The wind on Planet Namek was colder than Brian expected.
Not freezing.
Not uncomfortable.
Just cold enough to crawl beneath his clothes and raise goosebumps across his skin.
The grass stretched endlessly across the plain, bending beneath the western wind. Mountains rose in the distance, their strange silhouettes fading into the pale blue haze.
Brian stood alone.
His boots were planted in the grass.
His hands hung loosely at his sides.
His fingers flexed once.
Then relaxed.
He stared toward the horizon.
He's coming.
He could feel it.
A distant presence.
Cold.
Controlled.
Cruel.
Approaching at impossible speed.
Brian closed his eyes.
Am I strong enough to kill Frieza?
The question had been haunting him since he'd made the decision.
He had trained for years.
Years of pain.
Years of isolation.
Years of deliberately pushing his Saiyan body beyond limits that should have been impossible.
His control over ki had become absurd.
He could reinforce individual muscles.
Suppress his presence.
Sense energy from enormous distances.
Shape ki into weapons.
Use his Saiyan instincts instead of fighting them.
And the Majin DNA he'd acquired had given his body another advantage.
Regeneration.
Not immortality.
Not invulnerability.
But the ability to recover from damage that would cripple an ordinary warrior.
Then there was Ikari.
Max Power.
The frightening way his Saiyan body adapted during battle.
All of it had made him powerful.
But none of it answered the question.
Could he kill Frieza?
Brian exhaled.
Training partners stopped.
Sparring partners held back.
Frieza didn't.
Brian opened his eyes.
"...Damn."
His stomach growled.
Brian stared downward.
"You've got to be kidding me."
Thirty seconds later, he returned from his spaceship chewing.
He swallowed.
"Okay."
He wiped his mouth.
"Now I'm ready."
He rolled his shoulders.
Crack.
His neck.
Crack.
His wrists.
Crack.
Then he began moving.
Jab.
Cross.
Slip.
Pivot.
Hook.
His movements were smooth.
Controlled.
Not training.
Calming.
His breathing settled.
His heartbeat slowed.
Then he stopped.
The presence was close.
Brian looked toward the horizon.
A tiny figure appeared.
It grew larger.
Closer.
Until finally—
Frieza descended.
His feet touched the grass without disturbing it.
Brian stared.
Small.
Elegant.
Relaxed.
Almost harmless.
That was what made him terrifying.
A scouter attached to Frieza's face began calculating Brian's power.
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
The numbers climbed.
Then—
CRACK!
The scouter exploded.
Frieza looked at it.
"...How troublesome."
Brian smiled faintly.
"Guess the calculator wasn't built for me."
Frieza looked at him.
Their eyes met.
The wind moved between them.
"I know who you are," Brian said.
Frieza smiled.
"And I know who you are."
Brian's expression hardened.
"Then you know why I'm here."
"To die?"
"To kill you."
Frieza laughed softly.
"Hohohoho..."
Brian raised his right hand.
Ki condensed around his palm.
It stretched into a thin blue-white blade.
SHING!
Frieza's eyes narrowed.
Brian didn't attack.
He waited.
Frieza didn't move either.
Five seconds.
Ten.
Brian's eyes traveled over him.
Feet.
Hands.
Shoulders.
Tail.
Breathing.
Nothing.
No stance.
No tension.
No obvious weakness.
He's completely relaxed.
Brian swung.
SHRAAAK!
A crescent-shaped blade tore across the field.
Frieza simply tilted his head.
The attack passed.
Far behind him, a mountain split apart.
BOOOOOOM!
Brian watched Frieza.
Not the mountain.
Not the slash.
Frieza.
He didn't even look.
Brian attacked again.
This time, Frieza stepped.
One step.
That's all.
The blade passed harmlessly beside him.
Brian stopped.
Interesting.
He wasn't measuring Frieza's speed.
He was measuring his efficiency.
Frieza wasn't dodging the attacks.
He was moving only enough to make them miss.
Brian's eyes sharpened.
So that's how he fights.
He lowered his hand.
The blade disappeared.
Then he rushed forward.
Not with a scream.
Not with a burst of rage.
Just one explosive step.
The grass behind him flattened.
Brian appeared directly in front of Frieza.
His fist traveled toward Frieza's jaw.
Frieza raised his forearm.
The punch landed.
CRACK!
The impact pushed Frieza backward.
But Brian didn't pursue.
He watched Frieza's feet.
One slid backward.
The other planted.
His balance remained perfect.
He absorbed it.
Frieza's eyes narrowed.
Brian smiled.
"Okay."
Frieza disappeared.
Brian's smile vanished.
His instincts screamed.
