Bab 23: Chapter 23: The Official Formation of the Crusher Force!
"Wow, I must say, I'm impressed," Turles exclaimed, looking at the remaining recruits with a smirk on his face. The training room that was once filled with a large number of recruits was now left with only a pitiful few ready to fight. They eyed Turles cautiously, their senses heightened like alert prey animals, aware that the predator was near but uncertain of when it would strike. Turles couldn't help but find amusement in their cautiousness.
"Appule, Mepple, congratulations on making it into the Crusher Force," Turles said, his smile warm and genuine. The two recruits stared at him, their suspicion evident. Turles chuckled, finding their wariness amusing. "I assure you, it's not a joke," he reassured them. "The purpose of this week-long test was to determine who had the willpower to continue despite the hopeless odds, enduring pain, and near-death experiences almost every day of the week." Turles walked up to them, observing their tense bodies and taut muscles. Unlike other villains who thrived on fear, Turles had no interest in such tactics. "Now, let's go out and celebrate the official formation of the Crusher Force!" Turles announced, standing at the door of the training room, waiting for everyone else to join.
"I don't think Captain Turles is pulling our leg…" Mepple whispered.
"I... I..." Appule dropped to his knees, tears streaming down his face. "I finally made something of myself, Mom! I'm finally someone!" His tears of joy and sobs echoed through the training room.
Mepple stepped back, shocked by Appule's emotional outburst. Glancing at Captain Turles, Bonyu, and Sai, she feared being associated with a crybaby. But to her relief, she noticed they weren't angry or displeased with Appule's display of emotions.
"Get up. Stop making a fool of yourself." Bonyu passed by him, unimpressed. "Imagine what people would say if they saw a member of the Crusher Force bawling his eyes out." She told him.
"Gei gei!" Sai extended his hand to help Appule up, a gesture of support and solidarity. Turles grinned, understanding the message conveyed by Sai's action. It signified that Appule could count on Sai for support.
"We don't got all day, squad. Let's go celebrate!" Turles hurried them up. Turles led the Crusher Force through the building.
"I'm shocked we just walked past the cafeteria. He did say we're going to celebrate, right?" Naba asked the others to make sure she wasn't going crazy.
"Yep! Captain Turles said celebrate. Does he usually celebrate by eating?" Mepple asked curiously.
"Eating is one of a Saiyan's greatest joys in life, apparently," Naba responded.
"I suppose this celebration must be something a Saiyan would enjoy even more than eating." Bonyu chimed in, understanding Saiyan culture.
"Grrrah!" Sai flexed his muscles with a soft screech.
"Yes, you have pretty impressive muscles, Sai," Appule remarked, rather puzzled.
"I know you're having fun keeping us all in suspense like this, but do you mind telling us what this celebration is?" Naba just asked Turles directly.
"It's a surprise," Turles replied with a mischievous smirk.
The Crusher Force made their way to the space pods outside. Turles deliberately led them to six isolated space pods and stood in front of them, facing the team. Mepple and Appule were the only two to shout in joy at the sight of the custom-made space pods. Pride could be seen on Turles's face as each of the pods had their team's logo on the front of the ships. It was the spitting image of the fruit from the Tree of Might! These were their squad's personal spaceships, just like how the Ginyu Force had their own personalized space pods.
Naba's voice choked up as she spoke, "You even made one for me? But I'm just an engineer. I rarely use these things. Non-combatants like us don't usually travel to other planets. We stay on the ship to fix problems and maintain—"
Turles gently hushed her, interrupting her words. "I have a reason for giving you your own ship. For now, hop in and eagerly await the surprise. This celebration will be to die for." His eerie chuckle sent shivers down the spines of even Bonyu.
"Wai-" Turles didn't give Naba or anyone else the chance to question him further as he telekinetically shoved them into their pods.
Grunts of discomfort escaped from his teammates as they settled inside the attack balls. Turles ordered them to follow him as he took off, and within seconds, the rest of the team launched into the sky as well.
Mepple, excitedly speaking through her scouter, remarked, "You know, this is the first time I'm flying in my own spaceship."
