Dragon Ball AH
Zanji Saga
Eric Kinneary
Prologue
It was a time of peace in the Galaxy. All of the tyrants had long since been defeated: Frieza, Buu and Bebi defeated by a mere saiyan. It seemed that the events of the century revolved around this one hero. His name was Goku. It was a name few new of in this new age. This time of peace so fondly called "The Golden Era". Violence had been all but erased from people's minds. Military forces had not been used in more than a century. Martial Arts forgotten in the winds of time. To some, this world was a utopia. To some, this world was a place of pleasure. But to one, this planet was a place of sheep. Sheep to be slaughtered. This utopia, this perfect world, would know his wrath. It was time for Zanji to take his place in the universe. And this planet would be the first in his empire.
But Goku could sense there was something wrong, that something vast and evil was approaching his adopted home. He left his journey with the Shenlong and went back to Other World, where he has been waiting for two centuries for word of the coming disaster. That time is now.
Chapter 1
"And after you do that... you follow it with that... hi-ya! Then counter with a... wa-cha!" Grand Kia instructed as he cut through the air in a series of chops and halfway kicks. Goku and Pikkon looked on in disbelief, exchanging worried glances. They had finally attained their free lesson from Grand Kia after 200 years of training, and so far, it had been a huge disappointment. At first, it looked as if it might turn out well, he had instructed them on the basic art of Grand Kai, but now he seemed to make it up as he went along. If not for the sunglasses covering his eyes, Grand Kai would have been betrayed by his looks in a second.
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"Defend yourself better, Gohan!" The boy's father cried out. But his son was to slow. Gohan spiraled towards the earth as an elbow came crashing into his jaw. Goku looked at his son with pride though. Gohan had finally attained super saiyan level 3 a few days ago. Although the flowing hair looked odd on his son's form, it was an honorable achievement. And before long, Goku hoped his son would be able to achieve super saiyan level 4. Of course, finding a way to grow his son another tail could prove to be a challenge.
"Argh!" Gohan thought to himself, "I need to develop a better defense! Dad breaks though it every time. I'll have to figure out how he does that..." Goku came swooping towards his son, his long yellow hair receding, replaced with the shorter, black hair of his normal form.
"It was a good fight today, Gohan. With some practice, I think you should be able to achieve the next level. Besides, we've been sparring for 183 hours now. I think I need a break. Your mom is bound to be worried sick by now." Goku thought of his wife. It was to bad she had turned into a cloud when she died, after all, she couldn't cook for him anymore. Gohan was okay, but he'd be darned if he could cook fried rice like she could.
The two started home, glance every so often at Vegeta as he continued to train in the distance. Gohan didn't know if he'd ever give up. Even in death Vegeta has become obsessed with becoming stronger than Goku.
"You'd think it was life or death with that man." Gohan went over again in his head, "When will he learn that no one is stronger than dad? No one that I know of has offered dad a challenge for the past 150 years. When will Vegeta learn that the reason dad is so strong... is because he enjoys it! He only cares about being stronger than someone when someone could get hurt."
Vegeta will learn some day that being stronger than dad isn't what's important. He'll figure it out eventually."
"Gohan? Hello? Goku to Gohan, come in Gohan."
"Oh? Oh!" Gohan hadn't realized it, but Goku had been trying to get his attention for the past 5 minutes. "Sorry dad. Guess I was just thinking to myself again." Gohan looked to the ground in shame. "I've got to stop doing that!"
Goku suddenly stopped in mid-step. Gohan lifted his head and turned around. His father was standing there, looking up ahead, as if he was in shock.
"Dad? What is it, dad?" Gohan walked towards his father with an expression of confusion on his face. Goku raised a finger. Then started running.
"PICCOLO! PICCOLO!" Goku screamed. But that was impossible. Piccolo was the guardian of hell now, why would he be here? But Gohan looked ahead anyway. And true enough, there was Piccolo. Floating slightly ahead, meditating under a tree. Goku was standing over him now, rambling on about how much he had missed sparring with him and asking about hell. Piccolo finally raised his head. An expression of annoyance on his face, he stared at Goku. The saiyan stopped talking. He could tell there was something important that Piccolo needed to say. And since Piccolo was never one to waste time, he started right away.
"Earth is under attack, Goku." This startling revelation left both Goku and Gohan reeling. Wasn't Earth the perfect planet now? Who would attack it? No human was supposed to... Wait. Earth was under attack. Meaning it wasn't a human. Goku had come to the same conclusion. Both Gohan and Piccolo could see it in his eyes. That deep set of determination that Goku got every time he had been angered, not many of his enemies lived to tell people about that look, only those who knew him closest could guess what it meant.
"Who is attacking?" Goku questioned softly.
"A warrior named Zanji. His strength is awesome, Goku. I doubt that the earth will last very long against him."
Chapter 2
"I was beginning to think I was crazy for leaving the dragon all those years ago. But my guess was right, and now it's time for us to defend Earth. I'll go get Krillin and Vegeta. Gohan, look for Trunks and Goten. Piccolo, round up Tien and Yamcha." Gohan looked on as his father issued the rapid orders. That spark was coming back into his eyes, the same spark that Gohan saw everytime that his dad faced an oncoming danger. Goku continued, "If I know them, they'll be glad to help defend earth. Besides, with all the special training we received up here they should have improved greatly."
With that Piccolo nodded silently and disappeared, moving quicker than the untrained eye could see. Gohan leaped into the air and sped off in search of Trunks and Goten. Their power levels shouldn't be too hard to detect. They were almost as strong as he was now. Goten had picked up his training again in the after life, as well as Trunks.
Goku leaped into the air, and quickly found Vegeta, "Vegeta! I need to talk to you!"
Vegeta stopped punching and kicking the air and threw his weights to the ground. He turned around slowly, clearly annoyed.
"What is it Kakorott? Even in death you cannot leave me alone! Or is it that you want to spar with me?" A grin slid across Vegeta's face, "If that is it, then I swear upon my Saiyan ancestors..."
"Woah, woah, slow down Vegeta," Goku stammered, "It's nothing to do with that. Earth is under attack by someone named Zanji. I need your help to defend it! Gohan and Piccolo are rounding up the others as we speak."
"Ah, then that is why you have sought me out. There is a time for training and there is a time for fighting. Now you shall see how my strength has grown after all the years. No one will stand in my path! I am the Prince of the Saiyans!"
Goku smirked slightly and rubbed the back of his head. "Okay Vegeta... I'm going to go find Krillin. Go to the Grand Kai's place and wait for the rest of us there."
Vegeta snarled, but set off in the direction of the palace any way. Goku concentrated, trying to find Krillin's power. It was getting harder to detect his friends with so many other high ki levels. He shifted through the different powers until he found Krillin's. Once he sensed it, he rushed to go meet him. Goku quickly explained the situation to the small monk. His friend joined, but obviously worried about his planet.
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"So you see Grand Kai, we must defend our home. Zanji must be stopped, or he will become a danger to the entire galaxy!" Goku pleaded.
