Smith's consciousness settled into the system space with practiced ease. The void surrounded him, neither dark nor bright, existing outside normal physics. The Dragon Ball Z Dokkan Battle interface materialized before him—three glowing options arranged in familiar configuration.
Character. Item. Partner.
He selected Character first, and the interface shifted. The familiar planet appeared overhead, rotating slowly. But instead of a solid sphere, it had become a meteor shower—countless balls of light orbiting in complex patterns, each one containing a potential template.
Smith studied the available options with growing excitement.
The weaker characters from previous cycles had vanished entirely. Krillin, Yamcha, Yajirobe—none appeared in the current rotation. His increased power level had filtered them out, leaving only templates that could meaningfully enhance his capabilities.
What remained made his pulse quicken.
Raditz occupied prominent position near the meteor shower's edge—power level 1,500, the weakest available option but still the Saiyan who'd begun the Z era. Young Gohan appeared next, the version from the Saiyan invasion arc with power level 2,800 when enraged.
Then the serious contenders began.
Nappa—power level 4,000, capable of casual city destruction. Goku with Kaio-ken mastery—base power 8,000, multiplier taking him to 16,000 or higher. Vegeta—power level 18,000, elite Saiyan warrior and prince of a destroyed race.
Frieza's forces showed in force as well. Cui at 18,000. Dodoria at 22,000. Zarbon with transformation capabilities pushing higher still.
And deeper in the meteor shower, barely visible but definitely present—the Ginyu Force. Captain Ginyu. Jeice. Burter. Recoome. Guldo.
At the very edge of perception, Smith detected Nail—the Namekian warrior with power level 42,000.
His mind raced through calculations. These templates represented the Saiyan Saga and early Namek arc. Next cycle would push deeper into Namek territory—Frieza's transformations, Vegeta's massive power increases, Super Saiyan Goku.
The progression was intoxicating.
But for this draw, he needed to think strategically about what would serve him best.
Raditz at 1,500? Useless. Smith's current base power of 2,000 already exceeded that. Young Gohan offered interesting potential but lacked consistent access to his rage power.
Nappa at 4,000 would be solid. Vegeta at 18,000 would be spectacular.
But Smith's attention kept returning to one specific template, and not because of raw power.
Guldo.
The weakest member of the Ginyu Force by conventional measurement—power level barely exceeding 10,000. In a straight fight, dozens of available templates outclassed him completely.
But Guldo possessed something that transcended raw strength: time manipulation.
Specifically, the ability to stop time for as long as he could hold his breath.
Smith's knowledge provided context that the system interface couldn't. In Dragon Ball Super, Hit had become Universe 7's greatest assassin through time manipulation—the ability to "skip" forward fractions of a second, creating unpredictable combat advantages.
Guldo's power was better. Complete time stop rather than time skip. In the hands of someone who could actually fight—someone who could hold their breath for minutes rather than seconds—it would be absolutely devastating.
At higher power levels, combat happened in fractions of seconds. Decisions made in microseconds. Having even one full second of stopped time while your opponent remained frozen? That was the difference between victory and death against equal or superior opponents.
Hit had built an entire assassination career on inferior time manipulation. What could Smith accomplish with the genuine article?
His second choice would be Goku with Kaio-ken. The power multiplier technique alone represented massive capability expansion—potentially doubling or tripling effective combat strength in exchange for physical strain. And the Spirit Bomb provided strategic options against opponents too powerful for direct confrontation.
Third choice: Nail. The fusion question intrigued him. He'd already integrated Piccolo's template. If he added Nail—another Namekian warrior—would they fuse automatically? Would his power level jump to 1,000,000+ like when Piccolo and Nail merged in the original timeline?
Probably not that dramatic. More likely a straight power addition—42,000 added to his current capabilities. Still substantial, but not the exponential growth fusion typically provided.
Beyond those three, his preference ranked by pure power level. Vegeta. Zarbon. Dodoria. Cui. The Ginyu Force members.
Captain Ginyu's body-change ability seemed flashy but ultimately impractical. Why steal someone else's body when you could just... train harder and surpass them honestly?
Smith observed the meteor shower for another moment, letting possibilities cascade through his mind. Then he made his decision.
He gathered ki into both palms, forming a Kamehameha at maximum output. The energy compressed, refined, grew brilliant with accumulated power. His mental focus locked onto Guldo's position deep within the meteor shower.
Time stop. Give me time stop.
"Kamehameha!"
The blast erupted from his avatar chibi hands and streaked upward through the void. It struck the meteor shower dead-center, and one specific ball of light shattered under the impact.