Appule nodded in agreement, adding, "It's the same for me. Mid-ranking soldiers like us usually have to ride in large spaceships."
"Eeyk," Sai chimed in.
"Well, it's not as thrilling as you might imagine," Bonyu spoke up. "Unless you have a fondness for staring at the vast emptiness of space."
"I've even grown to despise traveling through space," Turles admitted.
"Depise!? How!? Space is so cool!" Mepple exclaimed, astonished.
"I'm a full-blooded Saiyan. It's not in my nature to sit still for so long without some promise of growth." Turles explained
Bonyu took note of Turles' words, recognizing that whatever surprise awaited them would likely aid in their growth if Turles was doing something he hated for it. Naba, however, couldn't understand their purpose for leaving the planet, asking, "Then why are we even flying off the planet in the first place?"
"It's a celebration. What kind of celebration would it be if the leader of the team wasn't there with his crew?" Turles replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"I'm getting excited about this surprise celebration party." Mepple expressed, unable to contain her enthusiasm.
"Skrree!" Sai agreed.
"That's the spirit, you two. Now sit back and enjoy the ride. We probably won't be back for a while." Turles informed them.
"I didn't pack anything! Why didn't you tell me we were leaving for so long!?" Naba shouted in frustration.
"What part of 'surprise' did you not understand, Sis?" Turles felt the need to repeat himself.
"Whatever." She grumbled. "This better be worth it, or I will shoot you."
Turles only laughed. They both knew that Naba couldn't hurt him even if she tried everything in her power to do so. Even back when he had a power level in the hundreds, the only thing that blaster of hers could do was annoy him. But it would be awkward if they changed the dynamic of their relationship just because he's stronger than her. Actually, he's always been stronger than her. It's just that he's been promoted, and she's still in the same place.
It was understandable. It's not like there were many opportunities for engineers to rise in position. Unlike soldiers who could rise through accomplishing achievements, engineers had to rely on a similar but far more difficult method of rising. Unless they developed some new useful tech for the Planet Trade Organization, they had to kiss up to higher-ranked engineers for any chance of a promotion. Turles didn't know how he'd feel if he had to suck up to someone like Zarbon or Dodoria or hell, even Cui or Vegeta, just to rank up. Unless they were willing to train with him, he'd feel stifled and annoyed. Turles probably would've just ditched the Frieza Force and gone to Earth to take advantage of the dragon balls before coming back to take it over for himself. Thank Zeno, the Planet Trade Organization ran on a meritocracy.
Even if Turles wasn't a Saiyan, it wasn't like he still couldn't conquer the universe. It just would take a bit longer, and he'd have to play it far safer. Namekian, android, human, a member of Frieza's race, it didn't matter with his knowledge. Knowledge was power no matter what world you were in. Something that Turles would take advantage of till he's overtaken even the Omni-King! After all, if you're going to live out a dream, why not go to the very top?
Over the course of a few days, the Crusher Force finally stopped traveling through space. Turles had them crash down on an uninhabited planet. When they got out of their space pods, Turles gathered their scouters and destroyed them, much to the surprise of the Crusher Force members.
"What was that for!?" Naba angrily asked.
"Sh…" Turles gently shushed her, turning his scouter off as he reached into his full body armor.
It had the traditional torso protection of other armors, but also offered crotch, upper leg, and shoulder protection. Turles had his custom colored gray and black, just like in his original movie debut but unlike in the movie, he wasn't just wearing battle trousers. He had pants on. It just didn't feel right fighting in his underwear.
Turles pulled out the seed from the Tree of Might and buried it deep underground. He grabbed Naba and rose into the air as everyone looked at him for answers. With a mischievous smirk on his face, he pointed toward the area where he had planted the seed. In only a matter of minutes, the Crusher Force saw a massive tendril of vines begin shooting up from the ground. The root-like branches rapidly pierced through the ever-expansive planet with neither mercy nor gentleness.
The landscape of the planet was characterized by towering mountain ranges that pierced the sky, with their peaks obscured by swirling clouds. Jagged cliffs and deep ravines cut through the land, revealing layers of vibrant rock formations in various hues, ranging from earthy browns and rusty reds to vivid oranges and purples. Some of these rock formations bore complex patterns as if nature itself had delicately carved them over thousands of years. The Tree of Might was destroying all of these for the sake of its growth!
