Earth's Survival Crisis!

Son Gohan naturally feared neither of them. In a flash, he dodged their pounce, throwing punches and kicks as he moved!

Bang!

Bang!

Spopovich and Yamu were knocked down, crashing heavily onto the tournament ring!

Backstage.

The Z Fighters stared in astonishment at the two men who had suddenly rushed onto the ring, only to be knocked down by Gohan in an instant.

Krillin said, "What... are those two guys doing? That's against the rules already, isn't it?!"

A cold glint flashed through Piccolo's eyes. He cast a sidelong glance at Shin and thought, Could this be the Supreme Kai's purpose? But why?

Son Goku did not react much. "Strange. Why did they attack Gohan? Did Gohan do something to provoke them?"

Everyone fell silent.

Was this really the time to be thinking about that?

In the arena.

The host finally came to his senses and immediately shouted into the microphone, "W-what is going on? Contestants Spopovich and Yamu suddenly rushed onto the ring and attacked contestant Great Saiyaman! This is a serious violation of the rules! Please leave the ring immediately, or I will disqualify both of you!"

Spopovich and Yamu struggled to their feet.

Even with their magically enhanced bodies, taking attacks from Super Saiyan Son Gohan was no easy matter. They had nearly met their ancestors.

Spopovich clutched his violently spasming stomach. Hearing the host below the ring yammering on, his face turned vicious as he raised a hand and fired an energy blast at him!

"An energy blast!" Krillin cried.

At once.

Gohan's gaze sharpened. He stepped in front of the host and casually swatted the energy blast away!

"Bastard! What are you doing? Are you trying to kill someone?!" Son Gohan demanded furiously.

Yamu picked up the energy-extraction device that had fallen to the ground, his expression grave. "Spopovich, this guy isn't simple. Let's attack together, subdue him first, then drain his energy!"

Spopovich nodded, and the two of them charged at Son Gohan with angry roars!

Son Gohan snorted coldly, not taking the feeble pair seriously at all.

Though their bodies had been magically modified and made them seem like supermen compared with ordinary people, before Super Saiyan Son Gohan, they were nothing more than stray dogs by the roadside.

With just a few punches and kicks, Son Gohan beat Spopovich and Yamu until they curled up on the ground in pain. Even with bodies that did not fear pain, they could not get back up anytime soon.

After a long while.

Spopovich and Yamu spat up sour fluid as they struggled to climb to their feet.

Yamu's eyes darkened as he said to Spopovich, "We're no match for him. Let's find our lord first and have him deal with this guy!"

Spopovich nodded in agreement.

Thus.

The two men shot Son Gohan vicious glares, then rose into the air and flew toward the horizon!

Backstage.

Shin watched Spopovich and Yamu fly away, then calmly reminded them, "I think you should chase after them."

Everyone was stunned.

Scratching his head, Son Goku said, "They did attack Gohan just now, but Gohan already gave them a good beating. There shouldn't be any need to pursue the matter, right?"

Krillin nodded as well. "Yeah, with their level, it shouldn't matter if we let them go."

But Piccolo's expression was grave. He did not believe that people who had drawn the Supreme Kai's attention could be so simple.

"Supreme Kai, is there something special about those two?" Piccolo asked.

Shin said calmly, "Those two are connected to the survival of your Earth."

"What?!"

Shin's words changed everyone's expressions as they stared at him in disbelief.

"It's complicated, and I can't explain it clearly in a short time. But I suggest you hurry and catch up to them, because those two are already almost out of sight," Shin reminded them.

Hearing that.

Everyone looked up and saw that Spopovich and Yamu, who had only just flown away, had already reached the far end of the horizon and were about to vanish from sight.

"Damn it!"

Piccolo cursed under his breath and was the first to give chase!

Seeing this.

Krillin looked helplessly at Son Goku, hoping he would make a decision.

Seeing that Piccolo had already gone after them, Son Goku said to the others, "Let's go help Piccolo too, okay?"

Vegeta said dissatisfiedly, "Kakarot, it'll soon be our turn to fight. Where do you think you're going at a time like this?!"

Son Goku looked at Vegeta with a headache and urged, "Vegeta, this isn't the time for a tournament, is it? Didn't you hear what the Supreme Kai said? Those two who attacked Gohan are connected to Earth's survival!"

Vegeta looked unwilling, but when he thought about Earth possibly being destroyed, his attitude softened.

"Hmph! I'll let you off this time, but once this is settled, you'd better fight me one-on-one in a proper duel!" Vegeta said.

Son Goku was somewhat surprised that Vegeta had been persuaded so easily, but he was delighted inside. This meant Vegeta had truly acknowledged Earth as his second home.

"Okay, I promise you. Once this is settled, I'll have a good fight with you!" Son Goku promised.

"Since we've decided, let's go catch up with Piccolo!" Son Goku said to everyone.

Krillin looked a little troubled. "I can go, but I need to tell my wife first."

"Goku, you go on ahead. I'll tell Android 18, then catch up with you!" With that, Krillin ran farther backstage.

Seeing this.

Son Goku turned and jumped onto the ring, explaining the situation to Son Gohan as concisely as possible. Then he asked, "That's what's going on. Gohan, are you coming with us?"

Son Gohan nodded in agreement almost without hesitation.

"Then let's go." Son Goku was the first to fly into the sky to chase after Piccolo!

Shin smiled faintly, rose into the air as well, and followed in Son Goku's footsteps.

Vegeta spat and hurried after them too.

Just then, Krillin came running out after informing his wife. Seeing that his companions had already flown away, he hurriedly chased after them.

Just as Son Gohan was about to follow them, Videl ran over.

"Mmff..."

Videl whimpered and gestured wildly. Her Silence had not yet been lifted.

Seeing Videl flail about as though she wanted to say something, her face red from holding it in yet unable to make a sound, Son Gohan was startled. "Videl, what's wrong?" he asked worriedly.

Videl pointed at her mouth, tears glimmering in her eyes, looking deeply aggrieved.

"Can't you talk?" Son Gohan asked anxiously.

"Mm-hmm! Mm-hmm!" Videl nodded repeatedly.

"What happened? Why can't you suddenly speak?" Son Gohan seemed even more anxious than Videl and kept questioning her.

But Videl made muffled noises for a long time without being able to say anything, which made Son Gohan frantic.

Just then, Kibito walked over and explained, "This young woman has been placed under a spell, which is why she cannot speak."

(End of chapter)