Finally Succeeded

"Ha!" Goku kicked off the ground with his right leg, charging toward his opponent first.

The moment he closed the distance, as if he had foreseen the move, he lowered his head and dodged the sharp hand-blade Son Gohan swung toward his face.

Goku pressed his advantage, throwing a punch straight at his opponent's face, but Son Gohan easily dodged it by turning his body. As fist met palm, the two began a trial of strength.

Raditz, watching from below the stage, found it hard to keep up with the action.

The two traded blows on the stage, a collision of power against power, a weaving of movement against movement, as if it were a magnificent performance.

But this was clearly no performance; it was a real, no-holds-barred fight where every punch landed with impact.

"When will I ever have skills like that?" Raditz sighed, feeling that his previous fights were nothing more than street brawls, devoid of any beauty.

"You want to learn? I'll teach you," Master Roshi, standing to the side, suddenly said while pushing up his sunglasses, which reflected the light.

"Uh..." Raditz was stunned for a moment, not expecting Master Roshi to say such a thing.

"Are you looking to take me on as a disciple?"

"I can teach you some basics," Master Roshi said, ignoring the question about discipleship and continuing on his own.

"Then I shall trouble you, Master Mutten." Raditz lowered his posture.

Although Master Roshi looked like a lecher on the surface, he held the reputation of the "God of Martial Arts" throughout the world.

Master Roshi didn't reply, continuing to watch the struggle on the ring.

The battle between Goku and his grandfather had reached a fever pitch. Both sides chased and struck, having exchanged dozens of blows, yet the outcome remained undecided.

Suddenly, Goku stood his ground, his entire body tensed, and took a full-force kick from Son Gohan in mid-air head-on. The heavy blow, however, did not make Goku retreat even half a step.

"It seems I have to bring out something different." Son Gohan looked at Goku, who had taken his kick head-on, and marveled at his progress in martial arts, yet he had no intention of holding back.

"Ka--me--ha--me--HA!"

As the words fell, a scorching energy wave surged from Son Gohan's hands toward Goku.

At the critical moment, Goku's figure flickered, and the energy wave passed right through him.

"Afterimage Technique?"

"Ha!" Goku, having flashed into the air, descended rapidly and returned the same move.

"It's time to decide the winner." Raditz leaned forward in excitement, not noticing a sharp gaze silently fixed on his back.

The scorching energy wave exploded on the ground, the ring was instantly shattered into flying debris, and Son Gohan was knocked over.

Goku pressed his advantage, driving his knee into the fallen Son Gohan with a powerful strike.

"Give up, or we keep fighting."

Goku declared his victory, and his companions cheered, the situation seemingly settled.

Unfortunately, the situation took a one-hundred-and-eighty-degree turn.

The fallen Son Gohan sneakily grabbed Goku's tail.

With his weak point seized, Goku immediately lost his ability to fight, and Son Gohan regained the upper hand.

The plot did not change significantly due to the variable that was Raditz.

After several twists and turns, Goku's tail was still pulled off, and then Son Gohan conceded, revealed his identity, and the grandfather and grandson were reunited.

Watching the heartwarming scene on the stage, Raditz turned his gaze to the tail lying outside the ring and snuck toward it.

"Finally got it..." Raditz suppressed the wild joy in his heart and reached out toward the tail.

Suddenly, a wrinkled hand grabbed it first.

"Is this your goal, Raditz?" Raditz froze on the spot, looking at Master Roshi before him.

"Master Mutten, what are you talking about? I just wanted to help Goku keep it; after all, it's also..." Raditz feigned composure.

"You don't need to rush to argue. I'll keep this for now; you can find me after things here are finished." Master Roshi didn't give Raditz a chance to explain and turned to walk toward Goku and the others.

Watching Master Roshi walk away, Raditz was a bit dazed, not knowing what had gone wrong.

His emotions might have been a bit volatile, but that shouldn't have been linked to the tail.

"Unless he never believed my words from the start," Raditz thought with a bitter smile.

"Raditz, come over quickly. Don't you have something to ask Fortune Teller Baba?" Bulma's voice called out.

Collecting his emotions, Raditz walked over.

"Goku asked about the whereabouts of the seventh Dragon Ball and has already gone to get it. None of us have any questions, so it's your turn." Krillin patted Raditz.

Raditz glanced at Master Roshi, who didn't seem to have said anything to Bulma and the others; everyone was as they always were.

"Baba, I want to know where my home is."

Since transmigrating, Raditz hadn't looked into the past of this body's original owner, so he decided to take this opportunity to find out.

He saw Fortune Teller Baba operate her crystal ball, and an image appeared within it.

A ruin-like structure appeared, the surrounding walls covered in cracks, and the circular roof had mostly collapsed. Unknown weeds grew from inside the house; it was clear that the place had long been abandoned.

Seeing this scene, Raditz was speechless. He wasn't going to be an orphan, was he?

