West City.
Near Capsule Corporation stood a quiet, detached villa.
This was the home of Loren and Android 18.
Gohan stood at the gate with Videl, both of them looking a little stiff.
"This is it," Gohan said.
He took a deep breath and pressed the doorbell.
Videl's heart jumped into her throat.
She quickly adjusted her clothes, trying to look as presentable as possible.
The door opened.
Standing there was Android 18, her golden hair shining, dressed casually in a white T-shirt and denim shorts.
"Sister Android 18," Gohan greeted respectfully.
Android 18 glanced at Videl for a moment, then gave a light nod.
"Come in."
Videl followed Gohan into the living room.
And then—she saw Loren.
Loren was sprawled across the sofa in an utterly undignified position, his head resting on a pillow, a game controller in his hand.
His eyes were glued to the screen.
"Bang!"
K.O.
"Damn it!"
Loren clicked his tongue and tossed the controller aside.
"What kind of garbage balance is this game using?"
He didn't even look up.
Or rather—he noticed them, but clearly didn't care.
"..."
Videl froze.
This was…
The man who defeated Cell and saved the world?
He looked like a lazy gamer being supported by his girlfriend.
No—actually, Android 18 didn't look like someone who supported anyone.
So what exactly was going on here?
"Teacher Loren," Gohan finally spoke, bracing himself.
"This is my classmate, Videl. She—"
"Oh."
Loren lazily sat up and finally glanced at her.
His gaze swept over Videl briefly.
"Mr. Satan's daughter?"
"Yes… yes," Videl answered nervously, her palms sweaty.
"Hello, Mr. Loren."
"Mm."
Loren nodded, then leaned back again, picked up his juice, and took a sip.
"So?"
"What do you want?"
"I… I…"
Videl's carefully prepared words of admiration got completely stuck.
Seeing this, Gohan quickly stepped in.
"Teacher, Videl just learned how to fly."
"But her Ki control isn't very stable yet."
"So she wanted to ask you… for some guidance."
"Guidance?"
Loren raised an eyebrow and looked at Videl again.
"Stand up. Fly."
"Ah—yes!"
Videl nodded quickly.
She took a deep breath and activated her Ki.
Her body slowly lifted off the ground—shaky and unstable.
She was clearly forcing herself to stay airborne.
Sweat had already formed on her forehead.
"Stop."
Loren cut her off after one glance.
Videl immediately landed, looking nervous.
"Is it… really bad?"
"It's not bad," Loren said calmly.
"It's stupid."
"Eh?!"
Both Videl and Gohan froze.
"You're using brute force, not Ki," Loren said, crossing his legs comfortably.
"You're treating Ki like muscle power—pushing it, squeezing it, forcing it out."
"You think you're controlling it, but you're actually fighting against it."
"That's why you look exhausted just hovering in place."
Videl's eyes widened.
That was it.
That awkward, strained feeling—he described it perfectly.
"Then… what should I do?" she asked earnestly.
Loren pointed at the glass of juice Android 18 had just set down.
"How much strength do you need to pick that up?"
"…Not much."
"When you pick it up, do you calculate how much your biceps should contract?"
"No."
"Exactly."
Loren yawned.
"Flying should be the same."
"It should feel like breathing. Like drinking water."
"You don't 'control' Ki—you get used to it."
"Let it become part of you, not a tool you wrestle with."
"Stop treating it like homework."
"Treat it like play."
"When you can do flips in the air and drink juice at the same time, you're almost there."
With that, Loren picked up his controller again.
"Lesson over."
"Gohan, if there's nothing else, take your classmate home."
"Don't interrupt my rank climb."
"..."
Videl stood there, completely silent.
Instinct.
Habit.
Play.
Those words shattered the fog in her mind.
She had treated Ki and flight like advanced techniques she needed to conquer.
So she tensed up.
Forced it.
And failed.
She finally understood—her approach had been wrong from the start.
"Thank you, Mr. Loren!"
Videl bowed deeply toward his back.
"I understand now!"
Loren waved his hand dismissively without looking back.
Gohan gave Android 18 an apologetic smile and left the villa with Videl.
They walked quite a distance before Videl finally spoke again.
"Gohan…"
Her voice trembled slightly.
"Your teacher… he's terrifying."
"Just a few words—and everything suddenly made sense."
Gohan laughed and scratched his head.
"Teacher's always been like that."
Videl looked at the honest boy beside her and suddenly understood something.
With a father like Goku, and a teacher like Loren…
No wonder Gohan was this strong.
"Gohan," Videl said seriously.
"I'll work hard for the World Martial Arts Tournament."
"I won't let you, Uncle Goku, or Mr. Loren down."
"Yeah!" Gohan nodded enthusiastically.
"Do your best!"
As he looked at the determined girl beside him, Gohan felt his own fighting spirit stir once more.
Dad.
Uncle Vegeta.
Everyone.
This World Martial Arts Tournament…
Was going to be very interesting.
...
Author's Note:
The fanfic Dragon Ball: I Became Invincible by Being a Lazy Salted Fish! is now fully completed.
The entire story has been uploaded on Patreon as a dedicated collection:
📚 Dragon Ball (Chapters 1–404)
Organized into 47 posts, with multiple chapters per post for easy binge reading.
🔥 I also have an Additional 18+ fanfics now available for readers who enjoy exclusive mature stories. 😉
1.Dragon Ball: Oolong's Sex Adventure
2. Elements of Lust – ATLA & Korra Mixed Smut
3. Doraemon: Filtering with Nobi Tamako
4. The Naive Me Who Became Someone's Everyday Secret
5. High School DxD: Rias Gremory, the Phenex Bride
🔗 patreon.com/Shadow_demon_007
Thank you all for your continuous support and love for this story 💙