The sun was already low in the sky, painting everything in warm orange and red colors. Goku stood on the ground, tired, sweat dripping from his chin. He had been fighting Vados since early morning, and now it was almost evening. His orange gi was torn in many places, his silver hair wet, but his eyes still burned with the excitement of a true warrior.
Vados floated a few steps away, calm and perfect as always. Her long white hair moved softly in the wind, and her purple skin looked smooth even after hours of fighting. She held her staff lightly in one hand and smiled the way a teacher smiles at a student who is trying very hard.
"Try to survive my next attacks, Goku," Vados said in her clear, gentle voice.
Goku wiped the sweat from his eyes and nodded. He spread his feet wide, bent his knees a little, and brought his fists up in front of his face. His chest went up and down fast. He was tired—so tired—but he would never give up.
Suddenly, whoosh! Vados disappeared. The air itself seemed to scream where she had been standing. Before Goku could turn his head, she was already right in front of him. He threw a fast punch with all the strength he had left. Vados caught his fist in her small hand like it was nothing. She smiled wider, spun around once, twice, three times—faster and faster—holding Goku's arm. He felt the world spin around him.
"Arghhhhh!" Goku yelled as everything became a blur.
With one smooth movement, Vados let go and threw him down toward the ground like throwing a ball. BOOM! Goku hit the planet so hard that cracks ran across the ground for hundreds of meters. The whole planet shook a little, dust flew up in huge clouds, but far away on his big comfortable bed, Lord Champa kept snoring loudly, fast asleep with a happy smile on his fat purple face.
Goku lay in the new crater for a second, coughing. Pain shot through his back and legs, but something inside him—the proud Saiyan blood—refused to stay down.
BOOM!
"Ahhhhhhhhhhh!" Goku shouted as bright white-silver energy exploded out of his body. The dust that covered everything was blown away in a second. The shining energy rose high into the sky like a giant pillar of light. His hair stood up a little, glowing with power. His muscles grew bigger and harder. Goku stood up slowly inside the shining light, ready to keep fighting.
Vados clapped once, softly. "That's good, Goku. Now come at me again."
She took her fighting stance—right hand forward, left hand behind her back, exactly the way her brother Whis always stands. She looked relaxed, almost bored, but her eyes sparkled with interest.
"Beshhhhhh!" Goku kicked off the ground so hard that the rock under his feet cracked and split open. White smoke and broken stones flew behind him as he shot toward Vados like a rocket.
BAM! Their fists met in the middle. The shockwave pushed the air away and made a loud thunder sound.
Goku attacked with everything he had. Left punch, right punch, elbow, knee, high kick, low kick—he moved faster than most people can even see. Every blow carried the power to destroy mountains. But Vados danced around every single one. She leaned left, stepped right, bent backward, floated up—just a little each time, never wasting movement. Not one punch touched her.
Goku saw a tiny opening after she dodged his spinning kick. He twisted in the air and sent a powerful spinning heel kick straight at her head.
Vados tilted her head to the side, the kick passed an inch from her cheek, and she smiled like she was enjoying a pleasant breeze.
"Damn it!" Goku shouted, getting angry now.
They kept fighting—punch, dodge, kick, block, fly, turn. Goku used every trick he ever learned from Master Roshi, King Kai, Whis, and all his battles. Nothing worked. Vados was simply too fast, too strong, too perfect.
Then she spoke, calm as ever. "My turn."
Before Goku could blink, she was gone again. BAM! A hard punch hit the left side of his face. BAM! Another on the right. BAM! A third right in the middle. Each punch felt like being hit by a planet. Goku flew backward, blood coming from his nose and mouth.
He dropped to one knee, one hand on the ground to stop himself from falling completely. His chest hurt when he tried to breathe. Blood dripped from his nose onto the dirt. Sweat poured down his face and mixed with the blood.
Vados floated closer and looked down at him. "Never drop your guard just because your enemy is stronger. Even if it means you will die, keep fighting. That is the only way to grow."
She raised her right hand. A small ball of pure white energy formed in her palm, no bigger than a tennis ball, spinning slowly.
Goku looked up, eyes wide. He forced himself to stand.
Vados pointed the little ball at him and fired.
Goku crossed both arms in front of his chest just in time. The white ball hit his arms and started spinning faster and faster. It grew hotter—first warm, then burning, then hotter than the sun. The force pushed Goku backward. His feet dug deep lines in the ground. Cracks opened everywhere around him like spider webs.
