(Author note: Hello everyone, just wanted to say. I'd advise reading this chapter with some sad music or something.
It would really set the tone to show he determinded Toji is as a dad towards Megumi. At least I wrote it while listening to such a song.
Well, that's just my advise, enjoy!)
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Toji, Bardock, and Skrik materialized on the glass-covered desert planet. The spot where Toji had crashed like a fiery comet weeks ago remained unchanged - a massive crater of vitrified sand stretching nearly a mile in every direction.
But the tear in reality that Toji had created was another matter entirely. What had been a seven-foot gash in the fabric of existence had grown to a yawning chasm nearly thirty feet across.
Through it, the crimson landscape of Hell was clearly visible, occasionally punctuated by distant screams and flashes of infernal light.
"Three weeks, I can feel it," Toji observed, his mechanical breathing steady despite the concerning sight. "Time truly flows differently even between realms. Luckily, it's not been longer."
Bardock and Skrik stood transfixed, but for entirely different reasons. The Saiyan warrior and the death bird were experiencing something neither had felt in decades - life.
Skrik spread his massive wings to their full seventeen-foot span, his six eyes blinking in different patterns as he stared upward at the night sky.
The stars glittered like distant jewels, and three moons of varying sizes hung in the heavens, bathing the glass desert in silver light.
"STARS!" the death bird shrieked, his voice cracking with emotion. "Skrik sees STARS again! And MOONS! Beautiful, beautiful MOONS!"
To Toji's surprise, the normally sarcastic creature began to sob - an ugly, honking sound somewhere between a caw and a wail. Tears streamed from all six of his eyes as his wings trembled.
"Technically speaking," Skrik continued between sobs, "Skrik hasn't seen stars in seven thousand, three hundred and twenty-two years! Or maybe longer. WHATEVER! SKRIK DOESN'T CARE ABOUT PRECISION RIGHT NOW!"
Bardock's reaction was more subdued but no less profound. The Saiyan warrior stood motionless, his face upturned to the heavens, tears silently streaming down his weathered cheeks.
His tail, now restored along with his physical body, hung limply behind him.
"Air," he whispered, drawing a deep breath into lungs that felt new and strange. "Real air. Not the sulfur stench of Hell."
Toji ignored their emotional displays, his focus entirely on the tear in reality. With measured steps, he approached the gash, studying the energies that sustained it.
"Stand back," he commanded, his modulated voice cutting through Skrik's continued sobbing. "I must seal this breach before we proceed."
Extending both handsToji channeled his destructive ki. Black lightning crackled along his armored form as he directed the energy not outward in attack, but inward toward the tear itself.
The destructive energy he had used to create the breach was still present, sustaining the unnatural opening between realms. Now, Toji used his power to neutralize that energy, systematically unmaking his own handiwork.
As the black lightning connected with the tear's edges, the crimson glow began to fade, it becoming smaller. The sounds of Hell grew distant, muffled, as if heard through increasingly thick walls.
With the destructive energy neutralized, Toji did something that made both Bardock and Skrik stare in disbelief. He reached forward and physically gripped the edges of reality itself, his hands seeming to sink into the very fabric of existence.
With force, he pulled the edges toward each other, physically forcing the tear closed like a cosmic tailor mending a torn garment.
Reality resisted, the fundamental laws of the universe protesting this mortal intervention. But Toji's will was stronger. With a final effort that sent tremors through the glass desert, he sealed the breach completely.
Where the thirty-foot gash had been, only the faintest of scars remained in the air - a nearly invisible line that would heal itself completely given time.
Toji lowered his hands, the mechanical breathing resuming its steady rhythm as he turned to face his companions.
Bardock approached cautiously, his warrior self having recovered from the initial emotional shock of returning to life.
"That was..." he began, struggling to find words adequate for what he'd just witnessed. "You made altering reality look as easy as tying a bootlace."
Before Toji could respond, his vision suddenly darkened. The world tilted sharply, and for a brief moment, consciousness fled entirely.
He caught himself on one knee as he immediately woke up, his mechanical breathing becoming labored and irregular. The sound echoed across the glass desert, a discordant rhythm that showed how bad he was.
