Hearing Vegeta's demand, Nappa froze for a moment.
He stared at Vegeta, disbelief flashing through his eyes.
To increase his strength… Vegeta was actually asking him to beat him to the brink of death.
So it wasn't just that Vegeta was ruthless toward others.
He was ruthless toward himself, too.
And yet, the more he saw Vegeta like this, the more it matched the Vegeta in Nappa's mind.
After all, it was common Saiyan knowledge:
after being gravely injured and recovering, a Saiyan's power could rise dramatically.
And the worse the injuries, the greater the boost.
But if the injuries weren't severe enough, you suffered all that pain for only a tiny gain—sometimes even less efficient than regular training.
The problem was… if you misjudged the force and went too far, you'd die.
And this kind of "shortcut" was frighteningly addictive.
Back when the Saiyan race still existed, some Saiyans had used this talent—combined with healing technology—to "farm" boosts.
But trying to grow stronger through repeated near-death recoveries was extremely dangerous.
It required absurdly precise control over how close you were to dying.
Like stress-testing the hardness of glass—any Saiyan who tried to exploit the "bug" like this…
inevitably ended up dying.
Eventually, the method was banned.
Otherwise, the Saiyans wouldn't have become a rare species even before they were wiped out.
Still, Nappa had followed Vegeta for too long. Arguing with him was pointless.
After a short silence, Nappa finally braced himself.
"Vegeta… if you feel like you can't hold on, tell me immediately…"
Vegeta scoffed. "Tch. Stop whining. Don't underestimate me, trash."
In the next instant, Nappa drove a brutal punch into Vegeta's abdomen.
Vegeta doubled over, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth—
but he quickly forced himself upright, grinning viciously.
"That's all you've got?"
Vegeta was clearly pushing Nappa—trying to provoke him into using full strength.
To be fair, it wasn't entirely deliberate.
Vegeta had always looked down on Nappa and Raditz. This was just the way he spoke.
Nappa roared, gritted his teeth, and struck again—this time aiming for Vegeta's chest.
BAM!
CRACK—!
It sounded like ribs breaking.
Vegeta's body shot backward, smashing through a mountain.
BOOOOM!
Dust and rubble swallowed him completely.
Nappa's eyes widened. He feared he'd hit too hard and shouted, "Vegeta!"
The dust cleared.
Vegeta staggered out of the ruins, clutching his chest. Fresh blood ran down the corner of his mouth.
"Not enough. Again!"
Nappa's pupils contracted.
"Again?! If I misjudge it, you'll die, Vegeta!"
Vegeta's brow lifted, glare sharpening. "Nappa, you useless idiot—if I'm not worried, why are you?
Since when did you become soft?"
Hearing that scolding, Nappa bit down hard.
In that moment, he realized something—
even if he had a chance to kill Vegeta, he wouldn't be able to do it.
Vegeta was evil, bloodthirsty, battle-crazed, and shameless…
but he was also unbreakable.
Relentless.
Nappa had hated him for treating him like disposable bait. He'd even tipped off Frieza.
But now, with the perfect chance to end him, Nappa hesitated—
and Vegeta demanded more.
A savage fire rose in Nappa's chest.
Nappa roared, gathered every ounce of strength he had, and unleashed a crushing shockwave straight into Vegeta's abdomen!
After taking that hit, Vegeta was finally reduced to a critically injured state.
He lay on the ground, barely breathing—
yet a hint of delight appeared at the corner of his mouth.
"Yes… that's it…"
With trembling hands, Vegeta pulled out a Senzu Bean and stuffed it into his mouth.
Crunch. Crunch-crunch…
He chewed and swallowed rapidly.
In an instant, all his injuries healed completely—
and the energy inside him surged like a volcano.
"HAAAH!!"
Vegeta released his aura.
A power unlike anything before erupted outward, blasting the ground into a crater spanning several kilometers.
Nappa had learned the basics of ki suppression during the trip to Earth, but even so, he instinctively stepped back in shock.
"This… this power… it's insane!"
Vegeta clenched his fist, feeling the roaring energy inside him, and sneered.
"Good… Keep going, Nappa!"
Nappa's eyebrows shot up.
"What? Again?!"
Vegeta barked, "Idiot—didn't you hear Zarbon?!
Frieza has more transformations. Even more power!
This still isn't enough!"
Nappa swallowed hard, then nodded. "Alright… I get it!"
In the next instant, Nappa once again put everything he had into it, unleashing his full strength onto Vegeta.
But when the dust cleared—
Vegeta looked basically fine.
His face twisted with fury.
"What the hell are you doing, Nappa?!"
Nappa wiped sweat from his forehead. "Vegeta… you need to suppress your ki even more.
You're too strong now. I don't think I can even injure you anymore."
In the next moment, Vegeta vanished.
When he reappeared—
his fist had already pierced straight through Nappa's chest.
Nappa spat out a mouthful of blood, eyes wide in disbelief as he stared at Vegeta.
"Ve…!"
"Vegeta… you…"
Vegeta snorted coldly. "Hmph. I already suppressed my ki and you still couldn't hurt me. Worthless."
He yanked his arm out.
Nappa's ki plummeted rapidly. He could feel death approaching.
Vegeta said icily, "If you're a Saiyan, your strikes need to be as ruthless as mine.
I don't need trash following me."
Then Vegeta pulled out a Senzu Bean and shoved it into Nappa's mouth.
Nappa desperately chewed and swallowed.
In an instant, his injuries vanished—his chest wound sealing as if it had never existed.
And at the same time, a powerful force surged through his blood.
Nappa stared at his hands, stunned.
"So strong… I can actually become this strong…!"
Vegeta dumped cold water on him immediately.
"Idiot. Now that you've gotten stronger, hurry up and attack me."
Nappa nodded hard. His palm flared with blinding light.
"Here I come!"
And so the brutal cycle repeated.
After five more rounds, Vegeta finally felt it—
his strength was barely increasing anymore.
A sentence Goku had once said suddenly echoed in his mind:
Your growth mainly comes from training and real battles. You can't rely only on near-death recovery boosts.
Vegeta looked at his hands and murmured, "Have I… already squeezed out my potential?"
Just then, Nappa asked excitedly, "Vegeta—again!"
"Wait, Nappa!"
Vegeta raised a hand, blocking him.
Nappa had just beaten Vegeta half to death several times and was riding the adrenaline high.
He asked eagerly, "What is it, Vegeta?"
Vegeta's expression darkened. "Looks like I've hit my limit.
This near-death recovery… isn't giving me any boost anymore."
Nappa's eyes widened. "How? I thought Saiyan potential was limitless!"
Vegeta roared, voice booming across the air.
"Idiot! Moron!
Even Kakarot said it—battle power growth mainly comes from training!
Without years of foundation, how could you possibly leap to the heavens in one step?!"
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