"You will not space!" Shouted Cell, who thanks to his great android speed superior of Super Saiyan 2 level... was getting closer and closer to the last line of defence against the end of the world.
A last line of defense that didn't give up, so they continued to spam energy attacks time after time thanks to their infinite ammo cheat
KIKOHO!!!
KAMEHAMEHA !!!!
However, those attacks failed to hurt their target and were barely being able to contain him
"Damn insects" Cell shouted as he tried to advance with some difficulty towards his prey, as if a strong wind prevented him from flying naturally
"What a monster He's not even hurt!" Ten and Roshi yelled as they continued to attack despite knowing that their attempts were being quite useless
KIKOHO!!!
KAMEHAMEHA!!!!
And since they could keep him for a short time, Ten Shinhan began to think of new strategies for the imminent moment when Cell got too close to them "Me and Roshi will constantly attack with Ki attack as support, you should attack melee"
"Are you afraid of being absorbed and that is why you send us to the front line of battle?" Yam yelled, that despite agreeing that this is the best possible strategy, she had to protest a bit to make up for what happened a few minutes ago when they fought
KIKOHO!!!
KAMEHAMEHA!!!!
"You are the one who should be scared of that happening" Ten Shinhan shouted to remind him of the reason why this should be the strategy to follow
KIKOHO !!!
KAMEHAMEHA !!!!
"And couldn't you use the Mafuba to lock him up?
Years ago you didn't stop using it against everyone!" Ginger said, since believed she had found a more practical and effective solution to solve this problem
Unfortunately Roshi informed them why he hadn't used this ability against this enemy "That monster knows all of our techniques!
If he used it and he knows how to use it he could reflect it against me
Mafuba doesn't work well against people who know how to use it"
KIKOHO!!!
KAMEHAMEHA!!!!
"What a useless technique!" Criticized Yam once again, in this case Muten Roshi Although this time partly frustrated ... that ability would have been very convenient in this situation.
"Yam, you don't help that way" Ginger shouted that among other things she didn't want any kind discrepancies right now
KIKOHO!!!
KAMEHAMEHA!!!!
"Don't get distracted! He's coming!" Roshi yelled seeing that Cell was too close to them and that he couldn't be contained for too long.
"Damn hindrances!
AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" Cell shouted, that as if he were a MORPG boss he got angry at the end and drew even more strength than in the first phases where he supposedly had more energy
KIKOHO!!!
KAMEHAMEHA!!!!
Energy he used to actively counterattack Ten and Roshi
GARLIC CANNON!
BOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM !!!!
An attack that managed to counter Roshi and Ten Shinhan's continued effort with relative ease.
[NO!
He has stopped our combined attack
And also with a Vegeta ability
Shit] Ten Shinhan thought as he prepared to attack Cell once more
A Cell that when stopped being braked was able to achieve a dizzying speed, with which advanced towards them
However, that possibility had already been predicted by our heroes… what's more, they were waiting for that moment "Ginger!
NOW!!"
AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!
AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!
While Ten and Roshi had been slowing Cell's advance with their inexhaustible energy, Ginger and Yam had increased their power in the same way that Vegeta and Trunks had done to perform a powerful attack with all their power
¡GOLDEN DOOM!
¡ETERNAL FLASH!
An attack that traveled at high speed towards Cell, which due to the acceleration produced by anger towards Ten and Roshi couldn't change direction at that moment "Shit ..."
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM !!!!!
A combo attack much more powerful than Vegeta's Final Flash, but above all wider and more precise, so wide and precise that hit him squarely
"AHA !!!!
We have done it!" Yam and Ginger shouted with joy as they celebrated the victory in an exaggerated way with hugs, grabs and slaps ... as if they were football players after having scored the winning goal in the last minute
"It was a good teamwork ..." Ten Shinhan said while taking a deep breath ... relieved by the result, so much so that he even treated the two Saiyans with camaraderie
"There hasn't been a single cell left of him ...
Hahaha…" Muten Roshi said, making a joke that only amused him
"Yes, you have completely destroyed that body" Said a mysterious voice, although something familiar that hadn't participated in this heroic and complicated feat.
¡¡¡!!!
"WHAT THE…!"
What nobody expected is that that voice….
WAS FROM THE SAME CELL!!
Which was alive and about to attack Ginger and Yam with an energy attack!
"WATCH OUT!" Muten Roshi yelled as he moved in near slow motion towards Ginger and Yam like in a certain 90's movie with a very catchy soundtrack that the girls loves
BOOOOMMM!!!!
