Chapter 14: The Conclusion Grows Closer

Balmont stepped forwards, forced ki deep within the muscles of his legs, and dashed towards Kakarot. Leaping up into the air, Balmont spun his leg around and smashed into the young saiyan's hastily constructed guard. The kick broke through and connected with Kakarot's jaw, sending him flying backwards. Balmont wasn't allowed a moments rest as Bulma swiftly responded with a barrage of punches. Each punch flew with such incredible speed and devastating power but they were useless. Bulma had no clue how to correctly throw a punch and Balmont knew he could take advantage of his opponents naivety. He jumped up into the air and brought an elbow down into Bulma's unprotected head. The girl was stunned for a moment, allowing for Balmont to grab hold of her arm, pivot his legs, and slam her body into the ground. As soon as Balmont had finished dealing with the girl, he heard the young saiyan's battle cry from behind him. Kakarot's leg collided with Balmont's side, forcing up blood that coated the inside of his mouth. Biting down hard, Balmont pushed through the pain as grabbed Kakarot's leg and threw him a few meters away. Kakarot skidded for a moment in the rocky ground before planting his feet down. The wolf's violent assault continued as the town began to clash punches and kicks. Every hit shook the ground around them. Every hit let out a deafening explosion of sound that echoed for miles around. Though Balmont was putting all of his energy into each of his attacks, the young boy was still holding on. There was a fiery inferno of hatred and determination that clung to the child's white energy. But, there was only so much passion could do to close the gap strength created. Balmont let all of his energy explode in a punch that collided with Kakarot's fist. The sound of crunching bone resounded, merging with Kakarot's scream of pain. Balmont stopped for a moment, expecting his young opponent to be down for the count, but as he did, Kakarot ducked down and slammed his other fist into Balmont's soft stomach. The wolf stepped back, clutching his stomach, and weezed,

"W-what the hell!? You shouldn't be able to stand!"

Kakarot stood, hunched over in pain. A cut had opened up on his forehead, leaking blood down his eyes and onto the floor. His breathing was irregular and strained, each breath sounding like it might be his last.

But still he stood.

"I-I won't l-lose to you…"

The child's eyes were filled with bloody tears that made red lines on his cheeks. Fire burned behind that child's eyes. Devilish fire. If someone like this was allowed to live, there is no telling how strong they would become. Maybe the strongest in the universe. As Balmont was lost in thought, a foot slammed into his back, sending him directly towards Kakarot. Bulma's voice roared from behind him,

"UP! KAKAROT HIT HIM UP!"

The young saiyan was confused for a moment but got the message. He pulled back his fist and rocketed it towards Balmont's jaw. The monster punch collided, rocking Balmont's brain, and sending him flying up into the air. He flew for a few moments, before being greeted by Bulma who elbowed him the back, sending him shooting back into the ground. Kakarot jumped back, barely avoiding being caught in the massive dust storm that was kicked up as the wolf finished his swift descent. Bulma landed next to the young saiyan and asked,

"Kakarot, what happened to your hand? Are you okay?"

"Don't lose focus of what's important," Kakarot snapped back, "There's no way that that attack took him down for the count."

Bulma nodded and returned to staring at the crater she had just made. Even though she was still in danger, some part her felt very proud that she was able to pull off such a successful attack. But, like Kakarot said, the battle wasn't over yet. Right as she thought that, the dust rapidly dispersed. Immediately, the two warriors tensed up, desperately trying to prepare themselves for the continuing of the battle. For a moment, there was no movement. Only silence. Neither fighter lowered their guard. If they did, Balmont would see it. Finally, the silence was broken as Bulma whispered,

"Maybe he really did-"

Before she could even finish, a flash of grey fur appeared in the corner of her eyes before she felt a clawed hand wrap around her throat. Kakarot attempted to free her, leaping forwards with his leg raised for a kick, but was tossed back by an invisible blast of energy. Bulma tried to scream out but the clawed hand closed tighter and tighter around her throat. Her eyes pleaded with her attacker but, when she looked into Balmont's eyes, she saw something terrifying. Balmont's dark eyes now had another colour that merged with the black. A deep, royal purple gave him a truly menacing aura. Bulma kicked out, flailing her legs in a desperate attempt. Even as her attacks landed, Balmont did not break eye contact. The purple invaded Bulma's soul, forcing her to turn away out of fear but Balmont forced her to stare. Suddenly, his focus changed to something behind Bulma. A small smile grew across his face as he tossed Bulma to the ground. He let his arms rest at his side as he called out,

"Finally, I can finish this..."

Kami was shocked at Kakarot's sudden disappearance but there was no time to dwell on it. He had a fight to finish. Tolstoy let out another screech and dashed forwards. Kami pivoted his weight and turned to the side, causing the bull to soar past him. Before Kami could return to normal standing position, Tolstoy was already on him. The bull's fist smashed into Kami's face, throwing him back a few meters. The punch shook the core of Kami's mind, making his vision blurry and fuzzy as the monster's assault continued. A kick collided with Kami's chest, but, as it did, Kami was able to respond with a weak punch that scraped Tolstoy. Again, he was forced back, but, this time he was able to move out of the way before the attack could continue. Kami was surprised he was still able to stand. Blood was beginning to combine with the bile in his stomach, causing him to nearly vomit. But as this happened, something else was taking control of his mind. A kind of anticipation.

Because there was no way he was going to lose.

