Leaving for the Trial Arena before the others had only bought Kaido a one-minute lead against his competitors- and in the end, that lead really wouldn't have mattered. His destination, Arena B, was an amphitheater carved into the reddish-brown stone of the earth. The sides of the amphitheater served as simple stone bleachers since the spectating Saiyans watching their young had no need for comforts like cushions and shade. One side of the amphitheater was raised above ground level so that the Royals and their honor guard could sit elevated above all- looking down on the fighters. On the opposite side of the arena, more comfortable and cushioned seating had been arranged for high-ranking officials from Lord Frieza's government.
The seats had yet to fill up, and although Kaido briefly remained in the sky above the arena to look out for his father, he did not spot the scarred Saiyan warrior. He could only assume he was still accompanying the King, and possibly the Queen. Before he could try and look for his sister's face among the crowd, a high-pitched and shrill voice called out to him from below.
"Hey kid, if you're fighting, get down here!" Kaido looked around for the source of the voice, until he saw a strange orange-skinned fish-like alien at the back of the arena, dressed in battle armor. He held a microphone to his fanged mouth- which only amplified his voice. Kaido recognized the being as a Sefaran, a common race among the minions of Frieza. "You need to be dressed and scanned, kid."
Kaido's cheeks reddened slightly at being called out so loudly, but he complied– and as he landed before the short alien, he was joined shortly after by his soon-to-be rivals for the King's attention. Kaido hardly recognized any of them, and the ones he did know, he knew only by reputation. The first to arrive after him was Arra, the girl who'd interrupted Zorn during the listings. Kaido didn't know her personally- his training had never really allowed him much interaction with his peers, save during his brief education. Still, he knew Arra as a rowdy and angry child, known for her willingness to fight over the smallest things, as well as her frequent disrespect for authority. Once, he'd seen her bite the hand of a teacher during one of his infrequent lessons of Saiyan History. When she took note of his staring, he focused his attention on the other, wary of provoking her.
The only other person he knew among the seven other fighters was someone he honestly wished he didn't know– Lero. A mid-class warrior's brat like him, Lero was unfortunately a common presence throughout Kaido's childhood. Both of them were of similar status, were both born in the same year, and had learned under the same teachers. While Kaido's father was a low-class warrior who'd raised his own station through service in the Royal Guard, Lero's was some sort of mid-class war hero. Lero never failed to remind Kaido of his 'baseborn heritage', and for all his father's faults, Kaido could never stand by and let the taunts go unanswered. When the two met eyes, the other boy opened his mouth.
"You ready to lose in front of your daddy, Kaido?" Lero said the words confidently, knowing he could get away with them easily. Even when provoked, Kaido wouldn't dare make a scene at the most important event of his life thus far. Kaido wanted to punch him in the teeth. Since the other fighters were already looking at them both, Kaido chose to retort instead.
"You ready to die like yours?" Kaido smiled as he said it, and that smile only grew wider when the comment drew a giggle from a handful of the other contestants. Lero didn't frown, but his own lack of retort left Kaido satisfied. He'd get his chance to punch his rival, unless Lero fell first. Hopefully, he'd remember the comment when the time came for their battle.
Before any of the others could interrupt, the Sefaran announcer cleared his throat, thankfully avoiding the microphone as he did so. Once he'd drawn their attention, the alien spoke. "Save the taunts and heckling for later. Line up so I can have you identified, scanned, and dressed." As he said the last word, the Sefaran tapped a large trunk with his right foot. Kaido could only assume the trunk held the battle armor he and his fellow fighters would be wearing throughout the Placement Trials.
With one last glare exchanged between Kaido and Lero, the two boys separated, standing in line with the others. Kaido stood at the head of the line, eager for the chance to pick his armor before the others. To his side was a girl he did not recognize, and to her side was a boy that looked nearly identical to her. The two of them would've been impossible to distinguish from one another, if it wasn't for her incoming adolescence, which made her a few inches taller. Both of them even had similar laughs, Kaido couldn't help but note.
Once the competitors were lined up, the Sefaran brought out a tablet with a translucent green section. After the alien turned the device on, Kaido recognized what it was: a primitive handheld scouter, like the ones the Nursery had for analyzing the incubators. The scouter-pad beeped for a handful of seconds, and when it was done, the orange alien spoke. "Alright kid, what's the name?"
