The Saiyan Gamer


Chapter 27: The Second Trial Begins!

"Come on, Sprout! You're too predictable!"

Root moved quickly, his sword flashing forward at me with immense precision. My body screamed at me to dodge, but instead, my sword flicked up and knocked his out of the way. He smirked as he switched his grip in a second and then bounced back, drawing a long line across the side of my neck with his retreat.

I ignored the pain and jumped at him, my sword coming down in a powerful swing. He responded by diverting my blow to the side and swinging up with his own. I barely had time to bring my blade back up in time to deflect his sword which would have probably cut a chunk out of my face.

He wasn't coming at me as fast as he could, but he wasn't making it easy on me either. His power level was at 4611, so he was more than strong enough to just blitz me and be other with. But this was training, even if it was brutal.

You've Leveled up a Skill! Basic Sword Skill Level 10!

Brutal but effective. I jumped back and settled back into my stance. His eyes widened slightly and his smirk only increased.

"Something changed just now," He noted. "You seem way more relaxed like you fully understand all of the basics all of a sudden."

I shifted as I felt the sword in my hand, a new feeling washing through me. My eyes sharpened as I stared him down. "I'm a fast learner."

"Let's see about that!" He charged at me, his sword already in motion. I sped forward and met him halfway, our sword colliding in a clash that sent sparks flying into the night sky.

The battle raged on as we took turns switching from the offensive to the defensive, neither of our swords touching the other person as we moved across areas of the Great Divide. In a split second, I saw my opening and rushed in, sword flashing in the direction of my little brother's neck.

"You really did master the basics," He smirked, once my blade stopped a centimeter away from his flesh. I smirked in response, even after I felt the tip of his sword pressed up against my ribcage. "I'm impressed. It took me much longer than a week and a half."

"Yeah, well I'm older," I slowly retracted my sword and sheathed it.

He rolled his eyes before crossing his arms and turning away from me, "The tournament starts tomorrow morning, but if you're up for it, I can start teaching you the first step to learning our family style."

That caught my interest immediately. "Yeah? I'm ready when you are."

"Alright, watch closely," He said as his hand moved smoothly to his hilt. His Ki flowed around his body and as I watched, a large portion of it seemed to condense around his arms. He inhaled deeply, before moving forward and drawing his sword at the same time. He moved like a blur, the attack slicing through multiple trees faster than I could blink.

"Notice anything different?" He asked.

"Your Ki was focused on your arms and you were holding your breath," I said, causing his eyes to widen slightly.

"Wow, you even noticed that, huh," He paused for a second, before sheathing his blade. "Instead of just letting your energy stay around your body, you have to make more of it go to your arms and keep it there. It's harder than you think to learn, but you have to be able to do it consistently to move forward. It seems easy, but it is pretty exhausting focusing on fighting and keeping your Ki in place."

"So what's the breathing for?" I asked.

"It's a trick I discovered," He said, frowning slightly. "It was harder than I thought it would be to master. When I hold my breath, it helps keep the Ki in place so I don't have to focus on that while attacking. Dad doesn't like it, but if it works, it works."

I wasn't sure if I agreed with his mindset, but he could do what he wanted. "So Dad can do it automatically?"

"He says that he's mastered it so well that he doesn't even think about it anymore. Same with Brussel."

Yeah, I want that level of control. I decided quickly. I'll master it properly before I move on.

"Alright, let's get started."


The dual suns had barely begun to illuminate the night sky when we all arrived at the site of the second trial. Unlike last time, it was just a giant open area in the Great Divide. At one end of the area, there were quite a few hastily made food shops, with food already being prepared.

Even more, people came along this time, even though much less were actually participating. It made sense, considering that watching a fight was way easier. The general atmosphere was buzzing, as everyone shared a joint excitement.

Despite the first trial having third classes and second classes fighting together, the second trial had them separated. Root explained that it was so that there could be a clear 'strongest of third class' and 'strongest of second class'. When I pointed out that if that were the case, they should have separated the classes from the very beginning, he told me that they used to do it like that, but because the third class tournament trial was boring, they'd just combined them.

