Dragon Ball: Governed


Chapter 48 - Savagery Resurfaced


With the Tenkaichi Budokai beginning to premier, everyone awoke early and got together. Upon discovering that Gohan decided to take his shot at the tournament, Kakarot was all for it. Though having the option to do so many times over the years, the Saiyan who's gotten accustomed to Earth didn't see the reason to since he was so much stronger than any normal participant hoping to gain some clout could ever be. But once Chi-Chi told everyone that Kakarot and Gohan would be attending, that's when everybody decided to come out of retirement.

Kakarot, Krillin, Chi-Chi, Tien, Chaotzu, Gohan, and Gyumao. All of this made up of the super skilled fighters to participate.

Oh, and you can't forget about Roshi, either.

All of the participants were on the arena, surrounded by all people of different cultures. Kakarot and his crew, being surrounded by nothing but strangers, were unable to see just exactly what was going on in the arena. They saw bit by bit that someone would come off the ring after doing some test.

"Man...it's been so long," Krillin said in awe. "I remember how it was when I was younger...but everything seems so different now. I don't even think the arena was this huge."

"You took the words out of my mouth," Chi-Chi chimed in.

"The thought of participating crossed my mind, but I didn't see any reason to. The competition is just far below what I am."

"Heh," Gohan chuckled. "Exactly how I felt about school."

"Did you tell that to the principal before or after you got expelled?" Chi-Chi jabbed.

Whenever she got that phone call home about Gohan getting expelled, Chi-Chi went ballistic. It had been a while since Gohan had fear instilled to him by his mother and it was the first time in a long time that Kakarot even truly experienced it - hell, he'd be inclined to say that was his first time.

Gohan didn't have anything to rebut his mother's words and respectfully remained silent. Chi-Chi crossed her arms in triumph and looked the other way. However, just whenever Gohan needed something to take his mind off the incident at home, he was tapped on the shoulder by someone.

"Glad you could make it, Gohan!" Videl greeted. "I see you brought the whole family, too."

That's when Gohan's eyes lit up. Everyone but Kakarot noticed, though it wasn't like he cared. "I was wondering when you'd show up!"

"Oh, Videl!" Chi-Chi hugged the young woman. "It's nice to see you make it, too! So Gohan really did talk you into participating, didn't he?"

Videl blushed. Gohan did far more than talking her into it, but she wasn't going to discuss that with his parents. "Sure did. Also, Gohan told me a lot about your tricks and taught me a thing or two! So don't think I'm some slouch."

"Oh, we can see that!" Roshi said, lowering his shades. He sucked in air at the sight of the curves on her young body in those short spandex tights. If only he was 18 again. "I see why ya got her as a friend, lad."

Gohan gave Roshi a subtle stink eye. The old pervert chuckled and put his shades back up and started to whistle. He may have been 18 and sheltered by his mom, but Chi-Chi had him visit Roshi enough times to pick up on his perverted nature. He had even got a hold of his magazines when he was 12...good times.

"Because she's a fighter just like me," Gohan clarified. "She was already stronger than her dad, but she's leagues above him now."

Gyumao, in a joking mood, leaned over to his grandson's ear and whispered, "Ya know you're not fooling anybody, right?" Gohan always felt comfortable talking to Gyumao about his history with females and the big man knew all too well that his Grandson was quite the mack with the ladies. For him to see Gohan tag a female along meant that he actually liked her. She must have been someone special for sure. If he had to guess, it must be the similarities when it came to fighting.

Gohan got red in the face and remained silent to Gyumao's words.

Curious, Tien asks Videl, "How come we aren't in the back for preliminary rounds? I always thought that was the protocol when it came to this event."

"They changed things up a bit. Instead of taking it inside and beating on each other, they have these punching machines that calculate the force behind impact. Only the top 15 highest can get in. It would be sixteen, but since my dad was the previous champion, he gets the automatic spot in the finals."

"That hardly sounds fair," Roshi commented. "Some sloppy fighter can get a higher number than a more technical Martial Artist simply because of a marginal size difference in physicality." From what he understood, many hadn't tapped into their true potential via the utilization of ski, so it was only fair to those who actually knew the arts of fighting. There were very few of those people these days.

"It's all in the form," Videl responded to Roshi. "Come, follow me."

Being the daughter of Mr. Satan came with its perks. Besides all the annoying notoriety that Videl had been getting for years now, one thing she never complained about was getting front row seats. Now that she was participating for the first time as an adult and not a junior, she was allowed instant access to the front of the arena as well as those that followed her.

Once a group of people are done punching the machine, Videl and those with her all get called up and proceed to go in a single line.

Once Videl stepped on and her face was shown, everyone in the crowd started to cheer in a roaring unison. Krillin had to cover his ears because the sounds grew so loud.

