By rainbowraindeer
Disclaimer: If I owned Dragonball Z, I wouldn't be writing a fanfiction like this one, now would I?
Review RepliesMysticSuperSaiyanGohan: Okay, I understand it all completely. Hopefully I'll be able to apply it to any future fighting and saiyan healing!
Dragonwarriorkeltyr: Chapter twenty was probably my most action packed chapter yet! But I hope this one outweighs it, we'll just have to see. And as for Uub, I probably want to keep this story as close to DBZ as possible, so Buu's reincarnation may have to be in the end. I'd just have to make sure that Goku wouldn't leave with him or anything. But at the moment, I think I'll take votes, and we'll see how it all ends up!
Lady-Kagome84: When Gohan thought that, he meant that he wouldn't let another opportunity to kill his father pass him by.
LauraNeatO: I guess I just didn't want to over do it in reminders, but I'll add plenty in this chapter. I assure you.
Ava: Well, I do try to squeeze in a bit of humour here and there; Goten and Trunks always do wonders for that part of the story. And the romance will be here soon enough (Gohan x Videl all the way!). But I really wanted this story to be a different version of the Buu saga, and so it had to have the same elements of the real DBZ (That's what makes a remake!). To prove your point true, my favourite genres of a story are romance and comedy. But I'm happy you're still satisfied with action.
The following people were kind enough to review as well: Darksupersaiyan, Shadow Dreamer 27, Evil Kirby, Saiyan Prince1 and Lady Tsuru.
Sparks flew all around them as both Gohan and Goku landed their punches and kicks. Occasionally, that fateful scream rocked the fighting area as a powerful attack managed to hit its target. Blood was starting to join the fray, spraying splashes of crimson liquid on the usually white pavement below the battle.
Babidi enjoyed every second of it, watching as Gohan fought with his father as the man tried desperately to pull his son back into the good side. The boy of course wasn't listening, drowned in the memories of Goku leaving him – his family and all his friends too – over and over again.
But when the wizard had witnessed Gohan, his most trusted servant, save Goku from a certain death, a nerve had snapped. Something had forced the boy to stop his strangling, and Babidi would stop at nothing to find out what it was.
But that aside, perhaps Gohan wasn't right for the job. He still had a heart, which was getting in the way. It was obvious, he didn't want to kill his father, just make him suffer, which was still pretty good, but their would be no end result. So Buu would probably have to finish Goku off, since Gohan was obviously not going to do it.
"Gohan!" Babidi called through his mind link with the boy, "Stand down! Buu will finish him off!"
He could almost see the teenage minion gasp in shock, "No! I'll be the one to kill him! This is personal!"
"I don't care!" Babidi scowled, arms crossing over his chest, "You've already shown me that you don't want to kill your father!"
The yellow skin of his scaly little hands rubbed together as he watched Gohan and Goku jet across the sky, desperately trying to land a punch on the other. But even though Gohan was fighting his father with as much power as he could, he was still able to send his master a reply.
"Give me a second chance…" A growl echoed through Babidi's head, indicating how much Gohan truly wanted to finish the job himself. "I won't let it happen again!"
The wizard pondered that option for a second, wondering if he should let Gohan continue fighting his father, or send Buu up. His patience was growing thin, but the boy seemed to really want this. It couldn't hurt.
"Very well." He finally answered, "But be quick about it! You only have one more chance!"
The voice that returned seemed almost happy, but too neutral to officially be called that. "Thank you, Master Babidi! You won't regret it!"
Babidi didn't say anything more. He just stepped back, expecting the real battle to finally begin. Gohan would hopefully not disappoint, or there would be consequences. Dire consequences.
……………………………
Goku's body swerved from left to right, his long hair flowing around him in a fussy, golden mess, as Gohan threw punch after punch at him. The boy was fighting a little more aggressively than before, as though trying to finish him off as quickly as possible. It was like he had suddenly been given a time limit of how long the battle should take.
