(NOTE: If you get confused by the sudden jump to the middle of Gohan's fight with Dabura, I suggest watching the canon fight minus Goku and Vegeta's commentary. I hate repeating canon events unless I can put a new spin on them. Novelizing portions of episode 226 and 227 is not my idea of a good time)

Last time on Dragon Ball HPA! Both the World Martial Arts Tournament and the quest to stop Majin Buu's revival moved expediently. Peko and Akane defeated Babidi's monsters with tremendous ease and moderate difficulty respectively. Vegeta fought an intense battle against Chisa Yukizome, disguised as Femme Fury and came out on top. Goku bonded with Videl before sending her out of the ring. Now the two saiyans face off in a rematch that they've both been waiting for. The story continues now in this exciting chapter. Read on to find out what happens!


EPISODE 8: Welcome to the Abyss!


Vegeta and Goku launched themselves at each other with intensity and scowls, knuckles slamming into each other, shaking the stadium and the audience as they then began punching at breakneck speeds, the sound of bone hitting bone echoing around with loud screams from both saiyans. The two grappled fists and slammed their heads into each other, each one trying to twists the other's wrists to overpower the other.

That was when Vegeta made a dirty move. He pulled his right arm backwards and caused Goku to fall off balance and then stepped on his foot. Then, while Goku was recoiling from the pain, Vegeta freed his right hand and let off an energy blast in Goku's face, knocking him back and then drove his fist into Goku's stomach, causing him to stumble back in pain.

"Cheap shot!" Chichi yelled from the stands.

"Come on, dad!" Goten cheered for his father.

"No mercy, dad!" Trunks shouted.

Vegeta smirk and took a swing at Goku's face, but he missed as Goku became naught but an afterimage. Vegeta turned around sharply, figuring Goku would now be behind him, but he was wrong.

"Kaaaaaameeeeeehaaaaameeee—"

Vegeta had to only hear the sound coming from above before he flew into the air to get away from Goku. That was when he realized his mistake. Goku would never, not in a million years, aim a Kamehameha, intended to hurt Vegeta at the ground.

"HAAAAAAAA!" The attack sailed dead on across at Vegeta who was unprepared and just making it to Goku's altitude. No Galick Gun in the world was going to save him from the energy Goku charged up. So, instead, he kept flying higher into the air and let Goku's attack sail across the horizon. Then he charged one up.

"Galick Gun!" Vegeta shouted, blasting one at Goku from above, angled downward.

"Kaio-ken!" Goku shouted and increased his ki to four times its limits in order to have enough strength to kick the blast into the air. He immediately ticked the technique back down to nil. "Phew," Goku said, wiping his brow. He frowned and put his knuckles on his hips. "Come on, Vegeta, you could've hurt somebody."

"Oh, look who's talking!" Vegeta barked.

Goku swiped his thumb across his nose. "I was just getting back at your trick against my poor foot with a trick of my own. But, what do you say we keep this old school, or maybe fly a bit further away so the audience isn't so close."

"All right, but no complaining when you lose," Vegeta said.

The two made a beeline for the open ocean and stopped. The water below would now would likely count now as out of bounds.

"Excellent," Vegeta said with a smirk. "Out here, we can launch our finest attacks with no restrictions."

"Yup," Goku said and it was only now Vegeta realized Goku's back was to the sun. "Think fast. Solar Flare!"

Vegeta immediately got blinded and disoriented as Goku went in for the follow up, pounding Vegeta with a slew of punches and kicks, aiming the last one downward to send the Prince of all Saiyans hurtling into the water. However, Vegeta was able to right himself and managed to make it back into the air before he got to close to the ocean's surface and then started unloading energy blast after energy blast at Goku.

Goku moved to dodge, but the blasts follow, Vegeta controlling them to track Goku's movements. However, Goku was letting him and began circling around Vegeta closer and closer, tighter and tighter. The moment Vegeta took to realize this was the moment he slipped up and the two dozen or so blasts sailed past Goku and went flying over the horizon as Goku came flying in, planting his boot in Vegeta's face.

Vegeta went back, only to rush back in and deck Goku hard in the face himself. The two began trading blows and crossing up, landing fierce hits against each other before retreating backwards.

"KAMEHAMEHA!" Goku shouted, unleashing the blue beam.

"GALICK GUN!" Vegeta shouted, unleashing the purple one.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I can't even begin to explain to you what is happening, but all I can tell you is that I am impressed!" The announcer shouted, looking at the big screen. "Both fighters appear to be evenly matched. How will this go?"

Vegeta and Goku pushed against each other, their attacks ramming into each other with sheer intensity. First Vegeta got an edge, then Goku, then Vegeta, then Goku, then Vegeta again, then Goku again. Vegeta poured more energy into the attack, but Goku matched it. The attack exploded over the ocean as the two darted towards each other, Goku missing a sweeping kick at Vegeta's head as the shorter Saiyan ducked under it. He made a punch for Goku's head, which Goku evaded by leaning backwards, the two once again going at it in close quarters, zipping to and fro, their collisions rocking the ocean waters.

Vegeta smashed Goku hard in the face. Goku punched Vegeta hard in the stomach as the two pulled back from each other, but not too far. They stood with their hands at their sides.

"This isn't like when we fought on Earth. We're evenly matched this time," Goku pointed out. "This fight's gonna come down to skill rather than power."

"Hmph," Vegeta said. "I could easily defeat you if we both went Super Saiyan."

"I wonder about that," Goku smirked.

Vegeta growled, only to let it go and speak calmly. "Kakarot, a few years ago, Bulma said something to me, that everything I did was just to have a rematch with a corpse. She wasn't wrong, exactly."

"Yeah, I know I kind of left you hanging," Goku said. "Sorry about that. And I'm sorry that this isn't exactly the rematch you wanted. I know you'd prefer us to go all out, but I really don't want anyone getting hurt and we're kind of restricted on the whole out of bounds thing."

Vegeta sighed.

"Hey, how about this?" Goku asked. "No matter who wins this, we won't fully count it and we can have another rematch. I still want to handle this Buu guy with Gohan and the others so that might take a while, but if I run out of time, maybe I can convince Baba to let you visit Other world for a day and we can have a proper rematch."

Vegeta stared. Something about Goku's earnestness rubbed him the wrong way, almost as if Goku was pitying him, looking down on him. A swirling knot in Vegeta's stomach began to form, filled with darkness and hate. Still, he relented to Goku's terms. "Fine, let's take it back to the arena. We'll finish this old school." He pointed at Goku. "No energy blasts. No Kaio Ken. We settle this like our ancestors, in the ring with our pride on the line!"

"Sounds good to me," Goku said. "Race you there!" He then took off.

"Hey! This is not a game!" Vegeta shouted, flying after him.


While Goku and Vegeta were busy duking it out, Gohan was also having a problem of his own. Dabura was proving to be a lot tougher than he anticipated. He was already scuffed up, down a glove and had to ditch his nice green vest Bulma made for him. And while he'd been able to avoid getting seriously injured, the fact of the matter was, Dabura hadn't taken any real damage either.

"Gohan! What's wrong?" Akane asked. "Are you hungry? Do you not feel well? I know you're stronger than this!"

Gohan sighed. He was starting to worry Akane. She knew he was holding back. Gundham and the others probably did too. They just weren't as vocal about it.

"What's that girl blathering about?" Dabura asked. "Don't think I'll take it easy on you if you're sick, scared or nervous." He clenched his fists and held out his arms up above his shoulders, blowing away the water below him and Gohan. "I am the Demon King! I offer no mercy!"