"Kaido, Son of Artiko and Hipa. Middle Class." Kaido responded more formally than most would've, but it's not like the alien minded much. After typing away at the device in his hands, the organizer responded. "Here you are. Kaido, Age 10, Battle Power of 450. Go grab a suit, kid." Kaido didn't need the alien to repeat himself. As soon as knelt to grab a suit from the trunk, he knew exactly what he'd grab.
For the sake of bets, Saiyans going through the Placement Trials were each given battle armor with differing colors. All were white-plated, but the pads came in varying colors. Kaido had given this a lot of thought in the past, and the choice seemed obvious- Red. Red was the color used by both the Royals and their guardsmen, and he wanted to stick out when he won against his competitors. He heard a snicker from Lero as he slipped into the elastic armor, but Kaido stepped away, content with his choice. As he did this, his competitors were listed and scanned.
Suna, the girl twin that had been behind him, had been scanned at 350. Her brother Komat had scanned even lower at 280. Both of them were a year younger than Kaido, which was just about what he expected from other competitors. The Trials could be undergone at any age before adolescence, provided the child's level was higher than 200. Kaido was only doing the trials at 10 because his father had insisted on training him beforehand. While Suna chose light blue as her color, her brother Komat chose a vibrant orange. After those two came a tall boy named Nipu, who had scanned at the number 375. That boy chose a yellow suit, and he was followed soon after by a much older boy named Kohl, who was scanned at 600. Kaido hadn't recognized Kohl before, but he realized who the tall preteen was the second his age was spoken. The twelve-year-old had been at the last year's trial, and although he'd failed then, he'd come back now, ready to prove himself. Kohl chose Indigo for his color, and although his age and power level brought on some whispering from other competitors, he seemed to pay it all no mind.
Following after came Lero, who stood proud and smirked in Kaido's direction when his level was scanned and declared. His rival was scanned at 500, and Kaido was sure that if Kohl hadn't been scanned at 600 right before, Lero would be boasting. Instead, his rival kept his taunting nonverbal and focused on Kaido. He lingered so long on that smirk that Arra, who'd fallen at the last spot in line, shoved him ahead. "Pick your stupid color already!"
Lero wasn't weak enough to be pushed to the ground, but he was still caught off guard. He immediately turned around as if to push Arra back, but the Sefaran organizer interrupted with his nasally voice, clearly annoyed. "Grab your color and move out of line, Saiyan. And no chatter from now on- your crowd is waiting." Kaido couldn't keep a smile from forming on his lips. When Lero backed off to pick his armor, he did so throwing a glare at both Arra and Kaido. Kaido had no doubt Lero was already plotting to show them both up, the same way he'd planned to do him.
Finally, the moment came for Arra, the little child legend, to have her reading. The organizer declared her scouter reading as 430, and Kaido managed to stop his fantasizing long enough to exhale a tiny sigh of relief. In truth, Kaido feared Arra might be more of a challenge. He had not expected to be slightly higher in rating than her, and certainly had not expected Kohl to be highest. Battle Power wasn't everything, but it helped reassure him of his chances of victory.
While Lero had picked Green as his color, Arra had chosen Violet- leaving just one set remaining for the final competitor in the line-up. The small boy called Leku, who Kaido hadn't really taken much notice of, was scanned at a battle power of 450 – the same number as Kaido. The boy had a shit-eating grin on his face as it was read, like he was proud of the number. Kaido hadn't really understood why the boy was so proud until the organizer commented on it. "450 at seven years old? You Saiyans really are freaks of nature." Leku was the youngest of them there, but he was tied with Kaido for the third-highest rating.
Kaido had fought and bled hard to raise his battle power over the last four years, waiting long for the opportunity to prove himself and ace his first attempt at the Placement Trials- but some Saiyans, especially those in the high-class, were seemingly built differently. Kaido still remembered the end of the last year's trials, when the victor of Arena A was put in a match against King Vegeta's own young son, only for that fight to come to a quick and brutal end. The Prince was half Kaido's age, and he'd destroyed his opposition. There was no waiting for trials for elites like Prince Vegeta- and while Kaido and others like him were competing for the right to serve the King, the princeling was probably off conquering worlds by himself. Sometimes, he wondered why they even needed the Royal Guard's protection.
