PART THIRTY ONE: ULTIMATE WARRIORS

Chapter 152

Translated by npberryhill

As the fighting escalated in further violence and rage, a drama was unfolding outside the arena. Universe 13 Nappa had sadistically crushed Videl of the 18th’s stomach, her body shattered from the damage she’d suffered. While still alive, she was in utter agony, streaks of blood running down the corners of her mouth, the liquid nearly suffocating her. Nappa didn’t hesitate to stomp his boot down even harder upon the screaming Earth woman.

It was at that point that Bra had finally regained consciousness. She had been stunned by the bald Saiyan, and felt a sharp pain across all her limbs as well as dizziness in her head. But hearing the desperate cries of her protector nearby, she realized what was happening. Turning her head, she witnessed the psychopath continue to torment Videl. A rush suddenly came over her, a righteous rage in response to the horror Vegeta’s daughter had just witnessed.

“Vi... Videl!!! she roared, straining to pull herself back onto shaky legs.

“Well, look who’s back up!” Nappa said, turning to her. “Did you sleep well, kid? I hope you took advantage of your free little nap, because now it’s your turn to be squashed under my boot, you insect!”

“You... monster...” she panted, staggering and suppressing a groan of pain. “Let her go!”

“I’ll let her go, sure,” Nappa repeated with a vicious smile. “After I smash every last bone of hers to pieces!”

A new burst of fury suddenly seized Bra, the adrenaline taking over her muscles, and she felt herself rushing towards the Saiyan without even realizing it. The fear and anger had melded into an unknown instinctual reaction, which now dictated her actions, to her own confusion. Was this the same protective rage felt by the other Saiyans of Earth, who had always fought to protect their loved ones and their homeworld? Either way, she was horrified at the sight of Videl in such a state, and refused to watch idly as the woman who had intervened to save her writhed in excruciating pain.

But her assault was interrupted suddenly, as a powerful blast of energy swept past her just inches from her face, seemingly a stray attack from the arena that continued onwards. She froze, trembling with anguish as Nappa sneered and stared back at her. He outstretched his arm.

“I won’t get caught off-guard again. I felt your power starting to rise back up, well whatever tiny energy you have anyway. You should’ve trained, royal little brat. You just stay put while I dismember your girlfriend here. Do that, and I’ll kill you before you have to suffer as much as she is, ha ha ha!”

Bra recoiled, but raised her arms shakily, barely able to form a wobbly guard. She would never abandon Videl to such a terrible fate. She may have fallen short, and she was still completely terrified, but to die without her pride, without fighting to the last, was something she would never do! Somewhere in her mind, stories about her father seemed to arise from nowhere, of the many brave battles he’d fought. They seemed to hold new meaning to her now, as if she at last understood what it took to fight a battle to the end without ever compromising her pride. If only she had trained, even a little, she could have surely defeated this Saiyan and been able to protect Videl, now even closer to death on the ground. Bra felt the shame of her helplessness.

She was no Super Saiyan, like her counterpart of the 16th, nor was she a fighter at all — she preferred to have a social life, to pursue the interests that any normal teenager might... But she now knew that it would not be so easy to deny the line from which she was descended. Even this Saiyan bully had referred to her as a princess of their race. She didn’t give a damn about that title. Even her father, though he would regularly remind her of her lineage and the potential strength that lay dormant within her, treated her not like a martial arts pupil but like a daughter. She had no doubt of the fury that would consume his face were he to see her attacked by these evil soldiers. And she would fight to the very end, to honor her father whom she adored — even though she’d never actually told him.

“I’m not going to let you go on anymore, you shit-for-brains bully,” she spat in disgust. “I don’t care if I’m a Saiyan Princess, even my Dad has moved on from that old-fashioned royalty stuff. But you listen and listen well, he loves me with everything he has. And if I die, I swear he’ll make you regret ever having touched a single hair on my head, don’t you doubt that for a second!”

