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That was Cell's body—cutting through the air at a speed beyond the sound barrier, the shock of his movement splitting the sky with a violent boom.
The ground and the surrounding mountains shattered once again under the terrifying shockwave.
Even the thick cloud layer above him was blown apart, punched open into a massive hole by the force of that single strike.
Blue lightning crackled through the air, intertwining with blazing golden energy.
Just one casual attack from Gohan had produced aftershocks powerful enough to tear through the atmosphere.
In the World of Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid
"Whoa ho ho ho! Now this is a fight! My blood's boiling just watching it! This is what real combat looks like—fists hitting flesh! Humans really can be terrifyingly strong!"
Tohru trembled with excitement, clutching Kanna in a tight hug. Her entire body shook as if her blood itself was burning in response to the battle surpassing all limits.
She had thought the fight between Acacia and Gilliam had already represented the peak of power.
Who could have imagined something even more outrageous—something like a battle between gods and demons?
This kind of raw violence and intensity made Tohru itch to jump straight onto the battlefield and fight them herself.
Kobayashi's mouth twitched.
To her, Acacia's fight had already been absurd. But compared to the world-destroying spectacle unfolding on the screen now, that earlier battle could be summed up in two words:
"That's it?"
...
In the World of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure
DIO's expression darkened to the extreme as he stared at the screen showing Cell and Gohan fighting.
For the first time in a long while, he felt overwhelming pressure.
At first, he had actually admired Cell's ruthless brutality. He had even entertained the idea of bringing the creature under his command.
But when Cell unleashed power strong enough to shake an entire planet, every unrealistic fantasy in DIO's mind was instantly crushed.
Because he realized something terrifying.
He might not be Cell's opponent at all.
"Impossible! I—DIO—the greatest being in existence—how could there be a creature stronger than me?!"
His pride and arrogance thrashed wildly against the thought, refusing to accept reality.
"Lord DIO… is something wrong?"
Enya the Hag looked at his ashen face and asked cautiously.
"Hmph. Nothing. Those two insects have a little strength, that's all."
DIO would never admit that anyone surpassed him.
"Exactly! Lord DIO could never have an equal! You are the strongest being in all eternity!"
Enya's praise bordered on fanaticism. In her eyes, DIO was absolute truth itself.
Hearing her words, DIO's expression softened slightly.
"Heh… my ambitions go far beyond simply being the strongest…"
He twisted his arms into a serpentine pose, striking a wicked stance as his shrill laughter ripped across the silent desert sky.
Meanwhile, far away in the endless sands, a group traveling through the desert—DIO's sworn enemies—had fallen into stunned silence.
"That power… it's even more terrifying than when DIO first became the Vampire King! Jotaro!!"
Jonathan Joestar's face was filled with shock as he shouted to Jotaro Kujo beside him.
Even Jonathan, who had once faced the "Ultimate Lifeform," felt suffocating pressure from the power radiating off Cell and Gohan on the screen.
Jotaro's face was grim.
For once, even his usually stoic expression showed real seriousness.
The aura spilling over from that other world was so heavy it made his chest ache.
Back to the Battlefield
The projection zoomed in.
Gohan's two simple punches hit like apocalyptic hammers, smashing Cell into the ground like a meteor.
Cell struggled and trembled as he forced himself upright. His once perfect face was filled with disbelief at Gohan's strength.
He couldn't accept it.
He had absorbed Androids 17 and 18. He had become Perfect Cell—the ultimate lifeform, the strongest being in the universe.
So why was he being completely crushed by a mere child?
The violent pain coursing through his body made it hard for him to even control himself.
Cell's eyes bulged, bloodshot as if they might burst from their sockets. He tried to steady himself, but his supposedly perfect body felt heavy and unresponsive.
At last he staggered to his feet.
The next second, his legs gave out.
He collapsed awkwardly onto the scorched earth.
"Impossible! This can't be happening!!"
His eyes were completely red with blood vessels—madness born from terror and despair at Gohan's overwhelming power.
Suddenly, a violent wave of nausea surged through him.
"Why… just two hits from that brat… GAAH!"
He roared as foul green fluid spewed uncontrollably from his mouth.
"How could it cause me such damage…"
Cell's twisted face showed the severity of his injuries. He coughed violently, then spat out another mouthful of disgusting green blood.
The nauseating sensation grew stronger, as if something inside him were tearing apart.
He forced himself to stand again, unwilling to give in.
He was Cell!
His energy, speed, and regeneration all stood at the very peak of the universe. The ultimate warrior. The perfect being.
How could someone like him lose to a kid who had only just powered up?
Gohan paid no attention to the storm of emotions inside Cell.
He simply walked forward with calm, steady steps toward his fallen prey.
Cell froze.
To his horror, as Gohan approached, his body began trembling uncontrollably.
It felt like facing the apex predator at the top of the food chain.
"What a joke! How could I be afraid of a snot-nosed brat?!"
Roaring internally, Cell shot into the air before the fear could fully consume him.
"If you keep pushing me like this… then let's go to hell together!!!"
Cell's voice was filled with madness.
He brought his hands together—the unmistakable starting pose of the Kamehameha.