"Uh, no, it's not that," Gohan said, rubbing the back of his head. "It's just…I kind of didn't want to do this. I was hoping I could conserve all of my energy in case Majin Buu got out, but you're a lot tougher than I anticipated."

Dabura clenched his teeth and looked displeased. "There's no way you could be holding back. Explain yourself!"

"Well, I mean, I am holding back," Gohan said.

"WHAT?!" Dabura shouted.

Shin, again, looked like he was 5 minutes away from a leaky bladder at this news.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to insult you," Gohan said, "But…well…it's been a long time since I used my full power in an actual fight, five years in fact. I'm a little rusty so I was trying to get back into the swing of things, you know. Not to mention…last time…" Gohan took a deep breath. "Just be aware…I might not be myself after a while."

"Hmm?" Dabura's eyes narrowed with interest.

"Here goes," Gohan said and began to power up, roaring with fury. The pain of loss. That's what Goku had taught him was the key to Super Saiyan. So, Gohan invented a fictitious loss, the image that he wouldn't be able to protect Akane, Videl and all of his other friends if he didn't go all out.

Dabura stared slack jawed as Gohan powered up.

Babidi's power meter was also waving wildly, reaching readings beyond 6,000 kili. "Impossible! There's no way!"

Gohan's hair became spikier and more golden as his whole body bulked up, spreading the increased girth evenly throughout his frame.

This is insane! Shin thought. Gohan wasn't even using this much energy against Kibito! How was he hiding that?

Gohan roared louder as a cocoon of golden light emanated from all around him. It dissipated quickly as Gohan's golden aura now sparked with lightning. He then relaxed his muscles a little and floated in front of Dabura. "Sorry to keep you waiting, your majesty," Gohan said with a subdued tone.

Dabura didn't see Gohan's next move as much as he felt it. Gohan's punch to his gut caused him to spew bile everywhere. Dabura went flying through several rock formations.

Gohan, for his part, offered no mercy. "MASENKO!" Gohan blasted Dabura before he'd even had the chance to get up from the ground.

Dabura let out a scream of pain as he was blasted and consumed by the blast.

Peko's eyes shrunk in. "What incredible power! It's even stronger than the day we first felt it."

"That's it! Gohan!" Kotomi cheered, pumping a fist into the air. "You got this!"

Dabura popped out of the ground, but it was clear he was feeling the effects of Gohan's attack. His clothing was ripped and blood was starting to drip from his jaw. His breathing was haggard. "Lucky shot!" The Demon King shouted, firing a massive blast of his own energy at Gohan.

The Ultimate Hero didn't even look in the blast's direction before backhanding it away into a rock formation, shocking Dabura. That…wasn't possible.

"Scared?" Gohan asked.

Dabura uttered an incoherent stammer only to jump a little when Gohan got right in his face.

"You should be," Gohan said and blasted Dabura with a massive energy blast. At first, it seemed like this one would be the final blow, but Dabura had been quick enough to brace for impact and created an oval shaped energy shield to protect himself, getting launched backwards.

Gohan seemed to teleport right next to Dabura's left flank and then, with one kick, shattered the shield and decked the Demon King in the face. Gohan's follow up strikes were brutal, cracking bone, damaging organs and breaking teeth. And, as before, he followed up his assault with an energy blast for extra death insurance.

Dabura came back swinging though, rushing Gohan as fast as he could, but the Ultimate Hero just knocked him away with minimal effort. This happened multiple times. Finally, Gohan had had enough and, instead of just knocking Dabura away, he grabbed Dabura's arm and broke it at the elbow before punching him across the face and kicking him away. Fed up with Dabura's stubbornness, Gohan decided his next attack would be his last.

"KAAAAAAAAAA! MEEEEEEEEEEE!"

"DABURAAAAAAAA!" Babidi screamed. There had to be something he could do.

"HAAAAAAAAA! MEEEEEEE!"

Thinking quickly, Dabura spat a bunch of times in Gohan's general direction. No matter how much the teen moved, surely one of his loogies would tag him.

…And that's when Gohan appeared right behind him.

"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Gohan didn't just kill Dabura with his attack, he completely and utterly vaporized him.

Shin and Gohan's fellow students stared at the resulting, diminishing blast wave in awe.

No way…the Demon King…slain? Shin thought, shocked out of his mind.

Kotomi was the first to break the silence, laughing. "Oh! There going to have to glue him back together! In hell!" She cackled, almost laughing herself sick.

"He is the demon king, that is where they usually end up. Still, it would be difficult to glue even a dark lord back together when, well," Gundham chortled. "There's nothing to glue back together." He cackled loudly. "WELL DONE, SON GOHAN! This bearer of the evil eye, bows to your skills once more! Truly, yours is a power unmatched in the mortal realm!"

"That was AWESOME!" Akane exclaimed. "I wanna be that strong!"

Gohan slowly powered down from Super Saiyan 2 as the background returned to that of Babidi's ship. Surprising to her and everyone gathered, Gohan ruffled her hair. "That power's not all it's cracked up to be, Akane."

"Huh? What do you mean?" Akane asked, confused. "You looked so cool."

"Maybe," Gohan said. "But…that power comes at a price for me. I don't want to see you pay it," he turned away and smiled at her. "You're fine as yourself."

Akane was more confused than ever.

Gundham stared at Gohan in confusion at first but, in the next moment, he could immediately understand what Gohan meant. He simply turned his head away and chose not to comment, keeping the Hero's "price" a secret.

"Come on, let's not keep Babidi waiting," Gohan said and floated down the vertical corridor to descend down Babidi's ship.

The wizard, of which, was in a full-blown panic. Pui pui cut to ribbons. Yakon dead. Dabura annihilated. How? How could some of his best fighters from across the universe be destroyed so easily. Who the hell were these earthlings?

"No! It's not fair!" Babidi exclaimed. He turned back to the dial in front of Buu's "egg". He'd barely collected 3/8 the amount of energy needed to awaken Majin Buu. At this rate, Buu would never be woken up and he hadn't any more powerful minions to throw at Gohan and the others.

He began by making the corridor an endless loop for a bit using his magic while gazing at his crystal ball. That would buy him time. He needed to search. He needed to find a warrior more than capable of defeating or at least stalling this lot so that Majin Buu could reawaken. Someone! Anyone! He'd take any entity he could find! A farmer with a shotgun would do at this point if it would help him revive Majin Buu!

After several minutes of searching—precious time compared to the speed of his adversaries—Babidi finally found his prize. Yes, he's perfect! Look at that arrogance! That lust for power! I can just sense the dark seeds in his heart waiting to be unleashed!

And then, Babidi unleashed his magic upon his unsuspecting victim.


In the arena, Goku and Vegeta were continuing to brawl just as they promised. Melee attacks only. No energy blasts. No Super Saiyan. And while that had sounded fun at first, Vegeta was not amused. If anything, he was just getting angry.

Listen to these peons cheering and fawning. They don't even know true strength! None of them do! I should've never agreed to Kakarot's terms! I should go Super Saiyan right now and teach him a lesson about battle! If he wasn't already dead, I'd kill him myself!

That's when he felt a throbbing pain in his head like none he'd ever felt before. He clutched his head and began screaming in agony.

"Vegeta! Are you all right?" Goku asked.

"Hey, what's wrong with dad?" Trunks asked Bulma, tugging on her arm.

