"Kale, let me handle that guy," Gohan said, itching for a fight.
It had been a long time since he had last fought seriously.
Now that two people had come to challenge them, there was no way he was letting Kale take both by herself.
"All right, Gohan-nii." Kale nodded.
"Um… Caulifla, aren't we forgetting something?" Cabba asked with a helpless smile.
"What?" Caulifla looked confused.
"Frost… got killed," Cabba replied.
"I never liked that guy anyway. Dead is dead." Caulifla shrugged, sounding completely unconcerned. If anything, she seemed a little pleased about it.
Cabba had no answer to that.
Poor Frost. He died, and nobody even cared.
"Besides, Cabba, I've always felt like that Frost guy was a hypocrite," Caulifla said, resting her chin on her hand in thought. "You never got that feeling?"
"No way," Cabba said, startled. "Frost is a good person. I started working with him when I was little, helping keep peace across the universe."
"You should look into him sometime," Caulifla said. "He may have done things behind your back that you know nothing about."
"Well… I guess that's possible." Cabba nodded thoughtfully.
"Sorry, we got the wrong person. We thought that guy was Frieza," Gohan explained.
"Frieza?" Cabba raised an eyebrow.
"Frieza's a villain. He did a lot of terrible things back then, so we thought he'd been brought back to life," Gohan said simply.
"Come on, dead people don't just come back to life," Cabba said, unconvinced. "And I'm done talking. If we're fighting, let's settle it over there."
As he spoke, he pointed toward a mountain range in the distance.
Gohan had no objection.
The two of them quickly flew off into the distance.
Kale and Caulifla remained where they were, facing each other.
…
Universe 7, Galactic Patrol Headquarters.
Inside Merus's room.
Merus held his staff and watched Kale through the crystal ball set into it.
After all, he had trained Kale for many years, and she had followed him through battle after battle, doing a great deal for the Galactic Patrol.
It would have been ridiculous to say he felt nothing for her.
Right now, Merus had only one thought:
Gohan had better dump Kale as soon as possible.
Then the God of Destruction he had raised would come back to his side.
Merus had even looked into relationship dynamics between couples.
Couples argued all the time.
If Kale and Gohan had a fight, maybe she would go back to where she came from.
And as far as Merus was concerned, his place was exactly that.
She would definitely come back.
And once she did, he would find a way to keep her there.
When Merus saw Cabba and Caulifla appear in the crystal ball, he paused in surprise.
Those two made it all the way to Earth?
Then he heard the conversation between Caulifla and Kale and immediately pricked up his ears.
"Kale, why are you on Earth?" Caulifla asked, staring at her.
"When I was five, Merus-nii took me away," Kale explained.
"Merus? Who's that?" Caulifla asked blankly.
"An Angel in training," Kale answered honestly.
"An Angel in training? What's that?" Caulifla had never heard the term before.
"Angels are the true gods of the universe," Kale said.
"Gods? Now that's interesting. So you've been training with a god all these years?" Caulifla asked.
"Yeah. That's basically it." Kale nodded.
Hearing that, Merus felt a small swell of satisfaction.
Kale hadn't forgotten him after all.
That was a comfort.
After all the years he had spent teaching her, of course she would remember him.
"And did this god treat you well?" Caulifla asked again.
The moment Merus heard that question, he focused even harder.
"I wouldn't say he treated me well, and I wouldn't say he treated me badly," Kale said with a huff. "To train me, he made me join the Galactic Patrol. I fought all over the place for him and helped capture criminals."
Merus felt as though someone had stabbed him right through the heart.
How can you say that about me?
I did so much for you.
And you think I only saw you as a tool…
Then again…
From beginning to end, that really was how I treated her.
Buu too, for that matter.
So was that why they never liked him?
But Ken used them too.
Why did they all like Ken and not him?
The more Merus thought about it, the more tangled he felt inside.
"The Galactic Patrol? I've never heard of an organization like that. Is it something like a cosmic peacekeeping force?" Caulifla asked thoughtfully.
"The Galactic Patrol belongs to Universe 7, so it's normal that you wouldn't know about it," Kale replied honestly.
"Universe 7?" Caulifla froze slightly.
"This place is Universe 6," Kale explained.
"Really? I had no idea there were so many universes." Caulifla nodded slowly, then asked, "But why did you end up on Earth?"
