Time was merciless, always slipping away unnoticed.
In the blink of an eye, six months had passed.
Inside the Hyperbolic Time Chamber.
Son Gohan and Trunks clashed in a flurry of blows.
Compared with six months ago, both of their hair had grown considerably longer.
Trunks had also grown broader and a little taller.
They were both fighting in their base forms.
Yet the thunderous impacts never stopped, each one like a bolt from a clear sky.
Their strength was almost beyond belief.
After six months, both their power levels had soared. Neither was the fighter he had once been.
But a closer look revealed the difference.
Trunks was panting, while Son Gohan remained calm and handled every attack with ease.
Though he had only one arm now, he still gave off an overwhelming sense of power, as if he were invincible.
Boom!
Their fists collided, and a tremendous burst of force exploded outward.
They sprang apart at once and stopped a few meters from each other.
Trunks panted. "Gohan, you're too strong. I'm no match for you."
Son Gohan looked at him and smiled. "Heh, you've improved a lot too. Besides, I'm your teacher. I ought to be a little stronger than you."
"But you'll surpass me sooner or later," Son Gohan added, giving him something to aim for.
"Come on, Gohan, don't joke about that!" Trunks laughed.
"All right, that's enough training for today. Get a good day's rest. Tomorrow we start the next stage," Son Gohan said with a smile.
"Yes!"
"No 'yes!'"
Son Gohan ruffled Trunks's hair, and the two returned to the rest area, laughing.
They stripped off their sweat-soaked clothes, enjoyed a hot bath, then made rice balls and flatbreads for dinner before falling fast asleep.
The next day.
The two began training to break past the limits of Super Saiyan.
Trunks had already transformed into a golden-haired, green-eyed Super Saiyan, golden flames blazing around his body.
He threw lightning-fast punches and kicks, his cries of "Ha! Ha! Ha!" echoing across the Hyperbolic Time Chamber's plaza.
Son Gohan sat cross-legged on the ground with his eyes closed, working through possibilities and piecing together new ideas in his mind.
He had lived two lives. With the memories of his previous life and this one, along with the powerful soul and keen insight born from their fusion, he had plenty to draw on.
The current Son Gohan's capacity for growth and understanding was not to be underestimated.
He remained seated for an entire week.
A week later.
To Trunks's astonishment, Son Gohan stood up.
His brows drew together, and he gritted his teeth.
He clenched his right fist, and a long "Haaa!" roared from his mouth.
A whirlwind sprang up around Son Gohan, spiraling skyward and spreading in every direction.
Boom!
A muffled clap of thunder sounded high in the empty air, and a bolt of lightning struck down.
"Aaaah!"
Son Gohan's long hair stood on end. Golden hair, green eyes, and surging golden flames—he had transformed into a Super Saiyan in an instant.
But his base power was considerably higher than Trunks's, so the gap between them grew even wider after the transformation.
After all, an ordinary Super Saiyan's power surged to fifty times its base level.
Wind battered Trunks's face. He stared wide-eyed, marveling at the sheer power of Gohan's aura.
I'm so jealous. When will I be that strong?
But Son Gohan's transformation was far from over.
His aura was still growing.
Two seconds later.
Son Gohan's muscles swelled abruptly, and he shot up twenty centimeters.
From 176 centimeters, he grew to nearly two meters tall.
A flash of gold swept over him, and his bulging muscles gleamed with dazzling light.
A vast wave of energy bore down on Trunks, forcing him to shut his eyes.
"Whoa, this—"
"Gohan broke through the Super Saiyan limit and reached a new level!"
Trunks was stunned, but he was thrilled for Son Gohan too.
I need to work harder. Gohan's getting farther and farther ahead.
That was what Trunks told himself.
Judging by the aura Gohan was giving off, the Androids were no longer a threat.
In this form, he could crush them.
It's hard to believe. The Androids beat us down for twelve whole years. Then I buried Gohan once, and suddenly everything clicked for him.
His power has skyrocketed in such a short time.
It's incredible.