Vegeta began to stumble about like he was trying to hold in a gallon of urine. "Something's…attacking me."

"Where?!" Goku asked. "I can't see anything."

"Uh oh! Is this outside interference?" The announcer asked. "The match would have to be called off and there could be serious consequences depending on the circumstances."

Goku gasped. No! Did Gohan and the others fail? He took a moment to do his best to sense ki. No, I can sense Gohan. It's faint, but that's just because he's far away. He and the others are fine, so Buu's not released. I can even sense the Supreme Kai. So then…what's wrong with Vegeta?

"In…siiiiide," Vegeta groaned, continuing to stumble about.

This was a very bad and unprecedented situation. With Vegeta clearly in no situation to take questions, the announcer leaned towards Goku.

"Um, Mr. Goku, sir. What should we do? Should we call an ambulance?"

"I…I don't know," Goku said making a fist.

By now, Vegeta was on his knees, gloved fingers clawing at his forehead, still screaming in pain.

"Dad!" Trunks called out in alarm.

A large burst of energy emitted from Vegeta as he screamed and floated into the air. Then he suddenly went Super Saiyan.

"Vegeta!" Goku called out in alarm.

Vegeta floated back down to the ground, hunched over. It looked like the worst had passed, but then…Vegeta lifted his head and showed that a strange M had been planted on his forehead.

Goku gasped. He recognized that symbol. Those guys Yamu and Spopovich had been sporting them. No! It couldn't be! He turned his body towards the announcer. "Hey! You need to call off the match and evacuate the audience before—"

Goku was cut off by the sound of a fired energy blast…which ripped through the stadium like it was ripping a piece of paper in two.

Goku gaped at the demolished rows of the stadium. Hundreds, possibly thousands of people ended in an instant.

"Oh, I'm afraid it's far too late for that, Kakarot," Vegeta said and jerked a thumb at himself. "The kid gloves come off now. I don't want your pity fights or your mercy! Fight me with all of your strength and lets settle this once and for all!"

"Hey!" Goku shouted at the announcer. "Call off the match. Get everyone out of here now!"

"I'm sorry, but I make the rules now," Vegeta said. He aimed an energy blast at the announcer and proceeded to fire.

The attack was intercepted…by Chisa Yukizome.

"CHISA!" Goku shouted, alarmed. She took the brunt of the attack head on, getting seriously hurt, bleeding all over, but no matter how much damage the attack did to her, the announcer was safe.

"Chisa!" Munakata hadn't seen her move, much less run over to the announcer.

Chisa panted and then fell backwards on the ground, woozy. She lay in a pool of her own blood and body fluids.

"Vegeta, what have you done? She could die at this rate."

"Hmph, that's her fault," Vegeta said. "She could've been an amazing warrior, but look at her now. Weak. Worthless garbage. I should just end her now. It would be a mercy."

Neither Trunks nor Bulma could even comprehend Vegeta's behavior right now.

And then, Vegeta fired his shot.

Goku was the one who intercepted this time, powered up all the way to Super Saiyan to match Vegeta. "Vegeta…you know how much Chisa hates fighting." He clenched his fists, teeth grinded in anger. "What's happened to you all of a sudden?"

"I'll tell you what's happened. I finally realized I don't give a damn about anything other than beating you, Kakarot! And in a battle befitting the way of a Saiyan, not your worthless skill and strategy tournament where one ring out decides the whole thing! This will be a fight to the death! You and me! Just like it was so many years ago!"

"Vegeta," Bulma said, tearing up, "I thought we were past this."

"Oh, I know. If you won't take me seriously," Vegeta aimed a single finger in Chichi's general direction.

Instinctually, pounded Vegeta in the side of the face, sending him slamming through the wall and into the street. The ring out didn't matter anymore. This wasn't a fight at the world martial arts tournament, not anymore.

"Chisa!" Munakata had finally managed to make his way over to her and held up her limp, bleeding body.

"Hey, Kyosuke, right?" Goku asked.

Munakata looked at the glowing Goku.

"Fly west from here, as far as you can. You'll see a white tower. In the center is a small abode. There's a cat there. His name is Korin. He has more senzu beans. Chisa needs one now or she'll die."

"Right," Munakata said and gazed down at the unconscious red head, blood leaking from her eyes. "Don't worry, my angel. I won't let you die," Munakata flew off at breakneck speeds. Sakakura, not wanting to be left behind, followed.

"Hey," Goku said to the still conscious, but very scared announcer. "Do me a favor and call this a no contest like I asked, okay? Vegeta's not fighting with the right mindset. I'm not taking this win. Besides, killing the audience is against the rules anyway."

"R-right," the announcer said. "But…um…"

"Just…figure it out," Goku said and left the arena. He went to go meet Vegeta out in the parking lot, but he'd vanished. But how? Goku then picked up his energy. How had Vegeta gotten so far, so fast? What about their fight?

That was when the wheels started turning in Goku's head. "Oh no!" He took off flying in the direction of Babidi's ship.


Vegeta got up off the ground, not knowing where he was. Everything was dark. "Welcome, Vegeta. So glad you could join me."

"Where am I?" Vegeta asked, groaning as he got up. "Who are you?"

"I am Babidi, your new master. I have some pests I need you to dispose of. Would you do that for me?"

Vegeta turned away from Babidi. "Hmph. No thanks. I only want to fight Kakarot."

Oh, he's a stubborn one. Not completely under my control. Still…

"Vegeta, I'm sure this Kakarot will be along shortly. Why not loosen up your new power against some others while you wait. I mean, with your new power, it should be easy, right?"

Vegeta only smirked cruelly. "Oh, I believe I'll enjoy this."


Gohan and friends, having no idea what had transpired back at the tournament, descended down to level 4.

"Finally!" Kotomi exclaimed, hunching over onto her knees. "I seriously thought we weren't going to ever reach the bottom."

"I know, it did seem suspicious," Shin said, eyes darting around.

"You think so too, huh?" Gohan asked him.

"So, what foul creature do you think the wizard will throw at us next?" Gundham questioned. "We have already defeated even the likes of the Demon King. Our party is far too strong to be stopped even by a rogue cosmic entity."

"How about a Prince of all Saiyans instead?"

The entire group was shocked to hear that voice, especially when the owner of said voice stepped through the door and into the cramped room.

"V-Vegeta," Gohan stuttered.

"Sensei?" Kotomi questioned, completely confused.

Shin was the first to notice the M on Vegeta's forehead. "Oh no!" He exclaimed. "He's fallen under Babidi's control!"

"What?" Gohan shouted.

"But…what about the tournament?" Peko inquired. "I do not understand."

"Oh, I decided that the tournament wasn't that important anymore," Vegeta said, folding his arms. "I decided I'd much rather have an anything goes match with Kakarot instead. But, while I wait, I figured I'd at least have some fun picking apart the little bugs getting in the way of that.

"Have you lost your mind?!" Gohan shouted.

"Vegeta! How could you let this happen? If you keep this up, you'll release Buu and threaten the entire universe with his existence! You have to stop this meaninglessness now!"

"Meaningless?!" Vegeta roared. "Tell me something, Kai! Have you been raised and suppressed by another? Have you had to stand by, day in and DAY OUT and watch as your own people die one by one after most of them were already wiped out. And then, just to add insult to injury some low-class, third rate member of your own race, keeps one-upping you while you have the blood of a prince running through your veins! And then, just to keep piling on the indignities, you live on a back water hick world for several years in the vain hopes of having a rematch with a corpse! Meanwhile, you keep yourself busy babysitting a bunch of weakling brats!"

