In a vast desert still hundreds of miles out from their destination of West City, Gohan, Krillin, and a still-grumbling Piccolo flew at a relatively relaxed pace away from the heat of battle, Gohan allowed to relax due to Kintoun's immense speed. However, no sooner had Gohan finally convinced himself that his father was perfectly fine than an indescribable ki power came to the surface of the fighters' awareness. They stopped in their tracks, hovering in mid-air while they used their ki sensing to determine what was going on.
"This power...it simply can't be Vegeta or Dad!" Gohan said. "If either were holding out that much power naturally, why wouldn't they have used it earlier?"
"Unless...yes," Piccolo thought aloud. "The ki feels...familiar. Wild, erratic, almost...animalistic." He looked over to Gohan, who looked back in confusion, waiting for Piccolo to elaborate. "During your first night in the wastelands, you gazed upon the full moon and underwent a harrowing transformation into a giant ape-like creature. The only way that I could stop you from leveling the area and killing me and everyone else in your path was to blow up the moon, thus reverting you to your normal form."
As Gohan was left to process this information, Krillin gasped in surprise. "Wait, Gohan does that too?! Goku did the same thing when we were kids, at the 21st Budokai! He just looked at the moon and lost all of his wits, becoming a giant monster and attacking innocent people indiscriminately!"
Piccolo grunted. "It's as I suspected, then. This transformation is a natural ability of Goku's race, and since it seems to require a tail-"
"Which Goku doesn't have." Krillin added on.
"-Then we must logically conclude that Vegeta has underwent it himself somehow, and increased his power tremendously."
Gohan just managed to regain his composure. "B-but Dad doesn't have a chance against that kind of power!"
"Nor do any of us, for that matter," Piccolo amended.
"T-the only way to turn them back to normal, according to what Yamcha told me back then, is to cut off the Saiyan's tail!" Krillin added. "But Goku doesn't know that! We-agh, I should've told him what had really happened back then, but I-!"
"Stop whining, you!" Piccolo commanded. "Now isn't the time to be caught up on what you could have done!"
"He's right," Gohan said. "Now is the time to fight."
Piccolo couldn't help but smile at the sight of the small child's own warrior instinct beginning to show itself, while Krillin began sweating slightly. Gohan saw his newfound friend's hesitation and looked him square in the eyes before responding.
"I'm not leaving my daddy behind, not when I can do something, anything, to help him!" he said simply. "And if you're really his friend, then you aren't going to, either."
Gohan turned to Kintoun and gave the cloud specific directions on where to go. Although it stalled for a second, appearing to the others as if it were a person hesitating, it soon took off at breakneck speeds to the east, barreling straight for the enormous ki signature. Piccolo chuckled in spite of himself before setting off after him, his own immense speed allowing him to quickly match the cloud's pace. With one last nervous gulp, Krillin looked towards the massive ki signature with a determined expression even as he continued to sweat nervously.
"They're both crazy, but...at this point, I guess so am I!"
With that, he powered up to maximum and set out after them as fast as he could manage, all three racing against time to save Goku from this unimaginable threat.
Once his transformation was finally complete, the prince let out a triumphant roar which caused several nearby rock formations to crack under the pressure. But even as the beast cast his gaze onto Goku, still the warrior didn't move a muscle, continuing to stare at him in utter terror.
"You...I've heard of a monster like you! You...you killed my grandpa!" he cried out in shock.
Vegeta paused in confusion before he began to laugh heartily, which in his current state came out as a series of deep bellows.
"What nonsense are you spewing now?! Haven't you figured it out-I've never been on this planet before! How could I have killed this 'grandfather' of yours?" After a moment he chuckled once more. "Right, of course-you hit your head as a child, didn't you? That's how you lost your original programming-and, apparently, most of your brain cells. Well, since you didn't catch on from my earlier explanation, I suppose I'll have to spell it out for you: all Saiyans can do this, Kakarot! Provided they have a tail, anyway!"
As Vegeta's words rang through his mind, other memories began rising up to the surface…
"Now, remember, Goku: you are never to look out the window on a full moon night, do you understand? Otherwise the monster will come back! Now, do you promise me that you won't do it again from now on?"
