Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Game

Thinking

“Talking”

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Gray Tanaki had lived a perfectly average life. He graduated from a decent university, had a couple of girlfriends, played video games with his friends, watched a lot of anime, and did everything you’d expect your average man in his 20s to do. His life was perfectly average, which was why he never expected to see this after his death.

Welcome to [Dragon Ball Z: The Game]

Gray lived a perfectly average life, he wasn’t supposed to be given a chance like this. He wasn’t a hero. He didn’t donate tons of money to charity. He didn’t die saving someone's life. He wasn’t supposed to get reincarnated.

He lived his life, had fun, and then lost it in an instant when a drunk driver swerved into him while he was walking home from a bar. How cliche. 

Of course, he wasn’t complaining. The chance to go into the Dragon Ball universe? It’d be scary, that’s for sure, when theres beings that could kill him with the snap of their fingers. But the chance to live out every man's power fantasy, to train your ass off and become the strongest, to have epic battles, and to have your own harem of beautiful women? Of course he wasn’t complaining, he was excited, more excited then he’d ever been in his entire life. 

Maybe getting hit by a truck is the secret key to getting isekai’d. Gray thought, attempting to look around, but unable to. His vision was completely filled by a 90s-esque arcade game start screen. He quickly realized he didn’t even have a body anymore, and wasn’t sure how he could progress past the starting screen, but luckily for him, the game seemed to read his mind.

Character Customization:

You have: 1000 Credits

You have gained 1000 credits based on your actions in your past life.

Credit breakdown:

+500 for being knowledgeable about the world you’re entering.

+250 for being a [Above-Average] individual.

+100 for taking in a stray cat.

+100 for having big ambitions.

+50 for winning your 5th-grade spelling bee.

Damn, who would’ve thought my hobbies would help me someday? 

Warning: Options that cost more credits than you have will not be shown.

Select your starting race:

Free - [Human]

250 - [Namekian]

500 - [Demon]

750 - [Cerealian]

1000 - [Sayian]

Gray instantly ruled out Namekian and Cerealian. As cool as those races were, they were both victims of massacres that nearly made them extinct. Plus, Namekians didn’t have dicks. How could he have a harem of sexy babes if he didn’t have a dick tot fuck them with? He then ruled out Demon, as while there were some strong demons in the Dragon Ball world, he’d be going in pretty much blind. The demon realm wasn’t showcased much in the series, other than being home to some antagonists like Babidi and Dabura. There were a few games that went more in-depth on the realm, but he wasn’t sure if non-canon events would be real in this world. If they were, he definitely didn’t want to be anywhere near the demon realm. 

That left him with Human or Sayian. This was a no-brainer, as while it’d take all his points to become a Sayian, it’d definitely be worth it. The humans in Dragon Ball became pretty much useless after Namek. More importantly, he’d be able to go super sayian, which was both the coolest and most broken transformation in the series. The game seemed to read his mind again, as he saw the Sayian option light up for a second before the game moved on.

Select your starting perks:

You may select one perk from each category. The perks you do not choose can be gained later in the game through quests. 

[Sayian Perks]

All these perks will relate to your race.

[Perfect Ozaru] - Sayian’s receive a 10x multiplier to their power level upon entering their Ozaru form. You’ve perfected this form and will gain an 11x multiplier, which can be trained and increased by up to 25x.

[Legendary Super Sayian] - You share the bloodline of Broly, and will be able to unlock the Legendary Super Sayian form.

[Sayian Pride] - As a Sayian, you are a part of a battle-hungry race. Your pride pushes you onwards, allowing you to upgrade combat skills 10% faster.

[Reincarnator Perks]

As someone who reincarnated, you have access to unique perks.

[Above-Average] - Since you lived an above-average life, you will be given an above-average buff. Gain skill exp 5% faster.

[Nerd] - As a fan of the Dragon Ball world, you will be able to learn iconic techniques 10% faster. (Only applies to techniques you can learn.)

[Lucky] - To be chosen for this game, you must be lucky. Start with +10 LUK.

[Double-edged Sword] - Your knowledge of this world may not be as useful as you think. By choosing this perk, you will be able to choose 3 more perks from any category, but the world will be slightly altered from how you remember it.

[Social Perks]

[Smooth Talker] - You are naturally a smooth operator. Sentient creatures are 10% more susceptible to your words.

[Ladies Man] - You have a way with women. Gain 2x Reputation with women.

[A Cute Pawn] - Sometimes your life will depend on how good your ass-kissing skills are. Gain 2x Reputation with beings who have a higher power level than you.

[A Humble Master] - You don’t let your power go to your head. Gain 2x Reputation with beings who have a lower power level than you.

[A Natural Leader] - You’re a natural leader. People naturally listen to you, and will view you as a leader.

Gray considered each option carefully. His first decision was to accept the [Double-edged Sword] perk. The world being altered was concerning, as his knowledge of the series would be one of his biggest assets, but the description said “slightly,” and he felt like a slight deviation was worth the extra perks. He used one of the extra perks to select both [Perfect Ozaru] and [Legendary Super Sayian]. This wouldn’t help him much early on, as he wouldn’t be able to go super Saiyan or control his Ozaru, but would be a huge help in the future. Plus, how cool would it be to not only be a Super Sayian, but THE legendary Super Sayian!

He skipped over the rest of the reincarnator perks, having already selected [Double-edged Sword] and thinking the rest of them weren’t very enticing. Having extra LUK at the start would be nice, but he’d rather have a buff that scaled with him later on. He selected [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], and [Ladies Man]. The first two were easy, as he covered all his bases with that. Everyone he’d meet would either have a higher or lower power level than him, unless they somehow managed to be exactly equal to him, which meant he’d be getting 2x reputation with everyone. Reputation would definitely be important when there were beings like Beerus running around. He could probably wiggle his pinky toe and blow up the Earth. He’d eventually need to be on his good side. [A Humble Master] would help him make powerful friends, which could save his ass in a pinch.

Of course, the last choice was personal. He was in the world of Dragon Ball and had a gamer system. The world was truly his oyster. Of course he’d want all the women he could get. [Ladies Man] would make it that much easier, especially when he’d have to inevitably fight with Vegeta or Yamcha for Bulma. There was no way he was going to pass up on being with one of the original greatest waifus. 

The game processed his choices and then moved on to the next section.

Choose your difficulty:

WARNING: This can not be changed later on.

[Easy] - For those who don’t want a challenge. You’ll never have to fear for your life, but you’ll also never be able to live out your wildest fantasies. Portions of the game will be locked, and you will gain 50% less XP, but your enemies will be much weaker. You will have heavy restrictions to ensure your actions are appropriate for the Dragon Ball universe. Follows canon closely. 

[Normal] - For those who want the average adventure. The chance of death is low, but not 0%. Portions of the game will be locked, and you will have restrictions to ensure your actions are appropriate for the Dragon Ball universe. Follows canon closely. 

[Hard] - For those who want a challenge. The chance of death is high enough for you to be scared, but you’ll receive a 2x multiplier added to all XP gained. You will have fewer restrictions, but not complete freedom to do whatever you want, and enemies will be much smarter and more difficult. Follows canon closely. 

[Expert] - For those who are too confident. Your odds of dying are higher than your odds of living, but you’ll receive a 5x multiplier added to all XP gained. You’ll have near freedom to do whatever you want, but enemies will be much smarter and more difficult. Follows canon partially. 

[Nightmare] - For those who are suicidal. Do whatever the fuck you want. You don’t need to follow the story, canon can go to hell! Rape, steal, kill, make your own skills, take over the universe, become a god, I don’t give a fuck what you do. You’ll have no restrictions. However, neither will your enemies. Enemies will be much smarter, more difficult, and have modifiers. You will receive a 10x multiplier added to all XP gained. (Recommended for those who want to live their lives to the fullest, or for those who want to die quickly.)

Gray stared at the options but knew there was only really one choice for him. He was reincarnated into Dragon Ball, a series he was a huge fan of. He had the chance to live out his wildest fantasies. To battle strong enemies. To fuck his favorite waifu’s. There was no way he was going to go into this half-assed. He’d rather die as a badass than live this newfound life as a bitch. He’d already lived one life, if he died early in this one, then so be it. Fuck it, we ball. Nightmare mode it is.

The game setup is complete!

Good luck, have fun, and try not to die too quickly!

Gray blinked and hastily raised his hand up to his eyes to block the light. Wait… his eyes? He glanced down, and saw that along with eyes, he now had a full body. He looked around and saw that he was in a small room, which looked like some type of dorm room. A small mirror on the wall, a twin bed against the wall, and a small bathroom off to the side. He also had a window on the wall, which he couldn’t help but look out. The sight that greeted him was a red rocky canyon, with huge boulders and rock walls surrounding the canyon. Inside the canyon, which was where his room was, there was also a series of buildings, which looked very similar to college buildings from his world.

+10 INT for observing your surroundings! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

 He thought he was in a college of some kind, but a more pressing matter surged into his thoughts as he rushed over to the mirror on his wall. He better be hot.

Luckily for him, he was. A chiseled jawline, short blonde hair, and a pair of pretty ocean-blue eyes stared back at him. He was practically a model. Maybe this was a benefit of [Ladies Man] ? 

+ 10 INT for using your brain! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Thanks game. He also seemed to be pretty tall. He didn’t have a real way to measure himself, but from comparing himself to the bed he guessed he was probably a fair bit over 6 feet tall, maybe 6’5 or 6’6. That made sense, as most Sayians were actually pretty tall despite what people online seemed to think. Vegeta being barely over 5 feet really lowered the idea of Sayian’s heights, but Nappa was close to 7 feet tall, and Raditz was a few inches over 6’. He was wearing the series’s standard black Sayian armor but had a badge to the left of his chest that had the number 1554 on it.

Gray was pulled out of his thoughts by a loud banging on the door, “Hurry up, recruit 1554!” a voice hollered through.

Gray walked towards the door, before deciding whoever was outside could wait a bit longer as an idea came to him. He rushed over to the mirror, and whispered “Observe.”

[Observe] skill unlocked!

+10 INT for unlocking [Observe] (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Gray Tanaki:

[Sayian]

Age: 15

Wallet: 0 Coins

Lvl: 1 (0/500 XP)

PL: 825

Available Points: 5

HP: 125/125

TKI: 275/275

STR: 5

AGI: 5

END: 5

INT: 35

CHA: 5

LUK: 5

KI: 5

HREG: 5

EREG: 5

Skills: [Observe LVL 1]

Perks: [Gamer’s Mind], [Gamer’s Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Sayian], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], [Ladies Man]

Gray Tanaki is a Sayian in training on Planet Vegeta. 

Well, at least I know where I am now. Gray thought as he read the final line. He took a moment to click on each of his stats to make sure he knew how they all worked. 

PL = Power Level: A numerical description of your strength. (Power Level = STR x AGI x END + base. Your base is 200.)

HP - Health Points: How much health you have. When this reaches 0, you die. Due to [Nightmare Mode], you will feel weaker as your HP decreases despite your [Gamer’s Mind] and [Gamer’s Body] perks. (HP = STR x END + base. Your base is 100.)

TKI - Total Ki: The amount of Ki you have. Ki is used for energy attacks. Due to [Nightmare Mode], you will feel weaker as your KI decreases despite your [Gamer’s Mind] and [Gamer’s Body] perks. (Ki = INT x KI + base. Your base is 100.)

KI - Ki: Affects your Total Ki and Energy Regeneration.

STR - Strength: How strong you are. This affects the weight of objects you can pick up or move, as well as the force behind your physical attacks.

AGI - Agility: How quick and agile you are. This affects your ability to hit opponents, as well as dodge opponent's attacks.

END -  Endurance: How durable you are. This affects how much damage you take from attacks. 

CHA - Charisma: How likable you are. This affects the amount of reputation you gain from interactions, and how persuasive you are.

LUK - Luck: How lucky you are.

HREG - Health Regeneration: How quickly your HP regenerates. (Health Regeneration = HREG/per minute. You will currently regenerate 5 HP per minute.)

EREG -  Energy Regeneration: How quickly your KI regenerates. (Energy Regeneration = EREG/per minute. You will currently regenerate 5 KI per minute,)

+10 INT for thinking to observe yourself! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+10 INT for looking through your stats! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+10 INT for checking your stats description! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+1 LVL in [Observe] (10/1 XP) (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Gray didn’t have much time to think, as right as he finished reading the descriptions a bang came from the door again, though he made note that he already had a pretty high power level, and it seemed relatively easy to raise. 

“Get your ass out here, recruit 1554! If you’re not out here in 5 seconds I’ll make sure your ass is dead today!” The voice yelled, gruff and slightly nasally. 

Gray hurried to the door, opening it up to the sight of a large muscular man. He wore standard Sayian armor and was a good few inches shorter than gray. He had a square face with a purple scouter over one of his eyes, dark black hair, a thick bushy mustache, and muscles that had veins bulging out from them. If this had been back in his world, there would’ve been no question about if he was on roids. Gray stared at him for a second, thinking Observe .

[Meat Head] Bouleor:

[Sayian F-Class Instructor]

Age: 37

PL: 22,560

Reputation: 10/100 (Positively viewed)

[Meat Head] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will gain INT 50% slower, but STR and END 100% faster.

+1 LVL in [Observe] (20/10 XP) (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Gray’s eyes nearly popped out of his head as he saw his power level. Sayians’ weren’t supposed to be nearly this powerful! Vegeta peaked at 18,000 during his fight with Goku, and he was significantly stronger than any of the other Sayians, having surpassed his father in strength when he was a child. He knew [Nightmare Mode] was going to make this difficult but over 22,000? This instructor, who’d never even appeared in the actual series, was already as strong as Zarbon and Dodoria. Suddenly, his own power level of 825 seemed much less impressive. He didn’t even want to imagine what Vegeta’s power level was right now.

F-Class? What does that mean? Gray pushed the thought to the back of his mind a second later.

“Fuck you staring at, recruit? Got lost in my eyes? Flattery won’t get your rank moved up, I don’t swing that way dumb-ass.” Bouleor pulled him out of his thoughts as he mocked him, and for the first time, Gray noticed the large group of teenagers gathered behind him as they snickered at his expense. 

Gray glanced around and saw that they were in a futuristic-esque tunnel, with large white curved walls curving over their heads. Large purple gemstones admitting light glowed down from the ceiling. He looked over at the teenagers, all of whom wore the same standard armor that he did, and had numbered badges on their front. Bouleor turned away from him and started walking down the tunnel, with the large crowd of teenagers following him. Gray seamlessly joined the crowd to follow him but quickly noticed that the other recruits seemed to make a point of staying away from him, with a few casting glances at him and whispering to one another. 

Why were there so many Sayians here? Did he start way before canon, when planet Vegeta hadn’t been destroyed yet, or had a combination of [Double-edged Sword] and [Nightmare Mode] fucked up canon to the point where the Sayians had survived somehow?

“Hey, why were you taking so long, dumb-ass? You’re just giving him an excuse to kill you!” Gray turned to his right as a girl ran up next to him. He had to look down to make eye contact with her, as she was pretty short compared to him, around 5’8 if he had to take a guess. She had short red hair, and a slim yet muscular physique, looking like the tomboy type. She had a tough yet cute-looking angular face, and her gray eyes narrowed as she scowled at him. She had small breasts that were nearly completely hidden by her Sayian armor. 

Observe, Gray thought

[Rough] Tamari:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit #119]

Age: 15

PL: 18,729

Reputation: 110/1000 (Liked)

[Rough] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally talented in “rough” situations, such as training, sports, etc.

An even shorter girl was close behind her, peeking past Tamari to look at him. She looked the opposite of how Gray expected a female Sayian would look. She was probably barely over 5 feet tall and had long blonde hair. Her entire body was very soft looking, as her baby-blue eyes looked at him in concern and her hands pressed together worriedly. Her face was a bit more rounded than Tamari’s, and her breasts were too big to be hidden by the Sayian armor, being rather noticeable. Gray quickly used observe on her as well.

[Angel] Asia:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit #1450]

Age: 15

PL: 2,180

Reputation: 200/1000 (Liked)

[Angel] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally kind.

“Ah, I woke up late,” Gray said sheepishly to Tamari, making up an excuse on the spot. He didn’t know who these two girls were, but considering they were talking to him while everyone else seemed to be avoiding him like the plague, he assumed they were his friends prior to him inhabiting this body.

“You can’t do that, idiot!” Tamari said angrily, her hand lightly punching his arm, “You’re the lowest ranking in our class. The only reason you’ve made it this far is because Bouleor enjoys toying with you. If you make him genuinely annoyed, he’ll kill you! We both know you’re disposable, there’s a reason we started with 2000 recruits this year and we’re down to under 1600.”

“Tam,” Asia said softly as she placed her hand on Tamari’s arm, “You’re being too harsh on him! We all make mistakes.”

Tamari groaned and relented, sighing dramatically as she tilted her head upwards and cross her arms behind her head, “Yeah, I’ll be nicer when this dumb-ass stops almost getting himself killed.”

Gray quickly put the pieces of the conversation together as they walked. He was apparently the lowest-ranked recruit, i.e. the weakest, and had only avoided being killed because the instructor thought he was fun to toy with. Apparently, they’d lost nearly 500 recruits already, whether that was from solely Bouleor being annoyed with them or from training he wasn’t sure. 

It made a lot more sense now why all the other recruits were avoiding him, as he was ranked the lowest. He wasn’t sure why these two girls seemed to be friendly with him, but for whatever reason they seemed concerned about him.

+20 INT for using their conversation to learn more about your situation! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

“I’ll try to be more careful in the future, alright?” Gray said, smiling gently at Tamari. The girl blushed lightly and then turned away with a huff. 

“By the way, where are we heading?” Gray asked her, as they walked with the large crowd of recruits following Bouleor.

Tamari stared at him incredulously, “You hit your head or something? We’re going to the training grounds like we do every day.”  

“Ah, I was just joking, haha,” Gray lamely made an excuse, rubbing the back of his head, embarrassed as he realized how stupid his question was.

The three of them continued with the crowd, making small talk on the way, but Gray’s mind was racing as a new alert appeared.

[Quest Alert]

Survive your first day of training!

Rewards:

+20 Attribute points (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+500 Coins

+500 XP

Failure:

Death.

The three continued with small talk as they walked to the training grounds, but Gray was too nervous about the upcoming training to think about any topics to bring up that might get him more information about his situation.

Eventually, they walked past a giant bunker. Gray saw another large crowd of recruits inside of it, all in a circle listening to a big burly man speak. There was a variety of machines in the bunker, along with a track and battle arena. There were healing pods lining the walls and a cafeteria in the corner. Gray assumed this was what Tamari meant by training grounds, but instead, Bouleor walked right past it. Gray glanced back at the top-tier training arena as they walked past and then glanced at Tamari.

Tamari noticed his glance and scowled, “Damn Class-B pricks. They think they’re so cool because they get a fancy training area. Can you believe one of them tried picking a fight with me yesterday? Called me a Class-F failure. I don’t know why they’re so cocky, every class’s training ground is shit compared to Class-S.”

Gray felt a knot form in his stomach as he listened to her. 

That’s what Class-F meant. I’m the lowest-ranked recruit… in the weakest class. Are you fucking kidding me game? Fucking nightmare mode. 

It was one thing to be the lowest-ranked recruit among the 1,500 recruits around him, but there was a class system? He was the lowest ranked in the worst class? 

Wait… Bouleor’s the instructor of Class-F. He’s probably the weakest instructor and his power level is 22,000? Fucking bullshit nightmare mode. “Fuck it we ball” my ass.

After a few more minutes of walking, they arrived at a large open outdoor area in the canyon. Their training ground was definitely a lot less spectacular than the one they walked past earlier. He felt like he was at a middle school track meet.

There were foldable tables set up with tents over them, and water bottles on the tables. That was it. Just a big open canyon, and a couple of tables with tents.

“Alright, maggots. Get to running. Same as always, 50 laps, then meet back here.” Bouleor shouted loudly, his voice echoing throughout the canyon. 

Gray saw a string of recruits start running out towards the large rock wall on the opposite side of the canyon at speeds he couldn’t even hope to match. Tamari and Asia took off past him, and he quickly started running to keep up with them, but that was a lot easier said than done. He could see why he was the lowest-ranked recruit now, as everyone else seemed miles ahead of him physically. Luckily, he had a gamer system and they didn’t. Roughly 30 seconds into running he got a notification.

[Running] skill unlocked!

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

[Running] LVL 1 - Your ability to move your legs quickly.

+10 AGI for unlocking an AGI-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Gray thanked every god he could think of, even Beerus, that he had the 10x multiplier. The added AGI, along with his new skill, allowed him to barely keep up pace with Tamari and Asia, although they were at the back of the pack, and he was definitely feeling the effects of the running, his breathing heavy and uneven. Another minute passed, and just as he was starting to fall back behind Tamari and Asia, he got another notification.

[Running] level up! (10/10)

+10 AGI for leveling up an AGI-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Gray felt his legs start moving faster, and had to slow down slightly as he nearly flew past Tamari and Asia. Keeping pace with them was suddenly a lot easier, and his breathing evened out. 

Thank you OP game system. I didn’t think I was going to survive even one lap at that pace.

The rock wall they were running towards was very far out, so far he could barely see it. If Gray had to guess, it was likely at least 2 miles away, maybe farther. They had been running for nearly 2 minutes and weren’t even halfway there.

We’re doing this 50 times? This is going to take hours, is this the only training we do all day?

[Running] level up! (100/100)

+10 AGI for leveling up an AGI-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Gray’s time concerns were answered as he finally was able to comfortably keep pace with Tamari and Asia, allowing him to look around at the other recruits. Some of them were practically blurs, as his eyes couldn’t even keep track of their movements. He realized that while this would take them hours, the higher-ranked recruits would probably be done within 30 minutes, and would move on to the next training stage, or have time to rest. He glanced over at Tamari, remembering that she was nearly in the top 100 of their class. She looked almost bored, not even breaking a sweat as she practically jogged at a pace he had been struggling to keep up with a few minutes ago. Asia at least looked like she was trying, but also only had a few sweat drops on her forehead. They were holding back, running slower so he wouldn’t be alone at the back. That pissed him off.

“Go faster,” Gray grunted and picked up his pace. By now, there was a large gap formed between the three of them and the rest of the recruits. Even the slowest ones had already reached the wall, and were on their way back, while they were only a bit over halfway. 

Tamari glanced at him in surprise, and then nodded and matched his pace. Asia followed her lead and also caught up with them. They continued like that, and not even a minute later they had reached the wall, now gaining on the slowest group of recruits. They turned around and started heading back to the starting site, and Gray felt like his lungs were about to give out already. He glanced to the side and saw Tamari still barely trying.

Dammit, fucking game. I’m supposed to be having badass battles and dicking down hot girls! Not being pitied by a girl a foot shorter than me.

Gray struggled to breathe as he kept up the pace, and felt his legs to start slow down. Asia looked over at him, concerned, then looked at Tamari, “I think we should slow down a bit…”

No, dammit, I’m supposed to be a badass. I’m not going to slow down and look pathetic in front of the only people who give a shit about me here. 

Gray forced his legs to keep moving, gritting his teeth, and was greeted by a notification.

[Determination] skill unlocked!

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

[Determination] - Your desire to keep moving forward. When your body wants to stop, make it keep going. 

+10 END for acquiring an END-related skill!

Gray kept pushing his legs to move, one after the other, and found it slightly easier than before. However, even with the small boost, he wouldn’t be able to keep up for long. Luckily, he was saved by another notification.

[Running] level up! (1000/1000)

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+10 AGI for leveling up an AGI-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Level up!

+50 Attribute points (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+500 Coins

This pattern continued for the next hour, Gray slowly upping the pace as his [Determination] and [Running] skills both reached level 4 overall. Eventually, their pace was fast enough that they passed the group of recruits in front of them, a pack of 4 people, 2 boys and 2 girls. Gray felt a smile creep on his face as his body steadily got faster, and soon enough they had passed a few groups. After a little over an hour, they had 10 laps left, and Gray felt a hand grab his shoulder.

“I don’t know what’s gotten into you today, but we need to slow down,” Tamari said, gesturing over to Asia, who was now dripping in sweat and struggling to keep up. Gray nodded, satisfied by the progress he’d made on the run, having started as by far the slowest of the three and now being in the middle. They ran the last 10 laps and arrived back at the starting camp.

“Wow, not last this time 1554! I thought I’d sooner see Lord Freiza lose a fight before I saw you finish ahead of someone!” Bouleor shouted at him, giving him a hard pat on the back that nearly knocked him over as he laughed. Gray didn’t respond, tired and dripping in sweat from the run and not having the mental to deal with holding a conversation.

“Damn, not last in something for once? Keep this up and maybe you’ll move up a rank! Then you’ll only be the second most worthless one here.” A pretentious voice said, and Gray looked up to see a small crowd of 4 boys and 1 girl staring at him. He used observe on the one standing at the front. He was uncharacteristically short for a Sayian, looking to be around 5’6, and with a mop of dirty blonde hair on his head. He had a round face, clean of facial hair, and a relatively lean body, not bulging with muscles like many of the other Sayians. 

[Arrogant] Dareth:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit #18]

Age: 17

PL: 25,680

Reputation: -150/-1000 (Disliked)

[Arrogant] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally arrogant, believing they are better than others.

A higher power level than the instructor? What the fuck?

“What the hell do you want, Dareth?” Tamari asked, standing slightly in front of him in a defensive way. Gray used the moment to use observe on the others. The first one was a girl he would admit was gorgeous, with long green hair flowing down her back, a cute angular face, that looked almost alien-esque, and a slim body. She stood back behind the others, almost as if she was using them as a shield to hide behind.

[Survivalist] Celia:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit #1550]

Age: 16

PL: 1,020

Reputation: 0/100 (Neutral)

[Survivalist] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will do whatever it takes to survive.

The second looked nothing like a 14 year old boy. He was practically a giant, towering even a few inches over Gray, and looked like a sumo wrestler. He was fat, but clearly had muscles hidden underneath it. He had black hair with a buzz cut that definitely didn’t suit him, and a pudgy face. He had an annoying smirk on his face, and was standing a few inches behind Dareth.

[Stupid] Gallow:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit #4]

Age: 14

PL: 32,540

Reputation: -20/-100 (Negatively Viewed)

[Stupid] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally stupid. 

The other two couldn’t have looked more like side characters if they tried. One was tall and thin, with spikey blonde hair jutting up from his head. He was grinning stupidly, showcasing the two teeth missing from his mouth.

[Follower] Garlet:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit #1209]

Age: 15

PL: 3,460

Reputation: 0/100 (Neutral)

[Follower] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be natural followers. They are terrible leaders but go above and beyond with a good leader.

The final boy looked like the type of plain isekai protagonist who’s name you would forget halfway through the second episode. He was short with messy black hair that overshadowed one of his eyes, and very thin. Despite his modifier, he looked like he didn’t have a pound of muscle on his body.

[Strong] Kit:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit #860]

Age: 15

PL: 5,975

Reputation: -150/-100 (Disliked)

[Strong] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally inclined to pursue STR-based skills. 

“I came to see if you’re finally ready to stop hanging out with this loser. You’re strong, but there's no way you’ll make it through the mid-year exam with him weighing you down,” Dareth said, gesturing to Gray, “Join up with me. You can replace one of these two.” 

Dareth nodded his head in Kit and Garlet’s direction.

“Who I hang out with has nothing to do with you. You're an even bigger dumb-ass than you look if you think I’d even consider joining your team for the exam.” Tamari said, flipping up her middle finger and holding it in his face.

Dareth glared at her, then smirked maliciously and looked at Asia, “Well, maybe your friend thinks differently.”

Dareth took a step forward and reached out to grab Asia’s arm. Tamari moved to stop him, but almost faster than Gray’s eyes could process, Gallow appeared in between the two. Tamari grit her teeth as he obscured her vision of Asia. Gray’s hand snapped up using his newfound agility, and clamped onto Dareth’s wrist, stopping him in place.

The face Dareth made would’ve been comical if Gray wasn’t using all the meager strength he had to hold Dareth’s arm in place. Dareth looked genuinely shocked, as if the idea of Gray stopping him had never occurred to him.

“You finally grew some balls, last place? Or maybe you’ve become suicidal?” Dareth said, yanking his wrist from Gray’s grasp easily and clenching his fist.

Whatever he was going to do next was interrupted by Bouleor’s shout, “What are you idiots doing? Everyone’s done with their laps, get over here for the next part!”

Dareth glared at Gray, “I’ll make sure you’re my partner for the duels today, got it?”

-20 Reputation with Dareth (For standing up to him) 

-10 Reputation with Gallow (For standing up to Dareth) 

-10 Reputation with Garlet (For standing up to Dareth) 

-10 Reputation with Kit (For standing up to Dareth) 

+8 Reputation with Celia (For standing up to Dareth) [4x from [Ladies Man], [A Humble Master]] 

Gray glared back at him and didn’t respond, mainly because he didn’t even know they were going to be having duels, but he wasn’t going to let Dareth know that. Dareth scoffed and walked away, heading towards the forming group of recruits near Bouleor. His posse followed along quickly, not sparing them another look.

Despite being a higher power level than him, he’s still listening to Bouleor. I need to learn a lot about this planet, and quickly. Apparently power isn’t everything.

+80 Reputation with Asia (For protecting her) [4x from [Ladies Man], [A Humble Master]]

+40 Reputation with Tamari (For protecting Asia) [4x from [Ladies Man], [A Cute Pawn]]

+10 CHA for being chivalrous (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Gray’s eyes widened as he saw the perks that gave him extra reputation were different for each of them. Considering that [A Humble Master] activated for Asia, that meant he was a higher power level than her now. 

Stats.

Gray Tanaki:

[Sayian]

Age: 15

Wallet: 500 Coins

Lvl: 2 (300/1000 XP)

PL: 10,325

Available Points: 55

HP: 325/325

TKI: 525/525

STR: 5

AGI: 45

END: 45

INT: 85

CHA: 15

LUK: 5

KI: 5

HREG: 5

EREG: 5

Skills: [Observe LVL 2], [Running LVL 4], [Determination LVL 4]

Perks: [Gamer’s Mind], [Gamer’s Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Sayian], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], [Ladies Man]

Gray Tanaki is a Sayian in training on Planet Vegeta. 

WTF? 10,000 already? I know that running was tough, but damn.

Gray couldn’t help the smile coming onto his face as he saw his new power level. 10,000 in one workout gave him hope that maybe raising his power level wouldn’t be too difficult. Luckily for him, Asia assumed his smile was directed at her, so he didn’t look like a weirdo smiling at nothing.

+20 Reputation with Asia (For smiling kindly at her) [4x from [Ladies Man], [A Humble Master]]

Gray calmed himself down before he got ahead of himself.

10,000 is great, I gained over 9,000 from just one workout, but I need to remember the difficulty this world is set to. 10,000 is still only middle of the road in the worst class. The recruits in the S-Class are probably in the hundreds of millions. This is just the first step. My stats are also horrible right now, I’m quick and can take a punch but that won’t help me if I’m not strong enough to hurt anybody. 

“Thank you for helping me, Gray,” Asia said shyly, smiling kindly at him with a blush on her face. Next to her, Tamari nodded and gave him an appreciative look. 

“No problem, there's no way I was going to let that dickhead do anything to you.” He said, smiling gently at her, eliciting another blush. She really was pretty. He’d been excited to meet and seduce the characters he knew, like Bulma and Android 18, but too many women in his harem could never hurt, right? 

“It reminds me of the first time we met,” Asia said, blushing heavily as she looked away shyly.

“Hurry the fuck up, last place! You ran a bit quicker today and think you’re too cool for ki training now?” Bouleor shouted behind him, interrupting their conversation. 

