Dragon Ball Z: What If Gohan Never Stopped Training

Inside the Smoldering Ruins of Babidi's Ship

Steam hissed from shattered pipes. Smoke curled upward from cracks in the walls. The air itself seemed to tremble as the pink, round figure of Majin Buu floated downward.

Gohan stood tall before him, Super Saiyan 2 energy crackling around his frame like a tempest. Sweat rolled down his brow. He just watched Buu defeat Dabura and now… he was face to face with the monster.

Buu blinked at him. Then giggled.

"Buu smash pointy man! Now smash spiky hair boy!"

He clapped childishly.

Gohan narrowed his eyes. "Don't underestimate me."

Buu lunged.

The air exploded around him as he fired forward with terrifying speed, faster than his size suggested possible. Gohan dodged left, narrowly avoiding a meaty punch that shattered the wall behind him.

Gohan countered with a spin kick to Buu's head, it connected, sending the pink monster skidding sideways but Buu bounced back mid-roll, landing with a grin.

"OW! That tickled!"

The fight began in earnest.

Buu charged again, throwing a wild series of hammer punches. Gohan ducked under one, sidestepped another, then jumped into a backflip kick, his foot smashing Buu's chin and knocking the creature skyward.

Gohan followed, blurring upward and unleashing a flurry of rapid punches to Buu's midsection. His fists glowed gold with ki-enhanced strikes...

"HAH! HAH! HAHHH!"

The air pulsed with every blow, shockwaves rolling across the ship.

But then, Buu's body jiggled unnaturally and his stomach absorbed the impacts, reforming instantly.

"Wha...?!"

Buu grinned upside-down, suddenly contorting mid-air and swinging his leg like rubber, catching Gohan with a spinning whip kick that sent him slamming through three stone pillars.

Boom! Boom! CRASH!

Gohan groaned, flipping upright before he could hit the ground. He was bruised but not broken.

"Okay… regeneration. That's a problem."

Buu floated downward, then puffed up like a balloon.

"Buu make big boom now!"

He fired a massive pink energy blast. The beam tore through the air, spiraling with wild magic.

Gohan's eyes widened. He launched upward, avoiding the beam just as it vaporized the ground where he stood.

In mid-air, Gohan gathered energy in both palms.

"Masenko… HAAAA!"

A golden beam exploded from his hands, striking Buu dead-on in the chest. The blast erupted, sending smoke across the battlefield.

Silence.

Then...

Buu walked out of the smoke, whistling. A hole smoked in his belly… but slowly reformed like melting taffy.

Gohan gritted his teeth. "How do you kill something that refuses to stay dead!?"

Buu giggled again. "Your turn, spiky boy!"

With a sudden surge of speed, Buu closed the distance, arms stretching unnaturally and slamming Gohan into the ground like a club.

BOOM!

Dust erupted in a massive cloud. Supreme Kai and Kibito looked on from the edge of the crater, horrified.

"Gohan!" the Kai shouted.

But Gohan wasn't done yet.

From the rubble...

Gohan shot upward, aura blazing, blood trickling from his lip. He roared, slamming into Buu with a charged elbow, knocking the creature across the chamber.

Gohan pursued, hitting Buu with a high-speed combo, left hook, knee to the gut, uppercut, roundhouse, each attack shaking the walls.

Buu crashed through a support column. But the moment Gohan paused, Buu regenerated again, now chuckling as he clapped his stubby hands.

"You fun! Buu like fighting you!"

Gohan's breath was heavy now. His golden aura flickered slightly.

He was stronger than ever. Stronger than Goku was during the Cell Games. Stronger than most mortals could even imagine.

But still, it wasn't enough.

Not against this.

Supreme Kai spoke quietly, terrified. "He's wearing Gohan down. If this keeps going…"

Gohan landed beside them, panting. "He… he's just playing. I'm hitting him with everything… and he's not even serious yet."

Buu floated above them now, arms outstretched.

"Buu make BIG kaboom now!"

A glowing ball of energy formed in his hands. Bigger than before. Enough to erase the entire ship.

