Hope of Resurrection

Planet Frie grew gradually colder.

At night, a faint mist hung over the mountain forests. After settling the two hundred Saiyans who had fled into nearby Planet Kasha, Roland and the others returned to their training.

As time passed, Roland felt himself growing stronger every day. He still lost every time he fought Sephiria, but that was because she was simply too powerful. He really was getting stronger, though, so he tested his battle power with a Scouter.

1000!

The clear number filled Roland with motivation. Being able to compare the numbers and see exactly how much stronger he had become each day felt like playing through a video game. It was wonderful.

Whoosh! Roland and Sephiria were training, as they did every day. It was Sephiria's merciless training that had allowed Roland to make such tremendous progress.

That day, their usual training continued.

Whoosh! A white flash suddenly cut through the air, streaking forward in a straight line as gales howled around it. Fierce whirlwinds spread outward from Roland as he moved with fluid agility, creating confusing afterimages and throwing everything he had into his attacks against Sephiria.

Sephiria watched calmly and yawned. Then she suddenly slapped toward one direction.

"Smack!" Roland was sent flying.

Roland quickly spread his arms to steady himself. Then he twisted, tapped the ground with his toes, and shot toward Sephiria like a cannonball.

He followed up with a punch. The fierce rush of air made it howl and tremble.

Sephiria sneered and reached out, catching Roland's fist in her hand. His powerful attack came to an abrupt halt.

"Roland, when you attack me, your moves still aren't vicious enough." She hurled him into the air, then vanished in a flash. When she reappeared above him, she clasped her hands together and brought them down hard.

Bang!

Roland took a heavy blow, spitting blood as he plummeted straight down.

But just as he neared the ground, Sephiria's graceful figure appeared even faster. Without changing her expression, she kicked him with all her strength. The brutal force sent a terrifying wave of air surging outward. Roland hurriedly crossed his arms over his chest, but the powerful impact sent him flying again.

After flipping through the air more than a dozen times, he drove both feet into the ground. The earth split open, and an area more than ten meters across was left utterly devastated.

"Not bad. You've become a competent fighter in actual combat." Sephiria praised him and drifted over to Roland. He panted heavily, a trace of blood still at the corner of his mouth. "It's all thanks to your training, Sis."

"Mm."

Sephiria nodded casually. Moonlight fell across her flawless face, and the sight made Roland stare for a moment.

"What are you looking at?" Sephiria asked.

"You."

Roland blurted it out.

Sephiria smacked him on the head. Roland chuckled, then started preparing dinner. A campfire soon blazed, and the richly fragrant roasted meat gradually turned golden brown. Drops of fat dripped from it, hissing as they hit the fire and sent up wisps of smoke.

Not far away, the Gravity Chamber hummed softly. In its oppressive gravitational field, Hertz was training hard.

As he ate the roasted meat, Roland said to Sephiria, "Hertz has been training really hard lately."

"He misses his wife," Sephiria said.

"Oh." Roland nodded.

Sephiria had told him that Hertz's wife was named Ashita. She had grown up alongside Hertz as his childhood companion, but she lacked talent and was a noncombatant. She worked as a clerk in the Childcare Department in the Royal Capital. Hertz had returned this time without getting the chance to see his wife; Planet Vegeta had already been destroyed.

Although Hertz had seemed as if nothing was wrong lately, Sephiria could see the sorrow in his heart as his teammate.

"The dead can't come back to life. The warrior race doesn't dwell on such things. There are a few suitable female Saiyans on Planet Kasha, so perhaps we could find someone for him."

"People who die can come back to life," Roland said lightly.

"What did you say?" Sephiria had excellent hearing. After thinking it over, she looked at Roland in disbelief. "Don't tell me there's a way to bring the dead back to life?"

Roland considered it for a moment. "Sis, do you remember when I wanted to send you to Earth?"

"Of course I remember. Actually, I wanted to ask you about that. How did you manage it? Wait, could that power bring someone back to life, too?"

"Yes. It was the power of the Dragon Balls. There are mysterious orbs in the universe. If you gather all seven, you can summon Shenron, who can grant the collector one wish, as long as it's within reason. A wish to bring someone back to life can be granted." Roland then told her about his search for the Dragon Balls with Tights.

After hearing him out, Sephiria was stunned. "So Hertz's wife can come back to life, too?"

"Yes. As long as she hasn't been reincarnated yet, Shenron can bring her back..." Roland said. Given the Saiyans' circumstances, most of them probably went to Hell after death, so reincarnation wouldn't happen anytime soon.

"Roland, is that true? Is there still hope of bringing Ashita back?" Hertz came over to Roland, his voice trembling with excitement.

"It's possible, but the Dragon Balls go dormant for a year after a wish is made. The set I used won't be ready again for another six months, so if you want to bring your wife back, you'll have to wait until then."

"That's wonderful! Ashita can come back to life! Wait... did you say those things were called Dragon Balls?" In his excitement, Hertz suddenly felt he had heard of such orbs before. A flash of inspiration crossed his mind, and he asked, "Are the Dragon Balls you mentioned the ones made by the people of Planet Namek?"

"Yes. I didn't know you'd heard of them."

"Are the Dragon Balls famous?" Sephiria asked.

Hertz took a deep breath, his face flushed. "I heard that the Namekians had mysterious powers during a mission once. But their planet suffered a great disaster three hundred years ago, and every one of them died."

"No, there are survivors on Planet Namek," Roland said firmly.

A gleam entered Sephiria's eyes. "So there might be Dragon Balls on Planet Namek, too!"

"There are, and they're even more powerful than the set I used. But there are strong fighters on Planet Namek, and given the reputation of us Saiyans, they'd probably drive us away as soon as we arrived. So it's best to wait until the Dragon Balls I used have recovered."