The blue sky stretched endlessly above them as they flew toward Goku's approaching ki signature.
Toji led the way, the transparent energy bubble containing Vegeta and Nappa floating alongside him like an oversized hamster ball.
Piccolo followed close behind, his cape - clothes beam - billowing in the wind, while Krillin and Gohan brought up the rear.
Krillin's exhaustion was evident in his labored breathing and the occasional dip in his flight path.
The battle with the Saiyans had taken its toll, and without the benefit of a senzu bean, his reserves were running dangerously low.
"Slow down a bit," Toji called over his shoulder, noticing Krillin struggling to keep pace. "We're in no rush."
The group adjusted their speed accordingly, which gave Toji the perfect opportunity to satisfy his curiosity.
He turned his attention to the Saiyan prince, who was now more rested, but still scowling within his energy prison.
"You know," Toji began conversationally, "with all the excitement, I never actually caught your name. I'm Toji Fushiguro, by the way." He offered a casual two-finger salute, as if they were meeting at a social gathering rather than after a battle that had nearly destroyed the planet.
Vegeta's eyes narrowed, suspicion evident in his gaze.
After a moment's consideration, he realized that indeed, this human anomaly hadn't been present long enough to hear his name mentioned. A strategic opportunity presented itself.
Drawing himself up as much as his confined space would allow, Vegeta adopted the regal bearing that had been drilled into him since birth.
"I am Vegeta the Fourth, son of King Vegeta the Third," he announced, his voice carrying the weight of generations of royal blood. "Prince of all Saiyans and survivor of the last remnants of my near-extinct race."
He watched Toji carefully as he emphasized those final words. The prince wasn't certain about this human's character, but he'd observed enough to suspect that Toji wasn't inherently cruel like Frieza or his men.
Perhaps appealing to sentiment might prove useful – the extinction of an entire species was something even the hardest hearts might hesitate to contribute to.
"Extinct race?" Toji echoed, raising an eyebrow in apparent surprise. "That's unfortunate. What happened to your people?"
"Destroyed," Vegeta replied curtly, "Our planet was hit by a meteor. Few survived."
Toji nodded thoughtfully, then asked, "So what were you planning to wish for with these Dragon Balls? If your race is nearly extinct, I'd imagine that would factor into your wish."
The question caught Vegeta off-guard, though he was careful not to show it. His mind raced through possibilities.
He couldn't simply admit to wanting immortality for the sake of power – that would sound too selfish, too villainous.
The Earthlings would surely contradict him if he claimed benevolent intentions. He needed something plausible, something that might earn him sympathy without being easily disproven.
"Immortality," Vegeta stated plainly, noting the immediate hardening of Piccolo's expression. Before the Namekian could interject, he continued, "To live long enough to repopulate the Saiyan race. To ensure our legacy doesn't die with me."
Toji tilted his head, a curious expression crossing his face. "Why not just wish for your entire people back? Wouldn't that be simpler?"
Vegeta had anticipated this question. "I don't know if that's possible. According to the legends, the Dragon Balls grant only a single wish. Resurrecting an entire race might be beyond their power."
Toji turned toward Piccolo, maintaining his facade of ignorance. "Is that true? Could the Dragon Balls bring back his people or not?"
Piccolo's antennae twitched in irritation. "The Saiyans have been dead for too long. The Dragon cannot resurrect those who have been gone for more than a year."
His eyes narrowed as he continued, "Besides, you should know that the Saiyans are not a good people. They conquer planets, destroy entire species, and sell the worlds to the highest bidder. They are scum."
The Namekian's words were calculated, understanding exactly what Vegeta was attempting. The battle for Toji's allegiance was clear – whoever had the Strongest on their side held an insurmountable advantage.
"That's not fair!" Nappa's gruff voice suddenly interjected. He had apparently regained consciousness but had been wise enough to remain silent until now. "Frieza enslaved the Saiyan race! He made us do those things. We had no choice!"
Toji's expression remained neutral, but internally, he was thoroughly amused by the political maneuvering playing out before him.
The power dynamic was intoxicating – knowing that his word, his decision, would determine the fate of these warriors. It was a heady feeling, having such influence.
"Speaking of Saiyans," Toji said, changing the subject smoothly, "earlier you called yourselves 'the mightiest warrior race in the universe.' What exactly makes you so mighty, Nappa? Or was that just hot air?"
A vein pulsed visibly on Nappa's forehead at the jab, but the massive Saiyan maintained his composure with visible effort.
"It's no exaggeration," Nappa growled. "Saiyans grow as we fight. We live for battle, hunger for it, never run from it. And we always come back stronger after near death. It's in our blood."
Vegeta's eyes flashed with momentary anger at Nappa for revealing the secret of the Zenkai boost so readily.
