A/N: Bleargh! I'm finally able to write a new story again! I swore to myself I wouldn't until I mapped out the rest of Passing the Torch, and now that I have, its merely a matter of making a tweak here and there and voila! Chapters will be coming regularly and thus, with that in mind, I was finally able to reply to a challenge from a fellow author. I've been asked to leave their name as anonymous for certain reasons (Strange, if ye ask me) But I will honor their request for this story, whose concept is even stranger. Exactly the reason why I bothered to write it in the first place! Now, with that being said...

...be sure toe enjoy!

"What's going on here?! How can one boy have so much power?!"

~Vegeta

Arrival

Prince Vegeta was a stone cold killer. Some might even call him cold-blooded. Heartless. Ruthless. He'd destroyed hundreds of planets, countless civilzations, slaughtered entire races, and for what? For fun. Not just under those orders of his master-he, was servant to no one!-thrill of the hunt, and the glroy of battle, nothing more. This madman had murdered entire species when he was just a boy, all without batting an eyelash. For the prince of saiyans, only three things mattered. The destruction of Frieza, the restoration of his race, and immortality. Beyond that he cared precious little for-what the devil did they call it?-friends or comrades. Even Nappa, his right hand man, he saw as little more than a tool. And why should he not? He was a prince! he had no need of such frilly attachments!

Even so, for a prince of only three-known-people, however, he had quite the ego. If he knew the remaining members of their race consisted of: the space pirate Turles, a derranged boy and his father, and Kakarot, the low level son of Bardock, his ego would've taken a considerable hit. As it were, he'd already suffered several. Blows, that is, not strikes to his substantial ego by any means.

Glancing blows at best, mere annoyances at the worst. The fools on this planet actually thought they could stop him! Him! The prince of all saiyans! As if he would fall to these peons! As if he, could be felled by sorcery rather than strength of body. The people of this planet used many strange techniques, however, wielding the elements as though they were their own. It was annoying! Troublesome at best. The silver-haried one, that masked man, was the most irritating of all. More than once he evaded a potentially fatal blow; only to strike back with the wrath of his feeble elements. All he'd done thus was far dirty the prince's armor. Nothing more than that.

They'd landed here in this fog-shrouded land of-what had they called it,Wave Country?-and promptly scanned for any beings of significant power. As luck would have it, they found such a being. Two in fact. One, a man in particular, wielded a giant sword. Of course, Napa got that one. Indeed, the balding saiyan was given the weaker of the pair to fight which left the prince to contend with a strange, silver-haired man; his mask at half mast upon the lower half of his face. He seemed quite intent upon protecting the trio of children behind him, and Vegeta had already taken great pleasure in eliminating the pink-haired wench at the first opportunity. As children went, she was by far the most annoying! Constantly shrieking and shrilling..he'd done the world a favor by blowing her to pieces! Oddly enough her death seemed to reinvigorate the silver-haired one. He struck with renewed ferocity, his hand crackling with light and lightning as he summoned a monumental surge of power. Vegeta remained nonplussed, uncrossing his arms as the ground began to tremble. Ah, an energy-based attack! So the people of this word did have some knowledge of the concepts of ki.

"Raikiri!"

The prince did not flinch. He would not back down from a challenge, nay, any challenge, however petty it might've been. He braced himself, every fiber of his body tensing as the masked-man blitzed him, his technique tearing into the earth beneath his feet; ripping it asunder as though it were swiss cheese. Vegeta's scouter beeped a warning. Even so, the prince would not be budged. The man lunged, his lightning-filled hand seeking the chest of the armored warrior, thrusting through to the heart-

-and failing to penetrate.

He was only slightly dissapointed when it failed to penetrate.

"Is that it?" Vegeta pried the still-crackling hand from his chest. "Your 'ultimate technique' couldn't even crack my armor." He scoffed, the patient expression warping into his trademark scowl. "Just as I thought, you're nothing!" Fear flickered in the man's eyes as he struggled and failed to extricate his wrist from the vice-like grip of the Prince. That fear found itself smothered in more immediate terror as Vegeta laid the opposite hand upon his chest, fingers pulsating with an eerie golden glow. He could see it in his eyes; the man knew his time had come; even so, he uttered one last burst of defiance.

