Core

The light swallowed everything.

Gohan's vision was filled with nothing but pure white, as if he were staring directly at the sun. But he did not close his eyes, because Android 16 had given him only this instant.

Cell's roar came from within the light, laced with fury and disbelief. It was the sound of five hundred million power crashing down. Even a "perfect lifeform" could not remain calm before such strength.

"Get out of my way!"

A black energy wave collided with the golden light, and the underground laboratory shook violently. The walls cracked, nutrient fluid burst from ruptured pipes, and the entire space trembled beneath the clash of power.

Gohan's feet sank deep into the ground, golden aura enveloping his entire body. His eyes remained fixed on the light. Within it, Cell was struggling to withstand the impact of five hundred million power.

"So this is all of Android 16's power..." Cell's voice came from the light. "An android can actually unleash this level of strength..."

"But do you think this is enough to kill me?"

His black aura surged. Under the suppression of five hundred million power, Cell actually forced his energy even higher.

Gohan's heart sank.

He's constantly growing stronger in battle... Gohan's thoughts raced. Android 16's power is formidable, but Cell's potential is even more terrifying. If this battle drags on—

Just then, Android 16's calm voice came from the light.

"Gohan. Cell's chest."

Gohan's pupils contracted.

Through the interwoven light and darkness, he saw Cell's chest. The cracks there were rapidly spreading.

They were not wounds inflicted by Android 16's power, but a loss of control Cell himself could no longer suppress amid the violent fluctuations. The residual consciousnesses of the incomplete forms he had absorbed were taking this chance to resist desperately.

"No... get back in there..." Panic entered Cell's voice for the first time. "You defective products... be quiet..."

But his commands no longer worked. The cracks widened, and what poured from them was not blood, but a strange black substance.

It was a sign that the Saiyan cell membrane was collapsing.

This is it... Gohan's breathing quickened. The opening Android 16 created.

The light reached its peak at that moment.

Cell's body was slammed hard against the wall by that force, his chest completely exposed. The Saiyan cell membrane finally could not endure the impact of five hundred million power. Like torn cloth, it split open and revealed the true heart within—a core pulsing with golden light.

"Impossible..." Cell's voice was hoarse. "I clearly evolved into perfection... why am I still failing..."

"Because you were never perfect." Gohan's voice was icy. "You're just a collection of cells. The residual consciousnesses of defective products will resist, and Saiyan cells will crave battle. And you..."

"You never truly controlled yourself."

Android 16's voice rang out again. "Gohan. Now. Pierce through him with a single strike exceeding the limits of his defense."

"I know."

Gohan took a deep breath.

His aura began to rise.

His golden aura flared, but it was not the aura of an ordinary Super Saiyan. Against the backdrop of Android 16's five hundred million power, Gohan's strength continued to climb.

320 million... 350 million... 380 million... 400 million...

"This is..." Vegeta's pupils shook. "A realm beyond Super Saiyan?!"

"No..." Android 18's gaze sharpened. "This isn't a complete transformation, but he's using some method to forcibly squeeze out his potential..."

420 million.

Gohan's body trembled. Every blood vessel screamed, every cell burned. This was a limit he had never attempted before—not Super Saiyan 2, but already infinitely close to that threshold.

"Enough," he said quietly.

The next instant, he vanished from where he stood.

Cell did not even have time to react.

"What—"

A fist pierced his chest.

Not from the front, not from the side, but with absolute precision through that crack, straight into the core.

Golden light erupted in that instant, bursting out through Cell's back and illuminating the entire underground laboratory.

"Crack... crack crack crack..."

Cell's body began to split apart. The core that had been struck made an ominous sound, like shattered glass.

"This... is impossible..." Cell lowered his head and looked at the fist piercing his chest, his voice hoarse. "I absorbed all the defective products... I evolved into perfection... I should have been the strongest being in this world..."

"Why... can a four-year-old child... defeat me..."

Gohan did not answer. He merely slowly withdrew his fist and watched as Cell's body began to crumble.

"Because I've seen true strength." His voice was very soft. "I know that true power never comes from piling up cells."

"It comes from the people you want to protect."

Cell's pupils abruptly widened.

"Protect...?"

"You wouldn't understand." Gohan took a step back. "Because you've never had anything you wanted to protect."

The corner of Cell's mouth suddenly twisted into a sinister smile.

"Is that so...? Then let me tell you a secret, traveler..."

His body was disintegrating, but his core was still alive.

"Even if you kill me... that data... will still remain..."

Gohan's heart sank.

