Screams ring out in East City as three small, white pods crash into the ground at high speeds, creating shockwaves throughout the city. Buildings are destroyed in the area around the three craters, while all glass within miles suddenly shatter. The screaming dies down almost as soon as it started, replacing by the wails of vehicle sirens rushing to save those caught in the destroyed areas. The unlucky few who were closest to the pods when they crashed watch in stunned silence as they slowly begin to crack open, revealing their passengers.

The first to step out is a tall man with black hair that reaches his knees. The clothing he wears is strange, almost armor-like in design. It does little to hide the multitude of scars covering him. Dozens upon dozens of ugly scars run across his well-muscled body, yet almost none of them reach his face. A furry tail can be seen coiled around his waist. He stares at the citizens with a complicated expression on his face, which is partially hidden by a green piece of glass.

He is quickly joined by two other strange men. One is similar to him in size, while the other is far shorter than either of them. They share few similarities with the first stranger beyond that.

The first of his companions is bald, and even taller than the long-haired man, with a thin moustache going around his lips. Like the first man, he wears armor-like clothing, but unlike the first man, he stares at the citizens surrounding them with a cruel grin, like a child with a magnifier glass would look at ants.

The shortest of the trio wears similar apparel to his comrades. Armor, an unknown piece of technology on his eye, and a strange tail-like belt. Like the first stranger, his hair is dark in color, but it is far shorter. His forehead is prominent with a widow's peak haircut.

The bald man seems... almost deferential towards him. The short man doesn't give the citizens a second glance as he scans the area he crashed in. Eventually, a brave citizen calls out to the trio.

"W-What are you?"

The short man grins, an ugly, arrogant mockery of a smile. He casts his gaze towards the bald man, then utters the words that seal the city's fate.

"What are we... Nappa, would you like to answer?"

The bald man, Nappa, looks at his companion, obviously delighted. "This'll be fun. Thanks, Vegeta!"

His hands crackle with electricity, yet before he can do... whatever it is he was planning to do, the long-haired man puts a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't go too far... there may be a dragon ball in this city. We wouldn't want to destroy it..."

Nappa looks outraged for half a second, before the words his companion said register in his mind.

"Good point, Raditz... I'll just have to do this the old-fashioned way!"

The last thing the frightened citizens see is Nappa's bloodthirsty grin as he dashes towards them...

Kami looks at East City, sorrow apparent on the old Namekian's face. His hands clench and unclench around the gnarled wood of his staff.

"Monsters..." he mutters to himself as Nappa tears his way through East City. He feels a strong hand grip his shoulder, and forces himself to look away.

His oldest (and most terrifying) friend shakes his head, before speaking in a firm tone. "There's nothing you could've done."

Kami listens to Mr. Popo's words, then sighs in despair. "I could have fused with Piccolo. Our combined power would be more than--" he is suddenly cut off as the genie-like man speaks.

"No. Not yet. That would bring about an even worse disaster."

"Not yet? Do you believe that there will come a time when fusing with him won't be disastrous for the Earth? " he asks.

"Yes."

Kami turns his gaze towards his other half at these words, watching as Piccolo prepares himself and the others for the arrival of the Saiyans.

"I hope you're right..."

Piccolo grabs the hem of his weighted clothing, casting it off of himself as he intentionally flaunts his power.

'That's right, bastards... come and get me.' he thinks with a grimace, fighting back the fear he feels as he senses the power contained by the three Saiyans. The Namekian turns his head, silently staring at his allies.

Goku's friends have gotten stronger than he thought would be possible. A year ago, half a dozen of them wouldn't be able to beat Goku's brother. Now... now, each and every one of them is more than a match for the Saiyan... or they would be, if he hadn't gotten stronger. From what he can sense, Piccolo is the only one of them who can match the weakest of the three Saiyans, and that's only because of the skill gap between them. As for the other two? He can only hope that they'll be able to hold them off until Goku arrives...

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He stifles a gasp as he suddenly feels the three sources of energy fly towards him at mind-boggling speeds. Within the next minute, he can see them. He scowls as he spots the familiar figure of the man who killed Goku, only... he seems changed, somehow. Physically, the Saiyan bears dozens upon dozens of new scars, seemingly left by a creature's sharp claws. Spiritually... Piccolo honestly can't tell what's different. He can see that the Saiyan carries himself differently, yet he has no idea why. Maybe it's because he's joined by two other Saiyans, both far more powerful than him...?

'I suppose it doesn't matter.' Piccolo thinks, dropping into a fighting stance.

Three pairs of feet touch down at the wasteland the defenders of Earth have chosen as their battleground. Everything is silent for several seconds, before it is interrupted by the mechanical beeps of a scouter.

Beep....

Beep...

Beep...

"Ha!" Nappa suddenly laughs. "Their power levels don't even go over 2000! How pathetic!"

Raditz shifts awkwardly in place, before Vegeta speaks.

"Don't you remember what Raditz told us? These Earthlings can hide their power levels. Those readings are useless." he says, pulling the scouter off his face.

Nappa repeats his action, a wide grin on his face "So we'll need another way to find out their power levels..."

Vegeta smiles, looking at the opponents. "It seems like we're outnumbered... it wouldn't be fair to fight them all by ourselves, would it Raditz?"

