Piccolo's Return

As New Planet Namek's twin suns sank below the horizon, Piccolo concluded his final training session. Before him, dozens of young Namekian warriors sat cross-legged on stone platforms, their arms still held in the pose of extending and striking. Over two years, he had taught these clansmen, who had never clenched a fist before, every combat memory the Grand Elder had passed down to him—Qi Fractals, the complete legacy of warrior-type Namekians. Not so they could invade others, but so they could learn to protect themselves.

The Grand Elder stood at the palace entrance, his aged body casting a long shadow beneath the twin suns' final afterglow. "What you taught them was not merely the art of combat. You taught them something the Namekians have forgotten for three hundred years—the will to protect."

"I didn't teach them these things." Piccolo withdrew his arm, and dozens of Qi Tentacles simultaneously retracted into his body. "My master taught me. The Turtle Hermit School."

"That Earthling called Master Roshi?"

"Yes. He once said—the fists of the Turtle Hermit School are raised only to protect."

The Grand Elder nodded slightly. "Porunga has recovered. Before you leave, you may use one wish."

Piccolo stood before Porunga in silence for a long time. The dragon god's massive body blotted out the entire starry sky, golden light spilling across the land. He could make any wish—make Namek peaceful forever, grant himself power beyond Super Saiyan, or even bring his father back to life. Yet he took out the Turtle Hermit School martial arts manual he had read countless times from his robes. The character for "Turtle" on its cover had already been worn somewhat blurry.

"Porunga. Please carve every word in this manual into my memory."

It was no earth-shattering wish. Porunga fell silent for a moment before giving a low response. Golden light enveloped Piccolo's entire body. The manual opened by itself, and the words and move diagrams on every page flowed into his forehead like living things—from "Straight Punch" to Crushing Fist, from Tiger-Subduing Palm to "Circular Qi Flow," every most basic, most fundamental, most indispensable step of the Turtle Hermit School was branded deep into his memory. This was not a power enhancement, nor was it a new form. It merely allowed a disciple who had never trained in the basics of martial arts as a child to make up every lesson he had skipped. Piccolo lowered his head to look at the "Turtle" symbol on his chest, then gave Porunga a solemn bow.

"Thank you."

The single-person spaceship shot into the sky, trailing a pale green exhaust flame as it vanished into New Planet Namek's night. The Grand Elder stood at the palace entrance, watching that shrinking trail of light, his aged hand gently resting over his chest. He had never told Piccolo—but this green-skinned Namekian youth had already become the strongest warrior in Namekian history. Not the strongest in power, but the steadiest in heart.

In May of Age 764, Piccolo's spacecraft landed in the plaza of The Lookout. When the hatch opened and he stepped out, everyone froze for a moment. It was not that his appearance had changed—it was his aura. His qi had become heavier, steadier, deeper, and every movement carried a sense of rhythm that even Tien Shinhan had never seen before. That was not a Namekian battle rhythm. It was the instinct that came only after the opening forms of the Turtle Hermit School's basic martial arts had fused into one's body.

"What wish did you make?" Goku was the first to rush over.

"I had the Turtle Hermit School manual carved into my memory."

Goku blanked for a moment, then broke into a wide grin. "Then you know the basics better than I do now! Teach me sometime—no, wait, Talos taught me that Turtle Hermit School manual, and I still haven't finished learning it. The later chapters are too complicated. I've read them so many times, but I still can't remember them."

"Do you still have your copy?"

"It's under the bed at Turtle Hermit House." Goku scratched his head. "The sea wind's made it a little moldy."

"I'll go memorize it." Piccolo's tone was calm when he said it, but everyone heard the weight behind those words.

Tien Shinhan stepped forward, his third eye opening and closing slightly. "While you were gone, we finished refining an alternative to Third Eye Link. Chiaotzu uses his paralysis technique to lock the enemy's joints, and my Third Eye Beam strikes precisely in that instant. Its range and accuracy have both improved, but without your extending arms to restrain the enemy, the overall rhythm is still a little slow. Now that you're back, the new Third Eye Link can be upgraded—you teach me how to use Qi Fractals, and I'll share the sensory range of the Third Eye Beam with you."

"Deal." Piccolo held out his hand.

Tien Shinhan clasped it. It was the first time the two had shaken hands.

Bulma spent another entire night at the microscope in The Lookout's underground laboratory. The final report on the Cell research was nearly complete, and the safe extraction plan for the Saiyan Near-Death Amplification Factor had passed every simulation test. She removed her goggles, rubbed her bloodshot eyes, and pressed the communicator. "Talos, come to the lab. I have something to show you."

When Talos entered the laboratory, Bulma was removing a pale golden serum from the centrifuge. The liquid glimmered faintly inside its test tube, its color gentle yet carrying an energy fluctuation that could not be ignored.

