NOVEL NEXT Chapter 4: Growth (4)
'I really am a handful'
I grumbled with irritation as I emerged from the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, rolling my shoulders.
Kami's head swiveled rapidly, his eyes narrowing as he caught sight of me.
'But if my math is correct, only five minutes have passed in real time, the Time Chamber is too overpowered'
It was absolutely insane that such a resource was just sitting on Earth, un-utilized by anybody.
Kami dropped his watering can slowly, making no sudden movements until he fired a Ki beam in my direction with speed.
'That's cute'
I simply stretched my palm, the wave of Ki absorbed on contact.
Kami's expression changed.
"Who are you!?" he demanded.
'What's his lore again?'
In Dragon Ball World, Kami was a Dragon-Clan Namekian that had fled Planet Namek due to a series of escalating natural disasters, alongside Piccolo, a Warrior-Clan Namekian.
The pair of them managed to find their way onto Earth and Piccolo immediately desired to conquer the planet, wanting to turn it into the hub of a future intergalactic empire he would build.
Kami had always been aware of this tendency and forged relationships with human Martial Arts masters as a contingency, so that when Piccolo finally gave in to his desires, he could collaborate with them to defeat Piccolo.
In this version, Kami had taken the burden to seal Piccolo inside himself, fusing with him.
This event was actually what drove Master Mutaito to develop the Evil Containment Wave, yet ironically, he wasn't unable to share this creation with Kami.
'I should probably help him out'
It was just one less variable to deal with.
Kami flinched as I wordlessly approached him, apprehensively swinging his cane in my direction.
PYUU!
I used Instant Transmission to teleport to the other side of his strike, his cane hitting air.
Kami groaned in fear as I placed my hand on his shoulder.
"Ugghh!"
I used Forced Spirit Fission, Kami groaning fearfully as he felt a surge of ki rush out of him, realizing the Piccolo had been unleashed.
"FINALLY! After all of these years! I've been-"
BOOOOOOM!
Unfortunately, Piccolo had no time to monologue as a Meteor Bomb ruthlessly smashed into his body, eviscerating him on contact.
Kami's jaw dropped and he fell to his feet as he watched light green smoke flow high into the air, a black burn spot etched onto the white surface of the Lookout.
'Kami looks awfully weak'
He was a wrinkly old Namekian and despite the moral burden Piccolo had put on him, he still relied on Piccolo for most of his strength as a Guardian.
I placed my hand on his head, channeling my Ki into his body.
Kami collapsed fully as a deep warmth radiated inside his old body, his skin quickly tightening while his muscles momentarily expanded, a series of dramatic changes wracking through him.
The gap between my Ki and his Ki was almost beyond description, a little bit of my energy enough to permanently rejuvenate him.
"That's payment for my past and future use of the Time Chamber, have a nice day," I said bluntly, descending from the Lookout.
Kami continued to stare at me dumbfoundedly.
He looked at me and then at the burn mark and then at his own transformed body cyclically, in sheer disbelief, stun locked.
'I'll chat with him later'
Whether I wanted to conquer the universe or not, it kind of went without saying that I wanted Earth to be my primary planet.
'I can sense my other clones'
Ki Sense was a ridiculous ability, being able to supernaturally map out the world around you and discern the vitality and strength of all living things near you, beyond surreal.
But that was just my reality now.
PYUUU!
'They've already started'
The Festival of Spirit took place in a large open field in the Sacred Land of Korin, Korin's Tower only a few feet away from the arena. A large circular platform made of stone served as the stage of the contest, intricate symbols lining its edges.
A small crowd of village dwellers, martial artists and travelers surrounded the stage on all sides, sitting on blocks of stone, while Korin, the fluffy white cat, sat on an exalted throne overlooking the platform.
Stood on the platform was King Chappa, a well-built dark skinned man that looked roughly Indian, clad in form-fitting yellow marital arts robes that exposed the right side of his chest and shoulder. Opposite him was Nam, a slightly lighter-skinned man on the same ethnic descent, wearing a turban and orange martial arts robes.
My clone was stood on the outskirts of a forest not too far away, strategically out of sight of the competitors and observers.
He spun apprehensively as I appeared deeper in the forest behind him, walking towards him slowly.
I smirked as the cogs turned in his brain.
"Hasn't it only been five minutes?!"
"That's roughly thirty hours in the Time Chamber and there are nearly a hundred of us at this point"
His expression softened, a little awe in his eyes as I approached him.
"How much progress have you made?"
"Well we can actually fight now," I said, causing him to smile. "We can do Instant Transmission and we've even created a few Special Moves"
"Seriously!?"
"It was all calculated, explosive return on investment was always a part of the plan," I reasoned.
