Fulfilling Any Wish

"Chen He, what's wrong with you?" Goku panted heavily, his voice sounding strangely muddled.

"Don't look outside," Chen He warned in a low voice.

But it was already too late. Goku's gaze seemed to be drawn by some unseen force through the hole Chen He had torn in the wall, landing directly on that full moon—unnaturally round and blindingly bright.

Thump—thump—!

It was the sound of a wildly pounding heart. Goku's eyes instantly turned blood-red. His previously small frame swelled madly as if inflated, coarse black fur burst through his skin, and savage fangs grew from his mouth.

"Th-This... what kind of monster is that?!" Bulma screamed, collapsing to the floor.

[System Detection: Target has undergone Great Ape Transformation. Combat power increased tenfold. Current combat power: 120!]

"One hundred and twenty combat power?" Chen He snorted coldly and released his grip, allowing the several-story-tall beast to smash through the laboratory ceiling.

Chen He's combat power had now reached 412. Even against a Great Ape whose combat power had increased tenfold, he still held an absolute advantage.

Roar...!!!

The mindless Great Ape let out a roar powerful enough to shatter glass. With one enormous step, it crushed the supposedly indestructible sealed chamber into scrap metal. Everyone fled in panic through the breach created by the collapse.

Pilaf pissed himself in the command room. "What the hell is that thing?! Get the planes up! Retreat, now!"

The three small attack planes had barely taken off when Pilaf reluctantly turned back. "Open fire! Take it down! We can't leave the Dragon Balls there!"

Rat-a-tat-tat-tat...!

The dense machine-gun fire struck the Great Ape's thick fur like a mere tickle. The Great Ape casually grabbed a broken steel beam nearby and swept it through the air as though swatting flies.

Bang!

One plane instantly became a fireball and crashed. Then the Great Ape spun around, seized a massive boulder weighing several tons, and heaved from the waist. The boulder tore through the sky and precisely smashed off the wing of Pilaf's plane.

"Waaah...!" Pilaf and his two lackeys escaped by parachute, trailing black smoke behind them.

Having dealt with the flies, the Great Ape's irrational red eyes locked onto the fleeing group. Its huge hand swept down, directly catching Bulma, who had been running at the rear.

"Ahh!! Help! Chen He, save me!" Bulma struggled desperately in the Great Ape's black-furred palm as its foul-smelling mouth was about to close around her.

"This farce should be over."

A cold voice sounded beside the Great Ape's ear.

Chen He moved.

He was so fast that several afterimages remained where he had stood, while his true body instantly appeared above the Great Ape's nose.

"Let her go!"

Chen He threw a powerful hook, smashing it heavily into the Great Ape's mountain-like jaw.

Bang—!

Great Ape Goku reeled backward like a rag doll beneath Chen He's heavy blow. Bulma fell from the air, but Chen He smoothly caught her in a princess carry and set her safely back on the ground.

The Great Ape flew into a complete rage, wildly hammering Chen He with fists as huge as war drums.

Afterimage Fist!

Chen He's body flickered, and every one of the Great Ape's punches struck only an illusion. He weaved effortlessly through the dense barrage of fists, even taking the time to brush dust from his clothes.

"Time to go back."

Chen He flashed and appeared directly behind the Great Ape. His movements were swift and clean. Both hands clamped tightly around the brown tail that was still thrashing wildly as all the force in his body erupted at once.

"Up!"

Chen He let out a low shout and suddenly exerted strength with both arms. Before everyone's horrified eyes, he ripped the tail out by its roots!

Awooo—!!!

The Great Ape let out a shrill scream. Its enormous body rapidly shrank like a deflating balloon. In less than a few seconds, the once-unrivaled beast vanished, leaving only naked Goku lying amid the ruins in a deep sleep.

Early the next morning, amid the ruins.

Goku woke up rubbing his eyes, feeling sore all over.

"Huh? Why are my clothes ripped? And... why does my butt feel kind of light?" He scratched his head and stared blankly at the demolished castle around him.

