Chapter 22 Dragon Universe
"I wonder, do you think you can save everyone in your cute, little group, and survive this, Kakarot?" The Saiyan asked, keeping his sinister grin stretched on his face. "Well I'd like to see you try! Cursed traitor!" Before anyone could do anything, the dark violet energy rocketed from the attackers' hands towards the sky, before splitting into multiple smaller streams of light, set to rain down on the fighters!
"Ah hell!" Gajeel barked, as he, along with everyone else braced for the impact of the attack. But Goku and Vegeta didn't brace. Instead, they flew towards the impending storm or light. As the two Saiyans got closer to the streams, their bodies were suddenly surrounded by an eruption of pure energy that could only be described as golden flames! Then the two Saiyans disappeared, with only golden blurs being seen by the attackers and the group, just before the streams of violet all exploded before they could hit the ground. Enormous clouds of smoke soon engulfing both Goku and Vegeta. But as quickly as the smoke clouds appeared, they were dispersed by a massive wave of energy emitted from Goku and Vegeta themselves. Now that the two Saiyans were no longer moving, the group instantly noticed a change with the two. The Saiyans seemed to glow as their bodies were surrounded by a harsh, gold aura, but the group also noticed that the hair had also changed. The Saiyans' spiky hair had now spiked upwards, and had turned a bright gold color.
"Am I going crazy, or did their hair change from black to yellow?" Natsu blurted out.
"No, we can see it too." Lucy responded. Goku then turned his head to see the group.
"Is everyone okay?" Goku then asked. Everyone responded with a silent nod.
"Good." Vegeta then said, still keeping his eyes on his opponents. "Just stay back and let us deal with these two." Just as Vegeta finished speaking, the Namekian fired a crimson blast straight towards Vegeta. Using his quick reflexes, Vegeta swats the blast away, before charging head first at the evil Saiyan. He then threw punch aimed at the Saiyan's stomach. The punch connects, sending the Saiyan flying back. He then gives chase as Goku flies towards the Namekian, weaving left and right. The Namekian couldn't follow the movements quickly, which lead to him getting kneed in the nose by Goku. The Namekian reeled back in pain as his nose began to bleed, purple colored blood slid from both nostrils. But the Namekian wasn't going to let a broken nose stop him from killing the Saiyan brat, and Goku was far from done with this fight. Goku then attempted a backhand, but it was blocked by the Namekian's right arm. The Namekian then used this chance to fire multiple gut shots at Goku, all of which landed. Goku backed away, grasping his stomach in pain. But he didn't have much time to dawdle, as the Namekian threw a punch aimed for Goku's face. Goku manages to dodge in time, only for him to be hit with a hook towards his left cheek. Goku retaliated with an uppercut to the chin. Once it hit, the Namekian was sent flying further upwards towards the sky. Goku then used his incredible speed to give chase.
Back with Vegeta, he was currently blocking a flurry of punches and kicks from the evil Saiyan. At first, Vegeta was effortlessly swatting away the attacks. But with each attack blocked, Vegeta could feel his arms becoming sore. The evil Saiyan's attacks were coming in faster and stronger. The Saiyan goes for a cross punch, but instead of blocking, Vegeta dodges to his left, and then grabs the evil Saiyan's right hand. The Saiyan is both surprised and irritated, using his left hand, he then goes for several body shots in an attempt to free himself. But Vegeta then head-butts the Saiyan! The Saiyan is dazed, only for a short moment, but it was long enough for Vegeta to then toss the Saiyan over his shoulder down to the ground below. The Saiyan couldn't use his flight in time to stop his fall. The impact kicked up an explosion of scorched earth, and the Saiyan lay at the center of a small crater. But before he could stand, he heard the sound of something charging. He didn't even have time to look up before his body was showered with a barrage of energy blasts from Vegeta. The blasts left behind a massive cloud of smoke, covering the Saiyan.
"I'm not finished yet!" Vegeta boasted, he then stopped his barrage before aiming his right palm towards the smoke cloud. "Big Bang..." A blue ball of energy formed in front of his palm, before growing larger than Vegeta's upper torso. "ATTACK!" The energy ball then shot down from his palm, with immense speed! The attack cut through the smoke, before making impact and creating a massive explosion! Vegeta then lowered his arm, "Come on." Vegeta then said, "I know you're still alive down there. Get back up, I'm done kicking a man while he's down." Suddenly, the smoke clouds then vanished, blown away by the a sudden release of Ki. As Vegeta expected, the Saiyan was still alive, and he was still ready for more.
"I have to say, out of all the versions of you that I've killed, you're the only one that's given me an actual fight." The Saiyan stated. "But I've got to ask, since when did Vegeta, Prince of the mighty Saiyan race, care so much about his enemy? You should be careful, sympathy on the battlefield will only serve to get you killed-" Before the Saiyan could finish his words, Vegeta then dashed towards the Saiyan, before punching the Saiyan in his gut! The punch was so strong, it sent the Saiyan flying backwards. Vegeta then zips behind the Saiyan before throwing a powerful haymaker, halting the Saiyan's momentum and sending him face-first towards the ground.
"You give yourself far too much credit." Vegeta then said, crossing his arms. "I was being generous, not soft." But to Vegeta's surprise, the Saiyan simply began to laugh. The laughter began to irritate the Saiyan Prince. "What the hell's so funny?" Vegeta demanded. The Saiyan got back up, facing away from Vegeta.
"It's your statement." The Saiyan responded. "I couldn't help but find it ironic." Vegeta's expression grew more serious.
"What the hell do you mean?" Vegeta then asked. "What part did you find ironic?" The Saiyan turned around, the two Saiyans were locked eye-to-eye.
"The part about giving yourself too much credit." The Saiyan answered. "I could say the same about you."
Goku had fired an assault of punches and kicks, all of which found their way onto the Namekian. Goku then stopped, before using both his fists to hammer the Namekian down to the scorched ground. The Namekian managed to stop himself from hitting the floor, and when he did, he immediately fired a large beam attack at Goku. Goku crossed his arms, and the attack hit, creating an explosion that engulfed Goku. The Namekian then straightened himself before placing his feet firmly onto the dirt. The smoke in the air began to disappear. Once all the smoke was gone, Goku was still alive, and he was even unfazed. The Namekian then smiled with amusement.
"You're tougher than you look," The Namekian then stated. "I haven't fought a version of you that survived for this long, let alone that attack."
"I don't know what you mean about another me, but you're no slouch either." Goku responded. "Even after I went Super Saiyan, you're still able to stand, and to top it all off, you're hiding something." The Namekian's smile quickly vanished.
"Caught me red-handed, didn't you." The Namekian then said, "But what makes you think I'm gonna waste it on you?"
"Oh really?' Goku asked. "Well then, if you're really gonna think like that, then maybe it's about time I got serious!"
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