Asia and Tamari (36.1)

Game

Thoughts

"Talking"

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Gray let his eyes flutter shut as his Saiyan pod raced through the dark expanse of space. He had been anticipating the trip back to Planet Vegeta, as the long trip would be boring when he essentially had nothing to do.

So, he had been sure to train extra hard on the last day on Earth and hadn't slept for multiple days in a row. Now, he had a chance to catch up on his sleep, and the boring trip would be over before he even knew it.

As his eyes closed and sleep consumed him, he had no way of knowing about a small, barely noticeable crack in the back outer layer of his pod. He had no way of knowing that it had been hit by a stray Ki blast. Most importantly, he had no way of knowing that the trajectory of his space pod had been slightly altered.

Slowly, over the course of millions of miles, the space pod shifted. As it did, a message rang out through the small Saiyan pod.

"Autopilot realigning…"

Unfortunately for Gray, his exhausted body didn't wake up from the robotic voice. 

"Destination: Planet Vegeta is outside of the predicted course. A new destination has been chosen."

Gray's body remained slumped over, sleep healing his exhausted muscles as the voice finished.

"New destination: Planet-

And so, a crack in a Saiyan space pod altered history.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

On a Saiyan pod racing towards Planet Vegeta, far from Gray's, sat a beautiful woman with long purple hair.

Saeko stared out the space pod with a bored expression, letting out a sigh as she still had countless hours inside the cramped pod ahead of her.

As she stared out blankly, her mind started to wander.

"I wonder how Asia and Tamari have been?"

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Two weeks ago - One day after Gray left Planet Vegeta.

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Tamari huffed, her face one of incredulity as she stared at the towering man in front of her.

"T-Tamari, calm down," Asia squeaked to her side, her unbelievably cute face causing Tamari to calm down a bit as she tugged on her Saiyan under armor.

"It's exactly as I told you," Bouleor growled, ignoring Tamari's look, "All F-Class recruits who passed the test will be skipping D-Class. You'll be moved straight to C-Class, along with the other D-Class recruits."

"Why?" Tamari asked bluntly, a suspicious look in her eyes. She was sure that there was something more to it than just that.

Gray left yesterday, and now suddenly we're skipping an entire class? 

"I don't have to explain shit to you, recruit," Bouleor growled, but then his face softened slightly. He raised a hand to his face, scratching his chin as his stern expression softened, "Look, I don't give a damn if you die, alright? You, or that annoying kid, or any of your little friends. I'm just telling you this so you don't keep annoying me, alright?"

"The feelings mutual," Tamari shot back, her face still steely, "Just get to the point."

"Both F-Class and D-Class are being eradicated," Bouleor huffed, an annoyed look on his face as he explained, "As of this year, there will be no more Saiyans accepted into the academy."

"W-What?" Tamari asked, not able to keep the shock off her face, "Why the hell not?"

The training program for young Saiyans had been around for many years - and she figured it would be around for many more years to come considering the Frieza-family war. 

If there are going to be no more new recruits, then it's easy to see where this is heading.

With no new recruits added, the number of Saiyans in the academy would dwindle. Whether it was from graduating, or from dying, the number would continue to decrease until there was no one left.

"Lord Frieza is winning," Bouleor replied bluntly, "The war, that is. Soon, there will be no need for more troops to fight in the war. King Vegeta has ordered for the academy to be closed in two years and for any Saiyan's under the age of 12 to no longer be trained in fighting at all. Even parents are now banned from allowing their children to fight."

Tamari's eyes went wide, her body standing stock still for a moment as she took in the last part.

"B-Banned from fighting?!" Tamari asked incredulously, "Are you fucking kidding me?!"

For Saiyans, to fight was to live. If they couldn't fight, then there was no reason to live. To force the next generation to not fight nor train…

"Is the King insane?!" Tamari growled, glaring at Bouleor as if this was his fault, "Has he already gone senile?!"

"T-Tamari! You can't just say that…" Asia trailed off next to her, the girl glancing around nervously to see if anyone had overheard her. Luckily, they were in a side hallway within the academy and there was no one else in earshot.

"It's fine," Bouleor grunted, his face twisted in uncertainty, "I thought the same thing, but King Vegeta is a Saiyan just like us. Hell, he's probably the most Saiyan-like Saiyan in our entire race. He would never give that order if he didn't have to… Lord Frieza must've forced him to."

