Dragon Ball Super: The Lone Wolf Saga
Ch. 4 - Stronger
By: Shisoukengo
Can you save me, will you fail me now, it's almost over cause you've faded out again
Will you break me, when you're holding me down, I will escape you and I'll push you closer to the ground
Cause you're the one that's going down, and I am stronger now
Since you crawled away, you're so far away
As Yamcha and Puar listened to the tale of the Namekians they'd encountered after their arrival on Namek, a multitude of expressions crossed the lone wolf's face. He'd first been sympathetic to hear that a group of Namekians were still haunted all these years later by the atrocities committed by Frieza during the tyrant's visit to Namek. He'd understood their fear of an attack by another enemy, and that they'd be unprepared if and when it did happen. He'd felt anger that one among them had convinced other Namekians to help him gather the dragon balls, claiming to want to use the wishes to grant them enough power capable of defeating any enemy that might attack them, only to turn against them by wishing for power for himself and henchmen to help suppress his own people.
Yamcha suddenly found himself confused that none of the Namekians who had helped this villainous Namekian obtain this power was willing to risk their lives to stop him. Though, the fact that he'd killed those who attempted to stand against him was a damn good reason if he'd ever one. Which made Cargot's resistance to such a person all the more impressive. He'd heard all about the bravery they Namekians had shown from Krillin, during the first days after his revival, and couldn't believe that those same people who'd been willing to face down guys like Freeza's henchmen were suddenly afraid of someone like the guy he'd just beaten.
"Okay, let me see if I got this correct. Some guy, who was one of your strongest warrior clansmen, convinced some of you that an attack by a guy like Freeza could happen again. So you all gathered the dragon balls in order to use the three wishes to make some of you into Super Namekians. Only the guy who originally convinced you guys to go along with this was corrupted by his new power, and after becoming a Super Namekian, used his power to hold your leader Moori hostage. And spawned a few strong guys to help keep the rest of you in line. That about right?" Yamcha asked, briefly recapping the important parts of the story.
One of the Namekians, Maima, nodded in confirmation.
"Yes, in fact, he's imprisoned nearly all of our village elders, and now holds most of the dragon balls in his possession," Maima finished, his partner Tsumuri nodding along.
"It was only due to the effort of young Cargot here, that he does not possess all of the dragon balls at his disposal," at the mention of the young Namekian's name, the kid looked down at the ground, clearly embarrassed at being the center of attention.
"I-I couldn't let him summon the dragon again," Cargot stated timidly, and Yamcha could only grin in recognition of the kid's moxie.
Rather than encourage, as the gesture was meant to, the look only seemed to further embarrass the young Namekian. Cargot looked down at the ground, unnerved by the human's grin. Yamcha noticed this, however, before he could apologize to the kid, the other Namekian spoke.
"But in sneaking off with one of the dragon balls, you've endangered the rest of our kin," Tsumuri spoke, his face reflecting the grim reality of the Namekians' situation. "Mukade-san has been corrupted by the Super Namekian powers he has been granted. And he will use that power to destroy anyone he thinks may be a threat to that power."
"Sounds like a real sweetheart," Yamcha muttered, with Puar nodding in agreement as he clung to his friend's shoulder.
The two older Namekians said nothing, finding it difficult to rebut the human's simple hadn't been just one of Namek's most skilled fighters, he was both well-known and highly respected. So much so, that when he'd shown up with two other Namekian fighters to defend the elder Moori's village against Frieza's henchmen, the other Namekians celebrated. They'd believed in the three warriors' capabilities, and Mukade himself was very confident that they could defeat their enemies and drive them away from their world. None of them could have been prepared for the seemingly insurmountable strength the aliens possessed. And every Namekian had paid the price. Mukade, having been crushed so easily by a mere attendant of Frieza, had seemingly taken this defeat the hardest.
Naturally, over time, that feeling of failure and not being able to protect his own people, had festered in the Namekian warrior. Gradually, it grew into resentment, and a lust for power that had dominated his thoughts. But Mukade had clearly underestimated what it meant to have the power of a Super Namekian, and no matter his good intentions, his actions had caused irreparable harm to his reputation among his fellow Namekians. However, that did not apply to the younger Namekian, apparently having a much more optimistic outlook than his older counterparts.