"Goku, you have been a great student and a wonder to watch at tournaments, but I just can't let you leave Other World. Others have asked for the same thing and I have had to turn them down as well. I wish I could do something Goku, but I can't." The Grand Kai answered, twirling his mustache slowly.
"Now you listen here, you tiny excuse for a man! I haven't had a real battle in nearly two centuries! You will let me down to Earth or I will..." Vegeta trailed off. Goku had covered his mouth quickly, before the Grand Kai could get to upset. The Z Fighters looked on in horror at what Vegeta had nearly succeeded in saying. Grand Kai was also in shock. Not once in his entire reign had anyone ever talked to him in such a way. "Goku, take your friends with you. Leave my palace and do not return," the Grand Kai stated as he hopped off his throne and picked up his boom box, "You will not be allowed to leave this world and your friend will not be permitted to enter the next Other World Tournament."
A sweat bead dropped from Goku's head as he ushered Vegeta out of the palace. Once they were outside, he released Vegeta from his grip,
"You fool! You would stay here? In this place instead of going to Earth and experiencing another great battle? You are a saiyan! Have you forgotten?" Vegeta raged.
"No Vegeta, I haven't forgotten. But the Grand Kai isn't going to let us go to Earth."
Yamcha stared after Goku, disbelief in his eyes. "But Goku! It's Earth! We have to go. It's our home!" he pleaded. Goku merely lowered his head and closed his eyes, and spoke quietly...
"Yamcha, I know. But you didn't let me finish. The Grand Kai isn't going to let us go to Earth. But we're going anyway. We won't have to slip through the guards since I know Instant Transmission; I haven't done it in a while though, so my aim might be a little off. In the mean time, I want all of you to prepare. Put on your best gis. It's time for our training to be put to the test."
All of the fighters gave a small nod in response. Goku was right after all. He usually was. The Z Fighters rose in unison into the air and flew in quiet order to the North Quadrant barracks where they all lived. Then each donned a separate gi.
Piccolo slipped out of his guardian vest and white pants and put on his normal purple uniform and training mantle. Yamcha merely switched his dirty orange gi for a clean one. Krillin had reverted to the orange gi that he and his comrades had recieved from Master Roshi centuries before. Tien adorned a long sleeve blue shirt, with loose slacks. Most people in other world had never seen slacks before; it had become a new style after Tien first wore them. Goten and Trunks changed into the same gi as the other. It was basically the same as Krillin and Yamcha's, but green with no undershirt. Vegeta put on his usual blue gi. Gohan had decided to keep his personal purple fighting gi he had adopted just before he and his friends had defeated Buu. Goku had also re-adopted his orange and blue gi with his friends, also reverting back to using King Kai's insignia on the back and his own on the front.
Finally when they were prepared, they all linked hands, with Goku standing at the end of the line. He pressed two fingers to his forehead and furrowed his eyebrows. This was a technique he had not practiced in years, and it was not easy to do even when he used it regularly. Finally he was able to lock onto Earth's own energy. Most of the Z warriors had never gone though this process and were suprised when they felt their bodies become light and travel at incredible speeds...
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As they left, the Supreme Kai turned from the scene. He had been watching unnoticed from a few hundred feet away behind a bush.
"That Goku... he is truly a rare case. Not many would defy the orders of the Grand Kai. He must truly love his planet, Earth. From what I have learned about him, this is not unusual. Goku is an awesome force. I pity the fool Zanji. He does not know what he is getting into... Then again, Goku may not be enough to stop him. Not even Vegeta has been able to gain the strength Goku has in the last two centuries. Perhaps it is because of the ancient Saiyan legend. Goku is the chosen one after all. And I have no doubt that this will play a factor in the upcoming events. Not even his fight with Shenlong could have prepared him for the approaching battle..."
Chapter 3
The Z Fighters appeared on a crowded street. People were staring up at the sky in wonder or shock. None of the heroes knew why until they too looked up and saw Zanji for the first time. He was tall, maybe 7'5 with green skin and a long blue robe. He had black cropped hair that was almost completely covered by a white helmet. He had his arms wide and two small, yellow ki blasts were being charged. Goku immediately started barking out orders for his companions:
"Yamcha, Tien, I want you two to take everyone out of here. Herd them away as quickly as possible. Krillin, I want you to look for any stray people in buildings. This place is about to get really violent. Trunks, Goten I want both of you to look around the city and make sure there aren't any cars or trucks making their way in. I don't want anyone coming into the city. Piccolo, go take a quick look around the here and tell me if there are any cities in the vicinity. If there are, get the others to help you out and remove everyone from them. I don't want them to get hurt. Vegeta and Gohan, you two are with me. We're going to start this thing off."
With that, Yamcha and Tien created moving ki blockades to get citizens out of the city. Krillin took off and started searching buildings and getting the inhabitants onto the street in lightening speed. Trunks and Goten both powered up to Super Saiyan and took off with a yellow trail leading off into the sky. Piccolo created a white aura and went into the opposite direction, scouting for nearby cities. Goku watched them leave, then looked up at Zanji. He set his face coldly stared at Zanji.
Zanji was not one to waste time though. He quickly let loose his ki blasts at stunning speeds that would have been impossible for Goku to sense if he had not been expecting them. The mighty saiyan quickly powered up to Super Saiyan and fired two of his own blasts. Each was barely enough to slow the balls, but that was never Goku's intent. He appeared below them and grabbed them in his own hands, being careful not to apply too much pressure, for they could explode in his face if he didn't show enough caution. He turned his body around and slung them both back up at Zanji. Zanji easily avoided them in time.
"How did you do that, human? When I came to this world I was sure no one of your power existed! What kind of trick are you using?" Zanji questioned Goku. However, it was Vegeta who answered the challenge:
"Fool. We have no reason to explain anything to you. Now leave before I kill you!" Zanji looked taken aback by being talked to in such a way. But he quickly covered his shock in a veil of anger. He lashed out towards Vegeta. Most of his punches were in anger, however, and weren't aimed well enough to do much damage. However, Vegeta wasn't powered up at all, so most connected. Vegeta stumbled back. He hadn't been in a real life-or-death fight in many years so he was out of practice. But he was dozens of times more powerful then he was when he died...
"I hope that wasn't your best shot. I haven't even begun to show you my true power after all. But if that's how you want it... here it goes!" Vegeta vowed. He crouched low and began powering energy around his body. His eyebrows twitched with energy and lightening bolts surrounded his body. Vegeta stood up suddenly and let out a scream that even Krillin could hear in the distance. He now had longer black hair and a red fur covering his body, while transforming into his final Super Saiyan state, he had destroyed half of the remaining city. Buildings stood in ruin and fires raged around the four fighters.
"Vegeta! You could have just killed hundreds of people! Be careful when you power up next time!" Gohan belted out at the proud Saiyan prince.
