Chapter 13: Semifinal match, The Warrior Prince vs the Pugilist Pauper

Vegeta was excited, his already pointy hair bristling even more than it normally did, as if to demonstrate just how excited the Sayian Prince was at FINALLY having the chance to prove his superiority to Kakkorat after all these years.

It was the moment he had spent seven years preparing for, just on the freak chance he did get a shot at fighting Kakorat one last time. And amazingly enough, here he was about to do just that. Yes, Vegeta thought, his typical smirk on his face, as he took a fighting stance. I am going to enjoy finally proving myself your better after all these years, Kakkorat.

Goku couldn't help but smile himself as he too took a fighting pose. Wonder how much stronger old Vegeta's gotten these past seven years, Goku thought to himself. Hopefully enough where we'll be able to have a convincing battle without him growing suspicious. Goku's mind then began to wander to the conversation that he'd had with Bra some time during Vegeta's fight with Piccolo.

"Excuse me, Mr. Goku?"

"Huh?"

"Down here sir."

Goku glanced down and was unsurprised to see what appeared to be a mini Bulma standing before him.

"Oh, hi there! You must be Bra, right?"

The small lavender haired girl nodded, a look of pride gleaming from her face at the mention of her name. "That's right, Bra Briefs is the name, science and inventing stuff's my game."

"So you're the one that made Marron's gi? Looks nice."

"I guess so, but what I'm more proud of is what it can do. It's weighted clothing you can adjust so you don't have to worry about your current set of clothing becoming too light and stuff."

Goku let out a low whistle. "You're Bulma's daughter alright, no doubt about that. And you're not too bad a fighter either."

Bra's face was clearly turning beet red at that comment. "Thanks," she said in a tone of voice that made it obvious even to Goku that she wasn't the least bit thankful about being complimented for her fighting abilities.

"Speaking of fighting, though, you're about to fight my dad in the final round right?"

Now it was Goku's turn to nod, this time with a wistful look on his face.

"Yep, can't wait to see how much he's improved in the past seven years too."

"About that… Not sure how I can say it politely, so I won't. I want you to let my dad win the match after you two have done a good job of beating whatever remaining brains cells you have out of each other's heads."

Goku frowned slightly as he crossed his arms. "Why? Don't you think he can win on his own?"

"Well, let me put it this way: You trained under that King Kai guy for less than a year right?"

"Right."

"And before that you could barely fight off a guy with a power that was barely above 1000 right?"

"Yep."

"And after the training, you went from barely being able to fight against a power of 1000, to being able to fight someone with a power of 18,000. And your original power was what, a little above 300?"

"Something like that. Do… you have a point with this?"

"Just that you've been dead for seven years, had even more time to train and become even MORE powerful than when you died and have probably achieved a Super Sayian 3 or 4 or something like that in the meantime, am I right?"

Goku let out a small chuckle as he began to sheepishly rub the back of his head. "Maybe… You're quite perceptive for a girl your age."

"With an IQ of 200 I would damn well hope so." Bra paused as she realized just how rude she had been and mentally cursed herself for not being more polite to the man that could very well be the one chance she would have at having her father finally shut up after all these years. "So yea, if it's not asking too much, could you just let my dad win this one fight? If not for me then for him?"

"What do you have to do with this?" Goku asked as he cocked his head to the side in confusion.

"Just that I'm sick of listening to my dad complain on and on about how that 'third class clown trash' had the nerve to show him up and then die before he could prove his princely superiority. I'm only seven and you have NO idea how sick I am of hearing that and his "I am the Prince of all Sayians" speech.

"That's the selfish reason; the other reason is just that winning this fight means more to him than it does to you, Mr. Son, I can tell. Admit it: If my dad did beat you, you wouldn't lose so much as a wink of sleep right? Assuming you sleep in the afterlife that is, and even if you don't my metaphor still stands regardless."

Goku let out a small, uneasy chuckle. He had to admit that Bra did have a point there, Vegeta had always taken their rivalry so much more seriously than Goku himself did.

"I'll see what I can do Bra, but your father's not stupid, there's a good chance he'll be able to tell that I'm not using my full power on him."

"I know, just do the best you can sir, that's all I ask. And, for what it's worth, good luck. My dad's been waiting seven very long years to get a crack at you, so you better be ready."

Goku grinned as he gave her a thumbs up. "Don't worry Bra, I can take anything your father dishes out to me."

Goku cut his musings of the past short as he brought his attention back to the present. The Announcer was just finishing up with his introduction and gave the two fighters the go-ahead to start the match.

Neither Goku nor Vegeta needed permission as the two enemies-turned-rivals rushed at one another and began trading furious punches with the same insane speed that the rest of the normal audience was just beginning to come to terms with.

"Man, they sure went all out on the special effects this year…" a random teenager said.

