"It seems how powerful Cell can become still depends on how much energy he has absorbed. Even if he carries cells from every powerful being of the current era, his foundation is still what it is."
Watching Cell, Vegeta deepened his understanding of him.
At first he had been surprised by how weak Cell seemed. In the original timeline, Cell had come from the future — a version capable of killing Trunks — which meant his power should have reached hundreds of millions. But the Cell before him now had clearly regressed. His former abilities had faded significantly.
He had taken a drastic gamble: he willingly abandoned his future power and traveled back to this era. If he had simply stayed hidden like in the original story, Vegeta would not have actively searched for him. Hidden pests were the hardest ones to find.
Unfortunately for Cell, he had chosen to reveal himself to Vegeta — and even had the audacity to treat Nappa as prey.
Vegeta also realized something else: Cell must have assumed that he and Nappa had only recently arrived on Earth. Otherwise, knowing his current strength, Cell would never dare show himself.
"Heh heh! Perfect — let me use you as warm-up. I've been itching for a fight."
Before Vegeta could say anything more, Nappa had already charged forward, eager as always.
The man was simple-minded and strong-limbed. He still could not sense ki, and without a scouter, he looked at Cell and saw nothing more than another monster with some strength — a decent test subject for his resurrected body.
Nappa rushed Cell, crackling with electricity as he forcefully gathered his ki. His first punch, one that should have shattered the ground, was easily dodged by Cell, who slipped past it effortlessly.
Nappa froze in confusion. But within a heartbeat he explained it away as unfamiliarity with his restored body or the increase in his strength. So he unleashed a wild barrage of kicks and punches — a storm of strikes that would have overwhelmed any fighter with tens of thousands of battle power.
But to Cell, it was child's play.
Cell still retained memories of his previous power. Even weakened as he was, he could easily toy with Nappa.
After amusing himself for a few moments, he swatted Nappa aside with a casual flick of his tail.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Nappa's body smashed through the ruins again and again. Dust and debris flew, the already devastated land suffering further destruction.
Cell then sprinted forward, eager to absorb Nappa's energy — but before he could reach him, Vegeta narrowed his eyes, instant-transmitted in front of Cell, and sent him flying with a single kick.
Vegeta stood before the battered Nappa, arms folded.
Nappa was already incapacitated. Cell's tail strike had nearly finished him. Vegeta immediately understood what Cell intended — he had deliberately not killed Nappa, planning to absorb him later for a greater boost in energy.
That was fine. A serious injury would push Nappa's strength up once he healed.
"Vegeta…" Cell finally steadied himself and felt a sharp tremor of wariness.
In his memory, the future Vegeta had been dangerous.
But something now confused him — Vegeta's earlier movements had happened without any detectable warning.
"How is this possible? According to the records, you should only have a battle power of eighteen thousand at this time. How did you kick me that far?" Cell muttered in disbelief.
"Eighteen thousand? That was long ago." Vegeta sneered, easily reading Cell's thoughts.
Cell stared at him, bewilderment growing.
"No… you don't seem surprised by me at all. You know me? You know who I am?!"
"Looks like you're not completely stupid. At least you noticed that I know about you."
Vegeta smiled with unrestrained contempt.
Cell paled, a line of cold sweat sliding down his cheek.
"Impossible… How did you find out about me? I never showed myself after arriving in this era — and you only just came to Earth!"
"Who told you we just arrived on Earth? Didn't you notice the battle scars are long old, fool?"
Vegeta stepped forward until he stood face to face with Cell.
"You—! Your power… how is this possible?!"
Cell backed away rapidly. His entire body trembled. Vegeta's ki sank into his bones like an icy blade.
He had run into a disaster.
Everything in this era was different from what he expected.
This Vegeta knew his identity and possessed strength at least a hundred times his own.
"Are you afraid? Understandable. You're pathetically weak. I was hoping you would grow into your perfect form, but I don't have time to play games with you."
Vegeta's words gave Cell a moment of hope — only to crush it completely.
Cell tried to speak. "You…"
But before he could continue, his eyes widened in agony.
Vegeta's fist had pierced straight through his abdomen.
"What a fragile body. Too bad — with me in this world, you will never have the chance to grow."
At that moment, one impossible thought surfaced in Cell's mind.
"You… you… you're from the future too… or you were reborn… so—"
His words dissolved into a violent cough of purple fluid, splattering across Vegeta's face and armor.
Vegeta grimaced.
He knew it was Cell's blood, but the smell was rancid — like crushed insect guts.
Disgusted, Vegeta ripped his arm out of Cell's body, burst with ki to burn away the filth, and punched Cell into the sky.
Raising his hand, he gathered an immense sphere of energy.
The Great Explosion attack.
After the fight with King Cold, Vegeta had refined and upgraded the technique — turning it into something even more devastating than before.
~~~~~~
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