Dragon Ball Z: History of Gohan - Chapter 6
Energy was in the air. The Z Fighters and the androids had arrived on-scene at the battlefield for a heated fight.
Goku seems already a little out of breath... I don't know why that's so, seeing as he hasn't even begun to fight.. Something's odd... Tien observed and thought to himself.
"So.. you said something about knowing all of my moves, huh? Tell me more about that," Goku said.
"The Red Ribbon Army has been watching all of your major fights, Goku. We watched you as a child at the World Tournament, your fight with Demon King Piccolo, and even your fights with other Saiyans a few years ago. Suffice to say, we know all of your moves, and we're confident that we can deal with you," Dr. Gero explained.
"Did you happen to observe anything after those fights with the Saiyans? Any data on what I did on Namek?"
"Unfortunately we were not able to track your progress as you left this planet, however we're not worried in the slightest. Our data we did gather will be fine," Dr. Gero replied confidently.
"You think so? I've got something unexpected that I think'll really spin your heads."
"I highly doubt it," Dr. Gero smugly remarked.
"Take my word for it, Gero. No data you collected could compare to a Super Saiyan," Piccolo assured, a grin on his face.
"A Super Saiyan, you say? Well, I must say that you've peaked a little of my interest, folks. Show me this 'Super Saiyan' thing, why don't you," Gero said, trying to sound more interested than he really was. He did want to see the form, however remained unbudged and unconcerned by the potential threat it could pose.
"You can't say you didn't ask for it..." Goku began as he bent his knees and clenched his fists, "Hhhhaaaaaaaaahhh!"
Goku's hair rose up quickly, and almost instantly turned golden. Small plants were uprooted from the ground. Gravel and rocks flew about in the area. The ground began to crack. He was slowly but surely mastering this form, being able to transform even easier each time he used it. He changed his stance to a more relaxed one; his transformation was complete.
As the dust began to settle, the Z Fighters could see the two androids standing in their same position. The Z Fighters still stood in awe at this form, witnessing this amazing, raw power.
Krillin glanced back at the androids as they became more visible, They don't look the least bit scared.. or even impressed! Oh gosh... Goku, be careful... he thought to himself, not saying in out loud so not to lower the morale of Goku, which currently appeared to be fairly high, before this seemingly-fateful fight.
"The Super Saiyan form is definitely quite a lot more threatening than your Kaioken technique we observed, however this is still nothing to get ourselves worked up about," Gero said. He looked over at Android 19, "You will still be able to deal with him just fine, 19."
Android 19 nodded his head, approving of the information the doctor had just set out for him. He and Goku both readied themselves in a combat stance, ready to charge toward each other with all their brute force. They glided at each other in a heartbeat. Goku vanished behind Android 19 and swung his fists rapidly. He was unable to land any significant hits on the android, as he was guarding them all with ease.
Android 19 jumped back several times until he flew into the air toward a nearby mountain. Goku pursued him. Android 19 charged a purple ball of energy out of his palms. He used it to destroy a large portion of the mountain, causing rocks and other debris to cloud Goku's vision and hinder him in the fight. Android 19 charged a similar, however smaller ball of energy in just his right hand and used it to allow him to charge through the debris much easier than Goku.
As the dust began to fade and the rocks began to fall, Goku continued to persistently chase the bulbous white android back down to the ground. As Goku descended toward the grounded android, he vanished in different directions, only to surprise the android by landing behind him.
They stood back to back, both slightly confused. Goku, collecting himself almost instantly, jabbed the android in the back with his sharp elbow with amazing force, launching him back and into the mountain they were once on, destroying the remains of it completely and covering Android 19 in pieces of it.
Dr. Gero stood flabbergasted. No way! One hit from his elbow and that was it! he thought, not wanting to reveal his concern to the Z Fighters, despite his priceless expression clearly showing his discontent to all of them. The Z Fighters cheered for Goku. Piccolo, however, stood with his arms crossed and a slight frown on his face. He could tell it wasn't over quite yet.
"It's a shame Vegeta isn't here to watch this.. I know he loves a good fight!" Krillin stated.
"I dunno... Vegeta would probably just get angry at how he's not as strong as Goku," Yamcha replied.
"Hahaha! Yeah, that sounds about right!" Krillin chuckled, holding his stomach.
Present Gohan stood silently watching the fight. Usually he would be one of the first people to cheer his father on and to make jokes along with Krillin, however this time he chose to be more reserved than usual.
Android 19 emerged from the debris and quickly continued the fight. He sprinted toward Goku and jumped as he approached him, only to be punched and then kicked by Goku, once more launching him far away. This time Goku kicked him upward, only to quickly fly up to the skies to pursue him, as he realized he should have done when he lodged the android under the mountain's debris earlier.
Their battle continued with neither side gaining a huge upper-hand.
"Look at that! It's insane how fast they're moving! I can barely keep up!" Tien exclaimed.
