While Bardock was flying back toward Planet Vegeta, Vaske was preparing to clear a suspiciously weak planet.
There were no truly powerful beings there. The strongest race on the planet had only one fighter with a power level of 2,000. For a low-class Saiyan warrior, that would already be manageable. Yet they were sending Vaske — one of their most elite young Saiyans.
When Vaske heard that the planet had a moon, he instantly knew this was a game played by the upper echelons.
Low-class warriors could have cleared this world without much trouble. Sending him felt deliberate.
Vaske was already considered grown up. He was nine years old — but Saiyan pods accelerated growth. After three years inside a pod, a Saiyan's body developed as if six years had passed outside. It was perfect technology for their race.
Because of his mutation, Vaske was considered one of the most valuable young males on Planet Vegeta. The Queen had attempted multiple times to arrange a marriage for him. It was said that he possessed one of the finest genetic mutations on the planet.
If she managed to secure the right girl — especially one of her own cousins — she could indirectly control Vaske through lineage, authority, and political leverage.
Vaske had laughed at the idea.
Internally.
If he had shown even a hint of mockery, the consequences would have been far greater than forced marriage.
He rejected every proposal. Marriage was meaningless to him right now. When he reached far greater heights, when he stood above others completely, then he would think about his lineage.
As for his strength — it had increased significantly. But he had not faced worthy opponents recently.
When he fought alongside Kronah, they were assigned weaker targets. When he went alone, he was sent on missions that were supposed to challenge someone at his displayed power level — but they never truly did.
Still, he gained something more important than battlefield scars.
Training efficiency.
By constantly pushing himself, he had begun to unlock dormant potential within his body. His current philosophy was simple:
Train.
Conquer planets.
Kill.
Convert battle into dormant energy.
By following this method, he cleared seven missions in roughly three years.
Yet despite this performance, he was still treated as a "valuable asset" — deployed carefully, never fully unleashed. He was expected to clear stronger and more meaningful worlds than this one.
Which is why this assignment felt like pure disrespect.
And that was something Vaske hated.
Still… if they were giving him a moon, a chance to train his Great Ape form, he would not refuse it.
He had seen Kronah transform into the Ikari state. It had been unbelievable. Even now, the memory lingered.
Kronah could not fully control it — but the fact that even a weaker Saiyan could access such power left a mark on Vaske.
If they could reach that state…
Then what could he reach?
He had to prepare first.
Vaske planned to bring the stone with him for better training results. The stone was something that gave him unbelievable progress. If he wasn't constantly sent on missions with other Saiyans always around him, he could have trained much more freely. Usually, he only had about twenty days after returning from a mission before being sent again toward distant worlds to conquer them.
But even that was enough.
In the past three years — through constant fighting, passive training during missions, and meditation inside pods — he had amassed a massive increase in power level. When he released his full power, it reached 17,000 PL, which was probably the highest on all of Planet Vegeta.
Still, he was certain he could not defeat Kronah.
Kronah was a different beast. Even without Ikari, he was an impossibly skilled fighter. If he faced someone with 20,000 power level in base form, he could still keep up until the moon appeared. And once the moon rose, the fight ended instantly.
There were no words except awe to describe his captain.
When Vaske once asked Kronah about Ikari, Kronah had simply said:
"If I master it fully, don't worry — you will too. I will teach you."
But Vaske understood something deeper. Controlling a form and mastering it were two completely different things. If he waited for Kronah to finish perfecting Ikari and then slowly teach him, he might grow old before ever reaching that level himself.
He needed his own breakthrough.
He just never found the right situation to push himself far enough.
Until now.
He had six days before departure.
Vaske had accumulated a large amount of credits from successful missions, and he attended auctions daily. He enjoyed seeing rare items brought from conquered worlds — weapons, strange minerals, alien fauna, and unknown biological specimens.
Once, he found something unusual: a tree capable of producing fruits that looked like oranges. However, it was extremely risky to buy, since there was a high chance it would never adapt to the soil of Planet Vegeta.
Still, Vaske bought it.
He managed to negotiate the price down significantly, paying only 80,000 credits.
He planted it immediately. Now, after one full year, it finally ripened for the first time. The fruits were tasteless — almost dry — but that didn't matter.
He noticed the effects.
The healing was not extraordinary. It didn't regenerate limbs or restore massive damage. But it noticeably improved circulation, accelerated wound closure, and strengthened his blood quality. Minor injuries healed faster. Fatigue faded quicker.
That was enough.
He saved every seed and planted more trees, planning long-term. This wasn't about immediate power — it was about future stability.
He intended to harvest and store the fruits, bringing them with him on the upcoming mission.
About the destination, he knew little:
Gravity: half of Planet Vegeta's.
Maximum enemy power level: approximately 2,000.
Travel time: six months in one direction.
Soon, the six days passed.
Vaske boarded a larger personal ship — one he had purchased himself so he wouldn't always be restricted to cramped pods. The space was still limited, but far better than a pod. The interior contained:
A small sanitation area.
Food storage.
