The silence was absolute—or at least, that's how it felt to everyone present.
A strange mix of emotions filled the air so completely that even the desert wind seemed to hush, its whispers drowned out as if begging the two warriors to stop. But that wasn't going to happen.
Goku's whole body trembled, not from fear, but from a flood of emotions that he knew well. Being a man—or now, a god—didn't erase the simple truth: joy, excitement, nerves, the rush of anticipation… all of it was still deeply human.
But for a Saiyan, those feelings meant something more. The thrill of battle, the clash of fists, the release of raw strength after every strike—it was intoxicating. Goku had always been that way, since he was a boy. He wasn't cruel, he wasn't bloodthirsty, but fighting with his own body—hand to hand, fist to fist—that was everything. Weapons, magic, armor… none of it mattered. The body itself was both weapon and shield.
Now, he and Beerus were about to prove just how far that truth could go.
"Before creation comes destruction," murmured the God of Destruction, his hands folded behind his back, his face cold and unreadable.
But even as he said it, Beerus felt the contradiction inside himself. He had been waiting for this—for someone who could stand against him. The thought alone thrilled him.
"You don't believe me?" he added, narrowing his yellow eyes at the calm warrior across from him. "I'll explain later."
The silence broke in an instant.
KABOOOM!
The sound shook the world as Goku and Beerus clashed. It happened too fast for the eye to follow. Two figures, face-to-face—one holding the other's fist in his palm.
The power released from that single strike was monstrous. The rocky ground beneath them didn't just crack—it collapsed into a massive crater stretching across the land. Neither stood on the surface anymore. They floated in midair, the battlefield beneath them erased.
Beerus's arm trembled as he held Goku's punch. His expression stayed calm, one hand still behind his back—until Goku drove forward with his other fist. Beerus had no time to dodge. Like a brawler in the streets, he lowered his head and blocked with his skull. It wasn't elegant, but it worked.
Another explosion ripped the land apart. Giant stone formations collapsed like fragile sandcastles under the shockwave. And that was without either of them landing a clean hit.
"Ouch," Goku muttered, shaking his stinging hand. That small distraction cost him.
Beerus's kick slammed into his stomach, sending him flying backward like a missile. Goku's body tore through cliffs and stone ridges one after another as he was launched for kilometers across the landscape.
He finally stopped himself, gasping—only to find Beerus already there, dropping down with an axe kick aimed at his shoulder.
CRASSHH!
The blow sent Goku crashing straight through the planet's crust. He fell for miles, tearing through layer after layer of rock, his limbs digging into the walls and leaving deep scars behind him. The ground itself shattered under his body like glass.
At last, he stopped. Looking up, all he could see was a pinprick of light—the entrance to the endless tunnel he had carved with his fall. He had burrowed through the planet for kilometers.
But that small point of light suddenly turned purple. A glow bathed the cavern, staining his skin violet. Beerus was already pressing his attack. From above, the god fired a blinding energy blast straight into the hole.
There was no way to dodge. Goku had only one option. He touched his fingers to his forehead—
From space, the beam ripped clean through the planet, a line of violet energy escaping into the void. It didn't hit the core, so the world survived—for now.
"Just as I thought," Beerus chuckled when Goku reappeared behind him. "It would've been disappointing if it ended so quickly."
The two floated high above the surface, Whis observing quietly from nearby.
Goku struck again, this time with a kick so strong that Beerus had to cross both arms to block. For the first time in ages, the god's limbs went numb from the impact. He realized then—Son Goku had truly grown.
The planet itself trembled in fear. Every clash of fists shook the earth, cracked mountains, and shattered stone. Even blocked strikes sent shockwaves tearing across the land, displacing tectonic plates and spawning endless earthquakes.
Their battle was destroying the world beneath them.
BAAAM! BAAAM! BAAAM!
Every impact exploded like a bomb. The skies were ripped apart, clouds erased by the shockwaves. White shock-rings spread across the horizon like sonic booms, except this wasn't sound—it was pure, divine power.
The air lit up with flashes, like a storm of lightning bolts crisscrossing the heavens. The speed was insane—Goku and Beerus seemed to be everywhere and nowhere at once.
"Ugh!" Beerus's eyes widened when Goku drove his knee into his chest, like a Muay Thai fighter striking with savage precision. Beerus barely flinched. Grabbing Goku's head, he smashed his knee upward into the Saiyan's face.
But Goku twisted the move to his advantage. Grabbing Beerus's leg, he spun rapidly, his flaming red aura forming a whirlwind that howled like a hurricane. Then, he let go.
BROOOOOM!
