Frieza threw Gohan onto the ground and pinned his head under his foot.
Listening to Gohan's screams, Vegeta clenched his fists, yet he still didn't rush forward.
Frieza lifted his head and said, "What's wrong, Vegeta? Not coming to save him? Looks like you're too scared to move. Fine—hold it in for a little longer. I'll have this brat stop breathing soon, and then it'll be your turn."
Vegeta's body wouldn't stop trembling.
He didn't actually care whether Gohan lived or died—it was just that Frieza's power was even stronger than he'd imagined, and he simply couldn't make a move.
Gohan's ki grew weaker and weaker. Even Goku, still healing inside the spaceship, could feel it.
If this kept going, Gohan would really die.
Goku couldn't care about his injuries anymore and wanted to rush out to save him, but Creed pressed him down in the healing pod.
In his current state, even if he went to fight Frieza, it would only be throwing his life away. He wasn't in peak condition—losing like that would be unbearable.
Besides, Creed wasn't worried at all.
Even if they all died, he could just defeat Frieza himself and then use the Dragon Balls to revive everyone anyway.
Just as Frieza lifted his foot, about to stomp down—
Vegeta couldn't hold back anymore. He fired a Energy Wave and sliced off Frieza's tail.
He had no choice but to act.
If Gohan died, Frieza would definitely turn to him next—and how long could he possibly last?
Still, Vegeta understood clearly that he wasn't Frieza's match. After saving Gohan, he started dragging Frieza into a high-speed chase across the sky.
Even though he was easily caught up to, it wasn't a situation where he was completely pinned down either.
While they were locked in that pursuit, Dende ran over to Gohan. In under two minutes, he healed all of Gohan's injuries.
Not only were Gohan's wounds gone, even his stamina returned to peak condition—like he'd eaten a senzu bean.
Frieza also noticed Gohan's ki recovering and stopped.
Vegeta gritted his teeth and said, "That Namekian brat can heal? Why didn't you say so earlier!"
Gohan returned to the battlefield and flew to Vegeta's side.
"I only just found out too. If I'd known earlier, Dad's injuries wouldn't have been such a problem."
Vegeta didn't argue further. Feeling the powerful pressure from Gohan's gathered ki, he instead sneered.
"As expected of a half-breed with Saiyan blood. After being revived, your battle power improved again—even if it's only a little. If we join forces now, maybe… just maybe… we can take him down."
As he spoke, the two of them fired Energy Waves at the same time. They struck Frieza like a torrential storm, explosions rocking the very space around them.
But when the smoke cleared, Frieza still hadn't taken even the slightest damage.
"You people still struggle before death. Saiyans or Earthlings—it doesn't matter. There's no way you can defeat me. How many times do I have to say it before you understand?"
Gohan clenched his teeth hard. Even if their attacks did nothing, he refused to give up.
The boost he gained after being revived filled him with even more confidence.
Before Vegeta could stop him, Gohan rushed forward again.
With no choice, Vegeta could only follow and coordinate with Gohan's suicidal style of assault.
Just as they moved—
A white blur suddenly appeared, blocking their path and forcing them to stop.
Gohan froze for a moment, then smiled.
"Piccolo-ojisan."
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Gohan," Piccolo said, arms crossed.
Piccolo stared at Frieza and said slowly, "So he's Frieza… I see. He really is a pretty terrifying monster."
Vegeta said coldly, "And here I thought it was someone important. So it's the guy I killed back on Earth. I get it now—your second wish with the Dragon Balls was to revive this useless piece of trash so he could come here and stir up trouble."
Hearing the mockery, Piccolo didn't even turn his head.
"Sorry. I am trash. But you'd better be prepared. After I kill Frieza, you're next."
"After you kill Frieza, I'm next?"
Vegeta laughed like he'd just heard the funniest joke in the universe.
"I never imagined Namekians could tell jokes too."
Frieza also found it strange.
How was there still a surviving Namekian?
And Piccolo felt different from the other Namekians.
Since Frieza's scouter had been destroyed during his transformation, he couldn't read Piccolo's battle power at all.
"Alright," Piccolo said suddenly. "Time to clean up the trash of the universe. I'll handle this guy alone. None of you interfere. Go find somewhere to hide—Dende too, or you'll get caught in the aftermath."
Hearing that, not only Vegeta and Gohan, even Dende thought Piccolo had gone crazy.
Vegeta believed Piccolo was just good with words and had no idea how strong the enemy really was.
What shocked Dende even more was that Piccolo actually knew his name.
King Kai was also astonished—Piccolo's ki was several times stronger than when he trained with him. What had he gone through?
But Frieza was still beyond what Piccolo should be able to handle.
If Piccolo died, then Earth's Kami would die too.
All they could do now was pray that Piccolo could hold out until Goku reached the battlefield.
Gohan, however, believed Piccolo would definitely win—because Piccolo wasn't the kind of person who underestimated his opponent.
Frieza chuckled.
"You're awfully confident in yourself, aren't you? Too bad. That confidence will shatter soon enough. You'll be kneeling and begging me for mercy."
Piccolo didn't answer.
In an instant, his figure vanished from everyone's sight.
Then in the next moment, he was right in front of Frieza.
That speed—Frieza didn't even react.
After taking several heavy blows, Frieza was sent flying.
The attack came without any warning and caught Frieza completely off guard.
In midair, Frieza adjusted his posture and shot up toward the sky, but Piccolo was even faster. In the blink of an eye, he caught up and drove an elbow into Frieza's stomach.
The two of them collided in the sky with punches and kicks. Their momentum was even more shocking than any Energy Wave. Each impact made the heavens tremble, and the scattered ki sent lake water surging and cracked the mountains.
In that exchange, Piccolo held the advantage.
Gohan thought victory was assured.
But Vegeta grew more and more alarmed.
He understood Frieza better than anyone. No matter how fierce the attacks looked, they were useless against Frieza.
Even if he hated to admit it, he still wanted to see how things developed—if it went bad, he'd have no choice but to escape and wait for another chance later.
Piccolo also noticed it.
No matter how much he beat Frieza down, Frieza could always adjust and counterattack, as if he couldn't feel pain at all.
(End of Chapter)
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