"Wow! Even the guy with three eyes can't keep up that fast!" Krillin joked.
"As much as a mood-lightener might not hurt, I wouldn't say this is the time for messing around, Krillin," Piccolo sternly said, monotone, "I feel like this fight is a little more serious than it looks" he elaborated.
Goku punched Android 19 in the stomach, knocking him back a few feet. Having a free moment, Goku began to catch his breath. He was panting, already tired. C'mon! You've fought longer and harder than this before! You can take him! Pull yourself together! he encouraged himself in his thoughts.
Android 19 was staring him down, respecting his moment of regaining his strengths. Goku suddenly charged toward him, letting out a loud battle cry. He gave two mighty thrusts of his arm into the android, and then proceeded to go for a multitude of smaller strikes, most of which were guarded well by the android.
Seeing that he wasn't going to miss any major breakthroughs in the fight, Piccolo glanced over at Gohan, noticing he had been awfully quiet, "Gohan... Are you noticing what I'm noticing?"
"I think so..." he replied.
"I believe I also see the problem here," King Cold added. He had been quiet as well, even more so than Gohan, mostly because he could tell the Z Fighters still weren't perfectly settled with the idea of him working with them.
"This fight isn't as much of a landslide as you all think it is.. Goku is rushing himself and his techniques are poor compared to what I know he can do."
"What? He's crushing that robot! He's barely scratched, too! How is that poor?" Tien questioned.
"If Goku was going all-out that android would be nothing but wires and chips in the dust by now." Piccolo said. There was a degree of certainty in his voice. Even though he was unable to measure the android's power level, he was still sure that Goku in his Super Saiyan form would be plenty in order to humble it.
"Goku's Super Saiyan form was enough to defeat my son.. and then that mysterious young man from several years ago humbled him once more using his variant of the Super Saiyan form.. That transformation is by far more than just strong hair gel, gentleman.." King Cold added.
"Well... maybe that android absorbed some of Goku's power!" Yamcha suggested.
"Absorb his power? What do you mean?" Piccolo asked, having not previously known that the androids were capable of something like that.
"Back when we were in the city, that long-haired android put his hand on my mouth and took a whole bunch of my power... It was crazy. That fat one could have done the same to Goku!" he explained.
Before Piccolo would have the chance to ask for more information regarding the androids being able to absorb an opponent's power, Goku did a front-flip in the air in order to gain some momentum. He finished his combo by kicking the android straight down into the ground. Krillin, Tien, and Yamcha let out a collective cheer for Goku, having put on another great hit to the android. The hit, however, was still not enough to destroy Android 19; he stood up after only a few moments and began to stare at the tiresome Goku, who was panting more and more as the minutes passed.
"He got up! Just like that! How is that possible?!" Yamcha shouted, not sure if his eyes were fooling him.
"You imbeciles! Androids don't feel pain like you and I... How fortunate for them.." King Cold said harshly.
Yamcha wanted to argue with King Cold and rebuttal for him calling them all imbeciles, however he knew this wasn't the time or the place, and that they had much bigger concerns.
Goku continued to pant, not sure of what his next move should be. Like King Cold, he had realized early-on that the androids would not be able to be humbled by pain, and he would have to flat-out destroy them in order to win the battle. He put his wrists together and began charging a quick Kamehameha beam. Giving it only a few moments to charge, he quickly released the ki from his hands and shot it directly toward Android 19.
Dr. Gero chuckled happily. Android 19 likewise quickly grew a child-like smirk on his face as he opened his right palm and swung his arm into the air in the direction of the Kamehameha. As the blast hit his hand, he seemed to be enveloped in the blue cloud of energy its impact created. Every ounce of the energy that was concentrated into the blast went straight into the fat android's power systems via a red sensor directly in the center of its palm.
The Z Fighters all stood in amazement. Even after hearing Yamcha's brief story of how they could absorb energy, seeing the android consume an entire Kamehameha blast was truly a sight to behold.
"Goku! Don't fire any more energy at that thing! He can use his palm to absorb energy! At all costs, do not let him grab you!" Piccolo shouted. Usually he would allow a fighter independence, and would have let Goku figure that out himself, however this was serious.
Goku's panting was slowly worsening as he grew ever-more tired. He remained floating in the air, "Heh... Eheheheh... Sheesh, he's like... he's.. he's like a sponge, isn't he?" Goku smiled.
"I'm starting to see what you guys were talking about now... Goku doesn't look like he's in the right mental state, even for him," Tien said.
"Perfect! That blast seems to have given 19 a compensational sum of energy - just enough to put him on par with Goku's Super Saiyan form! Yes! Now, 19! Go!" Gero commanded, overcome with happiness.
"Are you guys sure he didn't take any of his energy before the battle? He's been like this the whole time," Krillin asked.
Android 19 and Goku once more had an altercation in which neither side had a gigantic advantage over the other. Goku let out a strike to separate him from the android and continued to catch his breath some more. He slowly but smoothly descended to the ground, clenching his chest.
