NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 47: The Plan (27.2)
Game
Thoughts
"Talking"
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I know Mr. Popo is probably one of the best trainers in the whole universe, but damn!
Gray stared appreciatively at his party member's new power levels. Evidently, they hadn't been sitting around doing nothing while he was being put through Mr. Popo's hellish training.
[Emotional] Asuna:
[Ex-Vice-Captain of the Raditz Squad]
Age: 19
PL: 200,770,575
HP: 250,250/250,250
TKI: 410,000/410,000
Reputation: 800/1000 (Liked)
[Emotional] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will highly value their emotions, doing whatever it takes to follow them.
[Survivalist] Celia:
[Saiyan Princess]
Age: 19
PL: 247,550,920
HP: 275,975/275,975
TKI: 5,752,000/5,752,000
Reputation: 1,200/5000 (Greatly Liked)
[Survivalist] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will do whatever it takes to survive.
[Masked] Saeko:
[Galatic Sword-Collector]
Age: 19
PL: 147,700,700
HP: 175,920/175,920
TKI: 172,000/172,000
Reputation: 1,125/1000 (Greatly Liked)
[Masked] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be adept at masking their true personality and emotions.
[Sexy] Ranfan:
[Martial Artist]
Age: 25
PL: 25,750,500
HP: 5,725/5,725
TKI: 9,500/9,500
Reputation: 1,500/5000 (Greatly-Liked)
[Sexy] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally sexy, being unafraid to utilize this sexiness to get what they want.
They had all become stronger after getting a share of the Funf exp, but not nearly this much stronger. Celia was close to how strong Raditz had been, while both Asuna and Saeko were stronger than any of the squad members except Raditz. Even Ranfan had gotten a lot stronger, as the Earthling woman could probably contend with the weaker A-Class Saiyan Recruits.
It only took a week for Popo to make her stronger than Kolra.
However, there was one other person on the lookout who took most of Gray's attention.
I passed him.
[Stern] Piccolo:
[Namekian Warrior]
Age: 9
PL: 2,579,985,990
HP: 1,970,200
TKI: 1,987,750
Reputation: 150/1000 (Liked)
[Stern] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be naturally stern and unbending.
Kami had been very open about how Piccolo was essentially his last resort for saving Earth. Gray had assumed Piccolo was probably at least a billion power level for Kami to have so much faith in him, but he was more than double that.
Though, if he's this strong and is still holed up here training then this won't be a cakewalk.
If the Namekian still wasn't able to stomp out the invaders at 2.5 billion, then Gray likely still wasn't the strongest being on the planet, even with his power boost.
But, I'm more than strong enough to kick Raditz's ass.
Gray blinked as he looked around.
Where's Nam? I forgot he existed for a second.
"I take it your training went well?" Gray was dragged from his thoughts as Celia spoke, the group of her, Saeko, Asuna, Ranfan, and Piccolo approaching him.
"Very well," Gray hummed in response, flexing his hand open and shut, "Notice anything different?"
"I think we'd be blind if we didn't," Saeko said bluntly, a smirk on her face. Asuna and Ranfan giggled behind her.
"Yeah," Gray simply grinned, "How about you guys? Was the training good?"
"If by 'good' you mean the hardest thing I've ever done," Ranfan said, her eye twitching, "Then yes, it was great!"
"Mr. Popo's training is not for the weak," Piccolo scoffed, "I'm impressed you survived this long."
"Thanks! …wait, that wasn't a compliment!" Ranfan bit back.
"Now that you are all here," Kami spoke, bringing their attention to him, "We have something vital to discuss."
Kami closed his eyes for a second, his face twisted as he seemed conflicted, but then he finally reopened them and stared directly at Gray.
"Our alliance," He said, his eyes boring into Gray's head, "I'd like to make it a permanent one. After you remove the other invaders, If you and your leader agree to leave the inhabitants of Earth unharmed, then I will permit him to use the dragon balls."
There was silence for a moment, everyone staring blankly at Kami. Finally, Gray broke it.
"Why the hell are you lookin' at me like that?" Gray said bluntly, "You think I can control what Frieza does? If you wanna make a deal like that, then go talk to him yourself."
"W-Well, you are…" Kami trailed off, looking like he was conflicted on what to say again, "...Quite strong. You must have some sway with this Frieza, correct?"