However, because of that, the third class second trial was considerably small. I'd defeated quite a few, and because I took their flags, there were quite a few others who couldn't pass. They couldn't fight second classes, so when the trial neared an end, they ended up fighting within their groups, leaving just a few remaining.

"I'm betting you'll lose your first match, chump," Brussel chimed in from next to me. I didn't even dare to look at her, not risking losing control of my anger.

"He's actually ignored her for a week straight," Root said to Omato, who floated slightly in front of us all. "It's a shame they can't fight now. That would be fun."

"I'm sure their fight after the tournament will be very entertaining," Omato said, looking over his shoulder. Reason for the extra emphasis being that I almost blew up the estate trying to attack her a week ago.

I'm going to kill her so slowly… I took a deep breath to compose myself. Without looking back, Omato handed me a piece of paper with the tournament lineup. Memorizing it in a second, I smiled internally when I realized that he hadn't lied about fulfilling my request.

"So the gap between fights will be two days?" I asked.

"Two days," He said simply. "I know what you're thinking, but two days is generous. If this was a real battlefield, you'd have way less than that. If they have enough money, they can pay for a Hiringu plant."

"A Hiringu plant?"

"It's a rare plant that has healing properties," He explained. "It doesn't heal you completely, but it sure does a good job."

"Where can you buy these plants?" I asked, curious. I wonder if I can craft them together to make the effects stronger.

"I'm the only one who sells them. They're in a place only a few know, and it's far too dangerous for anyone who isn't an elite to visit," He crossed his arms over his chest. "Satou will be selling them at one of the booths."

"Alright," I said before I began scanning the crowd for any recognizable faces. "Do you think my ability to heal will cause a problem? I'm sure people won't be happy to face me, knowing that they'll still be hurt from their last battle and I'll be completely fine."

"I doubt anyone will mention it. If they did, it would look like they're trying to back out of the fight," He explained. "No one wants to do that."

"Hmm..." I acknowledged his answer as I continued to surf the crowd. Eventually, I found who I was looking for, and they were heading in my direction.

"Morning," Omato greeted Bardock, who nodded stiffly in return.

"You ready?" Turles asked me, offering me a fist bump.

"More than ready," I replied, returning it. My eyes drifted slightly above his head, and I was surprised at what I saw.

"You alright there?" He asked, waving his hands in front of my eyes. Snapping back to focus, I looked up and nodded my head in response.

When did I begin to close the gap? As the conversation continued, I reread his sheet again, still shocked by what I was seeing. At one point in time I wouldn't have even dreamed of beating Turles in a fight, but now…

Let's not think too far ahead. I taught myself, my eyes drifting down to Kakarot, who was basically beaming. I would be facing him first, I needed to focus on that fight. Once I looked down at the little ball of energy, I couldn't help but gasp. His power level...

His power level is 2352 and he's gone up two levels! I shouldn't be worrying about Turles when I had a worthy opponent right in front of me. Even if his Zenkai did give him two levels, his power level went up way too high for just two levels. Was his power level wrong all this time? Or was he somehow able to hide his true power?

"You've gotten stronger," I noted, earning a wide grin from the ball of energy.

"I can't wait to fight you again!" Kakarot bounced up and down like a spring.

"You'll have to win your other fights first," I reminded him, but that didn't deter him in the slightest.

"Zaria's gotten stronger too, huh?" Turles said, looking over my shoulder. I didn't need to turn to know that Zaria was behind me. She was pretty much always close by.

"She has," I admitted proudly. Her power level jump was the biggest, really. She was quickly approaching 1000 when she was forced to stop because she was overexerting herself. Yamoshi's training was no joke.

"It's a shame we won't get to see her fight," He said, before sighing and turning to Raditz, who was silently reading a book next to Gine. "Or you, nerd."

"Maybe next year," He said, although his lack of interest was clear.

"You'll all do great," Gine smiled weakly over at us. It didn't take a genius to see that she wasn't happy at all about it, but no one brought it up. I'm surprised she came at all, considering her pacifist nature.

"Where's Leeku, by the way?" I asked Turles, the absence of my first actual friend suddenly becoming apparent.

"I haven't seen her," Turles shrugged his shoulders. "Don't really care, to be honest."

