It's Your Time Now! Gohan Takes Center Stage!
Hercule Satan was having a really, really rough day. Although, if he were being entirely honest with himself, it had probably gone better than it should have. His brilliant plan to save the world had been to make friends with the pink murder-demon who had killed billions of people, hinging on the hope that he had the mind of a child and didn't know he was doing anything wrong. It was actually working until a bunch of crazy, drugged-up yahoos attacked them and blew up Boo's house. Then Boo had split into a good and evil Boo and the evil one killed the good one and… ate him? Which turned him into some kinda jacked-up Super Boo. Then he killed all of the yahoos and flew off. Then pink lightning came down from the sky and he heard really loud screaming that just seemed to be coming from everywhere, there were earthquakes and explosions and it was just awful. Now he was wandering the desert with no food or water and no way to get back to civilization.
On the plus side, he had a new dog.
Hercule was carrying Bee under one arm and trudging through the aforementioned desert, grumbling and muttering under his breath. Listing every grievance he'd felt that day from how it was bullshit that all of those superpowered clowns from the Cell Games decided to enter a tournament that no one but them could possibly win to the rocks and sand in his boots was all he could do to distract himself from the dread that threatened to swallow him whole. He'd failed. He hadn't saved the world or stopped Majin Boo from becoming a monster. In fact, he'd stood by helpless, again, while Boo had become an even bigger monster. The only person he'd managed to save with his last-ditch, hairbrained scheme was himself. Even then, considering his predicament, it was unlikely that he'd saved himself for long. But as long as he kept muttering and grumbling, then he wouldn't be thinking about that. In an odd way, irritation was keeping him alive.
As the first thoughts of at what point he might have to consider eating Bee crept into Hercule's brain, he spotted something on the horizon that was more than just the shimmer of heat haze. It wasn't a city, sadly, but it was… something. No, someone! Someone was actually coming closer toward him! Someone else was actually alive!
"Hey!" he shouted enthusiastically, suddenly buoyed with energy. "Hey, over here!" He started running toward the person-shaped blob in the distance, hoping that whoever it was might have water or food. Maybe they could even tell him just what the hell was going on!
Dende, for his part, was also having a very bad day. Not only had Gohan, his… closest friend, died but so had the entire population of Earth. All his friends, his servant Popo, every living being on the planet save for himself. Not only that, but he could tell that the Lookout had been destroyed as he was robbed of his sight of all the world. It was as painful as being suddenly blind and deaf. How had things all have gone so catastrophically wrong? How had he failed so spectacularly in his position as Guardian in less than a decade when Kami, his predecessor, had reigned with relative peace for three hundred years? Despair and shame had deadened his ki sensing to anything but the greatest of powers. He didn't even know if Piccolo was still alive. He could sense the ki of Gotenks battling this Majin Boo and felt the flickers of hope but Boo's energy seemed inexorable and he could retaliate from anything the fusion warrior threw at him. Once again, Dende was a spectator to fate as he had been when the tyrant Freeza had lain waste to Namek or when he had first become Guardian during the Cell Games.
No, Dende corrected himself as he wandered under the baking, relentless heat that was somehow more painful than any he had endured under the three suns of Namek. This was somehow worse than that. Blind and helpless, he wasn't even a spectator. He was a prisoner. With nothing to do but wander on the dead Earth until Majin Boo was either defeated or destroyed everything. Then, however, a sound made Dende's ears twitch and yanked him out of his despondency.
"Hey! Hey, over here!" It was a voice. A person's voice! There was someone else on Earth! Someone alive! Dende pushed himself off the ground and flew toward the sound of the person's voice, a voice that was strangely familiar. When Dende finally flew toward the source of the voice and saw just who it belonged to, he couldn't help but be stunned. Out of billions of people, the last human being living on Earth was… Hercule? Who was carrying a dog? For his part, Hercule's eyes lit up in recognition as Dende floated down toward him. "Hey, I know you," he said, "You're that little green–"
"Dende," he interrupted brusquely. "My name is Dende." He touched down on the ground and looked at Hercule in confusion as if he still couldn't believe what he was seeing. "How did you survive?" he asked.
Now it was Hercule's turn to be confused. "Survive what?"
"Majin Boo's attack."
"What," Hercule pressed, "You mean that pink lightning? What happened?" Dende gave a resigned sigh.
