Kaito continued his school life as usual—only now, there was No.18 in it.
Ever since that day, No.18 had grown closer and closer to Kaito. To others, the two already looked like a couple.
That day, the school had arranged a field trip to visit the Capsule Corporation. No.18 arrived early and was waiting for Kaito outside his classroom.
Even though the male students passing by all knew that No.18 was already "taken," they still couldn't help but sneak a few more glances her way.
No.18 was long used to such attention. With her arms crossed, she leaned casually against the wall, her posture practically radiating a "keep your distance" aura.
Inside the classroom, a group of gossip-loving students huddled together, whispering among themselves.
"Hey, isn't that Lazuli? She's here for Kaito again, huh?"
"Of course she is. What, you think she came for you?"
"Ha, I know my limits. A girl like that would never look twice at me."
"Unbelievable though, right? Kaito's only been here for what, two months? And he's already dating our school's most popular girl. Some people really have it all."
"What's so strange about that? Kaito's almost too perfect. Don't you remember that basketball game? Even Lance couldn't handle losing to him—completely shattered his confidence!"
"Yeah, I heard the PE teacher even asked him to join the city tournament, but he turned it down."
"Man, I can't believe someone actually managed to steal Kaito away. So depressing."
"Uh… you're a guy, dude!"
...
After a while, Kaito appeared at the end of the hallway. When she saw him, No.18's lips curved into a faint smile. As Kaito approached, she spoke first.
"You sure took your time. What were you up to this time?"
Kaito sighed helplessly and shrugged.
"Same old story. The PE teachers again—they keep trying to get me to join some basketball tournament."
"So? Did you say yes?"
"Nope. I'm not that good. I'd rather not embarrass myself."
"Don't kid yourself. I think you could probably take the national championship."
"Haha, sounds like you've got a lot of faith in me."
No.18 turned her head with a soft scoff, then naturally grabbed Kaito's hand and started walking downstairs.
"Enough chatter. Let's head down—everyone's already gathering. The bus leaves soon, and I want to see if we can get some good seats."
By "good seats," she meant the ones where they could sit together. Unfortunately, when they got on the bus, all those seats were already taken. Only single seats remained.
Kaito said casually, "Looks like we'll have to sit separately. I'll take the front—"
"Forget sitting! Let's just stand!"
No.18 cut him off abruptly. To everyone's surprise, she boldly wrapped her arms around Kaito's arm, leaning against him right there in front of everyone.
Kaito hadn't expected her to be so forward. When he looked down at her, he noticed that even though her face looked calm, her flushed cheeks gave away just how flustered she was inside.
When it came to relationships, No.18 was still a beginner. Doing something that intimate in public was clearly a big deal for her.
And with the bus getting stuck in traffic every few minutes, starting and stopping abruptly, she kept stumbling into Kaito's chest. Each time made her blush deeper—and if one looked closely, they could even see faint wisps of steam rising from her head.
Fortunately, the trip wasn't long. The bus soon arrived at the gates of Capsule Corporation.
As soon as the door opened, No.18 bolted out like a startled rabbit. The other students burst into laughter—not mockingly, but because the whole scene was just too amusing.
Kaito got off soon after and found No.18 waiting under a large tree.
When he walked over, No.18 asked shyly, cheeks still red,
"Did I… look really stupid just now?"
Kaito reached out and flicked her forehead lightly, smiling.
"Stupid? Not at all. I thought you were adorable."
"Really…?"
"Of course. And if anyone dares say otherwise, I'll knock them out."
"No, don't! I'm pretty sure you actually could kill someone with one punch!"
No.18 looked at him seriously—because she honestly believed it.
Just then, a fashionable woman with short golden hair suddenly appeared. With a teasing smile, she said,
"My, my… what a handsome couple! You two must be the students here for the tour?"
Startled, No.18 instinctively stepped behind Kaito, her wary gaze fixed on the woman's perpetually half-closed eyes.
Kaito, however, found her face somewhat familiar. He asked carefully,
"Yes, we are. Excuse me, are you Mrs. Briefs?"
"Oh? You know who I am?" The woman tilted her head, intrigued. "And what's your name, young man?"
"I'm Uchiha Kaito. This is Lazuli."
No.18 stared at Mrs. Briefs in surprise—she hadn't expected her to look that young. After all, Dr. Briefs was in his sixties!
But then again, rich men often had young, beautiful wives. It made sense… or so she thought.
In reality, she was wrong. Mrs. Briefs wasn't young at all—she just looked it. Her youthful face had barely changed even decades later, right up until her death. It was nothing short of incredible.
Mrs. Briefs covered her mouth with a soft laugh.
"Hehehe, what are you two doing out here? Your classmates are already inside."
"Ah, looks like we fell behind," Kaito said.
"That's fine. In that case, why don't I give you two a personal tour?"
She seemed rather fond of Kaito—and his looks were easily 80% of the reason why.
No.18 immediately tensed up. She reached to grab Kaito's arm, but he'd already answered,
"That would be great, thank you."
Mrs. Briefs's eyes curved even more as she smiled. When she leaned closer to Kaito, No.18's face instantly fell. Forget embarrassment—she wrapped both arms around Kaito's arm again, clinging tightly as if to declare her claim in front of everyone.
Without a word, she stayed attached to him as they followed Mrs. Briefs into the company.
Mrs. Briefs was surprisingly straightforward—she didn't hesitate to take them straight to Dr. Briefs's personal workshop, not worrying at all about whether Kaito might see or leak any sensitive blueprints.
Before they even stepped inside, the sharp crackle of welding echoed from within.
When the door opened, they saw a girl with a blue ponytail, welding mask on, busy at work.
To Kaito, that girl was far from unfamiliar—she was none other than Bulma, the undisputed heroine of Dragon Ball.