"Wait, Piccolo!" Goku called out urgently as he watched the Namekian stride forward with grim determination. "This guy is much stronger than the two Saiyans who came before. Don't underestimate him!"
Piccolo paused but didn't turn around. "I know this Saiyan isn't going to be easy to deal with, but I've also trained under King Kai. I want to prove that I'm not inferior to you, Goku." With that declaration, he resumed his march toward Vegeta.
Krillin and the others exchanged meaningful glances before giving Goku reassuring nods. They quickly moved to flank Piccolo, forming a united front against the Saiyan prince.
"Everyone..." Goku whispered, then broke into a wide smile despite the dire circumstances. "You're all the same as always." He rushed forward to join them.
Karnel sighed internally. Why does this feel like they're marching to their execution? Still, he straightened his posture and positioned himself to observe the coming battle with appropriate seriousness.
"Will numbers really make a difference?" Vegeta sneered, completely unimpressed by the display of solidarity. He casually reached into his armor and withdrew a small capsule, extracting several seeds and a vial of cultivation fluid. Without ceremony, he planted the seeds in the ground and dripped the mysterious liquid over them.
"Oh, he's going with the agricultural approach," Karnel commented with amusement, watching Vegeta's odd behavior. "How very... practical."
Master Roshi looked confused. "Karnel, do you know what he's doing? This seems rather unusual for a warrior."
Karnel waved dismissively. "He's planting vegetables. Some rather special ginseng will sprout from the soil shortly. Just watch."
As if on cue, the ground erupted in six different spots. Green arms thrust upward, followed by the emergence of six grotesque humanoid figures with plant-like features and unsettling grins.
"Oh, those are vegetables!" Goku exclaimed with his trademark innocent enthusiasm, pointing at the creatures. "Can you eat them?"
Vegeta's laughter was cold and mocking. "Go! Kill them all for me!"
The Saibamen responded with eerie, chittering laughter as they rushed toward the assembled Earth warriors.
"Is Vegeta seriously underestimating them?" Karnel muttered. "The warriors who trained on King Kai's planet aren't going to be troubled by a few cultivated vegetables."
The battle erupted and ended almost immediately. The Saibamen couldn't even get close to their targets before being systematically destroyed by Krillin, Yamcha, and the others with casual efficiency.
"Idiots!" Vegeta crushed his scouter in his fist, though he didn't seem particularly angry about the outcome. "So all of you really can suppress your power levels. Interesting."
Piccolo ground a defeated Saibaman's head under his boot and smirked. "It seems your little toys weren't as impressive as you thought they'd be."
"Piccolo, stay focused!" Goku warned, his enhanced senses picking up the tremendous power radiating from Vegeta. "The strength of those ground-grown monsters is nothing compared to this real opponent."
"Tch!" Piccolo replied dismissively. "I don't need you to teach me how to fight!"
Vegeta threw back his head and laughed maniacally, his eyes gleaming with bloodthirsty anticipation. "It seems you Namekians are very confident in your abilities. Come on then! Let me see what kind of strength allows you to speak so arrogantly to royalty."
Piccolo sneered back, quickly giving instructions to Krillin and the others before launching himself forward in a direct assault.
Vegeta had no intention of showing mercy to someone who dared speak disrespectfully to the Saiyan prince. He flickered to Piccolo's side mid-flight with casual speed, his expression cold as he delivered a devastating kick.
One move. That's all it took.
Piccolo crashed to the ground but immediately sprang back up, his eyes bloodshot with fury. Roaring with rage, he unleashed a barrage of punches, each one creating visible ripples in the air from their power.
"Pathetic Namekian, you're far too weak to be any match for me!" Vegeta crossed his arms over his chest, effortlessly dodging Piccolo's hundreds of punches per second while continuing his verbal assault. "This is the best you can do?"
Piccolo's anger only made him more reckless. His increased power meant nothing when he lost his composure, and Vegeta's counterattack sent him flying back to where Krillin and the others waited.
"Piccolo!" Krillin shouted, seeing his friend temporarily unconscious on the ground. "Damn it! Yamcha, Tien, what should we do?"
"This is trouble," Yamcha acknowledged grimly. "But we're not backing down! Let's attack together!"
He charged forward with the others close behind, while Goku carefully moved the fallen Piccolo to a safer position before assessing the four-on-one battle that was about to unfold.
"There goes Piccolo again," Karnel observed, leaning against a nearby tree with his arms crossed. "That arrogant fool rushed in headfirst and got knocked down in just a few moves. Didn't he learn anything from last time?"
Master Roshi watched the unfolding battle with genuine interest. His own strength was far inferior to these warriors, so observing combat at this level was both educational and entertaining.
"I notice Gohan isn't here," Karnel mused idly. "Did Chi-Chi drag him back to his studies again? Poor kid." He had been somewhat interested in seeing how the young half-Saiyan was developing, but ultimately shrugged it off. "Well, they're not my children. Their future achievements are none of my concern."
The battle concluded as predictably as it had begun. Vegeta defeated Krillin and the others with minimal effort, though he was careful not to deal any fatal blows. It wasn't mercy that stayed his hand, it was the occasional meaningful glance from the mysterious Saiyan watching from the sidelines. A power level of 590,000 wasn't something he could contend with in his current state.
"Tch, it's really inconvenient having Karnel here," Vegeta thought, his eyes flicking toward the observing Saiyan. "My strength is still too far behind his. When my combat power exceeds 600,000..." He left the threat unfinished, but the promise of future violence gleamed in his eyes.
Just as Vegeta was savoring his easy victory, Karnel's expression suddenly shifted to one of alert concern. His head snapped upward, eyes scanning the sky as if he could see through the atmosphere itself.
"What's this?" he muttered, his voice carrying a note of genuine surprise. "Someone else is coming from space, and at incredible speed. This aura... it's shocking, filled with violence and bloodlust. The power level far exceeds even Frieza's." His eyes narrowed dangerously. "Who could be approaching at a time like this?"
The arrival of this new threat would change everything. The battle with Vegeta had been merely the opening act of a much larger conflict that was about to unfold.
In the distance, something monstrous was racing toward Earth, and even Karnel seemed genuinely concerned about what was coming their way.