Out in deep space, four spherical spacecraft streaked through the stars at high speed.
The ones speaking earlier were Ginyu and three others, riding inside a compact ship of their own.
Right now, their ships were racing straight toward Namek.
...
Universe 7, Namek.
Vegeta had been captured and stuffed into a healing tank.
Zarbon stood outside with one of Frieza's grunts, both of them watching Vegeta through the glass with open contempt.
"Hmph. Didn't think we'd have to patch up a traitor like you," Zarbon snorted. He glanced at the grunt beside him. "How long until he can talk?"
"He's in bad shape. If you want him lucid, it'll take at least thirty more minutes," the grunt answered.
"I'll go report to Frieza-sama. You stay here and keep an eye on him," Zarbon ordered, then turned and left the room.
The med bay fell silent, leaving only the grunt and Vegeta.
"Glug… glug…"
Vegeta remained submerged in the healing tank.
"Heh-heh! So this is the mighty Vegeta. In front of Frieza-sama, you can only cough up where you hid the Dragon Balls," the grunt chuckled smugly.
Vegeta's eyes snapped open.
The grunt's pupils shrank. His whole body stiffened.
"Hakai!"
Vegeta thrust a hand forward. A pinpoint of purple-red destruction energy shot out and struck the tank.
In the blink of an eye, the entire healing tank vanished—no wreckage, no debris, nothing left behind at all.
The grunt froze, mind going blank with terror.
Vegeta stepped forward and backhanded him once.
The grunt dropped dead.
Vegeta threw his head back and laughed, his voice echoing through the ship. "Didn't expect me to recover that fast, did you?!"
He fired a ki blast into the hull, blasting a clean hole through the wall.
Zarbon, on his way to report, heard the explosion and his expression twisted instantly.
Frieza jolted as well.
Both of them realized something was wrong and rushed toward the med bay. A heartbeat later, they saw the hole torn through the ship.
"He got away!" Zarbon shouted.
"Go after him!" Frieza barked, furious.
"That bastard!" Zarbon shot out through the hole, scanning wildly for Vegeta.
Vegeta, meanwhile, sprinted through the corridors and slipped into the main control room. There, he found five Dragon Balls laid out on the floor.
Frieza really thought he could squeeze their location out of me?
Fine. I'll take every last one you've collected.
Vegeta leaned out into the hallway and shouted back into the ship, "You two idiots got played! I'm still onboard!"
Frieza's face darkened again and again.
"What?!" Zarbon looked down from above, a nasty feeling crawling up his spine.
Vegeta didn't hesitate. He fired another ki blast.
A deafening boom followed, and a violent explosion tore through another section of the ship.
"That bastard!" Zarbon dove straight down toward the blast site.
Vegeta scooped up the five Dragon Balls, kicked another hole through the hull, and tossed the Dragon Balls out one by one.
Frieza and Zarbon reached the explosion site, but Vegeta was nowhere in sight.
"Don't tell me…" Frieza's eyes widened as realization hit. His expression turned even uglier. "Vegeta stole the Dragon Balls?"
They rushed for the main control room.
When they arrived, Frieza found exactly what he feared—every Dragon Ball was gone.
"Ah… that bastard!" Zarbon looked like he'd swallowed something rotten. He shot back into the sky, searching frantically.
Vegeta, grinning, hid beneath a cliff overhang.
You won't find me.
Without scouters, you're nothing.
"Frieza-sama! Could he still be inside the ship?" Zarbon asked urgently.
"Search it!" Frieza snarled through clenched teeth.
Vegeta slipped into the lake, dove deep, and quietly swam away.
Frieza's anger twisted his face as he crushed his fist tight enough to crack his knuckles. His teeth ground together. "We tried to trap him and got burned instead. We let Vegeta escape and lost the Dragon Balls. He can't have gotten far carrying five of them. I'll search the ship—tear apart the outside, and check beneath the ship too!"
Zarbon nodded quickly.
"Listen carefully," Frieza hissed. "If you don't bring Vegeta back within an hour, I'll take your life."
"Yes, Frieza-sama!" Zarbon answered, then flew off.
Vegeta surfaced on the far side of the lake and gathered the Dragon Balls he'd tossed out.
Perfect.
That unlucky idiot Frieza never imagined I'd snatch every Dragon Ball he worked so hard to collect.
With these, plus the one I found earlier, there's only one Dragon Ball left. Once I get it, I'll have all seven.
My wish is finally within reach.