"Congratulations," Dende told Hercule. "You are now the last human being alive on Earth." The color drained from Hercule's face and he went cold inside.
"So… so everyone's gone?" he asked. His wife, Miguel… Videl… his little girl… "We're the only people left on Earth? Majin Boo killed everyone?"
"Not everyone," Dende reminded him. "I said you were the last human on Earth. Goten and Trunks are still alive and fighting Majin Boo but they're only half-human." Hercule had several questions about that. Half human? What the hell was the other half? More importantly, a couple of toddlers were fighting Majin Boo? How?! Just because they could make their hair glow didn't mean they were anywhere near strong enough to fight him. Was everyone taking their crazy pills?! "Still," Dende went on, oblivious to Hercule's confusion, "As Guardian of the Earth and its people, it's my job to take care of you. Let's see if we can get you guys some food and water." He lifted off into the air and hoisted Hercule up under one arm.
"Where are we goin'?" Hercule asked as he held Bee tight and tried hard not to look down toward the rapidly-disappearing ground.
"Toward one of the remaining cities," Dende explained. "There may not be people in them anymore but there should still be supplies there we can scrounge. From there, I guess we'll just have to hunker down and… see what happens."
Hercule was about to make some remark about how, for a Guardian of the Earth, Dende seemed to be pretty bad at his job but, before his brain could even remind him just how high up they were, something happened. A flicker of white and red shot across the sky over their heads and rent the clouds apart followed by a thunderclap that was so impossibly loud he could feel his teeth rattle. "What the hell was that?!" he asked in shock. Dende's response was delayed, mostly because his mouth was hanging open.
"G-Gohan?" he stuttered. He was alive! Not only that but he was incredibly powerful! Dende was just glad that, from the angle he was being held, Hercule could not see the dark emerald coloration to his cheeks or the… starch of his antennae.
OoOoOoO
Majin Boo had all but completely reformed in the span of a few seconds and was poised to strike Piccolo and the children. He coiled as Piccolo threw out his arms, trying to shield Goten and Trunks to buy them a few seconds to run, whatever time he could, and screwed his eyes shut to the end. There was a powerful "THOOMP!", however, a sound like someone beating an enormous drum once… and then the end didn't come. Piccolo opened his eyes and Goten and Trunks peered out from behind his cape to stare in awe at…
"Gohan?" Piccolo breathed in shock. The young man was standing with his back to them, his red hair glinting in the sunlight and the thick locks being blown by a slight breeze. He was wearing a white and blue gi that Piccolo had never seen before but when he looked back over his shoulder at them and smiled, there was no denying that it was him.
"Hey, guys," he greeted them with a confident smile. "Sorry I took so long but it's alright now. I'll take it from here." Gohan turned his attention to the roiling mass that was Majin Boo, reeling from his surprise attack, and started to walk toward him before Goten rushed forward and grabbed onto Gohan's calf leg with all her might.
"Big bro, no!" she cried desperately, her voice tinged with fear. Gohan stopped and looked down at Goten as she buried her face in the back of his leg. "You can't!" she protested on the verge of tears. "B-Boo's way too strong for you! I… I just got you back," she told him as she looked up, eyes brimming with unshed tears. "Everyone's gone… you can't go away again…"
"Goten's right," Piccolo agreed. "You weren't a match for Majin Boo before," he reminded Gohan reluctantly. "He's far more powerful now." Despite that information and despite the reminder that everyone he knew, in fact the entire population of the world, was dead, Gohan's confidence was unshaken. That caught Piccolo's attention. He'd never seen this side of Gohan before. He'd never seen him so self-assured and focused. Like he was completely in control. Gohan smiled at them reassuringly and got down on a knee in front of Goten, placing a hand comfortingly on the back of her head.
"Close your eyes," he told her gently. "Forget everything else. Just feel my ki." Goten nodded with a sniffle and did was her big brother asked, closing her eyes. She was shocked by what she sensed and gasped as she felt her brother's power. It was way bigger than Boo's! When she opened her eyes, she shared his brother's confidence and smiled back at him when he tousled her hair. "Everything's gonna be fine now," he promised her and started to stand.
"Hey, wait!" Trunks called and stopped Gohan in his tracks. "If you're here," he said, "Then what about my dad? Is he…" There was the tiniest flicker of hope in his eyes and it killed Gohan to take it away from him.
