PART EIGHT: THE FIRST MEETING WITH THE LEGENDARY SUPER SAIYAN!

Chapter 37

Translated by American Vigor

Gohan woke up early for what was to be a day of rest and relaxation.

He was eager to go to the outdoor barbecue and karaoke fest that had been scheduled for later that day, in which he and his friends were to have fun times at a park.

He energetically got up out of bed and stretched for a few seconds, then clenched his fists. A golden aura suddenly formed around him, accompanied by changes in the colors of his hair and eyes. Then, after loosening his fists, the aura dissipated, although his hair and eyes retained the colors characteristic of his Full-Power Super Saiyan state. Through transforming into a Full-Power Super Saiyan, he was upholding his father’s recommendation to maintain the form throughout the day, and to relinquish it only for periods of sleep.

Now that he felt further invigorated for the day, he showered and then put on the set of clothes that Piccolo had offered him, which were of the appearance of the attire that Piccolo had traditionally worn.

He then went to join the rest of the group, and among those who were planning to attend the gathering were Bulma, Kulilin, Yamcha, Piccolo, Oolong, Kame Sennin, Trunks, and Vegeta.

Gohan did not sing much, and he knew that others likely would do so instead. Fortunately, the day was a quite beautiful one. However, it was unfortunate that his parents had left home even earlier than he had that day for the purpose of enrolling him in a reputable school, of which he had already forgotten the name. However, at the moment, Gohan did not consider anything related to school a priority, because if Cell proved victorious in a few days at the Cell Games, nothing else would matter.

After Gohan arrived at the park, he didn’t immediately see Vegeta, who had recently emerged from his second day of training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. As for Piccolo, he was standing a few meters away from the rest of the group, as usual. Kulilin, Yamcha, and Muten Roshi were preparing a small stage for the karaoke fun, and Bulma’s father, accompanied by his wife, approached them with a microphone in hand.

The event was part of a broader festival that was being held in honor of the arrival of spring, and the festival’s name – Hanami – literally meant “Flower Viewing.” Occasionally, just as Gohan and his friends were doing now, families and friends gathered under the park’s cherry blossom trees for picnics in celebration of the season. Even now, Gohan saw a few pink petals slowly falling from the cherry blossom trees under the influence of a gentle breeze. Spring, which usually was symbolically associated with renewal and rebirth, had a special connotation for this particular year, Age 767. They would fight with all their might at the Cell Games, and if they won the day, there would be a new era of peace on Earth, with Cell’s reign of terror defeated at last and the ways of true warriors upheld. If they failed, then this would be the last spring of peaceful renewal, as chaos and destruction would otherwise befall the planet. With the Cell Games ominously approaching, this picnic was one of the last opportunities the warriors of Earth and their friends would have to meet before the start of the tournament.

While many of the warriors had indeed gathered for the picnic, Tenshinhan and Chaotzu had declined the invitation. It was true that they generally avoided crowded areas and often decided to not mingle with the small group of friends. However, Gohan hoped that Dende would be able to later join them for the festivities, even though the new guardian of Earth had been hesitant to do so, as he wanted to properly fulfill his guardianship roles.

After greetings amongst each other, the warriors and friends talked about many pleasant things. They all avoided talking about Cell, as the purpose of this occasion was to relax.

At last, the moment for karaoke had arrived. Yamcha was the first to walk onto the karaoke stage to sing, and Bulma hurried to get Vegeta, who had decided to come to the park but had isolated himself from the group. As Yamcha started singing, almost everyone sat down to listen. To the pleasant surprise of most in the group, Yamcha was not a bad singer. After the conclusion of his song, Yamcha hopped off the stage and handed the microphone to Kulilin. Before Kulilin began singing, Bulma returned with Vegeta, although she had not been able to convince him to readily associate with everyone else. She felt it was enough that at least now he was just a few meters away, and she left him alone as he leaned against a nearby tree. Bulma then sat on the grass near the stage, while holding the young baby Trunks in her arms. Her son from the future was not far away, standing like his father, although close to the rest of the group.

Kulilin then began to sing, and while all who were listening to him regarded his song as a dissonant mess, many among them felt that hearing him sing was at least somewhat amusing. Gohan then looked toward Vegeta, who, upon having heard Kulilin’s singing, looked as though he was in the mood to kill.

