Piccolo saw where Buu was headed and went cold.
"He's going after Zarek and the boys."
"I'll get them."
Goku vanished with Instant Transmission.
He reappeared beside Zarek a heartbeat later.
Zarek jolted. "Kakarot? What are you doing here?"
"Grab on. Buu's still alive, and he's coming this way."
"What?" Zarek grabbed him at once. "Vegeta blew himself up with that much power and still didn't kill him?"
"He regenerated."
"That idiot," Zarek snapped. "I told him to use Hakai. Did he at least try?"
"He did."
"And?"
Goku put a hand on Goten and Trunks before answering.
The next instant, they were back on the Lookout.
Zarek spun toward him. "You were saying?"
"He ate it."
Zarek stopped.
For once, nothing came out.
Buu had eaten destruction energy.
Not blocked it. Not survived it.
Eaten it.
"And he was fine?" Zarek asked. "He didn't get erased?"
"Fine," Goku said. "Didn't even look bothered."
Zarek stared off into space.
"That thing is a monster."
Elsewhere, Gohan and the others finally found Kale.
Kibito knelt beside her and checked her heartbeat. "She's alive."
Caulifla snapped at once. "Hands off."
Kibito pulled back, completely lost. "I was checking whether she was alive."
"She's alive. Great. Now heal her."
"I will."
"Wait," Shin said. "We should go to the Sacred World of the Kai first."
Kibito turned to him. "You want to bring all of them?"
Shin thought it over and glanced at Gohan and Kale. "Only those two. If anyone here can beat Majin Buu, it's them."
Cabba and Caulifla both stared at him.
Kibito nodded. "That may be our only choice."
"Hey." Caulifla's eyebrow twitched. "You're not seriously leaving us behind."
The Kai Kai had already started.
Shin and Kibito's bodies blurred.
Caulifla's temper shot up.
So that was it? She and Cabba were dead weight?
Cabba moved first. He lunged forward and wrapped both arms around Kibito.
Then he reached back. "Caulifla, grab me!"
Caulifla caught his hand.
Kibito looked down at them, speechless.
They had not been invited.
Apparently that had not stopped them.
The Kai Kai pulled everyone away.
When the world came back, Shin and Kibito stood in the Sacred World of the Kai.
Or at least, it should have been.
Shin looked around.
Kibito looked around too.
Neither of them moved.
The place was familiar enough to be unsettling, but wrong enough to make Shin's stomach drop.
Had someone taken over his world while he was gone?
Then Fuwa walked over from the distance.
Shin stiffened.
"Kibito," he said under his breath. "Do you see him?"
Kibito frowned. "Who is that? Why is he dressed like a Supreme Kai?"
Shin's face tightened.
Seven years had passed, but he had not forgotten Fuwa. Getting beaten half to death tended to leave a clean memory.
"He must be a Demon Supreme Kai," Shin said.
Kibito stared. "Then why is he here?"
"No time for that." Shin quickly turned to Gohan. "Gohan, defeat him. I know you can."
Gohan scratched his cheek and stepped forward, not at all sure this was a fight he was supposed to start.
Fuwa studied him for a moment, then smiled.
"You're Goku's son, aren't you?"
"Yes. I'm Gohan." Gohan brightened a little. "You know my dad?"
"I've heard of him. He trained with a future version of me, didn't he?"
"Oh. So Dad trained with future you."
"I met him once," Fuwa said. "My future self told me about it."
"That makes sense."
Fuwa's gaze moved past him, landing on Shin. "You all look like you've had a rough day."
"We ran into Majin Buu," Gohan said. "He's really strong."
Fuwa knew Buu. That part was not surprising.
Then he looked at Shin again, and the rest of the picture became painfully easy to guess.
"With him leading you, no wonder it went badly."
Shin flinched.
Fuwa sighed and spoke to Gohan with genuine concern. "Take my advice. Don't spend too much time around the Supreme Kai of Universe 7. The stupidity rubs off."
Gohan glanced back at Shin, then quickly looked away. "Uh…"
Fuwa waved a hand. "Go back where you came from. You know the way. You are not welcome here."
Shin seized the excuse at once. "Gohan, we're leaving."
Gohan looked from Fuwa to Shin and decided this was not his mess to untangle.
"I'll go with him for now," he said.
"Your choice," Fuwa said. "Just be careful."
"I will."
Shin activated Kai Kai again.
This time, they arrived in the correct Sacred World of the Kai.
Shin let out a long breath. "Finally."
Kibito still looked unsettled. "Supreme Kai, who was that?"
"He claimed to be a Supreme Kai too," Shin said. "The first time I met him, I thought he might be one of your descendants."
"My descendant?" Kibito looked even more lost. "Why would you think that?"
"I thought I had landed in the future," Shin said, looking pained by the memory. "It made sense at the time."