Goku looked up at his grandfather, concern evident across his face as he recalled his appearance the night before: his clothes tattered, his chest heaving as if he had only narrowly escaped his own death. He didn't want to see his grandfather like that ever again.
"Yes, Grandpa. I promise."
"Man, that was insane!" Krillin cried out in astonishment. "Why didn't you tell me you turned into a giant monster like that?"
"Huh?" Goku replied, puzzled.
"Wait, y-you don't know...?" Krillin asked as Goku continued staring at him, confused. Krillin, deciding it might be a good idea not to discuss it further, changed the subject. "W-well, don't give up now, Goku! Beat that Jackie Chun guy!"
As Goku walked off towards the arena, he shook his head slightly. "Wow...what a weirdo."
"Hang on, hang on," Goku interjected. "Why do you need to cut off my tail again?"
"Well, Goku, remember when the moon was destroyed during the 21st Tenkaichi Budokai?" Kami, his latest martial arts teacher, asked. Goku nodded reluctantly.
"I didn't see it for myself, but yeah."
For some reason, Kami began to sweat slightly. "R-right. Well, anyway, it is within my power to restore the moon, but in order to do so, I require certain...materials, connected to the event."
"Okay...but what does my tail have to do with the moon being destroyed?"
Kami was silent for a moment before eventually opting to push forwards without an explanation. "Look, it's all very complicated 'magic stuff,' as you once put it, and I'm sure you don't want to sit through a lecture on the subject. Besides...I'm sure the tail gets in your way while fighting."
Goku cocked his head to the side for a moment before ultimately nodding.
"Well, alright...if it brings the moon back, then...sure."
As Goku processed what Vegeta had said, he gasped slightly before regaining his composure.
"So...that's what you're trying to tell me. That the one who killed my grandpa...and smashed up Pilaf's Castle...and all of the buildings at the tournament...that was all...me."
Vegeta simply snickered. "Oh, what do you know? A few brain cells were left over!"
"Oh, Grandpa...I'm so sorry! I'm sorry that I disobeyed you, that I lost control back then and all of those other times! I'm sorry that I'm not strong enough to defeat this monster now! But...I suppose I'll have all the time in the world to beg for forgiveness...when I see you in Other World."
With this thought, Goku grit his teeth as Vegeta finally lunged towards him.
"KAIO-KEN TIMES TWO!" Goku cried out, wincing at the additional pain of pushing himself back to twice his maximum. To his surprise, he found that even at this level, Vegeta could still barely react to his attacks, and after a series of ineffectual blows to his face, a single punch from the massive ape prince was enough to send Goku tumbling into the dirt, bleeding slightly from several small cuts and bruises.
Vegeta laughed once more. "Give it up, Kakarot! You don't stand a chance! I'm ten times stronger in this form, and just as agile as when I am at normal size! What's more, whatever power you used to surpass me seems to damage your body tremendously! You simply can't hope to measure up to the power of a Saiyan elite!"
Goku looked up at Vegeta, dazed as a result of his injuries. "He's right, there's no way I can overpower him or outmaneuver him as I am now! Even the Spirit Bomb might not be enough to finish this guy off...but I have to try anyway! I just need a distraction! Just a few minutes!"
With that, Goku leapt up into the air once more as Vegeta looked on, bemused by his futile resistance.
"Let's see...I only saw him use it twice, way back in the 22nd Tournament...here's hoping my memory serves!" He put his hands to his face, fingers spread apart as he closed his eyes in concentration. Vegeta only had just enough time to recognize the technique before Goku unleashed it.
"SOLAR FLARE!"
With no time to react, Vegeta was left blinded once more, howling in agony as Goku slipped away as fast as his wrecked body could enable him and eventually landing on top of an open rock formation a hundred meters away. He spread out his legs and held his arms aloft in the air.
"All right...here's good. Now...forests! Oceans! People and animals, and every other living thing which calls this planet home! Please, lend me just a small portion of your power!"
No sooner had he said these words than tiny, almost invisible specks of blue ki already began to gravitate towards his body, steadily increasing in magnitude as he stretched out his awareness towards more and more of the ki signatures inhabiting the planet. Many of the larger specks of ki he gathered he could even recognize, once he had gotten used to energy sensing-Nam, who he'd fought in the 21st tournament; Korin and Kami, two of his greatest mentors; as well as a somewhat large speck he couldn't identify for some reason, coming from the direction of Jingle Village. And, of course, there was the energy of Yamcha, Bulma, Chi Chi, and all of his other friends, all placing their faith in him to destroy this menace once and for all.