I’ll have to find out about our first meeting another time.

Gray and the two girls hurried towards him, and the training started soon after. Everyone else already knew how to use ki, and the training Bouleor gave them was to pretty much just to work on controlling it. It didn’t seem like he really had any training plans, but I guess that’s what F-Class gets.

Gray wasn’t sure how to bring out his ki and thought back to what he knew about the series. 

What was it that Gohan told Videl when he was teaching her? Just let it flow out… 

Gray frowned as he tried and nothing happened.

Not very specific. You suck at teaching, Gohan.

Gray held his hands a few inches a part, leaving a ball-shaped area cradled in between them. He focused, closing his eyes and imagining the energy flowing in his hands. A moment later, he felt a small pull in his gut, and suddenly a small orb of light was hovering in between his hands.

[Ki Control] skill unlocked!

+10 Ki for acquiring a Ki-related skill!

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Gray grinned and tried moving the ball around. He couldn’t control it very well, but he could make the ball move roughly in the direction he wanted to. For the next two hours, Bouleor leaned against a rock and took a nap while the recruits worked on their ki control alone. Gray spent the time talking with Tamari and Asia once he had enough control to keep the ball afloat while talking. Throughout this time, he managed to level up his Ki control to level 5, and could control the ball well enough to move it around fairly quickly, but didn’t risk trying to shoot any beams. He wasn’t sure he trusted himself to not accidentally hit someone, and he wasn’t strong enough yet to confidently fight any of the higher-ranked recruits. He also managed to level up once from the XP he gained by leveling up his [Ki Control] skill.

After 2 hours, Bouleor abruptly stood up from the rock he’d been leaning on, and shouted at the recruits, “Alright, time for the fun stuff! Everyone form a circle, it’s time for some duels!”

The recruits around him dismissed their various ki constructions, and started forming a large circle around Bouleor. Gray followed Tamari’s lead, and eventually, there was a decently large circle formed around an empty area in the canyon. Bouleor called out various numbers, and those recruits stepped into the circle, resulting in either a round of cheers or boos ringing out around them. Gray hoped he wouldn’t be called, but after watching a couple of duels he was feeling more confident. No one was moving faster than he could keep up with, and he felt like he’d be able to hold his own for the most part against some of the higher-ranked recruits. 

“Next up, 1554 and 18!”  Bouleor shouted out, and a round of cheers rang out. Gray grimaced as he realized what was going on. This was what Dareth meant about being his dueling partner. Gray entered the circle, feeling nervous, as while he’d felt like he could hold his own against most of the recruits he’d been watching duel, the highest ranking of them had only been at the upper end of 300. Dareth was in the top 20.

Tamari grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back as he started to walk into the circle. She leaned close to his ear, “Just dodge, ok? Don’t give him a show and he’ll get bored. I fucking mean it Gray, if you try to fight back you’ll die. You’ve got no chance against him.”

Gray nodded at her words and walked forward. He didn’t plan on fighting back anyway. His agility and endurance were high, but his strength was practically non-existent. He wasn’t going to throw all his attribute points into strength so early on when he didn’t have much of a plan. His win condition was to dodge and endure until the crowd grew bored and they started the next duel. Bouleor was clearly looking for a show, as he’d ended duels while they were still fighting earlier if they weren’t exciting. 

“Regretting standing up for your little girlfriend now, last place?” Dareth said, smirking as he stood across from him. Gray opened his mouth to speak but didn’t get a chance to respond, as Dareth suddenly appeared right in front of him. He launched a fist at Gray’s face, and Gray barely managed to stumble out of the way.

“DARETH! DARETH! DARETH! DARETH!” A chant broke out in the crowd around them.

“Beat his ass, Dareth!” 

“Show that weakling where he belongs!”

“Kill him!”

Gray gritted his teeth as he heard the shouts around him.

I’ll make then regret that when I’m stronger.

“Feeling nervous? Here, give me your best punch,” Dareth said, stopping in the middle of the ring and holding his hand in a “come here” motion. Laughter rang out around them from the crowd.

“Don’t let him goad you, Gray!” He heard Tamari shout, and Gray had no intention of playing into his game. His power level had grown a lot today, being over 10,000 now, but it was still less than half of Dareth’s. He wasn’t looking to die young.

Gray stood at the edge of the circle, ready to dodge at a moment's notice. Dareth realized he wasn’t going to throw a punch, and surged forward again, swiping a kick up at his face. Gray ducked under it, then barely managed to roll to the side in time as the kick changed direction and came down toward his head. 

“Do you plan to run forever? Where did those balls you had earlier go?” Dareth mocked him, chasing him with a flurry of punches. Gray barely managed to dodge, but eventually had to hold up his arms to block one.

-10HP (315/325)

Gray grunted as a punch hit his crossed arms, the force of it causing him to lose some HP even though he blocked it. Dareth smiled as he heard his grunt, and his punches seemed to speed up. His flurry of punches and kicks continued, forcing Gray to guard more.

-10HP (305/325)

-10HP (295/325)

-10HP (285/325)

-10HP (275/325)

-10HP (265/325)

I can’t keep going on like this. He’s chipping away at my HP, and the crowd doesn’t seem bored yet.

“DARETH! DARETH! DARETH!”

“Kill that coward!”

“Beat his ass!”

An idea formed in Gray’s head, and he made a point to hold up his arms and block a punch going for his face, leaving his lower body open. Dareth noticed, and a harsh uppercut slammed into Gray’s gut. The crowd roared even louder.

-120HP (145/325)

Gray grunted as spit flew out of his mouth, his body slumping onto Dareth’s fist.

Damn, that hurt way more than I thought it would. 

He felt like his ribs were broken, but continued with his plan. His body slumped on Dareth’s fist, and Dareth held his fist there for a second to gloat his connected punch to the crowd, his head turned towards them with a big smirk. Gray’s hand stealthily swiped the floor, grabbing a handful of sand and small rocks. He swung his arm upwards, and Dareth’s gloating was cut short as a pile of sand found its way into his eyes. He pulled his arms away, his hands now clawing at his eyes.

“You bitch! You fucking coward! I’ll-” Dareth roared out, but was cut off as Gray’s hand slammed into his gut.

2HP! (1,508/1,510)

Gray launched into a series of punches, slamming his fists into Dareth’s midsection as hard as he could while he was blinded. The crowd roared around him, becoming deafening.

2HP! (1,506/1,510)

2HP! (1,504/1,510)

2HP! (1,502/1,510)

2HP! (1,500/1,510)

2HP! (1,498/1,510)

2HP! (1,496/1,510)

2HP! (1,494/1,510)

2HP! (1,492/1,510)

2HP! (1,490/1,510)

2HP! (1,488/1,510)

2HP! (1,486/1,510) 

2HP! (1,484/1,510)

Gray barely rolled to the side as Dareth’s arm swung out. His other hand was still rubbing his eyes, but he’d managed to get most of the sand out by now. 

“I’ll fucking kill you! You’ll regret that you little weasel!” Dareth roared, swinging his arms out wildly at Gray. He was too angry to think clearly, and his martial arts-esque punches and kicks from earlier had been transformed into a series of wild haymakers. Gray dodged easily, not having to guard any of the wild punches.

If I could do some damage this fight would be over. 2HP a hit? Damn nightmare mode.

“Alright, alright, this isn’t going anywhere.” Bouleor’s hand shot out and grabbed one of Dareth’s punches, stopping him in his tracks. Gray stood still and looked at him.

“It’s getting dark, and watching you throw these stupid punches while this sissy dodges isn’t much fun at all. Training’s over for today. Go get your dinner, maggots.” He said, letting go of Dareth’s arm and walking back towards the tunnel we’d entered the training grounds through.

+20 Reputation with Bouleor (For holding your own) [2x from [A Cute Pawn]]

+8 HREG for surviving a tough battle! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+8 EREG for surviving a tough battle! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+20 INT for fighting smart! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

“I’ll make you regret humiliating me, last place,” Dareth said as he stalked away, his posse fell in behind him.

-20 Reputation with Dareth (For humiliating him) 

-10 Reputation with Gallow (For humiliating Dareth) 

-10 Reputation with Garlet (For humiliating Dareth) 

-10 Reputation with Kit (For humiliating Dareth) 

+20 Reputation with Celia (For humiliating Dareth) [4x from [Ladies Man], [A Humble Master]] 

Huh?

“That was amazing, Gray!” Asia said while bouncing up and down excitedly, looking like she was torn between whether she should hug him or not.  

“Yeah, how the fuck did you do that? That was badass.” Tamari said, grinning widely at him as she lightly punched his arm.

+20 Reputation with Asia (For humiliating Dareth) [4x from [Ladies Man], [A Humble Master]]

+20 Reputation with Tamari (For humiliating Dareth) [4x from [Ladies Man], [A Cute Pawn]]

“Some luck combined with Dareth being a complete dumbass,” Gray said cheekily, and they all shared a laugh.

“Hey, 1554!” A shout echoed across the canyon, and Gray saw it was Bouleor shouting as he stood by the entrance to the tunnel, recruits pouring in past him, “Come with me for a few minutes.”

A symphony of “oos” rang out from the remaining recruits in the courtyard, and for a moment Gray felt like he was in a high school instead of a military training program to make child Sayians into killing machines so they could sell planets for their super-galactic overlord. 

“Be careful,” Tamari said nervously, “I doubt he’ll do anything too bad, but if he does, make a run for it, ok?”

Gray nodded and said a quick goodbye to the two girls. He walked over to Bouleor, and followed him into the tunnel. They went the opposite way of the stream of recruits, who he assumed were heading to the cafeteria, and walked in silence for a few minutes.

“Where are we going?” Gray finally broke the silence.

“Getting your power level checked, kid. I never thought I’d see the day a useless brat like you held his own against someone like Dareth. It might be time for a rank change.” Bouleor answered.

“Can’t you just use your scouter?” Gray asked, glancing at the purple scouter sitting on Bouleor’s face.

“Protocol, kid. I already know your power level went up. You’re a bit over 10,000 now. The guys in the stats department need to measure you with their fancy machine to get your new level in the system, then you can get your rank up. Those S-Class bastards do this pretty much every day, but since I’m stuck with you F-Class brats I need to make a special trip for this.” Bouleor responded, and a moment later turned and opened a white door on the wall. The room they entered looked like a laboratory, with various machines and computers within it. There was a rolling chair by a computer in the corner, and a woman sitting in it.

[Clutz] Shizuka:

[Sayian Lab Worker]

Age: 26

PL: ?

HP: ?

TKI: ?

Reputation: 0/100 (Neutral)

[Clutz] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally clumsy.

+1 LVL in [Observe] (100/100 XP) (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Skill [Observe] will now show more information.

Damn, she’s strong. I can’t even see her power level.

The woman stood up out of her chair and turned towards them, giving Gray a good look at her. She had long blonde hair, and a gorgeous angular face with big round glasses sitting on her eyes. She was decently tall, and had long legs, but there was one feature of her that was by far the most noticeable.

Those… they’re huge…

Her breasts seemed to float perfectly on her chest, only sagging down slightly. They were giant. Two huge mountains on the woman's chest. She wore a surprisingly normal outfit, with a buttoned-down white shirt and black skirt. As she walked over to them, her breasts bounced and jiggled, looking like they were going to tear through her shirt. Her ass was covered by the skirt, but he could clearly see the outline as her big ass pressed into the skirt. 

On her way over across the lab, which was only 20-30 feet long, Gray watched the woman almost trip twice, and then actually trip. She recovered quickly and reached them.

“Welcome back, Bouley! Who’s this cutie you brought?” She said, staring up at him.

+80 Reputation with Shizuka (For being cute) [4x from [Ladies Man], [A Cute Pawn]]

+10 CHA for charming an older woman (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

80?!

“Please… don’t call me that,” Bouleor said, his hand grabbing the bridge of his nose as if he were fighting off a headache, “This is a recruit in my class. I need his power level measured.”

“Sure thing, Bouley! Step right over here, cutie.” She said, leading him to a large pod-like machine. The door raised upwards to open, and he stepped in. It was rather spacious, with a dome-like interior and a green floor. A moment later, the floor glowed, and then the door raised open again.

“All done!” Shizuka said, and Gray exited the pod. She was leaning over a desk to stare at a computer screen, and Bouleor was making a point to stare out the window as Shizuka’s ass pressed into her skirt. Gray stared unashamedly. 

Yeah, I’m not leaving this planet without her. I need that ass.

Gray added Shizuka to the list of his eventual harem, now consisting of her, Asia, and a bunch of characters from canon. 

“Wow! You grew a lot, cutie. You’re power level I mean, not that thing in your pants, though that seems to be growing too,” Gray hastily covered his crotch with his hand and blushed, “You’re up to 10,325! You were only just over 800 when you were last measured. Good job!”

“Thanks,” Gray responded, doing his best to calm his little friend down.

“Gaining that much power overnight is rare. How’d you do it, kid?” Beolour asked, staring at him with a suspicious glint in his eyes.

“Not sure,” Gray responded, “Can I go now? I’m starving after that fight with Dareth.” 

He needed to veer the conversation away from his insane growth. He still didn’t know enough about to world to know if he should be worried or not, but it was better to be safe and keep the suspicion to a minimum. He didn’t want Freeza randomly blasting him because he was getting strong too quickly.

“Yeah, yeah,” Beolour said, waving his hand and opening the door, “You’ll get your updated rank in the morning.” He stepped out and Gray followed behind him.

“Bye, cutie!” A voice said behind him.

“Ah, bye, Miss.” He responded, turning towards the way they came as Beolour walked the opposite direction. 

“Call me Shizuka! Or Onee-sama would be fine too~” Shizuka said, wrapping her arms around his neck from behind playfully, and pressing her breasts into his back.

“Sure, Shizuka. I need to go eat now, but I’ll hopefully see you again soon.” Gray said, fighting to keep his little gray under control.

+20 Reputation with Shizuka (For being kind) [4x from [Ladies Man], [A Cute Pawn]]

“Come back soon, cutie!” She shouted after him as he headed towards the way they came. 

As he walked, a new notification appeared in front of him.

[Quest Complete]

Survive your first day of training!

Rewards:

+20 Attribute points (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+500 Coins

+500 XP

Failure:

Death.

Nice. When I get back to my room tonight, I’ll work on distributing those attribute points once I have a rough plan in mind. Or should I save them for when I’m in a tough spot?

He continued down the long hallway until he passed a door with a large sign over it that read “Eating Zone.”

Eating Zone? That’s gotta be the cafeteria, right?

Luckily for him, it was. There were long tables stretched out in the middle of the room, with a series of smaller tables off to the sides. There were also a few booths against the wall. He was about to look for Asia and Tamari when a voice spoke up behind him.

“Hey bro! That was pretty badass what you did to Dareth earlier!” Gray turned around as a large hand patted him on the back roughly. 

[Macho] Ken:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit #2]

Age: 16

PL: 40,320

HP: 2,490/2,490

TKI: 2,400/2,400

Reputation: 25/100 (Positively viewed)

[Macho] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally manly.

The boy in front of him looked a lot more like a grown man than a 16-year-old boy. He was tall, even taller than Gray by an inch or two, and had muscles bulging muscles, but looked more lean than someone like Bouleor. He had spiked blonde hair and a blonde bushy mustache on his face. He had a huge toothy smile on his face, and his other hand was held up for a fist bump.

Is this guy being serious, or is he making fun of me? He’s way stronger than me right now, so I’ll hope for the former.

Gray held up his hand and fist-bumped him, “Thanks. I had to do what I could, y’know?”

“I get you, bro! And you looked badass doing it! Very manly!” The boy said, laughing obnoxiously loud and drawing the attention of eating recruits around him, “I’m Ken by the way! Come train with my group tomorrow, man! It’ll be great!”

“Sure, I’ll try to find you before training tomorrow,” Gray said, deciding to believe that the man was being honest.

At least that confirms for me that we have training tomorrow too. Tamari did mention that we go to the training ground every day. 

Ken laughed loudly again, and gave Gray a pat on the back again, nearly sending him flying to the floor, before walking away. Gray glanced around, realizing that the cafeteria didn’t have any staff handing out food. He watched another recruit who had entered during his conversation with Ken to see what to do. The recruit walked up to a large machine on the wall, said his name, and then said machine opened and tray of food came out. 

Gray imitated the boy, walking up to the machine and saying his name, and frowned as he saw his tray of food. It looked terrible. A pile of slop. The recruit before him didn’t get anything good either, but his at least looked edible.

This is what I get for being in last place in Class-F. Damn nightmare mode. I’ll hopefully get something better tomorrow with my updated rank.

Gray shoved down the food as fast he could, wanting to taste it as little as possible.

+1 HP recovered for eating (Class-F Slop)

How surprising.

Gray finished his food, and looked around the cafeteria to see if Tamari and Asia were still there. He spotted Asia sitting alone at a table and stood up to go join her, but was interrupted before he reached her.

“What you did was cool.” A monotone voice said, belonging to the green-haired girl standing in his path. Gray recognized her as Celia, the girl whom he gained reputation with after his fight with Dareth, despite her being a part of his posse. 

“Thanks. You’re not mad about it? I thought you were his friend.” Gray responded, staring down into her amber eyes.

“No. He’s rude. It was deserved.” She said, her voice monotone and her sentences short, “I’m perceptive. You’re confused. Ask me any questions, and I’ll answer.”

“Not confused,” Gray corrected, not wanting to expose that, yes, he was very confused about what was going on, “Just curious. Is there a library, or somewhere I can read books at here?”

I really need some knowledge on this worlds situation. I need to know the year most importantly. If I’m before Freeza destroyed Planet Vegeta, I need to get as strong as possible as quickly as I can so I don’t die when he does.

The girl nodded, “Follow.” She said, then turned around and exited the cafeteria. They walked in awkward silence for a minute, but the girl didn’t seem to care as she led him towards the library.

Gray broke the silence, “You seem pretty cool. What’re you doing hanging around an ass like Dareth?”

“Safety. He’s strong enough to survive the mid-term exam. By being on his team, I will also survive.” She said simply.

“You said you’d answer my questions, right? Can you tell me more about the mid-term?” Gray asked, trying to sound non-chalent. 

“Asking me that when the exam is in 2 days is comical,” She said, but there was no sense of amusement in her face, “The mid-term exam will be held in 2 days. It changes every year. It was a battle royale last year, but could be a series of duels, a mental challenge, or anything challenging. The only thing that is the same every year is the size of the teams, and the amount of death. You will be in a team of 5. If you don’t have a team of 5, you will be placed on a random team that doesn’t have 5 members yet. The majority of Class-F will either die or fail and be expelled from the training academy, which is considered worse than death by some. For the rest of the year, Class-F will be abolished. Those who pass will be put into Class-D, where another exam will be held with the current Class-D to decrease the number of recruits.”

“Thanks,” Gray said, thoughts running through his head as they continued their walk in silence.

2 days. I have 2 days to become strong enough to survive the exam. Should I assume Tamari and Asia will team with me? Tamari’s strong, she’ll give me a better chance of survival. Asia will weigh us down, but we’ll have to work around that. There’s no way I’m abandoning a future harem member. I need to become strong enough to protect her. I need to be strong enough to survive even alone. I can’t rely on anyone. 

“This is the library.” Celia said, stopping and gesturing to a small wooden door on the wall, which looked much less future-esque than anything else he’d seen.

“Thanks,” Gray said, “You’re nice. I hope we can be friends, I’ll ignore Dareth’s dumb-assery and be friendly during the exam if we run into each other.”

She’s not very strong, but she’s pretty, and I might as well make as many allies as I can while I’m pretty weak.

Celia nodded, “You are also kind, Gray. I would love to be friends, but I have to decline. I would feel guilty. For what it’s worth, I am sorry.” 

What?

“Sorry?” Gray repeated, looking at her confused, “Sorry for what?”

“You’ll know soon enough.” She answered cryptically, walking back in the direction they came.

Should I be concerned about that? Probably, but not much I can do about it right now.

Gray entered the library and looked around. It was huge, with 2 floors, and towering bookshelves. It looked new, as if it’d just been built that day, and had yet to be used. There were tables spaced throughout, and in the corner there was a section for… computers?

I’m dumb. I’m an idiot. This world is so technologically advanced, of course Planet Vegeta has damn computers! I’ll just look up everything I need to know.

“A visitor? That’s rare.” A voice spoke, and Gray looked over to see a very small girl sitting on a high stool behind a large desk.

[Smart] Miko:

[Sayian Librarian]

Age: 19

PL: ?

HP: ?

TKI: ?

Reputation: 

[Smart] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will gain INT 100% faster.

The girl was short, very short, looking to be under 5 foot. She had short brown hair, and large brown eyes. Her petite body was covered in an… kimono?

Is she really a Sayian? A Sayian strong enough that I can’t see her power level too.

“Most Sayians are too focused on battle to ever think about gaining knowledge. What are you here for?” Miko asked, her big eyes staring at him curiously.

“Just wanting to use a computer, that’s all.” Gray said.

“Disappointing. You’ll never find true knowledge on there.” She answered, her lips curving downward.

True knowledge?

“Where do you suggest I look for ‘true knowledge?’” Gray asked, indulging in her.

“Books. I’m a good judge of character. The knowledge you desire is in that row.” The girl answered, gesturing to a small row of books separated from the tower bookshelves.

“Thanks.” Gray said simply, not sure if he should be suspicious or grateful. The girl nodded, and turned back to the book sitting on her desk as Gray walked toward the bookshelf. 

+20 Reputation with Miko (For taking her suggestion) [4x from [Ladies Man], [A Cute Pawn]]

It turned out to be a good choice to listen to her, though Gray became even more suspicious as he read through the books. They were exactly what he was looking for.

How the hell did she know that? Is she a mind reader?

Gray sat their reading for nearly 2 hours before he was satisfied. He’d have to return tomorrow to read some more, but it was getting late, and this would do for now.

+100 INT for reading 10 new books! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

The gist of it: He was fucked. The current year was 760, one year before Raditz arrival on Earth, meaning that Planet Vegeta should’ve been destroyed. Canon was now completely out the window.

The Sayians were still under Freeza’s rule, and they were still selling planets, though Freeza seemed to have less control over the universe in this world than he did in canon. The academy he was in was used to train Sayians to join his force of soldiers. It’d been implemented roughly a decade ago, when Freeza’s family had a falling out. This explained why Freeza had less control than in canon, as he was vying with Cooler and King Cold for control. This was also likely the reason why he hadn’t destroyed Planet Vegeta, as he needed the Sayians to bolster his army. 

As for the academy, every 2 years the current S-Class would graduate into the Freeza Force. The current year was one of those years, meaning he’d have to find a way into S-Class within the next half a year if he wanted to go that route.

I can’t be sure how fucked canon is, but assuming it’s very fucked, overthrowing Freeza and taking control of the universe would be badass. I could fuck alien women from all around the universe. The academy and Freeza force are probably the best way for me to gain levels and stats. I’m getting a lot early-game from the nightmare multiplier, but it’ll probably get more difficult later on, and fighting strong opponents will be my best bet. 

Gray waved goodbye to Miko and exited the library, using the floor plan of the academy, which had been in one of the books Miko recommended, to find his way back to his room. He entered, and had just sat down on his bed to rest for a moment when a sharp bang came from the door.

“Gray! It’s me! Open up, quick!” He heard Tamari shout from outside, and he walked over to the door and opened it. Tamari was outside, panting as if she’d just sprinted there, and her eyes were wide and manic.

“Hurry up! Come with me, quickly!” She said in a panic, grabbing Grays arm and dragging him down the tunnel before he could respond.

“Where are we going?” He asked as he ran to keep up with Tamari.

“The infirmary.” She said simply, still breathing heavily and in a panic. 

They rushed down the tunnel, which was pretty much empty since it was already past nightfall, and Tamari lead him to a large set of glass doors, which slid open automatically as they approached. She dragged him into a side room, and Gray’s eyes widened at the sight before him.

There was a doctor setting up a healing pod, but on a stretcher next to it was an all-too familiar blonde girl. Asia laid on the stretcher, her armor broken in various places, with a flurry of bruises on her face and arms. Her right arm was twisted at an unnatural angle. She was unconscious, and there was some blood stained near her mouth.

“What happened?” Gray asked angrily, using observe to make sure Asia was still alive. 

[Angel] Asia:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit #1450]

Age: 15

PL: 2,180

HP: 15/120

TKI: 100/1,450

Reputation: 200/1000 (Liked)

[Angel] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally kind.

She’s alive, but barely.

“That bastard Dareth!” Tamari said angerily, staring down as her hand was clenched hard enough to draw blood, with tears dripping from her eyes.

“His fucking lacky Gallow started a fight with me in the cafeteria, and we both got dragged to the discipline chamber. He did it on purpose, so I wouldn’t be there with Asia.” She said, tears dripping from her eyes as her voice cracked. 

“When I got out, I couldn’t find her. I hoped she’d just gone to bed early. A recruit from Class-A on his way back from training found her body covered in rocks in the canyon. Dareth left her there to die. He wanted to kill her.” Her voice sounded completey broken as she stared at Asia’s body, tears dripping down her face.

Gray’s eyes widened as he realized what happened. Dareth had gone after Asia to get back at him for defending her and humiliating him during the duel today. He remembered seeing Asia eating alone in the cafeteria, but was interrupted before he reached her by… Celia.

She did that on purpose. She distracted me to keep me away from her. That’s why she apologized at the library.

Gray felt anger rise up as he realized he’d been tricked. Celia had started talking to him to draw him away so Dareth could go after Asia. His hands clenched into a fist, and he gritted his teeth.

“Gray…” Tamari said, reaching out and clamping her hand on his wrist, “I fucking hate him, Gray. He hurt Asia. He tried to kill her. And I can’t do a damn thing about it.”  Tears stremed down her face, and a sob broke through.

“I fucking hate it Gray. I hate that he can do this and I can’t do anything about it. He’s too fucking strong. Gallow’s too fucking strong. I can’t do anything…” Tamari said, light sobs escaping as she used her other hand to wipe her face, “I feel so helpless.”

Gray ripped his arm from Tamari’s grasp, and turned away, “I’ll see you tomorrow, Tamari.” 

Gray walked away silently as he heard Tamari’s soft sobs behind him.

He knew he should’ve stayed. That he should’ve comforted Tamari as she stood there tramutized, sobbing over her best friends broken body. That he should’ve done anything but leave.

But he didn’t. He was mad. Furious. He didn’t know he could be this mad. He walked in silence back towards his room, a single thought repeating over and over again in his head.

She’s mine.

He’d decided the moment he met Asia. She was beautiful, gentle, and kind. She was going to be a part of his harem. He reached his room, and kept going. He walked until he was at the entrance to the training grounds, and walked out, the combined moonlight of Planet Vegeta’s 2 moons lighting up that part of the canyon.

She’s mine. She’s mine, and yet you hurt her.

He dropped to the floor.

[Pushup] skill unlocked!

+10 STR for acquiring a STR-related skill!

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

She’s mine. You touched something that’s mine.

[Pushup] level up! (10/10)

+10 STR for leveling up an STR-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Level up!

+50 Attribute points!

+1,000 coins!

[Party] system unlocked!

I’ll make you regret it.

[Pushup] level up! (100/100)

+10 STR for leveling up an STR-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

I’ll make you beg for mercy.

[Pushup] level up! (1000/1000)

+10 STR for leveling up an STR-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

I’ll kill you.

He stood up, sweat dripping from his body.

[Punch] skill unlocked!

+10 STR for acquiring a STR-related skill!

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

I’ll fucking kill you.

[Kick] skill unlocked!

+10 STR for acquiring a STR-related skill!

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

I’ll fucking kill you.

[Punch] level up! (10/10)

+10 STR for leveling up an STR-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

I’ll fucking kill you.

[Kick] level up! (10/10)

+10 STR for leveling up an STR-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

I’ll fucking kill you.

[Punch] level up! (100/100)

+10 STR for leveling up an STR-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

I’ll fucking kill you.

[Kick] level up! (100/100)

+10 STR for leveling up an STR-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

I’ll fucking kill you.

[Punch] level up! (1000/1000)

+10 STR for leveling up an STR-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

I’ll fucking kill you.

[Kick] level up! (10/10)

+10 STR for leveling up an STR-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Gray wasn’t sure how long he was out there, fueled purely by his rage, but he didn’t sleep that night.

You’re fucking dead, Dareth.

The game agreed.

[Quest Alert]

Kill Dareth

Rewards:

+100 Attribute points (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+2000 Coins

+10,000 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Increased reputation with Asia

Increased reputation with Tamari

Increased reputation with Bouleor

Increased reputation with Ken

Increased reputation with Celia

Increased reputation with ?

Increased reputation with ?

Failure:

You will have to live with your inaction

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

That’s chapter 1, thanks for reading! Reviews are welcome, flames will be ignored. Also, I have a PAT(re)(ON) now! I’m hoping to do this writing thing full time eventually, so any support is greatly appreciated! PAT(re)(ON) . com / Koyon 

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gray Tanaki:

[Sayian]

Age: 15

Wallet: 2,500 Coins

Lvl: 3 (1000/2000 XP)

PL: 253,325

Available Points: 155

HP: 5,725/5,725

TKI: 3,175/3,175

STR: 125

AGI: 45

END: 45

INT: 205

CHA: 25

LUK: 5

KI: 55

HREG: 13

EREG: 13

Skills: [Observe LVL 3], [Running LVL 4], [Determination LVL 4], [Ki Control LVL 5], [Pushup LVL 4], [Punch LVL 4], [Kick LVL 4]

Perks: [Gamer’s Mind], [Gamer’s Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Sayian], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], [Ladies Man]

Party: Empty

Gray Tanaki is a Sayian in training on Planet Vegeta. 

Chapter Text

Game

Thoughts

“Talking”

AN: The stat, reputation, and level changes are being showcased a bit differently in this chapter. They will only be lightly mentioned, and the specific amounts and reasoning will be broken down at the bottom of the chapter. Please leave feedback on if you prefer this format or the format from Chapter 1. Thanks for reading, enjoy!

(Also, an important note at the bottom regarding when this story will be updated.)

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gray glanced at the small digital clock sitting next to his bed, which read 6:45. He was sat in a meditative pose on the floor of his small bedroom as a small ball of Ki circled around his head. He had 15 minutes before training would start and he wasn’t nearly as proficient in [Ki Control] or [Ki Suppression] as he’d like to be, but this would have to do. He stood up and did a quick check of his stats. 

Gray Tanaki:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit 1554]

Age: 15

Wallet: 2,500 Coins

Lvl: 3 (1400/2000 XP)

PL: 253,325

Available Points: 155

HP: 5,725/5,725

TKI: 33,925/33,925

STR: 125

AGI: 45

END: 45

INT: 205

CHA: 25

LUK: 5

KI: 165

HREG: 13

EREG: 13

Skills: [Observe LVL 3], [Running LVL 4], [Determination LVL 4], [Ki Control LVL 9], [KI Suppression LVL 5], [Ki Sense LVL 2], [Pushup LVL 4], [Punch LVL 4], [Kick LVL 4]

Perks: [Gamer’s Mind], [Gamer’s Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Sayian], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], [Ladies Man]

Party: Empty

Gray Tanaki is a Sayian in training on Planet Vegeta. 

I’m not sure how Beolour will react to my sudden increase in power level. Considering Frieza needs strong fighters for his army, I doubt he’ll send someone to kill me for growing so quickly, but I can’t be sure. I need to suppress my power as much as possible. 

After his intense training session, Gray had gone back to his room when the two suns on Planet Vegeta started to rise. He’d spent the last couple of hours training his [Ki Control] skill, as well as unlocking and training his [Ki Suppression] skill.

I need to be more careful. I let my anger cloud my judgment. I should’ve trained to suppress my Ki before I tried to make any big jumps in my stats. 

