Departure

Three years after King Piccolo was sealed away, Goku and Krillin's sparring on the beach outside Turtle Hermit House had lasted from dawn until noon. Three years had slipped by quietly amid their daily training. Goku had grown noticeably taller, Krillin's bald head gleamed even brighter in the sun, and Tien Shinhan's third eye had become ever more composed. But the greatest change had taken place in the study on the second floor of Turtle Hermit House—the pulsing of that sealed cocoon had grown stronger by the day.

At that moment, Krillin sat cross-legged before the cocoon, just as he had every day for the past three years, telling the faintly pulsing cocoon about what he had learned in training that day. He had just gotten to his breakthrough in the rotation speed of the Destructo Disc when the cocoon wall suddenly shuddered violently. Krillin's voice cut off. He stared at the cocoon wall, his eyes widening by the second.

A crack appeared on the cocoon wall. An extremely thin, faint crack spread from the top of the cocoon to its middle, then stopped. A weak thread of golden light shone through it.

"Talos—!" Krillin's shout carried down from the second floor, loud enough for the entire Turtle Hermit House to hear. "The egg cracked!"

In less than ten seconds, everyone had gathered on the second floor. Master Roshi stood at the front with his cane. Goku crouched beside the cocoon, his tail stretched rigidly straight. Tien Shinhan and Chiaotzu stood at the doorway. Talos entered last, walked to the cocoon, crouched down, and pressed a hand against its wall. It was hotter than it had been three years ago. The life signs within were no longer a vague pulse, but a clear, powerful heartbeat.

"Ding—Sealed cocoon about to hatch. Internal life signs: Namekian infant. No malignant aura residue detected. Seal array conversion rate: 100%—the dark power of the original King Piccolo has been completely converted into the newborn individual's life force. This individual has no soul-level inheritance relationship with King Piccolo."

As soon as the system finished speaking, the cocoon wall was forced open from within. The crack spread across the shell. A fragment peeled away, and then the entire cocoon wall split apart like an eggshell. Pale golden light poured from within. When it faded, a tiny figure lay curled up on the table.

His skin was light green, two small antennae sprouted from his head, and his ears were pointed. His face was nearly identical to King Piccolo's. But when he opened his eyes, everyone froze—those eyes were not crimson, but pale gold. There was no rage or hatred in them, only the bewilderment of a newborn.

"King Piccolo..." Krillin instinctively took half a step back.

"No." Talos extended a finger before the Namekian child. "He isn't King Piccolo. He has none of King Piccolo's memories, and none of King Piccolo's hatred. He was the last egg his father spat out before dying, but he is not his father. He is himself. Namekians have no tradition of names, but he needs one." He turned to Master Roshi. "Master Mutaito, please give him a name."

Master Roshi fell silent for a moment, then took off his sunglasses. "Piccolo. His name will be Piccolo—not King Piccolo, just Piccolo. I accept him as the thirty-seventh-generation disciple of the Turtle Hermit School."

Piccolo looked at the people around him—at Goku, who was crouched motionlessly before him; at Krillin, whose fists were clenched in nervous tension; at Tien Shinhan and Chiaotzu, standing silently at the door. He could not understand their words, nor did he know what the Turtle Hermit School was. But he could sense their ki—no fear, no hostility, only the warmth he had been able to feel all through his sleep within the cocoon. He reached out with his tiny hand and grasped Talos's finger.

"Ding—Hidden achievement 'Piccolo Reborn' unlocked. Reward: Battle Power +500. Passive skill 'Namekian Affinity'—when communicating with Namekians, initial favorability +50."

"Current base Battle Power: 8200."

From then on, a small new figure became part of daily life at Turtle Hermit House. Piccolo grew quickly—far too quickly for a human. On the third day after hatching, he could already stand and walk. By the tenth day, he could speak in halting, unpracticed words. A month later, he was running after Goku across the beach. His body grew visibly day by day, from an infant into the size of a human child around three or four years old.

"This kid's growing way too fast!" Krillin crouched down to inspect Piccolo, who was digging a hole in the sand. "Are all Namekians like this?"

