Krillin had already logged out of the Virtual Earth Network early that morning. When he looked to the side, he saw that Goku was still sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed. Standing up, Krillin twisted his neck and stretched out lazily, loosening up his body as a series of crisp crackles echoed from his joints.
"Heh!"
With a sharp glint in his eyes, the little bald man suddenly lashed out—a surprise attack. His right fist shot out like a raging dragon, bursting with power several times greater than before, roaring through the air. He grinned with delight. "Fivefold Muken… I did it!"
The results of training in the Muten Tower had to be truly integrated into reality to count.
Although Krillin often doubted his own talent, that was only because he constantly compared himself to Goku. Compared to most Earthlings, Krillin was already one of the top martial artists.
After getting used to the contrast between virtual and real worlds, Krillin had learned to naturally translate his training in the virtual Muten Tower into his physical body, drawing out his ki to release an even stronger Muken in reality.
"Heh!"
"Hah!"
"Haa!"
Barefoot, Krillin flowed through a complete martial routine in the training room—his movements invisible like shadows, drifting like the wind.
The ease with which he executed the Fivefold Muken left him exhilarated. He was genuinely happy and reflected to himself, "With my current foundational ki and Muken, I should be able to hit a battle power of around four or five thousand, right? But I shouldn't rely too much on numbers. Martial arts can't be measured by cold, rigid figures."
"Tienshinhan reached Level Five, Stage Three of the Muken a while ago. Even if his base ki is slightly lower than mine, the gap isn't big. And his version of Muken has merged with the Tsuken... If I run into him in the finals, I mustn't let that technique go on for too long!"
"If he gathers too much power with the Tsuken, I'm definitely done for!"
Krillin's eyes sparkled with resolve.
He was a disciple of the Muten school too—how could he not have ambition? Goku had already won a championship. It was his turn to step up!
Soon, Krillin snapped out of his thoughts and stopped his form practice.
"Ah man, I just took a shower... I shouldn't be sweating again."
He lowered his stance and looked down at his fist, reflecting inwardly:
Muken is really tough… I only went from Level Four to Level Five, and it was already that hard. How did Mr. Gohan reach Level Thirty-Four? And Master Roshi—fifty levels?! How did he even create that?"
The little bald head sighed inwardly. The path of martial arts had no standing still—it was either forward or backward. One could only charge ahead with relentless courage and vigor.
Just then, Krillin turned his head and noticed Goku had also logged out of the Virtual Earth Network and was sitting silently, seemingly lost in thought.
"What's up, Goku?" Krillin asked casually.
"It's weird… that girl… why did she say something like that?" Goku muttered, still sitting cross-legged, arms folded, frowning with a slight pout.
Krillin was startled. "What girl?!"
He lunged toward Goku in an instant, wearing a face full of anguish and betrayal, grabbing Goku by the collar and shaking him furiously. "Damn it, Goku! Isn't Bulma enough for you? You're still flirting with other girls?! I haven't even had a single one yet! You traitor!"
---
Some more time passed, and finally, the day of the grand finals arrived.
From the end of the regional qualifiers to this moment, countless people from all corners of the world had been pouring into Sayuan City. Today, the crowds reached their peak. Sayuan was overflowing with people—it felt like the entire world had gathered in one place.
"Fresh meat buns! Hot and steaming fresh out of the steamer!"
"No good, no charge!"
"Martial arts pastries—snacks loved by martial artists!"
"Come take a look, Immortal Pancakes—!"
Yajirobe kept his eyes shut tight, but the variety of mouth-watering aromas still drilled into his nose, as if trying to sneak through his nasal passages into his heart, liver, spleen, lungs—and finally his stomach… God, I want to eat so bad. I haven't had a proper meal in forever…
Even the hand resting on the hilt of his sword trembled slightly.
No!
The once-chubby boy turned lean swordsman shook his head violently. A girl's image flashed in his mind… No, she was no longer a girl—she was a tall, confident, beautiful young woman. So strong… Chi-Chi had become that strong already.
A faint smile tugged at Yajirobe's lips as he opened his squinty eyes, now filled with determination.
I can't give in to food!
What if I get fat again? That'd be so embarrassing!
"Hey, how many meat buns do you want?" a vendor's shout snapped him back to reality. Yajirobe blinked and realized he had somehow wandered right up to the meat bun stall…
He jumped in surprise and waved his hands furiously. "No! I… I… I want o—no, no, I don't want any at all!!"
The vendor muttered, "Fine, don't buy anything. No need to get all worked up."
Yajirobe stumbled away in embarrassment. Some nearby tourists began to notice the scene… After all, Yajirobe was something of a celebrity now. He was the newly crowned champion of the Southern Capital, known for stirring up controversy as the cold, stoic swordsman. People had even dug up stories about the infamous Noahrobe who once dueled Bejinghan—and many speculated that Yajirobe was likely Noahrobe's successor.
Because Yajirobe had always used the wooden swords provided by the tournament when he competed, none of the spectators had ever seen his actual Muten blades.
