The series begins with a flashback of the destruction of Planet Vegeta at the hands of Frieza, and the upbringing of Goku on Earth as depicted in the original Dragon Ball series. Five years have passed since Goku's victory over Piccolo at the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament, and he has since married Chi-Chi and now has a son named Gohan. Goku and Gohan are heading towards a reunion with Goku's friends at Master Roshi's island. Elsewhere, an odd-looking spacecraft crash lands on Earth. A man in battle armor emerges from the vessel and flies off to scout out a powerful life form he locates with the help of an apparatus on his eye. Piccolo is nearly killed by the stranger, but this is averted when the man leaves to scout out a more powerful life form. The other strong life form is Goku, who at the Kame House presents his son to Roshi, Krillin, and Bulma. The stranger arrives and surprises everyone when they notice he has a monkey-like tail, just like Goku used to have.

The stranger says that his name is Raditz, and that he is Goku's older brother. Goku cannot remember this, as he had suffered from brain damage caused by a fall when he was a child. Raditz reports that he and Goku are of an alien race called the Saiyans and that he and Goku are among the last four remaining. Raditz then asks Goku to join them in exterminating the population of Earth, taking Gohan hostage when Goku refuses. Piccolo appears and offers to help Goku defeat Raditz; Goku accepts his offer and together they follow after Raditz. Goku and Piccolo confront the Saiyan at his space pod's crash site, but Raditz is not impressed and tells them that the other two remaining Saiyans are even stronger than he is.

Goku and Piccolo are no match for Raditz in direct conflict, so they decide to have Goku distract Raditz while Piccolo gathers energy for an attack strong enough to defeat Raditz. This plan fails, as does Goku's attempt to stop Raditz by grabbing his tail ends when Goku gets tricked by his brother. Raditz tortures Goku, causing Gohan to unleash his latent abilities in a fit of rage, and he strikes Raditz in the chest. Goku uses this opportunity to grab Raditz from behind, allowing Piccolo to use his Makankosappo technique on Raditz - killing them both. Before he succumbs to his wound, Raditz tells his enemies that the other Saiyans will arrive on Earth within a year. Bulma, Krillin, and Master Roshi arrive to witness Goku's death.

Kami takes Goku along with his body to the Other World. Bulma takes Raditz's scouter in order to repair it and find Yamcha, Tien Shinhan, and Chiaotzu. Piccolo takes Gohan into his custody and flies off, intending to train the boy in preparation for the two Saiyans' arrival. In Other World, Kami arranges for Goku to be allowed to travel to King Kai via the million-mile-long Snake Way; King Kai will then train Goku in advanced fighting techniques, in hopes that by the time he is re-animated Goku will be strong enough to face the new Saiyans who are heading towards Earth. While Goku starts his journey along the long road, Krillin unsuccessfully attempts to tell Chi-Chi of her husband's death and her son's kidnapping. Meanwhile, Piccolo tells Gohan of his father's fate. Gohan doubts that he has any significant intrinsic power, so Piccolo uses a dramatic method to demonstrate Gohan's hidden power - he throws Gohan at a rock, which Gohan destroys reflexively.

Gohan's survival training begins. After a length of time spent alone on a mountaintop, Gohan looks at the full moon, which causes him to transform into a Saiyan "Great Ape." Rather than let him rampage unchecked, Piccolo destroys the moon, making any further transformations impossible for both Gohan and the other Saiyans, and removes Gohan's Saiyan tail, before leaving to begin his own training. Meanwhile, Bulma repairs the scouter, and Yajirobe delivers a summons to Krillin, telling him that the two of them, along with Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu, are to report to Kami's Lookout for training.

Six months have passed since Gohan's incident with the full moon, and he has since become much more adept at surviving in the wilderness. Piccolo then begins training the boy personally in martial arts. Meanwhile, Goku has arrived at the end of Snake Way, meeting King Kai on his planet, which, despite its small size, has ten-times Earth's gravity. In order for Goku to train under King Kai's teachings, he must attempt to make the master laugh. After Goku's accomplishment of making him laugh, King Kai tells Goku to catch his pet monkey, Bubbles. This proves to be a difficult task for Goku due to the planet's intense gravity, but he is persistent and refuses to give up.