"Because of Gohan-nii. He's the only one who's ever truly been good to me." Kale's eyes were full of warmth, as if Gohan were her whole world.
"So you like him?" Caulifla immediately understood.
"Yeah." Kale had nothing to hide.
"Is he really that good to you?" Caulifla asked.
"Yes." Kale nodded again, this time more firmly. Then she added, "He's the person who treats me best in the entire universe."
Caulifla let out a helpless sigh.
So much really had changed.
"Caulifla-nee has always been good to me too. Aside from Gohan-nii, the person who treats me best is you." Kale's eyes flickered.
"That's enough for me." Caulifla felt a little warmth rise in her heart.
Merus: "…"
What about me?
Where do I rank?
I don't even make second place?
"Caulifla-nee, weren't you going to spar with me?" Kale asked.
"Forget it. I'm not fighting anymore." Caulifla shook her head.
Now that her little sister had found real love, as long as she was happy, why stop her?
Caulifla had come here intending to rescue Kale from what she thought was a miserable situation.
But to her surprise, Kale seemed genuinely happy here.
In that case, there was no need to take her away.
Merus stared for a moment longer, heart thoroughly stabbed, then shut off the crystal ball.
I'm never watching her again.
I'd rather watch Majin Buu.
Right. I wonder how Buu's doing.
Apparently, all these years he had been training Supreme Kais according to Zeno-sama's orders.
Might as well take a look…
Through the crystal ball in his staff, Merus turned his attention to Majin Buu.
The moment he saw him, Merus froze.
Buu was sleeping soundly inside a mass of blue icy flame.
Worse, he had absolutely no dignity about it. In his sleep, he scratched inside his underwear, then lifted his hand to his nose and sniffed it.
Buu grimaced immediately, clearly hit by the stench, and hurriedly moved his hand away.
Merus: "…"
Why is he sleeping in a place like that?
Where even is he?
Merus looked more carefully at Buu's location and realized he was actually on Earth in Universe 7.
How did he end up on Earth?
Using his staff, Merus carefully checked what had happened back then.
That was when he discovered that Buu had entered a sleep cycle, after which a Supreme Kai had sealed him in blue flames and dumped him on Earth.
Merus shook his head helplessly.
Then again, judging by the timing, Buu really had been due for sleep.
He used to sleep all the time when he was with me too.
Merus had no intention of going over there and releasing him.
Ungrateful brat.
I was the one who set you free back then, and after staying with me for barely any time at all, you ran off to join Broly.
Another six years had passed.
He suddenly wondered how Ken was doing now.
What level had he reached?
Merus badly wanted to ask.
But he was also afraid that if he found out, it would just stab him in the heart all over again.
In the end, he shook his head and decided not to ask.
…
Universe 6, Earth.
Gohan and Cabba stood facing each other.
Boom!
A powerful aura suddenly exploded out of Cabba's body.
His vast ki spread outward in all directions.
"So strong!" Gohan's face turned serious. Without another moment of hesitation, he released his own aura as well.
The two of them both settled into fighting stances.
Whoosh!
Cabba attacked first, rushing straight at Gohan with incredible speed.
But just as he reached him, his body flickered and vanished on the spot.
In the blink of an eye, Cabba appeared behind Gohan and kicked at the back of his knee.
Smack!
Gohan nearly dropped to one knee. He caught himself with one hand on the ground and barely managed to steady his body.
But Cabba was even faster. One sweeping kick later, Gohan was sent crashing to the ground.
Whoosh!
Cabba rushed in again, grabbed Gohan by the collar, and hurled him into the air.
Gohan shot high into the sky.
Cabba followed instantly and unleashed a flurry of punches and kicks in midair.
Gohan could do nothing but defend.
Bang!
A moment later, Cabba spun through the air and slammed Gohan back down with a vicious kick.
Gohan crashed hard into the ground, leaving a crater behind.
"Gohan-nii!" Kale cried out, heart aching, and immediately moved to go help him.
But Caulifla grabbed her and held her back.
"What are you doing? Let go!" Kale shouted.
"Kale, are you really going to run over there and help him?" Caulifla said with a snort. "He's a man. He should be protecting you, not the other way around."
"When I was little, Gohan-nii protected me," Kale said, biting her lip, determination written all over her face. "Now I've gotten stronger. So now it should be me protecting Gohan-nii."
Caulifla had no answer to that.
