DRAGON BALL NEXT

EPISODE 6

AKIRA VS. SAMBA!!!

Some people have experienced the feeling of being on top of the food chain, only to realize that they're nothing but a chunk of meat in between the teeth of a larger predator.

At least, such was the way that Samba felt as he faced Akira, whose presence seemed to encompass the whole stadium, the whole universe as far as the olive-skinned savage was concerned. The young human standing before him had just evaded his most powerful attack, a feat the proud Samba had thought nigh impossible.

Who is this kid, dammit?! he thought as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. We were warned before coming here of the Saiyajin and the half- breeds, but there was no mention of a human being with even nearly the amount of power he has!!!

The accursed human had gone so far as to address him as one would address a weak stripling.

For what you did to Pan, you're gonna pay!!!

The very thought made Samba's blood boil. The insolence! A mere human, speaking unto one of his heritage as if he were nothing but a low-born warrior! If only he knew of my proud parentage, it would be a much different deal!!! The anger, humiliation and hatred pushed away all his fear and washed over him like molten lava, giving him an adrenalyn boost he'd never before felt.

But also, there was another force that helped erase the horror he felt at the moment. A fear of something so terrible, the option of dying a thousand deaths before this human was actually becoming attractive.

He dared not fail his master. Better to be atomized by the human than face the master's wrath.

-What's the matter, pasty boy? I thought you were gonna hurt me or somethin'!!!-, Samba said, falling into a fighting stance, his voice trembling like that of a madman or a person on the border of hysteria.- WELL C'MON, DAMMIT!!!! I'LL FREAKIN' KILL YOOOOUUUUU!!!!!!!

Had it not been for Samba's shades, Akira would have seen the haze of madness in the green one's eyes as he wildly charged the young human, claws extended and teeth bared.

In the VIP booth, Pan held her breath, unnoticed amidst the roar of her companions. Opposite them, the Z-warriors cringed in tension. All save for Vejiita, that is. He was wearing a strange smile, one that would make all the other warriors in the room run for cover, had they been watching him.

And then, before Samba's eyes, a millimeter away from his claws, Akira vanished into thin air.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------------------------

Deep in the mountains, next to a waterfall, there was a small capsule house. Out of it came a slender blonde dressed in caqui shorts and a black T-shirt. She was quite athletic, and although she was already well in her sixties, her face hardly showed the passing of time. Indeed, in her eyes resided an eternal passion, which would often turn into a form of wild exhuberance that most men feared. Actually, all men, except the one she loved. Who by the way, she noticed with a sense of disgust, was WAY late for dinner. Turning her scowl towards the waterfall, she squinted to try and find the other man in her life. Or rather, the boy.

-JUNIOR!!!!!!! I CALLED YOU FOR DINNER OVER AN HOUR AGO!!! GET YOUR ASS BACK IN THE HOUSE RIGHT NOW, DAMMIT!!!!!- She roared, and all the animals in the mountain ran away in fear. The only form of life that approached her was a hovering speck that came out of under the waterfall, and grew as it got nearer. It was a young man, no older than sixteen, with short blond hair, and a third eye perched in his forehead.

-But, mom, dad said to-- -. Tenshinhan Jr. could not finish his sentence.

-HAVEN'T I TOLD YOU NOT TO LISTEN TO YOUR FATHER!?! IF YOUR FATHER TOLD YOU TO JUMP OFF A CLIFF, WOULD YOU DO IT!?!-, Launch screamed at her son, who flinched at the rock-cracking volume of her voice.

-Actually, mom, he did, and I have... how do you think I learned how to fly?- In a second, Tenshi, as his mother called him when her mood was mellower, regretted saying those words. Launch grabbed him by the ears and dragged him into the house, impervious to his yelps of pain.

-DON'T YOU GET SMART WITH ME, YOUNG MAN!!! It's bad enough that I have a crazy husband, but I also get a smart-ass son!

-Where she gets off calling Tenshinhan crazy, I'll never know- a small voice behind the kitchen door muttered. With an angry growl, Launch whipped an uzi out of nowhere and started blasting the door, and didn't stop until it was nothing more than sawdust. When it cleared, the whole kitchen was riddled with bullet, and a very frightened, white-skinned, mime-looking midget with an apron hovered in the air, shaking as it realized it was unharmed.

-WHAT. DID. YOU. SAY!?!?!-, Launch roared, aiming the uzi at the bewildered Chaozu's head.

-I-I-I I said "dinner's ready, come get the chow"!! Really, I did!!!

