He actually... felt afraid of the look in a Low-Class Warrior's eyes?!
What a joke!!!
"Kakarot!!!"
Vegeta let out an angry shout, trying to drive the doubt from his heart.
"So what if you've become a Super Saiyan too?! I'm the strongest Super Saiyan! I am Super Vegeta!!!"
"Haaa!!!"
Vegeta pushed the energy within him to its limits, and his golden aura flared even brighter!
He flashed forward, appearing before Goku in an instant like a golden meteor. His fist, packed with terrifying force, tore through the air and slammed toward Goku!
Yet faced with this lightning-fast attack, Goku merely shifted slightly to the side.
His arm rose as if he'd known what was coming, perfectly blocking the path of Vegeta's fist!
Smack!
A crisp sound rang out as he blocked the blow.
And that wasn't all. The instant he blocked it, Goku had already adjusted his body into the perfect position to strike. Using the momentum of Vegeta's charge, he drove the elbow of his other arm hard into Vegeta's chest!
"Urgh!"
Vegeta felt a tremendous force slam into him. His chest roiled, and his body flew backward beyond his control.
Vitelli, watching from the sidelines, immediately brightened at the sight.
He couldn't help murmuring to himself:
"Oh? That was pretty good. Moving with his instincts, striking after the other guy but getting there first... Looks like Goku went to the Lookout and got some pointers from Mr. Popo, huh?"
On Earth, apart from the mysterious Mr. Popo, Vitelli couldn't think of anyone who could have honed Goku's reflexes and battle instincts to this level.
"Vegeta!"
Goku shouted and instantly caught up with Vegeta in midair.
He drove a sharp side kick into Vegeta's abdomen, sending him rocketing even higher into the sky like a ball!
Vegeta tumbled through the air several times before barely managing to steady himself. His insides were still churning.
But before he could catch his breath, the sharp whistle of something rushing toward him from behind made his expression change!
"Damn it!!!"
Goku had appeared above and behind him without him noticing. He interlocked his fingers, raised his hands high over his head like a hammer, then brought them crashing down like a giant axe, powered by the force of his descent!
Boom!!!
"Waaah!"
Vegeta had no time to dodge. The heavy blow landed squarely on his back, and a burst of pain instantly shot through his entire body!
Crash—!!!
A deafening impact sent dust billowing into the sky!
Vegeta slammed into the ground, smashing a huge crater into it.
Goku slowly descended and hovered above the crater. His golden aura burned steadily as his emerald eyes stared coldly down at the bottom.
He spoke in a calm voice that carried tremendous pressure:
"Weren't you calling yourself Super Vegeta? Is that really all you've got?"
At the bottom of the crater, Vegeta struggled to get back up. When he heard Goku's words, he began trembling with rage.
His clenched teeth were nearly drawing blood.
Humiliation, fury, resentment... all kinds of emotions surged wildly through his heart.
"If that's really all you've got..."
Goku's voice suddenly grew stronger.
"Then you're going to lose here today!"
"Haaaa—!!!"
Goku suddenly powered up again! His golden aura blazed even brighter!
He became a bolt of golden lightning, trailing a long tail of flame as he swooped fiercely toward Vegeta at the bottom of the crater!
Vegeta's pupils shrank as he felt the threat rushing toward him!
He clenched both fists, forcing himself to calm down.
"Kakarot!!! You're still a long way from beating me, Vegeta!!!"
Vegeta roared in defiance and rapidly swung his hands, firing dozens of energy blasts at the diving Goku in an attempt to disrupt his attack!
At the same time, Vegeta shot backward to the side at high speed, continuing to climb higher into the sky!
He quickly drew his hands to his waist and curled his body inward. The energy within him began rushing toward his palms at an unprecedented speed!
A terrifying wave of energy that made the heart tremble spread through the air!
"This will be the final attack, Kakarot!!!"
Vegeta's voice sounded distorted as he concentrated his energy to the limit. Between his hands, a gigantic purple sphere radiating an aura of destruction rapidly took shape!
Seeing this, Goku immediately stopped his pursuit and landed on a towering mountain peak.
His expression was grave. He planted his feet in a fighting stance and quickly drew his hands to his waist as a blue light began gathering between his palms!
"Here it comes, here it comes! The classic scene!"
Vitelli rested one hand on Raditz's shoulder. Raditz was so tense that his whole body had gone stiff. With his other hand, Vitelli seemed to be reaching for something as he excitedly muttered:
"They're doing a beam struggle! They're doing a beam struggle! Why is that idiot Vegeta on the left... Tsk, I really should've brought some sunflower seeds!"
Between Goku's hands, the blue energy of the Kamehameha gathered densely, radiating a light as brilliant as the sun.
High above, Vegeta poured every last bit of his strength into the gigantic purple energy sphere. The size and power of the Galick Gun continued to increase!
