The Soul and The Flesh~Frieza Saga Part X After they were done, (they ate the whole thing, rare though it was, nonstop, to Raimi's surprise) Raimi felt sleepy again, but didn't want to rest just yet. She sat by Chiishinchu and looked at it, finally able to really study a Dragonball up close. Though it looked like it was, it wasn't made of glass. It was cool to the touch and hard, but warmed quickly as she handled it, and it had a Ki signature as well. The stars always looked the same; in other words, they seemed to always be in the same place, no matter how she turned it. And, if she powered up a little, they all glowed in response to her Ki. They were very beautiful too, glistening in the sunlight.

"I wonder how they are made. They can take lots of abuse... Hmmm, I'll have to ask Kami-sama when we get home." She said softly. Vegeta was watching her, still wary. He didn't know what to think of her. She was so confusing, helping him now, and stopping him later on. She was a mystery, one he wasn't sure he wanted to understand too well.

"Hey, just how did you end up on Chikyu-sei anyway? Only Kakarrot should have been there." He said suddenly. Raimi looked up at him and frowned slightly.
"To be honest, I don't know. I have no memory before two years ago. I may have been born there, or out in space somewhere."

"And where were you trained? I'd swear you were Saiyan trained, but it would be impossible, only Nappa, Raditz and myself were left... " He paused, realizing that this wasn't true, and Raimi herself was the proof. Maybe there were other Saiyans stranded on planets out there...

"I was... Well it's hard to explain." He looked at her meaningfully. They had nothing but time right now, so she might as well tell the story. She frowned a little. Should she tell him though? It could prove dangerous to the already unstable timeline.

There was a deep rumble, and then the earth shook violently beneath them. Both of them looked up, alarmed, but then Vegeta smirked. He strolled to the edge of the lake and looked around. Raimi joined him, and them felt a new tremor start. She also felt a sharp rise in Frieza's Ki, which was followed by another earthquake.
"So, he's impatient, eh?" Raimi said, smiling. Vegeta nodded.

"Well, we can just sit tight here. He'd never expect us to be here, we're too close to the ship." He said. They turned slightly, feeling a massive Ki bolt bearing down upon them. Raimi saw it, a huge red ball that was leaving a wide swath of barren land behind it. It flew by them, and they ducked, covering their heads as the shockwave enveloped them. The explosion as it hit was deafening, and they ran backwards to prevent the mini-tsunami from drenching them.

"Man, he's worked up!" Raimi yelled over the roar of another ball. Vegeta smirked and stopped Sanshinkyu & Oshinchu from rolling into the lake. This reminded Raimi of Bulma's little adventure, the one from the Anime. She grinned; she'd taken care of a pair of Frieza's soldiers that had been identical to the guys that harassed her friend, so hopefully Bulma would not have to deal with that little fiasco. She jumped and caught Chiishinchu and then sat and stretched her legs out, nearly doing the splits, blocking the entrance to the niche the Dragonballs were in with her legs. Vegeta sat with his back to the wall, his feet touching her left foot.

"Good idea. I'm not quite that limber though, so you stay there." He said, and watched the water in the lake sloshing madly as it slowly calmed once more. Raimi was relieved to see that he fell silent, his question seemingly forgotten, at least for now. She leaned back and looked up at the sky, trying to feel the rapidly approaching Goku and the Ginyu-tokusentai. She frowned, deep in concentration.

"Hey! What are you doing?" Vegeta said loudly, making her snap to attention.
"Looking for trouble, what else?" She said, a little peeved. "You know, nastiness is not a desirable trait in companions, no matter how briefly they are together!"
"Bah, I am as I want to be, and soon I'll be the strongest warrior in the universe!" He growled back. He calmed slightly. "So, why are you and your friends here on Namek? What were you guys going to wish for?" Raimi chuckled and smiled at him, a strange glint in her eye. He had a strange idea that she knew something he didn't.

"Well, we want to bring our friends back to life, the ones Nappa killed, remember? But, there is a deeper, far more important reason for all of us, even you, to be here." Her voice was quiet, and her face mysterious. He felt a strange chill wash over him as she stared at him intently. He fidgeted, not wanting to ask her what she meant. But Raimi just sat there, looking scary until Vegeta gave in.

"Ok, ok, what the hell are you talking about?" He yelled. Raimi leaned forward and folded her legs into a lotus-like position.
"You see, it's Frieza. He must be stopped, at all costs. He has destroyed so many lives, even the planets these lives were lived on, and it has to stop, now. So while all you guys, both my friends and you yourself, think we are scrambling for the Dragonballs, we are really taking down the Tyrant. And, to make sure this happens, Goku is on his way right now." Predictably, Vegeta leapt to his feet, eyes blazing.

