Raditz no longer looked the way he had when he arrived. His Battle Suit was damaged in several places, exposing the muscles beneath, and his face was covered in bruises. A trace of blood even trickled from the corner of his mouth. The fight had clearly been anything but easy for him.
Raditz's foundation had been far too weak. He lacked the fighting spirit a Saiyan should have had, and he'd taken such a beating just clearing out a few grunts weaker than himself. Turles was somewhat displeased!
"Hmph!" Turles snorted and continued watching the fight.
In truth, Raditz was starting to lose his nerve. He'd always been the sort to bully the weak and fear the strong, and now he was injured from the fight. Facing an opponent whose battle power exceeded his own, he would have given up already if he hadn't noticed Turles's cold gaze fixed on him.
Even now, he didn't understand why Turles had insisted on bringing him along and kept training him. As for battle power, Vegeta was far stronger than he was. Raditz knew exactly how little he had to offer, but with Turles's strength looming over him, he didn't dare resist.
But with no way out, the battle lust buried in Raditz's Saiyan blood finally ignited. His gaze grew fierce as he stared at the Pirate Leader opposite him.
Raditz's change didn't escape the Pirate Leader, even though he had no idea what had brought it on. Remembering that two more Saiyans were watching him intently from the sidelines, the Pirate Leader stopped holding back!
"Ha!" The Pirate Leader let out a shout and attacked. First, he fired an energy blast, then shot forward behind it, charging straight at Raditz.
He'd used this trick to catch many opponents stronger than himself off guard. Wary of the Saiyans' reputation, he'd used it right from the start this time. The thought of killing a Saiyan filled the Pirate Leader with excitement, and a cruel smile curled across his lips.
Raditz didn't try to take the energy blast head-on. He turned aside and dodged just before it hit, but he hadn't expected the Pirate Leader to be right behind it. His body was left completely exposed to the enemy. Seeing the foe's sneer, Raditz had no time to react and could only raise both arms as best he could to block the coming attack.
But Raditz had miscalculated. The Pirate Leader wasn't aiming for his upper body. His strike hit Raditz in the abdomen, and the full-force blow sent him flying backward.
Blood poured from Raditz's mouth as he took the hit. His body was beyond his control, hurled backward by the tremendous force. He smashed through several small mountains before finally coming to a stop, crumpled among the rubble.
Watching Raditz's dismal performance, Turles shook his head in speechless dismay. He wondered what Bardock would think if he knew his eldest son was such a weakling!
When the Pirate Leader moved to finish Raditz off, Turles finally intervened.
In the blink of an eye, Turles appeared above Raditz as if he had teleported. He casually raised a hand and effortlessly caught the Pirate Leader's killing blow.
The Pirate Leader's face froze when his strongest attack was caught so easily. Fear began to show in his eyes.
For Turles, anyone with a battle power below ten thousand could no longer stir his desire to fight. After all, unlike Son Goku, he didn't have a pure, childlike love of battle that let him find enjoyment in fighting any opponent, no matter how strong or weak.
"Don't kill me, please!" the Pirate Leader begged.
But his plea meant nothing to Turles. Turles raised his right hand, and a massive amount of energy gathered in his palm, gradually forming a bright orb.
When begging proved useless, the Pirate Leader's eyes hardened. He immediately unleashed a powerful aura, and his body began to change.
The Pirate Leader actually had a rare ability to transform. Turles dispersed the Ki Blast in his hand and watched with interest as the Pirate Leader's power continued to rise.
1500!
2000!
2500!
3000!
3500!
His aura finally stopped growing at a battle power of 4500. His strength had tripled—that wasn't bad!
But the Pirate Leader's appearance had become even uglier. He looked like an enormous frog, with fleshy growths covering his head. It was revolting!
Turles curled his lip in disgust. Saiyans looked cooler and more handsome when they transformed into Super Saiyans, and their power increased by an outrageous fiftyfold. And that was without even mentioning Super Saiyan 2 and Super Saiyan 3!
Having lost interest completely, Turles raised his right palm again. Energy rapidly gathered, and a basketball-sized orb soon appeared in his hand. As the enemy charged toward him, Turles thrust the orb forward.
The orb seemed to move slowly, but it was actually incredibly fast. Before the Pirate Leader could react, it appeared right in front of him and began to expand violently!
"No!" The Pirate Leader's final cry was followed by a mushroom cloud rising into the sky. The terrifying explosion echoed outward in every direction!