"Toji!" Bardock rushed forward, grabbing his arm to steady him. "What's happening?"
As the Saiyan's hand closed around Toji's arm, he felt something warm and wet. Looking down, Bardock found his palm covered in dark red liquid.
Blood.
Not just from where he'd touched Toji's arm - it was seeping through every crack in the damaged Vader suit, pooling on the glass beneath them.
"You're bleeding!" Bardock exclaimed, his voice rising with alarm. "Everywhere!"
Skrik flapped over, his earlier jubilation forgotten as he examined Toji with all six eyes. The death bird's skull-like markings seemed even more pronounced as his feathers bristled with concern.
"Skrik KNEW this would happen!" he screeched, wings flapping agitatedly. "Skrik WARNED you! No mortal without divine ki can simply FORCE their way into Hell without CONSEQUENCES! Technically speaking, Hell has been attacking your mortal body since the moment you stepped foot into it!"
Toji forced himself to stand, ignoring the blood now dripping steadily from his armor. "We... must continue," he managed, his modulated voice weaker than before. "No time... for delay."
"You're in no condition to do anything!" Bardock protested, stepping in front of him. "You're bleeding out! You need rest, medical attention-"
"No time," Toji repeated more forcefully, the mechanical breathing stabilizing through sheer force of will. "My son... I can sense him. He's alive, but barely."
"At least let us clean your wounds," Bardock insisted. "Stop the bleeding somehow. I can fly us in a ki bubble to a nearby planet with medical facilities."
Toji shook his helmeted head. "The suit... is the only thing keeping me alive right now. If I remove it... I won't last a minute."
He gestured vaguely at his torso. "I'll keep myself from bleeding out the same way I did in Hell - telekinesis. Slowing the blood flow, creating pressure where needed."
Bardock's face darkened with concern, but he recognized the determination in Toji's stance. This was not a battle he could win.
"What's our next step then?" he asked reluctantly.
"We need to find a tree," Toji replied, his voice steadying as he focused on the mission. "More specifically, its fruit. The Fruit of the Tree of Might."
"The Tree of Might?" Bardock repeated, surprise evident in his tone. "I've heard legends, but-"
"It exists," Toji confirmed. "And it's currently in the possession of a Saiyan named Turles. That's what the Axis Mundi revealed to me."
"Turles? Another Saiyan survivor?" Bardock's expression brightened momentarily before turning serious again. "But where would we find him? The universe is vast."
"He should be in the Southern Galactic Quadrant," Toji stated.
Bardock frowned. "That doesn't narrow it down even remotely. That's a fourth of the entire universe."
"I know," Toji acknowledged. "That's why we'll have help."
He raised his organic hand to his helmet, focusing his thoughts outward. "King Kai," he projected mentally. "I need your help."
The response came almost immediately, tinged with surprise and relief. "Toji! You're alive! And back in the mortal realm! How are yo-"
"No time for explanations," Toji interrupted. "I need to find a Saiyan named Turles in the Southern Quadrant. He has a Tree of Might. My son's life depends on it."
"Turles?" King Kai's mental voice turned concerned. "He's a dangerous criminal, Toji. He plants Trees of Might on inhabited planets, draining their life force completely-"
"I don't care about his moral status," Toji cut in harshly, but then softened his voice again. "Only his location. Will you help me find him or not?"
A brief silence followed before King Kai sighed. "Very well. I'll search the Southern Quadrant. But this will take time..."
"Then we start now," Toji replied grimly.
For what seemed like hours, Toji extended his ki sense to its absolute limits, searching for any trace of Saiyan energy while King Kai did the same from his planet in the afterlife.
Bardock and Skrik waited silently, the latter perched on a glass outcropping, occasionally preening his feathers.
Finally, Toji's head snapped up. "I have a reading," he announced. "Not just Turles - I sense the Tree of Might itself, growing on a planet. Turles's ship is in orbit, and he and his squad are gathered around the tree."
Without further explanation, Toji grabbed Bardock's shoulder and gestured for Skrik to perch on his prosthetic arm. The death bird complied, making himself smaller as he settled on the black armor.
