Chapter 87: Buu's Fury

Sort-of update on the damaged-laptop-slow-updates situation in the notes at the end.
Plus a bit of an explanation of my own views on SSJ4, which have changed a bit thanks to all your responses (and some more of your responses), and hopefully I can manage it without giving too much spoilery stuff away.

In summary: There are plot-holes associated with SSJ4 and the Shadow Dragons. But I'm rebuilding the concepts from the ground up, and I think I got this.

"I...w-won't..." Buu shrieked. "...stand for this...! Rrrggghhh...! Eeeeyyaaahhh...!"

"Whoa..." Goku said quietly. "What a big baby. All because I'm stronger than him..."

The violent green electric storm building around Buu in a cage-like shape suddenly burst asunder, scattering into the surrounding air and hanging there, hissing and popping menacingly. His eyes blazed red like twin furnaces. "Gyyaaaahhh...!"

A biting wave of force flooded out from Buu in every direction, hurling Goku away. Buu began to thrash around madly, totally losing control. Spitttle flew from his mouth, and his fingernails dug into his palms until a thick purple blood-like substance dripped from them.

"Uh..." Goku had to make an effort to stand; the planet's instability, combined with Buu's antics, was buffeting him in every direction. "What's going on...?" He was, at least, glad for a break in the fighting, in order to recover some energy—something he was dangerously low on.

Explosions broke out at random spots around them, smashing up the already-pulverised ground. Green lightning flickered. Buu's unearthly scream of frustration continued.

"Listen closely, because I'm only explaining this once," Old Kai said, tapping the earrings he, and the other two Shin-jin wore. "These are Potara earrings. If one person wears one on their right ear, and another person wears the other on their left ear, the two fuse and join bodies, creating a being that far surpasses the sum of its parts!"

"Oh!" Kaioshin exclaimed. "I wish I'd known about this a long time ago...! But in any case, that's great! That might be our shot at defeating Buu!"

"Just maybe," Old Kai agreed. "It's how I got like this, you know..." He paused to make sure they were listening. "I was young and handsome once...then an old witch went and stole one of my earrings. She didn't know what it was for, and put it on...and since then I've looked like this!" He shrugged. "It did do wonders for my magical skills, though...since then I've been able to perform my power-unlocking ritual." He unclipped his earrings, nodding to the pair of listeners. "Why don't you two give it a try?"

"A-All right..." Kaioshin took off his right earring, handing it to Kibito, who removed both of his.

"Like this...?" The servant hesitantly put Kaioshin's Potara on his right ear. As soon as he did so, a great irresistible force began to pull the two of them together. "Aah!" Kibito gasped. They slammed together and were transmuted into a burst of green light.

When it faded, a new being stood before Old Kai. This Shin-jin wore Kibito's outfit, but in physical appearance was very similar to Kaioshin; the only noticeable difference being his long silver hair, which flowed straight down his back in the manner of Kibito's. He was also notably alive, bearing no halo above his head. "Wow..." he murmured, inspecting himself.

"Hmm...interesting," Old Kai said speculatively. "I suppose you're called Kibito Kai or somesuch..."

The new Shin-jin shook his head. "No, my name's Kibitoshin. Thought I'm not sure how I know that with such certainty...but never mind that." He flexed his arms. "I have such power now! I can fight now! Maybe Goku and I together can—"

"I know it's what you're best at, but don't be foolish!" Old Kai warned. "You're still no match for Buu! He'd chew you up and spit you out. Now...take my Potara, and go give them to somebody. There must be a couple of fighters on that planet worth fusing together—and with warriors like that, the resulting fusion won't need any help polishing off Buu."

"Of course..." Kibitoshin agreed. "If fusion does so much for me, think what it'll do for fighters like them...!" He paused. "Say, how long does this last?"

"Weren't you paying attention? It's permanent."

"Wait, what?!"

Raditz and Launch, utterly drained, had actually fallen asleep despite the chaos shaking the Earth, but were jolted into wakefulness by a hand on each of their shoulders, and a rush of energy. "W-Wha...?" Launch sprung to her feet. "I'm back to 100%!"

"Yeah, me too," Raditz said slowly, turning around. "Thanks...uh...who are you?"

"Kibitoshin—I'm the fusion of the Supreme Kai and Kibito." He held out Old Kai's Potara earrings, offering a brief explanation.

"Fantastic!" Raditz breathed. "Sounds kind of like the Fusion Dance the Metamorans used...I met a couple of 'em in the afterlife, but I just didn't have the patience to learn their silly dances...and besides, there wasn't anyone similar enough for me to fuse with. Though I did like their dress sense."

