"What was that?" Nappa blinked.
Vegeta turned his head as well, watching the trail in the distance.
"Felt like someone just flew past," Nappa said lowly.
Vegeta's brows drew together.
I felt it too. Whoever it was overtook our pods and headed for Earth before us.
Who the hell was that?
Whoosh!
A heartbeat later, Vegeta and Nappa's pods hit Earth's atmosphere like two small meteors, wrapped in roaring flames.
Boom, boom, boom!
The two spherical ships slammed into the ground, carving out a pair of massive craters.
Creak…
The hatches opened, and Vegeta and Nappa floated out of the pods.
They took in the scene around them at a glance.
Nappa immediately tapped the scouter over his eye.
"Just like Raditz said… not a single life signature on the whole planet," he muttered, looking around.
Vegeta also swept his gaze across the devastated wasteland.
"Feels like some kind of ancient weapon… probably nukes," Nappa said. "A civilization that nuked itself into extinction. Stupid Earthlings—wiped themselves out."
"Hmph. Nothing to be surprised about. You see every kind of civilization out in space," Vegeta said, unimpressed.
"You're right, Prince Vegeta…" Nappa nodded. "According to Raditz's instructions, we just need to find the vortex. That should lead us to the hidden world."
"Then start looking," Vegeta said coldly. "Save the commentary."
"Yes, sir!" Nappa answered, then chuckled. "I'm really curious how strong this Kakarot guy actually is."
Just then, a figure appeared nearby and walked toward them.
"Who's there?" Nappa called, stunned for a moment before turning toward the newcomer.
It was an alien with light purple skin, dressed in the uniform of the Galactic Patrol. The suit outlined a lean, athletic frame, and there was a pistol holstered at his waist.
"Hello. My name is Merus," he said politely.
"Merus? With that outfit… you sure look like Galactic Patrol," Nappa snorted, staring at him. Then he turned his head slightly. "Prince Vegeta… something's off. The scouter can't read this guy's battle power at all."
"Hmph. If he's Galactic Patrol, he might have some gadget that masks his power," Vegeta said casually, as if this were nothing unusual.
"Doesn't matter. You two came here looking for the Saiyan called Son Goku, right?" Merus asked, smiling.
"So you do know quite a bit, little Galactic Patrolman," Vegeta said, lips curling in contempt.
For the record, twenty-four years ago, when Ken and Broly crossed paths with Vegeta, Merus had stayed in the ship and never showed himself.
So you couldn't blame Vegeta for not recognizing him.
"I can take you to him," Merus offered.
"Galactic Patrol… you're not plotting anything, are you?" Nappa sneered. He glanced at Vegeta. "Prince Vegeta, want me to kill him?"
Merus: "…"
Do I really give off that much 'please kill me' energy?
I'm being perfectly polite here. Why is murder your first option?
"No need. We're here for one reason: to straighten Kakarot out," Vegeta said with a snort. He looked at Merus. "Listen, little Patrolman. Don't try any tricks. Just take us to Kakarot and behave."
"This way," Merus said, lifting off and flying toward the vortex.
In no time, he brought them to the swirling portal.
Nappa was about to dive in headfirst when Vegeta grabbed his arm.
"If this throws you out into open space, you won't even know what killed you," Vegeta said. He calmly pulled a remote from the pocket of his chest armor and thumbed a button.
"Well, you'd know. You'd suffocate," Nappa muttered.
Vegeta: "…"
Whoosh!
Their pods shot toward them and stopped by Vegeta's side.
Nappa called his own with a tap of his remote.
Merus: "…"
The two of you are paranoid to the core.
Especially this Saiyan called Vegeta—he doesn't miss a thing.
Merus didn't say anything. He simply flew straight into the vortex.
Vegeta and Nappa slipped back into their pods.
Whoosh, whoosh!
The pods plunged into the vortex and were shaken around like clothes in a washer.
Flash.
The next moment, the two pods popped out above a deserted plateau and settled down.
