Further Transformation?

"You make a good point, but the 'hair' I'm talking about isn't that kind of 'hair.'"

"Then what kind of 'hair' are you talking about?"

"Shut up!"

Thump! Son Gohan rapped Trunks on the head.

The two differently colored Great Apes instantly took off, leaving Supreme Kai and Kibito standing there in stunned silence.

Watching the direction the Great Apes had gone, Kibito asked, "Supreme Kai, what do we do now?"

Supreme Kai Shin said, "I've heard that Saiyans lose their reason when they transform into Great Apes, but those two were able to talk to each other. That means they're no ordinary Saiyans."

"If they're not ordinary Saiyans, what are they?" Kibito asked.

"They may be Saiyans with royal blood."

"As far as I know, Planet Vegeta, where the Saiyans lived, was destroyed by Frieza decades ago."

"Only a handful of Saiyans escaped that fate because they were away on missions. That included Saiyan Prince Vegeta. These two Saiyans are very likely Prince Vegeta's descendants."

Kibito continued, "But why are Saiyans so terrifyingly powerful? The golden ape's energy was frightening. I feel like he could crush me with a single finger."

" Saiyans are a rare warrior race in the universe. I've heard they can transform into the legendary warriors known as Super Saiyans. Frieza destroyed Planet Vegeta because he feared the emergence of a Super Saiyan."

"But later—about fifteen years ago, I think—Frieza was killed by a Saiyan named Son Goku. Son Goku was a gifted warrior who could transform into the legendary Super Saiyan."

"And Son Goku was the Saiyan who was exiled to Earth as a child."

"This planet is Earth. So even if those two giant apes weren't Son Goku and Vegeta, they must be closely connected to them."

"I never imagined that Saiyans had become this powerful. I really am a frog in a well."

After saying all that, Supreme Kai sighed and lowered his head.

Kibito hurried to say, "Please don't say that, Supreme Kai. No matter how powerful the Saiyans are, they're still mortals. You, Supreme Kai, are the greatest god in this universe."

"That may be true, but I'm a pretty useless god," Supreme Kai continued.

Kibito simply changed the subject. "Supreme Kai, what should we do now? Should we keep following them?"

Supreme Kai thought it over, then shook his head. "No. They clearly left because they didn't want us watching them. If we follow, we'll only make them dislike us."

"I can tell they mean us no harm. They're friends, not foes, so we should avoid provoking them."

"Kibito, let's go check on Majin Buu's sealed egg. It's been tens of thousands of years since we last saw it."

"Yes, Supreme Kai." Kibito nodded, then placed his hand on Supreme Kai's shoulder again. The two vanished in an instant.

In a secluded mountain valley.

Son Gohan and Trunks, having returned to human form, swam in the river, splashing water everywhere.

After their swim, they climbed ashore and put on their stretchy Battle Suits. Then each of them caught a huge crocodile, gutted it, and set it over a campfire to roast.

After transforming into Great Apes, they needed to replenish their energy.

In less than half an hour, the fragrant crocodile meat had attracted a crowd of adorable little animals.

The brothers tore off a few pieces of meat and tossed them to the animals.

They ate all the rest themselves.

Patting their full stomachs, they sat on a large rock.

Trunks rubbed his belly and sighed. "Whew, it feels so good to be full. I don't think anything makes you happier than eating."

Son Gohan clapped his hands and stood up. "Now that we've eaten, let's continue the experiment."

"Okay," Trunks replied.

The two of them flew out of the valley and headed to a wide-open grassland.

First, with a Boom!, they transformed into Super Saiyans. Then they looked up at the moon.

"Thump! Thump!"

"Thump! Thump!"

Their heartbeats rang out like war drums, and the brothers transformed into Golden Great Apes once more.

But unlike last time, they didn't have to worry about their clothes falling off.

Bulma's Battle Suits—worth every penny.

Their incredible stretchiness was simply unbeatable.

Even as twenty-five-meter-tall Great Apes, the suits fit comfortably and allowed them to move freely, without the slightest hindrance. The quality was unbelievable.

"Heh heh!"

Son Gohan and Trunks exchanged a look, then crashed into each other, kicking up dust and sending fierce winds howling.

After fighting for a while, they stopped.

"Just as I thought," Son Gohan said. "It doesn't matter whether we transform into Super Saiyans first or Great Apes first. Our final battle power is the same: a five-hundredfold increase."

"And our speed isn't affected by the transformation at all. We're much faster than I am as a Super Saiyan 2."

At the same time, Son Gohan made a more detailed comparison between this form and Super Saiyan 3.

Super Saiyan 3 increased battle power four hundredfold.

Ape-Form Super Saiyan increased it five hundredfold.

In that regard, Ape-Form Super Saiyan was clearly superior.

As for speed, Ape-Form Super Saiyan was considerably faster than Super Saiyan 2, but it probably still couldn't match Super Saiyan 3.

So Super Saiyan 3 was faster.

As for stamina, Ape-Form Super Saiyan didn't use much energy. Its drain was about the same as Super Saiyan 2, making it very efficient.

Thinking of Son Goku's astonishingly leaky Super Saiyan 3, Son Gohan had reason to believe that Ape-Form Super Saiyan could crush it in that regard.

Of course, it was possible that Son Goku's Super Saiyan 3 was still an unrefined form, which was why it consumed so much stamina and ki.

Son Gohan decided to keep an open mind about that for now.

As for defense, there was no contest.

Ape-Form Super Saiyan had thick skin and tough hide, giving it a ridiculously high level of defense.

The small frame of Super Saiyan 3 couldn't begin to compare.

However, Ape-Form Super Saiyan had some obvious weaknesses.

Its speed and ugly appearance were two of them.

The main problem was that it needed the Blutz Wave light produced by a full moon to transform.

Although Bulma could already build a device in the GT saga that produced more than 17 million units of Blutz Waves, they clearly weren't in a position to make one yet.

Still, he could tell Bulma about the idea now and have her build one in advance.

There was another way to solve the problem, too: the Saiyan secret technique, Artificial Moon!

Vegeta could use his own energy and oxygen to create an Artificial Moon.

Although the technique drained some of the user's energy, its effects were no different from those of a natural full moon.

But Son Gohan and Trunks didn't know how to use it.

So that was another weakness.

Trunks asked, "Gohan, can you transform into Super Saiyan 2 on top of the Great Ape form?"

Son Gohan replied helplessly, "I've already tried. I can't. At least, I can't become a Super Saiyan 2 right now. Maybe my foundation isn't solid enough yet."

"Then why not become a Super Saiyan 2 first and transform into an ape afterward?" Trunks asked.

"We can try, but I already have a feeling it won't work," Son Gohan said. "Most likely, the result will be the same."

Sure enough, after undoing the Great Ape transformation, Son Gohan first transformed into a Super Saiyan 2. Then he looked up at the full moon and tried to transform.

But that familiar sensation returned.

After his eyes absorbed the Blutz Waves, his tail twitched as if he'd been shocked.

A moment later, his whole body went numb.

His heart beat faster and his blood boiled, but he still failed to transform into a Golden Great Ape, and his battle power didn't increase noticeably.

The transformation had failed!