-Hmph. For your sake, I hope so-, Launch huffed, holstering the uzi. She overlooked the kitchen.- Sigh. I guess it's takeout again.

-What the heck happened here!?!-, a masculine voice exclaimed from behind them. Tenshinhan Sr. was wide-eyed at the destruction cast upon his house.

In a second, he would also regret having opened his mouth. The screams could be heard all the way to Karin's Tower.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------------------------

The world seemed to seemed to freeze in that moment in what seemed to be an eternity. It was only within a fraction of a second that his gut seemed to explode, every atom in his body trasforming into pure, undistilled pain, as Akira reappeared, underneath him and at his side. A core of knowledge deep inside his brain told him that the human had evaded his attack, moved underneath and away from his arms, then delivered a crushing uppercut to his stomach; still, all his data-processing functions had been overridden by the all-encompassing pain that threatened to end his consciousness right there and then. He could feel that he'd not yet touched the floor, as he was hanging from Akira's fist like a slab of meat on a hook. As the pain slowly retreated, he realized blood was flowing from his mouth to the floor. As he fell to the floor (once Akira removed his arm), he remembered to breathe again, and started to regain control of his limbs from the subconscious reflexes that had overtaken them.

Pan regained her breath as well, just as the crowd burst into cheers. Oh. My. God!, she thought, a sudden urge to giggle like an idiot starting to flow through her. He's okay! I knew he'd be, but still...! He's SO strong! I can't believe it! Everyone around her went into a frenzy of cheering and screaming, so she did as well, shouting a barrage of insults to Samba that would make the devil cover his ears.

The Z-fighters cheered as well. Vejiita's grin grew even wider. Could it possibly be!?! I don't want to get my hopes up, but if it is..!

Tango was bug-eyed by now, shivering with fear at the sight of his brother, doubling over in pain, squirming like a worm on the ground.

Akira just stood there, seeing the once proud savage fighting not to throw up. He crossed his arms and scowled.

-Get out of the ring-, he said. Samba turned an eye to him, suddenly frozen by Akira's words.

-W-what-t?

-You heard me. You're in no condition to fight. You're barely conscious as it is.- Akira turned a pair of burning eyes towards Samba that had he been able to move would have made him bolt.- Don't get me wrong. I've got the strongest urge to rip every limb from your body and make you swallow them.

Akira turned to Pan, who was looking at him, her face now relaxed. As she looked at him, she understood what he wanted to do. She nodded, letting him know telepathically that she wouldn't feel betrayed by his mercy towards the green monster. Go on. Somehow, I knew you'd do that. I feel that's just the way you are.

Akira smiled, then turned his scowl towards Samba, who was now kneeling, trying to stand.

-But I'm not a soulless beast like you. That's why I'm gonna give you the mercy you denied Pan. You're gonna walk out of this ring, then you're gonna take your brother and leave the tournament grounds to never be seen again.

Samba now stood on his feet, regaining some of his composure. He couldn't fail his master. HE COULD NOT!!! The pain, the humilliation and the hatred made him forget his vow of silence.

-Graagh... to hell with you... and your mercy...I will not fail... my mission... I WILL DESTROY ALL THE EARTH-WARRIORS!!!! I WILL NOT FAIL MY MASTEEEEEERRRRRRRRR!!!!!!-, Samba screamed, bloating his ki beyond its prior capacity. Every cell in his body gave way to his power, and for a nanosecond, he had the illusion he was going to win.

Such an illusion shattered into a million pieces when Akira's ki grew into a monster that seemed to swallow his own like a drop of water in the sea.

-YOU IMBECILE!!!!!!- Akira roared, as he disappeared and reapeared again exactly two hundred times, each time throwing an earth-shattering blow, each time breaking a different bone in the green warrior's body. The spectacle was gut-wrenching. Two seconds after starting to move, when he finished his grizzly work, Akira stood before the shattered doll into which he'd made Samba as the warrior-turned-beanie-baby squirmed in unconsciousness on the floor. At that very moment, the pocket-cube fell, seeming needless now that one of the fighers was out of comission.

The whole audience was deathly silent for a moment, morbidly contemplating the wrecked Samba, then roared in approval. Master Roshi still gawked at the unconscious chiropractor's nightmare, when Akira's voice drew him out.

-Hey, Master Roshi, aren't you gonna declare the fight over?-, the young warrior said, his voice even, not showing an ounce of tiredness, anger or happiness. Just sadness.

