31Prologue: Deja Vu
Time was running out. Goku could feel the oxygen pumping through his heart as his body was going overdrive. The Tournament of Power has pushed his body's natural limits again and again. From going Super Saiyan Blue Kaioken Times 20 multiple times to forcing himself to transcend the Realm of the Gods, reaching Mastered Ultra Instinct and surpassing what was thought possible for a mere mortal.
Even with all of that being said, Son Goku still had a tough challenge ahead. Ultra Instinct was a powerful transformation/technique but Jiren the Grey still proved to be a valiant warrior. After unlocking his Hidden Power, the Pride Trooper overwhelmed the Silver Haired Saiyan for a moment. But Jiren made a fatal mistake in threatening the Saiyan's friends in the stands. This caused rage to boil as his white aura flashed and gave Goku the upperhand.
Now Jiren has fallen on the ground looking up at the Silver Saiyan God. Utterly defeated, he tells him, "What are you waiting for? Finish it."
Goku stared at the strongest Pride Trooper. He wished they could have fought under better terms. He knew what was going to happen once Goku knocks Jiren off the stage. He and jiren were both the last remaining members of the Tournament of Power. All other members have been eliminated, including all of the other ones from Universe 7 and 11. Initially there were 5 members of Universe 7 left facing off against the top three Pride Troopers of Universe 11, that being Jiren, Toppo, and Dyspo. The last remaining members representing Universe 7 were Son Goku, Vegeta, Android 17, Son Gohan, and Freeza.
Gohan sacrificed himself in order to eliminate Dyspo. They could afford that since Universe 7 had the numbers advantage. At that point, it was now 2 against 4. Toppo transformed into his Hakaishin state and dominated Freeza and Android 17. It took the full power of Vegeta in his newly acquired Super Saiyan Blue Evolution state to knock Toppo off with a Final Atonement. However this time, Vegeta survived the backlash of the self explosion.
Jiren, frustrated at the weakness of his fellow teammates, decides to stop playing games and just finish every one off. If you want something done, do it yourself. He unleashes power that the spectators and fighters never would have guessed he had in reserves. Goku did his best, but even with Super Saiyan Blue Kaioken Times 20, it still wasn't enough to go toe to toe with the strongest mortal in the multiverse. Especially now that he unleashed more of his power. Even with the efforts of Goku, Vegeta, 17, and Golden Freeza, they stood no chance. Jiren first eliminated Freeza by grabbing the Galactic Emperor by his head and forcefully throwing him straight to the stands. Jiren was going to eliminate Goku, Vegeta, and 17 at the same time with one giant energy blast. Goku and Vegeta were lying on the ground exhausted. They didn't have the strength to stop Jiren's attack or to get away from it in order to stay in the Tournament.
That was when 17 made the ultimate sacrifice. He took the entirety of Jiren's blast and self destructed making sure that Jiren's attack didn't touch Goku and Vegeta. His final words were, "Sacrificing my life for the universe… I kind of like how human that is."
Vegeta found what little energy he had left to fend off against Jiren. But he didn't even have enough stamina left to transform into Blue. He had to go up against the Pride Trooper in base. There was nothing the Prince could have done. Jiren pummeled the Prideful Saiyan to the point where he got a black eye. Jiren at the very least respected Vegeta enough to commend him in keeping to his ideals and not giving up until the very end. Jiren blasted him off stage. But right before he was eliminated, Vegeta transferred what little Ki he had left to Goku. The final member of Universe 7.
Goku, thinking about his friends and family and what's really at stake, was able to go into Ultra Instinct Omen for the third time. However it still was not enough as Jiren was overpowering him. Under the pressure fo Jiren's full power. Goku learned the Secret of Selfishness and tapped into Mastered Ultra Instinct.
That takes us to the present. Seeing the strongest opponent he has ever faced so defeated rubbed Goku the wrong way. He wished there was a way that he could fight Jiren under better terms. But this was the only way to go. It was either their Universe or his.
"GOKU! WHAT ARE YOU DOING? FINISH HIM OFF ALREADY!" Beerus shrieked from the sidelines. He and the rest of the spectators were all shocked at Goku's transformation into Mastered Ultra Instinct. He had surpassed the Gods of Destruction and may be able to give the Angels a decent fight. He had defeated Jiren who was touted as the strongest mortal in the all of the universes. But Goku had surpassed his limits and showed that the impossible was possible.
