If Piccolo knew what Son Gohan was thinking, he'd definitely feel even more regret.
Once such a brilliant warrior, Gohan had gone to Namek to fight Frieza at a young age. He later battled against Cell and defeated him. Even in the fight with Majin Buu, he transformed into Ultimate Gohan and pummeled Super Buu. Although he didn't finish the job—due to Buu absorbing him and Gotenks—his strength at the time was still at the pinnacle of solo combat.
But now, that same Gohan was trying to prove himself by defeating one of Frieza's minor henchmen.
A fall from grace, truly.
Luckily, Tagoma—the "minor henchman"—had no idea what Piccolo was thinking. Otherwise, he'd definitely protest: he was no mere underling! He had trained alongside King Frieza himself for several months!
When Gohan insisted on fighting Tagoma alone, Piccolo didn't object. He stepped aside and let Gohan handle it. However, if Gohan couldn't manage, Piccolo was ready to jump in. Still, he figured that as long as Gohan turned Super Saiyan, he should win handily.
At least... that's what he hoped.
Piccolo found himself uncertain. The confidence he once had in Gohan had long since been eroded by years of neglect and stagnation.
At that moment, Tagoma—having just been kicked away by Piccolo—charged again. This time, he aimed his attack directly at Piccolo.
But before the attack could land, Gohan intervened, stepping between them and deflecting Tagoma's blow.
Then came a roar.
Golden light erupted around Gohan, and in the blink of an eye, he transformed into a Super Saiyan.
If you didn't know who the enemy was, the moment would've felt epic—Gohan protecting his "Uncle Piccolo" and transforming in a burst of power. It was classic shounen heroism.
But considering the opponent was just a random lackey of Frieza?
The drama felt... off.
"Super Saiyan, huh? Interesting," Frieza said from afar, a flicker of amusement on his face. "Even the son of Goku has learned to transform now."
He remembered Gohan from Namek—just a child back then, barely a nuisance. Now, that same child was glowing gold. It was honestly getting ridiculous. Super Saiyans used to be legendary. Now they were everywhere.
That said, Frieza's amusement turned to irritation. He had lost twice to Super Saiyans in the past—first to Goku, then to Trunks.
Seeing another one now stirred up old resentment.
Still, Gohan wasn't worth the effort. If it had been Goku transforming, Frieza might have truly lost his temper. But for now, he remained calm.
Gohan, meanwhile, launched his assault on Tagoma. The sudden boost in strength turned the tide instantly. Tagoma, who had earlier pushed him back, was now on the defensive.
Piccolo, Goku, and the others all sighed in quiet relief. At least Gohan could still pull it off when it mattered.
If Gohan had failed even as a Super Saiyan, they honestly wouldn't know what to say.
Fortunately, under Gohan's intense barrage, Tagoma collapsed, clutching his stomach in pain and gasping for breath.
"I did it! Uncle Piccolo, I beat him!" Gohan exclaimed, grinning as he ran up to Piccolo.
He looked so genuinely proud that Piccolo didn't have the heart to say anything. Once a prodigy who rivaled gods, now celebrating a victory over a foot soldier.
Piccolo just gave a solemn nod.
Then something unexpected happened.
A frog jumped in front of the defeated Tagoma. Everyone noticed, but before they could react, the frog jumped up... and the words "Body Swap" flashed across the ground in bright letters.
"Exchange?" Tagoma muttered in confusion.
Suddenly, two beams of light shot out—one hitting the frog, the other hitting Tagoma.
Then everything changed.
Tagoma stood up... or so it seemed. But his mannerisms were different. He struck a ridiculous pose and said with a sinister grin:
"I'm back! Captain Ginyu reporting for duty!"
That's right—the frog was none other than Ginyu, who had been trapped in that form ever since Namek. Somehow, he had made his way to Earth and bided his time all these years.
Now, with a new body at last, he approached Frieza with tears in his eyes.
"King Frieza! Your loyal servant Ginyu has returned!"
But when he turned and saw Goku...
His face twisted with rage.