Tamari clenched her hand, forming a fist at her side as she silently seethed.

This… this isn't right.

"Listen, seriously. I don't give a shit if you die, but if you know what's good for you, then you should leave the academy now," Bouleor said bluntly, staring down at Tamari. As Tamari opened her mouth again to answer angrily, Bouleor explained more, "Just listen, brat. It doesn't take a genius to see what's going on. If you're a powerful Saiyan, the next few years won't be kind to you. Take your friends, leave the academy, and go lay low. I'll be doing the same - I'll be retiring soon."

Tamari clenched her fist even tighter but didn't say anything in response. As Bouleor turned and walked away, leaving just her and Asia in the hallway, she couldn't muster out a response.

…He's right. I hate it, but he's right.

It wasn't a secret that Frieza didn't like their kind - he didn't particularly like any of the races that he had enslaved, but he seemed to have an unusually strong dislike for Saiyans in particular.

He's preventing young Saiyans from training and fighting.

In essence, he was trying to weaken the Saiyan race as a whole. And Tamari didn't have to think hard to know why.

Frieza was most certainly a dictator, but he was a very blunt one. When he decided a planet or race under his control was no longer useful, he killed them. There was no coverup - no attempt to hide the genocide.

It was easy to see where their race's relationship with Frieza was heading.

When the war ends, he'll kill all the strong Saiyans, and then force the young weak ones to continue working under him.

Tamari stared at the white floor beneath her feet, her fingernails digging into her hand so deeply that blood started to flow.

"Tamari…" Asia said softly from her side. She reached forward, wrapping her small hand around Tamari's bigger one and giving it a comforting squeeze.

"I'm fine," Tamari grounded out, relaxing her hand as she gave Asia a comforting grin.

"What should we do?" Asia asked simply, tilting her cutely at her. Her big eyes were filled with worry.

"...We wait for Gray," Tamari said decisively, nodding at her own words, "He'll know what to do. We'll stick to the current plan until he gets back."

He said it wouldn't be long. Just a month or two.

Luckily for Tamari, Gray would be recalled after only roughly a month.

Unluckily for Tamari, he would not arrive back on Planet Vegeta after a mere month.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Welcome, recruits! I'm your C-Class instructor, Raki!" A large, tall, and bulky man stood in front of a huge crowd of Saiyans. He had a short tuff of black hair, a sharp jaw, and a very square head, "Just do whatever the fuck I say and we'll get along, alright?"

In front of him stood rows upon rows of Saiyan recruits, all standing side-by-side with stiff backs. 

Seems like another Bouleor.

Tamari stood casually in one of the rows as her friends stood next to her. Asia was to her right, Ochaco and Raphtalia to her left, and then Ren and his 'brothers' to their left.

"In case you didn't know, we do things a bit different in Class-C! You will not be taking an exam at the end of the year," Raki continued, pacing in front of the row of recruits as he shouted toward them far louder than he needed to, "Well, not in the same way you did previously, at least. Throughout the next six months, you will be ranked based on your performance! The rankings will be decided solely by me!"

Raki walked down the line again, a large smirk on his face as he continued, "However, you will start with your initial ranking being determined by your current power level! The only way for it to rise is if I decided to raise it, but! At any point, you can choose to trade your ranking with someone else's, as long as both of you agree!"

A small murmur of confusion spread throughout the recruits surrounding Tamari, but she understood why this was the case. Gray and Celia had explained how Class-C would be before they left, though they had planned to be back before the Class-D exam even happened. Now, they would be gone for a large portion of her time in Class-C.

It sounds stupid - why would anyone want to trade places with someone of a lower rank? 

Class-C was different from Class-F and Class-D - it wasn't just a measure of pure strength. It was also a measure of intelligence.

Of course, you could still pass with pure strength. If you were the most powerful Saiyan in the class, then you would be placed at a high rank, and then be guaranteed to pass. This still allowed for some of the more meathead Saiyans to excel, but there was still a problem with that strategy. The difficulty came with keeping that rank.

Class-C was less about pure strength, and more about using your intelligence to navigate the social system. Being a high rank didn't make you invincible - no, it was quite the opposite. It made you a target.

