Dragon Ball, Saiyans Don't Just Want to Get Stronger!

He was one of Prince Vegeta's sparring partners for today! If he were late... at the thought of the Prince's icy gaze and terrifying fists, Nappa flew even faster.

Inside the door, Vitelli did not return to the gravity room immediately. He walked to the window and looked toward the royal palace, his eyes deep and thoughtful.

It was time.

Early morning on Planet Vegeta was shrouded in a layer of gray, metallic luster.

Vitelli pushed open the courtyard gate, carrying a small pack on his back—inside were two sets of clean, spare battle armor.

He looked back at the sturdy gravity room in the backyard, its silver-gray metal shell gleaming with a cold, hard luster in the dim light, and a trace of regret flickered in his heart.

If only I could take it with me using a Hoi-Poi Capsule... he sighed silently.

Unfortunately, Planet Vegeta lacked the magical space-compression technology of Hoi-Poi Capsule.

But then he thought, if Bulma's family on Earth could build a 300x gravity room, what did this minor loss matter?

He stopped lingering, turned around, and flew toward the spaceport with a steady aura.

At Landing Pad 3 of the spaceport, the massive, disc-shaped spaceship prepared specifically for this mission had been waiting for a long time.

Raditz was whispering to an alien wearing Frieza Force attire. Vitelli landed silently; he didn't disturb them, just stood quietly to the side to listen.

"Planet Sofu, a medium-sized planet dominated by technological civilization," the official pointed to the holographic projection of the planet from his tablet, his tone as flat as a routine report. "The main resistance consists of automated defense systems and combat robots. According to preliminary reconnaissance, the strongest robot has a combat power of only about 5,000. It shouldn't be too difficult for your squad."

The official paused and added a key piece of information. "Additionally, the planet has a stable satellite orbit and experiences a full moon. If you encounter difficulties, you can transform into a Great Ape at any time to turn the tide. This planet was carefully selected; theoretically... there shouldn't be any accidents."

Vitelli nodded inwardly as he listened. Robots? That meant the combat style would be relatively singular, relying more on energy intensity and physical destruction.

For someone like him, who had already mastered the application of "ki" and whose physical strength and speed had undergone explosive growth, this was a decent training ground for real combat. Plus, he had the moon as a trump card.

He quickly calculated his plan: defeat the robots quickly, head straight to the central headquarters to destroy it, use his power of over 30,000 to create the illusion of mutual destruction with the enemy, and if any flaws appeared, he could cut off his tail and leave it in a conspicuous place so Vegeta and the others would believe he had died, with only his tail remaining.

Perfect! Vitelli gave his plan a mental thumbs-up.

Just then, a somewhat hurried sound of air being torn apart reached him.

Nappa, bruised and limping, carefully escorted a short figure as they landed—that short figure was none other than Vegeta.

The little Prince's battle armor seemed exceptionally new today, and his chin was slightly raised, carrying a deliberately cultivated air of looking down on everything.

He spotted Vitelli standing to the side immediately, and in those eyes, a fierce fighting spirit ignited instantly, along with... a smugness, as if he had mastered Vitelli's secret.

"Hey! Vitelli!"

Vegeta walked straight up to Vitelli, his voice deliberately raised, carrying undisguised provocation. "How long did you think you could hide your secret? The gravity room! You've been using that thing to get stronger, haven't you!"

Vitelli just looked at him calmly, a faint, elusive smile on his face; he neither admitted nor denied it. This indifferent attitude instantly infuriated Vegeta.

"Not talking? Is that an admission?"

Vegeta stepped forward, his small body almost pressing against Vitelli, his eyes flashing with dangerous light. "Let me tell you! I am not the same person I was a month ago, the one you could catch off guard!"

He clenched his fists, and an aura far more powerful and violent than before erupted! Although still immature, the intensity... was indeed far beyond that of an ordinary Saiyan warrior!

"My current combat power... has broken through 20,000!!"

Vegeta's voice was filled with extreme confidence and arrogance. He habitually raised that iconic thumb and, under Vitelli's strange gaze, pointed it fiercely at himself. "Relying on external tricks like the gravity room, you've reached the limit of an ordinary Saiyan! Right now, in front of me, Vegeta, you are nothing but a bug I can crush at any time! Do you understand?!"

Looking at Vegeta's familiar, arrogant gesture—the kind that usually preceded a humiliating defeat—Vitelli felt no ripples in his heart. He even felt a little like laughing.

Twenty thousand? A rapid improvement indeed; he was worthy of being a genius among Saiyans. But... he was still too green.

Whether it was the control of power or combat instinct, he was still far, far behind.

Vitelli couldn't be bothered to waste words with him, nor did he want to stage a farce before departure. Just as Vegeta was still chattering away, showing off his "strongman" demeanor—

Thwack!

A crisp, muffled sound!

Vitelli struck like lightning, his palm precisely chopping the back of Vegeta's unguarded neck!

The force was perfectly controlled—stunning without causing brain damage! It didn't cause any substantial injury, yet it instantly blocked the nerve conduction.

