"What is on that sheet of paper, Roshi-sama?" Tenshinhan inquired, approaching the old man who shook in disbelief while staring at the sheet of paper, eyes staring at a blank point of the paper where there weren't even any symbols to gander at.
"Unbelievable… For Demon King Piccolo to return now…" Muten Roshi muttered under his own nose, his hollow breath barely moved the hair of his facial hair. "You… What did the monster that killed Krillin look like?"
"Well… He was scary and… Green! Yes! He was very green, he had wings and sharp teeth. Otherwise, he was quite humanoid… I believe…" the announcer struggled his way through words, it was only because of the nature of his profession that he had the gall to remain as eloquent as he was in his state of panic.
"Hmmm… Sounds like one of Piccolo's spawns, without a doubt…" Muten Roshi stroke his beard. "We must act at once, in that case. Chayote and Son Goku are immensely powerful, they very well might take care of Demon King Piccolo together. However, we must collect the Dragon Balls just in case."
"I don't understand, Roshi-san, just who is this Demon King Piccolo?" Tenshinhan pressed on.
"He is a demonic bane from the past. A terrifying tyrant whose Evil Tribe has once taken over the world. Not even the combined forces of every martial artist on Earth could repel this scorn. It was Master Mutaito, master of martial arts who brought me and Tsuru Sen'nin up in the world of martial arts, who managed to seal the monster away. At the time that was the only way to save the world." Muten Roshi explained.
"But back then… We didn't have the Saiyans on our side, right?" Yamcha raised a fair point.
"True. The out of this world strength of Goku and Chayote might just be the biggest advantage on our side. The Mafuba, the sealing technique that sealed Demon King Piccolo away before, does not prevent one sealed away from aging or growing weary, with some luck, Demon King Piccolo will be at his weakest right after being released. However, with Demon King Piccolo, we cannot take any chances…" Muten Roshi insisted.
"I see…" the announcer stood up from the floor where he'd been groveling up until now. "So then why did he attack me? It seemed like I was the target of this spawn of Demon King Piccolo's…"
"That is odd indeed." Muten Roshi agreed. "As far as I know, neither of us had any Dragon Balls with us or any other valuable artifact."
"He took the list!" the announcer grabbed his hair and stroke it upward, letting his nerves get to him. "The list of competitors!"
"Ahh…" Muten Roshi tilted his shades. "I see… Well… In that case, we might truly have a chance. It is so unlike Demon King Piccolo to act in desperation and fear that I ruled such a possibility out from the get-go but…"
"Could you clear it up a little bit, Muten Roshi-sama?" Yamcha said.
"It appears that Demon King Piccolo is targeting martial artists. He is afraid that a martial artist would use the Mafuba on him again. He is so much unlike the scorn he once was, the Demon King of old would have invaded the world and took it by force the moment he manifested onto this world… What lowly state has he awakened in to scheme like this?" Muten Roshi explained. "Either way, we have no time to waste! You two, will you help us collect the Dragon Balls?"
"No." Tenshinhan shook his head. "I apologize, Roshi-sama, but I would instead confront Demon King Piccolo myself. I am not sure what these Dragon Balls are or what their purpose is but if the Demon King is targeting all martial artists, this is a matter of pride to me! I will not stand aside and let him rampage across the world nor will I mirror his behavior and scheme behind his back."
"Ten-san…" Chiaotzu floated higher up, almost to where he was level to Tenshinhan's determined expression to take the fight to Demon King Piccolo. The ghoulish shrimp looked conflicted between going with his lifelong friend and partner and saving the world the way it was meant to be saved.
"You might stand a chance." Muten Roshi grumbled. "However, you will not be facing just King Piccolo, you will be facing the entire might of his Evil Clan as well. Each one of them more than a challenge to the mightiest martial artists the Earth had to offer during the heyday of the old generation of martial artists. To challenge Piccolo head-on now is to commit suicide."
"You can take Chiaotzu, he is more than a match for any challenges you might face collecting those Dragon Balls. Even if Demon King's clan folk try to stop you, you would have Muten Roshi and Chiaotzu protecting the Dragon Team." Tenshinhan stood his ground. "Meanwhile, Piccolo Assassination Squad would be taking it to the Demon King and keeping him occupied while you collect the Dragon Balls."
"I see you've excluded Yamcha from the Dragon Team." Muten Roshi stroke his beard.
