6 months had passed since Trunks had made his announcement.

And ever since, the city had been in a constant state of movement.

Even the more seasoned patrollers were feeling the effects of the upcoming Orange Star exams; every training facility was either occupied or cramped with younger recruits, save for late hours ‒ now, to be exact ‒ when they were cramped by those who'd been scorned by those recruits.

Accommodations had to be made, of course. But it did little to sour Trunks's mood.

"You seem proud," a gruff voice observed from behind, as the black-coated commander watched over the city from his high perch.

"A bit, yeah." He continued taking in the noise of the city. "This is the most activity we've had in a while."

The voice, emanating from a short and stocky man possessing a white/yellow chassis similar to that of which many Saiyans donned over a black bodysuit, and black, raised spiked hair adding an additional quarter to his height, scoffed. "Why it took so long for you to employ this idea baffles me. As if written words and simulations could ever constitute real battle."

"You think that's crazy? It wasn't even my idea. Chronoa suggested it after skimming through Goku's past."

The armored man scoffed. "If you weren't of my blood, I swear, I'd confuse you for a Tuffle."

"Hey, try all you'd like, but there is nothing you could say right now to bring down my mood." Trunks took a long, celebratory breath. "Fact of the matter is, this was a great idea."

He turned. "Say, how many people have come up to you for training in the last few months?"

"Hundreds. Narrowed down to a low-end dozen after my preliminary, of course."

Trunks reacted with a low chuckle. "Really? Usually, it's one or two!"

The older man let out a "Hmph!" and approached the edge with his son.

"This year's given us an odd batch, I'll say." The lavender-haired sword saint nodded.

"Absolutely. In skill sets and backgrounds alike, there aren't many like them. I've got an eye on a few, in particular."

Trunks began reminiscing.

"Two teens, both from pre-age eras on Earth and Sadala. One peculiarly long-haired girl practiced an art of assassination that died with its successor a few millennia ago, and the other…"

The older man chuckled. "That exceptionally-violent ogre who cost you a jacket?"

Trunks huffed. "The plan was for us to fight from the get-go, sure, but the two nearly ripped each other apart before I broke it up. Then, they took out their frustration on me. End result: both needed care, the boy was held for decision, and a few million zeni went down the drain."

"Couldn't the Kai simply restore you?"

"She said that I 'Brought it on MySeLf,' and then made the fashion vendor charge me extra for it!" His father stifled a full-blown cackle, to the commander's seething.

"Apologies."

"Anyhow… another group consisted of two gentlemen, one a young blonde Saiyan, and the other a massive Musai relic. Off the boy's former attire, 900s Earth-based, I assume he's far future. As for the other, he just told me the last age he remembered. Late 900s, as well..."

"Let me guess, another kerfuffle?"

"The exact opposite," Trunks clarified, to his father's shock. "In fact, they outright refused to fight. The boy hardly even seemed confused, and I had to convince him that he wasn't still in his timeline. And then after I got through to him, he took the news in a stride, and set off immediately."

"Great. A Saiyan stuffed with lukewarm blood, and a moron to boot."

"Oh come on, don't think of it like that. Besides, while they didn't fight outright, there's something incredible within the boy; he knew how strong the Musai was, yet he approached with a greeting. Big guy was no slouch, either, though HIS power was a tad more… blatant. He didn't seem proud of the fact, either."

"Hmph. A front, most likely."

"Father..."

"What? All I'm saying is that their race is as talented in trickery as they are strength, that's all."

"FATHER!"

"It's a compliment, boy!"

His dad had been through a lot, admittedly. And Trunks had dealt with his own biases, those of cybernetic and divine sorts especially. Nevertheless…

"And then there was the latest batch. I opted for three this time, because Conton's been having a boom in resources, thanks to the peace."

"And?"

"Well off the bat, one was a Super Saiyan. She had a particularly fiery temper and short fuse to boot, and a human hybrid from what I've seen, so it adds up pretty well. Although, a subsequent clash proved how lacking she was in a real fight..."

