On a small, little-known island located Southwest of Kame House, two tall, beefy men sit in silence. The shorter of the two, who has an afro and a handlebar mustache, has his eyes closed, seemingly concentrating intently. The other man, who's body is covered in long, jagged scars, stares at him, focusing on every movement he makes.
The mustached man breathes deeply, barely moving a muscle as he sits on the abandoned island.
...
...
...
"Stop!" the taller man suddenly calls out.
His companion's eyes shoot open as he hastily stops whatever he was doing.
"Uh... am I done, S-Sensei?" he stutters, still not used to saying the word.
"Hmph... yes... yes, I think that's all the Ki density and Ki purity your body can handle. Your progress has been excellent, considering that you hadn't even accessed your Ki before meeting me." Raditz says, looking his pupil over with his Analyze technique.
Name: Mark Satan
Age: 28
Gender: Male
Race: Earthling
Date of Birth: January 31, Age 736
Power level: 256
Health: 100/100
Stamina: 100/100
Ki: 100/100
Ki density: 2
Ki purity: 5%
Ki control: 11
Level of Trust: 2
Strength compared to User: Overwhelmingly weak
Current emotions: Hope, joy, fear, excitement
Due to the gap in power between the two of you, you have gained access to Mark's current thoughts. Do you want to view Mark's current thoughts?
'I'll pass, System.'
After refusing to invade on the privacy of Hercule's mind, Raditz stands up, looking down at his pupil with a small grin.
"You're stronger than Spopovich was when you fought, and your foundation is far more stable. You should have no trouble beating him if you face off again."
"It's all thanks to your teachings, Sensei."
'Fuck... I can't believe he actually agreed to call me that. It was a joke!' Raditz inwardly groans. 'I can't exactly go and tell him that... I always loved reading those novels about people getting reincarnated into cultivation worlds and pretending to be some sage-like old senior. It usually ended pretty well for them, and it always got them extremely loyal followers. Since Hercule is gonna be the world's most popular man, I thought that having him view me as a wise mentor wouldn't be a bad idea... but I never imagined it being so cringey!'
"So... so are we finished, Sensei?" Hercule asks in a timid voice. "You've gotten me to be as strong as Spopovich, and I've learnt to manipulate Ki on my own now..."
Raditz snorts. "You have a lot to learn. You're nowhere near my 7 year old nephew, much less myself. I told you before, I see a lot of potential in you. You haven't come close to realizing it yet. Besides... I still haven't taught you how to use your Ki."
"You mean--"
"Yes Hercule, I'm going to teach you Ki techniques."
The burly fighter can barely hold his excitement in as the godlike Saiyan who he calls Sensei thinks on what to teach him.
'Let's see... his Ki control isn't good enough for me to teach him to sense Ki, what with Vegeta practicing day and night in an attempt to escape from the Katchin holding him down. Hercule wouldn't be able to block Vegeta out, and I can imagine that having a distraction that big wouldn't exactly help his training speed...'
'I can't teach him any of the advanced techniques, both because of his lacking Ki reserves and because of his Ki control... I guess that leaves me with the basic Ki blasts, Flight, and basic Ki shields.'
"Alright... get to your feet. I know what you're going to start with."
Hercule scrambles off the ground, watching with curious eyes as Raditz walks to a large, barren area of the island. Under his awed gaze, his Sensei points his right hand at the ground. A split second later, a large, human-shaped dummy pops into existence. Two small, black slabs of metal hold its feet onto the ground.
"This is your training partner. It can't move, it can't hit back, and it can't give any advice." Raditz says, slowly walking back to Hercule's side. "What it can do, however, is take a hit. It's made of the same material as the armor I was wearing when I arrived on Earth. Less than ten people on this planet are capable of damaging it, and none of them can even scratch the metal on its feet. Me included."
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"E-Even you can't damage it?!" Hercule exclaims in shock.
"That's what I said, is it not? Enough about that... I'm telling you this to prepare you for your next lesson. I'm going to teach you how to attack with your Ki."
"Like what Spopovich did at the World Martial Arts Tournament?!"
"No. His Ki attacks were messy, rough, and unrefined. He put all the power he could into that Ki attack, and yet it didn't even contain a fraction of the force it should have. He used the most basic form of a Ki attack. Namely, creating a clump of Ki outside your body, compressing it into a ball, and then launching it at the opponent. That's what you'll start with until you're used to aiming your attacks. There are much better ways to charge, store, and fire Ki than what he did. For example, I infuse my most basic Ki attacks with a tiny bit of paralyzing Ki. When it hits an enemy, it will act like an electric shock, forcing their muscles to spasm and act out of their control. On top of that, I usually force them to spin once launched, which adds power to the initial hit."
Hercule gulps as he listens to the Saiyan.
"Some Ki attacks use their user's lifeforce to power them, while others use the willingly-given lifeforce of others. Those are a bit too advanced for you, and I personally wouldn't recommend them to begin with. Some of the most powerful Ki techniques don't focus on the energy you give them, but on the way you use that energy. Instead of just building a clump of Ki and firing it at the enemy, you could condense it into a disc, which has immense cutting potential, or force it into a spinning beam of energy, which can drill through almost anything... but enough about that. You aren't anywhere close to being able to use those techniques. Concentrate your energy, force your Ki to flow out of whichever hand you want to fire a Ki blast from. Make sure to keep a firm grasp on it until you're ready to fire."
