They had just returned to Capsule Corp when it happened.
A soft glow surrounded what was left of Goku's body. The light was gentle, almost holy — like the universe was giving him a little salute.
Kai crossed his arms and watched from the back of the group. He kept his expression neutral.
'Yup. There it is. Body vanishing act. Thanks, Kami. Thanks, King Yemma. Dude dies once and gets promoted to ghost with gym privileges.'
The light pulsed brighter.
Bulma gasped beside him. "He's… disappearing?"
Roshi nodded solemnly. "He died saving the world. Kami must be sending his body to the Other World. A rare honor."
"Guess they're letting him train up there," Krillin added softly.
'Letting him train? He's about to be coached by a guy with antennae who lives on a tiny planet and owns the worst car in existence. Goku's gonna love every second of it.'
With one last shimmer, the body was gone. All that remained was the tattered orange gi and a lingering sense of weight in the air.
Chi-Chi had been led inside by now, too overwhelmed to stand. Krillin and Roshi said their goodbyes, both heading off to begin their own training. The place grew quiet.
That left just Bulma… and Kai.
They were alone in Capsule Corp's main lounge — a polished room full of monitors, open toolkits, and a refrigerator that might've had an AI in it. Bulma was typing furiously, eyes locked on a floating screen as lines of code scrolled past.
Kai stood nearby, trying not to look like he was loitering.
"Any readings on incoming pods?" he asked casually.
"Nothing yet," Bulma replied, not looking away. "But I've got long-range scans running. If those Saiyans are as strong as you guys say, we'll probably know when they hit the atmosphere… with an explosion."
'You have no idea,' Kai thought. 'But hey, good instincts.'
He glanced at the hallway. Then at her. Then took a breath.
"Hey… random thing. I was wondering. Since, you know, the Raditz fight and all…"
Bulma turned slightly, one brow raised.
"A stray ki blast completely obliterated my house."
"…You had a house?"
"Oh yeah," he said, nodding gravely. "Nice little place in the mountains. Peaceful. Wooden floors. Very rustic. Gone now. Absolute tragedy."
She stared at him for a long second. "…You just don't want to pay rent, do you."
Kai winced. "Not… just that."
She sighed. "Fine. You can stay in one of the guest rooms. No weird science. No explosions. And if you break the microwave, you fix it."
"I don't know how to fix a microwave."
"Then don't break the microwave."
The guest room was better than any apartment he'd ever had. The bed was memory foam. The view looked out over West City. There was even a coffee machine he was afraid to touch.
But he didn't linger long.
Within minutes, Kai was out in the Capsule Corp backyard, shirt already off, barefoot in the grass. The sky was still streaked with hints of gold from sunset, and the warm air buzzed faintly with city life in the distance.
He took a deep breath.
'Alright. Let's see if all that "adaptive potential" is actually worth a damn.'
He slid into a Turtle Style stance: solid footwork, knees bent, arms loose but ready.
His muscles moved with precision. His ki hummed faintly in his chest, not wild like Goku's, but steady. Controlled. Deep in his bones, something was shifting. Evolving.
He started slow: punches, blocks, kicks. Then faster. Stronger. His body moved like it had done this for years — even though technically, it hadn't.
[DING][Adaptive Trait: Combat Movement – Efficiency Increased][Balance Adjustment Complete]
'Let's gooo. System's cooking.'
He dropped low, launched into a rising uppercut, and twisted mid-air. Sweat poured down his chest. His arms burned in a way that felt amazing.
That's when he heard a voice.
"You're training already?"
He froze mid-motion and turned.
Bulma stood a few feet away, holding a tray of food and very obviously trying not to look at his abs. Her eyes were locked somewhere in the neutral "clouds and lawn" zone.
"Yeah," Kai said, grabbing his shirt and slinging it over his shoulder. "Figured I'd get a jump on things. Saiyan invasion clock's ticking, y'know?"
She nodded without looking at him. "You… uh… don't waste time."
"I've got main character work ethic," he said, grinning.
That actually got a small laugh. "Well, food's ready. Try not to die before dinner."
He gave her a thumbs up as she turned back inside, walking maybe a little faster than normal.
'Okay. That went fine. Casual. Cool. Definitely didn't weird her out by being sweaty and mysterious. Probably.'
Dinner was surprisingly quiet. Bulma had made something spicy, weirdly neon, and oddly delicious. They ate while the Capsule Corp housebots zipped around cleaning.
Kai ate like someone who knew cardio was coming tomorrow.
After a moment of silence, he asked, "Hey… have you ever built a gravity room?"
Bulma blinked. "A what?"
"A room where you can increase the gravity inside. Like, crank it up to 10 times Earth's gravity. Forces the body to adapt faster."
She frowned. "That would… shatter your bones. Like, instantly."
"Only if you're weak."
"You are weird."
"I'm just forward-thinking," he said with a shrug. "It'd be a game-changer for training."
Bulma chewed her food thoughtfully, then pointed a chopstick at him. "If I did build that — big if — you better not die using it. That's bad PR."
"Deal."
She nodded slowly. "I'll take a look at the specs tomorrow. Might be possible."
'Boom. Planting the seeds. One step closer to catching up with people who casually shoot energy lasers out of their eyes.'
Later that night, Kai stood on the balcony outside his new room.
The stars above were scattered across the sky like glitter someone sneezed into the universe. West City glowed below. The Capsule Corp tower loomed silently behind him.
Two stars were falling toward Earth. Slowly, but surely.
Nappa.
Vegeta.
And in one year, everything would change.
Kai crossed his arms and let the night breeze wash over him.
'No Saiyan blood. No tail. No plot armor. Just me and a system that levels me up every time I suffer.'
He smiled faintly.
'Good thing I've been suffering my whole life.'