"Tch, fine." Goku lifted his hand and summoned a yellow Ki blast. That ki blast, if landed, will end the Tournament of Power once and for all.
"GAHHH!"
Goku fell down to the ground in excruciating pain. Purple lightning and aura ignited around his frame as he was forced back to base form. He could barely move. He felt so weak and drained. "What-What's happening to me?"
"The limit breaking power of the Gods… Surpassing his body's natural limitations with little to no rest in between has come back to bite him." Whis explained as he and the rest of Universe 7 watched their only hope for their survival fall down to his knees.
"But he won! He had it won! Goku had Jiren on the ground! This isn't right! This isn't how it was supposed to go. Son Goku was the superior warrior. He should have won the tournament already." Beerus shouted in fear. All hope was lost now. Goku was vulnerable and Jiren could easily knock him off.
"HAHA! Looks like it wasn't meant to be, poor little pussy cat! I'll admit, Son Goku did exceed my expectations and actually had me reeling for a minute there. But looks like Mastered Ultra Instinct was just a little much for your little Saiyan. JIREN! KNOCK HIM OFF NOW! DO IT! DON'T WASTE ANY TIME!" Belmod, the Universe 11 Hakaishin exclaimed.
Jiren walked up to Goku with a solemn face, "Son Goku. I must also commend you for fighting till the very end. You have taught me a lot about true strength and even surpassed me. But Fate has decided that I must win this tournament. And so it shall be."
Now the roles were reversed. Jiren's Ki blast was going to end the Tournament for good.
"D-Damn it. I had it. I had it in the bag. I could have finished Jiren off but I wasn't fast enough. I let my guard down for a split second and my own body backfires one me. Now the whole Universe is going to be destroyed. Guys, I'm sorry. I wasn't strong enough. Please forgive me. But this is one battle we aren't gonna win." Goku depressingly announced. As he closed his eyes waiting for the final blow. All of the Universe 7 member's heard Goku's words and replicated his sadness.
"We did our very best…" Krillin started.
"But it just wasn't enough…" Tien finished his thought for him
As Universe 7 were enjoying their last final seconds, there was one warrior who refused to accept this outcome.
"FATHER?! NO!" Son Gohan, the son of Goku shouted as he jumped towards the battle stage. Everyone yelled after him, saying no and not to do it but it was too late. The Hybrid had made up his mind.
"G-Gohan?" Goku looked at his oldest son in confusion. What did he expect to do. The rules prohibited fighters from entering the state after they were thrown out. If they did that, then the whole Universe was going to get erased.
"Father… I'm sorry. This is all my fault. If I had kept up with my training and actually took fighting seriously then I wouldn't be so weak. We would have won the tournament. I know it's against the rules but I couldn't let you go down like this-"
"Gohan. It's alright my son. It isn't your fault. You are not weak. You did well. We fought as hard as we could. There's nothing much else we can do." Goku replied.
"Due to interference from an already eliminated fighter, Universe 7 will be erased!" The Grand Priest announced.
"Aw man! We have to erase Goku's universe 7?" Future Zeno whined.
"It can't be helped. His son broke the rules. And we have to enforce them!" Present Zeno commanded as they both lit up their hands and light on each of the member's of Universe began to ripple, signifying that their time was over.
"BYE-BYE GOKU! WE'RE GOING TO MISS YOU! YOU WERE OUR BEST FRIEND!" Both of the Zenos yelled at the same time.
"Goodbye Zen-chan." Goku then hugged his son. "Gohan, if anything I should be the one apologizing. I hesitated for one second and that's all it took for me to lose. But before we get erased. I just want you to know that I love you. I love you, your mother and Goten. I know I wasn't the best father and husband. I let my desire to fight and get stronger get in the way. I hope you find it in your heart to forgive me,"
Gohan began sobbing, "I never thought you were a bad father. Please forgive me for neglecting my training-"
"I already told you that you don't need to apologize for that. You have the right to make that decision. Me and you fight for different reasons. And that's okay. You're not supposed to be like me. Be like you. I'm proud of you, Gohan. I really am."