“Hmph!” sneered the giant, moving his arm slightly in the direction of the girl’s face. “Finally looks like you’ve found your guts, kid, here at the end. Very well then, your Majesty, I’ll honor you with a quick death after all! Die!”

The Saiyan created a powerful Kikoha, which he fired straight at Bra, paralyzed with dread. But as the energy sphere was about to disintegrate her, it suddenly exploded into tiny fragments and scattered around. Bra, shocked, could only admire the small flashes of light that as they flickered out. As for Nappa, he was speechless, and felt a sudden stinging sensation on his leg, the one which had been stomping on Videl. For that matter, he strangely noticed that he could no longer feel her under his boot. He no longer had a boot at all!

Looking down in dread, he saw his leg had been ripped off from the knee down, blood cascading down from the severed hip-bone. Further down, Videl was lying on the ground gently, her husband at her side.

Sensing Videl’s lifeforce slowly fading, Son Gohan of the 16th had completely abandoned his fight with Cell to come to the rescue of his wife and Bra. It didn’t matter that she was from another universe, he would never allow the woman he loved to die. His mind had already been permanently scarred by Pan’s death at the hands of Bojack, and he couldn’t bear to see something like that happen again, not to his daughter or his wife. Now, having seen Videl’s condition, that legendary righteous fury had once again seized Gohan. Nappa was about to experience the true meaning of the word regret.

Videl opened her eyes, looking tenderly at him and barely managing to whisper. “...ah... Thank you for saving me... my darling....”

She tried to stand, fighting the pain, and helped to her feet by Son Gohan. She coughed out another wad of blood, which partially got on her husband from another universe — but the half-Saiyan didn’t care, he just hoped she was going to be alright.

“Take it easy, Videl, don’t force yourself!” he said hurriedly.

The latter smiled and gratefully placed a kiss on the lips of her soulmate, shutting her eyes, cheeks flushed. Son Gohan turned the same color, embarrassed for several reasons.

“Oh uh... I’m not your...”

“...Oh... Oops,” Videl blushed, realizing this was Gohan of Universe 16. Deep down though, she ignored the awkwardness. They were practically identical, and she knew she could count on this Gohan just the same. Whether it was her version or not, Gohan was a wonderful man in any universe, and someone she would always be grateful to have in her life.

However, the respite was short-lived. With his attention focused on Videl, Son Gohan had momentarily forgotten about Nappa. The latter had taken the opportunity to slip discreetly behind Bra, grab her neck from behind, and lift her off the ground.

“No more posturing! I’ve got this feeble little girl! If you don’t want her to die, give me some of that miracle medicine! I know you’ve got some kinda healing trick!”

“Ackk...” Bra’s suppressed voice was faint as Nappa tightened around her airpipe, her legs dangling in the air.

Son Gohan stared intently at the Saiyan, a glint of pure hatred in his eyes. Videl didn’t say a word, though worried about Bra she knew it was all in Gohan’s hands now. As for the half-Saiyan, he’d had enough. These same brutal and selfish enemies, threatening his loved ones yet again — Cell, Nappa, the Frost Demons, Babidi... It was time he put a definitive end to this insanity.

“I’m sick of this crap!” Gohan said, suddenly disappearing.

Before even realizing it, Nappa had lost his right arm as well, with which he’d been holding Bra tightly against him. In that fraction of a second, Gohan had freed Vegeta’s daughter from the grip of her tormentor, bringing her to safety while tearing off the bald brute’s forearm. The latter hadn’t even totally registered what had happened.

“No sudden moves, I’ve got my eyes on you AAAAHH!” he screamed, now terrified.