"Similarity won't be a problem," Kibitoshin promised. "The Potara can fuse any two beings...as long as they have ears, I guess..."

"All right, thanks." Raditz took the Potara, closing his hand protectively around them. "I guess I should fuse with the strongest person possible...so that'd be Goku...I'd better get going. He'll be too tired to fight soon enough."

"I don't know..." Launch said. "I can imagine the arguments Chi-Chi and I'd have if you and Goku became one person..."

Raditz grinned. "Oh, don't worry; we can just defuse afterwards, right?"

"Uh...ah..." Kibitoshin's face flushed. "I may have forgotten to mention...it's sort of...permanent."

"Wait, what?"

With a roar, Buu flung the green bolts outwards. They seemed to strike the very sky itself, tearing open great green rents in the heavens, which pulsed with the same sickly hue.

"Unbelievable...!" Goku could barely stand up under the barrage of force he was being subjected to.

"What the hell is this?!" Old Kai spluttered. "Buu's tearing at the walls of the universe itself! The fabric of reality's still damaged after Janemba's attack and Raditz's stunt earlier—this could be catastrophic!"

Indeed, it was. The already-weakened state of the universe was further shaken by Buu's tantrum; bolts of energy were fired directly into the heart of the timestream; and his terrible scream of rage was sent spiralling back up the river of time with them, passing unnoticed until it came to a slight crease-a wrinkle in time, almost. A point when the magic of the Namekian wishing-dragons had interacted with the flow of time in an unpredictable way.

This impression, this horrific sample of the terror that was Majin Buu, struck the exposed slice of the past right as Bulma placed her hand on Cell's stolen time machine. An impression that, in the highly-ordered mind of a scientist, might be gleaned as numerical data—a measure of time, perhaps...whereas in the mind of a spiritually-awakened fighter, more emotive, personal information could come through. Images, voices.

The rest, as they say (though it is doubtful anyone knows who 'they' are), is history.

The effects of this were felt in the present. Gohan was shaken awake by a stabbing, burning sensation in his forehead. "What..." This is...like the visions! I'm getting the same feeling... Though he felt sick and weary to his bones, he stood. What's happening over there?

Goku shielded his eyes, looking up at Buu. "Man, as soon as he calms down, he's gonna start kicking my ass...I'm just about beat. Then again...if he keeps this up, he could finish what Gohan started—"

Raditz was always one for dramatic entrances. Instant Transmission had its benefits.

This was not the first, not even the first against Majin Buu, but it was undoubtedly the most spectacular.

"DRAGON FIST!"

The gigantic golden dragon, wreathed in flames, emerged from the Super Saiyan 3's fist, roaring a primal battle-cry and crashing into Buu. It tore right through his corona of light, shattering and instantly ending his warping, distorting effect on reality, clamping its teeth around his head and shoulders and soaring down into the ground, creating an explosion the size of a small city.

Raditz lowered his arm, flying down and landing next to Goku, breathing heavily but exhilarated, aura still shining—he'd managed to increase the efficiency of the technique since Janemba, if not the power.

"How was that, then?" He asked triumphantly.

Goku frowned. "Cool, but...how'd you learn my technique?"

"Your technique?!" Raditz asked, taken aback. "I invented it mys—wait. If we both know it, that means..."

"...those dreams..." Goku murmured.

"...they were..."

"I WILL END YOU!" Buu roared, fully regenerated.

"Save that for later!" Raditz said quickly. "If you knew it, why not use it already?"

"Well, the dragon's bite is a really powerful piercing attack, but it'd just punch a couple of holes he could heal, and the actual explosion wouldn't be powerful enough to bring down Buu...honestly, if I could just nail him with a x10 Kamehameha it'd be much better."

"Right." Raditz raised his arm, gripping his bicep with the other hand. "How about two dragons?"

"That might just do it! You get behind him."

"Gotcha!" Raditz teleported away again. We may not even have to fuse!

Goku drew back his arm. "All right, Buu, come and get it!" He didn't start building his energy yet—he knew in this powered-up state he could release as much as he needed in an instant. I never could put in the required energy 'trigger' for this technique before...I just wasn't strong enough. But now... The muscles in his arm bunched and rippled as he waited for Buu to get close enough.

Buu certainly obliged in that regard. Reason had flown from his mind. He didn't care that one of his targets had vanished; as long as he had something to crush. He charged up blazing red energy spheres in both hands. "YOU...WILL...SUFFER!"

Goku's smile suddenly vanished, serious face returning. "You've single-handedly slaughtered almost everyone I cared about. YOU DON'T THINK I'VE ALREADY SUFFERED, YOU BASTARD?!" His arm shot forwards, energy bursting to life. "RYU-KEN!"