When the smoke cleared, a circular crater a hundred meters across had been blasted into the ground. The Pirate Leader's body had been vaporized, leaving no trace behind.
If Turles had still been an ordinary person in his previous life, he would never have been so indifferent to taking a life. But his memories had changed him. He hadn't become cold-hearted, yet there was still a decisive and ruthless side to his nature!
Besides, every one of these Space Pirates had blood on their hands, so Turles felt even less burdened.
After dealing with a grunt who hadn't even qualified as an enemy, Turles turned around and looked at Raditz, who lay beneath the rocks, barely alive. His gaze was deep and unreadable!
Raditz looked weakly at Turles, fear and a desperate will to live in his eyes. He was afraid Turles would abandon him. As a Saiyan, he knew their nature all too well: once someone became a burden, a Saiyan could abandon anyone, even a comrade.
"Turles, please, save me! Please don't leave me behind!" Raditz couldn't help pleading.
"Raditz, this is the first time, and it'll be the last! If it happens again, I'll kill you before it comes to this!" After leaving him with those words, Turles had Broly carry Raditz back to the spaceship, then flew over to Jaco and Tights.
Turles's ruthless display had shown Tights the cold side of the Saiyans. She didn't dare act recklessly again and obediently stood behind Jaco, though Jaco's legs were shaking even more than hers.
"Jaco, you can fly, right?" Turles didn't mind their reaction and simply asked.
"I-I can!" Jaco stammered.
"Good! Follow me!" Ignoring Tights's startled cry, he grabbed her by the belt and carried her off toward the spaceship.
After landing in front of the spaceship, Turles put Tights down and strode inside.
As she straightened her clothes, Tights couldn't help muttering under her breath, "You're really not a gentleman. Who treats a lady like that? Keep it up, and you'll never find a girlfriend!"
Turles paused when he heard her, then continued walking, muttering quietly in a voice she could clearly hear, "I don't like older women."
His words infuriated Tights. She flailed her arms at Turles's retreating back, wishing she could grab him and give him a good beating.
Suddenly, Turles stopped and turned around. Tights, still in the middle of her antics, froze in place. Seeing the smile at the corner of Turles's mouth, her cheeks flushed bright red. She let out a scream, covered her face, and crouched down.
"Hahaha!" Seeing this adorable side of Tights put Turles in a great mood, and he burst out laughing.
Only after the spacefaring heiress had nearly reached the point of no longer being able to show her face did Turles stop laughing and give her instructions. "Someone will show you to a room soon. You can wash up first. For clothes, you'll have to make do with what you have until we reach the next stopover planet and can buy some."
Then Turles turned and left.
When Tights heard his footsteps gradually fade, she finally stood up. She watched his retreating figure, almost out of sight, as the blush slowly faded from her face and the corners of her lips lifted slightly.
"He's really interesting!"
Inside the medical room!
Turles looked at Raditz, submerged in a Medical Tank, and asked, "How long will he need?"
A Kabru Race member standing behind Turles immediately replied, "Sir, Raditz's injuries are mainly external. His internal organs aren't seriously damaged, so he'll be fully recovered in just one day."
"Mm." Turles nodded and continued watching the unconscious Raditz.
Raditz's performance this time had truly disappointed him. He hadn't even forced the enemy to transform before being badly injured. He was worse than an ordinary Saiyan Low-Class Warrior. The weakest Saiyans sent to invade planets had battle powers of around one thousand, yet Raditz had been judged at birth to have the potential of an Elite Warrior. The result, however, had been downright pathetic!
There was no choice. Turles would have to be hard on him.
"You're called Kara, right?" Turles tried to recall the Kabru Race member's name.
"Uh, sir! My name is actually Kashi. Kara is in charge of repairing the spaceship." The Kabru Race member looked uneasy.
Turles felt a little awkward. It wasn't his fault, really. The Kabru Race members all looked so alike.
"Fine! Kashi, when Raditz wakes up, tell him to come straight to the Training Room and find me. Also, don't give him a Scouter yet!"
"Yes, sir!"
Turles nodded and left the medical room.
As he walked along the spaceship's corridor, Turles began thinking about how to train Raditz. Before he could come up with an answer, Paragus intercepted him halfway down the corridor.
"What's wrong, Paragus?" Turles asked, puzzled by Paragus's excited expression.
Before you continue