"Damn, what a shame." Raditz looked embarrassed as he put distance between himself and the other Saiyans, not stopping until Vegeta and Nappa were far behind him.
He hadn't fully mastered his body yet—he couldn't even use the simplest ability like flying. He planned to use the next few days to familiarize himself with all aspects of his new body, using his injuries as an excuse.
The first test: strength level.
Raditz picked up a stone and squeezed it lightly. With a sharp "crack," the stone shattered in his hand.
He was amazed—he had easily crushed solid rock with the same amount of force he'd normally use to hold a cup. This was exactly what he needed to learn to control. With his newfound power, mastering precise control would be essential to truly command this body.
"If I remember correctly, my current power level is around 1200 in pure strength, and about 1500 when factoring in other abilities. Let's test my attack power."
Raditz tried to sense the energy flowing through his body and gathered it into his palm. Miraculously, blue energy coalesced at his fingertips, gradually forming a sphere of light. An energy ball! Raditz was overjoyed.
This was the most basic technique—if you couldn't even create an energy ball, you had no right to call yourself a warrior.
"Haaaa!"
With a shout, he launched the energy ball straight toward a barren mountain.
The light burst on impact! A deafening "BOOM!" echoed through the air. Smoke from the explosion billowed upward, blue-gray dust spread in all directions, and countless pieces of rock rained down. Only the base of the once-massive mountain remained.
Just a small energy ball had such destructive power. It seemed that a power level of 1500 was nothing to scoff at! Then again, Goku had once destroyed the moon, so this level of strength wasn't particularly surprising. More importantly, the energy ball he'd just fired lacked directional control—he could only blast it in a straight line, far from mastery of the technique.
"I should find someone to practice with," Raditz thought suddenly.
Progress would come faster through actual combat than fumbling around alone. Now that he was roughly familiar with his limbs' movement and had learned to harness energy, experiencing a few real battles would certainly yield significant improvement.
With this in mind, Raditz activated his scouter.
"Beep beep!"
"Beep beep!"
"Beep beep!"
...
More than a dozen signals appeared at once. Warning sounds filled his ears as numbers continuously flashed across the display.
250, 582, 322, 455, 890, 1421... the highest was actually over 2300! He'd thought the "power levels" Nappa mentioned would be under 1000 at most, but now it seemed this planet was practically equivalent to a mid-tier world.
Raditz proceeded cautiously, targeting the weaker readings first. He headed toward the signal showing a power level of 250.
After a while, following the scouter's guidance, he found his target.
It was an alien with a frog-like head—dark green all over with a muscular body. A row of round white hemispheres adorned its chest. With four arms, each holding a different weapon, it made for an intimidating sight.
When it spotted Raditz, the creature instinctively backed away.
"Saiyan!" it exclaimed, raising its laser gun.
Raditz could see that the inhabitants of this planet had grown fearful of Saiyans—the frog-headed alien's hand trembled as it aimed the weapon. The scouter automatically focused on the target, and the displayed power level fluctuated upward slightly.
"Just as I thought—emotional state affects power level," Raditz muttered.
At that moment, the frog-alien fired.
The beam was thin and sharp, containing intense energy, striking Raditz directly in the chest.
"Come on!" Raditz didn't dodge or evade. Instead, he threw an energy ball forward.
The two energy sources collided, triggering violent friction. Sparks scattered through the air as shockwaves rippled outward. Almost immediately, Raditz's energy ball overwhelmed the continuous beam of light and blasted toward the frog-alien. Along its path, soil erupted, trees splintered, and the air itself seemed to explode.
"BOOM!"
The massive explosion echoed in Raditz's ears. A large crater marked the ground, its edges scorched black. The frog-alien had been completely vaporized in the blast, leaving nothing behind.
The difference in power levels was too great—using energy balls made combat completely effortless.
As Raditz was savoring his first victory, his scouter suddenly issued a warning. Multiple energy signatures with power levels around 300 were converging on his position from all directions.
"Perfect timing." True to his Saiyan blood, Raditz couldn't help clenching his fists, feeling a surge of excitement.
He took the initiative, rushing forward through several jungle clearings until he reached the gathering of energy signatures. There were seven frog-aliens of the same species, all looking nearly identical except for variations in size. They had been running toward their fallen comrade when they stumbled upon Raditz.
"Saiyan! It's a Saiyan!" one of them screamed.
Immediately, they all began shouting, their expressions a mix of ferocity and terror. Though frenzied and clutching their weapons tightly, none dared to advance.
If they wouldn't come to him, he would go to them! Without hesitation, Raditz charged forward, his sprinting speed surprising even himself.
He abandoned energy attacks in favor of close combat—elbow strikes, side kicks, chain punches, knee strikes, back throws, hammer fists—unleashing every move he could execute. Though he had no practiced combinations, the sheer advantage in power level was enough to overwhelm several frog-aliens.
Soon, only two remained. Facing Raditz, they felt overwhelming fear.
They exchanged glances, steeled their resolve, and attacked together!
Two fists are no match for four hands—not to mention they had eight hands between them! Though their power levels were low, their attack speed was impressive, presenting quite a challenge for Raditz.
"Bring it on!" Raditz yelled, throwing several punches in rapid succession.
Even against two opponents, Raditz maintained the upper hand. A single punch from him could shatter an opponent's limb, and he could easily defend against their eight-armed assault. At first, he struggled to track their movements, but soon their speed seemed to slow before his eyes.
After several exchanges, one frog-alien's arm was completely broken, bone piercing through skin as purple blood flowed from the wound.
They emitted strange screams as the white hemispheres on their chests suddenly burst open. The fleshy sacs inside released an energy shockwave that caught Raditz off guard.
"Ugh!"
The powerful blast sent Raditz flying several feet backward.
"Damn it! Got careless!" Raditz stood while rubbing his neck, and saw that the frog-aliens had collapsed, completely lifeless.
Looking at his own body, he noticed his battle armor was slightly dirty but otherwise unmarked.
"Seems their desperate attack couldn't penetrate my battle suit. The defense is really impressive. My body's not bad either—I don't feel any pain from that blast..." Raditz mused appreciatively. Suddenly, the smile froze on his face. "Oh no! I promised to find food!"
Meanwhile, Vegeta stood with arms crossed, impatiently tapping his fingers against his forearm as he stared in the direction Raditz had gone. "That worthless fool is taking forever. I really ought to kill him..."
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