"Then... the shrimp dies... first..." Taida rumbled, raising the blade high.
"Take... THIS!"
With a grunt of effort, he brought the massive sword down.
It cleaved the air and struck the ground where Goku had stood, pulverizing the floor and sending a tremor through the road.
But Goku wasn't there.
"Huh...?"
Taida blinked slowly.
"Over here." A voice chirped from behind him.
The sloth turned his massive body around.
Goku was standing there, hands on his hips, looking unimpressed.
"You... are pretty... fast..."
"And you're really slow."
Taida let out a frustrated huff of air through his nose.
"Usually... my appearance is... enough. People... run away... screaming... so... I am too... lazy... to go full power... at the... start..."
He shifted his grip on the sword, holding it with both hands now.
His posture changed, the lethargy replaced by heavy intensity.
"But now...You made me... work... I hate working..."
Taida's voice dropped an octave, becoming darker.
"So now, there will be no mercy."
Taida exploded into motion.
The giant sloth lunged forward with frightening speed with the massive sword whistling through the air.
Goku didn't retreat.
He weaved through the strikes.
He was dodging the blade by mere millimeters.
"Die! Die! Die!"
Taida roared, swinging wildly.
The environment took the brunt of the assault.
Massive trees were felled like twigs.
Boulders were sliced cleanly in half.
Bulma and Umigame shrieked, then both hid behind a large granite outcrop.
SHING.
The top half of the rock they were hiding behind slowly slid off, sliced cleanly at an angle.
It crashed to the ground, exposing them.
Bulma and the turtle stared at the smooth, cut surface of the stone, then at each other with their faces pale.
"We need a better rock!" Umigame wailed.
But Taida had forgotten about them.
He was focused entirely on Goku.
"Stand... still!" The sloth bellowed, bringing the sword down in a vertical chop meant to split Goku in two.
Goku hopped to the side, and as the blade buried itself in the earth, he saw his opening.
He leaped onto the flat of the blade, then sprinted up Taida's arm while the bandit was still trying to dislodge his weapon.
"Jan... Ken..." Goku chanted, his voice rising as he clenched his small fist tight.
He reached the shoulder and launched himself into the air, right in front of the giant's face.
Taida looked up, his eyes widening in realization.
"...PO!"
Goku drove his fist squarely into the center of the sloth's forehead.
CRACK.
The sound was sickeningly loud, like a sledgehammer hitting a watermelon.
The force of the blow sent a shockwave through the bandit's skull.
Taida's eyes rolled back instantly.
The massive body went rigid for a second, then slumped.
He fell backward crashing onto the dirt road.
He didn't move again.
The giant sloth was dead before he hit the ground.
Bulma and Umigame stared at the unmoving mountain of fur in the middle of the road.
"He... he actually killed him." Bulma whispered, her voice trembling.
Umigame was shaking so hard his shell rattled against the gravel.
"H-He is no ordinary boy!"
Goku walked back toward them, dusting off his hands as if he had just finished taking out the trash.
"All done!" He grinned, pointing to the corpse.
"He won't bother us anymore."
He walked past the stunned pair and approached the massive boulder blocking the road.
"Now, let's get this out of the way."
Goku placed his hands against the stone surface.
With a grunt of effort, he shoved. The multi-ton rock groaned, scraped against the earth, and rolled away into the ditch as if it were made of styrofoam.
As the boulder rolled away, it revealed a cluster of five men crouching behind it.
They were dressed in similar bandit attire, holding smaller swords and clubs. They were trembling violently, their faces pale as ghosts. They had clearly watched their leader get flattened in less than a minute.
Goku blinked, looking at the cowering group.
"Oh? Who are you guys? Are you friends with the big guy?"
The bandits froze.
They looked at the dead sloth, then at the small boy who had killed him, then at each other.
"N-No! No, sir!" one of them squeaked, dropping his club.
"Never met him! We were just... taking a nap! Behind this rock!"
"Yeah!" another chimed in, sweating profusely.
"We're just peaceful travelers! Please, feel free to pass! The road is yours! We won't disturb you! Have a nice day!"
They pressed themselves against the treeline, frantically waving them through.
Goku shrugged.
"Okay then."
He walked back to Umigame and hoisted the turtle onto his back again.
"Let's go, Bulma! The road is clear!"
Bulma looked at the terrified bandits, then at Goku. She swallowed hard, kick-started the bike, and drove past them without a word.
She was starting to realize that the most dangerous thing in Mount Paozu wasn't the monsters, it was the boy running next to her.
/////////////////////////////////////////////////
Few hours later, they finally rolled into Oinktown.
Bulma parked the motorcycle near the entrance of the village, letting out a groan as she swung her leg over the seat.
Her back was stiff, her hands vibrated from the handlebars, and her butt was numb.
