Chương 119: Chapter 119 – No More Playing Around!
The crimson aura of Kaioken ×30 blazed intensely around Ajax as he focused on the spot where Frieza had landed. The ground beneath him sizzled as cracks radiated out from the force of his blow.
Ajax knew this alone wouldn't take down Frieza—not even close. As an avid fan of the series, Ajax was all too familiar with Frieza's ungodly resilience. In that regard, Frieza was like a cockroach.
But right now, Ajax could actually appreciate that quality, especially since there was still so much his fists wanted to discuss with Frieza's face.
Ajax's eyes flicked to the side when he sensed Dende's faint presence finally arriving after being left behind by his monstrous speed. Without turning, Ajax issued a curt mental command:
'Dende, heal the others.'
He didn't wait for confirmation because he trusted that Dende had heard him and would act appropriately. In a battle like this, every second mattered, as any hesitation could give Frieza the chance he needed to access more than just 25% of his power.
...And, truthfully, it was also because Ajax really wanted to beat the living shit out of Frieza.
Ajax disappeared, leaving only a faint trace of energy in his wake.
He reappeared right in front of Frieza just as the emperor was struggling to his feet. Still dazed from the blow, Frieza raised a hand to block, but his disorientation threw his timing by the slimmest fraction of a second.
Ajax's lips curled vindictively.
His fist slammed into Frieza's jaw, and a second Pinpoint Impact blasted dust and rocks in every direction as Frieza rocketed backward like a meteor. The tyrant's body carved another line across the battlefield, toward the edge of the large landmass, but this time, Ajax had no intention of letting him catch a breath.
Before Frieza's body could even start its descent, Ajax had already appeared above him. His fist, glowing with the focused energy of another Pinpoint Impact, drove into Frieza's gut and smashed him down with enough power to shake the entire landscape.
The earth immediately caved to form a crater several meters deep as Frieza slammed into it. Blood burst from his mouth like a crimson fountain, violently expelled by the forceful collision.
The bloody droplets had not yet begun their descent when Ajax's crimson Kaioken aura evaporated them as he shot past. With his body angled perpendicular to the ground, he plunged down toward Frieza and launched his first punch just moments before the collision.
Then, a barrage of machine-gun-like blows followed, raining down and hammering Frieza's body deeper into the earth.
To an observer, Ajax appeared to hover just above Frieza, his arms a whirlwind of motion as he struck again and again.
In reality, Ajax wasn't hovering. Instead, he was actively propelling himself downward via flight, and the only thing preventing him from crashing directly into Frieza was the sheer speed and ferocity of his strikes.
His arms burned from the strain of maintaining the onslaught and the Kaioken, but the fury ignited by Mushin's terrified final expression burned even hotter. With a snarl, Ajax picked up his pace.
Frieza snarled back.
Ajax's next two strikes were intercepted by Frieza's hands.
For a heartbeat, they remained suspended in that position, glaring at each other with mutual loathing and hatred. Within that fleeting moment, the shattered rocks and debris kicked up by Ajax's furious assault appeared to float in the air between them.
Then, in the blink of an eye, they vanished and reappeared in rapid bursts across the vast, war-torn landscape, exchanging blows faster than the speed of sound. The only indications of their position were the shockwaves that rippled for miles and the earth that shattered beneath them.
It was amidst this furious exchange that Ajax realized something about Frieza. Now that he'd achieved a level of power capable of matching the tyrant's raw strength and speed, he could finally gauge Frieza's actual fighting skill—and it was lacking.
Frieza's martial prowess, which Ajax had once presumed to be formidable, was actually less than impressive.
From what Ajax could tell, Frieza must have trained in martial arts at some point, as he displayed a decent foundation. The tyrant's movements showed hints of form and technique, and that alone placed him well above brutish fighters like Dodoria.
However, it was also clear that Frieza hadn't faced a serious challenge in far too long. His movements were stiff, his forms awkward—like a musician who was suddenly called to perform after letting their instrument gather dust for years.
But even if Frieza was not out of practice, his style seemed comparatively crude next to the practical and adaptable martial arts Ajax had learned from Master Roshi or the refined, disciplined techniques of Kami. Unfortunately, Ajax couldn't be certain if this was the full extent of Frieza's martial arts skill, as he lacked detailed knowledge of Frieza's habits.
This lack of information was due to the limitations of the Multiform technique since it was, ultimately, no Shadow Clone Jutsu. When Ajax splits into multiple bodies, he receives only the vague circumstance of each clone's demise, not a complete stream of memories or insights from their experiences.
Nevertheless, Ajax didn't need detailed specifics to make an educated guess—he imagined Frieza was very used to overwhelming his opponents with sheer strength and speed.