"Cell Factor Extract—prototype model. I extracted the Saiyan Near-Death Amplification Factor from Cell's cells. After the third-stage refinement, I successfully removed its fusion properties and retained only the amplification effect. The improved factor won't trigger Cell-like irreversible damage, but there's still a certain amount of strain. Based on body weight and battle power calculations—you should be able to endure one dose. It temporarily doubles your battle power, but once the effect wears off, all the meridians in your body will enter a state of deep exhaustion. You'll need about a day to recover. It passed the animal trials, but human testing..." She looked at Talos. "Are you willing to try?"

"I trust you." Talos took the serum and drank it in one gulp without hesitation.

Pale golden light exploded from within his body. His battle power surged rapidly from its normal 400,000—800,000, 1.6 million, 3.2 million, 6.4 million—before stabilizing at around 8 million. The amplification lasted nearly ten minutes, three minutes longer than even Bulma's predicted limit. When the light faded, Talos dropped to one knee, every meridian in his body throbbing with overloaded soreness, but the system notification contained only two words: Safe.

"It worked." Bulma clenched her fists, then collapsed into her chair, smiling more freely than she had in a long time.

"This serum—can it be mass-produced?"

"With the current samples, I can only make two more doses. The Cell larvae tissue is limited, so I don't dare waste any. Both doses are for you and Goku. If Vegeta and Son Gohan need them too, we'll need more Cell samples. Also, this serum's amplification stacks multiplicatively with Kaioken—if you take it while in Kaioken, the boost will be even more terrifying, but the strain will multiply several times over too. Don't use it that way unless there's absolutely no other option. The Cell Factor showed one trait in my experiments—it suppresses Majin Buu's cells. I don't know the exact mechanism yet, but if you bring this serum with you against Buu, it might produce an unexpected effect at a critical moment."

Talos put away the two doses and nodded.

Master Roshi called everyone back to Turtle Hermit House. Goku, Vegeta, Lazuli, Lapis, Krillin, Tien Shinhan, Chiaotzu, Nappa, Piccolo, Bulma—every one of them stood on the beach. Master Roshi stood before the group, leaning on his staff, his eyes behind dark glasses sweeping over every face.

"I called you back because of something important. Kami came by. He said Majin Buu's seal is weakening—not today, not tomorrow, but soon. That thing has been sealed on Earth longer than I've been alive. I don't know how strong it is, and I don't know whether we can win. But I know one thing—the Turtle Hermit School has never stood outside a barrier waiting for someone else to finish the fight." He planted his staff into the sand. "Talos has full command of this operation. All training will prioritize his tactical requirements. Everyone will follow his deployment. Any objections?"

"No!" everyone answered in unison.

Goku stood at the edge of The Lookout's plaza with his eyes closed, sensing for an entire night. Super Saiyan Kaioken pushed his sensory abilities to the limit. He could even vaguely "see" the enormous cocoon sealed deep within the Earth—pulsing, stronger than it had been yesterday. He opened his eyes and said to Talos behind him, "Three months."

"Enough." Talos turned toward everyone already assembled in The Lookout's plaza. "Vegeta, Lapis, continue in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. Objective: stabilize Super Saiyan 2 and push the upper limit of infinite energy output another twenty percent. Tien Shinhan, Chiaotzu, Nappa, the three of you will undergo coordinated special training at The Lookout—Piccolo, teach them the basics of Qi Fractals and integrate the enemy-locking ability of your extending arms into team tactics. Krillin, Lazuli, continue refining the star topology—Lazuli is the primary node, Krillin is overall coordinator. In three months, Buu will break free. This isn't a tournament, and it isn't an invasion—it's about protecting this planet from being completely erased."

"And you, Goku—" Talos turned toward him. "You must stabilize your Super Saiyan Kaioken for more than three seconds within three months. There are two doses of Cell Factor Extract. One for you and one for me. But don't rely on the serum—that's the final safeguard."

Goku grinned and slammed his fists together. Golden aura mixed with crimson light and burst forth—the glow of Kaioken flickered within his Super Saiyan form for nearly one second.

In the distance, atop the roof of Turtle Hermit House, Old Master Zhao held Talos's daughter as the baby waved her tiny hands toward The Lookout. Master Roshi sat beside him, lifting a bowl of seafood porridge as he murmured words only he could hear—"Teacher, do you see? The Turtle Hermit School is no longer just a martial arts school. It's an army."

In The Lookout's plaza, everyone began training at once. Golden aura, crimson light, blue energy blasts, white extending arms—all colors intertwined, painting one final silhouette of this army before its departure in the morning light of The Lookout. Three months. The countdown had begun.