She looked over at Goku.
He was standing there, bouncing lightly on the balls of his feet, looking around with curious eyes.
The hundred kilogram turtle was still strapped to his back.
He didn't look tired.
He didn't even look like he had broken a sweat.
Unbelievable. I'm wrecked.He carried a reptile the weight of a refrigerator on foot, and he looks like he just woke up from a nap.
"Are we there?" Goku asked.
"Yes, this is Oinktown. Listen, before we track the sphere, we're dumping the turtle. I don't want any extra baggage when we go after the Dragon Ball. We don't know who, or what, is guarding it."
They walked into the main street.
The village was quaint, seaside rustic... and populated entirely by pigs.
There were pigs in overalls selling fruit.
Pigs in dresses walking piglets.
Pigs in construction hats fixing a roof.
"Whoa!" Goku pointed at a pig in a suit reading a newspaper.
"You weren't kidding! Only pigs really do live here!"
"Looks like Wontonka's packed with Animalias."
Bulma observed with scientific interest.
"This must be a colony."
"Ani-what-now?" Goku asked.
"Animalias, they are humans who consumed a drug called Animorphaline."
They walked past a group of pig-children playing tag.
"In this world, martial arts is the most glorified sport there is. Fame, money, power, it all comes from fighting. Some people don't have the talent, so they take shortcuts. Animorphaline boosts muscle density and reaction times, and because the World Martial Arts Tournament takes place in a country where the drug isn't illegal, people abuse it."
She looked at a shopkeeper who was struggling to pick up a coin with his trotters.
"But the results... vary. And they are irreversible. You drink the vial, you might get the strength of a tiger, or you might just turn into a pig forever."
She clenched her fist slightly.
It's messy science. Sloppy chemistry. When I finally take over the main labs at the Corporation, I'm going to synthesize a cure. No one should be stuck like that just because they wanted to win a trophy.
She shook her head, dismissing the thought, and turned her attention to the shell on Goku's back.
"Speaking of biology... that explains them. But what about you?" She poked Umigame's shell.
"You're a turtle. You didn't take performance-enhancing drugs. How do you speak common? Reptiles don't have the vocal cords for it."
"Ahem. Well, young lady, I didn't learn it on my own. My master taught me."
"Your master?—"
"Do you have a master?!" Goku interrupted, his interest piqued.
"Oh, yes, he is the greatest warrior to ever walk the earth. He is a legend. A true god of martial arts."
Goku stopped walking.
"A... A god of martial arts?"
His jaw dropped, and his black eyes began to sparkle.
"Is he... is he really strong?"
"The strongest under the heavens." Umigame confirmed solemnly.
"He's messing with you, Goku." Bulma said, shaking her head as they walked.
"There's no such thing as a god of martial arts. He's probably just talking about some old hermit who knows a few party tricks. Don't believe everything a turtle tells you."
"I am not jesting, young lady." Umigame insisted.
"His power is beyond comprehension."
They crested the dunes, and the vast expanse of the ocean stretched out before them, shimmering under the sun.
Goku stopped dead in his tracks.
He didn't say a word.
He just stared at the endless horizon.
Slowly, he reached down and untied his shoes.
He kicked them off and stepped onto the warm, golden sand barefoot.
He wiggled his toes, watching the grains sift between them. He took a tentative step, then another, feeling the soft, shifting ground give way under his weight.
"It feels... good." Goku laughed, a sound of pure, unadulterated delight. He started stomping around, leaving deep footprints.
"It's warm! And soft! Like dirt, but cleaner!"
Bulma stood back on the pavement, watching him.
She saw the way his face lit up, not with the same satisfaction she felt, but with the simple, raw joy of existing. It was a smile of total innocence.
For a moment, she felt strange.
Is that what it feels like?
She wondered, watching him chase a crab.
To just... be?
But reality snapped back as Umigame crawled past her, moving faster than he had all day.
"The water!" The turtle cried, dragging himself into the surf.
The waves washed over his shell, and he let out a sigh of ecstasy.
"Oh, sweet, salty home!"
He turned back to face them, bobbing in the surf.
"I can take it from here! Thank you. You saved my life. I will never forget this kindness."
"Take care, Umigame!" Goku waved, standing ankle-deep in the water.
"I will speak of you to my master. He will know the names Goku and Bulma."
Goku's ears perked up. He took a step forward, the water splashing his knees.
"Wait! Are you gonna introduce us? Can we meet him now?"
Umigame shook his head slowly.
"Not today, young warrior. You have your own quest, and I have been gone too long. But do not worry. If fate wills it, the Master will meet you at the right time. For now, continue your journey."
And with a splash, Umigame dove beneath the waves and disappeared into the deep blue, leaving only ripples behind.