"Attack?" King Piccolo's face twisted with anger, as if he'd just heard the biggest joke in the world. "You're saying you'll attack me, King Piccolo?"
Raditz ignored him, leaning forward with his hands drawn back at his waist.
"How ridiculous!" Seeing that his opponent completely ignored his warning, Piccolo clenched his fists. "Then I'll show you my true pow—"
Before he could finish the word "power,"
Raditz moved.
In a flash, he vanished. A fist carrying an invisible force slammed into King Piccolo's face.
"Ugh!"
King Piccolo's unfinished words were swallowed by a pained groan. The punch left his face horribly distorted.
"Boom!"
His towering body shot backward like a struck baseball. He smashed through rocks along the way before embedding himself deep in a distant cliff face.
He was even faster and more ferocious than when Raditz had been sent flying earlier!
Silence fell.
Master Roshi froze completely, staring in stunned disbelief.
Had the script been flipped?
Had someone I trained really become this powerful?
"Cough... cough, cough..."
King Piccolo stumbled as he landed, clutching his face. Green blood seeped between his fingers, and his features twisted with pain and fury. His crimson eyes fixed on Raditz.
Yet his rage slowly subsided, giving way to an abyssal calm.
"Not bad!" King Piccolo's voice was icy as he wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. "You're the first person to wound my pride like this."
"You're not about to say something like, 'I still haven't used my full power,' are you?" Raditz teased lightly. "Well? Let me see it."
"Heh, heh, heh..."
King Piccolo ignored the taunt. "If I can help it, I'd rather not unleash my full power. Fighting at full strength shortens my lifespan."
As he spoke, he clenched both fists and bent forward slightly. His aura began to rise, and even the rubble at his feet trembled.
"But now... I have no choice!"
Master Roshi felt the pressure growing stronger and stronger. Even his breathing grew labored.
Seeing Raditz beside him remain unfazed, he reminded him sternly, "Raditz, I don't know how strong you are at full power, but you can't let him keep this up!"
Raditz felt a little sheepish.
Truthfully, gaining this strength had gone to his head a bit.
When he'd run into an early major foe like King Piccolo, he'd actually felt like playing around.
He nodded slightly, his smile fading. "Master Mutten, I understand. I'll fight him with everything I have now."
"Get somewhere far away and take cover, in case he tries to catch you off guard."
After Master Roshi had moved away, Raditz's expression grew serious.
"He's climbed to around 310..."
He studied King Piccolo's surging aura and thought, My power is about 500, quite a bit higher than his. But I can't afford to be careless.
King Piccolo's aura finally steadied. "Ready, kid? I'm going to tear you to pieces!"
With that, he became a green blur, raining punches down on Raditz.
Raditz's movements were elusive. He weaved effortlessly through the flurry of fists, occasionally blocking and easily deflecting the attacks.
"Damn it!" King Piccolo grew more frustrated as his attacks kept missing. With a roar, he brought his fists together in front of his chest, and a massive energy ball formed from the violent energy.
"Die! Special Beam Cannon!!"
The enormous blast roared toward Raditz.
This time, Raditz neither took it head-on nor dodged completely. His eyes narrowed as he brought his palms together and fired a tightly condensed golden energy wave, sharp as a sword.
"Rumble!!"
The two massive blasts collided and erupted instantly, kicking up a cloud of dust.
But just as King Piccolo began searching for his opponent, another golden blast pierced through the dust and shot straight toward his chest.
"What?!" His heart sank. He twisted desperately to dodge, but he was a fraction too slow.
"Boom!" The blast missed the center of his body but still struck his left shoulder.
"Gaaaah!!" King Piccolo screamed as the explosion tore off his entire left arm! Green blood sprayed everywhere.
He staggered backward, clutching the stump as blood poured from it. Pain and shock filled his face as he stared at Raditz, who remained perfectly composed. "What kind of monster are you?!"
Raditz didn't answer. He simply tilted his head slightly, gesturing toward the severed arm on the ground.
King Piccolo followed his gaze, and his expression darkened further.
He took a deep breath and tensed his muscles. The flesh around the stump began to writhe violently as green energy gathered there.
With a sound that made the skin crawl, a brand-new, fully intact left arm quickly grew from the stump!
"..."
Raditz watched in silence. When it came to regeneration, his opponent seemed more like a "monster" in some ways.
But something else troubled him more right now.
If I really kill him, Kami will die too. The Dragon Balls won't be restored, and Krillin will truly be beyond saving.
There was no doubt about who would win the fight, but how to steer it toward the "right" ending had become a problem.
Raditz needed to give King Piccolo an opening to spit out the egg that represented hope for rebirth and revenge, then let him meet a "glorious" defeat.
"It's useless. No matter how many times you injure me, I can recover!" King Piccolo declared, swinging his new arm with more bluster than confidence.
But the unease deep in his eyes gave him away. Regeneration wasn't without a cost; it consumed a great deal of his strength and energy.
"Is that so?" Raditz said calmly. "Then let's find out whether you can regenerate faster than I can attack."
With that, Raditz's aura changed abruptly! He vanished again!
The next instant, pain struck King Piccolo's abdomen, chest, and all four limbs at once!
Every blow from Raditz landed like a mountain, precisely targeting vital points and joints!
King Piccolo couldn't keep up with his speed. He could only endure the attacks with the Demon Clan's tough body, but blood kept spraying from his mouth, and the sound of cracking bones rang out clearly.
He tried to counterattack, but couldn't even touch the hem of Raditz's clothes.
"Too slow."
"Not enough power."
"Your guard is full of openings."
Raditz's voice accompanied every heavy blow. The attacks battered not only King Piccolo's body but his spirit as well.
"Gaaaah!! I'll take you down with me!!" King Piccolo was driven to desperation. He recklessly forced every bit of energy within him to erupt!
Golden flames soared skyward, enveloping him in a gigantic ball of energy. He tried to drive Raditz back with an indiscriminate, wide-area burst.
Raditz merely raised a hand.
A blue energy wave blasted out and slammed into the sphere!
They were locked in a stalemate for less than a second.
The blue beam surged forward with overwhelming force, like a red-hot iron rod plunged into snow. It tore through King Piccolo's energy burst in an instant and slammed into his chest!
"Guh!!"
King Piccolo was blasted away like a broken kite. His chest was charred black, with the bones beneath plainly visible.
His energy had dwindled to almost nothing. He struggled, but couldn't get back up.
He looked at Raditz as he approached at a leisurely pace.
"I never imagined that, after being sealed for these past few hundred years, someone like you would appear."
His voice was self-mocking, but his eyes burned with fury, resentment, and a trace of fear.