Vegeta and Nappa flew out, hovering in the air.
"So it's true. You go through the vortex, and there's another world waiting on the other side," Nappa said, grinning as he hit his scouter. "Vegeta, this planet… huh. That's odd. I'm picking up more than one power level over 1,000. How's that possible? Is the Galactic Patrolman messing with the readings?"
"There's no reason for tricks. And they're not our match anyway. First, we find the strongest one," Vegeta said with a cold snort.
"Where'd that Patrolman go, anyway? He's not here," Nappa said, scanning around.
"Hmph. Probably hiding. Ignore him," Vegeta said, not bothered in the slightest. He adjusted his scouter, sweeping the planet. "Found them. Two strongest readings in the same spot. One of them might be Kakarot. Let's go have a little fun. They're all pieces on my board."
With that, Vegeta shot off toward Piccolo and Gohan's location.
Nappa followed, laughing. "Vegeta, the gravity on this planet is tiny. Moving around feels great!"
…
Capsule Corporation headquarters, Bulma's home.
"Well, if it isn't Merus. What brings you over?" Ken asked, staff in hand as he accepted the video call.
"I'm here specifically to watch the battle between Mr. Son Goku and Mr. Vegeta," Merus said honestly.
"Come over to my place. We'll eat while we watch—like a movie night," Ken said with a smile.
Bulma: "…"
Bulma, watching from the side, was completely speechless.
You call that watching a movie?
"Oh, and bring your sister while you're at it. I'll invite her to the movie too," Ken added.
Merus fell silent on the spot.
"Which sister?" he asked.
"All of them," Ken said, clenching his fist.
Merus quietly wiped at the sweat forming on his forehead.
"Hey, hey… this is my house. I'm the one doing the inviting," Bulma snapped, pouting and rolling her eyes at Ken.
"Don't say that, Bulma. The universe belongs to the angels. It isn't your personal property," Ken replied. "Think about it. The entire universe is mine, which means you're mine, and everything in your house is mine too."
Bulma had no answer to that. She stomped her foot and turned away in a huff.
Fine. I'll just leave. Happy?
Merus on the other end really wanted to butt in.
This is my sister Vados's universe. What's it got to do with you?
"Merus, what's with that look? Don't think I can't tell what you're grumbling in your heart," Ken said, glancing sideways at him.
Merus: "…"
"You were going to say, 'This is my sister Vados's universe,' weren't you?" Ken asked.
"No…" Merus decided to deny everything.
"Don't bother denying it," Ken chuckled. "Here's how you should look at it: your sister's going to marry me someday. Once she does, she follows her husband. So Universe 6 will be my universe."
Merus was left speechless.
You really will say anything, huh.
"I seem to remember there's a line before that 'follow the husband' bit," Merus said with a smile. "Something like, 'Marry a chicken, follow the chicken; marry a dog, follow the dog…'"
"Merus, I've already recorded that," Ken said calmly. "I'll send the clip to all three of your sisters later. Enjoy explaining why you called them chickens and dogs. Top-tier brother right there."
Merus: "…"
That is not what I meant.
"I'll CC the Grand Priest as well. Might as well send it to him too," Ken added.
At that, Merus decided it was safer to say nothing at all.
A brief silence.
"Anyway, let's focus on Vegeta versus Goku," Merus said quickly, changing the subject. "I'm going to watch at the scene, so I won't come by."
"Alright," Ken said, not arguing. "But I'm putting this on record: you're not allowed to interfere in their fight."
"What if someone dies?" Merus asked.
"That's fine. We can bring them back. For them, dying counts as training," Ken said.
"Got it. I definitely won't interfere," Merus promised.
"And let me be clear about something else: if you meddle and ruin my plans, I'll ask the Grand Priest to smack you around," Ken added.
Merus could only give a wry smile.
Why would the Grand Priest hit me?
I'm his son…
…
Deep space, between the stars.