One more punch was thrown, but Goku managed to catch it. He twisted it around, causing Gohan to flip over. He pushed the appendage into Gohan's back, trying as hard as he could to hold onto the boy.
"Gohan…" He breathed, feeling sweat drip down the sides of his face, "Why did you save me before?"
Gohan squirmed, trying to free himself, but to no avail, "What do you care?" He spat, ki starting to flare around him.
"I care because…" Gohan landed a kick to his stomach before the next words left his mouth. A small blast of ki pounded into his body, and the wind was blown right out of him.
A kick swept under him, tripping him up, before another kick slammed into his stomach. He shot towards the ground in a fiery golden gust. His body made contact, and a pained screech cut through the dusty air.
Gohan was soon standing over him, another energy blast aimed for his chest. "Why? Why do you care?" The energy twirled around in his palm, getting ready to fire.
"Because!" Goku's feet shot up, hitting Gohan square in the chest. The teenager slammed into the ground himself, "I know there's some good in you."
Gohan was quick to jump to his feet. He lifted into the air, and charged at his father. A fist flared above his head, and would have slammed into Goku's own, if he had not moved out of the way at the last second. Gohan flipped on an angle in an attempt to hit him again, but Goku was able to dodge the attack once more.
As Goku maneuvered through each shot thrown by Gohan, he felt the super saiyan three form slowly take its toll on him. It was getting harder and harder to fight. And he knew he was sweating like a pig. But he had to press onward, for the future of the earth rested on his shoulders.
So lost in his thoughts, he didn't know he had been hit until he slammed into the awaiting ground. Gohan was once again standing above him. Only this time, a foot was pressed into his bleeding chest.
"What makes you think that?" Gohan asked, not sounding as angry as Goku expected, you could even say he sounded curious. "There's no good in me anymore!" He pushed as much weight as he could into his foot, pushing Goku into a self-made crater.
Slowly, Goku's hands wrapped around Gohan's foot. His eyebrow-less forehead narrowed over his eyes, and Goku took on a pained expression as he pulled Gohan's boot away from his chest. Energy gathered in his palms, and he was quick to let it loose, blowing Gohan away in a rainbow of different blues.
The teenager's body flew at least ten feet into the air, where he finally managed to stop himself. Goku slowly pulled himself out of his man-made crater, and cupped his hands around his mouth. "Because you saved me!" He yelled through a smile, "You could have killed me! But you didn't!"
Gohan's pupils slowly drifted to the sky. His eyes clenched shut as he tried to shake the words out of his head. Anger radiated through the air as Gohan once again erupted in golden flame. His body suddenly dropped like a bullet from the sky, aimed right at Goku.
A surprised scream left Goku's strained throat as he quickly jumped backwards.
Even though Gohan had been travelling at unimaginable speeds when he had dropped, he landed at light as a feather on the lookouts surface. He was quick to charge forward, delivering a powerful punch across Goku's jaw.
The man flew backwards, but managed to flip back to his feet just before he slammed into the ground. Blood dripped down his chin, and landed on the lookout's pavement. A pool of the crimson liquid soon formed, tainting his boots as it rolled along the cracks in the concrete. His long hair swayed slightly as a strong wind drifted around his tired and tattered form.
"I don't know why I didn't kill you…" Gohan spoke, an unwavering gaze directed at Goku's almost-blue eyes. "But I promise you this…!" Ki flowed around him, as he charged an energy blast in his bleeding palms. "It wont happen again!" And the blast was released, setting a course right for Goku.
Goku managed to catch it, juggling around the ball of energy around in his hands. He gave Gohan that smile, which had warmed Gohan's heart for eleven years. Even though it looked so twisted on his brow-less face, Gohan paused, staring into the face he now hated so much.
"You don't want to kill me…" Goku clamped his hand around the ki tight, destroying it in his grip. Pain flared through his body as his hand was set on invisible fire, but he ignored it, smile still focused on his son.
Gohan growled, "I do…" He hissed, "I honestly do."