"My dad was the first one to try it this morning. He scored a 137 and nobody's managed to surpass his record the entire day." She signals them all to take a step back and they do so, allowing the young skilled fighter to get into her fighting stance. After making sure she got into a proper stance, she looked over her shoulder. "Gohan, if you really say that I'm stronger than my dad, then the proof in the pudding's going to be here."

He just winked at her.

Videl took in a breath as she cocked her fist back. The entire crowd grew silent, as well as the announcer. Videl's name didn't need to be shouted out for the world to know who she was. A simple glimpse at the face was all they needed. Videl didn't let everyone's anticipation of her score get to her, though - she remained focused. Swinging swiftly as she motioned her hips, the very moment that her fist came into contact with the punching machine was the moment that she let out her breath all at once.

The beeping from the machine continued on for a good five seconds before stopping at 150. She pumped her fist into the air, proud of the fact that she exceeded her dad's. Many people awaiting their turn gulped hard. Some were already worried that she would be good because she's Mr. Satan's daughter, but seeing her getting an even higher score? Now she was someone to look out for.

"A score of 150 for Miss Videl! Passing her own father's number, she just may have more than likely secured her spot automatically."

"See, what I told ya?" Gohan gave Videl a high-five and a soft pat on the bottom that went by unnoticed...except for Roshi. "You're definitely stronger than him."

Videl stepped off to the side and watched as Kakarot got his name butchered since he was up. The Saiyan scoffed at the mispronunciation of his name. He could never get used to it ever since he came on Earth.

Kakarot stood upright and just flicked the machine with his middle finger. The machine beeped and came to a calculation of 225. This caused quite a few people to pass out on their backs. Kakarot just revelled in the looks of shock and some even being terrified of his capabilities.

"You didn't have to show off," Chi-Chi scoffed.

Kakarot just shrugged smugly. There was a part of him that loved getting a reaction out of people. He couldn't help himself.

But the surprises didn't stop there.

Tien clocked in with a punch of 200. His best friend, Chaotzu, took his power down as much as he could, yet still got eyes nearly popping out their sockets with a reading of 175. Chi-Chi knocked off at 226, just to one-up her husband, who stifled in a chortle. Gyumao outdid everyone with a score of 250, though the reactions weren't as great. After all, he was the size of love baby between a human and a mountain. Krillin tagged in at 192. Roshi himself decided to actually try to be smart about it and got 135, but of course, it didn't mean anything now since everyone else just wanted to blow people away. Still, for an old, brittle looking man, scoring two points behind the previous champion himself said a lot.

"Gohan…" Videl tugged him in closely to whisper. "You told me that your friends were expert Martial Artists who knew about ki, but you never explained to me that they were freaks of nature."

Videl wasn't mad about it, just shocked that this was even possible. Taken aback by her own results, seeing everyone else blowing her out the water was a lot to take in.

"You think that's something…? Watch this."

Gohan didn't waste any time and punched the machine without setting himself correctly. Kakarot laughed while everyone else face-palmed at Gohan getting a reading of seven hundred and ten.

One of the administration members of the Tenkaichi Budokai hesitantly walks over to Gohan, sweat going down his chubby cheeks as he plays with his round glasses. "U-Uh...excuse me, Mr. Gohan. Just under the assumption that something's going on with the machine, we're going to replace this one with a new one, okay? And we'll have you try again."

"Go for it," Gohan told him. "I'll just break the next one."

"No you won't," Chi-Chi fussed.

Gohan scoffed as he shook his head. If it weren't for her, the machine would be in bits.


As they were just enjoying the moment of being in the limelight of the Tenkaichi Budokai, Kakarot or the others hadn't bothered to notice that there had been four pairs of eyes on them the whole time...with two of those pairs belonging to individuals not from this realm.

"Remember, we don't expose ourselves to them until we come face to face with one of them in the ring."

"Of course. That long-haired boy seems to have the highest potential of them all. He's not as strong as the man who looks like him, but if that power can be brought out…"

"Exactly…"

Despite replacing the machine with another one, Gohan still recorded an outrageous number that resulted in just half the one he initially struck. Having the highest strike out of everyone, not one single person participating in the tournament kept their eyes off him, except for his family and 'friend.' And only a few of those had their eyes on him for different reasons.

Since the preliminaries were finished, the numbers were all stacked up against each other and the final 15 contestants from the preliminaries had been put in since Videl's father had already earned his spot. All of the contestants were placed in the waiting area under a roof just a few dozen yards away from the ring.

These contestants consisted of Gohan and his family alongside with Videl and a few other people who went by the names of Yamu, Spopovich, Kibito, Shin, Jewel, and Pintar.

"All righty, folks! The match-ups have finally been made and it's time for the tournament to begin! We have quite a few new faces to make it into the preliminaries, so let's hope for something refreshing will ya!?"

"Oh, they'll get something refreshing, all right," Gohan said under his breath.

