Outer Court · Seventh Universe · Earth · Penguin Village
After returning from the Dragon Realm, Yamiru finally understood that the comedic, almost nonsensical atmosphere of Penguin Village wasn't purely random. It had actually been shaped by the power of the Dragon God.
This small village had been transformed into something akin to a fairy-tale fantasy world.
Here, even an ordinary middle school girl like Akane Kimidori could accomplish unbelievable feats—things that outsiders like Yamiru and his companions would consider completely irrational.
For example, she could shout words into existence as tangible objects.
Or, no matter how severe her injuries were, she wouldn't die. In fact, after a single day, she'd be back to normal, as if nothing had ever happened.
Perhaps, just as the Dragon God jokingly said, this kind of environment was indeed "interesting".
The Dragon God enjoyed interesting things, and conversely, any place the Dragon God took an interest in would inevitably become interesting.
Yamiru speculated that if someone pragmatic, realistic, dull, or simply unamused stayed in Penguin Village, they probably wouldn't benefit from the Dragon God's influence at all.
With that in mind, Yamiru decided not to tell Arale, Dr. Norimaki, or the others about what he had learned.
To be honest, he found this Dragon God quite terrifying.
If one day the Dragon God decided it would be more amusing for the entire Omniverse to become like Penguin Village, he could make it happen effortlessly.
And would such a world be interesting to Yamiru? The mere thought sent chills down his spine.
That kind of "interesting" felt too chaotic—just imagining it gave him a headache.
But then again, a world where the whims of a god dictated reality was exactly what one should expect from a being of the Dragon God's stature. Assuming that a god of such power was merely a benevolent and harmless old man who happened to be "on their side" was, in a way, the arrogance of mortals.
"Hehehe…"
While Yamiru was deep in thought, little Arale was chugging an entire canister of gasoline like it was a bottle of soda.
Right beside her, Bulma watched with great interest—it was clear that she had encouraged Arale to do this. But neither Arale nor Bulma seemed to think it was a big deal. It was obvious that Bulma, still in her childhood innocence, had fully adapted to the absurdity of Penguin Village.
As for the others, even Tights was simply enjoying the spectacle.
Dr. Norimaki? He was a man who once disassembled Arale and plucked food straight from her stomach compartment. Drinking gasoline? That was nothing to worry about—Arale was a robot, after all.
"Did you just go to the Spiritual Realm?" Tights asked with a cheerful smile, sidling up to Yamiru.
"Mm." Yamiru nodded. Honestly, he felt a bit envious of Arale's carefree nature. In this aspect, the little robot girl was even purer than Son Goku. "I went to ask the Dragon God about some things… I'll tell you the details another time. But it's nothing bad."
"Alright~" Tights tilted her head playfully. She wasn't particularly concerned with knowing the specifics. She reached out and rubbed Yamiru's forehead. "Stop overthinking everything and come have some fun."
Yamiru exhaled and joined in on the laughter.
---
The next day.
The alien fly-man had long since fled Earth in terror. His spaceship wasn't technologically superior to the ones piloted by Jaco or Jiora, so it didn't hold much research value.
As for the technology within Arale, Dr. Brief had gained a general understanding of it. But delving deeper would take far longer than just a day or two. Besides, Dr. Brief had little interest in designing humanoid artificial intelligence.
Thus, after spending a night in Penguin Village, the Brief family departed at dawn.
Despite becoming fast friends, Arale and Bulma showed no sadness at parting ways. They simply waved goodbye with bright smiles.
Tights didn't leave with her father and sister; she chose to stay with Yamiru, continuing their unplanned and destinationless journey.
Master Roshi also didn't leave with Dr. Brief and the others. Instead, he cupped his hands around his mouth and called out to the sky—
"Nimbus!"
This startled Tights.
"What kind of look is that?" Master Roshi growled, irritated by the gazes of Yamiru and Tights. "This cloud was originally brought down from Korin Tower, okay? You think I can't ride on it?"
