"What?" The dinosaur-like warrior stopped, staring at Bulma in disbelief.
Realizing she might've said too much, Bulma quickly covered her mouth. Hiding behind a rock, she whispered, "It's true! Otherwise, why would everyone be risking their lives to find them?"
The steel-helmeted warrior said, "Blueberry, we don't have time to listen to her nonsense here."
The dinosaur-like warrior didn't move. Seeing he was already wavering, Bulma pressed while the iron was hot, her lips trembling as she said, "So I'm saying, don't bother with me. Wouldn't it be smarter to just go find the other six Dragon Balls? If you wish to conquer the entire universe, maybe even that wish could come true."
Blueberry suddenly laughed and turned back to the steel-helmeted warrior. "That's kind of interesting. Don't rush. If we bring back all seven Dragon Balls at once, wouldn't Lord Frieza be even happier? And if what this woman says is true, then we'll be the rulers of the universe."
"Exactly!" Bulma nodded repeatedly, forcing a smile. "That's what smart people do. You should rely on your own strength to search for them."
Blueberry cracked his knuckles. "So what you're saying is, you won't take us unless you suffer a little first? Talk. Where are the other Dragon Balls?"
"In the sea!" Bulma was terrified, but she reacted quickly. "The other Dragon Balls all sank into the sea."
Even so, Blueberry grabbed her and flew into the sky, taking her all the way to the shoreline. Bulma regretted it now, why had she told them the Dragon Balls were underwater? Seeing the oversized diving machine they had prepared, she could only sit inside with a bitter smile and lead them into an underwater search.
The two warriors could walk freely beneath the water. Bulma piloted the machine, weaving around aimlessly. But she couldn't let them realize there were no Dragon Balls down there, so she drove them to the place where she'd been attacked by lobsters before. That place didn't just have lobsters—it also had a massive whirlpool. She wanted to trick them into falling into it.
Who knew the two warriors weren't stupid? They grabbed onto her machine and jumped down with it.
At the deepest part of the lake, there was still no sign of any Dragon Balls. The steel-helmeted warrior was already getting impatient. He raised the machine gun mounted on his arm, ready to blow up both Bulma and the machine together.
Bulma hurriedly pointed at a cave not far away and shouted, "It's here! The Dragon Balls are in here!"
They entered the cave. It ran deep. Guided by the searchlight, they reached the innermost part and saw a hollowed-out depression like a nest. Fortunately, inside lay several spheres about the same size as Dragon Balls.
Bulma immediately said, "Look—there they are!"
Seeing the glittering beads, Blueberry didn't doubt it for a second. Greed flashed in his eyes as he slowly walked over.
Bulma leaned close to the steel-helmeted warrior and whispered, "You should hurry and grab some too! Otherwise he'll keep them all for himself. Go on!"
There were more than ten beads inside the "nest." Blueberry slowly picked through them, while the steel-helmeted warrior looked suspicious, flicking his fingers as if calculating something.
Bulma forced a stiff smile. "Don't bother counting. The more you take, the better, right? Hurry up and take them!"
Blueberry chose the biggest one in the middle and tried to lift it—only to find it extremely heavy. So he called the steel-helmeted warrior over. Hearing Bulma urging him, the steel-helmeted warrior didn't suspect anything. He set the Dragon Ball in his hand down and ran over to help Blueberry lift the huge bead.
At that moment, the bead suddenly emitted a golden glow. Its surface cracked—and out crawled a palm-sized crab.
The two warriors exchanged a look. Something was wrong.
When they turned around, they found Bulma controlling the machine, snatching up the Dragon Ball the steel-helmeted warrior had set on the ground. At the same time, she shut off the searchlight, plunging the undersea cave into darkness.
No matter what, Bulma was an expert at operating machines. She slammed a button on the control panel's edge. The machine shot upward at high speed and slammed through the cave wall. The entire cave began to collapse.
Only then did the two warriors realize: the "nest" they'd been staring at was nothing more than the shell of a gigantic crab.
Now the massive crab was enraged, repeatedly attacking them with its pincers. Even though they were Frieza's men, in the end they were still low-level soldiers. Facing a deep-sea monster like this, they were completely helpless—striking back with useless attacks.
As the cave collapsed, it was about to bury them at the bottom of the water.
Bulma hugged the Dragon Ball and returned to shore. She'd just let out a breath of relief when she heard the roar of massive waves behind her.
Turning around, she saw the two warriors had also burst out of the water—but following them were two enormous pincers. Under Bulma's horrified gaze, the two warriors were dragged back down into the depths by those pincers.
At the same time, news came from Frieza's side. A subordinate rushed into the spaceship and reported, "Lord Frieza! The Ginyu Force just sent word—they've already arrived at the designated coordinates. They should reach here very soon!"
"I know." Frieza folded his arms and looked out the window. "They've dragged their feet until now. Since nothing has happened, it seems Vegeta still hasn't managed to gather all seven Dragon Balls."
"Remember this: when the Ginyu Force arrives with the scouters, even if you hide at the ends of the earth, I'll still have a way to find you."
Meanwhile, under Creed's guidance, Gohan arrived at the Grand Elder's place. Creed and Goku didn't go with him.
Creed could sense that the Ginyu Force might arrive at any moment. They had to prepare to meet them head-on.
And the Grand Elder of Namek could draw out the hidden potential of those with talent. Gohan was a Saiyan, and his mind was pure and unclouded. Sending him there to increase his strength was the perfect choice.
But Creed miscalculated one thing—Gohan was still too young.
Even though Creed had told him to suppress his ki while flying, Gohan couldn't hold back. When he was about to reach the Grand Elder's home, he suddenly sped up—exposing his ki.
Vegeta had been waiting for exactly this chance. The instant Gohan's ki was exposed, Vegeta chased after him.
When Gohan walked into the Grand Elder's room, Vegeta arrived right outside.
Sensing the powerful ki inside, Vegeta thought Kakarot was there. But when he saw Gohan step out—his power now vastly increased—he was so shocked he couldn't even speak.
"What did you do in there!?" Vegeta demanded loudly. "How did your power suddenly increase that much?!"
(End of Chapter)
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