After finally gathering all of the energy he could, his body began to pulse with the sheer magnitude of ki flowing through it. Goku smiled, enjoying the feeling tremendously, and began condensing the power he'd gathered into a single energy sphere. However, no sooner had he formed the sphere and readied himself to throw it than Vegeta finally found him, launching a massive ki blast from his gaping maw which grew beyond even his own great size. Although lacking in power, it was nevertheless powerful enough to slam into Goku before he had time to react, vaporizing the formation he had been standing on and sending him careening into the ground several dozen meters away. Just before he hit the ground, he became marginally aware of a slight pulsing sensation in his head-the tell of detecting other ki signatures. However, the waves of pain quickly overrode all other thoughts.
"Damn! Shouldn't have...done it...so close to him! Stupid...so stupid!" he muttered with clenched teeth.
After shakily rising to his feet, he could only look on helplessly as Vegeta landed with a massive crash a few meters away from him.
"You're a crafty fighter, Kakarot, I'll give you that. But your luck has just about run out, it seems."
Goku could only chuckle, his speech somewhat slurred by his injuries.
"Looks like it. I used up...all my energy...trying to make that sphere. I've got...nothing left."
Vegeta's monstrous jaw became set in the closest thing to a grin he was capable of.
"All I needed to hear..."
With that, Vegeta began to advance towards Goku, who succeeded in dodging the first few blows only to find himself backhanded into a nearby rock face. As Goku felt several bones in his back give way from the force of the impact, he only had a few seconds' respite before he heard a sickening crunch as Vegeta's massive foot landed directly onto his legs.
"AAAGGGHHH!" Goku cried out in agony as he felt all sensation in his legs slip away from him. More so than the sheer pain, however, his suffering derived from his anger-anger at himself for not being strong enough. As his life flashed before his eyes, Goku could recall many times when he had been bested, both physically and mentally. He had nearly died at the hands of Taopaipai, was left for dead by both Tambourine and King Piccolo, was left with only one working limb by King Piccolo at full power, and, of course, killed in the battle with Raditz. Yet in none of these instances was the gap in power quite this lopsided, his disadvantage laid out so plainly. He had, quite simply, no options left. His Kaio-ken had left him drained, and his Spirit Bomb had been ripped away from him. Now, he had only just enough energy to remain conscious even in spite of the immense pain-and, he later realized, just enough for one last act of defiance.
In the span of an instant, while Vegeta sneered over his opponent, Goku charged up and fired a weak ki blast from his fingertips, piercing the soft material of Vegeta's left eye with little difficulty. As the prince cried out in pain and stepped back a few paces, Goku smiled with a hint of both pleasure and sadness, doing his best to try and accept his inevitable failure.
"AGH! You...you scarred my face, you low-class scum!" Vegeta cried out in protest as his massive hands fumbled for Goku's limp body. "I'm not going to wait for you to slip away quietly, Kakarot! I...am going...to savor this!"
Without another word, the prince began tightening his grip, and Goku howled in agony as he felt his ribs begin to buckle and crack.
As all of this was going on, Yajirobe cowered behind a different rock face, his first hiding spot having been blown to bits by Vegeta's ki blast. For a brief second, he had felt the impulse to help his old acquaintance, but one look at Vegeta's massive frame effortlessly dissuaded him from that path. Thus, he continued to passively observe until he felt three ki signatures land behind him, causing him to turn around rapidly.
"What the-?! Oh, hey, Krillin, what's up?" Yajirobe began, skipping over the child he had not yet met before before finally realizing that he had failed to process Piccolo's inclusion in the group. He jumped backwards in terror before Krillin reassured him that Piccolo was more or less on their side. "Anyway, what are you guys doing here?!"
"I might ask you the same question," Piccolo replied with a scowl. "How long have you been here?" Yajirobe's silence seemed to confirm Piccolo's initial assumption. "And you've done nothing?"