After three weeks, Goku succeeds in catching Bubbles. He is then issued his second challenge, to hit Gregory, the flying grasshopper, with a large mallet. After two weeks of trying, Goku succeeds and fully masters the planet's gravity in the process. King Kai then proceeds to teach Goku his signature technique: the Kaio-ken. On Earth, Gohan's training with Piccolo comes to a close, while the rest of the Z Fighters finish their training with Kami and go their separate ways.

King Kai has also taught Goku the Spirit Bomb technique, and tests Goku's ability to create a Spirit Bomb with a large brick as a target; Goku destroys it with no problems. However, King Kai warns Goku of the potential danger of creating a Spirit Bomb on Earth. So Goku decides to only use it as a last resort. With his training complete, Goku is ready to be resurrected. Only then is it revealed that the Saiyans will be arriving sooner than the expected; additionally, King Kai had forgotten to allow sufficient time for Goku to travel back along Snake Way to reach Earth before the Saiyans arrive there. Goku sends an urgent telepathic message to Master Roshi via King Kai's telepathy, insisting that the Dragon Balls be used to resurrect him with all possible haste. On Earth, Roshi, Bulma, and Oolong summon the Eternal Dragon Shenron and fulfill Goku's wish. Goku then begins the long journey back along Snake Way; with all of his training, increased strength and speed, and new techniques, the return journey will be far quicker than the original. The next day, the Saiyans Vegeta and Nappa land on Earth to begin their search for the Dragon Balls.

Vegeta and Nappa emerge from their two space pods and Nappa wipes out Metro East with a single blast. The two Saiyans then fly off towards the island where Piccolo and Gohan have been training. Krillin arrives first, and the three face off with Vegeta and Nappa. Piccolo learns for the first time that he is a Namekian, a member of an alien race from the planet called Namek, when told by Nappa. At Vegeta's order, Nappa plants seeds in the ground, and six Saibamen are born. Tien, Chiaotzu, and then Yamcha fly in to join in the battle. Vegeta suggests they have a game of one-on-one and instructs the Saibamen to use all of their power during their fights. Tien faces off first against a Saibaman. Tien overpowers the Saibaman, but before he's able to finish it off, Vegeta accuses the Saibaman of having held back his full power and subsequently destroys the Saibaman as incentive to the remaining five to obey the order to use their full strength. Next, Yamcha decides to fight in place of Krillin; the Saibaman latches onto him and self-destructs, killing Yamcha.

Nappa faces off against the Z Fighters and proves to be a formidable opponent. During Nappa's attack, Tien loses his arm. In an act of desperation, Chiaotzu attaches himself to Nappa's back and sacrifices himself using a kamikaze technique, but Nappa is unharmed by it. Grief stricken by Chiaotzu's sacrifice, Tien uses his Tri-Beam technique on Nappa, but this also fails, and Tien dies of exhaustion as a result. With the Z Fighters now down three, the team can do nothing but hope for Goku's arrival, which is expected in three hours. The Saiyans soon learn of this trump card and scoff at the notion that any one new fighter could change the course of the battle, until Krillin informs the duo of Goku's special training. Intrigued by the possibility of challenging a newly-strengthened Goku, Vegeta issues a three-hour reprieve to wait for Goku to arrive.

Goku fails to arrive within the three-hour reprieve and the battle with the Saiyans resumes. At that moment, however, Goku finally reaches the end of Snake Way, is teleported back to Earth by Kami, and flies towards the battlefield on the Nimbus Cloud. Upon sensing Goku's impending arrival on his scouter, and discovering that Goku's power level is now far greater than before, Vegeta orders Nappa to kill the remaining Z Fighters, including Piccolo. The Saiyans reveal that they came to Earth for the specific purpose of obtaining and using Earth's Dragon Balls, which they learned about by monitoring Raditz's conversations while he was on Earth. Vegeta says that he and Nappa can later go to Planet Namek and use the original Namekian Dragon Balls to wish for immortality for themselves, since the Namekians were the creators of the original Dragon Balls. After Gohan strikes Nappa, an enraged Nappa fires a powerful ki blast at Gohan, but Piccolo jumps in the way at the last second to shield Gohan from the blast.

