Tales of the Xenoverse

What if Future Gohan Survived?

Suggested by JackBeanstalk on Archive of Our Own

As Gohan leaped skyward, Android 17 opened his eyes, having faked being defeated, before firing a massive ki blast for Gohan; one that was casually deflected, before he was surprised by a punch to the face, which threw him backward. Catching himself with his arm, Gohan flipped onto the ground, quickly leaping away, with Android 17 in hot pursuit. Firing multiple ki blasts, Gohan teleported, amazingly dodging a would-be attack from Android 18, before elbowing her back, sending her falling.

As the aforementioned ki blasts hit their target, sending Android 17 down like a crashing plane, Gohan grabbed Android 18 by the ankle, before whipping her like a Rat Tail Towel into a building, throwing her through the hard concrete.

Landing back on the ground, Gohan glared at where the Androids would've landed, and just as so, both Androids rose from the rumble and debris, both definitely appearing damaged, but hardly beaten.

Gritting his teeth, Gohan growled, charging his aura, while a bolt of lightning struck a nearby building; the echo of thunder and sudden forming of storm clouds slowly followed. As the rain began to pour, both Androids readied themselves, slowly walking towards their opponent, but stopping short.

Android 17 looked at this sister, who simply gave him a nod.

"This thunderstorm is a perfect backdrop for your demise..." he said bluntly.

Gohan wasn't fazed. "There is no end for me. No end!"

In the moment, both Androids movements practically became one, as both charged straight for him, the first attack Gohan barely dodged, but from there only a massive barrage followed, one that Gohan could hardly keep up with. Suddenly, Android 17 slid his leg across Gohan's, sweeping his legs and almost tripping him; Gohan quickly regained his balance, before taking flight, trying to escape the deadly duo.

Both Androids only followed, however, before firing a pair of twin ki blasts in front of Gohan, creating a smokescreen and allowing them both a free hit, sending Gohan into another building. Following up their attack, Android 17 and 18 bombarded Gohan with an overwhelming amount of ki blasts, pelting the half-Saiyan with an impossible amount of energy that would surely slay anyone in its path.

In the timelines you know, this would, in fact, be the case for Gohan... however, here is where the Divergence occurred. In that moment, those mere seconds as Gohan's life force weakened, Gohan thought back to a technique Android 17 had used against him, a means of transforming his own aura to resist ki attacks; a kind of 'barrier'.

He didn't know if he could, and even if he did, would it even work in fooling his enemies, but in this situation, it truly was his own option at survival.

With the last of his energy and another scream, Gohan thought back to his father, his mother, Piccolo, Bulma and Trunks, before charging his aura which hardened like a candy-coated shell around him. Despite the blasts still slamming him into the concrete of the town, Gohan had survived, the stunt costing him the rest of the energy and dropping him out of his Super Saiyan form. The Android's inability to sense ki being Gohan's saving grace, the twins simply flew away, content with their work and searching for yet another town to torture.

After several hours Trunks would manage to find Gohan, left behind in the pouring rain; beaten unconscious, completely out of energy, but thankfully, alive. After bringing Gohan back to what remained of Capsule Corp, Bulma would finally reveal to them both her own plan for dealing with the Androids: a Time Machine.

Trunks would volunteer, but Gohan would quickly shut him down. The way he saw it, he had been too late in gathering the Dragon Balls all those years ago, he had brushed off his fathers first symptoms, believing they'd simply be the results of his battle with Frieza. Simply put, this reality was his fault, therefore it was his responsibility to fix his mistakes and save his father's life.