Gohan's mind raced. He couldn't keep this up. Not like this.

But he wouldn't back down either.

Gohan flared his energy once more. Sparks danced across his skin.

"Then I just have to… use a stronger form…"

He clenched his fists, his aura surging wildly, unstable. His ki was going beyond its limit.

"I can't lose here… I WON'T!"

Supreme Kai gasped. "He's… pushing past Super Saiyan 2!"

The energy around Gohan pulsed violently, somewhere between control and chaos.

And Buu just laughed.

"BOOOOM TIME!"

The energy sphere was ready.

Just as Majin Buu hurled the energy sphere...

FLASH!

Everything vanished.

The searing heat of Buu's ki blast disappeared, the sounds of battle dissolved into silence and the stench of smoke was gone. Gohan's boots struck solid ground, not stone or dirt but something softer. The wind was calmer. The sky, purple.

They were in the Sacred World of the Kai.

Gohan stood stunned, panting, fists still clenched. Supreme Kai and Kibito stood a few feet away.

"You… took me out of the fight?" he said, his voice a low growl.

Supreme Kai took a careful step forward. "You said it yourself. Buu was toying with you. And you were giving him everything you had."

Gohan's eyes flared, his golden aura briefly spiking.

"I meant… in Super Saiyan Two."

He lunged forward, grabbing the Kai by his robes and lifting him clear off the ground, eyes burning with fury.

Kibito's voice cut in like a blade. "Put him down! Stop lying to yourself! You were dying out there!"

Gohan's teeth clenched. His jaw tightened.

Slowly, he set the Kai down.

Without a word, he stepped back… then lifted his head, golden sparks crackling around him.

And then, his body surged with light and power.

The ground trembled slightly as his golden aura twisted and expanded, his hair lengthening, his brow vanishing beneath that primal transformation.

Gohan… had become a Super Saiyan 3.

The wind howled through the quiet Kai Realm as his power thundered across the world.

Supreme Kai stumbled backward, shielding his eyes. "W-What…!?"

"This…" Gohan said coldly, "...is Super Saiyan Three."

But Supreme Kai shook his head, his voice still shaken. "Even that… may not be enough."

Gohan powered down, the long hair shrinking back, the strain momentarily released.

He stared at the two of them, fed up.

"I have… a stronger form."

Kibito scoffed. "More lies? Is this just a game to you? You couldn't even keep Super Saiyan Three up for long! You're bluffing."

Gohan's eyes narrowed.

"I've had enough of the questions," he snapped, stepping past them both. "Buu is alone. He's not at full power yet. Someone has to stop him before he does become unstoppable."

"WAIT!" Kibito called after him. "At least let us change your battle attire. You look like you've been through fire."

Kibito raised a hand and with a flash, Gohan's torn black spandex was replaced by a long Kai-style outfit, deep red and blue with golden trim, just like Supreme Kai's.

Gohan stared down at it with a mix of disdain and disbelief.

"Great," he muttered. "Now I look like you."

Kibito folded his arms. "You could show some gratitude."

Supreme Kai added softly, "You need to rest, Gohan. Heal. Meditate. You've been through..."

"Don't tell me what I need!" Gohan barked. "You pulled me out of a battle that I could've ended."

"You mean the one that nearly ended you?" Kibito retorted.

Gohan inhaled sharply, fists clenching again. His voice dropped into a dangerous calm.

"If I don't calm down... one of you is going through a mountain."

Without another word, he sat down, legs crossed, arms folded, back turned to both of them. His aura flickered faintly around him as he began to meditate.

Silent.

Still.

But a vein popped on his forehead. His jaw was clenched tight. He was barely holding it together.

Behind him, Supreme Kai leaned close to Kibito and whispered, "Why does he lie so easily? He's obviously pushing himself too far."

"He is definitely lying," Kibito muttered. "I think he wants to prove something to us."

Back to Gohan, his eyes closed but his expression was furious. Inside, he wasn't meditating to find peace.

He was meditating to keep himself from destroying the only allies he had left.

And somewhere… far across space…

Majin Buu was still laughing.