Hank turned his head to the teen above him and glared. "After everything you've seen today, men flying and energy attacks so close they nearly sizzled your eyebrows off, and you think that it's just a bunch of special effects?"

The man blinked with a baffled expression at Hank. "W-Well what else would it be?"

Hank had to resist the urge to crush the palm of his hand into his face. "Does NOBODY remember the last few tournaments? Back in my day no one ever questioned the Kamahamah…"

"Well, people were a lot more gullible back then weren't they?" the teen replied as his face scrunched up in confusion.

Hank however ignored him and went back to watching the fight, just in time to see both Vegeta and Goku knock one another back with equally powerful right and left hooks to the face.

Goku's face was lit up with the sort of twisted glee filled grin that he only got when in the heat of battle. "Not bad Vegeta, I got to say that you've improved a lot since the Cell Games."

Vegeta let out a haughty dismissive snort. "Please Kakkorat, you and I both know that was a warm up, so let's go someplace else where we can really cut loose."

"Okay, but give me a sec-"

Goku then turned his attention to the World Announcer and shot a powerful thought in his direction. Hey, Mr. Announcer?

The blond man froze, his professional demeanor temporarily destroyed. W-What the- G-Goku?

Yea, it's me.

Y-You can read minds?

Well, technically what I'm doing right now is telepathy, not mind reading, but that's beside the point. Vegeta and I are going to go up in the sky and vanish for a bit out of the sight of the normal folks vision, then I'm going to teleport the two of us to a place where we can really go all out. If it's not asking too much, can I ask you to pretend that the two of us are still here and fighting it out in the sky?

Well normally, such a thing would result in disqualification for the both of you, but seeing as how it's you that's asking-

Thanks, I owe you one, truth be told the only reason I want to stay in this is for the final round so I can get some money for my wife and son. Gohan mentioned to me that part of the reason why he entered was for the money and figured it's the least I can do seeing as how I beat him in the first round already and blew his chance at bringing home the bacon.

O-Of course, er, best of luck!

Goku gave the Announcer a salute. Thanks. You get all that Vegeta?

Vegeta simply snorted again but nodded. Sentimental fool.

Moments later the two warriors were up in the sky, and then, they were gone.

The World Tournament Announcer, to his professional credit, did his best to play his part.

"WOW FOLKS, IN ALL MY YEARS OF ANNOUNCING I'VE NEVER SEEN A BATTLE AS FIERCE AS THIS ONE."

"Sure would be nice if we could see any of it," Erasa muttered.

"Ain't that the truth," Sharpner remarked. "I mean the flashy lightshows and flying effects are cool and all, but when you can't make out most of it then what's the point? At least with real martial artists like Hercule we could actually follow what was going on."

DBZ

"Is there a reason why you bothered to transport us to the Lookout of all places Kakkorat?"

"Well I figured we could duke it out here without worry. At first I was thinking of the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, but then I remembered you've already used up all your time, so that won't work."

Vegeta snorted. "Humph."

After a quick greeting and discussion with Dende about Goku's plan, both the Guardian of Earth and Mr. Popo took temporary refuge in the Time Chamber so that both sayian warriors could duke it out without worry.

With the Lookout now empty of bystanders, both warriors quickly flew far away from the hovering castle and transformed, first into the first level of the Super Sayian, then into the second.

With electricity visibly crackling from their auras, both warriors kept on pouring out their ki as both of their power levels continued to skyrocket. After a near full minute of powering up, their growing golden auras stabilized and vanished, leaving both Goku and Vegeta with golden blond hair and eyebrows.

"Got to say Vegeta, I'm honestly impressed." Goku's tone of voice had switched from playful and careful to the serious one he always went to when in battle. "I've spent the past seven years training in the afterlife so intensely that I doubt I would have been able to survive it at all were I still alive." Goku paused as his lips twitched into a small smile. "And yet despite it all we're still even after all this time. Pretty amazing when you get right down to it."

"ENOUGH TALK!" Vegeta barked in his raspy voice, a vein visibly popping from his temple. "We fight now!"

Goku's only response was a confident nod, and with that the battle was truly on as Vegeta made the first move with a sudden, solid punch to Goku's stomach that forced the low born warrior to bend over in recoil as all the air rushed out of his lungs. Not letting up, Vegeta then socked Goku with a powerful right hook to the face that sent him sailing until Goku was able to get control of his body and stop.

Goku cupped his hands and shifted them back, a blue ball of ki forming between them that Vegeta instantly recognized as Kakkorot's signature attack.

Then Goku vanished from view, only to reappear in front of Vegeta an instant later.

"KAMEHAMEHA!"

The powerful beam of sky blue energy knocked Vegeta clear off his feet and hundreds of yards away as his whole body was buffeted by raw ki. Seconds later he found himself on the ground, head spinning and mentally cursing himself for falling for the same trick that he had used on Cell. While it was simple, it was like most of Goku's tactics in battle after all, a damn effective one.

