On one of their earliest rest stops when Bulma released a small house from her capsule, Bikini did what she could to learn about their newest friend, after reassuring that Bulma's technology isn't witchcraft.

Bulma scrunches her nose in disgust.

"Ugh! You stink! When was the last time you had a bath?!"

Goku tilts his head confused.

"Bath?"

Bulma shrieks in absolute revulsion while Bikini pinches her nose.

"Ew! You country bumpkin! You can't be serious!"

"H-He smells quite serious..."

"Bikini, I'm not touching him! You clean him!"

"R-Right..."

Bulma has always been a demanding girl, but never bothered Bikini, if anything she almost relied on her older sister's decision making... Almost. Bikini takes Goku to the bathroom and the two bathe. Bulma waits outside spraying the house with an air freshener after throwing their clothes into the laundry.

"I bet she'll finally get him to take that stupid tail off his pants..."

Bikini however finds the tail to be real, although she had assumed as much, but more questions plaguing her mind.

"Goku, was your grandpa a good person?"

"Uh-huh! He was real nice! He always kept me fed and taught me how to fight! He said I couldn't go out during full moons though... I've only ever seen it once!"

"A full moon? You're more of a monkey than a wolf! Just look at this tail!"

She takes hold of it playfully, but Goku grows limp and falls over in the tub, his face displaying discomfort and weakness. Bikini gasps and releases the tail to hold the boy up.

"G-Goku, what happened?!"

He perks up immediately and pouts at her.

"If you grab my tail, I lose all my strength!"

"I-Is that right...?"

"Yeah, but can I ask something? How come your pee pee is gone?"

"Girls don't have those. That's how you can tell a boy from a girl."

"But Bulma doesn't have a horn when you do!"

Bikini lightly brushes her horn concerned.

"That's... Well. I'm not sure. Not all boys have tails."

"They don't?! I thought Grandpa lost his. We're pretty different from everyone else, huh!"

Bikini frowns in thought. Dr. Briefs had spent years of his life, as well as her own, researching and studying her horn; her very being. It didn't bother her at first, but as years passed, she never really let it bother her. No one else is like her, and that lead to some people staring, in fact it was a leading cause for her to be home schooled.

She never thought it bothered her, or rather, she always kept smiling past the feeling of worry.

"I guess we are... I wonder, if that's okay."

He smiles at her without a hint of worry. Not a hint of insecurity or even weakness in his glowing face.

"That just means you have a horn and I have a tail, so why worry about it?"

She can't help but giggle at such a carefree and childish response. Mirroring his expression, she dries them both off and closes her eyes.

"You have a great point! Come along now, it's bed time!"

Though the group have no issue sleeping, Bikini always woke up at the start of sunrise; something that would bother Bulma to no end when they had shared rooms. To her surprise, Goku had already woken up, and from what she could see from the window is attempting to lift a boulder just barely larger than himself. Her eyes nearly gouge out her head as the small boy turns the heavy rock into a pile of rubble with his bare hands. She meets with him outside still quite shocked from the display of strength.

"I-I knew you were strong, but not THAT strong!"

Goku chuckles before flexing his muscles.

"I'm very strong! Grandpa was stronger, but I'm young, and no monster is going to beat me!"

Bikini cups her own cheek thinking about strength, the use of it and it's purpose, but Goku pulls her out with his growling stomach.

"Oh... I'm hungry! Better find food!"

She was about to offer him some, but curious to learn more about the boy, Bikini inquires about something.

"You hunted all your life, right? Why don't you show me how it's done?"

"Okay! You have to have a keen nose, that's what Grandpa said, and I can already smell something nearby!"

"Something salty..."

Bikini sniffs the air a little as Goku nods.

"Yeah! Good nose! You wanna hunt with me?"

Bikini shakes her head.

"I-I don't like hurting other things... I'll come watch over you! So you don't get lost on the way back."

"But the scent isn't that far. Oh well, I'm not done with my exercises!"