Beerus slammed into the surface below, causing the landscape to detonate. From orbit, the explosion lit up an entire continent-sized stretch of the planet in gold. The shockwaves erased mountains and cliffs in every direction.
"Oops," Goku muttered, scratching the back of his neck nervously. He remembered Namek, when Frieza slammed him around the planet like a ragdoll—but this was worse.
Beerus rose from the crater, unharmed, his purple aura blazing. He floated calmly, dusting off his Egyptian-style clothes.
"I can't use only seventy percent of my power anymore," he said flatly. "But don't think you've won. We'll need to change our deal."
"What do you mean?" Goku asked, his nerves tightening.
"Don't worry," Beerus said, sensing the tension in his opponent. "You can go to the Ninth Universe… but only if you defeat me."
It was like a bucket of ice water poured over Goku. Forcing Beerus past seventy percent was one thing. Actually beating him? That was something else entirely.
Before he could process, Beerus vanished. Goku turned just in time to see a purple fist smash into his face.
BAAAM!
The explosion sent him flying again. As he struggled to slow down, Beerus appeared above him, arms folded, grinning without effort. He vanished once more, reappearing beneath Goku to launch him even higher with a brutal kick.
The Saiyan's ears rang as his body ripped through the air. He spread out his arms and legs, halting himself just at the edge of the atmosphere. Looking down, the planet seemed far away.
"Don't get distracted," Beerus's voice said.
Goku looked up. The god was already above him, hands clasped together like a hammer, ready to slam him down with devastating force.
And if that blow landed from this height… the fall alone would be catastrophic.
BOOOOM!
Goku stopped him. With both hands, he caught Beerus's, barely escaping that devastating double strike. He held him back as best he could, but the attack still rumbled with monstrous force. Even so, the Saiyan didn't budge an inch. The struggle reached a stalemate—they were evenly matched.
Both pulled away immediately and went right back into their fierce exchange of blows. Some were blocked, others slipped through the other's defense.
Goku's elbow landed square on the feline deity's face. Beerus's grimace showed just how powerful the Saiyan's hits were. But Beerus didn't slow down. He fired back instantly, as if he were truly immune to pain.
He grabbed Goku's head in both hands and slammed it into his own, then pushed him back and struck him in the chest with a sharp, open-palm hit.
He tried to follow up with the same attack, but Goku was already defending himself, crossing his strong arms to block the assault.
That was the rhythm of the fight. More than two clean hits in a row was rare. Most of it was blocks, bone against bone, muscle against muscle—both fighters' techniques were flawless.
Beerus had thousands of years of training behind him. But Goku had a solid foundation in martial arts since childhood, and combined with his warrior blood, it made him a worthy opponent who wasn't falling behind.
Only a few lone strikes ever broke through, whenever one managed to slip past the other's iron defense.
And of course, the massive white shockwaves kept flashing across the dark void after every clash. Both fighters were being pushed farther and farther from the planet, drifting inevitably into space.
"Is that all you've got, Beerus?!" Goku shouted as the god lifted his arms to shield himself from a relentless storm of kicks. Goku kept pressing, one after another, each one stronger than the last.
Beerus's forearms began to ache from enduring such a barrage. Those kicks could have shattered mountains like glass.
Without dropping his guard, Beerus looped his tail around one of Goku's legs and yanked him close, slamming into him with a powerful shoulder tackle—an unorthodox move that caught the Saiyan off guard.
"Uggh!" Goku grunted as the air blasted from his lungs, the blow hitting him square in the chest.
It was enough of a distraction to lose sight of Beerus. Goku snapped his head around, searching—but too late. A purple glow flared behind him, engulfing his back.
There was no time to dodge or block. Beerus had already launched a powerful blast of purple energy straight at him.
Sorry… Goku thought with regret, apologizing to the small, unknown planet below as he touched two fingers to his forehead.
The blast passed him and struck the planet's barren surface, wiping it out instantly in a brilliant storm of red and golden sparks.
In the endless dark of space, that golden flash marked the death of yet another world in the Eastern Galaxy.
Goku shielded himself as best he could, crossing his arms. Even from such a distance, the shockwave rattled him harder than anything he'd ever felt. But of course—an entire world had just been destroyed.
For Beerus, it was routine. His yellow eyes gleamed with a sharp light, unmistakable satisfaction written across them. No matter how many times he saw it—thousands? millions?—he always found it beautiful. He couldn't stop. Once he began, he truly couldn't stop. It was his role in the balance of life and death.
Cruel as it sounded, that planet no longer had a purpose. His job was to "cleanse" the universe, to make way for new worlds and lives created by the Supreme Kais.