He managed to learn the [Ki Sense] skill from sensing his own Ki, which allowed him to figure out that at his current level, he could suppress his power level down to 45,000. 

Good, but not good enough. It’ll have to do for now.

He wasn’t sure how normal increasing your power level by over 30,000 overnight was in this world, but he hoped he’d be seen as a prodigy instead of a threat. Gray opened his door and started heading towards the infirmary, ignoring the crowd of recruits who were also leaving their rooms to start heading toward the training grounds. He wanted to check on Asia before he headed to the training grounds. He wasn’t sure how long it would take for the healing pod to work its magic, but he suspected one night wasn’t enough for the level of damage Asia took.

Granted, Goku healed from near death in only a few hours on Namek, but he’s also Goku.

Gray entered the infirmary and headed towards the room Asia was in and was greeted with an unexpected sight. 

“Just because your little friends hurt doesn’t mean you get to skip training, 119! Get your damn armor on.” Beolour was speaking down to a tired-looking Tamari, who was wearing the form-fitting grey undersuit that every Sayian had under their armor. Her armor was leaned up against the wall. 

Gray felt his power level rise slightly through his suppression as he found himself growing angry at the sight, “Hey, her best friend almost died, give her a break jack-ass.” 

Beolour whirled around to look at him, “What the hell did you say, br-chuuk!” Beolour’s words caught in his throat as his scouter displayed Gray’s new power level.

“H-how did you…” He stuttered, his eyes wide, before he clenched his fist and looked ready for a fight, “You think just because you got a bit stronger you can tell me what to-” 

He was cut off by Tamari, who gave Gray a small grateful smile, “It’s fine, Gray. Asia would be worried if she knew I was skipping training to watch her anyway.” 

Tamari stood up and walked over to her armor. Beolour’s face looked constipated as he stared at Gray, looking as if he was torn between saying something else or not before he walked past him with a grunt and left the infirmary.

Gray glanced over at Asia’s body floating in the healing pod, reading her HP.

HP: 95/120

I’m glad she’s nearly healed. She’s kind, very kind, which is rare for a Sayian. She didn’t deserve what Dareth did to her.

He felt his anger rise again, then squashed it. He’d get his revenge today. But first, he needed to apologize.

“Tamari,” He started, “I’m sorry for running out on you last night. I should’ve stayed here with you.”

Tamari chuckled, “Don’t worry about it. Us Sayians and sappy emotions don’t go well together. I didn’t expect anything.”

Gray nodded, grateful that she wouldn’t hold it against him.

She’s not wrong. Most Sayians are meatheads who only care about fighting and their pride. 

They fell into a comfortable silence as they walked together out of the infirmary, heading over to the crowd of recruits and standing with them as they waited for Beolour to start leading them to the training grounds.

“Hey, where’s your little friend at?” Gray heard a snarky voice ring out behind him, and he glanced over to see Dareth smirking at him, his posse nearby.

Tamari glared openly at him, stepping forward and opening her mouth to say something before she stopped as Gray grabbed her hand and gave it a squeeze, “Gray?” She asked, blushing lightly as she looked at him.

“Just ignore him,” Gray said simply.

“Seriously, Gray? After what he did to Asi-” She started again.

“Trust me,” Gray responded, causing her to be silent for a moment. She looked up at him, confused, then nodded slowly.

Don’t waste your words on a dead man, Tamari. 

Dareth tried riling up Tamari a couple more times, but eventually scoffed and walked away with his group when she continued to ignore him. As they walked toward the front of the crowd Celia looked back at Gray, an apologetic look on the normally emotionless girl's face. Gray ignored her and pretended he didn’t see it. A few minutes later, Beolour shouted for them to follow him and they headed towards the training grounds.

Right as Gray exited the large garage-like door into the open canyon, he sensed an object rapidly flying towards him and shot up his hand. He glanced down at the object, which was a badge that had the number 220 on it. He glanced up and saw Beolour give him a stiff nod.

Right, they measured my new power level yesterday. This must be my new rank, though it won’t be for long.

Gray remembered his conversation with Ken the day prior and looked around for him. He wasn’t hard to spot, as the tall muscular boy was shouting loudly with a crowd of other huge muscly boys. Gray started walking towards them, and Tamari cast him a curious glance before following along. As he got closer, Gray could more easily make out their conversation.

“Brothers! I must do this. I wish I could stay with you all, but there are 11 of us! The teams are of 5, so as the strongest among us, I will be the one to join a random team for the exam!” Ken shouted, holding his fist up towards the sun.

“No, brother Ken! I’m the weakest, I don’t deserve to be on a team with you all! I’ll join the random team!” One of the muscular boys responded, tears streaming down his face as he stared at Ken. 

“No, I’ll do it!” Another voice rang out, and an argument over who would be the odd man out broke out.

“You know these guys?” Tamari asked, looking at them wearily.

“One of them,” Gray responded, shoving through the crowd of boys to reach Ken, “Hey, Ken. I came to see if you still wanted to train together today.”

Ken’s eyes widened as he saw him, a glint appearing in them, “Yo! Gray man!” Ken wrapped his arm around Gray’s shoulder and pushed him forward slightly as if showcasing him to the other boys, “It’s already been decided, brothers! I have already agreed to be a part of Gray’s team, so none of you will have to join a random team!”

A flurry of shocked shouts emerged from the boys in front of them.

Ken then leaned over next to Gray’s ear and talked much more softly, “Can I pretty please join your team?”

You’re rank #2 in the class, you think I’m going to say no? 

Gray nodded in agreement, and Ken slapped his back roughly, “Thanks! Brothers, this is brother Gray! He’ll be training with us today!”

A ring of excited cheers came from the crowd of boys at his words.

“Gray,” Tamari finally broke through the crowd of rowdy men and grabbed his arm roughly, “Did he just say he was going to be on our team for the exam? Don’t go just adding people without asking me! What if I already had 2 other members?”

Gray glanced at Tamari, her words confirming that she also assumed the two of them and Asia would be on the same team, “Did you already have 2 other members?”

She blushed, “Well, no, but still ask me anyway!” 

Gray nodded with a chuckle, and a moment later Beolour shouted for everyone to start running. He took off with the group of boys around him, the run going much differently from the day before. They ran as slow as the slowest boy in the group, who happened to be the boy who openly shouted he was the weakest earlier, but were still finishing multiple laps every minute. However, Gray realized partway through their running that both Tamari and one of the boys looked to be having an easier time than him, as neither had a drop of sweat on them.

[Quick] Callion:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit #189]

Age: 15

PL: 17,620

HP: 250/250

TKI: 925/925

Reputation: 25/100 (Liked)

[Quick] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally quick, and will gain AGI 100% faster.

My power level is way higher than his and Tamari’s, but they’re faster than me. However, his HP is only twice as much as Asia’s despite his power level. He and Tamari must have speed-centered builds.

Gray glanced at Tamari and realized that she wasn’t particularly muscular. She had some muscles, as if she went to the gym a few times a week, but was much slimmer than many of the other Sayian girls he’d seen, some of whom looked like they were professional bodybuilders.

I should try and be more well-rounded with my stats. I can’t be sure if I’ll see a lot of enemies who focus on being fast or not. My strength won’t help me if I can’t hit them.

There had been a few characters in the series that focused primarily on one aspect of fighting, like Burter, but for the most part, everyone was well-rounded. When Goku arrived on Namek he was faster than Burter, who called himself the fastest in the universe, while also being far stronger than Recoome. 

His concerns were partially alleviated as his [Running] skill leveled up twice during the run.

They finished their running, and Gray spent the next few minutes conversing with Tamari and Ken, but his mind was elsewhere as he watched Dareth arrive back from his run as well.

I can’t wait to tear his head off.

They moved on to the Ki training after all the recruits arrived back, and Gray felt confident enough in his control to try learning some Ki beams. He walked away from Ken and his group, leaving Tamari with them as he approached a large boulder. The boulder was 40-50 feet tall and looked to be at least 20 feet thick. 

This’ll be so cool if it works…

Gray held up his hand, his fingers in the shape of a gun, and focused his Ki on the tip of his finger. He flicked his hand, and a small line flew out from his finger and shot directly through the rock, then continued on past it into the large canyon wall behind it.

[Ki Gun] Skill unlocked!

Ki gun is way less cool sounding than Spirit gun, but good enough. Pretty basic though, I need to think of something cooler to be my signature move.

He continued to experiment and tried pushing his Ki around his hand. His hand glowed a bright blue, as a coat of Ki surrounded his hand.

[Ki Enhancement] Skill unlocked!

Level up!

+60 Attribute points!

+1,500 coins!

Gray flexed his hand, the energy moving fluidly with his hand. He clenched his fist, walking up to the boulder, and thrust his fist into it. The punch had a bigger impact than he thought it would, as the entire boulder practically exploded. All that remained afterward was a pile of dust and a few pebbles.

Gray clenched his fist again, staring in awe at the pure power his fist had, then glanced over at the other recruits. On the complete opposite side of the training field, Dareth was practicing his Ki control with Gallow, sending beams of energy into the sky. Gray stared at him, his eyes burning holes into the back of his head, as he felt anger flow throughout his body. He lifted up his fist.

I wonder if you’ll survive even one punch.

Dareth seemed to feel his stare, and turned around, making eye contact with him.

Only one way to find out.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dareth grunted as he channeled his Ki into his right hand, aiming it upwards and streaming it out as long as he could. He needed to push himself today to ensure he’d be strong enough to pass the exam tomorrow. His team was strong, but not strong enough to be a shoo-in to pass the exam. He and Gallow were strong, him being ranked in the top 20 and Gallow being ranked in the top 5, but Kit and Garlet were pretty weak, and Celia was next to useless if you discounted her intellect. 

He’d hoped his stunt with Asia the day before would scare Tamari about her chances of surviving the exam with Asia on her team, but she seemed dead set on sticking with her and las- former last place.

He just got lucky yesterday. I’ll kill him during the exam.

She would be the perfect addition to his team, replacing Garlet, who he found rather annoying anyway. He and Tamari had hit it off on the first day of training and had been good friends throughout the first week. She was one of the better-looking Sayian women he’d seen, as well as being strong and a good fighter. A perfect woman for him. 

Then his luck came crashing down, as some prick had to start picking on her little friend. That hadn’t been a problem to him, as he cared little for Tamari’s short best friend. She was drop-dead gorgeous, sure, but incredibly meek and weak. He could hardly believe she was even a Sayian.

He ignored the situation, but he wished he hadn’t in hindsight as the worst possible person had come to her rescue. The last-place loser he and Gallow had been bullying did nothing but get his ass beat standing up for her, but somehow was seen as a hero by Tamari and Asia. He assumed Gray told Tamari about the bullying he and Gallow did, because the next day he’d gone from a close friend to an enemy in Tamari’s eyes.

Dareth scowled as he felt eyes staring into the back of his head, and turned around. His eyes locked with Gray’s, who was giving him a thousand-yard stare. He flinched and found himself turning his gaze away.

Has he always been that intimidating?

Pride and anger welled up within Dareth at the fear he’d felt momentarily from Gray’s gaze and he turned back to glare at Gray. Gray’s eyes bored into his, and he barely resisted the urge to flinch. The pure unbridled anger in Gray’s eyes burned into his, and he turned away again, fear welling up within him. 

Why do I feel like…

He stared at the ground, his body betraying him as fear consumed him. The world seemed to disappear around him, and his hands started shaking.

…I’m about to die?

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Alright, recruits! Time for the best part of training!” Beolour shouted as the crowd of recruits started to form a circle around him. Gray walked up behind him before the crowd grew too large, and gripped his shoulder with his hand.

“Put me against Dareth.” He said simply.

“Ha? Who do you think you’re talking to like th-” He grunted in pain as Gray’s hand gripped his shoulder harder, starting to form a crack in the shoulder pad of his armor.

“Put me against Dareth.” He said repeated.

“Alright, alright, I will,” Beolour said, grunting as he pulled his shoulder out from Gray’s grip, staring at him with a small amount of fear in his eyes.

Gray walked back to where Tamari and Ken were in the circular crowd, and Tamari looked up at him with concern, “What did you say to him?”

“You’ll see,” Gray responded cryptically. Beolour shouted out two numbers and the recruits walked into the circle to start battling. 

Beolour’s smarter than he looks. He’s saving us for last. If I kill Dareth in the first duel of the day, the mood will be rough for the rest of them.

Eventually, after watching the entirety of 8 duels, Beolour shouted for him and Dareth, “18 and 220, get your ass’s out here!”

A roar went throughout the crowd as the rematch from yesterday occurred, though the shouts were less one-sided than the day before.

“KICK HIS ASS, DARETH!”

“Beat that prick into the dirt, Gray!”

“Don’t let him off easy this time, Dareth!”

Gray entered the circle and noticed Dareth looked much less confident this time around. Whereas he was cocky and gloating the day before, he was now tense and had his guard up.

“Scared?” Gray asked, tilting his head and smiling sweetly at him.

Dareth’s eyes widened at Gray’s words, and he charged forward angrily, swinging a fist towards his face, and then pulling back to avoid Gray’s much-faster fist barreling towards him. He held his palm up towards Gray, apparently deciding that today’s fight was more serious than yesterday's, and shot a series of Ki blasts towards him. Gray swiped his hand effortlessly, sending the blasts flying into the floor, and then appeared in front of Dareth in a flash. Dareth barely managed to cross his arms and block the uppercut to his gut, but spit still flew out of his mouth at the impact. 

425HP! (1,085/1,510)

Cheers erupted from the crowd, “GRAY! GRAY! GRAY!”

Dareth somersaulted backward to avoid Gray’s next fist flying towards his face and then kicked the floor to launch himself backward and gain some space. He grunted as his back slammed into something, and he looked over his shoulder to shout at whatever recruit had walked too far into the circle, only to come face-to-face with Gray.

“Where ya going?” Gray asked with a sickly sweet grin on his face, and then Dareth’s vision was filled with Gray’s face as he was headbutted into the floor.

560HP! (525/1,510)

Dareth grunted as he scrambled to his feet, only to fall face first back into it as a hole appeared in his foot, courtesy of Gray’s raised hand, his finger sticking out and smoking like the tip of a gun.

400HP! (125/1,510)

Dareth struggled to push himself off the ground, blood dripping from the top of his head and flooding out from his foot. The crowd's roar was deafening, and Dareth’s body ached as he forced himself up onto one knee, a combination of adrenaline and his pride keeping him conscious.

“You bastard…” He grunted as he raised his palm, firing a beam of Ki towards Gray. Gray raised his hand, using [Ki Enhancement] to cover his hand in a protective layer. He held his hand straight in front of him and walked towards Dareth’s kneeling form, his hand blocking the beam as he walked through it.

Dareth’s eyes widened as he saw Gray walking through his beam, and howled in pain as he pushed every ounce of Ki left in his body into the beam, “Stay away, you bastard!”

Gray continued walking towards him, his hand blocking the beam until he was only a foot away, and stared down at Dareth as his beam ran out of energy.

“S-stay away, y-you weakling! I won’t lose to someone like you!” Dareth growled, flinging his fists up wildly towards Gray. Gray dodged the weak swings easily, and extended his left hand, backhanding Dareth into the floor. Dareth rolled over weakly onto his back as his body laid flush against the canyon floor, staring up at Gray. His eyes widened as Gray held up his hand, pointing his finger towards Gray and bringing a small ball of Ki to float at the tip of it.

“W-wait, you can’t really be…” Dareth’s eyes widened as he stared down the barrel of Gray’s [Ki Gun] , realizing Gray was actually going to kill him, “D-don’t, you can’t…” He stuttered.

Gray stared at the boy writhing on the floor, who looked up at him in fear as the crowd's roar filled his ears. Gray’s smile stretched from ear to ear, his heart beating pounding in his ears. He felt as if he was on top of the world, the crowd cheering his name.

“FINISH HIM!”

“KILL HIM GRAY!”

“GRAY! GRAY! GRAY!”

This feels better than I imagined it would. I could get addicted to this.

“N…No, y-you wouldn’t…” Dareth stuttered, staring up with unhidden fear at Gray.

Gray’s eyes seemed glued open, and he forgot the last time he blinked. He felt as if he’d just done every drug in the book. His gut spun from the rush of power he felt. The crowd around him seemed to lose their details, changing from people into blobs. Gray’s hand shook slightly, and time seemed to freeze around him.

Why… why can’t I do it? 

He stared at the small ball of Ki on his finger. It would be so easy. A single shot and the boy below him would be dead. This feeling of power was intoxicating. He could end the boy's life in an instant.

He tried to kill Asia. He would’ve killed me without a second thought if our situations were swapped. So why can’t I do it?

Gray stared down, his hand increasing in its shaking. The boy on the ground looked up at him with fear in his eyes, “P-please… I’m sorry… D-don’t…”

He’s just an anime character. A nameless extra that didn’t even appear in the series. He’s not a real person. I just need to fire off one shot.

Gray stared into the begging boy's eyes. Gray realized something very important that day. While he was Gray, a Sayian warrior, someone given a Gamer system so he could live out his wildest dreams, he was also Gray Tanaki, a man who lived an average life. A man who never got into a fight in his life, much less killed someone. 

However, while Gray would come to this realization on that very day, it was not at this moment. 

I know why I can’t do it.

“Dareth.” Gray said, a grin appearing on his face, “Do you remember what you told me yesterday?”

This feeling. I need to feel it more. That’s why. Gray lied to himself.

“W-what?” Dareth stuttered, crawling backward slowly, able to hear him perfectly as the crowd around him seemed to disappear.

I can’t do it, because it’d be too easy. He hasn’t suffered enough.

“‘I’ll make sure you’re my partner for the duels,’” Gray quoted Dareth’s threat from the day before, an uncharacteristically large smile spreading his face, “I’ll have to return the favor, right? I’ll make sure to see you in the exam.”

Gray lowered his hand and walked past Dareth, ignoring the angry shouts from the crowd, as Dareth stared off into the air, his eyes glazed in fear, his body shaking. 

“Alright, that’s enough for today! Everybody go get some dinner, training’s over!” Beolour shouted, walking into the circle and gesturing for the recruits to get moving. He walked over to Dareth and tried to help the poor boy out.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next couple of hours passed like a blur for Gray. He’d started his revenge, humiliating Dareth and sending him into a fearful panic throughout the rest of the day. He’d finish it tomorrow during the exam. He’d received countless reputation notifications as his reputation was raised with both his friends and recruits he didn’t know. He even leveled up his reputation with Ken, becoming “liked.” However, for some reason, Gray felt unsatisfied.

Maybe I really should’ve just killed him there.

Gray sat at a table in the cafeteria with Tamari and Ken, along with Ken’s group of “brothers.” He’d been congratulated countless times by passing recruits, some even stopping to ask if they could join his team for the exam. Tamari had swiftly rejected them all.

“Are you alright, Gray? You seem kinda out of it.” Tamari said, looking at him in concern. She had been the only one to not launch a barrage of questions at him after the duel, most of which concerned how he got so much stronger. She seemed more concerned with his attitude, as he was clearly out of it.

“Yeah,” He said, standing up from the table, “I think I’m just tired. I used a lot of Ki today, I just need some sleep.”

Tamari didn’t look convinced, but nodded at him and let it go. 

I wonder why Beolour didn’t bring me to get my power level measured again. Should I be concerned about that?

Gray walked out of the cafeteria but was stopped in his tracks by someone leaning on the wall outside the door, clearly waiting for him.

“Gray,” Celia said.

“What do you want?” He asked simply, walking past her and towards the bedrooms. 

“Don’t be in such a rush, Gray. You will regret not hearing me out.” 

“Why is that? I don’t think I care about what you have to say.” Gray responded but paused his strides to turn back and look at her.

“Let me join your team for the exam.” She said.

Gray chuckled mirthlessly, “Why on Ear-, Planet Vegeta, would I want you on my team? You helped Dareth go after Asia. Even if I ignore that, you’re power level is barely over 1,000.”

“You are not perfect.” The emotionless girl said, her eyes peering into his.

“No one is,” He shot back, “What’s that got to do with anything?”

“I’m perceptive. You are correct about my low power level, but I make up for my weak body in different ways. I am very good at reading people, Gray. You will not survive for long without my help.” She said, and Gray debated between walking away but decided to indulge her.

“Why’s that?”

“The path you tread requires you to be perfect, which you are not. You have faults. I will make up for those faults.” She said simply.

“Yeah, not buying it,” Gray said, turning around and walking away from her. He recalled her modifier, [Survivalist] . 

She’s saying whatever she can to try and survive. She won’t have Dareth’s help anymore once I kill him in the exam.

“I will break it down for you, Gray, since you don’t seem to understand. You like girls.” She said loudly after him as if that explained everything.

Gray stopped walking as the sheer stupidity of her statement hit him, and turned back to face her, “Yeah, of course, I do. Just not the ones who conspire to kill my friend. If you think having a nice pair of tits is enough to make me forget about that, you’re not as smart as you let on.”

“You miss my point, Gray, but I thank you for the compliment. It is because you crave women so much that you will not survive.” She said, stepping closer to him.

“What are you talking about?”

“You’re very simple, Gray. You want women. You want power. You are greedy and possessive. You haven’t always been this way, but the last two days you have been.” She said, gesturing towards him, “You believe you can be this way because you are powerful. You look down on everybody around you, even if they are stronger than you. You look at them as if they aren’t real people. You look at Tamari and Asia as if they are limited-edition collectibles. You will die quickly with this type of thinking, but I will ensure you do not if you let me.”

Gray shifted uncomfortably under her gaze and glared at her, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re just making things up to try and get my protection.”

“I am not, Gray. Where most Sayians train their bodies their entire lives, I have not had that privilege. My body is weak, unlike a Sayians. I had to train my mind. No one else notices, but I do.” Celia continued, tilting her head at him, “Do not take this as an insult. Gray. I am not saying that your thinking is wrong. I am saying it will get you killed. I will keep you alive.”

“Even if I did think that way, how would it get me killed?” Gray asked, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable.

“There are millions of Sayians, Gray.” Celia started, and Gray’s eyes widened slightly at the large number, “You didn’t know that. I don’t know why you didn’t, as it would be common knowledge for any Sayian who grew up on Planet Vegeta. I also don’t care why you don’t know. You could be a spy from another planet or have simply hit your head and lost your memories, it doesn’t matter to me.”

Celia took another step closer to him, closing the distance between them, and looked up into his eyes, “Of the millions of Sayians alive, there are only just over 10,000 in Lord Frieza’s elite force. The rest are relegated to working jobs on Planet Vegeta or are under King Vegeta’s direction. Do you know why that is?”

“They aren’t strong enough?” Gray asked.

Celia giggled lightly, one of the few times Gray had seen her showcase emotion, “No, though that is a very Sayian response. They aren’t smart enough. You fall into this category, but you don’t know it.”

“Are you saying I’m stupid?” Gray inquired, staring down into the girls' eyes.

“Not in the slightest. You are smart, but your focus is misguided. You focus too much on becoming stronger, as most Sayians do, and about “collecting” women. You haven’t taken the time to become knowledgeable about the things that will keep you alive. It became very clear when you let Dareth go today. You will likely not have another chance to kill him.” She said.

“What are you talking about?” He asked angrily, this time being the one to take a step closer to her, “I’ll see him in the exam. I’ll force Beolour to make sure of it.”

“This is where your lack of knowledge becomes apparent, Gray. There is more than one Class-F. There are millions of Sayians, and hundreds of thousands join as recruits every year. Joining this academy when you’re old enough is the normal choice for the majority of Sayians. One of each class wouldn’t be enough room for all of them. There are 50 Class-F instructors, and roughly 80,000 Class-F recruits will be taking the exam. Beolour will not be able to ensure you and Dareth are in the same exam group.” She explained, not backing down as Gray towered over her.

Gray’s eyes widened at the information.

Is she lying? I don’t remember there being so many Sayians in the series, but nearly all of them died before canon started, and canon seems pretty much non-existent at this point, so it’s possible. If she’s telling the truth then I really won’t have another chance to kill Dareth unless he survives the exam.

“Even if he could somehow, there is no guarantee that the exam would be set up in a way that you two could battle. The exam is different every year. It could be a battle royale where you could target Dareth, but it could also be something as simple as an evaluation of all our skills by a higher-ranking instructor. This is why you need me, Gray. You are far too uninformed about the world.” She said simply.

She’s not wrong, but…

“If that’s something every recruit here should know, I can ask Tamari or Asia about this type of stuff.” He responded, shooting down her point about him needing her.

“They will not know as much as I do. My focus on training my mind, as well as the connections I have from my upbringing, will be much more valuable than anything they can tell you. However, that is only one of the reasons you need me. There are many things you won’t be able to rely on Tamari or Asia for. I told you earlier that there are only 10,000 Sayians in Lord Frieza’s elite force, despite millions being alive and capable. This is because most Sayians train only their body, and you will never survive to graduate from Class-S with that way of thinking,” Celia said, speaking quicker as she became more passionate, “There are many tests that will evaluate your intelligence. Everyone within Lord Frieza’s elite force can learn the moon's pattern on a new planet in an instant. They can create strategies to counteract Cooler’s best commanders. Play the role of a general against King Cold’s forces. That’s why Dareth wanted me on his team. You need much more than simply strength to survive.”

Gray’s mind raced at her words, Is this what you meant by smarter opponents, damn game? 

In the series, most fights consisted of a lot of screaming, punching, and techniques. There wasn’t much strategy. Most of Goku’s enemies just stood in front of him and challenged him.

“Let me tell you a story, Gray. One every Sayian on this planet knows, but you likely do not. Many years ago, a Sayian elite in Frieza's force was overseeing the conquering and selling of the planet Orant,” Celia started, slowly stepping forward until their bodies were nearly pressed together, “He met the King of the planet after exterminating the majority of the lifeforms there, but was so enraptured with him that he put his neck on the line to convince Frieza to spare him. He believed the King, Talium, was the only perfect man. He was kind, a powerful fighter, and had married numerous beautiful women. He became somewhat of a celebrity here.” 

Gray could practically feel her breath now, as her face was inches from his, “When Talium was on his deathbed, he wrote a book about his life. The book said that when Talium was young he loved reading so much that he related to characters in books more than real people. He started to see the people around him as just book characters. He married numerous women, but saw them as a collection, marrying none that looked too similar. He used his friends and subjects as tools, killing them when they lost their usefulness so that no one who knew his true self would be alive to expose him. He strived to be a perfect fairytale king. To be overly generous, to be loved by everyone. Then, as he died, he exposed his evil self to the world.”

Celia slowly dragged one finger up his front, resting it on his chest and staring up into his eyes, “You remind me of him, Gray. You don’t look at the people around you. You look through them. You don’t love Tamari or Asia, you just want them as part of your collection. You didn’t spare Dareth earlier because you couldn’t finish him, you did it to look merciful to those around you. When you explain to Tamari why I’m the 5th member of your team, you won’t tell her that I’m just a tool, you’ll say that you’re strong enough to forgive me. Allow me to be a tool for you. I’ll entrust my life to you. I’ll learn the pattern of the moon for you. I’ll strategize your battles. You can continue to live the way you are now, desiring power and thinking with your dick. You protect me, and I’ll protect your way of life. My life is yours, and when I become useless to you, you can kill me so no one else will ever know about your true evil self.”

Celia took a step back and held up her hand for him to shake, an unnaturally wide smile on her face. It looked out of place on the usually emotionless girl. Gray stared down at her hand. He felt as if he was making a deal with the devil.

She’s not wrong. I don’t truly know Asia or Tamari, or any of the women I intend to have in my harem. I haven’t been seeing these people as real people. I’ve been viewing them as characters from an anime, just as Talium viewed everyone around him as characters from a book.

Gray raised his hand, his fingertips brushing Celias, and then…

…slapped her hand away.

Celia stepped back, her eyes wide in shock as her smile drooped.

“You’re not as good at reading people as you believe you are, Celia. There’s no evil self I’m hiding.”

Am I evil? No, I would never become someone like Frieza. I couldn’t even kill Dareth earlier. Deep down, I’m still human. I’ll kill countless innocent people under Frieza’s rule, but I’ll feel guilty every time, and it’ll be worth it when I overthrow Frieza. Their lives will be sacrificed so I can protect countless more from him.

“But, you’re not entirely wrong. I’m not a good person either.”

I’m not Goku. I won’t fight to protect innocent people. I’ll fight to be a badass. I won’t try to form a deep connection with all my friends and lovers. I’ll follow my dick, and claim every beautiful woman I can.

Gray grabbed Celia’s outstretched hand, which was hanging slightly to her side from his slap, and roughly pulled her towards him, their bodies pressing together, “I’ll work my ass off to become stronger, and claim every woman I can! I’ll accept your offer. However, you won’t be a tool. You’ll be my tool. I won’t throw you to the side when your use runs out. You’re mine now, for the rest of your life.”

Celia’s eyes stared up into his, wide with shock, and then she nodded slowly and shakily.

Gray grinned, and stepped back, “Good, now, why me? How can I know you won’t jump ship to join someone stronger than me when things become difficult like you’re doing to Dareth right now?”

“Hmmph, asking me that after you just said I’d be yours for the rest of my life? How bold.” She said, traces of amusement on her face, “I have dreams too, Gray, just like everyone. I was born with a weak body that refuses to grow stronger. I’m destined to be a leech. However, if I jump from person to person so easily I’ll never be able to live my life happily, and I’ll become known as a traitor. Honestly, you’re my best bet. You’re strong and seem to know you’ll grow stronger. You’ve grown much stronger in such a short time. You’re smart, but not smart enough to not need my help. You might not be a good person, but you’re not cruel. And, most importantly, I know you’ll never betray or abandon me.” 

“Oh? And how do you know that?” Gray asked.

The normally emotionless girl giggled and did a small twirl, turning in the opposite direction of him and walking away. She looked over her shoulder and gave him a wink, “You said it yourself, right? You’ll claim every woman you can. The only reason you bothered entertaining this conversation was because you were thinking how much of a waste it’d be to let someone like me die. I look forward to being a part of your collection.” 

Gray sighed as he watched the girl walk away, and turn back towards the direction of his bedroom. He blatantly ignored the reputation notification he received. She really enjoyed that conversation apparently.

Who would’ve thought that emotionless girl would be the one to help me figure out so much about myself?

He eventually arrived back in his room and sat on his bed. His quest to kill Dareth was still active, so he hoped that meant he’d have another chance to finish him off.

I can’t bitch out again. I won’t survive like that, much less become a badass who overthrows Frieza. I won’t throw away my human self, but I won’t hide from my Sayian self either. I came here to live my life to the fullest. To do everything I couldn’t in my last life.

His eyes roamed over to the [Party] button. He’d unlocked it during his rage-fueled training session but hadn’t looked into it yet. He swiftly tapped the button.

[Party] - You can add a maximum of 4 people to your party. Individuals in your party will gain 10% of any stats or XP other party members gain. (This includes you, as you will gain 10% of any stats or XP your party members gain.)

Damn, would’ve been nice to have last night. I could’ve helped Tamari and Asia get a bit stronger from my training. 

He tossed off his Sayian armor and took a quick shower, then laid back on his bed, letting his eyes drift closed. He had to be at his best for the exam tomorrow, and he hadn’t slept a wink the night before. 

You better hope I don’t see you, Dareth. I’ll really finish you off this time.

Sleep consumed him seconds later.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gray awoke to a chorus of extremely loud thuds, as if someone was dropping bombs outside his room. He wiped his eyes and looked out the small window in his room, quickly seeing the cause of the thuds. Thousands of Sayian space pods were streaming down towards the planet, landing one after the other and creating craters in their wake.

Why the hell are so many Sayians coming back right now? Did they just finish a mission or something?