Goku runs over to another boulder and lifts it up, only for it to grow flippers and a head! Goku stumbles back as he drops the creature.

"Wha-?! It's alive! A tortoise!"

"D-Don't crush me...! I'm not a rock, I'm a sea turtle...!"

Bikini walks over alarmed at the reveal herself.

"A turtle? But aren't you from a tropical or marine habitat?"

Turtle nods with a bead of sweat coming down his head.

"A-About that, see... I got lost looking for food... I can't tell my way to the sea from here so I kept wandering around..."

Goku eyes him cautiously.

"You sound slow and tired even for a tortoise. Did you eat all your food you found and got hungry again?"

"No, no, I'm just running on fumes... Do you have any water I can drink...?"

Bikini takes the turtle back to their house, surprising Bulma who got the talking animal a bucket of water, and the three watch it drink big gulps before the eldest speaks up.

"I don't know how you managed to get all the way out here. There's a desert we have to pass to get you back to the ocean!"

"There is...? Oh... I'm never going to get back home now...!"

Bikini clasps her hands together eager to help someone.

"Not with that attitude! Thankfully, we have a map of the world, and the time to spare!"

She whines as Bulma begins to pull on her hair.

"As if! I have thirty days left of summer before I go back to school!"

"B-But you only go to find a boyfriend, you're already smarter than most the teachers...!"

"I'm not wasting my time with this!"

Goku hoists the turtle on his back.

"I'll just do it myself then and you can keep going. How far is the ocean?"

Bikini takes to Goku's side with a nod.

"I'll come with!"

Bulma, who was eager to let the boy go as she pulls the map out, shakes her head at her sister's decisions.

"Wh-! Bikini, you can't be serious!"

She blinks and the map in her hand is in Bikini's. The younger sister quickly looks it over before nodding.

"Very serious! I'm sure you can manage on your own!"

The three leave before Bulma can get another word in. With her face red with frustration, she yells out at them.

"DON'T BOTHER COMING BACK!"

She huffs and looks around her... It had only just really dawned on her that they were still within the Pazou region, which is a part of the world untouched by time, resembling the Jurassic Era where large dinosaurs still roam. Large, carnivorous, somewhat sapient dinosaurs that could swallow her in one gulp if she was even that luck.

Bulma catches up to the two in her car.

"WAIT FOR ME, DAMMIT!"

Though it took a few hours, the party makes it to a tropical beach, and Turtle gratefully beams at Goku and Bikini.

"Thank you for helping me! Please, wait here, I'll make this trip your while."

Turtle swims out to sea leaving the trio behind. However, it isn't long before he swims back with a short elderly man in a Hawaiian star patterned shirt and the longest beard the children had ever seen! Atop his head sat a long wizard's hat in the same pattern as his shirt. He hops off the back of the turtle patting his shorts of with a sigh.

"Ah, damp with seawater..."'

He looks up at the trio with a gruff huff studying them. He saw them from afar and his eyes grows soft for Bikini. Yet, his gaze remains on Goku with a harsh stare. Goku doesn't notice the innate hostility though and only tilts his head.

"Whoa! The tortoise brought an old geezer! Are you his friend?"

Bikini chastise the boy.

"Goku, that's no way to talk to someone we just met! I'm sorry sir, my name is Bikini."

The old man doesn't respond. Rather, he ignores them and addresses Turtle.

"Which of them helped you? Was it all of them?"

Turtle shakes his head.

"No, only the boy and the horned girl. Pajama Girl wanted to leave me behind."

Bulma shouts angrily.

"I have a name!"

The old hermit's eyes widen as he mumbles under his breath.

"A Saiyan and an Equestrian working together...? Never heard of such a blasphemous thing... Still..."

He coughs politely and looks to Bikini.

"Alright. I am a friend of Turtle. For your kindness, I'll bestow upon you two a gift. Bikini, was it? Step forward."

She does so with an expectant expression. The old man raises a hand and exclaims loudly.