Strangely enough, the dragon that roared forth looked exactly like Raditz's—and strangely enough, it had exactly the same amount of power as Raditz's.

Buu panicked, flinging his charged-up attacks, but they were smashed aside. This time, he wasn't caught by surprise, though, and he took the dragon's charge head-on. It shoved him backwards, shuddering left and right slightly as Buu resisted its onslaught with all his might.

Raditz watched Buu approach. I'm still at over half power...I should be able to maintain Super Saiyan 3 even after this for a minute or two...okay. Now! "DRAGON FIST!" At the exact moment Buu's back was open to attack—nothing happened.

Raditz stared at his arm for a second, bewildered. What? Why isn't it working?

Buu, meanwhile, had wrapped his arms around the dragon's neck and wrestled it to the ground. It swerved around, its snapping jaws shearing a leg off and shredding the severed limb, but Buu shoved it away two-handed and survived the resulting explosion with only minor burns.

Raditz cursed silently. For whatever reason...it didn't work. Guess there's nothing for it! "Goku, catch! Put it on your left ear!" He threw one Potara earring down to Goku, who caught it. "We'll fuse, and have the power to beat Buu! Unfortunately, it's permanent, but..."

"I understand." Goku fastened the earring to his left ear. "We do what we have to. This is a gift from the Kaioshins, isn't it?"

"Yeah, they—guhh!" Buu, having regenerated, crashed into Raditz from the side, driving his knee into the Super Saiyan's chest and catapulting him into the rumbling ground. The second Potara hung momentarily on the point of falling, but Buu snatched it out of the air. "What's this?" Goku's wearing one all of a sudden...whatever these are, they must be some kind of weapon they're planning to use against me. "Well, no matter," Buu said, grinning. "Your power level hasn't risen at all yet, so I'm guessing they're only of use in conjunction with each other. Once I crush this one, you'll be back to where you started—somewhat ironically, at your end." I should thank them for this little comeback, really...I was lost in my rage. Dangerously close to reverting...to him coming out to play...His fingers began to tighten around the earring—

—and then he couldn't feel them.

Gohan, Super Saiyan 3 hair streaming out behind him, energy-beam-sword in hand, appeared mid-motion, post-slash, in front of Buu. Buu's severed hand tumbled uselessly away, and Gohan swiped the Potara from its twitching grip before Buu could regain control of the appendage. To stop Buu taking him out as quickly as he had done Raditz, Gohan made a series of rapid Shifting jumps to the ground. He held up the Potara, extinguishing his beam-sword and hurriedly attaching the earring to his right ear. "Like this, right, dad?" He asked. "I heard most of what you were saying—we'll fuse into one being, right?"

"Yeah, that's it!" Goku agreed, feeling a tugging force pulling father and son towards each other as the Potara reacted.

Buu, having recovered from his surprise, was racing down towards them. "So that was their plan! Well, it matters little...their power, however high—is mine!" He transmuted his body into an amorphous, flowing state, aiming to absorb the pair even as they fused.

"Gohan! No!" Raditz hissed, pushing himself up out of the dirt. "It's permanent, you fool!"

Gohan, now less than a foot from Goku, blinked. "Wait, what?"

At that moment, they met in a splash of green light. The next moment, Buu was upon them, and they were gone.

(SSJ4 thoughts at the very bottom of the page)

Okay, so update on my computer; I have just about managed to get this chapter done, but it's kind of short and only just on time (it is rather late on Sunday). Anyway.

Chapters will still not be done as quick, and probably not be as long as usual, until it's fixed, but it's not quite as big a problem as I thought. About two-thirds of the screen is still usable.

One extremely generous reviewer, smashman42, said:

"I was wondering if you had thought about accepting donations towards your laptop screen via or something? I don't have heaps of money, especially this time of year, but I'd like to help a little if you are up for it. With the sheer number of readers you have small donations will add up fast. Just a thought."

Just wondering if anybody would be willing to do that. If you review/PM me, please tell me whether or not you'd be willing to donate a little bit. Also if by the site rules I'm even allowed to ask that or not.

Please bear in mind I am not expecting anything. I certainly don't expect other people to pay for my stuff. So please don't be offended; if your answer to this is 'no' that's perfectly fine. (But I guess you could consider this a Christmas present? Or something? And in any case if I can use my PC with greater efficiency I might be able to get out a bonus 'Christmas special' chapter sometime during the holidays maybe.)

