When Yamcha heard them talking about girls, his expression turned a little awkward.
Goku noticed at once.
"Yamcha, what's wrong? Why do you look so uncomfortable?"
Krillin tilted his head.
"Aren't conversations between guys always about women? You're dodging it—don't tell me you're… weak in that department?"
Puar hurriedly waved his hands.
"No, no, it's not that! Young Master… Young Master just has gynophobia…"
Krillin blinked.
"Gy-no-what?"
Goku nodded as if enlightened.
"Oh, I know that one. It's when someone's legs turn to jelly the moment they see a woman. That must be it."
Krillin jumped back two steps in shock.
"Wait—so you're not into women? Are you into guys?!"
Puar quickly corrected him again.
"N-No! Young Master doesn't like men either!"
Master Roshi, who normally loved joking around, suddenly frowned.
"If you really have that kind of problem, then you can't train at my place."
Yamcha was startled.
"Why not?!"
Krillin answered matter-of-factly,
"Because Launch lives at Kame House right now…"
Only then did Goku realize something important—Launch had to be moved.
Not because Yamcha was afraid of women…
But because if Goku wasn't around, leaving Launch alone at Kame House was basically inviting Master Roshi to take advantage of her.
Goku stood up immediately.
"Don't worry. I'll go back and take Launch with me. No one's staying at Mount Paozu anyway—she can live there."
Roshi had wanted to keep Launch, but when he thought about it carefully…
If Launch left, he wouldn't get any benefits.
And since Yamcha was about to become his new disciple, that "entry gift" had to be replaced anyway.
As for gynophobia…
Roshi snorted inwardly. Yamcha was just inexperienced with women. Once he dragged him to a few clubs, he'd probably be chasing girls harder than anyone else.
So he waved his hand.
"Taking Launch away is fine. That girl's personality is too unstable. With her gone, I won't have to live in constant fear."
Yamcha's eyes lit up. He looked at Goku gratefully.
"Thank you!"
Goku waved it off.
"No problem. It's what I should do."
At that moment, Roshi turned to Yamcha.
"Don't get happy too soon. Joining the Turtle School isn't that easy."
He leaned in and said solemnly,
"To become my disciple, you must bring a cute, beautiful girl to live on my island for a while. Only then will I teach you."
"What?!"
Yamcha's legs nearly gave out.
"Master Roshi, you're joking, right? That kind of condition is insane!"
Roshi shrugged.
"Is it? Goku and Krillin joined on the same day, and Launch was the girl they brought."
Yamcha looked at Goku and Krillin in disbelief.
Both of them nodded vigorously and sincerely.
Krillin said,
"That's right. Master Roshi's standards are super high. We went through a lot of trouble to bring a girl to the island before he agreed to teach us."
Yamcha was completely stunned.
Forget bringing a girl to an island…
Just looking at a real woman was enough to make his legs shake.
It felt like Turtle School was completely out of reach.
Before Roshi could even say anything about curing his condition, Puar suddenly spoke up.
"Master Roshi… as long as she's a cute and pretty girl, that's enough, right?"
Roshi nodded eagerly.
"Of course!"
"You won't… do anything inappropriate, right?" Puar asked nervously.
Roshi put on a righteous face.
"What could I possibly do? Looking at beautiful women lifts the spirit and prolongs life. I'm just an old man who wants to live a few more years. What's wrong with that?"
Puar hesitated, then nodded.
"If it's just looking… then I guess that's fine…"
With a poof!
Puar suddenly transformed into a tall, curvy, stunning beauty.
"Master, if I transform into a girl, will you accept Young Master as your disciple?"
Goku and Krillin both stared, dumbfounded.
Krillin's eyes sparkled.
"Whoa! Is that a transformation technique? That's amazing!"
Yamcha, however, showed no reaction at all—he was far too used to Puar.
He explained,
"Yeah. Puar can turn into anyone or anything. He even tried turning into a beautiful woman before to help me overcome my fear… but since I knew it was him, I wasn't scared at all. When I face a real woman, I still freeze."
Goku and Krillin nodded in understanding.
But Master Roshi…
The moment he saw Puar's transformed body, his eyes nearly popped out.
"Y-Yes! Absolutely! Perfect!"
"From today on, Yamcha is officially a disciple of the Turtle School!"
Yamcha twitched.
Is this teacher even a serious person…? This feels way too embarrassing…
But then he remembered how dazzling Goku and Krillin had been on the tournament stage…
and how Roshi had even given Nimbus to Namu out of pure kindness.
Yamcha forcefully convinced himself:
Master Roshi is just outwardly lecherous but inwardly upright. He's just trying to seem more approachable.
With that, Yamcha steeled his resolve.
After everyone finished eating, Krillin suddenly remembered something.
"Hey, Goku… if you take Launch back to your place and then return to training, are you really going to leave her alone on that mountain?"
Goku shook his head.
"No. I'm not going back to Kame House to train."
Krillin was shocked.
"What? You're not going back?"
Goku nodded.
"Yeah."
"Why?" Krillin asked, confused.
Master Roshi spoke calmly,
"Krillin, even if both of you went back to Kame House, you'd just be repeating the same training. At your current level, there's honestly nothing more I can teach you."
He looked at them seriously.
"Remember this—there's always someone stronger. Never become arrogant. From now on, how far you go depends entirely on your own paths."
Krillin froze for a moment.
Then he realized—those months with Roshi had already made him stronger than years of getting beaten up at Orin Temple.
He had just become world champion.
Even if luck played a part, that was still top three in the entire world.
If he wanted to go further…
He had to walk his own road.
Krillin nodded hard.
"I understand."
Then he suddenly thought about traveling.
He reached into his pocket, pulled out the remaining four hundred thousand in prize money, split it in half, and placed one pile on the table in front of Goku.
"Goku… since both of us are heading out to train, we need to be prepared. When you're on the road, money is everything—food, lodging, all of it. Let's split the remaining prize. Two hundred thousand each."
He pushed the money toward Goku.
Goku quickly pushed it back.
"N-No, Krillin. You forgot—I've got a rich girlfriend. I don't need that pocket change…"
Krillin stared at him, completely stunned.
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