He turned.
A fist was already beside his face.
Brian tilted his head.
The punch missed by less than an inch.
Brian didn't counter.
Instead, he watched Frieza's shoulder as it passed.
Then his hip.
Then his rear foot.
Weight transfer.
Frieza turned.
Brian ducked beneath the next strike.
This time he noticed something.
A tiny change in Frieza's breathing.
Brian stepped outside the line of attack.
His palm touched Frieza's chest.
A pulse of ki exploded outward.
BOOM!
Frieza was thrown backward.
Brian didn't chase.
He stared.
Frieza stopped himself.
Neither spoke.
Brian's eyes narrowed.
He changes his rhythm before accelerating.
Frieza smiled.
"You observe quite carefully."
Brian shrugged.
"You're giving me a lot to look at."
Frieza vanished.
Brian moved.
The two crossed paths.
A shockwave ripped through the field.
Brian landed.
Frieza remained standing several meters away.
Brian looked down.
A thin cut had appeared across his shirt.
He hadn't felt the attack.
He touched the fabric.
His fingers came away with a little blood.
Brian stared at it.
He's faster than I thought.
Frieza smiled.
Brian's grin returned.
"Okay."
His aura intensified.
"Now I'm interested."
He rushed again.
This time, Brian didn't attack immediately.
He circled.
Frieza followed.
Brian changed direction.
Frieza mirrored him.
Brian accelerated.
Frieza accelerated.
The distance disappeared.
Brian suddenly stopped.
Frieza's fist was already coming.
Brian stepped inside it.
The punch passed behind him.
Brian grabbed Frieza's wrist.
Instead of striking, he twisted.
Frieza rotated with the motion.
His tail whipped toward Brian.
Brian released the wrist and ducked.
The tail passed over him.
Brian planted his hand against the ground and spun.
His foot caught Frieza across the ankle.
Frieza lost his balance for half a second.
Brian used that half-second.
His palm struck Frieza's chest.
Ki detonated.
BOOM!
Frieza flew.
Brian watched him travel.
Then Frieza stopped himself.
Brian smiled.
Got him.
But Frieza smiled too.
Brian's smile disappeared.
Frieza raised one hand.
The air changed.
A sphere of energy formed above his finger.
Brian's instincts screamed.
He moved.
A death beam tore across the battlefield.
Brian ducked.
The beam carved through a mountain.
Another came.
Brian jumped.
Another.
He twisted.
Then Brian noticed something.
The beams weren't random.
They were herding him.
Every shot forced him toward a particular section of the field.
Brian's eyes widened.
He's controlling my movement.
He stopped.
A beam came straight at him.
Brian raised his palm.
The energy struck.
His aura flared.
He caught the beam.
For one second, the energy burned against his hand.
Then Brian twisted his wrist.
The beam bent.
He redirected it into the sky.
BOOOOOOM!
Frieza's expression changed.
Brian grinned.
"You're not the only one who can manipulate ki."
Frieza disappeared.
Brian's smile vanished.
He felt pressure behind him.
He turned—
Too late.
BOOM!
Frieza's fist drove into his ribs.
Brian's body folded.
Frieza didn't follow with another punch.
He grabbed Brian by the throat.
Brian's feet left the ground.
Their eyes met.
Frieza smiled.
"Then let us see how well you manipulate it under pressure."
Brian's eyes narrowed.
His hand wrapped around Frieza's wrist.
His ki blade appeared.
Not along his arm.
Around his elbow.
SHING!
The blade flashed upward.
Frieza released him.
Brian dropped.
He twisted in the air.
His feet touched the ground.
He immediately drove his palm into the earth.
A wave of compressed ki ripped across the field.
Frieza jumped over it.
Brian expected that.
The moment Frieza landed—
the ground beneath him exploded.
BOOOOOOM!
Frieza disappeared into the smoke.
Brian stared.
Nothing.
Then—
A hand emerged.
Frieza tore through the smoke.
His expression had changed.
No amusement.
Only irritation.
Brian's grin faded.
He's getting serious.
Frieza vanished.
Brian's eyes tracked him.
There.
A disturbance.
Brian turned.
He predicted the strike.
But Frieza changed direction halfway through.
Brian's eyes widened.
The fist hit his stomach.
BOOM!
Brian flew.
He crashed through the grass.
He rolled.
Stopped.
Silence.
Brian coughed.
Blood hit the ground.
He pushed himself up.
His ribs were broken.
He could feel it.
Then the Majin DNA reacted.
Warmth spread through his torso.
Bone shifted.
Tissue repaired.
Brian inhaled.
The pain receded.
He looked toward Frieza.