"I...I do not think Mukade-san is beyond redemption! I think he just wants to protect Namek!" Cargo exclaimed, the belief in his voice palpable.
'Goku would really like this kid,' Yamcha thought as he looked at Puar, both smiling at the young Namekian's words. Turning back, Yamcha placed his hand atop the young Namekian's head, both of the other Namekians tensing at the unexpected gesture.
"Well, if there's any truth to that, we'll find it out one way or another," Yamcha stated, his confident grin not wavering.
Puar smiled, relieved to see that his friend seemed to have regained the confidence he possessed in his youth. As his friend looked off into the direction the enemy had just flown toward, the human reached out with his senses, detecting the ki signatures he could feel.
'There's about a couple dozen of them in that direction,' Yamcha thought, the energies standing out like candle flames in the night. 'But most of them feel like these guys here. Three of them are different though, and a lot stronger.' The human's face morphed into a frown unbeknownst to him.
'Two of them are only about as strong as those Ginyu freaks, nothing I haven't faced before,' He thought, his frown becoming deeper as he honed in on one particular ki. 'But this one's totally different, it's on a whole other level than the two I just fought.'
"Yamcha-sama?" Puar questioned, his concern coming back as he watched the emotions play out on Yamcha's face.
Hearing his name, Yamcha turned to glance at his comrade, his face immediately softening at the worry Puar displayed. Looking over at the Namekians, he could see them gazing at him as well, though their faces were more a mix of curiosity and concern than anything. Yamcha reverted back to his original display, allowing himself to draw back on his trademark confidence as his mind focused back on his training.
"Heh, don't worry Puar, this will be the perfect chance to see how my training the past couple months have paid off. After all, if I can't help these guys out, then that would mean there's no point to any of this," Yamcha stated, turning as he gave the Namekians a thumbs up.
Turning back around, Yamcha's ki flared slightly as he took to the skies, Puar having just enough time to latch onto him before he did so. The three Namekians stood, confused as they watched the Terran fly off on the trail of Zeeun. Cargot was the first to respond, his ki also flaring as he no longer felt the need to hide himself anymore.
"Wait!" He called out, launching himself into the sky as well, his fellow Namekians right behind him.
Zeeun growled angrily as he approached the village in which his master resided. All of the Namekians present looked up from their farming duties, seeing the oppressive monster land in front of them. Many of them wore looks of shock, not only at the lack of a dragon ball present on his person, or even at the lack of a monstrous partner who had left with him to chase Cargot, Maima, and Tsumuri. No, what had them all in disbelief were the clear indications of injury the monstrous commander had apparently suffered. Grimacing with anger and pain, Zeeun called out as he looked up to the lone Namekian hut that sat atop a hill overlooking the Namekian village.
"Mukade-sama! Mukade-sama! Come quick, there's trouble," the injured henchman called out, blood seeping from his mouth.
After a few moments of silence, the entry door to the large hut opened, and two individuals stepped out. One tall and obviously male, with smooth humanoid features and pale, blue-tinged skin and long, shaggy blond hair. Though not as muscular as the other two members, he was still fairly well-built, possessing two horns on his head as well. He wore a sleeveless, lavender robe-like top with a blue sash tied around his waist, and white pants with orange and blue boots. The other figure was much shorter, barely reaching up to the waist of its much taller comrade, and possessing green skin and features not unlike that of a toad. It wore dark blue pants with a red sash tied at the waist, and orange boots, and had large, pointed ears and bulbous eyes.
The two figures stood looking down at their fellow henchman, both wearing unpleasant smirks on their faces. Behind them a shadow loomed, shrouded in the darkness of the hut as it remained just outside of the entryway, obscured from the sunlight.
"Well Zeeun, it appears you've had quite the adventure out there," the tall figure stated, sarcasm heavy within.
"Sounds like fun to me," the shorter figure replied, nearly cackling in its response.
"Angira. Medamatcha. We have a problem that Mukade-sama needs to know about," Zeeun responded, his anger growing in response to his comrades' attitudes.
