Chapter 69 – Right Hand of the Emperor

~ Plains on Namek ~

Vegeta immediately exited his pod the moment it opened just wide enough for him to squeeze through. Without hesitation, he flew into the sky, not bothering to wait for the pod door to close behind him. Meanwhile, Nappa stepped in to handle the situation, skillfully controlling both pod doors to ensure they were properly shut.

High above, Vegeta unfurled his Ki sense, straining to detect any power signatures in the vicinity. His senses reached outward, scanning the area for any signs of life or energy.

"Are you picking up anything, Vegeta?" Nappa called out as he ascended to join Vegeta at his altitude.

Vegeta's eyes narrowed in concentration as he continued to search, his focus evident in the way he tensed.

"Nothing," he muttered with a frown. This was troubling, as it implied that they had landed too far from anything significant. Undeterred by the initial result, Vegeta strained to stretch his ki sense further and further, pushing his limits to expand his range in search of any detectable power signatures.

"What the hell? The scouters didn't pick up anything?" Nappa's incredulous voice drifted over from beside Vegeta. The Saiyan General's proximity made his mumbled barrage of unflattering comments about unreliable technology audible. "Top of the line my ass. If they can't identify anything, then there's something seriously wrong with them."

"…"

Vegeta wordlessly turned on his scouter, his stoic expression completely masking any hint of embarrassment at the oversight

He hadn't noticed exactly when it happened, but at some point, he had instinctively begun to rely more on his ki sense than on the scouter. Ki sense was simply more intuitive, more connected to the essence of his being. The scouter, on the other hand, was a tool—useful, but ultimately external aid.

Although he didn't regret this shift for even a moment, he had to concede that in terms of range, the scouters still held the absolute advantage.

Soon enough, the scouter hummed a catchy tune and booted up, rapidly processing data and scanning for any power levels within its considerable range.

Though no words were exchanged, Vegeta shot a reproachful glare at Nappa without missing a beat. Having known his subordinate for so long, he could easily guess what was going through that empty bald head. He dared Nappa to say something. In fact, he double-dared him!

Nappa, catching the intensity of Vegeta's murderous glare, raised both hands in mock surrender. 'Alright, alright,' his gesture seemed to say, acknowledging Vegeta's silent rebuke. Despite this, he couldn't suppress the massive grin that spread across his face at the familiar, telltale sound of a scouter turning on.

Moments later, any remaining mirth drained from the pair as their scouters flashed red. Bold crimson text scrolled relentlessly across their displays in a continuous, ominous line:

'SCOUTER OVERRIDE INITIATED. ALL FEATURES DISABLED.'

"Well, fuck!"

Nappa's words perfectly summarized their situation.

However, Vegeta was not one to concede defeat at the first sign of trouble. With narrowed eyes, he deftly inputted a series of codes and commands into his scouter. After a tense moment, he scowled in frustration—the warning message remained stubbornly unchanged.

"Tsk. They were one step ahead of us," Vegeta snapped, clicking his teeth in irritation. He leaned slightly toward Nappa to explain, "My administrator override code was declined, so this must be Zarbon's work."

Vegeta didn't see fit to elaborate further; the logic should be self-evident. Among those with authority exceeding his, Ginyu was God knows where, and Frieza—well, that lizard was too reliant on Zarbon to even remember his own master code.

Sometimes, Vegeta doubted Frieza could even wipe his ass without calling for Zarbon.

Vegeta crossed his arms, thinking furiously.

As expected of the Frieza Force's great general, Zarbon had once again proven his strategic brilliance with an airtight strategy. The first thing Zarbon had done was to take away their sight, rendering them effectively blind—a brilliant strategic strike considering how dependent the Frieza Force as a whole was on scouters.

By disabling their scouters, Zarbon had stripped them of their primary means of reconnaissance and communication, forcing them to search Namek blindly. And Namek was by no means a small planet.

In the back of his mind, Vegeta couldn't help but grudgingly admire Zarbon's foresight. This wasn't just about disabling their technology; it also doubled as a devastating psychological blow, a reminder of their vulnerability, meant to shake their confidence. Or at least it would have, had he been the Vegeta from before his attempted invasion of Earth.

His 'not-victory' on Earth had taught him a lot.

Casually, Vegeta crushed his scouter in his hands, reducing it to countless small metal pieces that fell like metallic dust to the ground. With Zarbon disabling the scouters, they now served only as real-time beacons for their location—liabilities, not assets.

He shot a look at Nappa, a silent command that the Saiyan General instantly understood. Without another word, Nappa followed suit, crushing his scouter with a powerful squeeze until it, too, was reduced to worthless debris.

With the scouters now disposed of, Vegeta launched himself into the air, soaring over the unfamiliar landscape of Namek. The Saiyan Prince didn't look back or wait for Nappa, knowing his subordinate would follow.

He had no particular destination in mind; he simply hoped to stumble upon something—anything—that could provide information, be it a lead on the Dragon Balls or Frieza himself. In his current circumstance, he knew that remaining stationary was the worst strategic decision he could make.

As he flew, the Saiyan Prince brought his hand to his chin in thought. The more he considered their situation, the more he suspected that their landing location wasn't a coincidence.

Frieza Force's attack pods were equipped with AI-controlled landing sequences meticulously programmed to maximize the probability of a secure and optimal touchdown. The internal AI of each pod was meant to be foolproof, eliminating operational errors and guaranteeing that warriors landed in strategically advantageous positions.

