Did I Get Reincarnated?

Where is this?! Why's it so dark? Wasn't I watching anime?!

Karochi was completely bewildered. He remembered finishing a day of delivering takeout in his rented apartment and happily watching anime. So why had he suddenly lost consciousness—and why couldn't he open his eyes?

Sleep paralysis? A ghost sitting on his chest? Panic-stricken, Karochi thought of scenes from horror movies.

At last, driven by his overwhelming desire to see the world, he managed to open his eyes.

"Holy crap—a monster!" The sight before him terrified Karochi the moment his eyes opened. A strange creature with a long, deep-yellow head was staring at him. Frantically, he flailed his arms and legs.

But soon, he noticed something else that sent a chill down his spine: his arms and legs were short, just like a baby's! And he was inside a container that looked like an incubation pod, with a strange tube covering his nose and mouth!

"What's going on?!" A strange crocodile-headed creature seemed to notice Karochi thrashing about and came over to ask.

The yellow-headed creature looked just as baffled. With an innocent expression, he could only say, "I don't know. They said this Saiyan called Karochi's parents were killed in battle, so they put him in one of the pods for orphans! He was fine just a moment ago. Maybe he got scared when he saw what I look like. Hahahaha!"

Saiyan?! Listening to them, Karochi was dumbfounded. Holy crap, this is the Dragon Ball world?! Damn, I'm screwed! And I'm on Planet Vegeta, of all places! I'm done for! Karochi didn't have time to think about becoming a Super Saiyan or any of that. All he wanted to know was what year it was.

After all, in the original story, Frieza destroyed the Saiyan homeworld with a gigantic energy blast. If he struck before Karochi could get off Planet Vegeta, it would be all over!

The only comforting thing was that death in the Dragon Ball world wasn't necessarily the end. He could still go to Otherworld and be reincarnated!

The crocodile-headed alien smacked the yellow-headed alien on the head and scolded him. "Don't mess around. If anything happens to him, the Saiyans will hold us responsible!"

They were menial workers, specifically assigned to look after Saiyan infants. Saiyans were cold-blooded and warlike, but they took very good care of their babies. You could say the little ones received every kind of attention.

All these incubation pods used the latest technology from Planet Cool. They had mattresses as soft as silk and a gentle, comfortable environment for growth. At regular intervals, the pods also supplied the infants with large doses of specially processed nutrients to make sure they grew faster and stronger.

The yellow-headed alien seemed to remember something. His body began to tremble, and he spoke with newfound caution. "Got it, got it!"

With that, the two aliens left the area in front of Karochi's pod.

Well, I'll just take things as they come! Karochi smiled bitterly to himself. The original story never specified exactly when Frieza destroyed Planet Vegeta. The only clue was that it happened some time after Goku was born.

The good news was that, over the past few days, he hadn't seen Goku, Bardock, or Gine anywhere in his field of view. That was a relief.

Karochi had also noticed the information about himself.

Name: Karochi

Parents: Confirmed deceased

Talent: Above average

Battle Power: 94

Among the Saiyans, newborns with a battle power below 30 were classified as low-class warriors. Those between 30 and 100 were mid-class warriors, while those above 100 were high-class warriors.

Karochi had just about reached the threshold for high-class! That didn't mean much in the later parts of Dragon Ball, but it still had its uses—like the Grand Elder's ability to draw out someone's potential and boost their battle power on Namek. Better talent meant more potential to draw out.

After the Grand Elder unlocked Son Gohan's potential, his battle power increased tenfold. It was so astonishing that Vegeta thought Goku had arrived.

Talent also determined a Saiyan's potential on Planet Vegeta. Once they matured, low-class warriors generally had a battle power below 2,000, while mid-class warriors ranged from 2,000 to 5,000. Only high-class warriors could reach or exceed 5,000.

Heh, good thing I came from another world! Otherwise, I'd probably be stuck with a battle power of two or three thousand for the rest of my life. With no immediate danger to worry about, Karochi had already started planning how to train.

In the original story, the concept of "ki" was never explained in much detail. But whatever form it took, Dragon Ball had grown out of China's culture of qigong, and its creators had drawn heavily on Chinese martial arts.

Karochi's goal was to learn how to control his ki before entering the Saiyan training camp! He'd have to stay in this incubation pod for three months before they came to get him.

Since his parents had died in battle, Karochi would temporarily be sent to a childcare center. After a year there, he'd receive the house and other things his parents had left behind. He'd also enter the Saiyan training camp for three years of training.

Karochi closed his eyes and began to sense the energy flowing through his body. It was very clear, but controlling it would take a thorough understanding of how ki circulated.

Three months later!

Karochi was lifted out of the incubation pod, his brown tail wrapped around his waist as if he were still asleep.

Seven months later, Karochi left the childcare center and received the house his parents had left behind. Luckily, he'd inherited their points—Saiyan currency, earned by completing missions. Otherwise, Karochi would probably have starved to death.

Saiyans had a ridiculously huge appetite, especially. Even now, Karochi could eat twenty times as much as an adult from his previous life. It was terrifying.

"I can finally control my ki!" Karochi let out a deep sigh of relief. His battle power had already passed 100 when he left the incubation pod. To avoid standing out too much, he'd mastered ki control by the second month after leaving the pod. It was still pretty rough, but he could control the reading on his Scouter.

After a year, his battle power had reached 124.

Just then, someone knocked on the door. Karochi hurried over to answer it. Standing outside was a female Saiyan. Unlike other Saiyans, who were usually irritable and impatient, she was quite gentle.

Of course, Saiyans like her were oddballs among their people. Their battle power was usually low, and they worked in civil administration. Goku's mother, Gine, was one such Saiyan; she was kindhearted and innocent.

"Karochi, Saiyan. You're being notified to report to the Saiyan training camp in seven days for a three-year training program." The woman didn't make small talk. She simply told Karochi about the upcoming training.

After taking the notice, Karochi bowed politely. "Sorry for the trouble, miss. Thanks for coming all this way!" He could tell that her battle power was much higher than his.

"Mm! All right, get ready. Someone will come pick you up in a few days to take you to training." The female Saiyan was briefly stunned by Karochi's polite manner. After all, Saiyans were famous for their fiery tempers.

After giving Karochi her instructions, she turned and left. She probably had others to notify.

Once the door closed, Karochi let out a deep breath. Honestly, if he'd had Goku's gravity device, those seven days might have been enough to train under a hundred times gravity and shoot his power up to eighty or ninety thousand! Of course, that was pretty unlikely. Karochi was still far too young.

Even so, Karochi did some basic training over the next seven days, things like push-ups. Later, he even strapped on weights. It couldn't compare to training with a gravity device, but surely it was still better than that training camp, right?