Vegeta hopped to his feet and just in time to meet an incoming Goku, whose punch the Saiyan Prince just barely had enough time to block. The two began to trade punches and kicks similar in manner to how they had fought in the World Tournament ring but this time, with no space restraints or innocents to worry about, the two really let loose as each successful landed blow caused specks of stone filaments began to shake free from the three major rooms inside the Lookout's palace. Meanwhile, the whole half sphere location began to quake and vibrate as a result of the continuing fisticuffs.

After a nearly five long intense minutes of this melee madness, Vegeta broke the monotony with a powerful straight kick to the chin that sent Goku flying up in the air a good many feet before Vegeta batted him back down to the ground with a two handed smashing strike that sent Goku's body smash-bouncing on the Lookout's flooring some distance away.

Vegeta than flew above his foe's still stunned frame and began throwing ki balls madly, most of them hitting their target until Goku managed to teleport midway through the barrage and deliver a mighty roundhouse kick to Vegeta's already somewhat battered face, not only leaving what was by that point bar none the darkest, purplest, largest, bruise on Vegeta's right cheek, but sending the Sayain prince back down to taste the ground below them.

Vegeta slowly staggered to the heels of his feet, before straightening himself upright and looking back up at the still floating Goku with renewed determination burning in his blue eyes. He brought back both his hands, summoned balls of dark purple ki, and flung the two orbs, which instantly split into a rain of small, slightly less powerful beams of ki.

The energy barrage was sent far too quickly for even Goku's reactions to keep up, and so he took that blast, teeth gritted all the while. When the smoke finally cleared, Goku stepped forward, raising his hands to his head in the process.

Vegeta flinched into a defensive stance and braced himself, but it was only too late that he realized that Goku was going for a less direct ki attack, and the next thing Vegeta knew he was blinded by a sudden burst of ki based light that seemed to be as bright as a sun itself.

While he was blinded, the Saiyan Prince's mind was temporarily distracted from fighting, and it was that temporary distraction that gave Goku the chance he needed as he teleported himself in front of Vegeta and began delivering a series of powerful rapid punches that his much acclaimed prince did not have the reflexes and reaction time necessary to counter. Thankfully, Goku's physical beating was a brief one as his jack hammering blows ceased some few moments later.

It was only when Vegeta's ears began to twitch (and his sight had more or less returned by this point) and hear the familiar "Ka Me Ha Me…" chant above him that he realized the extent of Goku's strategy. Working on instinct, Vegeta brought both of his hands above his head and brought the two of them together at the palm.

"FINAL FLASH!

"-HA!"

Two massive maelstroms of sky blue ki collided together and a blinding brilliant flash of white light consumed the dimension of the Hyberbolic Time Chamber for miles and miles around. For a moment, both beams held against one another with neither of them seeming to give an inch. But slowly, surely, eventually, Vegeta's Final Flash attack began to overwhelm and overpower the Kamahama, until Goku could no longer hold the flood of raw energy back and the Prince's attacks overtook his whole body.

The steady stream, however, slowly began to lose power and strength, no matter how much Vegeta tried to sustain it, until at last the Prince of All Saiyans was forced to cease his onslaught, and was now stuck only in the first level of the Super Saiyan. Vegeta, of course, knew that his attack hadn't finished off Kakkorat at all and wasn't the least bit surprised when he came floating back down, looking quite the worse for wear as the top half of his fighting uniform had been burned clear away, leaving his entire bare muscular chest easy pickings for burns and cuts and scrapes and bruises.

Not that I am that better off, Vegeta admitted to himself. He had spent a lot of energy in that attack and was just about as drained of ki as Kakkorat, and both warriors were weary, as one could have no doubt told by their heavy, labored breaths. But neither was willing to give up the fight just yet.

"Hey… V…Vegeta. I just came up with an idea. You still have enough energy to go Ultra and become all bulky?"

"W… What if I do?"

"Well..." A sly weak smile appeared across Goku's lips. "What do you say to finishing this with nothing more than our fists and raw physical power? Sound good to you?"

Vegeta's only response was his trademark smirk as his already impressively muscular body began to burst with bulky muscle mass. Goku smiled as well as his body followed in suit, and touched the ground a moment later.

For a long moment neither rival said a word to the other, their greenish blue eyes locked onto every muscle twitch as they raised their now massive arms up and stuck a fighting pose.

Goku had the honor of having the first punch connect against Vegeta's jaw as he delivered an powerful uppercut right under the Prince's chin, but Vegeta was quick to counter as he slammed back with a right hook that sent Goku's head snapping back with a loud 'thwack' noise.

Goku quickly brought his head backwards… and continued moving into a head butt that forced his forehead to whack hard into Vegeta's', causing both Sayian warrior's' heads to start to leak blood in the process.