Kibito did not seem convinced.
"But Gohan seemed to know him," Kibito said quietly. "Was it wise to bring him here?"
"We do not have room to worry about that," Shin said. "Majin Buu is the problem."
"You are right," Kibito said. "You always put the universe first."
Shin nodded, fully serious. "More and more evil gods keep appearing in our universe. Proper gods are becoming rare."
Caulifla looked around. "This place looks almost the same as the one we just left."
Cabba nodded. "Yeah."
Shin turned back to the group and tried to recover some authority. "This is my Sacred World of the Kai. Earlier, we simply arrived in the wrong place."
Gohan did not bother with that.
"Kale is still unconscious. Please heal her."
Shin cleared his throat. "Kibito."
"Yes."
Kibito knelt beside Kale, and healing light spread over her body.
Her injuries faded quickly. As Kibito worked, he finally felt the power inside her.
His hands slowed.
So this was a Legendary Super Saiyan.
The energy in her felt bottomless.
How could a mortal carry that much power?
Kale's eyes opened.
The first person she saw was Gohan.
"Gohan-nii!"
She sprang up and threw herself into his arms.
Gohan caught her. "Kale. Thank goodness."
Kibito remained kneeling beside them.
He had healed her.
He was, in fact, still right there.
Kale did not notice.
"Where are we?" she asked.
"The Sacred World of the Kai," Gohan said. "Universe 7's, I think."
"Universe 7?"
"Gohan," Shin said with a small laugh, "you do not need to say Universe 7 while you are here."
Gohan paused.
There was probably no safe answer to that.
Shin straightened and looked at Gohan and Kale with renewed purpose.
"I brought you here because of the Z Sword. With that sword, you may be able to defeat Majin Buu."
"The Z Sword?" Gohan asked.
Kale looked just as confused.
Cabba and Caulifla waited.
Shin said nothing to them.
Caulifla's face darkened. "What about us? You're just pretending we're not here?"
"We're Saiyans too," Cabba said.
Shin smiled.
"Very well. Come along. A Saiyan who can pull out the Z Sword is a true Saiyan."
Kibito nearly applauded.
That was good.
That was very good.
Shin led the way, with Kibito close beside him and the Saiyans following behind.
Before long, they reached the sword.
The Z Sword stood buried in the ground, silent and unmoving.
"This is the legendary Z Sword," Shin said. "Who will try first?"
"I will!" Cabba stepped forward immediately.
Shin had no objection.
It did not matter who pulled it out. If someone managed it, that person might gain the strength needed to fight Majin Buu.
That was how Broly had become so powerful.
Probably.
Kibito leaned closer and whispered, "Supreme Kai, do you think Broly gained his power from the Z Sword after pulling it out?"
"That is exactly what I was thinking," Shin said, pleased. "We are of one mind, Kibito."
Kibito nodded solemnly.
Cabba gripped the hilt with both hands, then paused.
"What happens if I pull it out? Besides becoming a true Saiyan."
Kibito huffed. "You understand nothing. This is the legendary Z Sword. Whoever pulls it out gains terrifying power. Surely you know Broly."
Gohan and Kale nodded.
Cabba and Caulifla shook their heads.
Kale looked at Caulifla. "Broly is a Legendary Super Saiyan too. He's much stronger than me."
Caulifla's interest sharpened. "There's someone like that?"
Shin smiled with confidence. "If you pull out the Z Sword, you may gain the sword's power as well. You may even surpass Broly."
Gohan gave him a doubtful look.
"Broly became strong because of the Z Sword?"
"Gohan-nii," Kale said softly, "you do not have to believe everything he says. Broly is that strong because Ken-nii trained him."
Gohan nodded. "That sounds more likely."
Cabba tightened his grip again. "Then I'll see for myself whether this sword has that kind of power."
Kibito folded his arms. "You should step aside. You are wasting time."
Cabba glared at him. "Don't underestimate me. I was named one of Planet Sadala's top ten outstanding young Saiyans."
Kibito blinked.
"Sadala?"
He looked at Shin.
"Planet Sadala was destroyed long ago," Shin said. "And he claims to be from there."
Kibito gave Cabba a long, careful look.
"Then perhaps we should not expect too much."
Cabba ignored him and pulled.
The sword did not move.
He pulled harder.
Still nothing.
Kibito shook his head. "Next. We do not have time for this."
"Cabba," Caulifla said, "ignore him. Go Super Saiyan."
"Yes."
Gold light flared around Cabba as he transformed.
Kibito sighed. "You think Super Saiyan is enough to pull out the Z Sword? How childish."
Cabba wrapped both hands around the hilt and pulled with everything he had.
[End of chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
[Check out my Patreon to read 20+ chapters ahead]
[[email protected]/BellAshelia]
[Thanks for your support!]