Son Gohan's training plan

Curiosity filled Trunks's eyes as he stepped inside.

Son Gohan followed right behind him.

Once they were both inside, the door to the Hyperbolic Time Chamber closed automatically.

Trunks walked ahead, brimming with excitement.

He said, "Gohan, did you hear that? A whole year in here is only one day outside. Isn't that incredible?"

Son Gohan smiled. "Yeah, of course I heard. And the difference in how time passes isn't the only thing special about this place. You'll see soon enough."

"What else is there? You know so much, Gohan," Trunks said.

"I'll tell you in a bit. Let's check out the living quarters first," Son Gohan said.

In a minute, I'll let you experience several times normal gravity, plus those enormous temperature swings. You'll get a taste of what it's like to go from ice to fire.

Son Gohan decided to give Trunks a surprise.

The living quarters were just to the right of the entrance.

They were simply furnished, with two large beds, a wardrobe, and a full-length mirror mounted on the wall.

A little farther inside were a bathroom and a toilet.

An enormous bathtub stood in the bathroom.

Lying in it after an exhausting training session would probably feel wonderful.

Just then, Trunks asked, "Gohan, where do you think the water here comes from? And where does it drain to?"

Trunks, you've really stumped me with that one.

"Use your imagination."

Trunks: "..."

The kitchen was to the left of the entrance. Besides the usual tableware, it also held several large vats.

They lifted the lids and looked inside.

The vats contained water, rice, and flour.

Want meat? Well, there wasn't any.

It was only enough to fill their stomachs.

Son Gohan knew there was something odd about these vats, too.

They seemed to refill themselves automatically at regular intervals.

It was truly magical.

Still, Son Gohan couldn't be bothered to look too deeply into something that defied basic physics.

After all, this was an anime world. What did possible or impossible even mean here?

You probably haven't seen someone build a spaceship with nothing but a hammer.

This was nothing.

After checking out the living quarters and kitchen, Son Gohan waved a hand and said, "Trunks, come with me."

"Okay." Trunks nodded and followed Son Gohan, his face alight with excitement.

Whether he would still be smiling in a minute was another question.

They walked through the passage between the living quarters and the kitchen, arriving before a vast, white expanse.

It was as though they stood on the shore of a white sea. No matter how far they looked, there was no end in sight.

With a faint, teasing smile, Son Gohan said, "Trunks, go down and take a look."

"Okay!" Trunks answered loudly, then leaped into that boundless white world.

Then-

Thud! He fell flat on his face.

Trunks shot Son Gohan a resentful look and struggled to stand.

But crushing gravity bore down on him, dragging his body toward the floor.

Trunks felt as though every cell in his body was being pulled downward.

"Hahaha!" Son Gohan pointed at Trunks and burst out laughing.

"Honestly, Gohan..."

Trunks pouted and muttered under his breath. A white aura flared around him, and he slowly rose to his feet.

He had been careless, without the slightest preparation or concern.

Otherwise, with his power level, Trunks would never have fallen flat on his face here.

"Hahaha! I forgot to tell you-the gravity here is several times Earth's," Son Gohan said with a laugh as he stepped into the white expanse himself.

Since he was prepared, Son Gohan had no trouble at all.

His body merely felt heavier, making it harder to move.

"You knew, Gohan, but you didn't tell me beforehand! You made me fall. That's mean," Trunks continued to grumble.

"Hahaha! What's wrong with giving the Hyperbolic Time Chamber a hug to show your respect?"

As Son Gohan spoke, he felt the air around him suddenly turn scorching hot.

Every breath felt like he was inhaling wisps of flame that relentlessly seared his insides.

But before long, the temperature plummeted.

It was like falling from a furnace into an ice cavern.

The frigid air even slowed the flow of blood.

Every exhaled breath turned into flecks of ice in an instant.

Extreme heat one moment, extreme cold the next-the alternating ice and fire were sheer torture.

Trunks's face went from red to pale and back again.

"I... I finally understand why Mr. Popo said nobody could live in here for two years. This place is deadly."

Son Gohan took several deep breaths of the alternating hot and cold air, loosened up his body, then threw punches and kicks with fierce vigor. After a few leaps, he came to a stop.

He said, "You're right. An environment like this really is grueling, but training here can make our strength improve by leaps and bounds."

"With several times normal gravity and this freezing and scorching air, our power levels will keep rising even if we do nothing but live here."

"So, Trunks, if we want to defeat the androids and grow stronger, we should be grateful to have a place like this to train."

Trunks stood at attention. "Got it, Gohan. I'll train hard."

Son Gohan nodded. "Good. Then let's get started, Trunks. We've got a lot to do and not much time, so every second counts. We're starting the first stage of our training now."

"Okay."

"Come on. Don't turn into a Super Saiyan. Attack me with everything you've got."

Son Gohan divided their training into three stages.

He knew that both his and Trunks's foundations were far too weak.

So the first stage would be to reinforce and strengthen their fundamental abilities.

Those fundamentals fell into several categories: base power level, the ability to take a hit, and combat skills.

They could work on all three at once, and each would support the others.

Son Gohan planned to spend six months completing this stage.

It wouldn't matter if it took a little longer.

Only with a solid foundation could they build something towering upon it.

Taking time to sharpen an axe made chopping wood faster. The same principle applied here.

As for the second stage, Son Gohan planned to go beyond Super Saiyan.

Once their foundations were solid, they would begin trying to break through their limits.

They needed not only the courage to imagine it, but also the courage to act and put it into practice.

Only then could they keep surpassing themselves.

If they grew complacent and believed Super Saiyan was the pinnacle, they would never become truly powerful fighters in their lifetime.

Son Gohan also planned to spend six months completing this stage.

That was a little long, too.

But there was no way around it.

They had no teacher, so they could only keep experimenting and practicing to find out what worked.

They would learn from their failures and keep trying new methods.

Through repeated failures and constant reflection, Son Gohan believed they would succeed one day.

After all, things couldn't get much worse. They were already far better off than before, weren't they?