Vegeta kept his eyes on the scouter, which showed that Goku's combat power remained at only 5 points.
Confused, Vegeta finally shouted, "Kakarot! Tell me, why is your combat power only 5, yet my attacks can't even touch your clothes?!"
Goku replied calmly with a smile, "Do you want to know the reason?"
Vegeta bristled, "What nonsense are you talking about? I don't care about your reason, so why are you telling me?"
Goku's smile widened. "Vegeta, then open your eyes and take a good look at my fighting power."
"I've been waiting for this!" Vegeta thought. He had long wanted to see the true strength of Kakarot.
Goku planned to use only about one-thousandth of his full strength, since Vegeta at this stage was too weak to handle his full power.
As Goku took a deep breath, Vegeta's scouter began beeping rapidly:
"18,500… 19,000… 20,000… 21,000… 22,000!"
At 22,000 points, the scouter couldn't handle the energy and exploded.
Goku stopped increasing his Ki. Piccolo, observing from nearby, frowned in confusion. This display was far from Goku's full strength—he had once felt Goku's energy was like an abyss. Compared to that, this was nothing.
Vegeta's forehead glistened with sweat. "Kakarot's combat power… over 22,000? How is this possible? He's just a low-level warrior, yet he surpasses even a genius like me?"
Goku smirked and waved at him. "Come on, Vegeta. Attack if you dare."
"How dare you look down on me, Kakarot!" Vegeta roared and charged at Goku.
Before Vegeta could strike, Goku delivered a swift kick, sending him flying high into the sky.
Vegeta's body barely slowed as he passed through the clouds. He nearly vomited the milk he had drunk as a child.
What Vegeta didn't realize was that Goku had controlled the blow perfectly—otherwise, that kick could have easily killed him.
After more than ten seconds, Vegeta recovered slightly.
"Damn it, Kakarot! That low-level warrior… his power far exceeds mine. This is unforgivable!" Vegeta seethed with humiliation, vowing to make Kakarot suffer a fate worse than death.
Thinking quickly, Vegeta muttered, "The only solution now… is to transform into a giant ape. But Kakarot also has a tail… will he stop me first?"
On the ground, Tien, Yamcha, Krillin, Chiaotzu, and Gohan watched in awe.
Krillin exclaimed, "As expected of Goku! Even such a powerful Saiyan is like a baby compared to him!"
"Yeah! You can't compete with Goku in anything," Yamcha added. "It's just asking for trouble."
Tien clenched his fists. "No matter how far the gap grows, I'll train hard to catch up."
Piccolo looked at Goku and said, "Son Goku… in these past few years, the gap between us has grown."
"You'll catch up eventually, Piccolo," Goku said with a smile.
He knew he would become even stronger in the future, though he didn't reveal it.
Piccolo glanced at the sky. "But what's Vegeta doing? Why hasn't he come back down yet?"
"Who knows! Maybe he's planning to turn into a giant ape," Goku said casually.
"Giant ape?" Piccolo thought. He remembered that Gohan had transformed into a giant ape before.
Worried, Piccolo asked, "Goku, you can handle it, right? The moon… I destroyed it, so he shouldn't be able to transform instantly."
Vegeta searched the sky and couldn't find the moon. "How… how could there be no moon? I chose a full moon to land on Earth. Normally, I should see it by now!"
"Damn it! Did it get destroyed early? Fine, I'll use a substitute," Vegeta muttered.
He didn't want to fly back to create an artificial moon far from Goku. If he did, Kakarot could also transform into a giant ape! He couldn't allow that.
On the ground, Piccolo said, "Goku, Vegeta flew far away. Is he planning to escape?"
"No, he'll come back," Goku replied. "Vegeta has too much pride. He'll definitely return."
In the sky, Vegeta flew far enough and shouted, "Then I'll transform here! Kakarot, just wait! When I become a giant ape, I'll tear you apart!"
He gathered a ball of energy in his hand. As the energy condensed, Vegeta's aura dropped slightly.
Vegeta hurled the energy ball, yelling, "Combine with the oxygen of this planet… and become an artificial moon!!"