“Everybody, get your lazy ass out here! The whole entire base will be up today, Classes F through S, and I won’t let someone under my watch be the one who's late!” Beolour shouted from outside his door.

Gray glanced at the clock in his room, which read 2:45.

I guess it’s my fault for assuming the exam would start at the same time as training. I should’ve asked Celia yesterday.

Gray quickly changed into his Sayian armor and walked out his door into the tunnel.

“Hurry your ass’s up! Everyone better be at the training grounds within the next half hour!” Beolour shouted. Recruits were hurrying past him, some looking nervous and others excited, a change from the crowd that normally waited around the bedroom area to follow Beolour to the training grounds. Gray’s eyes scanned the tunnel hastily for his team members.

I was so tired yesterday that I didn’t check to see if Asia was healed yet. Will she even be able to take the exam?

He hoped she would be, as his team would be given a random recruit who didn’t have a full team if she wasn’t. Gray nearly jumped in surprise as a hand slapped his back roughly.

“Yo! Gray, my brother! You look nervous. Relax man, this exam will be the most fun we have all year.” Ken said from behind him and Gray nodded at him.

He’s right. I didn’t even hear him walk up behind me. I need to calm down. I’m not a human anymore, I’m a Sayian. A badass Sayian at that, whose power level is leagues above the rest of Class-F. 

A moment later Tamari ran up to the two of them, Asia following behind her. Gray smiled at the now-healed girl, “Glad to see you’re alright, Asia.”

The blonde girl blushed and nodded stiffly at him. She seemed to fall in the ‘nervous’ category rather than the excited one. Tamari was the opposite.

“Today we finally get to leave this shit hole, eh? I hope Class-D has some bigger bedrooms.” She said jokingly, an excited grin on her face.

“That’s the spirit, sister Tamari!” Ken said, holding his closed fist up.

“So, should we try to grab a 5th member before the exam starts, or stick with whoever gets randomly assigned to us?” Tamari asked, looking at Gray for input.

“No need. I am here.” A voice intoned behind Gray, and he glanced over to see Celia standing there. Tamari looked at her, then back to Gray, who gave a nod.

“You can’t be serious, Gray! One of Dareth’s lackeys?” She hissed, stepping towards Celia.

“I assure you I will prove to be a valuable teammate,” Celia said simply.

Tamari opened her mouth to argue more, but was cut off by Beolour as he speed-walked toward them, “I don’t care how strong you are now, brat, if you’re late I’ll kill you personally!” 

The rest of the group started walking towards the training grounds, but Gray stayed behind for a moment. He grabbed Beolour’s shoulder roughly, “Can you make sure I’ll see Dareth during the exam?”

“No way, kid.” He said, grunting from the pressure on his arm.

“Are you sure?” Gray asked, his grip increasing on Beolour’s shoulder. This type of threatening behavior worked yesterday to get him matched with Dareth in a duel, so he was hoping it would work again.

“Listen, brat, even if you tear my arm off right now I couldn’t make it happen. It’s out of my control. I would if I could, I like having two arms.” The larger Sayian grunted out.

Gray turned away in a huff, and Tamari fell back to match his pace and walked next to him, “Are you sure about her Gray? We could find someone better. A lot of higher-ranking recruits wanted to be in the team after they saw what you did to Dareth yesterday.”

“I’m sure,” Gray said, giving her a comforting smile, “Trust me, alright?”

Tamari still didn’t look completely convinced but nodded begrudgingly at him.

They arrived at their normal training grounds soon enough but were met with a closed door. A large muscular Sayian stood in front of it. 

[Stoic] Squas:

[Sayian F-Class Instructor]

Age: 26

PL: 28,670

HP: 3,000/3,000

TKI: 2,450/2,450

Reputation: 0/100 (Neutral)

[Stoic] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will have difficulty showcasing their emotions.

An instructor from a different Class-F group.

Gray looked at him questioningly, and the man gestured for them to continue, “Continue until you reach the depart zone.”

Gray didn’t remember where that was and didn’t have the map of the academy with him, but luckily for him Celia wordlessly took the lead, walking a few steps in front of their group. He fell into small talk with Tamari and Ken, as Asia seemed too nervous to join the conversation. A few minutes and a flight of long stairs later Celia turned, and they exited out a large garage-like door with a crowd of recruits around them. 

“Everybody line up! Stick with your groups and get in line!” A voice hollered, and Gray glanced at the short older man ordering the recruits around. There was a single file line forming, with recruits standing shoulder to shoulder, so Gray followed Celia’s lead and they stepped into the line. Once he was standing comfortably in the line, Gray cast observe on the man, ignoring the level he gained in the skill as he read Tarro’s description.

[Wise] Tarro:

[Sayian B-Class Instructor]

Age: 126

PL: ?

HP: ?

TKI: ?

Reputation: 0/100 (Neutral)

[Wise Teacher] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally wiser, gaining INT 50% faster, as well as individuals who learn from them gaining INT 50% faster.

A Class-B instructor? I guess Celia wasn’t lying about how many Class-F recruits there are if they need help from other class instructors to handle them all.

They stood shoulder to shoulder in the line, and Gray felt like he was in the army back home for a moment. He glanced down the row of recruits and realized he couldn’t see the end of the line. 

There must be tens of thousands of us here.

A few hundred feet away from them sat a collection of Sayian pods, with a couple of men moving them around into groups of 5.

There’s no way those are for us, right? Are we leaving the planet for our exam? 

A thought suddenly popped into Gray’s head as he saw a large man grab a space pod and carry it while flying.

“Why haven’t I seen anyone flying until now?” He asked, whispering down to Celia, who was standing next to him. 

I didn’t even bother trying to learn to fly since no one else was. If Videl could fly after just finding out what Ki is, then there must be a reason someone like Dareth wasn’t using it in our fight. I was worried nightmare mode might’ve fucked the world up to the point that no one could fly.

“Planet Vegeta’s gravity is very strong. It is not feasible for weaker Sayians to utilize flight. It would be faster to walk for us in Class-F, but for someone like him,” She gestured to the large Sayian flying with the space pod in his hands, “It is possible to be used in battle.”

Makes sense. The gravity also must be why the running was so difficult on the first day. Goku swam across half the world as a kid, and yet I was struggling to run a mile in under a minute despite having a power level multiple times higher.

After roughly 20 minutes, Tarro pulled a small white ball out of his pocket. He tossed it up in the air, and the ball suddenly grew legs and wings, the front of it turning into a bright green screen. The small flying ball-shaped robot flew down the line nearly faster than Gray’s eyes could see, then circled back and landed in Tarro’s hand. Tarro glanced at the screen on the ball for a moment, before looking up and shouting loud enough for the entire line of recruits to hear him,

“GRAY, RANK 220, AND ANYONE ON HIS TEAM MAKE YOUR WAY TO ME.” Gray’s eardrums felt like they were going to burst from the sheer volume of his voice. Gray stepped out of line and started approaching the man, having to walk down the row of recruits, as Gray was positioned close to the middle while Tarro was at the front. The rest of his group followed behind him. Tarro continued shouting out names as Gray approached.

Gray reached him a moment later, and Tarro held out a small badge to him, “You are on Team 1 within Class-F. Find the pod with your name on it. You’ll receive the rest of the information you need once you’re inside.” 

He gestured to a pile of pods a few hundred feet behind him.

We really are leaving the planet. But why was I the first one called?

Gray’s team approached the set of space pods, and Gray found the one with his name on it. Gray glanced at his team, who were all standing in front of their space pods, but looking at him for direction.

“I’ll see you guys when we get wherever we’re going.” He said simply, nodding at them. They all returned his nod, and he waited until everyone but Celia had climbed into their pods. He looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

“Anything I should know before I get in?” He asked, as she was the only one who knew he was pretty much clueless about what was going on.

“The ships will be connected. You can ask me any questions from inside. Besides that, it’ll likely be a long journey. Get some sleep. ” She said simply, climbing into her pod. Gray nodded and did the same, climbing into his round space pod and watching as the door closed him within it.

“Gray, Rank #1 within Class-F, you will now be briefed on your mission.” A robotic voice rang out from within his pod.

Rank 1? I’m ranked 220. I’ll ask Celia about that later.

“5 Sayian groups will be sent to planet Vargon. Your group is one of them. You are to exterminate all lifeforms with a power level greater than 1 on the planet. This includes native and non-native lifeforms. Only 5 lifeforms may return from the planet. Death, failure to exterminate all lifeforms, or more than 5 Sayians leaving the planet will result in a failure.” The robotic voice said.

Are you kidding me? I couldn’t even bring myself to kill Dareth, and now you want me to massacre a planet’s population, along with the other 4 Sayian groups?

[Quest Alert]

Pass the exam.

Rewards:

+500 Attribute points (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+10,000 Coins

+10,000 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+1 [Perk Token]

+1 [Skill Token]

Bonus Rewards:

You will receive bonus rewards based on how many [Sayians] you kill.

You will receive bonus rewards based on how many [Vargonians] you kill.

Failure:

Death.

“I assume you’re glad I’m here now, Gray.” Celia’s monotone voice came from a speaker in the pod. 

Fucking nightmare mode. I wonder if I dump all my points into LUK I’ll stop being fucked over?

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

UPDATE - This story will be updated every Saturday from now on. There will be a benefit on my PAT(re)(ON) to read 1 chapter ahead (able to read the chapter 1 week earlier) starting next Saturday (January 6th) at PAT(re)(ON) . com / Koyon . This will likely increase to more than 1 chapter ahead in the future.

Thanks for reading! Hopefully this chapter gave a bit more insight into Gray’s character, as well as Celia’s.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gray Tanaki:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit 1]

Age: 15

Wallet: 4,000 Coins

Lvl: 4 (800/5000 XP)

PL: 253,325

Available Points: 205

HP: 5,725/5,725

TKI: 33,925/33,925

STR: 125

AGI: 45

END: 45

INT: 205

CHA: 45

LUK: 5

KI: 185

HREG: 16

EREG: 16

Skills: [Observe LVL 4], [Running LVL 6], [Determination LVL 4], [Ki Control LVL 9], [Ki Gun LVL 1]. [Ki Enhancement LVL 1], [KI Suppression LVL 5], [Ki Sense LVL 2], [Pushup LVL 4], [Punch LVL 4], [Kick LVL 4]

Perks: [Gamer’s Mind], [Gamer’s Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Sayian], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], [Ladies Man]

Party: Empty

Gray Tanaki is a Sayian in training on Planet Vegeta. 

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SPECIFIC CHANGES IN THIS CHAPTER BREAKDOWN:

+130 Ki from unlocking [Ki Sense], [Ki Suppression], [Ki Gun], [Ki Enhancement], and from LVLing up Ki-related skills.

Increased [Ki Control] by 4 LVL’s (5 to 9) while meditating.

Unlocked [Ki Sense] while meditating.

Increased [Ki Sense] by 2 LVL’s (0 to 2) while meditating.

Unlocked [Ki Suppression] while meditating.

Increased [Ki Suppression] by 5 LVL’s (0 to 5) while meditating.

Unlocked [Ki Gun] during daily training.

Unlocked [Ki Enhancement] during daily training.

Increased [Running] by 2 LVL’s (4 to 6) during daily training.

Increased [Observation] by 1 LVL (3 to 4) from observing Tarro.

+80 Reputation with Tamari for standing up to Beolour for her (260/1000.)

+50 Reputation with Ken for letting him join his team (75/100)

+100 Reputation with Tamari for beating Dareth easily (360/1000.)

+40 Reputation with Ken for beating Dareth easily (105/1000)

+3 HREG for finishing a battle.

+3 EREG for finishing a battle.

+Various amounts of reputation with various Class-F Recruits for beating Dareth

+300 Reputation with Celia for letting her join his team (328/1000)

+100 Reputation with Celia for being charming during their conversation (428/1000)

+20 CHA for charming Celia.

+1,800 XP from unlocking and leveling up skills 

+50 Attribute points from leveling up after unlocking [Ki Enhancement]

Please leave feedback on whether you prefer this format, with the specific changes being at the bottom and only lightly mentioned during the chapter, or the other format from Chapter 1, where the specific changes were shown during the chapter.

If you made it this far, a little sneak peek into the next chapter: The exam won’t be as easy as you think, and not for the reasons you’re thinking either :)

Chapter Text

Game

Thoughts

“Talking”

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Arrival at planet Vargon will commence in approximately 10 minutes.” A robotic voice filled his space pod, and Gray looked through the reddish-purple window at the rapidly approaching planet.

Well, I should do it before I arrive there, just in case.

Gray rapidly deposited 50 points into his LUK stat before glancing at the small screen on the side of his pod. He pressed the picture of the second space pod out of a line of five and spoke,

“Hey, Celia, you know anything about Vargon?” Gray asked.

He probably should’ve asked her about the planet during the past 8 hours they had been flying there, but he’d fallen asleep soon after the awe of flying through space wore off.

“Of course. It’s a D-Class planet, with the average power level being just over 5,000. The population and type of lifeforms living there are unknown. The planet is unenticing and of low priority to sell.” The girl's voice emotionlessly responded to him.

“Is that also something every Saiyan recruit would know?” Gray sighed.

“Of course.”

Do Saiyans learn about every planet close enough to travel to, or is this one important?

He tapped the third space pod on the screen, “Hey, Ken, you already know about the planet we're heading to, right?”

“No way man, never heard of it. Do you? You must be super smart if you do, brother Gray!” Ken’s masculine voice excitedly resounded through his space pod.

“Ahem, yes, of course, I do,” Gray coughed into his hand and relayed Celia's words.

He doesn’t know, so Celia was lying about that. Why would she lie about something like that? Maybe she just doesn’t want to seem like a know-it-all. Or maybe Ken is dumber than the average recruit.

Gray recalled Ken and his “brothers” loudly shouting and crying manly tears at the training grounds the day before.

Yeah, probably that.

Gray glanced at his stats one last time, debating on whether he should use any more of his available points.

Gray Tanaki:

[Saiyan F-Class Recruit 1]

Age: 15

Wallet: 4,000 Coins

Lvl: 4 (800/5000 XP)

PL: 253,325

Available Points: 155

HP: 5,725/5,725

TKI: 33,925/33,925

STR: 125

AGI: 45

END: 45

INT: 205

CHA: 45

LUK: 55

KI: 185

HREG: 16

EREG: 16

Skills: [Observe LVL 4], [Running LVL 6], [Determination LVL 4], [Ki Control LVL 9], [Ki Gun LVL 1]. [Ki Enhancement LVL 1], [KI Suppression LVL 5], [Ki Sense LVL 2], [Pushup LVL 4], [Punch LVL 4], [Kick LVL 4]

Perks: [Gamer’s Mind], [Gamer’s Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Sayian], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], [Ladies Man]

Party: Tamari, Asia, Ken, Celia

Gray Tanaki is a Sayian in training on Planet Vegeta. 

Nah, I’ll save them in case I need them in a pinch. I’d be in trouble if I distributed them evenly now and ran into a defense-oriented opponent who I couldn’t beat because my STR was too low, or a speed-oriented one I couldn’t hit.

He’d added the Saiyans on his team to his party earlier during their flight. He was concerned something might happen to them that’d give his system away, but no one said anything, so he assumed only he could see it. 

Gray tensed his arms as they hurtled towards the blue planet, fire starting to appear around the window of his pod as they plummeted toward the ground. The floor grew closer and closer in his vision until he jumped slightly as his pod was rustled by the landing. He reached up and pressed the button right above the door to his space pod, resulting in the door opening. He stepped out and looked around, taking note of all the… nothingness on the planet.

The ground was blue, and seemed to be hard and rocky, as if they were still in the canyon back on planet Vegeta, but without all the rocks and walls. It was just the flat floor for as far as Gray’s eyes could see. Gray glanced over as a flurry of space pods landed around him, his teammates soon stepping out. 

Gray took a step towards the nearest one, containing Tamari, and looked down in surprise as he stepped farther than he expected.

I feel lighter… far lighter. The gravity here is much weaker than on planet Vegeta.

“Why’s there nothing here? We landed in a bad place for a genocide-type mission.” Tamari groaned as she stepped out of her pod, stretching and looking around at the bare planet. The others started approaching Gray and Tamari.

“I’m not good at the whole strategizing thing, so just tell me what to do brother Gray, and I’ll get it done!” Ken exclaimed, raising his fist and grinning widely at Gray.

Gray nodded and turned to Celia, “Start looking into how the moon works on here, if there even is one. Knowing when we can transform would be a huge help  Tamari, you and I will go scout. Ken, stay with Celia and Asia here until we’re back. Make sure they stay safe and don’t hesitate to kill any Saiyans or Vargonians if you see them. Don’t give them a chance to talk. Asia… start thinking of a plan.”

Not that I’ll use your plan, but I can’t just tell you to sit here and look pretty, can I?

“Sure thing, Gray man!” Ken said, his eyes narrowed seriously.

“Um, it could be useful to talk to any inhabitants we run into, in case they have information we can use!” Asia spoke up, before blushing and looking away as all eyes turned to her.

“No, we can’t be sure what abilities they have. We’re here to kill them. Do so as quickly as possible if you see any.” Gray shot down her idea, feeling a slight pang of guilt as she looked down at her hands and fidgeted.

We have no idea what type of abilities the Vargonians have. If Bardock was on a planet full of aliens who could see the future, who knows what these guys can do? I won’t get fucked over because I’m feeling guilty over killing them. They won’t get the chance to speak.

“Is it a good idea to split up like this?” Tamari asked, glancing at Gray.

“Yes, just be careful. If you see any lifeforms, kill them. If you find someone with a power level over 10,000, retreat here. Don’t take any fights you’re not confident in winning alone. You head that way, Tamari, I’ll go in the opposite direction. We’ll meet back here in roughly an hour.” He said, gesturing to his left, then turning to the right at Tamari’s nod and sprinting off.

His feet moved even faster than usual, covering hundreds of feet in every stride.

If the gravity is lower here, then this should work.

Gray continued at full speed, then shot upwards off of one foot, leaping high in the sky.

[Jumping] skill unlocked!

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

[Jumping] LVL 1 - Your ability to launch yourself upwards.

+10 AGI for unlocking an AGI-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Not the skill I was looking for, but I won’t complain about getting that.

Gray fell back to the ground and started running again, leaping back into the sky a moment later, this time trying to channel his Ki throughout his body. He envisioned it surrounding him, holding him up and keeping him afloat.

[Flight] skill unlocked!

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

[Flight] LVL 1 - Your ability to fly.

+10 AGI for unlocking an AGI-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Gray grinned as he felt himself stay in the air, soaring forward at rapid speeds. The wind bellowed in his ears and broke across his face.

Man, this’ll never get old. This must be how the Wright brothers felt.

His eyes scanned the planet below him but didn’t see anything out of the usual. The planet was completely barren. No people, animals, plants, buildings, or anything at all besides a few rocks.

How could anyone live here? Or are we just in an uninhabited part of the planet?

He flew for another few minutes before deciding to turn around and head back, hoping Tamari had better success. As he was turning to fly back, he turned around abruptly as he sensed a mass of Ki barreling towards him. He looked up and saw 3 Saiyan space pods hurtling toward the planet a few thousand feet ahead of him.

3? Did pouring all my points in LUK actually do something and one of the teams we have to fight is only a team of 3?

He landed on the ground and started slowly walking towards where the pods were landing.

I know I told the others to be careful, but I shouldn’t have any problems even if it’s three-on-one. I’m leagues above the rest of F-Class.

Gray stopped a couple hundred feet away from the pods, crossing his arms and waiting for the Saiyans to exit the pods. The pod furthest from him opened, and a tall Saiyan stepped out. He was completely bald, muscular, and had a green scouter on his face. He wore the standard Saiyan armor, which had a #52 badge on the front. He looked like a knock-off of Nappa. Gray cast observe as the man turned towards him, and his eyes nearly bulged out of his head at the sight.

Fuck you, game. Genuinely, fuck you.

[Simpleton] Arlic:

[Saiyan C-Class Recruit #52]

Age: 19

PL: 768,990

HP: 14,600/14,600

TKI: 52,450/52,450

Reputation: 0/100 (Neutral)

[Simpleton] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will lack common sense.

Why is there a C-Class recruit here?

Said recruit suddenly appeared in his face, a fist pulled back. Gray barely managed to dodge, kicking the floor and launching himself backward, having to push aside a fist as he did, the large man chasing him.

“If everyone comes to me as you did, I’ll be home before they serve dinner,” Arlic said, grinning at him as he followed up his attack, launching a flurry of Ki beams from point-blank distance. Gray slapped the first one away but grunted as his hand stung from the contact.

-15HP! (5,710/5,725)

He shot up into the sky to dodge the rest, but Arlic raised his hands and followed his trajectory with a flurry of blasts. Gray saw one of the other pods open behind Arlic, and he flew the way he came as fast as he could, a trail of Ki blasts following him. He managed to dodge most of them, but his leg burned as the edge of one grazed him. Arlic shot off the ground and started following him, slowly catching up. Gray quickly tossed 20 more points into AGI.

Gray sighed in relief as he realized he was faster than the huge man now, who was slowly falling further behind.

His muscles look like they have muscles. There's no way he can be THAT fast with that body type.

Gray noticed that the energy belonging to the other two Saiyans with Arlic wasn’t following him, and eventually Arlic gave up the chase with a shout, “I’ll hunt you later, you little rat!”

Gray relaxed once he was sure Arlic wasn’t following, slowing down his flight speed as beads of sweat dripped down the side of his face.

Why the hell are there C-Class recruits here?! I thought the other teams would be F-Class!

Gray continued towards Ken’s power level, his [Flight] skill gaining a level before he arrived at the location where their pods landed a few minutes later. Celia was a few hundred feet from them, staring up into the sky. Asia was making a makeshift chair out of a few rocks, and Ken was standing near her, his arms crossed as he stared straight ahead with a serious look on his face.

“We got a problem,” Gray said as he landed, saying it loud enough for them to all hear him. He continued as Celia started walking back to the group, “I didn’t find any Vargonians, but I found three Saiyan pods arriving. There were C-Class re-” 

He was cut off by a shout, “Incoming!”

Gray turned to the direction of the voice and saw Tamari shooting towards them from the sky, a male and female Saiyan following close behind her, and Gray sensed two more power levels following them from further back. The male was short with black spikey hair, while the female was taller and muscular, looking like an Olympic bodybuilder, with short blonde hair tied into a ponytail. 

Gray shot up into the air, intercepting the male Saiyan as he saw Ken do the same to the female Saiyan from his peripheral. Gray dodged a flying punch from the man and was mentally relieved when his Ki-enhanced counterpunch landed, slamming into the man's face.

1,450HP! (2,420/3,870)

He’s not nearly as strong as Arlic was, so not another C-Class.

His leg flew up as the man was momentarily dazed from the punch, and Gray’s roundhouse kick connected with his chest, sending him flying to the floor. He didn’t have a chance to see how much damage the attack did, as he was forced to bend backward to dodge a Ki beam heading towards him, courtesy of the female Saiyan. He glanced towards the ground and saw Ken standing up from a crater, launching himself back up towards them, but being stopped by a flurry of Ki blasts as one of the power levels he’d sensed earlier arrived. 

Gray didn’t have time to look at Ken’s situation for long, as the female Saiyan launched herself at him. He raised his hand, forming a gun with his hand, and shot a small beam of Ki at the approaching girl. She tried to dodge but was too slow, resulting in her shoulder having a hole pierced into it. She quickly backed up and put a hand over the bleeding wound.

1,670HP! (2,560/4,230)

Gray quickly raised his hand to block a beam of Ki heading toward him, but Tamari intercepted it with a beam of her own. The other power he’d sensed earlier had arrived, and his beam was slowly overpowering Tamari’s. Gray didn’t have time to assist her, as he had to drop to the floor, his fist slamming downwards and barely missing the male Saiyan he’d kicked down earlier, who was attempting to rush at Asia and Celia.

The Saiyan shot backward, flying into the sky and retreating to the female Saiyan. Gray turned to his side and raised his arm, catching Ken’s body as it hurtled towards him, steadying him on his feet. A moment later, Tamari appeared next to him, having to retreat and dodge the Ki beam overpowering her own. The two newly arrived Saiyans regrouped with the injured ones in the sky as Gray’s team did the same on the floor. 

+50 Reputation with Ken (For helping him) [2x from [A Humble Master]]

He took the lull in the battle to use observe on them. He glanced at one of the two new arrivals, who had been clashing beams with Tamari. He was tall and fat, his face round and pudgy, with his belly jutting out, as well as being bald.

[Weak] Rugool:

[Saiyan D-Class Recruit #45]

Age: 17

PL: 210,540

HP: 25,000/25,000

TKI: 21,120/26,260

Reputation: -10/100 (Negatively Viewed)

[Weak] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will gain STR 50% slower.

A ton of HP. He’s a tank. Slow and weak, but he has a lot of Ki and can take a lot of hits. And he’s also in Class-D, dumbass game. Why is he even here?

Gray looked to the other new arrival, who looked very thin. He had messy black hair and a sharp angular face, his eyes sunken into his face and hallow. He was abnormally skinny for a Saiyan, looking more like a long-distance runner than a warrior.

[Quick] Capper:

[Sayian D-Class Recruit #56]

Age: 18

PL: 201,899

HP: 550/550

TKI: 2,925/2,925

Reputation: 0/100 (Neutral)

[Quick] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally quick, and will gain AGI 100% faster.

A speed-oriented build. He’ll go down in one hit, but I’m not sure I’ll be able to get that hit in.

He turned his gaze to the female Saiyan.

[Strong] Pasley:

[Sayian D-Class Recruit #51]

Age: 17

PL: 206,975

HP: 2,360/4,230 [Bleeding (-200HP/m)]

TKI: 7,760/10,045

Reputation: -110/-1000 (Disliked)

[Strong] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally inclined to pursue STR-based skills. 

Well rounded, but strength-oriented.

Finally, he glanced at the male Saiyan he’d sent flying at the start of the fight.

[Angry] Erkin:

[Sayian D-Class Recruit #68]

Age: 17

PL: 196,755

HP: 1,520/3,870

TKI: 4,560/12,045

Reputation: -250/-1000 (Disliked)

[Angry] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally angry. They will gain a 10% boost to every stat when enraged, but will lose control over their thoughts.

They’re all close to my power level- no, probably fairly weaker after the AGI I gained earlier, but I’m not sure I could take them all on my own.

Gray glanced at the rest of his team. Tamari looked a bit winded but overall fine, while Ken was covered in bruises but still grinning largely with excitement. Asia looked concerned and unsure what to do, while Celia was looking at him for instruction.

This is where having two weak teammates is coming back to bite me in the ass. At least there are only 4 of them.

“We need to fight smart if we want to win this without any casualties,” Gray started, “Ken, you couldn’t hit the small one, right?”

“Yeah, he kept dodging all my attacks, but his punches don’t hurt much,” Ken said, breathing slightly heavily.

“Don’t hurt much” my ass. You’re covered in bruises and he launched you into the floor. They won’t hurt much to me, but his power level is 4x yours.

“Take the big one. He’s slow, dodge most of his attacks and you’ll be fine.” Gray said to him, and Ken nodded at his words, looking up at Rugool, who was also conversing with his teammates.

His power level is far higher than Ken’s, but he’s slow and weak. Ken matches up against him well, since he’s decently fast but very strong. Ken will be able to dodge and survive his weak attacks, but Rugool won’t be able to dodge his attacks. He’ll wear him down.

Gray glanced over to Tamari, and pointed up at Erkin, “You take him, Tamari. He’s already half-dead, so his movements should be slow. Use your speed to your advantage. If you’re losing, say something to piss him off. I get the feeling he’ll get mad easily. I’ll take the other two.”

Not being able to think in a battle is practically suicide. His modifier does more harm than good. [Observe] is more helpful than I thought, since it lets me strategize easily with information I wouldn’t know otherwise..

“Are you sure, Gray?” Tamari asked, looking up at him in concern, “You’ve been getting a lot stronger lately, but both of them?”

“I’ll be fine,” He dismissed Tamari’s concern, smiling reassuringly at her, then turned to Asia and Celia, “You two. You see the skinny one up there? Look for a moment when he’s distracted, and try hitting him with a Ki blast.”

I doubt I’ll be able to hit him, especially not when I’m fighting the girl as well. Asia and Celia are weak, but considering how low his HP is, one shot might be all it takes to injure him heavily enough.

The two girls nodded at him, and his attention was dragged back to the group of Saiyans as Pasley shouted down to them, “Y’know, I’d say your death would be quick and painless, but I’m pissed off over this hole in my shoulder, so it won’t be.”

Gray grinned, “Thanks for the thought, I appreciate it,” he launched himself into the sky, speeding towards Pasley, “In return, I’ll make sure yours is.”

Erkin tried to intercept him as Pasley readied herself for the fight, but was intercepted by a Ki blast from Tamari, “You’re fighting with me, jack-ass! You’re an even bigger idiot than you look if you think you’re strong enough to fight Gray!”

Erkin’s face scrunched in anger at her words, and he shot himself towards Tamari, leaving Pasley to Gray. Capper tried to bolt down towards Asia and Celia as Ken shot towards Rugool but was interrupted as Gray fired a Ki blast at him mid-flight, resulting in him turning his attention back to Gray. 

Gray thrust a Ki-enhanced fist towards Pasley, which she barely dodged, then followed up with a kick that she was forced to block. She crossed her arms but was still flung back from the force of his kick.

200HP! (2,160/4,230)

Gray rushed towards her to follow up his attack but was interrupted by a fist slamming into his ribs. 

He flung his arm out to grab Capper, but he dashed back out of his reach.

-8HP! (5,717/5,725)

I barely even felt that.

He swiped away a flurry of Ki blasts from Pasley, rushing towards her as she flew back and continued to launch blasts at him. He felt another fist slam into his face but ignored it as Capper dashed away again. He was significantly faster than Pasley, and he reached her a moment later. He slapped aside another string of Ki blasts and grabbed her outstretched arm, which had been firing blasts at him, and ignored a flurry of punches landing on his back as Capper tried to help her. 

He yanked Pasley towards him, tilting his head to dodge her other hand’s punch, then slamming his elbow down on the arm in his grip. Pasley screamed out in pain as her arm broke in half, and Capper’s punches increased in speed, but he continued to ignore them, grunting lightly as the man's weak punches started to add up.

1,800HP! (360/4,230)

Pasley’s eyes rolled over as she struggled to maintain consciousness, the combined pain of a hole in her shoulder and a broken arm wracking her body. She succumbed to the pain, her body slumping as she was held up by her broken arm by Gray. He spun around and threw a kick at Capper, but he dashed back and dodged it. He turned back to Pasley but heard a scream behind him a second later. He glanced over his shoulder to see Capper holding the bleeding stump where his arm used to be, a green Ki blade spinning past him. Gray glanced down and saw Asia’s arm outstretched, another spinning blade sitting in her hand.

Damn, that looked like Krillin’s Destructo Disk or one of the disks Freiza threw. Badass.

Gray took advantage of Capper’s distracted state as he gripped his arm in pain. He rushed towards him, dragging Pasley’s limp body with him, and shot his fist out. Gray’s fist easily tore through Capper’s chest, like a knife through butter, and the Saiyan boy let out a final guttural scream before his body slumped, hanging on Gray’s fist.

Blame Dareth, not me. If I didn’t regret sparing him so much yesterday, I probably would’ve felt guilty about this.

+1,000 XP! (1,800/5,000)

+1000 Coins

+1 [Saiyan] Kill Count! (1/10)

+10 HREG (For winning a battle)

+10 EREG (For winning a battle)

+10 END for taking [Capper]’s punches like a man

1/10? 5 teams of 5 would be 25, 20 excluding us, so there are fewer Saiyans than if there were 5 F-Class teams of 5, but they’re stronger.

