Dragon Ball Roshi

Looking at the sneaky green-skinned human on the ground, the Phoenix bird was quite puzzled. Who is this person? Why does he seem to recognize me?

Although the young Piccolo now looked somewhat similar to the older Piccolo or even the current Kami in appearance, the Phoenix was a bird, not a human. Its vision wasn't the same as a human's. Just like how it's hard for different human races to distinguish the slight differences within each race, the Phoenix also struggled to discern fine details of human appearances.

Luckily, it had some understanding of ki manipulation, so it wouldn't fail to recognize a familiar presence.

But this young Piccolo was clearly not familiar…

---

"What's that sound?"

Goku, sweating heavily as he did push-ups, suddenly perked up his ears. With a "hey," he pushed off the ground with his arms and leapt to his feet.

Krillin was trembling all over, the ground beneath him soaked with sweat as he gritted his teeth, confused. "Is there... a sound?"

Panting, he collapsed back to the ground, then sluggishly pushed himself up, his whole body sore.

He knew Goku wasn't the type to slack off during training, so if Goku said he'd heard something, then he definitely had.

"No… wait, is there a ki over there?"

Goku and Krillin, both by the lake, scanned their surroundings. Goku muttered, his gaze suddenly drifting over to a distant grassy slope. He blinked in surprise.

"Yes, there's definitely a ki…" He thought for a moment, sensing something strangely familiar about it. He then waved Krillin over. "And the Phoenix is over there too! Let's go, Krillin, let's check it out!"

The two eagerly ran over, just in time to see young Piccolo being chased around the ground by the Phoenix, looking utterly helpless.

"Hey, who are you? Playing with the Phoenix?"

Piccolo, utterly frustrated by the Phoenix's teasing yet unable to catch it, silently fumed. Just then, he heard a crisp voice from a boy. Startled, he spun around and saw none other than Goku and Krillin standing on the dirt slope, looking down at him. It was Goku, drenched in sweat, but still smiling cheerfully.

Are they laughing at me?!

Infuriated, Piccolo, though unaware of what had happened to Kakarot to make him act so foolish, was deeply embarrassed to have his struggling side exposed—especially with that damn bird causing trouble!

Without thinking, he raised his hand, and bright yellow electrical sparks gathered in his palm.

Zzzzzzzz!

"Hey, what's he doing?" Krillin exclaimed in surprise. "Is he firing a Kikoho?"

Goku wasn't worried at all and laughed. "It's fine, he won't hit the Phoenix!"

Sure enough, Piccolo's attack missed…

"Ah, ah..." The Phoenix easily dodged the blast and then began mocking him mercilessly. Its laughter was harsh, sounding like a duck's quack—grating and unbearable. But because of this, the mockery only intensified, making Piccolo's whole body tremble with rage, veins bulging on his forehead.

Goku, unable to help himself, started laughing from the slope, and Krillin, influenced by Goku, smiled along.

Piccolo, with a dark expression, turned and glared at Goku and Krillin, his eyes sharp and vicious. If I can't beat this bird, I'll take out these two guys instead. He thought. I'll use the opportunity to beat up Kakarot's two disciples before that fool even shows up, then retreat to the mountain to lie low for a while.

"Hey, hey, Goku, is he…?" Krillin squinted, jokingly asking.

This was the Martial Immortal Island, the domain of his master, the Martial Immortal. Who was this guy? Was he incredibly bold or just unaware of the situation?

Goku nodded. "Looks like it!"

Piccolo's anger only grew. He looked coldly at Goku and said, "Seems like not only has your personality changed, but you've completely forgotten the lessons I've taught you by beating you time and time again… Kakarot! Look at you now, smiling like a fool. It really makes me want to vomit!"

In fact, he was referring to Goku's ki. It was warm and peaceful, which made Piccolo extremely uncomfortable.

Kakarot's ki was always erratic and wicked.

Before Krillin could say anything, Piccolo vanished from his original spot. Startled, Krillin quickly turned, and to his surprise, Piccolo's figure, though not very tall, had suddenly appeared right in front of him. Their gazes locked, and Piccolo's eyes were cold with fury. He had already had enough of Krillin's mouth, and without hesitation, he slapped his palm straight toward Krillin's chest.

What a vicious attack!

Krillin dared not underestimate it and immediately tried to dodge. However, his clothes felt as heavy as a mountain, and he stumbled!

The stumble, while helping Krillin avoid Piccolo's palm, caused him to fall to the ground.

The sound of Krillin hitting the ground was surprisingly dull and heavy.

Piccolo didn't pay attention to this. All he thought was that this bald guy was so weak that after just one round, he had already put himself in a dire situation. His eyes flashed with malice as he grinned cruelly, revealing his sharp white teeth. His pale, sharp claws gleamed with cold intent as he turned his hand into a claw and reached for Krillin's throat.

At that moment, just as Piccolo was about to revel in his triumph and Krillin's frustration, Piccolo's claws were suddenly seized by a powerful hand.

The strength in that hand was incredible, vastly different from what Piccolo had felt during his night battles with Kakarot. Surprised, Piccolo looked toward the owner of the hand—none other than Son Goku.

"Don't go too far…" Son Goku said in a deep voice, holding firmly onto Piccolo's wrist.

For some reason, in the expression on Son Goku's face, Piccolo almost felt like he was seeing Kakarot's shadow. He suddenly chuckled, a small, mocking sound escaping him, and then he relaxed his grip, releasing his strength. Son Goku also let go of his wrist.

"If he's the one who can't keep up, and yet he's still provoking me, then I can't be blamed for teaching him a lesson, can I?" Piccolo sneered, shaking his wrist and coldly adding.

Son Goku looked Piccolo over seriously and then shook his head. "He's not weaker than you…"

Piccolo glanced at Krillin, who was struggling to get back up, looking somewhat clumsy. He couldn't help but laugh. "Are you kidding me?"

"Goku... In this situation, if I take off 'this,' it wouldn't be considered slacking off, right?" Krillin's face turned red with anger as he huffed and asked Son Goku, all the while gripping his black cloth wristband.

Son Goku nodded.

Krillin grinned slyly and stood firm, decisively removing the wristband from his right hand. The movement of taking off the wristband seemed laborious, as if it wasn't cloth but some heavy metal.

Piccolo's mocking expression remained, but his mind started to grow suspicious.

Krillin tossed the wristband aside casually, and it fell to the ground. It made no sound of something heavy hitting the floor—it was light, like an ordinary piece of cloth.

"Trying to make things look mysterious and thinking that'll turn the tide? Trash." Piccolo sneered maliciously.

"Do you know why Goku didn't rush to fight you?" Krillin took a deep breath. After removing his wristband, it felt like his entire body had lightened, and he grinned mischievously. "Goku is the kind of person who jumps at the chance to fight strong opponents… Do you understand what I'm saying?"

Piccolo's pupils constricted.

"You're way weaker than Goku!"

Just like the Piccolo from before, Krillin suddenly vanished in a flash.