-Whoa, kid! You didn't kill'im, didja? I mean, not that I mind, I heard what he did to Gohan's kid, but...-, Master Roshi said as he jumped on the platform.

-No, I just broke most of the bones in his body. I wanted to make sure he'll never hurt another person again.

-Kinda drastic... I like it! LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!! AS THE CONTESTANT SAMBA IS UNCONSCIOUS, THE WINNER OF THE TENKAICHI BUDOKAI'S THIRD BATTLE IS AKIRA!!!!!!!

Amidst the crowd's ovation, Akira picked up the limp Samba by his clotes and flinged him over his shoulder. As he walked into the waiting room, he hurled the body towards the terrified Tango, who only managed to catch it. He was even more horrified to see his brother was still alive.

-He'll live if you get him to a doctor. But what I said still stands. Since you obviously didn't hear me, I'll say it again. Take your brother with you, walk out of here, and never let me see either of you again. Got it?

Tango gritted his teeth, as afraid as his brother was of his master, yet unsure of wanting to face someone with this young human's power. Akira moved closer to him, and Tango took a step back involuntarily.

-Remember who you'll be fighting against in the next battle? That's right. Vejiita. He's not exactly the forgiving type. He'll make you feel so much pain you'll think that what your brother went through was a refreshing shower.

Akira wasn't through the word "refreshing" yet when Tango ran away from the Tournament grounds, taking his brother with him.

After everyone in the waiting room had congratulated Akira, Vejiita and Tango were called for the fight. When Master Roshi was informed of Tango's sudden departure, Vejiita was declared winner by default.

Later that day, Gohan and Goten were released from the regeneration tanks, and Gohan was quite pleased to hear of the treatment Akira had given "that green bastard (no offense, master Piccolo and Dende)". So pleased, in fact, that he invited everyone to another round at the Papaya Cantine, only to remember that it'd been destroyed in the wake of Vejiita's drunkenness a few days past. So they settled for a good in-door dinner, courtesy of the Hotel (quite easy to get, since it belonged to Trunks' family) and Bulma's idea, as she didn't want Vejiita out of her sight anywhere near booze.

So nightime fell, and almost everyone had the time of their lives, save for a certain saiyan misoginist whose identity I'll leave for you to guess. Kryllin's family, the Briefs and the Sons gossiped, as did the younger females of their families. And Trunks, Uub, Goten and Akira traded fighting tips, girl tips and nasty jokes. Akira headed over to the bar to get some more root beer, when he felt a fierce ki approach him from the side.

-That was quite the killer instinct you showed back there, crippling that Samba creature like that-, Vejiita said, climbing on a stool.- I wouldn't have thought you to be that cruel. It's not a bad change, actually.

-Oh, well, I didn't break his spine, so he should be able to move soon enough.

-Maybe, but what interests me the most is that act of mercy you showed for that green bastard at the end. You were gonna let him walk out, didn't you?

-Well, yeah, I mean, I don't like picking on weaker people, you know? What about it?

-You tell me. It kinda reminds me of somebody. A very good fighter. His name was Kakarot, but the moron chose to call himself Gokuu.- Vejiita looked at Akira fiercely, as the young one almost choked on his root beer.- Ring a bell?

-Hmmm. Nope, sorry-, Akira said, wiping the soda off his mouth.

-Uh-huh. Well, this guy was almost as powerful as me. His problem was, he was a real imbecile. I'm not kidding, he was as stupid as they come, dumb, thick-headed, one big tub of concentrated idiocy--

-Hey, c'mon!!! You know that's a lot of crap, Vejiita!!!- Akira exclaimed, then almost slapped himself as the Saiyan prince grinned fiercely.-... er... I mean, th-that's what I've been told, y'know?

The Prince of the Saiyajin's gaze met his own, and Akira launched into a fit of nervous laughter that attracted the attention of everyone in the bar. That's when someone tapped on Akira's shoulder, making his sudden fit stop.

-Hey! Excuse me, Uncle Vejiita, but I'll steal Akira here for a minute!-, Pan said, pulling Akira's arm, his expression like that of a man whose death penalty has just been revoked as he was dragged towards the group made of the under-forty ladies of the three clans. Vejiita was left to his own thoughts.

The next day, the Z-warriors met at the waiting room at the crack of dawn. There was no one in the whole colisseum, only the cleaning crews, preparing the arena for the events to come.

-Kinda early, aren't we?-, Akira said.- There's something about an arena that just pulls me to it.

