William stood firm, arms crossed, his eyes gleaming with intrigue as he observed Goku channeling an immense surge of ki. The sheer intensity of the energy made the air shimmer, tremors rippling through the ground as loose stones levitated and danced around them.
They had been sparring for hours, their clash drawing awe and exhaustion in equal measure. Most of the Ravagers had wandered off, uninterested in another ki-flinging brawl. Only Yondu remained, lounging lazily in a reclined chair, casually munching on bright, crystalline popcorn native to this galactic sector.
William glanced at him, smirked faintly, then returned his gaze to Goku.
Suddenly, Goku screamed.
A sharp, piercing cry tore through the sky as a golden hue began to flare around him. His eyes flickered erratically, black, then green, then black again, his aura surging in chaotic pulses.
FWASH!
The golden light blinked out.
Goku dropped to his knees, chest heaving, soaked in sweat. His fingers dug into the dry, cracked earth as frustration boiled over.
"Why... why can't I break through?" he thought bitterly, slamming a clenched fist into the ground.
BOOM... CRACKLE!
A crater exploded outward beneath him, spiderweb fractures spreading like veins of failure. His breath came in ragged gasps.
Footsteps crunched behind him.
Goku looked up, blinking through sweat as William passed by and came to a halt just ahead.
"You're forcing it," William said calmly. "Power alone won't take you there. You need something deeper. Something that sets your soul on fire."
William turned, eyes narrowing.
"Tell me... do you have family?"
Goku flinched.
His eyes instinctively darted toward Yondu, lounging mid-bite. That moment of vulnerability didn't go unnoticed.
WENG!
A brilliant orb of ki ignited in William's palm, compact, blinding, alive. He raised it casually and aimed it at Yondu.
The blue-skinned man froze, popcorn halfway to his mouth.
"Whoa, now, hold up..."
Goku lunged forward instinctively.
"NO! DON'T..."
BOOOOOOM!
The blast rocketed toward Yondu and detonated in an instant, engulfing the area in a searing white light.
For a moment, silence.
Then—
Goku's face twisted into pure fury. His body shook violently as an overwhelming tide of energy surged through him.
His vision blurred, heart racing.
"He didn't... he wouldn't... NO!"
"I... WON'T LET YOU..." he growled, voice cracking under the weight of rage. The earth beneath him trembled as storm clouds churned overhead, drawn by the swell of energy.
CRACKLE!
Lightning tore the sky apart.
Goku's silhouette stood silhouetted in the flashing storm, his aura flaring in rhythmic bursts. His scream rose like thunder.
"I WON'T LET YOU GET AWAY WITH THIS!! HAAAAAAAAAAAA!!"
His roar ripped the air as his aura exploded outward, golden light tearing through the battlefield. The raw energy reshaped the terrain, rocks lifting, trees bending, the ground fracturing beneath his feet.
His hair flared upward, golden and fierce, his eyes now glowing a piercing emerald.
WHOOOOOOSH!
In a golden blur, Goku launched forward. His fist, wrapped in incandescent energy, collided with William's face.
BOOOM!
William flew backward, skidding across the battlefield like a meteor.
But Goku wasn't done.
He flashed forward again, appearing above him and slamming a boot into William's ribs, then unleashing a flurry of furious strikes, left, right, elbow, knee, each blow cracking the air.
William grunted, trying to guard, but Goku was relentless.
With a yell, Goku grabbed his legs and spun.
FWUMP FWUMP FWUMP—
He hurled William like a whirlwind, then released, launching him across the sky and into a towering mountain range.
The impact vaporized the summit in a plume of debris.
Goku wasn't finished.
He gathered his hands, the air thick with rising pressure as a sphere of energy coalesced between his palms, golden, jagged, vibrating with raw destructive potential.
"NOVA HOWL!!"
WHOOOOOOOOSH!
A beam of golden fury lanced across the sky, hurtling toward the mountain crater.
The world seemed to hold its breath.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
The blast vaporized the peak and much of the surrounding valley, carving a massive crater into the land. Lightning crackled wildly across the rim, and scorched winds howled outward in shockwaves.
From the dust, silence.
And then—
WOOOOOM!
A pulse of energy surged upward from the epicenter.
William stood at its heart, arms outstretched, completely unharmed. In one hand, he held a glowing orb of ki above his head, crackling, pristine.
Goku's eyes widened.
"Impossible... That attack should've flattened a moon..."
WENG!
