"You think I've hit my limit?" Vegeta refused to accept it. "No way! One day, I'm going to become a powerful God of Destruction!"
"AAAAAH!"
A massive surge of energy gathered between Vegeta's hands, and he blasted it straight down at Frieza.
The instant they sensed that power, Goku and the others' expressions changed.
"Vegeta, are you trying to destroy this planet?!" Piccolo barked.
Frieza had been about to dodge.
But the moment he heard Piccolo's voice, his eyes sharpened, and he shot up into the sky.
"Hah!"
Frieza kicked the falling energy sphere.
With a dull boom, that single kick sent Vegeta's attack flying up into the heavens.
Vegeta took another 100,000-point critical hit, and the light went out of his eyes.
"H-He… he just kicked it…" Piccolo stared, stunned.
"That was Vegeta's full-power attack…" Krillin looked like he was about to cry. "That guy's way too strong!"
"I'm scared…" Kale clung tightly to Gohan's arm.
Gohan: "…"
I'm scared too.
"This is bad… I didn't think he'd be this terrifying!" Goku drew a deep breath as starlike streams of light gathered around him. "Come on… heal already, body!"
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Using the tiny bit of angel power he could still muster, Goku treated his own injuries.
His half-recovered body started healing fast.
"My turn to attack, right? I'll go easy on you…" Frieza snorted, his grin widening. "You ready?"
Vegeta went numb inside.
For the first time in his life, he felt truly shaken. Real terror. A decisive defeat. It crushed him into bottomless despair.
"Hic… hic…"
Vegeta cried.
For the first time, fear and hopelessness drew tears from him—and his will to fight snapped.
Whoosh!
Frieza rocketed upward and smashed his head hard into Vegeta.
Vegeta spat a mouthful of blood and tumbled in midair.
Frieza spun as well, only his flip was far more graceful. He reappeared directly above Vegeta and drove a flying kick into him, sending him crashing down.
Boom!
Vegeta slammed into Planet Namek's ground and let out a hoarse cry, but he didn't even try to resist.
Just hurry up and kill me.
This world's a tragedy.
Even if I train my destruction energy, I'm still no match for Frieza.
He was right. Someone like me—how am I supposed to become a God of Destruction?
Vegeta truly gave up. He couldn't muster even a trace of fighting spirit.
Frieza drifted down and landed beside him.
Piccolo, Gohan, Krillin, and Kale froze in fear, none of them daring to move.
"Heal already… heal…" Goku kept trying to treat himself. "Damn it… even if I fix my body, I still can't use Ultra Instinct!"
But at this point, he couldn't afford to care.
If he didn't heal properly, he might not even be able to leave Planet Namek.
I have to get my body back and fight this guy head-on.
Vegeta, hang on a little longer.
Snap!
Frieza's long tail whipped out, hooked Vegeta by the back of the neck, and lifted him off the ground, holding him high.
Worth noting: back when Frieza was in his second form, Krillin had sliced his tail off.
But after he returned to his true form, it had grown back.
With his neck cinched tight, Vegeta could barely breathe. He coughed twice.
Thud!
Frieza drove a heavy punch straight into Vegeta's spine.
"Pfft…"
Blood sprayed from Vegeta's mouth.
"By all means, you can come help him whenever you want." Frieza smiled toward Goku and the others.
Piccolo, Krillin, and Gohan were too terrified to move.
Kale hid behind Gohan, shaking, not daring to show her face.
It's too scary.
This is beyond scary.
Why did Merus-nii send me to a place like this?
I want to go home.
I want to go back to Sadala.
Kale wanted to cry, but fear left her with no tears.
Thud!
Frieza punched him again.
Vegeta coughed up another burst of blood.
Whoosh!
With a casual toss, Frieza flung Vegeta into a nearby hill.
Vegeta bounced once, rolled off, and lay there like a corpse, too lazy to even twitch.
"What a bore. You won't even fight me. Killing you now is a bit early, but I'll put you out of your misery. Torturing you isn't interesting anymore." Frieza looked disappointed.
"Vegeta's about to be killed, Ken. Are you really not going to do anything?" Merus turned to ask.
"I'm not stepping in. Let it happen—this is his trial." Ken sighed.
"Perhaps for Vegeta-san as he is now, death truly is a release," Whis said thoughtfully.
"Whis, talking with you is always refreshing," Ken praised.
Merus: "…"
I'll just stop talking.
You're tearing me down without even trying.
"Goku-san's wounds are healed, but he's used up every last bit of his angel powers…" Whis glanced at Goku and smiled at Ken. "My, my… looks like I'm the winner of this bet."
