Dragonball M, Chapter 4: Kidnapping! Invasion! A new Threat Strikes First!

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

Pinach really appreciated the sentiment, but he couldn't. Rest was vital to getting stronger, he knew that. He saw up close what happened when mental fatigue and anguish took a hold of a person. It took Sarada leaving Vocado and running away to Earth to get away from Parsley before she was able to get stronger finally. But, this was different. Those days weren't plagued by a demon hellbent on his race's destruction.

He couldn't rest until Tundra was gone. It wasn't that he didn't want to, but he couldn't. "I want to, but I can't. And I won't be able to until Tundra is dead." He frowned and found a place nearby to sit down. "We're so close to being free, but the obstacle in front of us seems so insurmountable. The two guys on Ruco were so much stronger than us. And yet, Tundra has to be even stronger than them or why else would they do what he says. So no, I can't take it easy until this is done."

“All things in time, Pinach. They might be strong but they aren’t stronger than Sarada, Parsley, and Inanna will be. It looks grim now but this Tundra will get his soon, I promise.”

[Tami]

“They are being tended to by Kai, who’s over there with them. They’ll be ok.”

"That's good." Dash leaned back fro a moment, closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Then she opened them again, "Sorry for causin you trouble, an thanks for helpin me out. Ah guess ah hit my head harder than ah thought." With that, she struggled to push herself up and back on her feet, though she had to lean a hand against the wall to do so, "Ah'd better go check on them, an ah better go find Praxat. Never got a chance to tell her where ah went off to."

[Cleric of Hell’s Brigade]

Eva nods, eyes distant as she lets Dash go to the others.

Meanwhile, Kai quirks an eyebrow at the second Totoma.

“Timeline shenanigans are not good. How exactly did they manage to do this? Swords and Toadian?”

[Tami]

Focusing her senses on where everyone was, Dash was able ot figure out that one trip was all that she needed. Making her way slowly out towards the Plaza, she looked around for Pinach, Totoma, and Praxat as she did.

OOC: This is going to be a challenge. Who should she encounter into first? Who might give her the best explanation of what is going on?

[Monstrous Bird of Qin, Ou Ki]

Eva nods, eyes distant as she lets Dash go to the others.

Meanwhile, Kai quirks an eyebrow at the second Totoma.

“Timeline shenanigans are not good. How exactly did they manage to do this? Swords and Toadian?”

Rousong shrugs. "One moment I was meditating, the next I had been unceremoniously dropped onto this lookout. Durive explained... in his own unique way, and based on previous experiences with him, I believed it best to simply not think too hard about this. I decided to explore, and have been doing so for..."

He blinked. "...some time? Perhaps it's a side-effect of what happened, but my sense of time seems to be off."

[Sub-Zero MKA]

"Oh, you know me?" He quirked his head. "Ahh, I see, I see... this must be the timeline that Sarada came from. How wonderful... how she's been faring has been on my mind as of late. But... two things. E Bekon was my... Imperial name. Totoma would do, if not for the presence of this... other me. So please, call me Rousong. And secondly, I notice you did not quite answer my question. No matter."

His gaze met Avoca's for a moment, piercing and intense. After that moment had passed, he grinned. "Tundra. Well now, to think that Tundra would exist in some capacity in this timeline as well... you'll certainly have your hands full, in the near future. Now, to answer your question... do you truly think that something as trifling as being in a separate timeline would stand in the way of one such as I?"

"...is what I would like to say. In truth, my being here is a mere accident borne of... something involving toadians, swords, and that wily bastard, Durive. Now..."

He gave the assembled Saiyans another once-over. Of the four, his mother and... this Avoca, from what his Windows of the Soul ability had told him, were the strongest of the bunch, followed by his counterpart, and then the boy.

"I would guess that Sarada is preparing herself to face Tundra, yes?" Considering the circumstances, it was either that... or she had been killed. "I do hope so, as you'll certainly need more than you two to defeat him..."

"Hey, I think you're forgetting someone!" exclaimed Totoma.

Rousong chuckled. "Not in the least. I'm only considering relevant people. Your ki is unstable and even if it weren't, you would hardly be anything more than a nuisance."

"Big talk from a guy that lost to someone weaker than I am now," said Totoma.