"Yes. He would be ample back-up if I ran into trouble. Don't forget that I drew blood from Son Goku himself, I will not give Demon King Piccolo an easy fight!" Tenshinhan insisted.
"Very well, only because Demon King Piccolo might try something that will jeopardize our quest for Dragon Balls and because Chiaotzu has taken part in the World Martial Arts Tournament and is, therefore, a target, you and Yamcha might challenge Demon King Piccolo. However, you must understand, the Dragon Balls are wish-granting orbs, but they can only grant you one wish. If we ask the Divine Dragon to destroy Demon King Piccolo, it will not be able to resurrect you within one year. This means that if you die fighting Demon King Piccolo and we use the Dragon Balls to destroy him for good – you cannot come back to life."
"That is a risk I am willing to take, for I am a martial artist and my pride demands I confront those who would disgrace or threaten martial arts!" Tenshinhan clenched his fist with a determined look on his face. A face that understood the gravity of his situation fully but who provided more gravity to the responsibility to challenge and overcome those threatening martial arts over his own well-being. "I will understand if you chicken out though…" he turned to Yamcha.
"Are you kidding me?" Yamcha clenched his fist and placed it by his chest. "If some Demon King is trying to kill all martial artists, he's basically asking for a beating!"
"So you would rather run off again and die rather than protect your girlfriend?" Bulma crossed her arms over her chest, looking displeased with Yamcha but not in the same way she's been displeased before. Her eyes weren't scorned or brimming with rage, they were terrified. She wasn't demanding that Yamcha followed her because of her selfish need to hog the poor dolt all to herself, she wanted him by her side because that's where Demon King Piccolo wouldn't be.
"Sorry, Bulma, I didn't expect or want this to happen but… Krillin's dead. If there's a chance that the Dragon Balls can be used to bring him back, that Tenshinhan and I can defeat Demon King Piccolo, we have to take it." Yamcha wrapped his arms around Bulma and pressed her to his chest.
"But how will we know if Yamcha and Tenshinhan succeeded?" Oolong raised a point. "Let's say we do collect the Dragon Balls and then we have to decide what to wish for, right?"
"No. We will wish for the destruction of Demon King Piccolo." Muten Roshi smirked, judging from his expression, he knew something the rest did not.
"What? But Roshi-sama, Yamcha and I can do it, that's even if Chayote and Son Goku would not have beaten Demon King Piccolo to a pulp by the time we get there!" Tenshinhan looked shocked that Muten Roshi thought so little of their chances to eliminate King Piccolo before the Dragon Balls were collected just after claiming it was possible to someone of their power.
"You don't understand, Chayote and Son Goku are not going to confront Demon King Piccolo. They have no idea where Demon King Piccolo even is. They're headed for Fortuneteller Baba's Palace to cash in the Free Return Ticket for Krillin and bring him back to life. That's after they destroy the Evil Tribe spawn that killed Krillin." Muten Roshi explained. "Chayote appears to be able to sense Ki, Ki as evil as that of Demon King Piccolo must stand out so she might know where the Demon King is though. If you run into them on the way, she can direct you toward his location."
"Bulma, I'll need a jet capsule." Yamcha pulled Bulma off his chest where she had her nails dug up deep into his gi, planning to hold him close and never let go. Since the genius inventor didn't respond, Yamcha reached in for the case in her pocket and pulled out a capsule, pocketing it himself before placing the case back where he'd found it.
"Chayote isn't an excellent flyer. I pale in comparison to her sheer strength and speed but I can beat her in speed of flight. We can still catch up to her, Yamcha, let's go," Tenshinhan asked Yamcha to go already. After nodding to everybody for farewells and then shaking hands with Puar, Yamcha split off of the group and ran off with Tenshinhan who had taken off into the sky already. Yamcha popped the capsule and sat inside the jet, going through the start-up process.
"The Fortuneteller Baba's palace is located in a large lake, surrounded by a desert north of Southwest Forest. The address is FS 199644 CC," Muten Roshi yelled at Yamcha who had almost blasted off without hearing out the directions.
"There he is." Chayote pointed ahead. "The announcer wasn't lying, Krillin did a real number on him, he's flying pretty slowly…"
Up ahead hovered a pathetic excuse for a demon, clutching over his busted ribs and covered with bruises, a long drool of blood hung from his bottom, fishy lip. The demon was of green skin and had a spiky mohawk formation over his head. Pointy ears and no teeth. No body hair to speak of and demonic wings that appeared similar to those of the Devil Man - a demon without a doubt.