"FIRST MATCH UP: VIDEL VERSUS JEWEL! You're going to want to stay quiet and keep your eyes open for this one here, folks! We've seen the kind of talent Videl's put up in the junior matches over the years and she's finally decided to enter the real big boy tournament as an adult! It's an entirely different league in here but will she be able to show just how well her skills convert to this division!? Let's find out!"

Videl couldn't even do as much as look at Jewel. He reminded her much of Sharpner. He didn't appear all that muscular beneath his baggy button up gi, but his long blonde hair and bright colored eyes and strapping facial features just made her think about him and how annoying he was. If it weren't for Erasa, she wouldn't even as much as know his name.

As the two walked over to the arena, Jewel spoke. "I gotta say, you sure didn't get your looks from your dad cause you're too damn cute. Say, no matter what happens after this match, I'll give you my number and we can go out to eat once I win the tournament."

Videl rolled her eyes and remained silent as they headed onto the arena up the steps. Both of them stood across from one another and backed up a bit as the announcer stood in on the grass below.

He got into his battle stance and winked. "I'll make it worth your while, baby, trust me. I doubt that virgin over there you've been hanging with since you got here can make your leg shake for an hour straight after I'm done with you."

Videl grinned. "That boy over there isn't a virgin. I tell you what, though. If you can beat me, then I'll 'consider' taking your number."

"BEGIN!"

"Hah! Deal. I'm not holding anything back, either! I've seen your score!"

Videl watched as the guy came running up to her as fast as he could. Despite only training with Gohan for a week and a day or so, for some reason, the way Jewel moved...seemed so slow. With every single movement he made the closer he got, the wider Videl's grin curled. This was just going to be way too easy.

Videl ducked under a punch from the blonde and tripped him using her feet. Before he could fall out of the ring, she grabbed him by the back of the shirt and tossed him back over into the middle of the ring.

"You're sloppy."

"This is going to be way too easy for her," Krillin pointed out.

Feeling a bit embarrassed, Jewel tried to play it off smiling as he got back on his feet and dusted himself off. "Not too shabby, Miss Videl. You're right, though - that was sloppy. I can forget about your sexy ass for a bit and treat you like I would any other fighter. HIYA!"

Videl blocked a jumping kick from Jewel and moved her head from side to side, up and back, evading every single punch and kick he had for her. The audience, as well as her own father, who watched from his office, was in awe at her great agility and finesse.

Grabbing a fist aimed directly at her face, Videl maintained a firm grip. "I guess you don't want to take me out that bad." Placing her hand just inches away from Jewel's stomach, Videl backed her hand a bit and came forth, stopping just short albeit with enough force to send Jewel sliding on his behind and right out of the ring.

"Di-did she even touch him!?" The announcer fixed his glasses. "No matter, it's a ring out! Videl wins!"

As Jewel remained on the ground, befuddled and mesmerized, Videl had the last word. With a proud grin plastered over her face, she crouched down on the edge of the ring to share her departing words with Jewel. "And for the record, I wasn't going to give you a chance whether you won or not. Ciao!"

"Amazing…" Tien remarked. "How did you manage to teach her such mastery of chi in such a short amount of time, Gohan?"

Standing there proudly with his arms crossed, Gohan just replied, "I kept her motivated."

"How?" Chaotzu asked.

"You don't wanna know…" Gohan cleared his throat.

Krillin just face-palmed.

Coming down off the arena, Videl asked Gohan how she did. He said that she did wonderful, which for some reason, swelled her up with pride. She noticed the look of satisfaction on his face. No doubt he had to love the fact that he taught her so well with the limited amount of time they had.

"NEXT UP! Gohan versus Kibito! We have never seen either of these two before but they recorded remarkable numbers with the punching machine! Hopefully we get something spectacular rather than the one-sided match we just all experienced!"

It wasn't until Kibito was called up to face Son Gohan that he caught Kakarot's interest. Much to the Saiyan's amazement, he wasn't able to feel any source of energy from him...nor his supposed friend.

"You all picking up what I'm picking up?" Roshi asked.

"Yep," Krillin answered. "Nothin'."

"Could it be that he's a cyborg or an android or something?" Chaotzu asked. It was a smart question on his behalf, given that the last opponents that they battled up against well over a decade ago were cyborgs and androids, all of which had no source of energy that they could pick up.

"Hard to tell," Gyumao said. "One thing's for sure, though. They're not from here."

That was something everyone could agree on. Despite all the different types of people that lived on Planet Earth, none with their complexion or overall style was anything that had ever been seen before. Whoever they were, they were enigmatic. And that was what made them interesting. Seeing Gohan going up against one of them would allow Kakarot and the others to tell whether or not he was a wannabe or the real deal.

"What's going on?" Videl asked. She was hearing everything they said, though she had no idea what was being discussed. It was definitely something on the inside, though this was something that definitely caught her attention. Who was Gohan up against? The guy definitely looked like some sort of alien. Most of all, what really got Videl's eye was the sight of Gohan's tail. After meeting him at his home for the first time, he revealed to her that his tail wasn't some belt, but a real part of his body. And yet for some reason, he decided to keep it unwrapped from his waist.