A single ship was cutting through the void, headed for Planet Sadala.
There were only two people aboard: Cabba, a tiny four- or five-year-old Saiyan, and Raditz, still shackled.
Cabba was sprawled out in the control room, snoring away.
Raditz, meanwhile, couldn't sleep at all. In his head, he'd already decided he'd traveled back into the past.
Then, out of nowhere, the scouter over his eye picked up two voices he knew better than his own.
Raditz froze.
That's… Prince Vegeta and Nappa.
So I didn't actually go back in time?
Or are their voices crossing time to reach me?
"Prince Vegeta… Nappa… can you hear me?" Raditz asked carefully.
"Oh? Raditz. So you're still alive," Vegeta's amused voice came through.
"Huh? It really is you, Prince Vegeta!" Raditz was thrilled—and completely confused.
So… did I go back to the past or not?
"Raditz, if you're alive, stop messing around out there and get to Earth. What are you doing slacking off?" Nappa growled.
"Prince Vegeta, Nappa… I'm not slacking off. I got caught by a Saiyan brat," Raditz said, glancing nervously at the sleeping Cabba and lowering his voice.
"You're pathetic. Wait… a Saiyan brat? What's that supposed to mean? Spell it out," Nappa said, catching himself mid-rant.
"This kid looks four or five at most, but his battle power hits 10,000. And he can raise and lower it whenever he wants," Raditz explained.
"Oh? What's his name?" Vegeta asked, suddenly interested.
"Cabba," Raditz said.
"Cabba? Never heard of a Saiyan by that name," Nappa said, shaking his head.
"Hmph. Use your head for once," Vegeta snorted. "He's that much younger than us. Of course he wasn't born on Planet Vegeta."
The corner of Nappa's mouth twitched.
You could make your point without calling me an idiot…
"That's not all, Prince Vegeta. He said something really strange," Raditz went on. "He claims they live on Planet Sadala. And the armor he's wearing looks just like what we wore before we joined Frieza's army. So at this point, I strongly suspect I really did get thrown back in time."
"You… what?" Vegeta was just as taken aback. "Something like that actually happened?"
Planet Sadala still exists?
That shouldn't be possible.
Planet Sadala was the Saiyans' original homeworld.
Eventually, the Saiyans took complete control of the world.
Then came a civil war. Vegeta I—grandfather of King Vegeta—overwhelmed the opposing faction and took the throne.
But the war left Planet Sadala so badly damaged it couldn't support life anymore.
So Vegeta I abandoned the rebels on Sadala, blew the planet to pieces, and led his followers to the Tuffles' world.
At first, the Saiyans and the Tuffles got along well enough.
The Tuffles even handed over advanced technology.
But the honeymoon ended fast.
War broke out. The Saiyans wiped out the entire Tuffle race.
After that, the planet was renamed Planet Vegeta, and the Saiyan kingdom lasted down to Vegeta IV—the Vegeta alive now.
Vegeta frowned, completely thrown.
He'd heard it from his father himself: Planet Sadala had been destroyed long ago.
By his great-grandfather's own hand.
"Tell me everything. What exactly happened?" Vegeta demanded.
"I don't know the reason behind it. All I can tell you is what this little brat said. Sounds like he plans to throw me into a prison on Planet Sadala," Raditz said.
"Then we'll talk once you reach Sadala," Vegeta snorted.
"We're already on Earth. We're just about to settle accounts with your brother," Nappa said, chuckling.
"Once you two beat that useless Kakarot, make sure you come find me. I'll send you my coordinates then," Raditz said quickly.
"Of course," Vegeta replied, a faint smile tugging at his lips. "If Planet Sadala really still exists, I definitely want to see it for myself. As for that time travel talk… that's just nonsense."
…
A rocky highland—Piccolo and Gohan's position.
"They're coming. They're headed straight for us," Piccolo said, face hard.
"Yes!" Gohan answered, his voice tight with fear.