His role as a God of Destruction was no less important than theirs. He knew that perfectly well. He never struggled with his own nature.
Beerus raised both arms forward, gathering between his cupped hands a glowing sphere as bright as a sun. It grew quickly, swelling to an enormous size before he hurled it forward.
"Damn it!" Goku growled, pulling his hands back as a small blue orb formed between them. "Why does destroying give you so much satisfaction? What's wrong with you?!"
"Destroy to create!" Beerus replied simply, flashing his sharp-toothed smile. He watched Goku closely, waiting for that one legendary technique whose name he couldn't quite remember.
"Kameeee…" Despite his fiery red divine aura, blue sparks flared brightly from between his hands.
"Hameeee…" He had no time left. The massive red supernova was almost on top of him, swallowing everything in its path like a blazing sun… until his light appeared as well.
"HAAAAAAAAA!"
The familiar roar of Master Roshi's technique rang in Beerus's ears, just like the last time.
It was colossal. A towering wave of blue energy blasted from Goku, making him look like an ant before his own attack. It was a gigantic Kamehameha.
When it clashed with Beerus's sphere, blue and red fought like never before. There was no comparison in history.
Every muscle in Goku's body strained under the monstrous energy coursing through him. Though his form was slim from the transformation, veins bulged across his sculpted muscles, which swelled slightly with effort.
It was the power of two gods colliding—even if one of them only temporarily.
But it was enough. Harnessing that strength, Goku poured more power into his favorite technique.
"HAAAAAAAAAAA!"
His eyes rolled white from the sheer effort, nearly driving him mad.
It was working. At first, they were deadlocked. But now, Beerus's supernova-like sphere was being pushed back, inch by inch, toward his grinning face.
Instead of panicking, the red glow around Beerus showed a calm figure, arms folded behind his back. He was pleased. Pleased that someone other than Whis could give him a fight worth remembering.
At last, he raised his right hand. He understood now—Goku had surpassed seventy percent of his power.
From two fingers, he flicked another small sphere, identical to the first, that slammed into his massive red energy ball.
It had only been called a supernova. The explosion that followed went far beyond that. Everyone present—even Whis, who had never taken his eyes off them—was consumed by a blinding white light, stronger and purer than anything before.
Goku heard no sound. It was deafening in its silence, yet more powerful than anything he had ever felt.
From that moment on, Beerus would never again forget two things: the name of the technique called Kamehameha… and the name Son Goku.
In Naruto Verse—
"If you touch her again, I'll kill you."
That sharp, aggressive black gaze sent a shiver down Zaku's spine. He kept pulling on her arm, but the boy in the orange dogi refused to let go.
"I'll say it one more time," the Otogakure shinobi spat, trying to look more intimidating than his opponent. "If you don't let go, I'll kill you both in one—Aghh!"
He never got to finish. Goten released his grip as asked—and with that same hand, shoved him, driving the tips of his fingers straight into the genin's chest.
Zaku felt like he had been rammed by a bull. The pressure against his torso wasn't meant to be fatal, but it was inhuman all the same.
He slammed against the ground on his back, bouncing three times before finally stopping. His body carved a shallow trench in the dirt as he was dragged along.
Kin couldn't believe it. Dosu's single exposed eye went wide, nearly bulging, as he tried to make sense of what he had just witnessed. All he saw was Zaku flying and crashing violently into the earth, as if he'd been struck by an invisible force. If someone told him Goten had pushed him with psychic powers, he would have believed it more easily.
"Cough! Cough!" the groaning genin hacked, leaning on Kin's help to sit up.
His breathing was labored, but what stood out most was his stunned expression. He knew exactly what had happened—he had felt it firsthand. That kid had struck him.
He had just confirmed on his own flesh that the Saiyan's abilities were far beyond Rock Lee's. And Lee already seemed superhuman in terms of taijutsu.
When he looked at his damp palm, horror crept across his face. Tiny red specks dotted his hand. The blow had made him cough up blood. He understood perfectly—if that boy had wanted to, he could have pierced straight through his chest with those fingers.
When Zaku lifted his head, he saw him walking away, catching a glimpse of the monkey-like tail that made him flinch even more. What a damn freak.
"Did you see what he just did?" Shikamaru whispered to his teammates from their hiding spot. "He appeared out of nowhere and sent that guy flying like it was nothing!"
Ino and Choji's eyes were about to pop out of their heads in shock. Then Ino snapped out of it—Goten was Trunks's friend. They lived together, always seen side by side. Kakashi himself had even found them together once.
