Vegeta stares Master Roshi down. His right arm dangles at his side completely numb. Blood flows freely from the gaping hole near the shoulder.
He shoves his left hand firing a lightning fast bolt. His scouter reads nothing as the opponent dodges.
"No way!"
Vegeta fires several more blasts but the result is the same each time.
"What's going on here? No one can move that fast without some kind of power level, yet my scouter can't pick up even a trace of his."
Vegeta breaks into a sprint putting himself right next to Master Roshi. He assaults him with a barrage of punches and kicks. Still his foe evades the rapid strikes without setting off his device.
"Woah, he's really doing it," says Goku. "He's mastered perfect ki control. He can raise and lower it in an instant without any time for detection. I can't sense him at all."
Master Roshi intercepts Vegeta's punch by grabbing his wrist and twisting his arm aside. The hold exposes the enemy's torso. Master Roshi chops Vegeta's gut, palm strikes his chin, and sends a spin kick into his kidney.
Vegeta barks as he stumbles around for his footing. After regaining balance, he turns slowly towards Master Roshi with a single bloodshot eye glaring.
"I don't know what kind of trick you're trying to pull old man, but it's pissing me off."
"It's no trick. Merely discipline."
A rage filled scream builds in Vegeta's lungs. Just before it can break out, he pushes it back down by inhaling.
He's trying to goad me into a reckless attack. Since I can't determine how much energy I need, I'll just hit him as hard as I can. Kakarot and the kid have nothing left so it shouldn't matter if I use most of it up.
Master Roshi narrows his eyes.
He's regained his composure, he thinks. I may have perfect ki control, but he still has more stamina. And it doesn't looks like he'll be wasting any more of—
A nauseating amount of power gusts over him.
"Oh wow," says Master Roshi. "He's going to try and end this in one attack."
He begins swaying his arms and hands rhythmically. Vegeta watches the strange display as he continues to power up.
"Your tricks won't work this time!"
Power fills his body. When it feels like twice what he has been using so far, he dives into combat. He unloads another round of hits, but for some reason each one seems slower than it should be. His remaining eye fights against a drooping lid while drowsiness grapples his mind.
Master Roshi barely stays ahead of the powerful blows. Eventually he finds a moment to sweep Vegeta's legs out from under him and jump back to safety.
Vegeta lands on his butt leaning on a forearm. The urge to scream rises again, but only a yawn escapes his throat.
"Am I really this exhausted from battling these weaklings?" he says. "No, there's no way. Something's up."
He watches the now approaching enemy. Or at least Master Roshi was approaching until he stumbles backward, then sideways, and then forward again. His hands look like they hold invisible cups while trying to find his mouth without ever quite making it.
"What the hell? Mocking me again are you?"
Vegeta rises, suppresses another yawn and lashes out. Still he cannot hit Master Roshi who sways about like a jelly filled sack. Without ever settling into a rigid pose, Master Roshi flips and flops through unnaturally fluid angles. His swirling and spinning makes Vegeta dizzy. The strange drowsiness he feels only makes it worse.
Master Roshi randomly faces away or even lies on the ground leaving himself completely exposed to attack. But whenever Vegeta strikes at the opening, Master Roshi narrowly evades and lands a counterstrike. He bumbles about with unorthodox attacks like hip bumps and donkey kicks. He practically slobbers on Vegeta as he brushes against him in his drunken antics.
Vegeta's anger mounts and burns through the sleepiness. He unleashes another flurry. Master Roshi finds them sharper than before. Their speed and accuracy push him back. Knuckles and pointed boots jab at his soft body. A left hook connects with the side of his head. The lenses of his sunglasses shatter as the frame flies off his face.
The two combatants shuffle backward from one another to catch their breaths.
I guess my hypnosis is wearing off making my drunken fist less effective, thinks Master Roshi. I hope he's worn out enough for this to stop him.
He puts his finger tips together in front of his face. The hairs on his arm stand up and point towards his hands, drawn in by a static electric current.