"Sasuke, Naruto!" Hatake Kakashi shouted at his remaining students, uncaring as the blast singed his skin. "Run! You have to run before its too-

Fool! Vegeta put an end to his words with an energy wave, obliterating the silver-haired man as though he'd never been. Kakashi didn't even have time to scream as his body turned to so much dust on the wind, blown away by the winds, borne away from the students he'd failed to protect.

Bereaved by the loss of his sensei and teammates the raven-haired whelp flew at him in a rage; flinging blows at a surprising speed for one such so young and inexperienced in the ways of battle. Vegeta toyed with him for a few minutes more, allowing him to believe he could win before a swift chop to the neck put an end to that fantasy. The boy had spirit. Such a shame he had to die like the rest. A brief burst of ki sent the Uchiha to join his clan in the Otherworld.

When the man know as Zabuza Momochi cried out in pain somewhere within the mist, Vegeta knew Napa had also won his fight. Took you long enough, fool, he mentally chastised. The burly saiyan often enjoyed toying with his prey before finishing them off. And from the sound of that broken neck, it seemed he too, was finished. Now, that just left the blond one-

His scouter beeped a warning as brown and black blur flickered before his vision. He caught sight of a masked visage, and then, no more.

"You...You...ANIMAL!"

Black eyes bulged as a fist slammed into his cheek. Vegeta felt a trickle of blood worm its way past his chin but he hadn't the chance to wipe it away. Before he could hope to react, clenched knuckles found hiis stomach and bore down upon him with bonejarring force. Once. Twice. Thrice. When the power behind them inexplicably lessened, the prince forgot to hold back. Anyone worthy enough to injure hiim deserved his wrath. Vegeta lashed out with all his might and power, delivering a brutal haymaker that sent his unseen attacker hurtling into the mists to join his fellows. Whomever they were, they did not return. Just as well, he mused. He'd have beaten them within an inch of their life, waited for them to heal, and done it all over again.

The prince straightened his spine with a small effort, his surprise already fading into obscurity, replaced by an raging fury. Anger clung to him like the mists of this wretched land, all consuming; encompassing his every pore. Lowlife! He glared bloody red daggers into the mist, the red filter of his scouter turning darker still as he it detected a low power level within the mist. How dare they strike the face of royalty! HOW DARE THEY?!

A volley of ki blasts eurpted from his hands, laying waste to whatever lay to the right and left of him. When his scouter could no longer detect his attacker, he relented. No one could've survived that. Hopefully he'd had obliterated Nappa as well. Honestly, the man was beginning to grate on his nerves. No such luck.

"Vegeta."

...

"Vegeta."

...

"Vegeta."

...

"Ve-ge-ta...

"Oh godamnit Nappa!" Vegeta roared, unable to tolerate his lackey's insufferable behavior any longer. "What the hell do you want now?!" He cut his eyes across the mist, as a massive man waded towards him, grinning from ear to ear. Despite having gained a thin slice across his cheek, the hulking warrior looked no worse for the wear. He enjoyed a good fight, same as the rest. But what was that under his arm?

"What've you got there?"

The balding warrior grinned and raised a massive forearm.

"Look what I found!" He exuded. "A local!"

"Oh, for the love of-

At first, Vegeta didn't know what he was looking at; because Nappa wouldn't stop moving his damned arm! When he finally fell still the item in question soon became apparent. It, whatever it was, was clad in a hideous orange-blue jumpsuit, the kind of thing you'd only find at a bargain-bin sale. Hmm...he'd have to remember that one. He hung upside down, his eyes at half-mast; drooped and lidded as though in some sort of daze. A thin line of drool trailed down he side of his face and into the earth. Because Nappa had him by the tail. By the tail! The brown furry appendage remained there, clutched tight within his massive fist, rendering his unruly captive powerless for all his efforts.

"What's your name, boy?" Vegeta asked.

When no response was immediately forthcoming, Nappa squeezed his tail even harder.

"Naruto!" The boy all but screamed. "My name is Naruto! Now let me go!"