"W-Well since you're here, let's merge"
'Hmph!'
'Hmph!'
I dapped him up, my palm and his palm connecting firmly.
I then soaked myself with Ki, allowing a clear white aura to flare around me before I willed myself to accelerate forward, my clone doing the exact same.
It a matter of seconds, our bodies collided with each other, our Majin flexibility triggered as our collided masses became fluid, forming a human brown blob that eventually rippled and re-structured, our features and form rapidly developing.
At this point though, our consciousnesses were still separate.
My clone widened our eyes as a surge of information freely flowed into his mind, memories of all our training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber playing out at 100x speed, a multitude of different perspectives and viewpoints thrust upon him.
At the same time, our body began to modify, the composition of our muscles shifting ever so slightly to reflect the vast experience generated inside the Time Chamber.
It took about a second but eventually our consciousnesses merged, streamlining into one again.
'Woah'
My eyes flickered open and shut as I tried to get my bearings, the vast volume of POV footage blasted into my brain, flashing periodically in my active mind.
'This is too unbalanced'
I was loosely aware that mixing the Hyperbolic Time Chamber with my absurdly high growth rate, practically infinite Senzu Beans and clone training efficiency would allow my Power Level to skyrocket but tasting the gains first-hand was absolutely something else.
'I don't even feel like fighting these guys anymore'
The competitors for the Festival of Spirit were primarily World Martial Arts Tournament jobbers, bums that I could definitely one shot with ease.
My revised lore made it so that the Power Levels of Earthlings weren't in the single digits because they actually trained but none of them could teach me anything or even help me grow that much.
'I should probably just go'
I really mulled it over in my mind but I couldn't really find a good reason to participate in the competition. While it was an opportunity to make myself known among Earthlings and start building my reputation, I wasn't committed to revealing myself just yet.
"Hey, dark and beefy! Get over here!"
'Huh?'
My body softened as I beheld the busty pale-skinned bushy blonde-haired girl that called out to me from afar.
It was Launch.
She was wearing a comically tight green crop top and beige booty shorts, her clothes revealing her smooth curves, wide hips and hourglass figure. On her back she carried a suspiciously large backpack, that being her only accessory.
It was odd to say but she was easily the most beautiful girl I had ever seen. The kind of beauty that wasn't supposed to exist in the real world, only possible in drawings or paintings.
"Don't tell me you're chickening out! I wanted to see you fight!" she continued, barking angrily at me.
My expression softened as my gaze lingered over her form.
It was a little cringe to admit but I was smitten already, my reproductive urges which had been dormant ever since I entered this body, revived with unbelievable vigor.
I leapt up into the air, covering the short distance between us and landing by her side, a mildly impressed expression finding her face.
"Y-You look way too big and strong to not get up on that stage and show us what you've got!" she insisted, ogling me.
"I just want to leave the fighters here alone, their not as strong as I thought they'd be so I'm gonna go home," I said sheepishly, trying not to stumble on my words.
'This Majin body is really dangerous'
I tried to shake off my emotions but they overpowered me, my rational mind subdued.
"So you think you're hot stuff, huh? I'm bettin' all that muscle's just for show! Prove me wrong, tough guy!" she said, smacking my abs.
Her touch set a ripple in my body, a slight disorientation gripping me.
'Get it together!'
I was angry at myself for being so pathetic. Majin body or not, the mere touch of a woman shouldn't have scrambled my settings to severely.
I shook my head, trying to reset my mind.
"Are the fighters on the stage boring you that much?" I opened.
"Boring doesn't even cover it! I've seen better fights at a kids' playground!" she said sharply. "But you look like you could fight really well, it kinda sucks that you don't want to go at it," she complained.
I smiled involuntary. What can I say? Having an attractive girl be this invested in you was like an ice pack to a sprained ankle.
"Well if it sucks that much, let's get out of here," I offered, as smoothly as I could manage.
"Mmm, nah, I wanna rob this place anyway," she said bluntly.
I recoiled slightly, maneuvering past my wounded pride.
"The winner gets a Senzu Bean, right? That magical little thing that heals ya up? Bet I could make a fortune sellin' that on the Black Market," she admitted with a wicked grin.
"How are you going to take if off the winner?"
"Martial arts don't make you bulletproof," she scoffed, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
I smiled wryly.
"Well I happen to have some Senzu Beans, I can get you some if you really want," I offered.
"Really? If you hand them over me to me, we can split the profits, I'm willin' to do 70-30 but only cuz you're buff," she said, dropping her backpack.
I smirked.
"Deal"
I quickly used Instant Transmission to teleport back to the Lookout, teleporting again directly in front of the Hyperbolic Time Chamber.