“Vegeta! Come on over here and sit with us!” Gohan yelled to the Saiyan Prince. “Enjoy the party!”

The father of Trunks, however, was not there for fun. He considered Gohan’s words to have been reflective of naivety, and their overall tone and manner had reminded Vegeta of Kakarotto’s foolishness, which annoyed him further.

“I left the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, and what do I see? Kakarotto and his son having a good time!” Vegeta condescendingly said. “Instead of wasting your time here, you should be spending a second day in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, training to defeat that arrogant freak!”

Vegeta knew very well that Gohan and his father had achieved the ability to retain their Super Saiyan forms in a constant manner even when not in combat, although he still did not feel this alone would be enough to defeat Cell. He was still aggravated that he had not discovered the secret to maintaining the form as they had, but he was attempting to conceal as best as possible his frustration over that particular fact.

“Don’t worry, Vegeta. We still have many days before the Cell Games!” Gohan said.

At least, his father had told him to not worry. Gohan, while skeptical of how his father could be so relaxed in these dire days, still placed his trust in his father’s judgment.

Unfortunately, though, they were about to become aware of another significant threat, one that in many ways was more menacing than Cell!

While Kulilin’s song was coming to an end, a huge acorn-shaped spaceship suddenly landed close by, under the deafening thunder of powerful engines.

Upon seeing the spaceship, Gohan had stood up and entered a fighting stance. Piccolo soon landed near the group, and Kulilin dropped the microphone. Bulma stepped back and stood behind her future son, Trunks, who had traveled back in time from what one day would be referred to as Universe 12. She felt confident that her son from the future would be able to protect her and her baby.

As the engines of the spaceship quieted, a metallic ramp extended from the ship and soon touched the ground. Moments later, dozens of armored soldiers moved briskly down the ramp and surrounded the group, while directing their attention primarily toward Vegeta.

Upon sensing something unusual, Son Goku used his Instant Transmission technique and suddenly appeared about a meter to the right of Gohan. Without a word, they waited for the soldiers to make a move.

However, before the soldiers took further action, Vegeta and the others noticed another figure emerge from the spaceship and walk down the ramp. As the man approached, he carefully watched those who had gathered, especially Goku, Gohan, Trunks, and Piccolo.

After arriving within one meter of Vegeta, the man, to the extreme surprise of the warriors and friends, then bowed to Vegeta, with the soldiers then doing so as well!

Vegeta resultantly became even more curious about the man’s identity, and he recognized that the man in charge of the soldiers was wearing armor reminiscent of that worn by some members of Frieza’s forces. The armor was, however, somewhat different. It was colored mostly green, although the breastplate was red. The shoulder pads were not as large as those that had been typical of Frieza’s forces, and they just covered the shoulders, as opposed to extending well beyond them. Attached to his armor was a flowing white cape, which indeed suggested to Vegeta that this individual was a person of notable status.

A grin formed on Vegeta’s lips, as he had been significantly flattered by this sign of respect. It had been many years since he had seen anyone show such respect to him, and based on the man’s appearance, Vegeta, to his great delight, deduced that the man had bowed to him through recognizing his status as the Prince of Saiyans.

Moments later, the man began to speak.

He introduced himself as Paragus, a Saiyan who was one of the last survivors of the massacre perpetrated by the tyrant Frieza. Paragus continued his monologue and told them of Planet New Vegeta, which he had established as a base upon which to revive the Saiyan Empire.

“Your Majesty, as you are the prince of our people, I would be humbled for you to come with me to Planet New Vegeta so that you can truly begin your rightful reign as king,” Paragus said.

“That doesn’t interest me,” Vegeta dryly replied, before turning away from Paragus.

Paragus was quite surprised by this response, to say the least. He had been convinced that Vegeta would have been eager to accept the offer. While rising, he decided to reveal to Vegeta another – far more important – factor as to why he had come to Earth.

“Your majesty, I had been planning to tell you this later, but it seems you will benefit from becoming aware of this now ... the Legendary Super Saiyan has appeared!”

Vegeta instantly became shocked at the revelation.

He turned toward Paragus, eager to hear more.

“He has already destroyed many planets and annihilated entire solar systems,” Paragus said. “Soon, he might come to destroy Earth, or Planet New Vegeta!”

