Pilaf’s Castle

"Hahaha..."

"Goku, come catch me!"

"Chi-Chi, wait up!"

Two streaks of light darted across the sky as Chi-Chi and Goku chased each other playfully on their own Flying Nimbus.

"Bulma, has the seventh Dragon Ball been located?"

Sitting on the Black Nimbus with Bulma and Tights, Yuujin asked.

"Yes, it's been detected," Bulma replied after checking her Dragon Radar. "It's in that direction, and it should be about 1,500 kilometers away."

"Once we find that Dragon Ball, we'll have all seven of them."

"Chi-Chi, Goku, stop fooling around—we need to pick up the pace!"

"Oh!!"

The Black Nimbus and Flying Nimbus sped ahead, and soon Yuujin, Bulma, and the others arrived at the location marked on the Dragon Radar.

Below them lay a vast, gray desert, and not far ahead stood an enormous castle.

"A castle, out here in a place like this? The seventh Dragon Ball should be inside," Bulma said, a bit surprised.

Yuujin glanced at the castle in the middle of the desert, a hint of a smile appearing on his face.

Meanwhile—

"Lord Pilaf, according to the radar, the other six Dragon Balls are coming straight to us!"

"What?!"

"Let me see!"

In the castle, Shu and Mai reported to their boss, Pilaf, who jumped up in excitement when he saw the six Dragon Ball signals on the radar screen. He couldn't hide his joy:

"Who would've thought they'd all come right to my doorstep? Fate must want me to achieve my goal of conquering the world!"

"Ohohohoho..."

Unable to contain himself, Pilaf laughed up at the sky, relishing his good fortune.

"L-Lord Pilaf, it's that Yuujin and Son Goku! They have the other six Dragon Balls!"

Mai displayed a live image of Yuujin and his group, causing her to cry out in alarm.

"Yuujin and Sun Goku? The ones who thwarted you both before?"

"Tch, they're just riding some strange clouds; nothing impressive," Pilaf scoffed. "My ambitions can't be stopped by anyone. Since they brought the Dragon Balls to me, I'll gladly accept them."

"Shu, Mai—bring them down!"

With a sneer, Pilaf seated himself on his throne and issued the order to Shu and Mai.

Although Shu and Mai felt it was risky, they dared not disobey their boss.

"Yes, Lord Pilaf!"

They activated the castle's weapon system. Machine guns popped up around the fortress, aimed at Yuujin and his group, and unleashed a barrage of gunfire.

"Ahh…"

They had just prepared to enter the castle to find the seventh Dragon Ball when the unexpected assault began. Yuujin quickly created an energy shield to protect Bulma and Tights, while Goku and Chi-Chi darted through the air on their Flying Nimbus, dodging the attacks.

"You nasty villains! How dare you attack us?"

"Take this!"

Fuming, Chi-Chi pointed at her forehead, causing rays to shoot from her small helmet and blow up several machine guns.

"Hahaha…"

"My turn! My turn!"

Thinking it looked fun, Goku laughed as she extended two fingers and shot out powerful beams, quickly destroying the machine guns on the castle.

"Ahhh…"

"Those…those two little girls…are they monsters?!"

Pilaf gaped at the screen, his jaw hanging open, while Shu and Mai looked equally shocked.

Before, it was only Yuujin and Son Goku who caused them trouble, but now another formidable little girl appeared! How could they even survive this?

"Curse them!"

"No one can stand in the way of my ambitions! Keep attacking—keep attacking!"

Coming to his senses, Pilaf bellowed.

"Yes, Lord Pilaf!"

Shu and Mai sprang into action. Cannon turrets rose from the castle walls and launched shells, exploding across the desert with loud booms.

"Hahaha…"

"Blow them up! Blow them up!"

"As long as I get their Dragon Balls, I can summon the legendary dragon to make my dream of world domination come true."

"Ohohohoho..."

As Shu and Mai continued the assault, Pilaf laughed, convinced that even those powerful beings wouldn't survive such an onslaught.

However—

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

"Ahhhh…"

After a series of explosions, the entire castle shook. Pilaf and his minions were thrown to the ground, and the room's giant monitor flickered before plunging into darkness.

"Ouch…ouch ouch…"

"Shu, Mai, where are you?"

"L-Lord Pilaf…"

The room was a chaotic mess, while outside the castle—

"Haha…look at that, those people inside. That's the power of our Yuujin!" Bulma shouted proudly, standing on the Black Nimbus as Yuujin obliterated the turrets with a few energy blasts.

"Let's finish this up and head home."

Murmuring to himself, Yuujin focused his energy. A beam shot from his fingertip, slicing through the massive castle, splitting it in two.

Swoosh…

With a resounding crash, the upper half of the castle toppled to the ground, revealing Pilaf, Shu, and Mai inside.

Shu and Mai sat limply on the ground, dazed and clueless about what had just happened. Pilaf, however, stood behind them, dazedly touching his bald head.

The top of his hat had been sliced off—just a little more, and his head would have been too!

For the first time, Pilaf realized how lucky he was to be so short...

To be continued…