Vegeta's scouter chirps and presents a rising number.
"Hmph. So he has a power level after all."
Vegeta charges as a ghastly green aura forms around Master Roshi's hands. He picks up the pace to beat him to the punch.
With his assailant bearing down on him, Master Roshi pushes out more power. The aura around his hands develops a spiky pattern that rises and falls. Though he pulls his fingers apart, the aura stretches to encompass both hands.
Vegeta's scouter stops at 884.
"Bankoku Bikkuri Sho!" says Master Roshi.
"Not good enough old man," says Vegeta.
He leaps and raises a fist to punch straight through his target.
A violent torrent of green electricity fires from Master Roshi's hands. Vegeta immediately seizes up and convulses as the attack hits him. His body jerks as it stops suddenly. He drops to his feet and walks backward on his heels.
The electricity bypasses his physical defenses shocking him to his core. The unusual properties of the technique render his overpowering defenses useless as it conducts along his bones through his enhanced durability.
This can't be happening, thinks Vegeta. My power level may be low, but it's still far above his. I should be able to push straight through this, so why can't I?
He forces his energy outward away from his body rather than keeping it within. Slowly, the green lightning pushes away from him on an invisible field instead of striking him directly. The electric blast now splatters across the clear surface and around him. He trudges forward into the stream.
Master Roshi retreats as Vegeta closes in. The current gets harder to wade against as the gap shortens, but eventually Vegeta enters striking range. He raises a hand and swipes it across Master Roshi.
For a moment he thinks he has succeeded as his hand chops the target cleanly in half. However, the image fades to nothing. His scouter beeps and points. He follows it.
Master Roshi throws off his coat revealing a simple white tank top. His lips peel back to show gritted teeth. The skin bound bones that make up his arms inflate with muscle mass. His chest, abdomen, and legs buff up alongside them. His huge muscles look like they will pop if stuck with a pin.
He struggles to extend his right arm before him as if the ki within could explode if moved too quickly. He retracts his left arm to his side. He takes a puff of air and struggles to bring his palms together in front of his chest under the weight of the ki. A crisp white outline emanates from his whole body.
Vegeta watches his scouter continue to rise as Master Roshi spreads his arms out wide. Both of them spin a quarter circle in the same direction. They close together as they do so the wrists touch in front of his chest. He slides his hands to his right hip.
"His power level is rising to 1,000," says Vegeta. "I didn't think he had this much to begin with. And I'm not sure I have the strength to block it now."
"Kah, meh."
Vegeta grits his teeth. His muscles tense. An orb of white energy forms in Master Roshi's cupped hands.
"Hah, meh."
A cool bead of sweat runs down the side of Vegeta's scarred eye. The glowing sphere engulfs Master Roshi's hands so they are no longer visible.
"Hah!"
Master Roshi's arms lunge. A beam fires from his palms. Blinding light flashes across the whole battlefield.
Goku and Gohan squeeze their eyes shut as the massive blast swallows Vegeta.
The wave discharges an unrelenting current of power. Goku senses Vegeta's life force eroding away beneath its might.
The light starts to fade as the beam shrinks. Goku and Gohan open their eyes. Master Roshi breathes heavily. His muscles have withered back to their original state.
A black figure stands in the clearing dust. Vegeta's head hangs low with his sweat soaked hair holding straight behind him. Remnants of armor cling to his body. The blue jumpsuit smokes from smoldering patches where burned skin shows through.
He wobbles in place. He coughs for fresh air. He leans hard to one side about to collapse from fatigue. His leg slides out wide to catch himself. His head rises. His eye opens.
"I've got to hand it to you old man," says Vegeta. "You've managed to awaken my Saiyan Soul. That only ever happens when I'm on the brink of death."
Master Roshi smiles.
"So it wasn't enough."
He turns to Goku.
Goku looks back and points desperately at Vegeta who walks towards him.
"Goku," says Master Roshi. "You have grown into a fine young man."
Goku screams a warning as Vegeta starts to jog.
