Snake Way

Snake Way

Snake Way (蛇の道, Hebi no Michi), or Serpent Road, is a one million kilometer long (about 625,000 miles), narrow, winding path, located in Other World, above Hell, which leads from King Yemma's palace to King Kai's planet, and is the only method of getting to the latter (other than teleporting).

Overview

Snake Way

Because of its length, it took Goku 177 days to reach the end (due to King Kai saying that the Saiyans would arrive in 158 days, and it took them eleven months total). If one were to fall off Snake Way, they would pass through a thin layer of clouds (it is revealed early on that the clouds are actually edible and are quite tasty) and then fall into Hell. In the anime, it is also the home of Princess Snake, a filler character who falls in love with Goku and tries to stop him from leaving her palace.

Residents

Known Residents

Princess Snake's palace on the Snake Way

• Princess Snake
• Princess Snake's Attendants
• Sweeper

Travelers of Snake Way

• King Kai (presumably)
• King Yemma
• Goku
• Piccolo
• Yamcha
• Tien Shinhan
• Chiaotzu
• The Ginyu Force (excluding Captain Ginyu)
• Raditz (Harukanaru Densetsu only; supposedly had a relationship with Princess Snake)

Video Games

The Snake Way in Attack of the Saiyans

The Snake Way appears in Dragon Ball Z: Kyōshū! Saiyan, Dragon Ball Z: Goku Hishōden, the Legacy of Goku series, Dragon Ball Z: Harukanaru Densetsu, and Dragon Ball Z: Attack of the Saiyans where Goku has to cross Snake Way just like in the original storyline in order to reach King Kai. It also appears in Dragon Ball Z: Shin Budokai as the map screen. Snake Way also appears in Super Dragon Ball Z, seen in the background of the Check-In Station battle stage.

In Dragon Ball Z: The Legacy of Goku, Goku has to cross the Snake Way twice, like he did in the anime. The edges of the road will sap energy (even if the code for invincibility is entered). In Dragon Ball Z: Buu's Fury, the game will start at Snake Way after the recaps are done. Unlike Legacy of Goku, it would not take long to get to end, and the edges are not dangerous.

The Snake Way is also a battle stage in Dragon Ball Z: Taiketsu.

Snake way in Infinite World

In Dragon Ball Z: Infinite World, at the Story Mode's Saiyan Saga, there is a challenge for Goku in which he has an established time limit to reach King Kai's through Snake Way. If he falls, he will lose some time but will be replaced on the floor. At a certain point, there is a hidden Dragon Ball beneath the Snake Way. In this game, Snake Way is incredibly short compared to the anime and the manga. Also Princess Snake's castle is missing and there are platforms for the player to jump on, although though it is risky to jump across them.

Trivia

• Contrary to what is stated in the original manga, the Ocean dubbed version of the anime states that Snake Way was 10,000 miles long, which contradicts the fact that Goku swam half-way around the world in only one day when he was 15 (that would mean that he swam over 20,000 miles in that amount of time). The FUNimation dub does not give its original length either, it also states it to be 10,000 miles long. In Dragon Ball Z Kai, Snake Way is stated to be 1,000,000 miles long.
• To travel a million kilometers in 177 days, would mean Goku was traveling at an average speed of about 235 kilometers per hour, or 145 miles per hour, on his way to King Kai's planet.
• In the manga, there is no official time it took Goku to get back to Earth after being wished back during the battle with the Saiyans, but King Kai estimated it would take two days. Going by the two days that was estimated by King Kai, that is about 20,830 kilometers (13,018 miles) per hour for a million kilometers trip in 48 hours.
• Despite being said that only King Yemma (and then Goku) have crossed Snake Way, in the Other World Tournament saga, it was shown that King Kai actually had many people train with him. At that time, however, they may have not actually traveled to his planet, and could have trained with him elsewhere, such as on the Grand Kai's planet. This was, however, anime filler.
• Princess Snake's appearance in her Giant Snake form is nearly identical to Snake Way.
• Snake Way is a possible reference to the Great Wall of China with both traveling great distances.