"I'm sorry, Trunks," he told the boy as gently as he could, "But Vegeta's dead." Then he smiled again and gave him a thumbs-up. "But don't worry. I'm going to end this mess and then we'll wish everyone back!" Trunks nodded and wiped his eyes, giving Gohan a thumbs-up back. He'd never say it out loud but Goten's brother might not be such a huge dork after all. Then, at last, Gohan put his back to them and put his focus on Majin Boo.
One second, he was only a few feet away from them.
The next, he was standing right in front Majin Boo, more than a hundred yards away.
Gohan looked up at Majin Boo as the monster put his head on straight and looked down at him. 'Well,' he thought to himself in mild amusement, 'Someone's been working out.' Also, he couldn't help but reflect on the fact that, while his mother always had nemeses who were shorter than her, such as Vegeta and Freeza, for some reason his enemies were always much taller than him. As Boo looked down at Gohan in confusion, there was a flicker of recognition in those red eyes and he flashed his pointed teeth as he chuckled.
"I remember you," he said as he tapped Gohan on the chest. "You were one of the ones who tried to stop me when I was weak. I thought I killed you. Just like I killed everyone else." Gohan just smirked at him silently and cracked his knuckles.
So,' he thought to himself, 'Boo's gotten smarter, too.' Majin Boo sneered at Gohan's reaction before his strange and long mouth morphed into another twisted smile.
"What, hotshot?" he asked smugly which made Gohan wonder where Majin Boo had even learned the word "hotshot." "You want to fight Majin Boo?" Gohan raised one eyebrow and chuckled.
"Fight you?" he echoed. Then his smile dropped and he fixed Majin Boo with a murderous glare. "No. I'm gonna fucking kill you." Majin Boo started to laugh, his mouth open wide and his blue tongue lolling out. Then, suddenly, Majin Boo was gone. The others had no idea what had just happened. Gohan was just standing there with one of his legs lifted in the air. Right after that, there was a deafeningly loud "Crack!" and a crater exploded out from beneath him while the wind generated from that kick whipped Gohan's hair wildly around.
"That… that was all from one kick?" Piccolo wondered in astonishment as his mouth hung open in shock. They couldn't have even hoped to track his movements.
"Gohan's not even a Super Saiyan!" Goten pointed out excitedly. What had happened to her big brother? How had he gotten so strong? Whatever it was, it was awesome!
"Where the heck did Majin Boo go?" Trunks asked as he looked around curiously, trying to lock onto his ki. "What, did he blow up with one kick?" Trunk could be forgiven for his confusion as, with everything else going on, none of them had been able to hear the distant "Crack" that was lost in the echoes of the thunderclap of Gohan's kick. As the sun was blotted out, however, it soon became abundantly clear where Majin Boo had gone.
Gohan squinted up at the sky as the ground under him quaked. "Huh," he muttered as he put a hand up to shield his eyes. "That's… definitely never happened before." Glowing with the heat of reentry, a perfectly-cloven half of the Capsule Corp Megamoon fell from the sky, wearing one half of Bulma's smiling face in a truly apocalyptic image as it came bearing down on him.
OoOoOoO
"That pink son of a bitch!" Vegeta swore hotly as he shook his fist at the crystal ball he and Baba were watching. "He can't do that to my moon!"
OoOoOoO
"Hey!" Trunks exclaimed as the moon came hurtling out of the sky. "That jerk broke my mom's moon!" Which was only half true, actually. Gohan had been the one to kick Majin Boo through the Megamoon, after all. Speaking of whom, Gohan threw out his fist in a punch toward the Megamoon, a kiai racing up his arm and rippling off his fist to blast the moon into thousands of chunks that shot across the sky… and then promptly came crashing down, scattering all across the hemisphere.
"Whoops," Gohan muttered with a wince. Before he could focus too much on that, however, he looked up and saw the other half of the moon coming hurtling down toward him. Not wanting to take any chances this time, Gohan generated a small ki ball and hurled it at the moon half, blasting it into ash in a blinding flash of light. Majin Boo came hurtling out of that flash, however, bellowing with rage and drawing back a fist. He swung his fist to strike and Gohan blocked it with a forearm before smashing the point of his other elbow down onto Majin Boo's head which sent him down hard into Gohan's upraised knee and crumpled his head. Gohan didn't waste any time, though, and pressed the attack, flying forward and driving Majin Boo back with a relentless barrage of impossibly-fast punches that made Majin Boo's torso ripple and distend from the shockwave of each impact as he constantly gave ground.
