"You and Broly are the same race, aren't you?" Hit asked. "The one I beat up earlier had a tail. I remember Broly had one too. Why don't you?"
"My tail was cut off a long time ago," Goku said honestly. "Kami said keeping it would only cause trouble."
"Hmph. Kakarot lost his tail because he loses his mind when he turns into a Great Ape," Vegeta said, seizing the chance to mock him. "Saiyan royalty keeps control even in that form. Only low-class warriors go berserk."
Goku glanced at him and did not argue.
Vegeta smiled in satisfaction. At least he had managed to beat Kakarot in words.
"Come," Hit said, finally taking his hands out of his pockets and settling into a proper stance.
Golden light burned around Goku. He moved in a flash and appeared right in front of Hit, and the two immediately clashed. Their fight rose from the ground into the air, each exchange growing faster than the last as their bodies blurred across the purple sky.
After several rounds, Goku kicked at Hit, but Hit blocked it with one arm.
"Not bad," Hit said with a faint smile. "But compared to Broly back then, you still have a long way to go."
"Yeah, Broly's a genius," Goku said.
"And even if you can predict my movements, you're still reacting after me."
"Then I'll predict even further ahead."
They broke off and crashed together again, trading blows in the air. About a minute later, Goku's breathing had grown heavier, while Hit still looked as calm as ever. When they landed back on the purple ground, Goku's shoulders were already rising and falling from the strain.
"Your speed has dropped," Hit said. "What happened to that momentum from earlier?"
"Beating you isn't going to be simple," Goku admitted. "If this keeps going, I'll run out of stamina first."
"So you surrender?"
"Not yet. I'll try this."
Red fire rose around Goku's body.
Super Saiyan God.
Vegeta's mouth twitched hard from the side.
Kakarot, you bastard.
He still was not using his real strength. He had only gone Super Saiyan God. Not Blue, not Ultra Instinct, not even close to everything Vegeta knew he had.
Shameless.
"Red hair?" Hit studied Goku's new form with surprise.
"This is Super Saiyan God," Goku said with a grin.
"You have a lot of transformations." Hit glanced toward Vegeta.
Vegeta's expression darkened. "Don't look at me."
"You can't take that form?" Hit asked.
"No. I don't have a tail." Goku turned slightly and pointed behind himself.
Hit stared at him in silence.
"So that other transformation needs a tail?"
"That's right."
Hit raised a hand, inviting him forward. "Then show me what this red-haired form can do. And one more thing—can you turn your hair green?"
"You mean Broly? He's the Legendary Super Saiyan. Vegeta and I are just regular Saiyans."
"So Broly is stronger."
"Yeah."
Goku did not waste more words. He rushed in and drove his fist toward Hit.
Hit's expression sharpened, though the corner of his mouth lifted slightly. He avoided Goku's attack with a smooth shift and chopped toward the back of his neck, but Goku seemed to have expected it. His counterpunch came around at the perfect moment and struck Hit square in the nose.
Hit grabbed his nose, his face turning ugly.
What was going on?
Why had the time he could skip grown shorter?
Had this man's power already surpassed his?
Goku pressed in with a kick. Hit gritted his teeth and caught it with one hand, only for Goku to vanish and reappear behind him.
Cold sweat broke across Hit's forehead.
Goku's punch landed hard and knocked Hit face-first into the ground. Hit rolled several times, his head scraping a long mark through the purple earth before he managed to push himself up.
Shock filled his eyes.
The skipped interval had shortened again.
Goku reminded him of Broly, but somehow, this Goku felt even stronger than Broly had been thirty years ago.
From a distance, Goku launched an energy blast. Hit crossed his arms and caught it head-on. The blast exploded, kicking up a wide cloud of dust, but when the smoke cleared, Hit was still standing and unharmed.
"All right," Hit said. "Then I'll get serious too."
A deep purple light burst around him.
Goku blinked. "What's that?"
"My full power. I haven't used this state in a long time, and I can probably only hold it for about a minute." Hit smiled. "I can also use that technique from earlier one last time. Be careful."
"You're telling me your plan too," Goku said with a grin.
"This time, I'll hide my hands."
Hit slipped both hands back into his pockets.
Vegeta stared from the side, speechless.
Goku's red aura burned brighter as his expression grew serious. He took one breath, then charged again.
His fist closed in on Hit's forehead.
"Time-Skip."
Hit activated his technique and caught Goku in midair. He was about to strike when he noticed something strange out of the corner of his eye.
Goku's hair had changed color.
Blue.
Hit froze for a fraction of a second. "Blue hair?"
"Heh. Careful!"
Goku's kick slammed into Hit and sent him flying. Hit tumbled through the air several times before regaining control and landing, his face shifting between shock and disbelief.
"I never expected someone this strong to exist in our universe," Hit said, a smile slowly returning.
Vegeta's body trembled with anger all over again.