But as he caught Toji's gaze turning toward him, something in those eyes – an expectation, a test – made Vegeta's instincts scream that dishonesty and purposefully hiding things now would be a fatal mistake.
His nerves were on fire with the certainty that concealing information would cost him everything.
"There's more," Vegeta found himself saying, the words coming almost unbidden. "There is a legend among our people – the legend of the Super Saiyan."
"Super Saiyan?" Toji prompted, his interest apparently piqued.
"A warrior of unimaginable power," Vegeta continued, his voice taking on an almost reverent quality.
"Once every thousand years, a Saiyan is born with the potential to transform into a warrior with strength beyond comprehension."
"The last Super Saiyan destroyed himself and our home planet in ancient times through his own uncontrollable power."
Gohan and Krillin exchanged glances, clearly wondering if this was just another Saiyan boast. Piccolo, however, seemed to be considering the possibility more seriously.
"Interesting," Toji mused. "And this thing about coming back stronger after near death – how does that work exactly? Is it a set percentage based on injuries, or does it depend on how strong your opponent was?"
Vegeta hesitated, genuinely unsure of the precise mechanics. "I can't say with complete certainty," he admitted reluctantly.
"But I believe it's based primarily on the latter – on how strong the opponent is. The one the Saiyan is trying to surpass at that moment."
Before Toji could probe further, a cheerful voice called out from ahead.
"Hey! Guys! Over here!"
They all looked up to see a figure rapidly approaching – a man in an orange gi riding atop a golden cloud that streaked through the sky like a living sunbeam.
"Dad!" Gohan cried out, his face lighting up with pure joy.
Goku waved enthusiastically as he closed the distance on his Flying Nimbus.
His expression shifted from happiness at seeing his son to curiosity as he took in the strange scene – particularly the two Saiyans trapped in Toji's energy bubble.
As they all came to a halt midair, Toji couldn't help but circle around Goku, examining the legendary warrior with undisguised interest.
The Nimbus cloud was particularly fascinating – a mythical object straight out of Journey to the West, now hovering right before his eyes.
Goku, for his part, was quickly assessing the situation. The Saiyans he'd been rushing to fight were already subdued, and the person responsible radiated power unlike anything he'd ever encountered.
It wasn't just that this stranger was strong – his ki seemed to permeate everything, extending beyond the limits of what Goku could sense, as if it were the very air itself.
Yet despite this overwhelming power, Goku detected no malice, no evil intent. Just as he had always done, he greeted the stranger with his characteristic openness.
"Hi there! I'm Goku!" he said with a bright smile. "Thanks for saving my son and friends. I was worried I wouldn't make it in time."
"Don't mention it," Toji replied with a casual shrug. "I was in the area and able to help. Plus, I was interested in fighting these aliens." He gestured toward the captured Saiyans, then turned his full attention back to Goku.
"Speaking of fighting... you seem quite strong. Stronger than Nappa, not quite at Vegeta's level, but something tells me you've got some tricks up your sleeve. How about... a spar?"
The air between them seemed to hum with energy as their gazes locked at that last word.
Something passed between them – a recognition of the same hunger, the same desire to test limits that Goku had only ever seen reflected in his own eyes.
Their battle auras began to rise instinctively, making the atmosphere crackle like it was charged with electricity.
Everyone else watched with varying degrees of concern. Krillin looked particularly nervous, while Piccolo observed with narrowed eyes.
Even Vegeta and Nappa seemed intrigued by the prospect of seeing what "Kakarot" could do against this monster.
Then, as quickly as it had built, the tension dissipated. Goku turned toward his injured friends with an apologetic smile.
"Maybe later," he said to Toji. "My friends need help first."
Reaching into his gi, Goku produced a small brown pouch and opened it to reveal several green beans.
"These are senzu beans," he explained to Toji. "They heal injuries and restore your energy completely. I sadly only have two." He said as he looked at Piccolo, Krillen, Gohan and Toji. He then carefully broke two beans into halves, creating four portions.
"They're not as effective when split, can't regrow limbs this way, but they should still bring everyone back to full health."
He distributed the half-beans to Piccolo, Krillin, and Gohan, who consumed them immediately.
Their wounds vanished, and their postures straightened as energy flooded back into their bodies.
Goku offered the final half-bean to Toji. "Here, you can use this one."
Toji accepted it with surprise. "I don't really need it, but thanks." He rolled the bean between his fingers thoughtfully, then suddenly turned toward Vegeta.
"Quick question – do you know how to sense ki? You know, detect someone's power and location without that device you were wearing?"
Vegeta frowned, momentarily confused by the abrupt change in topic. "No," he admitted after a moment. "That's not an ability Saiyans naturally possess."