Everyone on the ground turned pale.
Violent currents whipped around as the energy inside Cell surged wildly. The destructive pressure scraped painfully across the skin of Goku and the others below.
From the sky, Cell's desperate voice echoed down to Krillin and the rest.
"Kaaa… meee… haaa… meee… HAAAA!!!"
A terrifying blue sphere of energy formed instantly between his hands and blasted downward toward Gohan with world-destroying force.
"That lunatic…"
Goku stared up in shock, so tense he could barely breathe.
"Die! This is everything I've got! If you dodge it, the Earth will be vaporized! Your only choice is to take it head-on!"
Cell's twisted grin was filled with suicidal madness.
His fear of Gohan had turned into a final, desperate gamble.
The massive blue energy sphere streaked downward like a comet crashing into Earth.
For a moment, death itself seemed stamped onto Gohan's fate.
This was Cell's last, desperate counterattack.
Gohan—how would he respond to a move capable of destroying the world?
Would he retreat?
Of course not.
Facing Cell's all-or-nothing strike, Gohan's eyes remained calm.
He casually took the same stance.
A Kamehameha.
But the energy wave that burst from his hands was less than one-fifth the size of the giant blue sphere above.
When Cell saw it, he sneered.
In his eyes, that tiny beam looked like a firefly.
Did Gohan really think something that small could stop his planet-piercing attack?
Ridiculous.
No one understood the terrifying energy behind this blast better than Cell himself.
But even while mocking it, he didn't relax. After seeing Gohan's terrifying strength, he kept his guard up to the absolute limit.
He pushed the massive energy sphere forward with everything he had.
Then the two beams collided.
And Cell's face changed completely.
A crushing force surged backward from the impact point.
Cell stared in disbelief as his world-destroying Kamehameha was pushed back—rapidly—straight toward him.
He couldn't understand it.
Not at all.
How could Gohan's tiny beam be this powerful?
It was barely a fifth the size of his!
But its penetrating power and pushing force were far beyond anything he could resist.
Cell panicked.
Real panic, rising from the depths of his soul.
He could see his ending clearly now.
He was going to die.
Survival instinct took over.
Cell gave up.
He tried to run.
But how could he outrun a fully unleashed Kamehameha?
The moment he turned to flee, the blue beam—like the blade of a grim reaper—engulfed him instantly.
BOOOOOOM!!!
A catastrophic explosion erupted in the sky.
The power was like hundreds, even thousands of nuclear bombs detonating at once. A towering mushroom cloud rose, tearing open the heavens.
Wherever the shockwave reached, the earth shattered and blazing heat storms spread outward.
Mountains and massive boulders were instantly vaporized into dust.
With a single attack, everything within a thousand miles was flattened.
Gohan stood calmly, watching the explosion raging overhead.
He could clearly sense that Cell's energy had dropped drastically in that instant.
But only dropped.
It hadn't vanished completely.
Which meant something terrifying.
Cell was still alive.
On the ground, Goku and the others stared at the apocalyptic scene in horror.
But among them, Goku—Gohan's father—and Piccolo, who had trained Cell once before, kept their eyes fixed on the boy standing proudly on the battlefield.
Deep in their eyes was unmistakable pride.
Gohan had grown into someone they could only look up to now.
The energy storm gradually faded.
The destructive light in the sky slowly dissipated.
Yet to Krillin's disbelief—
Cell was still floating at the center of the explosion.
He looked miserable, his body badly damaged, but the truth was undeniable.
Cell was still alive.
"Cough… cough…"
He coughed weakly.
Gohan's finishing attack had nearly killed him.
Even now, he was barely clinging to life.
His ruined body had no strength left to fight. Though Cell possessed terrifying regeneration, it required time to activate.
And with Gohan's overwhelming strength, killing him now would be effortless.
Regret flooded Cell's heart.
He had never imagined his arrogance would push him into such a desperate situation.
Silently, he looked down at Gohan on the ground, waiting for his execution.
But…
Gohan simply stood there, calmly staring back.
He didn't attack.
The moment Goku saw this, panic shot through him.
He knew his son's gentle nature too well.
"Gohan! Hurry! Finish him now!" he shouted at the top of his lungs. "If you don't destroy him immediately, he'll regenerate! And if he gets desperate, he'll do something we can't even imagine!"
Gohan's body stiffened slightly.
Hesitation filled his face.
He didn't want to kill.
Even if the enemy was a monster like Cell, responsible for countless crimes, the idea of ending a life still weighed heavily on his heart.
But Gohan didn't realize that this brief moment of mercy would lead to catastrophic consequences.
Cell froze.
Then he burst into wild laughter.
The laughter echoed across the battlefield, filled with relief and contempt.
He had thought he was already standing at death's door.
Yet because of Gohan's foolish kindness, he had escaped death.
The super warrior who could have easily obliterated him had voluntarily given up the chance to finish him off—because of that ridiculous thing called compassion.
To Cell, it was hilarious.
"Son Gohan… this hesitation of yours will make you regret it for the rest of your life!"
Cell sneered.
And to him, this brief moment to catch his breath was already priceless.
"....."