Vegeta stashed the Dragon Balls beneath a rocky cliff and hid them carefully.
Then he felt three ki signatures racing in from far away.
That power… who is it? Kakarot and the others?
Vegeta looked up—and sure enough, Goku, Gohan, and Krillin were cutting across the sky toward him.
"So it really is Kakarot," Vegeta muttered.
High above, Goku, Gohan, and Krillin sped through the area.
"Vegeta's energy showed up around here earlier. He should be close," Goku said, slowing to a stop.
"Hold on, Goku… why am I even coming with you guys?" Krillin suddenly snapped out of it. "Wouldn't it be better if I stayed with Elder Guru?"
"Yeah, that's fair," Goku agreed with an easy grin. "But since you're already here, let's find the Dragon Balls together!"
Krillin sighed, checked the Dragon Radar in his hand, and saw that five Dragon Balls were clustered at the same spot as Vegeta.
"Vegeta's something else," Krillin said with a laugh. "He actually stole five Dragon Balls right out from under Frieza."
"He really is strong," Goku said honestly. "Let's go."
Gohan and Krillin nodded.
The three descended and landed beside Vegeta.
Vegeta could sense where their ki was, but he couldn't suppress his own down to absolute zero. And with five Dragon Balls right next to him, the Dragon Radar made tracking him trivial.
"Kakarot!" Vegeta clenched his fists and glared at Goku.
"Vegeta! You doing okay?" Goku laughed.
"Where's Ken?" Vegeta demanded. "Did he come to Namek?"
"He probably won't," Goku said, shaking his head. "But I'm not totally sure."
"The Dragon Balls are mine," Vegeta said coldly. "Don't even think about taking them."
"Vegeta, Porunga can grant three wishes," Krillin said, stepping forward. "We only need one—bring Chiaotzu back."
"Chiaotzu?" Vegeta sneered. "That little guy who blew himself up? Reviving him is pointless. What's a weakling like that going to do—eat Earth's food?"
Krillin's face tightened. "Watch your mouth!"
"Fine," Vegeta said with a dismissive snort. "Three wishes. You can have one. I'm taking the other two."
Two wishes left.
First wish: an immortal body.
But from what Frieza said, immortality might not be that simple. This dragon's power has limits—I know that much. If it can't even make me a Legendary Super Saiyan, then true immortality could be out of reach.
Frieza seemed to want a wish for regeneration—being able to restore his body.
Fine. I'll take that kind of wish instead.
Second wish… what should it be?
I'll wish for the ability to survive in outer space.
Regeneration won't help if you can't breathe in space.
Done.
Vegeta finished deciding his two wishes in an instant. Then his eyes went to the Dragon Ball in Gohan's hands, and a grin tugged at his mouth.
"Perfect," Vegeta said. "With that one, plus the one I hid earlier, all seven are within reach."
"You hid one too?" Goku brightened. "Then this is going way smoother than I thought! Let's go summon Porunga and make our wishes!"
"Follow me," Vegeta said, not bothering to argue. He scooped up two Dragon Balls, then bent to grab a third—
The second one slipped from his arms and dropped.
Vegeta went silent.
"Vegeta, let me help," Krillin offered quickly. "Gohan and Goku too. Don't worry—we won't steal your Dragon Balls."
Vegeta hesitated, then finally nodded.
Carrying the Dragon Balls, they lifted off under Vegeta's lead and flew toward where he'd stashed the rest.
...
Zarbon hovered high above, scanning everywhere for Vegeta.
Then he spotted several bright streaks of light in the distance.
He narrowed his eyes and quickly picked out Vegeta and Goku.
"Vegeta!" Zarbon's heart surged. "And those two kids… aren't they the ones who lured Dodoria away?"
One of them also looked oddly familiar.
Whatever. Doesn't matter.
The one he found familiar was Goku.
Zarbon had seen Bardock before—back when Planet Vegeta was destroyed. Bardock had charged out into the upper atmosphere and challenged Frieza's forces head-on.
Zarbon's eyes lit up with excitement.
One, two, three, four, five, six!
They've got six Dragon Balls!
Perfect. If Frieza-sama hears about this, he'll be thrilled.
"Vegeta! You're not getting away!" Zarbon roared as he surged after them.
"Someone's coming," Goku said, glancing back.
"Hmph. Zarbon," Vegeta said, unimpressed. "Frieza's lapdog."
"I saw him from far off earlier—he was with Frieza," Goku said, nodding. "Should we stop him?"
