To Find Strength

And thus Nasu continued to practice, making sure that each and every fiber of his body had been shaken to the point where he could feel himself burn away in the moment. He had to make that battle instinct perfect, whatever had been done was done and now he had to make sure he did not fall behind. Power did not assure him, if anything it only urged him to keep working harder. He could not risk himself slacking off. But in the midst of it all, he lost touch with the surroundings, and when an element impossible to sense like Chaznut made his way in his radius, it was nearly impossible for him to detect.

That was until he got called out. His body halted with one final swing, he blinked quickly a few moments and then his eyes began to wander until he spotted the tigerman. He did not have any doubt that he was alive, but he had no way to really discern his whereabouts when he could not sense him. He was positive he was fine, however, since Korado only returned to them with one corpse at the time.

He offered his comrade a smile and nodded.

“Likewise! I must apologize for dragging you into that mess. I had no idea events would unfold that way until a day or two after we arrived here, and from there I spent most of my time and energy preparing for it.”

The man was curious that apparently the tigerman was very well aware of his transformation. Then he happened to spot him at the time, thus he figured he had just not seen him, not that he was surprised about his own failure, he was far too focused on Lottus to really pay anything else much mind.

“Yeah. Do not worry. I did not decide to steal your hairdo or something.”

A weak laugh cracked his features before he stabbed his sword into the ground and let it rest there for a while, then he turned towards Chaznut with both hands resting upon his own hips.

“There was always this old Saiyan legend. The Super Saiyan, it spoke of a warrior of great bloodlust, or rather a god of destruction if you will. It looked like that day we went and awakened that old legend. After a fashion, you could say I always had it in me, yes. I do not think it was bestowed upon me…”

He raised a finger, as an indication that he was soon to give an explanation.

“I did tell you I could know how you felt back then, didn’t I? I was born and raised on a faraway world, if you remember. A kingdom with beautiful palaces, streets and castles. In the end it all turned into a bloody mess, filled with savage destruction and death. When I was nearly dying with a hole in my chest, I could not help but think of all I lost back then, and those I could still lose...”

His eyes moved away briefly, to stare at the ground, perhaps in a brief show of emotion yet left in him before he recovered and once more returned to stare at Chaznut.

“And I ascended. So, yes, I would say it was always in me. But I do not think it is… a privileged thing, so to say. The legend said one would appear every thousand years or something, and here we go, we just had two in one day.”

WC: 584
Total WC: 888

He wondered if they were not both trouble magnets, in the end. Wherever he went, something usually happened. He could not tell exactly what it was, but perhaps it had to do with the effect they were just over the top. Perhaps even Chaznut did not feel like he was that strong, but even that much was on top the average living being by a large mile. If anything Nasu was currently an anomaly, but it would not be long before many more anomalies would soon emerge.

“Perhaps so. But it was very close. If I had not ascended, who knows what could have happened.”

His concern briefly washed away and instead he chose to inquire more of Chaznut’s whereabouts and day, he had no idea what had happened that day to him after all. He was at least somewhat curious.

“What about you? How did you fare? The reason I chose to try and involve you is because I could feel signatures on par with yours but I did not have actual time to actually analyze the situation properly. Would you not tell me of your endeavors?”

Chaznut also chose to note if it was possible for any Saiyan to unlock this form, and such was obviously a difficult question to answer. It was not one he could easily answer, after all, it was not even a month that he had achieved this result. But he did have some considerations.

“If it was that easy, it would not be a legend. However, let us be honest, the strength you and I boast is not something that belongs to anyone. I would not say it is that easy, but people that can reach this level definitely have a chance, in my opinion.”

He had an honest smile on his features and nodded.

“Why do you not stick around me a little longer? Through some training maybe we can unlock something. I also need a decent sparring partner now that Lottus is dead. I do not intend to stop at Super Saiyan.”

The question as to how he felt was not easy to answer, but also not so tragic. So many things could have gone worse, and in the end, he had not only ascended but also cleared his relationship with Cheri. All things considered, he could say the future was bright.

“Good. Honestly, good. I wish Lottus could have seen the mistake of his own ways, but I did not stand in the way of what had to be done. The invasion was a problem. It was the Saiyans that first invaded this world, years before I was even born, and my lineage would never even know this planet existed. The Tuffles fought back and created a deadly gas, called Destron, and they have been at each other’s throats for fifty years. This invasion was sure to reignite war but now everyone is distracted by these Super Saiyan rumors, so in the end it seems we might actually be fine.”

He chuckled weakly.

“Truly, it is also thanks to the Saiyan Queen, Amara, that I am not involved in this aftermath all that much. She spared the details of my ascension, so only a few know about it. Otherwise I would probably be harassed to no end as long as I stand on this soil. As ever I remain a Knight in the shadows that watches, and I am fine with that.”

No fame, no glory. No such things were in his scope, he was only here to make sure what he cared about remained safe.

“I would see my people spared self-destruction. I may not be alive to see the fruits of my work, but it is the best way to spend any time I have left alive. That, and making sure the forces of evil do not overwhelm worlds other than this one. A little too much for one individual.”

If anything he saw a little spark in Chaznut, if he was stronger, he could definitely be one to fight on the front lines in the name of the greater good. Of course he would not force him in such shoes without him being convinced about it.

“What about you? You have just been involved in the aftermath of a fifty year old war. How do you feel?”