Both sides were making their final preparations. The battlefield fell into the stillness before a storm, broken only by the humming of the gathering energy, a sound that chilled everyone to the bone.
Nappa lay on the ground, while Raditz stood beside Vitelli. Both of them held their breath in suspense, eyes fixed on the two destructive energies about to collide in the sky.
In their hearts, they prayed desperately for Vegeta.
But... as they watched Goku below, steady as a mountain and radiating energy no weaker than Vegeta's, a trace of unease quietly crept into their hearts.
At last, both sides reached the peak of their power!
"Kamehameha!!!"
"Galick Gun—Fire!!!"
A gigantic blue beam and a gigantic purple beam, each containing all the power of its wielder, roared like two rampaging dragons as they crashed into each other!!!
Rumble—!!!
A deafening roar erupted in an instant!
A terrifying shockwave spread wildly in every direction, lifting layer after layer of earth. Countless enormous rocks were torn apart and blown away as easily as scraps of paper!
Dust and shattered rocks filled the sky, pelting Vitelli and the others as they watched from a distance.
But none of them had time to care. Their eyes remained fixed on the heart of the energy clash!
After the two forces struggled against each other for a moment, the tide began to turn!
Goku's Kamehameha slowly but surely pushed Vegeta's Galick Gun backward, inch by inch!!!
"W-what?!"
Vegeta's confidence froze in an instant, turning into utter shock and disbelief!
"How is this possible?! How could your power... be greater than mine?! I've already become a Super Saiyan! How could I lose?! I refuse to accept this!!!!! Aaaaaah—!!!"
No matter how Vegeta roared or desperately wrung out the last of his energy, he couldn't stop the Kamehameha from steadily overpowering him!
Amid a world-shaking roar and Vegeta's anguished cry of defiance, the blue Kamehameha completely swallowed the purple Galick Gun, then continued onward and slammed into Vegeta!
"Waaaah—!!!"
Vegeta's body was instantly swallowed by the vast torrent of blue energy. He screamed as he shot toward the distant sky, eventually disappearing over the horizon like a blue star.
Rumble...
The aftershocks of the energy collision gradually faded, leaving behind nothing but destruction and the howling wind.
"Hah! Hah! Hah!"
Goku panted heavily, his arms hanging limp at his sides.
The golden aura around him quickly faded, and his hair and eyes returned to their normal black.
He looked in the direction where Vegeta had disappeared. Though exhausted, he still smiled happily.
"I... won!"
Whoosh!
Vitelli appeared beside Goku in an instant, laughing as he slapped Goku on the shoulder.
"Nice work, kid! That's my Goku!"
Goku had started to smile back when he saw Vitelli, but then he suddenly seemed to remember something, and the smile vanished from his face.
In its place was a look of sadness and dejection.
He looked up at Vitelli and asked in a subdued voice:
"Vitelli, Master Roshi... Krillin... and Launch... Did Vegeta really send people to... kill them all?"
His eyes held one last faint hope as he stared at Vitelli, as if wishing to hear him say it wasn't true.
Though Goku knew they could be brought back with the Dragon Balls, the thought of his friends having suffered the pain of dying still filled him with sorrow.
Seeing Goku like this, Vitelli's smile faded too.
He sighed, put on a grave and serious expression, patted Goku firmly on the shoulder, and said in an extremely sorrowful tone:
"I was lying to you."
Goku nodded reflexively, still wearing that sad expression.
"I'm okay. We still have the Dra... Hmm?"
The next second, his whole body stiffened!
His brain seemed to shut down. It took him a while to slowly turn and stare blankly at Vitelli.
After a long moment, a dry syllable finally escaped his throat:
"Huh...?"
Seeing Goku's utterly foolish expression, Vitelli finally couldn't hold back a snort of laughter. He quickly tried to suppress his amusement as he said:
"I was lying just now! Don't thank me too much. You couldn't transform, so I gave you a little push~ No need to get all worked up. Just treat me to a few good meals later!"
Goku blinked blankly, as if he were still trying to process this huge revelation.
He still couldn't quite believe it, so he carefully asked again:
"Th-then that means... Krillin and the others... they're all okay? Everyone's fine now?"
Vitelli didn't answer. He just turned around, his shoulders shaking as he clearly tried to hold back his laughter, then started walking away.
Goku's adorable blank expression gradually changed.
His eyes slowly widened, and his eyebrows slowly rose. A rush of anger at being tricked surged through him!
"Vi—tel—li!!!"
Goku shouted angrily and rushed forward, reaching for Vitelli's clothes.
"I trusted you the whole time! And you still lied to me! You even used everyone's safety to trick me!!!"
"Hahahaha! Sorry, Goku! It was just a little joke~"
Vitelli laughed as he dodged Goku's grasp. After a few quick flashes, he was already far away.