"Let go of me, Caulifla-nee." Kale's expression was serious.
Caulifla sighed softly and slowly loosened her grip.
Kale was just about to rush over and beat Cabba senseless when she saw Gohan leap out of the crater.
Gohan waved to her and gave her a reassuring look, telling her he had this under control.
Kale happily nodded and sat back down beside Caulifla.
"You're really strong," Gohan said in surprise.
"Of course. I'm one of the more talented young Saiyans around," Cabba said with a small smile. "You're no match for me, so you should give up now."
"Saiyan? You're a Saiyan?" Gohan blinked.
"What, is that so surprising?" Cabba snorted.
"I'm a Saiyan too," Gohan said with a smile.
"I know," Cabba nodded. "Your father's a Saiyan. If you weren't one too, that would mean you weren't his biological son."
Gohan: "…"
You've got a point.
"Still want to keep going?" Cabba asked with a confident smile.
"It's been a long time since I last trained, so I'm rusty… You really are stronger than I am. At least in this form," Gohan said in a low voice.
"W-What do you mean by that?" Cabba suddenly had a very bad feeling.
"I should try becoming a Super Saiyan," Gohan said seriously. He drew in a deep breath, and golden light suddenly burst around him.
Snap!
His hair rose sharply upward as he transformed into a Super Saiyan.
Cabba was speechless.
Why can this guy transform too?
I thought only Goku and Vegeta could do that.
That's not fair.
"You should turn into a Super Saiyan too," Gohan said to Cabba with a smile.
Cabba fell silent.
How am I supposed to do that?
"Again with that transformation…" Caulifla muttered, annoyed.
"Caulifla-nee, you two can't do it?" Kale asked, surprised.
Caulifla: "????"
"Am I supposed to be able to?" Caulifla asked.
"As long as a Saiyan has decent talent, they can do it," Kale said with a nod. "Even Gohan-nii's little brother Goten can turn into a Super Saiyan."
Caulifla did not seem to have any clear impression of Gohan's little brother. After thinking for a moment, she asked, "So that thing is called Super Saiyan? And basically every Saiyan can do it?"
"More or less. I heard you need a peaceful heart, and then you have to transform through extreme anger," Kale said, stroking her chin in thought.
"Extreme anger?" Caulifla's bright eyes flickered. "And a peaceful heart? What even is that?"
"It just means keeping your mind calm," Kale answered.
"Doesn't that sound contradictory? On one hand you have to stay calm, and on the other hand you have to be extremely angry…" Caulifla said, exasperated.
"Once you get used to it, it doesn't feel contradictory anymore." Kale smiled.
"Whatever. I'll just try it first." Caulifla's face grew more serious. She stepped to the side, clenched both fists tightly, and started imagining things that made her angry.
Boom!
In the next moment, a burst of golden flame-like aura exploded around her.
At the same time, her hair shot upward and turned gold.
Her irises shifted to green as well.
Kale froze for a second, then stared in open shock.
She transformed that easily?
Back then, Gohan-nii and I had to work so hard to pull it off.
"Caulifla-nee, that's amazing," Kale said in admiration.
Caulifla's transformation immediately drew the attention of both Cabba and Gohan.
They turned to look at her at the same time.
Only then did they notice that Caulifla and Kale actually seemed to be getting along pretty well.
If you two sisters have already made up, is there even a point in us still fighting?
Gohan and Cabba looked at each other, and both suddenly felt that continuing their battle was kind of meaningless.
Then Cabba smacked his forehead.
That's not the point.
The point is… how can Caulifla transform?
Why can't I?
We're both Saiyans… am I the only one who can't do it?
"Huh? So this is Super Saiyan?" Caulifla said, feeling the immense power flooding her body and lighting up with joy.
"Caulifla-nee, doesn't it feel like your power jumped at least fifty times?" Kale asked with a smile.
Caulifla nodded seriously.
No wonder she had never been able to beat Goku before.
So this transformation multiplies your strength fifty times?
That's insane.
A fiftyfold increase was downright absurd.
"Kale, I've decided I'm going to test your boyfriend a little," Caulifla said. "And don't even think about stopping me."
"Don't—" Kale panicked.
"I'm doing this for your own good. Don't you want your Gohan-nii to take you more seriously?" Caulifla shot back.
Kale's eyes widened, and she fell into thought.