"Not yet," Vegeta said, shaking his head. "If we fight here, Frieza will notice. Once we reach the spot where I hid the Dragon Balls, we'll deal with him."
Goku didn't argue.
They picked up speed.
Zarbon was about to accelerate past them and cut them off—then a thought hit him.
Where are they going?
They already have six Dragon Balls…
So they're heading for the seventh.
Once they have it, all seven will be complete.
This is perfect.
I'll take all seven at once, bring them back to Frieza-sama, and he'll reward me for sure.
Zarbon's grin widened.
My luck is insane.
Vegeta hasn't even noticed me yet.
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"
Bright trails burned across the sky behind them.
Five minutes later—
"It's down there," Krillin said, checking the Dragon Radar and pointing toward the ground. "Looks like it's in the lake."
Vegeta glanced at Krillin, then at the device in his hand. "What is that thing?"
"I'm telling you it's a watch," Krillin said, laughing. "You buying it?"
Vegeta stared at him.
A watch?
That thing is obviously a Dragon Radar. Do you think I'm stupid?
Vegeta led the descent.
Goku and the others landed behind him.
"Before we pull out the last Dragon Ball, we deal with this guy," Vegeta said with a snort. "None of you move. I'm handling him."
"Vegeta, your armor's wrecked," Goku said. "Was that because of him?"
Vegeta felt that one hit deep.
"Hmph. That was an accident," Vegeta snapped. "I wasn't even serious back then!"
Zarbon dropped from the sky and landed directly in front of them.
"Vegeta!" Zarbon's eyes bulged, his face twisting with rage. "You really put me through hell. Because of you, Frieza-sama doesn't trust me anymore!"
He bared his teeth, voice turning savage. "But my luck is incredible. You've got six Dragon Balls! And if you landed here, that means the seventh is nearby. I'm right, aren't I?"
"So what?" Vegeta scoffed.
"You teamed up with those two brats, and now you've got another helper," Zarbon said, smirking. "You think the four of you together can beat me?"
His smile sharpened into pure contempt. "Vegeta, you miscalculated. I don't care how many of you there are—you're still not beating me. Bring out the last Dragon Ball, right now, and hand it over. If you do, Frieza-sama might spare your life for completing the set."
"They're just here to watch," Vegeta said, stepping forward with a confident grin. "Against trash like you, I'm more than enough."
"Vegeta, did you forget what happened?" Zarbon laughed coldly. "I beat you into the dirt before. Looks like you still haven't learned. Fine—then I'll beat you half to death again. And this time, you won't be crawling into a healing tank afterward."
With that, Zarbon transformed—his body swelling larger, thicker, and brutally muscular.
Krillin flinched hard.
Gohan stiffened too, a visible tremor running through him.
Goku scratched his head, staring in open curiosity.
"This monster… his ki just jumped a lot," Krillin said, voice low.
Vegeta's mouth curled upward, confidence written all over his face.
Idiot. Does he not know how Saiyans work?
Perfect. I'll show off my Hakai right in front of Kakarot.
I'll make you understand—there's more than Ultra Instinct.
There's Ultra Ego.
Hakai… the ultimate divine technique.
Zarbon charged straight at Vegeta, ferocious and fast.
Vegeta dropped his center of gravity and slipped under the sweeping palm.
As he moved, he grabbed a fistful of dirt.
Zarbon's hand slammed into the ground, carving out a crater.
Vegeta used the opening to rocket upward.
Zarbon snapped his head up and shot after him. "Vegeta! Don't think you can run! You're not escaping!"
Vegeta opened his hand and scattered the dirt downward.
"Aaagh!" Zarbon howled as grit struck his eyes. Pain tore through them, and his vision went black.
Vegeta flashed behind him and drove a heavy punch into Zarbon's lower back.
Zarbon's body buckled like something snapped. His rear armor shattered into several pieces, exposing skin beneath.
He dropped toward the ground.
Vegeta chased him down and hammered both fists onto Zarbon's head.
Zarbon crashed into the lake below, throwing up a spray several meters high.
Vegeta spread his hands and fired a barrage of energy shots into the water.
Explosions thudded one after another, shaking the air.
"Vegeta's gotten stronger again," Goku said, hand at his chin.
"Goku… you can still beat him, right?" Krillin asked quietly.
"Dad will be fine," Gohan said, sure of it.
"Yeah," Goku said with a calm smile. "We've gotten stronger too."
"You're right," Krillin said, nodding. "We trained for a whole month on the spaceship."
[End of Chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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