'So. You're leaving?'
Naruto paused after hearing Kid Goku's words.
Just as Kid Goku had appeared out of nowhere, he was now leaving just as abruptly.
It was a bit better than Goku coming and going without warning. After all, Goku had only arrived because he died. This time, he probably wouldn't be going back. Since the older Saiyan died of a heart virus, he couldn't be revived with the Dragon Balls.
'Wait death?' Naruto seemed to catch onto a key point. It seemed Kid Goku had come because he drank the Ultra Divine Water. Was he in a near-death state after drinking it? Relying on his tenacious Saiyan vitality and his own unyielding will, he had forced his way back from the brink of death.
It was almost a 1/1000 chance of survival.
If there was a common thread between the two arrivals, it was probably that both involved dying.
"I have something I must do." Kid Goku clenched his fists, speaking with quiet force. "I'm going back to defeat King Piccolo and avenge Master Roshi, Krillin, and the others."
Naruto didn't try to stop him. He knew Kid Goku had to return to his original world and stop the Demon King who was preparing to destroy it.
Kid Goku bowed deeply to the two humans and the beast. "I'm leaving. Thanks for taking care of me."
"Hahaha, go for it, you can do it," Goku said carelessly, offering a bright grin.
"Hmph, you tailed brat. If you're leaving, hurry up and go." Kurama turned his back, cursing softly. "Out of sight, out of mind."
Before long, Kurama's gruff voice echoed again. "You can definitely beat that Demon King or whoever. Remember, you're the human who defeated me, Kurama, in a fair fight. Don't embarrass me."
'What a tsundere fox.'
Kid Goku's power was already slightly higher than the Demon King's after drinking the Ultra Divine Water, now, after being trained by Goku for an entire year, Naruto believed that with his current strength, he could beat the living daylights out of King Piccolo.
But he didn't know if that would mean Piccolo wouldn't be born.
"Mhm!" Kid Goku said forcefully.
Then his body began to gradually fade into particles of light.
"Good luck, you can beat him." Naruto also offered his sincere blessings. "See you again someday."
"See you aga-"
Before Kid Goku could finish his sentence, he vanished entirely from the Seal Space.
Naruto stared at the empty spot, stunned at first, then shocked, muttering quietly, "This feeling... it really is possible we'll meet again."
He felt like he had grasped something, yet it remained just out of reach.
--**--**
Another timeline.
Korin Tower, the legendary holy land of martial arts, towered into Kumos far from the ground. At the summit, tens of thousands of meters up, stood a pristine oval building.
"Mmm..." After drinking the Ultra Divine Water, Kid Goku, who had been lying on the ground unconscious, suddenly twitched his fingers. His eyelashes quivered, and a soft moan escaped his throat.
A long while later, he slowly opened his eyes.
The first thing he saw was a large, round, flat face leaning over him.
The owner of that flat face spoke happily upon seeing him wake up. "Hey, hey, hey, Mister Hermit or whatever you call yourself you big cat, Goku seems to be awake."
Yajirobe was a skilled swordsman from the early Dragon Ball days. He appeared cowardly and weak on the surface, but he was actually a guy with a strong sense of honor. He played a key role many times, if not for him, the Earth would have probably been destroyed several times over.
"Call me Master Korin, you ill-mannered brat." The one Yajirobe had called 'Mister Hermit' was a large white cat leaning heavily on a wooden staff.
Master Korin, the Cat Hermit living atop Korin Tower. His ancient duty was to select excellent martial artists for the Sanctuary. Since he had waited hundreds of years without a suitable candidate appearing, he had almost forgotten the duty himself.
"You're clearly just a cat, yet you insist on calling yourself a Hermit," Yajirobe muttered under his breath.
His voice couldn't escape Korin's keen perception, infuriating the feline sage to the point where he wanted to smack the human with his cane. "I still haven't settled the score with you for eating my Senzu Beans."
Yajirobe was most famous for the title 'Senzu Bean Destroyer'. Rumor had it that in the later Dragon Ball era, Korin's stockpile, accumulated over hundreds of years, was almost entirely devoured by him alone.
"Stingy old man, it's not like I ate more than a few beans."
'A few? You grabbed a handful and ate at least several dozen.'
Even if he treated the beans as snacks when he was bored, they were still precious items belonging to a sage. Korin fumed with deep frustration.
"I'm back?" Kid Goku had fully awakened by now. Seeing the two bickering, he stood up on his own accord, dusted his gi off, and clenched his fists. He could feel vibrant power surging through his veins.
"I'm really back!"
"Goku, you're awake?" Korin decided not to bother with Yajirobe, that unreasonable pest. He walked up to the boy and looked him up and down with mild curiosity. "How do you feel right now?"
For hundreds of years, countless martial arts masters had attempted the Ultra Divine Water challenge, but without exception, none could withstand its deep toxicity. This had led him to believe the water was nothing more than pure poison.
In Korin's long experience, Kid Goku was the only person alive to have successfully completed the challenge.
Naturally, he was curious.
"I feel amazing!" Kid Goku jumped on the spot a few times, testing his lightness, then turned his gaze toward the distance. "I can feel it, that evil ki."
Whatever needed to be said could wait. The most important thing now was to defeat King Piccolo, the monster who had killed Korin and the rest.
A powerful fighting intent erupted from the young Saiyan's body.
"King Piccolo is over there."
Korin looked at Kid Goku in deep shock. In that fleeting instant, he felt as though he weren't facing a child, but the Kami himself.
Such immense ki.
To think it could amplify his power to this staggering degree. The Ultra Divine Water's true effects were utterly terrifying.
"Korin, give me two Senzu Beans," Kid Goku suddenly said.
"Here you go." Korin fished two beans out of a nearby jar and handed them over. "You planning to take the Flying Nimbus there?"
"No, I'm going to fly."
With those words, Kid Goku leaped into the air amidst the shocked stares of Yajirobe and Korin. His entire body enveloped by a white current of air, he flew at full speed toward King Piccolo's location.
The Super Enhanced Kid Goku had arrived!
Three seconds of silence for King Piccolo.
'He can fly? Did the Ultra Divine Water have that effect too?'
Korin looked with uncertainty at the jug of Ultra Divine Water sitting on a nearby pedestal, then shifted his calculating gaze to Yajirobe.
"How about... you give it a try?"
"No way, absolutely not." Yajirobe shook his head like a rattle drum. He had tasted a single drop, just that one drop had made him feel like he was dying in agony. Drinking the whole thing would undoubtedly kill him for real.
Even if he could fly, he didn't want it. Staying alive was the best option.
As the member of the Z Fighters who valued his own life the most, Yajirobe had no desire to try such a bizarre substance.
===============
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