Hearing this, Tarble deliberately asked in a cold voice, "Who exactly are you?"
Although he had more or less guessed who they were, he had to play the part all the way through!
"Listen up, brat!
"We were once elite warriors under Frieza. Now that Frieza is dead, it's time for us to become the Cosmic Emperors!"
"You Saiyan monkeys can enjoy the last few minutes of your lives on Earth!"
"Hahaha!"
As soon as they finished speaking, Tarble kindly reminded them, "Aren't you afraid of Super Saiyans?"
"Your King Frieza died at the hands of a Super Saiyan!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a voice full of disdain came through the Scouter.
"Hmph, Super Saiyans?"
"Trying to scare us?"
"So what if they're Super Saiyans? We're far stronger than Frieza now. If you've got the guts, don't run!"
"My brother and I would love to see whether Super Saiyans are really that powerful!"
Bzzzt!
A faint crackle of static sounded, and then the Scouter fell silent.
Clearly,
they were very confident in their own strength.
A mocking smile appeared at the corner of Tarble's mouth.
As the saying went, you couldn't talk a ghost into staying alive.
Since they were determined to get themselves killed, there was nothing more to say.
Just then, Rix's panicked voice came from beside him.
"Your Highness Tarble, their power is greater than Frieza's. What should we do?"
At this, Tarble said calmly, "What are you panicking for? Fate has already decreed that this calamity will befall us."
"Even if we can't defeat them, we still have to fight!"
"We Saiyans are a warrior race renowned throughout the universe."
"Even if we die, we'll die charging into battle."
These rousing words dispelled much of the fear in Rix's heart. He answered resolutely, "Yes, I understand."
Tarble reassured him:
"Don't worry. Son Goku, who can transform into a Super Saiyan, should be on Earth.
"If Frieza couldn't defeat Son Goku, what chance do these little nobodies have?"
After that,
the two said nothing more to each other.
A minute later, the spherical spaceship they were riding finally made its rather intimate acquaintance with Earth.
Rumble!
The spaceship came to an abrupt stop, then settled safely on the ground. Tarble couldn't help smiling.
He could sense several power signatures nearby.
No need to guess. It had to be Vegeta and the others.
He immediately pressed the button to open the hatch.
Creak—
The hatch slowly opened, and the view before him suddenly brightened. He instinctively squinted.
Once his eyes adjusted, he stepped out of the spaceship.
He looked up along the slope of the crater and, sure enough, saw the famous Z Fighters.
Among them was a man with flame-shaped hair sticking straight up, his arms crossed over his chest. Who else could it be but Vegeta?
But even after recognizing him, Tarble didn't call out right away.
Instead, he pretended that his eyes hadn't adjusted to the bright light yet. Squinting, he raised a hand to shade his brow.
His silence didn't stop Krillin and the others from speaking.
When they saw that the people who had emerged from the spaceship really were Saiyans, they all wore expressions that said, "Just as we thought."
They also let out one or two exclamations of surprise or uncertainty.
Yamcha exclaimed, "Krillin, they really are Saiyans!"
Krillin nodded in agreement. "Yamcha, they're definitely Saiyans, but why do their power signatures feel a little weak?"
Tien Shinhan offered a different opinion. "Weak?"
"They are a little weak compared to us now, but sense them carefully. Those two are stronger than Vegeta and the others were when they first came to Earth!"
Only Son Gohan and Piccolo said nothing, but both instinctively glanced at Vegeta.
They knew that only Vegeta, the Saiyan Prince, might recognize other Saiyans.
Hearing Tien Shinhan's words, Vegeta furrowed his brow in displeasure but didn't argue.
After all, he really had intended to invade Earth back then!
Besides, he could sense that Tarble's power was far greater than his own had been at the time.
Once he was sure the person approaching really was Tarble, he immediately called out, "Tarble, what are you doing on Earth?"
At this, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
At least Vegeta knew the man in front of them, which spared them an unnecessary fight.
Even though every one of them could easily overpower the newcomers,
they weren't bloodthirsty.
Naturally, they had no desire to fight if they didn't have to.
However,
when they saw the two people slowly flying up from the crater and heard what one of them said, they were all astonished.
Of the two Saiyans rising from the crater, the shorter one excitedly shouted, "Big Brother Vegeta, you really are here on Earth!"
"That's wonderful!"
Big Brother?
This little Saiyan had called Vegeta "Big Brother"!
Could he be Vegeta's younger brother?
That was Son Gohan and the others' first thought.
At the same time, they instinctively studied Vegeta and Tarble's faces.
The more closely they looked, the more surprised they became.
It was true: apart from their difference in build and Tarble's refined demeanor, the two really did look somewhat alike!
As for the other Saiyan, who was much taller, it was obvious he wasn't Vegeta's brother.
He was probably Tarble's subordinate.
After all, although he flew over with Tarble, he never once moved ahead of him.
As they watched, Tarble and Rix flew over to them.
Looking at Vegeta's face, which was identical to King Vegeta's, Rix immediately knelt and respectfully called out, "Your subordinate Rix pays his respects to Your Highness Vegeta."
Hearing that long-forgotten form of address, Vegeta furrowed his brow. "Hmph. There are only a few of us Saiyans left. There's no need to keep up those old customs."
"Yes!" Rix replied before getting back to his feet.
Vegeta's personality had changed greatly by now, and when speaking to his younger brother, whom he hadn't seen in decades, his voice was less cold. "Tarble, what brought you to Earth?"
As he spoke, he looked up at the sky, then lowered his head again. "Don't tell me you came to Earth to escape?"
"Can Saiyans who only know how to run away even call themselves Saiyans?"
"Where's the pride of the Saiyan warrior race you belong to?"
By the end, his voice had turned cold again.
He truly looked down on Saiyans with no backbone.
Hearing this, Tarble couldn't help thinking to himself:
You married into the family yourself. What Saiyan pride?
But aloud, he asked in confusion, "Escape?"
"Big Brother, what do you mean?"
"Rix and I heard you might be on Earth, then found out where Earth was and came here."
"We didn't come to escape!"
"Didn't you just say that there are only a few of us Saiyans left in the world?"
"I thought it would be better if we all came together."
Hearing this, Vegeta and the other Z Fighters furrowed their brows.
But a moment later, they relaxed.
They'd remembered that when Vegeta invaded Earth, he hadn't known how to sense power signatures or suppress his own power either.
At that moment, Rix suddenly spoke up to remind him, "Your Highness Tarble, have you forgotten? Just now, when we were above Earth, we heard on the Scouter that Frieza's soldiers were pursuing us!"
Hearing this, Tarble pretended to suddenly remember and echoed, "That's right, that's right. I'd forgotten."
He then looked anxiously at Vegeta. "Big Brother Vegeta, Frieza's soldiers caught up with us somewhere along the way!"
"And they said their power is far greater than Frieza's."
"Big Brother, what should we do?"
"By the way, is Son Goku, the one who can become a Super Saiyan, here?"
"I'd like to ask him to help take out the pursuers behind us!"
Before you continue