Kotomi looked and sounded like she was going to cry. "Sensei…"

"No, that isn't the sensei we know anymore," Gundham stated. "His mind and his pride have been corrupted by the foul wizard, Babidi."

"Sensei…" Akane glared at him. "Why would you let this happen to you? I looked up to you! You were strong!"

"Oh spare me!" Vegeta shouted. "The minute Kakarot showed up, you started kissing his butt and calling it ice cream! You're even wearing the same outfit as him! In fact," Vegeta unfolded his arms and took aim at Akane. "I think I'll kill you first." Vegeta charged up an energy blast and fired it at Akane.

However, Gohan, already in Super Saiyan 2, blocked and deflected the attack and punched Vegeta in the face, knocking him flat on the ground.

"Vegeta," Gohan grumbled. "Akane, myself and everyone here are your students. Think about what you're doing."

"Oh I know exactly what I'm doing," Vegeta said with an evil grin. "Piling up the bodies so Kakarot can see the carnage and weep his soft little heart into the other world after I finish beating him into the ground!"

Everyone was shocked, even Vegeta and Babidi, when Kotomi crossed the room and slapped Vegeta across the face.

"Kotomi!" Gohan knew that an angry, irrational Vegeta was the last thing Kotomi wanted to be tangling with, but right now she didn't seem to care.

"I can't believe you right now, Sensei," Kotomi said, staring at Vegeta with defiance, but also heartbreak. "You taught us that anything can be overcome with enough rigorous training and true strength. You were harsh on us, but you never called us weakling brats. You always acted like you were proud of us!" Kotomi held up her fists and sounded almost like she was pleading. "Where's that pride now? You're wrecking every single relationship you've ever had all for a grudge match with Goku? Why? I don't understand! Help me, understand!"

Vegeta glared at Kotomi. "Don't lecture me, you worthless piece of garbage! Don't act as if you understand me! I've only known you for a month!"

"That's why I want to understand! Please, sensei! I don't want to see you acting like this! This isn't you!"

Vegeta did not answer Kotomi with words. Instead, he charged an energy blast and aimed it right in her face. She was nowhere near as strong as Chisa Yukizome. This wouldn't just kill her, like Dabura, it would likely vaporize her.

"Kotomi! Stop it! Don't call his bluff!" Gohan shouted.

Kotomi continued to make unwavering eye contact though, staring Vegeta down, arms spread wide. "I'm the Ultimate Cheerleader," she said. "It's my talent to support people and cheer for them."

"Sorry, but I've ceased to care," Vegeta said and then fired.

However, the blast was deflected by another energy blast that intercepted it and knocked it off course, causing it to slam into the wall, but not by Gohan, not even by Goku.

"Well, what's it been? Five years and you're still the same loud-mouthed imbecile you were when I broke your arm."

Kotomi could not believe whose back she was staring at. The others could barely believe it too.

"Eighteen!" Akane cheered.

The cyborg blonde smirked and tucked some hair behind her ear.

"Get lost, Android. This doesn't concern you," Vegeta growled.

"Maybe not, but then again, I'm used to making sure you don't get your way."

"Please, Kakarot defeated you in the tournament easily. I could kill you with my eyes closed."

"I'd like to see that," 18 taunted.

However, Babidi had different plans. "Vegeta, I can't allow you to fight these intruders in such close quarters. Majin Buu might awake prematurely and that would be bad. So, I'll send you to a nice battlefield somewhere on this planet where you can be sure to inflict damage and drain all their energy."

"Hmph, fine, but when Kakarot shows up, you're on your own, wizard," Vegeta scoffed.

The group was teleported to a wasteland way out to the west on another continent.

"Hey, 18, where are Krillin and Piccolo?" Gohan asked.

"Piccolo went to go meet up with Goku who's on his way. Krillin headed to Korin's tower when we sensed a high power level headed in that direction."

"A high power level," Gohan had no idea what that was about.

"Look, Gohan," 18 said, "I can tell you're winded. Let me buy you some time."

"Hey, hold on a second. You're really gonna fight Vegeta?" Gohan asked. "He's out of your league in Super Saiyan!"

"Please all that animosity and sweat?" 18 asked and then let out a scream and powered up. "I'll break his arm like I did last time."

"Better watch what you say, Android," Vegeta smirked cruelly. "On second thought, don't. That'll make it easier for me to demolish you down to scrap."

18 chuckled. "You can try."

"Eighteen, wait!" Akane shouted. Her gut was acting up. It was telling her that this was bad.

"You kids sit there and be good. I'll handle Vegeta myself!" 18 lunged at Vegeta at stop speed, only for Vegeta to catch her by the face. He then held her up with his thumb and forefinger around her cheek.

"Oh, I'm going to enjoy this." Vegeta then smashed 18 into the rocks below, shattering them.

"Vegeta!" Gohan shouted and began to charge forward but Shin stopped him by getting in front of him. "Get out of the way, Supreme Kai!"

"Eighteen was right. You used a lot of energy to vanquish Dabura. You won't stand a chance against Vegeta with Babidi's magic amplifying him."

"But…Eighteen…"

Gundham put a hand on Gohan's shoulder. "Regain your strength, Archangel. With luck, your father will be here soon and get the dark one off our backs and progress can resume."

Gohan exhaled. "Yeah, okay. I guess…I guess I just gotta hope 18 can hang in there."

Vegeta began pummeling 18 in the chest, causing her to gasp for air with each blow. "So tell me, are these implants too? They're so easy to smash they feel about as cheap and plastic as I imagine your enhancements are." He then kicked her in the side of the head and sent her through a rock formation. With a powerful Galick Gun, Vegeta blasted 18 further underground before she had a chance to recover.

"VEGETA!" Akane ran forward.

"Akane, no!" Gohan shouted.

But Akane was too blinded by rage. 18 was like a big sister to her. She leapt at Vegeta with an angry punch, only to get swat into the ground with the flat of her hand and cut her face on the rocks below.

Gohan ran over to her. "Are you all right? That could've killed you!" Gohan shouted.

Akane sat up as 18 burst from the ground looking battered and bruised, bleeding from multiple areas, skin ripped open on her arms by sharp rocks.

"He's going to kill her at this rate!" Akane shouted. "I can't just stand by and watch this!" She stood up, looking angry. "18…18 is like family to me! Dammit! I feel so useless right now!"

Vegeta flew forward and began punching 18 repeatedly. She blocked with her arms, but he eventually just kicked her in the leg, nearly breaking it from the shin down and then smashed her in the face.

"Gohan…that's not sensei. Not the sensei we know. We gotta do something!"

"I know, but…"

While Gohan contemplated if he should jump in or not, Vegeta continuing to wail on 18, Gundham stood idly by, contemplating the power of the Majin boost.

So this is the force of devilry that consumes the mind and enslaves the soul. It is both fearsome and terrible. A power like that would surely be fitting for one such as I that shall one day engulf this world. However… He gazed at Vegeta pummeling 18. He had her grabbed by the hair and was repeatedly jamming his knee into her stomach. That level of brutality and hatred are beyond my comprehension. I will use no matter of Faustian dark powers to amplify my abilities. He chuckled. Of course, were the Dark Queen to ask me to sell my soul, I'd sell it in a heartbeat, especially to her.

Vegeta got bored of smashing his knee into 18 so opted to bash his elbow into her back, slamming her into the ground.