His father gave him tired eyes. "A Super Saiyan Soup Kitchen."

Trunks almost fell over.

"WEH-HELL, the second definitely shared the sentiment. A Saiyan noble."

"Elite?"

"No, as in, genuine royalty. And a separate clan from ours, too. Around your power after touching down on Earth, if not a tad higher."

"A name aside from my own ruling the Saiyans? Infinite possibility gives way to impossibility, naturally."

"Right… and then there was the human boy. Power-wise, he never showed anything to write home about ‒ even the girl could outpace him without transforming ‒ but ever since that day, according to a veteran personally mentoring him, he's been pulling off increasingly absurd feats. And then there was the explosion on what people call 'Brood Mountain'."

"Are you telling me..."

"Judging from clues, like damage and residual ki… most signs point to the human."

The spike haired man gave room for pause.

"Beyond belief, I know." A grin stretched across Trunks's face. "I haven't been this excited about the future in a while. Despite their… hiccups… with the progress that this generation is making, coupled with their effects on each other pushing them higher and higher..."

Trunks turned. "We're looking at the best year in Conton's history," the violet-haired man declared.

His father stared at him in shock.

For a peculiarly long time.

"... what?"

Trunks took a minute to realize he wasn't looking at him.

"... father, is there…"

The sky began distorting.

"No…"

Trunks slowly turned.

"NO…"

A series of rifts, 8 in total, tore holes in the sky.

His hair began to rise and his eyes shook. "NO, NO, NO, NO, NO…"

And to top it all off…

"Salutations, my subjects to-be!" An obnoxiously-snobby voice decreed from a spaceship's comm. "It brings me great pleasure to inform you all that, as of today, you're been annexed into my galactic empire!"

It was at this moment, as he took up the legendary Saiyan state in a fit of unbridled anger, that Trunks would quote a more iconic phrase of his.

"NOOOOOOOOO-"

Tides Shift, Time Rifts...

"Oh man, it's Frieza!"

"Frieza!? Why's he here!?"

"That bastard… I won't forgive him for what he did to my family!"

The space tyrant, as thousands upon thousands of troops tailed his ship, emerged inside a floating pod in a fit of snide snickers. "Oh believe me, my humble vassals to-be, I'm flattered by the familiarity. It saves oh so much effort on my end! Very well, I'll return the gesture and get to business!"

"I mean he doesn't sound all that bad, let's hear him out first!"

"First things first, subjugation!"

"OOOOOOH. Oh."

Frieza waited for the curious fellow below to finish, then continued. "Now then, any and all who'd oppose this change in management, speak now, and I'll kindly see to it that your woes are put to rest for all eter-"

Thousands upon thousands of hands suddenly raised below, Conton City becoming a sea of chi with intent to vaporize.

"You got me an ASSORTED VARIETY of fucked up!"

"I am NO ONE'S vassal!"

"WHY CAN'T YOU JUST STAY DEAD!? SHIT!"

Frieza's smugness faded, quickly.

"... eh… on second thought... would all available kindly wait a few moments, I'm not quite in fighting form yet!"

"Absolutely not!"

"Eat shit!"

"You killed my dog, you dastardly bastard!"

"No way I'm letting you throw on that tacky gold carapace again, lamewad!"

"THERE'S NOTHING TACKY ABOUT MY CHOICES IN WARDROBE, VERMIN!"

"ALL PATROLLERS, STAND DOWN."

The lord of star systems turned to see…

"Y… You…"

Trunks, standing atop the back of Frieza's pod, had calmed down enough to return to base. Though his shadow-draped face, save 2 blue eyes which twitched like enraged hornets in a glass jar, told a much different story.

"Look," growled the hawk-eyed commander as he desperately clung to sanity, "If you leave right now, and take your army with you, without any fuss, I'll forget that this ever happened."