"Shit, I've been followed?" the demon turned around, looking dumbstruck that somebody had managed to track him down. His eyes were gaping open to an unnatural degree, further displaying differences from normal, human anatomy. Still, the fact that this expression was one of panic brought pleasure within Chayote's heart.
"Were you the one that killed Krillin!?" Goku demanded to know. It was such a pointless question but the boy seemed to want to hear it from the demon himself. That might have been good for him, hearing the demon speak of Krillin in a lowly manner might have driven him into an even deeper fit of rage. Rage was Saiyan's natural, desired state. Only in such a state could his Saiyan instincts be awakened. Perhaps he'd finally see reason and return to Planet Vegeta with Chayote after raging about for a while?
"Krillin?" the demon wondered, he then ran his eyes across the sheet of papers that he held in his hand and identified a familiar face which he then cast aside, crushed in his sizable hand that donned pointy and dangerous claws. Now the huge hole in Krillin's abdomen made more sense… Still, for someone weaker than Krillin to kill him, he must have been using a technique of sorts that boosted his power level while he used it, not just attacked the baldy physically. "Oh, you mean this guy…"
"Well… Did you kill him or not!?" Goku ground his teeth and held his fists clutched tight by his sides, his muscles were as tense as they ever were and it appeared as if the boy's entire body was twitching with the force that passed through it every other moment in an involuntary twitch. "Because I'll kill you if you did!"
"It wasn't my fault. He committed a grave offense and laid his filthy, human hands on a demon, not just any demon, a spawn of the Demon King Piccolo himself – Tambourine!" the winged demon spread his hands out before quickly clutching his aching sides again. He really wasn't in the best state to do any of this… There would be no honor in putting this miserable fish-fiend out of his misery.
"Why you… You killed Krillin!" Goku roared out into the sky, letting out all of his steam. Before he could unleash all of his pent up rage, however, Tambourine let out a blast from his mouth, flying at Chayote.
"Ki-ki-ki! Let's see you fry sacrificing for your girl friend as your bald chum did for that useless human!" Tambourine taunted Goku as the blast hit Chayote head-on and detonated with a dulled explosion. Once the smoke cleared, Chayote stared back at the demon with a bemused expression, the attack had failed to even wipe all the dust off of her cloak.
W-What!?" Tambourine's jaw dropped. "You dare to not die after a demon of the Evil Tribe has blasted you!? Insolence!"
Goku let out a proud battle cry while leaping off of his Kinto and charging straight at the shocked demon spawn. The young Saiyan turned like a rotating drill in mid-air while charging head-on and delivered an overhead kick that cut through the body of the demon like a fine sword through a beaten steak. Split into two, Tambourine plummeted from the skies over a prairie near Southern Continent.
"I-Impossible… A mere human… Disposed of a demon…" Tambourine whimpered in a weak husk while falling, not moments later, his body lit up and blew up into bits. It was a curious feature of this brand of demons.
"He said something interesting." Chayote pat her shoulder as the blast that hit her managed to ruffle her baggy outfit a little bit and put it into an awkward position to hang, requiring some manual fixing. "This demon appears to have a King of sorts. We can kill him too if you want."
Right now Son Goku wasn't acting straight, not like his usual aloof behavior at all. He had just killed an already broken weakling in cold blood by attacking him without a hint of restraint. If Chayote could just nudge him to eradicate a whole race of these demons or at least leaving them kingless, then maybe he'd get a taste for those sorts of things and develop a craving?
"No. Let's bring Krillin back if you hadn't reconsidered…" Goku turned back to Chayote after the Kinto had moved down under him and caught him shortly after his attack on Tambourine. "Krillin's death has been avenged for now. We can flatten that Piccolo-guy later, together with Krillin."
"Alright." Chayote shrugged. It was worth a shot.
"Look, this signal on the radar. I think Bulma's outfitted this jet with a Dragon Radar. Hers must have one too… She's really been outfitting all of her gear with those things recently… I suppose with both Chayote and Goku running errands for her and looking for Dragon Balls, it can't be helped," Yamcha smirked. "Should we land and scoop it up? It's not too far from our current location…"
"Forget it. Our goal is to destroy Demon King Piccolo." Tenshinhan's telekinetic signal returned to Yamcha having overheard Yamcha speaking to him through a speaker on the jet he was flying. "The last thing we want to do is give him a free Dragon Ball in case we fail."