Vegeta merely turned around and looked at Gohan with contempt in his eyes, "Don't be so stupid, boy. I can sense the others; they're far enough away now, which means they've moved the people far enough back. So shut up and let me handle this." Zanji had stood quietly while all this was going on, but had decided to resume his attacks while Gohan and Vegeta bickered. He zanzokened behind Vegeta and shoved his knee into his back. Then dragged him up into the sky by the neck. He let out a barrage of kicks and punches then slammed the saiyan warrior back into the ground. Vegeta pelted upwards suddenly and head butted Zanji with a powerful blow. Then he surrounded himself in a ball of ki and unleashed dozens of punches at mind-blowing speed that even Goku had trouble keeping up with.
But Zanji was not one to be outdone, and quickly grabbed the Saiyans hands and locked them with his own. He twisted the palms down and pushed up, causing Vegeta to scream in pain. Zanji smirked, but let go of his opponents hands. At lightening quick speed, he grabbed Vegeta by his hair and slung him around into one of the crumbling buildings. Zanji stood up straightly, convinced he had defeated his opponent. But then, an earthquake started slowly, trembling the ground ever so softly. It increased to a noticeable shock wave and soon a staggering tremor. Light exploded from the crumbling building and Vegeta stood defiantly within it, smirking.
"You got the better of me that time, I'll give you that. And it's rare that happens. But this is what happens to people who defy the Prince of the Saiyans!" Vegeta declared boldly. He spread out his arms wide and let his ki expand 10 feet on every side of him. Goku knew this attack. The last time he had done it, Vegeta had nearly destroyed the entire Earth. Goku could only hope he had enough sense not to put to much power into it...
Chapter 4
Goten and Trunks were busy turning traffic of hover cars around when they felt Vegeta's power grow.
"Wow," Trunks thought, "I haven't felt this much power from father in a long time. Green boy must be giving him a hard time. Father's power is shooting up now! He must be performing the Final Flash attack. I saw him trying to re-learn it a few months ago in Other World, I guess he must have succeeded. Maybe we can end the fight with Zanji quicker then I thought..."
Goten was not so optimistic however. "Great. Vegeta is powering up his energy. And from the feel of it, it's going to be a pretty big attack. Zanji must be giving them a lot of trouble for him to be attacking with this much ki so early. Well, as long as dad and Gohan are there, I'm sure we'll win." With that he went back to trying to turn around cars,
"Come on! Turn around! The city is off-limits right now!"
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Krillin hadn't found anyone left in the buildings. He had barely made it past the last building that was destroyed when Vegeta powered up. But as long as Goku was there to keep Vegeta in check, he was sure that everything would be just fine.
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Yamcha was busy trying to force pedestrians away from the fight. It was getting pretty difficult. They kept slipping through the cracks in his ki barrier. He had to finally give up and expand it so that it sliced through all the surrounding buildings. No one was in any of them, they had all come out onto the street to see what all the commotion was about. Tien was busy across the city and had resorted to the same tactics as Yamcha. But both Tien and Yamcha felt it when Vegeta began to power up his Final Flash. That's why the both began to push the people of the city back further and faster.
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Piccolo was certain that no other cities were close enough to be harmed by any attacks that the Saiyans pulled off. So he stopped and turned around slowly, his face twitching in shock,
"Vegeta... what are you doing? You're going to waste all of your power to early into the match! I can't believe you've lost this much sense while we were in Other World!" Piccolo surrounded himself with white ki, then shot off back to the city where he could join his Saiyan comrades in battle.
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Gohan also couldn't figure out what Vegeta was planning on doing. Waisting all of his energy so early into a match was very stupid. Maybe Vegeta had a plan?
Vegeta thrust his hands together and cupped them in front of him. A yellow ball of energy with tendrils of ki appeared. Vegeta's muscles grew and shrank with increasing speed. He was having trouble containing the blast. It was almost time to let it go. Only a few more seconds...
Zanji wasn't sure what his opponent was doing either. This was the strongest fighter he had come across in many years, but he had to also be the stupidest... Expending all of your ki in was a last ditch effort. No one would do it on purpose this early... Maybe he had underestimated the new fighters. Maybe they weren't as smart as he thought they were. He might be able to have some fun with them after all...
"Good. It's done. Now then you green sack of crap, are you ready? Because here it comes!!" Vegeta released his energy, but stopped after giving up less then a tenth of what he had charged. He absorbed the energy back into his body and zanzokened behind his opponent and punched Zanji's back so that he flew into the oncoming ki blast. Vegeta then covered his eyes with his arm and tried to create a ki shield around himself to protect from the remnants of the blast. He was thrown back about 50 feet before he got his bearings and forced himself to stop moving. Goku and Gohan had done the same, both immediately powering up to Super Saiyan just to defend themselves from the loose energy.
An intense light filled the night sky and explosions rippled through the city. Yamcha and Tien had moved far from them however, making sure to be out of reach of the blast's after shocks. But it had created intense earth quakes and wind rushed past both of them, nearly blowing them from their feet. Krillin had soared high into the sky to see what was going on, as he hadn't detected anyone in any of the houses for miles. What he saw was indescribable. A shock wave rushed past him, which he barely avoided. It cut off half his shirt as it soared away. Fires raged in the abandoned buildings and many had just collapsed under the intense power. The city itself was shaking and there was a large crater where the ki attack had originated. Krillin looked up in time to see a monster sized boulder come crashing onto him.
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"Maybe I wasn't wrong about them afterall," Zanji thought, "I may have to stay on my toes. That spiky haired bastard is a genius! I would have never thought of using that kind of attack. But it didn't do much damage, I'm afraid. And he'll have to pay for hitting me in the back." As the smoke cleared, Zanji was seen in a defense posture. His arms crossed in front of him in an X and one leg up to defend his lower body. Parts of him were still steaming, but as the villain took himself out of his stance, he looked almost unscathed.
"But how?" Vegeta wondered in shock, his entire body twitching in shock, "There should at least be some kind of mark on you. What kind of a monster..."
"The kind you're going to remember. Because it's about to get really messy," Zanji stated. He crouched low, and a green ki surrounded him.
"What the..." Goku started, "He knows how to gather his energy? Oh man! That means we haven't even seen the worst this guy can do! Gohan, power up right now. I can sense that Piccolo is on his way. We're going to need all the help we can get..."
Chapter 5
Goku didn't wait for Zanji to stop powering up before he started. He immediately launched in Super Saiyan 4. It took him less than a minute to finish his transformation, but when he did he stood as a powerful warrior. Reddish pink fur exploded from his skin and his hair grew out to shoulder length. He grew a few inches in height and gained enough muscle to push his weight up 50 pounds. Even Vegeta looked over at him with wonder, he had never seen Kakorot at this much strength. Gohan hadn't either. Goku had only been toying with Gohan when he sparred him in Other World. He hadn't reached his full power in nearly 100 years. But now it was time to unleash it. This was the moment he had been waiting for ever since he left Shenlong. It was time to take it. Gohan had also completed his transformation to Super Saiyan 3. White energy crackled around him as he stood as tall as his father, and almost as bulky. He was no fool though. He knew his father was dozens of times stronger than he was. And in this Super Saiyan 3 form his energy drained fast, so he would have to attack quickly.
