"This guy's a lot stronger than I expected," Son Goku commented as he watched Dabura.
Vegeta's face darkened with anger. "But he's still not strong enough to be unbeatable. You've gotten more and more useless as you've grown up. You weren't even this weak when you were a kid."
Dabura seemed to notice Vegeta and glanced at him. Son Goten noticed too, but he had no intention of intervening. At least this way, the story he knew wouldn't stray too far off course. Still, he had a bad feeling.
"Haah—"
Taking advantage of Dabura's momentary distraction, Son Gohan let out a roar and charged at him.
"Ptooey."
Dabura spat at Son Gohan. (Good grief, someone call the neighborhood committee aunties! There's a man spitting on the ground here.) The spit shot toward Son Gohan like a bullet. Knowing how dangerous Dabura's saliva was, Son Gohan hurriedly raised his hand to block it, then quickly flung off the glove he was wearing.
"Crack." The petrified glove hit the ground and shattered into several pieces of stone.
While Son Gohan was distracted by the petrified glove, Dabura leaped at him. He held out his right hand, and a greatsword appeared as if by magic. He brought it down hard on Son Gohan, who clasped his hands together and caught the blade at the very last moment.
Super-speed self-taught sword-catching with bare hands. That was right: Son Gohan had used the long-lost technique of super-speed self-taught sword-catching with bare hands. It let anyone instantly master the skill of catching a blade barehanded. This technique was... Sorry, I can't keep making this up.
"Crack."
Son Gohan snapped the greatsword with a forceful twist. Dabura smiled faintly and tossed away the broken sword, while Son Gohan panted and dropped the blade.
In the control room, Babidi stared at the energy level, which had barely increased, his face dark with frustration. "Damn it, Dabura, what are you doing? You need to badly injure that boy quickly. That'll wake Majin Buu."
Son Gohan's aura flared as he prepared to fight Dabura for another three hundred rounds.
"Fuck, I'm done waiting!" Vegeta stepped forward angrily. "Let me just wipe him out already."
"There's no need, Vegeta. Gohan hasn't lost yet," Son Goku urged.
"This fight is as boring as playing a game!" Vegeta snapped. The two men, who had been about to resume fighting, stopped.
Vegeta pointed angrily at Son Goku. "I want to end this stupid game as soon as possible and settle things with you. That's why I entered that tournament."
Dabura's sharp eyes fixed on Vegeta, a sly grin creeping across his face. Son Gohan watched him warily, looking puzzled.
"Lord Babidi, transport us back to the spaceship," Dabura said to Babidi telepathically. "I've found something very interesting here."
Babidi looked confused, but trusted his subordinate and used magic to transport Dabura, Son Gohan, and the others back.
A triumphant smile flickered across Vegeta's lips, subtle enough to go unnoticed, then quickly disappeared.
Dabura dropped out of thin air and hurried toward the hatch. Son Gohan shouted, "Dabura, are you trying to run away?"
"Heh heh. There's no need for me to keep fighting you, because there's a warrior better suited to face you." Dabura chuckled, then glanced at Vegeta one last time before the hatch closed.
"What do you mean?" Son Gohan called after him, but Dabura had already left.
Son Goten held his forehead. What do you mean, what does he mean? Isn't it obvious by now?
Control room.
"Dabura, what did you find?" The moment Dabura came over, Babidi eagerly asked him.
"Lord Babidi, I discovered a warrior with an evil heart among those people," Dabura replied with an evil grin.
Babidi was overjoyed. "Really? Then they can fight among themselves, and Majin Buu will awaken soon!"
"Yes, Lord Babidi."
Third floor.
"What did that guy mean?" Son Gohan asked, confused.
Son Goku looked just as bewildered. "I don't really understand either. He said he'd found a warrior better suited to fight you."
"Found... What does 'found' mean?"
A flash of insight crossed the Supreme Kai's mind.
Babidi's crystal ball showed Vegeta. Watching the image, Babidi laughed excitedly. (Damn, that's filthy.)
"Wonderful! He really is different from the rest. That boy has a very strong evil heart. He didn't come here for justice," Babidi said happily.
"Let me take control of you." Babidi placed his hands—which looked suspiciously like they had shit on them—on the crystal ball and unleashed his magic.
"Ahhh!"
The moment the magic took effect, Vegeta sensed something was wrong. He clutched his head and screamed.
"So it really is as I thought," the Supreme Kai said, looking vindicated.
"Ahhh!" The headache forced Vegeta to transform into a Super Saiyan.
"Dad!" Trunks ran over to Vegeta in alarm.
"Vegeta, Babidi is using the evil in your heart to control you. Don't think about anything right now. Whatever you do, don't think!" the Supreme Kai said urgently.
Like hell I'm going to stop thinking about fighting Kakarot this way, Vegeta thought. The more someone told him not to think about it, the more he wanted to.
"Excellent! I've taken control of him. Now I'll draw out his potential and push him beyond his limits!" Babidi shouted excitedly, casting another spell.
"Ahhh!"
"Ah!"
Vegeta roared as his power surged wildly. Trunks, who had been clinging to Vegeta's leg, was knocked away by the force of his energy, but Son Goten caught him.
"Ha, ha, ha."
Panting, Vegeta lowered his hands and revealed his face. Black rings now encircled his eyes, and an evil-looking "M" had appeared on his forehead.
The Prince of Destruction: Majin Vegeta had arrived.
Before you continue