The Outcome Is Decided

The battle had reached a fever pitch as two figures collided soundlessly in midair.

Son Gohan's chest heaved, sweat dripping from his chin only to evaporate in his aura before it could fall.

Vegeta was panting as well, sweat soaking through his black tank top, veins bulging across his muscles. Neither showed any intention of stopping.

Son Gohan moved first, bringing his hands together at his waist as energy compressed wildly into his palms.

The surrounding air churned under the fluctuations of energy.

"Ka--me--ha--me--ha!!"

He thrust both hands forward.

A blue beam erupted from his palms, expanding several times in diameter as it shot straight at Vegeta's face.

Vegeta completed his opening move almost at the same instant.

He raised his right hand above his head, fingers spread wide as golden ki gathered above his palm. The energy swelled, its brilliance blinding.

"Final Flash--!"

He swung his arm down.

A golden beam crashed down from above, colliding head-on with the Kamehameha in midair.

BOOM!!!

The two terrifying energy beams slammed into each other and froze at the center.

The shockwaves expanded outward while the center collapsed inward.

They remained deadlocked for three seconds.

Then the violently clashing energy exploded into a sphere of light, white radiance swallowing half the sky.

Thick smoke billowed upward, engulfing both figures.

Son Gohan did not wait for the smoke to clear.

His aura suddenly erupted as he accelerated, plunging headfirst into it.

Vegeta caught his movement through the smoke and turned to meet him, swinging his right fist. Son Gohan tilted his head aside, the fist grazing past his ear as its force howled through the air.

At the same time, he drove his left knee toward Vegeta's abdomen. Vegeta dropped his elbow to block it, and elbow and knee collided with a crisp crack.

The recoil knocked them each back half a step, but they charged again at the same time and tangled in battle.

Their figures could not be seen through the smoke. Only the impacts of fists and kicks could be heard, while waves of ki blasted out and scattered the dust and haze.

As the thick smoke cleared, neither had stopped attacking.

Before Son Gohan could pull back his leg, Vegeta grabbed his ankle with his left hand and drove his right fist at his chest. Son Gohan crossed his arms to block it head-on, but the blow sent him flying. He flipped twice in midair before steadying himself.

BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!

Vegeta pursued, and Son Gohan rushed back to meet him. They collided, their fists smashing into each other's chests at the same time.

A shockwave erupted, knocking both of them back.

Vegeta lowered his head and glanced at his chest. His breastbone ached faintly. This brat was getting stronger the longer they fought.

Several figures landed almost simultaneously on a distant mountain ridge.

Such a terrifying battle had naturally drawn a group of warriors to watch.

Son Goku landed atop a protruding rock, arms folded as he stared at the battle below. Piccolo stood beside him, his expression unreadable.

Krillin, Tien, and Yamcha followed behind. The moment they landed, the oncoming shockwave forced them half a step back.

"So terrifying..." Cold sweat beaded on Krillin's forehead as he swallowed. "Gohan and Vegeta's ki... it's way too strong, isn't it?"

Tien's three eyes remained fixed on the battlefield as he said nothing.

The sound of an engine came from overhead.

A spacecraft landed on the flat ground nearby, and Bulma jumped out, her hair blown into a complete mess.

"Why are those two fighting?" Son Goku turned and asked.

Bulma sighed and briefly explained what had happened. Gohan had come to get the Gravity Chamber and happened to run into Vegeta coming out of the training room.

Vegeta had spoken in a hostile tone and tossed out a few provocations. Gohan had not indulged him, and after a few words, the two had flown here to fight.

"So that's what happened." Son Goku nodded, turning his gaze back to the battlefield with fighting spirit in his eyes. "Still, those two have improved way too fast."

"It makes my hands itch just watching." He clenched his fists, wanting to join the fight too.

Piccolo grabbed his shoulder. "Goku, don't make trouble. Let's see how things go first."

Son Goku chuckled and relaxed his fists.

Son Gohan threw a punch.

His right fist shot out fiercely from his waist, every ounce of strength in his body layering onto the strike.

The compressed air let out a sharp explosive crack.

Vegeta failed to dodge it.

The fist slammed solidly into his chest.

The force of the blow pierced through his pectorals. Vegeta felt the aftershock make his heart skip half a beat.

He was sent flying, tumbling through the air before crashing into the forested mountains.

Boom!

A massive crater was blasted into the ground, stones scattering in every direction.

Before he could even get up, countless energy blasts lit up overhead.

Son Gohan hovered in midair, alternately swinging both hands. Ki blasts erupted continuously from his palms.