"Boo–" Majin Boo started to say before Gohan hit him with a left hook. "Boo make–" he started to say again before he was hit with a right hook as well that twisted his head all the way around. "Boo make you–" This time he was shut up with a somersault kick that drove Gohan's heel into the top of his head and his head down into his torso.
"Oh, I'm sorry," Gohan taunted as he dropped out of his guard. "What were you gonna say?" Majin Boo's head burst up out of his torso and his eyes were practically popping out of his rage.
"BOO'S GONNA MAKE YOU DEAD!" Boo screamed in rage as he towered over Gohan. So, when he was angry, he got stupid again. The half-saiyan just wiped the spittle off his face and beckoned for the attack.
"Alright then," he taunted, "Give it your best–" But he was cut off as, in a burst of speed, Majin Boo wound his body up tightly into a cannonball and drove himself into Gohan's chest, knocking the wind out of him. He launched Gohan rocketing up into the sky and started pummeling him from all sides before he uncurled from his ball form, hovering above Gohan and forming a giant ki ball in his hand. Before he could throw the ball, however, his attention was caught by a whistle. He looked down at the ground far below and saw… Gohan? When Majin Boo looked back at the Gohan he'd been pummeling, it faded away from sight. Had he been attacking an afterimage this entire time?! "What happened?" Gohan shouted up as he cupped his hands around his mouth. "I thought you said you were gonna make me dead!"
An angry vein pulsed in Majin Boo's temple as he made the ki ball he was holding aloft even larger. "What Boo say, Boo do!" he howled furiously before hurling the ball down at Gohan. Shockingly, he didn't move to dodge the blast, deflect it, or even block it. He just held out his hands as the enormous pink ball came down towards him… and caught it. Then, with ever-growing horror, Majin Boo watched Gohan compress the ki ball down in his hands until it was about the size of an orange.
"Hey," Gohan called up as he bounced the ki ball in his hand, "You want this back?" Then he reared back and, in a pitch Erasa would have been proud of, he threw the ki ball at Majin Boo with all his might. In the time it took Majin Boo to register that Gohan had even swung his arm, the entire upper half of his body exploded and was reduced to a handful of pink tendrils coming out of the waist of his pantaloons. Boo regenerated in a burst of rage and launched himself at Gohan like a rocket, throwing wild swings in an animalistic fury. But, no matter how hard Boo tried, he just couldn't hit him! Not to mention every attack that was dodged left him open to a debilitating counterattack. Gohan was faster, a better fighter, and as reluctant as he was to admit it, he was much, much stronger. It soon became obvious that even as hopelessly outmatched as he was, Gohan was still just… toying with him!
So, for the first time in an existence that stretched back nearly to infinity, Majin Boo decided to think. He had a plan.
After collecting himself back from the puddle that he'd been pummeled into, Boo glared down at the still-smirking Gohan. "You know you can't beat me," he told him confidently. "Plus, I've gotten all the pettiness out of my system," he added as the smirk vanished from his face. "I learned my lesson the last time this happened," he explained as he pivoted to one side and brought his hands down to his side. "So now I'm just gonna kill you."
OoOoOoO
"Yeah, Gohan!" Goku cheered enthusiastically as she and the shinjin watched on Pracya's crystal ball. "Finish that creep off!" She couldn't be more proud of how powerful Gohan had become. She'd always known he had this kind of power inside him! Plus, it was a relief to see that he'd smartened up in the last seven years. It wasn't like she could get herself blown up again!
OoOoOoO
"Kaaameee…" Gohan started to say, though he was kind of surprised that Majin Boo hadn't moved at all yet. Had he just given up and accepted defeat? His surprise gave way to confusion as Majin Boo, still standing stock-still, started to power up. His skin began to glow and light was pouring out of his holes instead of steam as Gohan looked at him quizzically. "What, are you gonna blow yourself up?" he asked. It was only a wild guess because why not have yet another thing to share with his last nemesis? "You know that won't kill me, not even from this close."