A compact living room roughly five meters by five meters.
It wasn't luxurious, but it allowed real movement.
Training was still limited compared to planetary gravity, but far better than pod confinement. He planned to train and meditate throughout the entire journey.
Before departure, he ate all the healing oranges, since they would rot during travel. The rest of his food consisted mainly of meat, preserved and cooled using the stone inside his storage compartment.
Then the journey truly began.
He trained daily.
Meditated daily.
Measured his ki output.
Practiced control instead of brute force.
Space outside the ship was endless and silent.
Soon, three months passed.
It was the day Bardock returned.
He immediately ordered the aliens to bring a pack of wolves for the usual procedure — which meant capturing any alien or beast that had arrived on Planet Vegeta. The wolves trusted Bardock deeply. When one alien tried to slap a wolf — even though the wolf was in the wrong — Bardock never allowed it. He ripped the arm of the alien that tried to strike.
Bardock then went toward the mission report center. Elites didn't need to report, but middle and lower-class Saiyans weren't fully trusted by the King. Bardock submitted his report, detailing his findings and future plans for the wolves. Once done, he left the center, continuing until a strong Saiyan blocked his path.
The older Saiyan had grey hair and scars covering all visible skin. Bardock simply stopped and looked at him without any visible emotion. They stared at each other in silence — the kind of silence only warriors with experience could maintain. Bardock had just returned from a brutal mission, while the older Saiyan had countless missions behind his scars.
Finally, the older Saiyan broke the silence:
"Queen wants to see you."
Bardock's mind flicked with irritation. Why couldn't he just say that outright? Why assert dominance first?
"This time I will let you off," Bardock said, "but next time… won't be next time."
It sounded childish, coming from a nine-year-old Saiyan with a power level of 3,000. But Bardock's eyes betrayed nothing. The old man immediately realized Bardock was telling the truth — and that he dared to threaten a warrior with 8,000 PL.
No more words were exchanged. Bardock didn't even acknowledge that the Queen had summoned him.
When they arrived at the royal palace and entered the main hall, only the Queen sat on her throne. This was Bardock's first time standing in the main hall, and he didn't know what to do. He simply stood there, gazing slightly above her, looking at the window that bathed the room in light.
The grey-haired Saiyan tried to make him kneel, but Bardock remained standing — unflinching. Even the force of the 8,000 PL warrior pressing down could not sway him.
Bardock silently promised himself, and remembered the words he shared with Vaske after Judgment Day:
"Brother, I'm sorry I had to kneel, and you had to beg the judge just to save my life. I will never kneel to anyone. It's better to die standing than to live on my knees!"
The Queen remained calm, but her body language betrayed her tension. She gripped her fan tightly, and her left hand dug into the arm of the throne.
"Enough, Oltrum!" she screamed at the older Saiyan. Then she turned to Bardock.
"Do you know why I called you?"
"No," Bardock said.
"I called because I have arranged a marriage for you." "You will be married to royalty, its in your best interest to accept!"
Bardock's response was cold:
"I'm too weak to be married. I reject it. I will leave now. If you have nothing more to say."
She showed no respect — firstly because she wasn't someone who fought, and secondly because he sensed her little movements with his sharp senses.
"STOP RIGHT THERE, YOU DAMNED LOW CLASS!" the Queen roared.
Bardock stopped — not out of fear, but to ask what he wanted.
"Where is my brother right now?" He demanded.
Bardock's eyes, sharp and predator-like, made her quiver. She quickly changed her tone:
"She said: Bardock, he didn't meet my standards. I cleared seven planets in about three years, and he couldn't clear one. He wanted to take on a mission of similar difficulty to compare himself to you and see why you are so weak."
Those words shook Bardock, but he knew better than to believe them before verifying the facts himself.
He left for a faraway mission and would not return for some time.
Bardock thought for a moment, then asked:
"I understand. Do you know where he lives?"
The Queen summoned a worker and commanded them to show Bardock the location of Vaske's house. Bardock followed silently and arrived without a word. The worker merely said, "Here it is," and left.
Bardock instantly sensed a ki signature beneath one of the stones. He located the key and entered. He immediately picked up another ki energy emanating from a table. Pulling a scrap from the table revealed a material similar to paper and a message addressed to him.
Vaske had written it while preparing for his mission:
*"Firstly, let me tell you what I have been doing for the last three years. I have conquered many planets — eight in total. The first one almost cost me my life. I won't go into detail now; I will save that for when we meet.
I left a significant portion of my earnings for you, to increase your survival chances and reduce your mission clearance time. Spend it wisely; I don't care how much you use. Money is useless to me.
One more thing: I discovered something strange about my mission I'm going to. Be careful of manipulation from the higher-ups. They tried to marry me into the Queen's family to control me.
I know how difficult your planet was, and I have some leads on who sent you there. Survive, and we will handle all our enemies together. Use this house as you wish — it is yours as it is mine.
See you soon, your brother, Vaske."*
Bardock read the letter fully. A single tear ran down his scarred cheek.
"Thank God," he whispered. Relief washed over him.