"Hmm," I frowned, but didn't bother searching. There were far too many people, but I was bound to run into her eventually. If she won all of her fights, we'd end up fighting too, but I hoped to see her before that.

"Did you guys put any bets in?" Radtiz asked, catching my attention.

"A bet?"

"Yeah, Dad was talking about how people bet money on the fights," Radtiz explained. "It's a bit hard though, considering scouters aren't allowed during the trials."

That's not a problem for me, but power levels aren't the only deciding factor. I put a hand on my chin as I thought. "I'll probably just bet on myself then. I know I don't plan on losing at all."

"Wouldn't be so confident in yourself, twerp. You don't want to lose your pride and your money in one swipe," Brusell's voice chimed in from behind me, but I tuned her out like an expert.

"Besides, you can't bet on yourself," Root said. That isn't much of a problem

"Where can I do the betting?" I asked, the solution popping into my head quickly. Root pointed into the distance and I wasted no time flying up above the crowd and looking around. Scanning everyone's power levels, I searched until I found who I was looking for.

"Rue!" I called to my newest friend, who snapped his head up at me. Coincidentally, he was standing near the booths, and I flew over to him immediately.

"Sprout!" He greeted me with an enthusiastic nod and a bright face. "Can I do something for you?"

"Actually, yes," I pulled out some Meta-Wolf skin from the safe place and formed it into a large bag in the blink of an eye. A second later, it began to fill with hundreds of coins; just some of the spoils from the Juggernaught. "Can you go to the betting booth and bet on me? I'll give you some of the money when I win."

"Of course! Anything else?" He asked as he took the bag from me. He very clearly was struggling with the weight of it, but he didn't complain.

"No, that's it," I said. "Thank you. I'll be going now."

"Good luck!" He waved as I flew off. I smirked.

I don't need luck.


POV Change

"There's no shame in forfeiting."

The words were a complete lie, and his little brother's face reflected that he knew as much. Even still, Bll was trying to do everything within his power to make sure that his brother didn't go through with the battle ahead of him. He wasn't sure how the other guy had managed it, but Picklu's first opponent was the white-haired Saiyan from the end of the first trial. Once Bll found out that the blood-lusted Saiyan was his teacher's son, it clicked. He'd manipulated the lineup so that he could fight Picklu without Bll intervening.

"First, you join the first game to help me pass, and now you're telling me to forfeit out of the second trial?" Picklu almost spat, a heavy glare piercing his brother.

"I'm just…" The older boy didn't want to say nervous, knowing how that would sound. "It's just, that white-haired Saiyan… He's Omato's son and you know how crazy his wife and kids are."

"You don't think I can win," Picklu's eyes widened and Bll could see the hurt in his eyes. "Asshole. I beat him once, I'll do it again."

Bll frowned, unsure of how to proceed. Before he had the chance, though, two individuals walked over to them. One was a large man in every sense, with a bald head similar to Picklu's. The other was a woman with long flowing hair that brushed her tail.

"Your fight is about to begin, Picklu," The man, their father, announced. "Do not disappoint us. Losing in the first round is pathetic."

"When has he been anything more than pathetic?" The woman mocked, her voice critical as her eyes scanned her youngest son with distaste. Bll could only watch with gritted teeth as her eyes landed on the dent in his head and she grimaced. "I still have no idea how you came out of me."

"Mo-" Bll began to shout but was cut off by Picklu stepping up and pushing past him.

"I don't care what you think, I'm going to win," He said, determination clear on his face. They didn't seem convinced, not even saying goodbye to him as he walked off to his match.

"You don't have to be such assholes. He's doing his best," Bll narrowed his eyes on his parent, but they didn't bat an eye.

"His best is not enough. Never has been," Their Dad said flatly, before turning and watching as Picklu walked into one of the open arenas and waited for his opponent. It was the first fight of the day, so everyone was watching with anticipation.

"Why do you care so much anyway? Even if he somehow beats all of his opponents, you'll just crush him in the final anyway," His mother said, rolling her eyes at her eldest. "Did you bet money on him winning or something?"

Bll didn't reply, his anger towards them suddenly eclipsed by worry for his brother. And even despite that anxiety, his eyes couldn't leave the one who was going to be fighting him. The white-haired Saiyan walked into the arena slowly, and even from a distance, Bll could feel the killer intent leaking off of him.