He suspected that few, if any, had ever forced Frieza to the point where technique would make a difference; most opponents likely crumbled under the tyrant's base power alone.
Now, though, Ajax could see his theory confirmed in Frieza's face—a slight twist in that usual sneer, an expression caught between frustration and, perhaps, a hint of apprehension.
Landing an island a bit away, Frieza scowled as he raised both hands toward the sky at Ajax. Instantly, energy surged around him, and Ajax tensed, recognizing the dark glow of multiple Death Balls zooming toward him—identical to the one that had annihilated Mushin.
Each one of those Death Balls had more than enough power to reduce Ajax to dust.
… Or at least, they would have a minute ago.
But that was then, and this is now.
Ajax blasted himself towards Frieza and proceeded to swat aside each Death Ball with casual backhands as if they were nothing more than helium balloons. They careened off in all directions, detonating against distant mountains with massive, earth-rattling explosions.
For a brief moment, a crack appeared in Frieza's composure, revealing his sheer disbelief.
But Frieza had no time to process his disbelief, for Ajax had already slipped inside his guard. In a flash, Ajax's hand shot forward and clamped itself tightly over Frieza's lower face, his palm pressed firmly against the tyrant's mouth. Frieza's eyes widened, but his surprise was cut short as Ajax's face leaned in and moved past his.
With his Kaioken-enhanced strength, Ajax proceeded to slam Frieza's head downward into the ground with so much force that the impact shattered the small island beneath them. Water surged toward them as Frieza's head became half-buried in the unforgiving rock.
Frieza's fingers clawed at Ajax's hand, but Ajax only needed to tighten his grip. Without releasing his hold, he began to channel his energy into the same hand pressing against Frieza's face. A radiant white glow began to seep through the gaps between his fingers and Frieza's mouth as the energy pulsed and grew.
The raging red of Kaioken blended with the harsh, blinding white into an ominous glow over Frieza's furious, hate-filled eyes.
Ajax leaned down, his voice low.
"Here's a taste of your own fucking medicine."
Frieza let out a muffled growl beneath Ajax's hand, but he could do nothing to change his circumstances. Without hesitation, Ajax released the accumulated energy straight into Frieza's face.
The blast detonated at point-blank range, erupting in a column of searing light as the island disintegrated and water turned to vapor. Steam and fragments of rock shot into the sky while a thick, smoky fog reduced visibility to nearly nothing.
The force of his own attack knocked Ajax back a foot or two, but he remained steady as he scanned the haze. Although he couldn't see through the dense clouds of steam and water, he also didn't need to. Frieza's malevolent energy pulsing angrily within the steam already told him everything he needed to know.
Then, without warning, a flash of white hurtled toward him at blistering speed—Frieza's tail—angled to knock him away.
Frieza's strike might have succeeded in catching most fighters off guard due to the poor visibility, but Ajax was no ordinary opponent. As a member of the Z Fighters, he relied on more than just sight; for him, Ki sense made visibility completely optional.
With lightning speed, Ajax's hand shot out and seized Frieza's tail in mid-air. Gripping it tightly, he swung Frieza around and around like a top as he swiftly moved over to the nearest outcrop with respectable height. With a powerful twist of his core, he swung Frieza upward and brought him crashing down onto the outcrop with tremendous force.
Frieza let out a furious screech as he was smashed through the outcrop top to bottom and into the earth with barely any deceleration. The tyrant's body rebounded slightly from the impact with the ground as a shower of his spit arced majestically through the air.
Taking advantage of the moment, Ajax yanked Frieza up from his sprawled state with a forceful tug on his tail. Then, with another fierce twist of his core, Ajax drove his fist into Frieza's jaw and violently smashed the tyrant's rising head back into the ground. The impact was so fierce that a howling tornado immediately erupted from the impact, swirling with a dark mix of dirt and water.
Ajax was standing, utterly unfazed by the tornado swirling around him, when suddenly, his body seized as a sharp jolt of pain tore through his limbs—the strain from the Kaioken ×30. For a brief moment, his vision blurred, a harsh reminder of how far he was pushing his limits. If only he had more time to train with Dende, then this multiplier might have been more manageable. However, as it stands for him, ×20 was no challenge, ×25 pushed his adaptation, and ×30 had him racing against the clock.
By all rights, Ajax should have already been screaming and writhing in agony on the ground. Fortunately, the second half of his ability—adaptation to any current negative conditions—kept him on his feet. But as Shenron said, even that ability had its limits.
He had to finish this fast.
It was time to go for the kill.
His gaze landed on Frieza, who was still embedded in the ground and struggling to rise.