Rousong stared at him, then sighed and shook his head. "...I fought the Queen, while she was a super saiyan, without using the form myself, let alone... go beyond that." He fell silent for a moment. He could already see this one's issue... a simultaneous recklessness, combined with no... impetus. Furthermore, that ki abnormality... it was barely perceptible, at this point, but it was worsening.

Very well. In his magnanimousness, he would, as the very least, give his counterpart the impetus needed to surpass his limitations, as well as fix that ki abnormality. Though, the method he had in mind, perhaps, might make him languish in obscurity, if his will turned out to be lacking.

No matter. This world had little need for a hero lacking in such a vital heroic quality.

But for now, he was far more interested in his suspicions about the Queen being confirmed. Mind, he could simply pluck the answer from the mind of one of those assembled, but he was quite confident he was correct.

Avoca took a moment to determine whether or not he could be trusted. Sarada spoke of him and what she said wasn't particularly negative, so she didn't feel inclined to just completely ignore him. If her instincts proved wrong, she could just kill him and not lose any sleep over it. He was from another timeline, after all, so it wasn't any big deal on her end.

"Yeah, she's preparing for Tundra. Her and her sister." That he knew of Tundra meant the Frost Demon was an issue in his timeline, as well. She wondered how many timelines were plagued by him. Probably not many, since the Saiyans were dead in all but a handful of them anyway. "They've been in there for twelve hours already."

Eva nods, eyes distant as she lets Dash go to the others.

Meanwhile, Kai quirks an eyebrow at the second Totoma.

“Timeline shenanigans are not good. How exactly did they manage to do this? Swords and Toadian?”

Rousong shrugs. "One moment I was meditating, the next I had been unceremoniously dropped onto this lookout. Durive explained... in his own unique way, and based on previous experiences with him, I believed it best to simply not think too hard about this. I decided to explore, and have been doing so for..."

He blinked. "...some time? Perhaps it's a side-effect of what happened, but my sense of time seems to be off."

She couldn't help but notice the... small box with chopsticks for limbs babbling on to that giant frog about some bullshit or another. She only just arrived, but it seemed that it had been going on for a while. Nothing exciting was going on other than two nobodies going on about time powers and time crimes and other boring ****. It sounded like it had nothing to do with her, so she didn't bother drudging up the brain power necessary to even eavesdrop on what they were saying, much less understand it. The moment something cool happened -- like punches being thrown -- then she'd be more interested.

"I thought this time bullshit was settled three years ago," she muttered irritably.

[Sub-Zero MKA]

Eva nods, eyes distant as she lets Dash go to the others.

Meanwhile, Kai quirks an eyebrow at the second Totoma.

“Timeline shenanigans are not good. How exactly did they manage to do this? Swords and Toadian?”

“All things in time, Pinach. They might be strong but they aren’t stronger than Sarada, Parsley, and Inanna will be. It looks grim now but this Tundra will get his soon, I promise.”

"I know you're right, Kai," Pinach said. "I know there's no way they can lose to anyone!" All they had to do was wait until the next day, and there was a good chance all this would be over. Between the three of them, he really doubted Tundra stood a chance at all.

[Tami]

"I know you're right, Kai," Pinach said. "I know there's no way they can lose to anyone!" All they had to do was wait until the next day, and there was a good chance all this would be over. Between the three of them, he really doubted Tundra stood a chance at all.

Seeing Kai talking to Pinach, Dash walked up to them first, "Pinach, ah'm glad to see you're okay. How's Totoma doin?"

[Sub-Zero MKA]

Seeing Kai talking to Pinach, Dash walked up to them first, "Pinach, ah'm glad to see you're okay. How's Totoma doin?"

"He's doing a lot better thanks to Kai," he answered. "How are you doing? You didn't look too hot before."

[Tami]

"He's doing a lot better thanks to Kai," he answered. "How are you doing? You didn't look too hot before."

"Ah think my head ain't as hard as ah thought." Dash rubbed her head once as she spoke, "Must've banged it up when ah was thrown, but Lady Eva helped me out. Still a little wobbly, but ah'll be fine soon enough."

"Ah guess ah'd better go check on Praxat. Ah figgure she's gotta be around here someplace."

[bruceleegreyhulk]

"Ah think my head ain't as hard as ah thought." Dash rubbed her head once as she spoke, "Must've banged it up when ah was thrown, but Lady Eva helped me out. Still a little wobbly, but ah'll be fine soon enough."

"Ah guess ah'd better go check on Praxat. Ah figgure she's gotta be around here someplace."