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Goten and Trunks were unable to stop oncoming traffic, so had merely destroyed the roads by creating a 75 foot deep trench all the way around the city. This way no cars or trunks could get through. They looked at each other and nodded, both heading towards their fathers.
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Yamcha and Tien both knew that they wouldn't be able to join the others any time soon. Forcing the people back was an extremely simple task, but it meant they had to hold up the ki barriers constantly. They would be no help. If they left then the civilians would merely run back to the action.
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"Kakorott! I do not need our help! Go away. I can handle this monster by myself," Vegeta spat towards his long time rival Goku. His saiyan pride, something Goku rarely took so seriously as to risk his life about, had taken over. He would be damned before he'd let Kakorott take the credit for another victory.
"Vegeta, wise up! Zanji will clearly be to powerf..." Goku trailed off. He slowly turned his head, his mouth slightly open, towards Zanji. He had finished his energy gathering at long last, and it was the largest amount any of the Z Fighters had ever felt. It's dark force seemed to over power all of those present. Piccolo dropped from the sky, along with Goten and Trunks, all in wonder. Suprised that so much energy could be contained in a single body. No one had ever felt anything quite like it. Goten and Trunks looked over at Goku, Vegeta, and Gohan. They took their cue and immediately transformed to Super Saiyan level 2. But they both knew they'd be able to do little to help the other three more powerful and experienced veterans.
Zanji launched himself at Vegeta, one arm outstretched. Vegeta bent his body backwards so that his enemy would go shooting over him. He then tried to lend a kick to Zanji's stomach, but he was to slow. Zanji had already pushed his leg away and was preparing a punch to Vegeta's face when help arrived. Goku sent a small but fast ki blast to knock him away from Vegeta. Vegeta looked back at Goku,
"Kakorott! I told you I don't want your help! Leave me to fight him alone!"
"No way, Vegeta. I don't plan on letting you loose." Goku snapped back. He may be a pain sometimes, but Vegeta was one of Goku's closest friends.
Zanji hopped back up, and was preparing another attack when Trunk and Goten ran towards him. They both attempted to send a punch in his direction, but were pushed away with a mere flick once within Zanji's range. Each of them landed in a pile of rubble, bleeding from numerous cuts and scrapes. Gohan ran towards the attacker of his younger brother, determined not to let him get away with hurting his family. He jumped up into the air and delivered a flying kick to Zanji's neck. It barely phased him. But Goku was there right away to punch him in the back and Vegeta was there to punch him right back at Goku. The team worked well together, even after all these years. Goku kicked Zanji into the air and fired an energy ball at him, using small amounts of ki so that it would travel faster then normal. Gohan then appeared above the oncoming alien and slammed an elbow into his back, forcing him back to the ground. Zanji was quick, however. He masterfully spun himself upright, and created two balls of energy in his hands. He began to spin around, creating incredible winds. The Z fighters had to drop to the ground in order to brace themselves against the speed. Gohan had to lower himself and dig his hands into the gravel. Then the rain began. A rain of ki energy shot down from Zanji. Goku and Vegeta were able to defend themselves fairly easily by dodging back and forth from each ball. Gohan was having more trouble. He wasn't fast enough to avoid all of them and had just given up. He curled himself into a ball and created a ki shield around himself. He was able to stop most of the blasts before they hit him, but three were trapped inside when he created the defense. And because of his ki barrier, the blasts were contained. Gohan was immediately blown backwards. Trunks and Goten had flew higher into the sky when they saw the winds start.
When the blast cleared, Goku and Goten immediately rushed over to Gohan's side. He was beaten badly and was bleeding from several cuts along his face. His gi was in tatters as well.
"Gohan! Are you alright? Talk to me, Gohan!" Goten screamed at his older brother. A look of panic was creeping it's way over his face.
"Goten... it's alright. I'm...," Gohan started, but he was overcome by a fit of coughing. He tried to regain his composure and started again, "I'm fine. I... just need... a little nap..." Gohan closed his eyes and let his head fall to the ground.
Goku looked over at Zanji. His look intensified. He gritted his teeth and stared at his opponent. He was ready to fight Zanji for real.
Piccolo came swooping down, immediately rushing to Gohan's side. With his sensitive ears, he had heard all that had already been spoken. And he knew what he had to do. He looked over at Goku and nodded slowly. He took off for Corin's tower, the place where, he hoped, the senzu beans still grew.
Chapter 6
Goten was still sitting at Gohan's side when his father called him and Trunks over.
"Goten, come here. You too Trunks. I have a plan." Goten was reluctant to move from his brother's side, but he knew better then to ignore his father at a time like this. As he walked toward Goku, Goten couldn't help but look up at Zanji. He was lazily floating up in the air, looking down at the Son family.
"Goten! Hurry!" Goku yelled to his son. Goten was quickly at his fathers side along with Trunks and Vegeta. "Goten and Trunks, I need you to do something. It may be difficult, but it's the only chance we've got."
"I'll do whatever it takes, Goku," Trunks stated boldly. He to was at Gohan's side when the smoke cleared. He wanted to avenge what had been done to him almost as much as Goten and Goku. "Look at him up there. He knows we're setting up a game plan, and he's letting us. He's only been toying so far. We're going to have to do something drastic if we want to beat him."
"You're right. That's why I'm going to pull this trick out of the bag. I want you two to fuse. Into Gotenks," Goku said. He knew the implications of this. If they were to miss a single step or point their finger an inch off course, they would be fused as a fat or skinny version of Gotenks, making them even weaker then they were to begin with. "You know what could happen if the dance is done wrongly."
"Yeah, dad."
"Yes, Goku," Both boys looked at Goku with amazement. They had never even considered fusing for this battle. It would be a tricky procedure though. They hadn't done it in centuries. Hopefully everything was still up there and they could remember the steps.
"All right then. Vegeta, you and I will make a distraction while they do it. We don't want Zanji to try and stop them. Oh, and don't forget to power up full strength. We'll need every ounce to defeat him."
"Kakorott, I know. I'm no fool. Now let's hurry up and get on with it. Having to use all of our powers to defeat him is embarrassing enough! I don't want to make this last any longer than it already has." Vegeta spat at the ground. He had been leaning against a wall of rubble with his hands folded. He was clearly not enjoying any of this, as he had adopted his trademark scowl again. Goku ignored him and went through the motion of the dance. He put one leg over the other, and pointed both hands to the left. Then raised them over his head, while rotating his leg back to the ground and shifting his weight to his right leg. After that he leaned to the right and pointed both fingers at an invisible partner.
"All right, got it?" Goku questioned. Both nodded. "Boys, go ahead and get to it. Be careful."
Goku and Vegeta both broke off their talk and hopped into the air on either side of Zanji, while the boys stood and practiced their movements.
"Are you finished yet? I'm ready to get on with this. I don't feel like standing here all day, I have a planet to enslave," Zanji proudly spat out.