"We don't have time to argue, Piccolo!" Krillin snapped. "Look, that monster that Vegeta's become-the only way to turn him back is to cut off his tail! Now, I'm thinking that if Gohan distracts him from the front, I can hit him with a Kienzan from the back to cut off his tail. Then you, Piccolo, hit him with your Special Beam Cannon while he's dazed, and the rest of us can finish him off. And Yajirobe can cover for me just in case I don't hit him."
Piccolo simply scoffed. "I don't know if we should place any aspect of the plan on this coward," he said, jerking his head towards Yajirobe.
Yajirobe himself bristled at the comment. "What you call 'cowardice,' I call 'common sense', you jolly green jackass!"
"Alright, listen here, you-!"
"Guys!" Krillin interjected, pointing towards Goku as he continued to be crushed. "We're losing time!"
Piccolo nodded, although he also began to telepathically relay an alternative plan to the others, which Krillin ultimately agreed to. Piccolo left Yajirobe behind as he leapt for cover along with the others, leaving Yajirobe plagued with indecision. After several seconds, he eventually decided to follow suit, moving towards a somewhat close rock formation and hiding behind it, waiting to strike if need be. Meanwhile, Gohan moved out into the open, ready to confront the massive tyrant.
"Hey, you! Leave my daddy alone!" he cried out, not quite replicating the righteous anger he'd felt during his last fight with the prince. The prince simply turned around, Goku still firmly in his grasp, and laughed.
"Why, look here, Kakarot! Your little half breed brat has come to watch you die!"
Gohan stepped back a pace, horrified of the prince's immense power. Vegeta continued chuckling.
"This is why I love family. Now, look closely, whelp! Observe...the proper order of things."
As he tightened his grip on Goku even further, laughing maniacally, he suddenly felt the air around him warm up slightly, and he leaped to the right just in time to see a Kamehameha soar past him. He resumed his laughter as he turned himself around and observed Gohan's shocked expression.
"Did you think I wouldn't know? You Earthlings are sentimental to a fault! I knew that your little midget friend or the womanish one would come back and try to attack me with...with..." He caught a glimpse of something in his peripheral vision, yet paused as he turned around to focus on the source of the attack. Where he had been expecting to find Krillin lending support to his friend…
He instead saw Piccolo, sporting a sinister grin as he held his hands out in the familiar gesture before leaping away towards the rocks.
"What?! How?! Why would he-?!" Vegeta thought in a panic until he was further distracted by a burning sensation at the base of his tail and across the furs of his back, ducking just in time to look back up and see a large Kienzan soaring off into the distance. Vegeta's blank white eyes widened in terror as his entire body trembled, and he realized what Krillin had done. "My...tail! Damn...it...!"
With one last gasp of anger and shock, Vegeta slowly reverted to his normal form as Goku fell out of his hands and onto the ground. The prince huffed and panted as even more of his energy slipped away from prolonged usage of the Oozaru form. He looked down towards where his tail had been a moment before, but found only a burned stump of fur amidst a series of scorch marks as a result of Krillin's attack. Vegeta's brow furrowed in anger as he clenched his teeth at this latest insult. He looked around until he spotted Krillin, having landed on a nearby cliff after throwing the disc.
"You...first you make me shed my noble blood...and now, you cut off my tail?! I...will not stand for this!"
With a roar of fury, the prince leapt towards Krillin, but found himself intercepted by a kick from Gohan. His anger granted him the strength to land a few hits on Vegeta in his weakened state, but Vegeta was quickly able to get the upper hand, staggering him with a punch to the gut.
"I guess the brat wanted to die first," he said with a sneer. "Well, tell you what?" He picked the boy up by the scruff of the neck and tossed him up into the air before flying up after him, sending him flying into the ground with a powerful kick mere feet away from where Goku was left crippled. "I'll let you die next to daddy," he finished. Mere seconds later, he was able to casually sidestep Krillin's attempt at a punch before countering with his own, sending him crashing into the ground as well.
Piccolo grimaced from behind his cover as the others fell. "Damn it! He's still too powerful! Those two were supposed to buy me time to charge up, but at this rate, he'll find me before I can finish! Of course, I might have a chance if that human with the sword thought to help, but a gutless coward like that would never-!"
"HYAAAAHH!" Yajirobe cried out as he leapt from behind a rock, his trusty katana in hand, and aimed a slash at Vegeta's back with all of his strength. Surprisingly, the attack actually did something, piercing the prince's armor and even nicking his skin slightly. As Vegeta stumbled forwards in surprise, Yajirobe attempted to turn tail and run, but was swiftly intercepted by the prince and kicked into unconsciousness after colliding with a nearby boulder.