"It's over," Vegeta said with a grin. "BIG BANG ATTACK!"

Nope. Not this time. Gohan wasn't going to let that happen to 18. Not only was it inhumane, Krillin would be miserable. He threw himself into the path of the blast, powering up to Super Saiyan 2. He managed to fire off a Masenko at close range to mitigate the damage, but was ultimately engulfed by the blast. Vegeta did little more than give him a shallow cut on his cheek and chin.

Lightning sparked around Gohan. He was far from happy.

"Oh? So you finally decided to stop waiting on the sidelines and let women do your fighting for you, Mr. Ultimate Hero?"

"Honestly, I wanted to catch my breath for a bit longer, but I'm not gonna let you kill 18. Vegeta, I don't know what kind of sick and twisted game you're playing, but I'm done playing it. Maybe if I kill you instead, we can wish you back with the Dragon Balls without whatever's controlling you."

Akane's blood ran cold. So did Peko's. Gohan making death threats, even for a good cause, did not sit well with what they knew about them. Akane was finally starting to see the "price" Gohan mentioned regarding his power.

Gundham's scarf billowed in the wind. Dragon Balls, hmm? Orbs of power that can revive the dead? Color me intrigued.

Gohan flew towards Vegeta with blinding speed, fist poised to strike, but another figure got in the way, his own father.

"It's all right, Gohan. Leave Vegeta to me."

"Dad!" Gohan was surprised to see Goku at first, but then saw the fingers he was removing from his forehead. Goku had arrived via Instant Transmission.

"Sorry, it was hard to lock onto you guys at first when you were underground Babidi's ship. Then I ran into Piccolo who told me what was going on. You did a good job holding down the fort, Gohan. Go finish the job. I'll handle Vegeta." Goku glared at the prince, thinking of the people killed at the stadium and the fact that Vegeta had tried to kill Chichi. "He made this personal."

"Dad…" Gohan said.

Shin had to interject. "Goku! You can't! This is exactly what Babidi wants! You and Vegeta are equals! If you fight, Majin Buu may yet awaken!"

"Then let him come," a new voice added to the fray.

Gundham gasped. He hadn't expected this arrival so soon.

"Sonia?!" Gohan was surprised to see her.

"Goku caught up to me after my match with Videl. I heard about what happened. Sorry I could not get here sooner. I am…not a very fast flier."

"Gohan!" Gundham shouted. "Let your father face his own sins! With the Dark Queen here, our party has been amplified in numbers and in strength! Let us crack open the egg beneath our feet and descend into darkness together! If hell awaits us, we shall face it together!"

"Gundham's right," Goku said. "There should still be some time before Buu awakens. If you manage to kill him or Babidi before he does, my fight with Vegeta won't matter."

"Okay, but what about 18?" Gohan asked.

"I got her." Everyone looked around to see Hajime shouldering 18.

"Oh, hey, it's that Harold guy."

"Hajime," Hajime corrected Akane.

18, still conscious looked at Hajime. "I thought you couldn't fly."

"I can't, but you can, right. If you focus your ki, you don't have to move your body, right? I'll shoulder the rest of you."

Goku smiled at Hajime. This is exactly what he told Videl not too long ago. Even if you don't have a lot of power, just do what you could do. And, getting 18 out of the blast zone while she was this injured was the best thing Hajime could do right now.

"18, get yourself to Korin's tower and get a senzu bean. You should meet up with Chisa and Kyosuke there."

18 nodded and then lifted herself and Hajime off the ground. "Don't drop me, okay. I hurt bad enough to fly like this, but at least with you shouldering half my weight, I can focus the rest on getting myself out of here."

"Er, no problem Mrs. 18," Hajime said.

18 chuckled a little. "You're going to make some lucky girl very happy one day." She and Hajime then flew off.

Hajime blushed and laughed nervously.

Shin and the others shuffled away from Goku and Vegeta towards the entrance to Babidi's ship.

"No! No! No! No!" Babidi shouted. "Why did I let them stay on this planet? This is a disaster!" He looked at the meter. Thanks to Vegeta pummeling 18, Buu was now 5/8 of the way charged. No Dabura. No Yakon. No Puipui. What the heck was he going to do?

"Please allow me," Sonia said and approached the entrance.

"What are you going to do?" Shin asked.

"The Dark Queen has perfect ki control," Gundham stated. "Such a strike from her should not disturb the devilish beast contained within."

While Shin was trying to translate Gundham's statement, Sonia punched the covering to Babidi's ship. It shattered like glass, the pieces falling into the corridor below. The sounds of them impacting on the ground, echoed through the chamber. However, not a single shockwave could be felt along the rocks below everyone's feet.

"If you spread the damage you intend to only your target, you can avoid unnecessary usage of energy and avoid collateral damage. The attack is weaker overall, but in some circumstances, such as these, it can be useful."

"Wow, nice job Sonia," Gohan said. A decade plus years of muscle memory had called for Gohan to value strength and skill over precision so despite his vast experience, he could never pull something like that off.

"With this, we should be able to proceed downward. Let us move carefully," Shin said. He looked back at Goku. "I still don't approve of this, but I guess circumstances aren't being that kind, are they?"

"Just go," Goku said without a hint of kindness.

"Hey, Goku," Akane said, glaring towards him and Vegeta. "Make sensei realize he's wrong!"

"Don't worry, Akane. Not only is this not the first time I've tangled with Vegeta, I'm not exactly a stranger to saving the world either. You guys have a job to do." Goku powered up a little more. "This is mine."

Akane nodded and then proceeded down the ship's vertical corridor with the others.

With the distractions out of the way, Vegeta powered up. "Let's begin, shall we? I hope being dead for five years hasn't made your body fragile."

Goku then powered up to Super Saiyan 2. Vegeta, to his small shock, did the same. This was going to be unlike any fight Goku had had in a while. But he was ready for it. The wind blew. The dust settled and then…the battle began.


While Goku and Vegeta fought overhead, Gohan and the gang managed to get to stage 4 in Babidi's ship, finding only minions to greet them. Very…scared…minions.

Kotomi cracked her knuckles. "Showtime."

Screams of agony and calls for maternal figures could be heard as Kotomi helped Gohan conserve that little bit of strength by taking out the small fry. She then breathed on her palm, turning away from the pile of tangled, limb broken bodies behind her. It was clear to everyone watching that those guys weren't getting back up. This allowed the group to descend to the bottom of Babidi's ship to face off with the wizard himself and the still unawakened Majin Buu.

Babidi was, understandably, in a panic, as he hid behind Buu's egg, cowering and trying to stay quiet.

"So where's this Babidi guy?" Akane asked, looking around. "It's so dark in here." She sniffed. "And unlike with Yakon, I don't even have a foul scent to track."

"No need to worry," Shin said, pointing at the giant egg in the room. "Buu's right there. If we combine our efforts into a coordinated massive energy blast, we should be able to destroy Majin Buu before he awakens."

Gohan powered up to Super Saiyan 2 again. "Let's do it. Just like in training guys, sync your movements and ready your attacks."

No! This can't be the end, Babidi exclaimed, panicking. I need Buu to awaken. This can't be happening!

Babidi began searching for any mind he could among the group, but with precious time to spare, he had to focus squarely on the group before him. Gundham and Sonia showed promise for different reasons, but nothing like Vegeta. Both were tempted by dark magics and bargains, but the purities in their hearts let Babidi know they knew better. He could try. Maybe the distraction would call off the coordinated attack long enough to let Buu awaken. Even if it failed, it was worth the risk, right?

