Perfect Cell

Cell showed no sign of movement for quite a while after being blasted into the mountain.

"Did he get away?" Vegeta asked doubtfully.

Just as Vegeta stepped forward to check, Cell suddenly burst out of the hole, his tail stabbing toward Vegeta. Vegeta twisted aside to evade, but Cell grabbed both his ankles.

"This time, you're the one who'll die. I'll let you have a taste of my specialty."

As he spoke, Cell drove his tail toward Vegeta's back. Vegeta flexed his waist and abdomen to dodge, then tightly hugged Cell's tail.

"Thanks for the offer, but I don't think much of it."

Cell's tail continued thrashing in Vegeta's arms, trying to break free. The two began wrestling against each other. Suddenly, Cell felt the force on his tail loosen and quickly seized the opportunity to pull it free. Just as he prepared to stab Vegeta, a sharp pain suddenly tore through his abdomen. Vegeta had released his grip only to drive an elbow into Cell's stomach. Vegeta's voice followed.

"How could I possibly become your food that easily?"

Cell's falling body was held up by one of Vegeta's hands pressed against his chest. Vegeta leaped up and kicked Cell flying. Cell crashed into the sea, sending up a huge spray of water.

Vegeta plunged into the sea and appeared before Cell. After smashing a fist into Cell's face, he pressed his hands against Cell's chest in an open-and-close stance. An energy blast carried Cell from the seabed, bursting through the surface and soaring into the sky, where it flashed with dazzling white light.

Boom~

Vegeta shot up from beneath the sea and hovered in the sky, watching the smoke from the explosion. When it finally cleared, Cell's battered appearance came into view. Cracks covered his carapace, and purple blood seeped from them.

"This attack must've hurt badly, right, Cell? Then let me tell you something shocking. See that kid over there called Trunks?" Vegeta said, pointing at Trunks.

"That brat's battle power may be below mine, but overall, he's roughly on my level."

Cell turned to look at Trunks, then saw Ye Bai beside him and became even more despairing.

"From what I can see, even if you haven't gone all out yet, you're probably only about as strong as him. You've truly disappointed me. So that's all the strength you have. I thought you were supposed to be terrifyingly powerful! If I killed you now, I'd practically be lowering myself," Vegeta said disdainfully.

"Damn it! I can't accept this! If I were complete... if I could become perfect, I could defeat that guy!" Cell roared in helpless fury, wildly releasing the energy within his body. His aura whipped the surrounding sea into violent waves that continuously crashed against the reefs of the nearby islands.

Only then did Krillin remember the remote in his hand. He raised it and looked it over.

Ye Bai noticed it as well and asked Krillin, "Krillin, what is that?"

"This is a remote Bulma made using Dr. Gero's design blueprints. It can forcibly shut down and destroy the androids," Krillin answered. Android 18's expression changed drastically at those words as she lay in Ye Bai's arms.

"Can you give it to me?" Ye Bai asked.

Without hesitation, Krillin handed the remote to Ye Bai. But to his surprise, Ye Bai crushed it the moment he took it and said, "This thing is useless now. If something appears that Goku and the others can't handle, I'll take care of it."

"But Bulma worked so hard to rush the research on this. And, uh, Ye Bai, are you two really okay like that?" Krillin hesitated as he spoke, pointing at Ye Bai and Android 18's position.

"It's fine. I'll explain it to Bulma. Krillin, once we get back to West City, I'll help you find a cute girl with a good personality and introduce her to you," Ye Bai explained, then dangled a little incentive before Krillin.

"Really? Ye Bai, you're not lying to me, are you?" Krillin said in delighted surprise.

"Yeah, but you need to cleanly deal with whatever's left with your ex-girlfriend. That girl isn't right for you," Ye Bai reminded Krillin. He failed to notice that Android 18 had been staring straight at him ever since he crushed the remote.

Before Krillin could reply, Vegeta asked Cell, "What did you just say? You said that as long as you could become perfect, you wouldn't lose to me?"

