It Started with Ultra Instinct, but Did He Switch Later?

Reiz's shoulder was as hard as an iron plate. The force rebounding from it left his knuckles aching terribly.

Almost at the same time, Reiz's body reacted on instinct.

"Smack!"

Reiz swung his hand back and slapped Raditz, sending him flying up into the air. Raditz spun a full 360 degrees before crashing hard onto the ring.

"Thud!"

Raditz hit the floor with a dull thump, completely dazed.

"Uh..." Reiz hurriedly pulled the blindfold off his eyes and looked at Raditz a little sheepishly.

"Ah... That hurts! It hurts..." Raditz grimaced in pain, lying on the ground and groaning. He felt absolutely miserable.

He clutched the cheek that had been slapped, then rubbed his fist, which hurt as if the bones were cracked. Tears were welling in his eyes.

"Sorry, Raditz." Reiz helped him up, smiling. "That was just a reflex. You okay?"

Raditz: "..."

Raditz was on the verge of tears.

I punched you, and my bones nearly cracked.

I put up with that!

But then you slapped me right back!

That really hurt, you know?

He looked at Reiz reproachfully, his eyes filled with hurt.

"Here's your bonus." Reiz handed Raditz the blue coin.

At the sight of the blue coin, Raditz wiped away his pain-induced tears and happily accepted it.

He gripped the coin in his palm, savoring its cool touch. The pain in his face seemed to ease a little.

"Not bad, not bad. I'll study it some more, then we'll continue in a bit!" Reiz smiled, then turned and left the Training Room.

He needed time to process what he had experienced in the fight.

Reiz knew very well that he still needed to keep training.

He'd faced attacks from five people, none of whom had much Combat Power, and he'd still been hit!

Reiz knew he still had a long way to go.

Of course, that was because Reiz hadn't used his ordinary energy and had wrapped a cloth around his eyes.

If Reiz unleashed all his energy, no matter how hard Raditz and the other four tried, they wouldn't be able to hit him.

But that wouldn't help him train, so there was no need.

For now, Reiz's goal was to master the basics of Ultra Instinct as quickly as possible.

He really wanted to know what Ultra Instinct would be like once he'd mastered the basics.

After walking through the spaceship's narrow corridor, Reiz returned to his room.

The cabin door slid open without a sound, and soft light spilled from within.

Linoshi was still sitting on the small bed, but now she held a Scepter in her hands, staring at the crystal ball atop it.

The Scepter was pure white, its shaft long and slender. The crystal ball at its tip seemed to hold a swirling galaxy and gave off a faint glow.

Linoshi gazed intently at the crystal ball. Its shifting lights were reflected in her blue eyes, and her expression was focused and gentle.

At the sound of the cabin door opening, Linoshi flinched.

When she saw Reiz return, she hurriedly put the Scepter away.

"Whoosh!"

The Scepter turned into specks of Starlight and vanished into the air.

Her movements were as quick as a child caught doing something wrong. Her face was flushed with obvious panic, and her fingers began unconsciously rubbing the hem of her Battle Suit again.

"Y-you're back..." Linoshi said softly, her blue eyes lowered as she avoided Reiz's gaze.

"What were you looking at? You seemed really absorbed." Reiz smiled, his gaze settling on Linoshi.

She sat on the narrow bed, as meek and sweet as a butterfly with its wings folded.

"N-nothing..." Linoshi shook her head and hurriedly replied, blushing. Her blue eyes darted down in a panic.

Reiz said nothing, only gazed at her with a smile.

His gaze wasn't sharp; if anything, it held a touch of warmth. But simply being watched in silence made Linoshi feel like a dewdrop exposed by the sunlight, with nowhere to hide.

Linoshi lowered her head even further, almost burying it against her chest.

"O-okay, I'll tell you!" Flustered by Reiz's gaze, Linoshi quickly answered in a quiet voice, so soft it was almost a mosquito's buzz. "I-I... I was watching you fight Prince Vegeta!"

After speaking, she sneaked a glance at Reiz, then quickly lowered her eyes again.

Reiz was a little surprised.

This little Angel really cares about me!

She was actually watching me fight Vegeta!

"Any good suggestions?" Reiz asked with a smile, sitting on the bed beside her while leaving a comfortable distance between them.

"You did really well. To grasp Ultra Instinct to this extent in such a short time is already amazing." Linoshi bit her lower lip and looked up at Reiz with admiration.

Still, Linoshi didn't dare meet Reiz's eyes directly. After one glance, she hurriedly lowered her head, her fingers once again unconsciously rubbing the hem of her Battle Suit.

"But I still got hit when Raditz and the others ganged up on me." Reiz scratched his head, feeling a little dissatisfied.

"That's because..." Linoshi paused to gather her thoughts. "At first, you were using Ultra Instinct. But later, when you saw so many fists and feet coming at you, you couldn't help abandoning it and relied on your own senses to dodge the attacks instead!"

She hit the nail on the head. A serious light shone in her blue eyes.

After hearing Linoshi's explanation, Reiz thought back over the fight and suddenly understood.

Linoshi was right!

At the beginning of the fight with Raditz and the others, he had indeed used Ultra Instinct. His body had felt as light as a feather, weaving smoothly through gaps between their fists and feet.

But later, there had been too many attacks coming from every direction, and they had become a blur.

So Reiz had unconsciously stopped using Ultra Instinct and relied on his ears to detect his opponents' attacks.

That was why he'd gotten hit.

"Looks like I still need to keep training hard," Reiz murmured, stroking his chin.

"You've already done so well... Making such huge progress is truly impressive!" Linoshi praised him. Her voice was soft, but her approval was sincere.

"Thanks for the compliment! To repay you, how about I massage your feet again?" Reiz said with a smile, glancing at her dainty feet tucked beside her on the bed.

"Huh? Y-you're going to massage them again?" Linoshi blushed and lowered her head once more, her hands unconsciously clenching her Battle Suit.

"If you don't want me to, that's fine," Reiz said earnestly. There wasn't a trace of teasing in his eyes, only respect.

Linoshi's hands began rubbing her Battle Suit again. She looked rather nervous.

The cabin fell silent for a few seconds. All they could hear was their quiet breathing and the low hum of the spaceship's engines.

Several more seconds passed in silence.

"I... I want you to." Linoshi's voice was as faint as a mosquito's, barely audible. When she finished speaking, her whole face had turned red.