"Fat chance, kid!" Nappa scoffed. "You're gonna hang there until we're done wit ya, unless you'd like to end up like your friends?" He sneered at the child's shriek of rage, uncaring as the boy's eyes flashed crimson. He was still laughing when the boy's metal hitiate slammed into his mouth. Vegeta almost laughed at his partner's gobsmacked expression. It was rare indeed to see his fellow saiyan humiliated so. Nappa's retaliation was as swift as it was brutal; his knee smashing into the blonde's stomach with enough force to drive the breath from him.

"Nnrgh!"

For a moment, just a moment, the boy looked as though he was about to burst into tears. But at the last, and just before they would, he closed his eyes, refusing to let them fall before his aggressors. Vegeta rewarded his defiance with a fist to the face. The boy raised criss-crossed arms in a feeble block, for all the good it did him. It was like tearing through tissue paper. One hit from the prince and the kid slumped, unconcsious. The notion would've been pitiable, had it been anyone other a saiyan to do him in.

"Stupid little shit!" Nappa was livid! "He chipped one of my teeth!" He swung the boy into the ground for good measure. "Ha! How do you like that!"

"Hold it, Nappa!"

"What?" Dumbfounded, the weaker saiyan complied, allowing Vegeta to get a closer look at the unconcsious boy. To have a tail was one thing. He'd seen countless races with tails and none of them came even remotely close to rivaling the saiyan race. The longer Vegeta looked, however, the more certain he became. This boy...was a saiyan. A saiyan! It shouldn'tve been possible, given his blue eyes, blond hair, whiskered cheeks...but what was this? Even as he looked on those features seemed to shimmer, the whiskers and blond fading away like mist unable to stand up to his might. The blue eyes persisted a moment longer before they too failed to withstand the test of time, falling back into black, onyx orbs. Both warriors jerked in surprise.

"What the hell?" Nappa guffawed. "What just happened?!"

"I don't know...perhaps it was an illusion of some sort?" Vegeta scoffed, remembering the dastardly deception the silver-haired man had tried to wreak on his pysche. Petty mind games! A true warrior faced his battles head on! He did not hide behind cheap parlor tricks! He clicked his scouter, suddenly curious. If this was indeed a saiyan, then he should have a somehwat sizeable power level.

1,000. Surely that can't be it...

"Nappa, let go of his tail."

"B-u-t-

Vegeta cut his eyes at him.

"I said let go of his tail!"

His right-hand man reluctantly complied, allowing the boy to crash to the ground and the prince to check his scouter once more. What he found there elicited a small chuckle. There seemed to be two sources of power within the boy, one significantly stronger than the other. Apart, they were nothing. Together, they equaled...

1,500.

"Well well, I wasn't expecting this."

"What's the scouter say?" Nappa asked, laughing beligerently after Vegeta relayed the information he'd just gleamed. "Ha! Raditz's gonna be pissed." A soft groan warranted their attention. The boy was struggling too hard; desperately attemptng to crawl away from them. Vegeta guessed his destination with dispassion; he was trying to reach the fallen bodies of his comrades. What little remained of them, save their ashe. Ha! He'd gone soft, this one! There was nothing to be done for them now. The pink-haired wench and her teacher were dust in the wind, and the emo-brat was headless. What did the boy hope to achieve by looting the corpses of the fallen? If that's what he was doing. Still, Vegeta couldn't help but watch as the boy knelt beside the ashes of his team couldn't help but to snicker as the boy began to weep. What was this? Was he actually going to shed tears for them? Pah! Nonsense!

We saiyans need nothing but the glory of battle, a place to sleep, and a hale and hearty meal.

"How could you?" The boy was glaring at them, bloody red daggers. "What did they ever do to you?" He stood woodenly, not taking enough care. "They were my friends." He accused, stepping forward. "How could you do this to them? How could you?! WHAT DID THEY EVER DO TO YOU?!"

Nappa made the mistake of opening his mouth.

