"Ten thousand times...?" Vegeta felt sick to his stomach.
The moment Temat finished speaking, he vanished and reappeared right in front of Vegeta in a blur. Then he drove a heavy punch straight into Vegeta's forehead.
"Gah!"
Vegeta cried out and fell flat onto his back. The ground shook violently when his body hit, but the very next moment he forced himself up again, glaring at Temat in rage and humiliation.
"Still want to keep going, Prince of Planet Vegeta?" Temat asked with a smile.
"Ken, do you really think this is funny?" Vegeta shouted.
"Ken? Him again?" Temat blinked, then shook his head lightly. "You've got the wrong person. I'm not this Ken you keep talking about."
"What? You're not Ken? That's impossible!" Vegeta said, his face full of disbelief.
"This is bad... I didn't expect him to be this strong," Goku said, his expression turning even heavier. Then he looked at Raditz. "You and Vegeta should get out of here."
Raditz stared at him blankly. "What? Then what about you? Why didn't you include yourself?"
"I want to try fighting him," Goku said, taking a deep breath, his eyes already lighting up with anticipation.
Raditz was stunned. "Are you out of your mind? You want to fight that guy?"
Goku did not answer. He used Instant Transmission at once and appeared beside Vegeta in a flash.
"Kakarot?" Vegeta said, startled. Then he quickly pointed at Temat. "Good. You're here. Take a look and tell me if that guy is Ken."
"He's not," Goku said, shaking his head.
"Not?" Vegeta still looked unconvinced.
"Did you forget?" Goku said, thinking it through aloud. "Ken doesn't have ki. Or rather, we can't sense anything from him at all. But Temat's ki is incredibly strong."
Vegeta snapped back to attention at once.
Right. Kakarot was correct.
Ken had never given off a normal presence like that. What he had was angel power, and that was completely different from pure ki.
"Still," Goku added as he looked Temat over, "now that his hair's turned silver-white, he really does look even more like Ken."
"Hmph. Maybe he's some clone Ken made," Vegeta muttered.
"Whether he is or not, the answer's the same. Fight first," Goku said with a grin before looking up at Temat. "Hey! I'll be your opponent."
Temat studied him with interest. "Oh? And who are you?"
"I'm Son Goku," Goku said with a smile.
"Son Goku? Aren't you a Saiyan?" Temat asked.
"I'm a Saiyan who grew up on Earth," Goku answered honestly.
Temat looked calm as ever. "Show me what you can do. But if you're just going to turn into the same form as the Prince of Planet Vegeta, then I suggest you surrender now."
"I can't transform like that," Goku said, pointing behind himself. "I don't have a tail."
Temat glanced where Goku pointed and saw that there really was no tail there.
Without wasting another second, Goku ignited crimson flames around his body and transformed into Super Saiyan God.
"Come on," he said, settling into a fighting stance.
"Red hair?" Temat said, mildly surprised.
"This is—"
Goku had barely gotten the words out when Vegeta stomped him straight into the ground, burying him deep in the earth.
Temat: "..."
"Are you two actually friends?" he asked flatly.
A moment later, Goku shot back out of the ground from another spot and rose into the air.
"Vegeta, what was that for? Ow..." Goku muttered, wincing.
"Kakarot, did I ever say I'd already lost to him?" Vegeta scoffed. "It's not your turn yet."
Goku scratched his head helplessly.
"Hmph. I only let my guard down because I thought he was Ken. Did you really think I'd lose to him?" Vegeta snorted.
Then he opened his mouth wide and began gathering energy for a mouth blast.
Temat's face shifted slightly. "Not good!"
In an instant, he vanished and reappeared directly above Vegeta, then kicked him hard in the mouth.
The blast Vegeta had just fired exploded inside his own mouth with a muffled boom.
The result was immediate.
By the time the smoke cleared, Vegeta's mouth was blackened, smoke was curling from it, and even the golden fur around his head had been scorched dark.
"That was close," Temat said, letting out a small breath. "If that attack had hit Planet Sadala, it could have done serious damage."
Goku burst out laughing. "Hahaha! Vegeta, now you look like a black ape!"
Temat laughed too, then gave Goku a look that meant more than he said aloud.
At that moment, he had a sudden feeling that this man called Son Goku was not actually a bad person.
Vegeta glared at Goku with murderous intensity.
Off to the side, Raditz finally could not hold back any longer and flew over.
"Kakarot, what kind of transformation is that?" he asked.
"Oh? This one? Super Saiyan God," Goku replied.
