Goku nodded thoughtfully. "Integrating all of our powers and returning to a base form... that sounds incredibly challenging. Vegeta, Kratos, we need to step it up."
Axis, despite being a Saiyan of the same generation, was already walking far ahead of them. Even his son was now on their level. Goku told himself he had to put in the effort so as not to fall behind.
Vegeta snorted and crossed his arms over his chest. "Kakarot, this isn't the time to ponder that. The urgent matter is the tournament in three days. Lord Whis, are there any characters from the roster of warriors sent by Universe 6 that are worth noting?"
"Vegeta asks a key question," Whis replied with a beaming smile. "As for the roster of Universe 6, you will naturally find out once we arrive. It is a secret for now, after all, they do not know the situation on our side either."
They could not leak any intelligence now, otherwise the competition would lose its intrigue.
"In any case, we have no need to fear. Axis will appear as the anchor. Goku, Vegeta, and Kratos, you three just go out there and play around. We are sure to win this battle. Hahahaha!" Beerus lay sideways on his chair with his legs crossed, revealing a smug grin.
Having an existence with power comparable to a God of Destruction on his team felt absolutely exhilarating.
"Rest assured, Lord Beerus, there won't be any accidents," Kratos said with a confident look. "There won't even be a need for Father to step in. Mr. Goku, Mr. Vegeta, and I can take care of all the enemies."
The past month spent training with Goku and Vegeta had improved his strength significantly.
Training under a god-level mentor truly had many benefits. His father was right; blindly fumbling around alone resulted in slow cultivation progress.
"You all take a break. Then we will depart," Beerus said, yawning before he continued to enjoy his food and nap.
This lazy cat was actually not much better than his brother; both were gluttons, yet somehow never got fat.
"Kakarot, as well as Axis and Kratos, are you going back to Earth with me?" Vegeta asked. "I intend to speak with Bulma first and have her start making the Dragon Radar."
"Cough, then let's go back for a bit too. I haven't seen Gohan and Chi-Chi for a month," Goku said.
"Father, I won't go. I want to stay here and rest. are you going back to Earth?" Kratos looked at his father and asked.
The difference between this Earth and Holy Terra was massive. In terms of size, it was much larger than Holy Terra, and its geography was completely different. It could be said that aside from the name Earth, it was an entirely different planet.
"I will return to Earth. I have some matters to attend to," Axis said. "There are a few days left. Kratos, you can stay on the Planet of the God of Destruction and train well."
Returning to Earth this time gave him a chance to handle a few things.
Axis remembered that before the martial arts tournament between the two universes began, Bulma would create a new Dragon Radar to search for information on the Super Dragon Balls.
To get detailed intelligence on the Super Dragon Balls, they had to go to someone named Zuno.
It was said that he was an omniscient being, and there was almost nothing in the universe he did not know, whether in the past or the future.
"Understood. When the tournament begins, I will make a special trip to Earth to pick you up. I will send you back now." Whis nodded, waved the staff in his hand, and transported Axis, Vegeta, and Goku back to Earth.
After returning to Earth, Goku and Vegeta met with their respective families and told everyone about the martial arts tournament between the two universes.
"What? Why use our world as a betting chip? Those guys really are too much," Bulma said with great dissatisfaction.
"Exactly. Why didn't they discuss it with us?" Krillin said speechlessly.
The other Dragon Ball Z fighters also wore expressions of complaint. Goku, on the other hand, laughed and waved his hand to soothe everyone.
In his view, this was a good thing because he could fight against powerful opponents.
However, completely unlike the Saiyan's peculiar way of thinking, everyone present knew how serious this matter was. It wasn't as simple as just moving house.
Why didn't the gods ask for the opinion of Earthlings or other life forms? In the eyes of gods, they were dispensable existences, things that could be destroyed at will.
Axis smiled upon hearing this. Although the gods of the Dragon Ball world appeared friendly, in truth, the life and death of humans meant nothing to them.
There was nothing to be done about it; the gap in the level of existence was too large. For instance, would a human care about the life and death of an ant?
By the same logic, a god would not care about the life and death of a mortal.
The gods of the Dragon Ball world were actually considered part of a relatively friendly and benevolent faction. If this were a god from another universe, such as the Warhammer universe, they would learn what true grimdarkness and terror really meant.
"Axis, do you have business on Earth? Do you need our help?" Vegeta turned his head to look at Axis and asked.
Unlike Goku, who had a carefree and naive personality, Vegeta's mind was quite meticulous.