"Good. Then it's settled." Caulifla smiled mysteriously. "Besides, in this form, even if you wanted to stop me, you couldn't."
Whoosh!
In the next instant, Caulifla flickered and appeared right beside Gohan.
Gohan looked at her in surprise. "You didn't just figure out Super Saiyan right now, did you?"
"I thought it was going to be some deep, complicated transformation," Caulifla said, wagging a finger in front of herself. "Turns out it's ridiculously easy once you know the trick."
Cabba stared from the side, burning with envy.
I want to transform too.
Hurry up and tell me how you did it.
"You're incredible," Gohan said. "Back then, I had to train for a long time before I could become a Super Saiyan… You're just like my little brother Goten. He can transform easily too."
"I'm not interested in your little brother," Caulifla snorted. "I came over here to tell you something. I'm taking Kale back with me, to live on Planet Sadala."
"Did Kale agree to that?" Gohan asked.
"Of course she did," Caulifla said with a nod. "No matter what, Kale was born on Planet Sadala. That's her home."
"If she agrees, I won't object," Gohan said, deciding to respect Kale's choice.
"You… you'd really let her go?" Caulifla asked.
"If she wants to go back, I can't exactly force her to stay," Gohan said honestly, true to his easygoing nature.
"Then you don't care about her at all! Is this supposed to be true love?" Caulifla snapped.
Kale sees you as the love of her life, and you're this cold about it.
"I…" Gohan did not know what to say.
"How about this? If you beat me, I'll let Kale stay. If you lose, I'm taking her with me," Caulifla said with a snort.
"You've got me completely confused," Gohan said, scratching his head. "Wasn't it supposed to be Kale's choice whether she leaves?"
"Enough talk. Let's fight! Now that we're both Super Saiyans, there's no way you can beat me!" Caulifla huffed, eyes blazing with battle intent.
"I get it now. Kale doesn't want to leave, and you were just making that up," Gohan said, finally catching on.
"Think whatever you want!" Caulifla clenched her fists. "I'm attacking!"
Whoosh!
As soon as she finished speaking, she shot straight at Gohan.
Gohan immediately raised his guard.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The two of them instantly clashed in the empty wilderness, their bodies flashing back and forth so fast that trails of golden light lingered in the air.
Cabba stood off to the side in shock.
I can barely even follow them with my eyes.
Whoosh!
Caulifla flickered and instantly appeared behind Gohan, kicking at him.
Gohan twisted sideways to avoid it, then drove a palm strike toward her chest.
Smack!
Caulifla took the hit. She looked down, and her face instantly turned red with fury.
"Ah… sorry… I really didn't mean to do that," Gohan said awkwardly.
"You… you bastard! You flattened it!" Caulifla shouted, pointing at her left breast.
"I really didn't do it on purpose… Maybe we should just stop fighting," Gohan said with a helpless laugh, scratching his head.
"No way! I'm going to kill you!" Caulifla roared and lunged at him, all claws and fury.
Gohan hurriedly dodged.
Caulifla chased after him without letting up.
Thirty seconds later—
Smack!
Gohan pinned Caulifla to the ground.
That only made her angrier. She kicked him hard in the stomach.
Gohan grimaced in pain.
Caulifla took the chance to hook an arm around his neck and roll with him across the ground.
Kale: "…"
Why does this not look like a fight anymore?
This is going too far!
Cabba felt just as bad.
Especially when he saw Gohan holding Caulifla like that.
Something about it made him deeply uncomfortable.
"Stop!"
In the next moment, Kale and Cabba shouted at the exact same time.
Then the two of them looked at each other.
Gohan and Caulifla suddenly snapped back to their senses. Both of them flushed red, quickly separated, and climbed back to their feet.
"Hmph! Call it a draw this time. Next time, I'm definitely beating you!" Caulifla gritted her teeth. The golden glow around her faded as she returned to normal.
"Uh… all right. Then we'll fight again next time," Gohan said. "Fighting you was actually really fun."
The bad feeling in Kale's heart instantly got even stronger.
Cabba felt the same way.
These two absolutely cannot keep fighting like this.
If this keeps up, sparks are going to fly sooner or later.
"Kale, do you want to go with her to Planet Sadala?" Gohan asked gently as he walked over to her side.
"No. I want to stay with Gohan-nii forever," Kale replied without the slightest hesitation.
[End of chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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