"What the hell did you do, Turles!?" Naba broke free from Turles' grip, demanding answers.
"Oh yeah, I forgot you could fly," Turles admitted his mistake. "Sorry."
"Don't apologize for that! Just tell me what's going on!" Naba exclaimed.
"The surprise hasn't even happened yet, be patient," Turles reassured her.
"This isn't the surprise?!" Mepple exclaimed.
"This is… already so surprising on its own…" Appule marveled, gazing at the rapidly growing tree.
"Even I must admit, I'm curious as to what this surprise entails." Bonyu shared. "A planet-eating plant is amazing considering the size of that seed you had, but what exactly is it growing?"
"You really are a clever woman." Turles praised Bonyu with a smile.
"This is growing something!? I bet it's going to be huge!" Mepple's eyes shined.
"I suppose whatever it's growing is something you don't wish to be known by anyone else, correct?" Bonyu questioned.
"I didn't destroy your scouters for fun." Turles nodded.
"I'll protect this secret to the grave, Captain Turles!" Appule vowed.
"Me too!" Mepple added afterward.
"Just what the hell could be so important that you had to destroy our scouters for?" Naba grumbled.
"Something that'll be very helpful. Now, follow me. I think it's time I show you your surprise." Turles flew up to the Tree of Might.
The Crusher Force made it inside the Tree of Might. Turles couldn't help himself from cackling as he saw the shiny sexy fruits luring him toward them. With a small hop, Turles grabbed two fruits and devoured them. Sai soon followed after him and also only ate two. The rest of the Crusher Force watched in astonishment as the bodies of Sai and Turles underwent a physical change. Their bodies briefly expanded in size before reverting back to their original forms, but along with that short change, their power exploded. Bonyu grabbed Naba to prevent her from being blasted away by the wind produced by Sai simply powering up. Mepple and Appule had to dig in their boots and dig their hands into the ground just to prevent themselves from flying away. Turles had better control over his ki, so there was no gust of wind from him.
"Well, what are you waiting for? Go enjoy the fruits of your labor." Turles lost himself with laughter as he telekinetically gathered the fruits near him. "Ah, and only eat two every twelve hours, or you might die." He reminded them.
"Yes, sir!" Mepple and Appule shouted eagerly, diving for the fruits.
"It's sweet…" Bonyu took a cautious nibble of a fruit.
In an instant, Bonyu, Naba, Mepple, and Appule's power exponentially rose to over 15x their original power levels. Then by an unknown but still substantial amount when devouring a second fruit from the Tree of Might. Turles laughed to himself as he still had so many years till the start of Z. In a giant universe filled to the brim with planets, they were absolutely ripe for the taking. If he was a good guy, he'd probably be bothered with the extermination of several planets in the universe. Too bad he had no interest in being a sucker in this life.
"What year is it?" Turles suddenly asked.
"Age 753," Bonyu answered.
He had eight years until Raditz visited Earth and nine years until the start of the Namek Saga. If everything goes right, Frieza is likely to call him and the Ginyu Force to Namek after he starts losing. At that time, he should reply that he's heading to Namek but actually start heading to Planet Yardrat. Spirit Control was too useful to pass up. For now, he should focus on getting stronger than Frieza with these fruits. After he loses to Kakarot, he may not be willing to be so amiable to him because he's a Saiyan as well. An identical Saiyan to the one that'll nearly kill him!
Well, if everything turns out as it should.
PERTIMBANGAN PENCIPTA 
CaptainBoyHole
CaptainBoyHole Disclaimer: This is a work of fanfiction based on the Dragon Ball Z series, which is the property of Akira Toriyama and Toei Animation. I do not claim any ownership of the original characters, settings, or storylines. This work is not intended for commercial use and is solely for entertainment purposes. No copyright infringement is intended, and I am not affiliated with the creators or publishers of Dragon Ball Z in any way.
Shout-out to special Patreon members: Tuan Nguyen, Blacklionpride24
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