First Meeting with Goku

Wrong person?

Mercenary Tao's face instantly darkened, the corners of his mouth twitching uncontrollably. The world's number one assassin being so thoroughly ignored was a blow to his pride no matter how you looked at it.

"Who are you looking for?"

"None of your business," Raditz said flatly.

Damn, so arrogant! Tao was taken aback—he had never encountered someone so brazen before. His old face flushed red in an instant, and he gritted his teeth. "You're too cocky."

"Save it. You're no match for me," Raditz replied, still calm.

"Heh, kid, it seems you only know my name, not my terror." Tao clasped his hands behind his back, his mechanical eye rotating forward and protruding slightly, a cold smirk curling on his lips. "I'll send you off for free, then."

"For free?"

"My usual fee for killing someone is a hundred million. Today, I'll send you to see King Yama for nothing!" Tao gave a light shout, his figure flickering.

The next second, he appeared behind Raditz, lashing out with a kick that whipped into Raditz's lower back. By his estimate, that kick would surely snap Raditz's spine, leaving him unable to stand again.

Just as he was feeling smug, a massive recoil shot through his leg, sending a chill straight to his heart. Sweat beads seeped from every pore without him even noticing.

But Raditz showed no reaction, standing still as a statue.

"Im... impossible..." Tao's face twisted in disbelief as he launched a relentless barrage of attacks. To be fair, as Master Crane's younger brother and a top-tier assassin, his martial arts skills were exceptional, with an endless stream of techniques. The only flaw—for Raditz, at least—was that their power was far too weak!

"Master, are you done?" Raditz casually reached out, catching Tao's full-speed, full-power punch, and with a slight squeeze, crushed the entire Mechanical Arm.

"You... you..." Tao was dumbfounded. Sweat poured down his face, and snot dripped from his nose, hanging above his lip.

He couldn't even form a complete sentence, his chin trembling uncontrollably.

Raditz tapped his scouter, and the screen flashed the number 180.

"Oh, your Battle Power is 180, Master Tao," Raditz said as he stepped closer. "Mine is exactly ten times yours!"

Raditz finally understood the thrill Frieza felt when he said, "My Battle Power is 530,000." That feeling of overwhelming power, paired with a grand, boastful declaration—it was indescribably satisfying.

Ten times!

Tao shuddered in fear. He knew this strangely dressed man wasn't lying; the aura casually radiating from him said it all.

After a moment of internal deliberation, Tao decisively dropped his fighting stance, bowed and scraped with utmost humility.

"I'm sorry! I was wrong! I shouldn't have been so arrogant! Since you know who I am, please spare me! I'll give you all the commission from this job!"

"Uh..." Raditz hadn't expected him to cave so quickly.

"Is it not enough? No problem, I have plenty of savings—you can take those too! I'll never kill again! Just let me go!"

Tao's skill at reading the wind was impressive. As he spoke, he beat his chest and stamped his feet, his attitude so sincere he could win an award for his acting. If Raditz hadn't known exactly what kind of person he was from the start, he might have been fooled.

"Actually, I really admire you, Tao. Your outfit is so unique—legend says your agile tongue can shake a man's courage, your long pillar can strike straight to the core, and you're ruthless and cunning. A true model villain!"

"Too... too kind..."

"You've got it wrong. I wasn't complimenting you." Raditz's expression shifted, his five fingers spread wide, aimed directly at Tao's head. "What I mean is, you're worth a hundred million."

The moment the words left his mouth, a blue beam of light blasted from his hand, instantly engulfing Tao without even giving him a chance to scream. His headless body crashed to the ground with a clatter, adding another corpse to the filthy floor.

Tao had done plenty of evil, Raditz thought. Wiping him out was a convenient way to contribute to cleaning up the world.

As he walked out of the abandoned bar, the scouter beeped a warning again. This time, the distance was much greater—4899—and the energy was even larger than Tao's.

Son Goku! No doubt about it!

He could sense the energy source moving at incredible speed, then suddenly stopping. According to his estimates, Goku should be heading to Master Roshi's island, with his four-year-old son Gohan by his side.

Raditz immediately accelerated, flying toward Kame House Island.

Before long, the island's outline came into view. The sunlit sea was scattered with countless specks of gold, the rolling waves gleaming with blinding light. Amid the vast ocean, Kame House Island stood solitary. A warm, moist sea breeze brushed past the wooden house, dappled sunlight filtering through the coconut trees onto the sandy shore. Seagulls occasionally glided by, leaving graceful arcs in the sky.

Several people were in front of the house. Raditz's scouter locked onto one of them—the person with the highest Battle Power on this planet for now: Son Goku.

Raditz descended slowly toward the island, looking down at everything from above.

The group had been chatting and laughing, but as Raditz approached, Goku sensed an extraordinary energy. He suddenly looked up at the sky, shouting in alert, "Who?! Such immense power!"

Raditz knew he'd been detected, so he accelerated his descent and landed right in front of them. Seeing the main characters and their companions from Dragon Balls for the first time, a surge of indescribable excitement welled up inside him.

"Ah! This... such strong ki..." Master Roshi exclaimed in shock.

Beside him, Krillin's eyes went wide, equally astonished.

"You... who are you?"

"How should I put this? Let me think..." Raditz was about to make a bold declaration when he suddenly hesitated.

He'd only thought about finding Goku, not what to do next.

Take him away? Definitely not possible. Snatch Gohan? That was what the original Raditz did—he was different. Reunite with Goku and live under the protagonist's halo? No, he had to seize his own destiny!

Far across the universe, Vegeta and Nappa already knew he'd come to Earth. They'd show up sooner or later. In Frieza's plans, Earth was also a short-term target for conquest, and Frieza, who had long despised Saiyans, would eventually wipe out the last survivors.

Putting it all together, there was only one path: resist Vegeta and Frieza!

He was still too weak now. To accomplish his grand goal, he needed to grow stronger—and he needed allies like Goku and Piccolo, maybe even bring Vegeta and Nappa under his control.

Though he loathed the brainless Nappa, Raditz still planned to keep him alive. The main reason was that he really wanted to see what Nappa's Super Saiyan form would look like. For the transformation everyone was dying to see, he had to spare his life.

So the question was: should he stir things up now or not?