"Raditz, it seems your family has moved away," Bulma said innocently, not giving it much thought.

"Hmm, let's wait for Goku to return."

Raditz didn't intend to waste any more effort on this matter; he asked Fortune Teller Baba for an address and said nothing more.

Not long after, Goku returned riding the Flying Nimbus.

"I've got the Dragon Ball. Upa, let's go resurrect your father. Also, everyone, wait for me to come back!"

As soon as Goku landed, he pulled Upa along and flew off toward Korin Tower.

"Goku really is full of energy."

Yamcha watched the receding figure, then walked solemnly up to Master Roshi and bowed at a ninety-degree angle.

"Master Mutten, please guide my training!"

He knew that if Goku possessed his current martial arts prowess, this man deserved much of the credit.

If he could receive his guidance, he didn't expect a massive leap, but at least he could keep pace with Goku.

Master Roshi didn't make things difficult for him and immediately agreed to his request.

"Raditz, you come along too," Master Roshi added.

"Yamcha and Krillin's foundations are lacking and need intensive training, but you, Raditz... you need to start from scratch."

"Very well, Master Mutten."

Raditz hadn't expected Master Roshi to keep his word from earlier, so he agreed immediately.

It seems Master Roshi holds no malice toward me; he is waiting for an explanation.

Suddenly, the world fell silent, and a thunderclap shook the ground. The once clear, sunny sky seemed to be covered by a massive black curtain, turning dim and lusterless.

"Is this the start of the summoning of Shenron?"

Everyone looked into the distance, toward the direction of Korin Tower.

Shenron, I truly yearn to see him. I wonder if he can resolve the hidden dangers within my body. If I can successfully retrieve my tail from Master Roshi, I should have the ability to gather them myself one day, Raditz mused.

The strange phenomenon came and went quickly, and the ink-colored sky returned to its original hue in an instant.

After waiting a while longer, Goku's figure flew in from the distance.

"How was it? Was the boy's father resurrected?" Bulma asked, looking at the newly landed Goku.

"Haha, he was! And I even got back the Four-Star Ball." Goku produced a grayish-white stone sphere.

"Now we don't need to go searching for the Dragon Balls."

"I'm planning to participate in the 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament."

"Is that so? Goku, then you'll have some competition this time," Yamcha said, stepping forward confidently.

"While you were away, I already obtained Master Mutten's permission to train under his guidance."

"Oh... and Raditz is doing the same."

"Yes, I am too. I will be training alongside Master Mutten," Raditz told Goku.

"Doesn't that mean we can all train together?" Goku said happily.

At this moment, Master Roshi poured cold water on his enthusiasm.

Goku had to embark on his training journey alone; Master Roshi had nothing left to teach him, and it would be better for him to head out into the wider world to broaden his horizons.

The innocent and carefree Goku immediately set off on his journey to become stronger.

Meanwhile, Raditz and the others headed toward Kame House with Master Roshi.

Before the group set off, Raditz sought out Master Roshi alone.

Looking at the slightly thin old man leaning on his cane, Raditz felt a sense of vertigo, as if he were seeing that incorrigible, lecherous old man from the anime of his past life.

The image shifted, and he seemed to see that legendary master who, when facing King Piccolo, cherished his juniors and faced death without fear.

Two contradictory images intertwined, eventually overlapping with the person before him.

"Master Mutten, do you think I was sent by Dr. Gero to deliberately get close to Goku?"

After reflecting on his previous actions, Raditz could only find one flaw.

How could someone with no strength to truss a chicken escape from Dr. Gero?

Excluding special circumstances, there was only one answer: he had been released on purpose to achieve some goal.

Raditz had considered this possibility himself, though he knew he had been released intentionally, while Master Roshi likely believed Raditz was acting under someone's orders.

"If you were taking orders from him, you wouldn't have revealed his information to us, would you?"

Master Mutten pointed directly to the heart of the matter and pulled the tail from his robe.

"Tell me, why do you want this?"

"Forgive me, I cannot say. I can only tell you that this stems from my own reasons, not Dr. Gero's," Raditz replied without hesitation. "However, I can tell you that Goku is not the only one who possesses a tail."

The system's ability was his greatest reliance and needed to be kept hidden, but once he truly obtained this tail and completed the mission, who was to say he wouldn't grow one himself?

Master Roshi fell silent for a moment, gazing at Raditz's resolute face, wondering what other secrets this youth might be hiding.

"Goku and Bulma still have the hearts of children; they didn't notice your deliberate approach."

"But they have already accepted you as a friend, so I hope you cherish that."

Raditz certainly knew of Goku's sincerity; after all, even toward his enemies, he always left a chance for them to turn over a new leaf.

"I assure you, we will only ever be friends, never enemies."

Seeing Raditz speak with such conviction, Master Roshi said nothing more, tossed the tail to him, and walked away on his own.

[Genetic sample detected. Mission 1: Saiyan Orphan objective complete.]

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