Praxat calls out for Dash." Dash, I could use your help, I'm in a bit of a jam here!" Praxat shouted.

[Tami]

Praxat calls out for Dash." Dash, I could use your help, I'm in a bit of a jam here!" Praxat shouted.

Hearing the call, Dash excuses herself and heads over to where Praxat is, "Hey, Praxat, what's goin on?"

[Sub-Zero MKA]

Parsley found a place within Vaikuntha to drag Sarada's dead weight from the fight and placed her on the ground. Wordlessly, she fished out another devil fruit from their bag and placed it in her mouth. It didn't take but only a few moments for its healing properties to mend the damage caused by the Archon, and the internal damage caused by Sarada herself. Parsley ate one herself and sat down next to her.

"...ungh," came a soft groan, followed by a slightly louder rustle of metal on grass. "What happened?"

"You almost killed yourself," she responded sharply.

"I was trying to win," she argued.

"You were being reckless. Trying to brute force an ascension, knowing our bodies still can't handle that much power yet." She shook her head. She knew exactly what Sarada was trying to do, what she had done. Transcending the Super Saiyan form was absolutely possibly, but that wasn't it. It was a variation of the form they already had. More power, but it had more than its fair share of downsides. She discovered this long ago, through her own meditative research into the form and through common sense, as well as observation of Sarada's bulky form before it fizzled out.

"I managed to do it a while ago," Parsley revealed. "While you were asleep shortly after giving birth to your daughter, I would train by myself. I unlocked that bulky form." To prove it, she stood up and walked a short distance away. Then, she transformed. Her power shot past Super Saiyan's previous limits, surpassing even what Sarada had managed to do. Her muscles, just like Sarada's, grew to massive size, making her look not unlike a bodybuilder. "You see?"

"Wha-- Why didn't you tell me?! That's the power we need!"

"No, it isn't." As soon as the hulking physique arrived, Parsley let it drop until she was her normal size. "It's too slow. The power is there, but any opponent with any sort of speed will be able to dance around her and pick their spots with ease. You're no kind of threat like this." She sighed and returned to her original spot. "Only a fool would believe muscles of this size are any kind of advantage."

Sarada looked down.

"Listen, the power, the true power we need is there. We just have to find it." She remembered seeing the footage of Sarada's fight with E Bekon. She saw it. It was just a flash, but she saw the true level beyond Super Saiyan. The lightning around his aura was unlike anything she had ever seen. She would never know how he managed to achieve that new plateau without speaking with him, but she had at least the first step in mind. "We need to work on mastering the Super Saiyan form. We won't be able to move on without it."

"How?"

They had been training as Super Saiyans every day for years. They even did normal, everyday things in the form back when they were trying to improve their stamina. That, she felt, was the key. If they could completely eliminate the stamina drain, make this golden form feel as natural as their base forms, then they would have mastered it. Only then would they be able to unlock the next step. "Transform."

Sarada stood and did so instantly.

"Now, we stay like this. Everything we normally do, we do as Super Saiyans. Eat, train, shower, rest, meditate, sleep. Everything. This form has to become as natural to us as our base forms. That way, we can almost completely eliminate the stamina drain, push its potential to the limit, and master the form. Only then will we be able to move on. It's like," she was loath to admit that she even knew this analogy, "a skill tree in those stupid games Pinach plays all the time. You have a base skill that you need to max out before unlocking the next, more powerful tier. So on and so forth. Understand?"

"Yeah." She clenched her fists and flashed an excited grin. "Let's do it."

In the days and weeks to follow, Sarada and Parsley continued their schedule as they always had. They had two days of hard training, completely exhausting themselves and going full out. Then, they had three days of rest to properly and completely recover both physically and, more importantly, mentally. In those days, they worked on hand-to-hand techniques, teamwork -- fighting as a cohesive pair, as opposed to two people fighting the same person -- and meditation. Sarada in particular needed to maintain a tranquil mind, as that was the basis for her Peerless Instinct state, they found. They ate, slept, then met the next day head on. During it all, they maintained their Super Saiyan forms. Every activity they underwent, even during downtime, was done while golden. Sarada even fed little Shala while gold.

Slowly but surely, they felt the drain the form had on their stamina diminish. It was especially evident during combat. They could put more power into their attacks without draining their energy as much. That meant they could last longer in fights, sometimes going up to an hour at full tilt before having to take a break. They were getting close.