Upon hearing these words, Vegeta became far more intrigued. Paragus likely was older than Nappa would have been by this time, and the scar on his left eye enhanced his overall sense of charisma. However, Vegeta perceived that Paragus had no realistic capacity of becoming a true king, and even less capacity to overcome the Legendary Super Saiyan himself. But Vegeta knew that he, himself, could rise to the occasion. The Legendary Super Saiyan, in Vegeta’s mind, would be no match for the Prince of All Saiyans! Especially with the heightened powers he had acquired as a result of training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, he would vanquish this legendary warrior and claim his rightful status as king!

Vegeta had indeed been familiar with the legend, a legend that according to Paragus had been true. About once every 1,000 years, a Saiyan among many was born with extreme capability. With immeasurable power and an unquenchable thirst for destruction, the Legendary Super Saiyan was a living incarnation of the essences of violence and fighting. It was largely out of a fear that the legend could be true that Frieza had chosen to eradicate the Saiyan race, but it seemed that the Legendary Super Saiyan had survived even so. Vegeta had for many years hoped that he would emerge as the true Legendary Super Saiyan, and he had at one point on Planet Namek been dismayed that Kakarotto could have been the warrior of legend instead. However, both he and Kakarotto had managed to become Super Saiyans in their own right, and as far as Vegeta knew, the Legendary Super Saiyan was one reflective of his own caliber, and one whom Vegeta was worthy to challenge in combat.

Despite Son Goku’s protests, Vegeta agreed to travel with Paragus.

“Vegeta, the Cell Games are going to be held in just a few days!” Goku said. “We can’t leave Earth right now!”

“I don’t take orders from you!” Vegeta yelled, without even looking at his rival. “You’re spending your time foolishly by not training, and I want to do something worthwhile with my time. I’ll be back before the Cell Games begin so I can crush that fool with my own two hands, but right now, I have yet another opponent to vanquish. Kakarotto, by defeating the Legendary Super Saiyan, I will show you how much better I am than you!”

Because of Vegeta’s determination and in wanting to prevent anything of dire consequence from happening to him, all of the warriors who were present decided to go with him. Paragus could not prevent them from boarding the ship, and Vegeta had detested the idea. After all, it was he, and no one else, whom had been asked for help! He did not need anyone’s help to defeat the Legendary Super Saiyan! But after considering the fact that Kakarotto could in fact use his Instant Transmission technique to ensure that everyone would return to Earth in time for the start of the Cell Games, Vegeta begrudgingly let them accompany him.

Muten Roshi and Oolong decided to join the group as well. Roshi was relatively unconcerned about what might happen. The trip did not appeal much to Oolong, but as his friends were quite strong, he hoped that everything would be fine...

The trip did not last long and they arrived without difficulty on Planet New Vegeta. The landscape did not seem particularly exceptional, although a palace was situated atop a cliff.

Upon seeing them arrive, dozens of men shouted, "Long live King Vegeta!"

Paragus did not hesitate to refer to these soldiers as relatively worthless when Vegeta asked who these people were who seemed so proud to serve. It was indeed clear that these soldiers were not Saiyans, and Vegeta wondered exactly how Paragus had managed to compel these soldiers to pledge allegiance to the new Saiyan Empire.

Paragus then introduced Vegeta to his son, Broli, who also was a warrior in his service. Vegeta was pleased to learn that Broli was indeed a Saiyan, although upon more clearly sensing his power level, he found it to be dismally low.

While Vegeta traveled to many star systems with Paragus and Broli, all in an effort to locate the Legendary Super Saiyan, Gohan visited the lands outside the immediate vicinity of the palace grounds with Yamcha, Trunks, and Kulilin.

They discovered a landscape devastated by war, with cities in ruins and a people who had been enslaved after having been confronted by the Legendary Super Saiyan.

In addition to this unexpected development, Paragus was confronted with yet another unforeseen problem. Goku’s mere presence was making Broli unstable, and even uncontrollable via the mind-control device that Paragus had attached to his head.

It seemed that Broli had been deeply perturbed by Goku’s crying while they had been in the same nursery soon after they had been born, and the memory of that experience, recalled upon seeing Goku, seemed to have served as a trigger of Broli’s madness. Goku’s mere presence was making Broli practically uncontrollable!

