A middle-aged man worked the fields under the midday sun, his movements slow and measured. The soil was dry and cracked, clinging stubbornly to the roots of a failing crop.
Close behind him, a small boy dragged a bundle of tied stalks across the dirt. A load like that usually required a cart, but the boy hauled it with ease.
"Set them there," the man said, pointing.
"Yes, Father!"
The boy grunted as he heaved the bundle over, his boots slipping in the loose earth. His tail flicked with sharp focus.
Budō paused to watch him. The boy grows too fast. He turned back to the field, his expression darkening. "This is the worst yield we've ever had. And winter is coming."
The thought was a constant weight. If the harvest failed, his family wouldn't survive the cold. Budō exhaled slowly, shifting his weight off his bad leg. If it came to it, he could still enlist. He was a former high-grade Martial Apprentice; injuries be damned, winter wars always needed meat for the front lines.
At least if I don't return, they'd be compensated.
"Father!"
Budō turned. The boy stood by the pile with a wide grin, dirt caked on his sleeves and rope burns reddening his palms.
"I finished tying them."
Budō laughed softly and placed a firm hand on the boy's head. "That's enough for today. Go home and check on your mother."
The boy's smile faltered. "But I can still help. I'm not tired at all."
"I know," Budō said, crouching until they were eye to eye. "Your strength isn't the problem. Your mother needs you more than these fields do."
The boy hesitated, then nodded. "Understood, Father."
He headed toward the cottage, glancing back once to see his father limping toward the next row. There was too much left to do and too little time to do it.
————
"
"Mother! I'm home! I helped Father with the crops!"
Silence.
A knot tightened in my chest as I stepped inside. I found her collapsed on the kitchen floor.
"Mother!"
I rushed to her side. She was breathing, just unconscious. I lifted her onto the bed—she felt light, almost fragile—and her eyes fluttered open a moment later. Her face was pale and drawn.
"Where… am I? Silly me… did I fall asleep again?" she murmured.
"You fainted," I said gently. "Father told you to rest. You don't need to cook anymore. Ringo's been practicing. It's… well, it's edible now."
She smiled faintly. "But—"
"No buts, Mother. Don't make us worry. Rest."
"You're right." She chuckled weakly. "It's funny. When your siblings brought you home, you were the one under my care. Now it's the opposite. We were lucky to find you, Merun."
——————
Merun. That's the name the Furutsu family gave me.
It's been nearly five years since they found me half-dead. I got lucky—taken in by a family that treated me like their own despite the tail. These past five years, I've come to love this household.
My mother, Nashi, used to be the picture of health—thin but tireless. She refused to let us shoulder the household burdens, determined to shield us from the harshness she'd faced as a child. But ever since Father returned with those war injuries, she's been fading. No one knows why. The potions Father buys from the village help, but they're a scam. Each one costs three days' worth of food, and our winter stocks are already bleeding out.
————————
That afternoon, Father returned.
"Welcome home," Mother said weakly.
"Just rest," he replied, kissing her forehead. "No need to greet me, dear." He glanced around. "Have the others returned yet?"
"Not yet, Father. It's only your favorite son here," I said.
He sighed. "If not for my leg, I'd be out hunting with them. The beasts go deeper into the forest this time of year. My limp would just slow the party down."
"We know," I said. "But Mother needs you. You handle the trading and the village politics anyway. Leave the hunting to my sisters. Besides, I still need my father's embrace."
He chuckled and ruffled my hair. "You talk too much, boy."
The language comes naturally now, even if I can't read or write. Peasants like us don't get an education.
"Are you going to see the village chief for the potions again?" I asked as he prepared to head back out.
"I am. I'll sell the harvest and the beast materials your sisters collected. Maybe find some odd jobs."
"Can I come?"
"Maybe next time," he said with a tired smile. "It's just boring stuff."
I watched him walk toward the village center. Budō was a broad-shouldered man, a powerful warrior before the war. Mother said he had potential until he crossed a noble. He'd refused a suicidal order to protect a noble's squad, and for that "insolence," he was kicked out of the clan and left with a permanent disability.
His life as a Martial Artist ended there. He built this cottage and cleared these fields from nothing. He reminds me of my father back on Earth—always struggling to keep the family happy with whatever he has left. He has my respect.
Our village is Owari, a farming settlement on the edge of the Sekigahara Confederate, under the "protection" of the Kinzoku Clan. Protection is a generous word. Their low-level martial artists harass us openly while the local lord stays shut up in his estate.
My father tells me the local lord was once kind and fair, often going out and mingling with the village folk, but after the previous war, he's been recovering in his estate.
...doesn't bode well if you ask me.
We're lucky our home sits at the forest's edge, sparing us from all that shit.