Gray raised his hand, a finger gun forming, and pressed it into Pasley’s forehead.

+1,000 XP! (2,800/5,000)

+1000 Coins

+1 [Saiyan] Kill Count! (2/10)

+10 HREG (For winning a battle)

+10 EREG (For winning a battle)

I feel… satisfied. Is this my Saiyan body affecting me? Telling me that killing feels good?

Gray felt the empty feeling that had been in his stomach since his battle with Dareth vanish, replaced by adrenaline flowing through him. A grin unconsciously formed on his face. He looked to see how Ken and Tamari were doing.

Ken was wailing at Rugool, who was now covered in bruises, swinging his fists widely towards Ken but missing. Erkin didn’t look much different, as his bleeding and bruised body was swinging widely at Tamari, his face scrunched in rage, but missing as his body started to feel the effects of his injuries. 

Gray shot towards Erkin, covering his fist in Ki as his fist slammed into the unsuspecting Saiyan’s head, sending him plummeting toward the ground. Gray didn’t need to follow up his attack.

920HP! (0/3,870)

+1,000 XP! (3,800/5,000)

+1000 Coins

+1 [Saiyan] Kill Count! (3/10)

+10 HREG (For winning a battle)

+10 EREG (For winning a battle)

[Ki Enhancement] level up! (100/100)

+10 KI for leveling up an KI-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Gray turned to help Ken but quickly realized he didn’t need to. Rugool was huffing as his punches slowed down, his eyes glazing over as the culmination of Ken’s punches wore him down. Ken shot up into the sky, shooting a beam of Ki down at Rugool. Rugool crossed his arms and tried to block it, but was forced downwards until his body formed a crater in the ground.

+100 XP! [Party XP Share]

Gray sighed in relief as their final opponent was finished. Capper had managed to do just over 1000HP of damage to him with his weak but quick punches adding up, and he was feeling a bit sore from the encounter. He glanced over at Tamari, who looked exhausted, then at Ken, who was covered in bruises but looked like he had more fight in him. 

+100 Reputation with Ken (For leading your team to a victory) [2x from [A Humble Master]]

+200 Reputation with Asia (For leading your team to a victory) [4x from [Ladies Man], [A Humble Master]]

+200 Reputation with Tamari (For leading your team to a victory) [4x from [Ladies Man], [A Humble Master]]

+80 Reputation with Celia (For leading your team to a victory) [4x from [Ladies Man], [A Humble Master]]

+50 INT for using strategy to defeat strong opponents! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Gray pushed his reputation gains to the side as he thought about their next course of action.

We need to rest before we do any more exploring. We’re all healthy enough to keep fighting, but we need to be at our best in case we run into Arlic’s group. It might be time for me to use up the points I’ve been saving.

Gray floated down to the floor where Asia and Celia were standing, Ken and Tamari following him down. Tamari spoke up, pulling her scouter off her face, “I can’t believe we pulled that off. Those guys' power levels were through the roof! What the hell were they doing here?”

“No idea, but they didn’t seem too tough. The big one was practically shrugging off my punches at first, but toward the end of the fight, he was struggling badly. He was a good opponent. I feel stronger after our battle!” Ken shouted excitedly, clenching and unclenching his fist.

“Yeah, I do too. Actually, I’ve been feeling stronger since we got here. Maybe it’s the gravity?” Tamari responded.

I’m surprised Ken managed to beat that guy on his own. The XP he gained from being in my party probably had something to do with his punches getting stronger later on in the fight, but they also probably got stronger from the AGI I gained earlier.

He glanced at Ken and cast observe, curious as to how much stronger he’d gotten.

[Macho] Ken:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit #2]

Age: 16

PL: 132,200

HP: 2,190/4,500

TKI: 2,650/2,650

Reputation: 215/1000 Liked)

[Macho] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally manly.

He was around 40,000 when I checked last, so he gained over 90,000 power levels from being in my party. This game might keep fucking me over, but damn am I glad I have it.

He glanced at the rest of his team to see if they’d also experienced a power boost.

[Rough] Tamari:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit #119]

Age: 15

PL: 42,200

HP: 565/1,075

TKI: 3,460/5,350

Reputation: 550/1000 (Liked)

[Rough] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally talented in “rough” situations, such as training, sports, etc.

Also a little over 20,000. Not nearly as much as Ken. It must be because he defeated his opponent on his own, so he got all the XP from it, instead of the 10% Tamari got from the ones I defeated. It makes sense, he defeated someone with a power level nearly 200,000 higher than his own. He probably got a huge boost from that.

[Angel] Asia:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit #1450]

Age: 15

PL: 18,950

HP: 725/725

TKI: 3,050/5,725

Reputation: 520/1000 (Liked)

[Angel] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally kind.

Not as much as the other two, but she’s not useless in a fight anymore. 

[Survivalist] Celia:

[Sayian F-Class Recruit #1550]

Age: 16

PL: 1,020

HP: 75/75

TKI: 250/250

Reputation: 508/100 (Liked)

[Survivalist] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will do whatever it takes to survive.

Gray blinked in surprise.

The other three had their power level grow a lot, but her’s didn’t change at all. Maybe it’s because of how the game distributes the stats. If they all “leveled up” from the XP they got from my fights, then maybe the game distributed their available points into whichever stat suits them best. Celia’s would’ve all gone into INT so her power level wouldn’t have risen… No, then her TKI would be higher. I don’t understand, but I don’t have time to think about it now.

“Let’s figure out our situation and make a plan. Those were four Class-D Saiyans, and I saw three Class-C Saiyans earlier. This exam isn’t going to be against our fellow Class-F Saiyans.” Gray said.

“You saw Class-C’s here?! Are you sure? Why the hell would they be on Vargon!” Tamari said, looking at Gray with wide eyes. He nodded in confirmation to her.

“This exam won’t be as easy as we thought. Finding and killing the inhabitants of this planet might end up being the easy part. Also, as concerning as the arrival of the Class-C Saiyans is, that might be the least of our worries.” Gray followed up.

“What do you mean? If those guys were Class-D, then the Class-C recruits would be even tougher to take down.” Asia said, staring up at him in confusion.

“You’re right, but I’m pretty sure there are Class-B and Class-A Saiyans here as well,” Gray said solemnly, all of their eyes widening in disbelief, save for Celia who nodded.

“You’ve realized it as well. There are 5 Class-F Saiyans here, which are us. There were 4 Class-D Saiyans, which were the ones we just defeated. Gray ran into 3 Class-C Saiyans. Pattern recognition would expect there to be 2 Class-B Saiyans, and 1 Class-A, though it’s just speculation. We have no way to be sure until we run into them.” Celia explained.

No, I do have a way to be almost completely sure. My quest earlier showed that I had defeated 1/10 Saiyans, meaning there are 10 Saiyans here besides us. 4 from Class-D, plus 3 from Class-C, plus 2 from Class-B, added with 1 from Class-A equals 10. 

“Gray, did you see the badge number on the Class-C Saiyans you saw earlier?” Celia asked him.

“Yeah, I saw one of them. His badge was 50-something. Why?” Gray responded, looking at her curiously.

“That information is more valuable than you think. Rank 50 is roughly the middle of C-Class. The D-Class Saiyans we fought were also ranked in the 50s, which is in the top quarter. There’s a pattern here.” Celia said simply, locking eyes with him.

“Go on,” Gray said, nodding at her.

“The small robot who scanned us before we left planet Vegeta likely tested our power levels. Our team was deemed the strongest out of Class-F, which is why we were Team 1. We were at the top of our class. The Class-D Saiyans we fought were in the top quarter, while the C-Class Saiyans were around the middle of their class. The B-Class Saiyans will likely be in the bottom half of their class, while the A-Class will be in the bottom quarter. If this is true, then they are not unbeatable. However, this is all speculation.” Celia said in a matter-of-fact tone.

What she’s saying makes sense. The space pod called me “rank 1” when it was telling me our mission, so the robot was likely testing our power levels and updating my rank. If her logic is correct, then the B and A-Class Saiyans might be beatable if we gang up on them, but I don’t want to rely on that.

“We should assume we’re right and act accordingly. Rest up here for a while so we’re all at our best when we run into them. I wasn’t hurt much in the battle, so I’ll scout the area around us a bit more. The other Saiyans should’ve landed by now, and it’d be bad if they were near us and we didn’t know.” Gray said.

That’s not the real reason, as I’d sense their energy if they were nearby. I just want to level up my [Flight] and [Jump] skills a bit to get some more AGI before we run into anyone. 

“Be careful. Come straight back if you see anyone.” Asia said, staring up at him with concern. Tamari nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, man. Even if they are a few classes higher than us, we can take them on together.” Ken said, looking at Gray seriously.

Gray nodded assuringly at them, “Don’t worry, I’ll head back if I run into anyone. I’m confident that I’m fast enough to escape even a Class-A recruit.”

No, I’m definitely not, but I’ll probably be fine if I dump a bunch of points into AGI and book it.

Gray took off into the sky, giving him a moment to think over the situation as he lazily scanned the barren planet as he flew.

If I use all my available points I’ll probably stand a good chance against all the C-Class Saiyans, but I’m not sure I’d be able to hold my own against the A and B-Class recruits. 

[Flight] level up! (1000/1000)

+10 AGI for leveling up an AGI-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

I need to find the Vargonians before the other Saiyans get to them. If their average power level is 5,000, then as harsh as it sounds, they're pretty much a free source of XP. I could use them to level up and get more points, as well as level up some of my skills. They have to die anyway, I might as well be the one benefiting from it.

Gray landed on the floor, leaping forward and covering thousands of feet with every jump.

[Jump] level up! (100/100)

+10 AGI for leveling up an AGI-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

It’ll also help my team get a lot stronger too. Ken is the only one who can realistically help in a fight right now. The rest will be sidelined to support.

[Jump] level up! (1000/1000)

+10 AGI for leveling up an AGI-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

I also need to figure out how to raise my END more. So far the only way I’ve been able to level it up is through my [Determination] skill and tanking Capper’s punches.

Gray decided that was enough leveling up for now, as the jump from needing 1,000 skill XP to 10,000 meant that it’d take him hours to level up his skills anymore. He flew back towards his team and was accosted by Celia as soon as he landed.

“Gray, speak with me for a moment.” She said, staring at him as emotionless as ever.

Gray nodded and they walked a couple hundred feet away from the others, “What’s up?”

“I know where the lifeforms living on this planet are.” She said simply.

“You do? Well, where are they?” He asked excitedly.

Her finger pointed down to the floor, “There.”

Gray blinked, looking at the floor, then back to Celia, “They’re in the floor? What the fuck do you mean, are they ants or something?”

Celia sighed, “Stretch your senses down as far as you can. The others can’t sense Ki like we can, so they wouldn’t have noticed.”

Gray nodded, closing his eyes and focusing on the floor below them. He felt nothing, so he reached deeper and felt more nothingness. He reached deeper, focusing all his Ki into stretching downwards as far as it could go. His head jerked back as his mind was flooded with thousands of power levels.

“What the fuck? They’ve been below us this whole time?” Gray sighed, staring at the mass of power levels below him.

“Indeed.”

What kind of alien lives in the ground? Are they an army of ants? Moles? Or… wait…

“We’re going to have to fight a civilization of dwarves with super-powerful weaponry, aren’t we?”

“Probably,” Celia’s monotone voice replied, turning and walking back toward to rest of the team, “but who knows?”

Well, dumping 50 points into LUK didn’t do shit apparently. A, B, and C-Class Saiyans, AND dwarves that’ll definitely have bullshit weapons. At least I’ll have the chance to get a badass sword. 

Gray blinked as the situation that just occurred processed in his mind, and he turned his gaze to Celia’s back as she walked away.

…I never told her I could sense Ki.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

UPDATE SCHEDULE: This story will be updated every Saturday. You can read the next chapter right now at (PAT)(re)(ON) (dot) (c0m) (/ Koyon). One chapter ahead is currently available there, but that’ll change to more than one in the future.

Thanks for reading! Hope y’all enjoyed this chapter. A little bit shorter than usual, but I wanted to end with the reveal of the (maybe) dwarves!

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gray Tanaki:

[Saiyan F-Class Recruit 1]

Age: 15

Wallet: 7,000 Coins

Lvl: 4 (4,500/5000 XP)

PL: 859,575

Available Points: 135

HP: 6,975/6,975

TKI: 49,825/49,825

STR: 125

AGI: 125

END: 55

INT: 255

CHA: 45

LUK: 55

KI: 195

HREG: 46

EREG: 46

Skills: [Observe LVL 4], [Running LVL 6], [Determination LVL 4], [Ki Control LVL 9], [Ki Gun LVL 1]. [Ki Enhancement LVL 3], [KI Suppression LVL 5], [Ki Sense LVL 2], [Pushup LVL 4], [Punch LVL 4], [Kick LVL 4], [Jump LVL 4], [Flight LVL 4]

Perks: [Gamer’s Mind], [Gamer’s Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Sayian], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], [Ladies Man]

Party: Tamari, Asia, Ken, Celia

Gray Tanaki is a Sayian in training on Planet Vegeta. 

Chapter Text

Game

Thoughts

“Talking”

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So, how do we get down there?” Tamari asked, staring at the ground wearily.

“Shoot a beam straight down! It doesn’t matter if we hit any of them, since we’re killing them anyway!” Ken said excitedly, a small Ki ball appearing in his palm.

“That’s… actually not a bad idea. We just have to make sure we don’t accidentally blow up the planet in the process. Oh, and we also shouldn’t do it here, let’s move away from our base.” Gray said, gesturing to the area around them. “Base” was being generous, as all they had was a couple of rocks to use as chairs.

“I don’t suppose we could utilize our Ozaru’s down there, could we?” Tamari asked with a sigh. She was openly not happy about the idea of being in enclosed tunnels deep in the planet.

“Not unless you have a way to get the moon down there. Even if you could, one wrong step could cause an entire planet's worth of rocks to collapse onto you.” Gray said, taking flight and leading the group in the opposite direction he’d headed earlier when he ran into the C-Class Saiyans.

“Hopefully these guys got some food. I’m starving.” Ken said, placing a hand on his stomach as they flew.

I know the Saiyans’ are complete meatheads, but I thought someone would’ve considered putting food and water in the space pods. I understand why it took Nappa and Vegeta so long to reach Earth now. They had to keep stopping to find food.

“You can say that again.” Tamari nodded at Ken in agreement.

They flew until their makeshift base was out of sight, and they all landed on the barren ground. Gray held up his hand, a finger gun forming, then shot it straight down. A finger-sized hole appeared in the ground, going deep enough that Gray couldn’t see the bottom.

Well, we’re going to need a bigger hole than th-

+152XP! (+1 [Vargonion] Kill Count! (1/?)

+12 Coins

Gray stared at the hole in the ground.

Did… did I just kill one accidentally? 

He lifted his finger again and fired another shot into the floor.

+168XP! (+1 [Vargonion] Kill Count! (2/?)

+14 Coins

Gray’s finger blurred, firing off an armada of bullet-sized Ki blasts into the floor.

+132XP! (+1 [Vargonion] Kill Count! (3/?)

+11 Coins

+189XP! (+1 [Vargonion] Kill Count! (4/?)

+16 Coins

Level up!

[Shop] unlocked!

+192XP! (+1 [Vargonion] Kill Count! (5/?)

+16 Coins

+260XP! (+1 [Vargonion] Kill Count! (6/?)

+25 Coins

+162XP! (+1 [Vargonion] Kill Count! (7/?)

+14 Coins

+144XP! (+1 [Vargonion] Kill Count! (8/?)

+12 Coins

+110XP! (+1 [Vargonion] Kill Count! (9/?)

+8 Coins

“Gray, I think we’re going to need a bigger hole to get down.” Tamari’s voice pulled Gray out of his mindless shooting, and his head jerked back as he blinked. The ground was littered with tiny holes, looking like someone had been firing a machine gun at it.

That felt so… easy. So natural. 

Gray coughed as he cleared his throat, “Yeah, you’re right. Step back for a few minutes.”

Tamari nodded, and his team flew up into the air, floating a few hundred feet away.

Now, I’ll do this carefully so I don’t accidentally blow up the whole planet.

Gray closed both his hands into fists, a layer of Ki covering them. He slammed one fist into the ground, and a crater formed around him. His other fist followed, slamming into the crater and making it double in size. His fists picked up in speed as he got into a rhythm, his fists slamming one after the other into the crater around him.

+10 END for toughening your fists! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Well, that’s one way to gain END.

The crater gradually grew bigger, and he sunk further into the planet as his fists made the crater deeper. The sonic booms his fists made with each punch roared in his ears, and adrenaline started flowing through Gray’s body as he sensed himself getting closer to the power levels under him. His thoughts strayed as he mindlessly punched the ground.

[Ki Enhancement] level up! (1000/1000)

+10 KI for leveling up a KI-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

I unlocked the shop system when I leveled up a moment ago. I need to check that out when I have the chance.  I was wondering when I’d get to use these coins.

Gray grunted as his arm burst further into the ground than usual, the ground reaching up to his elbow. He ripped his arm out of the floor and stood up, floating slightly over the ground. He channeled Ki around his foot and stomped down, the floor around him crumbling and falling into the large tunnel below him. Judging by the flurry of XP he received, whatever dwarves had been living down there before weren’t anymore, as they were crushed by an avalanche of rocks flooding into the tunnel from the crater around him. 

Gray floated back up to the top of the crater, realizing on his way up just how deep down he was. He hadn’t realized it while he was punching the crater into the ground, but he was more than a few miles down from the surface. He emerged at the surface and looked at his team.

“You found them?” Asia asked, looking at Gray with her tilted cutely.

Gray nodded, “Yup. A tunnel full of dwarves. Well, that was full of dwarves, but I have the feeling following the tunnel will lead us to more of them.”

Tamari nodded in agreement, “Let’s go check it out.”

They all floated down the huge crater in the floor, arriving at the tunnel Gray had smashed into. There was a pile of rocks crushing pretty much everything, but Gray could make out signs of a city underneath. The tunnel was illuminated by white gemstones, and there were what looked to be small homes made of rocks, but Gray couldn’t make out any details as they were smashed to bits. The entire tunnel itself was rather small, being only a few hundred feet long, so the majority of it was destroyed by the falling boulders.

“You bastard! You’ll pay for-” A voice shouted towards Gray, and Gray only managed to glance at the short purple-skinned man for a second before a Ki blasts completely erased his body. He was surprised to see Asia’s outstretched hand was the culprit.

“You said not to give them a chance to talk earlier, right?” Asia said in response to Gray’s questioning look. Gray nodded and looked for any other power levels in the room. There were no others, as the man was the sole survivor of the avalanche. 

Gray scanned the room and saw a large opening on the far right of the tunnel, “Well, let’s get to looking.”

He floated to the opening and landed in front of it, walking down the large tunnel, which was lit up by the glowing gemstones placed on the walls. His team followed him, and they walked down the tunnel until they reached a crossroad. There were two paths to either side and a continuation of the path ahead of him. There were words carved in the side of the wall, but Gray couldn’t read them, as they seemed to be in a different language. He could sense power levels in each direction.

He glanced at his team behind him, “I guess we just pick one, right? Doesn’t matter which one, since we don’t know where they lead anyway.”

“I get the feeling that we’ll be getting very lost down here very quickly,” Tamari said with a sigh and started walking down the pathway to his right. They continued down the long tunnel for a few minutes and then came across another opening, which led into a city. It looked similar to the one Gray had dropped an avalanche on, with the main difference being that it wasn’t destroyed.

There was a series of small houses, made completely of rock, but formed into near-modern-looking infrastructure. The same white gemstones as in the tunnels lit up the city, which was more like a small village, as Gray could see nearly the entirety of it from where he was standing. The ceiling looked to be around a hundred feet high, with stalactites hanging on it. 

These rooms seem to be pretty small, with only 10-15 buildings. This must be more like a neighborhood than an actual city.

“Can we see if they have any food before we start blasting?” Ken asked, holding his stomach as it grumbled. Gray nodded in agreement and headed towards a restaurant-looking building. It didn’t have any traditional windows, but instead had holes in the wall of the rock building where the windows would be. A small rock with letters carved into it sat in front of the building.

Gray stepped through the door, which was just a small opening in the wall, and was greeted by a very primitive-looking restaurant. Rocks instead of chairs, taller rocks instead of tables, and a rock carved into a bar-like shape. They were all low to the ground, and Gray didn’t need to sit down to see that his legs wouldn’t fit under any of the tables. 

A short purple-skinned man sat behind the bar-rock, and Gray was able to get a good look at the species. The man was short, looking to be under 3 feet tall, and looked similar to a stereotypical dwarf if not for his purple skin.

[Mean] Dorat:

[Vorgonian Small-Kind]

Age: 98

PL: 2,950

HP: 1,125/1,125

TKI: 150/150

Reputation: -50/100 (Negatively Viewed)

[Mean] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally mean.

The man looked up at them as they entered with a suspicious look, his voice rough and with a southern twang, “I ain’t never seen someone lookin' like y’all before. How’d you get here?” 

All the words I’ve seen carved on the wall are in a different language, and yet I can understand him?

Apparently, it wasn’t something special from his game system, as Tamari answered the man, “We’re just looking for some food. You sell that here, right?”

“Not to your kind, whatever y’all ugly bastards are. I’m not sure how y’all found this place, but we only serve small kind here. Get the hell out.” The man said dismissively, grabbing a small hammer from under the bar and holding it up threateningly. 

“There’s more than just you guys on this planet?” Gray asked the man.

“Of course, you’re here, ain’t yuh? What do ya mean by this planet? You’re one of those surface dwellers, aren’t you? Actually, I don’t give a shit, just get the hell out.” The short man hopped off the small rock he’d been sitting on and started walking towards them. He was stopped short as a Ki bullet, courtesy of Gray’s finger, blew his brains out.

“Let’s just ransack this place. Look for whatever food he was selling here. I guess we’ll be looking for more than just dwarves on this planet.” Gray said as they started searching the restaurant. They eventually found a room where the food was being held, but it was a collection of unrefrigerated meat that didn’t look very appealing.

Beggars can’t be choosers.

They sat on the rocks around one of the tables and started digging into the meat, ignoring the slumped-over corpse lying a few feet away. Gray tore the red meat off a large bone, which the game had labeled as “Carpquet meat.” He didn’t know what a Carpquet was, and considering how terrible the meat tasted, he didn’t want to find out. 

“It’s not very good, but still better than that slop they give us back on planet Vegeta, so I won’t complain,” Tamari said, ripping into her leg of meat. Gray nodded in agreement. At least this meat looked edible.

They eventually finished eating and brought some of the meat with them, leaving the restaurant and launching beams at the houses around it. The next few hours would bore Gray half to death, a feeling he didn’t imagine he’d associate with the massacre of an entire planet. They blasted houses, he watched his XP rise, and then they headed down the tunnels toward the next set of power levels and repeated the process. They continued for hours and didn’t find anything interesting, slaughtering village after village. 

Who would’ve thought committing genocide would be so boring? Or that I wouldn’t feel guilty in the slightest? 

Gray stared at his finger as a bullet flew from it into an unsuspecting dwarf’s head, unable to believe that just over a day ago he’d been unable now kill Dareth. Now he was committing genocide.

At least my [Ki Gun] ’s gone up 4 levels, and I’ve leveled up three times myself. This is boring, but at least it’ll pay off later.

Planet Vargon was big, much bigger than planet Vegeta, but he suspected he’d be able to circle the whole planet in less than an hour with his speed. Crossing the planet through winding underground tunnels was much slower, and Gray felt like they’d be wandering the tunnels forever.

“Is everyone here going to be this weak? I thought we’d get to see some cool swords or something. Isn’t that what dwarves make?” Ken whined, also growing bored from the senseless slaughter. Even Saiyans seemed to have stories about dwarves. They were stood in another destroyed village, courtesy of their Ki blasts.

“We’ve dug into a residential area. There are likely large cities somewhere within these tunnels. That will be where we find soldiers. It would be easy to find them from the surface, but we’ll need to take out these small villages anyway to complete the exam.” Celia’s emotionless voice explained, and Gray nodded in agreement.

We’re in this planet's equivalent of the countryside. Nothing but civilians. No blacksmiths, no soldiers wielding magical swords. Just houses and restaurants. 

“We can’t continue like this, we’re just wandering around aimlessly down here, going from power level to power level.” Gray said, glancing at Celia, “We can sense their power levels from the surface. We’ll fire blasts down into the villages, then come down again if we find any power levels that are too high to deal with that way. We can also look for the other races that are on the planet as we do. We aren’t here to sightsee.”

+10 INT for coming up with a good plan! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

I came down here in hopes of finding a badass sword, but I won’t be able to find one in one of these little villages. I’ll come back down once we sense a larger city from the surface. 

Ken nodded hurriedly in agreement, “Anything to get out of these dim tunnels, man. I thought this exam would be fun, but I feel like I’m just doing laps around the academy.”

Ken faced his palm towards the ceiling, a ball of Ki forming on it, and then shot a beam directly into the ceiling. The ceiling crumbled around the blast, Tamari blasting the rocks that were falling toward them into dust. Ken’s beam easily cut through the span of rock between the tunnel they were in and the surface, and the group of Saiyans flew upwards in the hole he formed. Gray couldn’t help the smile that came to his face as he saw the sun directly above the hole, shining down onto them.

I never thought I’d be so glad to see the sun. I don’t wanna know how long we spent in those dim tunnels.

Gray blinked as the sun grew brighter. Then even brighter, and he shaded his eyes with his hand.

Is the sun… getting closer?

Gray’s hand shot up, firing a Ki blast into the rapidly approaching “sun.” The two Ki blasts connected, exploding in mid-air, and Gray launched himself up the hole faster, sensing the power levels waiting at the top. He quickly reached the surface and was met with three flying Saiyans staring at him. 

“Surprised to see me, little rat? It was real nice of you to send out a flare for me,” Arlic said, grinning at him.

Shit, I was so eager to get out of those damn tunnels that I didn’t consider this. Ken shot a large Ki beam straight into the air. Any scouter looking even remotely in our direction would pick up on it. I’m glad this dumb bastard didn’t just spam Ki blasts down the hole while we were coming up, or we’d be in real trouble.

Gray glanced at the other two Saiyans with him. The first one looked muscular but slim, like an elite athlete. He was tall, with a flowing mane of black hair falling down his back.

[Leader] Maiz:

[Saiyan C-Class Recruit #44]

Age: 20

PL: 818,876

HP: 12,760/12,760

TKI: 62,170/62,170

Reputation: 0/100 (Neutral)

[Leader] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be natural leaders. Individuals under their command will receive a 5% boost to all their stats.

The other one looked more similar to Arlic, being extremely muscular. He had muscles on his muscles, and looked nearly bald, with just stubs of hair on his head.

[Strong] Dakon:

[Saiyan C-Class Recruit #44]

Age: 20

PL: 796,996

HP: 16,890/16,890

TKI: 55,460/55,460

Reputation: 0/100 (Neutral)

[Strong] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally inclined to pursue STR-based skills. 

An intelligent leader with his two muscley idiotic goons. How cliche.

Gray covered his fists in Ki, ready to hold them off until his team arrived to help, but his eyes widened as he sensed a duo of power levels rapidly approaching from behind the trio of Class-C recruits.

“Eh, you look scared, little rat! Am I that intimidating?” Arlic said, laughing loudly at Gray’s shocked look.

“I’m not looking at you, idiot! Turn around.” Gray responded, clenching his fist as he prepared for the fight of his life.

“Eh? What’re you talking about, you- ghuu!” Arlic's words caught in his throat as he turned to the men floating above them.

“Starting the party without me? How rude.” The male Saiyan said, grinning hungrily at the trio of C-Class Saiyans. The duo consisted of a male and a female Saiyan, with the male being a towering figure. His muscles were huge and well-defined, and he had a square face with a flowing mane of black hair behind him. The female couldn’t have looked more different, as she was much shorter, looking absurdly small for a Saiyan. Her body was thin, not looking very muscular, with a bob of short black hair on her head. She looked more like a young girl from Earth than a Saiyan.

[Confident] Aikon:

[Saiyan B-Class Recruit #42]

Age: 22

PL: 2,109,575

HP: 16,975/16,975

TKI: 92,250/92,250

Reputation: 0/100 (Neutral)

[Confident] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally confident. They will gain 10% more CHA.

They look like complete opposites, and even their modifiers contrast each other.

[Timid] Sarada:

[Saiyan B-Class Recruit #46]

Age: 22

PL: 1,998,259

HP: 6,890/6,890

TKI: 196,119/196,119

Reputation: 0/100 (Neutral)

[Timid] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally timid. They will gain 10% less CHA.

Gray’s mind whirled as he formulated a plan, his heart pounding in his ears. He didn’t even notice the rest of his team arriving behind him.

Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba-dump.

We’re the least threatening here. They’ll probably focus on each other. 

Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba-dump.

I can run. Even if one of them does decide to chase me, I can put points into AGI. I have a lot of available points from leveling up in the tunnels.

Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba-dump.

“You bastards think you’re tough just because you’re B-Class, huh? I hope you haven’t grown soft from those fancy training rooms you’ve got!” Arlic shouted as he engaged with the male Saiyan, he and Dakon launching themselves at Aikon.

We can run while they’re distracted. Head back into the tunnels. Farm more XP while they take each other out. It’s the smartest thing to do.

Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba-dump.

Gray turned his head to look at his team, his mouth opening to tell them the plan, but no words came out.

It’s the smartest option. The safest way to ensure we all make it out of the exam alive…

Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba-dump.

His gaze turned back to the battling Saiyans, Arlic and Dakon clashing with Aikon while Sarada was manhandling Maiz. A grin unconsciously formed on his face.

…why do I want to stay so badly? Why do I want to fight?

Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba-dump.

He turned back to the rest of his team, “I can’t promise I can protect you during the fight. Head back into the tunnel if you want.”

“Are you kidding me, man? It’s just starting to get fun!” Ken’s voice responded, a maniac grin even larger than Gray’s own on his face.

“Trying to keep all the good fights to yourself, huh? As if, jackass. I don’t need you protecting me anyway.” Tamari’s excited voice spoke up.

Of course. I’m such an idiot. I know why I want to fight so badly…

His heart was pounding in his ears, adrenaline flowing through his veins, and the feeling of pure excitement was forming in his gut. He felt like a kid in a candy store.

“I’ll provide support,” Celia said simply, and Asia nodded excitedly in agreement.

I’m a Saiyan. Of course I want to fight strong opponents.

“Don’t die,” Gray said, his grin growing even wider as he launched himself toward Sarada. His fist barely missed her face as she tilted her head to the side, her fist uppercutting at his gut in response. Gray shot backward, barely able to dodge her fist. She flew toward him, following up the punch with a roundhouse kick. Her hand shot up and caught Ken’s fist easily as he came at her from the side, but his distraction gave Gray enough time to cross his arms and block the kick.

-100HP! (6,875/6,975)

Gray grunted as he flew back, his arms aching from the force of the kick. His hand flicked up into a finger gun to intercept the flurry of Ki blasts she sent towards him with one hand as her other hand parried Ken’s punches. She disappeared faster than Gray’s eyes could see and appeared above Ken, a beam of energy appearing in her hand and sending Ken hurtling toward the ground.

That’s gonna hurt.

Gray shot back up towards Sarada, his flurry of fists being dodged easily by the quick girl. Maiz’s punches blurred with his own as he rejoined the fight, their duo of punches being dodged effortlessly by the girl. Ken seemed to be fine, as a moment later he appeared behind the girl, his attacks joining the mix. Gray realized how outclassed they truly were as the three of them formed a triangle around the girl, their punches blurring as they launched toward her, but none of them connected.

