Keikan's warriors streaked through the night sky of Barusei, the crators and bodies telling the story of the battle that had waged there only months earlier. Skeletons of metal and bone littered the ground, the soil soaked in blood. The Torajin could hardly believe any race could be so brutal. They finally spotted the tell-tale power of their leader some ways off to the right, and altered their course accordingly.

Keikan had set up camp in a small crater, his transport pod and communication devices close to his side. His glistening white teeth tore away a tender chunk of meat from the leg of some alien animal. He swallowed, and licked the blood from his mouth. He thought about the Saiyajin he had killed a few hours earlier. They had not been the ones who purged this planet. No, their powers didn't exceed 300. They must have been scientists. That would also explain the shorter, bald green alien that accompanied them.

Reido sat some yards away, feet drawn in, with his knees splayed out haphazardly, arms draped over them. His tail swished irritably.

"Keikan-sama! Keikan-sama!"

The faint metallic voice reached out to him through the pale light of the Barusei night...

"Nanda?! What is it?" he yelled as he stomped over to the device.

The sheepish voice rang out from his transmitter's speaker...

"Keikan-sama! Furiza has a message for us."

"Nani?" Keikan barked.

"It says there was a Chikyuujin with the Saiyajin Warrior, it was he who destroyed the robot, and slaughtered the Barujin. They were sent by Bejita-Ouji, who is stationed on Chikyuusei."

"NANI? CHIKYUUJIN?"

"Hai... so da...", the signal began to break up, "Furiza-sama... said..."

Keikan repeatedly smacked the transmitter in frustration. Finally, the signal wavered and returned...

"...attacking Bejitasei!"

"Bejitasei? What?"

The radio returned nothing but static. The mothership had dropped below the horizon and he couldn't get radio contact for another 20 hours...

He sat down in the padded seat of his pod, and placed his arm on the rest. He lapsed into meditation...

How could a Chikyuujin be that powerful? he mused. He would have his revenge on the Saiyajin Ouji.

Bejita sat fuming in his throne, indignation shimmering in his fierce eyes. He pounded the arm of his throne with a gloved fist.

"Get me the Chikyuujin and Kakarotto...NOW!" he demanded. Nappa scrambled into action, leaving the angry monarch in solitude.

The halls of his ship shook ferociously with the young emporer's rage.

Once again the two found themselves kneeling before an ever enraged Bejita.

"You succeeded in your mission. I am pleased at this news, however, there is one thing I need to know... who the hell are the Torajin?" Bejita demanded, his eyes wide and menacing.

"Sire?" Shikerou asked, keeping his eyes on the floor.

"I received a transmission from somewhere beyond X47 from creature calling himself Keikan. He said he was a Torajin and that we have committed an act of war on them by attacking Barusei. They are sworn to protect the Barujin, and they have declared war on the Neo Saiyajin." Bejita calmly stated, belying his explosive nature.

War? Shikerou and Kakarotto were astonished. Was Bejita actually afraid of these Torajin? Who was powerful enough to worry the Neo Saiyajin Empire? The air around the young Ou crackled menacingly with his latent power.

"You are both strong fighters. I'll admit to you that my father has tried to take Barusei, but for some reason has not been able. Now we know why. The Torajin must be extremely powerful. Go and train for the coming battle, we'll need all the help we can get." he stated, his chin resting in his left palm, propped by an elbow leaning on the arm of his throne. He tapped his index finger on his jawbone in annoyance, mulling over this new predicament.

The two stood, realizing they were dismissed. They bowed and walked out of the throne room. It was all they could do not to break into a run.

Shikerou hung some hundreds of feet above the crumbling remains of a large city. He scoffed at the weakness of the pathetic Chikyuujin. How had he survived? Why was he so powerful when others weren't?

His father had been a strong fighter... one of the strongest ever to live, but he had died of a disease when Shikerou was young: too young to remember. His power had become evident when he began his training, and he surpassed all the other students only a few months after starting his first martial arts class. Soon his Sensei was the only one in the entire dojo who could defeat Shikerou. He thought of his former master... what had become of him?

