"It's… a baby?" The excitement on Master Roshi's face faded, replaced by surprise and then sympathy. He sighed softly, his white beard trembling slightly.
"Sigh… looks like a poor child. Maybe his parents abandoned him and sealed him inside this strange baseball-like thing, letting him drift across the sea."
"What a pitiful little guy," the sea turtle said as it leaned over to take a look, equally sympathetic.
"We can't just leave him floating in the ocean," Roshi muttered before making a decision. "Let's bring him ashore first. Then we'll figure something out and see if we can find a kind family to adopt him."
"Or… Master Roshi, why don't you adopt him?" the turtle suggested jokingly. "Your house is so big. Having another person around might make it livelier."
"Are you kidding me?!" Roshi snapped like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, nearly jumping off the turtle's back as he glared fiercely at it.
"I don't like kids! They're noisy and troublesome! Besides…"
At this point, Roshi lowered his voice and revealed a rather lecherous grin.
"If beautiful ladies ever come over to discuss martial arts or life philosophy with me, wouldn't a brat standing nearby ruin the mood? I wouldn't be able to enjoy myself properly!"
The turtle rolled its eyes in silence and decided not to continue the topic.
After some effort, the man and turtle finally dragged the spherical spaceship onto the beach.
Roshi circled the metal sphere several times, knocking here and touching there. The smooth outer shell was perfectly sealed, leaving no visible switch or hatch.
Should I just punch it open?
Roshi clenched his fist, his muscles tightening slightly.
But after a moment, he shook his head and rejected the idea.
No, no… my punches are too powerful. What if I accidentally smash the baby inside as well?
Looking at the infant still sleeping peacefully inside the pod, Roshi found it impossible to be rough.
Since he couldn't open it, Roshi decided to leave it alone for the time being and let the baby stay inside.
"Master Roshi," the turtle said while tapping the surface of the spaceship with a claw, producing a dull metallic sound. "Look at the material of this 'baseball.' It's smooth and cold, and the structure is very unusual. The technology level seems extremely advanced… Could it be… from outer space?"
"What? Are you worried this little guy is an alien sent here to conquer Earth?" Roshi laughed loudly as if he had just heard the greatest joke in the world.
Placing his hands on his waist, he burst into his signature booming laughter.
"Hahaha! I'm the God of Martial Arts, Master Roshi! Conquer Earth? Even if aliens really came, they'd have to get past my fists first! I'd beat them until they cried and ran back to their home planet!"
Roshi's confident laughter echoed across the beach.
But at that moment—
Creak—!
A sharp mechanical unlocking sound suddenly interrupted his laughter.
The perfectly sealed spherical spaceship suddenly slid open a round hatch near its base.
In the stunned gaze of Roshi and the turtle, a small figure slowly crawled out of the opening, wobbling like a toddler who had just learned how to walk.
Broly stepped onto the beach.
He seemed slightly unaccustomed to Earth's gravity and environment. His small body swayed a little before he lifted a hand and scratched his thick black hair in confusion.
Both Roshi and the turtle immediately focused their attention on the tiny newcomer.
Broly wore a strange-looking battle suit, and behind him—
A fluffy tail gently swayed unconsciously.
"Master Roshi… look at his clothes… and that tail!" the turtle whispered in amazement.
"Indeed… that outfit is rather strange," Roshi said as he recovered from his surprise.
He carefully stepped forward, trying to look as friendly as possible. With what he believed to be his most kindhearted smile, he crouched down and spoke gently.
"Little guy, what's your name? Where did you come from? Can you talk?"
Broly lifted his clear eyes filled with innocent confusion and looked at the bald old man with a white beard and strange sunglasses.
His small face showed nothing but bewilderment.
Tilting his head, Broly seemed to try to understand the unfamiliar sounds.
But in the end, he simply shook his head and made a few meaningless babbling noises.
Fortunately, Roshi's attitude was friendly.
Otherwise—
He might have been beaten to death by Broly.
"Sigh… looks like he can't speak and doesn't understand us," Roshi said sympathetically.
"What a poor child… Perhaps he was abandoned because of that strange tail. His parents might have thought he was a monster."
Broly obviously couldn't understand Roshi's complicated thoughts.
He only felt that the old man in front of him meant no harm, so he scratched his head curiously and observed the unfamiliar environment—and the strange pair of a man and a turtle.
"Well, since we met, it must be fate," Roshi sighed and made a decision.
"Little guy, you can stay here for a couple of days first. I'll ask around and try to find a good family to adopt you so you can have a stable home. What do you think?"
Broly didn't respond.
At that moment—
Grrrrr…
A loud rumbling sound suddenly came from Broly's stomach.
The sound was especially clear on the quiet beach.
Broly immediately looked down and touched his protesting belly with his small hands, his face full of confusion.
"Hahaha!" Roshi burst out laughing at the innocent reaction.
"Are you hungry? Your stomach is complaining!"
This time Broly understood.
He immediately looked up at Roshi with wide eyes and nodded vigorously.
"Oh? So you understand when it's about food? What a straightforward little guy!" Roshi laughed as he stood up.
"Come on, follow me home. I'll get you something to eat."
Broly's eyes instantly brightened.
He took small, wobbly steps but followed Roshi determinedly.
Roshi led Broly back to Kame House, which had just been washed by the waves.
The inside of the house was still damp and messy, but fortunately the structure remained sturdy. The old refrigerator still stood stubbornly in the corner.
Roshi opened the fridge and was relieved to see that although the food inside had been tossed around, most of it remained sealed and hadn't been soaked by seawater.
He took out a bag of milk and waved it in front of Broly.
"At your age, you should still be drinking milk, right? Where's your mother? Sigh… I guess there's no point asking you."
Muttering to himself, Roshi skillfully placed the milk bag into the microwave to warm it up.