"Though he's a little careless," Shikamaru continued, watching the Saiyan walk toward Naruto with Sakura in his arms. "Look at him—turning his back on the enemy just like that…"
When Goten reached the blond, he saw that Naruto was unconscious, and strangely, blood had trickled from his ears. He crouched, gently laying Sakura down beside him. Then, with two fingers on Naruto's neck, he checked his pulse. Weak, but steady. He was safe.
"Sakura, can you hear me?" he asked softly, trying not to startle her. She heard him clearly, but her body was so weak she couldn't answer. Even her vision was blurry. "Just stay here. Nothing's going to happen to you."
If she had been in better shape, the kunoichi would have laughed in his face. Was he stupid? Run away, like this? She couldn't even speak, let alone move!
"Don't be so harsh," she scolded herself. "That's not fair. I'm still alive thanks to him."
What Goten did next froze three particular genins' blood. He raised his arm and pointed at the bushes.
"You! The ones hiding there! Come help them!"
"H–h–how did he kn–know we were here?" Choji stammered, so terrified he felt like throwing up the mountain of snacks sitting in his stomach.
"But we didn't make a sound! Damn it! First Neji, now him!" Shikamaru pressed his fingers against the bridge of his nose, exasperated. "I swear, if we make it out alive, we'll have to practice camouflage drills."
"Speak for yourself, idiot," Ino snapped, stepping out first, exposing them all. "If he's like Trunks, he can sense energy. That's all."
Dosu and his team were floored. They hadn't sensed those three at all. Yet the orange-clad boy noticed immediately, as if it were nothing.
"This is troublesome… but whatever. We don't have a choice."
So Team 10 began walking forward cautiously, never taking their eyes off Dosu's squad. They were so focused on keeping watch that they tripped over each other, huddling close as they advanced toward Goten.
"You two should help too," Goten said, this time looking upward. Everyone followed his gaze and spotted two more genins perched in a tree—Neji and Tenten, recently arrived.
Hyuga was ready to jump in when he saw his teammate battered below, but the Saiyan had already detected him before he even moved. That set him on edge.
But suddenly, Goten froze. His whole body tensed, the fur on his tail bristling like a cornered animal's. He felt it—an evil presence unlike almost any other, disturbingly familiar.
"No way… that snake guy again?"
He spun around, startling Team 10 into panic.
It was Sasuke. But something was horribly wrong. His chakra radiated pure malice, eerily similar to Orochimaru's, as if a piece of the Sannin's essence clung to him. It had to be the mark on his neck.
"Sasuke, what's wrong with you?" Goten asked firmly, stepping forward with a sharp glare fixed on the Uchiha.
And "wrong" was putting it lightly. His pale skin was now covered in black, flame-like markings glowing faint orange. Around him swirled a violent purple chakra, dark and oppressive, stirring dust and pebbles into the air.
Orochimaru's cursed seal had awakened. The painful memories of his past—his parents murdered by his own brother—flooded back, feeding his hatred, his thirst for revenge. His weakness had made him powerless then, and now the Sannin's temptation dragged him deeper into darkness.
"Sakura…" His voice was deeper, sinister. "Who did this to you?"
The perfect excuse to unleash his sadistic rage.
Team 10 nearly lost control of their bladders. Pale and trembling, they all pointed at Dosu's team. "It was them! It was them!" they cried in unison.
"Sasuke, you have to calm down." Goten was the only one who truly understood the danger. Neji might have sensed the corrupted chakra, but only the Saiyan grasped the true threat. He could feel Orochimaru's lingering presence woven into Sasuke's power.
"What? Did you let this happen? Did you stand by while Sakura ended up like this?"
This wasn't Sasuke—not fully. His deranged expression and blood-red Sharingan told another story.
"N-no, he h-helped her…" Ino tried to mediate, but her trembling voice betrayed her fear. Sasuke looked like a demon. His chakra was suffocating.
Sakura stirred weakly. She couldn't sit up, but she forced herself onto her side to look. Her heart sank at the sight.
"Sasuke, calm down," Goten repeated, tense, unsure how to handle this. "You're not yourself, you need to—"
"You're wrong. I feel better than ever." Sasuke strode toward Zaku, who had just stood up. "He gave me this gift. He made me understand—I am an avenger. And I'll take power at any cost, even if it means being consumed by evil!"
Goten froze. If that was true, Sasuke had already crossed a line. This wasn't just him anymore—this was something else entirely.
"Sakura, tell me. Who did this to you?"
"I did," Zaku interrupted smugly, pointing at himself. "What are you gonna do about it? Only now that there's an audience, you step in? You're a coward!"