He had a feeling his former sensei was alive and well, hiding somewhere... his power was great and somehow he would have escaped. If not for the purposes of fighting, Ji-san would make a excellent trainer for the Neo Saiyajin.

He clicked on his scouter and scanned the horizon. It showed hundreds of powers to the east... 1,247 kilometers, each between 2, the weakest concubine, and 50,000, the Neo Saiyajin Ou. That was the direction of the new Saiyajin palace. They had a foundation dug for a huge structure, miles wide and stories deep into the ground. It would raise into the air a few hundred feet once finished. Constructed of massive stones and fortified with alloys perfected by the team of brilliant alien scientists, it would be a structure to dwarf all Chikyuujin endeavors. The weakest fighters were hard at work cutting the stone from surrounding mountains and using their scouters to find metal under Chikyuusei's crust. They were highly successful. This new planet was rich with resources.

Slowly, he rose into the air, turning round and round and scanning the area. He recognized the place as somewhere in East Asia.

The Torajin roared and attacked with vigor. Zarbon had no trouble dispatching any who so much as came near him, and those that didn't were targets of his ki attacks.

Nearly instantly, he zanzoken'd out of the way of a striped claw, and appeared behind his hairy, orange foe. A quick punch to the spine sent the under-trained soldier spinning paralyzed to his death, over a hundred feet below. Zarbon caught sight of another trying to sneak up to his side, and spun around, crushing the thing's jaw with a well aimed boot. He loved to watch their mangled forms spin toward the planet, helplessly plummeting toward the lush jungles before they were lost under the wide leaves of the massive trees. He saw Dodoria being mired in orange bodies, and took off in that direction to help ward them off.

They had brought over 200 soldiers to purge this planet, which should have been sufficient since Keikan and his elites were off on Barusei. However, the estimates of a population under 10,000 proved to be about half of the real numbers. Furiza's men were of the lesser force, each at only about 5,000 power. They were definitely strong enough to take on the Torajin, who seemed to rarely break the 2,000 mark, except in rare cases, such as the Home Guard, who averaged around 4,000. Unfortunately, when five or six of them attacked at once, they were able to kill the invaders.

As Zarbon neared Dodoria, he noticed one of the Torajin behind the fat, pink, elite draw back a claw, charging ki, ready to strike at his exposed neck.

"That slow fool..." he muttered as he let fly with a blast of his own. The green ki whirred as it sped toward the hapless Torajin soldier, catching him in the face. His head exploded, leaving nothing but a steaming, bloody neck, as bits of the skull and brains showered around his intended victim. Finally Dodoria looked behind him, just in time to see the body fall toward the forest floor.

"Thanks Zarbon!" he yelled, waving at his green comrade. He turned back in time to be punched several times in the face by an enraged Torajin.

Zarbon sighed heavily at his partner's stupidity, and continued his descent. He flew into the throng of the four fighters, one of them Dodoria, the others lesser Torajin soldiers. His extended foot drove one a few hundred yards down, fists flying into the remaining two, knocking them back. Immediately Dodoria let fly with a devastating mouth blast that incinerated the two nearby, then turned his ire on the erstwhile fighter.

Zarbon looked around him. Thousands of Torajin were arriving by the minute, and only fifty of Furiza's original force still remained.

Things were looking grim.

*BEEP*

The familiar sound of his scouter woke Shikerou from his daze. He had been flying very slowly for almost an hour now, he was eager to train, but it had been so long since he had seen his master... would he forgive Shikerou?

His scouter read 1,500. Shikerou took off in that direction.

He followed the ki signal and scanned the horizon as he flew low over the ground. He could smell the warm breeze, the flowers: the smell of nature. He loved Earth but had always hated the people on it... deep down he really did. He had seen what Humans would do to their own planet, the death they would deal in the name of profit, in the name of technology. The humans were no better than the Saiyajin. Slaves, mass genocide, destruction of over half the rainforests. Humans had no honor, no respect for their planet. They didn't deserve it.

