The Birth of Evil

But the peace didn't last long. An uninvited guest arrived at the base: Babidi. After his spaceship was destroyed, he had escaped to the mountains and secretly watched Buu. Seeing Buu become friends with the Earthlings filled him with anger and jealousy. Buu was his creation, the ultimate weapon his father, Bibidi, had spent hundreds of years making. Buu was supposed to obey his commands and destroy everything, not befriend a bunch of insects. In the mountains, Babidi found an ancient artifact—the Separator. It could split an individual into two parts: the positive and the negative, the good and the evil. He decided to use it to separate Buu's good side from his evil side. The evil side would obey him, while the good side would grow weak. Babidi slipped into the base and found Buu playing a video game with Satan. When Buu saw Babidi, his smile vanished. "Babidi," Buu said. "What are you doing here?" "Buu, my child," Babidi said, pretending to be kind. "I've come to take you home." "Buu isn't going home," Buu said. "Buu is happy here." Babidi's expression darkened. "You won't obey me?"

"Buu isn't your slave anymore," Buu said. "Buu makes his own choices." Babidi gave a cold laugh and pulled the Separator from beneath his cloak. It was a palm-sized device covered in intricate runes, glowing with a dark red light. "If you won't obey, I'll make you." He pressed the Separator's switch.

A dark red beam shot toward Buu. He instinctively tried to dodge, but the beam was too fast and struck him in the chest. Buu's body began to split apart.

Cracks appeared in his pink skin, black light shining through them. Buu groaned in pain as his body was torn between good and evil. "Buu!" Satan rushed forward to help him, but an energy barrier knocked him back. Kashu and Android 18 hurried over from the depths of the base, but they were too late. Buu's body had completely split in two.

A chubby pink Buu lay on the ground. He was a little smaller, and his smile had vanished, replaced by a look of confusion and weariness. Another Buu stood before him. This one was thin and tall, with dark gray skin and blood-red eyes. His face held no smile, only cruelty.

"Evil Buu. I'm finally free," Evil Buu said, his voice as rough as sandpaper. "That foolish good side kept suppressing me, stopping me from doing whatever I wanted. Now I can finally..." He turned to look at Fat Buu lying on the ground. "...eat him." Evil Buu opened his mouth wide and swallowed Fat Buu in one gulp. Fat Buu struggled inside him, but Evil Buu's body began to change, absorbing his energy and form. His body swelled, becoming tall, strong, and muscular. His skin turned a mix of dark gray and pink, and horns sprouted from his head.

This was Evil Buu's true form. His power surged to a terrifying level—several times stronger than Fat Buu and even stronger than a Super Saiyan 3. East Supreme Kai sensed Buu's energy and turned deathly pale. "It's over... Everything is over... Evil Buu has awakened..." Evil Buu looked at Kashu and Android 18, a cruel smile curling his lips. "You're the Earth Guardians? And you're the one who tried to tame me?" Kashu stepped forward, standing in front of Android 18. "Buu," he said, "you still have a choice. Give up your evil side and return to your good side." "A choice?" Evil Buu laughed. "I have no choice! I am evil! I was born to destroy!" He raised his hand, and a massive energy blast shot from his palm toward the base. Kashu used Instant Transmission to appear in front of it and braced against the blast with both hands. Its force was immense. Kashu was driven backward, and the ground beneath his feet fractured into a web of cracks. "Interesting," Evil Buu said. "How much of my power can you withstand?" He increased the blast's output. Kashu's arms began to tremble, veins bulging on his forehead. Android 18 attacked from the side, punching toward Evil Buu's head. Without even turning around, Evil Buu lashed out with his tail and wrapped it around her wrist. With a light flick, he hurled her toward a distant mountainside. Android 18 crashed into the mountain, which collapsed and buried her beneath the rubble. "Android 18!" Kashu shouted.

The moment his attention wavered, Evil Buu's blast broke through his defenses and struck him head-on. Kashu was sent flying, smashing through several walls of the base before crashing deep underground into the energy room. Evil Buu looked at the ruined base and nodded in satisfaction. "The Earth Guardians? Pathetic." He turned and left, leaving nothing but rubble behind. Kashu crawled out of the wreckage. His clothes were torn, and he had a few wounds, but they weren't serious. Evil Buu's attack had been powerful, but not enough to kill him. Android 18 also freed herself from the rubble and flew to Kashu's side. She had suffered a few minor injuries, but the regenerative abilities of a Super Android were already healing them. "Buu... he's too strong," Android 18 said. Kashu nodded. "He's stronger than I expected. His power is close to what I can manage at full strength."

"Can you defeat him?" Kashu fell silent for a moment. "Yes. But it'll come at a cost." "What cost?" Kashu didn't answer. He went deeper into the base and came to Buu's room. It was a mess, and Satan lay unconscious on the floor. Traces of Fat Buu's separation were everywhere. Kashu picked up a fragment from the ground—a piece of Fat Buu that had broken off during the separation. It still glimmered faintly with Fat Buu's kind energy.

Looking at the fragment in his hand, Kashu came up with a plan. He left the room and went to the central hall. Everyone had gathered there: Goku, Vegeta, Gohan, Cell, Krillin, Yamcha, Tien Shinhan, Chiaotzu, Android 16, and East Supreme Kai.

"You've all seen Buu's strength," Kashu said. "He's stronger than all of us. But if we attack together, we have a seventy percent chance of winning." "Seventy percent?" Vegeta frowned. "You're saying we might lose?" "There's a thirty percent chance we'll lose," Kashu said. "And if we do, Earth will be destroyed. Thirty percent is too high."

