Goku and Demon King Piccolo exchanged a furious flurry of blows for a while, until Goku finally sent Piccolo flying with a powerful kick, barely bringing this round of combat to an end.
Piccolo collapsed to the ground, panting heavily as he wiped the saliva from his lips.
Goku was still standing, but his breathing had also become ragged.
Tien let out a deep breath.
"Thank goodness—Piccolo's down, but Goku is still standing. He has the upper hand!"
But Krillin looked worried.
"I just realized something… Goku flew all the way here. No wonder his stamina is dropping. He was fine earlier, but now he's starting to gasp…"
As he spoke, Krillin felt something in his pocket. His expression changed as he pulled out a flattened little pouch.
Opening it, he found a single Senzu Bean inside.
Krillin's eyes lit up.
"Goku! Catch the Senzu Bean!"
He tossed it over.
Goku instinctively caught it, glanced at it, and said,
"I don't need this."
And he actually threw it back.
After tossing the bean away, Goku immediately reengaged Piccolo.
The two of them clashed again, fists and kicks slamming into each other in a tense, brutal exchange.
Krillin caught the Senzu Bean, completely stunned.
He stared at Goku's back as he fought Piccolo, and for some reason it suddenly felt unfamiliar.
"Senzu Beans can instantly restore all your strength… He's clearly tired. Why won't he take it?"
Tien answered quietly,
"Maybe… he thinks it would be unfair to Piccolo."
"Unfair?" Krillin shot back.
"You're talking about being fair against a monster like Demon King Piccolo?"
A nostalgic look appeared in Tien's eyes.
"I think he wants to defeat his opponent honestly, with his own strength. I've had that feeling many times in battle—facing someone head-on, without relying on tricks. I've lived by that all these years."
"But treating Demon King Piccolo as just another opponent… that's on a whole different level."
"It looks like Goku is actually enjoying this fight."
Krillin shuddered.
Looking at Goku now, it felt like not only was he taller than him—his entire martial arts realm was leagues beyond theirs.
Yamcha clenched his fists.
"So that's it… But risking the entire world just to enjoy a fight—isn't that insane?"
Krillin smiled faintly, his eyes full of trust.
"Believe in Goku. He'll win.
And honestly… only Goku in this world can defeat Demon King Piccolo. If he's a little reckless, that's his right."
Inside the King's Castle, the King frowned.
"Why is it so noisy out there? What's going on?"
A guard rushed to the window and looked out.
"Your Majesty! Look—Demon King Piccolo hasn't gone to West City yet!"
"What?!"
The King hurried over and saw Goku and Piccolo fighting.
Just then, he saw Goku punch Piccolo away.
"Who is that young man? He's incredible!"
The guard was thrilled.
"This is great, Your Majesty! That young man seems even stronger than the Demon King. We might be saved!"
The King's face lit up.
"Yes! I never imagined a human this powerful still existed. We're saved!"
At that moment, Goku deflected an energy blast.
It slammed into a distant mountain—and the entire mountain was instantly flattened.
The guard's face went pale.
"Y-Your Majesty… their battle is terrifying. We should hide…"
"Don't be ridiculous!" the King shouted.
"That mountain was destroyed from that far away. There's nowhere we can hide!"
The guard quickly said, "Then… then we should go underground, to the bunker!"
The battle between Goku and Piccolo raged on.
Piccolo grew furious as his energy blasts kept getting knocked away.
"You're a slippery one! If my Demon Light Cannon hits you, you'll die for sure!"
Goku sneered.
"Hah, so Demon King Piccolo is trying to bait me into taking his attack head-on? What do you take me for, a three-year-old?"
"And besides, that kind of move might hurt a little, but it can't seriously injure me."
Piccolo twisted his lips into a crooked grin.
"Big talk, kid. You're gasping for air already."
Goku wiped the sweat from his brow.
"Same goes for you. Your energy is dropping too."
Piccolo laughed coldly.
"Hmph. I'm done playing. It's time to send you to hell.
This move will cost me a lot of lifespan—but you won't be able to dodge it."
His aura surged violently as he began charging power.
"Brat, dying to my Violent Demon Wave is an honor!"
Goku's eyes sharpened. He recognized this technique—a massive area-of-effect explosion.
He turned and shouted,
"Krillin! Get far away!"
Krillin, Tien, and Yamcha were startled. They immediately ran back as fast as they could, abandoning their plane.
At that moment, Piccolo finished charging.
"Disappear!"
A blinding golden light erupted from Piccolo.
It swallowed Goku.
It swallowed the King's Castle.
When the light faded, the castle was reduced to rubble, Tien's plane was shattered into scrap, and the once-green field had become scorched wasteland.
A massive crater hundreds of meters wide lay where Piccolo stood.
Piccolo panted heavily and burst into laughter.
"Hahahahaha! It's over!
No one can stand against me, Demon King Piccolo—NO ONE!"
On television screens across the world, people saw only a flash of gold… then static and blue screens.
"What happened?"
"Why can't we see anything?"
Krillin thought Goku was dead. Tears streamed down his face as he screamed,
"GOKU!"
Tien, far calmer, pulled out the rice cooker.
"Looks like my training with the Evil Containment Wave wasn't for nothing…"
He turned to Krillin and Yamcha.
"If I die, take care of Chiaotzu for me."
Without waiting for a reply, Tien marched toward Piccolo.
—
Then Goku rose from the crater.
His clothes were torn and ragged, but his breathing was steady—and he looked uninjured.
Krillin's crying stopped instantly.
Tien froze.
Yamcha rubbed his eyes.
"Goku!"
Krillin's face filled with shock and joy.
Seeing Goku still calm and standing, Piccolo's entire body stiffened.
"How… how is that possible…?"
Goku ripped off his shredded weighted vest and tossed it aside. It slammed into the ground with a heavy thud—but no one even noticed.
All eyes were locked on Goku.
Piccolo finally panicked. He stumbled backward, his body trembling.
"No… no way…"
"Absolutely impossible… No one survives my Explosive Demon Wave!"
◇ I'll be dropping one bonus chapters for every 10 reviews. comment
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on P@treon if you're interested:
patreon.com/NightShard525