Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6: THE WARRIORS' NEWFOUND POWER

​The final day of their exile had arrived.

​Inside the vast, blinding expanse of Zalama’s crucible, the five warriors stood facing one another. For the first time in what felt like a lifetime, the air was entirely stripped of violence. No one was shouting. No one was transforming. No devastating cataclysms of ki tore at the atmosphere.

​Only a profound, electric stillness remained.

​Goku stood at the center of the formation, his gaze sweeping over his comrades. His expression was serene, but the manic excitement burning in his eyes was impossible to mask.

​Nearby, Vegeta stood with his arms tightly locked across his chest, his sharp eyes evaluating every shift in posture. Jiren was a monolith of absolute discipline. Gohan watched with quiet, unblinking attention. And Yamoshi carried himself with the terrifying, effortless confidence of a being who had rewritten his own limits.

​The silence stretched on, heavy with expectation.

​At last, Goku broke it, a small smile playing at the corner of his mouth.

​"Well... we've spent all this time training separately. We've pushed ourselves harder than ever before. But there's one thing we haven't done yet."

​Vegeta raised a single, skeptical eyebrow. "And what would that be, Kakarot?"

​Goku's grin widened into something feral. "We haven't tested these new powers against each other."

​Gohan’s eyes narrowed slightly. "You mean all of us?"

​"Exactly." Goku clenched his fists, the air humming faintly around him. "I think we should spend our final day in one last battle. No holding back. Everyone shows what they learned during their training."

​Jiren slowly turned his heavy gaze toward Goku. "You intend to fight all of us?"

​Goku let out a bright, casual laugh. "Not exactly. I just want everyone to push their power as far as they can. We've all trained alone for years. Now I want to see what those years actually gave us."

​Yamoshi remained silent, his ancient eyes locked onto Goku with terrifying intensity. Then, without a word, the first Saiyan God stepped forward.

​"Then show me."

​Goku’s expression shifted, the amusement melting into sharp focus.

​Yamoshi’s voice dropped into a commanding register that seemed to vibrate in their very bones. "Show me what you have gained, Son Goku. You claim to carry the power of the Saiyan race within you, yet you have traveled a path that few Saiyans could ever comprehend."

​He slowly raised one hand, palm up.

​"Show me why you trained."

​A faint, primordial pressure began to seep through the chamber, heavy as a falling star.

​Goku smiled, a glint of pure thrill in his silver-touched eyes. "Heh... I was hoping you'd say that." He stepped forward, lowering his center of gravity. "Alright, Yamoshi. I'll show you."

​Yamoshi’s expression hardened like flint. "Do not show me merely the strength of a warrior."

​With a sudden flick of his wrist, his ornate golden battle armor loosened. Piece by heavy piece, it shattered away, clattering against the stone floor and revealing the simple brown combat gi beneath. Stripped of his ancient regalia, his presence did not diminish—it exploded, becoming infinitely more raw and intimidating.

​"Show me the capabilities of our race," Yamoshi commanded, his aura beginning to bleed outward in a shimmering, multi-colored tide. "Show me the power that Saiyan blood is capable of reaching."

​Goku’s smile faded completely. He settled deep into his fighting stance.

​Yamoshi's eyes narrowed to razor slits. "And most importantly... show me the power of the Angels within your Saiyan blood."

​The chamber trembled, the white floor fracturing beneath the sheer weight of his intent.

​Goku’s eyes widened a fraction, caught off guard by the ancient warrior's insight. Then, a slow, fearless grin stretched across his face.

​"That's exactly what I wanted to hear." He clenched his fists, and the air around him began to distort. "Let's go, Yamoshi!"

​Gohan instinctively took a step back as the kinetic tension between the two titans spiked toward a boiling point. Jiren watched in unblinking silence.

​Two Saiyans. Two completely alien philosophies of might. One, an ancient god who had walked the dawn of time; the other, a mortal who had stolen the techniques of the cosmos itself.

​Then—

​“Hmph.”

​Vegeta unfolded his arms, the motion sharp and decisive.

​Goku glanced sideways, blinking in surprise. "Vegeta?"

​The Prince of All Saiyans stepped up beside him, a vicious, bloodthirsty smirk twisting his lips. "You really thought you were going to have all the fun, Kakarot?"

​"If you're going to test yourself against the first Saiyan God," Vegeta growled, his dark aura erupting in a violent shroud of violet destruction, "then I'm joining you."

​Yamoshi shifted his gaze to the prince, his expression unreadable.

​Vegeta's eyes burned with the furious pride of a thousand defeated kings. "You heard him. He wants to see what the Saiyan race is capable of. Then let's show him." He clenched his fist, the ground turning to dust beneath his boots. "Kakarot, you've spent all this time chasing angelic power. But I took a different path."

​He stepped shoulder-to-shoulder with his eternal rival.

​"I've forged my own strength through destruction, battle, and sheer will."

​Goku chuckled, the adrenaline singing in his veins. "So you really want to fight him too?"

​Vegeta scoffed, his gaze locked entirely on the ancient god. "Of course. I would love nothing more than to defeat the first Saiyan God."

​Yamoshi's mouth twitched into a faint, dangerous smile, a true spark of excitement finally igniting in his eyes. "Two modern Saiyans against the first?"

​Vegeta’s smirk hardened. "Don't misunderstand me. I'm not asking for your permission."

​Goku laughed aloud, stepping forward. "That's Vegeta for you."

​Vegeta glanced sideways, his voice dropping into a lethal whisper. "Enough talking, Kakarot." He turned back to Yamoshi. "Let's show him the power of the Saiyans he wishes to see."

​Yamoshi raised his fists, his body swallowed by an epoch-shaking wave of primordial light.

​"Then come," Yamoshi’s voice echoed through the endless white, carrying the weight of an era. "Show me what you have become."

​Goku’s eyes sharpened to pinpricks. Vegeta dropped lower into his destructive stance.

​And in the silent heart of the chamber, as Gohan and Jiren watched from the edge of the storm, the final, terrifying clash of their training began.