Maybe I should get Gohan to bury me once too?
While Trunks's thoughts ran wild.
Son Gohan was carefully feeling out the changes in his body.
His "limbs" felt immensely strong, waves of power coursing through him.
Son Gohan felt every pore in his body open. It was as though molten lava, not blood, flowed through his veins.
His muscles bulged, and he seemed to possess boundless strength.
But it did not take long for Son Gohan to notice a serious problem.
He had expected it, though.
"This form leaks energy," Son Gohan said helplessly.
Sure enough, his open pores were not only greedily drawing in air but also releasing his energy.
The power was immense, but so was the drain.
By Son Gohan's estimate.
His power in this form was at least seventy times his base level.
That made it considerably stronger than an ordinary Super Saiyan.
But the energy cost was staggering.
He could not sustain it. It was wholly unsuited to a prolonged fight.
In other words, this transformation was probably a failure.
Even so, this form was more than enough to deal with Android 17 and Android 18. Killing them would be effortless.
In that case...
Before he had drained too much energy, Son Gohan decided to push ahead and try another form.
"Aaaaaah!"
His already formidable aura surged again.
And it kept climbing.
Trunks was dumbstruck. He dropped to the ground, too stunned to care whether the fall hurt.
Before his horrified eyes, Son Gohan's body grew taller and larger once more.
Terrifying power swept through the chamber.
Trunks knew it was Gohan, yet he could not help feeling afraid.
He was a huge wall of muscle before. Now he's practically a monster.
Trunks swallowed and shifted back a little.
Gohan looked frightening now.
His muscles had swollen like granite, and golden flames crackled across his body.
At least Son Gohan's face looked suitably rugged, with that scar over his eye.
If Trunks's face were on that body, the sight would be too much.
He could hardly imagine it.
Son Gohan exhaled and began to move.
He tested his punches, kicks, and speed, then shook his head and reverted to his base form.
When Son Gohan's overwhelming aura faded, Trunks let out a breath of relief.
That form had been another failed transformation.
His power had indeed risen to ninety times his base level.
But it came with major flaws.
In raw strength alone, this form could rival Super Saiyan 2. It was incredibly powerful.
Yet it not only consumed energy at an alarming rate—his speed had also dropped by half. The drawbacks were severe.
What good was all that strength if he could not hit his opponent?
Once his energy ran out, he would be helpless.
This form sacrificed speed for strength, leaving the two badly out of balance.
Trunks came over, envy plain on his face. "Gohan, that was incredible! You even scared me. You looked unbeatable. If I were an Android and saw you, I'd turn and run."
Son Gohan flexed his fist and looked at him seriously. "Trunks, both of those transformations were wrong. They greatly increased my power, but their flaws were too obvious."
Son Gohan then carefully explained the strengths and weaknesses of both forms to Trunks.
"I have a better idea now, though," he continued. "I think another six months should be about right."
"If that still isn't enough, we can spend another year working on it. We still have time."
"Ah. Right."
Trunks marveled at him.
Gohan's remarkable. His mind works so fast.
He just failed at a transformation, and he's already come up with a new idea.
I haven't thought of a thing yet.
I'm his student. I want to learn how he does it.
So jealous.
Son Gohan gave a crooked grin.
This must be what it means to stand on the shoulders of giants.
Though Son Gohan's insight was sharp now, he had not come up with these transformations himself.
They had been mentioned in the "original story."
But knowing something in your head and being able to do it with your body were two different things.
Son Gohan had spent plenty of time turning that knowledge into something his body could actually perform.
With less insight, he might have needed much longer.
After all, he had no one to guide or teach him now.
Putting a hazy idea from memory into practice was no easy task.
As for why he had tried those two failed transformations instead of skipping straight to Super Saiyan 1's Full Power Form.
Son Gohan had his own reasons.
It came down to the same principle: the firmer the foundation, the higher and steadier the building.
Only by walking a path himself could he find its traps and avoid or fill them next time.
No step in life was wasted. Every step counted.
Before you continue