Bulma shot him a lingeringly frightened glare. "You violent maniac. It's better if you don't remember anything!"

Pilaf's ambitions had turned to ashes along with his castle, while the Dragon Balls had been buried beneath the castle ruins because of the full-moon chaos.

Chen He stood with his hands behind his head, watching the rising sun.

[Ding! Great Ape rampage subdued. Mission complete. Reward points: +1000!]

[Current points: 1050!]

Pilaf Castle was now nothing but shattered walls and rubble. The madness of the previous night had completely reduced the steel fortress to ruins.

Bulma and the others watched the young man standing beneath the fading moonlight with complicated expressions. Chen He patted the dust from his hands, his gaze frighteningly calm, completely unlike someone who had just endured a life-or-death battle.

"Give me the radar." Chen He walked over to Bulma and held out his hand.

"Huh? Didn't the Dragon Balls fly away with that short guy's plane?" Bulma blankly handed over the Dragon Radar.

"In that situation, the Dragon Balls would only have been buried underground when the castle collapsed." Chen He took the radar and looked at the six overlapping red dots on its screen, a cold curve forming at the corner of his lips. "They never went anywhere. They're right beneath these ruins."

Half an hour later.

Relying on absolute strength, Chen He lifted several tons of steel plates and gathered the six Dragon Balls one by one as casually as picking up glass marbles.

"Chen He, what are you planning to do?" Seeing Chen He's grave expression, Yamcha felt an inexplicable chill run down his spine.

"To bring this journey to its proper conclusion!"

Chen He took the Three-Star Ball—the one that had been missing all along—from his clothes.

"Oh my God! Where did you get that?" Bulma cried. "Didn't that old man Master Roshi refuse to give it up no matter what?"

"Simple." Chen He spoke calmly. "During those days of training, I learned the Kamehameha. While I was at it, I traded several 'collector's edition art books' he'd always dreamed of for this Dragon Ball."

As soon as he finished speaking, Chen He's gaze sharpened, and his body turned into an afterimage.

Bang! Bang!

Two dull thuds rang out. Before Yamcha and Oolong could react, they felt a sharp ache in their necks. Their vision went black, and they collapsed limply to the ground.

"Y-You... why did you knock them out?" Bulma took a frightened step back.

"Some wishes don't need too many witnesses."

Chen He arranged the seven Dragon Balls neatly on the ground and took a deep breath.

"Come forth, Shenron! Grant my wish!"

The sky was once again shrouded in sudden inky clouds. The enormous Shenron rose into the air, his imposing red eyes gazing down at Chen He below.

"State your wish. I can grant any wish!"

Chen He raised his head, his eyes holding a foresight that transcended the age. He knew very well that, no matter how strong a Saiyan became, they had one fatal weakness... they could not survive in a vacuum or in extremely harsh cosmic environments. If he was to face monsters like Frieza in the future, this was a weakness he had to make up for.

"My wish is this: let me survive normally in any extremely harsh environment, including the vacuum of space!"

Shenron fell silent for a moment, red light flickering in his eyes. "This wish... is very simple. As you wish!"

A ray of golden light sank into Chen He's body. Although he did not feel any obvious changes yet, given Shenron's power, his transformation should already be complete...

"Your wish has been granted. Farewell."

Shenron turned into a stream of light and vanished. Under the impact of that tremendous energy, the seven Dragon Balls completely became ordinary stones and shot off toward every corner of the world.

"Phew—"

Chen He let out a breath of stale air. Once the Dragon Balls recovered, perhaps he could use them again to awaken his potential?!

"Chen He..." Bulma walked over, looked at the companions who had been knocked unconscious, then at the composed Chen He. "What wish did you make just now? Why did you hide it from them?"

[Ding! "Shenron's First Descent" wish achieved. System reward points: +1000!]

[Current points: 2050.]

"I only did it to keep them from interfering with my wish!"