Saiyan stowaways on the Ark

In that instant, Bardock's attack stance completely collapsed, and the instincts honed on the battlefield made him raise his hands to protect himself with all his might.

But it was too late.

If Bardock's attack was a raging meteor shower, massive in scale and wide in range, then Tomat's attack was the complete opposite.

The arms wrapped in dim golden light disappeared, a result of the high-speed movement, yet it did not create any violent waves or deafening sounds of air being torn apart.

Thomas's fist moved freely between his and Bardock's chests before Bardock could mount a defensive stance again.

Shoot, retract, shoot, retract, shoot, retract...

So much so that when Bardock realized he had been hit, he hadn't even finished putting his hands up in front of him to block the attack.

Tomat stopped moving, and at the same instant, Badak also retreated a short distance while maintaining a defensive stance.

However, Tomat did not pursue them at this time.

He simply lowered his fists and said in a low voice:

"Snapped."

Bardock was still on guard, but then his protected chest suddenly erupted with an impact like a meteorite strike, causing him to lean backward. This was just the beginning; one wave subsided only for another to rise. The continuous impacts exploded at the spot where Tomat had struck, instantly shattering Bardock's upper armor. Then, like an uncontrolled multi-bomb, he was thrown back by the shockwaves of the explosions while his trajectory was altered by the newly generated explosions, leaving behind numerous explosive marks in the sky and earth in no time.

"Drink it all!!!"

Bardock finally regained his footing on the ground, increasing his energy while resisting the bizarre explosion. The released energy and the impact of the explosion instantly destroyed the entire land.

But after countless eruptions, Bardock still stood on the rock pillar beneath his feet, while the surrounding area had long since turned into a bottomless abyss.

"Phew... That's a weird move."

Bardak pressed his hand to his chest; his body, which even the strongest armor could not match, was now charred black.

"That's better than a useless, futile move, right?"

The technological gap has become apparent.

However, another kind of gap has also emerged.

Tomat has always relied on technique to "better" neutralize Bardock's attacks. Even when he takes them head-on, he uses various methods to dissipate the force, so the actual damage is far less than the original power.

This wasn't just about showing off his skills; it was also because he understood that he lacked the ability to take direct hits without proper defense.

If Bardock were to find even the slightest opening and deliver a solid punch, Tomat could be defeated on the spot.

Unlike Bardock, Tomat also showed no mercy, seizing the opportunity to launch a fierce attack when Bardock was unable to defend.

It hit the target squarely, and the result was obvious.

Tomat caused damage, but it can't be said to be particularly effective.

"We're still a long way off..."

"boom--!!!"

The moment Bardock took flight, the rock pillar beneath his feet crumbled. It wasn't the rocks that supported Bardock, but rather Bardock's energy that held the rocks beneath him together from being pulverized.

The moment the rubble fell into the abyss, Bardock's fist collided with Tomat's fist.

Another earth-shattering shock erupted, and Tomat's face became more serious, while Badak's face showed a hint of pleasure.

Let's settle this once and for all!

*There are exceptions, though. For example, Vegeta's Super Saiyan 2 berserk mode in Battle of Gods is at least a level stronger than Goku's Super Saiyan 3, and the Super Saiyan 1 Goku created by the failed god-making ritual is also far stronger than Super Saiyan 3.

[Main Text] The Saiyans' Daily Life on Terra: Chapter 5 First Victory

The two men, locked in a standoff, once again had the opportunity to exchange punches, both aiming for each other's heads as if by unspoken agreement.

"Bang!!!!!"

But this time, Tomat didn't manage to hit Bardock's face first. Bardock managed to block his fist in time, within a gap that was only the thickness of a palm.

"Ha! That won't work!"

Bardock gripped Tomat's fist tightly, pulling hard to prevent him from breaking free, and said with a hint of smugness:

"Your punch couldn't possibly be faster than me... I saw it clearly, you suddenly used energy to propel your elbow before hitting me, so that you could accelerate instantly and hit me ahead of time, of course I couldn't dodge it."

Instead of panicking and trying to break free when Bardock saw through him, Tomat even deliberately closed the distance between their faces.

"Correct. It seems you also have plenty of experience observing your opponent in one-on-one combat."

Tomat's praise was more like a provocation, seemingly mocking Bardock's lack of strategies for fighting opponents of the same level—although he knew very well that Bardock could not possibly lack similar abilities or experience, because someone who only had experience in one-on-many battles against weaker opponents could not possibly have the opportunity to break through to Super Saiyan 1 and Super Saiyan 2.

Bardock seemed to have long forgotten those combat experiences that Tomat currently found unattainable, and he couldn't even fully utilize his physical abilities.

His strength had returned, but his technique had become rusty. This was exactly what Tomat was trying to convey to Bardock. Whether Bardock could understand it or not, no one knew.