Snarling, Vegeta threw forth a left and right hook to Goku's face, both of which landed on his cheeks and once again sent his head jerking in different directions against his will. Vegeta threw back an arm for another punch but Goku quickly (or as quickly as one could in the Ultra Super Saiyan form) countered with a short but powerful punch that forced Vegeta to gasp for breath for a brief moment. Goku seized the moment and began to steadily pound and batter Vegeta around like a glowing punching bag, each blow shattering the sound barrier as punch after punch hammered the Saiyan Prince's body and face.

After a brief pause, Vegeta staggered back, and for a moment Goku thought he would crash backwards to the floor into unconsciousness, but Vegeta was not one to go down without returning the favor. He suddenly surged forward like a stumbling elephant and delivered an uppercut that hit Goku right under his jawbone.

The force of Vegeta's blow packed so much power in it that it staggered and stunned Goku for a moment, as the Earth raised Sayian stumbled back a step or two with a slightly dazed look in his eye.

Said moment was all that Vegeta needed as he began to steadily pound Son Goku's face over with a series of quick, short jabs and punches that quickly turned Goku's head into a boxer's speed bag. The seconds turned into minutes, and those minutes turned into fives, than tens, then 20s, until a full half an hour of abuse had passed before Vegeta's arms finally began to slow and tire down.

No! Vegeta thought angrily to himself at his dwindling stamina. Surely I can continue to beat Kakkorot senseless a little longer? But even his drive and willpower had its limits as the strain of maintaining the Ultra stage, combined with all of the energy he had spent beforehand, finally took its toll on him.

With each successful punch, Vegeta lost more and more steam, until at last the Prince found that he could no longer lift either of his arms and was forced to return to his base state.

Annoyed with himself that he couldn't have kept waling on Kakkorot longer, Vegeta finally got a good look at Goku's face, having lost himself in the lust of battle and the simple fact that he was literally living his dream of pounding that proud smirk off of that self sacrificing fool's face.

Goku's otherwise cheery face (having been forcibly returned to base form somewhere at around the 15 minute mark of Vegeta's melee mauling) was a black and blue beaten pulp that forced even someone as hardened as Vegeta to take a moment's pause.

Then, he grinned. And then scarier still: He began to laugh. It started out a short, barking sort of chuckle, but it quickly snowballed into a full blow booming laugh.

"I did it… I DID IT! AFTER ALL THESE YEARS I'VE FINALLY BEATEN YOU ONCE AND FOR ALL KAKKOROT!"

"Sob yub wont to ead ack?"

"Wait?" Vegeta paused, his glee filled grin replaced by a fleeting frown. Then he began grinning madly again. "Yes… Yes let us head back and show everyone that I, Vegeta, have bested you after all these many years Kakkorat!"

After a very quick healing session from Dende to heal up Goku's face, both warriors wearily left the Lookout by way of Instant Transmission and returned to the tournament.

"You know," Mr. Popo commented to Dende as he looked out at the damaged but still intact floating palace that looked as if a Class Five hurricane had hit it. "I'm somewhat amazed that they didn't completely destroy the Lookout all together, given the shape that it's in.

The rest went as predicted and the World Announcer (who was relieved that they hadn't been gone that long) happily announced Vegeta the winner who would go on to the semifinal round against number 18.

Hearing this, Vegeta's ears pricked up and he whirled around to face the Announcer.

"Who said anything about me bothering to face the tin can? I was in this idiotic tournament for one reason and one reason only: To defeat the one you call Son Goku. Seeing as how I've done that I could care less who wins at this point." He turned back to Goku. "Have fun with the rest of your tournament."

Goku could only shake his head, his mouth turned up into a small smile as he heard Vegeta fly off the island (stunning the few remaining people's whose minds hadn't been visually broken by the day's matches) like a bat that had just barely escaped the burring hellfire of the Inferno itself. Vegeta shot off, his body covered in white aura, to go to the gravity room in Capsule Corp where he would celebrate his long desired victory in his own way: by training for the would-be threat that Android 15 had mentioned earlier.

"W-WELL FOLKS, LET'S MOVE ONTO THE NEXT SEMIFINAL MATCH: THE JUNIOR CHAMPION VIDEL VS NUMBER 18!"

AN: Sorry this chapter's a bit late, laziness and tiredness on my part. But, onto the reviews!

Gesto: Sorry I never got around to replying to your PM, but I'm glad that you're liking 18 and Marron. For the big sequel story (which is still a work in progress at this point) I was going to have 18 inactive for a while, but your comment got me to change my mind (which sadly means rewriting on my part but oh well). So expect 18 to remain around if nothing else.

Chad: Glad I was able to both pull you in and make you laugh. Be sure to let me know specially what you liked in future chapters, okay?