"Tch! Didn't see him there," Vegeta remarked with a slight grunt of pain. "Now, where did that Namekian fool go?" He glanced around the immediate area for a moment, noticing too late the Special Beam Cannon flying towards his chest. He twisted out of the way of the beam, leaving it to explode closer to his left hip. Piccolo grimaced as the beam once again failed to pierce Vegeta's skin, but consoled himself with the sound of several of Vegeta's ribs breaking as a result of the impact. He soon found himself on the defensive, however, as Vegeta fired several ki blasts in the direction of his own, a ploy which forced him to leap away from his hiding place and fall within the prince's sight. With noticeably more effort, the prince took to the sky once more, meeting Piccolo in the air with a punch to the jaw which Piccolo only barely managed to block. Their exchange of blows continued for some time, but it became clear to Piccolo that Vegeta still heavily outclassed him, handicapped only by the injury to his ribs. "Still..." he thought, "I'm not going to go quietly!"
As Vegeta and Piccolo continued to fight, Goku reached out to Gohan's mind.
"Gohan, listen to me! You have to help out Piccolo! He's not going to last much longer!"
Gohan struggled to rise to his feet, coughing as a result of the injuries he suffered. "I don't...I don't know what difference I'll make."
"You'll make all the difference in the world, son! You just need to keep him busy as long as possible so that Krillin can get here! Please!"
Gohan stumbled before nodding. "I'll...I'll do my best." With that, he set out into the sky, surprising Vegeta with a kick to his wounded side. As Vegeta winced at the additional pain, Piccolo was able to get a hit in and send him back several paces.
"Excellent, Gohan!" Piccolo said with a grin. "With the two of us together, we might just stand a chance!"
"I doubt that very much," Vegeta interrupted, chuckling as he recovered from the surprise attack. "You have some power, Namekian, but it's still nothing compared to the might of a-"
"Saiyan elite, yeah, yeah, we heard you the first dozen times," Piccolo interrupted, causing Gohan to laugh.
"Grrr! You'll regret mocking me, you insolent slug!" Vegeta retorted as he flew towards the pair and reentered combat.
Meanwhile, Krillin stumbled towards Goku's broken body at his telepathic urging, barely keeping himself from collapsing just as he reached his right side.
"Great..." Goku said weakly. "Now, Krillin, I need you...to listen closely..."
"What is it, Goku?"
"King Kai...taught me a powerful technique while I was...training with him, called the Spirit Bomb. What you do is...you gather all of the energy you can...from living things, and form it into one really powerful...sphere of ki. I tried using one on Vegeta, but...it didn't work, and I lost most of the energy."
Krillin's face fell. "...Huh."
"I've still got enough within me...to finish him off as he is now, though!" Goku reassured him. "But my body's too broken...to do anything with it. Which means...it's up to you, Krillin!"
Krillin was, understandably, confused. "Wait, why not give it to Piccolo? He's a lot stronger than I am."
"The Spirit Bomb...harms those with evil in their hearts."
"Oh...yeah. Huh," Krillin said, glancing towards Piccolo as he continued to fight Vegeta alongside Gohan.
"He's getting better," Goku remarked idly. "But I couldn't risk it. You're the only one...experienced enough to use it on him! Now take my hand, quickly!"
Krillin hurriedly complied, suddenly feeling a rush of energy enter into his body through his left arm. As he staggered backwards, amazed by the raw power even a fraction of the Spirit Bomb possessed, Goku continued to speak to him.
"Remember, Krillin-we've only got one shot! You've got to...feel his ki...and strike true! Got it?!"
Krillin nodded, and began trying to calm himself down as he gradually pinpointed the precise location of Vegeta's ki signature. Just as he had narrowed down where the prince was, he felt Gohan's signature begin to decline, and opened his eyes to find Gohan on the ground some distance away from him, bleeding from several brutal injuries. Piccolo tried to intercept Vegeta's next attack on the boy, but by this time the Namekian warrior had begun to tire, and Vegeta easily swatted Piccolo aside. Deciding to forego the child's suffering for a moment, he stepped towards Piccolo, chuckling slightly.