BOOOOOOOMMM!!!
A powerful attack that dragged Roshi, Ginger and Yam to a nearby island (yes, sometimes the same attack destroy planets, other islands, other small portions and terrain, others completely disintegrate what they touched ... and sometimes like this case just pushed)
With them off stage only Cell and Ten Shinhan kept flying
"Cell !?
How is it possible?" Ten Shinhan asked, stunned and with the word 'terror' written on his face (metaphorically)
A terror with which Cell rejoiced and like any villain with excessive ego he explained what he had done to deceive all the protagonists, secondary characters and readers "HAHAHA!
Surprised?!
I knew that like Vegeta you would try something like this to destroy me with a single blow!
Therefore, using the same technique that Piccolo uses to train, I divided myself into two and used the copy so that the two Saiyans spent all their energy on it
A risky strategy that has left me without energy and with a lot of damage
Fortunately Trunks had quite a few Senzu Bean
Hahahahah!!!"
[Damn…
He played with us] Ten Shinhan thought upon hearing how Cell's plan had been so successful
A success that left everyone quite screwed up, specifically him
"And now that there are no Saiyans bothering…
It's time to enjoy my food" Cell said as he licked his ugly and sinister mouth ... which reminds us all of a mask ... to highlight his intentions regarding Ten Shinhan
---
At that moment
A few kilometers from there
Trunks ... woke up
"Ahh… ah…"
With a terrible sensation in his back and stomach as a result of the mortal wounds that Cell had caused him
Deadly wounds that had already healed and that now only existed in the past and in some of his nerve's that still remembered the pain
Therefore, after checking that he wasn't dead, Trunks tried to get up
And the first thing he saw was
"Dad?"
"Don't waste energy uselessly" Vegeta replied, who was looking towards the horizon, turning his back with his usual kindness
Kindness that Trunks was more than used to, so he tried to direct the conversation in terms in which Vegeta could be more talkative "What happened to Cell?"
"That fuking coward escaped ..." Vegeta replied, refusing to make eye contact.
An answer in principle simple and casual ... however, that answer surprised and even alarmed Trunks
[As?
Wait ... what am I doing here ...
And if he really has escaped ... why didn't he chase him ...] Trunks thought as he looked around him, realizing that he was on one of the nearby islands where the conflict started, with Piccolo unconscious at his side
"I'm going for that coward ...
Give one of those Senzu to Piccolo if you want him to recover
I'm in a hurry…" Vegeta said as he walked away from that place without looking back.
A phrase that once again upset Trunks's mind "Dad… you really…
Weren't serious that time?"
And obviously whenever something did happen in an anime ...
This moment deserved a flashback
---
Flashback
A few hours ago (or months, depending on our understanding of the spacetime continuum)
In one of the time compressor rooms that Bulma had in her spaceship Vegeta trained in augmented gravity X600 in the most natural and exaggerated way possible in a fighting anime with super powers…
Doing push-ups holding your whole body with the little finger and with weights on your back
A somewhat exaggerated workout even for a Siayan, especially considering the repetitions he did until now
"9.999.999.996…
9.999.999.997…
9.999.999.998…
9.999.999.999…
…
And…
…
10.000.000.000…
…
…
…
10.000.000.001…
…
Ahh….
…
10.000.000.002…
…
….
Ahhh…
….
10.000.000.003…
…
…"
Training that was closer to torture that...
Flofff
It made Vegeta collapse falling to the ground, barely able to breathe and almost fainting
"Father, that's enough, at this rate you will die!" Trunk yelled upon see how his father had repeatedly exceeded his limits and was in a state closer to death than life
However, as soon as he tried to help him get up ...
He slapped him away, a rather weak slap due to fatigue. "Don't touch me!"
I need ... I must ... train more ... until my last breath ...
I have to become stronger ...
Stronger than those stupid androids ...
Stronger than that damn Cell
Stronger than the clown of Kakarrot's.
Stronger than Piccolo ...
Stronger than Gohan in his prime...
Stronger than ... than ..."
However…
Plofff ...
Vegeta's body was unable to keep up with his mind, so when he tried to get up to continue his training ...
He fell back
"Father!" Trunks yelled, who once again tried to grab his father to carry him to bed before something bad could happen to him.
"No…!" Vegeta said as he tried to push Trunks away again, but ...