Cell replied unwillingly, "That's right! As long as I can become perfect, I definitely won't lose to you. Strength, speed, technique, willpower—I'm flawless in every respect. That's what the computer's records clearly said."

Before Cell could finish, Vegeta suddenly kicked him in the face and sent him flying. Cell crashed into a distant island, smashed through a hill, and rolled across the ground several times before finally stopping.

Cell climbed to his feet, still muttering, "If only I could become perfect."

Vegeta landed a short distance away and walked toward him. Amid Cell's unwilling roar, Vegeta kicked him in the head again, slamming him face-first into the ground. He then planted one foot on the back of Cell's head to keep him from getting up before speaking.

"You're saying that despite the huge gap between us now, as long as you become perfect, you'll definitely be able to defeat me?"

Cell lay humiliated with his face pressed to the ground. Even his breath kicked up clouds of dust, yet he still said, "I believe I can definitely beat you. I believe that completely."

When Vegeta lifted his foot, Cell climbed up, bracing himself with his arms as he faced Vegeta.

"It looks like you're considering it. What do you say? Aren't you Saiyans a race born for battle? You naturally love fighting, and the stronger the opponent you encounter, the more your fighting spirit rises. You must want to find out what it feels like to fight me after I become perfect, right? I'm sure that's it, because you're a warrior race—and the prince of the Saiyans!"

"You really do know quite a bit about Saiyans. Fine, then! I'll go along with you and fall into your trap. I'll let you become perfect and let you go. After all, there's nothing for me to be proud of in defeating you as you are now. All right, you can go," Vegeta said confidently.

At that, a smile appeared on Cell's face. He rose into the air and flew toward Android 18. However, when he got closer, he suddenly saw Ye Bai with an arm around Android 18's shoulders, watching him with a grinning face. Cold sweat immediately streamed down Cell's forehead.

He suddenly remembered that he had forgotten this greatest enemy. Seeing this, Ye Bai stopped teasing him and spoke.

"Cell, do you want to become perfect? I can grant that wish, but you have to agree to one condition."

Upon hearing Ye Bai's words, Cell revealed a delighted smile. Meanwhile, Android 18 beside Ye Bai looked at him in shock. She thought he was going to abandon her just to let Cell become perfect. She had just heard about the Saiyans' nature—perhaps the man beside her thought the same way.

"What condition?" Cell asked.

Ye Bai released Android 18's shoulder and said to Cell, "After you defeat Vegeta, set up an arena three days later and wait for Son Goku to challenge you. How about it?"

Cell eagerly agreed at once. Then Ye Bai instantly transformed into a Super Saiyan and appeared before Cell, driving a fist straight through his entire chest. Seeing that Cell had not yet reached the brink of death, he followed up with an energy blast. Only when Cell's mutilated body was finally barely clinging to life did Ye Bai grab his falling remains, forcibly shove a Senzu Bean into his mouth, make him swallow it, and release him.

Cell's broken body recovered in no time. Then white light began to shine from his body, and his powerful aura rose without end, causing the entire Earth to tremble. Dark clouds blanketed the sky, and countless bolts of lightning connected the clouds above to Cell's body.

Cell's entire body began swelling and growing taller. A green energy barrier emerged around him, encasing him within it. As his aura surged rapidly upward, dense blue lightning appeared around the barrier, as though preventing anyone from approaching. As the rise of his aura gradually slowed, the green energy barrier began to disperse.

Cell's physique became balanced and upright, no longer carrying the bloated appearance of his second form. His muscular lines were smooth and powerful, combining a sense of strength with elegance. His proportions were close to human, yet possessed a more inhuman beauty.

Though his carapace remained green, his facial features became sharply defined. His eyes were narrow, piercing, and red. A pair of pointed horns stood upright from the top of his head. His body was mainly green, while his shoulders, chest, and the outer sides of his arms were covered in black carapace. A pair of black, membrane-like wing structures grew from his back, with his tail stored within them. His arms became more robust, his hands had five distinct fingers, his legs were slightly longer, and his feet turned yellow, shaped like simple combat boots.