Nappa's face contorted with rage, his massive frame trembling at the new guy's audacity.
The bald Saiyan's veins bulged across his temple and neck as he processed Toji's demand for an apology.
"You want US to apologize?" Nappa snarled, spittle flying from his lips. "Do you have any idea who you're talking to, Earthling? We, the Saiyans, the mightiest warrior race?!"
Vegeta remained silent, his mind racing to make sense of the impossible power reading that had just destroyed his scouter.
Something was fundamentally wrong here. No human should possess such strength.
"Nappa," Vegeta cautioned, his voice low and tense. "Wait-"
But Nappa was beyond reason. The hulking Saiyan's pride had been wounded, and the dismissive smirk on Toji's face only stoked his fury further.
"I'll crush you into DUST!" Nappa roared, his aura exploding around him in a violent display of yellow energy.
The ground cracked beneath his feet as he launched himself forward, massive fist cocked back for a blow.
To everyone watching, Nappa moved like a freight train - unstoppable, terrifying in his raw power and speed.
To Toji, he might as well have been standing still.
Time seemed to slow to a crawl as Toji's enhanced perception processed everything at once.
He could see individual beads of sweat flying from Nappa's brow, count the ripples of muscle tensing across the Saiyan's massive frame, even track the subtle shifts in the air currents disturbed by Nappa's charge.
'So this is what having this much Ki does,' Toji mused internally, feeling the raw power coursing through every cell of his body.
Everything about him had been enhanced beyond human limits - strength, speed, durability, even his cognitive processes were operating at superhuman levels, and he could have it do so and not do so whenever he wished.
All the benefits, none of the downsides of a world of cardboard like Superman- or a timeless world like the Flash.
As Nappa's fist inched toward him, Toji didn't even bother to move. Instead, he simply narrowed his eyes and flexed his aura slightly.
The effect was instant.
An invisible pulse of Ki radiated outward from Toji's body.
To the untrained eye, nothing seemed to happen - Toji hadn't moved a muscle. Yet Nappa's charge abruptly halted as if he'd slammed into an invisible wall.
The massive Saiyan's eyes bulged in shock as his body suddenly felt like it weighed a thousand tons.
An immense pressure crushed down on him from all sides, forcing him to his knees. His lungs struggled to expand against the overwhelming force.
"What... is... this?" Nappa wheezed, his face contorted in pain and confusion as he fought for each breath.
Krillin and Gohan stared in disbelief. From their perspective, Toji had done nothing but glare at the charging Saiyan, yet somehow Nappa was now on his knees, gasping for air.
Only Piccolo, with his more refined Ki sensing abilities, could perceive what was happening - the newcomer was exerting his Ki in a precisely controlled manner, creating a localized field of pressure that was crushing Nappa without affecting anything else around them.
'Impossible,' Piccolo thought, sweat beading on his green forehead. 'That level of Ki control... and that raw power...'
Vegeta's tactical mind shifted into overdrive. This situation had deteriorated beyond salvaging through direct confrontation.
If this human could bring Nappa to his knees with just a glance, they needed a drastic change in approach.
"If this amount of raw power won't work," Vegeta muttered, reaching into his armor, "then we'll need to change the game. We simply need more."
With haste, Vegeta produced a small white sphere of concentrated Ki - a power ball. Without hesitation, he hurled it skyward.
Toji tracked the movement with mild curiosity, making no move to intercept it. 'So he's going for the Great Ape transformation. Interesting... let's see what they can do.'
"BURST OPEN AND MIX!" Vegeta shouted, clenching his fist.
The power ball expanded in the sky, growing and turning into essentially an artificial small moon- emitting the specialized Blutz Waves needed to trigger the transformation.
"Nappa!" Vegeta commanded, his eyes already fixed on it. "Look at it! NOW!"
Despite the crushing pressure, Nappa managed to tilt his head upward, his eyes locking onto the glowing orb.
Piccolo's instincts warned him as he recognized what was happening. He could hear the Saiyans' heartbeats accelerating, their breathing becoming ragged. Their eyes had begun to glow an ominous red.