"Six months from now, only a select few of you will pass on to Class-B! Usually, each instructor group has roughly 100 recruits, and only 20 will pass," Raki grinned wide, his cruel eyes showcasing that he was looking forward to the reaction to his next words, "As you may have noticed, we have roughly 250 recruits in line today! Due to the Class-D exam not being held, the number of recruits wasn't dwindled. Despite that, the passing number will not change! Of the 250 of you here, only 20 will pass!"

The large training room that the Saiyans were lined up in became deathly quiet for a second. Then, murmurs and whispers began to spread. All around her, various recruits had various reactions - some were shocked, some worried, some afraid, and some excited.

Unfortunately for them, they were about to become a lot more worried.

"Along with the increased number of recruits this time, there has also been another change!" Raki continued, his cruel grin growing even wider as he spoke, "In previous years, not making the cut meant that you'd have another chance next time. This year, that policy has changed. If you are not within the top 20 at the end of six months…"

Raki paused for a second, then held up his hand dramatically, "You will be expelled!"

The room was dead silent for a moment again. Then, the muttering began again.

"E-Expelled? He can't be serious, right?" Tamari heard someone whisper behind her.

"No way, that'd be insane! For over 200 of us to be expelled…" Someone else whispered in response.

"But, you have no reason to be worried, recruits! While failure means living as an outcast for the rest of your life, this is also an opportunity! Your fate is completely in your hands!" Raki continued, clapping his hands together to draw their attention back to him. As he did, a gust of wind shot outwards, slamming into Tamari's emotionless face.

"Class-C is not nearly as suffocating as the other classes! We like to let our recruits handle their problems on their own!" Raki continued, flinging his hands out widely in a dramatic display, "I'm sure your old instructor told you to avoid killing each other, right? Accidents are bound to happen, but purposeful killing is not allowed in any of the classes!"

"Well… except for Class-C," Raki grinned again, his eyes alight, "I don't give a flying fuck what you do! No matter what you do, I will not stop you, and you will not be punished! All you need to do is be placed in the top 20 - however you do that is up to you!"

More murmurs erupted at his words, which quickly turned into excited chatter.

This was the true test of Class-C. A class where being a high rank made you a target - either to be murdered so the person behind you could climb higher, or to be forced into switching your rank with someone else.

Already, Tamari could feel a pair of eyes boring into the back of her head. She didn't need to turn around to know who those eyes belonged to.

I can't believe we got placed under the same instructor as that bastard.

There was a much smaller number of instructors in Class-C than in Class-F or Class-D, but it was still poor luck.

Silently, Asia leaned closer to Tamari, and Tamari couldn't blame her.

Standing right behind him, mere feet away, stood a man that Tamari could've gone a lifetime without seeing again.

Right when Gray leaves too. 

Judging by the way his gaze hadn't left the back of her head the entire time, as if he was trying to burn a hole into with his eyes alone, Tamari knew he would cause trouble.

Dareth.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gray Tanaki:

[Saiyan Squad Captain]

Age: 18

Wallet: 4,595,770 Coins

Lvl: 23 (3,922,770/10,000,000 XP)

PL: 3,637,430,200

Available Points: 450

HP: 1,889,950/1,889,950

TKI: 2,582,475/2,582,475

STR: 1525

AGI: 1780

END: 1340

INT: 1415

CHA: 1245

LUK: 795

KI: 1655

HREG: 1176

EREG: 1176

Skills: [Observe LVL 10], [Running LVL 17], [Determination LVL 20], [Ki Control LVL 17], [Ki Gun LVL 14]. [Ki Enhancement LVL 10], [KI Suppression LVL 12], [Ki Sense LVL 9], [Pushup LVL 17], [Punch LVL 17], [Kick LVL 17], [Jump LVL 17], [Flight LVL 9], [Prediction LVL 7], [Zenkai Boost LVL 6], [Cognitive Acceleration LVL 9], [Ah! Lord Freiza! LVL 7], [Mouth-Beam LVL 6], [Ki-Blade LVL 8], [Cooking LVL 10], [Ki Barrage LVL 9], [Ki Explosion LVL 7], [Ki Vision LVL 7], [Attack Boost LVL1], [Swimming LVL 9]

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: Second part coming right after this one!