"Nope," Gray replied blandly, "We're Saiyans. We just work for the guy. And 'work' is being generous - we don't get paid, so it's more like slavery."
"B-But! You're the strongest Saiyan!" Kami said, spitting out the words as his plan fell apart, "I-If you tell him about our agreement, and how we helped you, then he will surely agree!"
"The strongest Saiyan?" Gray looked at him incredulously, "I'm probably closer to the top now, but the strongest? No shot."
"T-There are other Saiyans stronger than you?" Kami asked, his wrinkled face becoming even more wrinkled as a hint of fear appeared in his eyes.
"I will break it down for you," Celia interrupted, "We have a training system in place on Planet Vegeta, where recruits are divided into classes based on their strength. 99% of our race will never reach beyond Class-A. They will either die during training or will dropout to take low-level positions in the Frieza Force. As of right now, Gray has far surpassed the level of Class-A. He is on the level of Class-S recruits."
"However," Celia continued as Kami started to open his mouth, "Even with the current Class-S likely only having at most 10 members, Gray would not be the strongest. These are the strongest our race has to offer. There's already a few Saiyans stronger right there, and that's not considering…"
Celia held up her hand, tapping on her fingers as she starting listing names off, "There's my Father, my brothers, and the former Class-S's who are now in my Fathers's elite force or holding high positions in the Frieza force. Gray is probably within the top 50, maybe even the top 20, but the strongest? Not yet."
She looked back up at Kami, "And, even if he was the strongest Saiyan, Frieza does not like our people. He has numerous soldiers from other races that surpass even my Father in strength. Gray's words would mean nothing."
Kami stared at her blankly, his eyes wide. His hand slowly clenched, a crack appearing in his now-repaired wooden staff.
"Ha!" Piccolo let out a mixture of a scoff and a laugh, "Seems like the world is a bit bigger than we thought!"
"Yes…" Kami trailed off, lost in thought for a moment, and then looked back at Gray, "You… I do not believe you are the strongest being on Earth, but after watching you fight, and seeing the variety of your techniques, I believe there is no one you can't beat."
"How many?" Gray asked. Kami looked at him questioningly.
"...How many?"
"How many people have you seen here that are stronger than me?" Gray clarified. Kami nodded, looking down in thought.
This is a good chance to get some information. Kami's been here his whole life - he should have a good scope of how strong each faction is.
"...Very few," Kami finally said, "One of Cooler's men stationed here is quite powerful. Another is far stronger, but he seems to only occasionally come to Earth. I've also sensed a higher-up within King Cold's forces that was very strong, and General Blue of the Red Ribbon Army is very skilled."
Gray blinked.
General Blue? I guess he was a pretty big threat in the show, but I thought it'd be someone like Commander Red or Staff Officer Black.
"...Demon King Piccolo may also be a threat," Kami continued, his face twisting, "He was nowhere near your strength when I last saw him, but he will not go down easily."
That's… not too bad. If Kami's right, then there are only a few real threats to me on Earth. Nightmare Mode will probably pull out some bullshit, so I should assume that number is actually closer to ten.
Kami continued as he looked down at his feet, "But, they seem much less threatening now. I knew that the invaders were not sending their full force here, but not to this extent. For there to be so many out there…"
Kami finally shook his head, pushing away the thoughts as he looked back up at Gray, "Never mind. We have a more pressing concern."
"Cooler," Celia nodded, and Gray looked at her questioningly.
"Raditz's squad is not doing well," Celia answered, "While we have been training, Cooler's forces have been applying pressure to them. I estimated that they could hold off for around two weeks, but they're barely hanging on after one. They will likely be completely defeated by tomorrow."
"And, when that happens, we lose our method to communicate with Planet Vegeta," Saeko said, looking at Celia with a raised eyebrow.
"Correct," Celia nodded, "If the Raditz squad, along with the last remaining Frieza Force soldiers, are wiped out, then Father will assume we are dead. He will not contact the planet again, and will not attempt to recall us."
"So, we just gotta go save them, right?" Gray hummed, stretching his arm out, "I can't take over the squad if they're all dead, so we gotta save them first."
"Yes," Celia nodded again, "We should plan tonight, and leave early morning tomorrow to go help them."