Frieza began seething. Seeing the pompous little space emperor fume instead of instantly heed his command only further drove Trunks up a wall.

"(This little brat again… Who does he…!)"

"You stupid little punk," A hulking, shark-toothed and battle-hardened soldier sneered, approaching from behind. "Do you have an idea who you jus-"

Trunks lifted his sword a tad, then slammed it back into its sheath. The scaled bruiser's armor disintegrated, stripping him to underwear and revealing his many interstellar-idol tattoos.

"Neither of us want me to turn around. Fall back."

Though not for the reason Trunks had envisioned, the uncanny musclehead hastily agreed.

Frieza'd been caught between a rock and a stalagmite. Therefore, he used what he knew he had.

"My, my, if it isn't the surprise Super Saiyan who so easily-"

"SHUT IT."

The torrent of bloodlust compelled the emperor to, quote, "shut it."

"There will be no flattery, there will be no speeches, and if this drags out any longer, I'm skipping negotiations and sawing you in half, right here and now."

"I beg-"

"I'M GIVING YOU AN ULTIMATUM, DAMMIT, TAKE IT!"

"Would you-"

"TAKE IT!"

"DAMN I-"

"TAKE IT YOU EAR-GRATING SPACE GECKO TAKE IT!"

"EXECUTE THIS PEST, AT ONCE!" Frieza cried out to his legion, hissyfit imminent.

Before they could move any further than a meter, Trunks ripped out his sword and slashed in a direction above the legions, catching a few in the swath.

The very space above them began sliding apart, dividing the unfortunate souls in the crossfire, who watched their upper halves shift away from the lower as the others watched the incomprehensible sight. The dimension would self-mend. The lifeforms wouldn't.

Frieza was equally as flabbergasted and terrified, the latter emotion reaching a crescendo as the swordsman who'd first taken his life raised his blade for an encore performance.

"Welp, I tried. Die."

"HOLD IT."

"(Th-that voice…!)" the humiliated conqueror mentally despaired. While many of Frieza's recovering forces observed him with cautious anxiety, enough of the older troops outright panicked for all available to be put on full alert. Down below, a major ruckus of cocky laughter and smug remarks - comparable to a class preparing to watch a child receive a personal scolding from the teacher - ensued.

"That's not… you're supposed to be-"

"Dead? I suppose that's something I picked up from you, ignorance toward the reaper's call. Unlike you, however, I learned my place, and it's not six feet under."

"Ve…"

Frieza howled his name in a fit of rage, as the armored man from before smirked.

"VEGETAAA-"

Trunks kicked his head in. "Shut up." He redirected focus to his father. "Is this about-"

"Oh, of course not. I'm not a child, I no longer want this fool's life. In fact…"

Vegeta smiled sadistically. "I'D SAY THAT DEATH IS TOO MERCIFUL FOR SCUM LIKE THIS."

Trunks gave an inquisitive brow raise. "What do you mean?"

"Here this pompous buffoon is, on our grounds, with the goal of taking it for himself without any of the responsibility it entails. In layman's terms, he wants new work jockeys and a shiny new residence." Vegeta shrugged. "So my plan is, let the bastard stay."

Frieza glared. "What are you thinking, you mangy mon-"

"But from now on, he'll be OUR work jockey."

Trunks gave out a "Hou?" while Frieza petrified.

"Until this blasted rift is sewn shut again, Conton City's taking upwards of 70% what resources come from this gremlin's empire. Though regrettably, there's not much we can do about the means, we'll at least be keeping a vast sum out of your pockets. You'll keep as much as you need to live throughout this arrangement, however, trust me."

"TH-THAT'S PREPOSTEROUS, MY EMPIRE CAN'T THRIVE WITH A MEAGER 30 PERCE-"

"Then I guess you'd be dependent on Conton and its infinite benevolence for the time being, wouldn't you? But of course, no one's FORCING you to take the deal."