And with that, the boy charged forward in a glowing mess of golden ki. Red surrounded his foot as he kicked outward. Hoping to land a strike in Goku's awaiting chest. But the man caught it, clutching onto it for dear life.
"I don't believe you." He spoke calmly as he yanked the boy forward, pulling them into a nose-to-nose position.
Gohan kicked with his other foot, striking his father in the ankle. But Goku didn't budge; all he did was endure the pain as it shot through his spine. "What's so hard to believe?" The boy asked in a yell. He tried desperately to pull out of his father's grip, and only succeed when he managed to land a punch on Goku's face.
He stumbled back slightly as the surprising punch hit, "Because you're my son!" Seeing Gohan's ki rise at that word once more, he added, "Whether you like it or not!"
Cement and rubble was quick to fly into the air as Gohan's foot slammed into the tattered ground. "No!" He shook his head, "You lost the right to call me your son seven years ago!" His eyes narrowed slightly as his pupils flashed red once more, "You proved to me that day that you hated me! That you hated mother! That you hated your life!"
Goku's calm attitude crumbled. His arms dropped to his sides. And his eyes widened, lifting under that eyebrow-less forehead. It was enough to say that Gohan hated him, but to say that he, Goku, hated Chichi and the life they had together. That just seemed to paralyse him completely.
So he didn't even react as Gohan's rocketing ki appeared behind him. He didn't even care when Gohan's sharp boot collided with his back, covered in long, glowing locks of golden hair. And he didn't even make a sound as his face smashed into the ground.
"Hate's such a strong word…" He heard Gohan say from behind him. A hand grasped the back of his shirt, and yanked him to his knees. Gohan dropped him, and slowly moved to his front. Turquoise eyes bored into his head, as more words cut through his mind. "But for you…" Gohan's foot shot out, hitting Goku's jaw and throwing his head back in a spray of blood. "…We might need to find a stronger one!"
Goku raised a hand as Gohan kicked him again. He managed to block it, sending a ki blast into his son's stomach at the same time.
Gohan took a step back as it impacted, but didn't make a sound as he felt it burn at his skin. Once it had disappeared, he threw a fury at punches and kicks at his father.
Goku's hands and feet were quick to move as he blocked all of Gohan's efforts to hit him. A kick flew by his head, but he crouched under it and managed to swing a leg out, sending Gohan to the ground as it swept him off his feet.
"Why are we fighting Gohan?" Goku asked, watching calmly as his son pulled himself out of one of the many craters they had created in their battle.
The boy rolled over, and moved to his feet. They stood mere inches away as Gohan sent his father a reply, "Because I want to destroy you!" And with that, a fist flew out, doubling Goku over by contacting with his bleeding stomach.
It dug into his flesh, trying desperately to rip him apart. His long, flowing hair moved along with him as he grabbed the fist and pushed away. His form flew back; and Gohan's did also, creating a larger distance than before.
Both were quick to gather large amounts of ki at their sides, all the while chanting, "Ka… Me… Ha… Me…" Blue lit up the sky, as both got ready to shoot. And like many times before, a red light flickered around Gohan's, and his Kamehameha wave was soon tainted with the colour of crimson. "HAAAAAAAAA!" Both yelled as they let the two energy attacks meet in the middle.
A clashing of attacks such as this had happened many times before. Between Goku and Vegeta. Between Gohan and Cell. And even the more recent battle between Gohan and Vegeta only a few hours before. But this one held a lot more meaning than the last three. This was between father and son, not a common enemy.
A circling of emotions was poured into these attacks, such as hate; anger and even a little confusion on what had lead to this great battle.
But one thing was for certain, neither of them wanted to lose.
From both ends, a scream was heard, rocking the very ground beneath them. The lookout was suspended in mid air, so it didn't disturb the world below them. But it did almost send those on the lookout off their feet as they watched the two pour as much power as they could into their attacks.
Goku slowly started to over power his son, thrusting his arms forward as he did. Gohan's feet sunk into the ground as he tried desperately to keep his footing. But to no avail, his father continued to win.