Predictably, Tolstoy attempted to rush him again. Kami was ready for it this time. Ducking underneath the punch, Kami sent his fist flying into Tolstoy jaw. The beast was stunned for a moment but he wasn't hurt. Tolstoy raised his arms high above his head and prepared to slam them back into the ground. Kami barely moved to the side, tearing his purple gi on a stray rock. Jumping back to create some distance, Kami charged ki within the palms of his hands and, as Tolstoy pursued him, let out an invisible blast of energy that threw the bull back into a stack of rocks. Now that Kami had a moment of peace, he could start the second part of his plan. Planting his feet, the ancient namekian put his hands together and begun to gather his ki within them. This technique was one that he remembered from his youth but he had not performed for many years. His other half, King Piccolo, had once attempted to use the technique on him but had nearly killed himself from the power drain. A lot had changed for Kami in the years since that battle.

And there was no way he was going to lose this battle.

Kami's muscles grew larger and larger as the intense ki that flowed within his body exploded. Tolstoy let out a scream of rage and dashed forwards. I just need a few more seconds, Kami thought, just a few more seconds. A aura of yellow energy flowed around him and a flaming heat tore at his muscles. Tolstoy was only seconds away but his attack still wasn't ready.

Please just a few more seconds.

The bull's flaming rage burned higher and higher as the seconds ticked down. Flickers of lightning danced in the air, mixing with the aura and shot across the sky. Only once Tolstoy was centimeters away did Kami fire. His hands outstretched, Kami screamed out as the ball of yellow energy in his palm exploded outwards. The ball shot forward, collided with Tolstoy's chest, and erupted into a avalanche of yellow energy. The tsunami of power drowned the bull in it terrifying wake and threw Kami sprawling backwards. Though that technique was devastating, the energy drain and power needed to use it almost rendered the attack useless. Kami had developed this attack years ago, before he had even split from his old self, and as he used it now, the name escaped him. Bright Missile? Blazing Explosion? The fatigue the attack brought about suddenly hit Kami, forcing him to his knees. Pain rushed through his old bones and threatened to give out but held strong. They only needed to for a few more moments.

Then, the battle would be over.

Once the dust and smoke had cleared, Kami could get a good look at the damage his attack had inflicted. The bull was not in good shape. His armour was torn and busted; blood clinging what was left. His muscles, that only a moment ago had been exploding with power, were beginning to wane. But still, his red eyes shone across the battlefield. The rage was still there. A low growl that Tolstoy was immiting, erupted into another screech of pain as he rushed forwards.

But Kami felt no fear.

Tolstoy shot across the battlefield like a bullet, making up the distance that Kami's attack had created within seconds.

Kami slowly got to his feet and stood with his hands at his sides.

Tolstoy screamed out as he prepared a punch.

But the punch never landed.

The hulking mass of the bull stopped, only centimeters away from the old man's frail body. Tolstoy's body shook, almost as if he was a leaf in the wind. Blood slowly began to leak from his tightened fist.

"Surprised are you, my large friend," asked Kami, "Well once I realized what you were doing it was quite easy to counteract. You can't merely just force your ki into your muscles to stop pain. It doesn't work like that, my friend. My last attack destroyed all the nerve ends around your skin, meaning that you aren't able to use that barbaric technique anymore."

Blood began to drip out from Tolstoy's eyes. Kami placed his hands on the bull's chest.

"Now, hopefully, you'll see that power isn't the only thing that decides a battle."

Giving a light push, Tolstoy's body dropped like a stone to the floor. A sense of pride began to flow over Kami as he watched his opponent keel over. For the first time in hundred of years, Kami had helped end a battle. And he'd done it without the help of the saiyans. The pride almost counteracted the debilitating pain that coursed through his blood, turning it into lava. Consciousness threatened to leave him as Kami walked towards his next objective. Though he hated to do this, there was someone he needed to help before he could give up and die.

Bardock.

The saiyan awakened to the taste of something metallic in his mouth. He tried to spit it out but a hand forced him to swallow.

"You will feel much better if you eat this, Bardock," said a calming and familiar voice. Thought he despised it, Bardock listened to the advice and swallowed. Within a moment, the pain that had stopped his body from moving disappeared. Bardock opened his eyes and locked eyes with the old namekian. Standing up and cracking his knuckles and neck, Bardock asked,

"What the hell did you give me, namekian?"

The old man smiled,

"What you need to end this battle."

I guess I can't argue with that, Bardock thought to himself.

"Guess I better finish this, namekian. You might want to stand back."

Kami gave a weak nod and watched as the saiyan flew away. Though Bardock may not have noticed it himself, Kami could feel the change in the saiyan. The power was unbelievable. Damn, Kami thought, the gap just grows larger.

But Kami knew that Bardock would be the only one who could finish this. The old namekian could swallow his pride once again. But this would be the last time. He'd be back to training as soon as this was over.

Bardock's feet touched down on the hard ground and he watched his son's desperate attacks against Balmont. The old saiyan wanted to step in but it was not his battle to intervene in. A saiyan never interrupts another saiyan's battle. He watched as Balmont lifted the girl high up into the air. She's got a lot stronger since last time I saw her, he thought but didn't think much of it. She had done well to keep up in this battle. As Bardock was lost in thought, he heard the thud of a body fall to the ground. Guess it's my time to get involved, he thought.

"Finally, I can finish this…"

As the conclusion grows ever closer, mAskMaN09 continues to bring you round the clock coverage of the battle as it unfolds. We coming up to the end of this arc and it's getting good. Who's going to win? What did Bardock do to Balmont in the past? Will Kami ever be useful again? Who knows? I mean I do but….

Anyway, see ya later

-mAskMaN09