"Hold on," Toji instructed, placing two fingers against his helmet. Concentrating on the distant ki signature, he executed the Instant Transmission technique.
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The glass desert vanished, replaced instantly by a lush but dying landscape. Before them stood an enormous tree with twisted branches reaching toward the sky, its roots having burrowed deep into the planet's core.
Around its base sat five figures - Turles and his squad, feasting on glowing red fruits.
Turles, a Saiyan with darker skin and features remarkably similar to Goku's, jumped to his feet at their sudden appearance.
"What is the meaning of-" he began, his voice a mix of surprise and outrage.
Toji didn't let him finish. With a casual backhand, he sent Turles flying into the tree trunk, knocking him unconscious instantly.
The rest of Turles's squad leapt up, reaching for weapons and powering up ki blasts. Toji simply raised his hand, exerting his telekinesis. All four warriors clutched at their throats, suspended momentarily before dropping unconscious to the ground.
"Gather all the fruit," Toji ordered Bardock and Skrik, his voice urgent. "Quickly."
As Bardock began plucking the glowing red fruits from lower branches, Skrik flew higher, using his beak and talons to harvest those beyond reach.
Toji approached the tree himself, reaching up to pluck one of the fruits. He held the red orb in his hand, studying it intently.
Though it appeared to be an ordinary fruit, he could sense the immense energy contained within - energy harvested from an entire dying world.
"This is it," he murmured, the mechanical breathing punctuating his words. "The key to my son's survival."
Once they had harvested every fruit from the tree, Toji gathered his companions close. With his telekinesis, he wrapped his ki around everyone - Bardock, Skrik, the unconscious Turles, and his squad.
"I'm taking us directly to the throne world," he announced, focusing on Megumi's faint ki signature across the galaxy.
The Instant Transmission was more difficult this time, the distance vastly greater and the number of passengers increased. But Toji's determination was absolute.
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They materialized in the upper atmosphere of the throne world, the massive imperial palace visible below them like a gleaming jewel against the landscape.
Toji immediately attempted to fly toward it, but his body betrayed him. A fresh spurt of blood erupted from his suit, the crimson liquid spraying into the air as he began to fall.
Bardock reacted instantly, catching him before he could plummet far. "Toji!"
"Carry me," Toji managed, his voice barely audible through the vocoder. "To the palace... before I bleed out."
Without hesitation, Bardock positioned Toji's arm around his neck and launched himself toward the imperial palace at maximum speed, leaving Skrik to follow with the other fruits and their unconscious captives.
As Bardock did, he sideglanced at Toji, his expression grim, 'Come on! We need to do this fast! You need to live damn it! If you die now- you can't come back anymore! Those damned gods will seal you so deep in Hell even the Legendary Dragon Gods won't be able bring you back!'
As they approached the palace, imperial guards, not recognizing them from how fast they moved, moved to intercept them, weapons raised.
Bardock didn't slow down. With his free hand, he released a ki wave that sent the guards flying without killing them.
Reaching the palace wall, Bardock didn't bother with entrances. He fired a ki blast that created a hole large enough to fly through, debris raining down as he carried Toji inside.
"Where to?" Bardock asked urgently.
"Follow... my directions," Toji replied, focusing on Megumi's ki signature. "Left... now right... down that corridor..."
They navigated the labyrinthine palace, Bardock blasting through any doors or guards that stood in their way. Finally, they burst through a set of massive doors into a high-tech medical chamber.
Inside, a group had gathered around a small bed where a tiny, pale figure lay motionless - Megumi, connected to various machines that struggled to maintain his failing life force.
Bulma, Goku, Vegeta, King Cold, Freeza, Nappa, Gohan, and Piccolo all turned in shock at their explosive entrance.
Their expressions transformed from surprise to horror as they took in Toji's condition - the cracked, battle-worn armor with no cape, blood seeping from every joint.
"Toji!" Bulma cried, rushing forward. "What happened to you?"
Toji pushed away from Bardock, staggering into the room under his own power. He waved off Bulma's attempt to help, pushing past anyone who approached him.
