Son Goku's words cast a heavy silence over the entire Kaiō God Realm.
This left Vegeta a bit confused. A chance to be resurrected and grow stronger was right in front of Goku, and yet, he was refusing it.
"Hey, Kakarot… don't you want to get stronger? That old man even said that you only get one chance. Are you really not willing to come back to life?"
Son Goku nodded firmly once again and replied: "Vegeta, I've made up my mind. I want to bring back Piccolo instead!"
Those words stunned Vegeta.
He knew exactly what reviving Piccolo meant. If Piccolo was revived, the Dragon Balls would come back as well. And after that, everyone who had died could be revived too.
Goku was still the same Goku.
After hearing this, Vegeta let out a faint smile. He walked over to Goku, looked him in the eye, and smiled again: "Kakarot… I'll be waiting for the day you grow even stronger. When that day comes, we'll have a full-blown, all-out fight!"
As he spoke, Vegeta bumped fists with Goku. Goku smiled and bumped fists back.
"Alright then, I'll go bring Piccolo here now! Elder Kai, wait for me!" Goku raised two fingers to his forehead, focusing on Piccolo's energy.
Whoosh--!
In the blink of an eye, he disappeared from the realm.
Whoosh-!
Another sound of Instant Transmission echoed. Everyone assumed Goku had returned, but it turned out to be someone else. Kibito had brought Trunks and Gohan via Instant Transmission.
Trunks asked, "So? Dad, is Elder Kai helping Goku Ojisan grow his tail again?"
Vegeta shook his head, then explained everything that had just happened.
After hearing it, Trunks chuckled and sighed: "If it's Goku Ojisan, this kind of decision doesn't surprise me. Goku Ojisan is still the same Goku Ojisan."
Just as he said that, Son Goku and Piccolo reappeared in the Kaiō God Realm.
"Alright, Elder Kai! I've brought Piccolo! I'll leave it to you!"
It was only then that Goku noticed Gohan and Trunks had also arrived.
"Gohan, Trunks, oh right! I've got great news! The Dragon Balls will be revived soon!"
After understanding the full situation, Trunks and Gohan couldn't hide their excitement.
Gohan said: "Dad, we already heard… but…"
His gaze grew distant, while beside him, Piccolo gently nudged Goku and said: "Goku… have you really made your decision?"
Goku nodded firmly, a look of conviction on his face. His eyes were sharp, and his voice resolute: "Yeah!"
That single word "Yeah" silenced everyone present.
"A noble sacrifice for the greater good… I knew I didn't misjudge you." The aged voice of Elder Kai rang out.
He continued: "It's a pity this old man only has one life to give. Otherwise, I'd have liked to revive you too."
With that, Elder Kai reached out to touch Piccolo, he was preparing to transfer the rest of his remaining lifespan to him.
The resurrection ritual began normally.
Elsewhere, Trunks watched thoughtfully. In his eyes, the halo above Piccolo's head slowly disappeared, while above Elder Kai's head, a new halo appeared.
As he looked at that halo, Trunks recalled what Elder Kai had said earlier, "It's a pity I only have one life. Otherwise, I would've revived Son Goku too."
"Alright. It's done. You've been fully revived," Elder Kai said to Piccolo.
Piccolo touched the top of his head; sure enough, the halo was gone.
'He… had truly come back to life.'
Meanwhile, Kami, who was in Heaven, was also brought back to life due to Piccolo's resurrection. As a result, the Dragon Balls on Earth were restored as well.
"That's great! iccolo Ojisan, you're alive again!" Gohan stepped forward to congratulate Piccolo.
But when he looked at the halo above Son Goku's head, his mood immediately dropped again.
Just then, Trunks casually said: "Um… everyone, I feel like Goku Ojisan can actually be revived too?"
The moment those words were spoken, everyone fell into a brief silence, Then, Son Goku's emotions exploded like a landslide.
He hunched over, bent down, and urgently asked: "Trunks, do you have a way?!"
Trunks smiled awkwardly and walked over to Elder Kai, giving him a deep bow.
"Elder Kai Sama, I'm truly sorry… But we might need to trouble you… to die again."
Elder Kai's eyes widened in disbelief as he yelled: "What?! I've already died once! How can I die again?!"
Trunks chuckled and turned to look at Piccolo.
"iccolo Ojisan has already been revived. That means the Dragon Balls have been restored! So if we use the Dragon Balls to revive Elder Kai again later, and he gives his life to Goku Ojisan once more, it all works out!"
Trunks' words were like sweet rain after a drought, instantly warming Goku's heart.
"That's right! Why didn't I think of that?! So, Elder Kai-sama, hehe, I'll leave it to you to die once more, okay?"
Looking at Goku's shameless grin, Elder Kai was instantly furious.
"Hey! What do you all take me for?! I'm a god! You can't just casually take my life like a loan! You little brats! Bullying an old man like this?!"
Trunks quickly tried to calm him down: "Elder Kai-sama, we truly apologize! Only you possess such divine and unparalleled ability; no one else can do this! Besides, if the universe ever falls into crisis again, with Goku Ojisan around, we'll have one more protector. Isn't the role of a Kaiō god to protect universal peace?"
Trunks, shamelessly flattering away, kept piling on the compliments.
Meanwhile, Kibito had already taken Gohan back to Earth. There, they had found Bulma, who once again dug out the long-sealed Dragon Radar.
All seven Dragon Balls were quickly collected by Gohan. The two of them brought the Dragon Balls back to the Kaiō God Realm. Looking at the shining Dragon Balls, everyone's eyes were filled with hope.
"Come forth, Shenron!" A bolt of lightning struck into the Dragon Balls, and a massive Eastern dragon emerged from within.
After so many years, seeing Shenron again brought tears to Gohan's eyes.
"State your wish. I can grant you one, any wish."
Just as Son Goku was about to make the wish to revive Elder Kai...
Trunks suddenly stopped him.
(End Of This Chapter)
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