"They were weak!" He said it as though it were the simplest thing in the world. "If they were stronger, we'd be the ones lying there now, wouldn't we?" The boy stood there a moment longer, trembling. Mumbling. A low hiss left his lips. Fingernails bit into his palm and drew blood stretching into deadly claws. Those whisker marks might've vanished earlier, but they reappeared just as quickly, deepening into thick troughs on either side of his face as Vegeta looked on. The air seemed to shimmer around him, pebbles raising themselves from the earth beneath the sudden upsurge of energy unknown. If Nappa was concerned, they certainly did little to show it.

"Vegeta, what're we supposed to do with this kid?"

The prince glowered.

"How the hell should I know, Nappa?!" He checked his scouter again, just to make sure it wasn't malfunctioning. Odd. The boy's power was a little higher than before. No, wait...it was still increasing!

Vegeta watched as his scouter bounced up in intervals of hundreds. The air around him vibrated, shaking even the marrow in his bones. 1,600… what? No… 1,900… 2,500… 22-no, now 3,000? The scouter trembled with the earth as Naruto's scream buckled the earth around the trio. The boy's shriek of rage ended the brief display of power. A blood red aura-a cloak-engulfed him, stretching across life and limb. Enveloped in the energy, he erupted into motion, clawed hands tearing deep furrows in the earth; gouging out the mist-soaked forest.

"I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU!"

The scouter's reading finally came to a discernible halt as the two warrior's flickered away from his wrath.

3,510?! That's not much lower than Napa's!

That left him nearly twice as strong as Radtiz and roughly five hundred below Nappa. And the boy was only a child! A power level like that would've made him an elite back on Planet Vegeta. It also begged the question then; what was such a powerful saiyan-a full blooded one at that-doing out here in this backward-ass galaxy?! Surely he couldn't have been so weak to be sent away! Naruto jerked his gaze skyward and screamed fury and fire at them; infuriated by his inability to reach them. He couldn't fly after all. His slitted gaze slid toward the treetops.

But he could jump.

"Nappa!" Vegeta snapped as the boy's body erupted into motion. "Watch it! The boy is more powerful than he appears!" But Nappa wasn't listening. Sneering, the bald warrior raised his fist, flicked two fingers upward a half heartbeat later. Vegeta growled in disblief as the forest below their feet detonated; showering both saiyans in clods earth and timber. It was as if the hand of god had come down from heaven; extinguishing life and existence as they knew it; leaving the entire forest in ruin. Was it enough?

"RAAAAAARGH!

"Kid's pretty good!" Nappa grunted in surprise as an eerie orange-red blur came tearing out of the cloud of dust and debrist to greet him; began badgering him with wild, uncoordinated blows. Uncoordinated, though he might've been, he had eyes only for Nappa; those razor sharp swipes came dangerously close to tearing the warrior's throat out on more than one occassion. Finally, the berserk blond found an opening in the titan's all but impenetrable defense. The savage saiyan's tail lashed out, wrapped in malevolent chakra, and struck a glancing blow across the warrior's cheek. But that wasn't all. Even as he plummeted, to the earth, he flung his hand forward, and his aura stretched. Nappa roared in surprise as those deadly claws closed around his armored wrist, shearting through the armored gauntlet as though it were naught but butter.

"Aaargh!" Nappa tried and failed to pry the claws off, but to no avail. "What the hell is this stuff, Vegeta?! It's hot!" Yowling in pain and surprise, he didn't realize the feral fighter's true intentions until it was too late. He was not alone in his realization.

"Clever boy." Vegeta observed, his trepdation fading as he descended to the earth; realizing just what the boy intended. He couldn't very well fight in the air now, could he? He was trying to drag Nappa down; bring the battle,, to the ground, to his home. And by the look of it, he was about to succeed. Naruto screamed and gave a mighty pull! And the chakra obeyed. Nappa had only an instant to realize the chakra claws were wrapped around more than just wrist before he found himself pulled. Yanked really, as he plunged beneath the earth's surface like a human splinter; his open mouth devouring dirt and debris, as he found himself buried beneath the hardened soil that'd once been a forest mere moments before. For the first time since he'd come to this recchid backwater planet, the prince found himself smiling.