"I may no longer have the strength to destroy this planet outright anymore, but I can at least deprive you fools of one luxury before I take my leave!" He began charging up a finger beam and aimed it at Piccolo. "Your species may have remarkable regenerative abilities, but with so little energy remaining, I imagine that this will be enough to finish you off."
Piccolo struggled to get up as he met the prince's eyes. "Wait...what of your wish?"
Vegeta chuckled. "Don't think that you can bargain for your life, slug. Kakarot already informed me that this planet's Dragon Balls would not be reactivated for another year. As a result, there is no longer any reason for me to keep you alive."
As Vegeta spoke, Gohan gradually managed to stand up and tried to leap at Vegeta once more, only for Vegeta to dodge his attack and knee him in the gut in one fluid motion. As Gohan tumbled to the ground right next to Piccolo, gasping in pain as he coughed up a few drops of blood, Vegeta continued. "However, those trinkets and your presence on this planet did confirm one thing for me: the legend of the Namekian power spheres...may just hold some merit after all." He leaned closer to Piccolo as he sneered at his defeated enemy. "I'll just have to pop by your home planet and see for myself, won't I? Who knows? I might even give your people a small payment...for their lost son's misdeeds." He began to laugh maniacally as Piccolo barely managed to stand up, still unable to dodge from such close range. Gohan grabbed onto Piccolo's ankle, a gesture which Vegeta failed to take notice of as he continued to charge the finger beam, wanting to ensure that his target would die. In an instant, Gohan poured every bit of energy he had left into Piccolo's body, falling to the ground unconscious as Piccolo's Namekian regeneration began to heal some of his wounds.
At this, Vegeta took pause, but was about to fire the beam anyway when he felt the nearby temperature rise, usually the indication of some kind of attack. Vegeta turned to the left just in time to see a brilliant blue ball of ki speeding towards him. Taking advantage of this instant, Piccolo leaped backwards while simultaneously stretching out his arms to grab the prince, leaving him stunned and stuck in place just long enough for the ball to hit home, completely enveloping both the prince and Piccolo's stretched out arms. As the attack collided, both of them felt a particularly painful new sensation as the ki blast seemed to be damaging not just their bodies, but their very souls. Piccolo staggered away as the sections of his arms hit by the blast were torn apart, retracting his arms and allowing his regeneration to take its course. With this anchor gone, Vegeta was left screaming in fury and pain as the Spirit Bomb soared off into the distance.
When the blue ball faded from view, Piccolo picked up Gohan and walked over to where Goku and Krillin had been left.
"Woo hoo!" Krillin cried out triumphantly. "Take that, you freaky alien! Whoo!"
Although Piccolo most definitely found Krillin's enthusiasm to be annoying at times, in this case it was once again infectious, and he chuckled slightly at the idea that that arrogant fool had finally been defeated.
Until...he felt a faint sensation in the back of his mind, and his eyes widened in shock.
"How? HOW?! The ki from that sphere was enormous!"
Krillin's jubilant smile gave way to a look of utter horror. "Y-you don't mean-?!"
"Yes!" Piccolo said, gritting his teeth in anger. "The bastard...he isn't dead yet..."
Dun dun DUUUNNNNN!
Yeah, Vegeta just refused to die in this arc, huh? Surprising, considering that arguably weaker attacks later on in the Namek saga leave him in a pretty bad way even when he's stronger. Just goes to show that power levels are bs. ;)
Anywho, Vegeta's not a monkey and the Spirit Bomb's been used up, which means that we'll be heading into the final section of this first iconic fight! Piccolo and Krillin are the only ones left standing after Vegeta's assault. Can the two of them work together and find a way to defeat this troublesome tyrannical terror? Find out next week, on Dragon Ball Z-uh, Hermit. Yeah!
Not too much to comment on in the writing department, nobody asked any new questions, and no really notable power levels other than Vegeta during this chapter, who's at...let's say 10,000 after using the Oozaru form, but because of his wounds, he can't exercise it fully.
Also, to address a comment from an anonymous user: official power level for Great Ape 'Geets is 180k, and with those kind of injuries, that sure ain't right, so I wanted to bring it to kind of a middle ground. He gets more screwed up later, of course.
So...have a fantastic day, and I'll see you guys next week!