"I've found it," he muttered, his voice a mechanical whisper as he clutched the fruit. "I've found it... I've found it..."
He approached Megumi's bed with unsteady steps, falling to his knees beside it. The sight of his son - so small, so pale, so still - seemed to give him a final surge of strength.
With gentle movements, Toji brushed his organic hand through Megumi's hair.
"I've found it," he repeated, holding up the Fruit of the Tree of Might. "The cure."
Blood continued to seep from his suit, pooling on the floor beneath him as he knelt there, but Toji paid it no mind. His focus was entirely on the fruit in his hand and the child before him.
"One final step," he whispered, his mechanical breathing becoming more labored. "For the fruit to heal him... it must be divine."
Toji knew- knew from the knowledge imparted by the Axis Mundi. The more life force the fruit absorbed, the purer its ki became.
If it absorbed enough, that ki would transform into something beyond mortal energy - divine ki.
And so, without hesitation, Toji began to pour everything he had left into the fruit. His remaining ki into the red orb in his hand.
Toji was the strongest, no one besides him, even if they pooled all their Ki together could give the fruit enough to transform it- even in Toji's weakened state.
Hell nearly killed him, but it also made him immensily stronger.
The fruit began to glow brighter, its color deepening from red to crimson as it absorbed more and more.
The process was visibly draining him, his already weakened body slumping further with each passing moment.
But he didn't stop. Not when his vision began to blur. Not when the mechanical breathing faltered. Not until he felt the fruit change - its energy transforming into something transcendent, something he could no longer feel but the pressure of.
It now contained divine ki.
With the last of his strength, Toji crushed the fruit in his hand. Carefully, tenderly, he removed the oxygen aid from Megumi's mouth and allowed drops of the fruit's glowing sap to fall between the child's pale lips.
The effect was immediate.
Megumi's body absorbed the divine essence, color returning to his skin as a wave of power erupted from him.
The machines monitoring his condition went haywire, some shorting out completely as his power level skyrocketed.
Toji began to laugh - a weak, ragged sound through the vocoder, but filled with joy. Tears streamed down his face inside the helmet as he watched his son's eyes flutter.
As he nearly collapsed backward, Goku was there to catch him, the Saiyan's face etched with concern.
"Toji, you need help," Goku said urgently. "Let us-"
"Mask," Toji interrupted, his hand moving weakly toward his helmet. "I want... to see him... with my own eyes."
Bardock stepped forward, his expression grave. "Don't. The suit is keeping you alive. Remove it and-"
"I'm dying anyway," Toji stated with surprising clarity. "Let me see my son... one last time."
After a moment of tense silence (Freeza herself in so much shock, she couldn't move, still processing), Vegeta moved forward.
Despite protests from the others, he helped Toji remove the helmet, revealing his scarred face beneath.
Blood trickled from the corner of Toji's mouth as he forced himself to stand, pushing away from Goku's help. With trembling steps, he approached the bed where Megumi was now stirring, the boy's eyes opening to reveal their vibrant violet color.
Megumi blinked in confusion as he saw his father's bloodied face instead of the familiar mask.
"Dada?" he asked, his voice small and uncertain.
Toji smiled, tears mingling with the blood on his face. With gentle movements, he leaned down and kissed Megumi's forehead.
"I love you," he whispered, his natural voice emerging for the first time in weeks. "Always have. Always will. I wish I could be with you lon...ger."
The effort of these final words seemed to drain what little strength Toji had left. As he stepped back from the bed, his legs gave way.
He began to fall backward, his vision darkening at the edges. This was it - the end he had known was coming since Hell began taking its toll on him.
But instead of hitting the floor, he felt himself caught by slender but strong arms.
Looking up with fading vision, Toji found himself staring into the smiling face of Whis.
"You're... he...re," Toji managed, blood bubbling between his lips.
Whis's smile widened slightly, his eyes twinkling with something between amusement and approval. "You've done it after all. You've created Divinity. Not inside you, mind you, but it still counts."
A small smile formed on Toji's bloodied face at these words. His eyes fluttered once, twice, then closed completely.
Toji Fushiguro had died.