"Was that fun?" Goku asked with a laugh as he lowered Zeno-sama back to the floor.
Zeno-sama stared at him for a moment, apparently unsure what to make of the experience.
"I liked it," he eventually decided. "No one's ever done that with me before. You're fun."
"You're pretty fun too," Goku said with a grin.
"Your name is Son Goku, right?"
"Just Goku is fine."
"Then you can call me by a nickname too." Zeno-sama leaned forward with interest. "What will you call me?"
Goku gave it a moment's thought.
"How about Zenny?"
"I like it. We'll use that."
Zeno-sama had found no disrespect in Goku's casual manner. His eyes held none of the fear, calculation, or forced reverence Zeno-sama usually received—only open, childlike sincerity.
"So, Zenny, did you call me here because of that tournament between all the universes?" Goku asked eagerly.
"We can talk about that later." Zeno-sama watched him expectantly. "I want to play with you."
"Sorry, but I'm really busy right now. I'll come back after I finish what I need to do."
Bardock's nerves nearly gave out.
That was the ruler of all creation, not some neighborhood child Goku could casually turn down. He had to fight the urge to walk over and knock some sense into his son himself.
The Left Guard and Right Guard looked equally offended, but Ken's presence kept both of them firmly in place.
"All right," Zeno-sama said without complaint. "You'll play with me when you're finished?"
"Sure." Goku scratched his cheek. "Come to think of it, didn't you used to play with Mr. Satan?"
"I got bored of him."
"And there was Buu too, right?"
Zeno-sama brightened at the memory.
"Yes. He was the best mount I've ever had."
Bardock could only pity the young God of Destruction. Apparently, Buu's days as Zeno-sama's personal mount were not over after all.
"Should I have Buu brought back?" the Grand Priest asked.
Zeno-sama seemed tempted, but Ken offered him another option.
"You could use Universe 7's Supreme Kai instead."
Zeno-sama considered the suggestion, then pointed toward his guards.
"Bring me Universe 7's Supreme Kai."
"At once, Zeno-sama."
The Left Guard and Right Guard bowed.
"I'll come with you," Ken said cheerfully. "We can spar along the way."
Both guards began trembling.
"Relax. I only want to see whether you've improved lately."
"Go ahead," Zeno-sama said, waving them away.
The guards wanted to protest, but neither dared complain in front of him. They bowed again and hurried from the throne room before Ken could start the promised sparring on the spot.
"I'll be going too, Zeno-sama. Grand Priest."
Ken waved and set off after them. Zeno-sama offered no response, while the Grand Priest acknowledged him with a small nod.
The instant they entered the World of Void, the two guards activated Super Fusion.
Their bodies merged, and the fused guard shot forward at full speed, leaving a brilliant trail through the darkness. He crossed into Universe 7 before finally looking behind him.
Ken was nowhere in sight.
Relief loosened the tension that had gripped him since leaving the palace.
"Good. He didn't catch up. Maybe he saw a beautiful woman along the way and got distracted."
"What beautiful woman would be waiting halfway between universes?"
Ken's voice came from directly ahead.
The fused guard nearly stopped breathing.
Ken floated in his path with an easy grin.
"I've been waiting for you, Fusion."
The nickname left the fused guard wishing he could split apart from embarrassment alone.
"Come on. Let's spar."
"Ken… if you want to beat me up, just say so. You don't need to invent an excuse."
That response caught Ken off guard.
Had the guards become so frightened of him that they no longer even bothered pretending this was a fair fight?
Back at Zeno's Palace, the Grand Priest observed the situation through his staff and released an amused sigh.
Ken had thoroughly broken the guards' confidence.
Nearby, Goku and Zeno-sama held hands as they laughed together like children who had known each other for years.
"This palace seems pretty boring," Goku said. "You should visit Earth sometime."
"I will. Once my mount arrives, I'll come and find you."
Zeno-sama suddenly remembered something and produced a small, toy-like device. It was round, with a blue button on one side and a red one on the other.
"This is for you."
Goku turned it over in his hands.
"What does it do?"
"Press the blue side, and I'll appear beside you. Press the red side, and you'll be brought here."
"Got it. Thanks."
Goku tucked the Zeno Button away.
"Can I leave now?"
"Don't forget to come back and play."
"I won't. I'll also see whether I can find you another good playmate."
Zeno-sama bounced with excitement.
"Yes! Find someone fun!"
Goku turned toward Bardock.
"Let's go, Dad."
Bardock bowed deeply to Zeno-sama and the Grand Priest before following his son out of the palace.
Once they were outside, Goku and bardock teleported back to Earth.
The sight of Universe 6 still intact finally allowed Bardock to breathe freely. Kakarot had frightened him half to death. For several terrible moments, he had genuinely expected Zeno-sama to erase the entire universe over one careless remark.
"Can we leave now, Kakarot?" Vegeta asked when they returned.
"Yeah. Let's go."
Bardock gave his son an encouraging pat on the shoulder.
"Stay focused out there."
Vegeta looked around and noticed that someone was missing.
"Where's Ken?"
"He had something else to do, but he'll probably be back soon."
"Then there's no reason to wait."
Vegeta and Future Trunks each placed a hand on Goku's shoulders.
"That won't work for traveling through time," Goku warned. "We should hold hands. If someone gets separated inside the temporal passage, finding them again would be a nightmare."
The idea of holding Kakarot's hand made Vegeta bare his teeth in disgust, while Future Trunks accepted without complaint.
"All right, Goku."
The three joined hands.
Goku then stuck out his tongue and used it to rotate the Time Ring into position.
