He still couldn't sense Goku and the others' ki at all, so with no choice, he could only fly toward the village where he had hidden the Dragon Ball. Mid-flight, he suddenly sensed a very powerful ki. Just as he was about to chase it, the ki vanished again.
He stopped in midair and scanned all around, but he couldn't see a single person. Whoever it was likely sensed him pursuing and hid, suppressing their ki. Floating in the air, he shouted loudly:
"Who are you? Get out here right now! I know you're nearby. If you don't show yourself immediately, I'll blow this whole area to pieces!"
Gohan hid beneath the hillside, listening to the yelling with his heart racing. He knew clearly that, right now, he was no match for Vegeta. Rushing out would only be throwing his life away, and the Dragon Balls would be taken from him too.
After a long time with no response, Vegeta raised his hand and began gathering ki, preparing to destroy the nearby hillside. Just before the blast fired, a childlike voice came from below:
"Wait!"
Gohan placed the Dragon Ball beneath the slope, then climbed out himself and shouted, "It's me!"
Seeing the familiar face, Vegeta gave a light laugh. "So it's Kakarot's son. I knew it was you. Because other than you, there aren't many around here who can hide their ki. What's that thing in your hand?"
Gohan quickly hid the radar behind his back. "It's a watch."
Vegeta didn't doubt him. He dropped down beside him. "A watch made that big… With your level of science, being able to reach this planet is pretty unbelievable. Where did your father Kakarot run off to? The three of us are the last Saiyans. When you go back to Earth, tell them this: I'll go back to Earth too. And this time, I'll destroy him, and Earth together."
As he said that, his knee slammed into Gohan's stomach. Gohan had no room to fight back. He could only clutch his belly and curl on the ground, gritting his teeth and enduring the pain, refusing to cry out.
Vegeta laughed loudly. "You're still at the age where you should be drinking milk. Hurry up and crawl back to Earth."
With that, he kicked Gohan and flew toward the village.
But when he dove into the lake bottom, he couldn't find the Dragon Ball he had hidden no matter how he searched. Then he remembered: the place he ran into Gohan was right between Kakarot and the lake. Had Gohan taken it? But how did he find the Dragon Ball? Could it have been that "watch"?
The more he thought about it, the more humiliated he felt. Like a madman, he charged back at top speed. He flew all the way to the cave and still didn't see a single person, and he couldn't sense even the faintest ki.
Still, he believed they would come back sooner or later to snatch the Dragon Ball he had. When that happened, he would just kill them.
So he returned to the spot where he had hidden the Dragon Ball and sat directly on it, thinking: If the machine in Gohan's hands really can locate Dragon Balls, then he absolutely couldn't leave this place casually. He could only wait for them to come to him.
Right then, the ground shook violently, like Namek was having an earthquake. Immediately afterward, far away in the distance, there was a massive explosion and then more, one after another, like meteors crashing down.
Only then did Vegeta think of it: if Frieza contacted his men to return to base for scouters, it would still take three or four days to get here. That meant he had to gather all the Dragon Balls within that time. As long as he gained eternal life, he would have a chance to defeat Frieza.
Because of Frieza's furious bombardment, the entire plain was trembling. Bulma, hiding inside a mountain rift, couldn't even stand steady. The Dragon Ball by her feet rolled straight into the lake.
She tried to scoop it out with a stick, but it was useless. It sank deeper and deeper. In the end, the Dragon Ball began diving downward at incredible speed.
With no other choice, she took out a capsule and released the submarine she had prepared, chasing after it. Underwater, she ran into a gigantic mutated whale—the Dragon Ball was stuck on one of the whale's tentacles.
The submarine released fish, scaring the whale off, and at the same time the Dragon Ball rolled free and fell into a fissure on the seafloor. Luckily, her submarine could withstand pressure. When she drove down, she discovered multiple massive lobsters that attacked on sight.
After a ton of effort, she finally fished the Dragon Ball back up. But she had wasted too much time. The moment she came ashore, she ran into Frieza's men on patrol.
Bulma was so scared she couldn't even speak. Staring at the ugly-looking warriors before her, her legs went weak and she couldn't move. The two warriors, eager to earn merit in front of Frieza, grabbed both Bulma and the Dragon Ball together and flew toward Frieza's spaceship.
Facing a hopeless situation with no one to save her, Bulma forced herself to shout:
"Please, let me go! I really don't know where Vegeta is! Even if you take me to Frieza, I can't tell him anything!"
Neither warrior answered. That silence only made Bulma more terrified. Thinking she might be ripped to pieces by Frieza, tears poured out uncontrollably. Looking back on her life, she realized she'd never truly had it easy. Ever since meeting Goku, it felt like every single day had become an adventure.
Then, gritting her teeth, she bit down on a warrior's finger and ended up falling as a result. Even though there was a lake below, falling from that height meant certain death. Just as regret hit her, the two warriors dove down and grabbed her again.
But this time they didn't fly back to the spaceship. They brought her onto land instead.
"...Seriously. This woman is such a pain."
The dinosaur-like warrior said, "I have a lot of things to ask you. If you answer honestly, I won't let you die too easily."
Bulma wiped her tears, sobbing as she spoke. "How many times do I have to say it for you to understand? I really only have the Dragon Ball in your hands, that's all!"
The dinosaur-like warrior licked his finger. "I want to see if you can keep playing dumb in front of Lord Frieza. Still… it's weird. Why is Lord Frieza collecting these beads anyway?"
The steel-helmeted warrior said, "Who knows? Low-level soldiers like us don't need to know that much."
Hearing that, Bulma's eyes flashed with an idea. She hid behind a rock, peeked out, and said:
"You really don't know what Dragon Balls are? You're so stupid! If you find a Dragon Ball, you'll get an unexpected reward, I'm serious. Dragon Balls are treasures that can grant any wish!"
"Stop talking nonsense!" the dinosaur-like warrior shouted.
Bulma hurriedly shook her head. "I'm not talking nonsense! If you gather all seven Dragon Balls, you'll get an unexpected reward—I'm serious. Dragon Balls are treasures that can grant any wish!"
"Stop talking nonsense!" the dinosaur-like warrior shouted again.
Bulma shook her head rapidly. "I'm really not lying! Whoever gathers all seven Dragon Balls can gain power that surpasses Frieza!"
(End of Chapter)
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