"Ah… Aaaaah! Mighty Mask has been cut into three pieces!" the referee screamed, his face going pale.
The crowd went dead silent, everyone staring in horror.
"Wait! No! It's three people!" the referee shouted, his eyes lighting up with relief.
"You idiots! Both of you are useless!" Zarek snapped.
"Zarek, what do we do now?" Goten asked.
"You think the three of us can't beat two Androids?" Zarek snorted, completely confident. "Forget three of us. I could beat them both by myself!"
"Oh… so that's why I couldn't find Goten," Chi-Chi said, looking up at the sky.
"So they were hiding inside that outfit together?" Gine said, half amused and half exasperated. "That had to be Zarek's idea. He's always messing around."
"Three people cannot enter as one fighter!" the referee shouted at Zarek. "You are disqualified!"
Zarek went quiet.
"What now, Zarek?" Goten asked, completely lost.
"Whatever. I'm done playing. Let's go." Zarek threw the line over his shoulder and flew off.
Goten and Trunks immediately followed.
Android 21 quietly let out a breath.
If that had turned into a real fight, I don't think I could've beaten that kid.
"Let's go down," Android 21 said to Android 16.
The two of them floated down and landed across from Mr. Satan.
Mr. Satan's face went pale.
"You remember our deal, right?" Android 21 asked with a smile. Her eyes made the threat very clear.
Mr. Satan nodded as hard as he could.
"Good. Then throw a punch at me, and I'll give you the championship," Android 21 said with a grin.
"I wouldn't dare! I wouldn't dare!" Mr. Satan waved his hands in panic.
"I said hit me, so hit me." Android 21 lowered her voice, then waved Android 16 closer and whispered something in his ear.
"Understood," Android 16 said.
"Go ahead," Android 21 ordered.
"Uh… okay. Then I won't hold back," Mr. Satan said, taking a deep breath.
"There are only four fighters left in the ring!" the referee announced. "Mr. Satan, Android 21, Android 16, and Krillin! And from the look of things, our only female fighter, Android 21, is challenging Mr. Satan!"
"Hehehe!"
Mr. Satan threw a few punches and kicks at the air, then pointed at Android 21 and shouted, "Hahaha! I've already seen through every move you have! Sorry, but I'll be honest with you. You're no match for me!"
The crowd stared.
Android 21 had just dragged him around like a toy a few minutes ago.
And he still had that much confidence?
"I'm the final champion!" Mr. Satan shouted, flailing dramatically as he charged toward Android 21.
Android 21 stood still.
"Satan Miracle Super Invincible Power Punch!"
Mr. Satan swung hard and punched Android 21 right in the forehead.
"She took a direct hit!" the crowd cried.
Android 21 did not move.
Mr. Satan felt like his fist had cracked. Pain shot up his arm.
"That was your special move?" Android 21 asked with a mocking smile.
"Y-Yes…" Mr. Satan nodded awkwardly.
"Aaah!"
The next second, Android 21 screamed and flew backward, tumbling out of the ring.
"Aaah!"
Right after her, Android 16 and Krillin also flew backward and landed outside the ring.
Mr. Satan froze.
Why did those two fly out too?
The audience fell silent, staring at the impossible scene.
"Ahem… everyone!" Mr. Satan said quickly. "That punch may have looked simple, but its true power explodes a few seconds later! Not only that, the shockwave can hit other people too. It's a group attack! That is the Satan Miracle… uh… that… that Punch!"
"The champion is Mr. Satan!" the referee shouted. "Second place goes to Krillin! Third place goes to Android 16!"
"I am the champion!" Mr. Satan shouted, raising both fists.
"Android 16 and Android 21 both looked incredibly strong, but Mr. Satan defeated them in one blow," the referee said, deeply moved. "Krillin was also excellent when he was young. After all these years, he has even grown hair for someone, but sadly, his skill seems to have declined."
Krillin went silent.
Hey, that was unnecessary.
Can you not use me as a life lesson?
You're making me look bad here.
I only came for the prize money!
And now I'm getting one billion!
Just thinking about it feels amazing!
"Mr. Satan really is incredible!"
"That's the friend of a god for you!"
"And he's Earth's guardian too!"
The crowd kept buzzing with excitement.
"I'll come to your house tomorrow for the money. If you don't pay, I'll erase you," Android 21 said calmly as she stood up and looked at Mr. Satan, who still had his fists in the air.
Mr. Satan's smile froze. He looked like he had swallowed something awful.
Of course, the crowd was still cheering his name at the top of their lungs.
…
Zarek, Goten, and Trunks left the World Martial Arts Tournament grounds and ran straight into Videl, who was flying back from the other direction.
"Videl!" Zarek waved at her.
Videl flew over at once and studied him. "You're Gohan's uncle?"
"Of course," Zarek said with a nod.
"Videl-nee, where did my dad and the others go?" Goten asked.
"It's like this…" Videl did not hide anything. She told Zarek and the others everything she knew about Majin Buu.
Goten and Trunks looked uneasy after hearing it.
Zarek stayed calm.
"Zarek, that sounds pretty interesting," Goten said, looking at him.
"Of course," Zarek said.
"I think so too!" Trunks added.
"Sounds fun enough. Let's go. I can feel a bunch of strong energy over there." Zarek pointed into the distance.
"What about Dad's energy?" Goten blinked and scratched his head.
"I can't feel my dad's energy either," Trunks said, looking around.