Yamiru and Tights simultaneously thought, Doesn't the fact that we can immediately guess what you're doubting mean...
"The young people these days! So rude!" Master Roshi grumbled. Meanwhile, a golden cloud flew down from the sky and came to a stop in front of him. Both Dr. Norimaki and Arale were surprised, especially Arale, who eagerly grabbed the tail of the Flying Nimbus and climbed onto it.
Those who understood the characteristics of the Flying Nimbus weren't shocked to see Arale riding on it. If someone as pure-hearted as Arale couldn't ride it, that would be truly strange.
Yamiru explained the Flying Nimbus's properties to Dr. Norimaki, who, unsurprisingly, passed right through the cloud and fell flat.
Arale, seeing that the doctor couldn't touch the golden cloud, gave a confused expression.
"Ahem," Dr. Norimaki stood up and dusted himself off, grumbling, "What a bothersome cloud!" He glanced at Tights, who was smiling mischievously, and Yamiru, who looked as if he had expected this. Dr. Norimaki grew even more annoyed. "Yamiru, can you ride it?"
Yamiru shrugged. "I can fly on my own."
Tights' smile widened with amusement...
"Hey~ Little Cloud, good morning~!" A blonde middle school girl named Akane Kimidori walked over with a schoolbag slung over her shoulder, her youthful face radiating energy. "Wow, such a beautiful cloud! Did the doctor make it?"
"Nope, Kimidori-chan." Arale answered cheerfully from atop the cloud.
After learning that only good children could ride the Flying Nimbus, Kimidori teased, "Well, that's what happens when the doctor always has those pervy thoughts!"
Dr. Norimaki snapped, "You talk like you could ride it!"
"I'm the best-behaved child! A beautiful girl has arrived!" Kimidori proudly tied her schoolbag straps around her head like a headband, rolled up her sleeves, and cheerfully jumped at the cloud. However, the moment she touched it, she fell straight through, landing on her backside with a loud thud. "Ouch!"
"Hahaha!" Dr. Norimaki laughed so hard he nearly doubled over.
"It's all because I'm too beautiful..." Kimidori muttered as she nonchalantly patted her bottom and stood up. "Looks like that's my sin."
Yamiru thought to himself, This girl really reminds me of Bulma during her teenage years.
"Alright, enough fooling around. It's time for this old man to head back." Master Roshi clapped his hands, and Arale jumped down from the cloud. He struggled to tear his gaze away from Kimidori's youthful figure behind his sunglasses, quickly refocusing, reciting the morning news in his head and recalling the scenes of his rigorous training from hundreds of years ago... If I fall off the Nimbus now, I'll be completely embarrassed.
Fortunately, the Martial Arts God stood up on the cloud. As he sighed in relief, Yamiru couldn't help but feel a little nostalgic.
Back when he had been cornered by the Red Ribbon Army, he had once met the criteria to ride the Flying Nimbus...
Yamiru's peripheral vision suddenly noticed that the speed and shape of the clouds in the sky were changing, something felt odd. He focused his attention and realized the surrounding environment had quieted down just a little. As he gathered his energy and sharpened his hearing, he could even hear the sound of sand and dirt gently moving on the ground...
"What's wrong with the old man?" Tights' voice snapped Yamiru back to reality.
He looked at Master Roshi on the Flying Nimbus, who had turned his head to look at a certain spot in the sky, his lips tightly pressed together, a faint sheen of sweat on his forehead.
"What's going on?" Dr. Norimaki asked, cigarette dangling from his mouth.
Master Roshi just shook his head. As he lowered his gaze, the reflection in his sunglasses showed Yamiru's thoughtful expression. He knew that Yamiru had probably figured out what was happening.
"The 20th World Martial Arts Tournament is coming up soon. Are you going to participate?" Master Roshi asked. "Tien Shinhan and Chiaotzu are likely going to enter."
Yamiru thought for a moment, then shook his head. "No, I won't be participating."