He opened with the Prince's Battle Technique.

The golden blasts were as dense as a torrential downpour, too fast to dodge.

Ah! Da! Da! Da!

The explosions merged into one continuous roar.

Shattered rocks flew everywhere as dust and smoke billowed up from the ground.

When the dust cleared, Vegeta was half-kneeling at the bottom of the crater, one hand clutching his chest. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, and he looked severely wounded.

Son Gohan gave him no chance to catch his breath. He dove down, his aura leaving a white trail behind him.

Accelerating toward the ground, he viciously kicked Vegeta in the face with his right foot. Vegeta's head snapped back, blood spraying from his nose as he was sent flying.

Before he could hit the ground, Son Gohan had already appeared in front of him. His knee drove into Vegeta's abdomen, producing a dull, heavy thud.

Vegeta's limbs went limp and spread wide as he was blasted into the sky.

Son Gohan flashed, appearing above him with both fists clasped together, then smashed down hard.

His clasped fists struck Vegeta's back, the force penetrating through to his internal organs. Vegeta spat out a mouthful of blood and plummeted like a meteor.

Vegeta lay in the deep crater, covered in blood and no longer capable of resisting.

Son Gohan landed on the ground, his chest rising and falling slightly. This battle had consumed a great deal of his energy as well, but after it ended, both his recovery ability and physical strength had risen another level. I recover while I fight. At the same power level, my endurance is better than Vegeta's.

Several figures flew down from the mountain ridge. Son Goku landed first and hurriedly stepped in to stop them.

"That's enough, Gohan! If you keep going, you'll kill him."

Son Gohan withdrew his gaze and took a Senzu Bean from a small cloth pouch.

He tossed it into the crater, where it landed beside Vegeta's hand.

Vegeta's eyelids twitched. With great difficulty, he gathered a trace of strength, reached out, picked up the Senzu Bean, and put it into his mouth.

The next second, his injuries healed at a visible rate. He was restored to full health! He took a deep breath, stood up, and rolled his neck, his joints cracking loudly.

Vegeta clenched his fists and took a step forward, his aura rising again.

Son Gohan remained where he was, his expression calm. "Come at me, then. You think I'm afraid I won't be able to beat you to death?"

Vegeta stopped and glared at Son Gohan. He was unwilling to accept being beaten so badly, but he also knew that continuing would not change the outcome.

He snorted coldly and folded his arms across his chest.

Son Goku walked between them. "That's enough. It ends here." He turned to Son Gohan. "Gohan, the Gravity Chamber is finished. Aren't we going to the Hyperbolic Time Chamber to train tomorrow?"

After thinking it over, Son Gohan realized that was true and replied indifferently, "Fine."

Vegeta's ears twitched. He turned with a frown. "Kakarot. What is this Hyperbolic Time Chamber?"

"Uh—" Son Goku immediately realized he had let something slip and quickly covered his mouth, scratching his head with an honest grin.

But in the end, he could not withstand Vegeta's icy stare and told him the truth.

Son Goku said, "It's a training facility at Kami's Lookout. A year passes inside while only a day passes outside. Gohan, Piccolo, and I are planning to train there."

Vegeta's eyes gleamed. "In that case, I'm going too."

Son Goku opened his mouth, unsure what to say, then turned to look at Son Gohan.

Son Gohan glanced at Vegeta, his tone calm. "Sure. Come with us. It'll be useful when we deal with the androids."

Fine. Once we get there, if training doesn't kill you, I'll beat you to death. You're practically volunteering to be a punching bag.

Vegeta snorted and turned to Bulma. "Prepare a year's worth of food for me."

Bulma looked at the three Saiyans, calculated silently in her head, then took out her phone.

"Hello? Mobilize every restaurant. Make enough daily meal sets for three big eaters to last a year, and pack them into Capsule Corp capsules."

The battle was over.

The mountain forest grew quiet, leaving behind nothing but devastation. Deep craters covered the area, and the ground had practically been plowed over.

Krillin stood where he was and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

Tien stood beside him, his three eyes fixed on the ruined forest below. After a long silence, he finally said, "We need to train harder too."

Yamcha nodded, silently overwhelmed.

One after another, everyone powered up and flew away.

Up in the sky, Son Gohan and Son Goku were flying together.

Son Goku suddenly said, "Gohan, you were pretty ruthless today."

"He wouldn't submit, so I beat him until he did," Son Gohan said.

Son Goku thought for a moment, then grinned. The two streaks of white light flew toward Mount Paozu.