Krillin, Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu had all sensed the powerful ki signatures that appeared on Earth and were flying toward Piccolo's location.
"There's nothing to be scared of. We're way stronger than we were a year ago," Piccolo said, shrugging off his cape and ripping off his turban.
"Yes!" Gohan replied.
"But what's keeping your father?" Piccolo frowned. "If that guy really is fifteen times stronger than your father's brother…"
He left the rest unsaid.
He knew he had no chance of winning that fight.
The other Saiyan, though, shouldn't be quite that strong.
"Dad's big brother is called 'uncle,'" Gohan muttered to himself.
Piccolo: "…"
"Something's coming this way," Piccolo said suddenly, turning his head. "And there are others flying in from another direction."
"More Saiyans? I thought there were only two, plus my bad uncle. That makes three, doesn't it?" Gohan turned in circles, his nerves stretched to the limit.
Flash.
At that moment, Krillin appeared overhead and dropped down.
"It's a Saiyan!" Gohan yelped, tensing up.
"Long time no see, Piccolo," Krillin said, smiling as he gave a small wave.
"Oh, it's you. What are you doing here? Get lost. You're just going to get in the way," Piccolo snorted.
"Don't say that. I've been training too. I've gotten a lot stronger," Krillin said with a laugh.
"Yeah? Any other idiots coming to throw their lives away?" Piccolo sneered.
"Yeah. Everyone's coming. I was just closest, so I got here first," Krillin said. "Ken told us we'd be fighting the other Saiyan together. That Vegeta guy is Goku's job."
Piccolo didn't answer.
"Oh, I remember you. You're from Master Roshi's place," Gohan said, eyes lighting up as he looked at Krillin.
"Yeah, I'm Krillin. You're built solid—just like Goku was when he was your age," Krillin said, grinning.
"Dad talks about you a lot. He says you're short but really strong," Gohan said, lightly touching his forehead.
"Short, huh. Real nice. Like he's some kind of giant," Krillin muttered, rolling his eyes.
"Will you fight with me?" Gohan asked. The more allies he had, the less scared he felt.
"Of course," Krillin nodded. "Training with someone like Piccolo must've been rough though, huh?"
"Piccolo-san is a good person," Gohan said with a smile.
Krillin: "…"
You're calling Demon King Piccolo a good person?
Kids really are easy to fool these days…
"Enough chatting. They're here," Piccolo said, baring his teeth in a grim smile as he stared up at Vegeta and Nappa descending from the sky. His eyes were serious.
Vegeta and Nappa stopped high above, looking down on the three specks below.
"So they're all here… No Ken, no Broly. That's a relief," Nappa exhaled. "Looks like they really don't plan on getting involved this time."
"They've probably been ready for this for a while," Vegeta said, smiling faintly.
The two of them drifted down and landed opposite Piccolo's group.
"Hey, where's Kakarot?" Vegeta asked, smiling lazily.
"He's still training. He should be on his way," Piccolo answered.
"That voice… So you're the one who joined Kakarot when he challenged Raditz," Vegeta chuckled.
"Voice?" Piccolo frowned.
"Didn't Raditz tell you? These scouters can be used as communicators too," Vegeta said, tapping the device over his eye.
"Prince Vegeta, that guy looks like a Namekian," Nappa said, leaning in.
"Drop the 'looks like,'" Vegeta said. "It's not like I've never seen a Namekian."
"Oh, right. Back when you were with Ken, you went to Planet Namek, didn't you?" Nappa said, suddenly remembering.
"Hmph. Don't bring that up," Vegeta said through clenched teeth, annoyed.
Back on Namek, I was basically his errand boy.
I'm the one who did all the work collecting Dragon Balls for Ken.
And who got the wish to survive in space? Him.
I didn't get a single wish.
No—that's not true. My wish was to become a Super Saiyan.
And that dragon couldn't grant it.
Every time Vegeta thought about it, his chest tightened.
I went through all that trouble to gather those Dragon Balls.
