The blazing midday sun scorched the earth mercilessly.
Even the air itself seemed to shimmer from the intense heat.
Inside a bustling town located several hundred kilometers away from West City, people continued moving about busily as usual.
“Boss, how much is this mask?” A clear youthful voice suddenly sounded from the front of a small general store.
The shop owner, a short and chubby middle-aged man lazily waving a cattail fan to chase away flies, instinctively raised his head after hearing the question.
Then he froze slightly.
Standing before him was a teenager around thirteen or fourteen years old.
The young man wore a simple martial arts uniform with short sleeves that exposed lean yet well-defined muscles.
Orange martial arts pants were tied tightly around his waist with a black belt.
Most eye-catching of all were his deep obsidian-like eyes and the brown Saiyan tail gently swaying behind him.
“Oh…
ah!
Young man, you’ve got good taste!” The owner hurriedly smiled.
“This mask is modeled after the Evil Oni from ancient eastern theater legends.
Only five hundred zeni!” The teenager casually picked up the mask.
It was entirely white with blood-red fangs and vicious glaring eyes painted onto its surface, giving it an intimidating appearance.
“Interesting.” A faint smile appeared on Sun Wuxiu’s lips.
He casually tossed several bills onto the counter before placing the mask directly onto his face.
“Keep the change.” Before the shop owner could even react, a fierce gust of wind suddenly erupted through the entire store.
The hanging decorations clattered wildly.
The owner’s vision blurred briefly.
Then, when he opened his eyes again, the young man had already disappeared completely without a trace.
It was as if he had never been there at all.
Outside the town, across the open wilderness.
A white streak shot across the landscape at unbelievable speed.
The power of the [Rabbit Talisman] surged wildly through Sun Wuxiu’s body.
Underneath the oni mask, excitement flashed brightly within his eyes.
Four years.
For four entire years during his training at Kame House, he had deliberately sealed away most of the talismans’ active powers in order to temper his martial arts foundation and prevent himself from becoming overly dependent on cheat abilities.
Especially the [Rabbit Talisman].
During all those years, he had resisted using its super speed completely, relying only on his own physical abilities while training under Master Roshi.
To him, it felt like someone accustomed to driving a supercar suddenly being forced to ride a broken bicycle for years.
But now…
The restraints were finally gone.
“This feels incredible!!” Sun Wuxiu could not help letting out a loud shout.
At his current speed, the surrounding scenery had already stretched into blurred lines.
Forests.
Mountains.
Rivers.
Everything vanished behind him instantly.
This speed had long surpassed the sound barrier.
In fact, it had already entered an even more terrifying realm.
The wind no longer felt like resistance against his body.
Instead, it felt almost as though the air itself had become his servant under the Rabbit Talisman’s influence.
“With my current base strength combined with the Rabbit Talisman at full power…” Sun Wuxiu calmly evaluated himself while speeding across the land.
“At this point in time, aside from the mysterious Mr.
Popo on the Lookout, nobody on Earth should surpass me in movement speed.” “Even Kami himself probably couldn’t match me in a pure speed contest.” The exhilaration brought by such overwhelming speed made him feel playful.
When crossing a large lake, he deliberately chose not to fly over it.
Instead, he directly sprinted across the water surface itself.
The moment his feet touched the lake, white waves exploded outward behind him while countless startled seabirds scattered into the sky.
Before long, Mount Paozu finally appeared in the distance.
“Whoosh!” The violent wind stopped abruptly.
Sun Wuxiu instantly appeared before the familiar courtyard.
The transition from extreme speed to complete stillness was perfectly natural, as though he had been standing there the entire time.
Looking at the wooden house he had personally rebuilt four years ago, warmth flashed briefly in his eyes.
Morning glories climbed along the wooden fence.
Several patched martial arts uniforms hung drying in the courtyard.
Those were the clothes he and Goku wore as children.
“Grandpa?
Goku?” Sun Wuxiu pushed open the courtyard gate and called softly.
No answer came.
The house was unusually silent.
A thin layer of dust had already gathered across the table, making it obvious nobody had properly cooked here in some time.
“They’re not home?” Sun Wuxiu walked over to the stove and touched the cooking pot.
Ice cold.
Something immediately felt wrong.
Slowly closing his eyes, Sun Wuxiu activated the calming power of the [Tiger Talisman].
His mind instantly entered a perfectly still state.
At the same time, he spread out his ki perception.
Although he could not yet scan half the planet like the powerful fighters of the future, locating familiar energies within Mount Paozu itself was extremely easy.
“Hm?
Over there.” Sun Wuxiu suddenly opened his eyes and looked toward the southeast mountains.
A powerful youthful aura pulsed near the mountain stream.
That energetic ki felt like the rising morning sun itself.
It was definitely Goku.
“But…” Sun Wuxiu frowned slightly.
“Where’s Grandpa’s ki?” No matter how carefully he searched the surrounding area, he could not sense Grandpa Gohan’s presence at all.
“Strange.” “Did Grandpa leave Mount Paozu for some reason?” Although suspicious, Sun Wuxiu was not overly worried.
After all, Grandpa Gohan was still a true martial arts master.
Very few people on Earth could actually threaten him.
“I’ll just ask that little monkey myself.” Sun Wuxiu touched the oni mask covering his face before grinning mischievously beneath it.
“It’s been four years since I last saw him.” “Let’s see how much the future protagonist has improved.” Beside the mountain stream, a waterfall crashed continuously into a deep green lake below.
A young boy with wild spiky hair lazily lay naked across a large rock near the shore.
His Saiyan tail, which had already regrown years ago, dangled beneath the water while swaying gently like a small snake.
This was twelve-year-old Son Goku.
“Come on…
bite it already…” “My tail is delicious…” Goku muttered to himself while drool nearly dripped from his mouth.
His stomach had already been growling for hours.
Today had been particularly unlucky.
He still had not managed to catch any decent fish.
At that moment, movement suddenly stirred beneath the water.
A gigantic monster fish over two meters long had been attracted by Goku’s moving tail.
The fish slowly approached before suddenly opening its enormous mouth full of sharp teeth.
It bit directly toward Goku’s tail.
“Got you!” Goku’s eyes instantly sharpened.
At the exact moment the fish lunged forward, he twisted his waist violently.
“Heh!!” His body shot upward before diving directly into the lake.
Moments later…
“THUD!” The enormous fish slammed heavily onto the grass beside the shore while flopping desperately.
“Hahaha!
I caught one!” “What a huge fish!” Goku excitedly rushed over before punching the monster fish directly on the forehead.
The fish’s eyes rolled backward immediately.
It stopped moving completely.
“Hehehe!
Grilled fish tonight!” “Haven’t eaten such a big one in ages!” Humming happily to himself, Goku prepared to drag the fish home.
Then suddenly…
A chill ran down his spine.
This was pure instinct.
The animal-like intuition he had developed after years of battling dangerous beasts throughout Mount Paozu.
“Who’s there?!” Goku spun around instantly while raising his guard.
At some point, a figure had silently appeared within the shadows of the nearby forest.
The person wore a vicious oni mask.
Arms crossed calmly over his chest, the mysterious figure silently looked down at Son Goku.