Dragon Ball Human

Scribble, scribble, scribble. Yamiru continued drawing the afternoon's battle.

The next drawing was of Tonpo transformed into a nude (censored) woman—two triangles on her chest as stick figures, tackling the large stick figure from behind. The small stick figure behind the large one punched the large stick figure in the vertical line of its waist. When he got to this part, Yamiru furrowed his brows and paused.

"Blue said I hesitated when I punched him there..." Yamiru bit his pen. When the fight happened, his brain was almost flooded with blood, his adrenaline was about to explode, and he couldn't remember what he was thinking at the time. Now, he couldn't quite recall the fleeting thought that crossed his mind as he threw the punch. He wondered, "Did I really hesitate?"

He put the pen down and walked out of the yard, throwing punches into the air under the starry night sky.

"With little strength." Yamiru threw a straight punch.

"And this is... with a bit of strength." Yamiru threw another straight punch.

"This is the strength I use when fighting with the punks from Animal Street." Yamiru tightened his fist and threw a straight punch.

"This is..." Yamiru furrowed his brows, feeling the force in his arm and fist, unable to quite grasp it. "It feels almost the same as the last punch. I can't say that using enough strength to tear my arm muscles is what it means to go all out, to not hold back, right? Besides, even if I wanted to, I can't exert that much strength yet..."

He muttered as he continued pondering, walking around the yard. He found a flatter piece of dirt and squatted down, pressing his palm into it.

"Let's give it a try." Yamiru murmured.

He lightly threw a punch at the ground.

"An ordinary punch!"

A shallow mark was left in the dirt.

"A serious punch!"

Bang! Yamiru's fist sank into the ground, leaving a clear, noticeable imprint when he pulled his fist away.

"Mm... How did I apply force when I punched Blue in the back earlier... Let me try to recall..."

Yamiru half-squatted, imagining the ground before him was Blue. Suddenly, a fire of anger surged inside him. "Damn it, you hit me so hard, huh? You almost cracked my skull, huh?!"

"Take this damn angry punch... Wait a minute!"

Yamiru stopped his fist mid-air and sat down abruptly, thinking, "Blue hadn't cracked my head and gave me Sequelae, right? Since this is a simulation, I shouldn't have had this much resentment... No, no!"

He thought for a moment, then, as if arguing with himself, gritted his teeth and retorted, "Are you stupid? This guy is in cahoots with the Red Ribbon Army! Do you even understand what a terrorist is? Why bother talking about martial ethics with someone like him? Just beat him up to death!"

"Have you ever killed someone? You're talking about beating someone to death?" Yamiru sneered.

After a brief silence, Yamiru seemed to separate himself from the two conflicting thoughts, stood up, took a few steps back, and rubbed his chin. "Hmm..." he let out a long exhale through his nose.

He muttered to himself, "In my past life, I barely ever fought anyone. After crossing over, I did get into a few fights, but I always instinctively avoided any dangerous moves. For example... a shoulder throw. I think I've only used shoulder throws, ensuring the opponent lands on their butt or back. I've never used a backward suplex. And when punching, I've always only struck the opponent's right chest or limbs—places I'm sure won't cause lethal damage."

Yamiru looked at his fist, recalling some videos he'd watched before.

Those street fights filmed by bystanders—some idiots who didn't have a clue how to fight—got into arguments on the streets and for some reason, either to show off or just for fun, would grab the opponent's waist and perform a wrestling move like in the movies. The result? The person being thrown ended up landing headfirst on the ground, their neck snapping with a loud crack, and they died right there.

"Maybe I did hesitate for a brief moment, but hesitation doesn't mean I slacked off. I did give it my all, just… whether the anger inside me had reached that extreme level of 'kill or be killed,' I can't be sure. Since Blue said so, I'll accept it," Yamiru reasoned, suddenly feeling a lot clearer inside. "Blue's definitely not a good person, but I'm no saint either. That bastard could've smashed my skull in one go. If I think about it from his perspective, I probably wouldn't have been able to do it. Maybe, one day in the future, I'll become ruthless enough? But I hope… that day comes much later."

"The mistake I made this afternoon was ultimately because, when it comes to fighting, I'm still a novice."

"Since that's the case, I just need to turn myself into a master who can perfectly control the power in my strikes. I need to know where to hit to make someone lose their ability to fight, where to hit to cripple them, and where to hit to take their life... As for personality, that's not something you change after a couple of street fights."

"As for now, the only thing I can do is improve myself... If I were as strong as Master Roshi, whether it's Blue or Tao Pai Pai, I'd be able to punch when I want, retreat when I want... That's the real way of the world."

Yamiru sat back at his desk.

He had already reflected on the fight from this afternoon, had gone over what needed to be gone over, and more or less processed it. Yamiru didn't know how martial artists or battle geniuses summarize their combat experience, but all he could do was what he had done. He pulled out the two coins he always carried with him, feeling frustrated. "That old man is so mysterious. He doesn't explain anything clearly. What's with this addiction to acting like some enigmatic expert?"

Flight technique, the Senzu beans, a unfamiliar face... Yamiru's speculations about the old man never stopped. Thinking about what the old man had said earlier, telling him to meet him in the park tomorrow morning, made him itch with impatience. He felt an overwhelming surge of energy and wished it were already tomorrow morning. He'd run straight to the park, grab the old man by the collar, and slap his face twice for all that acting high and mighty.

"Hmph..."

Yamiru felt a bit tired, smiling as he lay down on the small bed. As soon as the back of his head touched the pillow, a sharp pain shot through, as if his skull were cracking open.

"Fucking Asshole, don't let me see you again... Just wait until I level up, then I'll beat the shit out of you..."

Yamiru muttered angrily as he rolled over, lying on his stomach with his chin resting on the pillow. He drifted off to sleep, still in a daze.

In his dream, he ran to the park, and sure enough, the old man was waiting for him. Yamiru respectfully approached him, but suddenly, the old man smashed a cup and signaled for something. Out of the trees in the park came a swarm of monsters and demons, rushing at Yamiru, scratching and biting... "What did I forget today..." Yamiru, having a nightmare, tossed and turned in bed, the back of his head stinging as it touched the pillow again. He rolled over and mumbled sleepily.

---

The next day, at 4:50 AM, Yamiru opened his eyes and stared blankly for a few seconds.

He blinked, activating his keen eyesight! Blinked again, and turned it off.

"Hmm, not a dream."

Yamiru smiled, getting up and rubbing his chest. His body ached from last night's workout, and his chin felt numb...

With a light mood, he quickly finished washing up and getting ready. He put the two and a half Senzu beans in his pockets and made sure to secure the two coins.

"Let's go!"

Yamiru took a deep breath and ran toward the southern city in the morning light.

His head still hurt a bit, but his mood was better than ever.

An hour later, at the park, he saw the old man waiting for him.