Piccolo dies from Nappa's ki blast, resulting in Kami's death and the destruction of Earth's Dragon Balls. However, Goku finally arrives at the battlefield just in time to save Gohan and Krillin. After healing the two with a Senzu bean from Korin, Goku engages Nappa in battle. Despite the mighty Nappa's efforts, it quickly becomes clear that he is no match for Goku's new level of power. Realizing this, Vegeta orders Nappa to step down and finally decides to step into the fight.

With Vegeta ready to enter the fight, Nappa realizes that he has lost, and decides to attack Gohan and Krillin instead. However, Goku disables Nappa by using his new Kaio-ken technique. With his partner now useless, Vegeta launches Nappa into the sky and mercilessly kills him with a powerful ki blast. Goku tells Gohan and Krillin to leave so he can fight Vegeta without distraction. After moving to a new battleground, the two remaining Saiyans begin their epic battle. However, Vegeta is much more powerful than Nappa was, and Goku eventually realizes that even the two-times Kaio-ken isn't enough to defeat his opponent. He then decides to break his promise to King Kai and risk his own life to use the three-times Kaio-ken.

Goku powers up with the three-times Kaio-ken and attacks Vegeta with his increased power and speed. Vegeta is filled with rage as he realizes that Goku's power level exceeds his own, so he powers up even further and attempts to destroy Earth with his Galick Gun technique. Goku counters this attack with his Kamehameha blast, and when it turns out that they are evenly matched, he uses the four-times Kaio-ken to overcome Vegeta's blast, sending Vegeta flying into the outer atmosphere. Vegeta then searches for the moon to transform into a Great Ape and increase his power level. Realizing the moon has been destroyed, Vegeta releases a ball of ki that simulates the moon, and absorbs its Blutz Waves to transform into a Great Ape, which multiplies his power level by 10 times in the process. Krillin and Gohan sense Vegeta's increased power and decide to return to help Goku.

Goku uses Tien's Solar Flare technique to blind Great Ape Vegeta in order to buy time to create a Spirit Bomb, but Vegeta attacks Goku the instant he finishes gathering ki. Even in his battered state, Goku manages to wound Vegeta's eye, but he ends up with Vegeta crushing him in his hand and breaking most of his bones in the process. While hiding, Gohan and Krillin watch the fight and try to come up with a plan to cut off Vegeta's tail. They fail, but while Vegeta gloats, Yajirobe seizes an opening and severs Vegeta's tail with his sword, causing Vegeta to revert into his original form. Vegeta then angrily confronts Gohan, who is reluctant to fight at first, until he gets support from Goku. Goku then entrusts Krillin with the remaining ki from the previous Spirit Bomb, and Krillin successfully molds it into another Spirit Bomb.

Vegeta attacks Gohan with a barrage of energy blasts while Krillin attempts to lock the Spirit Bomb onto Vegeta's energy signature. Krillin throws the Spirit Bomb at Vegeta, but the Saiyan Prince manages to dodge it at the last second. Following Goku's advice, Gohan rebounds the Spirit Bomb back at Vegeta, though, surprisingly, Vegeta survives the hit, although he is badly weakened by the attack. Before Vegeta can finish the Z Fighters off, however, Gohan's tail suddenly grows back, and Vegeta decides to cut off his tail in order to prevent him from transforming into a Great Ape. Just then, Yajirobe ambushes Vegeta with his sword, injuring him. However, Vegeta is able to quickly overpower Yajirobe, defeating him. Following Goku's instructions, Gohan gazes into the artificial moon Vegeta had created earlier and transforms into a Great Ape. After being thrashed around by the Great Ape, Vegeta cuts off Gohan's tail in mid-air, but Gohan falls on top of him as he turns back to normal, crushing the Saiyan Prince to the brink of death. Finally defeated, Vegeta summons his space pod and attempts to escape, but Krillin grabs Yajirobe's sword and prepares to finish off Vegeta.