"What's wrong, Nappa?" Vegeta laughed. "Has he gotten the better of you?"

As if in answerment, the soil erupted. Nappa's entire body bristled with ki, a his fists clenched at either side. Naruto said nothing. He simply stood there, a second tail already boiling out from the cloak. Vegeta blanched as the boy's power took another jump. What the devil did he have inside him?! Why was his scouter detecting two powers?! Nappa, his own scoutered destroyed during the battle, paid no heed to the bloodthirsty boy in front of him. Oh no, he was far too focused; fixated on his own wounded pride and rage.

"You little brat!" Nappa snarled, veins bulging in his head.. "You think you're hot stuff?! I was commander in chief of the entire saiyan army! You're nothing compared to me!" He stabbed a hand into the soil and showed his fist, crushing a rock between his fingers as though it were naught but an egg. "Do you hear me?! NOTHING!"

"Napa!"

"Don't try to stop me, Vegeta!" The great beast of a saiyan opened his mouth and began to gather power in the back o fhis throat. "Imma kill it!"

"Don't you do it!" Vegeta bellowed!

"Imma do it!"

"Nappa, I said don't!" The tone of his voice left no room for arguement. "If you so much as a harm a hair on that boy's head I'll tear yours clear off your body!" His every syllable oozed killer intent. Nappa froze. To defy his prince was to die. He was no match for Vegeta. He knew this. But it didn't make any sense! What was so important about this boy that Vegeta didn't want any harm to come to him? He'd cert

"But why?!"

"He'll be of use to us." The prince replied, confident in his own victory, his eyes cutting across to Naruto.

"Boy!" Vegeta bellowed down at the furious kitsune. "Don't play dumb! I know you can hear me down there! You've had your fun!" He scowled his mirth fading when no response was immediately forthcoming. "Well, no more!" He raised a hand, violet energy striking his fingers askew. "If you continue to resist us, I'll destroy this pathetic planet and everyone on it, right here, right now!"

...what?" The demonic energies surrounding him began to flicker and fade in the wake of this new confusion, dissiipating like so much mist. "Destroy the planet?" He gawped. "Y-You can't! There's no way anyone should be able to do something like that! It's not possible!"

"I can and I will!" Vegeta cackled, his aura surging to obscene heights. "The choice is yours! Surrender now, come with us now, or I'll reduce everything to ashes! Your friends, your family, everything you hold dear, alll of it will be gone! Do you want that, boy?!"

"But you'll probably die, too!" Naruto pleaded. "Are you crazy?!"

"I am a saiyan elite!" The prince smirked. "I'm willing to take that chance. Are you?"

Naruto hung his head. This wasn't happening. This was not happening! His first real mission, his first real chance to prove himself, and he'd screwed up. Tazuna-san was dead. Everyone was dead. Sakura-chan. Sasuke. Even Kakashi-sensei, all of them were gone. And now, if he refused to comply, everyting else was going to be gone, to? Old man hokage, Shikamaru, Ayame and Teuchi...all of them would die if he refused to cooperate with this madman. He didn't want to believe it was possible, How could one man blow up a planet? How could he shoot energy from his fingertips? How could he kill sensei? How could be even remotely like him? Naruto hadn't wanted to believe that there were others like him; others with tails. Now that he'd found he was wrong, the gening suddenly found himself wishing he was alone in the universe again.

"Now, speak up!" Vegeta's voice sliced through his reverie; the words stabbing at him like a cold knife in the back. "I'll have your answer, one way or the other!" Naruto's teeth sank into his lower lip, chewing until he'd tasted blood. He didn't want to go with these men. Who knew what they'd do to him? No, he'd much rather stay here, if he had a choice. But he didn't have a choice.

"I'll do it...

"What's that?!" Vegeta bellowed. "I can't hear you over the DESTRUCTION of your planet!"

"I SAID I'LL DO IT!"

"Smart move." Vegeta was suddenly before him, that arrogant, assuming sneer twisting his every feature. "You're not nearly as dumb as you look." Before Naruto could spit a final insult, before he could get in the very last word, the prince lashed out. He struck hard and he struck fast, clenched knuclkes sinking into his stomach with such force, he felt them brush agains this spine. And then there was pain. He sank to his knees, eyes wide and disbelieving, unable to believe the sheer amount of strength behind the blow. He struggled to raise his gaze.