Even without a scouter, Bll could tell that his teacher's son was far stronger than his little brother. How Picklu could have ever beaten him in a fight, Bll had no idea. The shorter Saiyan walked with so much confidence that if he hadn't known any better, he would have thought he was an elite class.

No, there was no way he thought his brother was going to win this fight. He just hoped Picklu had the sense to forfeit before it was too late.


Spout POV

This feels great. I took a deep breath as I watched Picklu take his stance a few yards in front of me. Despite the fight not even beginning yet, he was sweating like an animal, and despite the blank expression on his face, his description told me it all. He's terrified.

"You don't have your brother to save you this time," I called out to him, loud enough for him to hear over the crowd chanting for the fight to begin.

"I don't need him to beat a weakling like you," He spat. As he did, he withdrew a bow staff from his back and spun it in his hand for a second.

"I'll show you the true meaning of the word weak," I couldn't hide the smirk that spread across my face.

This fight meant more than just redeeming my pride. It was more than getting revenge for him beating me down and taking my territory. This fight was a message and a statement. Falling into my fighting stance, I readied myself for a fight.

"You should have killed me when you had the chance. You won't get it again."

The sound of a Ki explosion marked the beginning of the battle. I wasted no time at all blasting towards him, the ground beneath me cracking into webs. His eyes widened in shock and surprise, but he was far too slow now. I wasn't the same person that I was before.

My fist slammed into his gut with so much force that it lifted off the ground. I followed it up with an uppercut that snapped his jaw shut with a resounding crack. I wasn't done there, though, as I spun and delivered a hard kick into his stomach, sending him skidding across the harsh sand.

The crowd behind me roared, pushing me forward.

He stood up quickly, rushing at me with rage in his eyes. I smirked, dodging his slow attacks with ease. I continued dodging, savoring the look of growing irritation in his eyes.

"What's wrong, Picklu? Can't hit the weakling?" I taunted him, watching as he ground his teeth together.

"Shut up!" With a powerful roar, he swung his pole at my head. This time I didn't dodge.

Catching it had stung just a little bit, but his reaction was worth it. His eyes widened, a glimpse of fear behind the shocked stare. I used that time to pull his staff towards me, bringing him forwards into my waiting forehead. His nose cracked and he tried to fall back, but my hand still held his staff tightly in my grip.

Dragging him back again, I chopped him in the throat. Immediately, he started to choke and his grip loosened. I yanked it from his grip, before turning and cracking him across the side of his face with it. To his credit, he stayed on his feet despite the blood pouring out of his nose and the additional dent in the side of his head.

"Come on," I spun the pole around in my hand loosely. I hadn't ever used one, but the way that I planned on using it, I didn't need any training. "I'm just getting started."

Picklu charged at me in a rage, throwing a punch at my face. I slapped his fist out of the way with his own weapon, before slamming the pole into his stomach and forcing him back. I didn't stop there though, as I advanced forward, striking him all over the body with it.

I didn't stop until the wood started to splinter and break.


POV Change

"He's brutal," Omato said, a proud smile set firmly on his face. "Picklu doesn't stand a chance."

Bardock watched with a blank expression on his face, his eyes not leaving the match for a second. From the beginning, the fight was obviously one-sided, but now it was basically just torture. Sprout stood over his opponent, both of them covered in blood. In Sprout's right hand was a shattered pole, and in his left, he had his opponent's arm in a lock, bent in such a way that Bardock wondered if it could ever be fixed.

"You aren't going to call the match now?" Bardock asked, turning to the broad red-head. He knew the answer before he asked, but it still felt absurd to him.

"The only way to end this game is by knockout, death, or forfeit," Omato replied. His smile had not left his face for a second. They both knew how this was going to end, even if they didn't say it out loud.

Bardock opened his mouth to speak, but he closed it not a second later. They were beyond reason, anyway. Saiyans loved violence, no matter who it was being brutalized. This was entertainment gold for them, and the roaring of the crowd only confirmed that. They didn't care that it was another Saiyan under all of that blood and bruises.

