Tap… tap… tap…
Androids 17 and 18 walked to the edge of the crater, hearing the despair in Son Gohan's voice below.
"Oh? Calling for your daddy after getting beaten up?"
A faint smirk curled on 17's lips. "Originally, Dr. Gero ordered us to kill your father. But who would've thought he'd die so early—from a heart disease, no less."
18 leapt down into the crater. She planted her foot on Son Gohan's head and said coldly,
"Son Gohan, aren't you Son Goku's son? We gave you so much time to grow… and yet you're still this weak."
"Cough… cough…"
Blood spilled from Gohan's mouth. His injuries were so severe he couldn't even speak anymore.
17 stepped into the crater as well, shaking his head.
"You're all just too weak. Today wasn't fun at all. I'm done playing with you."
"If trash like this can't entertain us, there's no point keeping him around," 18 said flatly. "Finish him, 17."
She lifted Gohan with one hand and hurled him into the air.
"Haha! Looks like you feel the same way, 18. Then I won't hold back."
17 raised his hand, aiming at Gohan in midair. A sphere of terrifying energy condensed in his palm.
"Die."
Whoosh!
As Gohan began to fall, the energy blast shot forward to meet him.
"D-Dad… I'll be seeing you soon… You're still in the Other World… right?"
Facing the incoming blast, Gohan closed his eyes in despair.
Just as he was about to be obliterated—
At that critical moment, space beside him rippled, and two figures emerged.
Gran… and Bulma.
Gran raised his hand and caught the incoming energy blast effortlessly. His fingers tightened slightly—
Boom.
The explosion was muted, like a dud firecracker. Wisps of smoke curled out between his fingers. The casual elegance of his one-handed motion looked almost unreal—so much so that Bulma's eyes sparkled with awe.
"Who?!"
Gran's sudden appearance startled both 17 and 18.
He spared them a single glance before ignoring them entirely, shifting his gaze to the unconscious Gohan in his grasp.
"With such terrifying potential… and yet reduced to this state because your mother filled your head with dreams of becoming a scholar. What a pity."
"Gran… you know him?" Bulma asked, feeling that the man in Gran's hand looked oddly familiar.
"You know him too."
"I… know him?"
Bulma fell into thought.
This was Earth in another timeline, but she had no idea which point in time it was. Judging by his clothes, he seemed to belong to the same Turtle School as Son Goku and Krillin… yet she had never seen him before.
"Didn't I just say it? His talent is extraordinary. It's just a shame his mother pushed him toward becoming a scholar," Gran reminded her.
Boom!
Bulma's pupils suddenly shrank as realization struck like a thunderbolt.
A memory surfaced from a year ago—when Gran had gone with her to Mount Paozu and asked Son Goku and Chi-Chi:
If one day Son Gohan were to die because of his dream of becoming a scholar… could you accept it?
So this man… is—
"He's Gohan!!!"
Bulma clamped a hand over her mouth, utterly unable to believe that the severely injured, one-armed man before her was the baby Gohan from her own timeline.
"Yes. He's Gohan."
"But how is that possible?!"
Her eyes reddened instantly.
Only now did she truly understand why Gran had asked that question back then.
In another timeline… Son Gohan really would die because of that dream.
"There's nothing impossible about it," Gran said, lifting Gohan slightly and sighing. "Besides, it's not entirely his fault. In this timeline, Kakarot died long ago. Even without the scholar dream, without Kakarot's guidance… Gohan's fate would still end like this."
"What? Goku… died in this timeline?"
Memories of Son Goku flooded Bulma's mind. Tears streamed down her face.
Of course… If Goku were alive, how could he allow his son to be beaten like this? How could he allow Earth to fall into ruin?
"Gran… what exactly happened here?"
"It's complicated. You'll understand soon enough."
Holding Gohan in one hand, Gran cast a cold gaze toward the ground below.
By now, 17 and 18 had returned to the surface.
"That gave me quite a scare," 17 said, looking up with a grin. "Didn't expect another strong fighter hiding on Earth. Now this is interesting."
18 narrowed her eyes as she noticed Bulma beside Gran.
"17… doesn't that woman look like Bulma from Capsule Corp?"
"…You're right. But she looks younger."
17 walked over to Trunks and stepped on his head again, looking up with a sinister smile.
"Hey, blue-haired woman—are you Bulma? Take a look at who's under my foot."
He didn't understand why she looked younger, but her son—Trunks—was right beneath him. This just made things even more entertaining.
Hearing his voice, Bulma turned her gaze downward.
A boy lay pinned to the ground.
His hair was the same blue as hers.
But his face was pressed into the dirt—unrecognizable. His aura was so faint it was almost undetectable.
He was on the verge of death.
"Gran… who is he…?"
Bulma wiped her tears, about to ask...
But in the next instant—
Gran vanished from the sky.
The sudden disappearance made both androids tense instantly.
Then—
Boom!
Gran reappeared beside 17.
A violent shockwave erupted from his body, blasting 17 away—sending him flying tens of thousands of meters in an instant.
"17!"
Seeing him disappear, 18 flew into a rage. She raised her hand, about to fire an energy blast—
But in the next moment—
Boom!
Another shockwave burst forth from Gran.
And just like that—
18 followed the same fate as 17, vanishing completely from the ruins.
END OF CHAPTER
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