Every so many days, they traveled to the Archons to challenge them. It served more as a barometer to check how much stronger they had gotten during their training than anything else. It wasn't so much victory that was the goal, but learning how to overcome a challenge through wit and skill rather than raw power. If they were going to defeat Tundra, they were going to need every single tool in the arsenal. Power wasn't going to win the day.

Parsley also worked on wordless casting, like Inanna suggested.

Their time had dwindled, so they ramped things up. Training harder than they had even then. They didn't end a day on their feet, barely able to crawl to their bag of devil fruit to heal. It wasn't comfortable, but the road to the biggest, most dangerous fight of either of their lives wasn't an easy one. If they wanted the Saiyan race to live to see the next Vocado Day, they were going to have to earn it.

[Monstrous Bird of Qin, Ou Ki]

This whole matter with... the other Totoma was... something, but they didn't have a whole lot of time to spare. Every second wasted equaled more dead saiyans. Tasure approached Pinach. "Pinach, open us a portal to Ruco. Avoca and I have some asses to kick."

It was a damn shame they'd not had longer to train. Five months of conditioning themselves to the form by staying in it as much as possible had resulted in gains beyond what they'd have gotten just training normally, but she figured they'd have needed at least fifty percent more time than they had--7 to 8 months--to really reach what she had been aiming for.

But, as said, they didn't have time to waste, so this would have to do.

"Mot--Tasure. Avoca. Here." It was the other Totoma. He fiddled around under his armbands and took out two small pills, tossing one to her and the other to Avoca. "Something my subordinates developed, based on several healing reagents across the galaxy. It's no... senzu bean, but I can assure you that it is potent, fast-acting... and, most importantly, tastes like meat and potatoes... slathered in delicious gravy."

...gods, he was hungry.

Tasure examined the little pill, then slipped it inside her glove, on the inside of her wrist. "Thanks... Rousong. Hopefully we won't need 'em, but... what sort of meat?"

"Beef."

"Outstanding."

With that, she waited for Pinach to open a portal.

[Sub-Zero MKA]

This whole matter with... the other Totoma was... something, but they didn't have a whole lot of time to spare. Every second wasted equaled more dead saiyans. Tasure approached Pinach. "Pinach, open us a portal to Ruco. Avoca and I have some asses to kick."

It was a damn shame they'd not had longer to train. Five months of conditioning themselves to the form by staying in it as much as possible had resulted in gains beyond what they'd have gotten just training normally, but she figured they'd have needed at least fifty percent more time than they had--7 to 8 months--to really reach what she had been aiming for.

But, as said, they didn't have time to waste, so this would have to do.

"Mot--Tasure. Avoca. Here." It was the other Totoma. He fiddled around under his armbands and took out two small pills, tossing one to her and the other to Avoca. "Something my subordinates developed, based on several healing reagents across the galaxy. It's no... senzu bean, but I can assure you that it is potent, fast-acting... and, most importantly, tastes like meat and potatoes... slathered in delicious gravy."

...gods, he was hungry.

Tasure examined the little pill, then slipped it inside her glove, on the inside of her wrist. "Thanks... Rousong. Hopefully we won't need 'em, but... what sort of meat?"

"Beef."

"Outstanding."

With that, she waited for Pinach to open a portal.

Avoca took the pill that Rousong gave her and slipped it inside her glove. They were going to need every single advantage they could get if they were not just going to survive, but win. She felt confident, but not the overwhelming confidence a person felt when they just knew they were going to win. They were going into things completely blind. They had no idea how strong either Daroga or Letchee were, other than "really strong" as Pinach recounted. The problem with that was that to him, even people that weren't that strong were "really strong". It was all relative. The only way to find out for sure was to head to Ruco and see for themselves. By that point, it would be too late to turn back. Once there, they had to fight and win, or fight and die. There would be no in between.

Pinach opened the portal. Those standing by them could see just a glimpse of the ravaged and devastated Ruco. Unlike hours before, it was deathly quiet. That was never a good thing, and did nothing but agitate her nerves. She swallowed down her apprehension and pressed forward. "Train hard," she said to Pinach without turning around. "We won't need you, but you need to be stronger. If Parsley comes out before I get back, tell her I'll see her soon."

Whether that would be in the land of the living or this otherworld she told her about, only time would tell.

Destiny awaits, she thought as she stepped through the portal.