"Super... Saiyan... God?" Raditz's eyes widened so far they nearly popped out. "How is that possible? You were a low-class warrior. How could you have a transformation like that?"
Goku laughed. "Vegeta used to say the same thing."
The second Vegeta heard that, and especially that laugh, he felt a knife twist deeper into his chest.
That laugh was too much.
It sounds like you're mocking me.
Back then, I told you that you were a low-class warrior, and you answered that even a low-class warrior could surpass an elite if he trained hard enough.
And in the end, you proved it.
You really did surpass me.
"Shut up, Raditz!" Vegeta barked coldly. "Your battle power's not even two thousand. Don't butt in here like you belong! Do you have any idea how strong Kakarot is now?"
Raditz's mouth twitched. "H-How strong?"
"Hmph. I hate admitting it..." Vegeta said, his whole body shaking with frustration as he shrank back to normal. "But that idiot may already be above me."
Raditz froze completely.
Kakarot was stronger than Vegeta?
What kind of joke was that?
Was this really the same Kakarot I used to pound into the dirt?
"You've got to be kidding..." Raditz said with a strained, bitter smile.
Vegeta ignored him.
There was nothing to say to an idiot like that.
If this had been years ago, I'd already have killed you with one finger.
Temat smiled lightly. "Why change back, Prince of Planet Vegeta?"
Vegeta did not bother answering him. Instead, he turned to Goku. "Kakarot, didn't you want to fight him? Fine. Go."
"All right... then I'm up!" Goku said, loosening his shoulders before flashing directly in front of Temat and taking his stance.
Temat looked at him quietly. "You don't seem like a bad person. So why would you do something like this?"
"Huh? You mean Raditz?" Goku asked, pointing back at his brother.
Temat nodded. "Yes. He killed many innocent people. He was sentenced to permanent imprisonment. If you help him escape, more innocent people will die."
"I'll keep an eye on him. And he promised me he wouldn't do anything bad again," Goku said, scratching his head.
Temat smiled faintly. "Do you really believe him?"
"Not completely..." Goku admitted, looking troubled. "But I want to give him a chance. I even forgave Frieza, didn't I? Raditz is my real older brother. I think I should forgive him too... even if he did try to do awful things to Gohan before."
"Frieza? Who is that?" Temat asked, slightly confused.
"He was a really evil guy. Raditz used to work for him. Later I beat him," Goku said honestly.
Temat smiled. "So you're determined to save your brother."
Goku said nothing, but the answer was already obvious.
"Then I'll say it again," Temat continued. "Beat me, and I'll release him myself. But let me make one thing clear. If I ever find out he's killing innocents again, no matter how far away he is, I'll go there in person and kill him."
"I'll keep watch over him," Goku said, nodding.
"And if you lose, then he goes back to the Grand Prison without complaint. Fair enough?"
"Yeah. That's fair," Goku said without objection.
"Then come."
Temat crooked a finger at him.
"Right!" Goku answered, immediately settling into a proper fighting stance before launching himself forward in a roar of wind.
He fired a hard punch straight at Temat's face.
Temat calmly raised a single finger and blocked the punch with absurd ease.
Goku's expression changed instantly.
The gap between them really was that huge?
"Still want to continue?" Temat asked, smiling as ever. Then he struck with an open palm and drove it into Goku's chest.
Goku went sliding backward, his feet dragging two long furrows across the ground before he finally stamped one foot down hard and stopped himself by force.
He rubbed his chest and bared his teeth in pain. "Ow, ow... that hurts."
Vegeta stood off to one side in silence, measuring the difference between himself and Goku.
My Golden Great Ape form feels about on the same level as Kakarot's Super Saiyan God.
The thought alone made him feel better.
"Prince Temat, you've got this!" Lusen shouted from the sidelines.
"I told you already. If His Highness is fighting, then there's nothing to worry about," Renso said with complete confidence.
"The prince's transformation looks so cool," one of the men behind him said admiringly. "If I were a woman, I'd marry him."
"Give it a rest," his companion laughed. "If you were a woman, you'd definitely be ugly. His Highness wouldn't even look at you."
"If I were a woman, I'd let you have the first turn," the first man said, patting him on the shoulder.
"Now that sounds good!" the other one said with a laugh.
Renso: "..."
"Would you two stop making stupid jokes at a time like this?" he snapped darkly.
Up ahead, Goku had just steadied himself and looked back toward Temat.
Then his eyes narrowed.
Temat had vanished.
Goku's expression turned even more serious.
"He's behind me!"
He spun and kicked backward on instinct.