Gray saw Sarada’s arm tense, and he launched his leg up as her arm shot out towards Maiz. Her eyes widened in surprise as his leg slammed into the bottom of her arm mid-punch.

[Prediction] Skill unlocked!

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

[Prediction] LVL 1 - Your ability to predict your opponent's next move.

+10 INT for unlocking an INT-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Maiz took advantage of her momentary surprise, slamming his fist into her gut. Her body curled over his fist, and Ken followed up the attack with a 2-handed hammer slamming into her back and sending her careening towards the floor. Maiz nodded gratefully at Gray, then grunted in pain as Gray’s Ki-enhanced fist slammed into his face, sending him flying backward.

-1,200HP! (6,280/12,760)

“What are you doing, dumbass?! We need to work together if we want to beat her!” Maiz said as he steadied himself in the air, glaring at Gray. He was already covered in bruises from the beating Sarada had given him earlier, and he looked unsteady after Gray’s punch.

“Ehh? You thought we were working together or something?” Gray smirked at him, a huge grin filling his face as he shot a Ki bullet toward him and he dodged to the side, “We’re enemies. I don’t need your help. I’d much rather fight her alone!”

Gray felt a sense of pride well up within him as he battled against his fellow Saiyans, but didn’t have time to dwell on it as he barely managed to lean fly backwards and dodge Sarada’s flying uppercut. She focused on him with a flurry of punches, and he found himself moving too slowly to dodge them all. Her punches grazed him time after time, and when Ken tried to assist him he found himself the victim of a roundhouse kick as the girl simultaneously pressured him and launched Ken to the floor. Maiz launched a Ki blast towards her, seemingly deciding that she was still the more important target, but she swatted it away without missing a beat.

-125HP! (6,750/6,975)

-280HP! (6,470/6,975)

-110HP! (6,360/6,975)

-164HP! (6,196/6,975)

She’s too fast, her punches keep grazing me. She’ll wear me down like this.

Luckily for him, he was given a reprieve as two green disks of Ki flew towards the girl and she was forced to fly backward to dodge. Asia floated a few feet below him, her arms outstretched. Maiz launched towards the girl as she backed away from Gray, and she turned her attention to engaging with him.

Gray quickly put 25 points into AGI and another 25 into END, then glanced over to see how Tamari was fairing. She was dashing in and out of Aikon’s reach, utilizing the same strategy Capper had used against him while the two C-Class Saiyans went blow for blow with the large B-Class. He glanced down to see if Ken was still alive, and sighed in relief when he saw the Saiyan still had some HP left. His body was sitting in a crater on the ground and he seemed barely conscious, but he was still alive.

He was dragged out of his thoughts as a flurry of Ki blasts came flying at him, and he intercepted them with Ki bullets of his own. Sarada was firing at him, and Maiz was nowhere to be seen anymore. Gray blitzed towards her with his new increased agility, dodging her blasts as he appeared in front of her, launching a flurry of punches at her. She dodged them and returned with punches of her own, but they didn’t seem nearly as quick as before, and Gray was able to avoid them. 

“Just you now. Give up and I’ll make it quick.” She breathed out to him as they exchanged a flurry of missed punches.

“You wish,” Gray growled in response, an idea forming in his head. Sarada leaned forward as her fist sailed toward Gray’s face, and his Ki-coated fist uppercut into her gut as he tanked the punch, their fists colliding at the same time.

-592HP! (8,729/10,100)

 1,500HP! (4,140/6,890)

Gray grinned as he won the trade of blows, but his eyes widened quickly as Sarada’s fist shifted to an open palm and she launched a Ki blast point-blank into his face.

-2,850HP! (5,879/10,100)

He coughed as a cloud of smoke appeared around his face from the impact, and he shot backward from her. He glared at her as his face stung from the blast, steadying himself in the air as he breathed heavily. She was also out of breath floating across from him, her eyes narrowed at him.

Fuck it. I might regret this later, but she’s pissing me off.

He quickly tossed another 25 points into STR, AGI, and END as she regained her breath. He used nearly half of the available points he had left after the grinding they did in the tunnels, but he was too pissed off to care after receiving a Ki blast to the face.

He blitzed toward the female Saiyan again, and Sarada’s eyes widened in shock as he moved even faster than before. She barely managed to cross her arms to block his punch but grunted from the impact. His other hand shot out and grabbed her arm as she was launched backward from the force of his punch, holding her in place. She looked at him in surprise, trying to wretch her arm free from his grip, but her efforts were silenced as his head slammed down into hers, launching her body downwards. 

850HP! (3,290/6,890)

Her body was launched towards the ground from the impact of his head into hers, but he held tight on her arm and kept her afloat. She blinked away the pain and raised her other hand to launch a Ki blast, barely managing to get it off as his other hand slammed into her face, his fist covered in a layer of Ki.

1,850HP! (1,440/6,890)

-1,250HP! (4,629/10,100)

Her eyes nearly glazed over as smoke spread around them from the impact of her Ki blast. Gray grunted as his stomach burned from the impact, but kept his grip on her arm through it all, keeping her afloat a foot in front of him. He raised his hand, a finger gun forming as the girl's eyes refocused after the repeated blows to her head. Her eyes widened as she saw his finger pointed at her head, and tried to bring up her other arm to block.

“W-wai-”

+5,000 XP! (8,956/30,000)

+5000 Coins

+1 [Saiyan] Kill Count! (4/10)

+10 HREG (For winning a battle)

+10 EREG (For winning a battle)

Gray breathed heavily as he dropped the girl's corpse, letting it fall to the planet below. Blood dripped down the side of his face, and he could feel a large bruise on his abdomen, the armor on his stomach cracked from the blast. He felt exhausted.

I had to use over a hundred points, and even then I had to rely on trading blows to take her down. 

“Are you alright, Gray?” Asia’s soft voice asked from the side of him, and he nodded assuringly at her as she floated next to him, looking at him with a concerned face.

“I’m fine, just tired, but I need to help Tamar-” His sentence was cut off as he unexpectedly took a punch to the face, steadying himself in the air a second later.

-650HP! (3,979/10,100)

“Thought I was dead, did you? We’re still enemies, remember? As a thank you for dealing with her for me, I’ll make your death quick and painless.” Maiz said, breathing heavily and covered in bruises as he stared down at Gray. 

“You would’ve lived longer if you kept playing dead,” Gray huffed out, his breathing heavy and erratic from the culmination of attacks he’d taken.

The already half-dead C-Class Saiyan launched himself at Gray, but never managed to reach him as a green disk sliced through his neck, his head being lobbed off his body. Gray blinked in surprise and turned to Asia, who had another disk floating on her palm.

No one ever expects the cute little girl to be dangerous. I doubt it even crossed his mind that she’d interfere.

“Thanks for the assist, Asia,” Gray said gratefully, giving her a tired smile. She blushed and nodded quickly at him.

He glanced around him as he evaluated the situation.

Sarada and Maiz: Dead.

Ken: Unconscious in a crater.

Aikon: He’s got a few bruises, but looks mostly fine.

Tamari: Unharmed, but running out of steam. She looks exhausted.

Arlic and Dakon: Bloodied and bruised. They’ll be down before long.

Asia and Celia: Unharmed, but not very helpful except for a surprise attack.

Me: More than half dead and exhausted.

Gray steadied his breathing as he looked at Aikon, who was in the process of slamming a flurry of punches into Arlic, ignoring Tamari’s quick punches as she dashed in and out of his reach. 

This isn’t going to be easy. I’ll probably have to use more points.

He quickly checked over his stats again after his point usage.

Gray Tanaki:

[Saiyan F-Class Recruit 1]

Age: 15

Wallet: 26,150 Coins

Lvl: 8 (12,956/30,000 XP)

PL: 2,756,450

Available Points: 135

HP: 4,035/10,100

TKI: 19,825/67,675

STR: 150

AGI: 175

END: 105

INT: 265

CHA: 45

LUK: 55

KI: 255

HREG: 56

EREG: 56

Skills: [Observe LVL 4], [Running LVL 6], [Determination LVL 4], [Ki Control LVL 9], [Ki Gun LVL 5]. [Ki Enhancement LVL 4], [KI Suppression LVL 5], [Ki Sense LVL 2], [Pushup LVL 4], [Punch LVL 4], [Kick LVL 4], [Jump LVL 4], [Flight LVL 4], [Prediction LVL 1]

Perks: [Gamer’s Mind], [Gamer’s Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Sayian], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], [Ladies Man]

Party: Tamari, Asia, Ken, Celia

Gray Tanaki is a Sayian in training on Planet Vegeta. 

My power level’s higher than even Aikon’s now. I’m exhausted and injured, but I should still be able to finish him off after he finishes with Arlic and Dakon. I’ll try not to use anymore points unless I need to.

He was brought out of his thoughts as a loud voice rang throughout the barren area. 

“All of you gathered in one place, just for me? I appreciate it. Truly, I do. I will make your deaths quick and painless to return your kindness.” A smooth voice rang out, and Gray looked up to see a man up in the air, his silhouette blocking the sun. His arms were outstretched, a large toothy smile on his face.

Electricity suddenly filled the air, and Gray felt a pressure settle on his shoulders. All the fighting stopped as everyones eyes simultaneously turned toward the new arrival.

A tall man floating in the air with a set of spikey black hair on his head. His face was incredibly handsome, angular with a sharp jaw, and his body looked like it was built for fighting. Muscles bulged from his armor, but his body looked lean enough to maintain a high speed. He looked how Gray expected elite Saiyans would, his body looking closer to Goku’s than any Saiyan he’d seen so far. A killing machine was staring down at them. Gray’s eyes nearly bulged out of his head as he cast observe on the man.

[Charismatic] Kolra:

[Saiyan A-Class Recruit #25]

Age: 21

PL: 15,678,852

HP: 62,600/62,600

TKI: 855,180/855,180

Reputation: 0/100 (Neutral)

[Charismatic] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally charismatic, and will gain CHA 100% faster.

“You even weakened each other, just for me? I’m truly touched!” Kolra shouted, aiming an open palm at the planet below them. A blast of Ki whipped toward Gray faster than he could react, but he wasn’t the target.

[Party member: Ken has died!]

We are so fucked.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Read the next chapter RIGHT NOW at Patreon.com/Koyon ! 

Thanks for reading, I hope y’all enjoyed it! This chapter was also on the shorter end, but it was jam-packed with fighting. Don’t worry, there will be more with the dwarves in the future, Gray doesn’t have his badass sword yet!

Gray Tanaki:

[Saiyan F-Class Recruit 1]

Age: 15

Wallet: 26,150 Coins

Lvl: 8 (12,956/30,000 XP)

PL: 2,756,450

Available Points: 135

HP: 4,035/10,100

TKI: 19,825/67,675

STR: 150

AGI: 175

END: 105

INT: 265

CHA: 45

LUK: 55

KI: 255

HREG: 56

EREG: 56

Skills: [Observe LVL 4], [Running LVL 6], [Determination LVL 4], [Ki Control LVL 9], [Ki Gun LVL 5]. [Ki Enhancement LVL 4], [KI Suppression LVL 5], [Ki Sense LVL 2], [Pushup LVL 4], [Punch LVL 4], [Kick LVL 4], [Jump LVL 4], [Flight LVL 4], [Prediction LVL 1]

Perks: [Gamer’s Mind], [Gamer’s Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Sayian], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], [Ladies Man]

Party: Tamari, Asia, Ken, Celia

Gray Tanaki is a Sayian in training on Planet Vegeta. 

Chapter Text

Game

Thoughts

“Talking”

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Last Chapter: “You even weakened each other, just for me? I’m truly touched!” Kolra shouted, aiming an open palm at the planet below them. A blast of Ki whipped toward Gray faster than he could react, but he wasn’t the target.

[Party member: Ken has died!]

We are so fucked.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Why do I hear boss music?

Gray’s breathing was heavy, and he could still hear his heart pounding in his ears. He glanced down at the large crater where Ken’s body had once been. He gritted his teeth as he glared at Kolra. 

I only met Ken a few days ago, but he was a good guy—a friend. I’ll kill this bastard for you Ken, no matter what.

That’d be a lot easier said than done. Even if he used up the last of his available points he’d probably still stand no chance. Retreating, hiding in the tunnels for a few days, and killing more dwarves would be the best plan. However, Gray had no intention of doing that. 

Ba-dump. Ba-dump. Ba-dump.

His heartbeat was pounding in his ears, his blood rushing throughout his body, adrenaline coursing through his veins. Most importantly, pure rage was growing in his gut. His Saiyan pride wouldn’t allow him to back down.

This feeling… I haven’t felt it since the first night in this world. The night Dareth went after Asia. Anger at Kolra… pride demanding that I avenge Ken… I can’t run away.

“Tamari,” Gray shouted through gritted teeth, “Take Asia. Go back down into the tunnels.”

“You can’t be serious, Gray! There’s no way-” Tamari started through panted breaths, but was cut off.

“He’s an A-Class Saiyan. I know you want to fight, but Asia will die if she stays here. You’re much faster than she is. Take her and go.” He said. He wanted both of them to leave so they’d be safe, but he couldn’t just say that and stomp all over Tamari’s pride.

“How valiant, young warrior! Trying to protect your friends! Truly touching. I’ll let them go since I’m so moved!” Kolra shouted down to Gray, a smile on his face.

Tamari looked indecisive for a moment, then glared at Kolra and sighed, “Fine. Don’t get yourself killed, alright?” 

“I don’t plan on it.”

I don’t plan on dying. In fact, I don’t have a plan at all, but I can’t retreat after he just killed Ken.

“You’re not going to tell me to run? Should I be offended?” Celia’s said from behind him.

“You’re only useful because you’re smart, right? Do something smart to help me out here, or we’re all dead.” He said simply, floating towards the two near-dead C-Class Saiyans who were arguing with Aikon. 

“You really think I’d team up with a privileged B-Class asshole like you?!” Arlic said loudly to Aikon, who was stretching his right arm while gripping his shoulder with his other hand.

“At least one of you meatheads has figured it out already. As much as I’d rather fight him alone, I’d rather not commit suicide. We need to work together.” Gray said, glad that Kolra seemed content to let them talk instead of just blitzing them.

“We all received the same mission, right? Exterminate all the lifeforms on this planet. Only two Saiyans can leave alive. It was three for you guys, right? And probably five for you.” Aikon said, jutting his chin in Gray’s direction, “We’ve all lost team members now. We take this A-Class bastard down together, and whoever's alive at the end can be my plus-one off this planet.”

“As if, you prick. Whoever’s alive between the two of you can be our third.” Arlic said, glaring at Aikon.

“We can figure that out after we beat him, alright? We’re all exhausted and injured. It won’t be easy. I’ll do most of the work, just hit him when you can, alright?” Gray said as he evenly distributed his remaining 135 points into AGI, STR, and END. He grinned as he suddenly felt nearly fresh and ready for battle. He glanced at his new HP.

HP: 23,285/29,350

It’s a strange feeling - suddenly going from exhausted to feeling like the fight just started.

“I don’t like it, you F-Class trash, but you seem the least injured of us all. Take a few blows before you kick the bucket, alright?” Aikon growled.

“Would being in your Ozaru form for the fight be helpful?” Celia’s voice resounded behind him. He turned around and looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

“Yeah, but even if the moon, which we haven’t seen since we got here, came out right now Kolra would also be an Ozaru,” Gray said, shooting down her idea.

“Huh? You F-Class bastards really are idiots! If we were Ozaru’s, then these injuries would feel like scratches. The bruises all over your body feel a lot less painful when you’re a 100-foot-tall monkey. These weaklings could also take more than one hit before they lose their usefulness.” Aikon said, his tail swishing and pointing at Dakon and Arlic.

I don’t know if what he’s saying is true, but I’ve also never been a giant monkey, so I guess it’s worth a shot. I also have an 11x multiplier compared to Kolra’s 10x from [Perfect Ozaru] , and that could grow even higher during the battle. I’ll gain a slight edge. Worst case scenario: We’re fighting Ozaru Kolra instead of normal Kolra. Either way, he’s way stronger than me. 

“I guess it’s worth a sho- wait, this is pointless. We can’t transform into our Ozaru’s anyway. Unless…?” He trailed off, glancing over to Celia, “You’ve found a way, haven’t you?” 

She nodded and placed her palms a few inches from each other. A small ball of flashing white Ki started forming between her hands. 

“W-What?! Is that… an artificial moon!? How can a Class-F brat like you do that? That technique is only passed down to members of the royal family!” Aikon exclaimed, looking in shock at the artificial moon forming in Celia’s hand.

“You can worry about that if you survive,” Celia said simply, tossing the large ball of Ki into the air and then immediately flying towards the tunnel they came out of. Gray understood why, as he felt the transformation overcome him near-instantly.

“Impressive!” Kolra’s voice shouted, sounding like a mix between a human and a monster’s voice as he transformed as well. All around Gray, the Saiyan’s bodies grew and changed. His muscles were torn apart and then remade again. They became taller, towering nearly a hundred feet over the planet’s surface below them, hair growing from every inch of their bodies, and their power levels spiking. He glanced at his new stats as his transformation finished.

Gray Tanaki (Ozaru Form):

[Saiyan F-Class Recruit 1]

Age: 15

Wallet: 26,150 Coins

Lvl: 8 (12,956/30,000 XP)

PL: 70,787,200

Available Points: 0

HP: 526,935/533,000

TKI: 269,925/269,925

STR: 500 (+305)

AGI: 300 (+80)

END: 500 (+350)

INT: 215 (-50)

CHA: 45

LUK: 55

KI: 1,255 (+1,000)

HREG: 560 (+500)

EREG: 560 (+500)

Skills: [Observe LVL 4], [Running LVL 6], [Determination LVL 4], [Ki Control LVL 9], [Ki Gun LVL 5]. [Ki Enhancement LVL 4], [KI Suppression LVL 5], [Ki Sense LVL 2], [Pushup LVL 4], [Punch LVL 4], [Kick LVL 4], [Jump LVL 4], [Flight LVL 4], [Prediction LVL 1]

Perks: [Gamer’s Mind], [Gamer’s Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Sayian], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], [Ladies Man]

Party: Tamari, Asia, Celia

Gray Tanaki is a Sayian in training on Planet Vegeta. 

He glanced at Kolra’s new power level, which was just over 150 million. 

I should’ve checked my power level after I used those points. He’s a bit over twice my power level now and was over 7x stronger before I used my points. I’m not sure if I’ve caught up any with [Perfect Ozaru] or not.

“Wait… how can we tell which one is Kolra?” A shorter ape from next to him questioned. He cast observe and saw it was Arlic.

“We can’t, but he can’t tell us apart either!” Dakon responded confidently, his ape form being even shorter.

“You moron. He doesn’t have any allies here, so he can just attack any Ozaru he sees!” Aikon said in annoyance, glaring at the smaller monkey. He was taller than both Arlic and Dakon, but still shorter than Gray. True to his words from earlier, the Saiyans looked more energetic than before they transformed. Granted, it wasn’t hard to look more energetic than they had been before, as they had looked as if a small gust of wind would finish them off.

We do all look pretty similar as apes, but there’s a pretty big difference. I know I killed the two smart Saiyans already, but these meatheads should be able to figure out this much!

“You’re all morons. He’s huge, as in way taller than all of us. Just attack the tallest ape.” Gray said, glad to receive nods at his words.

“Alright, you’ve gotten your last words in! Enough talking!” A massive beam of Ki exploded from Kolra’s giant ape hand. Gray could see it coming and would’ve had time to dodge, but he wasn’t the target. Dakon wasn’t as lucky, and his life ended in an instant as the beam tore through his chest.

“Scatter! Try to get some hits in where you can!” Gray’s monstrous voice shouted as he rushed at Kolra, sending a Ki-enhanced fist towards his face. Kolra easily dodged, tilting his head to the side, and counterattacked with a hand-chop aimed at his side. Gray managed to bring his arm back down in time to intercept it, grabbing Kolra’s wrist, but grunted in pain as the hand he was holding switched into an open palm and shot a Ki blast directly into his side.

-10,592HP! (516,343/533,000)

Gray kept his grip tight on Kolra’s wrist and attempted to pull off a WWE-esque move as he slung Kolra’s arm over his shoulder, grunting in pain when Kolra’s other fist slammed into his stomach as he did. 

-6,278HP! (510,065/533,000)

Gray grunted as he used all his strength to drag Kolra’s body over his shoulder, intending to slam him back-first into the ground. As Kolra’s body rose over Gray’s head, Kolra’s other hand gripped the top of Gray’s head to prevent gravity from dragging him toward the ground, and his legs shot out and slammed into Gray’s chest. Gray let out a scream of pain as Kolra’s feet pushed off his chest, having to let go of Kolra’s wrist as he was flung across the sky. 

-16,590HP! (493,475/533,000)

Gray immediately launched himself toward Kolra again, his fists a blur as he through an array of punches at Kolra, who easily dodged all of them. Kolra ducked under one of his punches like a boxer, pushing his body within Gray’s guard, and unleashed a flurry of his own punches into Gray’s stomach. Gray was stunned by the force of the punches and ended up caught off-guard by Kolra’s large leg roundhouse kicking him toward the ground, moving far faster than an ape that size had any business moving.

-8,560HP! (484,915/533,000)

-8,560HP! (476,355/533,000)

-8,560HP! (467,795/533,000)

-8,560HP! (459,235/533,000)

-8,560HP! (450,675/533,000)

-8,560HP! (442,115/533,000)

-8,560HP! (433,555/533,000)

-15,925HP! (417,630/533,000)

Gray growled as he stood up from the crater his body had created in the ground and glared up at Kolra. He glanced at Arlic and Aikon, who were both floating nearby on either side of Kolra. Judging from Arlic’s bewildered look, he and Kolra were moving too fast for him to keep track of, so they couldn’t find a time to intervene.

Gray shot himself toward Kolra again, his Ki-enhanced fist being dodged again. Kolra’s fist slammed into his face in return, sending Gray sputtering. 

-10,960HP! (406,670/533,000)

He’s too fast, I can’t hit him. I have to hope this works.

Kolra dashed toward Gray this time, his fist slamming into Gray’s gut. Spit flew from Gray’s mouth as a silent scream of pain came out.

-9,980HP! (396,690/533,000)

Kolra was momentarily distracted as a flurry of Ki blasts came at him from the side, and his other hand swiped up to block Aikon’s attack. Gray grinned at the distraction and accepted the punch to the gut as his arms wrapped around Kolra’s body, gripping onto his tail. He gripped as tightly as he could, but his plan was ruined quickly as Kolra’s tail ripped itself out of his grasp. Kolra’s face flashed with anger as his fist flashed out, slamming into Gray’s nose, “You think I’d have an untrained tail? Are you mocking me, warrior?!” 

-18,250HP! (378,440/533,000)

Gray grunted as he backed up, his hand covering his nose as it bled lightly, “Worth a shot.”

It didn’t work, but it gave me another idea.

Kolra was still pissed, and he blitzed himself toward Gray, a flurry of punches coming with him. Gray managed to dodge the majority of them barely, only getting grazed by a few. He allowed one to slam into his cheek, not trying to dodge. 

-7,460HP! (370,980/533,000)

Gray grabbed Kolra’s wrist as his fist slammed into Gray’s cheek, and Gray’s head flew forward in a headbutt. He tried to utilize the same strategy he’d used against Sarada of trading blows, but quickly realized it wouldn’t work as he saw the damage his headbutt inflicted.

-2,460HP! (358,520/533,000)

1,200HP! (434,500/435,700)

That hurt me more than it hurt him. 

Gray shot backward out of Kolra’s reach to avoid a counterattack, landing on the ground of the planet and looking up at the giant floating ape in front of him.

This might be my only shot.

Gray grinned as he cupped his hands by his side, and a pitch-black ball of energy started forming between his giant hands.

I’ve never tried this before, but what better time to create my iconic technique than now?

“Oh? You want to go head-to-head with me? Very well, I won’t hold back, valiant warrior!” Kolra’s distorted voice shouted down to him, his arms stretching out in front of him. The bottom of his palms touched together while his fingers spread outward from each other, a ball of Ki forming in the gap between his hands. 

Wait, what do I name my technique?! This is a big deal. The name will follow me for the rest of my life.

Gray’s ball of Ki grew bigger, the light around him seemingly being pulled into the dark orb as he pushed more Ki into it, charging the beam that would follow. Kolra was doing the same, seemingly waiting for him to shoot his beam first.

Nightmare blast! No, no, that’s lame. Destruction beam! Nah, too generic. Kameha- no, wait, Goku’s technique. Power cannon! Also lame. Galick gu- no, that’s Vegeta. Why’d they have to take all the good names?!

“Don’t bow out on me now, valiant warrior!” Kolra shouted down to him with a blood-thirsty grin on his face, misunderstanding the stress on Gray’s face.

Think, Gray, think! Cool name… cool name… cool name… wait. I got one. 

Gray flooded more Ki into the ball, which grew bigger and bigger in his hands. He thrust his arms out, shooting the black beam out in a similar style to Goku’s Kamehameha wave, “ [Kokuyo]! (Black Night!)”

[Kokuyo] Skill unlocked!

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

[Kokuyo] LVL 1 - Your signature move.

+10 KI for unlocking a Ki-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

“A strong name, warrior! I will respond in kind! [Midori No Tanken]! (Green Dagger!) ” The large green beam shot out from Kolra’s hands, slamming into Gray’s dark black beam. They clashed between the two of them, the planet shaking from the impact. The blasts clashed in the middle for a moment, seemingly even as neither side pushed past the other, before Kolra’s blast started pushing Gray’s back toward him. 

Gray grunted as he pushed Ki into his beam, using all his strength to push back against Kolra’s blasts to no avail. Kolra’s beam slowly grew closer to him, the bright green light filling more and more of his vision.

“Any time now, jackasses!” Gray yelled in pain as he desperately pushed against Kolra’s beam, and his shout was answered as Arlic and Aikon fired off Ki beams of their own toward Kolra. Their beams slammed into Kolra and Gray felt relief flood through him as his beam started pushing back Kolra’s. His relief was short-lived, as he tensed again and fought off the beam pressing towards him desperately. It was easily overpowering Gray now and was only a few feet away from him.

“HAHA! Good try, but you’ll need a bit more than that! You’ll end up like your friend if you don’t try harder!” Kolra’s laughing voice boomed throughout the planet, his beam slowly overpowering Gray’s. His hair looked a little tusled, and his armor scuffed, but he looked completely fine otherwise. Gray gritted his teeth and glared at him.

You bastard. I won’t die so easily.

The rage within Gray renewed itself with vigor as the man mentioned Ken again, and he screamed as he pressed against Kolra’s beam, “YOU BASTARD! I’LL MAKE YOU PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID TO KEN!” 

[Kokuyo] level up! (10/10)

+10 KI for leveling up a KI-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

[Determination] level up! (1000/1000)

+10 END for leveling up a END-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

[RAGE] Skill unlocked!

+1000 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

[Rage] LVL 1 - Rage flows through you. 10% boost to all combat stats.

+10 STR, END, AGI, INT, KI for unlocking a stat-boosting skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Kolra’s eyes widened as Gray’s beam pushed back against his, then grunted as another Ki beam slammed into his side, courtesy of Aikon, but he ignored it in favor of pressing more Ki into his own attack. The beams evened out again, Kolra’s blast still only a few feet from Gray but no longer pushing any closer as the two poured everything they had into the battle of beams. 

A flurry of Ki blasts slammed into Kolra as Aikon and Arlic mercilessly attacked the distracted man. They weren’t strong enough to do any significant damage to the man, but they were enough to distract Kolra as Gray’s beam started pushing his back.

“You… You truly are a great warrior! I would hold no shame in losing to you, but there are bigger things planned for me! I can’t die on this planet, so you must!” Kolra roared at him, his beam growing stronger once again and pushing Gray’s back. 

This bastard… It’s been taking everything I have to push him back, and he’s still been holding back?!

Gray’s Ki was thoroughly drained from the constant struggle, and his vision started blurring as he desperately held off Kolra. Spots filled his eyes, and his blinks seemed to take twice as long. His Saiyan pride flared up within him as he saw Kolra’s beam overpower his own, growing closer and closer to him, and he gave one final scream, “KOLRA! I’ll kill you no matter what! I swear it on my pride as a Saiyan!”

I know how Vegeta felt now.

The large green beam slammed into him, and his body was consumed in a flash of light. He felt as if his entire body was on fire. The adrenaline in his veins was replaced with a burning sensation, and his heartbeat was suddenly too faint for him to hear.

-358,510HP! (10/533,000)

WARNING: You have fallen below 1% HP.

WARNING: You are about to die.

“Damn it, you brat! Now we’re all fucked!” Aikon shouted, staring with a hint of fear at the huffing Kolra. 

“You die with honor, warrior!” Kolra said, looking down at Gray’s burnt ape body, “I will remember your name… I never learned your name, so I won’t, but I will remember our battle for the rest of my life!”

Gray’s entire body felt like it was burning, and he felt unconsciousness trying to pull him into its warm embrace, but he forced his eyes to stay open as a single thought raced through his head.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

He pushed his fingers into the ground in front of him and pulled himself forward.

I won’t die here. I won’t die. 

His huge body barely even moved a foot as he weakly pulled himself forward. 

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

His right hand dragged him a foot forward, then his left dragged him another. 

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

His vision was blurred, but he could see the hole they’d come out of in front of him.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

He continued slowly dragging his body forward.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

Explosions rang out around him, but he couldn’t hear them, his focus solely on moving forward.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

Voices rang out around him as Aikon and Arlic continued the battle with Kolra, but he couldn’t make out the words they were saying.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

He couldn’t hear anything.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

He couldn’t see anything.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

Just the hole slowly getting closer to him.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

He was so close. It was right there.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

Tamari was in there. Asia was in there. Celia was in there. They would help him. He wouldn’t die.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

A giant hairy foot landed in front of his face. He barely managed to drag his eyes up to look at the figure in front of him.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

The man said something, but Gray couldn’t hear it. He dragged himself forward, ignoring the foot blocking his path.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

He had to get to the hole. He had to live.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

The man raised his hand and shot a blast into the sky. Gray’s large body shrunk, but his pain-addled mind couldn’t remember why.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

“Your friends went down there, didn’t they?” Kolra asked, but Gray gave no response. His arm weakly pulled himself toward the hole.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

He was so close. It was only a few feet away. He made it. He would live.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

“I respect your struggle for life, warrior. I’ll allow it to continue, even though you have no chance of survival.” Gray gave no response.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

“If you’re hoping your team will save you, you will be sadly disappointed. I must kill them.” The man said simply, turning from Gray’s crawling burned body.

I won’t die here. I won’t die.

The man hopped down the hole, and Gray’s hand clawed his body behind him. His hand reached the edge of the hole, and with one final tug, his scorched body plummeted down the hole. His vision went black as his body fell freely through the air.

WARNING: You have fallen below 5 HP!

WARNING: You will not receive the [Zenkai Boost] skill if you are dead.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thanks for reading! You can read the next chapter on my Patreon right now (patreon.com/Koyon)! As always, updates will be every Saturday. I’ll hope to see y’all next week!

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

No character sheet here this time :)

Chapter Text

Game

Thoughts

“Talking”

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gray groaned as he blinked his eyes open, staring at the large glowing gem above him. He hissed as he tried to sit up, feeling like his entire body was on fire. He fell back onto the uncomfortable surface below him.

I’m… alive?

His eyes flicked to a floating notification in the corner of his vision.

Perk [Perfect Ozaru] will now increase your power by 12x.

[Zenkai Boost] Skill unlocked!

+1000 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

[Zenaki Boost] LVL 1 - What doesn’t kill you will make you stronger.

