Raditz departed for Saiyan Homeworld, leaving only the Old Kai and the Kaioshin and his attendant Kibito behind in the Sacred World of the Kais. All three were burdened with worry about the universe's future, hoping Raditz would return with good news.
"Ancestor, do you think this will go smoothly?" The Kaioshin's face remained drawn with concern.
"You worry too much." The Old Kai gazed into the distance with ancient eyes. "Raditz's current strength is more than sufficient to handle Majin Buu. And with so many powerful Saiyans at his disposal, they have strength to spare. I'd wager any one of them could defeat Majin Buu on their own." He paused meaningfully. "Besides, Lord Beerus has awakened. He won't stand idle if things become critical."
"Lord Beerus, the God of Destruction... I don't know him very well."
"That's because you're still young!" the Old Kai replied in a lecturing tone.
The Kaioshin lowered his head in shame. His tenure as Supreme Kai had been brief, his training incomplete. Apart from the obligatory formal meetings, he'd had almost no interaction with Beerus.
Though both held the highest divine rank in Universe Seven, the God of Destruction clearly surpassed the Supreme Kai in both character and status. After all, Beerus wielded absolute power. The Old Kai himself had been sealed within the Z Sword for angering Beerus, only recently released. In hindsight, linking the Supreme Kai's life force to the God of Destruction's seemed like a deliberate method of keeping Beerus in check.
"We wait for news," the Old Kai said calmly.
Raditz arrived on Saiyan Homeworld and swiftly gathered all seven Dragon Balls, assembling a group of Saiyans to prepare for battle.
Dark clouds gathered overhead as golden light pierced the heavens. Lightning crackled and thunder rolled across the sky, shaking the very ground. Then came the clear, resonant cry of the dragon—long and stirring—as Saiyaryuu materialized within the golden radiance.
"State your wish. You have but one."
"Saiyaryuu, tell me where Babidi is!" Raditz called out.
The dragon's colossal form shifted slightly, red light gleaming in its pupils. "Simple enough."
"I have transmitted the location directly to your mind. Farewell!"
Golden light converged toward the sky, forming a rotating disc. The Dragon Balls circled along its edge before shooting out in different directions.
Before Raditz could react, the other Saiyans leaped into action, each catching one of the flying Dragon Balls. They collected the now-stone orbs for future use.
"Instructor, who's Babidi? Why are we looking for him?"
"Did you call us all here for him?"
"It's rare to have everyone gathered—there must be something big happening!"
They buzzed with speculation, excited at the prospect of a mission. They'd missed out on the action during the Janemba incident and had been itching for a fight ever since. Especially after experiencing the realm of Super Saiyan God, they were eager for actual combat that would let them prove their strength.
Raditz looked at their expectant faces and smiled. "That's right. I'm taking you to deal with Babidi. Though honestly, this is barely more than a warm-up exercise—the opponent's not that strong. Just follow my lead when the time comes."
"Instructor, let's go!"
"Hold on." Raditz raised a hand. "We're still missing a few players. I want to show Babidi our absolute best lineup."
The Saiyans exchanged confused glances, but Raditz had already vanished. Moments later, he returned with another group: Son Goku, Vegeta, Tarble, Nappa, Pepara, Zucara,Tarnip, Piccolo, Super 17, the Kaioshin, and Kibito.
The gathering of such powerful warriors created an invisible pressure that was almost suffocating.
The Kaioshin and Kibito felt distinctly out of place among them. They swallowed hard, glancing around nervously, acutely aware they were probably the weakest ones present.
"Raditz, do we really need this many people to handle Majin Buu?" Vegeta surveyed the assembled warriors with a cold gaze and snorted.
"Numbers create spectacle. It'll make Babidi's despair that much deeper."
"Hmph. Suit yourself." Vegeta's expression hardened. "But Majin Buu is mine." He clenched his fists, eyes flashing with fierce determination. "I'll show them the true power of a Saiyan!"
Goku placed his hands on his hips and called out, "Hey, Vegeta! Didn't you say we'd play rock-paper-scissors for it? I want to fight Majin Buu too!"
The two immediately launched into their usual argument over who would face which opponent, bickering back and forth.
The Kaioshin looked at them and whispered to Raditz, "Is this... normal?"
Raditz shrugged. "You get used to it."
On a thriving planet deep in the Northern Galaxy, Babidi hovered in the air, accompanied by his most powerful subordinate—Dabura, King of the Demon Realm.
Below, a horde of evil warriors controlled by Babidi's magic rampaged through the streets, absorbing the people's energy and slaughtering them ruthlessly.
"Everyone, run! Get out of here!"
"We'll handle these bastards!"
While many civilians fled for their lives, some rose up to resist. They wielded advanced energy weapons against Babidi's forces, and several particularly powerful fighters managed to hold back the tide of the attack.
"Who are those people?" Babidi narrowed his eyes, a malicious smile spreading across his face.
"I've heard they're guards from the Galactic Justice League. Many planets are protected by people like them," Dabura replied.
"Is that so? I despise justice." Babidi glared viciously at the brave Alliance soldiers. "Get rid of them. Quickly."
Dabura released a sinister laugh and plunged downward. His figure vanished mid-air, reappearing in the next instant directly before the lead Alliance elite.
"You... you are—" The soldier never finished his sentence. His vision blurred, and suddenly he felt an iron grip close around his throat, strength draining from his body.
Crack! With minimal effort, Dabura snapped the man's neck.
The others reacted in horror, immediately surrounding Dabura. The Demon King smiled coldly as a circular shockwave rippled outward from beneath his feet, spreading rapidly and exploding with devastating force!
BOOM! The thunderous blast nearly obliterated the entire area. Soldiers, civilians, and even Babidi's controlled minions were all blown away as a massive crater formed with Dabura at its center.
"Hey, Dabura! What the hell did you just do?! Couldn't you control your strength? You killed all my soldiers!" Babidi shouted furiously.
The Demon King was powerful, but he had no restraint in his attacks.
"Don't worry, Mr. Babidi. I merely eliminated the pests who were in our way. There are still plenty of people on this planet. You can control more workers whenever you need them."
With Babidi's abilities, controlling a few people was child's play. He could recycle them after use—no waste at all.
This was their second raid since acquiring Majin Buu's sealed ball. Their first target had been a planet with minimal life energy, yielding less than half a unit of power. This time, they'd likely collect more than three full units, wouldn't they?
Babidi waved dismissively at Dabura.
For now, he still needed the Demon King to work for him. But once Majin Buu was resurrected... well, whether Dabura remained useful would be an entirely different matter.
At that moment, several figures suddenly descended from the sky, appearing out of thin air directly before them!
Author's Note:
Let me clarify the relationship between the two gods of Universe Seven.
The Kaioshin and Beerus are established to know each other, though they're not particularly close. Even though this Kaioshin is young, he's still several million years old. The gods hold regular meetings—how could they not know each other? Logically, even when a Supreme Kai position changes hands, the new Kai should make an appearance, right? And in the Dragon Ball Super manga, after Beerus appeared, both Kais recognized him together.
Finally, there's no need to get too hung up on the specifics of divine relationships and abilities. For example, in DBZ, after the Old Kai transferred his life to Goku, he gained a halo, but it didn't affect anything else. Where's the logic in that?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Writing takes time, coffee, and a lot of love.If you'd like to support my work, join me at [email protected]/GoldenGaruda
You'll get early access to over 50 chapters, selection on new series, and the satisfaction of knowing your support directly fuels more stories.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~