For years, Paragus had controlled his son with a remote control on his right wrist that sent signals to the mind-control device on Broli’s head. Paragus could use the device to manipulate Broli’s power as he saw fit. He had needed to do this to protect himself from what had been his son’s madness, which had been the cause of Paragus’ loss of his left eye.

With this equipment, Paragus had become the undisputed master of the universe. He needed his son, who was by far the strongest warrior he had ever seen. Indeed, from a young age, Broli had been endowed with supernatural strength, with a thirst for widespread destruction.

The reunion between Broli and Goku, however, was changing the dynamic of Paragus’ control. Broli’s destructive tendencies, emblematic of his status as the true Legendary Super Saiyan, were resisting Paragus’ devices. Paragus realized that if Broli awoke completely, all his efforts to exact revenge would be in vain! He needed just a little more time...the comet was due to hit the planet soon, and Paragus planned to have it lead to Vegeta’s death, all in vengeance against the former King Vegeta, who had tried to kill him and Broli out of fear for what he was and what he might become.

However, after the attempt to kill them, Broli was able to awaken the latent power within him to protect him and his father from Planet Vegeta’s destruction.

Paragus was looking forward to achieving his revenge, but his activities had indeed aroused suspicion.

Despite providing his guests with rather good hospitality, including fine food, Piccolo had decided to keep a close watch over Paragus.

Also, in the midst of one evening, Broli had come into contact with Goku while he had been talking with Piccolo. Piccolo had noticed that when the two Saiyans’ eyes had met, Broli’s demeanor seemed to drastically change. It seemed as if he was being repressed in some way, although the repression did not last long.

He attacked Goku!

Goku soon understood, as a result of fighting Broli, that Broli was indeed the Legendary Super Saiyan whom Vegeta had been looking for. Goku realized that Broli’s strength was remarkable, and Piccolo also understood through observing the duel that Paragus had been trying to deceive them.

The next day, a few hours before the comet was to hit the planet, Goku and Piccolo informed the others of what they had discovered. Vegeta, however, did not believe them.

'Why is it that Broli would be interested in Kakarotto..?’ he thought to himself.

As he, too, had been suspicious of Paragus’ activities, Gohan decided to tell his father and others about the rest of the planet, including the savagery committed against the enslaved race of people. After hearing yet another claim of suspicious activity, Vegeta summoned Paragus and demanded an explanation.

As he determined that his insidious activities had in fact been recognized, Paragus confessed the truth of his plans and intentions. Paragus revealed that he had been planning to make the Earth, a jewel of the cosmos, the capital of his new empire, and that Planet New Vegeta had never been intended to be a new home for the Saiyan race. He said that he had attracted everyone to Planet New Vegeta because it was doomed to be destroyed, and that with their deaths, and especially Vegeta’s death, his vengeance would be complete and his new empire would be able to flourish.

He confirmed Broli’s status as the true Legendary Super Saiyan, and then mocked Vegeta, saying that with Broli at his side, no one would be able to oppose his new empire. However, Broli, upon seeing Goku again, began to march aggressively toward him. His blood was flowing all the more quickly through his body, and he was exuding a paramount rage.

As he approached Goku, Broli began to mutter unintelligible words. Paragus, despite his efforts, was finding his control over Broli to be woefully ineffective.

Broli then began to repeatedly shout “Kakarotto!” while his power augmented further and further. A bright golden aura suddenly surrounded him, and although Vegeta tried to attack him with a kick and then an energy blast, Vegeta, to his great alarm, saw that his attacks had not fazed Broli.

Broli’s anger was increasing by the moment, and his hair was pointed straight, with a dark purple coloration. With his golden aura cascading around him, the warriors of Earth recognized that while his hair had not turned gold, Broli was indeed in his Super Saiyan form, with his hair likely discolored because of the mind-control device.

Soon, however, despite the device, Broli let himself become overwhelmed by his strength, which caused the device to finally shatter. Now free of his father’s control, Broli’s appearance began to drastically change. After a significant expansion of his muscles, and radiant waves of energy, Broli’s Legendary Super Saiyan form was unveiled.

Faced with such destructive power, Vegeta became ineffably dismayed. He was enthralled by the sensation that all was lost, as the power radiating from the unleashed legend seemed insurmountable...