Before making the attempt, Babidi thought to at least put everyone off guard first. Using his magic, he teleported everyone out of the ship, confusing them and breaking their focus. Buu still sat right in front of them, but now they were outside, far and away from Goku and Vegeta's scuffle, but they could still sense it.

"Babidi's just buying time," Shin said. "We have to act now."

"Right," Gohan said. "Come on, guys! From the top!"

Babidi chuckled and then…he attacked Sonia and Gundham.

Both students reeled backwards, clutching their foreheads, shocking everyone.

"Oh no, not again," Shin gasped.

"Sonia! Gundham!"

The group had to ignore Majin Buu. If Sonia or Gundham turned into Babidi's minions right now that would be really really bad.

"Get…out…of my head!" Gundham shouted.

"I…will not…yield…" Sonia grunted and then screamed in agony.

"That's it! Fight it you two! You can do this!"

"Kotomi!" Gohan exclaimed.

Kotomi had been so shocked it took her a second to realize what Gohan was asking. "Ah! Right! Gundham! Sonia! You can't let Babidi get in your heads like that! You know why? Cause you two are awesome!" She raised a finger to the sky. "You don't need dark magics offered by scumbag wizards trying to take over the world with evil monsters sealed in an egg! All the power you need is the power to believe in yourselves!" she shouted, smacking her fist against her chest. "Steel your hearts and let out a furious roar from your lungs! You are darkness bathed in light!"

"Darkness…bathed…in light?" This seemed to resonate with Gundham and he stopped feeling a headache. "KAHAHAHA! How poetic, Kotomi Ikuta! I like it."

Well, there goes one failure, Babidi thought. But he still had the girl.

Sonia was struggling harder than Gundham to control Babidi. Not only was she weaker overall, but the temptations of the darkness were surprisingly stronger in her heart than his.

Before Kotomi could say another sentence though, Gundham was the one that brought Sonia back to her senses. "Dark Queen! Do not despair at the temptations of the dark, for your power is far greater! Did you not vow that your might would fall only under my sway! If you give in to these weak temptations, you shall never be the ruler you so desperately aim to be! A Queen yields to no wizard! Wizards yield to a Queen."

Sonia's ki flared up and with a powerful shout, she pushed Babidi from her mind. The yelp from the wizard, helped Akane pick up his location.

Akane picked up the small little potato headed wizard by his clothing. "You!" Akane shouted. "Let go of Sensei right now. I'll beat you to a bloody pulp!" She decked Babidi in the face. "That one's for Gohan!" She punched him again. "That one's for sensei!"

"Akane, attacking Babidi does us no good right now! If we don't deal with Buu soon—"

Suddenly, a pulse of energy reverberated around the group and it was coming from Buu's egg.

"No…it can't be," Shin said.

"What? What's going on?" Akane asked. She was on the other side of Buu's capsule, still with Babidi's robes clenched in her angry fingers.

Babidi knew. He didn't need to look at the meter to know the energy he was feeling. Plus, the scared look on Shin's face told him everything. "It's happening! H-h-h-h-he…h-h-his full power."

"No!" Shin cried out in despair.

"Majin Buu is at full power!" Babidi cheered.

Akane, now more pissed off than ever, hurled Babidi at the nearest formation of sharp rocks. The small wizard banged his back on the formation and fell to the ground, groaning in pain. "D-dammit! What now?"

"I don't understand. It's too soon," Shin said, sweating, staring at the full M meter. "Goku's damage energy alone certainly couldn't have been enough to…"

"Dad…" Gohan finally realized what'd been happening for the past few minutes or so. "That must be it. Dad's been fighting at a level beyond a Super Saiyan. Dad and Vegeta both. And when two powers like that collide, with as much energy as they're putting out, the damage must be enormous.

"No!" Shin exclaimed in despair once more. The weight of failure crashed upon his head, shoulders and soul.

"I don't care if he's at full power or not! He still hasn't woken up yet. Is there a way we can stop it?" Akane asked.

"Let's see," Gohan said and began charging up an attack. "Kaaaameeeehaaameeee…" Gohan stopped when steam emitted from the platform surrounding Buu's egg capsule.

"Forget it," Shin said. "It's too late."

The dark clouds overhead had begun to recede. The lightning had stopped and Buu's egg capsule pulsed.

"Ugh, creepy," Kotomi stated.

"Creepy is the least of our worries! There's no choice! We must retreat! Run on my signal!" Shin shouted.

"No way!" Kotomi shouted.

"What?!" Shin could not believe her right now. "Are you so eager to die, Kotomi?"

"No. But I have guts," Kotomi said and began charging up a fiery ki blast. "And I'm not just gonna stand by and watch this thing hatch!"

"Yeah, I'm with Kotomi on this one," Gohan said, charging up another Kamehameha.

"Me too!" Akane shouted, doing the same.

Peko readied her Ki Blade. Sonia and Gundham also took proper stances to prepare energy attacks.

"You're all insane! Unlike any of you, I've seen what Buu is capable of! And it's more than our present group formation can handle! This is not the time for heroics! We must regroup and wait for a better opportunity! We have to wait!"

"Says you!" Akane shouted and let fly a powerful Kamehameha, causing it to slam into the egg sac.

"With you…" Kotomi grunted, finishing charging her attack, "THERE!" She blasted Buu's egg capsule, setting the area around the shell on fire.

"Why won't any of you listen to me?!" Shin shouted.

"For a Supreme Kai, you have done nothing but cry wolf since we teamed up," Gundham stated. "Your calls of the end of days have fallen on deaf ears! Our power has matched and surpassed that of Babidi's at every turn! Retreat?! Heresy! I, GUNDHAM TANAKA, would sooner fall to Buu's might than languish with my tail between my legs like some feral beast! BELIAL BLAST!" Gundham fired a ki blast gathered between his hands full of black, dark energy, causing an explosion when it slammed against Buu's shell.

"If there's one thing my favorite heroines have taught me, it's that running from a real fight is not an option!" Sonia declared, arms spread wide. Orange and yellowish energy gathered from both of her palms. "Binasu! Hato! Furaaaaaaashu!" A spread wave of ki energy emitted from Sonia's hands, engulfing the entirety of Buu's capsule.

"Sorry, Supreme Kai, but I have people I care about and some of them are standing right here," Gohan said, maximizing the power of Super Saiyan 2. "And unlike last time I'm not just going to stand by and watch them get hurt. People call me the Ultimate Hero these days and I fully intend to live up to that title! KAAAAMEEEEEEEEEHAAAAAAMEEEEEEHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Gohan unleashed a powerful blast that blew the egg away from its pedestal, sending it roll backwards a few feet. However, the capsule was still intact.

"Guys! We need to coordinate! If we attack it from all angles, we might be able to inflict something akin to damage!" Gohan shouted at the others. "Synchronized ki attacks like we originally planned."

"Got it!" Akane said, raising her hands above her head, one palm against the other.

"You're the boss!" Kotomi exclaimed.

"I shall lend you my power!" Gundham shouted.

"Me too!" Sonia added.

Peko planted her sword in the ground and took the same stance. "On your signal!"

Each member of Gohan's class knew this attack. After all, he'd taught it to each of them.

Each member charged their attack as the egg shell wiggled.

In perfect sync, all the students at Hope's Peak shouted in unison. "MA-SENKO!"

Buu's shell was rocked around from all sides, frightening, the now upright Babidi, worried that they'd destroy Buu before he'd have a proper chance to hatch.