All right, I think I'm done with the more serious stuff. Here, have some numbers:

Mystic Goku (Kaioken x4): 8

Super Buu (SSJ3 Break and Piccolo absorbed): 10

Super Buu (Piccolo and base Break absorbed): 7

Android 8: 8

Hercule: 12

Farmer with a Shotgun: 150

Arale: 9001

Arale standing on her head: 1006

Yamcha: Nope, Yamcha still sucks.

(Feel free to try and figure out where I stopped being serious. You're wrong.)

Warning: The following Q&A is extremely silly. That's just the mood I was in when writing it. You have been warned.

Q: First, I wanted too say love the story! It is the first fan fic I have ever read/ been interested in. And you got me hooked from the first chapter the plot and storytelling are amazing. It only took me 3 days to catch up because I was so into it. But, are we going to see some fusion since kaioken mystic goku can't handle super buu... Keep up the great work.

A: This chapter sort of kind of answers that question a little bit okay maybe not it's actually annoyingly ambiguous for the moment.

Q: I'm wondering how much stronger the Super Namek Nail in BTtL would be than in canon DBZ. I think that Nail getting strong enough to go against a member of Cooler's Armored Squadron wouldn't be much of a stretch given three years of training, and Piccolo in I three years could have been stronger than pre-fusion a Piccolo. Of course there is the question of if training when fused would yield greater returns, or maybe it would just be a wash. If Namekian fusion gives a geometric boost in power level (ie Fused Namekian PL ( )[Piccolo Kami * F] Nail) * F) where F is the multiplier for fusion) the I would think BTtL Super Namek Nail would be a helluva lot stronger than canon Kamicollo, maybe enough to keep canon Semi-Perfect Cell in check.

A: Good question. Not a clue.

Q: I'm still saying the event that disrupts time is related to someone trying to go back in time to deliver a warning, there's an explosion and shockwaves occur.

A: Close, but no cigar DON'T SMOKE KIDS (runs off singing) GI JOOOOOE

Q: I was wondering why Goku didn't use 5x Kaioken.

A: Because he can't.

Q: I just love that while every time Cell does a peekaboo routine its f-ing cheap, but Buu gets all the free passes.

A: Buu's regeneration is a lot more miraculous than Cell's.

Q: Oh yeah, Goku did never introduce himself, do you think that is his naive nature his introduction or is he playing dumb to irritate Buu?

A: With Goku, who knows?

Q: NOW ABOUT THIS WHOLE NOT GOING TO PUT FUSION THING...no just kidding. Idk, You've put it in as if it was forced on you, which I wouldn't it was. Buu saga wouldn't be the same with at least ONE fusion, but I'm sure you would've found something cooler to do (or not, but fusion seems the way to go).

A: Don't worry. I've had some variation of this fusion scene planned for a long time.

Q: Hmm, is the Red King a reference to Alice in Wonderland, perhaps?

A: Good guess. Wrong, naturally, but good. I feel like I've made the joke before.

Q: As for Son Goku's name translation...don't listen to that other commenter. Literally translated, the "Son" surname can also be read as "mago", which means grandchild/ancestor. "Go" can be read alternatively as sato(ru), meaning to be enlightened or to understand. "Kuu" has several meanings, including sky, or in this case, nothingness or emptiness. So, taken together, Son Gokuu is indeed "the (grand)child aware of nothingness". Nowhere in his name is the kanji nor connotation of monkey, which would be "saru/zaru".

A: Well, I've heard this version from multiple sources now; I'm going with it. Thanks!

Q: Oh boy what does Buu have up his sleeve this time? Will he revert back to his bulky kai form? And what will this fusion person be called (I'm assuming it'll be Goku and Raditz)? Radku? Kaditz? Goditz?

A: Ha-HAH!

Q: Since Goku can still get stronger, then after a reasonable amount of training to improve his kaioken and regain a better grasp on his kaioken he could really become unstoppable. Also since Gohan has so much potential, after traing would his SSJ3 become stronger the anyone else's SSJ3?

A: Possibly. Will he train, though? That's the question.

Q: I really hope that you give goku a good gight agaisnt this buu. Even thoigh he stated tjat he couldnt go to a 10x kaioken, a 6 or 7x kaioken should be enough. Although I know goku wont be finishing the story here, Id like to see a good fight of skills and power with buu coming out on top. Also, with break and piccolo absorbed, them not being limited by fusion time, does that mean buu wont need another absortion? Or shall we exptect another amazing plot point/ twist? Anyways great chapter man, this is really one of my favorite fan ficcion stories, you really hang up there with the likes of BOD and Honor trip!

A: Thankya! No, sorry Goku can't manage higher than a x4 in more than a single attack.

Q: I don't see what makes this so special.

There's thousand of DBZ stories and this is one of the few that are recognized? Bullshit

A: While I respect your opinion, please be a bit more civil about it.

