The defeated villains began pleading desperately after seeing Jaco!
"Arrest me quickly, esteemed Galactic Patrolman!"
"I confess to all charges!"
"Please take me into custody immediately! I'm a villain! Please! Hurry!"
"Don't let me go—I want to live in galactic prison!"
One after another, they begged to be arrested with shocking enthusiasm. After all, imprisonment was preferable to death, and they saw no escape from Raditz's grasp.
"..." Jaco observed this bizarre spectacle in silent confusion. Never before had he encountered criminals actively requesting arrest. Was this some kind of trap? Looking at their desperate faces, they didn't appear to be lying—but even if they were sincere, his small spacecraft couldn't possibly hold so many prisoners.
Finding himself in this perplexing situation, Jaco glanced at Raditz and frowned slightly.
"Something isn't right here. These criminals seem to be terrified of him. Were they coerced into this behavior? But my strongest attack had no effect on him. Perhaps I should... retreat for now." Jaco rubbed his chin thoughtfully as a bead of sweat trickled down his forehead.
The Galactic Patrol's strength was limited, relying primarily on handheld laser guns and spacecraft-mounted energy cannons. But Raditz had effortlessly blocked his cannon blast, which strongly suggested withdrawal was the prudent option.
This sector wasn't even officially under Jaco's jurisdiction. The Galactic King had merely sent him on a routine patrol passing through this area. When he received the distress call, Jaco—whose performance record had been less than stellar lately—had eagerly seized this opportunity to improve his standing.
Being relatively close by, he had quickly reached Planet Yardrat in his patrol ship. He certainly hadn't expected to encounter such a complicated situation.
"No, I must be brave. Yes... I'll try talking to him." The nervous patrolman cleared his throat twice, assumed his official Galactic Patrol stance, and pointed at Raditz. "Who are you? Why are you bullying these weaklings?!"
Weaklings? These were hardened criminals. Even Delutha felt embarrassed by Jaco's mischaracterization.
Seeing Jaco's pompous attitude, Raditz's soldiers immediately surrounded the patrolman, forming a dense wall of intimidating fighters.
These battle-hardened fighters had shown no respect for the Galactic Patrol even when serving under Frieza. And now, facing just a single patrolman? They weren't impressed.
Finding himself completely surrounded, Jaco deeply regretted his confrontational tone. If he had known he'd be facing such overwhelming numbers, he would have adopted a more diplomatic approach.
"Stand down. Move aside," Raditz ordered calmly.
"As you command." The soldiers immediately halted their advance and respectfully cleared a path.
A lone Jaco couldn't prevent Raditz from doing anything, but Raditz had no desire to create conflict with the Galactic King or the Patrol organization. Such an institution likely had higher divine authorities backing it—perhaps even Kais—entities Raditz wasn't prepared to challenge yet.
Besides, maintaining good relations with the Galactic Patrol could prove beneficial.
With this in mind, Raditz extended his hand in a gesture of peace:
"You're with the Galactic Patrol, correct? This is Planet Yardrat. To understand the situation, just ask the Yardrats themselves. They can verify that I'm not the villain here."
"Allow me to explain."
Just as Raditz finished speaking, Soba instantly appeared before Jaco.
As a Galactic Patrol officer, Jaco was familiar with the Yardrats' abilities, so the sudden appearance didn't particularly surprise him. What did catch him off guard was the friendly nod Raditz and Soba exchanged, as if they were longtime associates.
"And you are...?"
"My name is Soba, leader of Planet Yardrat."
Upon hearing this, Jaco immediately recalled the Galactic King's instructions regarding diplomatic protocol. He snapped to attention, feet together, and showed appropriate respect: "Greetings, sir!"
"Officer, please understand the situation. These captives are criminals who attempted to invade Planet Yardrat. They had assembled to attack our world, but thanks to Raditz's intervention, they were defeated. And these..." Soba looked around at Raditz's fierce-looking subordinates, clearly uncomfortable with his next words, but continued nonetheless, "...are all righteous fighters brought by Raditz."