Gohan's eyes widened, but they soon narrowed into a scowl, "Not if I can help it…" Pulling almost every ounce of strength he had left in his tiring body, he started to over power his father.
But that wasn't the end of it as, somehow, Goku managed to let even more power ripple into his attack. Once again, Gohan was pushed back, but he wouldn't give up. He took a daring step forward in an effort to retain the upper hand.
From his end, Goku smiled as he came to the realization that he was over powering Gohan. The boy was strong, but nothing compared to a Super Saiyan Three. Besides, he had spent too much energy in the earlier points of the battle to stand much of a chance in a move like this.
But then something dawned on him, something he had almost forgotten about. The winner of their clash of attacks was going to die; the beams were just too strong for anyone to survive. Except for Majin Buu, but that monster knew how to regenerate itself.
Basically, Goku wasn't ready to lose his son; no matter how many times the boy had said that he hated him. No, Gohan didn't deserve to die. He was only a teenager, so lost in a pool of memories that he was now looking at from a different angle.
Goku felt that he needed to end the attack before someone got hurt. Gohan had saved him on two occasions at that point, even if he denied that he meant to, now it was Goku's turn to do it.
Again, Instant Transmission seemed like the only option. So with a sharp intake of breath, he took a palm off the beam, letting Gohan quickly gain an upper hand. That hand rose to his head, and he disappeared in the blink of an eye, appearing behind his son.
Gohan watched as his own kamehameha wave overlapped his fathers, completely oblivious to the man standing behind him. It ripped through the air like a bullet, until it was nothing more than a thin line of crimson fire.
His hands closed tightly together, and he smirked in victory. But soon his senses came back online, and a very familiar flicker of ki was felt from behind him. He swung around, shocked by what he saw. His father floated there, staring at Gohan in a way only a super saiyan three could.
"No…" He blinked. "You should be dead!" His hands lit up in a flame of fire, and he shot out a hand to connect with his father's stomach. "Why won't you die!"
Goku grabbed the hand before it managed to do any damage, and threw his son over his shoulder. Gohan's body slammed into the ground, and was sent sliding across the tiled ground. Ironically, he stopped at Babidi's feet.
"Boy…" Babidi's soft tone echoed through the cold air, "Your time is up."
Gohan lifted himself up, eyeing his master in shock. "No… I can still beat h-" Gohan's sentence was cut short as a powerful mental shock was sent through him. The 'M' sitting above his brow line glowed a crimson red. He screamed as the pain grasped him, entwining with the powerful blows that infected his once beautiful body.
"Stand down!" Babidi hissed at the trembling boy. "Buu!" He yelled, turning his head to his father's creation. "Finish him off! And be quick about it!"
Buu's podgy head nodded up and down, before he jumped over the withering teenager, and sprinted over to where Goku stood.
Goku's eyes widened slightly as he watched Gohan's head fall as a pained look came over his face. "Gohan…" A bead of sweat dropped from his brow-less forehead, but Goku reached up to wipe it away. "What's happening to you?
A pink blur suddenly landed in front of him, soon revealing itself to be none other than Majin Buu. "You fight with me now, mean man!" Buu's childish voice hallowed, as he pointed a round finger at his pink chest.
A harsh breath left Goku's mouth as he crouched into a fighting position. The fight with Gohan had really taken a toll on him, and he slowly felt himself lose his grasp on his new transformation. Like he had predicted, it was a lot harder to hold onto than in other world. But still, the long hair and brow-less forehead remained.
His feet slightly shuffled as he was overcome with fear. He knew he wasn't going to last very long with such a depleting power level. But be damned if he wasn't going to try.
To be continued…
Posted 17 September 2005 – 2986 words
A new review record has been set: Eleven. One more than last time!
And speaking of reviews, this story managed to reach past one hundred. So thanks to everyone for helping me get to that point. Whether you are a one-time reviewer or sticking with me for every chapter, I love you all!
There you go, LauraNeatO! The word 'loose' has been changed to 'lose' in every place needed.