"Don't get too cocky, kid. Got all your tricks up your sleeve? Well, now I'm going to repay you for that beating you gave me earlier!"

Bardock exerted force again, tightening his grip on Tomat's hand, which he had grabbed earlier. A series of crisp cracking sounds emanated from his clenched fist.

At the same time, Tomat's veins were bulging as he resisted, trying to prevent his fist from being crushed into a pulp by Bardock's brute force, while simultaneously gathering strength in his other arm.

"Drink it!!!"

With a roar, Tomat swung his head at Bardock, but Bardock did not dodge and instead rammed his own head into Bardock's without hesitation.

A deafening roar, louder than steel could produce, erupted, but Bardock's gaze was not fixed on Tomat's face, which was pressed against him. Instead, he glanced to the side at Tomat's fist, which had been gathering power.

"Using this trick again? If we're on guard, we can easily stop it!"

Bardock thought this as he raised his hand in defense.

"Om-"

But in the next instant, Bardock's perspective shifted, and everything in his field of vision began to shake wildly, even Tomat's face became a blurry and distorted image.

"...What!?"

The look in Tomat's eyes that I glimpsed before my vision became so bizarre seemed to speak in a silent tone:

"—That's what you think, right?"

My thoughts suddenly became chaotic, and I couldn't even concentrate, let alone maintain the flight state. It was like suddenly stepping on a swaying balance ball.

At this moment, only Tomat himself knew what attack he had just launched at Bardock.

He didn't attack Bardock's side with a fist, but switched to an elbow strike before hitting him, without accelerating.

The previous attack was just a misdirection, leading Bardock to believe that Tomat would use the same tactic again, throwing a suddenly accelerated punch at his face.

Therefore, Bardock made preparations for facial defense in advance, which gave Tomat the opportunity to launch a surprise attack on the jaw—a vital position in combat.

Bardock's consciousness blurred for a moment, and his grip loosened. Tomat shook off his restraint and then tightened his arm as much as possible over Bardock, who was swaying in the air.

"boom!!!!!!"

The strike was aimed at Bardock's jaw again. The explosive uppercut, like a multi-stage rocket, landed heavily on Bardock's jaw, who was unconscious and unprepared. In that instant, the storm sweeping across the earth spread out, and Bardock, who was at the center of the strike, was sent flying into the air near the ground in the next moment, accompanied by flames generated by the intense friction with the air.

—But Tomat flew faster than him.

"Ughh ...

The tightly clasped hands slammed into Bardock's back without restraint. The body, which was originally going to rise endlessly into space, changed its trajectory again in the collision with the attack aimed directly below, and crashed into the ground as a fiery meteor.

"Take this! Aaaaaaahh ...

The roar, delivered with all its might, was both an effort to unleash its own pressure and a desperate attempt to squeeze out its own power. Just before Bardock hit the ground, Tomat transformed into a flash of light and appeared directly beneath him.

Knee strike!!!

Fighting with all their might is the respect that Saiyans show to each other.

Tomat delivered this move with the force to severely injure or even kill an opponent of the same level.

There was no excessive reliance on the notion that "Bardock can withstand such an attack."

There was no concern that "Bardock might have used a powerful killing move that killed himself."

Only by giving it our all, disregarding life and death.

"boom!!!"

A muffled thud sounded as the knee, still damp with breath, struck Bardock's body—a successful hit, but not the expected result.

Bardak did not continue flying upwards, and Tomat clearly felt that he had not collided with his torso, but with a much harder part of the body.

"Heh... Kid, you've tricked me again."

At this moment, Bardock had already placed his hands in front of his chest, overlapping them to form a defense, successfully blocking Tomat's knee strike instead of being knocked away.

"call--"

Tomat didn't pursue. Instead, the moment he confirmed Bardock had regained consciousness, he retreated, took a deep breath, and exclaimed:

"You monster."

At this moment, Tomat could not find any word other than "durable" to describe Bardock in front of him.

Did my attack really have any effect on him?

Such doubts arose spontaneously in his mind.

But the scene that unfolded before his eyes the next moment was something Tomat had never expected.

"puff."

Bardock spat out a torrent of blood. Although he remained standing and his Super Saiyan form was not deactivated, his arrogance was visibly diminished.

Tomat's attack was effective, and resulted in a serious injury that could not be ignored.

"Beautiful killing intent... Doesn't this also allow you to display more aspects that are closer to a Saiyan?"

As if responding to his previous words, Bardock deactivated his transformation, spread his arms, and fell backward.

"Hello!?"

Thomas stepped forward and called out, his voice tinged with worry.

But Bardock, lying on the ground, continued speaking in a calm tone:

"Don't get me wrong, I'm much better than you."

After seemingly relaxing his body and adjusting his state, Bardock sat up again, wiped the hot blood from the corner of his mouth, and asked: