Other than training,
Goku was interested in one more thing—eating.
Mainly because his appetite was ridiculous.
Eating was basically instinct for him.
And after living on the mountain for years,
his daily menu had been nothing but roasted meat or boiled meat,
seasoned with the cheapest, simplest spices.
Peppercorns, star anise, cumin, chili—no fancy additives,
always the same ingredients, the same two seasonings.
He'd long since gotten sick of it.
Grandpa had taken him into town to eat before,
but everyone knows Saiyan appetites.
A normal person's portion was a mouthful to him—never enough.
Having such a huge appetite was a hassle.
He'd been craving the city's endless variety of delicious food forever.
If he could eat what he liked and get full… that would be the dream.
So when Bulma said they'd hit the night food market,
she immediately saw his droopy, exhausted face light up,
and he even started trying to please her.
Bulma couldn't help giggling.
Right—he might be more sensible in this world,
but he was still Goku.
She remembered that time at a tournament when he got hypnotized—
she'd woken him up by yelling "Food!"
Soon after, they descended into East City and stopped at a hotel.
Bulma walked in side by side with Goku.
"Hi, we want a room!"
The receptionist took out two key cards and said politely,
"Certainly. Please show both of your IDs."
Bulma handed over her ID.
"No need for all that. Just one room for the two of us is fine."
She swiped her ID, paid,
took the key card, and led Goku upstairs.
The receptionist glanced at Bulma,
then at the short boy beside her—
and noticed the tail swishing behind him.
He muttered to himself,
"These two are weird…
A cougar-and-kid combo is one thing, but with props too?
Is that supposed to be fun?
That tail even looks real.
Where'd they buy it—extension or plug-in?
Sheesh… young people really know how to play…"
Once inside the room, Bulma headed straight to the bathroom,
took a shower, quietly washed her underwear and hung it up,
then took Goku out again.
The night market was full of stalls.
Because they were street vendors, prices were cheap,
and the hygiene was about what you'd expect for that price.
Still, the food was genuinely great—
especially the vendors with long lines.
Bulma looked around and asked, "Goku, what do you want to eat first?"
Turns out Goku had already trotted over to a jianbing cart.
That stall had almost no line, and no customers right now.
Bulma shrugged.
I said you can eat anything to celebrate,
and you start with jianbing?
Are you underestimating my money?
Then she swallowed what she was about to say.
Maybe Son Gohan hadn't been well-off, and Goku ate a ton,
so he'd grown up thrifty.
She walked over and paid for him.
Before long, Goku had eaten his way through everything:
stinky tofu, roujiamo, roast chicken, teppanyaki squid,
grilled cold noodles, fried skewers, kebabs, mala tang, liangpi…
The theme was simple: cheap, big portions.
While buying food for Goku,
Bulma also stocked up on lots of semi-prepared meals.
That would be their rations for the next few days.
She also bought him several sets of clothes.
All sporty kids' outfits—
a few trendy styles…
…
The next day, they set out again in search of Dragon Balls.
Because Goku wanted to train while traveling,
Bulma didn't fly the Nimbus too fast.
Three days later, near noon,
they reached the village where the fifth Dragon Ball was located.
There were plenty of houses,
but not a single person on the roads.
Bulma knew they were in Gaolaozhuang.
Everyone in this village had been tricked by that guy Oolong.
That wasn't the main issue.
The main issue was that someone might ambush them any second…
with an axe aimed at Goku's head.
Bulma was nervous.
If the axe hit her instead, that would be fatal.
She pressed close to Goku and warned him,
"Goku, I'll knock.
Stay sharp. If anyone tries to sneak-attack, block it."
Goku nodded. "Mm. Got it."
Bulma knocked on the nearest door.
"Hello? Anyone home?"
"Is someone there?"
Her clear young voice didn't sound threatening at all.
The door opened a crack,
revealing a terrified pair of eyes.
When the person saw Bulma, their guard eased a bit.
They sighed in relief. "Oh, it's a girl, not Oolong…
You're not from this village, are you?"
In the same village, everyone knew each other.
One look at Bulma and they knew she was an outsider.
Bulma nodded. "Right, I'm just passing through."
"Then you should leave quickly!
There's a monster near this village.
He kidnaps pretty girls to be his wives.
He's already taken several of our girls."
Bulma smiled lightly.
Then she said boldly,
"It's fine, I'm not scared.
He just takes girls as wives, right?
He doesn't eat people. What's so scary about that?"
The moment she said that, doors all around creaked open.
Villagers poured out and surrounded Bulma and Goku.
"Miss, are you serious?"