28 Rest Well

"What... What is this?" Antauri asked, stepping back a few times due to the raging red glow around me.

I vanish from sight and reappear right in front of the alien warrior, my fist buried deep into his his gut. I hear him yell out in pain and I immediately raise my other hand to block a punch he had aimed for my head.

This wasn't good.

Even with just this one strike I could feel my body tearing itself apart.

My young body can't handle the strain.

The only reason why I'm not dead yet was most likely due to my power and mental training. If I had been weaker, or if I hadn't meditated to the extent that I had, I'd have been six feet under the second I used the Kaioken.

I quickly used vanished behind Antauri and hit him with a knee towards his spine. I don't stop and I hit him with a spinning backhand sending him flying into the air.

As much as I would have loved to continue this little game, I felt my body giving out under the intense strain. I gave him no time to recover and quickly used Kai Kai to teleport beside him, knocked him back down towards the ground with a Sledgehammer.

I charge into the smoke, ready to continue my assault when I felt a small sting hit my face.

"Don't think that I'm finished yet!" I heard the alien warrior yell before I felt a Ki blast sending me back up into the sky.

I gritted me teeth and placed my hands on the pink energy sphere, pushing it above my head and sending it away from me.

It explodes behind me, illuminating us both in a pink light.

Seeing an opportunity, Antauri quickly rose up and started to fight back, locking us both into a brawl. It didn't make sense, how was he going blow for blow with me at this level?

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Everyone, every single Saiyan witnessing this went wide eyed with shock and awe. They had seen the battle between these two and saw that Zyleth had been getting pushed back almost the entire time.

Now they were all witnessing the same child who had been getting pushed back was now standing on equal ground, shrouded in a red glow.

And although all were surprised, none of them were more surprised than Vegeta. Not the King, but his son.

He knew that Zyleth's was the strongest Saiyan on Planet Vegeta. It had basically been told to him by his father back during Zyleth's match with Nappa. But he couldn't fathom that his teacher had been holding back this much.

How was he so powerful without the use of his Great Ape?

What is that red glow?

Why does he follow the orders of his father when he's so much more powerful than he is?

All of those questions came flooding into Vegeta's mind when he looked on at the battle above and he couldn't help but turn his gaze to his father. He was still there, spectating the battle with widened eyes and a dropped jaw.

Wasn't he supposed to be the strongest?

Wasn't he supposed be the one leading this charge?

Why was he here cowering on the sidelines while Zyleth faced the monster that had defeated their Elite warriors?

Comparing how Zyleth looked facing that monster above to how his father looked cowering in fear, Vegeta wondered who truly was supposed to be the King of all Saiyans in this moment.

His father or Zyleth?

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"Damnit..." I gritted my teeth with anger as I felt my body being torn apart more and more as time went on.

As Antauri took my attacks and returned them with his own, sometimes equal, punches, I racked my brain trying to think of something that could explain why he suddenly had become so powerful.

Feeling the time beginning to run out, I vanished and hit him in the gut once more with a full-powered punch, but it didn't do anything. It didn't even looked like he was hurt. It wasn't until he hit me with a Sledgehammer of his own that it finally clicked.

I rocket towards the ground, orientating myself to in the air and landing on the ground on one knee.

I deactivate Kaioken and suddenly feel a wave of pain hit me before I quickly swallowed the Senzu Bean.

Thirty seconds. That was my limit now.

Antauri descended from the sky and looked at me with a curious gaze.

"Giving up?" He asked.

"No. I just finally realized what you were doing." I said, to which he tilted his head with intrigue. "You're not feeling any of this, are you?"

His eyes widen for a split second before asking, "What do you mean?"

"My blows. I know for a fact that even if you powered up, there would still be some sort of reaction. A twitch, a groan of pain, something that would indicate that you are actually taking damage. The only reason that someone wouldn't show pain is either because they're monumentally stronger or..."

"Or?" Antauri asked.

"Or they couldn't feel anything at all." I finished as my mouth turned upwards and formed a smirk.

Antauri silently looked at me with a blank gaze before he suddenly started to chuckle, which then turned into full-blown laughter.

"Remarkable! It's been a long time since anyone had made me use this ability, and this is the first that anyone has ever figure it out!" He said with an almost joyful tone. "Yes, my people have the ability to turn off the pain centers in our bodies."

If I wasn't a Saiyan, whose people have the ability to grow stronger after near-death, I would've called that ability broken.

Sure, it was a double sided sword, but just imagining the implications of that ability was astounding. Ultra Ego's main flaw of having to take damage from your opponent to fuel your own power would basically be negated.

Why wasn't this race part of the choices I was given? I mean I still wouldn't have picked it, but I would have still appreciated the choice!

"Now that I've satisfied your curiosity, would you be willing to respond in kind?" Antauri asked.

"And what's that?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Your name. You still haven't told me." He said.

My eyes widened for a split second before returning to normal. I was expecting him to ask about the Kaioken. I was even debating about whether I should tell him about it or not when he asked, but I guess I don't need to anyway.

"Zyleth." I told him.

"Zyleth... Zyleth..." He muttered repeatedly as he committed the name to memory. "I will remember you, Zyleth. I will remember your name for the rest of my days."

"So for the next thirty seconds?" I said as I got in my stance and reactivated Kaioken.

He gave a hearty laugh as he also got into his.

"I guess we'll just have to see about that, won't we?" He replied.

As I stared down Antauri for the final time, I couldn't help but feel that something had shifted between us. Before it was just a battle of survival and revenge for what he had done to my father. But right now I couldn't help but feel a little respect for the warrior in front of me.

I was... enjoying this fight.

I almost didn't want it to end, but I guess good things don't last forever.

Letting out one last battle cry, we charged at each other with fists extended as we both aimed to end this fight in one blow.

"Times three!"

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I stood over the broken and defeated Antauri, a new hole having been pierced through his chest. The red and frantic red glow of Kaioken disappeared from my body as I deactivated the technique.

"It was... a good battle... wasn't it?" The beaten alien asked.

"It was." I nodded my head. "Rest well, Antauri. You were strong."

I watched as the warrior took his last breath and died with a smile on his face. My eyes widen in shock as his body began to slowly turn into small particles before disappearing altogether as if it were never there.

My quickly shook my head and smiled as I walked away from the resting place of a great warrior.

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As the battle had come to its conclusion, King Vegeta hurried through the castle before anyone could see him and searched around for the right room.

"It... It should be right here." He said as he looked down at the brick floor of the castle.

He raised his hand and blew open the floor with a small energy blast, revealing the underground room where the object he was searching for was being held.

Searching through a room full of treasures and priceless artifacts, he found the object in which he had so desperately sought after.

"Finally... Planet Vegeta is saved..." He muttered as he held up the object in question.

The most comfortable pillow in all the universe was now in his grasp!

As he turned to exit, he saw something else catch his eye... It was another pillow...

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Rest in peace to Akira Toriyama, who died on March 1st, 2024. 1955-2024.

Thank you so much for making our our childhoods so great and memorable. Your role in bringing entertainment to our lives cannot be overstated, and I couldn't be more grateful to you for the work you have done.

You will be missed dearly.