He no longer had the strength for it, so he just fell to the ground again
Vegeta was in a deplorable state, so deplorable due to his stubbornness that it made Trunks, who kept almost all criticism of Vegeta to himself, couldn't take it anymore
So Trunks felt forced to make him to see sense ... or at least express that what he was doing didn't seem healthy, logical, admirable or normal "Father, I understand that you want to be stronger than anyone ...
I really understand, but ...
This ... is no longer a goal ... is an obsession ... an obsession that is devouring you
Inside and outside"
"Are you going to give me the same speech as Gohan?" Vegeta protested as he raised his head to glare Trunks at his eyes with fury
Look that reminded Trunks that he shouldn't make comments that could subtract paternal love points, for which he tried to back down "No ... I ..."
But Vegeta, partly somewhat disturbed due to dehydration, heat stroke, lack of sleep, excess fatigue, hunger, bad mood and that he is also an egomaniac... preferred to listen to his voice rather than that of his insistent and meddlesome bastard son
"Since I was born I have only had one purpose ...
Become strongest, to be at the top of creation
What my family had always longed to achieve ...
The Super Saiyan!
I was the strongest Saiyans of all, with the most potential, born royalty!
It must be that legendary warrior!
That was my destiny!
Become the strongest, kill Frieza and take the position that always belonged to me
But…
I found out about Broly and both Kakarrot and his son defeated me ... and even a simple Namekian did that...
They were stronger than me ...
Not only that, Kakarrot became Super Saiyan before me
And also then you appeared, younger than me, stronger than me ... and you could even become a Super Saiyan..." Vegeta said as he kept looking at Trunks, speechless of hearing his father's sudden monologue
A monologue that he doesn't expect to hear, either because Vegeta is not very talkative and because his pride makes excessively difficult to express his joys, concerns and above all frustrations
And despite that, Vegeta took out everything he had accumulated until now while trying to catch his breath "Hahaha ...
I always believed that everything would be mine in the future, so there was no problem in claiming that title right now
It would be something that would come to me sooner or later
Why not get ahead of myself?
Why should I stop doing it?
My destiny remains the same right?"
But Trunks didn't answer, he didn't dare to interrupt even to nod
"To improve the joke Broly showed me that my path, my beliefs and my whole life had been a mistake that kept me further and further away from my goal
That I would never become Super Saiyans..."
And Vegeta continued with his monologue, speaking with more passion and fury than before "But did I stop?
NO!
I swallowed!
I swallowed that frustration, all that embarrassment, and kept going without deviating from my goal!
I trained, changed my method and tried to trick my body and mind into generating these stupid S Cells to become what I always had to be ...
The Super Saiyan!
I have reached my goal! I became the top of our race!
A peak that should belong only to me, the prince of the Saiyans!
I was already more powerful than Piccolo
It was only a matter of time before I defeated Goku, Gohan ... and Broly
But do you know what happened?"
"The androids?" Trunks answered this time, since Vegeta kept a silence too long after that question.
It's vident that wasn't a rhetorical question, he wanted someone to answer it and there was only Trunks
"Yes, the androids!
Those guys who weren't even Saiyans beat me up!
To me the Super Saiyan prince!
It's more…
And after that Piccolo also surpassed me, a monster made with my own cells appeared that is also stronger than me ... and what was the last straw ...
The useless humans also became stronger than me!" Vegeta yelled with great fury, frustration, envy and resentment as he hit the ground, but not with excessive force
BOOMM!!!!
Punch that showed that the rest was doing him well and that therefore he could continue with his speech for longer without the need to stop so much to breathe
"I could tolerate that Kakarrot and his son are so powerful
They are Saiyans after all, the strongest warrior race of all
But the rest…
HOW THE HELL CAN I TOLERATE THAT THAT SCUM IS STRONGER THAN ME!?" Vegeta yelled again, jumping up and grabbing Trunks by the lapel of his jacket to talk to him like a brawler more interested in fighting than to dialogue.
But Trunks also didn't answer, did anything or showed dissatisfaction with what Vegeta was doing with him.
The surprise generated by the sincere speech he was hearing and experiencing was stronger than any other kind of feeling.
He simply froze while Vegeta spoke to him a few millimeters from his face despite the great chances that Vegeta would end that speech with a head butt.
Fortunately because of Trunks' head ... Vegeta was too fired up to interrupt his only attack of sincerity, so with the same not peaceful and recommended attitude to speak ... he continued shouting at his son "And then there is Broly... the origin of my nightmares…
Should I give up and accept that he is invincible?