Majin Boo flashed Gohan a toothy grin as he cocked his head to one side at a most unpleasant angle and his body continued to pulse with light. "It might not," he admitted in a rasping voice, "But what about them?" He raised his arm and pointed to Goten, Piccolo, and Trunks. They were still watching the fight unfold and were only a few miles away. Gohan looked back at Majin Boo and time seemed to slow down as Boo continued to glow, brighter and brighter, until the moment before detonation. Moving as quickly as he could, Gohan used Instant Transmission to appear at Goten, Trunks, and Piccolo's side. He picked the kids up under one arm and, muttering an apology, threw Piccolo over his shoulder before flying up and away. It wasn't a moment too soon, either, as Majin Boo blew himself up right before Gohan took off and he flew as fast as he could, trying to outrace the edges of the towering pink inferno.
Once they were at a safe enough distance away, Gohan let the other three go and they all watched together as the explosion slowly died down and the light faded away. The desert that they'd all been standing on only moments before was now reduced to an enormous crater, dozens of miles wide and going so far down deep that none of them could even guess how far the bottom was.
"Honestly?" Trunks muttered after a moment. "Not that big a deal."
Piccolo gave Trunks an expression that was somewhere between amusement and irritation. "What," he asked, "Would you have preferred if Majin Boo had destroyed the entire planet?"
"No," Gohan said thoughtfully, "Trunks is right." That made Trunks puff out his chest a little as Gohan continued. "Think about it. When Cell tried to blow herself up, she said the explosion would have destroyed the entire planet. Majin Boo's way stronger than her." He rubbed his chin and furrowed his brow, trying to put the pieces together. "Majin Boo's not dead," he decided.
"Are you sure?" Goten asked her brother, looking at him curiously. "I can't sense his ki anywhere."
"That doesn't mean anything for certain. I taught you how to lower your ki," Gohan reminded her. "We have to keep our guard up. Still," he admitted, "I don't think Majin Boo has anything I can't handle. It's not like he can throw another moon at me," he pointed out with a chuckle. "Then we can wish everyone back after I've finished him off. Who's got the Dragon Radar?" he asked.
"I'm pretty sure I gave it to Piccolo," Trunks said and looked up at the Namekian. "You didn't lose it, did you?" Piccolo rolled his eyes and produced the Radar from the pocket of his pants, holding it up for Gohan to see.
"Though I don't know what it's good for," he told Gohan. "I can't sense Dende. He's likely as dead as everyone else meaning that the Balls are inert." Trunks snickered and Piccolo rolled his eyes before continuing. "If we're going to wish anyone back, we'll have to go to New Namek first. Which will be easier than I was worried it was going to be now that you're here but it's still going to be a bit of a process." When confronted with the news that Dende was dead, Gohan… chuckled. Piccolo raised a brow and looked at him in confusion. "I'm sorry," he asked, "But how is that funny?" He'd always thought Gohan and Dende were good friends. Was this part of whatever else had changed about Gohan recently?
"You'll see in a second," Gohan assured him as he held out a hand. "Everyone, grab on." Piccolo wasn't quite sure where this was going but he trusted Gohan and so he took his hand. Goten grabbed his other hand and Trunks reluctantly took Goten's hand.
OoOoOoO
"I don't understand," Xī muttered. "If they don't think Majin Boo is dead then why are they just leaving that area behind?"
"Probably because they can't find him," Pracya pointed out. "If they just waste time digging around looking for him then there's a chance that's exactly what Boo wants them to do and it would lead them into a trap."
"Is that monstrosity even capable of that kind of tactical thinking?" Kibito questioned.
"It sure seems like he's been getting smarter," Goku observed. "I'm with Pracya on this one. The smartest thing to do is wait for Majin Boo to come to them. Gohan's got all the advantage right now."
"That's Kaioushin to you!"
"Uh huh, sure."
OoOoOoO
"What in the hells have I missed?" Vegeta thought aloud. "First Trunks and Goten with that ridiculous dance and now Gohan's even more powerful than he was against Cell!" How much could possibly happen in one day?!
OoOoOoO
Dende drank ice water from a paper cup as he watched Hercule and Bee stuff their faces with food from a Pilaf's in West City. It had been sitting abandoned at tables, presumably belonging to patrons who'd been sitting there when Majin Boo had killed everyone. He watched them with a bizarre mixture of fascination and perturbation. He hadn't had many chances to watch people eating food and the process was still strange to him.