However, with Zarbon's tyrannical control over Frieza Force technology, how difficult could it have been for him to alter their landing coordinates? It would have been a simple matter for Zarbon to reprogram their pods to touch down in a more remote, isolated area, far from any strategic points or key targets.

Zarbon's strategy was clear: isolate them, deprive them of their technological advantages, and make their task as arduous as possible.

Vegeta suddenly jolted at a horrifying realization. If Zarbon could manipulate their trajectory, couldn't he have made their journey more… lethal? He swallowed hard, the muscles in his jaw tightening. Only now did he fully comprehend that Zarbon could have disposed of them in a million different ways during their journey here.

Images flashed through Vegeta's mind: the pods careening into a star, hurtling toward a black hole, or simply being programmed to self-destruct in the endless void of space. He clenched his fists tightly, his knuckles turning white, as he processed the realization of having his life at the mercy of another, a vulnerability he hadn't even realized he was subjected to.

But, considering how pragmatic Vegeta knew Zarbon to be, the hermaphrodite should have already silently disposed of them. In truth, not enough people realized that while Frieza's reign had been unshakable, it had not been solely due to Frieza's strength. Countless dissenters and challengers had been preemptively and silently snuffed out by Zarbon, without any chance to resist, before they even had the chance to garner Frieza's attention.

To think that he had nearly become one of those nameless failures–just another statistic that Frieza doesn't even bother to know.

However, Zarbon hadn't acted. And that fact spoke volumes.

It was clear to Vegeta that Frieza must have commanded Zarbon to keep them alive, at least for the time being. But why? The answer quickly came to him with sickening clarity. Frieza had always taken pleasure in his dominance over the Saiyan race, and keeping them alive must have been his way of showcasing his triumph, taunting them with their powerlessness before delivering the final blow.

Frieza wanted to rub his immortality in their faces as one final insult to the Saiyan race.

However, despite Zarbon's efforts, Vegeta tasted weakness.

The fact that Zarbon had to resort to sabotaging their equipment and manipulating their landing coordinates at all meant something in and of itself. If the tyrant had already achieved his coveted immortality, then their scouters would have been in perfect working condition to expedite their arrival. In fact, their attack pods might have even delivered them straight to Frieza.

For Vegeta, the logic was now crystal clear. Frieza had yet to achieve immortality, which explained why Zarbon foresaw the need for stalling tactics. And if that were the case, then Zarbon's next move was...

"Tsk," Vegeta clicked his teeth again in annoyance, his voice cutting through the rushing roar of the wind. "They're going to send someone to stall us. Given the circumstances, it's likely to be Cui."

As they flew side by side, Nappa shot Vegeta a look of pure confusion. He raised a finger and opened his mouth as if to ask a question, but the words seemed to be stuck in his throat. It was evident that he couldn't quite grasp how Vegeta had arrived at his conclusion, how his Prince had leaped from point A to point B with such certainty.

"Uhh… how did you know that? Did you sense someone?"

"No," Vegeta replied bluntly. "But that waste of space will show his face eventually."

Nappa released a noise of comprehension, though it was clear from his expression that he didn't actually comprehend shit.

Vegeta had no intentions of elaborating. Either Nappa would figure it out, or he wouldn't. Vegeta couldn't spare the time to explain, especially not when they were still dancing in Zarbon's palms.

The fact of the matter was, that Vegeta can conclude with some confidence that Zarbon was aware of their presence on Namek. With how focused Zarbon was on buying time for Frieza, the possibility of their attack pods landing undetected was slim, if not impossible, given Zarbon's meticulous oversight. This meant that every moment wasted dealing with Frieza's underlings was a moment lost in their pursuit of the Dragon Balls.

However, one crucial detail threatened to burn Zarbon's carefully laid plans to ashes: Vegeta could now control his energy.

With his Ki sense at his beck and call, the absence of a scouter was merely an inconvenience rather than a crippling handicap. While his range fell short of that of a scouter, it was sufficient to prevent them from wandering blindly across the planet.

This information asymmetry would be Vegeta's greatest weapon against Zarbon!

However, as Vegeta contemplated how to leverage his newfound ability, his attention shifted to Nappa. With a sidelong glance, he scrutinized his comrade, examining him closely.

"Ki Sense?" he asked simply.

"Working on it…"

Vegeta shook his head in response to Nappa's disappointing answer, though he supposed he couldn't fault Nappa too much. Mastering Ki sense was no small feat, especially for someone like Nappa who had never experienced it before. In contrast, Vegeta himself had unlocked the skill at the brink of death, in a situation where he had desperately needed it to survive. In hindsight, he supposed he had been somewhat spoiled by the circumstances of his own awakening.

Vegeta's senses suddenly sharpened. His eyes narrowed in concentration as he detected an energy signature approaching them steadily, directly ahead. He scowled. Just their luck...

With a silent gesture to Nappa, Vegeta signaled for caution, his senses on high alert as they continued their flight.

Before long, the source of the energy signature gradually grew closer until it was visible to the Saiyans. In unison, both Vegeta and Nappa halted, patiently awaiting the newcomer's approach.

To absolutely no one's surprise, it was Cui.

The purple-skinned alien came to a stop a short distance from Vegeta and Nappa, his gaze sweeping over them with arrogance. The scouter on Cui's face flashed and beeped before falling silent, having fulfilled its objective of guiding its user directly to his intended targets.

The world held its breath as the three locked eyes, tensions escalating.