The coordinated attack sent Buu's capsule rocketing up into the air. It crashed back down to the ground with a loud THUD.

"Dammit, not enough," Gohan said. "You help this time too Supreme Kai! Lend us you strength."

"You people are crazy!"

"We're not crazy! We're Ultimates!" Kotomi shouted, already charging another Masenko.

"If you're not going to help then just get out of the way!" Akane shouted, doing the same.

Shin sighed. Well, here went nothing. He too also began to charge an attack.

The coordinated ki attacks slammed into Buu once more. This time, the shell began to roll around as the halves split open slightly, emitting pink smoke, putting everyone on edge. The smoke blew out and began to float high into the air. Then the capsules broke open, revealing more pink smoke.

"I don't see him. Where is he?" Akane asked. "Is he a small guy?"

The two halves of the shell then broke apart, revealing naught but pink smoke. No figure emerged from the hatched shell.

"It-It's empty," Babidi said, jaw slacked.

"Aha…AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Gundham cackled. "Be it the years laying dormant or the might of our combined strength, twould seem that the threat of Majin Buu is naught more than myth!"

Shin laughed. He could do naught else. He had to agree with Gundham. "All of Babidi's efforts for nothing. He made a fatal mistake! Just like Bibidi, fooled by overconfidence, he underestimated his opponents. You earthlings have destroyed his sacred Buu! Years of captivity in that shell must have made him defenseless! And not even the energy from this planet could revive him! Now the story of Buu finally comes to an end!"

"We…we did it?" Akane gaped at the empty shell.

"WE DID IT!" Kotomi shouted, leaping into the air. "WE SAVED THE WORLD FROM BUU!" Loud as ever, she was jumping up and down, fists raised, happier than a cat set loose in a rat motel.

"It's not over yet," Shin said. "Akane, now you can go and finish Babidi off. With no one left to defend him, that's all that's left to do."

Akane turned to go and handle Babidi, who was now panicking more than every—and crying—but that's when Sonia noticed the look on Gohan's face.

"Gohan, why are you not looking as if you are in the mood to celebrate. Does your kind heart weep for Buu's demise?"

"No…that's not it," Gohan said, which stopped Akane's advance. Her gut was telling her something was wrong.

She about face. "Gohan, what's wrong?"

"Our last attack still wasn't strong enough to destroy the energy I felt in there. There's something…" Gohan suddenly tilted his head up at the sky. The others did the same, all gasping at the sight.

"What…is that?" Kotomi wondered.

"Something did come out of that shell, Supreme Kai," Gohan said, "And it's up there now!"

The students of Hope's Peak Academy gazed up at the cloudy, pink smoke above their heads. Akane's gut was telling her to run, but she couldn't comprehend why it would tell her to run from a cloud that reminded her of cotton candy. Maybe her gut was confused and she was just hungry. It had been a while since her buffet at the tournament.

"I'm getting a terrible feeling," Gohan said as the pink smoke started to take shape.

Suddenly, a fat, pink, singular antanaed, hammer pants wearing, purple caped adorned creature took a solid shape and then cried out "Buuuuuu!"

The creature fell to the ground with a heavy thud.

"Is that…?"

"Majin Buu?" Akane asked, finishing Kotomi's sentence. Nope. Her gut was spot on the first time. Despite its appearance, that pink thing was dangerous. Far far more dangerous than anything Dabura had shown against Gohan.

The fat, pink creature, with a childlike smile on his face, looked around curiously at the scenery. He then let out a childlike coo.

"So, what's the verdict, Supreme Kai?" Gohan asked. "Is this the guy you're so afraid of?"

"Yes, that's Bibidi's creation without a doubt," Shin said, quaking in his boots. "I'll never forget that disgusting creature's face."

"Disgusting?" Sonia asked. "But he looks so cute."

"Well…beauty is in the eye of the beholder," Gundham said, folding his arms.

"Don't let his looks fool you, Buu is pure evil," Shin said.

In contrast to Shin's statements, Buu began doing some light stretching. And, just to undermine the Supreme Kai even more, Sonia casually approached the creature.

"Hello there, my name is Sonia Nevermind. Welcome to Earth."

"Buu?" Buu looked at Sonia curiously. "What is Earth?"

"Oh, that's the planet we're on," Sonia said.

"Buu, pay her no mind," Babidi said, floating in close. "She is but a worthless insect on our path to glory."

Buu looked at Babidi.

"I am Babidi, offspring of the wizard Bibidi. And I am your master."

Buu looked at Babidi curiously, tilting his head.

"Kill her, Buu."

Buu turned his head away like a spoiled child, surprising even Sonia.

"Buu! Quit acting like a spoiled brat! I command you to destroy this earthling at once!"

"Buu," Buu uttered pouting and lifted his legs, dropping onto the ground on his fat with a THUD.

Babidi growled.

Gundham laughed. "What's the matter, wizard? Are you struggling with control? Perhaps your devilish genie would feel more at home under my command, Gundham Tanaka!"

"How dare you! As if you could possibly understand the power and skill necessary to command the likes of Majin Buu!" Babidi shouted.

"What I understand, is that your incompetence is wasted on this Buu fellow and you lack the keen insight necessary for proper control over familiars. While I have FOUR! Come my dark devas of destruction!" The four hamsters living in Gundham's scarf finally made their debut, leaving Shin and Babidi dumbstruck.

Buu clapped and laughed as if he'd just witnessed a magic trick, clearly entertained.

"Do you like the Four Dark Devas of Destruction, Buu?" Sonia asked.

Buu clapped, laughing.

"I am a Princess upon this planet, perhaps you would feel more at home being a servant of the royal family than participating in Babidi's quest for universal destruction," Sonia suggested.

"Buu?"

"As a servant of the royal family you would be granted a most large stipend and be subject to vast banquets."

Buu slobbered on his own lips at the mention of food.

"Bah! No banquet you serve could ever whet Buu's appetite," Babidi said. "Buu, I will grant you more food than you could possibly imagine if you work for me! We could take the best tasting food from across the galaxy!"

"Buu, please," Sonia pleaded. "He only wants to use your powers for destruction. I would treat you fairly."

"Buu, if you don't want to be stuck in that stupid ball again for the rest of your life, stop listening to this Earthling prattle and kill her."

"Buu?" Buu looked from Sonia to Babidi. The worried girl versus the angry wizard.

Under normal circumstances, most creatures would lean towards the being not promising to seal them up in a tiny ball if they didn't listen and then kill the one that was. Buu was not most beings.

As a malicious grin washed over his face, Gohan called out, "Sonia, watch out!"

Too late, with merely a slap to the side of Sonia's face, Buu sent her careening into a mountain and buried her until a pile of rubble.

"NOOOOO!" Gundham rushed over to unbury Sonia, only to despair at the sight of her snapped neck and cold, lifeless eyes. He then let out a roar of unholy rage and charged at Buu.

"Gundham, no!" Gohan shouted, only for Gundham to get kicked in the stomach and sent careening into the same mountain as Sonia, the whole thing collapsing on top of him. There was no way he or the Four Dark Devas were going to survive that.

Akane wanted to fight, but her gut was screaming at her that it was a bad idea. She stood still, rooted in place.

Ironically, it would be the go-getter cheerleader with greater intelligence to be the one with the smaller amount of common sense in this situation. "Hey, you big piece of used Bubble Gum!" Kotomi shouted.

"Buu?" Buu turned in Kotomi's direction.