"I've been alive for a very long time. And in all my years, I think the last decade or so with you has been my most cherished."
Goku stumbles towards his old master, waving his arms. Vegeta runs.
"I hope everything I taught you will serve you well wherever life takes you. You're a man who continues to overcome seemingly impossible obstacles and limits. I know you'll do many more great things for the people you love."
Master Roshi's smile widens.
Vegeta appears behind him.
Goku reaches out an arm.
Vegeta slices through Master Roshi's neck with a chopping hand. The body folds to the ground as the head lobs into the air.
Goku slides on his knees to catch the severed head. As it is about to drop into his cradling arms, Vegeta kicks it away.
Vegeta's foot swings back clocking Goku in the face and flattening him on his stomach.
The strike registers as a dull ache compared to the way the rest of Goku's body feels. Instead of worrying about the pain, he wonders why he never visited Master Roshi in the five years since he defeated Piccolo.
Why didn't I do it? he thinks. Is it because I thought he had nothing left to teach me? Was I too selfish in my own training?
"Heh, heh. Ah. Ha. Ha. Ha."
Vegeta's labored laughter echoes around the battlefield before sinking into Goku's ears.
"Shut up."
"What was that Kakarot? I couldn't hear you."
"I said shut up!"
The scouter pips up as Goku rises to his feet, back turned. Vegeta's smile flatlines.
He sees Goku twitch, but the backhanded punch crushes his cheek before he can tell what is happening.
Vegeta staggers back as the scouter clatters to the ground. He cups his mouth and cheek with his white glove. Red oozes between his fingers.
Vegeta throws a punch, but Goku ducks and spins to the right. He comes out of the crouch as the fist soars over his head. He whirls around and stabs his right elbow into Vegeta's scarred eye.
Vegeta hobbles around on lame feet. Goku steps in with graceful ease despite the agony still burning in his deteriorated muscles. The strikes come swiftly.
Vegeta struggles to block and dodge. He swings a gut punch to take back some initiative. Goku uses the opportunity to trade blows by hooking Vegeta in the side of the head. They both recoil from the hits, but it is Goku who recovers first and presses again. His vengeful eyes knife at Vegeta.
How can this be happening? thinks Vegeta. He should be out of power by now. The only way he could get a boost of energy like this would be…
He bends under a kick and shoves Goku away for some distance.
But how could someone with no Saiyan pride in their heritage tap into their Saiyan Soul? I guess I underestimated him all along.
Goku's foot catches Vegeta's ankle, lifting it off the ground. He slides his knee up to his chest and stomps his heel against Vegeta's abdomen, slamming him onto his back.
Goku jumps on top of his prone foe to pin him, but Vegeta counters with an uppercut to the jaw. They both end up in sitting positions.
"I hate to admit it Kakarot, but I haven't been pushed this far in a long time."
Vegeta wriggles to his feet with Goku not far behind.
"Thanks to you, I'm finally able to feel the rush of adrenaline coursing through my veins. I don't think I've ever felt it this strong. I'd almost forgotten the high it brings."
He drives his shin into Goku's hunched over stomach.
"I didn't realize until just now that something has been missing from my life, and you've given it to me. The chance to fight one of my own. Someone who can find that extra surge on the edge of death. Someone with the true spirit of a Saiyan."
Vegeta grabs a handful of Goku's hair and drags his forehead down into a rising knee. As Goku recoils, he throws a punch, but it gets deflected.
They both whale on one another with their remaining stamina too precious to waste on dodging. They pound away hoping for a knockout blow to end the fight. Measured attacks give way to brutal instinct as sense gets knocked out of their heads. Blow after blow they beat on their foe. The punishing skirmish lingers on. The craving for their next hit to finish the torture is palpable.
Their arms are heavy. Their legs shake beneath their own weight. Their lungs yearn for more air. Knuckles crack on ribs and skulls. Bruises discolor their faces and swell eyes nearly shut. Blood runs in streaks from cuts and nostrils.