That word hit Sasuke like a dagger. His whole body trembled, rage pounding in his temples. It reminded him of Itachi—standing helpless before his brother. It reminded him of Trunks, too, who had called him a coward twice already.
The Saiyans' arrival was changing things. And for Sasuke, their influence was only fueling his descent.
The black markings spread further, glowing brighter, and his chakra stormed violently. His gaze turned murderous.
"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"
He flashed through seals—five swift moves, ending in Tiger. His chest swelled, and he spat out a volley of blazing fireballs.
"Not happening!" Zaku shouted, thrusting both hands forward, releasing a violent sound wave.
The flames vanished instantly under the cutting blast. But hidden within them—shuriken.
Zaku's eyes widened. All he could do was cover his face as the stars tore into his arms and skin.
"Aarghhh!" he roared as steel sliced into him, opening flesh.
"Zaku, down!" Dosu cried, too late.
The fireballs were just a distraction.
Sasuke moved in a blur, appearing behind the stunned genin. Zaku froze, still reeling. A fatal mistake.
Sasuke seized both his wrists, planted a foot against his back, and pulled.
"Proud of these arms, huh?" he sneered, grinning like a madman.
His laughter was deranged, eyes wide, Sharingan blazing like blood.
"You must be! You must be so attached to them!" he cackled, trembling with twisted pleasure at the thought of ripping them off.
The sight horrified Goten. He had nearly done the same once, when he thought Sakura had died—but out of grief, not sadism. He regretted it deeply. He couldn't let rage control him again.
"What are you doing?!" Zaku screamed, trying to turn his head toward him. "Please, don't!"
But Sasuke pulled harder, savoring the cracks of bone and tendon.
Craaaack! Craaack!
The sound turned everyone pale. Ino covered her mouth, aghast. Sakura wept, tears streaking her battered face.
Shikamaru and Choji stood frozen in terror. Neji and Tenten were struck dumb by the grisly scene.
Zaku's screams were unbearable, shrill with agony. Death would have been mercy.
Even Goten stood frozen, jaw clenched.
But the true horror wasn't Zaku—it was Sasuke. This cruelty, this savagery—it wasn't him. That's what made Sakura cry. That's what made Ino tremble.
Sasuke had become a monster.
"You're next." He dropped Zaku, unconscious, and turned to Dosu and Kin.
They staggered backward, paralyzed by fear. Instinct screamed at them to run, but their legs wouldn't move.
Goten couldn't allow this. He had to stop him. But before he acted, a voice cut through the tension.
"NO! SASUKE, PLEASE STOP! DON'T DO THIS!"
Sakura's scream tore through the chaos. With the last of her strength, she forced herself to her knees and cried out, begging with everything she had left.
And Sasuke stopped. His head dipped. The black markings began to fade—until someone else landed.
A cobalt-blue aura slammed down from the sky, the impact shaking the ground and blasting the air.
"I knew you had something to do with this!" the Saiyan barked. "Damn it, Goten—what were you doing? Why didn't you stop him?!"
Trunks.
He had sensed Sasuke's vile chakra all along, mixed disturbingly with that same energy from the monster Goten had fought the day before. He had trusted Goten to handle it. But when the darkness only grew stronger, he had no choice but to appear.
The sight of Naruto, Sakura, and Lee battered filled him with fury. But when he spotted his own team—including Ino—his anger boiled over.
Goten tried to answer, but Trunks turned his back to him, facing Sasuke. The markings on Uchiha's skin flared to life again.
"We'll talk later. I don't get how you let it get this far…" He cracked his knuckles, his muscled arms taut with tension.
"No, Trunks, you don't understand," Goten tried to explain, realizing how bad this could get. "It's not entirely his fault. That man left a mark—"
"Don't worry," Trunks cut him off, waving a hand dismissively. "I'll just beat the crap out of him until he never wants to fight again."
Sasuke's lips curled into a twisted smile. His head tilted, his face deranged.
"Don't get cocky."
Everyone went silent, holding their breath.
Only three knew what the outcome would be: Goten, Ino, and Neji.
For Goten, the reason was obvious. For Ino, despite Sasuke's terrifying aura, she knew he wasn't anything like that pink-haired demon. And for Neji, because he alone, besides Goten, understood the kind of power the Saiyans truly held.
If he ever had to fight them, he'd quit instantly. He knew his limits. Those two were beyond him—beyond anyone.
Neji shook the thought aside just as Sasuke lunged. He was fast—blindingly fast.
BAAM!