"That bastard. He's been TOYING with us all this time. I'm going to enjoy being the one who kills him. I just hope those two down there don't mess up the dance. I don't feel like protecting them while they wait half an hour for the fusion to end!" Vegeta thought. He didn't wait for a signal from Goku, but instead immediately began to power up. He bent his upper body down, and curled his fists and began to power up. Goku followed his suit. Yellow lights exploded from both men and veins popped from various spots on their bodies. Any standing buildings were immediately knocked away from the two powerful warriors as their ki rose higher and higher. Within a minute, they had both tripled in power. But they weren't fooled, they knew that Zanji was still more powerful.
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Piccolo raced towards Corin's tower at full speed, leaving a white vapor trail behind him. He had talked to Corin before heading to the Grand Kai's planet to meet Goku. According to Corin, senzu beans should still be growing. There should be at least 10 beans growing right now, the rest had probably wasted away. But he had to hurry up. His friends were in trouble. A few minutes ago he had felt Goku's and Vegeta's power grow tremendously, but it still didn't compare to what he sensed from Zanji. And he probably wasn't even at his full strength.
"Hold on, Gohan. I'm going as fast as I can. Just hang in there. I know you can't die because you're already dead, but we'll need you for the fight. You getting knocked out only decreased our chances and it's only a matter of time before the Grand Kai discovers what we've done. And who knows how long Earth can survive those titans clashing... This has got to end now!" As those thoughts crossed his mind, he redoubled his speed and shot off even faster.
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"I don't know, Supreme Kai. Maybe I should have let Goku and his friends go down to their planet. After all, I did train him in the art of Grand Kai a few days ago... Maybe he should have helped his friends," the Grand Kai asked his boss.
"Yes, you should have. Goku is a fine warrior and so are his comrades," the Supreme Kai simply stated. They were both in the Grand Kai's tournament room, sitting in the stands. The Grand Kai liked to come here when he had something important on his mind. He liked to watch the asteroids drift slowly through the black star background. The Supreme Kai knew he could find him here after he got done secretly watching Goku teleport off to his planet.
"Maybe I should go find him? I'll tell him he can go on and try to rescue his people," The Grand Kai said. He jumped up and started floating towards the exit.
"Wait! Um... Maybe I should do it! Yeah, I'll do it. No need to bother yourself, after all, you have important... uh... Grand Kai business to attend to! Uh... yeah. So, I'll go tell them and you can go... do whatever it is you do. Speaking of which..." The Supreme Kai started, "What is it exactly that you do?"
The Grand Kai immediately jumped back. He looked around frantically, "Um... uh... so you said you had to go and talk to Goku? Uh... you should do that! Go now, before he gets to distracted with... um... food! Yeah! So... uh... you should go talk to him!" The Supreme Kai floated past his friend... still trying to figure out what he did. Every time he tried to ask, the Grand Kai changed the subject.
"Oh well. I'll find out one of the days. Right now, though, I have to go back to my palace and try to find out how Goku and his friends are doing. Maybe I should go find Baba. She has a crystal ball, I should be able to see what's happening from there." With that final thought, the Supreme Kai literally disappeared, leaving the Grand Kai wiping the sweat from his forehead, very happy that he had avoided answering that question again.
Chapter 7
Piccolo arrived at Corrin's tower fairly quickly. It had been abandoned years ago, but it looked the same, except a thin layer of dust covering everything in the small home. Piccolo began his search for the beans.
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Vegeta doubled over in pain. Zanji had just punched him in the gut as Vegeta was preparing another attack. Now Zanji was merely standing quietly, allowing Vegeta time to regain his composure. Goku immediately launched a counter attack by appearing behind Zanji and attempting a knee to his back. Zanji easily moved to the side, then flipped around and grabbed Goku's leg, swinging him into the ground. Vegeta charged towards Zanji and fired a small ki blast. Zanji easily destroyed it, but it was only meant to distract him. Vegeta appeared behind Zanji and grabbed him in a half nelson.
"Goku! Now's your chance! Use you're damned Kamehameha Wave to defeat him!" Vegeta screamed desperately towards the fallen saiyan. Goku looked up and nodded. then cupped his hands behind him and started his signature chant:
"Ka... me... ha... me..." Goku started. Blue energy cackled around his hands as a blue ball energized in his palms. He was nearly ready to unleash his deadly blue energy when Zanji sped towards him. Zanji flipped himself around suddenly and pulled his arms down with all his power. Vegeta was forced to let go, with the momentum of Zanji's speed he sped right into Goku while he was charging. Goku and Vegeta both flailed backwards, bloodied in several areas. Numerous cuts on the face forced Goku to wipe the blood from his eyes and out of his mouth. Vegeta was forced to do the same.
"We can't keep this up much longer, Kakorott. You're Namek had better get back here fast, I'm losing my patience. I'm nearly ready to destroy this entire continent if it means killing this monster."
"Calm down Vegeta. Piccolo will be back soon, he just has to find the senzu beans in Corrin's tower," But even Goku was starting to worry. It should have taken Piccolo less then 5 minutes to get to the tower and back with the beans. It had been nearly 20. Maybe there was more then just one alien on the planet and he had met up with him. "No," Goku thought, "I would have sensed them both power up. I haven't felt anything. But you had better hurry Piccolo. Zanji is much stronger then I thought he'd be. And if we don't get Gohan back in this fight soon, we could be finished."
As Goku and Vegeta were preparing another attack, they felt a huge energy surge from beneath them. When they looked down, they saw a tall warrior with black and purple hair. He was wearing a black and orange vest with white pants. Gotenks!
"Ha ha!" Goku belted, "They did it! It's a good thing they made sure to practice those steps over and over. We wouldn't have been able to afford a mistaken fusion."
"Kakorott, maybe you've forgotten, but we're stronger then that fusion down there. He's not going to be of much help in destroying Zanji."
"Maybe he won't be able to stop him. That was never my intention though. I merely want them to provide a distraction while we fuse," Goku stated nervously.
"WHAT?! Who says I want to fuse with you, Kakorott? I'd rather die then fuse with you!"
"But Vegeta, you're already..."
Shut up! Let's just get this thing over," Vegeta spat angrily. He knew Goku was right. Fusing into Gogeta would be the only way to insure that Zanji would be defeated. As Vegeta looked down, he saw Gotenks had already transformed into Super Saiyan 3 mode. He was just standing around, feeling his hair right now though. The idiot.
"Hey! Get up here right now. Stop feeling yourself," Vegeta yelled down to Gotenks. He looked up and immediately zoomed next to Goku and Vegeta. Goku then told him the plan.
"Don't worry Goku! I'll stop him with my Super Special Gotenks Ultra Punch!"
"... Whatever. Let's go Kakorott. I want this to be over with," Vegeta said coldly, looking at Gotenks, who was grinning idiotically. Goku nodded and both veterans dropped to the ground and began to practice, step by step, their fusion dance moves.