"What's the meaning of all this racket?" A deep, gruff voice growled out from inside. Zeeun swallowed noticeably, his injuries the only thing keeping him from openly displaying his fear.
"Mukade-sama, Dorodabo has been killed," he stated, expecting a vengeful reaction from his master and comrades. Instead, only silence greeted him in response.
"Did you find the dragon ball?" the figure, Mukade, asked instead. Zeeun's head snapped back in reply, seemingly aplomb at his master's cavalier reply.
"Y-yes, Mukade-sama," Zeeun answered.
"And do you have it with you?" Mukade asked.
"N-no, Mukade-sama, we were ambushed by a strange Terran, just as we were about to recover it," he replied, fear growing with each response.
"A Terran?" Angira questioned, a mild look of surprise leaking onto the tall man's features.
Even among the strongest races, there weren't many capable of matching the strength imbued onto them by Mukade. But especially those who were Terrans. This news seemed of particular interest to the hidden figure, who finally decided to step forward, and out into the sunlight. Taller than Angira, and with a muscular figure that appeared to rival that of Dorodabo or Zeeun. Its green skin, sharp pointed ears, and the two antennae which protruded from its head were distinctive to that of the Namekians. He wore a full-bodied purple suit, with a yellow robe draped around his enormous frame, just barely held together by an orange sash, with matching gloves covering his hands. His calculating gaze looked down onto his mutated subordinate, who kneeled down in response to his appearance.
"And did you dispose of this Terran, Zeeun?" The figure known as Mukade asked, his unsympathetic gaze focused on his subordinate. Zeeun's face belied the panic he felt at having to give such an answer, as he looked up to plead his case to his master.
"M-Mukade-sama, this Terran was impossibly strong! He killed Dorodabo in one blow, and nearly killed me as well. I came to warn you so that-," his statement was cut off as a beam of ki pierced through his chest, having been almost casually fired from the hand of his master.
"I spawned you all in order to help preserve the peace of Namek from those who would seek to destroy it. Particularly those not from our world. And now that one appears, not only did you flee, but you presume that any Terran could possibly threaten my power. Therefore, you have only proven that the life I granted you is forfeit," Mukade stated, watching just long enough to see the life fade from Zeeun's eyes.
Turning, the Namekian walked back into his domicile, speaking as he went along.
"Angira, Medamatcha. The Terran will be arriving shortly. Eliminate him, and recover the dragon ball." At his command, the two mutants bowed, as the other Namekians looked upon the dead body of one of their overseers in shock.
For what seemed like a lengthy stretch of time, but was more like a few minutes, the two henchmen looked outward, feeling with their senses the approaching ki headed in their direction. The other Namekians followed suit, also picking up on the presence that was approaching at a swift pace. Overhearing the conversation that had just taken place, and learning that a Terran was now on Namek, many of those who remembered their time on Earth, couldn't help but wonder who it was that had come to their aid.
"A Terran has come to Namek?" One Namekian questioned, and was answered quickly by another.
"Yes, and a strong one from the sound of it," the second Namekian responded.
"Do you think it is the Saiyan who defeated Frieza?" a third asked, voice tinged with the prospect of hope.
"What? Why would the Saiyan decide to come here all of a sudden?" a fourth replied, clearly skeptical at the notion that the one who defeated Frieza has returned to Namek.
The dialogue sprouted a round of mutterings among them, while Angira and Medamatcha continued to look outward, anticipating the coming arrival. Both wore confident, menacing smirks, secretly enjoying the idea of squashing the brief flower of hope that was beginning to bloom among the remaining Namekians.
"Heh, Saiyan or Terran, it doesn't matter who has come. They will die by our hands, the dragon balls will return to our possession. All of your elders will continue to remain imprisoned, and you will all continue to serve under the rule of Mukade-sama," Angira declared, bringing cackles to his fellow henchman Medamatcha, and quieting the murmur of the remaining Namekians.
