Beneath the stone pillar.
Dende looked at the beads at his feet and breathed a sigh of relief.
He did it.
He really did bring the Dragon Ball back right under the noses of those demons!
He saw it on the stone pillar.
The relief of surviving the ordeal hadn't even had time to spread in my heart.
I really want to get the last Dragon Ball too.
Suddenly, he heard a faint sound.
Dende turned around reflexively, instantly spreading his arms wide to protect the six Dragon Ball behind him with his frail body.
Two figures appeared in his line of sight.
Dende's heart sank to the bottom.
In the end... were they still discovered?
Just as he was sinking into despair, one of the figures slowly raised his hand and lifted the hood covering his head.
It was an old man with green skin and antennae on his head.
They're Namekian!
Dende's mind was in turmoil; he had never seen this tribesman before.
The old man revealed his wrinkled yet serene face.
It was Monaito.
And beside him was Granolah.
Granolah has dropped all bounties since her grandfather went missing.
He is a high-ranking bounty hunter in the North Galaxy.
This rating is never based on Power Level alone.
When rumors of the existence of the " Dragon Ball " on Planet Namek spread like wildfire throughout the underground world of the universe, Granolah immediately sensed that something was wrong.
Oatmeel conducted a tracking and analysis of the intelligence dissemination pathways.
He keenly sensed the storm brewing on Planet Namek, and that it was highly likely related to his grandfather, Monaito...
Without the slightest hesitation, he arrived at the planet at the eye of the storm earlier than everyone else, like the most patient hunter, lying in wait silently for his prey to appear.
Just now, he finally got what he was waiting for.
The familiar spaceship of the Heeters Family was locked onto by Oatmeel as soon as it broke through Planet Namek's atmosphere.
He watched as the four siblings, including Heeters, stepped out of the spaceship, drawn to the earth-shattering battle taking place in the distance.
They successfully rescued Monaito and then evaded the Scouter's scan using the jamming device on their bodies.
We arrived here safely, without any major incident. Before the Grand Elder...
The scene changes.
Inside the tallest stone pillar on Planet Namek, in the stone house belonging to the Grand Elder.
Monaito and Granolah had already followed Dende to the Grand Elder.
Granolah warily surveyed the ancient and sacred stone house.
Monaito's reaction was completely the opposite.
When he saw the incredibly large figure on the enormous stone chair, yet exuding an aura of profound old age, his face instantly filled with heartfelt respect and devotion.
He strode forward and bent down deeply.
"You must be the Grand Elder."
"I am Monaito, Namekian from Planet Cereal."
The massive figure on the stone chair did not respond immediately.
After a long while, the Grand Elder's cloudy eyes, with pupils almost invisible, slowly opened a crack.
He looked down at Monaito, and in the depths of his aged eyes seemed to reflect a vast expanse of time spanning countless light-years.
This inevitably drew him into his memories.
The original Planet Namek faced destruction due to a severe natural disaster.
The Grand Elder, as a survivor, multiplied and rebuilt Planet Namek here.
Meanwhile, other spaceships carrying the hopes of their people were lost in the cosmic storm.
Just like Piccolo's father, Katatz.
Some survivors ended up on Planet Cereal.
They were taken in by the kind Cerealian, settled down, and thus developed into the Namekian of Planet Cereal.
"I didn't expect..."
The Grand Elder's voice was ancient and resonant.
"As my life draws to a close, I still manage to see... my surviving clansmen."
He looked at Monaito, a barely perceptible hint of relief in his cloudy eyes.
"Unlike that child from Earth, your branch of compatriots should... be thriving by now, right?"
Upon hearing this, Monaito fell silent, feeling dejected.
Granolah, standing behind him, shuddered violently.
He clenched his fist instinctively.
Inside the stone house, a deathly silence fell.
Seeing the two's silent reaction, the Grand Elder's recent sense of relief was instantly replaced by endless sorrow.
He understood everything without needing to say a word.
Another... annihilation of the entire clan.
A long, heavy sigh echoed in the empty stone house.
"I see..."
"You've suffered, my child..."
But the Grand Elder's words seemed to have triggered something.
Monaito could no longer maintain his composure.
With a "plop".
Kneel on both knees.
That wrinkled face was now etched with unspeakable pain and regret.
"Grandpa!" Granolah exclaimed in surprise.
I don't understand what this is for.
Monaito ignored him and began to pour out his regrets.
His voice was hoarse and trembling, filled with deep self-reproach.
" Grand Elder!"
"I am... I am a sinner of Planet Namek!"
Upon hearing this, the atmosphere inside the stone house instantly froze.
Puzzle gradually surfaced in everyone's eyes.
Granolah instinctively tried to defend herself, "Grandpa, you..."
He wanted to say, how can you blame yourself?
But before he could finish speaking, Monaito continued.
"The calamity that befell Planet Namek... was actually caused by me."
"It's all because of me that those evil people discovered the existence of the Dragon Ball, which led them to set their sights on Planet Namek..."
She briefly recounts how she was manipulated by the Heeters, inadvertently revealing the secret of the Planet Cereal Dragon Ball, which triggered a series of chain reactions.
"Child, you don't need to blame yourself too much."
"The very existence of the Dragon Ball attracts unpredictable disasters..."
"Perhaps... this is the fate of us Namekian..."
The Grand Elder spoke slowly to comfort him, neither pursuing Monaito's mistake nor judging right or wrong.
"But..."
The Grand Elder's tone suddenly shifted at this moment.
"The flame of hope on Planet Namek has not yet been extinguished."
The moment the words left his mouth.
A bead emitting a soft orange light slowly floated out from the Grand Elder's wide sleeve and hovered in mid-air.
Four-Star Dragon Ball!
The bead slowly fell in front of Dende.