"Just… Just be happy it isn't Sprout on the other end of it…" Gine sounded sick as she spoke next to him. When Bardock turned, he wasn't surprised to see that her face was downright distraught.

While he disliked unnecessary violence between Saiyans, she disliked violence at all. He couldn't even imagine how she must have felt watching this, but they both knew that she would have felt worse if she'd stayed at home worrying about how they were doing. While Sprout wasn't her kid, Bardock knew that she'd gotten attached to the teenager in the time he stayed with them.

He'd gotten attached to Sprout too, he admitted to himself. He felt pride watching Sprout winning his current fight, and he'd felt pride watching him beat the first trial. All he could do is take Gine's words to heart. As long as Sprout wasn't the one bleeding on the floor, that was the best-case scenario.


Sprout POV

"I've thought about this for weeks."

I discarded the broken pole by throwing it over my shoulder. Picklu was barely recognizable now, but he was still conscious. One of his eyes was swollen, but the other stared at me with terror. He struggled on the ground, trying to get to his feet despite the pain.

"You humiliated me. You stole my home and laughed at me as I drowned," I spoke calmly as I strolled around him. "Just because I was weaker than you, you thought you could do whatever you wanted and I'd just roll over and allow it."

Picklu turned slowly and tried to punch me with his unbroken arm, but I scowled and withdrew my sword. Blood sprayed and his severed arm flew through the air, landing in the crowd somewhere. His remaining eye widened, and he erupted into painful animalistic screams. I walked towards him and swept him onto his back, his scream momentarily paused by the wind being knocked out of him.

"I'm not going to kill you…" I said, watching what looked like relief grow on his face. "Not yet, at least."

His relief disappeared as my sword stabbed into his left leg and I lifted my foot into the air above his right. "I want you to beg. Grovel and beg for your life and I might let you live."

Panic, terror, and defiance all flashed over his face in an instant, and I smiled. He still felt pride, even on the brink of death. I dropped my foot and the bones in his lower leg shattered like twigs. His screams filled the air, second only to the cheering from the crowd.

"And ne-"

The wind next to me was violently displaced, and when I turned, a fist was barely an inch from my face. So fast!

My body tensed as intense pressure fell over me. I recognized it this time as killer intent, and it was coming at me like a waterfall. I recovered from it quicker this time, taking a step back and examining the owner of the fist. His face was contorted in fury, his eyes wide and staring and his aura flowing around him like the sun. It was Bll, and the only reason that he hadn't hit me was that Omato had caught him by the collar.

"I'm going to fucking kill you! I'm going to make you regret the day you stepped foot on his planet!" Bll growled at me, practically frothing at the mouth. "You're dead! Do you understand m-"

With one chop from Omato, Bll's eyes rolled to the back of his head and he went unconscious. Omato nodded his head at me, giving me the go-ahead to continue, before flying off to the sidelines with the limp body. I waited until they were safely back in the stands before I turned back to Picklu, although my mind was now far removed from this fight.

I don't think anything could have made me more exciting for the fights to come. I rolled my shoulders and sighed. Still, this fight needed to end.

"Anyway, before I was rudely interrupted…" I turned back down to the collapsed body, which was fortunately still alive. "Are you ready to beg for your life?"

When he didn't reply, I lifted my foot back up and stomped another bone. His screaming only energized the crowd. Eventually, after several more broken bones, they began chanting.

"Finish him! Finish him! Finish him!"

"Are you hearing that?" I asked as I slowly crunched another bone. This time he didn't even scream, simply whimpering and shutting his eyes. As the chanting continued, something happened that made me feel better than begging ever would have.

He began to cry.

Joy filled me and I withdrew my sword from his leg, swinging it in the air for a few seconds. Nothing could compare to this moment. "Any last words?"

"I forfe-"

His voice was silenced by a swing of my blade. As if I'd give him that pleasure

"An explosive start to the second trial!" Someone spoke, his voice booming over the completely ballistic crowd. I looked up to see someone with his arms outstretched towards the crowd. "Sprout, son of Omato, has won via decapitation!"

I ignored the experience notification to bask in the glory of the applause.


The second trial begins! I hope you enjoyed it, there are many fights to follow!