บท 7: The Overly Inept Shenron
The first time he witnessed Shenron being summoned in person, Zuke couldn't help but feel a surge of excitement. After all, it was nothing like watching it in anime or manga—those sky-splitting bolts of lightning were now vividly real.
However, the thrill quickly faded as the dragon spoke, saying, "I will do my best to fulfill one of your wishes."
This phrase, "do my best," instantly set it apart from other dragons. It sounded as if there were many wishes it simply couldn't fulfill and would only try to.
Despite feeling slightly annoyed, Zuke kept his composure. As soon as the Cereal star Shenron was summoned, he delivered a swift chop to Monaito's neck.
Thanks to the earlier practice with those Namekians inside, Zuke had now mastered the strength needed to knock someone out without causing internal injury.
"You…!?"
Monaito looked at him, clearly stunned, as if doubting if Zuke was breaking his promise. But before he could voice his confusion, he slumped to the ground, unconscious—the blow had been perfectly measured.
"Don't worry; I'll keep my promise," Zuke muttered, though Monaito was already out cold. The reason for knocking Monaito out was to avoid him stealing a march and making a wish first, just like what happened many times in the original Dragon Ball story. Not knowing if Monaito would do the same, Zuke decided this was the safest option.
Afterward, all he had to do was toss Monaito into a spaceship and send him off—no promises broken.
The Cereal star Shenron required the Namekian chant to be summoned, but there were no language restrictions when making wishes—a fact confirmed in the original story.
"Shenron, can you turn me into a Super Saiyan?"
Looking up at the dragon, who appeared less imposing than others, Zuke asked his question directly.
Yes, becoming a Super Saiyan would be the simplest way to skyrocket his power. Transformation would multiply his combat power by fifty times, instantly raising his 4,000 power level to 200,000.
Though still far below Frieza's first stage of 530,000, achieving the Super Saiyan transformation would mean every single increase in combat power thereafter would grow fiftyfold.
"I'm sorry, but that is beyond my capabilities," the dragon replied without delay.
"But if you're willing to pay a price, it might be achievable," Shenron added, as he was committed to trying his best to fulfill wishes despite his limitations.
In the manga, this dragon had once raised Granolah, whose combat power was likely below 530,000, to the universe's top level by compressing his lifespan, a truly shocking feat.
"What's the price?" Zuke asked, though he already had an inkling.
"If you compress your lifespan to one year, you can achieve the Super Saiyan transformation, with some additional power boost," Shenron replied.
As expected, Shenron proposed sacrificing lifespan as the price, and Zuke immediately shook his head. He was certainly not about to sacrifice years of his life just for power.
In truth, this secondary dragon was just one of Zuke's avenues for gaining strength. Even without this dragon, he had other options and saw no need for such a steep price.
What if, after losing this Saiyan body, his synced powers vanished as well? Wouldn't that make all his efforts pointless?
"Can you use Dr. Gero's technology on Earth to make me an android?"
In Dragon Ball, the ordinary siblings became androids capable of overpowering Super Saiyans after being modified by Dr. Gero. If Shenron could achieve this, it might be a valid option.
After all, an android still resembled a human in every way except for the built-in energy core, a change Zuke could accept.
"… I'm sorry, but I located Dr. Gero, and his android technology is still in its infancy. I can't apply a nonexistent technology to you," Shenron replied after a pause.
Right—at this time, Gero was probably still an ordinary middle-aged scientist, and Bardock's son had just been born. It would be years before Dr. Gero created Android 8, let alone Androids 17 and 18.
"Then, can you give me the Tree of Might?"
After some thought, Zuke made another request—this time for the Tree of Might, which had appeared in a Dragon Ball movie.
The fruit of the Tree of Might, fed by a planet's energy, could greatly boost one's combat power. If he could acquire many of these fruits, he could raise his power substantially in a short time.
"Sorry, I've never heard of the Tree of Might," Shenron replied, disappointing him again.
Apparently, the movie's world line and the one Zuke was in were different, what fans call "filler" versus "canon."
It seemed that the Tree of Might didn't exist in this world, so relying on its fruits to boost his power was not an option either.
"It seems that relying on this Shenron for a massive power increase is unrealistic. I'll have to improve gradually," Zuke thought, feeling discouraged as his wishes kept being denied. He'd known Shenron had limits, but this dragon's limitations were excessive.
Only two Dragon Balls were needed to summon this Shenron, so it made sense that it was far inferior to Earth's Shenron, Namek's Shenron, and even the Super Shenron.
Since a combat boost wasn't possible, he might as well wish for something practically useful.
"In that case, can you teach me the Instant Transmission technique of the Yardrats?"
Finally, Zuke settled on this wish—the Cereal star Shenron simply had too many limitations, forcing him to settle for the next best thing.
Opting for the Yardratian Instant Transmission technique wasn't without reason.
In Dragon Ball Super, the Yardrats' Instant Transmission was essentially mastery over "ki," and mastering this technique meant achieving a heightened control over one's own "ki."
When Goku returned after learning Instant Transmission from the Yardrats, he had reached a new level in controlling his ki. Later, Vegeta would train with them and only manage to use it once.
In other words, mastering Instant Transmission would mean Zuke's ki control would surpass that of the future Vegeta.
To be continued…
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