His mind turned to thoughts of his trainer. What would he do if he found Ji-san anyways? Did he really think his former master would join his cause with the Saiyajin? At least the Humans pretended to be innocent... the Saiyajin were openly cold and malicious. His master would never approve. Could he fight his master... could he kill him?

He would have to if he refused to side with Shikerou and defied the Saiyajin. It was his new life - his old life was to be left behind him. If Ji-san decided to join him, he was more than welcome. He was a brilliant martial artist and would make a great trainer for the Saiyajin Forces.

He could only hope.

"Furiza-sama! Furiza-sama!"

The nervous guard ran into the room shouting hysterically.

"Furiza-sama!"

The small statured, extremely powerful lord of many galaxies stood gazing out the window over Bejitasei, his back facing the pathetic messenger who stood behind him...

"Hai...?" Furiza's voice was deep and menacing, with a cool air that belied his immense power.

The small man nervously wrung his hands as he stammered out his message.

"Zarbon and Dodoria have r-reached Torasei and they are u-uhh having s-some difficulties..."

Furiza made no move, but replied coldly and indifferently with an "Oh?"

"They say th-there are many more T-Torajin than they expected, sire..."

No response this time.

"Sire?"

Furiza's gaze wandered over the stars around him. His immense Empire brought him much pride... he was insanely powerful, and Keikan was certain to bend before him.

Shikerou's scouter read fifty yards, and yet he could see for probably two hundred across the barren plain. The wind whipped his blonde hair, which waved like the grass around him. He turned in circles, unable to place where the signal was coming from. Even his own ability to sense ki confused him as he felt it from every angle.

Suddenly Shikerou was on his face, with both arms painfully bent around his back to his shoulderblades. He strained to gain his feet, but was stopped by the foot planted firmly in his lower back. Nothing he could do would loosen the hold, indeed, any movement on his part worsened the pain in his shoulders. He feared his arms would break.

"You're slow." a familiar voice admonished.

"Sensei?" Shikerou chanced.

"You are my student no longer. You are a student of death. An alien race bent on genocide and slaughter. Imperialism." Ji-san spat at the last word. The hold did not loosen, in fact, Shikerou wasn't sure if it didn't tighten. The familiar sound of ki whirred in his ears, though it was not his.

"Sensei, please-" Shikerou's words were cut short and a scream escaped his lips in their stead. Ji-san's grip did tighten this time, and his face was smashed into the dirt by his former master's other palm.

"You have no honor! Do not call me your sensei. You may call me Ji-san, or enemy, but not master or friend."

Those words hurt more than any physical pain Shikerou had ever encountered. Ji-san was like his father to him. His real father had died early on, while his poor mother worked night hours at a factory to earn a living. He often wondered when she slept. Ji-san was there for him when others weren't, to offer wise words of advice, and understanding. He could think of no other name to call him but Ji-san, and so he did.

"Ji-san I implore you! Let me to my feet so I may speak to you face to face, like a man!"

"You did not grant your victims the same courtesy, so why ask it for yourself?" he retorted coldly.

Shikerou was loosing this battle, and felt worse than he had in years. All those lives he had taken to save his own, where was his honor? He had none, Ji-san was right...

Shikerou could not free himself, and so he relaxed his strain on his burning shoulders, allowing Ji-san to do what he would. He knew when he was defeated.

This was not how he envisioned his reunion with his sensei, although how could he have expected any warmer a reception? He was now questioning the wisdom of seeking out his estranged master. No, he should think on his decision to become a ruthless, bloodthirsty killer. What a fool he'd been.

"I suspect you've come to enlist me to your side. You're a fool to believe I would ever side with evil. I have come here to say 'no' and to die, as I suspect you will kill me for refusing. I can sense that your power is much greater than it was before you left. That is to be expected from such training as this race must provide. Unlike you, however, I will die with pride, fighting for my people."