Frieza stared.
"Regeneration."
Brian wiped his mouth.
"Something like that."
Frieza smiled.
"How irritating."
Brian stood.
His body still hurt.
The regeneration had fixed the damage.
But it hadn't erased the fatigue.
That mattered.
Brian understood something.
I can't let him keep landing clean hits.
He closed his eyes.
His aura changed.
The blue-white energy became denser.
His muscles tightened.
His breathing deepened.
Something primal awakened beneath his skin.
Ikari.
Brian opened his eyes.
They were sharper now.
More focused.
His power surged.
The ground cracked beneath him.
Frieza smiled.
"Interesting."
Brian vanished.
The next collision shook the entire plain.
BOOOOOOM!
Brian appeared behind Frieza.
Frieza turned.
Brian's fist was already there.
Frieza moved his head.
The punch grazed him.
Brian didn't pursue the miss.
Instead, he used the momentum to spin.
His ki blade extended from his forearm.
SHING!
Frieza jumped.
The blade passed beneath him.
Brian immediately shortened it.
The weapon disappeared.
His hand shot upward.
A compressed blast struck Frieza's foot.
BOOM!
Frieza lost altitude.
Brian caught him with a shoulder.
The impact drove them both through the air.
They separated.
Frieza landed.
Brian landed.
The two stared.
Brian was breathing harder.
Frieza looked annoyed.
Brian smiled.
"I'm getting faster."
Frieza's eyes narrowed.
"No."
Brian's smile faded.
Frieza took a step.
"You are merely becoming more accustomed to my movements."
Brian's stomach tightened.
Frieza disappeared.
Brian moved.
The attack missed.
Barely.
Brian countered.
Frieza avoided it.
Brian adjusted.
Frieza adjusted.
Their fight became a conversation.
No wasted blows.
No endless combinations.
One discovered something.
The other answered.
Brian began anticipating Frieza's attacks.
Frieza began intentionally changing them.
Brian adapted again.
Frieza stopped giving him patterns.
And that was when Brian realized something terrifying.
Frieza had been studying him too.
The next time Brian predicted a kick—
there was no kick.
The movement was a feint.
Brian's weight shifted incorrectly.
Frieza appeared beside him.
A palm struck his chest.
BOOM!
Brian flew backward.
Frieza didn't chase.
He simply watched.
Brian landed.
His boots carved two lines through the ground.
He looked up.
Frieza smiled.
"Interesting, isn't it?"
Brian wiped blood from his mouth.
"What?"
"Being the one whose movements are being studied."
Brian stared at him.
Then laughed.
A short, breathless laugh.
"Yeah."
His aura surged.
"But now I know you're doing it."
Frieza's smile disappeared.
Brian rushed forward.
This time, he deliberately created false movements.
A shoulder twitch.
A slight shift of his foot.
A fake change in breathing.
Frieza reacted.
Brian changed direction.
His fist connected with Frieza's ribs.
THOOM!
Frieza stumbled.
Brian followed with a ki blade.
Frieza leaned backward.
The blade sliced across his chest.
A thin line of blood appeared.
Brian stopped.
Frieza touched it.
His eyes hardened.
The atmosphere changed.
Brian felt it.
A massive pressure began building.
The playful battle was over.
Frieza's power erupted.
WHOOOOOOOOOM!
Brian crossed his arms.
The shockwave tore across the plain.
Grass flattened for hundreds of meters.
Dust swallowed the battlefield.
Brian dug his boots into the ground.
His muscles screamed.
This isn't his full power.
The thought chilled him.
Frieza's body began changing.
The transformation was violent.
Muscle.
Bone.
Energy.
Everything shifted.
Brian watched.
Second form.
The pressure alone made his knees tighten.
Frieza looked down at him.
"Now..."
His voice was colder.
"...let us see how much you can adapt."
Frieza vanished.
Brian barely saw him.
BOOM!
A fist struck his stomach.
His body folded.
He flew.
Before he could recover, Frieza appeared above him.
Brian raised his arms.
A kick drove him toward the ground.
BOOM!
Brian hit.
He rolled.
A beam tore through the earth beside his head.
Brian jumped.
Another followed.
He twisted.
The beam passed beneath him.
Brian landed.
His breathing was ragged.
Frieza descended.
Brian watched his feet.
Nothing.
No telegraph.
No warning.
Frieza attacked.
Brian reacted.
Too late.
CRACK!
His jaw snapped sideways.
He stumbled.
Frieza grabbed his arm.
Brian twisted.
Frieza used the movement against him.
Brian was thrown.
He flew toward the mountains.
He stopped himself with ki.