Gohan watches his father endure the belting and somehow find the strength to strike back.
Goku and Vegeta both surrender to their exhaustion and take a brief respite from the brutality. They back up for safety while catching their breaths.
This guy is unreal, thinks Goku. How can I beat him?
He examines the shorter frame of his opponent searching for any signs of vulnerability. The only real difference between them at this point is their physical height.
That's it!
"Hey Vegeta. Let's settle this once and for all."
Goku inhales deeply.
"And I'll prove to you rank and power don't matter in a fight with this last attack."
"Then I'll prove you wrong," says Vegeta, barely above a whisper.
They both lean forward to force their legs to start moving. They pump their arms to build up momentum. Their feet thump along the ground, gaining speed.
They jump and raise one knee each as they shove their other leg out for a kick. They twist slightly for maximum reach. Their bodies fly at each other on a collision course to land the deciding blow.
Goku watches Vegeta's foot sail for his head. The best defense he can offer is a wincing of his eyes. He knows the strike will end him.
The toes inch closer in slow motion. Then suddenly the foot stops short. He feels his own foot connect with something hard. His kick lands against Vegeta's head first, halting his adversary's momentum.
They fall away from each other. Their bodies collapse upon the ground. Gravity hits them harder than their fatigued strikes.
All Goku can do is lift his head a little. He confirms a motionless Vegeta and lets his head drop back to the dirt.
"You did it Daddy," says Gohan.
Goku hears the sound of his son's excited steps. Gohan kneels beside him. The events finally have time to settle in their minds.
It does not feel like a victory. The combat was dirty, devoid of honor. The senseless violence and loss of life angers and saddens Goku deeply. The emotional pain begins to eclipse the physical strain. His body has been messed up like this before, but never has he ever experienced such despair. The emptiness makes him wonder how life will ever move forward.
"Uh Daddy. Something's coming."
"Wha-what?"
"It looks like the spaceship I got locked in a year ago."
Gohan sees Vegeta roll over and slither towards the incoming vessel.
"He's trying to get away."
"I won't let him. Not after what he's done."
"But how can you stop him without any ki left."
"I'll just have to borrow some."
All things on the planet. Please, I beg of you. Lend me your energy.
A lightness takes hold of his body as ki from nature enters him. The invigoration propels him to stand once again. He sees Vegeta climbing into the pod.
"No Goku!"
King Kai's voice shouts in his mind.
"You can't use the Genki Dama for your own selfish revenge."
"It's not for me. I have to save the planet from him ever coming back."
Vegeta falls into his seat and slaps his hand over some buttons. A hiss signals the closing door.
"You're lying to yourself Goku. You need a pure heart to use the Genki Dama, but yours has become clouded with vengeance. If you use it like this, the technique will turn against you. It will destroy you Goku!"
Goku feels the power inflating in his body. The pod rises slowly in the air. If he concentrates all of it to his hand now, he can still destroy Vegeta.
"Don't do it Goku!"
"I have to King Kai. He can't get away with this. Maybe if we still had the Dragon Balls things would be different. But they're gone. We can't bring anyone back this time."
"I know you're hurting Goku. But loss is a part of life. Think about Chichi and Gohan. You saved them and the planet. Just as you hoped to do. I'm sorry it came at such a terrible cost, but you won't be doing any good throwing your life away on a petty act of revenge."
Goku looks at Gohan. He moves his eyes to the ship. The further it slips away, the less chance he has of killing Vegeta.
He raises a hand. It draws the energy circulating his body to the focal point in his palm.
He screams.
He lets his arm drop. The power for the Genki Dama drains away back to the planet. He falls to his knees as the vessel shoots off into the sky.
He motions for Gohan to come to him. His son hugs his tender torso. His own arms embrace Gohan's upper back.
They weep with effortless tears.
Author's Note 04/24/21: Finally the Saiyan threat has been pushed back. But our heroes are left to grieve for their broken family in the next chapter of Dragon Ball Ki, Remembrance.