Suddenly the pressure on his lower back was gone, and Shikerou sprang to his feet. He spun quickly around and saw Ji-san's fist coming for his face. Shikerou was fast, but not fast enough. Ji-san's first and second attack landed square on his jaw. He stumbled back and assumed a fighting position.

Shikerou had fought his sensei countless times at the dojo growing up. This time, however, was for real, and Shikerou couldn't bring himself to attack. Ji-san was extremely fast and had an amazing talent for countering anything Shikerou threw at him.

Shikerou took off his scouter and tossed it several feet away so as to avoid breaking it. They circled each other several feet apart in matching sutansu. Shikerou looked upon his former master for the first time in months. Behind the wall of purple ki whirring around him, he wore a light grey gi gathered at the waist by a worn black belt. It was frayed considerably, and seemed ready to break at any moment. He had on his usual leather sandals, also appearing to be over twenty years old.

"Hiiaaat!"

Ji-san shot forward and the flurry began. He lead his charge with his right fist, aiming at Shikerou's throat. Shike stepped to his left, deflecting the offending hand with his right, and swinging a left hook at Ji-san's ribs. His fist met air, and he found his wrist caught in Ji-san's left hand. Ji-san used his momentum against him, tripping him and pulling him off-balance, so that his back was facing his opponent. Ji-san landed his right elbow in Shikerou's back, driving him to his knees. A foot met his chin and Shikerou was knocked on his side.

He rolled back and sprang to his feet, nursing his face. Ji-san gave him no time as he came forward with another attack, this time with his left fist. Shikerou deflected it to his right, quickly spinning his right arm over and pinned the arm to his body. Ji-san swung a wide left hook at Shikerou's head, which he blocked, and pinned to his other side.

Ji-san's forehead bit the bridge of Shikerou's nose with a loud THWACK, and he stumbled backward, blood issuing forth from both nostrils. Shike's eyes began to water uncontrollably and he lost sight of Ji-san. Pain erupted in his stomach just below his armor, and he found himself doubled over. Before he could react, an elbow landed on the back of his neck and he fell to the ground on his hands and knees, blood dripping on the grass in front of him.

The attack relented momentarily and Shikerou wiped the tears from his eyes, sniffing some of the blood back into his nose. He used his ki to stop the bleeding and shut the pain out of his mind. Ji-san stood in the usual sutansu, the same as his own, the one he was taught.

Know your enemy's movements before he moves. Commit. Shikerou remembered his training under this man. He had to stop thinking and start fighting.

"Chiiaaat!" he heard himself scream as he burst forward, ki enveloping him. His fists moved at lightning speed as he hammered out attack after attack on the old man. First left, then right punches landed, and when Ji-san stumbled backward, it left an opening for two furious gut shots. Leaving no time for recovery, he jumped and spun a roundhouse kick into Ji-san's temple, knocking him almost double. Shikerou reversed his leg, and swept it under Ji-san's unsteady legs, dropping him into the grass.

"Ji-san! I do not want to kill you! I realize that you think little of me for joining with the Saiyajin, but it was the only way to save myself. You can save yourself, just join us and train the army. You needn't kill anyone!"

Slowly, Ji-san regained his feet. "I do not fear honorable death," he stated resolutely.

"Then you shall die, my sensei. I have no other choice..."

"So be it."

With that the fight began with renewed vigor. Shikerou was resolved. He loved Ji-san, but he could not let him live. He was too dangerous, too skilled.

Ji-san's attacks were fast and skilled, and Shikerou had a time of blocking and reversing them. Shikerou, on the other hand, landed devastating blows when he could actually land them. Ji-san's defenses were impeccable, but Shikerou's power had grown considerably since they last sparred.

Shikerou shot forward and drove his fist into the face he once looked upon in awed respect. He threw every combo he knew at the man, especially those he learned with the Saiyajin. Some were blocked, but most found their mark, as he powered up to his maximum potential: now 12,000 by the Saiyajin scouters. A power of that magnitude was unbelievable on Earth before Shikerou was captured, but paled in comparison with the elites of the Saiyajin.