"Why not just go right now?" Gray asked bluntly, continuing to stretch out his limbs as he felt some Saiyan arrogance leak into his words, "We're all a lot stronger now. Hell, I could probably do it myself at this point."
"You may be right, but having a plan would be wise," Kami countered, "Cooler's forces are still an unknown variable."
"Yes, and while we may be going to save them, the Raditz squad and Frieza Force will not be welcoming," Celia continued, "We are still their enemies. We could end up having to fight both them and Cooler's forces at the same time."
"Yeah, you're right," Gray hummed, sighing as he stopped stretching. After being knocked out for almost an entire day, he was itching to get back into a fight.
"No, you can go now," Piccolo said abruptly, bringing everyone's attention to him, "I will go as well. With both of us, there is nothing on all of Earth that could pose a threat."
"Oh?" Gray raised an eyebrow at Piccolo, smirking, "Why's that? Afraid I'll get too far ahead if you don't get some fighting in?"
"As if," Piccolo merely scoffed in response, "I'm not that prideful like you damn Saiyans. It'd just be disappointing if you went and died."
"Aw, you worried about me?" Gray smirked wider.
"Not at all," Piccolo replied blandly, "But we still have training to do. If you're dead, then I can't continue to progress my Special Beam Cannon."
"This is cute and all," Saeko smirked as she tapped the sword at her hip, "But it's already mid-day. If we're going to go, then we should go before nightfall."
"Yeah! Let's go kick some Saiyan butt!" Ranfan cheered. Celia looked at her blandly.
"You're not coming."
"W-What?! But I just did all this training!" Ranfan whined, "This is the hardest I've ever trained! I gotta use it!"
"M-Maybe she can come watch?" Asuna asked, looking hesitantly at Gray, "She has been working really hard… And! You and Piccolo will be doing all the work anyway, so I'll stay back and protect her!"
All eyes turned to Gray as they looked at him expectantly. Gray glanced at Ranfan, whose huge eyes were looking pleadingly at him.
"...She can come," Gray finally said, "Just stick with Asuna. She's right - me and Piccolo should be doing most of the work."
"Yay!" Ranfan cheered, hugging Asuna from behind. Gray looked away as both girls tumbled over, devolving into a pile of giggles. He glanced off the side of the lookout, staring in the direction of where he'd fought Raditz. Piccolo's footsteps rang out behind him, the Namekian walking forward and standing at his side as he also looked off.
Raditz, don't think I forgot about you.
Gray clenched his fist, a light sparking in his eyes.
I hope you enjoyed your life, because it ends today.
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Gray Tanaki:
[Mr. Popo's Favorite Student]
Age: 18
Wallet: 119,650 Coins
Lvl: 17 (85,000/750,000 XP)
PL: 3,118,252,700
Available Points: 0
HP: 1,889,950/1,889,950
TKI: 2,311,325/2,311,325
STR: 1465
AGI: 1650
END: 1290
INT: 1405
CHA: 1205
LUK: 795
KI: 1645
HREG: 1176
EREG: 1176
Skills: [Observe LVL 10], [Running LVL 15], [Determination LVL 15], [Ki Control LVL 14], [Ki Gun LVL 11]. [Ki Enhancement LVL 9], [KI Suppression LVL 10], [Ki Sense LVL 8], [Pushup LVL 15], [Punch LVL 15], [Kick LVL 15], [Jump LVL 15], [Flight LVL 9], [Prediction LVL 7], [Zenkai Boost LVL 6], [Cognitive Acceleration LVL 7], [Ah! Lord Freiza! LVL 7], [Mouth-Beam LVL 6], [Ki-Blade LVL 6], [Cooking LVL 6], [Ki Array LVL 8], [Ki Explosion LVL 6], [Ki Vision LVL 6]
Perks: [Gamer's Mind], [Gamer's Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Saiyan], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], [Ladies Man]
Fighting Styles: [Boxing Style: Kolra LVL 2], [Fighting Style: Broly LVL 1]
Party: [Saeko, Celia, Asuna, Ranfan]
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AN: Thank you for reading! The next chapter will be out in about a week, or you can read the next 5 right now at Patreon.com/Koyon ! I also have chapters up there for my other stories if you enjoy those.