It wasn't over.
Vegeta grabbed Recoome by the leg and hurled him like a shot put. Recoome's body flew more than a hundred meters before finally slamming into a rock and stopping.
Vegeta roared and raised both hands. Massive ki gathered into his palms. In an instant, he fired a dazzling white beam. The shockwave's violent surge whipped up countless rocks and clouds of dust. Wherever it passed, the ground itself was torn up and lifted—until it finally detonated right where Recoome was.
Boom!!!
In that thunderous explosion, rolling waves of ki surged outward. Black smoke blotted out the sky, and the earth shook violently. Not only Gohan, even Burter had to duck behind a boulder to avoid being caught in the blast.
Vegeta's continuous assault had practically drained him dry.
When the smoke finally cleared, Gohan lay face-down on the ground and muttered in awe, "So strong… He decided the outcome in one move. Vegeta really is still that powerful."
Recoome's side stayed silent for a long time. Even his aura seemed completely gone. Burter and Jeice started to panic.
No one knew how much time passed, until the ground finally settled.
Then Recoome's ki slowly reappeared.
He stepped out of the dust and smoke. His battle armor had been blown to pieces, leaving only a black bodysuit. His body was covered in wounds and blood—yet he still grinned and said cheerfully:
"Hi. I've finished my warm-up. Now we can start."
Seeing him like that, Gohan's fear deepened. He'd been beaten into that state, yet he still looked like he didn't care at all. How could someone be that strong?
Vegeta didn't look too surprised—almost as if he'd known Recoome wouldn't die so easily. But his brows were tightly furrowed, and his body had gone tense.
Recoome suddenly leapt up and rushed at Vegeta. Just as Vegeta tried to brace for defense, Recoome accelerated sharply in midair. Vegeta didn't even have time to react—
Recoome's knee smashed straight into his chest.
But Recoome was too confident. He didn't follow up.
Vegeta steadied his disrupted ki in midair, planted his hands on a rock, flipped, and lunged back in.
The two clashed in the sky.
Fists and feet turned into countless afterimages. The crackling impact sounds—bang bang bang—rang nonstop as they fought higher and higher.
Under the relentless exchange, Vegeta was already giving everything he had. Recoome, however, treated it like he was teasing a child. He didn't even lift his legs, and he kept laughing as he fought.
"Nice work, Vegeta! You're more capable than I expected!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he swung his thick arm and drove an elbow into Vegeta, smashing him down toward the ground. When Recoome stomped down to chase, Vegeta barely dodged and tried to spring upward—
But their speed wasn't even on the same level.
Recoome flashed behind him, and before Vegeta could react, he struck again, sending him crashing down.
Vegeta plunged into the water like a missile, blasting up a massive splash.
Vegeta still didn't come back up.
Gohan's heart tightened. Goku and Creed still hadn't arrived. If Vegeta got killed here, then Gohan's own life would be next…
Recoome landed on the water's surface, grinning. "What's wrong, Vegeta? Don't tell me you're done already."
The moment he said it, his pupils suddenly shrank.
A perfect arc cut across the water's surface
Vegeta burst upward, shot in close, and drove both hands into Recoome's stomach.
Recoome's muscular body stiffened from the sudden hit. He lost control of his movement, mouth gaping as blood spilled from the corner of his lips.
Vegeta pressed him upward like he was carrying him, ramming him higher into the air. His fists hammered Recoome's stomach over and over—each punch landing on the exact same spot.
Just as it looked like Recoome was finished, Recoome suddenly wore a mischievous grin. He grabbed Vegeta with both hands, hugged him tight
And plummeted at extreme speed from the sky.
Boom!
Their bodies smashed into the ground and blasted out a deep crater. Vegeta was upside-down, head buried, his upper body sunk into the dirt.
Gohan instinctively covered his mouth. With an impact like that, even if he didn't die, he'd lose half his life.
Recoome still wasn't satisfied. Like yanking up a radish, he grabbed Vegeta by the legs and ripped him out of the ground, laughing.
"You okay? Don't tell me you're actually dead."
Vegeta's face was covered in blood. His eyes were shut—he looked almost like a corpse.
But they still underestimated Vegeta's vitality.
Suddenly, a shockwave burst from Vegeta's palm and blasted Recoome away.
Vegeta dropped back down, struggling to stand. Even the smallest movement sent pain through his whole body.
Recoome, on the other hand—even with the blast hitting his chest—popped back up from the ground like he was doing a stunt.
"Good! Now this is fun. No wonder you were once Frieza-sama's most valued talent. But why did you betray him, Vegeta?"
Vegeta bent forward. After that beating, he couldn't even stand straight. His throat felt clogged, and he couldn't speak.
He knew Recoome was strong… but he hadn't imagined he'd be this strong.
At this rate, he might really die here.
Recoome put his hands on his hips and continued, "So? Don't you have any stronger moves? If not, I'll kill you."
Gohan clenched his fists. In this situation, if Vegeta died, he'd be next. With his strength, no matter how hard he struggled, he could never beat Recoome.
Now there was only one option left—fight with everything on the line.
Recoome opened his mouth.
A purple blast erupted from it.
No time to hesitate. Gohan sprang forward, grabbed Vegeta, and threw him aside, barely dodging the beam.
The blast swept across the lake and detonated on the far hillside. In an instant, the entire planet seemed to turn into daylight. Then a crimson glow erupted, explosions chaining one after another—almost flattening everything across the shore.
Recoome completely hadn't expected that. He froze on the spot.
The storm of wind from the explosion forced Gohan to press himself to the ground.
Vegeta shoved him away, gritting his teeth. "Move! You dare stick your nose in?! You idiot! If you had the time to help me, why didn't you attack that bastard Recoome instead?! At this rate, you'll get yourself killed sooner or later!"
Recoome turned toward his teammates and shouted, "Burter! Jeice! Let me take care of this brat too, alright? Can I?"
Burter replied, "Seriously… fine, do whatever you want. But after you're done, you're treating us to chocolate sundaes."
Recoome agreed, then slowly walked toward Gohan.
(End of Chapter)
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