Before Krillin deals the final blow to Vegeta, Goku intercedes. He asks Krillin to allow Vegeta to live, as Goku wishes to train harder and challenge Vegeta again in honorable combat. Krillin reluctantly agrees and Vegeta leaves Earth. Master Roshi, Bulma, Chi-Chi, and Korin fly to where Goku, Gohan, and Krillin are. They gather their injured, and the bodies of their deceased friends, and set off to the hospital. Krillin informs them that Kami is a Namekian, and that the planet Namek should have more inhabitants able to create Dragon Balls. After brainstorming on how to get there in a reasonable amount of time, they realize that Nappa's space pod is still a working vessel. Bulma decides to run it through some tests and see if it's still viable.

Goku, Krillin, and Gohan are in the hospital recovering from the battle with Vegeta. Their friends and family come visit. When the television is turned on, they see a report about Nappa's space pod. Bulma presses a button on the spaceship's remote control which she thinks will summon it to them, but instead it self-destructs the pod. Before everyone gives up hope, Mr. Popo arrives, and tells them that he knows of another spaceship. It's the Namekian ship that Kami used to come to earth when he was a boy. Bulma reluctantly agrees to inspect it up in Yunzabit Heights with him. They realize the craft is voice-activated in the native Namekian language. Bulma converts the language to English in a few weeks and learns how to use the ship; Gohan and Krillin decide to accompany her on her journey to Planet Namek to search for the Namekian Dragon Balls.

While on their month-long journey to Namek, Gohan and Krillin practice image training. Meanwhile, Vegeta has landed on Planet Frieza No. 79, and after being healed from the injuries sustained on Earth, Kui tells him Frieza is currently on Namek attempting to retrieve the Dragon Balls. Vegeta is incensed and decides to chase Frieza to Namek to try to use the Dragon Balls for himself. After 30 days aboard Kami's old spaceship, Bulma, Krillin, and Gohan arrive on Namek. Bulma uses her radar and notices that four of the seven Dragon Balls are together already. Gohan senses an evil presence, but Bulma is more optimistic and believes that the Namekians probably are the ones who have them. They notice Vegeta's space pod fly overhead and land in the distance, along with a second space pod shortly thereafter. Vegeta is not too thrilled to find out that Frieza's henchmen Zarbon and Dodoria are accompanying Frieza.

Frieza continues to collect the Namekian Dragon Balls, while Vegeta goes to Frieza's ship and slaughters Kui. Meanwhile, Krillin and Gohan battle more of Frieza's minions, but not before they destroy the spaceship they used to reach the planet. Back on Earth, Yajirobe delivers Korin's new batch of Senzu beans to Goku at the hospital. After eating one of the beans, making a complete recovery from his injuries in the process, Goku immediately prepares to journey towards Planet Namek himself.

Goku arrives at the Capsule Corporation, where Bulma's father Dr. Briefs has prepared a spaceship for him to travel to Namek in six days, and which also contains sophisticated battle training equipment, the most important of which is an artificial gravity device which allows for increasing the gravity in the ship up to 100-times Earth gravity. Goku begins to train at 20-times Earth's gravity as he takes off for Namek. Meanwhile, the Namekians begin to fight back against Frieza's men, however Zarbon and Dodoria prove too powerful. Discovering that their people are being located via their scouters, the Namekians destroy the scouters. Dodoria, filled with rage, vows to make the locals regret the day they ever crossed Frieza.

Krillin and Gohan save a young Namekian boy named Dende from Dodoria's attack. The three fly away and manage to hide from the pursuing Dodoria; shortly after this he is attacked by Vegeta. The two fight briefly. Dodoria begs for his life, offering to tell Vegeta the true story of his home planet's destruction. Vegeta releases Dodoria from his grip, and Dodoria reveals that it was Frieza who destroyed Planet Vegeta out of fear for the Saiyan race's potential. Vegeta is furious at being lied to and being used by Frieza, and kills a fleeing Dodoria.