His howl died down as a loud barrage of blows smashed into his body at extraordinary speed. Goku’s Son had at last reached the threshold of his patience and tolerance. During the tournament he’d seen all of his former enemies, each of them just as twisted and evil as he remembered. They’d fully displayed their cruelty, selfishness, ambition, and their sadistic pleasure in hurting others. His own daughter of course had been a victim of Bojack, while Cell had threatened his wife and relatives. Now he faced one of the very enemies that had sent his peaceful childhood into a violent cycle, the Saiyan that had killed his mentor. Add to that Babidi was the puppeteer behind all of this, and Son Gohan was in a state of unyielding determination. Any pity or mercy he might normally feel was a forgotten notion, even the sight of these nightmares from his past brought him unspeakable loathing. These villains were about to disappear once and for all, and he had the power to make that happen. To put an end to this absurd chaos, he would hold nothing back.

Without hesitation, Gohan continued striking Nappa’s body with blows so powerful that each one disintegrated a different part of its target into tiny crumbs. With only the Saiyan’s head remaining, which fell limply to the ground and rolled on its side, Nappa was completely vanquished. Videl and Bra covered their eyes.

“I have! Had! ENOUGH! I will annihilate you all, do you hear me, Babidi!? I’m ending your stupid takeover right now, starting with every one of your soldiers. And then it’ll be your turn!”

Another power level was quickly declining nearby, catching his attention. The flickering spark of life belonged to Son Goten, also from Universe 18, identical to his own younger brother. Kakarotto of the 13th, he could sense, was the cause. Yet again that barbaric version of his father was proving why he deserved to die.

Gohan was sick of this

As the events unfolded unexpectedly, Ginyu, under the disguise of King Cold, was gradually being pushed back towards one side of the arena. His two divine adversaries had been joined by the youngest of the Kais. With only two, their psychic shackles had been simple enough to break through, but he hadn’t anticipated a third master of the telekinetic arts.

The three of them together had managed to immobilize Cold once again, forcing a retreat. The Demon’s superior strength would do him no good if he couldn’t find a way to break out of this psychic cage the Kaioshins had created. Ginyu cursed himself mentally for having devoted all of his training exclusively to physical might and energy techniques. He recalled how Lord Freeza had always taken a more balanced approach, taking full advantage of his family’s predisposition to psychokinesis.

“You’re finished, you monster!” cried the West Kaioshin, her arms shaking. “Trapped with nowhere to go. Surrender now!”

Cold hissed in frustration. Surrender? No, he hadn’t been defeated, merely his body had been paralyzed. Fortunately, he did have a trusty technique, one which these Kaioshins hadn’t managed to pick up on back in the third round. They would never see it coming...

With a sudden smile, Cold exclaimed “Change now!”

North Kaioshin was the first victim, surprised by the sudden luminescent ray that shot from the Demon’s throat. Instantly, the two exchanged bodies. The Kaioshin blinked in shock, unprepared for the feeling of a new body, especially a gigantic one with four arms and a massive forked tail. But before he could even get his bearings, a bloody tragedy unfolded above.

Without wasting a second, Ginyu slit the throat of North Kaioshin’s body, which he’d just taken control of. Swiftly, with its last breath, he then changed bodies with the Eastern Kaioshin, who hadn’t yet reacted or understood his dire situation. Throughout his journey of survival and concealment, over many years, Ginyu had fine tuned the body-exchange technique to the extreme. He could now even control the bodies of extremely powerful beings such as Universe 16 Bra. Not only that, he’d improved the technique’s speed of execution.

Precision.

Immediate installment in the body of the victim, down to the smallest cell.

And last but not least, a most pleasant surprise.

As he sheared the throat of the Eastern Kaioshin, the spirit of the East Kai succumbed to the mortal wound of the North Kaioshin’s body, which he only inhabited a few moments before passing away. Northern Kai, experiencing the shock of the carnage and the body change, knew he had to step in. Cold’s body was completely foreign to him, but he couldn’t be caught off guard again.

No excuses.

He now possessed powerful fists, masterful energy, and the ability to fly. It wasn’t all that complicated. And he had rage, instincts which took precedence over reflection and hesitation. Without wasting a moment, the Kaioshin of the North rushed towards the Eastern Kaioshin’s body with his Jurassic physique. Ginyu had also just slit the throat of the East Kai, readying his next jump. Cold’s body struck with all its might, but he was too late — a thin stream of light shooting out of the crushed corpse’s body. He roared with rage and frustration.