"I need a safer plan." He raised the fragment in his hand. "This is a fragment of Fat Buu's good energy. If I can find a way to inject it back into Evil Buu, he might turn back into Fat Buu." "Would that work?" Gohan asked. "In theory, yes," Kashu said. "But I'll have to enter the depths of Evil Buu's consciousness and find where Fat Buu is trapped. Evil Buu absorbed him, but hasn't completely digested him. Fat Buu is still alive somewhere inside him."

"Are you going alone?" Goku asked. "I can't go alone," Kashu said. "I need backup. If I fail, someone will have to take over and keep fighting."

He looked at Goku. "Goku, you're coming with me." Goku nodded. "Okay." Vegeta snorted. "Why him and not me?" "Because Goku's better at working with others," Kashu said bluntly. "Vegeta, you're great on your own, but this time we need teamwork." Vegeta was about to say something, but Bulma tugged at his sleeve. He fell silent. Kashu turned to Android 18. "Lazuli, you'll lead the team while I'm gone." Android 18 stepped up to Kashu and took his hand. "Be careful." "I will," Kashu said with a smile. "I promised I wouldn't leave you alone again." They embraced, then parted. Kashu and Goku flew toward Evil Buu. Evil Buu had stopped outside West City and begun destroying everything. He had no particular target; he simply wrecked whatever he came across. The city became a wasteland in his hands as people fled in every direction, their screams rising all around them. Kashu and Goku landed in front of Buu. "Back again?" Evil Buu looked at them. "You still haven't given up?" "Buu," Kashu said, "we're here to make a deal." "A deal?" Evil Buu looked at him with interest. "Let's hear it." "If you lose, you'll let us release Fat Buu from inside you." "And if you lose?" "We'll let you absorb us," Kashu said. "You'll gain our energy."

Evil Buu's eyes lit up. "Absorb you two? You're both strong. If I absorb you, I'll become even stronger!" "Deal," Evil Buu said. "Come on!" He charged at Kashu, moving as fast as lightning. Kashu sidestepped and punched him in the back. The blow tore a hole through Buu's body, but it quickly healed as though nothing had happened.

"It's no use," Buu said. "My regeneration is a hundred times better than Cell's. As long as even one of my cells remains, I can't die." Kashu said nothing and continued punching, each blow leaving a hole in Buu's body. But Buu healed faster than Kashu could attack; the wounds were gone as soon as Kashu's fists pulled away. Goku attacked from the other side, hitting Buu head-on with a Kamehameha. Buu's body exploded into pieces, but the fragments whirled through the air and reassembled into a whole Buu. "I told you, it's no use," Buu said, shaking his head. "Don't you understand?" Kashu stopped attacking and looked at Buu. "Then I'll try another way."

He began compressing his energy. Not reducing it, but compressing it. He squeezed the energy inside him to its limit until its density grew so high that even light began to bend. His body started to glow—not with golden light, but with a pure, dazzling white radiance. "What..." Goku stared, eyes wide. "What kind of power is that?" "It isn't power," Kashu said. "It's will." He charged at Buu and punched him in the chest. The blow didn't pierce Buu's body. Instead, it injected the compressed energy into him. Buu's body began to swell like a balloon being inflated. He groaned in pain and tried to expel the energy, but Kashu's energy clung to his cells like glue, impossible to shake off.

"What... what are you doing?" Buu asked in alarm. "I'm making you stronger," Kashu said, "past your limit." Buu's body grew to twice its size, then three times, then five. Cracks appeared in his skin, pink light seeping through them. "No... stop..." Buu shrieked. "I'm going to explode!" "Then spit out your good side," Kashu said. "Otherwise, you'll die." Buu hesitated for a second. Then he opened his mouth and spat out Fat Buu. Fat Buu hit the ground, soaked and weak as a drowned kitten. His energy was only a tenth of what it had been, and he could barely stand. Evil Buu's body returned to normal, but he was much weaker too. Kashu's energy had drained much of his strength, leaving him at only half his full power. "You... you tricked me," Evil Buu said furiously. "You said you'd let me absorb you!" "I did," Kashu said. "But only if you won. Did you win?"

Evil Buu froze, then realized that he had indeed lost. Not because he had been defeated, but because he had been forced to release Fat Buu to save his own life.

"So, as agreed," Kashu said, "you had to let us release Fat Buu. And you've done that."

Evil Buu's face flushed a liverish purple. He wanted to go back on his word, but Kashu's gaze told him that there would be serious consequences. "Hmph," Evil Buu snorted. "You win this time. But next time..." He turned and flew away, vanishing into the sky. Goku watched him go, looking concerned. "He's not coming back, is he?"

"He will," Kashu said, "but not now. He's weak and needs time to recover. That gives us time to prepare." He went over and helped Fat Buu up.

Fat Buu opened his eyes and smiled weakly at Kashu. "Did Buu do something wrong?" "No," Kashu said. "You did well. You kept resisting Evil Buu's control and gave him a chance to release you." Tears streamed down Fat Buu's face. "Buu doesn't want to hurt anyone. Buu just wants to be with his friends." "You can," Kashu said. "We'll help you." Fat Buu nodded, closed his eyes, and fell into a deep sleep. Kashu picked him up and flew back to the base. The battle was over—for now.

But the real battle had yet to begin.