Ten minutes would pass after the scanning of fighters before the Sefaran was ready to announce the lists and begin the Placement Trials. During that time, more Saiyan spectators arrived in Arena B, the most notable being King Vegeta III. The Royal was accompanied by Kaido's father Artiko and another Guardsmen Kaido couldn't recognize, but not his Queen or his little heir. On the opposite side of the arena, the stands set up for dignitaries of the Planet Trade Organization had also filled up, with a plump red-skinned alien woman and a dozen other members of her race being the most prominent of the offworlders Kaido could see. Although Kaido would never have placed much significance in the outsider woman, he noted that the organizer only seemed ready to begin once she arrived, and not when the king had.
Eventually, the matches began with the sound of the Sefaran's nasally tones blasting through arena speakers. "People of the Royal City. My name is Papai and it is my honor to be organizing these matches for the fair residents of Frieza Planet #63. It is also an honor to announce before both the King of the Saiyans and all of you who have come from other worlds to cheer on the newest generation of our Lord Frieza's Saiyan Army– especially those of you who have come from Planet Brench." The Sefaran's words were met with more than a few death glares, but less heckling than Kaido expected. His eyes had immediately gone to his father to see how he'd react to the home planet of the Saiyans being called by its imperial designation number. Kaido was honestly afraid his father would fire down some blast, some open display of rebellion— Artiko had never been a man to tolerate any form of disrespect. But to Kaido's surprise, Artiko did not strike, react, or act out. His father had a surprising control over his own temper when before the king and his countrymen.
"The Trial matches observed today will be continued until a competitor has fallen unconscious or immobile, or after a fighter has forfeited. No killing will occur, but visitors beware- that rule will hardly stop any of our fighters today from going all-out. For those inclined to bet, make sure to look toward your updated pads for the ages, names, and power levels of our fighters today. You can make your bets now, or in between the matches." The strange alien took a few moments to let his fellow offworlders fiddle with their technology, and only then did he continue.
"For the first round of Arena B's Placement Trials, the following matches will occur: the mid-class competitor Lero will face the low-class Nipu. Immediately after the victor is decided, the mid-class Arra and high-class Leku will face one another, followed by the mid-class fighters Kaido and Kohl. Last but not least, the twin siblings Komat and Suna, both low-class, will face one another. After all four matches have concluded, we will have a short intermission to allow new bets, talent scouting, and resting for our battered fighters."
As Papai finished his practiced speech, Kaido turned over to look in the direction of Kohl, the boy who would soon be his opponent. Kaido had seen the taller Saiyan boy fail in his battle the previous year, although the raw power imbalance still brought him some pause. He'd honestly hoped Kohl would've fought him in the second or final round, since that would've let Kaido better note his opponent's skills and weaknesses. Instead, that fight would come first, and Kaido would have to prove himself better than the older fighter from the get-go. He had trained for a situation just like this, however, and he knew what he'd probably have to do.
Taking advantage of the brief moment between the Sefaran's speech and the first match, he closed the distance between himself and Kohl, until both Saiyans had met each other's gaze. Kaido extended a hand to his soon-to-be opponent, a proud smile on his face. "Sorry in advance, Kohl. It'll be my fault you're coming back next year." Kohl didn't shake his hand, responding to Kaido's bravado with a scowl and a quiet voice. "Don't talk to me, runt." Kaido wasn't sure if his taunting had actually angered his opponent or if Kohl was this curt with everyone. He hoped it was the former– angrier opponents were easier to disorient.
While Kaido had been engaging Kohl, the other competitors had begun their own brief conversations and exchanges of insults. Kaido barely caught the contents of these verbal sparring matches, as the sound of a strange whistle brought them all to a very quick end. This whistle was followed by further words from Papai. "Our first match is between Nipu, son of Cumbra, and Lero, son of Zukini. One is the son of a common Saiyan warrior, a living veteran of dozens of battles. The other, the son of a fallen and respected conqueror. Once our fighters step onto opposite sides of the arena, our first match can begin. It will end and begin with the sound of my whistle."
Lero and Nipu quickly took to the opposite ends of the fighting grounds, with both looking confident and ready to throw down. Kaido stopped focusing on his own match, and instead turned his attention to the fighters. He raised his voice above the sound of rowdy Saiyan spectators, giving a tiny bit of encouragement just before the match.
"Kick his ass, Nipu!" Kaido's shout was met with a thumbs-up from the other young boy, and Kaido smiled, even though he knew what was coming. As much as he wanted Lero to have the embarrassing first-round loss, he had no doubt in his mind that his rival would prevail. Nipu stood no chance.