"Your dads went to fight on another planet." Zarek pointed toward a distant star.
It was daytime, so there was nothing to see.
"They went to another planet to fight? My dad and Vegeta?" Goten asked, blinking.
"Obviously. Who else would it be?" Zarek said like it was nothing.
"My dad is definitely going to beat Goku," Trunks said excitedly, clenching his fist.
"Trunks, you're saying that in front of Goten and me?" Zarek's face darkened as he looked at him coldly. "You think that's okay?"
Trunks immediately went quiet.
"Say that again and you're not playing with us anymore," Zarek warned him.
Trunks quickly covered his mouth.
"All right, let's move. We need to find Gohan first." Zarek pointed in another direction. "Everyone, turn Super Saiyan."
Golden light burst around Zarek, and his hair spiked up.
"Yes, Zarek!" Goten transformed without hesitation.
"Ah… okay." Trunks transformed too.
Whoosh!
The three of them turned into streaks of golden light and shot toward Gohan and the others.
They were so fast that three long trails split the sea below them, kicking the water several meters high. Videl watched with wide eyes, stunned.
…
On an uninhabited planet.
It was not too far from Earth.
The planet was a barren wasteland, nothing but jagged mountains and bare stone as far as the eye could see.
At least it had air.
Goku and Vegeta stood across from each other, both of them burning with fighting spirit.
"Vegeta, ready?" Goku said, rolling his shoulders loose. "Show me how strong you've gotten."
Vegeta's mouth curled. "I've been waiting for you to ask." His eyes sharpened. "You first, Kakarot. Let's see what all that future training gave you. What did that Supreme Kai actually teach you?"
"Sure. I'll start."
Red light rushed over Goku's body.
Super Saiyan God.
Vegeta let out a short laugh. "So that's your choice."
"Yeah." Goku gave him a small nod. "Super Saiyan God."
"That's it?" Vegeta's grin widened. "Don't play dumb with me. I know you can use Super Saiyan Blue. And you've got Ultra Instinct too."
"Ultra Instinct still isn't something I can hold for a real fight," Goku said. "Blue's rough too. It burns through energy too fast. I thought about it, and right now, regular Super Saiyan God gives me the best balance."
Vegeta said nothing.
Goku scratched his cheek and smiled awkwardly. "Maybe I just haven't trained enough."
"Kakarot, you've barely moved in seven years." Vegeta looked far too pleased saying it. "No wonder you haven't improved much."
"I did train," Goku said, laughing a little. "Just not the way I used to. Most of the time, I was doing Supreme Kai work. It kind of reminded me of when Krillin and I trained under Master Roshi. We didn't start with flashy techniques back then. He made us build the basics first." His smile softened. "Honestly, I missed that."
"Hmph. Sounds like you wasted seven years."
"No," Goku said, more serious now. "I don't think I did."
"Then I'll show you what real training looks like."
Golden fur swept across Vegeta's body.
In the next instant, his form changed into a golden ape-like state.
But he did not tower over Goku. He stayed close to his normal size, still shorter than him.
Goku blinked. "Uh… can't you get bigger?"
"I can," Vegeta said. "But bigger isn't always better. If the power stays the same, compressing it into a smaller body makes far more sense in a fight."
"Oh." Goku rubbed his chin. "Yeah, that actually makes sense."
"Enough talk, Kakarot!" Vegeta bared his fangs. "I'm grinding you into the dirt!"
He lifted his right fist, left hand held back to guard.
Goku settled into his stance.
Vegeta moved first.
He kicked off the ground and drove a hard strike at Goku's side. Goku blocked with his arm, but the impact still shoved him half a step off balance.
Vegeta's grin flashed. He pulled his leg back and followed with a punch before Goku could reset.
Goku swept the strike aside and fired back at once.
Vegeta caught his fist.
For one breath, they froze there, power grinding against power.
Then both of them attacked.
Vegeta was faster.
He snapped forward and slammed his forehead straight into Goku's.
The crack rang out across the empty wasteland.
Goku took the hit head-on. Pain cut across his face, and a thin line of blood ran down from his forehead.
"Hah!"
Goku answered with a kick that launched Vegeta across the battlefield.
Vegeta smashed into a field of stone, carving out a crater on impact. Dust and broken rock exploded into the air.
A second later, he shot back out and landed in front of Goku, still smiling.
Goku smiled too.
Now he was awake.
They clashed again.
Their power tore across the planet, ripping through the dead land in wave after wave. The ground shook under them, stone split apart, and the sky above seemed to dim beneath the force of their blows.
Fists crashed. Knees drove in. Shockwaves rolled out one after another, loud enough to swallow everything else.
For now, neither of them had the edge.
Goku could not finish Vegeta quickly.
Vegeta could not break through Goku either.
After a long exchange, they finally broke apart, both of them breathing harder now.
"This is amazing, Vegeta," Goku said, still smiling. "You really did get strong. You must've trained like crazy."
"Of course I did," Vegeta said, pride burning in every word. "Aside from that Legendary Super Saiyan, I'm the most talented Saiyan alive. Did you think I'd let you stay ahead of me forever? I am the prince of the Saiyans."
Goku tilted his head. "Vegeta, the most talented Saiyan is Ken. I already corrected you about that. Did you forget?"
Vegeta went still.
Then his whole body started trembling.
A vein throbbed at his temple like it was one insult away from exploding.
[End of chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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