Back on Earth in Universe 6, inside Master Roshi's room, Krillin lay draped over a table, listlessly watching TV.
Yamcha sat nearby, sipping tea.
"Krillin, cheer up," Yamcha said. "Once the Cell mess is over, we can ask Shenron to bring Android 21 back."
"The Dragon Balls are gone," Krillin sighed.
"They're gone? What happened?" Yamcha asked, startled.
"You seriously don't know?" Krillin said. "Piccolo fused with Kami. The Dragon Balls disappeared with him."
"Then have Bulma build you another Android 21," Yamcha suggested.
"Yamcha… seriously? Don't joke like that," Krillin said, scowling.
As they talked, the TV host suddenly announced something with wild excitement.
"People across the nation! We have thrilling news! The genius champion of combat sports—Mr. Satan—has decided to enter the terrifying Cell Games!"
The broadcast cut to Mr. Satan striding out of his castle in a white cape.
Behind him, Zeno-sama was riding on Majin Buu, looking completely neutral.
"This is the great hero—Mr. Satan!" the host declared, then glanced at Majin Buu and Zeno-sama behind him, clearly confused.
"Satan! Satan! Satan!"
The crowd roared in unison.
"Who's that?" Master Roshi asked, walking over with a teacup to get a closer look.
"Looks like the world martial arts champion," Yamcha said helplessly.
"How are you feeling, Mr. Satan?" the host asked. "Your opponent, Cell, is so powerful even the military couldn't handle him."
"That's nothing," Mr. Satan said with a smug grin. "I brought backup!"
He yanked Zeno-sama forward and presented him to the camera like a prize trophy.
"Let me introduce him properly! This is Zeno-sama—the Omni-King, the greatest god in all the universes!"
"Hi, everyone," Zeno-sama said, still perched on Buu's back, waving at the crowd.
The crowd: "..."
Everyone just stared.
That little kid is the greatest god in all existence?
Are you kidding?
"Of course, I—Mr. Satan—will also personally defeat that bluffing lunatic!" Mr. Satan shouted, pumping his fists.
The crowd still went wild, because they liked Mr. Satan. As for the "little mascot" behind him, they ignored him completely.
The greatest god in all the universes?
Sure, Mr. Satan. Very funny.
"Hahaha—did he hire a mascot?" Yamcha said, pointing at Zeno-sama on the screen and laughing so hard he held his stomach.
"The greatest god in all the universes? Ken never mentioned anything like that," Krillin said, shaking his head.
"You really think that little guy is the greatest god?" Yamcha scoffed.
"You're right. No way," Krillin agreed.
"Doesn't look like it," Master Roshi murmured, thinking it over. "If the greatest god really showed up, it wouldn't look like that."
"Besides, if the greatest god appeared, wouldn't he be around us?" Yamcha said with a laugh. "Why would he be hanging out with some guy named Satan?"
Krillin felt that logic was rock-solid.
Flash!
At that moment, Merus brought Goku and Dende back to the Lookout.
Immediately after, Goku used Instant Transmission and appeared inside Master Roshi's room, leaning toward the TV for a better look.
"What're you guys doing?" Goku asked, curious.
"Goku?!" Krillin blinked. "How do you have time to come here?"
"Goku, long time no see," Master Roshi said with a grin. "You went to the future and didn't even come visit your old teacher."
"Haha… uh… haha…" Goku laughed awkwardly, having no idea how to answer.
"And you didn't come see me either," Yamcha added.
Goku: "..."
"Goku, what's up?" Krillin asked.
"Krillin, come with me," Goku said excitedly. "I brought back a new Kami—Dende. You know him."
"Dende? Really?" Krillin's eyes widened with joy. "That's amazing!"
As they were about to leave, Goku glanced at the TV again and spotted Zeno-sama.
"Who's that?" Goku asked.
"That's Mr. Satan, the world martial arts champion," Krillin said, pointing at the screen. "He says he's going to challenge Cell."
"Does the world martial arts champion look like that?" Goku said, squinting at Zeno-sama and muttering under his breath.
"Goku, what are you talking about?" Krillin said. "That's not Satan. That's the 'backup' he brought. He says that kid is the greatest god in all the universes."
"Oh? The greatest god?" Goku said, impressed. "That's incredible."
"Don't listen to that nonsense," Yamcha said. "If the greatest god existed, why would he be with some world champion?"
"Maybe it's true," Goku said with a smile.