"...No, it wouldn't." Raditz replies.

"Nappa, plant the Saibamen. We should have six left." Vegeta says.

Reaching into a pocket of his armor, the burly Saiyan brings out a small, glasslike capsule carrying six small seeds inside it. He fires six small beams of Ki into the ground, quickly depositing the seeds soon after. After covering the holes with dirt, he pours a few drops of a greenish liquid on the covered seeds.

As Piccolo, Gohan, and the other warriors of Earth watch in confusion, six clawed, green hands punch their way through the rocky dirt. These hands are soon joined by six others, then the heads, and finally the bodies. In mere seconds, six short, green monsters stand before them, shrieking in a chorus of unnatural, bone-chilling voices.

"The soil on this planet isn't half bad. Each of these Saibamen have a power level of 1200... almost as much as Raditz had when he first arrived on Earth." Vegeta begins with an arrogant smirk on his face. "How about we have a little warm-up before the real fun begins? There's six of you, and six of our Saibamen. That should make for an entertaining series of fights, no?"

"Bastards... they're just toying with us!" an outraged Tien mutters, barely audible over the shrieks of the Saibamen.

"Looks like we have a volunteer. You're up first, triclops." Nappa says with a grin, kicking one of the Saibamen in Tien's direction.

"Dammit... it'll take a lot more than a single one of these creatures to take me down!" he shouts in rage, rushing towards the short monster.

To the shock of all three Saiyans, the battle is over almost as soon as it began. Moving faster than expected, the three-eyed human lashes out at the Saibaman with a flurry of fists, instantly driving it back. Before the creature is able to do anything, Tien's hands have already found their way around its neck. With a quick movement of his wrists, he snaps its neck, then launches it into the air. Immediately after, he launches a wave of Ki at the monster's falling body, disintegrating it.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Hahaha!" the silence is suddenly broken by Nappa's booming laughter. "Good! Maybe this'll be fun after all. Next!"

Yamcha, surprisingly silent and serious, glares daggers at Raditz. Stepping forward, he speaks quietly.

"There's no need for you guys to fight them, I'll handle the rest."

"Yamcha--" Krillin begins, before he feels a hand grip his shoulder. Piccolo stares at the short, bald man... and shakes his head.

"Just watch." he says.

"Ha! Cocky, are you? Well, if you want to die so badly... then go ahead!" Vegeta laughs at the scarred martial artist.

The remaining Saibamen slowly spread out around the orange-clothed man, looking gleeful at the easy fight they've been handed.

Yamcha stays in place, still staring at Raditz as the Saibamen begin their attack. Just as the first strike nears him, he explodes in movement.

His head tilts to the side, dodging the first attack as his leg slams out behind him, impacting the clawed fist of the second Saibaman. At the same exact time, his hands reach out in a flash, grabbing the arms of the next two Saibamen. With a powerful tug, he pulls the two off balance. At this moment, the fifth Saibaman's hand reaches Yamcha...

Who then headbutts the hand, instantly shattering the fist. His hands let go of the two Saibamen's arms, before clutching their skulls in the next instant. To the shock of everyone present, he smashes the two heads together in a shower of gore.

'What the hell?! In the original show, he had trouble dealing with one of them! Hell, it was able to kill him once his back was turned! How'd he get so strong?!' Raditz thinks in shock, before Vegeta's voice startles him.

"Raditz, what's his power level?"

After taking a few seconds to remember how to activate his scouter, he focuses it on Yamcha's energy...

"2500!" he says in surprise.

"Hmph." Vegeta grunts in response, pondering this information.

Yamcha, to the surprise of every Earthling present, doesn't boast, brag, or say a cocky one-liner when Raditz reveals his power level. Instead, he focuses even further, launching a series of ferocious attacks against the three remaining Saibamen. The one with a broken hand is the first to fall, the creature's chest caved in by a powerful kick. With a frightened squeal, the two remaining monsters redouble their efforts, moving even faster than before...

But it's all for naught. The unusually silent man is at top form today. Every ounce of skill he's gained throughout his many years of training is on display. Every strike he performs is made with utmost efficiency, and with an impressive amount of ruthlessness. Before too long, his fist pierces the chest of one of the remaining Saibamen, killing it almost instantly.

The last Saibaman backs up in fear, looking towards the three Saiyans. Nappa grins at it, whilst the other two pay it no attention. It turns its attention back towards Yamcha... only to find that the fighter has disappeared.

Suddenly, Yamcha's leg comes crashing down on the head of the Saibaman, slamming it into the stony ground with a massive axe kick.

Turning his back on its dead body, he slowly approaches Raditz...

Until two green arms wrap around his body. Raditz closes his eyes as the Saibaman begins to glow.

'Even with his new power... I guess some things never change...' he thinks morosely...

Crack.

Raditz's eyes shoot open in surprise, allowing him to see the still-glowing Saibaman, which is staring at its two broken arms in shock.

Boom.

As the creature explodes behind him, Yamcha continues his approach. After stopping directly in front of Raditz, he opens his mouth.

"I've known Goku since he was a kid. He's like a little brother to me. Even though he wasn't the smartest man... he was definitely one of the kindest. You took advantage of that..."

"And that's why I'm going to kill you."