That was also the first time I realized where I was.
S-Sekigahara? As in Sekigahara Confederate?
in Panama?
...On planet Gaia? haha
I was... in Martial Unity?
That novel my brother recommended and wouldn't stop spoiling me at every chance he got, that Martial Unity?
If so, then. Fucking awesome, I know the future!
...Well, some of the future.
I only read enough to the point where they defeated the chimera final boss... it felt like the turning point of the story... happy ending yada yada.
I can already tell what was gonna happen. Rui becomes emperor of mankind.
After all, with the amount of power he had during that time, no martial sage would ever disobey his vision of the future.
I mean he literally, saw the future.
...In hindsight, I probably should have read more.
Maybe not fucking awesome.
Anyway. this meant that if we're following the story, I'm on a doom timer.
As soon as the Kandrian Empire becomes a threat to the other powerhouses, my family will be in grave danger. Not only after the Massacre of the masters event during the great war, but also the fucking beast horde after the roar.
I couldn't stand the thought of any of my family members being harmed.
Some of the deaths were at the hands of those mindless beasts were depicted gruesomely.
That's why, at the age of five, I started training on my own.
Beginning my journey to find my martial path.
... Saiyans can have martial paths right?
———
While I was brainstorming, I felt a sudden chill—starting from my tail, running all the way up to my chest.
I rolled forward instinctively.
"Caught yo—OW! How'd you do that?" my sister shouted, sprawled on the ground.
"hehehe. Skill issue, dear sister!"
"That's unfair! Your instincts are better than a beast's!"
Technically, I am a beast. Or an alien. Or whatever.
This was Mikan—fourteen, orange ponytail, the scout of the family hunting party. She was in the exploration stage, training the observation and evasion techniques Father had taught her. Always active, bubbly, and at times very annoying.
"Clean yourself up," another voice said.
Our eldest sister stepped into the yard. "We're home. It was a successful hunt."
"Welcome back, eldest sister!" I saluted.
She laughed and ruffled my hair. "I told you, just call me Ichigo."
"It would be my honor, eldest commander Ichigo!" I joked.
She laughed, then asked, "How's Mother?"
"She… fainted again. But she's alright! She's resting now."
Ichigo's expression tightened. "Alright, silly boy. We'll go tend to her." She spoke softly, walking toward the cottage.
I noticed the blood on her arms… and the gash on her back.
"You're injured!"
"This? Don't worry about it. Stronger beasts appear every winter, didn't I tell you? We just got caught off guard. Won't happen again."
She stood tall and dependable, long red hair tied in a bun. Since Father's injury, she led the hunts. Carrying his katana, she learned a few sword forms—and then one day, she became a Martial Apprentice. A genius who inferred new techniques from the basics.
Next spring, she'd be old enough to be considered an adult.
As we spoke, a huge shadow loomed behind her.
"WE'RE UNDER ATTACK!" I shouted, dropping into a fighting stance—well… I didn't know any styles, but it was a stance.
I froze.
Then my sisters started laughing.
Huh?
It was being dragged.
"Elder sister Ringo! What is that?!"
An enormous boar corpse slid across the ground behind her.
"Erymanthian boar," she said calmly. "Semi-squire level beast. Tough battle."
Ringo was twelve—short, petite, maroon hair wild and spiky. Frail-looking, but terrifyingly skilled in the defensive techniques Father had taught her. Her hands were wrapped thick with straw and hemp… bruises covered her body. She was on the cusp of becoming a Martial Apprentice. In the party, she was the tank. If she had more to eat, she'd have the mass to fully support that style.
Of the three, Mikan lagged behind in realm… but she seemed content as a scout. Father only knew a few techniques that suited her.
Looking closer at the boar—it looked insane. Two massive tusks, dozens of short fangs jutting from its snout, thick muscles carved with cuts… and the size. Even on its side, it was as big as a grown man.
How the hell did they hunt this thing?
I pointed at the beast. "May I help?"
"Suit yourself," she grunted.
I grabbed the rope and pulled. "HUUUP!"
She blinked as I dragged it with ease.
These past few months, I'd been training as much as my small body allowed—running, calisthenics, foundation work. Everything I remembered from my past life. I felt closer to seven or eight years old now.
I remembered Gohan fighting Cell at around ten or eleven. I doubt I'd reach that level by then.
No nutrition.No Master Piccolo.No genius talent.No formal training.
Even so, one thing was clear.
I was getting stronger.
Not in technique—but in raw strength, speed, and durability. My Saiyan body handled that on its own.
I was probably supposed to feel Ki too, but I had no idea how to tap into it. So for now, I focused on my body.
More than that… I really wanted to go back to my pod and check my power level.