+10 STR, END, AGI, INT, KI for unlocking a stat-boosting skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Previous [Zenkai Boost] usage - +100 to all stats for surviving against an enemy twice as powerful as you. NOTE: The benefits you receive from this skill will vary depending on the situation that resulted in your near death.

I guess that means I won’t be able to abuse Zenkai Boosts, huh? I’ll try it out sometime anyway, but I’m guessing I won’t get many stats if I just shoot a hole in my chest.

He glanced at his new stat page.

Gray Tanaki:

[Saiyan F-Class Recruit 1]

Age: 15

Wallet: 26,150 Coins

Lvl: 8 (14,256/30,000 XP)

PL: 29,036,200

Available Points: 0

HP: 25,980/85,500

TKI: 29,565/152,175

STR: 305

AGI: 340

END: 280

INT: 395

CHA: 145

LUK: 155

KI: 395

HREG: 156

EREG: 156

Skills: [Observe LVL 4], [Running LVL 6], [Determination LVL 4], [Ki Control LVL 9], [Ki Gun LVL 5]. [Ki Enhancement LVL 4], [KI Suppression LVL 5], [Ki Sense LVL 2], [Pushup LVL 4], [Punch LVL 4], [Kick LVL 4], [Jump LVL 4], [Flight LVL 4], [Prediction LVL 1], [Zenkai Boost LVL 1]

Perks: [Gamer’s Mind], [Gamer’s Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Sayian], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], [Ladies Man]

Party: Asia, Tamari, Celia

I’m so glad I picked Saiyan. Fucking thank you Zenkai Boost. You are so dead, Kolra, and it won’t be quick. I’ll make you pay for humiliating me, and for killing Ken.

He started to focus on the [Shop] button, as he’d been too busy fighting to look into it yet but was interrupted by a voice.

“Finally awake?” A female voice resounded around him, and he forced himself to sit up and observe his surroundings, ignoring the pain that coursed through him as he did. The remains of his broken armor was leaning against a wall, and the top of his undersuit had been ripped off. His chest was wrapped in bandages. He was in a room made entirely of rock and was lying on a long rock in the shape of a bed. A purple-haired woman was sitting on a small chair, which was of course carved from a rock, and staring at him emotionlessly. She was fairly tall, had long legs and huge breasts, and wore a tight-fitting black body suit, looking similar to the one Saiyans wore underneath their armor. 

[Observe] level up! (10,000/10,000)

+10 INT for leveling up an INT-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Observing all those dwarves before I killed them paid off.

[Masked] Saeko:

[Galatic Sword-Collector]

Age: 17

PL: 5,258,622

HP: 8,750/8,750

TKI: 2,500/2,500

Reputation: 25/100 (Positively Viewed)

[Masked] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be adept at masking their true personality and emotions.

Saeko is an Takuthian swordswoman, who came to planet Vargon in search of swords for her collection.

“Who are you? Where am I?” Gray asked quickly, tensing as he was unsure if the woman was a potential enemy. 

“Relax, I have no intentions of fighting you. I wouldn’t have saved you if I did.” Saeko said assuringly, smiling gently at him. Too gently.

“As for where you are,” Saeko continued, “You’re in my house, which is in a small-kind village.”

“You don’t look like a dwarf,” Gray countered, already knowing through his observe skill that the woman wasn’t one.

“You’re right. I came to this planet to find a master swordsmith, but I’m originally from planet Takuth.” The woman said in return, still keeping a friendly and gentle smile on her face. 

“Why did you help me?” Gray asked bluntly, wanting to get to the bottom of her motives.

I’m heavily injured, but with my new power, I could still take her. I don’t like that modifier of hers.

“I heard you crash into the ground nearby. I couldn’t just leave someone to die when I could save them.” She replied easily.

She’s lying. I was too injured to survive the fall. I would be dead right now if I hit the ground.

“I’m grateful that you saved me, but if you don’t tell me the real reason then I’ll be forced to kill you,” Gray said threateningly, channeling Ki to surround his fist.

“You’re more perceptive than you look. I guess all you Saiyans aren’t just meatheads,” Saeko said, her kind smile faltering slightly, “Fine. I heard your battle from down here and saw the other Saiyan come down before you. I caught you when you came plummeting down.”

“That doesn’t explain why you helped me,” Gray said with narrowed eyes.

“You lot have been destroying everything in sight since you arrived here, including my spaceship. I need a way off this planet, and my first choice was the Saiyan who came down the hole before you. He wasn’t very receptive to the idea,” Saeko said with a sigh, the smile on her face dropping completely as she leaned back in her chair, “He assumed I was weak enough to die in one blast and left me. He was complaining about his scouter not working, which I assume was from his fight with you, so he couldn’t read my power level. You came barreling down out of nowhere a minute later. I saved you so I’d still have a chance to get off this planet.”

That almost makes complete sense, but…

“Why didn’t you just leave in one of the Saiyan pods? There's a whole bunch of them sitting on the surface. They’d be unguarded since most of the Saiyans who came in them are dead.” Gray asked, shifting slightly in place. He wasn’t going to trust her so easily, not with a modifier like that and a power level of five million.

“Trust me, I tried,” The woman sighed, “They were programmed to come here and then go back to planet Vegeta. I doubt your kind would be kind enough to let me live when I showed up unannounced in one of their ships.” 

“So, you want to take a pod back to planet Vegeta, and I’ll vouch for you?” Gray asked.

“Yup. You said there were extra pods, and I did save your life, right?” She said with a grin.

Her story does add up. The mission said only 5 lifeforms could leave the planet, but with Ken gone, my team consists of four, so we could bring her. She did save my life, plus…

Gray’s eyes not-so-subtly gazed over her body, causing Saeko’s grin to grow wider.

With a body like that, I’d take her with me even if she hadn’t saved me.

“Fine, but we’re here on a mission. I need to take out the rest of the dwarves and Kolra before we can leave. That’s fine with you, right?” He asked.

“Of course. I’d be more than happy to help,” Saeko said, her true personality leaking out as a small bloodthirsty smile appeared on her face.

“You said you came to find a swordsmith, right? Did you find one?” Gray asked the girl.

I really want a badass sword. 

“I did. Are you looking for one as well?” Saeko questioned with a tilted head.

“Nah, I just want a cool sword. Take me to this swordsmith guy, then we need to go find Kolra before he finds the rest of my team. How long was I out?” Gray responded, wincing as he stood up from the rock bed, his chest burning.

Kolra’s going to have a hard time finding them down here if his scouter is broken. They should be fine until I get this swordsmith to make me a sword. I need more time to heal anyway, I might be a lot stronger now, but I’ll still get my ass beat if I try to fight him in this condition.

“Only a few hours. I can’t take you to the swordsmith, mainly because he’s dead. Even if he was alive, there's no way you could get him to make you a sword. His name was Yukoth, and he was a crazy old man. He rambled on about making the ‘perfect sword’ for the ‘one he was waiting for’ all the time, then kicked the bucket the day after he finished his ‘masterpiece.’ I couldn’t even get him to hold a conversation with me.” Saeko finished, making air quotes with her fingers.

“Damn. There should be more swordsmiths here, right? With the whole planet being full of dwarves and everything. I doubt that old man could make a good sword anyway if he was as crazy as you’re making him out to be.” Gray responded, stretching his arms as he fought to ensure the pain he was feeling didn’t show on his face.

“There are, but no one could compare to that man's work. He was crazy, but he made amazing swords. I started living in this village a few months ago to monitor him, so I know where his stash of swords is. We can go take a look at them.” Saeko said, standing from her chair and picking up the sheathed sword leaning against her chair. Gray nodded in agreement and Saeko led him out through the door. They left the small room and walked through a rather basic home. Once they were outside, Saeko started leading him toward a towering building made completely of rock.

“Is this village deserted?” Gray asked as he glanced around them, not sensing any power levels.

“Not exactly. After the old man died, the people living here blamed me. They didn’t believe me when I told them he passed away after finishing his ‘perfect sword’ so I had to kill them. I don’t blame them for doubting me, and you’ll see why when we get there.” Saeko said, being far too casual about slaughtering the village. They entered the large building and went up a flight of stairs. At the top of the stairs, there was a blank wall, and Saeko unceremoniously slammed the hilt of her sword into it. 

The wall caved in, crumbling to expose the room behind it. The room was large, likely at least 50 feet long in every direction, and was filled with swords. They looked as if they’d been tossed into the room haphazardly, as they lay on top of each other in piles. They all looked nearly identical, looking as if someone had carved them out of a boulder.

“These are his ‘failures.’” Saeko said, her fingers making air quotes, “Calling them failures is ridiculous, as most of these swords are worth billions, if not trillions, of Zeni. Even the worst of them are still A-Rank. He told me he used to throw them in the trash, but then the Dwarven King started taking them for his army, so he started hiding them here instead. I can tell he was pissed about someone using them considering that was one of the only coherent things he ever said to me. I would like to take a bunch with me, but I doubt more than a couple will fit in one of those tiny space pods.”

Yeah, I’ll definitely be taking some with me. I could sell just one and live lavishly for the rest of my life. I’m not sure if there even is an Inventory skill, but I’m going to try my damn best to unlock it before I leave this planet.

“So, which one of these is his masterpiece? And why do they all look the same?” Gray asked, looking around at the massive piles of near-identical swords.

“Every ore on this planet looks the same. You have to be a master swordsmith to even tell them apart.” Saeko hummed, walking over to a sword that was leaning against the wall alone, “This is his final work. You can see now why the villagers here didn’t believe me. He rambled on about making the perfect sword all the time, and then finished with this.”

Gray understood immediately, as the sword looked rather pathetic. The other swords might’ve looked as if they were carved from a rock, but they were all lean and sharp. They looked like they could cut through anything in the right hands. This, on the other hand, looked rather useless in a fight. It was sword-shaped, but the tip of it was blunt, and it was the only sword in the room that didn’t look identical to the others. It was made completely out of wood, looking like a kendo sword. It didn’t have an elaborate hilt, just a small wooden platform separating the actual sword from the hilt. 

“Yeah, I see what you mean. Maybe he was satisfied with this one because it’s made of wood? I haven’t seen any trees on this planet.” Gray hummed as his eyes glossed over the sword.

“There is one small forest, though it is ruled by the Giant Tribe. They’re the reasons all the dwarves, who are actually called small-kind, live underground. The giants, the tall-kind, took the castle where the King used to live.” Saeko responded, then held out the sword for Gray to hold. Gray grabbed it and swung it lightly. It was light and felt more like a toy than a sword.

“Giant’s? Are they strong?” Gray asked as he swung the wooden sword.

“To the small-kind? Yes. To you? Not really. Most of them probably have a power level of around 10,000 or so. I didn’t bring a scouter, so I’m not sure.” Saeko said.

Ah, so just another chore I have to do after I defeat Kolra, but I won’t complain about getting more XP.

Gray stared at the wooden sword in his hand.

Does this sword have some kind of secret, or is it really just a toy? Oh well, if it breaks from this then it was useless anyway.

Gray clenched his hand around the hilt, funneling his Ki into the sword. His bright blue Ki flooded around the sword and then started flowing into it. Gray pushed more Ki into the sword, and his eyes widened as he realized the sword was continuously absorbing his Ki, showing no sign of fracturing.

A Ki-absorbing blade? No, wait, there’s something more than that…

The very start of the hilt started changing, turning from wood into a deathly black stone, looking as if it was made of obsidian. Gray grunted as he funneled more Ki into the blade, realizing that he was almost out of Ki. Saeko watched with wide eyes as the black stone took over more of the blade, crawling up the hilt. 

Gray huffed as his Ki reserves ran dry, unable to pump any more Ki into the sword. Nearly half of the hilt was now a smooth and hard black stone. The stone started becoming wood again, creeping backward towards the start of the hilt until the entire sword was wood again, looking as if nothing had changed.

I know my Ki reserves are still pretty low from my fight with Kolra, but I pumped over 30,000 into that sword and only managed to change half the hilt? What the hell is this sword?

“What was that?! I’ve never seen anything like that!” Saeko breathed out as Gray leaned against the wall, exhausted from funneling his Ki into the blade.

“I’m not sure. I doubt we’ll find out until I’m strong enough to make the whole blade change.” Gray huffed, then narrowed his eyes at the blade as he sensed the Ki he pumped into it still being held within it. He swung the blade lightly toward the wall opposite of them and resisted the urge to jump in surprise.

A solid beam of Ki sliced out from the sword, launching towards the wall and going through it completely. A large boom rang out around them as the roof collapsed partially from the explosion. He and Saeko both stared wide-eyed at the carnage from the lazy swing.

[Incomplete] King’s Obelisk charge - [29,500/1,000,000] 

That was badass.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Go!” Gray shouted. Seako’s hand shot up and fired a Ki blast, which flew directly toward Gray. He swiped up his sword, slashing the blast in half. The blast swirled inward toward his blade, flowing into it. Gray stabilized his sword, then pointed it toward the rock building a few feet from him. The blast of energy shot out, completely obliterating the building. A pile of rocks and dust was all that remained.

“That was so cool! I fucking love this sword.” Gray grinned, staring down at the blade in his hand.

“Enjoying your new toy?” Saeko asked with a smirk.

“Duh. This sword is awesome. The only way it would be cooler is if it didn’t look so lame. Too bad… Oh, wait, it looks sick when I pump Ki into it.” Gray said as he matched Saeko’s smirk. Saeko hummed, turning and walking away from him.

“As fun as it’s been watching you play with your new sword for the past few hours, we really should go find Kolra, right? Either that or you go get some rest if you’re still not feeling 100% yet.” Saeko called over her shoulder. 

“Yeah, you’re right,” Gray sighed, leaning the sword lazily on his shoulder as he walked behind Saeko, “I’m not fully healed yet, but I’m close enough. He’ll have trouble finding Asia, Tamari, and Celia without his scouter, but I still don’t want to give him too much time to search.”

They’d been experimenting with his new sword for the last couple of hours as Gray slowly recovered HP and Ki, but he couldn’t take too much time to rest.

Gray closed his eyes as he focused on expanding his senses, looking for any sign of Tamari, Asia, Celia, or Korla. 

A lot of weak power levels… more weak power levels… even more weak power levels… there you are! 

Gray’s eyes shot open as he sensed a mass of disappearing power levels. There was a large collection of weak energy signals in one place, a much bigger collection than the little villages he and Saeko had been walking through, but they were disappearing rapidly. There was a battle, or more likely a massacre, taking place. 

If someone’s massacring a city of dwarves, odds are it’s Korla or someone on my team. 

“I found someone. Follow me. There’s no need to rush since whoever we’re heading towards is killing off a city of dwarves at the moment. If it’s Korla, he’ll wear himself down a bit and I’ll have time to recover more. If it’s someone on my team, then there’s no point in rushing. They’ll be fine against a few dwarves.” Gray said, walking swiftly through a tunnel in the direction of the power levels. Saeko nodded silently and fell into step beside him.

They walked in comfortable silence for a moment, before Saeko’s voice rang through the tunnel, “Why do you keep doing that?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Gray responded as he robotically pushed the sword out in front of him, then to his side, then into the air above him, then behind him, continuously pushing the sword into the air.

I’m hoping if I try this enough times then the sword will eventually go into my inventory. I’d really like an inventory skill.

Luckily for him, Saeko didn’t seem keen to dig any further, and they continued walking in silence. Gray continued trying to unlock the inventory skill until his head jerked up as they got closer to their destination. 

The large power is clearly Kolra, but there are two other large ones as well. Not even close to Kolra’s, but much stronger than any dwarves I’ve seen. Maybe they’re guards? The king? Or…

“Change of plan. Pick up the pace.” Gray said as he shot forward, breaking into a sprint as he sped through the tunnel toward the collection of power levels. Saeko didn’t respond, but he sensed her running closely behind him. 

Those power levels better not be yours, Asia, Tamari. 

They sprinted at near-full speed, and a few minutes later they reached their destination. Gray glanced up at the large over-bearing door, which was less of a door and more of a giant hole in a rock wall, that led into a giant cavern. The ceiling was hundreds of feet in the air, and there were hundreds of buildings, all made of rock, towering into the sky. Some were damaged, with smoke coming out of the side. At the far back of the city stood a looming castle. 

However, the most noticeable aspect of the large cavern was the bodies strewn across the ground. Everywhere Gray looked there were corpses. He flew over the city toward the large power level deep within it, eyes glancing over the dwarven corpses that littered the street. Saeko followed closely behind him. He rapidly approached the castle and didn’t bother looking for the door, instead opting to launch a Ki blast into the front wall and fly through it. 

Inside was a sight he didn’t expect. Kolra was standing confidently in the middle of the large throne room, a swarm of dwarves in full-plated armor, along with a pile of corpses, were scattered around him. A bloodied corpse was sitting on the elaborate golden throne, the crown sitting on his caved-in head being the only feature that allowed Gray to recognize the corpse as the king. 

Most importantly, an out-of-breath Asia was holding a spinning green blade on the top of her hand from behind a line of dwarven guards, Tamari’s slumped over body leaning against the wall next to her. Celia was nowhere to be seen. Gray inwardly sighed in relief as he quickly scanned Tamari’s body, seeing that she still had some HP remaining.

“I didn’t think I’d ever see you again,” Kolra mused, turning his attention completely away from the dwarves surrounding him and looking at Gray, “You survived. Impressive.”

“Of course I did. I told you I’d kill you, didn’t I? I won’t die before Ken is avenged.” Gray said confidently, floating down and landing on the ground. The circle of dwarven guards parted slightly to give an open path between him and Kolra.

“Gray!” Asia shouted excitedly, waving a hand at him. He smiled gently at her, then locked his gaze back on Kolra as Saeko landed next to him.

“You… you look familiar. You’re one of those dwarves I killed, right? Or, almost killed, I guess. I remember thinking you were a strange-looking dwarf.” Kolra said as he regarded Saeko.

“I’m not a dwarf, but I appreciate you remembering me,” Saeko said with a cold smile, unsheathing her sword. Kolra sighed as he saw her prepare for battle.

“I let you live because I respected your warrior spirit, but I won’t do so again. It would’ve been better if you’d died back there. I ignored how disgracefully you asked those other warriors for help last time, but requesting help from a dwarf is where I draw the line. You have no pride as a Saiyan, and you will die without honor.” Kolra said, directing a disgusted look at Gray and Saeko.

“You seem to have the wrong idea, so I’ll clear it up for you. I don’t need her help, or anyone's help dealing with you,” Gray said as his eyes narrowed at Kolra.

“Saeko, make sure Asia and Tamari are safe. As for the rest of you, if you value your life, then I suggest you stay out of this,” Gray growled as he gave a cold look to the surrounding dwarven guards. His look worked, as they stepped back hesitantly and gave him and Kolra space to fight. Saeko nodded at his words and appeared by Asia’s side a moment later.

“Hm, I’m glad to see that you have some pride. Still, using a sword, especially one that looks so pathetic? I respected our previous clash, but I misjudged you.” Kolra said, smirking slightly as he stared down Gray.

“Don’t get the wrong idea. I don’t care what you think,” Gray stepped forward, his right hand grabbing the bandages wrapped around his chest and ripping them off in one pull. He dropped them on the ground next to him, his still-bruised chest exposed. He dropped the sword on the floor next to him, kicking it across the ground toward Saeko.

“I don’t want anyone's help, and I don’t need a sword, but not because of something stupid like my pride,” He raised his arm, pointing directly at Kolra as he stood across from him with his arms crossed. A large blood-thirsty grin appeared on Gray’s face as he felt his heart beat faster, adrenaline rushing through his veins.  

“You killed Ken, and I’m going to make sure you pay for it. You shouldn’t have let me live before, because I won’t do the same for you. I’ll tear you apart, limb by limb, until you apologize on your knees. Be prepared for the fight of your life, Kolra. It will be your last!” Gray shouted, his Ki starting to flow around his body as he readied himself for battle. His grin grew even wider as Kolra’s face changed.

Unknown to Gray, Kolra felt a feeling deep inside of him, one he’d never felt before. The fear of death loomed over Kolra’s head as he stared at Gray’s bloodthirsty grin.

However, while Gray never knew what Kolra felt, neither did Kolra. The pure excitement flowing through his body drowned out all other feelings, and Kolra responded with a large bloodthirsty grin of his own. The two battle-hungry Saiyan’s stared down each other, a singular thought shared between the two of them.

I’m gonna kill you.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Here’s chapter 6! Hope y’all enjoyed!

As always, you can read 1 chapter ahead at Patreon.com/Koyon

This story is updated every Saturday (sorry it’s a bit late this week, had some unfun life problems)

Chapter Text

Game

Thoughts

“Talking”

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The tension in the room could be cut with a knife, the two powerful Saiayns staring each other down as the rest of the room watched in anticipation. 

“You seem stronger,” Kolra observed as they stared into each other’s eyes, both watching for the slightest movement that would indicate an attack.

“Oh, trust me, you have no idea.” Gray grinned, clenching his fist.

Gray made the first move, bursting forward and launching a Ki-enhanced fist toward Kolra’s face. Kolra swerved down, ducking under his fist and launching a flurry of fists into Gray’s stomach. 

-500HP! (80,000/85,500)

-500HP! (79,500/85,500)

-500HP! (79,000/85,500)

-500HP! (78,500/85,500)

-500HP! (78,000/85,500)

-500HP! (77,500/85,500)

-500HP! (77,000/85,500)

-500HP! (76,500/85,500)

-500HP! (76,000/85,500)

Gray tanked the blows and slammed his elbow downwards toward Kolra’s head, but Kolra kicked backward and launched himself out of reach. Gray followed after him, slamming a fist into Kolra’s crossed arms. Kolra kept his arms crossed and let Gray continue his onslaught.

200HP! (55,400/62,600)

200HP! (55,200/62,600)

200HP! (54,000/62,600)

200HP! (54,800/62,600)

200HP! (54,600/62,600)

200HP! (54,400/62,600)

200HP! (54,200/62,600)

Kolra danced back, but Gray followed up, not letting him back out. His fist continued to slam into Kolra’s guard as he rapidly backed away from Gray, trying to put more distance between them.

200HP! (54,000/62,600)

200HP! (53,800/62,600)

200HP! (53,600/62,600)

200HP! (53,400/62,600)

200HP! (53,200/62,600)

200HP! (53,000/62,600)

200HP! (52,800/62,600)

200HP! (52,600/62,600)

200HP! (52,400/62,600)

200HP! (52,200/62,600)

200HP! (52,000/62,600)

Kolra finally dropped his guard as Gray’s last fist slammed into his crossed arms, again ducking into Gray’s guard. Gray smiled slightly as the combination of his [Prediction] skill and his prior experience screamed at him to guard his stomach against Kolra’s incoming flurry of punches. Unfortunately for Gray, Kolra saw his arms going to block his chest, and he readjusted the trajectory of his punch. Gray’s brain was rattled as an uppercut slammed into his jaw.

-2,500HP! (73,500/85,500)

Gray was temporarily stunned by the blow and couldn’t stop the roundhouse that slammed into his chest, launching him through the castle wall and into the large city, his body landing roughly in the street.

-4,500HP! (69,000/85,500)

Gray quickly regained his bearings and climbed to his feet, barely dodging the flurry of Ki blasts heading toward him as Kolra flew out the hole Gray’s body created in the castle wall. Gray launched himself into the air, steadying himself as he stared at Kolra’s approaching form.

My power level is almost twice his, so why am I still losing?

Gray could hear his heart pounding in his ears, the adrenaline flowing through his veins, a small amount of rage building from seeing Tamari so injured, and even more rage flowing within him as he remembered Ken. He gritted his teeth.

I’m stronger. I was pretty much fully healed. He was even partially injured when the fight started. There’s no reason I shouldn’t be kicking his ass right now!

Kolra stopped a few dozen feet from Gray as Gray looked at him wearily. He grinned at the look on Gray’s face.

“You’re stronger than before, probably even stronger than me now, but you’re still an F-Class. You fight like a barbarian. No skill, no finesse, just throwing punches and kicks, hoping they connect. You’ve probably made it this far off of your power and decent battle sense alone, but this is as far as you’ll go.” Kolra said, landing on the ground below him as Gray followed his action and landed on the street. They stood in the middle of the destroyed city, dwarven corpses littering the street around them. 

I… get what he means. I’ve been winging it so far. That’s why he’s beating me. I might be strong, but I have no real training in any martial arts or fighting style. He fights like a boxer from my world, ducking into my guard and mitigating damage by blocking and backing away. 

Gray huffed out a breath as he shifted his stance, shuffling his legs as he ducked his head, his fists raising in front of his face. Kolra’s eyes widened at his actions, and he let out an angry yell.

“Are you mocking me now?! Do you truly believe that someone as unskilled as yourself can mimic my style? I’ll make you regret this slight!” Kolra yelled as he launched himself at Gray, a Ki blast forming in his hand as he aimed it directly at Gray’s guard. His hand lashed out, and suddenly the glowing Ki ball in his hand was only inches from Gray’s guarded hands. Then, his hand slammed into nothing. 

“What…?” Kolra muttered as a fist slammed into his jaw from below. 

7,500HP! (44,500/62,600)

[Boxing Style: Kolra] unlocked!

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

[Boxing Style: Kolra] LVL 1 - The boxing style utilized by the A-Class Saiyan Kolra. This style will become more perfect as it is leveled up.

+10 STR, AGI, END for unlocking a combat style! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Gray had ducked forward below Kolra’s attack, mimicking Kolra’s own movements from earlier in the fight. Gray resisted the urge to try and follow up his attack, instead retreating and holding his arms up in a guard again while Kolra flipped backward from his attack, landing in a crouch and looking disgruntled.

“As much as I want to say that was pure luck, I can tell it wasn’t. How did you do that?” Kolra grunted, wiping a small strand of blood leaking off a cut on his chin as he stood up straight. He glared hatefully at Gray. Gray didn’t respond, his body tense as he kept his guard up, waiting for Kolra’s next attack.

I’m not nearly as good at this type of fighting as he is, but I don’t need to be. I’m faster, stronger, and can take more hits. Even if I end up getting hit more, he’ll go down first. A battle of endurance is the safe option. However, it’s also pretty lame… Ken wouldn’t want me to win in such a pathetic way.

“Don’t feel like talking? Fucking brat, don’t get cocky now just because you got a good hit in. It won’t happen again.” Kolra growled, dropping into the same stance Gray was in. He launched forward, dancing around Gray as his fists shot out, slamming into Gray’s guard. Gray kept his guard up as Kolra’s feet expertly danced around him, not risking dropping his guard to try and get a hit in.

-200HP! (68,800/85,500)

-200HP! (68,600/85,500)

-200HP! (68,400/85,500)

-200HP! (68,200/85,500)

-200HP! (68,000/85,500)

-200HP! (67,800/85,500)

-200HP! (67,600/85,500)

-200HP! (67,400/85,500)

-200HP! (67,200/85,500)

-200HP! (67,000/85,500)

-200HP! (66,800/85,500)

-200HP! (66,600/85,500)

-200HP! (66,400/85,500)

-200HP! (66,200/85,500)

Gray resisted the urge to smile as he saw Kolra fall into a rhythm, his body relaxing slightly as he continued his same strategy, launching a punch with every step forward as Gray slowly walked backward.

That’s it. I need you to think this is how the whole fight will be. Just two boxers in a battle of endurance. 

Kolra was clearly confident in his own abilities, spurred on by Gray’s messy imitation of his style as his fists tore into Gray’s poorly created guard. His fists sped up, his feet moving quicker as he increased his pace, fist after fist barreling into Gray’s guard as he continued backing up.

“Where’d that confidence from earlier go? I was feeling a bit worried after that hit, but you’re still just an amateur. Your guard is messy, and your footwork needs a lot of work! Being cocky enough to use my own style against me will be your downfall, warr-” Kolra’s confidence was showing as he fell back into his usual speech patterns, but was cut off as he stepped in to send another punch into Gray’s guard. Instead of his fist slamming into Gray’s guard, it connected with Gray’s exposed face, easily breaking his nose.

-12,500HP! (54,550/91,450)

However, Kolra was less concerned with his fist breaking Gray’s nose and more concerned with the wide grin on Gray’s face. Two outstretched fingers were aiming directly at Kolra’s face.

Gray had opened up his guard completely, his arms outstretched to the side of him, twin finger guns aimed directly into Kolra’s face. Kolra had confidently stepped into Gray, as he had been doing with every strike since Gray was backing away, and was too close to dodge. Kolra shot his head down as he tried to bring up his guard, but Gray’s grin grew wider.

[Prediction] level up! (10/10)

+10 INT for leveling up a INT-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Thanks, game, but I really didn’t need it. I already knew he would try to hide behind his guard again.

Gray’s wrists flicked downward, his finger guns now pointed at Kolra’s legs. Kolra didn’t see it coming, too focused on trying to protect himself and hide behind his crossed arms. Twin Ki bullets shot through his knees, and Kolra crumpled to the ground with a pained scream. 

10,500HP! (34,000/62,600)

10,500HP! (24,500/62,600)

“You… you cowardly bastard!” Kolra shouted as he propped his body up with one arm, his other arm raising to launch a Ki blast toward Gray. He didn’t get the chance, as Gray’s foot was already flying toward his wrist, snapping it easily as he stomped his hand into the ground. 

6,500HP! (18,000/62,600)

Kolra withered in pain as Gray increased the pressure of his foot, holding Kolra’s hand pinned to the ground. Gray’s hand formed another gun, and he shot a Ki bullet through Kolra’s other hand as he tried to clutch at Gray’s leg. 

5,000HP! (13,000/62,600)

Kolra let out another pained scream, now having a broken wrist, a hole in his hand, and holes in both knees.

“Who’s the cocky one here? Did you think I’d just let you slowly wear me down, slamming into my guard forever?” Gray mocked Ken’s killer, staring down at his pained expression with a smile on his face.

“Damn brat! I can’t die like this!” Kolra shouted, and Gray’s eyes widened as Kolra opened his mouth wide, and a ball of Ki started to form in it. Gray didn’t give him the chance, a Ki-enhanced kick slamming down Kolra’s neck, breaking it instantly.

13,000HP! (0/62,600)

+10,000 XP! (22,956/30,000)

+10000 Coins

+1 [Saiyan] Kill Count! (5/10)

+20 HREG (For winning a tough battle)

+20 EREG (For winning a tough battle)

You got lucky, Kolra. I wanted to make you suffer a bit more for what you did the Ken, but you scared me with that last attack. I don’t want you blowing yourself up with me so close by. 

Gray sighed as he calmed down, the adrenaline draining out of his body. He wiped the blood dripping from his busted nose with his wrist, and stared down at the lifeless body at his feet, “Good fight, warrior.”

Though, for a guy shouting about pride and being a warrior so much, he was acting a lot different when things weren’t going his way. 

Gray ascended into the sky, breathing slightly heavily, and started heading towards the castle. He stopped a moment later and glanced back at Kolra’s body. 

What was it you did to Ken?

He raised his hand, a blast of Ki forming on his palm, and launched it toward Kolra’s corpse. His body exploded into a flash of light, and a crater appeared where his body once was. There was no sight of Kolra’s body anymore. Gray flew toward the castle and entered to the sight of the now-dead dwarven soldiers. Saeko was cleaning blood off her sword.

Saeko glanced up as he floated into the castle, coming through the hole his own body had created, and waved at him.

“Good job, Gray!” Asia shouted cutely toward him.

“You won. Good job.” Celia’s monotone voice intoned from beside Asia, Tamari’s unconscious body leaning against Asia.

“You’re late,” Gray said, landing beside Saeko and glancing around to ensure all the dwarves were really dead.

“I thought you’d get this handled. I was doing the dirty work,” Celia said, “Try to sense any dwarves. You won’t be able to, because they’re all dead.”