"Ah, I see, maybe that's smarter…" Yamcha gave in. "It seems to be moving. Somebody must have found it…"
"Don't worry, even if it is a Demon King Piccolo's spawn, Chiaotzu and Roshi-sama are more than enough. The announcer said that Krillin would have beaten one if it didn't trick him. That gives us an estimate of how strong those things are." Tenshinhan explained.
"So, at this point, we're just flying toward the Fortuneteller Baba's palace, hoping we'll bump into Chayote and Goku so that Chayote can tell us where King Piccolo is?" Yamcha wondered.
"Unless you have a better plan…" Tenshinhan said.
"No, let's keep on accelerating forward and hope that Chayote and Goku didn't get too far ahead of us." Yamcha shrugged.
"Stop!" Tenshinhan straightened his back out and halted in a split-instant once a rich formation of clouds split right in front of him, revealing a boat with wings that seemed to have been functioning as an airship and hovering in the sky just above the prairie where Yamcha had just picked up a Dragon Ball in. "Could this be?"
"Pilaf?" Yamcha read a logo on the side of the airship written with proud, man-sized white letters in a black background. "Don't worry, those guys are harmless, they're after the Dragon Balls, Son Goku and I have once ruined their plans for world domination."
"World domination is harmless?" Tenshinhan turned to the stationary jet Yamcha was in.
"With these guys going after it, it would be." Yamcha waved his hand at the giant airship as if it was just a lumbering joke in their path. "I guess it wouldn't hurt taking these guys down so that they don't get in Dragon Team's way."
With a mechanical noise, the wooden lid atop of the airship moved aside, letting three capsules hurl out from inside the ship. A blue one, a green one, and a pink one, all of the heavy, steel containers had other compartments on their sides open up, releasing mechanical limbs attached to heavy steel wire and completing the formation of three mechs in front of Tenshinhan and Yamcha's jet. Yamcha opened the front door of the window and emerged through the side of the jet that flared blazes downward to remain in mid-air, level to the airship.
"You guys, just give up and let us pass!" Yamcha yelled at the trio of the Pilaf Crew outfitted in their robot suits that barely seemed a step more advanced than the ones they've used before. "It's me, remember?"
"Whaaa!" a cybernetically augmented shriek of Shu, the canine swordsman of Pilaf's crew, made Yamcha smirk. His reputation spoke for itself. "He's from that brat's crew!"
"Calm down, Shu, he's alone, the brat is nowhere to be seen!" Pilaf tried getting his squadmate in line.
"But this is the dreamier and more competent one…" a feminine voice left the largest, pink mech-suit. "He is trouble too! We should leave it to Demon King Piccolo and his children instead…"
"D-Did you say Demon King Piccolo!?" Tenshinhan, who to this point was just floating and looking embarrassed for the enemy, lost his cool.
"Y-Yeah, that's right! We've teamed up with Demon King Piccolo so you losers better scram and let King Piccolo collect his Dragon Ball!" Pilaf looked confused at first but then let the development of the situation work to his favor by exploiting the respectful fear and surprise in Tenshinhan's voice.
"Well then, it's just our luck…" Yamcha smiled and jumped at Tenshinhan who caught and swung his partner over to the top of the airship before reducing the jet that Yamcha flew in back to a capsule and placing it by his belt, then flying over to join his partner in laying siege to Demon King Piccolo's airship.
"Sh-Shit! They're not backing down!" Shu shook inside his robot-suit erratically enough to let out busting, metallic bangs from inside.
"Calm down, if we take care of these two, maybe King Piccolo will give us more than just one-fifth of the world to rule, maybe we'll get a full one-third!" Pilaf tried getting his cohorts back under his control and this worked somewhat.
"You're right, we should combine at once and defeat them!" Mai agreed and took her position behind the leading mech-suit.
"Let me take care of these guys…" Yamcha, with a confident smirk, turned back to Tenshinhan.
"I know what you're doing. You mean to defeat them so that I challenge Demon King Piccolo first so that then you can challenge him after me, if he defeats me, knowing his abilities and seeing him weakened after my fight. Such a lowly and pitiful attempt…" Tenshinhan mocked his rival playfully before wrapping his arms around his chest and moving back a bit. "Well… Seeing how I will defeat Demon King Piccolo anyway, there is no need for me to worry about any of that happening. I'll let you satisfy yourself with some measly robot-goons, let me know if you are in trouble and need some help."
"Are they… Really friends…?" Mai wondered aloud inside her mech-suit.