Dragon Ball Human

Leaving aside Yamiru's mixed emotions upon seeing Dr. Gero and realizing his predicament: to Gero, Yamiru was nothing more than one of countless experimental subjects.

Gero only recalled this particular test subject, brought back by Android 7, after being reminded by his assistants. He hadn't expected that, after Yamiru killed the Red Ribbon soldiers tracking him under Brue's orders, the stiff-minded Android 7 would successfully complete the mission and return with the target.

"Doctor, here's the report." One assistant handed over a stack of papers.

Gero accepted it, skimming the contents rapidly. As a super-genius, he processed every word despite flipping through the pages at lightning speed. Within moments, he had digested the routine analysis conducted during Yamiru's three days of unconsciousness.

"I see… The cellular activity in his body exceeds 200% of an ordinary human's. If that's the case, even the candidates for Android 8's modifications are no match," Gero mused. "As for the cells in his eyes, the tests didn't reveal any abnormalities… which, ironically, makes it the biggest anomaly."

Gero handed the report back to the assistant and turned his attention to the boy floating in the thick green nutrient fluid within the upright tank. His gaze lingered on Yamiru's eyes. Whatever fury seemed to burn in them was meaningless to Gero. He had no interest in the emotions of an experimental subject.

"Back to normal black, I see… hmm."

Now that Yamiru had regained consciousness, Gero paused briefly before turning to leave. In a voice barely audible to Yamiru, he issued a series of orders to the many assistants in the lab for the next phase of experiments.

"Prepare the formal experiment as soon as possible," Gero instructed his chief assistant. "Adjust my schedule accordingly. I'll check on the other projects in the meantime."

"Yes, Doctor." The assistant nodded, retrieving a small notebook stuffed with sticky notes between its pages.

On Dragon Ball's Earth, computers were primarily large machines used for processing vast amounts of data. Personal laptops for convenience didn't really exist.

Gero came and went swiftly, finalizing arrangements before leaving the lab.

As soon as he was gone, the numerous assistants in the lab collectively heaved a sigh of relief.

As long as Dr. Gero, the boss himself, was around, everyone in the lab felt an indescribable pressure. Being researchers, they understood Gero's terrifying genius far better than the soldiers of the Red Ribbon Army ever could. This was a super-genius scientist who existed on a completely different level from mere mortals like them—someone comparable to Dr. Brief, who had single-handedly revolutionized Earth's way of life.

Inside the upright incubation pod, Yamiru had already come to a full realization of his dire situation.

Without a doubt, this was the most perilous moment across both of his lifetimes.

How could he escape?

Yamiru's mind raced, trying to come up with a plan. He absolutely refused to be transformed into an android—that might actually be the best-case scenario. More likely, he'd just be used as disposable experimental material, discarded as soon as his value was exhausted. To die silently on an operating table like this? Yamiru couldn't accept such an ending.

He hadn't reached Mount Paozu yet. He hadn't even truly set foot on the martial arts path. How could he fall here?

"I… haven't even met Son Goku yet!"

A fierce determination and seething rage surged in Yamiru's heart. The rage wasn't just directed at the capriciousness of fate but also at his own weakness. If he weren't so pathetically weak, how could he have fallen for the trap laid by that—Yamiru now understood how he had been ambushed—vagrant? If only...

He shut his eyes tightly, his lips pressed firmly together beneath the oxygen mask, and screamed internally: "Yamiru! Stop complaining! This is pathetic! Focus on finding a way to escape… think, think!"

Gradually, his emotions calmed. Yamiru knew that lamenting his fate was useless and disgraceful at a time like this.

Who knew how much longer he remained in the incubation pod? The constant humming and whirring of the laboratory equipment grated on his nerves. Each time he opened his eyes, he saw the same scene of assistants rotating shifts. Sometimes the lab was brightly lit; other times, it was pitch black, save for the flickering indicator lights on the machinery. Those lights reminded him of the stars streaking by in the vision he'd experienced earlier.

Even when the lab was empty, the incubation pod held Yamiru captive, offering no way out.

The pod's outer shell was made of specially synthesized glass that his current strength couldn't hope to break. Worse, Yamiru could feel that his entire body was in a state where it was almost impossible to muster any strength, likely due to some suppressive drug that had been injected into him.

He suddenly thought of Android 16, the purely mechanical android created by Dr. Gero, whose body was durable enough to contend with a Super Saiyan. Just how advanced was Gero's mastery of materials science?

In the oppressive confinement, even Yamiru's calm demeanor occasionally gave way to restless thoughts.

The humiliation in Yamiru's heart accumulated steadily as time dragged on.

What could be more humiliating than being imprisoned, confined like a lamb awaiting slaughter? At this moment, Yamiru couldn't think of anything worse.

Even though he tried his hardest to command himself to stay calm and keep a clear, rational mind, a searing anger continued to burn in his chest, growing incessantly like a poisonous flame.

It was amidst these tumultuous emotions that Yamiru suddenly understood why Android 17's first act upon awakening was to personally kill Dr. Gero.

Because Yamiru was certain: given even the slightest chance, he would undoubtedly do the same!

And then there was Bruh.

After being confined in the incubation pod for so long, if Yamiru still couldn't piece together how the Red Ribbon Army had targeted him, he might as well pull off the oxygen mask and drown himself.

For the first time, he truly understood the meaning of hatred—etched into his heart, stroke by stroke.

But for now, he buried it deep within.

---

In the torment of waiting, amidst humiliation and fury, Yamiru's mind was undergoing an intense transformation.

For the fifth time, the laboratory's overhead lights went completely dark.

In the corner of the room, submerged in dark green nutrient fluid within the upright incubation pod, Yamiru, naked and wearing an oxygen mask, now wore an expression of complete calm. No one could have known the anguish he had endured to forge this tranquility.

Suddenly, his eyes snapped open, and his Golden Veil glowed brighter than ever before.

"So vivid," he murmured.

Though the lights were off, leaving the lab in dim shadows illuminated only by flickering machine indicators, to his eyes, the room was as bright as day. Every detail was crystal clear.

Yamiru felt no particular surprise—he had long suspected that the Golden Veil were an external manifestation of some intrinsic trait within him. This was why, in the early days of his arrival in the Dragon Ball world, when he had been despondent, the Golden Veil had never activated. It was only after the mysterious elder's provocation, which sparked a change in his outlook, that the ability had occasionally flickered to life. And when the elder finally enlightened him, Yamiru gained full control over it.

Now, as he sensed the strength his heart had gained from this ordeal, he also felt the evolution of his Golden Veil.

It wasn't just night vision anymore.

Yamiru's eyes shifted toward the outer wall of the laboratory. When he focused his thoughts, he could even see through the wall to the doorway, where two humanoid figures stood, glowing faintly.

Ki.

---

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