Crushing Pressure

The night wind shrieked past his ears.

Gohan pushed his ki to its limit, golden energy flames trailing an afterimage behind him. The outline of Mount Paozu rapidly swelled in his vision, like a silent bullseye.

He already knew.

The Gravity Chamber was a relay station. Seventy-two percent of the data was being transmitted, and the target was the main node to the southeast. Vegeta had told him himself.

So he wasn't "discovering" anything. He was "confirming"—confirming whether Vegeta had told the truth, whether Mom was safe, and just how far that damned program had progressed.

Three minutes later, he reached Mount Paozu.

Chi-Chi was hanging laundry in the yard, and the large pot was still steaming. Everything looked perfectly normal.

Gohan sighed in relief, then immediately tensed again. It was too normal.

"Mom, it's urgent. Where's Dad?"

"In the Gravity Chamber."

He rushed toward the Gravity Chamber.

The door opened from within.

Piccolo stood before the control console, while Dad stood beside the screen. They both looked at him, their expressions strangely calm.

"Come in," Piccolo said.

Gohan walked in, and the door shut behind him.

"Vegeta notified you?" he asked bluntly.

"Three minutes ago." Dad nodded. "He sent a message. Just two words: 'Wait.'"

"...What a nutcase."

"I agree." Piccolo snorted, turning toward the screen. "But he was telling the truth. What matters most now is confirming the situation."

Gohan stepped up to the screen. The number was nailed to the center of the display like a spike:

"Signal Strength: 72%"

"Transmission Target: Southeast Main Node"

"Node Status: Active"

"When Cell was destroyed three months ago, this program activated automatically." Piccolo's voice was flat. "It has been transmitting data outward this entire time—cell samples, genetic sequences, combat memories. Everything is in there."

"Once the southeast main node finishes receiving it," Dad continued, "it'll activate the integration program. Cell's final form."

Gohan stared at the flickering 72%.

"So Vegeta blew up the Northern Research Institute—"

"Not to destroy the data," Piccolo said. "He did it to force the data to concentrate at the main node faster. He wanted the main node to reveal itself early."

"Maniac," Gohan muttered.

"The proud Saiyan prince." There was a trace of mockery in Piccolo's tone. "His curiosity is even stronger than his pride."

Gohan fell silent for a moment as he processed the information. Vegeta's logic suddenly became clear. He was playing a very big game, and Mount Paozu and the southeast were merely two pieces on his board.

"So what do we do now?" he asked. "Blow up the Gravity Chamber?"

"Useless." Piccolo shook his head. "Destroying the hardware would only make the data transfer to another carrier. The program would still exist; it would just run somewhere else."

"There's only one way," Dad said. "Make this node fail."

A sense of foreboding rose in Gohan's heart. "Dad, what do you mean?"

Dad walked over to the console, his fingers beginning to tap across the keyboard.

"I've trained in this Gravity Chamber for a long time, so I know its system well." Without looking up, he said, "There's a sleep program running in the background. If it executes successfully, the node will stop transmitting data outward."

"Wait—" Gohan tried to stop him.

The screen flickered.

"Node Status: Dormant"

The 72% froze in place, no longer changing.

"Dad!"

"Don't panic." Dad turned around with that familiar smile on his face. "Once the node goes dormant, the main node will temporarily stall after losing its relay. It'll wait—wait for this node to reactivate."

"That was the doctor's design," Piccolo added. "Multi-node redundant backups. As long as one node is still running, the data can keep transmitting."

"So as long as Mount Paozu's node remains dormant—"

"The southeast main node can't complete the integration," Piccolo said. "It'll be stuck, unable to advance or retreat."

Gohan looked at the grayed-out words, "Node Status: Dormant." The plan was clear: cut off the relay, stall the main node, and then what?

"Then we wait for it to make a move," Dad said, as though he had seen through Gohan's thoughts. "If the main node wants to complete the integration, it has to find a way to activate this node. It'll send something here. Whatever it is, that'll be our target."

"Using Mount Paozu as bait?" Gohan frowned.

"That's right." A gleam of excitement flashed through Dad's eyes. "We're going fishing."

Piccolo snorted from the side. "A lunatic's plan."

"Thanks for the compliment."

"I wasn't complimenting you."

Gohan took a deep breath and sorted through his thoughts. The node was dormant, the main node was stuck, and waiting for the other side to take the bait made logical sense. But something still felt off.

"What about Uncle Vegeta? Does he know about this plan?"

"He doesn't need to." Dad's smile carried a deeper meaning. "The Saiyan prince has his own rhythm. We only need to do one thing: protect this node."

He paused and looked at Gohan.

"For the time being, Gohan, you and Piccolo will stay here."

"You're going southeast alone?" Gohan's heart sank.

"I'm going to scout things out." A warrior's distinctive light ignited in Dad's eyes. "An opponent who's lasted three months is worth seeing in person."

"No." Gohan grabbed his arm. "It's too dangerous."

"Gohan."

"We don't know what's going on with the main node. What if it's already finished integrating? What if Cell has already—"

"Gohan." Dad looked at him calmly. "Trust me. Cell has come once before. If he comes again, it's nothing special. This time, we won't lose again."

Gohan tightened his grip on his arm and didn't let go.

"..."

"Don't worry." Dad patted his hand. "I won't do anything reckless. I'm just going to take a look and confirm the situation. If there's danger, I'll retreat immediately."

"You say that every time."

"Because you believe me every time." Dad smiled. "Don't you?"

Gohan released him and lowered his head.

He knew he couldn't stop him. Ever since he was little, no one had ever been able to change a decision Dad had made.

"...How long?"

"I don't know," Dad answered honestly. "Maybe a few days. Maybe longer. But I'll stay in contact. If anything happens, notify me immediately."

Gohan was silent for a moment, then nodded.

"Be careful."

"Don't worry." Dad walked toward the door, then glanced back. "Take care of Chi-Chi and Piccolo."

"...Got it."

The Gravity Chamber door opened, then closed again. Dad's presence vanished into the night.

The night wind slipped through the crack in the door, carrying the mountain chill unique to this place.

Gohan stood where he was, staring at the number frozen at 72%.

"Gohan." Piccolo's voice came from behind him.

"Yeah?"

"Worried about him?"

Gohan was silent for a while, then nodded lightly.

"...Yeah."

Piccolo said nothing. The silence lasted several seconds—long enough for Gohan to think the conversation was over.

Then Piccolo spoke, his voice carrying an unusual gentleness.

"Kakarot never does anything he isn't confident about. He just likes keeping the risks for himself."

Gohan froze for a moment and turned to look at Piccolo.

Piccolo wasn't looking at him. He only stared at the dormant node on the screen, his expression unreadable.

"...Uncle Piccolo."

"Yeah?"

"Thank you."

Piccolo frowned, as though something had caught in his throat.

"What are you thanking me for?"

"Just... thank you."

Piccolo was silent for a moment, then turned around and faced away from him.

"Don't get the wrong idea. I was only stating the facts."

Gohan didn't call him out on it.

He turned and walked out of the Gravity Chamber, raising his eyes toward the southeast. There was only a pitch-black night sky there—no stars, no moonlight, only endless darkness waiting.

"Dad."

His voice was soft, as if he were speaking only to himself.

"You'd better come back alive."