Then he didn't explain anything. He grabbed Krillin and vanished with Instant Transmission.
After that, Goku went and picked up Gohan too, bringing him to the Lookout.
Dende was thrilled to see Gohan and Krillin again.
"It really is you, Dende!" Krillin said, grinning.
"Dende, it's been so long!" Gohan said, equally excited.
"Dende, you coming to Earth is the best news," Krillin said warmly. "You might not recognize him right away, but this is Gohan."
"Dende, you're going to be the new Kami now?" Gohan asked.
The three of them talked nonstop, chattering and catching up.
After a while, Piccolo stepped in.
"Dende, you're a Dragon Ball prodigy," Piccolo said. "So tell me—how long will it take you to make the Dragon Balls?"
"About a hundred days," Dende answered.
"A hundred?" Goku forced a grin. "That long? In the future, you restored them in minutes."
"If we use the Earth Dragon Balls that already exist—the ones that turned to stone—then yes, they can be restored right away," Dende explained.
"That's perfect!" Krillin finally breathed again. "So the Dragon Balls can still grant three wishes?"
Great. Android 21 can be brought back!
"Yes," Dende confirmed.
"And can one wish bring everyone back like before?" Piccolo asked. "For example, revive everyone Cell killed."
"If you want that kind of large-scale wish, I'll need to adjust things first," Dende said. "Then the total wishes will drop to two."
"Can you revive someone who's already died once?" Goku asked.
Dende: "..."
"I… can't," Dende said, shaking his head. "I'm sorry. With my current ability, I can't revive someone who's already been brought back once."
Goku: "..."
Piccolo: "..."
Everyone around them stared in silence.
"Come to think of it…" Krillin murmured, glancing between Goku and Gohan. "Aren't you two the only ones here who haven't died before?"
Trunks: "..."
I haven't died either. Why am I not included?
"In the future, you could revive people who died once," Goku said, scratching his head. "Is that because future you is older and stronger?"
"Future me could do it… so that's probably the reason," Dende said, nodding hard.
"It's fine," Goku said, trying to reassure everyone. "We won't die. Don't worry. Either way, let's bring the Dragon Balls back first."
"That's all we can do," Piccolo agreed.
"Do you still have the dragon model?" Dende asked.
"Mr. Popo, bring the model," Piccolo ordered.
"Yes," Mr. Popo replied, hurrying off and returning with the model held carefully in both hands. He presented it to Dende with deep respect.
"What a cute dragon," Dende said, taking it gently and placing it on a flat patch of ground.
Then Dende began chanting under his breath, hands raised toward the model.
Golden light flickered inside it.
Foom—
A beam of gold shot into the sky, split into seven streaks, and scattered across the world.
"The Dragon Balls are back," Dende announced.
"Yep. Same process as Future Trunks' world," Goku said, nodding.
"Yeah," Trunks said with a soft smile. "It's another miracle."
"Alright," Goku said. "I'll go borrow Bulma's Dragon Radar and gather all seven. We can't rely on Ken for everything—we should do what we can ourselves."
No one objected.
"Gohan, spend the next few days hanging out with Dende," Goku added.
"Huh? Mom still wants me to go home and do homework," Gohan said, scratching his head.
"Then have Krillin do it for you," Goku said, turning to Krillin.
Krillin: "..."
…
Kale checked the time and realized Merus would be back soon. Reluctantly, she said goodbye to Gohan and returned to Bulma's place. She started throwing punches into the air like she'd been training the whole time.
When Merus returned and saw Kale "working hard," he smiled with clear satisfaction.
Of course, Merus hadn't used his staff to spy on what Kale was doing on the way back.
People deserve privacy.
Besides, Kale was a girl. Using a staff to watch her private life would be inappropriate.
Since Merus didn't scold her, Kale finally let out the breath she'd been holding.
Bier winked at Kale, silently promising she wouldn't snitch.
Jiren said nothing at all.
…
Zeno-sama was having the time of his life at Mr. Satan's house.
He even thought Satan was pretty entertaining.
The guy personally waited on me, scrubbed my back, even gave me massages.
Should I bring him back and make him my mount?
Zeno-sama was honestly considering it.
He also didn't feel like leaving. The Lookout was the last thing on his mind.
Majin Buu stayed in mount form the whole time.
The only comfort was that Zeno-sama allowed Buu to walk upright when Zeno-sama wasn't around.
Buu cried tears of joy.
…
Days passed.