Vegeta's arrogant expression froze instantly. His eyes widened, his face filled with an expression of unbelievable shock. He only managed a short, choked "Urgh..." before his eyes rolled back, and his body went limp, collapsing to the ground.

"Prince Vegeta!!!" Nappa and Raditz exclaimed in unison, like cats whose tails had been stepped on! They stared in horror as Vitelli picked up the unconscious Vegeta with one hand as easily as if he were a chick.

"You bastard! Are you crazy?! Do you know what you're doing?!" Raditz was both shocked and furious, his finger trembling as he pointed at Vitelli.

Nappa's muscles bulged, as if he were ready to pounce at any moment, but deep in his eyes lay a profound wariness of Vitelli.

Vitelli carried Vegeta, sweeping a blank look at the two of them. That icy gaze was like a physical cold current, instantly making the enraged Raditz and the ready-to-strike Nappa feel as if they had fallen into an ice cellar, freezing their movements in place.

"Shut up."

Vitelli's voice was low, yet carried an unquestionable majesty. "Too much chatter. Let's go."

He carried Vegeta straight toward the open hatch of the spaceship.

Nappa opened his mouth, wanting to say something more, but Vitelli paused his steps and tilted his head slightly, his gaze piercing Nappa like two cold daggers.

An invisible, mountain-heavy pressure instantly enveloped Nappa's entire body, making his very breathing choke!

"Do you wish to die?"

Vitelli spoke each word with deliberate slowness. His voice was flat, yet it carried a bone-chilling murderous intent.

Nappa shuddered, cold sweat instantly drenching his forehead. Every word he had intended to say was choked off in his throat.

He did not doubt for a second that if he uttered one more syllable, the monster before him would snap his neck without the slightest hesitation. He swallowed hard, lowered his head in humiliation, and dared not voice any further objections.

Raditz was so terrified he nearly wet himself.

And so, amidst a strange and oppressive atmosphere, the four of them—including the unconscious King Vegeta—boarded the disc-shaped spacecraft.

The hatch closed slowly, the engines emitted a low roar, and the massive ship ascended, tearing through the grey atmosphere of Planet Vegeta before transforming into a streak of light that plunged into the vast, boundless sea of stars.

Inside the ship, Vitelli shoved the unconscious King Vegeta into a stasis pod at random, setting the wake-up sequence for 24 hours before arrival.

He then walked toward a relatively isolated area in the corner of the ship.

Without even glancing at the complex, hesitant expressions of Nappa and Raditz, he stepped inside and sealed the hatch.

Soon, the humming of the stasis pod's energy circulation echoed from within.

Nappa and Raditz exchanged a look, both seeing a profound sense of helplessness and a flicker of fear in the other's eyes.

They walked silently to their own stasis pods and lay down. As the cold stasis fluid flooded in, their consciousness gradually faded.

The long interstellar voyage had begun. Destination: Planet Sofu. Duration: six months.

Deep in the North Galaxy, the headquarters of the Frieza Force.

This was a massive steel fortress suspended within a magnificent nebula, its interior decorated with extreme luxury and coldness.

Frieza lay comfortably in his signature hoverchair, which resembled a baby carriage. His slender fingers tapped elegantly against the armrest, and he listened to his subordinate's report with a cold smile on his face.

A short alien knelt respectfully on the floor: "Reporting to Lord Frieza, Prince Vegeta of the Saiyan race has departed for Planet Sofu under the escort of three high-level Saiyan warriors to carry out their first conquest mission."

"Oh, ho ho ho..."

Frieza let out a unique laugh, laced with mockery and cruelty. A playful light flickered in his scarlet eyes.

"Our little Prince Vegeta has reached the age where he should go out and see the world. How truly exciting."

He turned his gaze toward his two confidants. Standing beside him were the blue-skinned, tall and thin Cui, and the pink-skinned, obese Dodoria.

"Cui-san, Dodoria-san,"

Frieza's voice carried a cat-and-mouse-like laziness. "Tell me, as a benevolent leader, shouldn't I... send someone to guide this inexperienced little Saiyan prince? After all, the battlefield is a dangerous place. If King Vegeta's precious only son were to be lost by accident, it would be such a pity, ho ho ho..."

Cui immediately stepped forward, his face plastered with a fawning smile, and bowed.

"Lord Frieza is absolutely right! Prince Vegeta is still young and lacks experience. We are all colleagues serving you, Lord Frieza. It would be most appropriate for you to send an experienced subordinate to assist King Vegeta in teaching his son! This truly reflects your meticulous care for your subordinates!"

Dodoria also hurriedly puffed out his fat belly and chimed in with a muffled, gruff voice: "Cui is right! Everything is as Lord Frieza commands! Whoever you say to send, we will send!"

Frieza was very satisfied with their reactions. He rocked his hoverchair, his scarlet eyes shifting between Cui and Dodoria before finally settling on Dodoria. A smile, innocent yet chilling to the bone, appeared on his face.

"Then, I shall trouble Dodoria-san... to take the trip."

He emphasized the word "trouble," his tone carrying a trace of imperceptible cruelty. "After all, teaching the youth... sometimes requires... being a bit strict."

