Inside Korin's Temple, Master Korin sneezed mid-bite into his grilled fish. He muttered to himself, "I feel like I forgot something. Can't remember. Probably not important, meow."
He went back to devouring his fish.
"A long time ago... I and Piccolo were one."
Kami began his narration, unveiling a secret that had lain dormant for hundreds of years.
Kami and Piccolo were originally the same person. After learning a Kami existed in this world, he came to the Lookout. Coincidentally, the previous Kami was about to pass away. He wanted to pass on the position, but the previous Kami saw the evil lurking in his heart and refused.
So, Kami split himself in two. The virtuous side became the new Kami, while the evil side became Demon King Piccolo.
As they say, after walking on path of evil, the villain's strength skyrockets. Same happened here.
According to the setting, Demon King Piccolo's combat power was 260, while Kami had a pitiful 220. Yet, Kami could defeat Goku, who had already beaten Demon King Piccolo.
"God and Demon are originally one." After hearing the account, the group finally understood the relationship between Kami and Piccolo.
Now they knew why the two looked so similar.
"Now that you've passed the test, stay here for training."
Kami didn't state it explicitly to the others, but the meaning was clear. One person capable of defeating Piccolo was enough.
Naruto wasn't about to let him have his way. He had gone to great lengths to bring the Z Fighters here, if they left, all his effort would be for nothing.
"Kami," Naruto said, "teaching one person is teaching, and teaching a whole group is still just teaching."
"Everyone here is one of Earth's best martial artists. We're all here to deal with Demon King Piccolo. Let us all train together."
Before Kami could refuse, Naruto leaned close to his ear. "Kami, since you like watching the world, you must have noticed something unusual about me, right?"
One of Kami's favorite pastimes was watching the world below from the Lookout, as Kami isn't Master Roshi he didn't use it for voyeurism.
Because of his divine duty, he could even track a presence like Cell's. Naruto didn't think he was stronger than Cell, but he knew Kami would notice something. Whether the god could see the truth was another matter.
"I won't stay here forever. Someday I'll leave, so..." Whether it was true didn't matter, he said it anyway. "Just teach them well. Perhaps one day, Earth will need them to protect it."
"Besides, the reason Piccolo appeared and humans must suffer is because of you, Kami. You should teach them as compensation for the mistake you made back then."
"You don't want to see the world destroyed, do you?"
Under Naruto's barrage of Talk No Jutsu, Kami could only nod reluctantly. "Fine..."
--**--**
One month later.
Goku and Mr. Popo engaged in a fierce battle at the Lookout. Goku, who used to be defeated by Mr. Popo in a few exchanges, could now barely hold his own.
True to his title, Kami had pushed the Z Fighters to improve by leaps and bounds in just one month. With Mr. Popo as a sparring partner, their strength had risen significantly.
This was also thanks to the Z Fighters exceptional innate talent.
In the original story, during the year they waited for the second wave of Saiyans, Kami's guidance raised the combat power of Z Fighters on earth from 177-250 to 1700-2000.
While not extreme, the effect remained remarkable.
Goku showed the most prominent growth, his combat power increasing by at least 100 points. Tien followed, then Yamcha, Krillin, and Master Roshi.
Beyond Kami's teachings, Goku's power skyrocketed because Naruto took the time to visit Korin's Temple and secure several Senzu beans from Master Korin.
Beating Goku half to death and then feeding him a senzu bean to watch his combat power climb, that kind of talent made Naruto's mouth water.
"Not bad. Not bad." Kami watched Goku battle Mr. Popo with satisfaction. "He really is a promising seedling."
He looked over the Z Fighters. "I didn't expect them to grow to this level in just one month. Their foundation is unexpectedly solid."
"What do you think, Kami?" Naruto stood beside him, abstaining from the training. "The warriors I selected for you are impressive, aren't they?"
Kami nodded. "With these young martial artists around, Piccolo won't be able to cause any trouble."
It would be an understatement to say Goku made the most progress this month.
Goku's massive jump in combat power was a distraction, the one who actually grew the fastest was Naruto.