"You! You're the reason I was turned into a frog!"
Seeing Ginyu again surprised everyone—especially Vegeta.
"Ginyu? You're still alive?"
Vegeta couldn't believe it. He had long forgotten about the former captain of Frieza's elite squad.
"Vegeta, you traitor! You betrayed Lord Frieza!"
"You're one to talk," Vegeta sneered. "You were a frog for years. You should've stayed that way."
"What do you mean by that?" Ginyu asked warily.
"I mean it's a shame I have to kill you now," Vegeta said, suddenly appearing in front of him with a glowing energy blast.
"Wait, wait! Let's talk about this—!"
BOOM!
Too late.
Vegeta's energy attack exploded on contact, disintegrating Ginyu in a flash.
The suddenness of the attack shocked even Frieza. He hadn't expected Vegeta to act so ruthlessly—and so fast.
What a waste, Frieza thought. Ginyu had only just gotten his body back.
Meanwhile, Vegeta turned to face Frieza with icy calm.
"Now that your soldiers are dealt with... it's your turn," he said. "You killed me once. Not this time. This time, I kill you."
He was about to strike when—
"Vegeta, you sneak!" Goku shouted, suddenly appearing beside him. "We were all supposed to decide together who would fight Frieza!"
Krillin joined them too. "Yeah, don't think you can jump ahead just because you killed Ginyu."
Frieza looked at the three warriors... and his brow twitched.
Were they... were they arguing over who got to fight him?
Did they think of him as some kind of practice dummy?
Even worse, one of them was that little bald-headed human he had personally killed on Namek!
Sure, the other two were Saiyans. That made sense.
But Krillin?
Really?
Frieza was stunned. He still remembered killing that bald human, and how it triggered Goku's first transformation into a Super Saiyan.
Now that same human was standing here, side by side with Saiyans, acting like he had the right to fight him?
Had the universe gone mad?
That's when a strange thought struck Frieza.
Wait... could that be it?
Was this a setup?
Maybe this human wanted to die again to trigger Goku's rage—just like before.
That had to be it!
Frieza narrowed his eyes and pointed a finger at Krillin.
"Little bald head," he said coldly. "I know your plan. You want me to kill you again, so that Goku becomes enraged and transforms again. Don't waste your time."
Krillin blinked. "Huh?"
"I see right through you," Frieza continued. "I killed you once, and Goku went Super Saiyan. Now you want a repeat performance?"
"What are you talking about?" Krillin asked, confused. "I don't want to die again! Also... I'm not bald anymore! I have hair now!"
He pointed at his new spiky hair—the result of fusing with Saiyan DNA.
It still wasn't much, but it counted.
Frieza ignored him. "No matter what you try, it won't work. I've trained hard. Even if Goku gets angry, he won't beat me!"
Krillin, Goku, and Vegeta just stared blankly at him.
No one had thought of using Krillin's death as a trigger again.
But thanks, Frieza, for the free strategy idea.
Vegeta frowned. "Wait... is that really how Kakarot became a Super Saiyan first? Because Krillin died?"
He glanced at Krillin and then Goku with wide eyes. "So you mean... it wasn't training? It was a sacrifice?"
Krillin shrugged. "I mean... technically."
Vegeta muttered angrily under his breath. "All this time, I thought it was Saiyan pride. Turns out it was just a bald guy dying."
Despite the confusion, Krillin stepped forward and raised his head high.
"Frieza," he said, "the Krillin you killed back then is long gone. I've changed. I'm stronger now. I'm not the bald little ant you squashed."
"Is that so?" Frieza sneered. "Seems to me you've gotten delusional over the years. I'll just kill you the same way as last time!"
Frieza extended one finger and fired a beam of energy—just like he had done on Namek.
But this time, Krillin didn't freeze in fear.
This time, he didn't panic.
His heart pounded, but he stood his ground.
He wasn't that helpless man anymore.
He wasn't the trigger for someone else's power.
He was Krillin, warrior of Earth—and this time, he would face Frieza head-on!
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