Tien shinhan and Piccolo fought fiercely, from the ground all the way up into the sky. Overall, neither side gained a clear advantage — Piccolo's techniques were overwhelmingly powerful, but Tien shinhan's strength lay in his versatile and unpredictable style.
"You're quite the impressive guy," Piccolo said, wiping away a trace of blood from the corner of his mouth where Tien shinhan's punch had landed. "You're the only martial artist so far who's managed to push me this far."
"But if that's all you've got…" Piccolo's expression hardened. "Then this is as far as you go."
"You're not strong enough to face me at full power."
"You're right," Tien shinhan admitted frankly. "I'm not your match. But—someone else here is stronger than you."
He turned his gaze toward Goku. "He'll take over from here."
"You're saying this kid is stronger than me?" Piccolo the Great Demon King looked at Goku with utter disdain. He couldn't believe that this young man could possess power surpassing his own. The only one he truly worried about was Naruto.
"Then let me show you the terror of my full power!"
With a roar that sounded almost like he was constipated, the ground beneath everyone's feet began to tremble. Arcs of electricity danced wildly over Piccolo's body as his aura flared.
His battle power of 280 was now fully unleashed—yes, a terrifying 280 in total.
"Feel it! This is my terrifying power!" Piccolo shouted, oblivious to Naruto's inner thoughts, still talking to himself with a manic grin. "Even I tremble before this might!"
"One minute. That's all I'll need—one minute to wipe you all out!"
Unfortunately for him, one minute passed… and he still hadn't managed to defeat Goku. In fact, his body had already been injured by Goku's attacks.
In terms of pure battle power, Goku had now surpassed him.
Battle Power: 300 — Son Goku.
Half an hour later, Piccolo the Great Demon King was on one knee, blood pouring from a gaping hole in his chest. "Impossible… that there's someone in this world who can defeat me, the Great Demon King Piccolo…"
The overwhelming difference in power left him completely beaten. He knew his end had come.
But Piccolo made a decisive choice.
"The Demon Clan will not perish so easily!"
He shot a sideways glance at the others, then gathered his energy.
"Explosive Demon Wave!"
From Piccolo's position, a destructive energy wave blasted outward, devastating the surroundings.
At the same time, his right hand—glowing a menacing red—swung toward Naruto.
"Explosive Demon Light Cannon!"
The massive blast engulfed the area.
But these two attacks weren't meant to kill his enemies. They were merely cover for what he was about to do next.
Piccolo gathered all of his remaining essence and energy into his throat. After a grotesque movement of his neck muscles, he coughed up a giant egg.
Summoning all his strength, he spat the egg far into the distance.
Watching it disappear into the sky, Piccolo said weakly, "You damned humans… Just wait. My child will avenge me. He will kill you all."
"The world will still belong… to the Demon Clan!"
"Is that so?" Naruto's voice came from behind him. "I don't think so."
Piccolo turned around in shock—only to see a long strip of sealing cloth whipping toward him. In the next instant, he was wrapped up like a mummy.
"Sealing Technique!"
The word "Seal (封)" appeared on the cloth that bound him.
Though sealing jutsu from the Shinobi World weren't as absolute as the Mafūba (Evil Containment Wave), they were more than enough against a weaker opponent.
With a spatial distortion, the sealed Piccolo vanished from the spot.
Meanwhile, on the egg Piccolo had spat out, a strange tadpole-like symbol began to appear—
the mark of the Flying Thunder God.
All of this had been Naruto's plan — waiting for the exact moment Piccolo would give birth to his offspring, Piccolo Jr.
Piccolo was the evil half of Kami, but Piccolo Jr. was different.
He was neither Dragon Clan nor pure Demon Clan — a completely new kind of Namekian warrior.
"Where's Piccolo? Did he run away?"
As the dust settled, the Z Fighters began searching for any trace of him.
"No need to look," Naruto said, gathering everyone together. "I've got good news and bad news."
"The good news: Piccolo is no longer in this world."
"Piccolo's dead?!" Krillin cheered first. Having fought Daimao himself, he knew how terrifying Piccolo was.
Once the group confirmed that Piccolo was truly gone from their world, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
"Don't celebrate too soon," Naruto warned, pouring cold water on their relief. "Here's the bad news. Right before leaving this world, Piccolo spat out an egg — a child carrying all of his power."
He raised three fingers.
"Three years. In just three years, that child will grow into an adult. And when that happens, he'll be even stronger than Piccolo is now."
"If you don't train seriously, even Goku won't be his match."
"Wh-what…?" Krillin grimaced. "A guy even scarier than Piccolo…?"
"A stronger opponent just means a better fight," Tien shinhan and Goku both said, eyes gleaming with battle spirit. They were the only two who looked genuinely happy at the news.
"You all still have a lot of training to do," Naruto said encouragingly.
"In just one month, you've all improved this much. Imagine what you can do in three years."
"You might not be weaker than him at all by then."
Then, turning serious, he added, "When you reach the Lookout, tell Kami to restore Shenron. Piccolo killed the dragon."
Naruto handed Goku a folded note. "And tell him this too — the things written here are suggested upgrades for Shenron. Have him modify the dragon accordingly."
The original version of Shenron was too limited — aside from reviving the dead, he was practically useless to powerful martial artists.
Worse, there was that one-year limit on resurrection.
A total "tool dragon," really.
"Piccolo's child… you let him go on purpose, didn't you?" Master Roshi asked quietly after the group dispersed.
Naruto didn't answer directly, but his meaning was clear. "If they aren't pushed, they'll never know how strong they can really become."
Without a powerful enemy, the Z Fighters would never grow much stronger during peacetime.
In the original timeline, after the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai, the Z Fighters' power barely increased over the next four years.
Pressure creates motivation.
"Now isn't the time to relax," Naruto said. "The harder we train now, the easier things will be later."
"I thought as much," Roshi replied, a knowing look in his eyes. "You seem to know a lot about what's to come — and you've been constantly trying to make Goku and the others stronger. That must mean something terrible is going to happen in the future, right?"
Despite his usual lecherous behavior, Roshi's perception was razor-sharp — though, to be fair, Naruto hadn't exactly been subtle.
Before Naruto could reply, Roshi went on:
"Still, that's not necessarily a bad thing."
"If you're trying to make everyone stronger, I'll help you push them. The stronger we are, the safer the world will be."
After saying farewell to the Z Fighters, Naruto immediately headed for West City — to Bulma's home.
At the moment, the front gate of Capsule Corporation was only half repaired.
Naruto began by sharing the good news — that Piccolo was no longer in this world.
Then, with a solemn expression, he turned to Bulma and Dr. Brief.
"Bulma, Dr. Brief — I need the two of you to help me train."
As he spoke, he pulled out two objects and placed them before them.
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