He paused, his smile unchanging, and added a light, airy remark that was nonetheless dripping with bloodlust:

"Oh, right. The teaching can be serious, so they fully realize the cruelty of the universe and the... gap in power. However..."

Frieza's mouth stretched into a wider arc. "It is best to leave Vegeta alive. As for the others... ho ho, don't kill them all. Someone needs to... give our little prince a taste of the battlefield's cruelty, and incidentally, recount his son's brilliant training process to King Vegeta, wouldn't you agree, Dodoria-san?"

Dodoria knelt on one knee, his massive head bowed low. A look of wicked understanding crossed his rugged face, and his voice was loud and respectful:

"Yes! This subordinate understands! Please rest assured, Lord Frieza! This subordinate will certainly teach Prince Vegeta and his escorts well, so that they... will never forget it!"

Frieza nodded in satisfaction and waved his hand.

Dodoria stood up, his massive frame radiating an oppressive excitement and bloodthirsty desire. He strode out of the hall to prepare for his mission of "instruction."

In the hoverchair, Frieza closed his eyes contentedly. The clean, bright porthole glass beside him, which reflected like a mirror, captured his face—a visage where innocence and cruelty were inextricably intertwined.

The piercing alarm of the ship stabbed into the depths of Vitelli's consciousness like a cold steel needle, dragging him forcibly back to reality from six months of deep stasis.

The stasis pod lid slid open slowly, and cold air rushed in, carrying the distinct scent of the ship's metal and coolant.

He opened his eyes to adjust to the dim light. The first thing he saw was King Vegeta, who had also just awakened and was struggling to sit up.

"You bastard!"

King Vegeta's angry eyes locked onto Vitelli instantly, burning with the rage and intense provocation he had suppressed for half a year.

The stasis clearly hadn't quelled the humiliation of being knocked unconscious by Vitelli's palm before their departure.

But Vitelli merely glanced at him indifferently, a faint, almost imperceptible curve touching the corner of his mouth, as if he were looking at a petulant child. He stepped out of the stasis pod directly.

He couldn't be bothered to waste his breath. With steady footsteps, he bypassed the still-seething King Vegeta and headed straight for the ship's control area.

Completely ignored, King Vegeta let out a heavy "Hmph," his small face flushed with anger, his clenched fists making a creaking sound of grinding bones.

Just you wait... once this mission is complete, I will make you pay when we return! he roared in his heart, channeling his humiliation into a more intense drive.

Inside the control cabin, Raditz was already busy at the console. The screen displayed the complex atmospheric data of Planet Sofu and a dense web of defensive network markers.

Nappa clumsily squeezed himself into a spherical one-man pod.

"Prince Vegeta! Vitelli! You two are awake!"

Seeing them emerge, Raditz hurried over to greet them, his tone carrying a hint of imperceptible nervousness.

"The ship can only remain in a safe orbit outside the atmosphere of Planet Soph. The planet has a powerful defense system and automated turrets; large ships are too big a target and would be instantly focused down if we tried to force our way in! We have to use the one-man pods to enter!"

Vegeta's brows furrowed, clearly extremely dissatisfied with such a stealthy approach: "We can't land directly? It's just killing a bunch of bugs; does it really need to be this troublesome?!"

Vitelli also looked at the data on the screen with some curiosity. Saiyans always favored violent incursions, so missions requiring tactics were indeed rare.

Raditz hurriedly explained: "This is detailed intelligence provided by the Frieza Force intelligence department. Although the individuals on Planet Soph aren't strong in combat, their technology is advanced, especially their planetary defense system. The one-man pods have weak energy signatures and are small in size, making them the only way to avoid the main fire points and land safely."

He operated the instruments, pulling up several preset landing coordinates. "We need to move quickly. If we drag this out, their defense system might adjust its scanning parameters."

Watching Raditz skillfully switch between various interfaces and analyze the data streams, Vitelli raised an eyebrow and joked, "Raditz, I think you have a real talent for this. If there ever comes a day when Vegeta doesn't need you as a guard, you might consider switching careers to become a mechanical engineer or a technical developer. It might have more of a future than being a warrior."

"Huh?"

Raditz looked bewildered, his hands freezing in place. "No, Vitelli! I... I'm just fiddling with the ship a bit, you saying that... is my qualification as a combatant going to be revoked in the future?"

He felt he had been subjected to some sort of peculiar "insult."

Vegeta couldn't be bothered with any of this; he only wanted to step onto that planet as soon as possible and use destruction to vent the intense displeasure in his heart.

"Let's go! What are you dawdling for!" He barked, turning and striding toward his own spherical pod, the hatch closing with a hiss.

Vitelli shrugged and climbed into the pod assigned to him.

Accompanied by a slight vibration and the low hum of engines, the four metal spheres quickly detached from the mothership, turning into four streaks of light as they dove rapidly toward the Planet Soph below, which was wrapped in a pale yellow atmosphere.

On the surface of Planet Soph, the planetary defense command center was already in total chaos.

"Alarm! Alarm! High energy reaction! Confirmed Frieza Force standard one-man pods have breached the outer defense grid! Quantity: four! Coordinates locked! Descending rapidly!"