Frieza was already there.
A fist struck his chest.
Brian crashed through the mountain.
Stone swallowed him.
For a moment—
nothing.
Then Brian pushed himself out.
Blood covered his face.
His Majin DNA began repairing the damage.
He looked at Frieza.
His breathing was heavy.
His body was exhausted.
But his eyes were changing.
The longer he fought—
the more his Saiyan instincts took over.
Not rage.
Understanding.
His body remembered every movement Frieza had made.
Every acceleration.
Every angle.
Every change in rhythm.
Brian's pupils narrowed.
I know that movement.
Frieza attacked.
Brian slipped.
Not because he reacted.
Because he had already seen it.
Brian countered.
Frieza avoided it.
Brian adjusted.
Again.
Frieza's expression tightened.
Brian smiled.
"You're not the only one who learns."
Frieza's aura exploded.
Then his body compressed.
Smaller.
Sleeker.
More refined.
Brian's smile disappeared.
Final form.
The moment Frieza opened his eyes—
Brian knew.
This is different.
Frieza vanished.
Brian's body moved.
A fist passed through empty air.
Brian turned.
Frieza was behind him.
Brian pivoted.
A tail struck his side.
He flew.
Frieza followed.
Brian forced himself upright.
A death beam came.
He twisted.
It grazed his shoulder.
Blood sprayed.
His Majin cells immediately began repairing it.
Brian didn't stop.
He accelerated.
Ikari surged.
Max Power followed.
His muscles tightened until every movement felt like a loaded spring.
His aura became almost invisible.
All of his energy was being forced inward.
Frieza appeared in front of him.
Brian attacked.
Not wildly.
One decisive strike.
Frieza moved.
Brian's fist missed.
But Brian had expected that.
His wrist rotated.
The ki blade appeared.
SHING!
The blade extended.
Frieza leaned away.
Brian changed the angle.
The blade curved.
Frieza's eyes widened.
He barely escaped.
Brian's grin returned.
"Gotcha."
He released the blade.
His palm struck Frieza's chest.
A compressed burst of ki detonated at point-blank range.
BOOOOOOM!
Frieza was launched backward.
Brian followed.
He appeared above him.
Both hands came down.
Frieza crossed his arms.
The impact drove him toward the ground.
Brian landed.
The battlefield shook.
Dust rose.
Brian stood over the crater.
His chest heaved.
For one second—
he thought he'd done it.
Then Frieza walked out of the crater.
Blood trickled from his mouth.
His expression was cold.
Brian's stomach dropped.
Frieza looked at the blood.
Then at Brian.
"You have improved."
Brian said nothing.
"Considerably."
Frieza raised his hand.
"But you still misunderstand."
A sphere of energy formed above his finger.
"Adaptation..."
His eyes narrowed.
"...does not equal superiority."
Brian's aura flared.
Frieza disappeared.
Brian moved.
The beam missed.
Frieza appeared behind him.
Brian turned.
Too slow.
BOOM!
The fist struck his stomach.
Brian's body folded.
Frieza grabbed him.
And this time—
Brian couldn't escape.
Frieza drove him into the ground.
BOOM!
The crater expanded.
Brian bounced.
Frieza kicked him across the battlefield.
Brian flew.
He twisted.
Recovered.
Frieza was already waiting.
Another impact.
Brian's body slammed into the ground.
Silence.
Brian couldn't hear anything.
His vision blurred.
His arms refused to move.
Get up.
Nothing.
Get up.
His fingers twitched.
The Majin DNA repaired his broken bones.
His lungs filled.
His muscles responded.
Brian pushed himself upward.
One knee.
Then one foot.
He stood.
Barely.
Frieza watched him.
"Still?"
Brian spat blood onto the grass.
His entire body shook.
His aura was nearly gone.
His confidence was gone.
His jokes were gone.
His certainty was gone.
But something else remained.
Instinct.
Brian raised his fists.
Not because he believed he could win.
Because he understood something now.
Frieza wasn't an opponent he could simply overpower.
He wasn't a puzzle that could be solved in one exchange.
He was a wall.
A living wall of experience, speed, power, and cruelty.
And Brian was going to have to evolve faster than that wall could kill him.
Frieza took one step forward.
Brian's eyes narrowed.
His Saiyan instincts stirred.
His Majin cells continued repairing him.
Ikari still burned beneath his skin.
Max Power remained waiting.
His ki blade flickered faintly around his hand.
Brian inhaled.
Then smiled.
Not confidently.
Almost desperately.
"Okay..."
He raised his fists.
"...let's learn some more."
Frieza disappeared.
Brian moved.
And the real fight began.