Temat raised one arm and blocked the kick effortlessly, then nodded in approval. "Not bad."
"So fast!" Goku said with a grin.
Temat gave him a long look. "Your name is Son Goku, right?"
"Yep, that's right."
"I can tell you're not using your real strength yet," Temat said calmly. "Bring it out."
Goku laughed. "You really do know a lot. Honestly, the more I look at you, the harder it is to believe you're not Ken... but your whole vibe is different. So I guess you really aren't him."
"Then maybe I should meet this Ken someday," Temat said with a smile. "Does he really look exactly like me?"
"Pretty close now that your hair is silver-white. He's got silver-white hair too," Goku answered.
"Then introduce us sometime," Temat said thoughtfully. "But before that, let's finish this."
"I'm not that easy to beat," Goku said.
Blue flames burst from his body, and in an instant his hair stood sharply upward as he transformed into Super Saiyan Blue.
Temat paused. "Blue hair?"
"This is my newest transformation," Goku explained honestly. "Super Saiyan on top of Super Saiyan God. That's why it looks like this."
The second Vegeta heard that, he visibly lost his composure. His face changed over and over, and his whole body started trembling.
That bastard Kakarot...
He has another transformation?
Since when?
How did I not know this?
Damn it!
Don't tell me he's already left me behind all over again.
Raditz's eyes widened so far they looked ready to tear. "Kakarot turned blue?"
No one answered him.
Mostly because Vegeta felt like his heart had just been stabbed clean through.
I trained so hard. I finally overcame the weakness of the Great Ape form.
And Kakarot just casually unlocked another transformation.
That blue form is obviously stronger than my Golden Great Ape.
"Did you see that? That guy's hair turned blue," Lusen said in shock.
"What is he, some kind of hairstylist?" one of the others muttered.
"He was red before, now he's blue. Which one's stronger?" the other man asked curiously.
"The prince is stronger," Cabba said with complete confidence.
"Cabba's right. Silver's stronger," Renso said with a firm nod.
"We can start over now," Goku said with a grin.
Temat smiled faintly. "You really do have a lot of colors."
Then he shot forward.
The next second, the two of them were clashing at full speed.
A storm of fists and kicks erupted between them as they fought back and forth in a rapid exchange, evenly matched for the moment.
Raditz stood there completely stunned.
Had Kakarot really become this strong?
I trained in the Grand Prison for years just to push my battle power to two thousand.
And these people are out here playing with hair colors?
This is ridiculous.
The fight raged on, and after a few more exchanges, Temat drove a kick into Goku's chest and knocked him straight out of the air.
Goku bared his teeth in pain and sucked in a sharp breath.
In the next instant, Temat blurred again and appeared directly behind him.
Then he struck with another palm, this one landing squarely in the middle of Goku's back.
Goku spat out a large mouthful of blood. The blue light around his body even flickered for a moment as his form almost gave way.
Then he pitched forward and crashed face-first into the ground.
Temat slowly descended and landed beside him. "Still want to keep going?"
Goku pushed himself up, grimacing as he rubbed at his aching body.
"If you don't surrender, then we can keep fighting until you do," Temat said, still smiling.
Goku looked at him for a second, then nodded.
"No, I'm not your match. I give up."
Temat: "..."
For the first time, he truly looked surprised.
He had not expected Goku to surrender that cleanly.
A Saiyan would rather die than give up... wouldn't he?
"But you are a Saiyan... right?" Temat asked, more than a little speechless.
"Of course I am," Goku said with a nod. "So let's stick to the deal. I'll leave Raditz here for now. Once I beat you later, I'll come back and get him. Sound good?"
Raditz: "..."
Ten thousand invisible horses stampeded through his head.
No.
That comparison makes me the idiot too.
His whole body felt numb.
"Kakarot, are you serious?" Raditz shouted furiously. "If you're going to do this, you shouldn't have bothered breaking me out at all! You gave me hope just to drag me right back into disappointment!"
Goku turned, looked at him, scratched his head, and thought for a moment.
"You know... that actually makes sense."
Raditz had no answer.
It felt like punching cotton.
"But I already promised Temat that if I lost, I'd take you back," Goku said with a troubled look. "So hang in there a little longer. Once I beat him, I'll come get you."
Temat nodded in satisfaction. "You keep your word. I like that."
"Then we're heading out for now," Goku said, waving to Temat before reaching out and grabbing Vegeta. "We'll be back."
Vegeta let out a snort, but he allowed Goku to take hold of him.
"When we've trained a little more, we'll come back and fight again," Goku said.
[End of chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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