The orb in William's hand shot into the sky, halting midair before spinning rapidly. From its core, smaller orbs began to break off, dozens of them, glowing, twitching with intent. They moved like satellites locking into formation.
William's voice echoed across the battlefield, calm, clinical:
"You unlocked your next level. Good. Now let's see how long you can keep it."
Goku snarled, his rage not yet spent.
He shot forward again, ready to push through.
But the orbs fired first.
ZING!
The first orb shot past his head, narrowly missing. Goku tilted mid-air, twisting to avoid the next, then the next. More followed, in a wave of precision blasts.
He ducked, flipped, spiraled, narrowly avoiding impact, until one clipped his shoulder, spinning him sideways.
Another struck his ribs. He hissed, regaining control.
"They're tracking me... adapting..."
More orbs closed in.
Goku gritted his teeth, grunting through the strain as he weaved between the glowing barrage.
"I've come this far. I'm not backing down now."
He roared again, surging through the storm of energy toward William.
ZING! ZING-ZING!
The sky erupted with dazzling golden streaks as a storm of ki orbs surged forward, converging on Goku like a relentless swarm of predatory drones.
He dove beneath the first wave, twisting and weaving through the air like a ribbon caught in a tempest, his aura blazing with each sharp turn. Beads of sweat clung to his brow, his focus absolute. Every muscle in his body fired in perfect synchronization.
"Too many! They're predicting my moves!"
The next barrage was faster, more precise, almost sentient. The orbs no longer scattered aimlessly; they adjusted, adapting to his every step, every breath, every fleeting hesitation.
FWASH!
A bolt skimmed his thigh, scorching his skin.
WHUMP!
Another struck his back, forcing the air from his lungs.
But Goku refused to falter.
His fists clenched tighter. His body burned with strain.
He spun into a midair corkscrew, his aura rippling as he narrowly avoided a trio of orbs. CRACK! One exploded beside his ear, sending a deafening ring through his head.
Amid the chaos, his eyes locked onto his target.
William.
Still standing.
Still watching.
Unmoving.
Serene at the center of the storm.
"He's testing me," Goku thought, realization dawning. "He's not even trying—he's waiting to see if I'll give out first!"
His teeth gritted, his golden aura blazing brighter with every second.
"I'm so close... just a little more!"
FWOOSH!
Only ten feet separated him now.
Then—
ZZZZRRRRRMMMM!
The orbs reacted instantly.
They swarmed.
A luminous tidal wave of energy surged from every direction, above, below, behind, even through solid stone, the orbs phasing effortlessly as their vibrations crackled with raw, reality-shaking power.
Goku's eyes narrowed.
"No time!"
BOOM!
The first orb smashed into his shoulder, jerking him sideways mid-flight. The second plowed into his stomach, sending him tumbling upward. The third...
BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!
He was engulfed in an unrelenting barrage, his body spinning and twisting, battered by rapid-fire detonations that lit up the battlefield in a cascade of fiery bursts.
CRASH!
Goku hit the ground with bone-rattling force, bouncing before sliding across the fractured terrain, leaving deep gouges in his wake.
His golden aura faltered, flickering like a dying flame.
He gagged, coughing violently as blood spattered the dirt beneath him, the metallic taste mixing with the grit of earth on his tongue.
Everything around him blurred.
Above, the orbs of energy drifted gracefully back to William, arranging themselves in a precise orbit around him like vigilant sentinels.
The older warrior hovered closer, his hands clasped calmly behind his back.
"You almost made it."
Goku groaned, dragging his body from the rubble, his arms trembling as he forced himself upright.
"Damn it…" he gasped, "…I was so close…"
William descended gently, landing a few meters away. The orbs surrounding him dimmed, but did not vanish.
He studied Goku in silence.
Goku's muscles quaked, every fiber screaming in agony, yet his indomitable will held firm. He wiped the blood from his mouth with the back of his trembling hand and locked eyes with William, whose serene expression had remained unshaken since the fight began.
"I'm not finished," Goku growled, his voice raw but unwavering. "I can still fight!"
William's luminous orbs shimmered faintly, orbiting around him like loyal moons. He tilted his head ever so slightly.
"Then prove it."
Without a moment's delay, Goku erupted forward, a blazing golden streak tearing through the heavens. He disappeared mid-flight, reappearing above William in an instant, his fists clasped together for a thunderous overhead blow.
William calmly raised one arm.
CLANG!
The clash resonated like a colossal bell, the shockwave obliterating nearby rock spires. Goku snarled in frustration, channeling even more energy into his strike. Ki spiraled from his fists, crackling and writhing like chains of lightning.