Ginyu’s soul was heading straight for the last remaining Kaioshin body. Finally catching on, and with her given affinity to mind and soul powers, the goddess spotted the transfer ray heading in her direction and instinctively dodged it. What would happen now that the parasite had missed? Would a random spectator become his new host? If that were the case, she’d have to quickly anticipate Ginyu’s arrival and finish him off before he could jump again!

However, as she flew off in pursuit of the beam, the ray of light sudden spun back towards her — she had no time to react, so shocked by the phenomenon that her reflexes failed her.

“Hey hey...” Ginyu chuckled, having inserted himself into the deity’s body.

The body change technique had always had that as a weak point, which in some universes caused him to change bodies with the wrong target. He’d dedicated himself to fixing that. Back when he’d first acquired the ability, as a young child, his first attempts had all been dismal. Whenever he missed a target his body would inevitably end up hitting an animal. Fortunately for him, members of his species were able to help him return to his original body. He had also discovered that upon contact with an inert object, such as a rock, the beam would merely return him to his previous body.

By the time he succeeded in acquiring the horned purple body most well-known as the illustrious Captain Ginyu, his progress mastering the body change technique was somewhat obsolete. He was able to return to the service of Lord Freeza and use his new strength with complete success for many years. With the prestige he’d earned, had no need to practice or continue to develop the body change skill.

It was only after being betrayed by the master he so revered that the Captain was forced to push the technique to its full potential. Just as Freeza had made it a priority to have control of his original form, Ginyu endeavored to master all aspects of his technique. It would require utmost stealth, efficiency, and accuracy, as his very survival was at stake. He could be in mortal danger at any time.

Hundreds of bodies later, he had finally succeeded in piloting the soul itself, his own consciousness being directed in the beam whichever direction he saw fit as he searched for a new host. To some extent, Ginyu had achieved a level of perfection in the art of survival — similar to the superiority and determination shown by Cell and Buu. He’d mastered his own form of dominance, so that when it came to the exchange of bodies and control of his soul, he was the undisputed best.

Having now taken control of the body of West Kaioshin, he quickly directed an energy blade in his new hand up to the girl’s throat, preparing yet another suicide. However, North Kaioshin, from within Cold’s body, fired a psychic wave that narrowly prevented Ginyu from claiming another Kaioshin death. Without wasting a moment, he jabbed his monstrous tail forward, impaling Ginyu, within the girl’s body, with it. Sad though it was, he had to eliminate this parasite quickly and at any cost, including destroying the body of his divine sister.

With Western Kaioshin’s body falling to the ground as blood spilled everywhere, the receptacle hung limply, emptied of life. North Kaioshin wore a justified grin of vengeance.

“Got you, you bastard! It’s over...”

“Indeed,” a honeyed voice nearby chuckled. “It is over.”

The Kaioshin froze, slowly turning his head towards the voice. It belonged to a short alien near the body of the fallen goddess on the ground, the individual wearing a vicious grin of satisfaction.

“What a pitiful attempt. It’s time I put an end to the last of you worthless relics.”

The body thief had reacted to North Kai’s psychic Kiai by taking it head on. He knew the deity would go to any lengths to bring him down, and had used the momentum following the shockwave to extricate himself and exchange bodies again — happening upon a random soldier among Freeza’s army that was by chance closeby. That soldier bore the brutal impalement of Cold’s tail.

North Kaioshin’s failure had started to sink in, and the despair was evident on his face. The weight of every death, all of the other Kaioshin, was on his shoulders, due to his incompetence. This body jumper had evaded him at every turn and now all hope seemed lost.

“No...” he grumbled, his will having nearly evaporated. All that remained was a soul filled with regret and sorrow.

