The spatial tear sealed behind him, and Rhode stood in the familiar cosmos, his senses immediately reaching out to embrace the universe he had left behind. Earth. The Martial Arts Hall. The places he had called home for years.
I'm finally back.
But something was wrong. Aira's presence, usually a constant, comforting pressure at the edge of his perception, was absent. He searched, his senses expanding across the galaxy, then beyond. Nothing.
His heart clenched. No. She has to be okay.
Super Instant Transmission activated, the universal holographic map unfolding in his mind. He searched, scanning world after world, until finally—
There.
A desolate planet, lifeless and gray. And on its surface, two figures. One, a familiar, fierce silhouette wreathed in golden light. The other...
His eyes widened. A fused warrior?
The creature bore the unmistakable marks of Fusion—the strange, amalgamated features, the unified energy signature. And its power... three to four billion, at least. A staggering, terrifying level.
One of the components was clearly King Cold. The horns, the general build—unmistakable. The other... the red skin, the elegant features twisted into something grotesque... Zarbon.
King Cold and Zarbon fused? The absurdity of it almost made him laugh. Villains, using the heroic Fusion technique? And the result was this... monstrosity, with power multiplied thirty or forty times beyond either component. It shouldn't have been possible. Their compatibility should have been abysmal. And yet, the proof was before his eyes.
His gaze shifted to Aira. Her base power had grown—over one hundred million now, a testament to five years of relentless training. But against this fused abomination, she was vastly outmatched. And yet...
She wasn't afraid. She wasn't retreating. Her face, visible even from this distance, was alight with something Rhode recognized intimately: the fierce, reckless joy of a Saiyan facing an opponent who might finally, finally push them past their limits.
She's trying to trigger the transformation, he realized. She's using him as a catalyst.
His admiration for her courage warred with a cold, protective instinct. Thirty to forty times her power. If she faltered, if the transformation didn't come...
I have to be ready.
He didn't intervene. Not yet. This was her moment, her battle. But he hovered at the edge of perception, a ghost in the void, watching, waiting, prepared to act if the golden flame she sought consumed her instead of igniting her.
Three to four billion against one billion. The math was brutal, even with Aira's superior control. Unless she had developed something new in the five years he'd been gone, this fight would end badly long before any Super Saiyan transformation could trigger.
Rhode made a decision. In an instant, he shrunk to microscopic size and used Instant Transmission to attach himself to Aira—a ghost on her shoulder, ready to act.
The battle erupted.
Aira struck first, Great Ape Power blazing, her fist aimed at Kuganbo's face. The fused creature blocked with casual ease, a smug grin twisting his features. "You're no match for me now!"
"We'll see!" Aira's leg swept low, targeting his knee. The blow connected—and Kuganbo didn't even flinch.
"Foolish Saiyan," he sneered. "You made me exist. Now you die."
His leg shot up, then slammed down like a meteor, aiming to crush her. Aira vanished, reappearing behind him, her leg whipping toward his head with savage precision.
Kuganbo didn't bother defending. "I told you, you—"
**BANG! **
His head snapped sideways, eyes bulging in shock as Aira's kick connected with force that shouldn't have been possible. His body launched like a missile, carving a trench through the desolate landscape.
Rhode's eyes widened. That power spike...
In the instant of her attack, Aira's output had doubled. Not a sustained transformation, but a focused, momentary surge—a technique born of years of solitary refinement. A trump card she had crafted in his absence.
She's been busy.
Kuganbo crashed to a halt, climbing to his feet with a snarl. The smug confidence was gone, replaced by fury and dawning respect. "What... what was that?!"
Aira's smile was cold, fierce, and utterly Saiyan. "That was me, getting started."