"Their tails!" Piccolo shouted to Toji. "They're transforming into Great Apes! You need to stop them!"
But Toji merely raised a hand dismissively, never taking his eyes off the transforming Saiyans. "Step back," he commanded, his voice eerily calm. "I want to test my strength."
He released the pressure on Nappa, allowing both Saiyans to complete their transformation.
The metamorphosis was both terrifying and fascinating to witness. Bones cracked and reformed as the Saiyans' bodies expanded to a monstrous size.
Coarse brown fur erupted across their skin as their faces elongated into bestial snouts filled with razor-sharp teeth.
Within moments, two towering Great Apes stood where Vegeta and Nappa had been, their massive forms blocking out the sun. Their roars shook the very air, sending birds scattering from distant trees.
"Are you INSANE?" Piccolo snarled at Toji, grabbing Gohan and Krillin by the backs of their shirts. "Their power increases tenfold in this form!"
Without waiting for a response, Piccolo launched into the air, carrying the two smaller fighters to a safer vantage point on a distant cliff.
Toji stood alone before the monstrous apes, looking almost comically small by comparison. Yet his posture remained relaxed, his expression one of mild amusement.
"Well?" he called up to them, spreading his arms wide. "Don't keep me waiting. Show me what the mighty Saiyans can do in this form."
Great Ape Nappa let out a deafening roar and swung a massive fist downward. The blow created a shockwave that carved a trench in the earth as it approached Toji.
Toji didn't dodge.
The impact kicked up a massive cloud of dust and debris, obscuring the point of impact. From their distant vantage point, Krillin, Gohan, and Piccolo shielded their eyes.
"Did... did he just let himself get hit?" Krillin asked incredulously.
When the dust settled, Toji stood exactly where he had been, completely unharmed. Nappa's massive fist was pressed against his chest, but it might as well have been a gentle tap for all the effect it had.
"Is that it?" Toji asked, his voice dripping with disappointment.
Great Ape Vegeta joined the assault, both monsters attacking in tandem. Their massive fists rained down on Toji from all angles, each blow powerful enough to level mountains.
They stomped, kicked, and slashed with their claws, moving with surprising agility for creatures of such size.
Toji allowed the barrage to continue, standing motionless as the landscape around him was reduced to rubble. The Great Apes' attacks grew increasingly desperate, their faces twisted in confusion and rage.
Finally, Vegeta opened his massive maw and unleashed a concentrated beam of Ki directly at Toji.
Nappa followed suit, both beams converging on his position in a blinding flash of yellow and purple light.
The explosion was catastrophic, carving a massive crater into the earth and sending shockwaves rippling for miles in every direction.
"Holy crap!" Krillin shouted, bracing himself against the force of the blast. "There's no way anyone could survive that!"
As the light faded and the dust began to settle, a silhouette became visible at the center of the destruction.
Toji stood amidst the smoking rubble, casually stretching his arms above his head. Even his clothes remained pristine, without so much as a scorch mark.
"Ahh, that was a nice massage," he called up to the dumbfounded Apes. "Would you mind doing my back again? Nappa wasn't as good as you- what was your name again? I don't remember hearing it." He turned around, presenting his back to them and glancing over his shoulder with a taunting smirk.
Great Ape Nappa's mind snapped at the mockery. With a thunderous roar that shook the mountains, he reared back and gathered an enormous amount of energy in his mouth again- this time taking far more time to charge.
The resulting beam dwarfed his previous attack, a power that threatened to obliterate not just who stood before him but a significant portion of the surrounding landscape.
"Die!" Nappa roared as he released it.
Toji's expression shifted from playful to serious in an instant. With a spin, he extended his leg in a perfect roundhouse upper kick that connected with the energy beam.
The seemingly impossible happened.
Instead of being vaporized, Toji's kick redirected the massive energy attack back at its source.
The beam struck Great Ape Nappa with force, sending the monstrous Saiyan flying backward for miles before crashing into a distant mountain range with an explosion and impact that could be felt from where they stood.