"Good," Toji said with a smile that made Vegeta instantly wary. "That makes this experiment more interesting."
With a gesture, Toji opened a small section of the energy bubble and tossed the half-senzu toward Vegeta. The Saiyan prince caught it reflexively, his expression a mixture of suspicion and disbelief.
"What are you doing?!" Krillin exclaimed, his voice rising in panic. "We literally just heard that Saiyans get stronger after recovering from injuries!"
"Calm down," Toji replied without taking his eyes off Vegeta. "He would need to grow a million times stronger to ever be able to beat me. This is research."
Not really, for 18 000 to go to 120 million it would be a multiplication of 6666x, but well, he wasn't about to say that.
Vegeta held the bean, hesitating only briefly before popping it into his mouth. The effect was immediate – his muscles bulged, his posture straightened, and a powerful aura flared around him.
He could feel it... Could feel strength flooding through his body, greater than what he'd possessed even in his Great Ape form.
If he transformed now, he would be more than ten times stronger than his previous Oozaru state.
Piccolo, Goku, Krillin, and Gohan all took involuntary steps back, feeling the wave of power emanating from the healed Saiyan. Only Toji remained unmoved, watching with interest.
'Just as I thought,' Toji mused internally. 'Saiyan Zenkais are based on a combination of the opponent's power and the severity of injuries.'
'This explains why Vegeta only gained on Namek about 6,000 in battle power after fighting Goku, but later jumped to being stronger than Third Form Frieza.'
'And why Goku went from 90,000 against Ginyu to 3 million against Final Form Frieza. Goku sensed Frieza's power and wanted enough to surpass him and did- till Frieza showed more strength.'
'These Zenkais are truly monstrous, though they clearly have limits. Otherwise, they would have simply sensed Cell's power, deliberately injured themselves- like Vegeta did with Krillin, and taken senzu beans to surpass him.'
'Still, at this point in the timeline, they're a significant advantage we can exploit.'
Before Vegeta could gain any ideas, with a casual gesture, Toji closed and reinforced the energy bubble around him, making it noticeably tighter than before.
Vegeta felt it, and was quite annoyed as he tried to resist- without clearly showing that he was - but, Toji with a thought, amused made it only tighter- barely having the ability to move, and this clearly a mercy.
As Vegeta realised that if he continued he may be unable to even move his head- he stopped.
The message was clear – even with his newfound strength, Vegeta was still completely at Toji's mercy.
"I'll teach you how to sense ki later," Toji informed Vegeta. "Then I'll beat you up again, let you sense a bit of my power, and heal you. That should help us quantify how these Zenkais work. If Frieza is truly as strong as you say, we might need to exploit this ability."
Vegeta's eyes widened slightly at the casual way Toji discussed using him as a test subject, but he couldn't deny his own interest in the concept. If he could harness controlled Zenkais...
"Well," Goku announced, breaking the tense moment, "I don't know about you guys, but I'm starving! I haven't had a decent meal since I left King Kai's planet."
He turned to his son with a warm smile. "You probably miss your mom and her cooking too, right little guy?"
Gohan nodded vehemently, the mention of home and his mother breaking through his fascination with Vegeta's power boost. "Yeah! I can't wait to see Mom again!"
"Sounds like a plan," Toji agreed. "You guys head home for your reunion. I need to deal with some things at my place anyway."
He gestured to the energy bubble containing the two Saiyans. "I'll take these two with me since I'm currently the only one who can handle them if they try anything."
"I'll come with you," Piccolo stated immediately, his tone leaving no room for argument.
Toji glanced at the Namekian, easily reading his concern. Piccolo didn't trust leaving Vegeta and Nappa alone with him, regardless of the power difference. He was worried about manipulation, not combat.
"Suit yourself," Toji shrugged, secretly amused by Piccolo's protectiveness- it being out of self-interest nonwithstanding.
Goku looked between them, sensing the undercurrent but choosing not to comment. "Alright then! We'll catch up later. Come on, Gohan, Krillin – everyone's probably worried sick about us."
With waves and promises to meet again soon, the group split in different directions – Goku, Gohan, and Krillin heading toward Mount Paozu, while Toji and Piccolo, with their Saiyan prisoners in tow, set course for West City.
As they flew away, Vegeta stared at the back of Toji's head, his mind racing with calculations and possibilities.
This human anomaly had completely upended everything he thought he knew about power hierarchies in the universe.
If he played his cards right, perhaps this bizarre situation could still work to his advantage.
One thing was certain – everything had just become far more complicated.
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(Author note: Hello everyone! I hope you all enjoyed the chapter!
Do tell me how you found it, especially the Zenkai thing. This is how I reason it working. Do tell me if you agree or not- though man is it broken.
Well, I hope to see you all later,
Bye!)