Three months passed.
Bardock was floating through space alongside the Saiyans who came to retrieve him. They were surprised by both his growth and the Saibaman's growth. Some of them even offered him a good price for the Saibaman, since it had mutated due to the planet's soil and atmosphere. If the mutation remained stable on a planet with stronger gravity—like Planet Vegeta—Saibamen with such traits could become extremely useful in future raids.
And who knew what other surprises could come from mixing plants? If two mutated Saibamen were combined, they might produce something far more powerful—useful for both training and combat.
Bardock didn't know much about prices, so he rejected the offer for now, but didn't close the door completely.
"I'll think about it. Give me some time," he said.
They decided not to pressure him further. Instead, they used technology to revert the Saibaman back into a seed. The Saibaman wouldn't lose its strength or memories—it would simply enter a dormant, trance-like state in seed form.
When they measured Bardock's strength with their radar, it showed a power level of 1,050. It was a massive increase, but not unheard of. Low-class Saiyans often increased their power by up to five times. If someone exceeded that expectation, they were labeled either a genius or a mutation.
Mutations weren't always seen as curses or bad fortune. Saiyans believed mutated warriors could produce stronger offspring, and sometimes two mutated Saiyans were intentionally paired to have children. In most cases, this resulted in strong offspring, so it wasn't frowned upon—it was viewed as something done for the greater good of the Saiyan race.
Usually, low-class mutant Saiyans produced children who reached middle-class levels. But occasionally, there were exceptions—like Verus and Barena. Both were low-class Saiyans, yet they produced Bardock, identified as a mutant, and Vaske, seen as a Saiyan with the potential to become a future king's right hand.
Mutations ranged from useless ones—like strange body proportions—to unexplained and overwhelming ones. The Legendary Super Saiyan Broly would be classified as the greatest mutation and mystery of all. Meanwhile, Saiyans with longer tails were simply considered low-class mutants.
I myself was seen as a mutant—both in body and power—despite being born from low-class Saiyans.
Saiyan society resembled the societies of my past life. What they couldn't explain through science, they attributed to mysterious forces. The difference was that in this life, they were mostly right—mutations were real, and often beneficial.
In my past life, people who weren't "normal" were sometimes labeled cursed or evil. They suffered without doing anything wrong. I always felt anger toward those who bullied them and wasn't afraid to stand up for them—even hurting those people if necessary. I knew crossing certain lines would destroy my life forever, but I never regretted defending the innocent.
Bardock thought the same way I did. When we eventually met, we would probably make an excellent brother duo—though we wouldn't show that bond unless we had the absolute strength to protect it.
Vaske didn't know Bardock was returning home. His thoughts were fixed on the tournament currently underway.
This time, the fights weren't held in the old sandy arena. All elite Saiyans were watching, and they didn't want dust or a fragile battlefield ruining their entertainment. A massive arena was constructed entirely of whitish-blue marble, incredibly durable, measuring 50 meters by 40 meters.
Matches were rarely decided by ring-outs. Most ended with serious injuries.
When Saiyans were fired up by elite spectators, they didn't know how—or when—to stop. They kept getting back up. Sometimes that led to Zenkais and unlocked potential gained through near-death combat.
As for me, I won most of my fights.
The tournament was designed so everyone could showcase themselves, but only winners truly mattered. Recruits with the best records advanced to the top 64. I was among the top four, each of us holding a perfect score of 12 victories. Most who passed had around 8 wins and 4 losses, with the lowest passing record being 7 wins.
Now the round of 16 was underway. I won my fight easily and advanced to the round of 8.
I watched the elite Saiyans observing the battles. They weren't like typical Saiyans. Their fighting spirit was still there—you could see it in their eyes—but they didn't scream or provoke the crowd. They watched coldly and analytically.
That's when I realized this tournament wasn't about entertainment.It was a recruitment trial.
The rules confirmed it—ki blasts were allowed from the quarterfinals onward.
I would probably win, but I couldn't reveal too much of my strength. My true maximum was around 5,500, yet I only displayed 4,200. The elites watched my fights with piercing gazes, like predators who had finally found valuable prey.
I knew I would be chosen by a squad—or perhaps even allowed to choose one myself. But first, I had to win.
The reward was announced as a secret Saiyan technique. If I didn't already know about Bardock's fake moon technique—the Power Ball—I might have thought it was that. Anything labeled a "Saiyan technique" was guaranteed to be valuable.
Soon, the round of eight was announced.
I knew I would fight first based on the bracket. I jumped into the arena and waited for my opponent—a Saiyan who looked exhausted after fighting all day. We acknowledged each other silently, without malice.
"FIGHT!"
I attacked immediately. With his power level at 3,200, already drained from earlier matches, he couldn't keep up.
Third-person POV
Vaske cornered his opponent in the massive arena and began using his tail. But there was a clear difference between how he used it three months ago and now. Vaske never initiated attacks with his tail—it supported, blocked, and controlled space.
Opponents couldn't land clean strikes or effectively use their own tails, as Vaske's tail constantly circled them, disrupting balance and positioning. He was infamous for it—even ripping a Saiyan's tail off if they angered him. Though his hands did the final work, his tail was always the key.
Soon, Vaske dodged a counter from the Saiyan Hamyl and delivered a left hook that sent him flying out of the ring.
The fight was over.
Elite Saiyans applauded—quietly, without shouting or excess emotion.
All remaining matches concluded shortly after, and it was time for the quarterfinals.
There were two Saiyans Vaske paid close attention to:Nevil, a member of the royal family, and Vanila, a female Saiyan. Both had power levels around 4,000. The others were strong, but not true threats.
Vaske wasn't afraid—but he couldn't lower his guard.
The quarterfinals would begin in one hour, allowing fighters to rest and eat. The elite Saiyans all left together toward Commander Turtle's chamber—likely to discuss prospects and divide talents among squads.
The hour passed quickly. Even though Vaske wasn't tired or injured, he still consumed extra calories.
His opponent would be Vanila. Ideally, he would've avoided her until the finals, but this was still preferable to facing both her and Nevil back-to-back.
Now that ki techniques were allowed, the fight became far more dangerous.
The fight began slowly—unusual for Vaske, who normally rushed in. Vanila kept a high guard, similar to Muay Thai fighters. Every punch he threw was absorbed by her arms or legs, followed by sharp kicks. At first, they didn't hurt—but the damage accumulated.
Vaske switched stances frequently to protect his legs. When he fired ki blasts, she countered them perfectly with her own.
For the first time, he felt pressured.
He chose to sacrifice time, not ki.
He fired weaker ki blasts, forcing her to respond. At first, she countered with full-strength blasts. Over time, she adjusted and began matching his weaker output.
That's when he mixed in stronger blasts.
She couldn't tell which was which.
The stronger ones landed, dealing real damage. Her control began to slip, and she shifted to close combat—where Vaske excelled.
They fought evenly, but the accumulated ki damage caused brief lapses in her control. Vaske exploited every opening.
A surprise ki blast struck her left hand, rendering it useless. She became defensive. Soon after, Vaske unleashed a blast using 30% of his ki, damaging both of her legs.
She was defenseless, standing at the edge of the ring.
Vaske showed mercy.
He kicked her in the stomach, sending her out of bounds.
"Vanila has left the ring! VASKE WINS!"
Elite Saiyans stood and applauded—some silently remained seated, staring at him.
Other quarterfinal matches were intense, but none matched the dominance of Nevil, who defeated his opponent in under three minutes, knocking him unconscious.