Dragon Ball Z: Paradise Found

Obsession That Costed The Gold

With a gleeful look on his face, smug to where it seemed like Vegeta knew something that Frieza didn't, the Saiyan prince launched himself in a straightforward dash toward his opponent. Frieza bent his head to the side, avoiding the first strike, looking as vexed and bitter as he was since first setting his sights on Vegeta. The prince rushed forward with a knee strike, but Frieza's open palm caught it. Vegeta let out a grunt, throwing a powerful uppercut while the space emperor leaned back and floated away in mid-air.

"Surely this must be some kind of joke, Vegeta-san," Frieza muttered with no trace of enjoyment. He looked as disappointed as a teacher to whom his favorite student had just handed a cutout of a dirty magazine instead of a completed task. "We've come to this den of savagery and insolence attracted by your power. We've registered a power level as high as over a million. This is a pathetic waste of my time."

"You might think so now, Frieza, it's true that your power level is far beyond mine at the moment, but this is where I fulfill the legend of the Super Saiyan and ascend to the state of an ultimate warrior that will defeat you!" Vegeta pointed to himself with his thumb, looking mighty proud of his void accomplishments so far.

"My, my... Lost your mind already and I haven't even started smashing your head yet," Frieza sighed. The tyrant raised his arm up and let a miniscule pink flash shine at the tip of his finger. Vegeta's form froze with a shocked expression. A massive hole gaped in the center of the prince's chest, though the Saiyan's body looked rather... Floaty and ethereal. As the transparency of Vegeta's essence began fading, Frieza realized the deception behind Vegeta's technique.

The Saiyan dashed in from behind, smashing head-first into Frieza and bouncing off of the tyrant while stroking his aching forehead in frustration. It didn't take him long to continue his relentless attempts to prove himself to the fortune that was to grant him the power he deserved. A knee strike that didn't bother Frieza nor made him flinch, a backhanded smack that resonated through Vegeta's own hand rather than making his opponent wince or turn his head, Vegeta drove both of his arms downward with a double ax handle slam but his strike remained stuck on Frieza's unmoving head. The prince vanished back to a safe distance the moment that Frieza breathed in and sighed again.

"That Afterimage technique earlier was something I've mastered by watching the Earthlings. They call it martial arts. It's an art form of combat, and they're awfully proud of it despite their weakness. I think it'll suit a perfect warrior, the Super Saiyan, far better, don't you?" Vegeta chuckled, taking a fighting stance.

"I am much more interested in something else you've said. You appear to be able to judge the extent of our power levels and therefore see the vast difference between us without the use of a scouter," Frieza said.

"True, a scouter is a useless heap of junk and you're wrong to rely on it, Frieza," Vegeta smirked, looking mighty proud of the fact that he had picked up the ability to sense Ki, being the natural genius in combat that he was. "I could sense your power level earlier too. It was much greater than it is now. You've lost a great deal of power fighting that Namekian runt. That's too bad, but I won't be feeling sorry for you anytime soon, Frieza."

"What's that? You think that my battle power from my last form was superior to this one?" Frieza raised his bent finger up to his lips and let out a reserved chuckle. "Oh, dear Vegeta-san, you misunderstand. The reason why I am currently weaker than I was in my last form is that I am merely tapping into 1% of my power that my original form can muster. I must be very careful not to finish you off before truly making you suffer."

"1%?" Vegeta's eyebrows tilted a fair bit. The Saiyan prince trembled lightly, but he was quick to shake it off. "You're bluffing, Frieza. Your battle with that Namekian drained you out of your strength. You can't fool my superior fighting instincts."