The phrase "righteous fighters" felt like it caught in his throat, but Soba pushed through with it.
After all, the soldiers were nodding enthusiastically—weren't they proud members of the Galactic "Justice" League?
"I see. It appears I misjudged you, Mr. Raditz." After a moment of contemplation, Jaco reached his conclusion.
Jaco naturally believed the Yardrat leader's account—meaning those who had called for the Patrol were actually the criminals. He turned to look at the struggling villains, casting them a contemptuous glance while secretly rejoicing.
He would get credit for capturing dozens of criminals in one operation! Although he hadn't personally apprehended them, the achievement would still count toward his record.
Just imagine—no one in the Galactic Patrol had ever captured such a large gang at once! Jaco was already fantasizing about his promotion, salary increase, and ascension to the pinnacle of his career.
While Jaco indulged in his daydream, Soba added with a smile: "Raditz is a powerful Saiyan. These criminals didn't stand a chance against him."
"Haha, yes indeed," Jaco laughed along, then his face suddenly froze.
Saiyan?!
This Raditz standing before him was actually a Saiyan!
Jaco's hand instantly flew to the laser gun at his waist. His entire body tensed, heart pounding with alarm.
The notorious Saiyans had always been high-priority targets for the Galactic Patrol. However, due to the formidable strength of adult Saiyans, only a few elite patrolmen could actually engage them. Most officers harbored a mixture of hatred and fear toward the warrior race.
Synonymous with brutality, Saiyans were condemned alongside Frieza in the annals of galactic history.
Now, with a Saiyan standing right before him, how could Jaco not be anxious?
"Please remain calm. Look more carefully—I harbor no evil intent." Raditz opened his arms, displaying his sincerity.
Hearing this, Jaco's tense nerves relaxed slightly. Upon reflection, Raditz had helped the Yardrats repel an invasion—was he truly evil? Still, the deeply ingrained impression of Saiyans remained, preventing Jaco from completely lowering his guard.
He studied Raditz intently, checking multiple times, and was astonished to find that Raditz genuinely exhibited no malevolent aura!
Could a Saiyan actually be... good? Jaco could scarcely believe it.
"Don't be so skeptical," Raditz said. "Although Saiyans are naturally combative, we're not all villains. Some of us, like myself, are decent people. Recently, many planets formerly under Frieza's control have regained their freedom—that's our doing. If you doubt me, ask the people of Yardrat."
"That was YOUR work?!" Jaco couldn't help but gape in astonishment. Galactic Patrol Headquarters had received reports that numerous planets in the Northern Galaxy had recently broken free from Frieza's control and declared independence.
The phenomenon had puzzled everyone. Learning that a Saiyan was responsible left Jaco utterly stunned.
"Furthermore, perhaps previous Saiyans left negative impressions, but things may have changed. People can't be generalized—just like in the Galactic Patrol, there are those unmotivated officers with minimal abilities, and then exceptional, courageous, handsome, and capable officers like yourself," Raditz remarked to Jaco.
The last statement resonated deeply with Jaco.
Combined with the Yardrats' obvious gratitude toward Raditz, with many cheering his name, Jaco found himself reconsidering his perception of Saiyans.
"You make valid points. Our impression of Saiyans is indeed outdated. Now that Planet Vegeta has been destroyed, perhaps the survivors have changed their ways. I'll report to the Galactic King upon my return and recommend rehabilitation status for Saiyans." Jaco declared after careful consideration.
Rehabilitation for Saiyans? The concept was so unprecedented that Raditz couldn't help but laugh.
"And you're quite perceptive," Jaco continued. "My exceptional talent was so deeply concealed, yet you recognized it immediately."
"Ah... really?" Raditz replied, mentally drawing sweat drops on his forehead. "Yes, you're certainly... quite humorous..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Support me at p@treon.com/goldengaruda and check out more chapter of this or more early access chapter of my other fanfic translation.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~