"Okay," Kai said, hands on the kitchen counter like he was negotiating for world peace, "hear me out—what if we pushed the gravity chamber to a hundred times Earth's gravity?"
Bulma stared at him over her coffee like he had just asked for a death laser.
"You're at twenty. Twenty. That's already enough to turn most people into a smear on the wall."
"Yeah, most people," Kai said, motioning vaguely to himself. "I've been doing squats in that chamber like it's a spa day. I need more."
Bulma crossed her arms. "You're never satisfied."
"That's because I know I can be stronger. And if I stop now, I hit a plateau. And then a Saiyan punches my head off. Metaphorically."
"You say the weirdest stuff."
Kai winced internally. 'Right. Don't sound like a walking Wiki.'
"I meant, y'know, life is unpredictable."
"Look, even if I wanted to raise the limit, it's not like flipping a switch. I'd need to reinforce the structure, redesign the safety protocols, rebuild the stabilizers—it'd take weeks."
"Or... alternate plan." He clasped his hands. "Heavy gear. Weighted everything. Ankle weights. Wrist weights. Neck weights. I don't care. Just make me a walking anvil."
Bulma sighed so hard it could've powered a wind turbine. "Fine. I'll check the inventory. Maybe we've got something ridiculous lying around in R&D."
"You're the best. If I survive this, I'll remember you in my autobiography."
"Assuming you don't snap your spine and die in the backyard."
Later…
Kai stood on the Capsule Corp lawn, newly outfitted with high-density reinforced weighted gear.
Bulma had come through, as always — experimental training weights made to simulate gravitational pull. Fifty tons per limb.
Two hundred total.
He dropped like a sack of bricks the second they latched on.
"Ghhk—okay—this is… this is fine," he wheezed, flat on the ground.
Then—
[System Alert: Load Detected – 200 Tons]
[Initiating Structural-Muscle Response Calibration]
[Adaptation Engaged: Gravity Stress Resistance +300%]
[Per-Second Training Efficiency Enhanced]
Kai's arms stopped shaking.
His knees stopped buckling.
He stood up.
'That's more like it.'
Inside the gravity chamber, he set the dial to 20x gravity, but this time he didn't even feel it.
His system had completely neutralized it.
What used to crush him now felt like a minor warm-up.
[Adaptation Active: 20x Gravity Baseline Stabilized]
He launched into training — heavy strikes, high-speed footwork, shadowboxing with weights that could've crushed trucks. Every movement sent shockwaves through the room. The floor trembled.
Sweat poured, but he didn't slow down. The system was keeping his muscles growing as he trained — not hour by hour, but second by second.
'Time to push it further.'
Kai stopped mid-sprint and exhaled.
He held out his hands, palms cupped together.
'Okay. If I can learn this now, it'll be a huge boost. Goku made it look easy… which means it's probably not. But I'm not Goku.'
He took a deep breath.
"Ka…me…"
A faint flicker of energy sparked between his palms.
"Ha…me…"
The energy started to spin. Not bright blue yet. Still unstable.
"…ha!"
The blast flew forward… and immediately exploded in a puff of smoke about five feet in front of him.
It made a sad pfft noise.
He stood there blinking.
"…Huh."
[Technique Attempt Detected: Kamehameha]
[Success Rate: 14%]
[Energy Shaping Efficiency: Needs Improvement]
"Thanks for the pep talk," he muttered at the window where the system displayed its overly honest stats.
Still, he raised his hands again.
"Ka…me…"
Sparks formed again, this time brighter.
He smiled.
After hours of nonstop training, Kai finally sat down, letting the room cool from all the overcharged Ki.
He opened his system display, glancing over his stats.
Power Level (Adaptive Estimate): 1,200,000
Visible Output: 8,000 [Locked Concealment Active]
'...This is getting out of hand. Fast.'
But it wasn't fear he felt. It was thrill.
He could sense it now — the ceiling of human limits shattering under him.
The Z Fighters were strong.
But he was different.
He wasn't rising with arcs.
He was climbing the curve.
Back in the main house, Bulma sat at her desk, still examining what was left of the scouter from earlier.
She scrolled through the data logs.
"…No way. He couldn't be that strong. Right?"
The readout froze at the same number again.
99,999System Overload. Unknown Error.
She narrowed her eyes.
"…Just what are you hiding, Kai?"