William remained unmoved.
With calculated precision, he shifted his stance and twisted, redirecting Goku's force effortlessly. In one fluid motion, he drove a knee into Goku's midsection with a force that could crumple steel.
WHAM!
Goku hurtled backward, coughing violently as the air was knocked from his lungs. But he twisted mid-flight, gathering a surge of ki between his palms and unleashing it in a blazing blast before his feet even touched the ground.
"FLARE CANNON!!"
A dazzling beam of gold and white tore through the battlefield.
William calmly raised his hand.
The beam split on impact, bending harmlessly around him like a river parting around a rock. His cloak billowed. Dust surged in waves.
"You're still holding back."
Goku landed hard, panting heavily.
"No, I'm not!"
William's eyes narrowed.
"Then fight like you've nothing left to lose."
BOOOOOM!
The glowing orbs around William exploded outward like a hailstorm, and Goku leapt headlong into the chaos.
He twisted through the air, deflecting and dodging with precision, but this time, he wasn't just avoiding, he was analyzing.
Left side. Upper quadrant. Delay. Then a glitch in the fourth orb's trajectory.
"Now!"
With a sharp twist mid-air, he seized one of the orbs from the storm, his aura blazing as it resisted his grip.
Roaring, he hurled it straight back at William.
William arched an eyebrow as the orb detonated at his feet, light and dust erupting in a radiant explosion.
Before the haze cleared, Goku was already there.
CRACK!
His fist collided with William's jaw.
BOOM!
Goku's fist collided with a bone-rattling CRACK, snapping William's head to the side. The force sent him spinning, skidding across fractured rock before he rolled upright, his cloak billowing. For the first time, a thin line of blood appeared on his cheek, tracing its way down.
William raised his gaze, his eyes narrowing with genuine respect. "Impressive," he murmured, his voice low but steady. "You're exceeding my expectations."
Goku staggered forward, his jaw tight as he spat a mixture of dirt and blood onto the ground. "I… I'm not finished yet!"
With renewed determination, he lunged again, his fists weaving a furious pattern, jab, cross, uppercut—each strike radiating golden ki. William held his ground, deflecting the first two blows, but the uppercut sent him flying, tumbling backward through the air.
Goku didn't hesitate. He soared above William, unleashing a storm of ki shards that tore across his opponent's arms and torso. William cried out, his energy flaring brightly as he absorbed the shards and redirected them into the sky, where they burst into harmless sparks.
"Not bad," William growled, wiping blood from his lip. He closed his eyes briefly, centering himself, and when they opened again, his aura flared brighter, the golden glow pulsing in rhythm with his heartbeat.
Goku adjusted his stance, his expression steely. "What now?"
William's calm demeanor deepened as he replied, "I want to see how far you'll go when everything you rely on is stripped away." He extended his arms, releasing a dozen razor-sharp ki blades that hovered in the air, their edges gleaming menacingly.
Without hesitation, Goku surged forward at blinding speed, cutting through the blades with clenched fists. He leapt high and landed on William's shoulders, aiming to drive him down with a powerful shoulder-charge.
But William shifted effortlessly, absorbing the impact and twisting with the motion. Using Goku's momentum, he seized his arm and flung him across the battlefield with a mighty throw.
Goku crashed through a jagged cluster of spires, sending a cloud of crystalline dust into the air. Groaning in pain, he rolled to a stop, rising unsteadily on one knee, his determination unshaken.
William descended, crimson light swirling around his feet. "Your determination is impressive, but you still rely too heavily on instinct. I need your mind in this battle, not just your strength."
Goku's gaze sharpened. "Then I'll give you both." With a roar, he focused, his golden aura sharpening into a blade-like edge.
In an instant, he surged forward, his fists moving with lightning speed, left, right, elbow, knee, a relentless barrage that drove William into the crater wall. The edges crumbled, but William's back held firm under the onslaught.
Suddenly, Goku pulled his arms back. With a primal roar, he summoned every ounce of power he had earned through sacrifices, lessons, and bonds.
A wave of raw energy erupted from him, fleeting yet ferocious, blasting William off the wall and across the valley floor.
From the dust cloud, William emerged, landing effortlessly on his feet. He rose, blood and dust streaking his form, his eyes gleaming with approval.
It was then that Goku noticed a faint bronze light in the distance. Turning, he saw Yondu observing the fight from a safe distance. A sudden wave of relief washed over him, causing him to subconsciously revert to base form before collapsing into unconsciousness.