Just as everything became silent, the aura all of them had been sensing finally became visible, as a figure began to take shape in the distance. As the figure grew closer, it began to develop, becoming more humanoid in visibility until it finally became noticeable to all. The figure, shrouded in a translucent, yet intense aura slowed as soon as it appeared right over the village, before softly landing on ground. It was obviously male, and Terran in appearance, with a small, feline type creature perched on his shoulder. All of the Namekians stared at him, their hope gradually building along with their murmurs as they began again.
"Is that the Saiyan?" One asked, voicing what all of them were wondering.
"It is, it has to be Son Goku!" Another replied, their hope continuing to build in conjunction with their voices.
"His hair seems a bit different, doesn't it?" Another questioned, skepticism still lingering.
"He has scars too. Did Son Goku have scars?" Yet another inquired.
While this caused the tone of voices to die down, the Terran looked a bit uneasy, slightly irritated even at being confused with his Saiyan friend again. After briefly sweat-dropping at hearing Namekians' murmurings, his eyes drifted toward the prone body of the henchmen who he'd let go, then locked onto the two menacing looking figures standing overtop the Namekian villagers. Behind him, he could hear and feel the arrival of the three who had followed him. Cargot landed, alongside Maima and Tsumuri, the dragon ball still clutched in the young Namekians' hands. The murmuring of the Namekians increased once again, but the Terran didn't take his eyes off of the two figures above him.
"Well well, look Medamatcha, isn't this a surprise? The Terran was kind enough to bring the dragon ball back with him," the tall one stated. The short one, Medamatcha, laughed mockingly in response.
"Yes, Angira, it's almost a shame that we're about to destroy him," Medamatcha replied, causing Angira's smirk to become even more menacing.
"I didn't bring you freaks anything," the Terran responded, his glare, and Puar's, meeting theirs. "I'm just returning something to the Namekians that belongs to them."
His words caused the two mutant warriors to drop their smirks, as they leaped from their ledge to land several feet away from the new arrival. Seeing this, the three Namekians proceeded to back away, moving to join their fellow Namekians in observing the coming fight. Without taking his eyes from his two new opponents, Yamcha spoke to his friend Puar.
"Puar, you back away too. I got a feeling this is about to get ugly." At his friend's request, Puar nodded, floating up and away from his friend to join the Namekians.
"Good luck, Yamcha-sama," Puar stated as he moved away.
"Any last words, little man?" Angira asked, the tone of his voice.
"Yeah. If I were you, I wouldn't hold back. Otherwise, this is gonna hurt a lot," Yamcha replied, his eyes glancing back and forth between the two.
"It'll hurt for YOU!" Medamatcha declared, as he and Angira both launched forward in unison.
Just as it seemed the attack would reach, Yamcha appeared to suddenly vanish from view, such that even his opponents appeared shocked that their attack had missed. Everyone looked around, including the two henchmen, trying to get a visual of the Terran. Angira then looked upward, followed by Medamatcha and the other Namekians, to see the Terran suspended in the air above. Showing his frustration, Medamatcha let loose something akin to a growl, as the green-skinned mutant hunched over. Protrusions began to sprout from his back, growing in size until they took on the appearance of miniaturized versions of henchman they spawned from. The small creatures launched themselves from Medamatcha's upper back and shoulders, leaping toward Yamcha who remained in the air.
'Five of em huh? Guess now's a good time as any to try out something new,' Yamcha thought, ki flowing into his hands as they took the shape of claws.
The Terran then twisted his body at the hips, rotating and picking up speed with each rotation. The ki extended outward from his body, seemingly mixing with the air around him. It was too late for the creatures to stop their forward momentum, even if they seemed aware of the danger they were charging into. The spectators could do nothing but watch on as the miniature monstrosities made contact with the spinning Terran, each of them being struck several times by the ensuing barrage.
"Rogafufuken: Reppuu Sou!" Yamcha announced the name of his new technique.
As his rotations finished, he struck with one final blow, a cross strike which sent each of the creatures barreling back to the ground below. Each of them landed around their creator with a sickening thud, creating miniature craters in the dirt, like small meteorites falling from the sky above. Medamatcha was left speechless, anticipating the Terran would be unable to avoid his small doppelgangers, and using the creatures to drain his energy. Seeing, but not believing what he had just witnessed, Medamatcha was too stunned to react along with the other Namekians. Yamcha landed on the ground, not ceasing in his attack as he took advantage of his opponents' inaction.