Ken only smiled.
The Oracle Fish watched with interest as well, but didn't say a word.
Merus had already been stung enough and chose not to speak.
In Merus's eyes, Goku and Vegeta's side had no chance at all.
"Alright… I'm finally good!" Goku took a deep breath and stepped forward.
"Oh? You're going to help Vegeta? You finally found the courage to stand up?" Frieza sneered.
"Goku…" Krillin looked worried.
"Dad!" Gohan called out.
"Frieza, let's have a real fight—just the two of us," Goku said, grim-faced.
"Hmph. A low-class warrior with a power level of two wants to join in too? Wouldn't it have been smarter to run away earlier?" Frieza snorted.
"Kakarot… you…" Vegeta stared at Goku, at a loss for words.
Because all of a sudden, it felt like Kakarot's energy had jumped.
When did he get that much stronger?
"Low-class or not, I'm not letting you off!" Frieza chuckled.
"Yeah? Then try me." Goku held steady.
"Take this!" Frieza whipped a kick at Goku's face.
But Goku moved faster.
Thud!
Goku leaned aside, planted his right hand on the ground, and snapped a rising kick into Frieza's face.
Frieza grimaced, spun through the air several times, adjusted his posture, and landed cleanly.
Then he rubbed his aching cheek and stared at Goku with a cold glare.
Snap!
Frieza extended a finger, aiming at Goku from a distance.
"Goku, watch out!" Krillin shouted.
"You're getting cocky!" Red streaks shot from Frieza's fingertip.
The crimson beams screamed toward Goku.
Goku calmly raised a hand and slapped each one away, sending them flying in every direction.
Frieza froze, dumbfounded.
"What? You blocked all of it with one hand?" Frieza's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Hah… hahahaha!" Vegeta burst into laughter. "Frieza, stop holding back and show your real power! I'll tell you this—Kakarot's going to become the next Supreme Kai!"
Frieza's expression turned even colder.
Because he suddenly remembered: after his son died, that Supreme Kai had come in person.
And with one glare, that bastard had knocked him unconscious.
This Saiyan… is going to be the Supreme Kai's successor?
"Sure, the Supreme Kai isn't as strong as a God of Destruction, but crushing a tiny ant like you is still easy!" Vegeta mocked. "Frieza, you're finished! One day a god's going to pinch you to death!"
Whoosh!
With a cold snort, Frieza fired a beam from his fingertip that pierced straight through Vegeta's heart.
Goku's face went pale.
Piccolo, Krillin, and Gohan were stunned speechless.
Kale turned deathly white.
"Now you understand, right? I don't like people joking about me." Frieza huffed.
"Ah… pff…" Vegeta kept spitting blood, clearly dying.
"Vegeta!" Goku panicked and rushed forward, trying to use angel power to heal him.
But he'd already spent it all. He couldn't heal Vegeta at all.
Snap!
Vegeta weakly grabbed Goku's wrist.
"Vegeta, I can't use my healing anymore… hold on, okay? Ken will come save you!" Goku said quickly.
"I… I don't think I'll last until Ken gets here." Tears streamed down Vegeta's face.
Goku had no answer.
"Piccolo…" Vegeta struggled to look at him.
Piccolo: "…"
"Tell me—did my wish come true?" Vegeta gritted out.
"At this point… I'll tell you the truth." Piccolo's voice dropped. "I'm sorry. I transferred all of your wish to Gohan."
Gohan blinked, then understood instantly.
"I knew it…" Vegeta snorted. "Namekian… I don't hate you."
Piccolo didn't respond.
"Kakarot… if you make it out of here alive, and you see Ken later… tell him…" Vegeta's voice shook as emotion surged up.
"Tell him what?" Goku asked, startled.
Vegeta suddenly widened his eyes and jabbed a finger at Goku. "Kakarot… you have to become a great Supreme Kai! Use your Saiyan's power to defeat Frieza!"
"I… I got it." Goku nodded, heavy-faced. "Even if I might not be able to beat him."
"Tell Ken… once, a copy of 'Ultra Instinct' was right in front of me. I didn't treasure it. Only after I lost it did I regret it. If heaven could give me another chance…" Vegeta's voice kept fading. "I would… I would…"
His last sound thinned to nothing, and Vegeta finally stopped breathing.
"Vegeta…" Goku said quietly.
"So he finally croaked. I'll give him this—he was tough to the end." Frieza sneered.
"You cried and entrusted me… because you couldn't get what you wanted, right?" Goku sighed, then clenched his teeth and slammed his fist into the ground.
