"We're finally back!"
Bulma cheered excitedly, taking a deep breath of Earth's familiar air. She grabbed Vitelli's hand and hurried toward the house without a moment's delay.
"Dad! Mom! We're home!"
The Brief family home seemed untouched by time, still warm and just a little messy.
Dr. Brief, his blue hair a wild mess, sat leisurely in a chair in the front yard, sipping tea and reading the newspaper.
Mrs. Brief was as busy as ever in the garden, tending to her beloved flowers and plants and all the little pets she kept.
"Mom!" Bulma flew over like a happy little bird and gave her mother a big hug.
"Oh my!"
Mrs. Brief staggered back a little from the impact, but her face was beaming with joy.
She gently patted Bulma's back and chided her fondly:
"Honestly, little Bulma, you're a grown woman now. Why are you still so reckless? You need to be more ladylike~"
She looked up, spotted Vitelli following them inside, and her eyes immediately lit up. She hurried over to greet him:
"My, my! Little Vitelli came back with you, too! How wonderful! How long are you planning to stay this time? Oh, and when are you and our little Bulma planning to get married and have a baby? The two of you were gone for two whole months. It was so lonely here with just me and Bulma's father~"
Faced with Mrs. Brief's overly direct and enthusiastic attention, Vitelli felt completely overwhelmed.
All he could manage was an awkward smile. He had no idea how to answer her questions.
Fortunately, Bulma came to his rescue in time.
She hooked her arm through her mother's and led her toward the house, speaking in a playful, coaxing voice:
"Mom~! What are you talking about? We're still so young! There's plenty of time before we get married and have kids!"
"Oh? Is that so?"
Mrs. Brief let her daughter lead her inside, but couldn't resist turning back to look her over. Suddenly, she exclaimed in surprise:
"Huh? Little Bulma, why do you look even younger and prettier to me? Your skin looks much better, too! Tell Mom, have you been using some new skincare product? Or did little Vitelli find some miraculous beauty secret in space...?"
Mother and daughter gradually disappeared inside, chatting and laughing. The conversation quickly moved from having children to beauty and skincare.
Only then did Vitelli finally let out a quiet sigh of relief. He went over and sat in the chair beside Dr. Brief.
Dr. Brief lowered his newspaper, adjusted his glasses, and nodded calmly to Vitelli in greeting. "You're back."
"Yeah, I'm back, Doctor."
Vitelli responded politely.
They didn't waste time on small talk. Before long, they were naturally discussing Bulma's "Interstellar Logistics and Ecological Simulation" project.
Vitelli described some of the different ecosystems he'd seen in space, while Dr. Brief shared some new ideas about the structural design of large spacecraft and improvements to antigravity systems.
Vitelli couldn't understand a word of it, but the older man and the young man chatted quite happily.
After lunch, in the afternoon, Vitelli sensed two familiar auras in the distance, clashing fiercely.
Could that be Goku and Vegeta? Were they actually fighting? He was instantly intrigued.
After telling Bulma, Vitelli flashed out of the estate and vanished.
On a desolate, uninhabited stretch of rocky wasteland on the outskirts of West City,
Vegeta hovered in midair, his face so dark it looked ready to drip with anger.
Suppressing his fury, he shouted down at the young man standing on the ground:
"Kakarot! Listen carefully! You're a Saiyan, a member of a warrior race! You're not some weak Earthling! Why won't you come with me to conquer planets and expand our power?! Do you have no respect left for the Saiyans at all?!"
Several months had passed since Vitelli had gone to the God of Destruction Realm. Goku had grown from a boy into a taller, sturdier young man.
He scratched his head, looking utterly confused as he called back:
"Why would I invade other people? That's wrong! And I'm an Earthling! My name is Son Goku, not Kakarot! Why do you keep refusing to call me by my name, just like that guy Vitelli?"
"You...!"
The veins on Vegeta's forehead bulged. He felt like there was no getting through to this thickheaded idiot!
He took a deep breath and, with the last of his patience, delivered his final ultimatum in a cold voice:
"Kakarot! This is the last time I'll give you a chance! Join my team and help me kill Frieza to avenge Planet Vegeta! Then we'll use our power to conquer planet after planet and rebuild New Planet Vegeta for the Saiyans! It's your duty as a Saiyan, something you were born to do!"
Goku frowned at that, glaring angrily at Vegeta.
"I told you, I'm not a Saiyan! Whoever you want revenge on is your business! Why do you have to drag me into doing something bad? Are you a bad guy or something?"
Raditz, who had been watching from the side, couldn't take it anymore. He shouted:
"Kakarot! What nonsense are you spouting?! Don't you dare show Prince Vegeta such disrespect!"
The burly Nappa gave a cruel grin and cracked his neck.
Turning to Vegeta, he offered:
"Prince Vegeta, this weakling isn't worth all the talking. Why not let me teach him a lesson he won't forget? That'll show him who really cares about him!"
Looking at Goku's accusatory expression, Vegeta finally ran out of patience.
He gave a heavy snort, his killing intent palpable.
"If you insist on betraying your own blood and siding with those low-class Earthlings... then you have no reason to live. Nappa, do it. Make sure he dies slowly!"
"Heh heh heh! As you command, Prince Vegeta!"