"As long as someone... gathers it all again... I will..."

"Shut up."

Gohan threw another punch, utterly smashing that core to pieces.

Golden light illuminated everything.

Cell's body turned to ashes within the light, leaving behind not even a speck of dust.

"This... should be over, right...?" Gohan panted heavily.

But the next second, Android 16's figure collapsed out of the light.

"Android 16!"

Gohan rushed forward and caught the tall, blond android. His body was heavier than ever, and... cold.

"Android 16! Can you still hear me?!"

Those emotionless eyes slowly opened.

"...Gohan."

"Don't talk. I'll get you treated right now—"

"It's useless." Android 16's voice was calm. "My core... has already burned out. This is my final moment."

"No..." Gohan's voice tightened.

Android 16's gaze fell on his face.

"Gohan. You are the... most human Saiyan I have ever met."

"Android 16..."

"I was originally created to kill Goku. But now..." The corners of his mouth seemed to lift slightly. "To die for you... is my choice."

"So... live on. Protect the people you want to protect."

His eyes slowly closed.

"Goodbye."

"ANDROID 16!!"

Gohan's cry echoed through the underground laboratory, but the tall android no longer responded.

His core had gone dark.

"...Time." Android 18's voice came from beside him, hoarse and low. "There are eight minutes left on the self-destruct program. We have to leave."

Gohan raised his head and saw Android 18 standing some distance away. Her face was pale, her eyes slightly red, but her voice remained calm.

"Android 18..."

"He was our companion." Android 18's gaze settled on Android 16. "I'll remember him."

"Now let's go."

Gohan took a deep breath and gently laid Android 16's body down.

"...What about Dr. Gero?"

"He's dead." Android 18's voice was devoid of emotion. "After the life-support system was removed, he lasted only three minutes."

Gohan turned to look at the shriveled corpse in the corner. That scientist, who had spent his life consumed by madness, had died just like that in the laboratory he had created.

How ironic.

"Gohan!"

Vegeta's voice came from above. Gohan looked up and saw Vegeta standing at the entrance to the passage Cell had blasted through, carrying the unconscious Krillin and Android 17.

"Get up here! There's not much time!"

"Coming!"

Gohan grabbed Android 18 by the arm, and the two became streaks of light as they rushed toward the exit.

Behind them, the self-destruct countdown continued.

Seven minutes... six minutes... five minutes...

"Did we succeed?" Vegeta's voice was uncertain. "Is Cell really dead?"

"The core was completely destroyed," Gohan said in a low voice. "But before he died, he said... those data were still there..."

Vegeta's expression shifted slightly.

"What does that mean?"

"I'm not sure." Gohan shook his head. "But no matter what... we need to get out of here first."

Light erupted beneath their feet, and everyone rushed toward the surface at top speed.

Behind them, the countdown numbers continued to tick down.

Four minutes... three minutes... two minutes...

"We're almost there!"

The instant they burst out of the ground, the land behind them suddenly flared with blinding white light.

"Get down!"

Gohan shouted, and everyone threw themselves to the ground at once.

Then—

BOOM.

The entire world trembled.

A massive mushroom cloud rose from the ground. Scorching shockwaves swept through the area, devouring everything around it. The blast shattered every window within several kilometers, and even the distant buildings began to shake.

What ten-minute countdown? This was practically destruction on the scale of a small planet.

"Cough, cough..." Gohan crawled out of the dust, filthy and disheveled as he looked behind him.

Nothing remained there. Only a vast, charred crater, belching thick smoke.

Android 16... and the remnants of Cell... had all been swallowed by the explosion.

"Is it over...?" Krillin's voice came from beside him, filled with the relief of having survived.

Gohan did not answer.

He simply stood there quietly, staring at the ruins.

Cell's smile before his death lingered stubbornly in his mind.

"As long as someone gathers them again... I will..."

"...Gohan."

Piccolo's voice came from beside him. Gohan turned and saw Piccolo standing not far away, his expression complicated.

"Goku asked me to tell you that you did well."

Gohan froze for a moment.

"My dad..."

"He was protecting civilians over in the city just now. He sensed everything that happened here." Piccolo's gaze fell on the ruins. "He said you've grown up."

Gohan's eyes stung.

But he did not cry.

He merely took a deep breath and turned to face the others.

"Let's go. This isn't completely over... not with Cell."

"But at least today, we won."

Smoke continued to rise from the ruins, but sunlight had already pierced through the clouds, spilling across this war-ravaged land.

A new battle would always come someday.

But that was a matter for the future.