Thud!
A pit opened in the earth.
Goku lifted Vegeta in his arms and laid him flat inside.
"I get it now. You weren't crying because our people were killed. You were crying because you couldn't do anything about that guy… and because you regretted the choices you made back then…" Goku spoke softly to himself. "I don't hate you. I never hated you. You're the pride of the Saiyans. Let me share that pride."
He pulled the surrounding dirt in and covered Vegeta, then slowly stood and turned to face Frieza.
"I'm a Saiyan who grew up on Earth. For the Saiyans you killed, and for the Namekians you killed… I'm going to defeat you!" Goku shouted.
"Big talk." Frieza snorted.
"Leave this to me. Get far away," Goku told Piccolo and the others.
"Let's go!" Piccolo didn't hesitate. He shot into the air at once. "We'd just get in the way."
Krillin flew up immediately too, then looked back and saw Gohan still standing there, dazed, like he didn't want to leave.
Kale stayed glued behind Gohan, hesitating.
If everyone's leaving, Gohan-nii, why are you still here?
Kale wanted to go, but staying close to Gohan felt safer.
"Dad, be careful! You have to beat Frieza!" Gohan shouted, grabbed Kale's wrist, and flew up.
Once they'd all gone, Goku finally let out the breath he'd been holding.
Now I can fight properly.
"My, my… I wonder how long Goku-san can last," Whis sighed.
"Whis, if we bring Vegeta's soul over here, that doesn't count as cheating, right?" Ken said suddenly.
"It doesn't, as long as we don't revive him for now. If he comes back to life, he might jump down and cause trouble again," Whis said after a moment. "Not that it would change much, but for fairness, it's better not to revive him."
"Before his soul reports to the Other World, we'll intercept it here. Otherwise we'd have to go down there and fish him out," Ken said, raising his staff and pointing into empty space.
Snap!
A soul suddenly appeared in the space before them.
It had Vegeta's shape, but his body was a translucent spirit form.
The soul floated upward, drifting, looking like it had no awareness at all.
Before entering the Other World, souls generally have no consciousness.
For a soul, this is a different world.
Only after reaching the Other World does a soul regain awareness.
After death, a special pull draws the soul in, and it naturally drifts toward the Other World.
Vegeta was no different.
Except as he drifted, Ken caught him. With a curl of one finger, the soul flew to Ken's side.
Snap!
Ken snapped his fingers at Vegeta.
Vegeta's eyes flew open, shock written all over his face.
"Ken?" Vegeta blinked. "Where… where am I?"
Ken didn't answer.
Vegeta seemed to realize something and immediately looked down at himself.
"M-My body… what happened? Why do I look like this? Am I dead?!" Vegeta blurted out.
"That's right. You're dead." Ken nodded. "I called your soul here because I want you to watch Goku and Frieza's fight."
Vegeta: "…"
"You can just call my soul over like that?" Vegeta stared.
"Keep your voice down… if King Yemma finds out, he'll grab you and throw you straight into Hell," Ken whispered.
Vegeta's face changed. He quickly looked around, and only then noticed Whis and Merus nearby.
"You… the Galactic Patrolman!" Vegeta recognized Merus.
"Hello, Vegeta-san," Merus greeted.
"I'm not fine. I'm dead," Vegeta replied.
Merus: "…"
"I remember you… you're the attendant who stays with Beerus, right?" Vegeta's eyes lit up as he turned to Whis.
"Yes." Whis nodded.
"Back then, Ken gave you sausages to eat, didn't he? And then you gave him a book about Ultra Instinct!" Vegeta felt like even after dying, his mind worked better.
No—mind isn't the right word.
Dead people don't have brains.
This is consciousness.
Consciousness that travels without a brain.
That's why it felt sharper.
"Correct." Whis nodded again, smiling. "I recall Ken-san once handed that book to Vegeta-san so he could train. Unfortunately, Vegeta-san dismissed it."
Vegeta lowered his head, full of regret.
"Ken-san, have you ever given sausages to my older sister?" Whis asked.
Ken: "…"
That one came out of nowhere.
"Not yet," Ken said, shaking his head.
"My sister would probably like sausages with a more distinctive flavor," Whis said with a gentle smile.
"Please don't." Ken waved him off.
Whis: "????"
Why shouldn't I?
Did that sentence have some special meaning?
"So you can watch more clearly, I made a projection for you," Ken said, swinging his staff.
A battle projection appeared in front of them.
Vegeta immediately looked over.
Inside the projection, Goku and Frieza clashed in a fierce exchange.
In an instant, they traded dozens of moves.