-It's strange, isn't it? It's nothing but dirt, metal and stone, but what it represents is something so much larger than any of us-, Uub said as he stretched in preparation for the fights.

-I guess it's about the evolution of the species. For some reason, we are all compelled to fight, to be stronger, to be greater than we are now-, Gohan said, looking at the sun as it peeked over the edge of the stadium.- But we fight, and then we fight some more, and in the end, what we do is so tiny in the grand scheme of things... as many times as we've saved our galaxy, it's still so small in the great scale of the universe...

Goten looked at his brother.

-Is that why you became a scholar?- Gohan nodded.

-In part. I mean, why are we alive, after all? I don't mean how our bodies work, but why do they work? What is life made of? We all know of ki, but where did it come from? Where did it begin? Was there a beginning, and if there was, will there be an end? So many questions, much larger than any of us, and we still worry about the more petty ones. For example, why do we work so hard at making hair-growth pills, when there are people starving all over the world? What good is viagra when cancer can still not be cured, even by the senzu beans? We should be more worried with "is there something beyond the kami and the kaioushin?" There's something out there, something so tremendous that our understanding can't cope with it... it's inside and out of us, encompassing everything... I hope to find it someday. I wonder-, Gohan looked at the sky.- if dad's found it...

-Wow. I have no idea of what you just said, Gohan, but it sure sounds deep- , Akira said, blinking repeatedly. Gohan sighed, then laughed. Some people could just be so content in life... Ignorance is bliss, indeed.

The decisive hour arrived. The fights were set up: Gohan would fight Akira, and Vejiita was pit against Uub.

-Awright, I guess this is it, then, mr. Gohan.-, Akira said. Gohan smiled back at him.

-That's right. And you better stop hiding your real power, or I'm just gonna waltz all over you.

-I could say that to you too! I've got a full stomach and a mean disposition today! I know you like to take it easy on people, but if you're not careful, you're gonna wish I took it easy on you!

-Them's fighting words, pal!

Master Roshi cleared his throat.

-AAAALLLLRRIIIIIIGHT LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! WE HAVE REACHED THE SEMI-FINALS OF THE TENKAICHI BUDOKAI!!! OUR CONTESTANTS HAVE GONE THROUGH HELL TO GET HERE, AND ONLY THE FOUR STRONGEST FIGHTERS IN THE UNIVERSE REMAIN!!! FIRST UP--- AFTER DEFEATING HIS BROTHER GOTEN IN THE TOURNAMENT'S FIRST BATTLE-, Master Rohshi motioned towards the waiting room- HERE'S SON GOHAN!!!

Gohan walked onto the Platform.

-AND IN THE OTHER CORNER, A MAJOR SURPRISE IN THE TOURNAMENT!!! A FORMERLY UNKNOWN FIGHTER, HE'S SWEPT THE COMPETITION ALL THE WAY FROM THE PRELIMINARIES WITH THE GREATEST OF EASE!!! HAVING OUTCLASSED THE FEARSOME SAMBA IN A GUTWRENCHING MATCH, LET'S HEAR IT FOR AKIRA!!!!

Akira walked onto the Platform, waving.

As the crowd boomed, inside the VIP box Pan realized that for once she was not certain who she wanted to cheer for. A couple of days ago, had anyone asked, it would have been her father all the way. The only other person she could think of that would have made her so indecisive would have been her grandfather Gokuu, and he had his bloodties and their adventures together as a reason. It was rather ironic that this complete stranger, whom she'd only known for a few hours, could break her partiality in a matter of seconds.

Still, there was that strange familiarity, that powerful frame, those clean and shiny eyes, that enormous self-confidence that lacked the least bit of arrogance. But, above all, there was a calm feeling of serenity whenever he was around. It seemed like nothing could ever go wrong if he was there.

Wow. And here I thought there was no such thing as immediate love. Suddenly, she felt a lot closer to her grandmother, Chi Chi, and Videl. Apparently, it was fate for women in her family to fall in love with powerful men right off the bat.

The Pocket cube was activated.

-No holding back, mr. Gohan.

-None at all.

At the same time, both men fell into fighting stance, then zipped out of sight.

Vejiita watched the fight with growing excitement. The only way that kid'll beat Kakarott's son is if I'm right. And if I'm right...

Trading blows at Mach 1000, both fighters smiled.

-POWER UP!!!-, they both cried at the same time.

And then the Cube lit up like a million stars.

AKIRA VS. GOHAN!!!!! JUST WHAT'S THE YOUNG HUMAN'S POWER LIMIT!?!