A card materialized before him, rotating slowly to display its contents.
The image showed Goku—not Guldo—dressed in his orange gi with red Kaio-ken aura crackling around his body. The card's text listed capabilities in clean typography:
Character: Goku (Saiyan Saga - Kaio-ken)
Skills: Kamehameha, Turtle School martial arts, Kaio-ken, Spirit Bomb
Base Power Level: 9,000
Saiyan Bloodline (duplicate, will not stack)
Upon integration, all skills and power level will be added to current template
Smith stared at the card, disappointment warring with satisfaction.
Not Guldo. He'd genuinely hoped for time stop, and the opportunity might never come again. As his power increased, the Ginyu Force templates would rotate out of availability—just like Yamcha and Krillin had vanished this cycle.
One more chance. One more draw next year. If he didn't get Guldo then...
But Goku with Kaio-ken wasn't a bad draw. It was actually excellent.
Nine thousand power level added to his current 2,000 would push him to 11,000 base. The Kaio-ken multiplier—he didn't know what his maximum would be yet, but even doubling would mean 22,000 effective power. Triple would be 33,000. If he could push to Kaio-ken times four like Goku had against Vegeta...
Forty-four thousand. Planet-destroying capability.
And the Spirit Bomb provided options against opponents who exceeded even that. Borrowed energy from living things, concentrated into a massive sphere of pure life force. Theoretically capable of destroying beings far beyond the user's normal limits.
The Saiyan bloodline notation showed "duplicate, will not stack"—he'd already gained that from young Goku's template two cycles ago. His tail and transformation capability existed already.
Which meant no Great Ape transformation yet. He'd hoped for Vegeta's royal Saiyan blood—the genetic marker that allowed conscious control during Oozaru form. Without it, transforming into a Great Ape remained too risky. If he lost control at 20,000 power level...
Earth would suffer. Badly.
GT-era Goku had been Super Saiyan 3 and still lost rational thought when forced into Great Ape form. Smith's current power was nothing compared to that, but it was enough to level cities if unleashed without restraint.
Better to wait. Get Vegeta's template eventually. Then experiment with the transformation safely.
Smith made a mental note: do not integrate Goku template until after landing. His current power was 2,000. Adding 9,000 would spike him to 11,000 instantly. If he lost control of his ki suppression for even a moment, the aircraft would disintegrate. Everyone aboard would die—Pepper, Happy, Ivan, the Fraternity members, Xu Wenwu's reunited family.
The integration could wait until they reached headquarters. Solid ground. Isolated location. Proper safety protocols.
Decision made, Smith shifted his attention to the second summon option.
He selected Item, and the interface changed again. Another meteor shower appeared, this one containing physical objects rather than character templates.
The variety exceeded his expectations significantly.
Combat equipment appeared in abundance: Frieza Force armor (Type 1), Frieza Force armor (Type 2), both designed to enhance durability and provide life support in hostile environments. Power level measurement devices—2nd generation scouters, 3rd generation scouters, each offering improved maximum readings and additional functionality.
Vehicles filled multiple slots: Saiyan Attack Ball (single-person spherical spacecraft), Namekian ship (larger transport vessel), Frieza's massive mothership (entire fleet command center).
Medical technology: healing pods, but potentially with improved specifications.
Capsule Corporation products: Space Capsules (the portable storage containers Bulma invented), additional healing pods, even more Senzu Beans and the seedlings to grow them.
Then the exotic items began.
Tree of Might fruit—the planet-draining plant from the movie timeline, capable of granting massive power increases at the cost of destroying entire worlds. Spirit Tree seedlings that could grow the same deadly plant.
Power Pole—Goku's extending staff from childhood.
Nimbus Cloud—the flying cloud that only allowed pure-hearted riders.
Z Sword—The legendary weapon from the Sacred World of the Kai (the realm of the Supreme Kais) in the afterlife.
Potara Earrings—the Kai fusion items that created permanent, exponentially powerful merged beings.
Time Machine—Trunks' device for traveling to alternate timelines.
Android 8 and Android 16—the peaceful androids from Dr. Gero's early experiments.
Smith's eyes widened as he processed the implications. Some of these items were gamechanging. The Potara Earrings alone could create a fusion with someone like Thor or Tony that would exceed anything currently possible. The Time Machine offered strategic options beyond comprehension.
Even the Tree of Might, despite its world-destroying nature, represented potential if used carefully. Plant it on an uninhabited planet, harvest the fruit, gain massive power increases without ethical complications.
His mind spun through possibilities as the meteor shower rotated overhead, each ball of light representing potential that could reshape his future completely.