Beerus felt as though someone had snatched his child away.
It was, frankly, absurd.
Utterly unheard-of, unseen—an utter farce.
"Lord Beerus, shall we continue?"
Gohan asked, eyes blazing.
"Continue? Of course." Beerus gave a cold laugh, ready to fight again.
He was thoroughly irritated and needed battle to vent.
"Come on, hahaha!"
The two burst into perfect unison laughter and clashed once more.
They punched their way out of the atmosphere and plunged into the vast Universe.
The onlookers watched them vanish into the distance.
Everyone grew anxious.
None of them could survive in outer space.
They had no choice but to trudge back to the plaza of the Lookout, deflated.
Seeing their long faces, Whis smiled. "Would you like to watch the fight?"
"Yeah!" Goku nodded. "Can you do it?"
"Easy." Whis tapped his staff on the ground.
In an instant the black orb atop the staff glowed, projecting into mid-air.
An image of Gohan and Beerus battling immediately appeared overhead.
Amazed exclamations rippled through the crowd.
The two fighters now drifted in a lifeless star system.
They battled upon a small asteroid.
Gohan punched; Beerus shot skyward and dodged.
Gohan's fist slammed into the ground instead.
The planetoid exploded into dust.
Beerus raised a hand skyward, then hurled a glittering, scorching Ki Blast at Gohan, who hovered in the Void Realm.
Gohan blazed with towering battle-aura.
His Ten Times Kamehameha Wave shifted between red and blue as it met the golden orb capable of annihilating the entire system.
"BOOM!!!"
The two energies collided.
Whis's projection turned blinding white; the battle could no longer be seen.
Somewhere in the depths of space.
The Ten Times Kamehameha Wave and Beerus's scorching orb pushed against each other, deadlocked.
Ripples of overwhelming residual force spread out, turning several more asteroids into brilliant fireworks.
"Haaah!" Gohan surged his Qi again; the Ten Times Kamehameha Wave thickened and intensified.
Sensing the change, Beerus was stunned.
He mused that this brat somehow still had power left—utterly inconceivable.
Gohan was barely twenty-five or six; how could he be this monstrously strong?
A God of Destruction like himself had existed for eons.
Reaching such heights in a mere twenty-some years was Heaven-Defying.
Give him a few more millennia and who knew what he'd become?
The... ahem, better not speak of it—dared not even think it.
Unimaginable.
Seeing Gohan force the scorching orb back, Beerus pressed down with his hand.
The orb surged anew, crushing toward Gohan.
"Aaaagh..."
Under the pressure Gohan's face contorted, veins bulged, blood roared.
He heard his own heart thunder and the rush of blood in his ears.
His body burned, radiating terrible heat.
Suddenly—
"BOOM!!!"
The scorching orb and the Ten Times Kamehameha Wave detonated between them.
A tide of power swept out, erasing the entire star system.
"Ptoo!"
Gohan coughed up a mouthful of blood and tumbled backward through space.
Beerus clutched his chest and staggered several steps.
Beerus: … He stared in Gohan's direction, feelings mixed.
"Brat, you've got my blood racing…"
"Wonder how he's doing—must be badly hurt."
With that thought Beerus flew toward Gohan to check on him.
Halfway there he saw Gohan spring up as if nothing had happened, wiping blood from his mouth.
Beerus: … The God of Destruction had been rendered speechless twice in short order.
The boy's potential was terrifying; who knew what heights he'd reach.
Since he was already close, Beerus asked, "Hey, kid, you alright?"
"Fine, fine—that last blast gave me a scare," Gohan said.
Scare you? I nearly jumped out of my skin, Beerus thought, exasperated.
"Ahem, let's call it a day—no more fighting."
"Sure." Gohan nodded, flexing; his joints cracked like firecrackers.
"Tell me, what form is this?" Beerus asked, curious.
"Super Saiyan 4," Gohan answered honestly.
Beerus nodded. "Super Saiyan 4, impressive…"
"Lord Beerus, how much of your power did you use just now?" Gohan asked in return.
"Ahem, that's classified for now," Beerus muttered, fist to his lips.
"..."
Pulling that card again?
Saving room for retcons later?
Gohan was too weary to retort.
Whatever—no point pressing him.
It wouldn't change a thing.
"All right, back to Earth."
With that,
Gohan grabbed Beerus and Instant Transmission returned them to the Lookout.
When the two reappeared,
Trunks and the others gazed at Gohan with even deeper awe.
If Goku's clash with Beerus had broadened their horizons,
Gohan's duel left them utterly stunned.
A Saiyan could fight like that? It shattered everything they thought they knew.
Seeing her dad return, Pan insisted on being scooped into his arms.
Gohan took her from Piccolo, pinched her soft little cheek; content, she nestled against his chest.
She vowed never to climb out again.
Gazing at Shenron sulking overhead, Gohan recalled a classic line—memories from the past hit him again.
"Hey, Shenron, come clean up the mess."
Next,
Piccolo, the Brains of the Group, stepped up to make the wishes.
First: revive every human Babidi had killed.
Second: restore Earth after its two brutal battles.
For the third wish they checked with Beerus.
Regarding the planets obliterated in the fight,
Beerus said they were lifeless husks that shouldn't exist; no need to restore them.
So the third wish reinforced Earth's core—heavily reinforced.
All three wishes granted smoothly.
Shenron finally exhaled, bowed nervously to Beerus, then split into seven streaks of light and sped away.
Meanwhile Beerus was wolfing down food with gusto.
Watching him, Gohan rubbed his stomach; he was starving too.
After such a fierce fight, his body rightfully demanded fuel—perfectly reasonable.
Still holding Pan, Gohan walked over to Whis and Beerus.
He assumed they were finishing the leftovers.
Instead he found a fresh, steaming spread.
What was this?
Who'd ordered room service?
As he wondered, he spotted Popo and Dende ferrying dish after dish from the Lookout.
"Nice going, Dende—and Mr. Popo."
You sure know how to read the room.
Dende beamed, "Popo cooked loads—everyone's invited!"
A post-battle feast... Good food always lifts the spirits.
The Supreme Kai waved a hand, conjuring square tables and chairs.
Everyone pitched in.
Setting tables, carrying dishes, ladling rice... The First Lookout Food Festival had begun.
...[Skirt]: 825316682
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