Raditz hastily gathered the corpses of the frog-aliens, picked some fruit from nearby trees, and hurried back. Making Vegeta angry would be dangerous.
In his nervous state, he accelerated sharply. Suddenly, white flame-like energy erupted around his entire body! As the energy released, he felt the flow of ki!
In Dragon Ball, true power was expressed through ki. Although Saiyans traditionally relied on brute force in combat—impressive as it looked—this approach lacked the sophistication of Earth's warriors. This was why Vegeta himself had learned to control ki after arriving on Earth.
Perceiving ki was the beginning of Raditz's journey to greater power! He was overjoyed.
He immediately tried channeling his ki to levitate himself. Perhaps due to his Saiyan heritage, he mastered the skill after only a short while.
Running and training simultaneously, he finally returned to where Vegeta and Nappa waited.
"Useless fool. It took you that long to deal with this garbage?" As expected, Vegeta glanced at the food in Raditz's hands with a sarcastic sneer.
Though Nappa said nothing, his eyes were filled with disdain.
There was nothing Raditz could do about it—he was the weakest among them.
Raditz prepared a barbecue, divided the food, and served them attentively. Though Saiyans didn't mind eating raw meat, cooked food was cleaner and more nutritious.
After eating, the three continued their conquest of the planet.
Raditz explored the perception and use of ki on his own. After all, if Vegeta could master it in a very short time, there was no reason he couldn't!
A few days later...
"Boom! Crack! Boom!"
The sounds of intense combat and explosive collisions echoed continuously as Raditz moved effortlessly among his enemies. Over the past few days, he had studied and imitated the fighting techniques of Vegeta and Nappa, dramatically improving his combat abilities.
Not only had his effectiveness in battle improved, but his mastery of ki had also advanced significantly.
He could now act without relying on the scouter's readings, sensing ki directly and feeling its flow when using energy or moving. Additionally, he had learned to fly properly.
An enemy attacked from the front, firing continuous laser blasts that left Raditz no room to breathe. Yet Raditz dodged quickly, leaving afterimages in the air, always one step ahead of the laser fire.
Most impressively, he did this with his eyes closed!
It seemed like an extremely risky approach, but these demanding circumstances forced him to develop new skills as quickly as possible.
While dodging, he slowly closed the distance.
Finally, the moment arrived! "Take this!" Raditz roared, instantly accelerating. In the blink of an eye, he flashed in front of the enemy. He clenched both fists, and energy exploded from his hands!
Before the two enemies on either side could react, they saw a figure materialize before them, their pupils dilating in terror at the overwhelming aura.
Raditz's massive fists slammed into their abdomens, nearly punching straight through them.
The surrounding air compressed, airflow disrupted, and ripples of force spread outward from his feet...
The area fell suddenly silent as the remaining opponents froze in fear.
His speed was incredible—so fast they couldn't even react!
"Hmm?" Suddenly, Raditz's eyebrows twitched as he sensed a powerful gust of air approaching from behind, faster than wind! The power behind it was immense!
A sneak attack was inevitable, but Raditz had already mastered basic ki sensing. At the critical moment, he turned to face his attacker and launched a counterattack.
He threw a backhand punch to block the opponent's shockwave, but the massive impact momentarily numbed his arm, causing him to stagger forward several steps. His scouter emitted a sharp warning as a frightening number appeared—1250!
An enemy with over 1000 fighting power!
On this planet, such a being would be considered a master among masters. For Vegeta and Nappa, defeating such an opponent would pose little challenge, but for Raditz, this was a serious threat.
"You actually blocked it, Saiyan!" The tall frog-alien stared with bulging eyes, its muscles visibly tensing as its bones made audible cracking sounds.
It was clearly confused—how had it been detected after carefully stalking and attacking from behind? Did this Saiyan have eyes in the back of his head?
Still puzzled, it charged at Raditz without hesitation.
"Damn it!"
Raditz leaped upward and unleashed a shockwave with one hand. The brilliant beam of light shot toward the frog-alien like a blade, exploding on impact. The violent blast scorched the chaotic air currents, instantly heating everything around it as smoke and dust billowed outward.
Just as Raditz was beginning to feel satisfied, the frog-alien burst through the smoke completely unharmed! With a strange cry, it punched Raditz squarely in the chest, sending him flying back a hundred meters.
A massive trench was carved through the forest as trees splintered and the ground trembled continuously.
Without giving Raditz a moment to recover, the frog-alien made a tremendous leap, landing directly in front of him. Raditz lay sprawled against a boulder, exhaling sharply as he released the tension in his chest.
"Heh, what a surprise. Finally, an opponent who can actually give me a fight." A drop of sweat trickled down Raditz's forehead as a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
"You're smiling?"
"This is Saiyan instinct! In battle, our blood surges with joy!"
The frog-alien couldn't comprehend this response. It raised its arm high and swung downward with tremendous force, attempting to flatten Raditz into pulp.
Before the massive blow could reach Raditz, the ground had already begun to explode and sink, forming spider web-like fissures. The rock shattered instantly under the incredible pressure.
Raditz crossed his arms to block the attack, the energies from both combatants colliding and neutralizing each other.
The frog-alien was startled—it hadn't expected Raditz to completely nullify its attack, and a flicker of panic crossed its face. It leaped into the air, mouth gaping wide as bright white energy gathered like a vortex. The highly compressed energy aimed downward, erupting like a silver dragon.
"Impressive power, but still not enough!" Raditz laughed.
Since learning to harness ki, his combat ability had improved dramatically. He had even mastered the secret of explosive energy release!
His power surged sharply as pale energy erupted around his body. He extended his hands, all fingers spread wide, as continuous energy concentrated at a single point. Dazzling light shot skyward!
Saturday Crush! "BOOM!!!"
The energy collision caused continuous explosions as the two forces entangled, neither gaining the upper hand initially. The frog-alien exerted all its strength but struggled to advance even slightly, while Raditz seemed to have power in reserve.
"Hey, haven't you heard? Never challenge a Saiyan! AAAAHHH!"
Raditz suddenly roared, veins bulging on his arms as his ki spiked dramatically. His shockwave overwhelmed his opponent's attack, emitting incomparable brilliance! In an instant, the light engulfed the frog-alien, and the shockwave soared straight into the sky.
The enemy was completely vaporized.
Only a faint smell of ozone lingered in the air as Raditz crouched on the ground, panting heavily. "Good thing my power level has improved, otherwise I might have taken some serious damage dealing with that one."
Raditz gazed into the distance, secretly pleased with himself.
Earth, I'm coming soon!
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