But the truth was that being around this guy made Gohan somewhat uneasy, though that had nothing to do with his confidence, which remained unaffected. If anything, this only excited him more.

As the two stood on the ring, Shin, the one who remained silent the entire time, walked up and finally spoke. "No matter what happens here during or after this fight, none of you bother to make any moves. Is that understood?"

"Uh," Krillin rubbed his head. "I'm sorry...but who the hell are you?"

"What's going on?" Videl asked.

Kakarot scoffed. "Last time I checked, the only person I took orders from is my wife. I couldn't care less of who you are, but if something out there happens to my son, you and him are going to answer for it."

Shin shook his head. "I know more than you know, Saiyan…"

This caused everyone to go silent. Though everyone was confused at the fact that this person knew what Kakarot came from, Videl was completely bewildered. She never heard the term Saiyan before. There was something bigger going on here.

Realizing he's caught their attention, Shin continued to speak. "Just know that I know that your wife isn't the only person you happened to take orders from, including past or present. Something bigger than what you all realize is going on and I'm going to need you to sit back."

"Or what?" Gyumao asked.

"Saiyan, you know the name Freeza, yes?"

A slight chill went up the man's spine. "I do."

"The man considered the ruler of the Universe, the most vile, disgusting being there is to ever exist." He looked at them coldly over his shoulder. "I can vaporize him with a simple flick of my hand. Knowing that, also know you wouldn't be able to do anything to me or my mentee. Now sit back and watch."

"Kakarot…" Chi-Chi mumbled.

Kakarot remembered stories about Freeza from Turles. If the Saiyans were still out and about, he was still governing over them. For all he knew, it was perhaps Freeza who had sent those two Saiyans here long ago to conquer this world, but he wouldn't understand why. Earth had nothing to offer him or the Saiyans. "Very well. But remember what I told you earlier."

"I do and I will. Promise."

"BEGIN!"

"You have the potential to be the strongest warrior on this planet, perhaps in this entire galaxy. I'm going to need you to bring it out today - nothing held back."

Gohan chuckled. "I see that you're new to this and all, but you really don't know what you're asking for."

"I am far more aware than you are, boy."

"Tch!" Gohan dashed at Kibito, deciding he was going to end this fight with one punch.

Kibito saw this coming a mile away and moved to the side. Gohan slid over to the edge of the arena and turned around. Swatting a ki attack coming directly for his face, the half-breed grew serious.

"So you wanna play that route, huh!?" Gohan rushed in for Kibito once more, this time taking him serious. Kibito continued to dodge and block all of Gohan's attacks. Gohan vanished out of sight, re-appearing behind Kibito, attempting a punt to the spine. Kibito got a hold of Gohan's ankle by clamping onto it using his forearm. Reeling Gohan in, the young warrior is rendered an elbow to the face and dropped on his back.

Gohan performed a kip up to get back on his feet and fired off a wave of ki at point blank range. Unable to sense his ki, Gohan could only wait for the dust of smoke to clear up until he confirmed whether or not he did any actual damage. Much to his amazement, Kibito remained there, hands behind his back.

"That's more like it. Much more power is waiting to come out."

Growling as he clenched his fist. "Why you arrogant - hiya!"

"This guy isn't even trying with Gohan!" Krillin exclaimed. "What the hell is going on!?"

Everyone was speechless, including Videl. She couldn't even see Gohan move at the blinding speed he maneuvered himself, yet they could all see the guy was toying with Gohan? At just what level were these people on?

Still, Kibito was toying with Gohan. He evaded his attacks and retaliated each time, frustrating Gohan even more.

Leaning back to miss a punch, he swept Gohan by the leg, grabbed his face, and smashed him dead smack into the arena, forming a giant crack.

In the audience, Bulma couldn't believe what she was seeing, much less Turtle.

"I-I don't think this is supposed to be happening…" Turtle observed. Bulma kept her voice down though her suspicions continued to rise.

Kibito punted Gohan in the side and sent him into the clouds.

"Are any of you seeing this!?" the announcer screamed. "Gohan just got sent to the sun!" It wasn't as if he couldn't speak any sooner, though. Just a second later Gohan came crashing right back down - and hard. "And he's back down!"

"WHAT THE HELL!?" Chi-Chi screamed. "Are you trying to kill my son!?"

"I promise you we aren't," Shin told her. "Trust the process."

"What process!?" Krillin argued. "The process of seeing my god son getting beaten to death!?"

"Like I said, you're going to need to bring that power out of you," Kibito spoke calmly as he descended back down with his hands behind his back. "Get up, mortal."

Gohan, rising back to his feet, clothes torn up as he's bruised, chuckles. "Mortal, huh? That's a new one. Your head's so far up your own ass that your ego decided to take a shot for the stars, eh? Alright, then." Gohan grew serious. "You want to see real power!? I'll show you real power!"