"Daddy….." Gohan and Goku cried in each other's embrace as they awaited for the inevitable. Before they knew it, their entire vision went black as they were erased from existence.
The next time Goku opened his eyes, he found himself in a blue void. There were mirrors everywhere and in those mirrors he saw his reflection. He was in his Mastered Ultra Instinct state.
"Where am I?"
"You are in the Time Rift." Whis appeared in front of the Silver Haired Saiyan.
"Whis? What are you doing here? I thought I got erased?!" Goku asked curiously. If he was erased form existence, how was he even able to talk to Whis right now?
"I was the one who sent you here. Right before you got erased." The Angel replied non-chalantly.
"You can do that?" Goku asked in shock. He knew Whis could turn back time 3 minutes but he said that power was limited. So how could he send him to an entire-time rift?
"There's a lot of things we Angels can do. We can even bring people back to life if we needed to at will. Sending you here isn't hard. I simply healed you back to full health right before you were erased and combined our energie together so that you could come here safely without exploding from the inside-out."
"Okay… why am I in Ultra Instinct?" The Saiyan didn't remember transforming back into the form before he got erased.
"You are always at your peak in the Time Rift."
"So… did-"
"Yes. Universe 7 was eliminated. And so was Universe 11." Whis replied.
"WHAT?! Why did 11 get erased? They won didn't they?" Goku asked in shock. They said that the winner wouldn't get erased so what gives?
"Well you see.. Zeno and the Grand Priest revealed that they expected the winner of the Tournament of Power to use the Super Dragon Balls to revive the fallen universes. However if the winning team made a selfish wish, then they would get destroyed as well. And that's exactly what happened."
Goku grit his teeth and balled his fists, "So.. you're telling me that all of that… was for nothing. All of the pain and sacrifice. We were just going to get erased anyway?! How could someone do that? You call that justice? That is wrong! We were all just erased for the entertainment of you deities! And you expect us to just to be okay with that?!"
Goku's power level rose up to high levels. Whis was visibly impressed. Goku's current power level could be compared to a low to mid class Angel. And he just attained Ultra Instinct. With enough training with it, he could easily attain the power of a high class Angel.
Whis took a couple of moments to respond to Goku's outburst. He then smiled and said, "No. I don't expect you to be okay with it. Which is why you should change it."
"What do you mean?" Goku asked. How could he change it? His universe was already erased.
"Your universe may be gone now… but each of these mirrors represent an alternative timeline and dimension. If you really want to make things right. Then go through one of the mirrors… and make sure your universe doesn't get erased again.
The silver saiyan frowned, "I thought messing with time was against the rules?"
"Well as far as everyone else is concerned, you no longer exist. And if they did think you survived, this type of "time travel" is gonna be different from the one you've experienced. Instead of going back with this current body, your soul will merge with that of your younger self and will retain all of your thoughts and memories."
"Hm… Will I keep all of my strength and powers?"
"Yes and no. Depending at what point in time you end up in, some abilities and techniques might not be accessible due to the strength and maturity of your body. However, you can regain those abilities by building the body up again. And it will be even easier for you since you already have the knowledge and experience to do so."
Goku was deep in thought. He remembered the sad faces of Gohan and the rest of his team when they found out they were getting erased. He never wants to see that kind of face of hopelessness on his loved ones ever again. If there was a timeline where he could prevent that, then he will take the opportunity. Wow, now he knows how Future Trunks felt.
"I'll do it." Goku answered.
Whis smiled in delight, "Excellent! Now this will be interesting. Good luck on your journey Son Goku!"
Whis pointed his staff at Goku. A green beam shot through Goku and before he knew it, he disappeared.
Mount Paozu… Age 749
Goku opened his eyes to find himself in the beautiful wilderness. He looked around and immediately recognized where he was.
"I'm back at Mount Paozu! But I wonder at what point in time I ended up in."
Goku decided to go to a nearby river to see his reflection. He saw that he had on his old dark blue Gi with his power pole on his back and was very much smaller than what he was a few moments ago.
"I'M 12 AGAIN?!"
A/N:
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