Then in a moment that rather abruptly interrupted Dende's thoughts, Gohan appeared in the restaurant with Goten, Trunks, and Piccolo. Hercule, Dende, and Bee were are startled out of their seats by the new arrivals and looked up at the other four in shock.
"Hey, Dende!" Gohan greeted casually with a wave. Dende leaped up from the floor and hugged Gohan tightly with an enormous grin on his face.
"Gohan!" he exclaimed before turning his attention to Piccolo. Relief flooded him as he finally knew for sure that the other knew he was alive and he hugged Piccolo as well while Goten and Trunks helped Hercule to his feet. Hercule gave Gohan an appraising look before he smiled and held out his hand for him to shake which Gohan did gladly.
"Like the new duds, kid," he told him approvingly. "But, uh… what the hell's goin' on?"
"I literally never thought I'd say this but I agree with Hercule," Piccolo said. "What happened to you, Gohan? We all thought you died fighting Majin Boo the first time." Gohan smiled as he sat down on the edge of one of the tables, picking up a curly fry and eating it.
"Well," he began, "It started with Xī taking me to the Sacred World of the Kaioushin."
"Aaaaand I'm already lost," Hercule muttered.
OoOoOoO
"So this Pracya basically did the same thing as Elder Guru," Dende said nearly an hour later after Gohan had finished catching them up on what he'd been doing for the last day. "But… more?"
"Yeah, pretty much," Gohan agreed with a shrug. Goten and Trunks were only half-paying attention at this point as they'd long been distracted by the puppy.
"I just wanna know about this whole Dragon Ball thing," Hercule interrupted. "You're sure you'll be able to bring everyone back?" Mostly he meant Videl and Miguel but he knew that'd sound pretty bad.
"How do you think we brought everyone back after we beat Cell?" Gohan asked. "Including you?"
"Oh, yeah," Hercule muttered, "I died." He tried not to think about that too often because it really messed with his head.
"So what do we do now?" Dende asked. "What's your plan?"
"I guess I'm just waiting for Majin Boo to come out and make whatever his move's gonna be," Gohan replied with a shrug.
Trunks actually looked away from playing with Bee to offer his two cents. "Hey, I've got an idea," he offered. "Why not just take everyone to that magic Kai planet and then come back and blow Earth up? That'd make sure Majin Boo was dead."
"What?!" Gohan balked. "Trunks, I'm not gonna blow up the Earth!" Who did he look like, Vegeta?
OoOoOoO
"Just blow it up!" Vegeta screamed at the crystal ball, somewhere between anger and pride. "Just listen to my son, your prince, and blow the stupid planet up!"
OoOoOoo
"It's not like there's anyone left to get hurt but Majin Boo!" Trunks pointed out.
"You can't just blow a planet up!" Goten protested. "That's what a bad guy would do!"
"Besides," Piccolo pointed out, "That would destroy the Dragon Balls as well, meaning we can't wish anyone back!"
"Actually," Dende put in, "I'm with Trunks here." Gohan and Piccolo stared at Dende in shock.
"You're Guardian of the Earth!" They exclaimed in unison.
"Yeah, I'm well aware," Dende told them dryly. "Besides, even if the Dragon Balls are destroyed, it would take me less time to make a new Dragon than the four months it would take to wait for the Balls to reactivate." Laid out like that, Gohan hated to admit that it did make sense.
Hercule was now hopelessly lost. He started to say something when Gohan, Dende, Piccolo, Goten, and Trunks all stood up and snapped to attention, all of them looking off in the same direction. He guessed it must have something to do with that "ki" stuff.
"It's Boo," Dende muttered in a haunted tone. What else could have that kind of terrifying power? Gohan nodded and started making his way for the door.
"Everyone else stay inside," Gohan told them as he looked back over his shoulder. "I'm going to finish this." Now that Boo had decided to come out of hiding, he could end him once and for all.
"We're coming, too!" Goten insisted as she grabbed his hand. "We've been fighting Majin Boo, too, big bro!" Gohan started to say something before he was interrupted.
"Yeah," Trunks added, "I'm the Prince of All Saiyans! I'm not gonna hide!" Gohan looked to Piccolo for support but he simply held up his hands in defeat.
"You think I have any control over these two?" he asked. Gohan gave another little shrug with a smile still on his lips. It wasn't like anything could happen to them when he was around, after all.