Gray closed his eyes and stretched out his senses, trying to find any power levels. He couldn’t, only sensing Celia, Asia, Tamari, and Saeko. He tried to stretch his senses even further, reaching up towards the surface, but he didn’t find anything.

“I dealt with the tall kind as well. The mission is complete.” Celia said emotionlessly.

“You, with your power level of 1,000, doing all that?” Gray asked in obvious fake shock.

“You saw me create the artificial moon. I don’t think there's any point in pretending.” Celia said simply.

“Yeah, I have a lot of questions for you. A lot. Honestly, I’m debating on if I should try to overachieve and head back to Planet Vegeta with four life forms instead of five.” Gray hummed, observing Celia and seeing that her true power level was still suppressed, “But, since you're royalty or something, you can put in a good word for Saeko when we get back, right?”

I don’t trust you, but I also don’t know how strong you are, so it’d be better not to bite off more than I can chew anyway. It’s not like she did anything to hurt me, no, she’s been quite helpful during this mission, but the unknown is scary.

“I can. I will ensure she is welcomed on Planet Vegeta. I will also answer your questions and explain everything when we reach Planet Vegeta.” Celia nodded. Gray nodded in response and walked over to Tamari and Asia.

“What happened before I got here?” Gray asked, looking around at the destroyed castle and Tamari’s unconscious body.

“Tamari and I spent a while lost in the tunnels, but I used my scouter to find the largest culmination of power I could. We ended up here and thought it would be the best place to wait for you. Kolra arrived a couple of hours later, and Tamari thought you might have… died,” Asia said, frowning at the thought, “She attacked him, but it didn’t go well. Their short battle was loud enough to awaken every dwarf in the city, and I escaped with her to the castle in the confusion. I convinced the King that Kolra was the bigger threat, and his guards tried to hold off Kolra. That’s when you arrived.”

Gray nodded and turned toward Saeko as she spoke up.

“You’re mission is done, right? Does that mean we can head off this planet?” Saeko asked, sheathing her blade.

“Yes. The pod flies automatically, without the need for any input. She will heal on the trip back, and likely be fine by the time we reach Planet Vegeta.” Celia said, gesturing to Tamari. Gray nodded and picked up Tamari bridal style. Saeko unceremoniously blasted a hole in the roof, and they flew back up to the surface. 

“How do we find our pods?” Gray asked, looking around at the bare planet.

“I remember their location,” Celia said simply, and they followed her. True to her word, they soon arrived at their group of space pods. 

How the hell can she just remember where they are?

Gray gently placed Tamari in her pod, and Saeko climbed into Ken’s. Gray gave one final look at the bare rocky planet before climbing into his pod. He sighed as he slumped back into the pod, the exhaustion of the fight catching up to him. His pod floated into the air and shot off towards Planet Vegeta, the other pods around him doing the same.

This was an eventful exam. Hopefully, there will be no more surprises.

“Just so you are aware, my father, King Vegeta, will want to speak with you when we arrive.” Celia’s voice resounded through the speakers in his space pod.

Of fucking course he will.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FOR AO3 READERS: The chapters will be split into two parts from now on, such as this one being 7.1, and the next being 7.2. I already do that on every other site, so I’m just updating later and less often here if I combine it into one chapter.

So, I’m back. TLDR, had a poorly timed combination of problems, but I’m all good now. Updates will continue, but the schedule is changing a bit. Instead of every Saturday, the story will be updated on whatever day I feel the chapter is finished. There will be at least 2 chapters a month (probably more like 4-5, just using 2 as a baseline.) As always, you can read one chapter ahead at PAT(RE)(ON) . c0m / Koyon (this might become more than one chapter ahead due to the new schedule.) 

Part two will be posted later today!

Chapter Text

Game

Thoughts

“Talking”

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Well, at least I’ve got some time alone.

Gray checked his stats one more time as his space pod raced away from Vargon.

Gray Tanaki:

[Saiyan F-Class Recruit 1]

Age: 15

Wallet: 36,150 Coins

Lvl: 8 (22,956/30,000 XP)

PL: 29,036,200

Available Points: 0

HP: 55,580/91,450

TKI: 29,565/164,025

STR: 315

AGI: 350

END: 290

INT: 415

CHA: 145

LUK: 155

KI: 395

HREG: 176

EREG: 176

Skills: [Observe LVL 4], [Running LVL 6], [Determination LVL 4], [Ki Control LVL 9], [Ki Gun LVL 5]. [Ki Enhancement LVL 4], [KI Suppression LVL 5], [Ki Sense LVL 2], [Pushup LVL 4], [Punch LVL 4], [Kick LVL 4], [Jump LVL 4], [Flight LVL 4], [Prediction LVL 2], [Zenkai Boost LVL 1]

Perks: [Gamer’s Mind], [Gamer’s Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Sayian], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], [Ladies Man]

Fighting Styles: [Boxing Style: Kolra LVL 1]

Party: Asia, Tamari, Celia

His eyes skimmed through the stats for a moment, before thinking shop.

A screen appeared before him:

[Shop]

Wallet: 36,150

[Wooden Stick] - 1 Coins

[Bag of Chips] - 3 Coins

[Metal Pipe] - 10 Coins

Where the hell is the good stuff?

Gray mentally swiped the screen downwards, scrolling downwards as the items he could purchase became more expensive. There were thousands of items, with pretty much anything Gray could think of being available. He sighed in relief as he saw a search bar in the top corner.

I thought I’d have to scroll through this every time I wanted to buy something. Thank you, game.

Gray hummed as he thought about what he should search for.

Senzu Bean.

[Senzu Bean] - 100,000 Coins

[Enhanced Senzu Bean] - 1,000,000 Coins

[ULTIMATE Senzu Bean] - 100,000,000 Coins

[LOCKED] - Reach LVL 10 to unlock more shop items.

A hundred thousand coins for one senzu bean?! You better start giving me more coins and soon, damn game. And why the hell are there three kinds, or maybe even more, of senzu beans? 

Gray pushed aside his curiosity as he looked at the price, knowing he wouldn’t be able to afford anything more than a normal senzu bean anytime soon. 

Dragon ball?

[Earthly Dragon Ball] - 1,000,000 Coins

[Earthly Dragon Ball Set] - 6,000,000 Coins

[Namekian Dragon Ball] - 3,000,000 Coins

[Namekian Dragon Ball Set] - 20,000,000 Coins

[LOCKED] - Reach LVL 10 to unlock more shop items.

Yeah, won’t be getting any of those anytime soon. What about… healing items?

[25% HP Restore] - 10,000 Coins

[25% Ki Restore] - 10,000 Coins

[50% HP Restore] - 50,000 Coins

[50% Ki Restore] - 50,000 Coins

[Full Heal] - 100,000 Coins

[Full Ki Restore] - 100,000 Coins

[Ally Revive] - 10,000,000 Coins

[Self-Revive] - 100,000,000 Coins

[LOCKED] - Reach LVL 10 to unlock more shop items.

These prices are ridiculous… damn nightmare mode. I wonder if I could just buy four 25% restores instead of a full restore, or would it be 25% of my missing HP? More importantly, there’s a self-revive. Does that mean if I die I’ll go to other world like the characters in the series did? 

Gray’s eyes glanced over to the [Ally Revive] .

Sorry, Ken, you were a good guy, but that’s way out of my budget. Maybe in a couple of years, when I’m hopefully rich as hell and ruling the whole universe, I’ll be able to bring you back.

Gray glanced at his sword, which barely fit into the Saiyan pod. 

Why the hell did they make these things so small?  I wish I could’ve unlocked an inventory and taken those swords with me.  I’ll try to come back here someday on a bigger ship.

Gray wanted to spend more than a few minutes looking at the shop, but the exhaustion of the battle started weighing on him heavily.

Whatever, it’ll always be there. I’ll look through it more thoroughly another time.

Gray closed his eyes, allowing sleep to take hold of him as his ship raced toward Planet Vegeta.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Arrival on Planet Vegeta in approximately 10 minutes.” A robotic voice rattled through Gray’s space pod, waking him from his slumber.

Did I sleep the whole trip back? I guess I did only sleep for a couple of hours during the nearly two days we were on Vargon.

Gray looked out the pod window, watching Planet Vegeta grow bigger in his view. His mind wandered to Celia’s words earlier.

King Vegeta will want to speak with me? I get that she’s royalty, but how the hell does she know that? Hopefully, it’s nothing bad, but knowing my luck, it definitely will be.

Gray tried to calm his nerves as his pod raced toward Planet Vegeta, and before long his pod was slamming into the planet's surface, creating a crater around him. The pod door raised up, and Gray stepped out. They landed in the same place they had left from, but it looked much emptier. Instead of thousands of recruits, there were now only a few instructors. 

One of them was Beolour, who was walking swiftly toward him. He looked strangely nervous and stopped stiffly in front of Gray, staring at him expectantly. Gray wasn’t sure what he wanted but was saved from an awkward situation by Celia, who was walking toward him from where her pod had landed a few dozen feet away. She stopped next to him, and stood straight up, looking at Beolour.

“F-Class, Team 1, returning from Vargon. The mission is complete.” She said simply, and Beolour nodded stiffly at her.

“Good job, recruits. You’ve brought pride to your families, as well as to our class. You’ve passed the exam.” Beolour said stiffly, sweat dripping down his brow.

[Quest Complete]

Pass the exam.

Rewards:

+500 Attribute points (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+10,000 Coins

+10,000 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

+1 [Perk Token]

+1 [Skill Token]

Bonus Rewards:

You will receive bonus rewards based on how many [Sayians] you kill. 

+50,000 XP for killing 5 Saiyans!

You will receive bonus rewards based on how many [Vargonians] you kill.

+30,580 XP for killing 3,580 Vargonians!

You have leveled up multiple times!

Gray didn’t have time to even look at his reward, as he quickly realized why Beoleour was so nervous. A man was approaching them, one whom Gray recognized very well.

[Rough] Raditz:

[Saiyan Elite]

Age: 29

PL: ?

HP: ?

TKI: ?

Reputation: 0/100 (Neutral)

[Rough] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally talented in “rough” situations, such as training, sports, etc.

Why the fuck is he here?

He looked exactly how Gray remembered him. He was tall, with bulging muscles all over his body, and a long mane of black hair flowing down his back. Beolour turned toward Raditz nervously.

“Ah, Sir Raditz, these are the recruits from Team 1 in Class-F.” He said, trying his best not to look nervous but failing miserably.

“No shit,” Raditz said with a chuckle, glancing at Celia and gesturing toward Gray, “He’s the one, right?”

“Yes. This is Gray.” Celia responded emotionlessly.

“Great. The King wanted to speak with him as soon as he arrived. Let’s go.” Raditz said gruffly, ignoring the rest of his team, and Saeko, who were now arriving beside Gray from their own pods. Tamari looked as good as new and had been speaking quietly with Asia until they’d arrived beside Gray.

“This is Saeko. She is from the planet Takuth, but is a guest of Gray’s. Show her to a bedroom where she can stay, and I will bring Gray to Father.” Celia said, not letting any emotion show on her face as she gestured toward Saeko. Saeko gave a small smile.

“A pleasure to meet y-”

“I didn’t ask about her. Beolour, show her to a room. Kid, follow me.” Raditz interrupted her, staring pointedly at Gray.

“No, I will show him the way.” Celia countered again, and Raditz glared back at her.

What the hell is going on?

“The King gave me the task of bringing the boy to him. Don’t make this difficult.” Raditz said with a hint of steel in his voice.

“The King gave me a mission to find him. I will be the one to report the success of the mission.” Celia responded, still showcasing no emotion. Raditz's eye twitched in annoyance.

“Fine, you can come with me, bastard child,” Raditz said with a humorless smile on his face.

“A royal bastard is better than a low-class any day. I will speak with Gray and the rest of our team alone for a minute, then we will head to Father.” Celia answered evenly. Raditz glared at the girl angrily, then huffed and walked towards the door leading into the building.

“What was that all about?” Tamari asked, looking questioningly at Gray. 

“I’m not sure…” Gray trailed off, looking at Celia.

“Beolour, leave us,” Celia said simply, and the large man quickly walked away from the group.

“He is one of Fathers, that is, King Vegeta’s, squad captains,” Celia explained.

“Your dad is King Vegeta?” Tamari asked incredulously.

“I was wondering what you meant when you called her royalty back on Vargon…” Asia said quietly, glancing up at Gray.

“It is not important to you. I must bring Gray to Father now. Saeko, tell Beolour to show you to a room. You two, do whatever you’d like.” Celia said, looking dismissively at Tamari and Asia. 

Tamari looked like she was going to argue with her, but stopped as she glanced back at Raditz, who was glaring impatiently at them from across the training grounds.

“Be careful,” She murmured to Gray as she walked toward the building.

“I-I’ll see you later, Gray!” Asia said cutely as she rushed to follow Tamari. Gray smiled at her and nodded. Saeko walked over to Beolour.

“Before we meet Father, you must listen to me. What I will tell you is very serious.” Celia said, looking at Gray seriously.

“I’m not sure I trust anything you say anymore, but sure, go ahead,” Gray said simply.

“It’s fine if you do not trust me, as long as you do not trust the King either. I did not lie to you Gray, when I said I would entrust my life to you. I am truly on your side, but the King is not. Take everything he says with a grain of salt.” Celia said cryptically. Gray opened his mouth to respond, but Raditz's voice rang across the training grounds before he could.

“What the hell is taking you so long, bastard child?” His gruff voice shouted as he started walking toward them.

“I will explain more later. Just ensure you do not make any commitments to King Vegeta. Do not tell him any secrets, do not agree to any of his plans, and do not trust him. Most importantly, be respectful, but do not go overboard. No kneeling, no bowing.” Celia said as they started walking toward Raditz. 

I don’t trust her, but I also wasn’t going to do most of that anyway. Whether or not I’ll trust him or agree to any of his plans depends on what he says, but I won’t tell him more than he needs to know. The no kneeling and bowing part is questionable. Hopefully, he won’t try to kill me on the spot for being disrespectful, but I don’t know anything about royal etiquette, and she’s royalty, so I’ll have to trust her.

“You can fly, right?” Raditz asked gruffly, and Gray nodded, “Follow me.”

Raditz shot off into the sky, and Gray struggled to keep up with him. He was glad to see that while Celia was doing better than him, she was also struggling to keep up.

I can’t tell how strong she is with her power suppressed, but she’s likely not much stronger than I am now. 

They soared over planet Vegeta, and Gray got to see how the planet looked outside of the academy for the first time. They soared over small towns, farms, and then also huge cities. It took more than a couple hours of flight before they arrived at a giant city. The buildings looked rather… normal if you ignored that they were all built on the top of giant rocks and mountains.

There were skyscrapers looming around, as well as smaller buildings, but nothing looked very impressive or out of the ordinary expect for one building. In the exact middle of the city was a giant palace, towering over all the other ones. A giant mountain stretched into the air higher than any of the towering mountains or rocks around it, but the palace on top put even the giant mountain to shame.

It was completely golden, with columns of gold acting as support beams for the palace. It was easily tens of thousands of feet tall, as well as thousands of feet wide. Raditz led them through the city-like palace, and they eventually reached a giant set of double doors. Raditz pushed them open, and they stepped into a giant throne room.

The room was nearly pitch black despite the sun shining outside. There was a giant balcony hanging over the room, and a semi-circle of thrones sat in the middle of the room. Each throne had a figure in it, but only one of them was alive. 

King Vegeta sat on the middle throne, while the six thrones around him, three on each side, had large statues of men filling them, all of whom were depicted as dying in various ways. There were many more smaller statues littering the room, all portraying men kneeling before the thrones. Gray glanced at King Vegeta.

[Ruler] King Vegeta:

[Saiyan King]

Age: 67

PL: ?

HP: ?

TKI: ?

Reputation: 25/100 (Positively-Viewed)

[Ruler] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be natural rulers. They will have skills and perks that allow them to more effectively rule a kingdom.

“This is the child, your Highness,” Raditz said, but Gray noticed that the man didn’t kneel or bow, instead standing straight as he stared up at the king. King Vegeta looked exactly how Gray pictured he would, looking nearly identical to Vegeta, with his short stature and his large spike of hair, but looked older with the beard on his face. 

“He is.” King Vegeta’s voice rumbled throughout the throne room, “Good work.”

“My mission is complete, Father,” Celia spoke up.

“It is. Good work, Celia.” The King responded. His eyes locked with Gray, and for just a split second, Gray felt a spike of fear rock through his body. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting to come from this meeting, but the king’s next words were definitely not it.

“How do you feel about killing Freeza?”

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hope y’all enjoyed the chapter! The next one will probably be sometime in the next weekish, but as always, you can read one chapter ahead at PAT(RE)(ON) . c0m / Koyon

Chapter Text

Game

Thoughts

“Speech”

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“What?” Gray couldn’t help the word slip out of his mouth at King Vegeta’s words. 

Did he just ask me if I wanted to kill Frieza? Am I hallucinating right now? Am I dreaming? 

Gray hastily controlled his emotion, trying to keep his face as blank as possible.

Ok, Gray, think. I definitely plan to kill Frieza eventually and take his empire, but why the hell would King Vegeta of all people ask me this? Why is he even speaking to me in the first place? 

“Did you not hear me, kid? You’re young, but you should know better than to ignore me.” King Vegeta growled at Gray’s momentary silence. Gray felt a pressure press down on his shoulders, and he suddenly found himself struggling to hold his head high. 

If I tell the truth and this is some kind of test, I’m done for. Saying I want to kill our galactic overlord is a surefire way to die young. I’ll just lie to be safe.

“Ah, sorry, of course I would never even think of going against Lord Frie-” Gray started, but was cut off by the girl standing next to him. 

“He intends to go against Frieza in the future, father.” Celia interrupted. Gray’s head snapped in her direction, his whole body tensing, but he didn’t have the chance to say anything.

“His emotions toward Frieza?” King Vegeta asked. His focus was solely on Celia.

“He hates him,” Celia responded.

“Towards me?” He asked with narrowed eyes.

“Begrudging respect.”

What the hell is going on? Did they forget I’m standing right here or something?

“Good enough. If those feelings change, you’ll be responsible for dealing with him.” King Vegeta said, turning his focus toward Raditz. 

“Of course, My King,” Raditz responded with an arrogant grin. 

Gray’s eyes bored into the side of Celia’s head, hoping for some explanation of what was going on. She glanced at him with her eyes, her head still turned toward the King, and nodded slightly, “Father, before we speak any further, I think it would be wise if I explained some things to Gray.”

King Vegeta waved his hand dismissively, “Unimportant. You can tell him however much you deem fit to share later. You won’t waste my time.”

“Of course, Father. However, I also think it would be wise if I gave you the report about my mission before we discuss this any further. Raditz and Gray should step out while I do since some of the information might be… significant.” Celia said, leaving Gray even more confused. King Vegeta narrowed his eyes once again at Celila, looking like he wanted to refuse, but responded after a moment of silence.

“Fine. I expect this to be good. Leave us.” King Vegeta said, gesturing to Raditz.

Raditz’s eye twitched, glaring slightly at Celia. He turned around, placing a hand on Gray’s shoulder, and pushing him slightly towards the door they entered through. As they walked toward the door, Celia’s voice rang out throughout the chamber one more time, “No offense, of course, Raditz, Gray. I trust both of you, but this is something that needs to stay between our family. Maybe you can start briefing Gray about what’s going on so no more of Father’s time will be spent on it, Raditz?” 

“Yeah, yeah, sure,” Raditz responded gruffly as he stepped through the massive door, Gray walking out behind him a moment later. The massive set of doors slammed behind them, and Raditz started walking away from them, going towards an open area of the palace. Gray followed him, and a moment later they were standing on a large terrace, giving Gray a view of the towering mountains and buildings far below them.

“That damn bastard, leaving this to me. You’re lucky. His Highness would rather just give you your orders, but the bastard girl wants you in the know beforehand. She should’ve just talked to you on the trip back to Planet Vegeta, that lazy girl.” Raditz growled, leaning his back against a nearby wall. 

“So, you gonna tell me what’s going on?” Gray asked the long-haired man.

“Yeah, yeah. I’ll give you the quick version for now. That girl, Celia, is one of the King’s bastards. He’s had more than a few, but most are useless or dead. Most people don’t know that, only some royalty and the King’s elites, like me, so keep your mouth shut. Her mission was to scout out some of the new F-Class recruits to find some standouts. The stupid girl took it a bit far, enrolling herself as a recruit, and even then only found one. You better be really special, or neither of you be alive a few weeks from now.” Raditz said, staring out at the towering mountains around them.

That explains her strength at least, and how she made an artificial moon, but I already knew she had some tie to the royal family.

“Don’t worry, I won’t say a word. What about what happened in there?” Gray said, nodding his head toward the path heading to the King’s throne room. 

“About how the King practically ignored you? Get used to it. There’s a reason that girl is one of the few bastards still around. She’s useful, if only for her… ability. Even I don’t really get how it works, and I don’t really care,” Raditz growled, “Ask her about it if you do. Pretty much, you can’t hide anything from her. She’s especially good at finding traitors. If she said you felt any attachment for Frieza, or negative thoughts toward the King, then your head would’ve been blown off on the spot.” Raditz explained, dropping what felt like mindnumbing information for Gray as if he was just talking about the weather. 

An ability that makes it impossible to hide anything from her? 

Gray’s mind started whirling, thinking through all the possibilities.

Can she see the future, like Bardock could? Mind reading? Memory reading? Fuck, I knew she was suspicious, but I didn’t expect this. 

“Don’t look so scared, boy. It’s unbecoming of a Saiyan.” Raditz chuckled, and Gray realized his stress was showing on his face, “What’re you scared that she’ll find out? Got a small cock or somethin?” 

Gray couldn’t resist glancing down at his crotch.

Nah, I’m packing.

“Yeah, something like that…” Gray said and was glad when Raditz merely grunted and didn’t push him any further. 

It’s not like I have any THAT bad planned, just overthrowing Frieza and probably killing her father in the process… though if he’s on board with the whole killing Frieza idea, then I guess I he can stick around.

“Still kinda scary that she might be able to read my thoughts or something…” Gray mumbled, staring over the railing. 

Does she know about my past life?

“Enough of that. I need to start filling you in on the mission. You ever heard of the planet named Earth?” Raditz asked casually, and Gray struggled to keep his face emotionless. He failed, letting his surprise slip through, but was luckily facing away from Raditz as he stared over the railing. 

“Ah…” Gray trailed off, not sure how to answer the question.

Should I know Earth? Is it part of the Saiyan education I missed out on?

“Whatever, it doesn’t matter. I don’t blame you for not knowing, our contact with it is kept pretty under wraps, and it was thought to be pretty useless until a couple of years ago.” Raditz said, and Gray turned his head to lock eyes with him. 

“So, what about it?” He asked.

“That’s where the mission’ll be. I’m leading a squadron there, and you’ll be a part of it.” Raditz said, looking like he was going to explain more, but stopping as footsteps echoed down the path they come from. Gray stood up straight as he saw Celia walk around the corner.

“Father is ready to continue the briefing.” She said simply, eliciting a nod from Raditz as he pushed himself off the wall, walking past her toward the throne room again. Gray followed suit but paused as Celia placed a hand on his shoulder as he walked past, whispering to him, “Remember what I told you. Don’t reveal anything to him. Be vague. Let me do most of the talking.”

Gray nodded, and they walked toward the throne room.

I’ll have to trust her for now, but whatever ability she has is scary. I might have to kill her at some point. 

Gray flicked his eyes toward Celia, looking for any reaction on her face. She maintained an emotionless expression as they walked side by side.

So, not mind reading. 

They walked back into the throne room and stood in a line once again as the King leaned back on his towering throne. 

“I’ll start the briefing now. Be grateful, it’s not every day you get to speak with your King. I usually wouldn’t waste my time on this, but this mission needs to stay under tight confidentiality. Nothing I say here should leave this room unless it’s completely necessary, got it?” King Vegeta asked, glowering down at them as if begging for one of them to refuse. 

“Of course, Your Highness.”

“Of course, Father.”

…

“Um, Yeah, sure, Your Highness,” Gray spoke up, slightly panicked as the King’s sole attention focused on him after his moment of silence.

“Good.” King Vegeta intoned, then hopped off of his massive throne. He walked confidently towards a small door on the side of the room, hidden behind a towering pillar, and gestured for them to follow. Gray let Celia and Raditz move first, following behind them. Once inside the room, Gray saw what looked to be a board meeting room. There was a long stone table in the center, and various marble chairs placed around it.

King Vegeta walked over to a small white rock sitting in the corner, stomping on the side of it so it flipped over, revealing a paper underneath it. He picked up the rolled-up paper, and walked to the long table, placing it down. He rolled out the paper, and Gray eyes widened slightly as a map was spread out on the table. 

“This is Earth. Your mission will be here. The amount of maps made of Earth can be counted on your fingers, so you won’t be getting one. Memorize this one before you leave, which will be in 2 days.” King Vegeta said, gesturing to the large map lying on the table. Gray narrowed his eyes as he scanned the map.

I’ve only seen the Dragon Ball map a few times, but this looks roughly how I remember it, minus how the cities are laid out. 

The map showed a large land mass on the left, with an ocean separating it from a much larger land mass on the right. There was a small tract of land at the top that connected the two. Towards the bottom of the map, and in the middle ocean separating the two land masses, was a flurry of spread-out islands. There were multiple lines, each a different color, that cut across the land masses to showcase different territories.

Why the hell does the literal King of the Saiyans have a map of Earth? Judging from Raditz’s age, I thought I was around the start of Z, but maybe not if they’ve already been to Earth.

“Father, I think it would be best if we explained what we know about Earth to Gray before we continue - to ensure he is not confused,” Celia said. Gray narrowed his eyes slightly at her words.

Maybe she can read thoughts?

“Pointless. He’s promising, but this is Earth he’s heading to. I doubt he’ll make it back alive. Anything we tell him is just wasted time. He’ll follow Raditz’s orders.” King Vegeta growled, looking up from the map to stare at Celia. Celia’s eyes bore into him, and Gray saw her face change, going from its normal emotionless state to looking slightly pleading.

“Fine,” King Vegeta grunted, relenting at her look, “This is Earth. Up until three years ago, we thought it was full of weaklings. It had some decent materials, but nothing special. It was ranked D on Intergalactic Zillow.”

Gray struggled to keep his face blank.

Intergalactic Zillow? Is that really how Frieza sells planets?

“The war with his family has been costly for Frieza, so he increased the number of Saiyans in the planet-selling unit. The squadron that went to Earth never came back, so he sent another. They never returned either,” King Vegeta said, sitting down in one of the large marble chairs, “Frieza sent his left-hand man, Dodoria, but he returned empty-handed. The lifeforms on Earth are much stronger than we had anticipated, and it would require a full-on invasion force to take over the planet. King Cold noticed Dodoria’s excursion and sent his own forces. Frieza had deemed the planet more trouble than it was worth, but that was until one of King Cold’s generals was captured. He was interrogated, and let us know about this: An item called a Dragon Ball.”

Gray’s eyes followed King Vegeta’s finger as he placed it on a small orange dot drawn on the map, “When all of them are gathered together, they can grant a wish. Any wish. Power, immortality, even… killing someone.” 

Gray’s eyes widened as King Vegeta looked pointedly at him.

I was wondering why he asked me if I wanted to kill Frieza but then started talking about Earth. He wants to use the dragon balls to kill Frieza!

King Vegeta grinned at Gray’s look, his eyes glowing menacingly, “You understand, right? Frieza’s power is beyond even my comprehension, there’d be no chance to kill him in a battle. Instead, we utilize the dragon ball's power, and wish for his death!”

That’s… actually a good plan. At least, a good plan from what he knows. The dragon balls can’t kill anyone stronger than Kami in the show, but this world is so fucked up already, so who knows?

But, why does King Vegeta want to kill Frieza? To free the Saiyans?

“King Cold and Cooler want the power of the balls as well, so it’s not as simple as just invading Earth anymore. Earth has become a battleground between Frieza, Cooler, King Cold, and the inhabitants of the planet.” The King explained, his grin dropping, “Each of Frieza and his family have claimed portions of the planet for their own, but most of the planet is still controlled by Earthlings. They are… surprisingly powerful.”

I knew everything in this world was fucked up already, but the Earthlings are actually able to fight back? Did the Z fighters get a huge power boost or something?

“Now, this information will be essential for your mission. Pay attention, all three of you.” The King said, looking pointedly at Raditz, who had been openly not paying attention as King Vegeta relayed information that he already knew. King Vegeta placed his finger on the bottom of the left land mass.

“This is the territory of the ‘Red Ribbon Army.’ It’s an army of weaklings, but their technology in weaponry exceeds even ours, so they are a formidable force. They’re likely the weakest of the forces on the planet. The most recent report from Earth indicated that they have one dragon ball.” The King explained.

The Red Ribbon Army is not only still alive, but can hurt Frieza’s army. So, canon is just fucked, huh? Thanks, dumbass nightmare mode. Now a lot of the knowledge from my past life is useless.

The King dragged his finger up above a red line that separated the Red Ribbon Army’s territories from the one above it, “This is the ‘Land of Kami.’ It’s an uninhabited forest, but there’s a floating island in the sky where at least four powerful fighters live, one who calls himself the guardian of Earth. Our forces are unsure about where one of the dragon balls is, so it might be there, but don’t mess with this area unless you’ve gathered the other six already.” 

Four? Kami, Popo, Korin… and who? 

“Hmmph, only four fighters? I bet I could take those weaklings on my own.” Raditz said with a confident grin.

“Keep speaking like that and you’ll be replaced as Squadron leader for this mission. I chose you because you’re trustworthy and smarter than most. Don’t bother these four unless you have six dragon balls.” King Vegeta said, glaring at Raditz, who wilted under his gaze.

“R-right!” 

Considering this guy is Vegeta’s father, I thought he’d be a lot more arrogant and stupid. He seems pretty level-headed.

“Next is Frieza’s base. This is where you’ll be landing and living for the duration of the mission.” King Vegeta said, pointing to a large island right above the land connecting both the land masses. He then pointed to the actual land connected to the land masses, “This is Cooler’s base.”

“Neither of which have any dragon balls.” Celia chimed in helpfully, resulting in King Vegeta’s hands clenching.

“Yes… unfortunately, our forces have been largely preoccupied with Coolers, so we have no balls.”

Hah, no balls.

The King dragged his finger farther to the right, pointing to a large territory on the left land mass, “This is where most of the humans are gathered, in a place called ‘West City.’ It’s protected by a group of martial artists who call themselves ‘The Protectors of Earth.’ They have two dragon balls.” 

That’s definitely Goku and the other Z fighters.

“This is King Cold’s base. They’re holding one dragon ball.” The King said, pointing to the large island under the left land mass, then moving his finger to a series of smaller islands nearby, “These islands, and part of the bottom tip of the continent, are guarded by ancient martial artists. They also have one dragon ball.” 

Ancient martial artists? Is Roshi really holding his own against actual Saiyans, or is it some new bullshit I’ll have to deal with?

“Finally, our biggest concern. This area is entirely desert, and is owned by the ‘Triangle of Evil.’ It’s ruled by three monsters. One is a green monstrosity, said to be so ugly that just looking at it can kill you. The other is a mastermind emperor from thousands of years ago, and the third is the biggest problem. A sentient Rabbit that can turn anything he touches into a carrot! Even worse, their name is totally badass! The Triangle of Evil sounds so cool!” King Vegeta shouted, slamming his fists into the table, looking far more worked up than before, his eyes glowing red as spit flew from his mouth.

I can believe he’s Vegeta’s father now. This guy’s a total moron.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gray Tanaki:

[Saiyan D-Class Recruit]

Age: 15

Wallet: 45,150 Coins