"K-Kotomi, that's not such a—"

"I saved my best technique just for you, you oversized hacky sack!" Kotomi rocketed into the air as fire gathered all around her. "I still don't have a name for this technique, but I'm going to roast you ALIVE!" A ki aura in the shape of a phoenix surrounded Kotomi's entire body, just like when she had fought Krillin. Except this time it expanded to twice its size, wrapping Kotomi in its flames like a shield. The three tails of this ki bird dangled down as the ki aura let out its own war cry like an American bald eagle, flapping its fiery wings.

Kotomi dove towards Majin Buu with all her might and fiery passion. Sorry, Gohan, she thought, knowing full well this was likely to get her killed. But I don't back down no matter the odds. It's just not who I am. "Even in the face of certain defeat, I go full on, head on with no hesitation! That's me! KOTOMI IKUTA!" Fire engulfed the inside of Kotomi's eyes as she became one with her aura and proceeded to slam into Majin Buu with all her might, embedding her fist into the pudgy, pink monster and rocketing into the air with him.

Babidi grinned, unbothered. Shin gasped.

Kotomi screamed at the top of her lungs as the Phoenix's wings and tail feathers engulfed Majin Buu and she detonated all the ki she was using to manifest it in a huge, expanding fireball.

Kotomi started to fall out of the air, her vision waning, her body slightly burnt and exhausted from her own attack. A tired smile crossed her face.

"How's that…Prez? Finally feel like…going out with me?" She laughed nervously. Not even surprised when Buu punted her sideways across the air where she impacted on the same rock formation Akane haad thrown Babidi into earlier. Limbs twisted and broken, spinal column cracked, Kotomi spat blood out of her mouth as she closed her eyes, life ebbing away. By the time she hit the ground, she was already dead.

"K-Kotomi?" Akane asked, paralyzed with fear.

"Akane! Peko!" Gohan shouted. "We need to get out of here now!"

The girls agreed with Gohan's assessment and flew off into the air, zooming in the direction they once came. Gohan grabbed Shin and began to do the same.

"Buu, please kill them," Babidi requested.

Buu stood there, watching them fly off.

"Buu! I said get them!"

Buu continued to wait though. This was a game to him. He wanted to give his opponents the proper head start. Then he took off.

As Akane, Peko, Kotomi and Gohan flew together side by side, Akane asked, "You think he'll chase us?"

"I don't know," Gohan said, glancing back. "Doesn't look like it."

That's when Buu appeared in front of all of them. Gohan gasped. "Oh no!"

Buu then swat Gohan out of the air.

"Gohan!" Akane called, watching him fall. "Bastard!" Akane charged at Buu, but got swatted away. Fortunately, she was far more resilient than Gundham and Sonia and managed to get upright despite the assault. "Is that all you got?"

"Akane, stop, he's going to kill you!" Peko exclaimed. She got in between Akane and Buu. "see? Look, Gohan's even getting up."

It was taking effort, but Gohan was recovering from hitting the ground so hard, still in Super Saiyan 2. However, now the girls and Shin were at the mercy of Majin Buu. And Peko was his first victim. Crunching her glasses with a palm strike to the face, his next attack, a mere kick, broke her spine before he slapped her shoulder and crunched her into the ground with so much force, there was a crater and then he landed bottom first on top of her, pressing her into the ground.

Akane looked really, really upset. "This…this is all my fault."

"No, it's mine," Shin said. "I'm the one who allowed you all to come here, so it's my responsibility."

"But I charged in!" Akane shouted. "I didn't wait for Goku! Because of me…because of me…"

"No, even if Goku had been here, Babidi still would've undoubtedly taken control of Vegeta. Please don't blame yourself," Shin said.

At this, Buu rose from the ground and crunched Shin's jaw with his glove before smacking him into the same rocks the bodies of Sonia and Gundham were laying under.

"BASTARD!" Akane flew at Majin Buu once more. Her attack failed to do much other than redistribute Buu's fat rolls. However, when he went to slap Akane across the temple, Gohan's hand stopped him, grabbing Buu's wrist. With a glare that could force would-be criminals to pee their pants, he sent Buu flying with a harsh fist to the face. Then he followed up with an energy blast, burying Buu deep into the ground below.

"Akane, get out of here now. I don't want you getting hurt," Gohan said calmly.

"But…what about you? What about the Supreme Kai?" Akane asked, worried.

"Just go!" Gohan shouted. "You don't stand a chance against that monster."

"I know that," Akane said, only to suddenly look worried and angry simultaneously, blue in the face. "I've known that since he emerged. And yet still…still I…" She looked down. "Gohan…my gut won't stop hurting. Our friends…Gundham…Sonia…Kotomi…Peko…they…they…" Akane scrunched up her face.

Gohan pat her on the head as he had earlier. "It's not weak to cry, Akane," he told her. "It's upsetting, but I promise you, we'll fix this. I never got a chance to tell you guys, but, we have these things called Dragon Balls. We can use them to revive the people who were killed by Buu."

"We…we can do that?" Akane asked.

"Yeah, I've seen it before with my very eyes."

"Y-you promise, right? You wouldn't lie to me, right?!" Akane shouted.

"I wouldn't lie to you, Akane. I care about you. Get yourself to Kami's lookout. Did Krillin or 18 show you where that is before?"

"I…think I remember something like that," Akane said.

"Good. Go there and do whatever the group says. I'll catch up later."

"Wait…wait a sec!" Akane shouted. "When you say it like that, it sounds like you're saying you don't know if you'll make it or not!"

"Honestly…I don't know. Buu's really strong." Gohan watched the pink genie-like creature get out from under the rubble he'd buried him in and, in true Buu fashion, continued to bounce around like a child. "But you're safer with everyone else."

Akane's blood ran cold. "Don't say that. Don't say that! That's exactly what my fourth mom said right before she got gunned down by some guys! Gohan! Please! I…I…" Akane scrunched up her face again. She still wouldn't cry, she refused.

Gohan put his hand on the back of Akane's wild hair and pushed her head into his shoulder, embracing her. "I'll come back alive, Akane. I promise."

Even still, Akane held back her tears. She glared at Gohan. "Y-you aren't allowed to break that promise, do you hear me? I-if you don't make it then I'll…then I'll…" She punched her awaiting fist. "I'll…I'll go all the way to the other world myself and…and I'll beat you to a bloody pulp!"

Gohan chuckled. "Yeah, knowing you, you probably would." By this point, Shin was starting to pull himself out of the rubble. Gohan turned around, noticing that Buu was getting antsy. "Go. Now. Tell Videl everything and don't spare a single detail. This battle's going to require everyone's help."

Akane nodded, still holding back tears. And then she zoomed away quickly towards the lookout.

Gohan then shouted angrily. "BUUUUU! Don't think you're going to get away with any of this! For killing my friends, I, Son Gohan, the Ultimate Hero, slayer of the monster known as Cell, will destroy you, just like I destroyed him! That's a promise!" He then continued to float there, snorting angrily from his nostrils in full power Super Saiyan 2.

With the fighters of Hope's Peak Academy all but killed sans Akane and Videl, Gohan makes a declaration of victory. But can he keep his word? As Akane Owari speeds towards the lookout, the promise between her and Gohan stays within their hearts. With the wish made on the Dragon Balls clearly having boosted Gohan's otherwise waning strength, pushing him closer to his father's power, can the half-Saiyan hero bring down the utterly unstoppable Majin Buu? Find out on the next exciting chapter of Dragon Ball HPA!