Son Goku didn't care about Cell's taunts. Clenching his fists, his golden aura erupted once more. "Ha!"
"Atatatatatata!"
Goku gathered his Ki rapidly. The "Prince's Tactics" were executed to perfection in his hands. A barrage of golden Ki blasts, like a meteor shower of pure energy, rained down upon Cell, venting their destructive force against his body.
The golden explosions instantly swallowed Cell whole.
"Ha!"
Just like in the original history, Cell quickly deployed a green Energy Shield, directly blocking Goku's relentless assault.
"Huff! Puff! Huff!"
Once the attack ceased, Goku leaned forward, hands on his knees, panting heavily.
Cell, however, was different. He showed no signs of fatigue from maintaining the barrier. He simply looked at Goku with a mocking sneer. "What's wrong, Son Goku? Are you finished? If that's the case, then this fight ends now!"
Cell's demonic voice rang out. By the time Goku could react, the monster was already standing right in front of him.
THUD!
Cell buried his fist deep into Goku's stomach. The agonizing pain forced Goku to double over. Without pause, Cell delivered a vicious uppercut, sending Goku hurtling into the sky.
Seeing Goku airborne, Cell didn't let up. He lunged forward, grabbed Goku by the ankle, and began to spin him around at high speed.
Goku's world became a blur of motion. A second later, Cell hurled him away like a discarded toy.
BOOM!!
Goku smashed through a mountain peak like a cannonball, his body embedding itself deep into the solid rock. He coughed up a spray of blood.
"Hahahaha! Just as I thought! I, Cell, am the strongest!!"
As Goku slowly pulled himself out of the crater, he looked up at Cell and sighed. "Cell, you really are strong. I'm no match for you. I give up. I lose this match."
"What?! Son Goku, are you joking with me?!" Cell roared. "You know that if you lose, I will destroy the Earth!"
"Don't be so impatient, Cell," Goku replied, wiping blood from his lip. "I never said I was the strongest one here. Your final opponent isn't me."
As he spoke, Goku's gaze naturally drifted toward Gohan.
However, before anyone else could move, Future Bulma leaped onto the ring. "Son-kun, let me take it from here."
Goku stared at her, dumbfounded. "Bulma?! Stop messing around. You should get down. It's Gohan's turn."
Future Bulma gave him a faint smile. "Son-kun, I'm not exactly a 'weak woman' anymore. Don't worry. Cell isn't my match."
Cell frowned as he studied the woman in front of him. Wasn't this Trunks' mother? She was supposed to be an ordinary human. Wait... no Ki? An Android?!
"You modified your own body into an Android? You really are a madwoman."
"Tch. You really do have a high IQ," she countered. "That's right. I'm your next opponent!"
Goku scratched his head, feeling that something was very off about this version of Bulma.
"Alright, Son-kun. Head down for now."
Goku instinctively flew back to Turles' side. He pointed at the Bulma confronting Cell and asked, "What exactly is going on here?"
Trunks stepped forward to explain. "My mother modified herself into an Android in the future. Honestly... she's stronger than I am now."
"Is that so?" Goku blinked. "So that really is the Future Bulma. No wonder she feels so different. But is she really going to be okay?"
Turles' lips curled into a smirk. "Don't worry. Her power is beyond your imagination. Just keep your eyes open and watch."
After all, a battle power of 80 billion against roughly 60 billion? This was going to be a walk in the park.
Cell looked at Bulma with disdain. "You should go back down and let Son Goku eat a Senzu Bean before coming back to face me. Even if you turned yourself into a machine, you couldn't possibly be my match!"
A cold smirk played on Bulma's lips. "Heh. Such arrogance. I hope you can maintain that defiant attitude in a moment."
Suddenly, Bulma vanished. Cell's pupils shrank to pinpricks. Too fast!
BANG!
Before Cell could even process her movement, a fist slammed into his gut with the force of a supernova. The impact sent him hurtling backward.
Bulma didn't wait. She flickered away and reappeared in his flight path, delivering a brutal kick that sent him spiraling into the upper atmosphere.
The group watched in stunned silence. The Cell who had just been acting so untouchable and invincible was being treated like a literal toy by Bulma.
"Is... is this a dream?" Krillin stammered, his jaw hanging open. "That's Cell! Even Goku couldn't beat him, and he's being thrashed like this by a 'weak woman'?"
Krillin and the others who knew Bulma well all swallowed hard. "So... so strong..."
Vegeta, meanwhile, was gritting his teeth so hard they threatened to shatter. "Dammit! Kakarot was one thing, but how can this woman have this kind of power?!"
Up in the air, the two silhouettes flickered and clashed. Terrifying shocks of energy erupted with every contact.
As the fight intensified, Bulma mocked him. "What's wrong? Weren't you just talking big? Come on, pull yourself together. I prefer you when you're acting all arrogant and unyielding!"
Cell nearly coughed up blood from pure rage. Listen to this! Is she even human?! I'm getting beaten like a dog and she's telling me to act more arrogant?!
Cell was feeling utterly stifled. He had thought he was invincible, only for this Bulma to appear out of nowhere with such overwhelming power. His mind raced, and he cast a desperate glance toward Lazuli, who was standing near Turles.
If I can just absorb Lazuli, I'll definitely become even stronger!
Just as Cell was plotting his move, Bulma's voice brought him back to reality with a jolt. To him, it felt like the Star of Death was blinking right in front of his eyes.
"What? Thinking about something else while fighting me? You're asking for death!"
In the next heartbeat, Bulma's iron fist sank deep into Cell's stomach.
Cell's body convulsed. He felt a violent upheaval in his gut, as if everything inside him was being forced back up.
Gulp—BLEGH!
Android 17 was forcibly vomited out of Cell's body. Although Cell didn't immediately revert to his Second Form, his battle power began a steep, vertical plummet.
Bulma blinked in surprise, but she didn't stop. She kicked Cell away and then caught 17, tossing him toward Turles.
Through her interactions over the last few days, she knew the Androids of this timeline were different from those in her own. She didn't intend to kill them.
Trunks stepped forward and caught Android 17, gently placing him on the ground.
"Heh. Cell, I've had enough fun," Bulma said, her voice turning icy and full of killing intent. "Now, it's time for you to die!"
The cold finality in her voice finally snapped Cell out of his daze. He stared at her with bloodshot eyes. "Why?! Why are you this strong?!"
"If it's going to end like this, then you and this planet can turn to dust together!"
Cell gathered his Ki in the sky, a brilliant azure light radiating from his waist.
"KAME.... HAME...."
Seeing this, Bulma began to gather her own energy.
"KI.... BLAST...."
Blinding light erupted from both the sky and the ground simultaneously.
"WAVE!!!" / "CANNON!!!"