With one hand raised, Ajax summoned every ounce of control he could manage. Energy spiraled at his palm, slowly coalescing into a small, spinning disk—the beginnings of a Kienzan. But unlike usual, it was forming far more sluggishly. Gritting his teeth, he forced the Kienzan to take shape even as the strain set his entire arm ablaze with pain.
As it turned out, higher Kaioken multipliers came with yet another hidden cost. Just like a newly minted Jinchuuriki, the raw, explosive surge of power disrupted his Ki control, as he wasn't yet accustomed to managing such a large quantity of energy.
Fortunately, simpler moves like Ki blasts—where he just expelled energy as quickly as possible—weren't affected. Techniques like Pinpoint Impact, which he'd specifically trained with Dende to execute under Kaioken's pressure, remained viable. But forming the Kienzan? Sluggish. And more intricate techniques, such as the various applications of external Ki manipulation? Essentially out of reach.
For Ajax, this wasn't a permanent limitation; it was just a matter of time and practice. This challenge wasn't insurmountable—it was a skill to be refined, a mountain to be climbed. But the wish that granted him the Kaioken had been made barely thirty minutes ago, and that was hardly enough time to do much of anything.
He knew that with more practice, he'd be able to refine his control, smoothing out the kinks, and truly wield the Kaioken at higher multipliers without it disrupting his control. But for now, there was simply too much power, much too fast.
Three seconds later, the Kienzan was ready.
But three seconds was an eternity.
Just as Ajax was about to release the razor-sharp disc, Frieza's eyes snapped open and instantly zeroed in on the spinning Kienzan. With a vicious snarl, Frieza drove both feet into Ajax's gut, sending Ajax skidding backward as the air was violently expelled from his lungs. The Kienzan spiraled wildly off course into the distance.
Ajax clutched his stomach as he struggled to regain his breath in mid-air. He half-expected Frieza to pursue him, but surprisingly, the tyrant didn't. Instead, Frieza retreated, backpedaling and letting the fleeting opportunity to strike back slip away.
But then, Ajax noticed Frieza's aura beginning to roil and bubble, intensifying.
Ajax's eyes sharpened as he instantly uncovered Frieza's ploy. The tyrant's retreat wasn't born of fear; it was calculated. Frieza wasn't scrambling for survival—he was stalling to buy himself the critical few seconds needed to unleash even more of his power. Frieza had prioritized that over a single opportunity to attack.
Ajax's scowl deepened. He hated when villains proved sharper and more cunning than the canon had suggested.
In a flash, barely a second after sensing the menacing bubbling of Frieza's aura, Ajax arrived before the emperor with his left fist drawn back.
Frieza, catching the movement, instinctively crossed his arms to defend himself. But just as Frieza focused on the incoming blow, Ajax halted his left fist, stopping it a mere inch from the tyrant's arms.
Frieza's gaze remained locked on the fist hovering near him in anticipation of another clever attack.
And that's when Ajax's right fist introduced itself.
Ajax crouched low and launched himself upward with explosive force, bypassing Frieza's guard entirely by slipping his fist through the gap between the crossed arms and Frieza's chest. Ajax's fist rose and crashed into the underside of Frieza's jaw with uninterrupted momentum.
The impact sent a shockwave through Frieza, causing his eyes to roll back momentarily as the blow rattled his brain and disrupted his control over his power. Ajax could feel it—the tyrant's attempt to power up faltered as the uppercut shattered his concentration and also propelled him into the air.
Ajax straightened up as he watched Frieza ascend. For the first time since the battle began, a genuine smile crept across his face.
Why?
Because Frieza had barely ascended ten meters when a sudden, sharp impact abruptly halted his momentum. With impeccable timing, a pair of unmistakable blue boots smashed into the tyrant's face, the force of which sent Frieza crashing violently back down.
The battlefield gained a new, jagged crater.
Ajax glanced up and exchanged a long look with Goku, who hovered in the air, his expression set with unyielding resolve. No words were needed between them—they both understood the stakes all too well and also because their telepathic link made speech unnecessary.
'Goku, let's get serious. Frieza's only using 25% of his power, so we can't give him a single moment to escalate or power up more. We finish this now—no games, no holding back!'
Goku nodded gravely in agreement. His eyes blazed with a hidden, suppressed rage at the state of Gohan, Piccolo, and the others.
Drawing in a controlled yet intense breath, Goku gathered his energy and unleashed a roar that reverberated through the air.
"KAIOKEN TIMES TWENTY!!"
The fiery red aura that ignited around Goku filled the air with a throbbing pressure.
Then, in an instant, the duo vanished from sight as they launched into action.
Frieza won't know what hit him.
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