Rushing forward, the Terran's body once again became enshrouded as his ki surged, his aura visibly taking on the appearance of a snarling wolf as he approached the short, green mutant in the blink of an eye. As he did so, he had his arm positioned at his side, before thrusting them forward in a double palm strike.
"Rogafufuken Sen!"
The attack struck true as his aura enshrouded both Yamcha and Medamatcha, before the green mutant was launched into the air by the force of the blow. Coming to a stop, Yamcha pivoted, rushing back toward his opponent. Repeating the same maneuver, the Terran crashed into his opponent once again, this time sending his opponent flying into the base of the cliff both henchmen had been standing on prior.
Turning, Yamcha smirked as he faced the remaining henchman, his confidence continuing to build with each defeated foe. Seeing the Terran's face, Angira finally managed to snap out of his stupor. In a fit of anger, the blue-skinned henchman reared back, his arms held above his head. Thrusting downward, Angira drove his hands into the ground, the limbs stretching outward, similarly to the natural ability of the Namekians. Popping out of the ground, the hands latched onto Yamcha's ankles, momentarily taking the Z-warrior offguard. Smirking at his opponent, Angira announced his counterattack.
"Now I've got you!" Angira then reared his head back, ki gathering in his mouth, as he somehow managed to still announce his attack, "Evil Quasar!"
Thrusting forward, he fired his attack, a beam of yellow energy shooting from his mouth at the Terran. Snapping out of his stupor, Yamcha reflexively brought his left hand up, catching the blast of ki as it gathered into his hand. Realization dawned as Yamcha determined the blue mutant's attack wasn't strong enough to damage him. Using the momentum of his opponent's attack, Yamcha twisted, forcibly wrenching one of his legs free from his opponent's grasp. Spinning, the Z-warrior transferred the ki from his left hand to his right, before launching the gathered ki with an overhand motion in a pitching motion.
The attack sped back toward its origin at a speed much faster than when it had been fired. Angira could only watch in astonishment, so much so that his jaw dropped open, providing the perfect target as the attack struck home. Entering Angira's mouth, the ki detonated upon impact, engulfing the mutant in a fierce explosion. The blue mutant's hands immediately went lax, returning back to their origin as the henchman's body dropped backward. Puar, Cargot, and the other Namekians continued to look on, amazed at the Terran's speed and strength. For his part, Yamcha breathed a cleansing breath as he looked on his handiwork. Just as it appeared Puar and the Namekians were about to rush to surround him, Yamcha held up a hand to stop them.
Turning, he brought his attention to the figure that had stepped out to watch battle unfold. The Z-warrior continued to maintain his game face, though his characteristic confident smirk was nowhere to be seen. The burly Namekian stood looking down on him, and Yamcha could immediately tell that he was a cut above the opposition he'd just face. His fists clenched, as the two stared each other down for moments.
"Impressive, you were able to dispatch my men with such ease, even though I'd spawned them with enough power to be capable of defeating the likes of Frieza's underlings," the Namekian stated, frowning as he took in the Terran's appearance, his mind working to recall where and when he had seen him before. "Though you are strong, you are clearly not the Saiyan who defeated Frieza. Just who are you?"
Yamcha remained silent momentarily, before once again donning his confident smirk.
"Me? I'm the big, bad wolf," he answered, preparing for the true fight to come.
To Be Continued…
A.N. - alright, finally was able to crank out the latest chapter. Though I decided to keep some elements of Slug's henchmen's battle with Goku, I hope you guys enjoyed the twists I added to Yamcha's, as it should be obvious the two wouldn't fight the same opponents the same way. I am considering posting current and future chapters with power levels for each character, but I'd like to leave it up to my readers, so let me know what you guys think by dropping a review!
Translations:
Rogafufuken: Reppuu Sou - Wolf Fang Fist: Gale Claws
Rogafufuken Sen - Wolf Fang Fist: Flash