"This has nothing to do with him taking my dad's energy! Something's wrong with his heart!" Gohan blurted out, pointing at his father, who was struggling to breathe.
"This must be that heart virus that the weird kid from the future was talking about! He was right!" Piccolo realized.
"But Goku took the medicine he gave him, right?" Krillin asked frantically.
Goku fell to the ground, tightening the grip on his chest. Android 19 stared blankly at him, expressionless, as Dr. Gero laughed at the unfathomable misery and pain Goku was going through. Krillin jumped into the scene holding a bag of senzu beans. He tossed one in Goku's direction, "Goku, catch!"
Goku snatched the flying bean. Before consuming it he made sure to thank his friend for jumping in to help him. Goku began to feel a little better as the bean almost-immediately kicked in.
"Ahh... So the data I had gathered on these healing beans was no hyperbole.. They really do heal remarkable injuries in an instant.." Dr. Gero observed.
Android 19 quickly shot two beams out of his eyes in the direction of Goku, giving no warning. Goku was barely able to jump into the air and out of the way of them. Right as he felt he was on the cusp of safety, the android vanished behind him and dealt major punches to him, hurtling him back down to the ground with great velocity.
"The senzu bean... It didn't help him at all!" Yamcha noted, worried about what might be wrong with Goku.
"He can't shake this virus... But how? How could he be in this condition if he took the cure from the future kid?" Piccolo urgently asked. He had noted to everyone earlier that Goku was having a hard time out there, but he had not thought of the heart virus as a possibility until now.
"Dad never took the medicine..." Gohan admitted, a little embarrassed, not wanting to explain his father's faulty move which may have ended up costing him his life.
"What? Why not?" Krillin asked.
Goku stood back up, shaking.
"He... he never felt sick, so he never felt there was a need to take the medicine..." Gohan felt so ashamed for his father as he told the Z Fighters why Goku was feeling this pain. Gohan had been secretly suspecting that it was his heart for the whole fight, however didn't want to admit to himself that his role model had messed up this badly.
Android 19 charged right at Goku, headbutting him with great speed. This threw Goku a good distance back, and onto the ground once more. Goku descended from his Super Saiyan form back to his base form.
"Oh no... Goku was already having trouble as a Super Saiyan... This is bad!" Yamcha shouted. All of the eyes on the Z Fighters were wide open. A single blink could result in missing an important move.
Android 19 quickly fell from his vantage point in the skies and right onto Goku, who was still lying on the ground. Goku could feel his bones being weighed down by the android's great mass. Android 19 opened his palm and reached toward Goku's face, which was completely open for absorption. He clasped Goku and began to feel his energy coursing through his systems.
"We can't just stand here! All of his energy is being stolen!" King Cold yelled, not about to watch Goku lose his life force.
"Took the words right out of my mouth" Piccolo agreed.
The Z Fighters began to fly toward the scene, only to be interrupted by Dr. Gero, "If any of you fools go beyond this point, you will meet a fate far worse than what is going to happen to Goku."
The Z Fighters stared him down for a moment, unsure of their next move.
"So, would any of you filthy worms like to try me?" he asked, condescending all of them.
"As a matter of fact, I would love to," King Cold said.
"Same here!" Piccolo interjected as he got closer to King Cold. The Z Fighters were beginning to respect Cold more and more as this day went on. Perhaps the several years had really allowed him to see a new light.
Piccolo swung his arm toward Dr. Gero, who dodged the strike as if it were a fly, and countered with an eye beam similar to Android 19's. The two shots hit Piccolo in his torso as he let out a loud shriek and fell to the ground. Gohan flew down, hoping to aid his friend.
Immediately after the energy beams left Dr. Gero's eyes, King Cold let out a mighty swing toward his eyes, hoping to disable his ability. Gero remained unscathed.
"They can't charge ki like us! They have to absorb it! Eventually this hunk of metal is going to run out!" King Cold theorized.
He smirked as he charged a small ball of energy in the palm of his hand, which he used to blast King Cold in the face, knocking him down next to Piccolo.
"What King Cold has thought of is true, however I've got a while to go before I run empty, gentleman... I suggest you three use your brave friends as an example!" Dr. Gero intimidated the remaining Z Fighters - Krillin, Yamcha, and Tien.
Android 19 had found plenty of energy in Goku to absorb, and was having a field day in doing so. His field day was brought to an abrupt end, however, when he was kicked in the face unexpectedly. Goku was released from his grasp as Android 19 skidded across the gravel and dirt.
Unlike Piccolo, King Cold was still slightly awake and aware of his surroundings. Although incapacitated to where he could not fight, he was still able to see the surprise attack.
You're welcome, Vegeta... I distracted Gero so you could make that strike... Please don't fail us. King Cold thought to himself as he smiled and closed his eyes.