"I...fucking hate you."

"I know."

Vegeta struck again, a debilitating blow to the neck that sent him spiraling off into dreamland. Naruto dropped like a sack of potatoes. His lasts thoughts were oddly detached, his mind had already accepted the fact he and his heart had not; he'd never see his home again, not so long as he was under Vegeta's thumb. His last thoughts were not with his friends or his family, though he had none of the latter to call his own. No, his mind had already made a fragile peace with his departure, even as he wept inwardly from a broken heart. It was ultimately his stomach that posed the inevitable question.

I wonder if they have ramen where these guys are from...

"Now, you'll be coming with us." Vegeta stooped, slung his new charge over his shoulder. There should be just enough room for him inside his pod. If the boy didn't fit...well, they could always send for another. He cast a disparaging glance back at Nappa; the burly saiyan was still visibly seething after being handed such a narrow loss.

"We're leaving, Nappa!"

"But Vegeta...

"No buts!" This planet wasn't worth destroying. Oh no. He had far greater plans for it, just as he did for the pureblood slung over his shoulder. One day, someday soon, they would rebel against Frieza. And this boy was the key to it all. He knew it. With his powers, they just might stand a chance against the cold tyrant. Now he needed only to remind the whelp of his saiyan pride, beat some subservience into him...and voila! He would be the perfect soldier to unleash upon his enemies, and with the proper training, he'd consider himself grateful for being snatched off this mudball of a world. Oh, Frieza was likely to cause a fuss once he realized that a nother saiyan had survived, but Vegeta would be there to reassure his 'master' that the boy need not be seen as threat. in the end, his own arrogance would be his undoing.

After all, saiyans had to stick together...

...the irony of it almost made the prince laugh.

In reality, he had no idea just how much he'd underestimated his new charge...

A/N: As you can tell, I've been watching TFS'S version of Dbz for wee bit too long. I couldn't quite resist the urge to use their version of Nappa on occasion in this chaoter, as I find him to be quite amusing when it comes to driving the prince insane. Things'll get serious next chapter...for the most part. Remember, Vegeta was a major ASS before Goku kicked his ass to kingdome come, so to slaughter innocents like that solely for fun wouldn't be much of a stretch. And now he's kidnapped Naruto! Bad Vegeta! Bad!

Sooo...lets clarify things; in this story Naruto's parents were both fullblooded saiyans from the Planet Vegeta. Being of little power, he was sent to the planet-I've taken to calling it Ninjato-months before Frieza blew Planet Vegeta to smithereens. Minato and Kushina are not his parents. They never had any son. Lacking one, they used the strange alien child found by an ANBU in a space pod only days before. Naruto's blond hair and blue eyes were an illusion placed upon him by the village council so that he might never realize his true heritage. Are his true parents alive? Dunno. That would be interesting, but I honestly don't have any inkling of who his mom would be, were that the case. Fasha, perhaps? It would be amusing-and hilarious-where she to survive her battle with Dodoria and encounter Vegeta later in the series. She'd give him the beating of a lifetime! Ah, but I digress. Naruto's father would remain unknown, for obvious can't be Bardock, that'd be just...wierd. And Turles? Perhaps. This takes place in the time before Nappa and Vegeta head for earth. Which means, alas, that they'll be dragging a very unwilling Naruto wit them.

And if anyone is a' wonderin' why Naruto's saiyan instincs haven't kicked in fully, well, that can be attributed to the way he was raised. Kami knows he's not going to like serving under Naruto turn evil? NO. He'll be dying to get out from Vegeta's thumb the first chance he can get. Just wait till he hears about the dragonballs...

Alas, its back to work for me once again, I'm going to try to my hand at overtime tonight, for the first time in while so I'll probably be wiped out tomorrow. But, hey, at least I'll have your reviews to look forward to, no? And with that I leave you with the immortal words of General Ivan...

...REVIEW OR IMMA KILL IT!

R&R! C=