"Namekian?" Piccolo echoed, stunned.
"Piccolo, so you're a Namekian?" Krillin turned and stared at him.
"Really?" Gohan asked, wide-eyed.
Piccolo: "…"
"I've been to Planet Namek. They had a pretty strong fighter there. And they can make Dragon Balls," Vegeta said with a smirk. "So this planet has Dragon Balls too, right? You made them, didn't you? And they grant any three wishes as well?"
"Huh? He even knows about the Dragon Balls… Did Ken tell him?" Krillin blurted, then realized what he'd just said. "Wait—don't they only grant one wish here?"
"Oh? Only one wish?" Vegeta laughed. "So you do have Dragon Balls on this planet."
Krillin slapped a hand over his mouth.
Too careless. One slip and he spilled everything.
"Enough small talk. Get Kakarot out here," Nappa said with a cold grin. "Prince Vegeta won't even need to move. I, an elite warrior, can pin him to the ground and grind him into the dirt. You little flies might as well stop pretending you can win. You're not even in our league."
"At least you've figured out who the flies are," Piccolo said, baring his teeth. "But I didn't make the Dragon Balls. All I do is fight."
He dropped into a stance.
"You'll find out soon enough who the flies are," Piccolo snorted.
…
The Lookout.
"Kami…" Mr. Popo said quietly.
"Never thought I'd be an alien. No wonder I look different from everyone else," Kami said with a sigh. "I created the Dragon Balls a long time ago, and even then I had a strange feeling—like I'd seen something like them before. Maybe someone on Planet Namek made Dragon Balls or something similar. The memories of our ancestors must still be buried in my mind somewhere."
"Kami… from what they're saying, that man Ken went to Namek with that Vegeta fellow, and used their Dragon Balls to gain the ability to survive in space," Mr. Popo said.
"That's right," Kami nodded.
"They called Ken a god… I just don't know what kind of god he is," Mr. Popo murmured.
"Who can say?" Kami shook his head. "But Ken was already incredibly strong, even back then. I've heard the two new Saiyans—especially Vegeta, the stronger one—might not even be a match for him."
…
The battlefield.
"Kakarot still not coming out?" Vegeta snorted. "I'm not interested in you three."
"We'll accept the Dragon Balls instead if you'd rather tell us where they are," Nappa said with a nasty grin. He glanced at Vegeta. "Prince Vegeta, how about we use them to wish for immortality?"
Something clicked in Vegeta's mind.
Of course.
How did I never think of that?
What a waste.
If I had immortality, I wouldn't have to worry about Frieza at all.
"We can talk about that later," Vegeta said, brushing it off for now.
"Battle power 981… 1,220… 1,083," Nappa read off the scouter a moment later. "You three idiots seriously think you can take us on with numbers like that?"
"Nappa, take your scouter off," Vegeta said as he removed his own.
"Why?" Nappa asked, confused.
"Their power rises and falls during battle. You can't trust the numbers," Vegeta said, grinning as he casually tossed his scouter to the ground.
"You're right," Nappa nodded, taking his off too. "That weakling Raditz trusted what the scouter said and let his guard down. Nearly got himself killed."
"Weakling Raditz?" Piccolo repeated, his face darkening.
"Didn't you and Goku have to team up, and even then you only barely managed to almost kill him?" Krillin said. "Ken had to step in to save Goku, and that ended up saving Raditz too."
Piccolo said nothing.
"Weakling, huh… ha ha…" Krillin let out a dry laugh, feeling like the whole world had gone dim.
"Prince Vegeta, Prince Vegeta."
Raditz's voice suddenly came through from far away.
"What is it?" Vegeta said coldly.
"I heard everything you said…" Raditz replied, aggrieved.
Vegeta: "…"
Calling you weak is being generous.
"And, Prince Vegeta… I'm almost at Planet Sadala!" Raditz said quickly, changing the subject. "The way it looks… it's almost exactly like the pictures in the history books!"
(End of Chapter)
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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