"I think that's enough games," Toji announced, turning his attention to Great Ape Vegeta.
Without any visible effort, Toji raised his hand toward the remaining Ape. An invisible force seized Vegeta's massive body, lifting him off the ground as easily as a child might pick up a toy.
Toji made a casual flicking motion with his fingers, and Great Ape Vegeta was slammed into the earth with such force that the ground cratered beneath him.
Then, with nothing more than a narrowed glare directed at the artificial moon hovering in the sky, Toji sent out a focused pulse of Ki that shattered the power ball into fragments- the energy immediately dissipating.
Without the Blutz Waves to sustain their transformations, both Saiyans began to revert to their normal forms.
Their massive bodies contracted, fur receding, until they lay in their original forms, battered and barely conscious in the rubble.
Toji strolled casually toward Vegeta, who was struggling to push himself up from the ground. With deliberate slowness, he reached down and grabbed the Saiyan prince by his hair, lifting him up so they were face to face.
"Now," Toji mused aloud, examining Vegeta like an interesting specimen, "what am I going to do with you and your friend?"
The sound of approaching footsteps drew his attention. Piccolo, Krillin, and Gohan had flown back to the battlefield now that the immediate danger had passed.
"Kill them," Piccolo said without hesitation, his voice hard with hatred. "They came here to destroy our world. They've already murdered countless innocents." Though the last part was more said to motivate Toji rather than something he himself cared for.
Krillin nodded in agreement, Gohan though simply looked on with wide, uncertain eyes. When angry he had no problem with attacking to kill, now he was once more just a kid- trained as a warrior or not.
"I don't know who you are," Piccolo continued, eyeing Toji with a mixture of wariness and respect, "but you're clearly human, despite how unbelievably strong you are. This is your world too. These monsters need to die if we're to protect it."
Toji appeared to consider this, tilting his head thoughtfully. Then, with a casual flick of his wrist, he released Vegeta's hair, letting the Saiyan prince's face drop unceremoniously into the dirt.
"You make a good point," Toji acknowledged. "Though I have to say, I'm a bit disappointed. All this strength, and I couldn't even exert a single percentage of it."
Internally, Toji had no intention of killing either Saiyan.
He knew their importance to future events - Vegeta's eventual turn to the side of Earth's defenders, his role in fathering Trunks, even Nappa had his uses were he to not be killed. In this world no matter how strong- being alone in strength isn't wise.
Broly showed that- the mightiest born warrior, untrained yet beaten by weaker opponents with teamwork- though this is primarily speaking of his Z version. (He really needed to check whether the existing Broly is Super's or Z's or whether he exists at all or not.)
Besides, he was curious to see if Vegeta would take the bait he was about to dangle.
Vegeta's mind was racing. His pride had been shattered along with his body, but his survival instinct remained intact.
He needed to find leverage - anything to convince this human anomaly- this abominable mutant, one that was probably like the Ginyu force- no Frieza himself - to spare his life long enough for him to escape, recover, and eventually have his revenge.
Then it hit him. The perfect bait.
"Wait!" Vegeta croaked, spitting blood as he forced the words out. "You may have defeated us, but we're nothing compared to what's coming."
Toji turned back, one eyebrow raised in feigned curiosity. "Oh?"
"Frieza," Vegeta continued, sensing an opening. "The most powerful being in the universe. He didn't send us here... but when he learns of our failure- us his elite and learns of why we came here- to gain the Dragon Balls, he'll come himself."
"Dragon Balls?" Toji echoed, turning toward Piccolo and the others with a questioning look.
Piccolo hesitated, clearly reluctant to share such information with someone he'd just met, regardless of whose side they seemed to be on. Finally, he spoke, his voice guarded.
"Seven magical orbs," he explained tersely. "When gathered together, they can grant almost any wish. They were created by Kami, who is... connected to me. My death is his death, and the uselessness of the orbs."
He added that last part, in case Toji wanted to kill them all when he heard about the orbs and wanted them for himself.
"And this Frieza wants them?" Toji pressed, maintaining his facade of ignorance.
