'Punch it apart?'
'Earth?'
'Kid, are you seriously asking if the target you're talking about is Earth? The big, round planet beneath our feet?'
Fortuneteller Baba was momentarily left speechless by Yamiru's audacious request. Finally, she snapped, "No! Stop dreaming and go home! What kind of absurd fantasies are young people having these days? Dangerous ideas!" She grew increasingly animated, spitting as she ranted, "Utter nonsense!"
"Calm down, calm down."
Yamiru quickly raised his hands, trying to pacify Baba.
Destroying Earth with a single punch was, of course, just a metaphor. Back in his past life, fans often joked about the Dragon Ball characters' over-the-top power levels by using Earth's constant destruction as a benchmark (even though Earth only actually exploded once in the Buu saga). Yamiru couldn't exactly ask Baba, "Will I ever beat a Super Saiyan in the future?", that would sound even more ridiculous.
He explained, "It was just a figure of speech, really. Of course, I don't actually want to endanger Earth "
"Even so, it's a dangerous thought!" Baba took a deep breath, glancing nervously at the mysterious masked man nearby. Seeing that he remained unfazed by Yamiru's outrageous words, she relaxed slightly. "There's no such person who can destroy Earth with a single punch. And if there were, it would be a god's power! What on Earth are you dreaming of, kid?"
"But the path of martial arts should be limitless," Yamiru protested. "Being able to destroy Earth is the most grandiose level of strength I can imagine. Even if it's purely in my imagination, why not strive for it? Baba, I'm asking you to divine my future!"
"Heh..."
The masked man, who had been silent all this time, chuckled softly. "In the old days, there were indeed people who sought to destroy Earth, and they truly had the power to do so. Moreover, Baba, the world — the universe — is vast." He sighed faintly. "Forget Earth — there may even exist invincible beings capable of obliterating an entire solar system with a single strike…"
Who was this masked man?
Yamiru was so stunned he almost sat down. He knew the man wasn't spouting nonsense — after all, even in the manga, Perfect Cell had boasted that his Kamehameha could destroy the entire solar system. But this? Yamiru thought his own talk about destroying Earth sounded over the top, yet here the masked man was, casually upping the ante to solar system-level destruction. Unreal.
"Is... is that even possible?"
Baba, seemingly trusting the masked man, was clearly shaken. What she had dismissed as absurd when Yamiru said it now seemed to carry weight coming from him.
Yamiru grinned. "I've heard you can traverse the realm of the living and the afterlife, Baba. Surely, in the universe's resting place for all life, there must be some overwhelmingly powerful beings?"
Baba rolled her cloudy eyes. "Even if such beings exist in the afterlife, do you think they were upstanding individuals while they were alive, possessing that kind of terrifying power?"
Having seen so much of the world, Baba let out a weary sigh.
"Anyone that strong would likely have wreaked havoc in life. If they died, it's only right they'd be stripped of their physical bodies and sent to hell to suffer. As for the rare kind-hearted ones who opposed them, they'd ascend to the heavens and live comfortably after death. This old woman hardly has the time or luck to encounter such grand figures!"
Yamiru suddenly understood.
In the original story, powerful figures like Son Goku had always managed to cozy up to high-ranking divine entities like the Kaiō. Goku even went as far as mingling with the Supreme Kai, the God of Destruction, and even the Angels. While Fortuneteller Baba was certainly mysterious, she was more like a local minor deity — an independent operator within her limited domain.
After all, the afterlife in the Dragon Ball world wasn't just some spiritual concept; it was directly connected to the universe's divine hierarchy, a structured system governed by gods.
When alive, beings had more freedom, as long as they didn't cross the line and provoke divine wrath. But once dead?
Well, stripped bare, cast into the afterlife, and descending into the underworld, they were at the mercy of the gods.
Dragon or worm, everyone had to pass King Yemma's judgment first. If he allowed you to keep your body, you kept it. If not? You couldn't take it back by force — not that you'd even have the ability to try.
Yamiru's thoughts spiraled, and he quietly resolved to value his own life. No matter how incredible Dragon Ball made the afterlife seem, he wasn't about to gamble with his soul. Who knew what kind of torment awaited if he ended up there unprepared?
"Fine, fine. I'll give you an answer, you arrogant brat..." Fortuneteller Baba finally relented. She approached the floating crystal ball, raising her hands as she began chanting one of her bizarre, mockable incantations. "Mare mare mahon…!!" The crystal ball began glowing softly.
Yamiru refocused, his attention locked on the brightening sphere.
What would it show him?
Would he fight side by side with Super Saiyan Son Goku?
Would he beat Frieza into the ground like a cheap punching bag?
Would he sit casually chatting with the Supreme Kai or the God of Destruction?
Yamiru's heart raced, as if he were waiting for exam results that could change his fate forever. This divination felt like the ultimate moment of truth — a single reading to determine the course of his life.
Yet, when the glow of the crystal ball softened, what appeared was not what Yamiru had imagined.
"Oh my... what is this?" Even Fortuneteller Baba looked surprised. Within the crystal ball, rather than a blank void or indecipherable darkness, an actual image had appeared. A mountainous area, shrouded in peculiar misty clouds, seemed to obscure the view, leaving the scene somewhat blurred. "This place... it seems familiar…"
Yamiru frowned. "Baba, you can't even interpret your own divination?"
"That depends on how strongly the result connects to the question asked," Baba replied. "For example, when you asked me to locate the six-star Dragon Ball earlier, the divination should have revealed its location. But instead, it showed a dinosaur. Without realizing that a dinosaur might have swallowed the Dragon Ball, the meaning could have been missed entirely. As for this…"
"I asked if I'd have an incredibly powerful future, and the result is this bizarre mountain." Yamiru muttered. "How many layers of mystery are we dealing with? How am I supposed to make sense of this?"
"Exactly! It's confusing and unclear…" Baba clicked her tongue in frustration. "Why can't I remember where this mountain is?"
"It's the Mount Five Element."
The masked man, who had been so silent it was easy to forget he was there, finally spoke. His calm voice cut through the uncertainty. "At the far western edge of the world, at the boundary of heaven and earth — the Mount Five Element."