WC: 722
Total WC: 1,610

Why, he was indeed right.

There was no use in dwelling on what ifs and what not, but of course there was no denying that it was quite close this time. He could not just rely on this kind of ‘random’ power ups to do what his heart willed, rather he needed to grow stronger and better understand this Super Saiyan power and that was it.

In time, though, Chaznut shifted the topic along the lines of what he asked him, and of course Nasu made sure to listen. As far as he knew all the men from that day were members of that Heran’s gang, but of course there was something else up, rather the fact that both an Arcosian and Namekian of all people had chosen to help him was puzzling.

“Strange. You see. Arcosians in general are kind of doing their own thing. I do not exactly understand why one would be there for the attack. And a Namekian even? That is nearly absurd. I know the people of Namek all too well, they must be the most peaceful in the galaxy from what I have witnessed. But I assume you have had the chance of dealing with a rogue element.”

A thought occurred in his mind; did his friend even know of the circumstances that led to this attack? He wondered, but probably not. He did not get the chance to explain.

“So, you might have heard something. But this planet used to be home to the Tuffle and a couple others, until the Saiyans moved all the way here because our original planet was destroyed. There was conflict, and history records it as being my people that initiated the conquest, and the Tuffles responded in kind and even created one of the most dangerous weapons out there; a poisonous gas called destron. This war lasted for about fifty years until last year two new peaceful leaders decided to rush a battle for the end of the war, where most civilians were evacuated and no one really got hurt.”

And then he exhaled. That was a lengthy story to give, even if it was merely a summary. Even Nasu could not possibly have all the details, but it should give enough of an idea on the subject at hand.

“Now, out of nowhere, this mercenary called Fukushu chose to try and reignite the flames of war here. For what reason? He is a warmonger and war is certainly their most profitable activity. Some chose to join him too, motivated by their dissatisfaction from how the war had ended. One such man was Lottus, for example. But I still do not know why an Arcosian and a Namekian would join, perhaps they had other reasons to pledge alliance with the mercenary.”

Nasu stepped over one of the nearby trees, just to rip off a couple of branches and some more until he had collected enough of those.

“Well, it depends. My body did not exactly get much bigger when I transformed. I assume it is merely a power thing, then if you would choose to focus on your form’s strength… then yes, you would sacrifice speed for strength.”

But this kind of mindset gave him an idea. What if he could further evolve the Super Saiyan indeed? Perhaps not just by finding something else beyond it, but rather try to improve his current form? He could definitely and easily pump power into muscles, it was a basic energy control concept but it would do little.

“Oh. I don’t know… Ascended Super Saiyan sounds good, but maybe even just giving it a number could be alright. Beats me really. In the end what matters for me is that I do not fall behind. I am sure more people are bound to join me at this level very soon.”

Once collected he tossed them off onto the ground, before he looked back towards Chaznut.

“Rest easy. In the end all has been well. Perhaps too well. But what about you? How do you actually feel? You said you felt useless back there.”

WC: 686
Total WC: 2,296

Well, most Arcosians he had met were quite collected. But he knew that did not mean much either, any kind of person could come from any kind of species or culture, and in the end it only meant that most likely this Arcosian was not affiliated to the Empire. It would give them quite the bad image. He was sure about that.

As for the Namekian, it was a very strange case. He had never seen one with scales and he had no idea about Namekian biology, who knew what kind of story this stranger had, however of course it would not excuse his behavior. What Nasu had witnessed and gone through for the past years was most likely to lead on a path of vengeance, and yet it did not, they had no excuse either for this kind of behavior. The only exception was nearly Lottus but only for a handful of reasons, perhaps even having to do with him being his kin, which was indeed both a rich and weak argument at the same time.

“Definitely.”

He said, with his eyes that rolled just slightly. Sarcasm met with further sarcasm, how ingenious of Nasu. But nevertheless, there was something that concerned him there, he would at least see if Nero knows something about it. Such an element could be dangerous for the peace of Namek, which was by all means constantly threatened anyways by external elements, they did not need further conflict surely.

“We will see. I do not think I will purposefully chase anyone down. In the end I can only hope they have learned their lesson. But just like I told an old enemy, should I face them once more in battle, they will have had their second chance already and wasted it. Perhaps I am harsh but I would rather not endanger innocents out of foolishness.”

There was indeed a chance this could have possibly endangered the peace they had been striving towards, but honestly he had his doubts about it now that he lived to see the end of the assault.

“I shared those concerns, too. However, for better or worse, people are more concerned over the ‘Legendary Super Saiyan’ now. For the better it seems the information about yours truly also ascending has remained disclosed only to those who were there to see it that day. Therefore I will probably be spared the annoyance of sparring randoms or weird requests from fanatics.”

From his hand he allowed a handful of energy to burn into the wood he had gathered so that it would make for a little fire camp. He wondered about what he said quietly, there was not much he could likely say but he did believe Chaznut had it in him, he just needed to do… more.

“You can count on a couple of hands the number of people with power like this. If you have already reached the level you are at, I have no doubt you can reach mine. I would not worry about a superior form yet, I believe you need to become much stronger first. So you must train, but not only that, you should… explore, and experience. Meet people, do stuff, intervene in battles, all that. I found that method to be the best for my own growth.”

WC: 552
Total WC: 2,848