Tensing his body and grinding his teeth, a heap of smoke began to release itself from Gohan's body as his skin started to turn a light red color. Everyone immediately noticed what it was that Gohan was doing.

"Since when did you guys teach Gohan the Kaio-Ken?" Tien asked.

"That's the thing…" Kakarot blinked slowly. "We didn't."

"KAIO-KEN!"

In a burst of speed, Gohan rocketed for Kibito once more. The giant man took a strike to the face and a plethora of punches and kicks. Gohan ended his combo with a gut-strike to the stomach, which took Kibito by surprise, who doubled over, albeit slightly. Striking while the iron was hot, Gohan pounced into the air with his hands cupped, emitting a blue energy in the palm of his hands. "SUPER KAMEHAMEHA!"

Kibito looked up seeing a giant wave of ki coming right for him. The light blinded so many people but it wasn't for long. Balling his fist, he punched the energy right back at Gohan, who had no choice but to cancel the ball or ki out or he was done for. By firing a semi-charged Kamehameha at his own attack, an explosion right in the sky occurred, one of so much force that everyone had to duck and cover their asses.

"What in tarnation is going on out there!?" Videl's father sat there, eyes beginning to roll over from his face. He couldn't tell whether or not this was a dream.

Gohan was in the sky, body shaking and quivering due to the aching pain from withstanding his own supercharged attack. The Kaio-Ken died out as quickly as it was applied and he stood there with all hairs on his furry tail standing just as upright as said tail, which looked like a damn stick from how straight it was.

"Y-You're kidding me…"

"G-Gohan just gave it everything he had and he just...punched it away!?"

Kakarot at this point could see that Shin was not speaking on empty words. He looked at the man and he looked right back at him. He most definitely meant business.

Videl covered her mouth with her hands. "Gohan…"

The only other time Gohan had been in a fight of this caliber was whenever he trained with his mother, father, and grandfather in the Room of Spirit and Time during the time of puberty - during his most confusing time as a young, growing boy.

Never did he think he would come across someone just as strong as his own family.

Or even stronger for that matter.

Kibito appeared behind Gohan and sent him down once more by driving both fists into his back. Gohan came crashing down hard on his stomach, spitting up blood in the process. Just getting back up on his knees was a chore as his legs felt all wobbly. That was the first time he had ever used Kaio-Ken, and he had only used it from seeing his mother and grandfather use it before.

His body wasn't used to the intense pressure that it applied and it showed as he struggled to maintain balance.

"If you don't bring out everything you have within you right now, I can promise you that your planet will forever remain in jeopardy, and you just may never be strong enough to save it from the danger that's coming."

Gohan's tail twitched. "Is that a threat?"

Seeing the spike of alertness come to Gohan intrigued Kibito. Out of the corner of his eye, he spots a nod from Shin. Gohan seems ready to keep on, but it's that anger. His anger is what must be brought out. He knows what he has to do.

"No, it's a promise," Kibito responded. "Your precious family and that little Earthling girl you seem to fancy will all have their heads ripped off and bodies torn to shreds. This Earth will be a far-cry from what it used to be; beautiful and full of life turned into a barren waste-land where crows will die out because they won't even be able to find any bodies to feed on."

Gohan's anger made him forget about the world of pain he was just in mere moments ago. "No…" his body began to shake. "You can beat me to a living pulp...you can call me names, belittle me and degrade me. But one thing…" his bright blue aura flared to an entirely different color for a split second. "ONE THING...you don't do...is threaten my family...NOR MY HOME!"

Gohan, letting his power bubble up inside, unleashes an ear-piercing war cry that splits the clouds briefly, allowing the hot sunshine rays to beat on everyone. As his aura changed to a golden color, everyone's eyes widened.

Kakarot's especially. "No...is he…?"

Feeling that power come to the surface, Gohan holds onto it. He doesn't pay attention to the change of color that his power is emitting. He continues to let out a yell, this time compelling the clouds to all come back and let grey cast over everyone in the area.

Lightning strikes in the far distance. The grounds rumble from his power. People start to panic. What is this creature?

Seething at the teeth, Gohan lowers his head, keeping a firm grip on the power he feels raging inside. All it took was one good look at Kibito's face. "I WON'T LET YOU!"

Gohan's jet-black hair turns to that of golden. His black irises turn teal. The mass of muscle on his body increases as if he's making a dramatic metamorphosis. Half the tiles of the battle arena rise and crumble to hundreds of pieces until there's nothing left.

Having completed his transformation, there's nothing but rage in Gohan's eyes. He can't contain himself anymore.

"SHIN NOW!" Kibito yells.

Both Kibito and Shin hold their hands out. Gohan was mere inches away from Kibito before being put to an absolute stop, unable to move. He wanted to rage at them to let him go, but he can't even form words as electric zaps surround him.

Next thing he knows, something enormous pierces his stomach and he can feel the life being drained from him right then and there.