Whoosh!
Goku flashed behind Frieza and swung a palm strike.
Frieza flickered out of sight and reappeared behind Goku.
Whoosh!
A ki blast shot from Frieza's hand, screaming toward Goku at high speed.
Goku thrust both hands forward and caught it.
The ki blast pushed him back, sliding him across the air.
Thud!
Goku slammed into the hill behind him, carving a long trail into the rock.
"Heh!"
Goku shoved hard, launching the ki blast up into the sky, then stepped out from the hill's shattered stones.
"That Kakarot bastard…" Vegeta couldn't accept it.
Why does he get to be that strong?
Goku rose into the air and faced Frieza at eye level.
"Not bad. You're a lot stronger than I expected for a low-class warrior," Frieza said with a smug smile. "Too bad Vegeta died early. If he knew a low-class warrior was stronger than a so-called genius warrior like him, I wonder what he'd think."
Vegeta felt it stab his soul.
I'm already dead, and this bastard is still mocking me.
Unforgivable.
"Even if you're stronger than Vegeta, you're still the little ant I let go more than twenty years ago!" Frieza sneered.
"An ant that trains hard can still beat an elephant," Goku replied.
"Pfft…"
Frieza burst out laughing.
"Then tell me—how does an ant train hard enough to beat an elephant?" Frieza laughed loudly and suddenly glared at Goku's position.
An invisible force surged out and rushed to cover Goku.
Goku reacted instantly, shooting into the sky and appearing directly above Frieza.
"Right back at you!" Goku snapped, glaring down.
The invisible force covered Frieza.
Frieza's body dropped.
Just as he neared the lake's surface, he flickered out of sight.
In the next instant, Frieza was already behind Goku.
Thud!
Frieza kicked hard, sending Goku plummeting from the sky.
Boom!
Goku splashed into the lake below, water rolling outward in wave after wave.
He sank to the bottom.
"Hurry up and come out! I know you're fine!" Frieza shouted.
Down below, Goku stayed quiet, thinking.
He's fast.
How am I supposed to deal with him?
He doesn't seem to search like we do with sensing—he's using his eyes.
I'll try exploiting that.
"Ki Blast!"
Goku formed two ki blasts.
"Go!"
With a flick of his hand, one ki blast shot up from the lake's depths.
"Come out already! What's taking you so long?!" Frieza raised a hand, ready to strike the moment Goku surfaced.
The instant Goku showed himself, Frieza would smash him without hesitation.
"That hit earlier should've hurt him plenty," Frieza muttered.
As he spoke, a ki blast burst out of the lake and screamed toward him.
"Get ready to die!" Frieza clenched his fist and swung.
But something felt off.
That's not him!
Right then, the second ki blast shot up from the water.
"Over here!" Frieza laughed, about to attack—
And immediately realized again.
Still not him!
"I'm right here!" Goku dropped from above and drove both feet into Frieza's body, kicking him straight down.
Crash!
Frieza slammed into a small island like a cannonball, shattering it into several chunks.
He climbed out of the wreckage and shook his head.
"Damn… he's not hurt at all…" Goku forced a wry smile.
"I didn't expect a tiny low-class warrior to get me covered in dust," Frieza sneered. "Fighting you is fun. I've never been this excited. Now… how should I deal with you?"
"This is rough… I thought it might actually do something," Goku said with a laugh.
"I'll show you this!" Frieza beckoned at nearby rocks.
They rose into the air and floated around him.
Goku froze for a beat.
"Heh!"
Frieza hurled the rocks at Goku.
Goku dodged quickly.
"Damn it! If I still had that special energy, I could do this too!" Goku shouted as he dodged and smashed the rocks apart with punches and kicks.
But when he cleared the last of them, something felt wrong.
Frieza suddenly appeared behind him.
"Got you!" An energy sphere formed in Frieza's hand and snapped around Goku, trapping him inside.
"Crap! I can't move!" Goku's face changed.
"Die." Frieza sneered and drove the sphere down into the ground below.
Rumble!
It struck a small island.
A massive mushroom cloud erupted.
The shockwave roared outward in every direction.
"Get down, Kale!" Gohan pressed her head and shoved her flat against the ground.
Kale: "…"
I almost ate dirt.
Krillin flattened himself too.
Only Piccolo threw his arms over his head and endured the shockwave head-on.
A moment later, they climbed back up and looked into the distance.
"He's terrifying…" Krillin sucked in a sharp breath.
"Frieza's playing with Goku," Piccolo said grimly. "He could destroy this planet anytime he wants."
[End of chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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