The impact echoed with such force that even some of the tree leaves above came loose and drifted down. The branch where Neji and Tenten stood shook slightly from the shockwave.
Sasuke was satisfied with his strike… until his smile vanished without warning.
His punch had landed squarely on Trunks' cheek, whipping the Saiyan's head to the side. But then, slowly, Trunks turned his face back, pushing against Sasuke's fist that still pressed into his cheek… and smiling.
"I thought you were strong?"
Sasuke's blood ran cold. His legs began to tremble as the memories of that night clawed their way back into his mind. The weakness, the helpness...
"SHUT UP, YOU DAMN BASTARD! SHUT UUUUP!"
BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!
He threw punch after punch, slamming Trunks in the face again and again, desperate, frantic, wild.
But not a scratch appeared on the Saiyan.
Just to keep him from breaking down completely, Trunks tilted his head with each blow, pretending to react—almost like humoring him. Had he wanted, he could have stood there without even a hair moving.
Still, he noticed something: Sasuke had gotten stronger in a short time. The strange black markings across his skin had to be the reason.
Leaves kept falling around them. Even Neji and Tenten, standing at a distance, felt the rippling shockwaves with every strike.
"That Trunks is a monster," Tenten muttered, biting her lip nervously. "It's like he doesn't feel pain."
"He doesn't," Neji replied flatly, arms crossed as always. His cold words only rattled her more, and she quickly turned her eyes back to the fight when the punches suddenly stopped.
Sasuke dropped his arms, chest heaving. His knuckles were split and bloody, some fingers clearly broken from the sheer force he'd put behind the blows.
Trunks brushed the blood off his cheek, glancing at Sasuke's twisted fingers. He could tell how desperate the Uchiha had been, throwing himself beyond his limits.
But this time, it had gone too far. Sasuke had hurt others. He couldn't just let him walk away again.
Before anyone could react—anyone except Goten—Trunks grabbed the back of Sasuke's head and smashed him into the ground.
BOOOOM!
The earth split, trees cracked, and a thick cloud of dust exploded outward. When it cleared, Sasuke's head was buried in the dirt like an ostrich.
Trunks didn't stop. He yanked him out by the leg, holding him upside down like he weighed nothing.
"Trunks, I think that's enough," Goten said carefully, the only one not completely frozen by shock.
"The hell it is!" Trunks snapped, dropping Sasuke unceremoniously on his head. "What were you thinking, letting him go that far? You look like the crazy one, Goten! Weren't you supposed to like Sakura?" he yelled, pointing at the beaten kunoichi.
That outburst landed harder than the punches. Ino's eyes went wide—if it weren't for everyone else being there, she would've grabbed Trunks by the shoulders and shaken every detail out of him on the spot.
"What are you talking about? I don't like Sakura!" Goten barked back, his face flushing red for the first time in his life.
"Of course not, you bastard!" Sakura shouted in her head. "Why the hell would you like me? You think I'm the ugliest thing alive! You're only chasing after Tenten and Hinata, you damn monkey! CHA CHA!"
"Really?" Trunks chuckled, hands on his hips and eyes narrowing with a sly grin. "Then why do you let her treat you like that?"
That jab stung, but before Goten could reply, Sasuke was already moving. He lunged forward, launching a kick straight for Trunks' head.
But Trunks had been locked onto his energy the whole time. At the last second, he ducked, the kick slicing through the air and just grazing his lavender hair.
Sasuke broke. His sneak attack had failed, and he saw it happen in slow motion—utterly powerless.
Trunks spun and drove an uppercut into his stomach.
"Ughhh!"
Blood and spit burst from Sasuke's mouth. His legs buckled under the shock, but Trunks didn't let him collapse. He grabbed Sasuke's shirt and yanked him closer. The terrified Uchiha's eyes widened as a knee rocketed up into his gut.
THUD!
Another spray of blood splattered the ground.
These weren't normal strikes. They reverberated inside his body, damaging organs, spreading pain in every direction.
Finally, Trunks let go. Sasuke crumpled to his knees, clutching his stomach, trembling.
"Why did you do this?" Trunks demanded, his hard gaze fixed on him, every inch his father's son in that moment.
"You… don't understand…" Sasuke hissed, his voice breaking, drool and blood dripping from his lips.
He fumbled into his pocket with his broken fingers, wincing but smirking as he pulled something free.
A small, dark sphere.
He tossed it at Trunks' feet. Smoke exploded outward, swallowing the area.
"A smoke bomb?" Trunks waved the air, annoyed. "That won't work. I can sense you, remember?"
