Cultivation

King Kai's Kikoho shot out in all directions, flying at Raditz from every angle.

Raditz held Gohan in his arms, his movements slightly sluggish. Fortunately, he had already grown accustomed to the gravity. He poured all his strength into high-speed dodging, leaping and weaving through the dense barrage of Kikoho, narrowly escaping each attack.

In the blink of an eye, dozens of strikes came and went, all dodged by Raditz.

"This looks too easy." King Kai was secretly startled by how formidable a Saiyan could be, and immediately shouted, "I'm speeding things up!"

With that, King Kai launched an even fiercer assault, his hands moving faster as Ki Blasts came in rapid succession.

The first one grazed Raditz's back, practically sliding past it, shocking him into a panic. Before he could dwell on it, the second and third followed, their blistering speed throwing Raditz into chaos—no longer as relaxed as before.

"Boom!"

The third one hit him.

With an explosive roar, smoke and dust billowed. Raditz tumbled several times before landing on his back.

He could feel his insides as if they'd been shattered, searing pain shooting through every nerve. To make matters worse, Gohan had been knocked unconscious by the blast and lay slumped on his chest, crushing him and making it hard to breathe.

"Dammit, I've still got a long way to go..."

Raditz let out a bitter laugh, climbed to his feet again, and continued training.

And so, everyone immersed themselves in training without a shred of slack. King Kai announced the Saiyans' arrival time every day, keeping everyone on edge and driving them to work even harder.

Beyond the set training, Raditz also did extra physical exercises on his own, pushing himself harder than the others, and his progress was nothing short of astonishing. King Kai watched and praised him repeatedly, marveling at the Saiyans' immense combat potential.

After a month, Goku and Piccolo both caught Bubbles and joined Raditz's ranks, while the others kept striving to catch up. True to his Saiyan bloodline, Gohan gradually grew accustomed to ten times gravity and could move around slowly.

Half a year passed in the blink of an eye. Almost everyone had made rapid progress under King Kai's guidance. Raditz chose Goku as his partner, while Piccolo couldn't get along with anyone else and ended up pairing with Gohan. The others also formed pairs and began their own sparring sessions.

"Bam!"

A thunderous roar echoed across King Kai's Planet. Two figures crossed paths, leaving only their lingering auras in the air. The force of their punches spread, kicking up gusts of wind that rippled the planet's blanket-like grass like rolling waves.

Goku and Raditz!

Their intersecting figures halted midair, then turned and charged at each other again.

Goku swung his right fist, a hook punch aimed straight at Raditz's face. The immense power brought a fierce wind rushing forward, air currents spiraling. Raditz calmly extended his left hand and, before Goku's punch could fully land, grabbed his fist!

Goku tried to break free, but Raditz was stronger. He quickly lifted his left leg. Raditz had anticipated this, raising his right arm to block the kick. Then, twisting his wrist, he caught Goku's ankle, swung him downward with force from his right hand, and released his left in an instant.

"Swoosh—!"

"Bam!"

A large crater was smashed into the ground. Goku lay in the center, groaning in pain.

"Not done yet." Raditz pressed his advantage, firing off several Ki Blasts in succession, just like King Kai had trained him, sending them hurtling toward Goku.

Goku immediately leaped out of the crater, dodging at high speed while closing in on Raditz. He had long adapted to the gravity's burden, and without his heavy gear on, he was incredibly fast. After a few twists and turns, he was right in front of Raditz.

"Ha!" Raditz was ready, sweeping his leg in a kick.

The sweeping strike aimed straight for Goku, carving a sharp arc through the air toward his waist.

Just then, a red light erupted around Goku, his aura blazing fiercely. In an instant, Goku vanished—so fast even Raditz couldn't see him.

Kaio-ken!

By the time Raditz reacted, Goku was already behind him, hands clasped together like a hammer raised above his head, slamming down hard!

At the last possible moment, Raditz twisted his body into an almost impossible angle, barely dodging Goku's attack. Even so, the sheer force of the punch's wind shattered a corner of his Battle Suit's shoulder guard.

Goku wanted to keep attacking, pressing in and throwing several more punches.

"Don't get too cocky!" Raditz dodged left and right, adjusted his stance, and began to counter. The two clashed fists, unleashing a frenzy of blows. In the air, only the shadows of their fists could be seen, not the actual punches.

Hundreds of strikes back and forth, and both Raditz and Goku grew more excited with each exchange. The Saiyan blood in them ignited, driving them to fight with the most primal, intense methods. They met fist to fist, sending out violent shockwaves!

"Ahhh, da-da-da-da-da..."

Goku fought with increasing ferocity. The Kaio-ken amplified his strength, making him no less than Raditz.

Raditz, on the other hand, was gradually being suppressed by Goku, taking hits more often in their exchanges.

"Ha!" Driven by excitement, Raditz gritted his teeth and shouted, activating the Kaio-ken himself. Red light burst around him, blazing like flames, his Battle Power skyrocketing.

In almost an instant, Goku couldn't react in time and could only keep attacking. Their figures tore through the air, fists colliding with a thunderous roar. Air ripples like a storm burst outward. This time, Raditz landed a direct punch to Goku's chest, the force seeming to burrow into his body, sending him flying with a "Boom!"

Taking the hit, Goku crashed into the ground again, carving out a deep crater. His Kaio-ken state dissipated.

Seeing this, Raditz couldn't help but slip into show-off mode, hands on his hips as he shouted, "My foolish little brother, with that incomplete Battle Power of yours, you can't defeat me!"

After saying something so cringey, even Raditz felt a bit embarrassed.

He looked around and saw everyone staring at him in bewilderment. Raditz's face flushed even redder, feeling like he'd made a huge fool of himself.

"Wow, amazing!" Gohan was the first to exclaim.

"Yeah, no wonder he's Raditz."

"Goku's brother is way stronger than Goku."

"And what he said was so cool—I've got to work harder too!"

Though Piccolo didn't praise him, he thrust his fist toward Gohan. "Brat, where are you looking? We're in a fight!" With that, his fist slammed into Gohan's face, followed by an almost inaudible, soft "tch."

"..."

Raditz was caught off guard by the sudden reversal. So that's what worked for them!

He then looked at Goku, who was slowly getting up. A sense of crisis crept over Raditz. If he hadn't used the Kaio-ken just now, he might have been weaker than Goku. As expected, Goku's talent was remarkable.

He would have to train even harder!