Ginyu merely chuckled at the hopeless face of the Kaioshin before swapping bodies a final time. Hardly reinstated in the reptilian father of the Empire, the ex-captain of the Ginyu force made short work of North Kaioshin. A single violent swipe of his tail severed the small body in half before Ginyu let out a powerful cry of victory

“Master Babidi, I have defeated the gods themselves for you!!”

He never suspected those words would be his last.

One minute prior...

Son Goten from Universe 18 was near death, lying on the patio of the same number, being deprived of air by the merciless grip of Kakarotto. The insane Saiyan was experiencing a mad ecstasy as he slowly crushed the life from the worm beneath him. It reminded him of the good old days, back when he tortured most of the Earthlings, and many other species in space once joining with the others. He also couldn’t contemplate why his supposed own offspring could turn out so fragile and unable to fight. His counterpart might be on the same level as Emperor Vegeta, that Super Saiyan form with the ridiculously long hair, but his child was sickeningly weak.

“You’re so pathetic, scum!” Kakarotto sneered. “Talk talk talk, but you can’t back up shit, you’re all for show! I bet your dad and his fucking friends aren’t any better! Nappa’s out there right now crushing that little girl, Vegeta’s kid, to a pulp and there’s nothing you can do about it!”

“...Ha... Ha, ha...”

Kakarotto’s only remaining good eye opened in amazement. Somehow, even with his last breaths, this stupid brat was still trying to provoke him.

“Poor... idiot...” he grunted with difficulty. “You’re... gonna... get... trashed... so... bad...”

“Huh?” said Kakarotto, taken aback.

He tightened his grip on Goten’s neck, the boy’s legs hanging limply above the ground. His eyes were glassy, the last flicker of life almost having left his body. But Son Goten had felt it, a peace of mind before his own eternal rest: a tempestuous fury had just awoken outside the arena, one which would reap a storm of vengeance upon this evil.

“Who? Who’s this supposed savior that’s going to trash me, eh?” Kakarotto roared through his madness. “Where is he? You’re a fucking dead man and you’re still shit talking out your ass!” Kakarotto squeezed as hard as he could on Goten’s neck now. “I’ll tell you where he is! Made up! There’s nobody left with the balls to mess with—”

His words cut off mid sentence, the expression on his face going from malicious joy to shock and utter fear almost instantly. Suddenly, upon his body, all the fury of a vengeful Son Gohan was unloaded — as if time stood still, Kakarotto was hammered from head to toe with unblockable and overwhelming furious blows. He could only watch in horror as his son from a parallel dimension unleashed a fierce hatred upon him with such speed that he couldn’t even make out the individual movements.

In less than a second, it was over. What remained of Kakarotto’s body were but small shards of flesh that had been ripped away piece by piece amidst a red mist of guilty Saiyan blood in the air. An instant later his head itself, still wearing that shocked look of agony, was completely vaporized in a final energy blast. The same fate that had befallen Nappa moments ago had taken another victim. It’s name, the merciless and vengeful warrior of justice: Son Gohan.

Goten collapsed to the ground, barely breathing, when his brother rushed over to him. Gohan couldn’t hide the concern on his face seeing his brother’s injuries, even if this Goten wasn’t from his home universe.

“Goten, just hang in there!” he said, trying to help him sit up straight.

That’s when he heard a loud voice from nearby in the arena triumphantly announce:

“Master Babidi, I have defeated the gods themselves for you!!”

Gohan turned to see the blood-covered corpses of the Kaioshins littered at the feet of the giant Frost Demon. Seeing them so savagely slaughtered only amplified his anger once again.

“No more.” Gohan said, stretching his arm towards Ginyu, his teeth gritted in rage.

A massive energy beam emerged from his hand in the direction of Ginyu. The former captain of the Ginyu Force sensed the energy, suddenly panicking, but it was already too late to flee. His last desperate plea of “Chaaa—” was cut off by the enveloping ki blast.

