Before long, Bulma and Goku had left Mount Paozu.
Vrrrm, vrrrm vrrrm…
Bulma was riding an off-road motorcycle, a rhythmic, staccato sound buzzing above her head. She couldn't figure out what the deal was with that Flying Nimbus. It was clearly just a cloud, yet somehow it could carry a person. It was obviously just a collection of water vapor, yet it somehow understood Goku's commands. And even though it was empty and light, when it flew slowly, it made this weird noise like an old tractor chugging along…
"You're so slow," Goku said, his head hanging down from above as he rode on the Nimbus.
"Shut it!" Bulma snapped back, annoyed.
For some reason, she wasn't using her much faster aircraft anymore. She had started the journey in that off-road jeep, but after hitting some rough terrain, she'd switched to this off-road bike. Maybe she didn't want the trip to end too quickly? Even she probably didn't know for sure.
He's surprisingly cheerful… not even a little sad about leaving home. Bulma secretly glanced up at Goku, thinking to herself.
Goku had only spoken out of boredom. Even when Bulma snapped at him, he didn't care. With his bag and Power Pole strapped to his back, he occasionally lifted a hand to shield his eyes and gazed off into the distance.
"Bulma, how far is the next Dragon Ball?"
"Let me see…"
After switching vehicles, Bulma had hung the Dragon Radar around her neck with a thin cord. She glanced at it now—click, click—bright dots flashing on the deep green screen. "The nearest one… looks like it's straight ahead. Hmm, maybe a little over a hundred kilometers away!"
"How far is a hundred kilometers?" Goku asked, hanging upside down from the Nimbus by his tail. His sudden move startled Bulma, and she accidentally gunned the throttle—slam!—smacking her forehead into Goku's like she'd just headbutted solid steel!
Zzzzzzip! The bike suddenly surged forward like a wild horse off its reins, speeding ahead uncontrollably.
Bulma stared in shock at the bike now spinning and flopping on the ground like it had gone berserk without a rider. Her forehead tingled, eyes watering slightly. She looked down—and realized she was dangling in midair. Goku had caught her just in time on the Nimbus.
"You're trying to scare me to death!" Bulma flailed, teeth bared, limbs thrashing in fury.
But Goku just said, "Your bike's broken… what a pain. Here, grab the Power Pole, I'll fly you on the Nimbus, okay?" He thought it was a great idea and grinned. "This way we can find the next Dragon Ball super fast!"
I take it back! Cheerful my ass! This guy's a clueless idiot!
Bulma pictured Goku sitting on the Nimbus like he was fishing, one hand holding the Power Pole with her dangling from the other end, soaring through the sky like that… She gritted her teeth. What kind of lady would ever agree to such nonsense!?
A bit later, she pulled out the jeep capsule again, much to Goku's renewed amazement. Even though he didn't think it was some kind of demon magic like in the original story, he still found it awesome.
"Hmph, country bumpkin…" Bulma muttered under her breath as she started the car.
Why is it that every time Goku annoys me, it feels like my childhood fairy tales are getting shattered?
From above came Goku's excited voice again, apparently having spotted some interesting prey while riding on the Nimbus. The yellow cloud zipped out of her rearview mirror, flying ahead.
"Why'd you speed up all of a sudden?! Wait for me!" Bulma shouted in panic, slamming the pedal and chasing after him full throttle.
But in her rush to catch up to Goku, Bulma didn't notice that the Dragon Radar hanging around her neck had shifted slightly—the signal for the nearest Dragon Ball was moving closer to the center of their red triangle on the screen.
---
"Looks like I'm lost…"
He scratched his head in frustration, staring at the forest that seemed impossible to get out of, and sighed. It had been more than half a day since he'd left the last town. With his stamina, even if he hadn't made it to the next town yet, he should've run into a few travelers along the way. But under this blazing sun, there wasn't a soul in sight—not even a proper road.
He glanced at his crude map and frowned.
"I can't give up! This is a test for me! I will not give up!"
Taking a deep breath, he encouraged himself aloud. Thankfully, he had some basic survival skills. Though the journey had been tough, he'd overcome each hurdle so far. Now that he was already on this path, how could he back out so easily?
After walking a bit longer through the woods, his stomach began to rumble. He started eyeing the fruit hanging from nearby trees. But he didn't dare eat anything unfamiliar—who knew what might be poisonous? Out here in the middle of nowhere, getting food poisoning could be a serious problem. So he only picked fruit he could positively identify.
"Hey! Fireberry!"
His eyes lit up as he spotted a tree not far away bearing a fruit he actually recognized. He'd often foraged for this kind in the mountains over the past few years, so he knew it was not only non-toxic but also excellent for restoring stamina.
Delighted, he tightened the bundle on his back, cracked his knuckles, then took a few steps back and charged at the tree, scaling it like a monkey. While picking the fruit, a glance to the side caught something else—there was a bird's nest on one of the branches. The nest had no mother bird in it, only a few eggs... He hesitated, then decided not to touch the eggs since he'd already found something to eat.
As he plucked the last fruit, he looked again at the nest. "Huh?" He reached toward it, but just then the mother bird swooped back, flapping and pecking at him. Grimacing in pain, he snatched something from the nest and leapt to the ground, fruit stuffed into his shirt.
The bird chased him a bit more before flying off.
"Whew... What is it with birds these days? None of them are easy to deal with." He grumbled as he inspected what he had taken. It was a crystal-clear, smooth orb, with seven red stars suspended inside—strangely beautiful.
"This thing's pretty nice-looking. I thought it was some weird bird egg laid in another bird's nest... Oh well. No idea if it's worth anything, but I'll hang onto it." He wiped it off and stashed it in his pack. Then he picked up a fireberry, rubbed it clean on his sleeve, and shook it a bit—juice sloshed inside. As he bit into it, warmth like fire spread through him. It was sweet and rich, and the heat filled him with strength.
The sky slowly darkened.
He was exhausted and gasping for breath. Looking up, the sky was blanketed with stars, the Milky Way dazzling enough to draw one in completely. When would he finally get out of this damn forest? The trial was really proving to be hard... he thought bitterly. He'd always had a bit of a pessimistic streak.
Just then, a faint light shimmered in the depths of the woods ahead. His eyes widened in joy. "A light? Someone's there?" Delighted, he adjusted his pack and dragged his weary legs toward the glow.
---
"It's... a house?!" Krillin pushed through the woods and found the source of the light: a large, dome-shaped house standing all alone in the wilderness. His surprise quickly turned to realization. "Must be a Capsule house."
The little bald monk walked up to the door, brushed the dust off his robes, and wiped his forehead. Inside the brightly lit house, he could hear a heated argument: "Who would eat something like this?!" That seemed to be the gist of it.
He hesitated. "They're arguing? Uh... maybe it's a bad time to knock?" Just as he was wavering, the door suddenly burst open with a bam! A hot, sour wave of air hit his face, and everything went black as the swinging door smacked him head-on and sent him flying with a thud onto the ground.
"Huh?" Goku, holding a giant centipede in his hand, looked down at the collapsed visitor in confusion and scratched his head. "Who's this guy?"