At last, Earth reached the fateful seventeenth day.
On Mount Paozu, at Goku's house, Goku was dressed and ready to leave.
Bardock and Gine were prepared too, ready to go at any moment.
"Be careful, Goku… and you too, Bardock—and Gine…" Chi-Chi said anxiously. "All of you have to come back alive."
"Yeah, I know," Goku said, nodding.
"Relax. With me there, nothing will happen," Bardock replied.
"Thank you, Father-in-law," Chi-Chi said, then looked at Goku. "Gohan isn't fighting, right?"
"Huh? Uh… yeah, yeah… we're leaving!" Goku said, brushing it off. Then he grabbed Bardock and Gine and vanished with Instant Transmission.
Chi-Chi suddenly felt a chill in her stomach.
Why do I feel like Gohan is going to fight?
Flash!
In an instant, Goku brought Bardock and Gine to the Lookout.
Gine looked around in shock.
We were just at home—how did we end up here?
What is this place?
"This is above Korin Tower," Bardock whispered to her. "It's called the Lookout."
"Oh… so this is the Lookout," Gine murmured. "Honestly, it's… kind of underwhelming."
"Goku's here!" Krillin called out, waving. Then he looked at Bardock and Gine and scratched his head. "You two are Goku's parents, right?"
Bardock nodded once, expression unreadable.
"Where's Vegeta?" Goku asked, noticing he wasn't there.
"He left ahead of you," Piccolo replied.
"Of course he did," Goku said with a grin. "He's fired up. He must've improved a lot."
…
At Capsule Corporation headquarters—
"It's time. Should we head out too?" Bier asked Ken as she walked up.
"Zeno-sama might be at the arena," Ken said with a smile. "Are you sure you want to go?"
"W-what? Zeno-sama?" Bier froze, her face cycling through panic in real time.
"Yes," Merus said gravely.
"Why would Zeno-sama come here?" Bier gasped, horrified.
Then she seemed to connect the dots and lightly smacked her forehead.
"I get it. A few days ago you suddenly left Earth—did you go to welcome Zeno-sama?" Bier asked, thinking it through.
Ken and Merus nodded together.
"Zeno-sama came, and you didn't tell me?" Bier pouted. "If I don't go greet him, isn't that rude?"
"If you go to the arena, there's a chance you'll see him," Ken said gently. "So hurry up."
Bier went silent.
Three seconds passed.
"What did you just say?" Bier asked suddenly.
"Zeno-sama might be at the arena. Are you sure you want to go?" Merus repeated. "That line?"
"No, earlier," Bier said.
"Earlier is when you said you wanted to leave," Merus replied.
"I didn't say anything," Bier said with a sniff. "You two misheard."
She shifted her weight and lifted her right foot a little, trying to look tough.
"Your 'toughness' is leaking," Ken blurted without thinking.
Bier: "..."
Who are you saying is leaking?
"So Bier isn't going?" Merus asked Ken quietly.
"Look at her—she's terrified," Ken said, nodding. "She's definitely not going."
"Are we really not going?" Merus whispered. "Isn't that… kind of inappropriate, if Zeno-sama is going to be there?"
"Who said I'm not going?" Ken smiled. "Watching in person is more immersive."
Merus: "..."
I thought you didn't want to go.
Actually, everything you said earlier sounded like you were trying to avoid it.
So why change your mind this fast?
Bier: "..."
Bier felt genuinely speechless.
You were just acting like you didn't want to go.
Why are you going now?
"Let's move," Ken said, waving them on.
"Alright… then we'll go," Merus agreed.
Ten minutes later, Ken, Merus, Bier, Broly, Ai, Jiren, Kale, and the others flew toward the Cell Games area.
As he flew, Ken couldn't help but feel amused.
Cell really did pick a good moment to shine.
For this "game," you've got gods showing up like it's a grand opening.
If you knew who was watching, what would your face look like?
And Zeno-sama might even appear in person.
…
At the Cell Games arena, Cell stood at the center of the ring, eyes bright with anticipation.
It's finally here.
Come on, Legendary Super Saiyan.
Once I absorb your cells, I'll become the strongest being in all the universes.
I've waited for this day for so long.
And I finally figured out how to absorb your cells.
Keh-heh-heh…
A dazzling smile spread across Cell's face.
[End of chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
[Check out my Patreon to read 20+ chapters ahead]
[[email protected]/BellAshelia]
[Thanks for your support!]