Even though he’d had the speed to evade North Kaioshin’s blast, Son Gohan’s was so much faster, so much more fierce and relentless — there wasn’t the slightest hesitation in his attack. Cold’s body, and Ginyu within, was completely vaporized. Even his second augmentation form, even with a majin boost, the frost demon was nothing against the might of Mystic Gohan. In an instant, Babidi had lost another of his strongest soldiers.

Gohan lowered his arm, his face bemused, then hurried over to his brother, helping him up and wrapping the lad’s arm around his shoulder. The young half-Saiyan was still on the verge of death, but managed to whisper his thanks.

“You... came... I had... no doubt...”

“Hold on, Goten,” Gohan exclaimed, raising his voice in the direction of Piccolo suddenly. “I need a senzu bean, Piccolo, hurry!”

Having witnessed the determination and fury of Gohan, the younger brother had been completely reassured. There was no way Babidi would win now, not with Gohan there, blessed with the ancestral magic of the Kaioshins. However, someone else in the arena found Son Gohan’s sudden flashes of power to be most intriguing...

As Son Gohan had been pulverizing Kakarotto and Cold, another fight had finally come to an end up in midair, just above the Universe 19 patio. In spite of their fierce resistance, the two Heloites had been defeated by Cell, who wore a sadistic grin as always. The crest on the left side of his head had been sliced off by that damn ray, but he hadn’t been otherwise injured. His power had only increased with this battle. Unlike the Saiyans, whose limitations were quickly reached with the zenkai method, Cell had found that emerging from near death situations via his regeneration still netted him quite the boon.

His perfect body allowed him to acquire new strengths and abilities through the combined cells of so many. Surviving from near-annihilation was sure to boost his power even higher, provided that the conditions were met: that being that the damage was real, unexpected, and deadly. His implosion during the fight with Tapion had failed to meet these conditions. However, facing the Heloits, he’d been genuinely struck by surprise and underestimated their weaponry. It had almost cost him his life, and for a moment he had feared his own stupidity might indeed have proved fatal this time. He now owed them for helping him achieve yet another all-important powerup. It was one which he was certain he would need against Son Gohan — the latter which had still not been giving his true 100%. Cell could sense the truth in Gohan’s yet hidden reserves.

Now was the perfect time for their long awaited rematch — but more than anything he wanted to force Gohan, body and soul, to reveal his absolute maximum power. For that to happen, there were still pieces on the board that needed to be removed.

Cell held a semi-conscious Nedwook in one hand and Phipsil in the other. For the past twenty seconds, he’d been sucking the life out of her through his tail. She seemed to be in terrible pain, being sapped of her strength and tortured at the same time.

Finally retracting his sharp appendage, Cell smirked and let the Heloites fall unceremoniously to the ground below.

“Very well. Now then...”

He turned his eyes to the adjoining patio, where Son Gohan was helping his little brother. Cell sighed wearily, deciding to take the next step.

‘Master,’ he telepathically warned Babidi. ‘I’ve finished dealing with Universe 19. I’ll kill both the Piccolos immediately, then there will only be the two Gohans left to take care of and we’ll have won!’

There was no response. It seemed Babidi was busy dealing with the other Son Gohan. That was even better, and he was free to do exactly as he pleased.

Further up in the grandstands…

Piccolo was battling fiercely up in the spectator bleachers, alongside his counterpart from Universe 18 and Videl. Gradually Babidi’s strength had diminished. At this pace, they would soon overcome their extreme numerical disadvantage, evening things out between the two sides.

That’s when Piccolo heard Gohan’s voice in the distance.

“I need a senzu bean, Piccolo, hurry!”

He’d barely reacted to his pupil’s urgent message when he suddenly sensed a massive surge of energy appear behind him. Horrified, he didn’t even have time to utter a word. The Namek was sliced in half with a single brutal gesture from Cell, who hadn’t wasted a second.

As the two severed sections of Piccolo fell to the ground, the perfect warrior rushed the other Piccolo and Son Gohan’s wife — who spun towards him in terror. It was time to make the situation far more dramatic... and much more interesting.