And he could—Sasuke's energy shot through the haze like lightning. But what he hadn't expected was the direction.
Sasuke didn't charge at him. He grabbed Ino.
In a flash, he had her locked in his arm, a kunai pressed against her neck.
Trunks froze, eyes wide, cursing himself.
Sasuke's desperation had given him clarity. He remembered the look Trunks gave back in class 301, when Ino had clung to him to provoke Sakura. That expression had given him everything he needed: Trunks had a weakness.
And now, that weakness had a name—Ino Yamanaka.
"Don't move," Sasuke hissed, pressing the blade tighter against her pale skin.
Trunks' face crumbled. The Saiyan who had fought Majin Buu… was scared. His fists trembled.
"If I move too fast and miss… Ino dies."
Around them, Sakura gaped in disbelief, her swollen eyes stretched wide. Shikamaru and Choji were pale, sweating, and shaking. They hadn't even seen Sasuke's move—how could they possibly stop him?
But the one who suffered most was Ino herself.
That day, Sasuke died in her heart. She didn't hate him, but realizing she meant nothing to him hurt far worse than the kunai at her throat.
She didn't fight back. Didn't even raise her hands. She just cried silently, frozen, unable to process that the Uchiha was the one doing this to her.
And Sasuke? Even he didn't know what he was trying to achieve. He was terrified, clinging to the only leverage he thought he had. If he let her go, Trunks would break him into pieces.
He opened his mouth, ready to shout some desperate demand—anything, even something as absurd as telling Trunks to leave the exam and run from Konoha. His mind was breaking.
And then—
A faint buzz.
A strike so clean and fast, he didn't even feel pain.
His eyes rolled back completely. His body went limp, collapsing to the ground in a heap, twitching in strange ways that made his limbs look like rubber. The black marks of the curse mark glowed like burning fire, then quickly began to recede, all of them converging into one single point before vanishing entirely. That point was the seal on his neck.
Nobody saw what had happened. Ino thought Trunks was responsible. But no—he was standing several meters away in front of her. When she turned her head, she saw Goten, smiling and scratching the side of his head with his finger.
Taking advantage of Sasuke's obsession with the young Brief, Goten had appeared behind him and knocked him out with a light Shuto Uchi to the neck. Nothing more.
Ino touched the spot on her throat where the kunai had pressed. At least her skin wasn't broken; there wasn't a drop of blood.
"I think that's it," Goten was the first to speak. He crouched down, grabbed the unconscious Sasuke by his clothes, lifted him as if he were nothing more than a bag of bread, and threw him over his shoulder. "Trunks, take out the seeds."
Even Brief looked a little impressed. He shook his head, scolding himself for acting so foolish. He could've handled the situation himself, but he froze up like an idiot when doubt took over him.
"Hmph. Show-off," he muttered under his breath as he reached inside his dogi and pulled out the bag of seeds.
That day, both of them learned something new. Goten would try not to lose control again. And Trunks wouldn't let doubt paralyze him anymore, because sometimes, you just had to act.
"What's going on here? Where did these two come from?" Neji still had his doubts. From above, he watched as Tenten received one of the seeds from Trunks, then rushed to Lee's unconscious body to treat him. "And that other boy… I don't even need the Byakugan to know he's the same as Trunks. More than that, he used an unusual pressure point and completely crushed Sasuke's chakra in an instant."
Neji thought he couldn't be more surprised. He was dead wrong. The shock was indescribable when he saw Rock Lee stand up like nothing had ever happened.
Gai's pupil touched his ears in disbelief. The pain was completely gone. His ruptured eardrum had healed. It was a miracle.
Dosu hadn't moved a muscle the whole time. He cursed Orochimaru in his mind when he realized they had been used as cannon fodder. They had never stood a chance against Sasuke.
Dosu wasn't stupid. He recognized the markings of the curse seal from the start, and he knew the immense power it granted.
"Hey, take this," Trunks said, flicking them one of the miraculous seeds.
Kin barely managed to catch it, stunned by the stranger's bizarre generosity.
"Don't get it twisted," Trunks warned them with a cold, sharp look in his blue eyes. "If we meet again, it'll be different. Leave the scroll, take your friend, and go."
Dosu obeyed without a word. He pulled out their scroll and tossed it to Trunks, who snatched it from the air almost aggressively. Then he walked over to Zaku, hoisted him up roughly onto his shoulder, and turned back toward Kin. They'd give him the seed somewhere else.
"Kin, there's nothing left for us here," he said in a low voice, just for her. "Orochimaru tricked us. He planned for us to die at Sasuke's hands. It would've happened, if not for that kid. We'll continue the exam on our own."