Vegeta nearly retched.
The ring flashed, and all three disappeared.
In the depths of Universe 7, Ken studied the fused guard with an almost disappointed look.
"Fusion, you two are being unreasonable. I only asked for a quick spar. How does that count as bullying?"
The guard had no answer he could safely say aloud.
Ken stood several levels above them. Calling the resulting beating a spar did not make it one.
"Fine. You can go."
The fused guard thanked him profusely before fleeing toward the Sacred World of the Kai as though his life depended on reaching it.
Once he was gone, Ken turned his attention inward.
An avatar of Ken formed inside his body, directly before the little demoness. She retreated several steps the moment she saw him.
"What do you want?"
"You became awfully restless when I spoke to the Grand Priest." Ken's smile made her retreat farther. "Were you hoping he would notice you and break the seal?"
She refused to answer.
"Grand Priestess, teach her a lesson."
The Grand Priestess needed no further encouragement. She had been waiting for another chance to vent her anger, and the two women were soon wrestling across the sealed space again.
The Grand Priest remained in Zeno-sama's throne room, his attention fixed on something beyond the palace.
"What are you thinking about?" Zeno-sama asked, wandering over to him.
"I sensed someone from the Demon Realm enter our world," the Grand Priest replied. "The presence carries traces of a Demon Supreme Kai."
"A Demon Supreme Kai?" Zeno-sama's brow furrowed. "He dared come here?"
"Not the Demon Supreme Kai himself. The connection feels more personal—perhaps a relative."
"Who could it be?"
"I cannot say for certain."
"Where are they?"
"The presence most likely came from inside Ken. Whoever it is appears to be sealed within him."
Once again, Ken had managed to involve himself in something dangerous without informing anyone.
"He sealed one of the Demon Supreme Kai's relatives?" Zeno-sama asked, taken aback. "Should we make him release them?"
"That won't be necessary." The Grand Priest's smile returned. "Let Ken deal with the consequences himself. I doubt the Demon Supreme Kai knows what happened yet."
"Fine. I don't want to think about it anymore." Zeno-sama rubbed his head. "It's giving me a headache. I want to ride my mount later."
"Of course, Zeno-sama." The Grand Priest looked toward the distant universes. "For now, I only hope Ken continues growing. He'll need enough strength to stand on his own when the time comes."
Zeno-sama nodded enthusiastically.
Another concern continued weighing on the Grand Priest.
"There is one more matter."
"What is it?"
"Zamasu, the Supreme Kai apprentice from Universe 10, traveled to another timeline and killed every Supreme Kai there."
Zeno-sama immediately understood the consequence.
"Then all of its Gods of Destruction disappeared too."
"Exactly. The Space-Time God of Destruction has begun watching that timeline."
"So it'll probably be erased soon."
"That appears likely. A timeline has not vanished in quite some time. I had expected the GT timeline from the tournament with Universe 6 to disappear first."
"The GT timeline?"
"The one containing the universes you erased long ago while testing your power."
Recognition slowly returned to Zeno-sama.
"Oh, that one. The Space-Time God of Destruction still hasn't erased it?"
"No."
Zeno-sama quickly lost interest.
"Then I don't care."
He turned to leave and find something more entertaining, only to remember that his new mount had not arrived yet. The thought of Universe 10 brought him back to the earlier problem.
"You said Zamasu was an apprentice from Universe 10?"
"Yes."
"Then what was Universe 10's Supreme Kai doing while his student ran around causing trouble?"
The Grand Priest shared that concern.
"Zamasu's actions may draw the Space-Time God of Destruction toward our timeline as well. If that happens, our entire reality could become a target."
Zeno-sama's face darkened.
"Bring Universe 10's Supreme Kai here too. He can be another mount."
"Understood."
The Grand Priest contacted the guards through his staff and passed along Zeno-sama's latest command.
Future Trunks's timeline, Universe 7.
Goku emerged above Earth with Vegeta and Trunks, using the Time Ring and Instant Transmission together to complete the crossing.
Ruined cities stretched beneath them in every direction. Crumbling towers stood over empty streets, and entire districts had been reduced to lifeless fields of rubble.
"So this is the future Earth." Vegeta surveyed the devastation with growing fury. "That bastard…"
"It's even worse than Trunks described," Goku said, unable to hide the horror in his voice.
Then a thought struck him.
"I should check the Sacred World of the Kai in Universe 6 first."
Before Trunks could ask him to wait, Goku vanished.
"Goku!"
His protest reached empty air.
Trunks looked toward Vegeta, and the doubt in his eyes immediately irritated his father.
"What is that look supposed to mean?" Vegeta demanded. "You don't trust me to handle this without Kakarot?"
"No, of course not. You're imagining things."
Vegeta folded his arms and scoffed.
"I don't need Kakarot's help. When Zamasu appears, I'll grind his face into the dirt myself."
Trunks kept his thoughts to himself.
Vegeta had made almost the same promise before fighting Cell. The result had been anything but reassuring.
He could only hope history would not repeat itself.
Far away in the mountains, Goku Black sat inside a wooden courtyard, quietly drinking tea.
Two familiar energies suddenly appeared on Earth.
He turned his attention toward them and found Future Trunks standing beside Vegeta. A more careful search revealed no trace of Ken.
Only then did the tension leave his shoulders.
Vegeta had come from another timeline, but that hardly mattered. Compared to Ken, he was no threat at all.
In fact, his arrival was convenient.
Once Goku Black killed both father and son, Trunks would never escape into another timeline to find reinforcements again.
[End of chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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