"Alright," he decided before turning back to the door, "Let's go!" Then the four of them flew out the door and up into the sky, forming a ring with their backs to one another, each one looking to try and see where Majin Boo might be attacking from.
"Goten, Trunks!" they heard Piccolo shout. "You should fuse into Gotenks and help Gohan destroy Majin Boo! We can't leave anything to chance!" Goten turned to Trunks and the pair gave each other an emphatic nod.
"Wait," Gohan said as he turned to look at them, "I'm confused. What's fusion and what's a Gotenks?" Then he watched Trunks and Goten get into the starting positions for the Fusion Dance. "...I'm still confused. What are you doing?"
"Fuuu… sion!"
"Wait," Piccolo tried to interrupt, "I didn't say anything! It's a tra–"
"Ha!" There was a flash of light and Gotenks was standing between Piccolo and Gohan before they powered up straight to Super Saiyan Three. "Awww, yeah, baby! Hero of Justice time!"
"...I'm not any less confused," Gohan stated simply.
But there was no time to address Gohan's confusion because only a few seconds after Gotenks had formed, the air grew thick with pink dust that coalesced and wrapped around their body and Piccolo's. They flailed and fought frantically and tried to pull the pink goop off of them but that only made it stick to them even more until they were completely encased in pink goop.
"Hold on, I've got you!" Gohan assured them and he reached out his hands to grab them before the two mummified figures rocketed away and were pulled into another coalescing pink cloud. Majin Boo had, as Gohan soon deduced, regenerated in subatomic particles and had been able to keep his consciousness spread among them. Not only that but he'd been able to project his voice in a startlingly accurate imitation of Piccolo. The bigger question was, of course, why he'd done all of this.
With a burst of laughter, Majin Boo reformed with yet another new look. His antenna had thickened out substantially and grown much longer, reaching the back of his knees like the hair of a Super Saiyan Three. He had more noticeable facial features now, including a nose, and a generally more intelligent look about him. He was also wearing Gotenks' vest. His ki had also exploded in power from where it had been before to an almost terrifying degree. "I think I can confidently say," Boo drawled out in a less savage and more composed voice as he examined himself, "That this is the birth of the most powerful being in the universe! I'm more than Majin Boo. From now on, you can call me Super Boo!"
Confusion and shock gave way to anger as Gohan balled up his fists and clenched his teeth. "What did you do?" he demanded with a snarl.
"I made them a part of me," Super Boo explained as he ran a hand over his long antenna, "Even more than all the others I've consumed. Gotenks' power and Piccolo's intellect combined have made me invincible!"
OoOoOoO
"Trunks!" Vegeta cried in shock. He'd just watched his son die again, consumed by this abomination… despair gave way instantly to rage and he transformed instantly to Super Saiyan 2. "I need to go to Earth, now!"
"Oh, no you don't!" Baba told him firmly as she hung onto his hair for dear life. "All you'll do is die again, this time permanently! I know you're upset but you've just got to wait!" Vegeta snarled again and, reluctantly, powered back down.
'You'd better kill this monster, Gohan,' he thought darkly. 'Or when you die, you'll have to answer to me.'
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While Xī, Kibito, and even Pracya were panicking, Goku watched the crystal ball with calm determination. She believed in Gohan. She knew he could do this. He'd be able to defeat Super Boo.
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"We'll see how invincible you are!" Gohan snapped as he flew toward Super Boo, rearing back to kick his head off. To his shock, Super Boo actually blocked the kick with a forearm, both showing that he was fast enough to actually see Gohan's attacks coming and actually had some amount of skill now. Then he retaliated with a headbutt that sent Gohan hurtling down through several buildings before he smashed into the pavement and the last of those buildings collapsed down on top of him.
Super Boo laughed as he descended down toward the rubble with his arms crossed over his chest. "I don't know," he said smugly, "I feel pretty invinci–" Gohan exploded out of the rubble with an uppercut that nearly took his head off and kicked him hard in the stomach, so hard that his body warped around Gohan's leg before he rocketed away, hurtling through a few buildings of his own before he managed to stop himself.
"What," Gohan snarled with hatred in his eyes. "Did you think we were done?!" His blindingly white aura exploded around him as he let out his full power, which actually made Super Boo hover back slightly. "Now I'm through playing around! You'll die for this!"