The winds on Namek fell silent.
The atmosphere itself seemed crushed to the ground by an invisible pressure so immense that even dust dared not drift.
Frieza hovered in midair as the hardened, armor-like shell covering his body began to crack.
Crack… crack…
The brittle sounds rang sharply through the dead silence, like the prelude to something monstrous breaking free from its cocoon.
Blinding light burst from the fissures, bleaching the dim surroundings into a lifeless white.
"His energy… it's being compressed."
Piccolo's antennae trembled violently. Cold sweat slid down his face and shattered against the ground.
Having fused with Nail, his senses far surpassed ordinary warriors.
He could clearly feel it. The overwhelming energy inside Frieza, once wild and overflowing like a flood, was now being forced into an impossibly small container.
Density.
A suffocating level of energy density. Like cramming a star into a glass bead.
"No. We can't let him finish transforming!"
Instinct finally overpowered reason.
Every fiber of Piccolo's being screamed danger. If that creature completed its metamorphosis, everyone here might die.
Boom!
The ground shattered beneath his feet as he launched forward like a green bolt of lightning.
Energy gathered at his fingertips, forming the most powerful Special Beam Cannon he had ever created. The spiraling beam shot forward with lethal intent, aimed straight at Frieza's cracking chest.
"Stop right there!"
Just as the beam was about to strike, a hand suddenly shot out and slapped Piccolo's wrist aside, deflecting the attack.
Boom!
The beam that could pierce a planet grazed past Frieza's shoulder, blasting into the sky, punching a hole through the atmosphere before vanishing into space.
Piccolo stared in shock at the man standing in front of him.
"Goku? Have you lost your mind?!"
Goku held his position, arm extended from deflecting the attack. His expression was serious in a way that felt unfamiliar.
"Piccolo… this is my choice."
He didn't turn around. His eyes remained fixed on the glowing figure of Frieza.
"If we attack now, even if we win… I'll never get past it."
"This is a fight, not a tournament!"
Piccolo grabbed Goku by the collar and shouted, spittle flying.
"That thing is a killer! He's getting stronger. He's turning into something we can't even understand!"
"I know."
Goku gently pushed Piccolo's hand away. His gaze was calm, unwavering. The pure conviction of a martial artist.
"That's exactly why I have to face him at his strongest and defeat him head-on. That's the only way to truly end this."
Piccolo clenched his teeth, then slowly let go.
There was no talking sense into a Saiyan driven by battle instinct.
In those brief seconds of argument, Frieza's transformation completed.
Snap.
The final piece of outer shell fell away, crumbling into dust.
A blinding white light swallowed everything.
When it faded, the massive, grotesque creature was gone.
In its place stood something smaller. Even more compact than his first form.
His body was smooth, white as polished jade, without a single protrusion or spike.
Purple accents gleamed like gemstones across his head, shoulders, and chest.
The lines of his form were clean and elegant, almost unnaturally refined.
He looked like a perfectly crafted porcelain figure, delicate enough to shatter at a touch.
And yet, that seemingly harmless body made the very crust of Namek groan in agony.
[System Scan Complete]
[Target: Frieza (Final Form · Complete State)]
[Race: Frost Demon (Royal Lineage)]
[Power Level: 120,000,000]
[Evaluation: The true emperor has arrived. This is violence refined into art. Compared to his previous forms, this is his original state. In this form, even breathing is a weapon.]
Krillin stared at the string of zeros, his expression turning serious for the first time.
"Ones, tens, hundreds… millions… hundred million? One hundred and twenty million?"
He twitched slightly.
"I knew it from the original story, but seeing the number like this… it's still insane. This isn't a transformation. It's practically becoming a different species."
"So this… is his final form?"
Goku swallowed.
Even though he had prepared himself, when that pressure settled onto him, he could feel his bones groaning. Every cell in his body screamed at him to run.
Frieza slowly opened his eyes.
They were dark red, completely devoid of emotion. Still, like stagnant water.
He glanced at his hands and gently clenched his fist.
Pop.
The air burst in his grip with a crisp snap.
"It's been a while."
His voice had changed. Smooth, neutral, almost refined.
He looked toward Goku and Piccolo, a faint smile curling at his lips. It was the kind of smile a superior being might give something insignificant.
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
No warning.
No movement to signal the start.
Frieza vanished.
Piccolo didn't even have time for the signal to reach his brain before a crushing pain exploded in his abdomen.
"Gah!"
His body folded in half, eyes bulging as he spat out bile.
Frieza had appeared right in front of him. All it took was a casual knee.
Too fast.
So fast there wasn't even an afterimage. So fast it couldn't even be sensed.
"Piccolo!"
Goku reacted instantly, throwing a punch at Frieza's face.
Frieza didn't even look at him. His hands remained clasped behind his back.
His tail lashed out like a steel whip, striking first.
Smack!
Goku felt like a mountain moving at high speed had slammed into his face.
His nose shattered instantly. Blood sprayed as his body spun through the air.
He crashed into the ground, carving a trench hundreds of meters long and pulverizing everything in his path.
"Too weak."
Frieza shook his head.
Hands still behind his back, he walked toward the fallen Piccolo as if strolling through his own garden.
He raised his foot and stepped on Piccolo's head, pressing down slightly.
Crack… crack…
Piccolo's skull creaked under the pressure as his face was forced into the dirt.
"This time… who will save you?"
Piccolo struggled, but it was useless. Under that overwhelming power, he was like a fish pinned to a cutting board, unable to move even a finger.
One hundred and twenty million.
It wasn't just a gap in strength. It was a difference in existence.
"Let him go!"
Goku burst out of the rubble, red energy flickering around him as he activated the Kaio-ken.
Frieza still didn't bother using his hands.
He simply shifted slightly, dodging Goku's attack, then lifted his leg and kicked him in the back like a ball.
Boom!
Goku slammed into the ground again, creating a massive crater like a meteor impact.
"How boring."
Frieza sighed, a hint of boredom in his eyes.
"I thought you might entertain me a little. But this is all you've got?"
He turned his back on them, his long tail swaying lazily.
"Using my hands for this would be an insult. I'll play with you using just my feet and tail. If you can force me to use my hands, I'll consider it your victory."
The humiliation was absolute.
But what rose in Goku and Piccolo wasn't anger.
It was something far heavier.
A crushing sense of helplessness.
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