He wanted to know why Axis did not stay on the God of Destruction's planet to train Energy of Destruction with Whis and Beerus, but instead chose to come to Earth.
"You caught me. I have some questions I want to ask," Axis said, concealing nothing from Vegeta. "Your wife Bulma and that Galactic Patrolman named Jaco are about to go see a guy who knows almost all the knowledge in the universe."
On the other side, Bulma almost simultaneously mentioned that to make the Dragon Radar, she needed to understand the "Super Dragon Balls," while Jaco mentioned the supposedly omniscient Lord Zuno.
Vegeta looked at Axis with some surprise. Could this guy predict future events? This conversation had only just happened.
Or rather, before he even asked Axis, or perhaps before they returned to Earth, Axis had already foreseen all of this.
"You really are something, Axis. To think you can predict these things in advance," Vegeta said.
"Hahaha. Vegeta, treat your wife a little better. Your wife is one of the top scientific talents in the universe. Why don't you use the Dragon Balls to wish for her eternal youth?"
Axis continued, "I recall you used to want such a wish yourself, didn't you? It's not impossible to achieve now. You have already embarked on the path of the gods, and so has Kakarot.
"After becoming a god, you will possess an extremely long lifespan. Goku doesn't care much about things like this, but you care about Bulma. Consider wishing for her to become a god, or to possess an undying life."
"Then what about Trunks? What should I do? What about Trunks' future descendants? Trunks' daughter? Must I find the Dragon Balls one by one and make them all immortal?" Vegeta turned to Axis and asked.
He certainly wanted Bulma to stay by his side forever, but doing so felt overly selfish.
Bulma had her own mother and father, a sister, and their son Trunks.
Trunks would eventually marry and have children in the future. Was he supposed to turn an entire great clan into immortals?
And what of their friends?
"Hahaha! That problem is actually easy to solve. Why not just establish a family belonging to the gods?"
Axis smiled and said, "How many people can be in one family? Why exclude your wife? If it were me, I would want my son, and even my son's descendants, to all become undying gods. Just establish a Divine Clan. It's not that difficult."
It was surprising Vegeta would worry about such things. He should look at those fantasy cultivation universes; was there any immortal who didn't have a massive clan behind them?
Were there few families of undying immortals or Divine Clans?
Immortality was naturally something to be shared.
Why worry about so much? Concerns about the universe were the business of the God of Destruction and the Supreme Kai.
Axis's answer surprised Vegeta, but soon, a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth. This was the true Saiyan character.
Axis was right; why care about so much? He decided then and there. After this competition with the guys from Universe 6 was finished, he would search for the Dragon Balls.
He would let Bulma retain her youth. If becoming a god would disrupt the balance, then surely eternal youth wouldn't be a problem.
As for Trunks, that would depend on the boy's own wishes in the future. The kid still needed a dozen years to grow up anyway.
Axis gave Vegeta a thumbs up. That was the right attitude. Why overthink it?
It was only Goku who didn't seem to care about his family in that way. Otherwise, who wouldn't want their family to be immortal too?
"Do you want to come with me? After all, your wife is going to ask someone a question. If you don't follow her, she might get taken advantage of," Axis tempted him. "Also, as a man, it's good to back your wife up. You can also ask if there is anything else besides the Dragon Balls that can grant immortality."
Axis remembered that in the original story, this Zuno fellow had a rule: he would answer one question for men, but for women, they had to give him a kiss.
The number of questions answered depended on whether their appearance suited his taste.
In that arc, a young female villain kissed him and got ten questions, while the aged Bulma only got three.
However, this guy's stance wasn't very firm. The apprentice Supreme Kai, Zamasu, had merely threatened him a little, and Zuno had practically spilled everything he knew. Axis planned to find Zuno and learn the Language of the Gods.
When they met, there certainly wouldn't be any need for Bulma to kiss him just to get three questions answered.
If his wife was kissed right in front of him, Vegeta would ruthlessly fix that guy. If Vegeta couldn't do it, Axis wouldn't mind demonstrating his own Energy of Destruction.
"Hmph. Then I suppose I'll tag along. I can't let Bulma go alone."
"Then, since we need to make the Dragon Radar, I must have information on the Super Dragon Balls. Let's go, Jaco. Take me to this place where Lord Zuno is," Bulma said.
"I know, I know. I'll take you there, but that guy isn't easy to talk to. You'd best be prepared," Jaco said.
