The incident with Garr sent ripples through the low-class barracks. The story of the warrior who "fell" while trying to bully the infant mutant was too bizarre to be believed, yet there were no witnesses to contradict it. A new, cautious distance formed around Astra's cot. He was no longer just Borg's burden; he was an enigma wrapped in a low power level.
This suited Astra perfectly. The wary silence was a better shield than any wall. It gave him the space to deepen his studies.
His focus turned from raw power to refined application. The Void Fist was more than a fighting style; it was a philosophy of combat, and he was its sole practitioner and grandmaster. Under the constant, self-imposed 10x gravity field, he practiced its principles until they were as natural as breathing.
He broke the style down into its core components, using [Stellar Forge] to analyze and perfect each one:
· Perception of the Void: His [Mind's Eye] was the foundation. He trained it not just to see openings, but to predict them, to see the chain of cause and effect in a fight before the first blow was even thrown. He would watch the warriors spar, his mind running simulations, identifying the precise millisecond and millimeter where an application of minimal force would yield maximum effect.
· The Unbalancing Touch: This was the physical expression. He practiced on inanimate objects, then on the air itself, learning to redirect force with microscopic precision. A tap to a warrior's elbow during a wild swing could send their own fist into their face. A nudge to the heel during a charge could send them tumbling. It was the art of using an opponent's strength as a weapon against them.
· Ki Disruption: This was the energy component. Using his [Appraisal] to see the flow of Ki in a Saiyan's body, he learned to project a needle-thin thread of his own energy to strike key nodes in their system. A precisely timed disruption to the Ki gathering in a palm could cause a nascent energy blast to fizzle. A strike to the leg channels could cause a momentary stumble. It was a silent, invisible sabotage.
· Environmental Integration: The final layer. He learned to use the battlefield itself. A pebble kicked into a precise trajectory could blind an opponent for a critical second. The reverberation of a footstep on a specific part of the metal floor could mask the sound of his own movement. He was learning to make the entire world his ally.
He was not learning to hit harder. He was learning to make his opponents fall apart.
The System, observing this dedicated specialization, provided its acknowledgment.
[Combat Philosophy: Void Fist has reached a milestone.]
[Depth of understanding has unlocked a Trait.]
[Trait Acquired: Unseen Hand]
[Effect: Slightly increases the precision and subtlety of all non-offensive energy manipulations, including Ki Disruption and fine telekinetic control. Reduces the energy cost of Void Fist techniques.]
The [Unseen Hand] was a perfect complement. It made his already subtle manipulations even more ghost-like, more efficient. He could now practice his Ki Disruption for hours without significant drain.
Borg, under continued—if reluctant—orders from the King, continued his tests. But they were changing. The simple power-level punches and durability trials were giving way to more complex scenarios. Borg would have him navigate obstacle courses while being pelted with low-grade energy blasts, or try to identify the single weak point in a mock-up of an alien fortress.
Astra realized this was no longer just about testing a mutation. King Vegeta was looking for something specific. A tool. A scalpel.
The reason became clear during one of Borg's infrequent, grumbling monologues after a testing session. "The King grows impatient," Borg muttered, more to himself than to Astra as he logged the data. "The Tuffle filth on Planet Plant grow more entrenched by the cycle. Their technology protects them. Brute force is costly. We need... other methods."
Planet Plant. The Tuffles. The pieces clicked into place in Astra's mind. This was the period of the Saiyan-Tuffle war. The war that would eventually lead to the Saiyans' genocide of the Tuffles and their renaming of the planet to Vegeta. But now, it was a stalemate. The Tuffles' advanced technology and energy shields were neutralizing the Saiyans' overwhelming power.
King Vegeta wasn't just interested in a durable infant. He was interested in a Saiyan who could think. A Saiyan who could find the "breaks in things," not just in machines, but in enemy defenses. A Saiyan who could win a war not with a roar, but with a whisper.
This was an opportunity far greater than Astra had imagined. It was a path to resources, to influence, and to the one thing he desperately needed: a legitimate reason to grow stronger and study advanced technology.
During the next test—a simulation where he had to deactivate a series of Tuffle energy shields by overloading their projectors—Astra deliberately held back. He used his [Appraisal] and [Stellar Forge] analysis to instantly identify the solution, but he made his performance look slow, methodical, and most importantly, visible. He didn't just fix it; he pretended to labor over the console, inputting false commands before "stumbling" upon the correct frequency modulation.
He was no longer just the Ghost. He was crafting a new persona: the Analyst. A Saiyan with a unique, non-combat talent for deconstructing systems.
Borg reported the results. The next day, a new, higher-grade data pad was delivered to Astra's cot. On it were schematics for Tuffle shield generators and drone designs, all classified. The attached order was simple, direct, and came from the royal seal itself.
[Analyze. Identify structural and energetic vulnerabilities. Report findings.]
Astra looked at the schematics, a cold smile touching his lips for the first time since his reincarnation. He was being handed the keys to the enemy's kingdom and asked to find the loose bricks.
He had become a weapon in the King's arsenal. It was a dangerous, precarious position. But from within the belly of the beast, he could learn its weaknesses. He could use the King's own war to fuel his growth, to gain access to technology that could one day be turned against Frieza, or even against the Saiyan Empire itself.
The Void Fist was not just for physical combat anymore. He was now applying its principles to a galactic war. He would find the voids in the Tuffle defenses, and in doing so, create a void for himself to operate within the Saiyan power structure. The whisper had reached the King's ear, and the King was listening.