With a swift movement, both of them leapt into the dark forest and disappeared from sight.
"Give this to Naruto," Trunks said, handing a seed to Shikamaru.
The Nara simply nodded, signaling Choji with his head to follow him. For once, he didn't make any lazy complaints about how boring or troublesome things were.
It was almost funny how everyone just obeyed without a word. But who could blame them? The two Saiyans had shown up, torn through the situation in minutes, and kept their cool the whole time—even if both had their own personal slip-ups along the way.
"Got one more?" Goten asked, holding out his hand like a kid asking for candy. His tone was just as innocent.
"Not for him," Trunks replied, pointing at Sasuke's limp body still hanging on Goten's shoulder. "We'll wait until we reach the tower and let Asuma or Kakashi decide."
"It's not for him," Goten said immediately. "It's for Sakura."
Trunks had forgotten. Smirking at his own slip-up, he held the bag out for Goten to take one.
Goten carried Sasuke back to the shelter where he had slept the night before. Poor Uchiha had just woken up, only to be sent back to dreamland again—for who knew how long this time.
After dropping him off, Goten walked over to Sakura, who was still sitting silently where he had left her. She hadn't moved much at all.
He crouched in front of her, gently holding her face with both hands, tilting it slightly from side to side to examine her more closely. He winced at the sight of her battered face.
Sakura caught his expression, and her heart sank. If Goten already thought I was ugly, then right now I must look like a monster.
"Wow, they really roughed you up," he said with a nervous smile, still holding her face.
A memory suddenly came to Goten: the time when Fat Majin Buu beat up him and Trunks while they were fused, when they challenged him without even going Super Saiyan. When the fusion ended, the damage stayed, leaving both of them with mangled faces. He even lost half his baby teeth from that fight. For most kids it would've been a nightmare, but goofy Goten found it funny.
"Are you… making fun of me?" Sakura asked, her voice trembling, almost on the verge of tears. "I know I look awful…"
"Yeah, you look really bad."
Damn Saiyan! He was the spitting image of his father. No tact, no diplomacy. Brutally honest to the core.
Sakura felt crushed. She still wasn't used to Goten's personality, and she thought he said that because of the little lies Naruto had told him. She took it the worst way possible.
"It must hurt a lot. But don't worry—it'll pass." Carefully, he let go of her face. Even that small movement made her wince in pain.
"Remember that seed I gave that guy for Zabuza in the forest? This one's the same. Eat it, and you'll feel better."
Sakura opened her mouth slightly, letting Goten place the seed in. She chewed the tough, flavorless bean as best as she could. She trusted him completely—everything about Goten was incredible, so she expected nothing less from something he gave her. She had learned not to overthink things when it came to Saiyans.
"See? Back to normal already."
Sakura could hardly believe it. The pain was gone instantly. When she touched her swollen eye and found the bump was gone, she was stunned. Her hands traced her face—her delicate cheekbones were back, her lips weren't bleeding or swollen anymore.
She placed her hand on her stomach, which had been tormenting her for hours.
Goten noticed and grinned. "Not hungry anymore, huh?"
He stood up and offered his hand to help her rise. Sakura accepted.
"Senzu beans take away hunger too. I bet you feel brand new, like before the exam even started—"
"Why did you take so long?" was all she managed to say.
Goten almost missed it—her words were muffled because she had thrown herself into his chest, hugging him tightly, her face buried against him.
She wanted to cry. The last hours had been hell, and like something out of a fairy tale, Goten showed up and fixed everything in minutes. He healed her pain, ended her hunger, and saved her life… again.
Goten placed his hands on her small shoulders and gently pushed her back to look her in the face. Sakura didn't shed a single tear, but she was more moved than she could ever show.
"When this exam's over, you'll come train with me," he said seriously, his usual cheerful expression gone. This wasn't a joke. He understood now—Sakura's lack of fighting ability had put her at serious risk. That had to change. "If you want to be stronger, that is."
No further explanation was needed. She knew exactly what he meant.
"O-Of course…" she mumbled, lowering her face in embarrassment.
Naruto's loud voice suddenly echoed through the area, shouting and demanding to know what had happened to the "mummy guy" and the others. It snapped both Goten and Sakura out of the moment.
Everyone was safe now… except Sasuke. That was still the problem.
Goten and Trunks were eager to get Uchiha's body back to the tower and let Kakashi or Asuma handle it. What they had seen wasn't good, and a solution had to be found quickly.
Before that, though, there needed to be a short council right here—everyone talking, sharing thoughts, and deciding the next move.