His pupil hurriedly follows his instructions, concentrating all the energy he can into the palm of his hand...
Boom
A loud sound echoes throughout the empty island as an explosion erupts from Hercule's hand, throwing him dozens of feet backwards.
He slides along the ground once he lands, creating a long groove in the island's grassy ground. After several seconds of hesitation, he nervously looks towards his hand, trying to see the damage his mishap has caused him...
...only to spot a light-blue energy covering his undamaged hand. His eyebrows shoot up in surprise, causing Raditz to chuckle.
"You were too forceful. If I didn't create a Ki shield around your hand, you would've blown it clean off. Try again."
The burly martial artist sighs in relief, before walking back to his position in front of the dummy. He raises his hand, forcing energy to form in front of it... and then another explosion forms in the palm of his hand, throwing him backwards. This repeats dozens upon dozens of times before his teacher finally speaks.
"You're doing it wrong. You'll only hurt yourself if you keep trying it like that."
"Oh, uh-- what am I doing wrong, Sensei?" Hercule asks.
"Explain to me the process of creating a Ki blast." Raditz replies.
"Ok... um... well first I sense my Ki in my body, then I make it flow out of my hand into a ball, and then I fire it. I don't know what I'm doing wrong."
"That's all there is to it. You know exactly what to do, how to do it, and you have me here to make sure nothing goes wrong. Your problem is that you aren't confident."
"What do you mean, Sensei?" he asks, confused. "What does that have to do with it?"
"How do I explain this... imagine that you have a pitcher of water."
Raditz waves his hand, instantly creating a glass container, which quickly fills with water. He hovers it in the air with his Ki, before creating a glass cup in his hand.
"If you want a drink from this pitcher, you'll simply have to pour it into a cup, no? But sometimes, you'll pour a little too slow, and..."
The pitcher of water tips towards the glass, but instead of pouring into the cup, it runs down the side of the pitcher.
"...it'll do this. The pitcher, in this case, is your Ki, while the glass cup is the Ki blast you're trying to create. You need to 'commit to the pour', as some would say. You must try again. Be more confident, you can do this."
As Hercule attempts to create a Ki blast, Raditz turns away, scowling silently.
'That should keep him occupied for a little bit... but what the hell is taking Trunks so long?! He's supposed to show up sometime in August, right? The month is almost over, and yet he still hasn't shown up! Is he waiting for fucking Cooler and King Cold to arrive so he can save the day?!' the Saiyan thinks sourly.
'That doesn't make any sense though! He's supposed to show up and warn us about the Androids! That'll get everyone to intensify their training. If he doesn't show up, and if the System keeps stopping me from spreading its Ki guides to Kakarot, Goku, and Vegeta, then there's no way they'll be trained up enough to stand a chance against Gero, much less 17 and 18.'
As Raditz worries about the future and Future Trunks's absence, a loud explosion echoes throughout the island. The one-armed Saiyan turns his head with a hint of surprise, instantly seeing the source of the explosion.
"I did it! I even hit right on target!" Hercule cheers, causing a smile to bloom upon Raditz's face.
"Yeah, I guess you did..."
"What's next, Sensei?"
Hercule turns towards the taller man with an excited, almost childlike expression of joy upon his face.
"Now? Well, now you try again. You'll have mastered Ki attacks when you can seriously damage the dummy... but I suppose there is one more thing I can teach you while you master Ki attacks..."
"What is it?"
"Hercule, have you ever wondered what flying would feel like? Not in a vehicle, or with a jetpack, but with your own abilities?"
Hundreds of miles from Raditz's location, an orange-clothed man kneels next to a short, black-haired man. The black-haired man is weighed down by strange, heavy pieces of metal that are wrapped around his neck, hands, and feet. Despite the situation Vegeta finds himself in, he doesn't shout. He doesn't curse Raditz and swear to murder him, nor does he strain against the Katchin holding him down. As a matter of fact, he doesn't even seem angry at all. That's doubly impressive when you consider the man next to him...
"Woah! I can't believe your Ki control has improved so much, Vegeta!" Goku says with an amazed grin. "Although I guess you haven't had much else to do..."
"..."
"You should have the Instant Transmission mastered now, or at least, mastered enough to teleport yourself to the other side of the room. Just remember what King Kai told Raditz, and you should be out of those in no time!"
The short Saiyan scowls at Raditz's name, but doesn't say anything. After a few tense seconds of concentration, the natural Ki barrier surrounding him disappears, allowing the Katchin to fall on his bare skin...
...only, it doesn't. The Prince vanishes, reappearing a few feet behind Goku.
"Awesome!" the Saiyan from Earth cheers. "Now you and Raditz can finally spar! I'll go tell him!"
He turns around, as if to fly off, before something impacts the back of his head. He falls to the ground, completely unconscious, as Vegeta stares down at him with a blank face.
"With the Namekian on Yardrat, and you unconscious... nobody can stop me from killing that bastard, Raditz." he says, pointing a hand at Goku's body.
His entire body trembles in rage, and for the briefest moment, a flash of gold appears in his hair. It's gone as soon as it arrived, however, as he quickly suppresses the fury he feels.
'Losing my temper is what got me in this mess to begin with... I must stay calm if I want to beat him. If I kill Kakarot now, that piece of scum, Raditz, will sense it and be prepared for me...'
A sigh escapes his lips as he glares at the unconscious Saiyan. A split second later, he leaves the house, carefully concealing his energy as he flies Southeast...