Ji-san no longer stood a chance against his pupil. He was battered and bloody after a few moments, his eyes swelling until he could barely see. Shike was inwardly shocked at the state he had put his master in. His resolve faltered momentarily. How could he kill this man? How could he even have inflicted that much pain on him? He rebuked himself and pressed onward, abandoning his feelings and giving into his bloodlust.

"I'm sorry, Sensei. I will miss you, and I thank you for your teachings." Shikerou whispered.

"I forgive you, Shikerou. This is my fault, I did not teach you well enough, it would seem." Ji-san's words bubbled out between his bloody lips.

Shikerou screamed in rage as he let loose a massive ki attack that incinerated his sensei. Immediately, he fell to his knees in tears.

He ducked and let loose with a flurry of punches to the face and chest that beat his opponent back. With a grunt of effort he smashed his fist through the Torajin's soft middle, rupturing his organs and sending him toward the planet in a shower of blood and entrails. His fist was covered in the disgusting stuff, so he burned it off with his Ki. Dodoria was bogged down with foe, who were beginning to overcome him. Zarbon once again went to his partner's aid.

He flew low and shouldered two out of the way, delivering a punishing roundhouse that knocked a third spinning unconscious to the ground.

"Dodoria, finish these fools and come with me, we have no more time for this."

"But I'm having fun!" Dodoria whined, then turned and punched a Torajin so hard he broke its neck.

Zarbon gave no answer to Dodoria's usual childish retort, and instead began channeling his Ki, pulling more and more of his latent power from its deep slumber. He let his mind go blank and felt the power grow into living form. More and more, faster and faster, the power grew. It built up until he could feel it tingling along his flesh in a way that made him quiver with excitement. He was transforming.

With a suddeness that took his breath away he felt his power explode through the fiber of his being. His features grew stout and strong. His arms and legs widening, his chest deapening. His face distorted into a more reptilian form, with blunt features, very different from the handsome countenance he wore in his weaker form.

Fully transformed, Zarbon was slower, but incredibly strong. His power now reached 60,000.

He pressed a button on his scouter that would call his space pod to his current location. With a series of beeps, he was alerted to a few more Torajin fighters. He was barely aware of Dodoria calling his own pod to him.

With exceptional grace, Zarbon tore into the new fighters. Wherever his attacks fell, there was a loud crunch as the bones of his foe gave way. He was unstoppable now.

Finally the pods arrived, and Zarbon and Dodoria flew high above the planet, their ships obediently following. Zarbon focused his ki into a dense ball of immense power, draining most of the rest of his strength into it, hardening the outer shell so that it would not explode when it hit the ground, and heating it so it would melt through the crust of the planet.

With a thunderous roar he launched the blast downward, and immediately gained entrance to his pod. Dodoria and Zarbon shot off into space at high speed, away from the doomed planet.

No sooner than the pair left the atmosphere did a massive eruption spew forth from every volcano on the planet at once. The crust heaved, creating gigantic hills which cracked open, spewing forth magma. Abruptly, the planet gave way to the tremendous force and came apart at the seams, the outer ring of debris flying past the pair of space craft as they shot away toward the mothership.

Izumi sat in her private quarters meditating. She had been training non-stop for months and needed some well deserved relaxation. A trip to the harems would do well to brighten her spirits, and she thought she might just go see about that in a few hours.

"Send word to the navigators, I want this ship off Chikyuusei and headed for Barusei. NOW!" The messenger jumped in fright as Bejita pounded his fist on the throne to emphasize the last point. "And have a trasmission sent to Keikan there, tell him he'll have his war."

The messenger practically ran from the room to avoid drawing Bejita's ire.

With the massive propulsion system of the mothership, they could be orbitting Barusei in a matter of weeks, as opposed to the slower pods that took several months. Bejita left the throne room and headed straight for his personal training room. He hungered for battle.

Chapter 12