Kakarot, you bastard.
Are you showing off in front of me on purpose?
"Hit, you're an assassin, right?" Goku asked.
Hit said nothing for a moment before answering coldly, "So what if I am?"
"If you used real assassination techniques, I probably wouldn't be your match."
Hit paused. "And?"
"So I lose this match."
The blue light around Goku vanished, and he returned to normal with a relaxed smile. "I surrender. We were only sparring, after all. If this were a real fight, I might not be able to beat you."
Hit stared at him in disbelief. For nearly ten seconds, he did not say a word.
Finally, he asked, "Why did you come here?"
"Oh, right." Goku scratched his head. "Universe 6 and Universe 7 are going to hold a tournament. Champa said you should participate, so I came to bring you over. I also wanted to spar a little. That's basically it."
"A tournament with Universe 7?"
"Yeah. Come on, I'll take you back."
Goku offered his hand.
Hit hesitated instead of taking it. "Will Broly participate?"
"No. He's a god, so he can't join."
"What does that mean?"
"Broly is a God of Destruction. Gods of Destruction aren't allowed in the tournament."
"Broly became an actual God of Destruction?" Hit asked, genuinely startled.
"Yeah. Not just that—he's the leader of all Gods of Destruction now. They call him the Great God of Destruction."
"The Great God of Destruction… the one who leads all Gods of Destruction?" Cold sweat slid down Hit's face.
He and Broly had once stood on the same tournament stage. Now, after all these years, Broly had become the Great God of Destruction.
How strong was he now?
"What about that pink fat one?" Hit asked after a pause. "Are you connected to him too?"
"You mean Buu?" Goku said. "He's really strong too. Vegeta and I fused, and we still couldn't beat him. He's the Little God of Destruction now."
"Little God of Destruction?"
"Sort of the one below the Great God of Destruction, I guess."
"He became a real God of Destruction too?"
Hit went silent again.
"And Ken?" he asked at last.
"Ken? He's amazing. He became a real Angel too. I think that happened around thirty years ago."
Hit froze.
Ken had become that powerful too?
"Come on," Goku said, holding out his hand again. "I'll take you to Earth. Everyone's there."
This time, Hit did not refuse. He placed his hand on Goku's, and Goku used Instant Transmission.
Vegeta watched them disappear.
For a moment, he did not move.
Then his face twisted with fury.
Kakarot, you absolute bastard.
You forgot me.
By the time Vegeta snapped out of it, Goku had already taken Hit away. Vegeta stood alone on the purple planet, shaking with rage.
In the next instant, Goku and Hit appeared back on Earth, beside Ken at Capsule Corporation headquarters.
"Hit, long time no see." Ken stepped forward and patted Hit on the head. "Your head is still as distinctive as ever."
Hit's whole body trembled.
These people were too much.
Thirty years ago, they had already messed with his head. Now they were still treating it like something to touch.
If Ken were not an incredibly powerful Angel, Hit would have used every killing technique he knew to beat him senseless.
"Oh?" Ken looked at him with mild surprise. "You know now?"
"I know…" Hit wiped his sweat.
"Bird-head, long time no see." Buu came over with a big grin and patted Hit's head too.
Hit trembled even harder.
Don't you people have one of your own?
Why do you keep touching my head?
He turned to Buu with a dark face. "You don't have one?"
"Huh?" Buu blinked, not understanding.
"This." Hit pointed at his own head.
Buu finally understood. "Oh. No, I really don't."
To prove it, Buu even pulled open his pants and showed him.
Hit fell silent.
Goku looked between them, completely baffled. "What are you all talking about? I still don't get it."
"Where's Vegeta?" Emily asked from the side.
"Huh?" Goku looked around. "Vegeta didn't come back?"
He scratched his head, then finally realized what had happened. "Oh no. I left him there."
Emily stared at him with wide, angry eyes.
"I'll go get him right now."
Goku vanished again.
While he was gone, Ken briefly explained the tournament with Universe 7 to Hit.
"I understand. I'll do my best." Hit clenched his fist, then added through gritted teeth, "But if I win, no one is allowed to call me that again."
"Sure. No problem," Ken said with a smile.
"Ken, what exactly are you all talking about?" Vados asked, leaning closer with curiosity.
"Nothing, nothing. Little girls shouldn't ask about everything."
Vados stared at him.
Little girl?
She had lived for hundreds of millions of years.
Still, somehow, the title sounded rather pleasant.
Meanwhile, in the Other World, in the area where Frieza was being kept, Frieza and Frost hung from a large tree while countless dolls below them sang and danced without stopping.
Frost looked as if his soul had already given up.
Frieza's forehead throbbed with veins, his teeth grinding in fury.
How dare they imprison him in a place like this?
A boiling oil pot would have been better than this.
"Frieza, you bastard," Frost said through clenched teeth. "You dragged me into hell with you."
[End of chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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