The former tyrant felt icy eyes burrow through his skull.

"It's up to Conton's commander, after all."

The black-coated swordsman smiled. "What can I say, I'm a fan. All that's left is a verbal thumbs-up and a firm handshake. So how about it, Frieza?"

With all his impotent rage, Frieza's head darted around to check his fleet. Those left in one piece gave frantic signals and pleas for surrender; the more resilient and cut-atwain members waved white flags, literally lacking the balls to start a 30-second war. Reining in his composure, Frieza gave a shaky, "dignified" smile.

"V-very well, I suppose I'm left with little choice in the manner."

He slightly peeled his eyes open. "32%?"

Trunks glared back. "75%, take it or leave it."

Frieza hissed, before regaining composure. "A hard bargain you drive, dear boy. Fine then, as of now, the Frieza Force agrees to these terms!" he reached toward Trunks's hand, only to receive a swaying finger.

"I'm not the one who proposed the deal."

What little composure he had left shattered. "T-THAT'S NOT HOW IT WORKS!"

"It is in Conton. Don't worry, you're new, so I won't hold it against you."

The emperor-by-name creaked his head toward his past lackey, waiting with an outstretched hand and a terrifyingly-uncharacteristic grin.

After a moment of what could be compared to a hemophobe being forced to grasp a cougar victim's still-beating heart, the deal was sealed.

"As of now, Frieza and his force are now property of Conton City!"

"WHAAA-"

Frieza promptly fainted, to Vegeta's smug amusement. Trunks giggled a bit, hopping of the back of the pod before soldiers could hastily haul it off.

"That was way more fun than it should've been, especially considering the situation… Honestly, where did you learn savvy like that?"

Vegeta's smile faded. "By carefully observing the war tactics of the most cunning, sadistic, devilish, cold-hearted being in the-"

"Just say mom."

"Your mother, yes. Even I have seldom seen the ruthlessness on display during her merger meetings."

Trunks turned toward the other rifts mucking up the sky. "That's one avenue of panic blocked off. But what about the others?"

"If it's anything like the last situation," his father stated, "We'll have to introduce ourselves formerly before containing the area most affected. If they're willing, they could even aid us in the meanwhile… in one way, or another."

Trunks sighed. "Making the most out of a bad situation… let's just hope these don't get any worse from here." He directed focus toward the patrollers below.

"ATTENTION, ELITE AND ABLE PATROLLERS!" The commander boomed, causing immediate formation amongst the older patrollers.

"FORGIVE THE SHORT NOTICE, BUT AS NOW, SEVERAL RIFTS OF UNKNOWN ORIGIN HAVE OCCURRED IN CONTON CITY! YOUR ORDERS ARE TO ACT AS ENVOYS, ALL THE WHILE INVESTIGATING CAUSE AND SEVERITY, AND MINIMIZING PANIC AMONG THOSE WITHIN! INVESTIGATING TEAMS CANNOT EXCEED TEN UNITS AT A TIME, AS ONCE AGAIN, WE'RE HERE TO MINIMIZE PANIC!"

"WITH THIS SAID, MOVE OUT! LET'S MAKE THIS ONE QUICK AND CLEAN!"

About 80 patrollers rose from the ground to investigate each rift.

"..."

Trunks realized that, after the grand order, there were still a few patrollers left and feeling out of place.

"Uh, to everyone that's still here…make sure these Frieza Force guys don't do anything stupid, and uh... g-goodnight, everybody!" he waved as he slowly drifted toward the Time Nest, his father following behind with his face firmly within his palm.

"Supreme Kai of Time!" Trunks called out. "Something urgent has come up!"

Silence.

"Supreme Kai?"

Vegeta felt around. "Seems like she's already left…"

A deafening screech of rage smacked the two in the ear lobes from the other side of the Time Nest's portal.

"... found her…" Trunks squeaked, as Vegeta's head weightlessly swayed.

