"How is it?"
Tights noticed Yamiru's eyes had turned golden and asked curiously.
She was well aware that Yamiru's golden eyes could perceive extraordinary things.
"There's indeed an invisible person on the stage," Yamiru replied in a deep tone. "Judging by his ki, he's not much weaker than Goku."
Tights gasped, "That sounds tricky. You should be the one fighting him. You can see him with your eyes." Without hesitation, she raised her hand and shouted toward Fortuneteller Baba, "Hey, Baba, can we switch fighters?"
Baba's face remained emotionless as she responded, "Are you saying this Goku wants to forfeit?"
"I haven't lost yet!" Goku protested indignantly.
"Then we can't switch. Only when the fighter on the stage loses can the next one step up. That's the rule."
"So stingy!" Tights stuck her tongue out at Baba.
"You little girl, you're still too green!" Baba huffed.
"Don't worry. Trust Goku to figure something out," Yamiru said as he patted Tights's shoulder. "Oh, the invisible guy is making a move." He spoke quietly enough that Goku on the stage wouldn't overhear. Without Goku explicitly asking for assistance, Yamiru had no intention of helping.
"But nothing's happening..." Bulma, who had to step back to see the stage clearly, observed closely. Despite Yamiru's comment, Goku didn't react; he was still turning his head, searching for his opponent in confusion.
"The invisible guy is making faces right in front of Goku," Yamiru said, exasperated.
"How rude..." Tights muttered.
"But he's just trapping himself," Yamiru smirked.
Bulma nodded. "Exactly. Saiyans have exceptional senses — sight, hearing, smell, and touch. If he's just making faces that close to Goku, it won't take long for Goku to notice something unusual."
Sure enough, within moments of the invisible man smugly making faces, Goku sniffed the air.
He had been looking in another direction, carefully searching for his opponent, but the odd smell made his neck snap back. His eyes locked on an empty spot, staring intently, and his nose twitched as he sniffed more deliberately.
"Hey, who farted?" Goku laughed, scratching his head. But just as the invisible man let out a breath of relief, Goku suddenly spun around and threw a punch at the air he had been sniffing. His fist connected with an unseen body, making a loud thud.
"How sneaky!" Bulma exclaimed.
"He's got brains after all!" Tights was visibly surprised.
Then came a series of noises: thud thud thud thud thud. Something heavy rolled across the stage.
Like a young leopard, Goku's ears twitched with every sound, and he moved quickly to follow the rolling object. However, he was too late. His kick missed, stomping only on the platform.
"Darn, lost him..."
After his failed kick, Goku went completely still, moving carefully and keeping his footsteps light.
He perked up his ears, flared his nostrils, and his eyes roamed the stage, scanning every corner for anything out of place.
Meanwhile, Yamiru's gaze fixed on the opposite corner of the stage.
The invisible man was trying hard to suppress his labored breathing. Yamiru noted that he wasn't wearing shoes, clearly to make his footsteps harder to detect.
"Damn it... That kid is too sly... I can't believe I fell for his trick..." the invisible man muttered through gritted teeth. After a brief rest, he sneered. "But there won't be a second time..."
He silently crept closer on bare feet.
Goku, fully immersed in the tension of battle, unconsciously swayed his tail. Suddenly, the fur of his tail brushed against something.
"Huh?" Startled, the invisible man looked down, just as Goku's fist came flying in his direction. "A tail? How annoying!" the invisible man roared in frustration, deciding to confront Goku head-on.
"What incredible strength!" Goku was astonished as he clashed with the invisible foe. Unable to see his opponent's moves, he could only vaguely sense the other's power. This guy was far stronger than the bat he had fought earlier.
Goku launched his offensive.
The invisible man, infuriated and underestimating Goku's strength, decided to engage directly.
Thanks to his invisibility, the invisible man could skillfully dodge and block Goku's attacks while landing counterstrikes. Goku, on the other hand, had to endure many of the invisible man's blows and could only retaliate based on vague sensations. Yet, the perceptive spectators gradually noticed a shift in the battle.
"Oh... this kid is slowly adapting to such a disadvantageous fight," Fortuneteller Baba said in astonishment. "Is he relying more on his hearing and physical sense to locate his opponent? Or is he imagining it?"
"Goku looks like he's having a tough time!" Tights and Bulma, unable to grasp the intricacies, commented with concern.
"If this drags on, Goku will win," Yamiru said, crossing his arms and gradually tightening his grip. He smirked. "His talent and potential... truly enviable."
"I get where you're coming from," Tights said, leaning in to comfort him. "Look at me. I was born fourteen years earlier than my sister, but I still had to work my butt off just to not fall behind. Now, I'm still just a university graduate, while she's already pursuing her master's."
Yamiru couldn't help but remark, "Bulma probably didn't even need to go to college..."
But noticing Tights's cheerful yet slightly pouty gaze, he wisely kept his mouth shut.
He chuckled and said, "You're right. We all have a genius sibling. It's a lot of pressure."
"I don't feel pressured," Tights replied defiantly. "Look how happy I am. I just do my own thing."
Yamiru shrugged with a smile.
Tights blinked and suddenly seemed to understand something deeper about him. She circled around to face him directly, looking him in the eyes. "I never aimed to be like Bulma — a genius scientist or anything like that. But you wanted to be a martial artist. And Goku happens to be a genius in that field." She paused, then asked softly, "Deep down, you want to be like him, don't you?"
"I really don't want to admit it," Yamiru said, raising his hands in mock surrender. "Jealousy is always criticized, but yes, I'll admit it. I think I do envy him a little. Though I'd prefer the word 'admire'. Deep down, I truly admire him."
Despite his inner resolve to stay true to his path as a human and carve out his own destiny, Yamiru couldn't deny the occasional whisper in his mind: What if I were a Saiyan too?
The Lookout, King Kai's planet, unlocking potential, gravity chambers, Super Saiyan transformations — Yamiru had already confirmed that even with the future altered, he had countless ways to help Goku achieve Super Saiyan status. He wasn't worried about being the butterfly that prevented Goku's transformation.
Still, as he pondered these possibilities, another thought occasionally crept in through a crack in his psyche: If I were a Saiyan, those paths could be mine too. I could smoothly ascend to Super Saiyan.
Tights frowned at him.
"Bottling it up isn't good. Negative emotions build up bit by bit. At first, you think it's fine to hide them, but by the time you can't ignore them, it's too late," she said seriously. "You should find a way to vent and confront those darker thoughts. Turn them into something positive."
"Are you some kind of wisdom fountain?" Yamiru teased with a laugh. "You sound like a therapist."
Tights smiled but said nothing.
Bulma, standing nearby, suddenly interjected, "My sister's been reading a lot of psychology books lately. She even asked me about some of it."
"..."
Yamiru felt deeply moved, but just then, the battle on the stage shifted dramatically.
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