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"Ah, there the beans are," Piccolo sighed, relieved. He had been trying to find the beans in this clutter for nearly 15 minutes now. He snatched them up and stuffed them into a small brown bag, then took some string and attached the bag to his belt. Piccolo ran to the side of the tower and leaped off. He created a white ki aura around him, the jetted back off to the battle.
"I can feel a new power. I don't recognize it... exactly... but it's familiar..." Piccolo thought to himself. "There is something familiar about that ki. I'm not sure who's it is, but I don't sense Goten or Trunks anymore. This can't be good, that ki may belong to a new warrior. I have to hurry!" With that, Piccolo sped off even faster, doubling his ki aura around him.
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Gotenks led off with a punch against Zanji, but it was easily countered with a punch to Gotenks' face that sent him soaring into the ground, creating a crater 50 feet deep. Gotenks rushed back up immediately and redoubled his assault against the monster.
"Do those warriors send me a weakling while they run away in fear? Are you their dog, boy? Ha ha! I think so," Zanji teased Gotenks as he easily weaved in and out of the barrage of punches Gotenks was attempting to land.
"He wasn't with the warriors when I saw them first. Maybe there are more like him on the way? Five or six won't be a problem, but if enough come then I could be in real trouble. I had better try and end this soon," Zanji thought to himself.
"Super cyclone attack!" Gotenks screamed as he let loose wind attacks that were intending to knock his opponent down into the ground. Small tornadoes zoomed through the air, towards Zanji. The super warrior stopped them by creating a ki shield 20 feet wide.
"Super ghost kamikaze attack!" Gotenks screamed again. He blew out five straight ghostly copies of himself, each lining itself up. Then they all rushed Zanji, slipping through his ki shield with ease, as they were made out of a different energy then normal attacks. Once inside, the each detonated. Because of his ki shield, the blasts were contained. He too was blown backwards, the same as had happened to Gohan. However, because his ki shield was larger, the blasts weren't trapped in such a small area, and less damage was dealt to the green fighter.
When the smoke cleared, Zanji was standing on his feet with few cuts. Blue blood oozed from the cuts that did line his face, however. His blue robe was in tatters, so he ripped if off and tossed it to the side. When it hit the ground, it created such an impact that the street cracked into pieces before their eyes. He revealed that he was wearing no shirt underneath. It was a mistake to remove his robe, however. A ripped armor was better then none at all. But it was doubtful he needed any armor at all to stand up to Gotenks.
Chapter 8
Yamcha was still having difficulty holding back the large masses of people attempting to break through his ki barrier. They were standing on each others shoulders now, trying to climb over it.
"Get back!" Yamcha screamed to the citizens of the city. "You could get hurt if you go in there! Don't you understand? Can't you see all the explosions?" But it was no use. The people were not paying him any attention, and merely wanted to see what was going on amongst their homes.
Yamcha let one hand loose from the ki shield and fired a blast into the sky. It distracted the people long enough for Yamcha to topple the tour of people standing on each others shoulders, by extending a roof over the structure.
"Ha ha! You might be 200 years younger then me, but I've still got it where it counts!"
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Across the city, Tien was having equal difficulty. His people didn't want to go back either, and, instead of climbing on each others shoulders, they were trying to push their way through the shield. It was getting difficult to maintain a solid border, while making sure it wasn't strong enough to kill anyone who touched it at the same time. Many people had recieved minor burns or broken arms from ki zapping from the barrier.
"You people might have gotten more peaceful, but you sure have gotten stupider! Stop trying to get through, it's not doing any good. Just back up!" Tien tried to reason. But it was as if they couldn't even hear him.
"Goku... you need to hurry. I'm not sure how long these people will last if they keep trying to break through my shield."
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Meanwhile, Gotenks was still trying to find a way to defeat Zanji, but to little avail. Zanji was even starting to look slightly annoyed at the fact that Gotenks wasn't a challenge. He had tried many useless attacks, including the Super Ultra Gotenks Attack, the Ultra Mircale Bull Fighter move, the Ultra Super Mega Gotenks Punch, and another that Zanji didn't even pay attention to. Gotenks was busy on the ground now though, trying to recover from Zanji's counter of a ki blast to the stomach. So far Gotenks was in MAJOR trouble.
"Hurry Goku and Vegeta... I'm almost out of energy. I don't know how much longer I can hold him off..." Gotenks said quietly just before being engulfed in a huge wall of ki fired from Zanji. It knocked Gotenks back 50 feet and bank onto the ground. It tore almost all his clothes off, leaving just enough for modesty. The blast was so powerful, that it tore down the last of Gotenks' powers and left him in his regular saiyan state. He was no longer a Super Saiyan 3, and that meant he no longer would be any help in the fight.
Goku was about to rush to his side, when Vegeta grabbed him roughly.
"Do not help him, Kakorott! We must finish this fusion. Gotenks cannot die since he's already dead, so he is in no danger except a few cuts and bruises! Now then, I'm ready to perform the dance. Let's go," Vegeta said roughly. He was obviously bitter about having to resort to multi-person tactics to defeat Zanji.
"All right, Vegeta. We'll fuse. I can sense Piccolo approaching right now, he'll be able to give Gotenks his full power back, and wake Gohan up. Then we'll be able to finish Zanji off for sure." That last part made Goku crack a small smile. His home world would be safe at last, it would be only a matter of time. Of course, then he would have to go back and face the Grand Kai's wrath, and maybe even the Supreme Kai. Crap.
Chapter 9
"Fusion... Ha!"
"Fusion... Ha!"
Both Goku and Vegeta screamed at the same time, leaning over and touching fingers. A bright yellow light exploded from the two warriors as the fusion started. Their bodies melted together and their powers combined, then doubled. Rock from the road shot up and cracked in mid air, and large pieces just exploded. Smoke billowed up from the ground, into the air. It engulfed both sides of the road, then went on. Up and down the street, everything was blinded within a mile and a half. Zanji had to hold his arm up to his face to block out the cinder from touching his eyes. Gotenks was oblivious, as he lay unconscious in the street.
When the smoke subsided, a golden fighter stood proud in the broken street. He was illuminated even brighter in the night sky. Yellow shots of energy crackled from around him. A tall, muscular warrior stood where, moments ago, the saviors of the galaxy had. Goku and Vegeta had been replaced by this towering pillar of energy. Gogeta was so powerful, that even when Goku and Vegeta fused in their normal states, he had immediately transformed into Super Saiyan 4 level, without needed to power up to get there.
When Zanji looked over, he couldn't find the two competitors where he saw them last. Confused, he turned back to Gotenks, who was still laying on the ground, out cold. When Gogeta saw this, he immediately zanzokened in front of the monster, blocking his path.
"He is down. Do you have so little honor that you would fight a fallen warrior, as opposed to a fresh one?" Gogeta challenged boldly.
Zanji was taken aback. No one had ever accused him of being without honor. He snarled his nose and tried to land a punch in his face. Gogeta easily moved his head aside, letting the punch fly past his head, never moving his eyes from Zanji's face. Zanji attempted another punch, then another and another. None came close to connecting with Gogeta.