In one month given Naruto's talent for ki, he learned an enormous amount from Kami in that time. He even secretly picked up numerous techniques from Master Roshi and Tien.
In just a few days, he had managed to sense ki within areas where spiritual energy was extremely scarce. Questions that Goku couldn't answer were resolved here through Kami and Master Roshi.
Kami looked at Naruto, his tone full of regret. "Are you really not going to accept the position of Kami? Think about it."
This was the tenth time in a month he had brought it up. After witnessing Naruto's outstanding talent, Kami wanted to pass his position to him.
"No thanks. My ambition lies elsewhere. I want to reach higher levels." Naruto shook his head, rejecting Kami once again.
He wasn't suited for the position of Kami.
Kami sighed. "Your strength has already surpassed mine by a lot. With my current abilities, I can no longer teach you."
"Where do you plan to go from here? With your strength, you're already an invincible existence in this world."
"...Please don't set such a dangerous flag for me."
'You're already an invincible existence.' That was a terrifying negative buff, right alongside 'After this job, I'll go back to my hometown to get married.' or 'Nah, I'd win.'
Few survived after setting a flag like that.
"Actually, Kami, there's still one thing you can teach me."
"Oh? What is it?" Kami looked at him with curiosity.
He wondered what else he could possibly teach the boy.
Naruto beamed and stated his real purpose for visiting the Lookout. "I heard from Mr. Popo that you've mastered a language that doesn't belong to Earth. If possible, I want to learn it."
Naruto's battle power had broken a thousand. According to the progression of the Dragon Ball world, he should have been taken across Snake Way to King Kai's Planet to train.
However, Naruto had Adult Goku inside him. Everything King Kai knew, he already knew. Even the Instant Transmission, which King Kai was unaware of, Adult Goku had mastered. As for the ten-times gravity of King Kai's Planet, Naruto could simply use the Gravity Space in Amenominaka or ask Bulma to build a Gravity Room.
If the value of training under Master Roshi and Kami lay in their status as peak martial artists, then visiting King Kai would likely only teach him how to tell bad jokes. Aside from his divine duties, North Kai's only other title was Master of Bad Jokes.
Naruto's goal was the Namekian language.
Training on Earth could no longer push him further. He wanted to go to Planet Namek.
"Mr. Popo knows many of my secrets, but he doesn't usually spread them around. I don't know how you found this out, but it's nothing remarkable. If you want to learn, I'll teach you."
Kami saw through the lie immediately. However, since the language had no hidden origins or forbidden purposes, he saw no reason to refuse.
"Thank you, Kami."
The Namekian language wasn't complex. Once Naruto learnt a few simple tones, he gained a basic grasp of it. Within a few days, he became proficient.
"Piccolo has almost gathered all the Dragon Balls." Kami gathered the Z Fighters. "Given his personality, his patience has reached its limit."
By this time, Kami had already revealed to everyone that he was the creator of the Dragon Balls.
"If you don't stop him, the humans will be in danger."
"So, " Naruto cut in, taking over for Kami. "Go forth, brave youths, and create miracles!"
Krillin froze. "Naruto, aren't you coming with us?"
"Of course I am." Naruto had grown close with the Z Fighters during his stay.
'Though the place I'm heading is a bit different from yours.'
'Your group is more than enough to teach Piccolo the meaning of a righteous beatdown.'
"Oh right, Goku, your hometown is Mount Paozu, right?"
Goku, honest as always, nodded toward the direction Naruto indicated.
"Got it."
--**--**
"In the end, Naruto still didn't come with us," Krillin complained.
Even with his strength increased considerably, he lacked confidence facing Piccolo. Now that the strongest person on the team had left, his confidence sank further.
"He said he'd go to Goku's hometown first, then meet up with us," Yamcha explained. He turned to Goku. "Goku, is your place big?"
"About this big."
Goku gestured in the open space.
"That's only a few square meters. What could Naruto possibly do there?" Krillin asked.
"No idea." Everyone shook their heads, including Goku.
Only Master Roshi remembered what Grandpa Gohan had said when adopting Goku. He seemed to realize a certain possibility and nodded thoughtfully.
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