"Gohan!" Chi-Chi cries. Rushing for him, Kibito is right there to get a hold of her and prevent her from tending to Gohan's aid. Everyone else is just stuck...including Kakarot. The shock of seeing his son being brought to death's door-step is right there, but him? A Super Saiyan? He couldn't even fathom.

The people taking Gohan's power away from him look at Kibito and smirk before removing the pot with a thick needle and flying away. Everyone there is stunned and speechless. What the fuck just happened!?

Once Spopovich and Yamu take off with Gohan's stolen energy, Shin looks back at them. "All of you either have the choice of staying right here and tending to him or following those two and getting to the real danger." Without sharing another word, he took off.

Kakarot immediately came back to his senses. "All of you, go follow him! I'll be right with you."

Krillin, Gyumao, Tien, Chaotzu, and Roshi all nodded before they took flight.

Videl followed Kakarot to the arena, who took a simple hop over there. Leaning over and crouching near Gohan, Kakarot started to dig into his shirt until he got a hold of a senzu bean.

"Here son, eat."

Gohan couldn't even muster the strength to do that, much to Kakarot's frustration. Looking at Kibito coldly, he told him, "I will find out what's going on and if you two are up to anything, I promise I will slaughter you both."

"I'll stay put here and keep an eye on him," Chi-Chi told Kakarot.

"All will be explained in due time. I can cure your son. You go ahead and follow Shin. We both will be there once he's recovered."

"Videl, stay here with Chi-Chi. Chi-Chi, if he tries anything, spike your energy level and I'll be right back, understood!?"

"The only time I'll take a demand from you, Kakarot. Go on, we'll catch up soon."

Kakarot left it at that and flew off to catch up to the others.

Having caught up to them, Kakarot demands for an explanation. "What exactly are we supposed to be up against?" Shin didn't appear to be the enemy even though his actions would prove otherwise. He must have had his reasons. The impulse of ripping this stranger's head off ate at the Saiyan but he knew it'd be in his best interest to keep his wits about him.

"A warlock," Shin answered. "See, long ago, when humanity was in its infancy, across the universe appeared an evil warlock by the name of Bibidi. But before him, since time immemorial, there was something far much worse than him - a creature by the name of Boo. Bibidi discovered him and used his wizard powers to govern over this creature. This creature has absolutely no reason or empathy. His only purpose in life is to slaughter and destroy - to strike fear into those across the Universe. In just a few years of his existence, hundreds of planets had been wiped clean from the face of the Universe."

"That's damn near equivalent to my lifestyle as a child as well as many others who grew up on Planet Vegeta," Kakarot surmised.

"Your people wiped out entire civilizations and continue to do so, selling those planets for profit under Freeza. Boo wiped out entire planets effortlessly. Your people don't hold a candle to this monster. Though Bibidi managed to control him, it was only temporary. He ultimately resorted to creating a magic seal to place him in. He brought Boo to his next targeted location...Planet Earth. Bibidi had died, but he has a son named Babidi...just as terrible as he is. And he intends on releasing Boo here."

"For someone who can destroy Freeza with relative ease and worry so much about this Boo, he must be in an entirely other league," Kakarot said.

"He can wipe out Kibito and I while sleepwalking," Shin said, just to give everyone an idea of how monstrous he was.

"All we have to do is stop him from bringing this Boo creature back to the surface," Roshi concluded.

"Yes," Shin answered. "Your Son Gohan didn't have anywhere nearly as much ki that Babidi needed to resurrect him, but it was the most he could obtain due to his deep potential. Now that they've got his energy, they're going to lead us right to him."

It didn't take very long for Kibito, Chi-Chi, and Gohan to catch up to them. "HEY, YA'LL!" Chi-Chi shouted. "Guess who's back and as good as ever!?"

Seeing that Videl wasn't accompanied with them, the others figured that she turned back to the tournament. That was probably for the best given the circumstances.

"They're making their descent," Shin called out. As he headed behind a giant mountain rock, Shin demanded that everyone hide their chi that instant.

From there on, everyone watched what transpired below. The two people that had stolen Gohan's energy were being greeted by some strange looking people, all of whom undoubtedly took a part in slaughtering the innocent that lived in the area.

Seeing that one of the people under Babidi's belt was Dabra, the Demon Lord of the Demon realm, everyone wondered if this situation couldn't get any worse. They all got to see just how corrupt these people were when they killed the men that serviced them by gathering energy from Gohan.

After taking care of them, Babidi was most pleased. "Now, Dabura…"

"Yes, My Lord?"

"As I anticipated, they brought even more prey to the wild. All of them along with my father's killer."

Dabura chuckled. "The fools suppressed their chi, but I still sense all ten of them."

"Our best luck is to lure them all in and suck their energy as well. Kill one or two of them. Get them angry enough to draw them in. Whatever you do, don't kill the Godly Lord himself. That's a personal matter I want to dispute."