"Where are the two I was fighting earlier? Who are you?" Zanji raged angrily. Gogeta smirked and remembered an old saying he had coined many years ago.
"I am neither Goku nor Vegeta, but the instrument of your destruction," He stated calmly, moments before appearing behind Zanji and forcing a fist into his back, breaking skin and bone in the process. Zanji coughed up blood and was forced forward, Gogeta immediately appeared before him and punched him into the air, away from Gotenks. He then unleashed a barrage of well-aimed punches and kicks straight into Zanji's chest.
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Piccolo sensed a new power enter the battle, and two others leave.
"What is going on over there? First Goten and Trunks just disappear, while another warrior takes their places. Then Goku and Vegeta disappear while another takes THEIR places. And this new power seems familiar as well... I know I've felt it before, or something like it. But it's much stronger than Goku or Vegeta have ever been," Piccolo thought to himself. He was already going as fast as he could, but still he strained for every last drop of speed he had within himself to get to that battle. They definitely would need the senzu's if their powers kept disappearing...
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25 Minutes Left in Fusion
Gogeta fired a ki shot with one hand directly into Zanji's face, then used a high kick to force him into the air. He then raised one palm flat out towards Zanji and began one of Vegeta's trade mark attacks:
"Big... Bang..." Gogeta started as energy swirled around into a ball in his palm. He gathered slightly more before unleashing the attack. "Attack!" Gogeta screamed as a blue sphere of energy launched itself from his outstretched hand, making it's way to Zanji's face. It exploded on impact and forced him even higher into the air. Gogeta used the old technique of Shunkaido (Instant Transmission) to appear above Zanji. He connected an elbow with Zanji's neck and sent him flying into the ground, creating a crater 50 feet deep.
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As Piccolo neared the battle site, he saw what was causing the strange powers he was sensing. He saw a warrior in the fusion gi that Gogeta would wear when called. And the other power that was fading rapidly was on the ground, he could tell from the black and purple hair that it was Gotenks.
"So," Piccolo mused, "They fused. Goku and Vegeta must have created Gogeta and Goten and Trunks must have made Gotenks. I had better hurry and give out these senzus before they de-fuse. That way I can save one."
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15 Minutes Left in Fusion
Gogeta rushed down to meet Zanji, but was shocked as he saw him go rushing past. As Gogeta turned around, Zanji was already on top of him, letting loose a barrage of punches and kicks to stun and confuse him. Gogeta was attempting to block when he felt Gotenks' power jump. A few seconds later, he felt Gohan power up again.
"Good," Gogeta thought to himself as he continued deflecting Zanji's blows, "That means that Piccolo has given them the beans. It should be almost time for the final leg of events. Now then, let's end this right now!" Gogeta grabbed one of Zanji's arms as it went flailing past his head, and swung him around. Gogeta didn't let go, however, until Zanji was coming back up. He let the arm loose, and then immediately grappled Zanji in a half nelson.
"Everyone, get up here now! I have something to tell you all!"
Chapter 10
10 Minutes Left in Fusion
Gohan leaped up to his father's side, not even bothering to power up yet. Goten and Trunks had defused almost immediately after being given a senzu bean, and were both now fine. They were at his side also, and Piccolo joined them quickly.
"I'm glad to see that you are all well. Because now it's time to finish this battle off. I'll need all of you. I have a plan, but it's going to require one of you to give himself into a LOT of pain," Gogeta said, fixing his grip on Zanji so that he couldn't escape. "I want you to do it Piccolo. I don't mean to be cruel, but you are the weakest of us here, and we need the strongest to perform the attacks."
"Understood, Gogeta. I'll do it," Piccolo stated quietly. He knew the kind of pain his saiyan comrades could deal out, and he wasn't in any kind of good mood letting himself be subjected to it.
"Good. Goten, Trunks, you two are going to help me. I'm going to let go of Zanji, and then Piccolo is going to grab him. We are going to back off a few dozen feet, and then I want all of you to power up your strongest attacks and get ready to unleash them on him. Can you two do that?"
"Yeah."
"Yes," Goten and Trunks answered while Gohan merely nodded.
"Good. I'm not sure if it will be enough to stop him, but I hope it will be. Oh, and Zanji, I know you could hear every word I just said. But I'll make sure you can't move while Piccolo takes over for me," Gogeta blurted with a smirk on his face. He moved his knee at blinding speeds and connected it with Zanji's back, forcing the alien to cringe. Gogeta then quickly let go of him while Piccolo grabbed him from behind and put his arms around Zanji's in almost a backwards hug. Gogeta took the senzu bag from Piccolo and nodded towards his friend. He knew Piccolo didn't want to do this, but was anyway. And he was grateful. Piccolo knew.
"Good. Now then, let's do this!"
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6 Minutes Left in Fusion
Gogeta, Goten, Trunks, and Gohan backed off 250 feet, then began to power up their attacks. Goten and Gohan both cupped their hands behind their backs and began to chant:
"Ka..."
Trunks widened his arms out and charged to ki balls on the ends of them.
Gogeta disappeared, then reappeared a moment later with Krillin.
"Thanks, Gogeta. Sorry, but when that rubble fell on me, it took all of my strength to move it," Krillin stammered. He had been trapped ever since Vegeta had unleashed his Final Flash attack, and had been unable to move since.
"Don't worry, now just prepare to kill Zanji."
"Right."
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2 Minutes Left in Fusion
"Final... Ka... me... ha... me..." Gogeta recited. A giant blue ball of energy formed in his cupped hands, as he preformed his technique. Goten, Gohan, and Krillin were all on their last leg of Kamehameha, waiting to say the last "Ha" until they had charged all of their energy into the blast. Each had an astonishingly large ball. Krillin's was nearly as large as Trunks' ball. Goten and Trunks were both in Super Saiyan 2 mode while Gohan had powered up to Super Saiyan 3. Yellow ki was enveloping each saiyan and a white for Krillin. The energies were so near to each other, that they could each touch each other's power. Gogeta was in center of the line, with Trunks and Goten on one side, and Krillin and Gohan on the other. The attacks were nearly charged.
"Just a few more seconds," Gogeta thought, "And it will be ready. I just need you to hold on for a few more seconds Piccolo..."
"HA!" Gogeta screamed. Krillin, Gohan, and Goten followed shortly after:
"HA!"
"HA!"
"HA!"
Trunks brought both of his hands together and shot his energy towards Zanji as well. All five beams circled each other, weaving in and out of pattern. They snaked together, first two Kamehameha's, then three, then 4. Finally Trunks' attack was left, eventually including it's yellow energy to the Kamehameha's blue. The blast intensified and doubled with strength for every wave that was added. When all five were connected, they were an awesome force, moving slowly, but they were powerful.
One Minute Left in Fusion
Zanji saw the oncoming blast and used all of his strength to try to escape from Piccolo.