Evidently a lot of people disagree with you, or this story wouldn't have got recognised in the first place, would it? (And while I'm at it, I'm not sure if you'll ever read this chapter...but I hope you do, as then you'll have got past the early stuff and to the higher-quality writing. Seeing as this was a chapter 38 review.)

Q: Red King? Evil guy, nice guy, anti-hero, whatever. Is he just NAMED Red or is he actually all Red? About 30 or so chapters ago, the dragons for the later saga were still not complete in terms of design. Do you have any sort of idea as to how humanoid they are going to appear?

A: We shall see what role the Red King will play. And I think I know what the dragons will look like.

Vaguely.

Sort of.

Kind of.

Ish.

Eh.

Q: Also, as a last quick question: The demo for Battle of Z is out for Japan and NA tomarrow, and many will finally get to hear Bills and Whis' voice actors for the english dub of the game. I personally think that the voices are just right for the parts, but I would like your opinion. Well, as always, great chapter, and *enter cool review ending catchphrase that I am working on*

A: I think Whis' voice is spot-on! Bills' is...good as well, but not quite up to the level of his awesome Japanese voice actor.

Q: I am wondering why you would introduce the potarra fusion instead of the other one (i have forgot it's name) as i view potarra fusing inferior to it. my reasons for this is that the potarra is an incomplete fusion, merging the bodies, but not the minds. The other fusion doesn't last long, but is a perfect fusion of mind and body, creating a totally new person. also, why hasn't buu realized baby is loose inside him? in cannon i thought he could sense what was happening in his body, or is Goku distracting him from finding out?

A: Because the fusion dance is easily spammable. There are several people who could learn it and just use it to create a Gogeta-level being in every battle.

Also, just because something isn't as good, is not a reason not to use it.

Second question...hmm...you sure Buu could sense what was happening inside his body? He didn't seem to realise at first why he'd changed back when they removed Gohan, Goten, Trunks and Piccolo...

Q: Since Piccolo's in hell...would he fuse with his father to become an equivalent to ss3?

A: I don't think so, no. Neither would accept not being the dominant half of the fusion. And they probably wouldn't be SSJ3-level even if they did, given how comparatively weak one is. I mean, Piccolo and Nail were in the same ballpark as each other, and Piccolo and Kami were originally the same being.

Q: This is definitely my favorite DBZ story, and yes, Ihave read BoD and Honor Trip. This tops those by far, in my opinion. Those stories are great, but this one just... I literally feel overjoyed when a new chapter is released. I applaud you, good sir. New chapters of this story are one of the big highlights of my week. On to my questions:

1) Who shall fuse? There are some great possibilities.
Goku & Raditz?
Gohan & Goku?
Gohan & Raditz?

2) Is Goku wearing the Outfit from GT? That is so cool!

3) Why didn't Buu think about Goku using Kaioken? He has the knowledge that Goku has it, right?

4) Would you be in need of an editor/pre-reader-thing? (I admit, I offer partlybecause Iwant sneak peeks. :P )

5) Any way I can help you solve your computer troubles?

A: 1. Ta-dah!

2. Almost. It's the outfit from the end of Z when Uub appears; the main difference being the GT one has yellow pants.

3. I guess it hasn't been used by the saiyans for so long, it slipped his mind. And Tien was never actually present when Goku used the Kaioken.

4. Perhaps sometime, if I'm unsure about a chapter.

5. See above, I suppose.

SSJ4 Discussion

Okay, so I've had some conversations with reviewers. And I've formulated a system that should fix some of the issues with GT's SSJ4.

-"SSJ4" is just a naming convention. It's not the level directly beyond SSJ3. It's just a combination of Oozaru and SSJ. It only requires SSJ1 and Oozaru to achieve it.

-Saiyan must have an existing tail or regrow one to transform.
-Can only regrow tail if it was lost in adulthood (or in childhood if still a child); if they've grown up without one, it's too late.
-Saiyan must also have SSJ and be able to control the normal Oozaru form.
-Additionally, power in SSJ4 is highly dependent on existing SSJ power; a Namek-era SSJ, for instance, who went SSJ4 wouldn't be nearly as strong as a normal SSJ3.

-Almost certainly some kind of mental drawback is involved. Possibly exaggerates exzisting negative traits. Thanks to Infinitygohan for also suggesting A. going completely insane and viciously beating on the enemy, or B. sullen, quiet sadness and a sort of withdrawal. So something like that.

So how does that sound to you guys?

(I've got similar plans in regards to the many, many plot holes associated with the Shadow Dragons. But that's edging into spoiler territory.)