"You still have so much to learn, Goku," Vados said kindly.
She snapped her fingers.
The little ball suddenly grew huge—bigger than a house—and exploded with a light so bright it turned the whole area white.
KABOOOOOOOOOM!!!
The explosion was so strong the whole planet shook like it might break apart. Black smoke and dirt filled the sky. For many seconds, nothing could be seen.
When the smoke started to clear, Vados floated above the giant new crater, smiling.
And there, in the middle of all that destruction, Goku was still standing.
His orange gi was burned almost completely away. Only a few pieces hung from his belt. His chest, stomach, and arms—every muscle hard from years of training—shone with sweat under the setting sun. Burns and bruises covered his skin, but his eyes were bright and fierce.
Vados did not wait. BOOM! She shot down toward him faster than a shooting star. She hit the ground so hard that pieces of rock flew high into the air and blocked the red sunlight for a moment.
The flying rocks hung in the sky as Goku and Vados started fighting again right under them. Goku threw a punch strong enough to clear every cloud from the sky. Vados moved her head just enough—the fist passed by and the wind from it pushed the clouds away like a hurricane.
Before Goku could pull his arm back, Vados grabbed his wrist and threw him forward. He bounced across the ground—bam, bam, bam—then she appeared above him and punched him hard in the stomach.
Blood flew from Goku's mouth. He crashed into the dirt and made another deep hole.
"I'm not done yet!" Vados shouted, excited for the first time. She brought her leg down like an axe to finish him.
Goku rolled to the side at the last second. Her foot smashed the ground and made a shockwave that knocked him into the air anyway.
Goku flew straight up, coughing blood. Vados looked up, smiled, and followed. She caught up in less than the blink of an eye.
Bam, bam, bam, bam, bam! She punched him five, six, seven times—too fast to count. Goku blocked some with his arms, but most hit his face and body. Then one huge punch landed right on his cheek. Saliva and blood flew from his mouth.
Vados locked her hands together above her head like a big hammer and brought them down on Goku's back with all her strength.
CRASHHHHHH!!!
Goku hit the planet so hard that small mountains in the distance cracked and fell down like sandcastles. The ground turned into a desert of cracks and holes. Dust rose so thick that the sun disappeared behind it.
Vados stopped in the air, arms crossed, smiling a scary, happy smile.
Silence.
Then, far below, the ground started to shake.
"Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuu…"
The shaking grew stronger.
BOOM!
"ARRRRGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"
Goku screamed from the bottom of the deepest crater. Silver-white energy exploded out of him again, brighter and stronger than ever before. Stones and pieces of the planet floated up around him. His muscles grew even bigger. Veins stood out on his arms and neck. His hair glowed silver in the middle of all that power.
He stood tall, fists clenched so hard his whole body shook with rage and pride.
Vados's smile disappeared. Her eyes became sharp and serious.
"That's more like it," she said, voice strong now. "Show me your never-ending Saiyan spirit! Show me your hunger for power! Show me your pride as a Saiyan!"
BOOM! She shot toward Goku like a purple comet, ready to fight for real this time.
Meanwhile, far away on Earth…
Sunlight poured through the big windows of Capsule Corp. Bulma stood next to the huge bed where Vegeta was still sleeping. She wore a beautiful blue dress because today was a very special day—a big family celebration, and Lord Beerus and Whis were coming.
"Hey, Vegeta! Wake up!" Bulma said, tapping his chest with her finger. "Today is the party!"
Vegeta pulled the soft white blanket over his head and growled, "Woman, let me sleep five more minutes…"
Bulma walked to the window and pulled the curtains all the way open. Bright morning sunlight filled the room.
"You better get up right now, Vegeta," she said, leaning close to his ear. "Lord Beerus and Whis will be here very soon."
Vegeta's eyes snapped open—wide and red. In one second he jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom faster than most people can walk.
"Why didn't you tell me sooner?!" he shouted. "Make sure every single person comes to the party—everyone except that idiot Majin Buu! We don't need him eating everything and making Lord Beerus angry again!"
He slammed the bathroom door and locked it.
Bulma put her hands on her hips and smiled. "Don't tell me what to do, Vegeta. Everyone will be here, and I already prepared something very special for Lord Beerus—something delicious he has never tasted before."
She turned around, her high heels clicking on the floor, and walked out of the bedroom, ready to make sure the whole day would be perfect.