"Fine by me. I'll make sure you have your fun."

Babidi and his other henchmen, PuiPui decided to go in, leaving Dabura alone. Shin was quick to realize that they know they're there, but it was far too late. Within the blink of an eye, Dabra made it right toward their destination. Kibito was blown to bits. Shin tried to warn them of Dabura's spit turning people into stone but it was too late. Chaotzu, Tien, and Krillin had all been turned. One thing Shin did make sure of was that they didn't touch them otherwise they die.

Making way back inside, Dabura chuckled callously. "You all better run on to where you came from! Nobody can defy Master Babidi!"

"Heh!" Kakarot was the first to go. "WE'LL SEE ABOUT THAT!"

Shin made an attempt to warn everyone of the trap, but it was too late. Kakarot, Gohan, Chi-Chi, Roshi, and Gyumao, all shot in, leaving him no choice but to enter as well.


Going down the deep rabbit hole of Bobidi's ship, everyone was full of worry, except for Kakarot. It had been a long while since he had been truly tested. With the knowledge of his son being capable of turning into a Super Saiyan, deep down inside he knew he could become one as well. And due to the fact that Dabura was leagues ahead of him, this just may be the push he needs in order to finally ascend to the next level.

"Good of you to come as well," Kakarot told Shin.

"Of course. I can't leave you all to your own undoing because of your ignorance!" Looking up and seeing the ship has been sealed, he sighed. "Now we won't be able to escape at all."

"Then we'll just destroy the damn thing," Gohan said.

"No, you won't!" Shin scolded. "That'll wake Boo. Even if he doesn't have the energy that he needs, it would be nothing for him to destroy us and the planet! We have to use our heads."

"Agreed," Roshi said. "If this situation is as dire as you say it is, we have to try to be two steps ahead."

"That won't matter," Shin scoffed.

"Why not?" Chi-Chi asked.

"Because they're already three…"

The sounds of a metallic door sliding catches all their attention. From the door emerges the other subordinate of Babidi, PuiPui. "Master Babidi is at the bottom floor. Thing is - if you want to get through - you're going to have to kill me."

"An easy task," Kakarot said.

Cutting right to the chase, the full-blooded Saiyan maneuvered behind PuiPui and dug his fist directly through his chest, ripping his heart out on the scene. Dabura and Babidi, both of whom are spectating, witness this despicable action by Kakarot. The Saiyan licks the blood squirting onto his lips as he pulls out PuiPui's heart and squeezes it right in his hands.

The Saiyan's heart is pumping harder than it's ever been. Flashes of his old life just come in and out his mind. The manner in which he slaughtered people before as he went on conquests with Turles was what he missed. Killing innocents? No. But the barbarism? Yes, indeed.

Kakarot's tail wagged side to side. Flicking the blood off his hands, he speaks. "We know you can hear and see us. Please do tell...is this the best you can offer? Hehehehe…"

Everyone was struck in awe besides Roshi - most of all, Gohan. Everyone knew of Kakarot's past, including his son, but it's one thing to hear about the brutality and another thing to see it. All his life, Gohan witnessed his father fight bad guys and do it the right way. Never like this! But the old man Roshi had seen this brutality from Kakarot when he was just a little boy; knowing that the Saiyan had calmed down greatly despite the utter savagery he was capable of, a nauseous knot tied itself tightly into the Turtle Hermit's gut. To see this resurface was surely most unexpected, but he wasn't surprised - not like the others.

Shin stood silent. He knew what this was. Knowing of Kakarot's history as a planetary pirate, this was only expected. Despite his good, he's done more than enough bad over the years and being here he's been fighting every day against his wicked nature. That was all he knew growing up and now he had an excuse to act on those merciless desires. The evil surrounding them didn't help - not one bit.

"Kakarot…" Shin huffed. "You shouldn't have took it to the extreme!"

"Oh, and why not? They can't take what they've been dishing out?" He laughed. "I know you saw that lifeless woman with half a body out there! This is nothing that they're not used to."

"You may have done great things for this world, but you've done terrible things for others. They can sense the Evil within you, Kakarot! If you continue to show them that then they-"

"!"

Kakarot smashes his hands against his head as he lets out a painful cry. Everyone backs up in confusion.

"No, no, no, no! I knew they would do this!"

Kakarot, holding his head, letting out his power, starts walking mindlessly all over the place, falling on his knees, getting up, shaking his head. A deep, primal roar of the Oozaru even comes about every few seconds, causing the entire room to shake.

"What the hell are they doing to my father!?" Gohan screamed.

"He's trying to use your father's evil for his own personal gain - Kakarot, don't fall into it! CLEAR YOUR MIND! DON'T THINK ABOUT ANYTHING! DON'T LET THEM CONTROL YOU!"

"S-S-SHUT THE HELL UP!" Kakarot roared.