That he is unattainable even though he was born on the same planet as me and below me?
That since I was born I was never the best than him ... and that that goal, that destiny never belonged to me?
That I'm an impostor?
That as long as he exists all my dreams, all my aspirations, all my efforts ...
Are useless?
That my own existence is useless?
That nothing I have done or believed has been of any use !?
THAT I HAVE TO GIVE UP AND ACCEPT THAT I'M ALWAYS GOING TO BE BELOW HIM ?!
NO!!"
A "No" so powerful and infused with Ki that made Trunks to fall to the ground due to the shock wave
And before he could complain or get up...
Vegeta finished his speech
"Be the strongest
That is my only goal, my only aspiration, nothing else really matters ... and I don't care what others say or think ... be it Gohan, Yam, Kakaroto, you or Broly himself ...
So burn well this in your mind!
I only care to prove that I am superior to everyone with the blood of those who dare to believe that they are above me!
And if for this purpose I sacrifice whoever and whatever it is ... even my own life ... I will not hesitate for a second, regardless of the consequences or possibilities of success
So don't ever try to stop me
And for your own good try not to become a hindrance Trunks" Vegeta said as he pointed his index finger at Trunk, who was still on the ground and saw how Vegeta again turned his back to train without him
An image and speech that made it very clear what the motivations of the proud Prince of the Saiyans are
An image and speech that made it very clear that Vegeta didn't care about anyone, just confirming that he was the strongest ... at the price that was necessary ...
An image and a speech that made it very clear to Trunks that Vegeta didn't care about him in the slightest, his greatest utility was being a disposable tool that would throw away the trash when he was no longer useful.
Or at least…
It's what it seemed ...
---
Outside the Flashback
Several miles from where Trunks was recovering
On a half-destroyed island
Other people were waking up
"Ginger, Yam, are you okay?"
And those were the first words they heard when they woke up
"Roshi-chan?" Asked Ginger, that despite having her eyes half closed she could perfectly distinguish who that voice belonged to.
"That's right ..." Roshi replied, relieved to hear and see that they were both ok
"How can you be okay after that attack?
Is this the other world?
...
No, it's not possible ... you and I couldn't coincide ..." Said Ginger, who like her almost always drew hasty conclusions
But before he continued with his erroneous claim, Roshi resolved the doubt "I am alive
Thanks to the blessing of Broly and to a Senzu Bean just like you"
However, despite debating the reason why the three were alive was a fascinating topic, something caught Yam's interest even more "What the hell..."
"AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !!!!!!"
That was Ten Shinhan, who seemed to have turned into a human torch
A human torch that wouldn't stop releasing heat around himself, forming a barrier of tens of thousands of degrees Celsius
A heat so excruciating that was evaporating the ocean around himself, destroying the little vegetation on the few islands around and making the air practically unbreathable due to the extreme temperature
A hyper-concentrated heat barrier that even prevented Cell's advance towards it's insides
Ten Shinhan seemed to have become the core of a little but powerfull sun
"At this rate he will melt the planet" Said Muten Roshi, who after taking off his almost destroyed shirt and increasing his muscles took flight towards that incredible source of heat.
"What…
What are you going to do?
Didn't you say that if that thing absorbs you it's the end for all of ours?" Ginger yelled, who flew towards Roshi to prevent him from going there.
"Yes…
But I can't let Ten die...
Furthermore…
If Cell absorbs him, everything will be lost too" Muten Roshi replied, who was aware of the danger, but that he had no choice but to risk his life to save his friend and planet
"Do you really think you can fight that monster?
You have already seen what has happened, not even we with our most powerful attack have been able to kill him
And I doubt that we can hit him again with that" Yam said, that despite not hating at all that someone wanted to die honorably in combat, she didn't like that someone believed that they could succeed where she had failed.
And what was worse, that someone flirted with his sister
"… It's not about believing…
It's about duty…" Roshi replied as he gently pushed Ginger aside to face a green monster that threatened to destroy the world.
The same thing his teacher did
The same thing he did years ago
Although both attempts failed ... and resulted in the death of the brave's hero's
But before Roshi could demonstrate his great courage and capacity for sacrifice for all the inhabitants of the planet once again
"Wait ... what is he doing?" Ginger pointed in the direction of Ten Shinhan and Cell
Creating in this way a cliffhanger that would be solved the following week