"KAKARROT is coming here!?!? He's on his way right now?" He nearly screeched. Raimi winced and nodded, rubbing her ears. Vegeta smiled broadly, like he was envisioning something really wonderful; Raimi could only imagine what he was thinking of doing to Goku.
"Ah, but you don't know everything yet... " He paused and swung his eyes to her worriedly. " You see, before Frieza smacked me into oblivion for what I did... "
"What did you do?" He interrupted, voice low. Raimi blushed and looked away.

"I... well, he threatened to find Gohan and Kurilin and kill them to make me talk, and I kinda lost my temper. I ah, well, I spat in his face I was so disgusted. So he hit me, knocked me right out, but I lived, so forget it." Vegeta was wide eyed, staring at her with awe and some respect.
"Well, you may not be that great a fighter, but you have guts!" Raimi felt her temper rise again at his comment, but bit her tongue.

"Anyway, as I was saying, I heard him order Apuru to call for the Ginyu-tokusentai. Does that make any sense to you?" She asked innocently, watching him for his reaction to this news. She had to pretend not to know who they were, but Vegeta should know. Obviously he did; he was going pale with what could only be fear. It was very strange to see fear on Vegeta's face, and she felt bad right away. However, he recovered quickly.

"Yeah, I know of 'em. So they are coming to Namek... This is bad. And I haven't made my wish yet because of Kakarrot's brat! Kuso, now what am I going to do? Even with that brats help, and you me and baldy, we can't beat them unless I'm immortal!" He said, his voice tight. Raimi shook her head.

"You don't get it, do you? You fight for all the wrong reasons, and this is why you lost to Goku. You fight from anger, and for revenge, to hurt your opponent, and this lacks both honor and true power. You can't defeat these guys, not even if you're immortal. You use all your energy in one quick flash of rage, and are spent. Goku fights for totally different reasons.

"Goku fights to protect others, to save lives and to see if he's the strongest, the best fighter around. He doesn't set out to kill his opponents, unless there is no other choice. Now this can be a weakness itself, but his lack of ambition can more than make up for it. And, he rarely fights in anger, or allows himself to become unbalanced by rage. And, the secret of all female fighters is that survival is a sharper goad to win than politics and greed, and Goku seems to understand this. So, until you find a real reason to fight, one that can sustain itself, you will continue to lose." Raimi said evenly, but prepared herself to flee if need be.

Vegeta did indeed look furious, but she could see that he was thinking about her words. She saw him mulling over this, trying to understand what she was saying. He probably acknowledged the truth of his own reasons for fighting, but not the inherent weaknesses of them. He was raised in a survival of the fittest type of setting, and just couldn't make the leap to understanding Goku's philosophy on Martial Arts. Raimi further confused him with her next words.

"Sun-tzu, an ancient warrior-philosopher said this about invulnerability: 'Being unconquerable lies with oneself; being conquerable lies with one's enemy.' You must learn to judge your opponent more accurately, and exploit weakness, rather than just try to pummel them into submission. The first fight with Zarbon was like that, remember? And I always try to remember another phrase. 'Water is flexible. Pour it into a cup, and it becomes the cup. Pour it unto a river, and it becomes the river. Be water, and become a force of nature against your opponent.' And it works for me, except when my opponent is just to strong for me, no matter what my skill!" Raimi watched the sky as the proud Prince digested this surprising lecture from a surprising source.

"So, because I want to win, I will always lose, right? So why did I win until your precious Kakarrot beat me?" He sneered.
"Because, you were sent into battles you could not lose. Frieza, all of your life, has tricked you this way. If he truly needed big power, these Ginyu would have been called. You were pushed just enough to fool you, I'd say... " Before he could blow up at her, they both felt a flicker of Ki, and saw that Gohan and Kurilin were the source of it. Raimi jumped to her feet, as Vegeta grabbed Iishinchu under one arm.

"Stay here, I'm after them!" He yelled, and took off. Raimi yelled that she wasn't his slave, but he was gone too fast to hear her. She sighed and looked at the five remaining Dragonballs glittering in the light of two of Nameks suns. She had to stay, but she knew it would be futile. The Ginyu were almost here, and everyone was going to pay for the inconvenience Frieza had suffered by taking the Dragonballs from him. She sighed and began doing katas to loosen up her limbs. It was going to get very ugly very soon.