"Namekians grow far faster than humans." Talos leaned against a coconut tree. "King Piccolo was an adult when he was sealed, but after being reborn from this egg, he returned to an infant state. His current growth rate is catching up on the three hundred years he spent sealed away—but this accelerated growth will naturally stop at a certain stage."

Piccolo raised his head from the sandpit. His pale golden eyes stared at Krillin for a few seconds before he held out a sandy hand. "Krillin. Teach me the Destructo Disc."

"How do you know about the Destructo Disc?!"

"You talked about it outside the cocoon. Every day." Piccolo's tone was as flat as an adult's, completely at odds with his childish face. "You also said you were scolded for slacking off at Orin Temple, and then Talos said your ki was special. I remember it all."

Krillin's face turned bright red. He crouched down and condensed a rice-grain-sized prototype of a Destructo Disc in Piccolo's palm. "Since you remember, we'll start with the basics. The core of the Destructo Disc isn't rotation speed—it's the compression density of ki..."

Goku ran over, holding up a fairly round ball of light in his hand. "Piccolo! Want to learn the Kamehameha first? I can make it turn in the air now! Look—" The ball flew from Goku's palm, traced a beautiful arc around a reef, and plunged into the sea, blasting up a spray of water.

"You missed," Piccolo said expressionlessly.

"I didn't miss! I was aiming for the water!"

"You said you were going around the reef."

"After going around the reef, I was going to hit the water!"

Piccolo fell silent for a moment, then the corner of his lips curved into the faintest smile. It was the first time he had smiled since coming into this world.

Watching this, Master Roshi leaned against the entrance of Turtle Hermit House, holding a bowl of seafood porridge. He looked at the disciples chasing and roughhousing across the beach, took off his sunglasses, and wiped them with the corner of his shirt. Three years had passed. That egg had become a child who could smile.

Saiyan Saga Countdown: Eight Years.

Time flew, and eight years passed in the blink of an eye. Goku grew into a tall, upright young man. Krillin shot up in height as well. Tien Shinhan's third eye became increasingly profound. Piccolo grew from a child into a lean, hardened youth—his accelerated Namekian growth naturally stopped in the fifth year after hatching, leaving him with the build of a human boy around twelve or thirteen, already as tall as Krillin. Over those eight years, everyone's Battle Power rose at an astonishing rate.

Autumn, Age 761. One month remained until Raditz's arrival.

That morning, Master Roshi called everyone to the beach. Eleven years ago, there had only been three boys and an oil lamp here. Now, the beach was full of people—Goku, Krillin, Tien Shinhan, Chiaotzu, Piccolo, and Old Master Zhao, who held a baby in his arms. Bulma landed a Capsule aircraft on the beach, bringing a huge pile of the latest training equipment. Launch sneezed and turned blonde, then chased Oolong all over the beach with a submachine gun, while Puar transformed into an umbrella and floated in the air to block the sun.

"I called everyone here because there's something to announce." Master Roshi cleared his throat. "Talos told me last night that, within a month at most, Saiyans will come to Earth."

The beach fell silent for a moment. Goku's playful expression disappeared. Piccolo's pupils narrowed slightly. Tien Shinhan's third eye slowly opened.

"Before the battle with King Piccolo, you said the Saiyans from Planet Vegeta would come to Earth sooner or later," Tien Shinhan said. "Eleven years later, they're finally here."

"That's right. And I know the first one who's coming." Talos jumped down from a reef. "His name is Raditz—Goku's biological older brother."

Everyone looked at Goku. He stood there in a daze, his tail stiffening for an instant. He had never imagined that he had an older brother.

"My brother?"

"Your full-blooded older brother. He was launched into space with you back then, but he didn't come to Earth. He went to another planet to carry out missions. When I looked up his information in the system eleven years ago, I already knew—Raditz, a low-class Saiyan warrior, with a normal Battle Power of 1500. His purpose in coming to Earth isn't invasion. It's to find you. After Frieza destroyed Planet Vegeta, only a very small number of Saiyans survived. Raditz needs more Saiyans to complete his next mission." Talos looked Goku in the eyes. "So he'll come to take you away. If you refuse to go with him, he'll kill everyone on Earth."

