Arrival

Vegeta circled in the air for a moment, his gaze sweeping over the dense rocky mountains below—he was certain Android 20 was hiding somewhere among them.

He landed atop a higher peak and roared at the crisscrossing ravines, "Where are you? Get out here now! You cowardly bastard! Show yourself!" His voice echoed through the valleys and spread into the distance.

Behind a mountain in a lower-lying area, Android 20 was using the complex terrain to observe Vegeta's every move. Seeing Vegeta fly into a rage over being unable to find him and rise into the sky, preparing to destroy the entire range with an energy blast, he knew his chance had come. Android 20 raised his head and smiled in satisfaction. "The energy reading is extremely strong. That blast will be enough to replenish all the energy I just used, with plenty left over."

The energy blast came crashing down from the sky. Android 20 raced toward its point of impact and, in the blink of an eye, positioned himself directly beneath it. He spread his hands—his palm-mounted energy absorption devices swallowed Vegeta's entire blast. "Ahahaha~ Thank you for the energy!"

Faced with Android 20's mockery, Vegeta charged down in fury. But Android 20 had no intention of confronting him head-on. The instant Vegeta rushed at him, he leaped nimbly between several rocky peaks and vanished from everyone's sight in no time. Vegeta pursued him closely, but quickly lost his trail.

"Damn it! This guy moves even faster than I expected." Vegeta's anger only grew fiercer.

The view pulled back—Android 20 was now hiding directly above Vegeta, hanging upside down from a protruding rock like a bat as he watched from on high. "Hahaha~ You're far too used to sensing your opponents through ki. I know everything about you, yet you don't even know where I am." As soon as he finished speaking, he vanished again and changed hiding places, secretly observing the others as he searched for suitable prey.

"There's so much food here to replenish my energy." Watching everyone scattered about, Android 20 could no longer suppress his grin. "If I absorb these fools' energy, along with my own power, I'll be able to defeat that brat Vegeta!"

His gaze settled on Piccolo, and his interest was piqued. "It seems I should start with Piccolo, whose strength is second only to Vegeta's."

Android 20 silently approached Piccolo. Catching him off guard, he clamped one hand tightly over Piccolo's mouth while using his other hand and legs to lock him down. In a low voice, he said, "I already detected all of your positions beforehand. No one will notice you."

The red device in his palm began to operate. Piccolo's energy was siphoned away as though a floodgate had been opened.

Android 20 had calculated everything—the positions of everyone present, their blind spots, and the fact that Piccolo would have difficulty gathering energy to resist while being held. But he had overlooked one thing: Piccolo and Gohan shared an understanding that let them sense each other without the need for a powerful aura.

Even while being restrained, Piccolo used telepathy to convey his situation to Gohan and forcibly released a faint trace of ki—so slight that no one else would ever notice it, but enough for Gohan to detect.

Meanwhile, Piccolo's energy was about to be completely drained. Android 20 laughed smugly. "You only have a tiny bit of energy left. Just die like this!"

Just as he was reveling in his triumph, Gohan silently appeared behind him—one heavy two-handed blow interrupted all his movements and saved Piccolo from the brink of death.

The instant Gohan struck, the others sensed his suddenly surging ki and hurried in that direction.

The rescued Piccolo gasped for breath, but did not forget to thank Gohan. "You... you saved my life, Gohan."

Android 20, struck hard by Gohan, crashed from the air into the ground. He struggled a few times before getting back to his feet, his face full of disbelief. "W-why did he know?"

At that moment, the others arrived one after another and surrounded Android 20.

"Uncle Krillin, hurry and give Uncle Piccolo a Senzu Bean!" Gohan shouted urgently.

Piccolo ate the Senzu Bean, and his condition instantly recovered. He descended to the same height as Android 20 and reached up to remove his heavy white cape and turban.

When the cape hit the ground, it landed with a dull thud, making the earth tremble slightly.

Android 20's pupils contracted—the weight of that cape was completely different from when he had ambushed Piccolo earlier. Piccolo had not been fighting at full strength before.

"You ambushed me from behind earlier. Before I even had the chance to get serious, you drained my energy." Piccolo rolled his wrist, his tone calm. "That won't happen again. Leave him to me. Vegeta, none of you are allowed to interfere."

Vegeta did not agree immediately, and he continued to sneer, "If you want to throw your life away, that's your choice. With your current strength, you'll only be giving him energy for free." But he still yielded.

Hearing that Piccolo would not allow anyone else to interfere, Android 20 regained his confidence. "Very good. I'll drain his energy dry once more, and then... I'll be able to defeat Vegeta."

Before he could finish, Piccolo vanished and appeared in front of him, driving a knee viciously into his chin. The blow sent Android 20 straight into the mountain behind him, burying his entire upper body inside it.

He pulled himself out of the mountain, still doubtful in his heart. I can't lose... I was just careless earlier.

Unwilling to accept defeat, he charged at Piccolo again. But the instant he drew near, Piccolo suddenly vanished from his sight. Android 20 instinctively looked toward Vegeta, only to see Vegeta gesture upward at him. He raised his head—and saw an elbow rapidly growing larger as it smashed down at him.

That strike shattered the mountain rock beneath Android 20, leaving him sprawled amid the rubble.

Using his remaining hand to prop himself up, he looked at Piccolo above him, who regarded him with contempt. His face was filled with disbelief. "N-no way! I can't possibly lose to that guy! I already absorbed his energy earlier—I should be stronger than him! How could he beat me so badly?"

Refusing to believe it, he charged again. Yet this time, he still failed to touch Piccolo before being knocked down once more, smashing through several peaks in succession and sending dust billowing into the sky.

Android 20 attempted to use the dust as cover to absorb Piccolo's energy again, but failed. Instead, Piccolo seized his arm—then, with a sharp hand strike, cleanly severed his right hand.

Elsewhere.

Malvis suddenly looked toward the city where the androids had first appeared, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly. "They're here... They really took their time."

Before long, a figure entered his line of sight—it was Trunks.

Trunks did not notice Malvis. With Malvis's current strength, he could conceal his aura so completely that even a peak Super Saiyan could not sense the slightest trace of it, much less Trunks, who could not sense godly ki. At that moment, Trunks's attention was completely drawn to the enormous curved crater below and Android 19's still-smoking head. "What happened? These androids... what on earth are they all fighting now?"

As he stood there full of confusion and shock, he remained completely unaware that a figure had silently appeared behind him.

"Yo, Trunks."

Hearing the voice, Trunks abruptly pulled back and looked warily at the newcomer. "An android?!" His face was full of alarm and disbelief as he prepared to transform into a Super Saiyan—

Malvis suddenly disappeared. In the next instant, he appeared beside Trunks and placed a hand on his shoulder. The moment that hand touched him, Trunks felt all the power in his body become sealed, impossible to draw upon in the slightest.

"Don't compare me to those scrap heaps." Malvis's voice was calm, yet it carried an unquestionable pressure. "I am a god—the God of Destruction."