Nappa grinned viciously, his bloodthirsty gaze fixed on Goku.
"Get ready to scream, Kakarot! I won't go easy on you!"
Before he'd even finished speaking, Nappa's massive frame charged at Goku like a tank. His enormous fist whistled through the air and slammed toward Goku's face!
But what happened next was completely beyond Vegeta and Raditz's expectations.
Faced with Nappa's ferocious attack, Goku simply leaned to the side and dodged with ease.
Then he threw a counterpunch so fast that it landed in Nappa's abdomen before Nappa could react!
"Ugh!"
Nappa felt an unimaginable force slam into him, as if his innards had all been displaced.
He cried out in pain, his huge body bending uncontrollably like a shrimp.
Goku didn't pause for an instant. A swift uppercut followed, striking Nappa under the chin!
Crack! The sharp snap made everyone's teeth ache.
"Gwaah—!"
Nappa screamed as he flew backward. Several bloodied teeth mixed with spittle sprayed from his mouth, and he crashed hard onto the sandy ground in the distance, unable to get back up for a while.
Vitelli had just used Instant Transmission to arrive at the scene. He saw Goku beating Nappa from the moment he appeared.
He clicked his tongue and shook his head sympathetically.
"Tsk. I get here and Goku's already beating up Nappa... Poor Nappa."
Seeing Nappa lying on the ground, groaning with several teeth knocked out, Vitelli flashed over to the livid Vegeta.
He asked curiously:
"So, you finally couldn't resist causing trouble?"
Vegeta was completely focused on Goku, whose strength had far exceeded his expectations. He wasn't in the mood to entertain Vitelli, and merely gave an annoyed snort.
Seeing this, Raditz had no choice but to explain quietly to Vitelli:
"Prince Vegeta sensed Kakarot's energy and wanted him to join our team to strengthen us. But Kakarot not only refused to appreciate the offer, he also insulted the prince. Now he's even injured Nappa..."
Vitelli chuckled at that, his tone tinged with amusement. "So you're saying it's all Kakarot's fault?"
Raditz faltered, not knowing what to say.
At that moment, Vegeta had finally had enough.
Nappa's humiliating defeat had left him feeling disgraced.
With a whoosh, he dropped onto the battlefield and impatiently shouted at Nappa, who was still struggling on the ground:
"Useless fool! Get out of the way! Stop embarrassing yourself!"
He kicked Nappa aside, then fixed his cold gaze on Goku, who was already braced for another fight. A dangerous aura began to rise around him.
"Kakarot! Don't think that getting lucky and beating that useless Nappa gives you the right to act smug in front of me! My strength is far beyond anything you can imagine!"
Goku shook out his wrists, a thrilled smile spreading across his face as he met Vegeta's gaze. His eyes had grown sharp.
"Really? Great! I could tell you were different from the others! Come on, let's have a proper fight!"
"Ha!!!"
"Hah!!!"
They both powered up at once and vanished from where they stood!
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
The fierce clash of fists and kicks rang out across the wasteland like a rapid drumbeat, while the gale they stirred up sent sand and rocks swirling through the air!
Both moved at astonishing speed, leaving countless afterimages in the air and on the ground.
Vegeta fought with savage intensity. He seized an opening and drove a vicious side kick into Goku's face!
"Uwah!"
Goku cried out in pain and flew backward, tumbling across the ground several times before he finally managed to steady himself.
He rubbed his rapidly swelling cheek, his fighting spirit burning even brighter.
"You're... really strong!"
He could feel his blood starting to boil!
"Ha!!!"
With a furious roar, Goku's speed surged again. He appeared at Vegeta's side in an instant and punched toward Vegeta's face!
A disdainful smirk crossed Vegeta's face. "Is that all?"
Smack! Their arms collided with a dull thud.
Vegeta seized Goku's wrist and planted his feet, intending to use his strength to swing Goku around and smash him into the ground.
But Goku reacted instantly. He grabbed Vegeta's arm with his other hand, then used Vegeta's momentum to flip nimbly through the air. His legs scissored around Vegeta's neck, and he twisted with all his strength!
"Hyah!"
Goku let out a shout and, with a clever use of leverage and explosive strength, sent Vegeta spinning off balance!
At the same time, he adjusted his position in midair and kicked Vegeta hard in the face!
Thud!
This time, Vegeta was the one sent flying. He plowed a long furrow through the ground before finally coming to a stop.
"Ptui!"
Vegeta got back to his feet and spat out a mouthful of bloodied saliva.
He touched his stinging cheek and glared at Goku with mounting rage.
"You bastard... I'll never forgive you! Hah-hah-hah-hah-hah...!!"
Furious, Vegeta swung both hands, firing countless Ki Blasts in an instant!
The blasts poured toward Goku like a storm, covering every possible escape route! It was Vegeta's signature move, commonly known as Prince Tactics!
Goku's expression changed. He immediately began darting around at high speed, twisting and turning desperately through the gaps between the blasts.
But there were simply too many of them. Quite a few still struck his body, bursting into clusters of flames and leaving him aching all over.
"Yah!!!"
Goku was fired up now, too. He powered up, forming a powerful barrier around himself, then charged straight toward Vegeta through the constant barrage of Ki Blasts!