"Let me go! Don't you see we'll both die if that thing hits us?" Zanji pleaded.
"No. You'll die. I have nothing to worry about since I'm already dead," Piccolo said, a slight smile playing across his face. "Now stop struggling and take the wave like a man!"
"Let... me... GO!" Zanji screamed. He had created a green ki field again, and it was difficult for Piccolo to hold on. The blast was nearly upon them, but unless Piccolo held on until he to was inside the attack, then Zanji could escape.
"Shut up!" Piccolo raged, then looked at Zanji's back. There was a small hole where blood was oozing. It was where Gogeta had punched him earlier. Piccolo shot two small ki shots from his eyes into the wound. Normally it would not have been enough to even slightly phase Zanji, but since he was weakened and it was to an exposed opening, it had no problem subduing the beast.
It caused him to remain still just long enough for the blast to surround both warriors, engulfing them in a blue ki rays, systematically destroying their bodies. Zanji took the brunt of the force, but Piccolo was screaming nearly as loud as him when the blast started to contort their faces and twist their bodies. Zanji was incinerated by the blast, his body being stretched back until only bone remained. But that too was destroyed. Piccolo didn't receive such a hard punishment when Zanji was gone, as the blast was moving on into space, eventually dissipating in the cold.
Chapter 11
Just as Zanji was destroyed, Gogeta was covered in a yellow light, and a second later, where he had stood a second before, Goku and Vegeta now appeared. They looked at each other, then at the other warriors who were each looking on. Then Goku looked down and saw Piccolo's body on the ground, twitching slightly. He put his fingers to his forehead and disappeared, reappearing next to his fallen friend.
"Here, Piccolo," Goku's gentle voice urged, "Eat this. It's a senzu bean, it'll make you feel better again."
Piccolo opened one eye, and then his mouth. Goku slipped in the bean and watch Piccolo chew it, then swallow. Piccolo's eyes jumped open as his power returned.
"Goku, he's dead. We did it."
"Yeah Piccolo. We did. But now we have to go face the Grand Kai. He's going to be furious that we disobeyed him. Oh well. I guess we'll just have to face the music, eh?" Goku stammered. He looked slightly nervous.
"Yeah, well, Goku. Sometimes it goes like that. But we saved 15 billion people," Piccolo told his friend.
"You're right. I'd rather do that then listen to him drone on about the art of Grand Kai anyway," Goku said with a wink. "Now then, I'm going to go get Yamcha and Tien. I know they're just about ready to drop after keeping that field up for 2 and a half hours."
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"Goku! Goku!" the Supreme Kai yelled at Goku as he appeared on the Grand Kai's planet lawn. "Listen, I know where you went. And I know what happened, good job. But if the Grand Kai asks, I gave you permission to go, all right? I don't want him to know that you went without his permission, and I'm sure that you don't want him to know either."
"Sure! But, Supreme Kai, why are you helping me like this? I mean, aren't you angry we went against orders?" Goku asked.
"No. I would have done the same thing in your position. I'm just glad you were able to succeed with minor difficulty."
"Minor! You call that minor? We just destroyed the mo..." Vegeta started, but quickly quieted himself as he found all of his fellow Z Fighters and the Supreme Kai looking at him. "Never mind."
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As the eight heroes's stood before the Grand Kai, the rest of the fighters training in Other World were there to watch, gathered behind Goku and his friends in the Grand Kai's throne room. "Goku, Vegeta, Trunks, Goten, Krillin, Yamcha, Tien, and Gohan. In light of your recent services assisting some 15 billion people on Earth, I have decided to grant you permanent access to any planet in the North, South, East and West Quadrants. You wanted to help people, here's your chance," the Grand Kai told the eight Z Fighters as they stood in his court, amongst the other North Quadrant fighters. "I have designated all of you on emergency duty. You will respond to any assistance needed to a planet in danger. You were getting bored here, now you'll be kept busy. I trust that you agree with your knew positions?"
All eight of them had been briefed about this ceremony earlier, and were prepared for the statement. In chorus, all responded:
"Yes."
"Good. Then I dub you, Goku, Vegeta, Goten, Trunks, Krillin, Yamcha, Tien and Gohan, the official Z Fighters for Other World!"
XII
Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the North Galaxy where Earth sat, a small pod landed on a barren, wasteland of a planet. Winds swept through broken cities and crumbled houses; the air was dry and thick with sand. The inhabitants had long since abandoned trying to survive on the surface after the meteor hit the surface fifty years ago. No vegetation grew here, and no life, insect, parasite, mammal or fish survived living on the surface. There was no water above the surface, most of it had been evaporated after the chunk of rock landed in the central ocean, and the rest was poisoned with dead fish and rotting corpses of fisherman and animals on islands. Only small rivers ran under the surface, giving life to the people who lived there.
A small, frail alien stepped out of the circular pod (which resembled one of the space capsules used by Frieza and his henchmen). He was heavily clad in clothes, which were designed to protect him from the whipping sound and hurricane winds. An oxygen mask covered his mouth and black goggles covered his eyes, a hood covering his face. He slowly made his way to the entrance to a cavern, finally succeeding after stumbling several times under the wind. As the dark cavern encompassed him, he removed his robes, trotting down the barren road into the ground. The sand blew in here, but stopped after several feet, unable to gain the support of wind that it relied on. As the alien removed his garbs, a mane of red hair was released, contrasting against his small body. He removed his goggles, and then his oxygen mask. A green face was revealed. He walked into a cavern, and questioned the security guard on duty:
"Where is Emperor Salad? I have news of his son."
"You have news of Lord Zanji?" the guard question, straightening immediately. "Emperor Salad is in his chambers, talking with the scientists. Welcome back, Cola."
"Thank you. I must go and deliver my message to the emperor now," Cola stated simply, walking down one of several tunnels.
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Emperor Salad was engaged in talks with his trusted advisors when his aid, Cola, entered.
"Cola, welcome. You have news?" he questioned. Cola wasn't supposed to return for another few weeks, bringing a progress report for his son home with him.
"Yes, sire. I have dire news. I was watching Earth, and everything was going according to the plan. Zanji was overtaking the entire planet, but then eight powers emerged. I'm not sure, as of yet, where they came from however. They didn't seem to be powerful enough to stop them, but then, and I might be wrong, then they... merged. Two of the power levels became one, then the two highest powers became a single body. Shortly afterwards Zanji was killed," Cola took a pause, watching his friends reaction.
"He was killed? Are you certain?" Salad questioned, his face becoming rigid.
"Yes, I am certain of it."
"Then my son is dead. It is the way of things. He died an honorable death. He died a warrior, trying to save his race from death. He is now dead, as we will be shortly. The water in these caverns cannot sustain us, and I am afraid we are near depletion of our food supply. I will inform the population that my son, Zanji, is dead," he stated. Salad hung his head, and rose. Zanji was the last hope of a dying race. Their planet was all but dead, and Zanji had taken their last ship in search of a planet capable of sustaining them. Now that he was dead, they had no hope of living to see the next decade.