Somewhere on the opposite end of the multiverse…

"Damn it!" cursed a feminine figure in dark seclusion. "Has space-time become so frail…"

She turned, revealing red eyes. "That a simple prodding like this could cause rifts?"

Another figure, masculine and possessing identical red eyes, spoke up. "Lady Towa…"

"The last thing we need right now is for ANYONE in that cursed patrol to know about our presence… this is cutting it far too close…"

She turned to her side, revealing two other figures; the taller of the two possessing antennae, the other, a tail. Both looked worse for wear, confused and hardly able to stand.

"Still, I was successfully able to retrieve you two once again."

A multitude of dark-violet, swirling energy vats lit weakly, one by one, until they lightened the decrepit space with a deep, ominous glow.

Through her woe and desperation, curling lips were revealed.

"Soon, we'll be ready to make our move."

[OP: Granrodeo - Remember Your Passion]

7/2/2023 Patch Notes: Removed Golden Frieza implication. I like the idea that he only began to train himself AFTER this. Will still be weaker than Golden Frieza due to this specific Frieza surviving Namek and winning on Earth. OG sentence for context:

"THE FORM WAS INTENDED TO MOCK! IT'S TACKY BY DESIGN!" Frieza hastily retorted, before breaking into a sweat at the population's knowledge of that form.

10/17/2023 Patch Notes: Changed all mentions of "Tuffle" to "Tsufruian." Pretty nuclear change across the story, but I simply like "Tsufurian" more.

11/17/2024 PATCH NOTES: Corrected "Plant" to "Sadala." Questioned why I do that so often.

12/2/24 PATCH NOTES: Yeah fukkit, I'm just gonna use Tuffle and Tsufruian both interchangeably.

Yo! OP Here!

Yeah, things have been kinda shitty, I've been kinda lazy, not great pacing all around, but dammit I'm closing in. Hence the new OP.

So something I've been thinking about is nationalities n' shit in this story. Mainly, Uub, thanks Hackopa- I mean Toyotaro. That ending was cash, though. I'll give him that. Back to the topic, I dunno, Mei's language wouldn't change cus really old civilization, but I think Aroji shizz and the like will just be heavily implied Latin-American stuff from now on, considering how literally everyone else in DB no matter their origin has the same language no matter where they are. Main Languages are just easier on everyone involved, OG speakers included (fuck me and my barely-bilingual headass.)

Read GoH. Cash. Kinda regretting not sticking with Zinco's Haetae angle. Keyword: Kinda; Qilin/Kirin/Girin (this spelling is most likely the one I'm gonna use for Zinc) is just too cool. Regardless, I negged a lot of inspiration from that SUBARASHIIIII manhua, won't lie. On the topic of Zinco, I've been thinking a lot on his backstory and other nuances with his character over the past damn-near month, so, yeah. Next chapter will be about Neo and Dina partnering up for a 6-month training sleepover, mentor shennnnnanigans, rift setup paving way to an old turtle master, and also Zinco, Mei, and Kaza near the end. Other plans include solidifying Archi's beef with martial arts for the upcoming tournament (hint: you won't guess who proves Archi wrong on his MA stance), Kazikum and Wabi bonding, Voshyo becoming a fucking aniki to cope with his Conton City home while Celzius watches, and then STARTING THE FUCKING TOURNAMENT BABYYYYYYYYY. WE MIGHT GET THAT SHIT DONE BEFORE I DIE LET'S GOOOOOO maybe probably IDK. If I do end up dying for hnskhndovh reason, whatever, the attempt was cool.

Semester's almost over. JJK's going strong. Shoutout to the homie Mori Hui. RWBY S8's doing... something, it's missing a bit too much but I still got faith. Wanna buy FotNS: Lost Paradise and/or Yakuza 5 soon. Gonna start working on final projects and next chapter soon. And uuuuuuh...

That's about it. See ya.