"Take me along too. I'll accompany you. If that guy doesn't tell us, I'll finish him off personally." Vegeta huffed coldly, flying to Bulma and Jaco's side.
"Honestly, don't be impulsive, Vegeta. We are there to ask a favor, we can't be so violent. Maybe a little money will settle it," Bulma said.
Truth be told, she was quite happy inside that Vegeta was coming with her. It made her feel very safe.
"Hmph. Bulma, don't be so naive. On Earth, your money can solve many problems, but in the universe, one of my energy blasts can solve even more. Besides, Earth's currency has no circulation capability in space," Vegeta said with a look of dissatisfaction, crossing his arms.
As the former Prince of Saiyans and a general of the Frieza Force, he had traversed the universe for many years and naturally understood the rules and affairs of space.
Jaco laughed but didn't speak.
Having a Saiyan tag along would indeed make things much more convenient. The Saiyans' reputation for ferocity was resounding throughout the universe.
Although they had been decimated years ago, rumors of Saiyans on Earth had spread, so everyone in the cosmos knew the Saiyans were not extinct.
"Tch, I never said I was going to use Earth currency. Vegeta, perhaps you didn't know, but I have a sister who travels the cosmos constantly and occasionally sends me postcards.
"So, our family possesses currency that can be traded in the universe. It all belongs to my sister," Bulma said with distinct displeasure. She did have a sister drifting through space, after all.
"I'll go too. I happen to have some questions for this guy named Zuno," Axis said.
"Then let's not waste time. Lead the way. Jaco, take us to that Zuno fellow. We'll ask the questions quickly, make the Dragon Radar quickly, and end this event so I can focus on preparing for the tournament." Vegeta grunted. After the tournament ended, he still had Dragon Balls to collect.
"Good grief, I get it. Follow me. My ship can't seat that many people, so you fly your own," Jaco said.
Bulma nodded, taking Axis and Vegeta into the ship her family had built, and followed behind Jaco's small saucer towards Planet Zuno.
After entering the small ship, Axis looked around. It was a vessel capable of accelerating to several hundred times the speed of light and possessed spatial jump capabilities.
Honestly, navigating space at superluminal speeds was difficult. The true method for conventional travel was mainly jumping, which was faster than light and technologically easier to achieve than simple superluminal flight.
After about forty minutes or so, the group arrived at a pink planet. On this planet, there were some strange, fat beings with pink skin that resembled humans.
Upon landing on the planet, they found many guests. Most were there to ask questions, or perhaps simply there as tourists drawn by the name.
After getting off the ship, the group followed the Galactic Patrolman to the receptionist and stated their purpose.
"No problem. Lord Zuno receives everyone who wishes to ask questions. However, you must make a reservation. If you book now, you can ask your question in approximately seven years," the registration officer said.
"What? We don't have that much time. We need to see him now. How about this, we can pay extra. Can you let us in now?"
"Apologies, but not now. The rules set by Lord Zuno cannot be changed. Everyone must have a reservation to see Lord Zuno. Otherwise, if I let you in, how would I explain it to the others?" The officer in charge of registration spoke expressionlessly.
Just then, a fat monster resembling a toad, standing about three meters tall, walked in.
"For today, I have waited a full seven years. Take me to see Zuno quickly! I simply must know the answer," the frog monster said.
"Honored guest, you made a reservation seven years ago. Your question can now be answered. Please follow me," the receptionist said with a nod.
"Wait a minute. You, the green frog, give your spot to us." Vegeta flashed in front of the green frog in an instant and snorted coldly.
"This guy... dare to block the great me? Do you know who I am?"
"I don't know who you are, but I am the Saiyan Prince, Vegeta. If you know what's good for you, step aside."
"Eh? S-Saiyan! I-I'm sorry! I... I'll leave immediately." Upon hearing Vegeta announce the Saiyan name, the frog man was frightened out of his wits and ran away without looking back.
When the other guests who came to ask questions heard the name of the Saiyans, they also scattered in terror. The originally bustling plaza instantly became deserted. Bulma laughed awkwardly on the side.
However, she was gloating inside. Good job, Vegeta.
"This should be fine, right?"
"Everyone, follow me then," the receptionist sighed helplessly and led them into the palace to meet Zuno.
"You are the ones here to ask questions? Present your tribute. I answer one question for men, and for women, it depends on the situation."
"What is this tribute you speak of? Money?" Bulma asked.
"Just kiss him," Jaco said, quite practiced in the matter, and went over to give Zuno a peck on the cheek.
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ps?