Vegeta's attacks had no effect at all. Gritting his teeth, he exploded with an even fiercer offensive, his lightning-fast attacks coming from different directions, targeting Goku's weak points.
Goku, who was passively defending, was caught off guard.
It seems to have always been a consistent flaw of the Saiyans to get cocky when they have the upper hand and then turn the tables when the odds are against them.
No matter how strong they were, or how big the gap in power was.
However, after neutralizing more than a dozen of Vegeta's moves in a row, Goku had already seen through the pattern of his attacks.
"I've seen through your attack patterns!" With those words, Goku dodged Vegeta's attack at an extremely precise angle and landed a full-force punch squarely into Vegeta's abdomen.
Bang!!!! Struck hard, Vegeta was sent flying like a kite with its string cut. The crimson blood splattered through the air, looking particularly eerie.
Boom! Boom! Boom! … Vegeta's body smashed through several rocky mountains before finally coming to a stop.
Buried under rubble, his life or death was uncertain.
The battle seemed to have ended…
No!
It hadn't!
Boom!!! Suddenly, Vegeta erupted once more from beneath the rubble, his raging energy obliterating everything around him.
Instead of weakening, his aura surged even stronger after his injuries, his anger reaching the peak.
"Damn it! How could I possibly be defeated by you?!" Beaten down again and again, Vegeta's eyes were now bloodshot.
He leapt high into the sky, rising a kilometer up. His body swelled with power, a white-violet flaming aura rapidly swirling around him as he adopted an energy releasing posture.
There was no doubt. This was the prelude to him releasing a powerful move.
Sensing Vegeta's continuously rising aura, Goku showed no fear whatsoever.
"Then come at me with everything you've got." Standing firm on the ground, Goku's sharp eyes locked onto Vegeta above.
Crackle~~!!!
The weather changed, lightning wreaked havoc, and the land for miles around trembled violently from Vegeta's explosive power.
Before long, Vegeta's signature attack had taken shape.
"If you've got the guts, take this head-on!!! Galick—Gun!!!" From Vegeta's palms burst a white-violet energy beam, carrying the power to shatter stars, roaring straight toward Goku.
The terrifying might of this attack could rival an attack at a power level of 300,000.
Yet, instead of fear, Goku only grew more excited as he felt the power of this attack.
"Watch this!! Haaaa!!" Goku's aura erupted, and like a light breaking the dawn, he charged straight towards Vegeta's Galick Gun.
This sudden move shocked Talot, Raditz, and Salari. They hadn't expected him to act with such decisiveness.
Tien Shinhan, Chiaotzu, Krillin, Yamcha, and even Nappa couldn't help but break into a cold sweat for Goku.
Like a blade that cut through everything, Goku split Vegeta's Galick Gun in two. The destructive energy beam couldn't halt his advance at all!
"What?!!" Vegeta was stunned, and in that instant, Goku had already closed the distance.
With all his might, Goku unleashed the Penetrate!
BOOM!!!!!! The destructive punch landed squarely on Vegeta's chest, its sheer force piercing through his body and splitting the clouds behind him in half.
Puaaah~~!!! Blood spewed from Vegeta's mouth as he plummeted helplessly toward the ground.
[N-No… impossible… I am the prince… how could I lose to a Saiyan brat… I… I won't accept this!!] At this point, Vegeta had reached his absolute limit.
No matter what he had hidden, they were useless now.
Looking down at the falling Vegeta, Goku's expression suddenly turned stern, his face betraying no emotion.
That punch just now; he had actually held back. Otherwise, it would have been enough to kill Vegeta outright.
After all, that strike was unleashed while he was in his Super Saiyan form.
The victor had been decided!
…
On the ground.
Vegeta's gaze was unfocused, and his aura had dropped to a dangerously low point.
After taking Goku's Penetrate!, he was exhaling more than he was inhaling, with one foot already stepping into the underworld.
If he didn't receive treatment soon, this Saiyan prince might very well lose his life.
Seeing this, no one moved for a moment. In the distance, Nappa was already stunned, his entire body trembling.
Goku slowly descended from the sky, landing beside Vegeta. He released his Super Saiyan form, looking down at Vegeta who was on the verge of death.
Even though he had held back, the gap between them was still far too great.
And the technique's power was simply formidable, not something an ordinary opponent could withstand.
"As I thought, Penetrate! can't be used recklessly. He's already close to death." Goku's voice carried deep regret.
He was still young, and his heart was kind.
And Vegeta wasn't here to invade like in the original work.
So he never intended to kill Vegeta, but he couldn't help the outcome.
He still couldn't fully control the power of Super Saiyan.
In the next moment, Goku suddenly sensed three auras approaching.
Without a doubt, it was Talot, Salari, and Raditz.
Seeing his siblings arrive, Goku asked with slight urgency, "Brother Talot, Brother Raditz, Sister Salari, he's dying. What should we do now?"
He didn't want to see anyone die before his eyes, even if the person before him, Vegeta, wasn't exactly a good man.
Hearing this, Raditz and Salari glanced at Talot.
In their eyes, whether Vegeta lived or died was inconsequential; it wouldn't affect them in the slightest.
Talot reached out and ruffled Goku's hair, saying, "You don't want him to die, do you, Kakarot?"
"Mm. He's a really strong opponent. I have a feeling he'll become even stronger in the future. I want to fight him again someday, when he also becomes a Super Saiyan, and defeat him fair and square…" Goku's reply satisfied Talot. Raditz and Salari, hearing this, exchanged a look.
"I understand. Since it's your request, Kakarot, I'll save his life." Talot gave a faint smile. Even if Goku hadn't said it, he wouldn't let Vegeta, the original work's second lead, die here.
Please support on pat*eon for extra chapters; there is date to date subscription enabled on patreon. [There is a 7-day trial version availabe on patreon.]
https://www.pat*eon.com/dmtranslations
You can read ahead upto 20 chapters on my pa*reon.