"In his dreams!" Goku's tail bristled.

"Battle Power 1500." Tien Shinhan frowned. "Stronger than King Piccolo was back then."

"Not in the same league." Talos shook his head. "King Piccolo's peak Battle Power was only a little over 1000. Raditz's 1500 may not sound like much, but his combat experience is far greater than King Piccolo's when he had just been resurrected. Still, that isn't the problem. Raditz is only the beginning. After Raditz, two stronger Saiyans will come—Nappa, with a Battle Power of 4000, and Vegeta, with 18000. If Raditz doesn't return to report within a year, they'll come to Earth. By then, they won't be here to take you away. They'll be here to kill everyone."

No one spoke on the beach. Piccolo looked at Talos with his pale golden eyes and asked a question for the first time. "What are your normal Battle Powers now?"

"Goku's normal Battle Power is 4200. Krillin's is 2500. Tien Shinhan's is 3200. Yours is 2800. Mine..." Talos paused. "9200."

Piccolo fell silent briefly. "9200 against 1500. There's no need for Kaioken."

"But Raditz is only the beginning. Nappa has 4000, Vegeta has 18000. Vegeta's Battle Power is far beyond what I can handle in my normal state. I'll have to use Kaioken. And if even stronger enemies come after Vegeta—Frieza, the Saiyans' master, has a base Battle Power of 530,000. And beyond him, there are even stronger enemies."

Tien Shinhan said gravely, "Our normal Battle Power isn't enough. We need the Ultra Divine Water from Korin Tower."

Master Roshi suddenly spoke. "The Ultra Divine Water from Korin Tower can indeed awaken potential, but not just anyone can drink it. The Ultra Divine Water is poison by nature—it forcibly drives out the potential within your body, at the cost of deadly poison attacking your heart. Of all those who have drunk it throughout history, only Master Mutaito survived. Goku can drink it. Krillin, Tien Shinhan, Piccolo—you three don't need to. Your path of growth doesn't rely on explosive potential awakening. It relies on solid fundamentals and polished techniques. What we lack in the Saiyan Saga isn't a burst of power from any of you, but a precise role for every person."

Tien Shinhan looked thoughtful, and Piccolo nodded faintly. Krillin lowered his head and stared at his clenched fists. After a long silence, he suddenly spoke. "Then I'll go find Kami."

Everyone turned to look at him.

"I'm not a Saiyan. I don't have your bloodline. With a normal power level of 2,500, I can still fight Raditz, but against Nappa and Vegeta—2,500 is just suicide." Krillin stood up and looked at his palms, his voice soft but steady. "But I have my own strengths. My ki control is the most precise of everyone here. If Kami is willing to teach me, I can do things none of you can. Not taking them head-on—but supporting you. Using the most precise ki to split the battlefield and create openings for the main attackers." He looked at Talos. "You said my ki was special. Then let me use that special quality to walk a path you can't."

Master Roshi looked at Krillin and nodded. "I'll speak to Kami."

Talos swept his gaze across the faces before him—Goku was clenching his fists, Krillin was silently gathering his ki, Tien Shinhan had his eyes closed as he regulated his breathing, and Piccolo was watching him, awaiting instructions. He turned and looked toward the sky. Raditz's spaceship would arrive in one month. Vegeta and Nappa's ship would arrive in one year and one month.

"Let's go," Talos said.

Several figures shot into the sky at once. Orange battle uniforms, blue martial arts robes, white capes—the entire Turtle Hermit School flew toward Korin Tower and Kami's Lookout. Old Master Zhao stood at the entrance of Turtle Hermit House, holding the baby in his arms. The infant giggled and waved her tiny hands at the orange specks in the sky. She was Talos and Android 18's daughter—but readers would not learn her name until much, much later.

The sea breeze swept over the beach before Turtle Hermit House. The training ground where three boys had once left countless footprints now stood empty. Yet every grain of sand had been steeped in eleven years of sweat and perseverance. Master Roshi stood at the doorway, watching the orange figures vanish into the distance, and spoke softly.

"Teacher, did you see them? They're stronger than I was. And braver too."