The Saiyan's hair started to rise, flashing with a golden color. In his mind, he can hear Babidi's voice. Flashes of Kakarot's past life flicker through his head. The adrenaline rush he got before every conquest. He could feel it coursing through his veins. Babidi continued to feed on it.

Kakarot, side against the wall, bit his lip so hard that blood dripped to the floor by his boot. "G-GRAGH...!"

"His power…" Gyumao gulped in hard. "It's rising like Gohan's did…"

"No," Roshi told him. "It's going far beyond that…"

Kakarot let out one final scream to shake the room and send everyone down onto their behind. Huffing and puffing, Kakarot was on one knee, taking in deep breaths. His power surged like it had never before. He felt so much anger and hatred surface from deep down and just manifest into a power he never thought he would ever taste!

Looking ahead, a subtle smile appeared on Kakarot's face. His golden aura flared. He felt magnificent! Seeing the M on his forehead was more than enough for Shin to realize...Babidi won him over.

"Finally…" Kakarot sighed, full of relief. "I've ascended."

As soon as that happened, the atmosphere completely changed. One moment they were directly at Babidi's ship, and the very next, back at the tournament arena.

Just like that, everyone grew confused. The audience, the tournament announcer, and all the other participants of the tournament. All of those who just decided to leave mere moments ago up and reappear out of nowhere...with a familiar color, yet vastly different energy.

"D-Dad," Gohan approached him. "Dad, you're still in there, right!?"

"Oh, I'm here, son…" Kakarot responded. "And I feel great!"

"Now kill them!" Babidi yelled in Kakarot's head. "Kill them all and gather more energy for me - your master."

The Saiyan scoffed. "No one rules me!" Looking at his hands and tensing his muscles. "This power, son. You felt it the moment you turned, didn't you!?"

"Y-Yes…"

"And it felt amazing, didn't it?"

"Look!" Shin interrupted. "You're stronger now and obviously not under Babidi's control, so together you and Gohan ca-"

Kakarot blew Shin away with the flick of his hand, knocking him off the arena. "Enough from the clown! A damn God who's purpose is to protect the Universe can't even do his job right. I'm not listening, nor was I talking to you!" He pointed at Gohan. "I'm speaking with you, my boy! You, the only other person who knows what it's like to have Saiyan blood coursing through your veins! All those times as a little boy when I took you out every opportunity I had to train you - it was your Saiyan proclivities calling you to fulfill your destiny, Gohan. There is so much more than a simple life. All my time here, thinking of having a family and doing good as that supposed omniscient chub of lard Zuno said would do me good to finally achieving my goals when all it took was some witch to aid me in achieving my true goal makes me want to vomit! But still, you can relate to me, can't you son?"

Gohan was speechless. Stammering and fumbling words, he didn't even know what to say.

"We have a duty far above this, Gohan. Our people - the Saiyan people, are still under rule by that slime ball Freeza as we speak. Together, as Super Saiyans, we can take him out and take over what's rightfully ours - Planet Vegeta - or as we can call it...Planet Kakarot. That and Freeza's spot will belong to us!"

"Are you serious!?" Chi-Chi hollered. "All this time, you've just been doing this in hopes of becoming a stupid fucking Super Saiyan!? You never thought being a good husband, father, and samaritan of society was enough, did you! The only thing in the back of your mind was some stupid transformation! Now that you've got it, what are you going to do!? Just up and leave!? Go back to your old life just like that!" Tears swelling in her eyes, her voice cracked. "Did we ever mean anything to you?"

Kakarot fell silent momentarily. Sure, he had feelings for her. He loved her and Gohan. But...

"Kill them…" Babidi's voice echoed.

This feeling. He felt like he was a young boy again.

"Gohan, you and I are going to go over there, kill those clowns and leave this world. We are going to kill Freeza and take what's ours. Understood?"

"HOW COULD YOU!?" Chi-Chi cried. Running toward him out of sorrow, she hoped to bring him back.

"Don't go near him!" Shin yelled.

But it was too late. Chi-Chi had been smacked right out of the arena as if she was a nobody. Gohan called out for her, but no response. She was still alive, but out cold.

"You have no choice in the matter, boy. With or without you I can do this all alone, but it's best to bond the way a Saiyan should…"

"I've had enough of this!" Gyumao roared. "KAIO-KEN TIMES TWENTY!"

Before Gyumao could do as much a lay a finger on him, Kakarot's fist goes right through the man's stomach. The entire time, he maintained hard, cold eye-contact with his son as he killed the boy's grandfather right before him. Gyumao fell on his knees, grabbing at Kakarot's shirt. "This is all too familiar, isn't it, Gyumao?" Removing his hand from Gyumao, he smacked him away.

Gohan lets out an enraged roar, transforming into a Super Saiyan as well. "My answer is NO!"

Kakarot was rather disappointed, but he didn't dwell on his son rejecting him. "Fine. Then we'll have a legendary battle. As father and son. Your choice."

Gohan rushed in for his father.

Kakarot smiled. "Bring it on…"