Vegeta seized the opportunity to make himself useful. "Frieza doesn't know about them yet, but he will soon. The scouters transmit everything. He'll know the Dragon Balls were created by Namekians."
He gestured weakly toward Piccolo. "He'll either come here... or worse, he's already heading to Planet Namek to find their Dragon Balls."
"And trust me," Vegeta added, his voice dropping to an ominous tone, "Frieza is not to be trifled with. He'll wish for immortality, and then no one in the universe will be able to stop him."
Toji's expression shifted to one of intrigue - exactly as he'd planned. He crouched down, bringing himself eye-level with the battered Saiyan prince.
"How powerful are we talking?" he asked, his voice casual but with an undercurrent of eagerness. "Could this... Frieza actually make me try?"
Vegeta's eyes widened slightly as he recognized the hook had been set. "Yes," he replied, not needing to fake the sincerity in his voice.
"And more than that. When you fought Nappa and me just now, I was at a power level of 180,000 - the strongest in the Frieza Force, even surpassing Captain Ginyu. But if Frieza were here..."
He paused, the admission clearly painful for his pride. "Loath as I am to admit it, he would have had an even easier time against us than you did."
Toji rose to his feet, rubbing his chin thoughtfully as he processed this information - or rather, pretended to. "So what you're saying is," he said slowly, "you're offering to lead me to this Planet Namek and Frieza. And in exchange, I spare your lives..."
"You can't be serious!" Krillin protested immediately. "These guys killed our friends! They would have destroyed the whole planet if you hadn't shown up!"
Piccolo's eyes narrowed dangerously. "This is a mistake. They'll betray you the moment they see an opportunity."
Toji ignored their objections completely, instead clapping his hands together with an almost childlike enthusiasm. "Fine!" he declared cheerfully.
Relief washed over Vegeta's face, a smile forming on his bloodied lips.
Internally, he congratulated himself on successfully manipulating this powerful but apparently naive monsterous human. The fool had taken the bait completely - or so he thought.
Suddenly, all four conscious fighters stiffened, their heads turning in the same direction as they sensed a powerful Ki signature approaching rapidly from the distance.
Toji recognized it immediately, of course - reasoning that Goku, freshly revived and racing toward the battlefield after completing his journey along Snake Way. But he maintained his act, pointing with his thumb toward the approaching energy.
"Friend of yours?" he asked casually.
Krillin's face lit up with genuine joy. "It's Goku! He made it back!"
"Dad!" Gohan exclaimed, his earlier fear and exhaustion momentarily forgotten. "He's back! He's really back!"
Toji nodded, as if processing this new information.
With a casual gesture, he lifted both the unconscious Nappa and the barely-conscious Vegeta with his telekinetic Ki control, encasing them in a transparent energy bubble.
"Well then," he announced, beginning to float upward, "let's go meet him. This Frieza character needs to be stopped if your story about immortality-granting wish dragons is true."
Piccolo growled low in his throat, clearly dissatisfied with the decision to let the Saiyans live.
Nevertheless, he launched into the air alongside Toji, throwing a venomous glare at Vegeta, who responded with a weak but defiant smirk.
Gohan and Krillin followed, the former's expression a mixture of excitement at his father's return and uncertainty about their strange new ally.
As they flew toward Goku's approaching Ki signature, Toji allowed himself a small, private smile.
Everything was proceeding exactly as he'd planned. He had established himself as the dominant power, saved the Z Fighters from their canonical deaths- well Piccolo's, and set things up to head toward Namek - all while making it seem like it had been Vegeta's idea.
'The butterfly's wings are already in full swing,' he thought as they soared through the clear blue sky. 'Let's see where this new path takes things.'
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(Author note: Nappa lives! And so does Piccolo, but primarily Nappa!
For if you guys didn't know, I geniunely like Nappa- guy was a brute, but he did care enough about Raditz to suggest to Vegeta to revive him with the dragon balls, he honestly was to an extent better than Saiyan Saga Vegeta in character.
At least he cared about his people.
Well, I hope to see you all next chapter, we're going to meet Goku now.
Bye!