"So embarrassing…" Yajirobe kept his head down and stormed off, heading toward the competitor entrance. As he moved farther from the crowd, the number of tourists dwindled. Just as he was about to breathe a sigh of relief, something made him suddenly stop in his tracks.
"These three ki signatures…" He jerked his head up and saw, not far ahead, a few familiar faces!
Tienshinhan!
Krillin!
Chiaotzu!
"It's them…" Yajirobe mumbled, glancing at the three. Beside them stood a beautiful young woman with pure features and purple hair. He thought for a moment—wasn't that the heiress of Capsule Corporation, Bulma?
But there was another ki signature. Who was that?
The person was hidden behind Tien and the others, so Yajirobe couldn't get a clear look.
Resting a hand on the twin swords at his waist, he started walking over.
Tien and Krillin suddenly turned around and saw the lean, dark-haired swordsman approaching. They smiled in unison. "It's you…"
Because they turned, the person who'd been blocked from view was revealed—and Yajirobe froze on the spot, heart jolting violently.
It was Chi-Chi!
"…He's really not coming?" The girl seemed to be saying something to Bulma, a look of sadness on her face. That sadness struck Yajirobe like a dagger—not only because such a good girl shouldn't look so heartbroken, but also because he'd clearly heard what she'd said.
He?
Who was he?
Which he?
Chi-Chi looked off into the sky, smiling wistfully. "Yeah… he already won the championship, so he's not coming this time…"
She sighed softly after speaking.
It was a gentle sigh, but in Yajirobe's ears, it boomed like thunderclaps.
"What's wrong with you?" Krillin asked.
Yajirobe's face turned ghostly pale. Over four years of foolish obsession, of self-deception, all shattered in this instant. The dream he'd woven for himself was finally smashed apart.
Hadn't he already known, deep down, that ever since Chi-Chi was saved by "Goku" that night, she'd fallen for that monkey?
When he escorted her home, hadn't she spent the whole way back whispering Goku's name like she was in a trance?
And why had Chi-Chi wanted to learn martial arts in the first place? Wasn't he the first one she told?
"Hey, are you okay!" Krillin shook Yajirobe and shouted.
Chiaotzu, Bulma, and Chi-Chi all turned to look.
"Huh? Isn't that Yajirobe?" Bulma exclaimed. She had helped Krillin investigate the tournament's contestants before the matches, so she recognized him immediately.
"Yajirobe?" Chi-Chi recalled the name. Back when Yajirobe left her town, she'd felt a little regret—after all, he was the one who'd safely escorted her home after Goku had saved her. He was a good guy.
Sure enough, when she looked closely at the man behind Krillin, she could see faint traces of the boy from back then.
Chi-Chi smiled. "Yajirobe, you've gotten so skinny! I almost didn't recognize you!"
"Uh… well… I… ha ha, yeah!" Yajirobe opened his mouth to speak, but the words got stuck. In the end, he just scratched his head awkwardly and chuckled. "Haha, training with blades is really tough, I guess! Lost weight without even noticing! Pretty amazing, huh! Haha…"
"He's still just as weird as ever…" Chi-Chi thought, though her face still carried a gentle smile.
Bulma glanced around, sensing something strange in the air. She cleared her throat. "Well then, since you're all competitors, why don't you go on in together? I'll wander around a bit, and cheer you on later!"
She gave them a cheer-up fist pump as she finished.
Yajirobe didn't move. He forced a smile. "You guys go ahead, I forgot something. I'll head in later…"
Krillin and the others nodded without suspicion and headed in with Chi-Chi.
As for Chi-Chi, her only impression of Yajirobe was that, after Goku saved her four years ago, he was the one who brought her home. Other than that, she'd never really noticed the chubby boy who used to linger around her family's restaurant, quietly watching her from a distance.
"You like Chi-Chi?" Bulma asked suddenly, watching the others walk away.
"Wh—what are you talking about! I don't like Chi-Chi!" Yajirobe shouted, cutting himself off mid-denial.
"What's so scary about liking someone? If you like a girl, go after her!" Bulma said matter-of-factly, her tone serious. "If you don't make a move, how's the other person supposed to know? What, you think she's just going to figure it out on her own?" She thought of Goku, that musclehead, and huffed. "Your hair will go white first!"
Yajirobe trembled, his face turning even paler. The hand gripping his sword hilt clenched so tight, his knuckles turned white.
"I'm off then!" Bulma waved and walked away with a carefree air.
Yajirobe stood there alone, gazing at the spot where Chi-Chi and the others had vanished. He didn't speak for a long time… but in the end, he turned and walked away resolutely.
---
At a nearby meat bun stall, the vendor suddenly noticed someone standing in front of his stand and smiled wide. "Fresh steamed buns, just out of the steamer—oh! It's you?"
He looked up—and wasn't it that same weirdo from earlier, the one who yelled at him and refused even one bun?
The "weirdo" grinned and waved boldly. "Give me fifty buns!"