"Come Forth, Eternal Phoenix!"

Yet nothing happened. Turtle gasps and pulls on the hermit's shirt.

"U-Uh, Sir... The Phoenix died from food poisoning."

"W-What!? When was this!? I thought that perverted buffoon was taking care of them until I got back!"

"The day before actually. We were waiting for the Phoenix to return but they never did..."

The hermit drops his jaw dumbfounded... Then grumpily shakes his head groaning.

"I was going to give you eternal life... But it seems that can't happen."

Bikini eyes light up as she finds something of value.

"Can I have that instead? Around your neck?"

"This little thing?"

He holds up an orange crystal ball with three red stars inside. Bikini nods.

"Yes, please! It would mean a lot!"

"Really? H-Here."

He hands it over confused as the girl brings it to Bulma. The sisters cheer together as the Dragon Radar confirms it as the Three-Star Ball. Goku approaches the old hermit next looking at him oddly.

"Hey old man. Are you okay? You look all stiff and tired."

"I am stiff and tired. Do you want a reward too?"

"Not really."

That catches the hermit off-guard. He knows the true nature of what this boy is, that they are selfish and greedy, yet Goku merely shrugs this off. What he says next confounds the old man further.

"Oh, right. The tortoise had to eat the food he left to get you to make it. So when they were talking, I took this!"

Goku pulls out a food capsule from his go with a friendly smile.

"It's a magic bean that holds a bunch of food!"

Bulma gasps and stomps over correcting him yet again.

"It is not a bean! It's a capsule that holds some of our food! You really want to give that away?"

Goku tosses it to the hermit without a second thought.

"We can always find more food later."

The hermit catches this and pockets it. Saiyans require a massive amount of food, enough to fill even the most gluttonous of aliens, and yet this small Saiyan boy selflessly gives away such a thing without a catch. The hermit hands the capsule to Turtle with a softer sigh.

"Boy... I actually have another gift I can give you. Would you like it?"

"Huh? Oh, sure!"

"Come, Flying Nimbus!"

The old man calls out and a golden cloud flies down from the heavens. He gestures to it as it floats between him and Goku.

"This is a floating cloud is called, Kintoun, in other parts of the world. I call it the Flying Nimbus, and it will allow any person with a pure heart to soar through the sky, understand?"

Goku nods with a joyful shout.

"Amazing! I wonder how it tastes!"

The hermit shouts at him.

"D-Don't you dare try to eat it! Goodness, I wonder if you can even use it..."

His eyes bug out his head as Goku hops on without any effort.

"Soryah!"

Goku goes flying in loops, high and low, nearly out of sight all around before returning back to the group with a cheerful grin.

"This is awesome! Thanks, old man!"

The hermit huffs stroking his beard.

"Starswirl... At least call me by my name. Be sure to take care of that cloud and it will take care of you."

Starswirl smiles under his magnificent beard as he watches Bikini climb on curiously.

"Oh my...! It's so soft, like a bed, or a flying carpet!"

Bulma smirks and tries to hop on herself.

"If Bikini can get on surely I-"

She falls through with her face landing in the sand. Goku laughs rubbing his head.

"I guess your heart isn't pure! Whatever that means!"

"But I am pure! I'm a fair maiden who hasn't even had her first kiss yet!"

The old man shakes his head as he hops on top of Turtle. He is confused, curious, and hopeful for what the future may have in store. He certainly could not expect this in his countless years. He leaves the trio for their own adventure, whatever that strange ball may bring them.

Bulma huffs as she speeds fast as she can after the two, but Goku and Bikini easily keep up with her on the Nimbus, and they even begin to fly ahead.

"Slow down, will you!? I'm the one with the radar!"

Goku laughs as he pilots the cloud.

"I didn't think anything could move this fast!"

Bikini looks to ahead as they approach a village soon.

"At this rate finding the Dragon Balls will be easy as pie! Let's hurry, Bulma, Goku!"