During his time on Earth, Vegeta has learned to sense energy without needing a scouter; he senses Gohan, Krillin, and Dende in the distance. Gohan and Krillin lower their ki enough to avoid being detected further, but Dende doesn't know how to. Before Vegeta can home in on Dende's power, though, a giant Namekian fish appears, giving Vegeta the thought that it was the source of ki he detected - he has not yet completely mastered all of the subtleties of sensing energy without a scouter. He later comes across a village of 20 or so Namekians, and demands to be given the Dragon Ball. When the elder Namekian of the village denies him the Dragon Ball, Vegeta slays all the Namekians and finds the Dragon Ball in one of the huts. He then proceeds to throw it in a nearby lake so that Frieza and his men cannot find it. Meanwhile, Dende takes Krillin with him to see the Grand Elder of Namek.

Krillin and Dende continue their trek toward the Grand Elder's home, while Vegeta begins battling Frieza's right-hand man Zarbon. Vegeta appears to be winning when Zarbon reveals a transformation that powers him up immensely, shifting the battle in his favor. Meanwhile, King Kai informs Goku via telepathy that Yamcha, Tien, Chiaotzu, and Piccolo have arrived at his planet in the Other World to receive training, much as Goku did when he died. After learning that Frieza is the tyrant terrorizing Planet Namek, King Kai warns Goku to stay away at all costs as he fears that no one is powerful enough to defeat the mighty Frieza.

Krillin and Dende arrive at the Grand Elder's location - a conspicuous tower out in the open - and are greeted by Nail, one of the strongest Namekian warriors and a bodyguard to the Elder. The Elder speaks with them about the dragon balls, his ailing health, and the need for someone to help his Namekian children. He telepathically reads Krillin's past and learns of the history of Kami, including how Piccolo is the evil portion of Kami which Kami shed in order to become the Guardian of Earth. The Elder also learns that Krillin's intentions are pure, and that he has dormant power, which the Elder awakens. Krillin's power increases dramatically and he asks the Elder if Gohan can also have his dormant power awakened, to which the Elder replies yes. Meanwhile, Zarbon reports to Frieza that he has defeated Vegeta, even though Vegeta's corpse was not found. Frieza condemns Zarbon for destroying Vegeta as he thinks Vegeta has a Dragon Ball hidden and needs Vegeta to reveal its location, so he sends Zarbon to retrieve Vegeta and bring him back to the ship to heal. Zarbon finds Vegeta still alive and places him in a rejuvenation chamber inside Frieza's spaceship.

Vegeta is fully rejuvenated and conceives a plan to steal the five Dragon Balls where Frieza has been keeping them. He severely damages the ship with a single blast and throws all five dragon balls out of the ship. Meanwhile, Krillin arrives back at the Capsule House with a Dragon Ball that the Grand Elder had given him. Both Vegeta and Zarbon have followed him; the two quickly begin battling over possession of the dragon ball. Meanwhile, Gohan heads toward the village Vegeta attacked, discovering that there is still a Dragon Ball there. Eventually, Zarbon is killed by Vegeta, and Gohan retrieves the Dragon Ball which Vegeta had hidden in the lake and begins heading back to Bulma and the camp.

Krillin surrenders his Dragon Ball to Vegeta after Zarbon is killed, knowing he doesn't stand a chance against Vegeta. While returning to his stashed Dragon Balls, Vegeta senses Gohan. Gohan also senses Vegeta, so he masks his ki and hides his newly found Dragon Ball. Vegeta eventually coaxes Gohan out but doesn't see the hidden Dragon Ball. Thinking he has all seven Dragon Balls, Vegeta lets Gohan live and takes off, after delivering a knee to his stomach. After returning to the nearby Namekian lake, Vegeta realizes Gohan had taken his hidden Dragon Ball and goes berserk. Meanwhile, Frieza is informed that the Ginyu Force, an elite fighting team, will be arriving shortly, bringing much needed state-of-the art scouters as well as extensive fighting strength. Goku continues his training at intense gravity levels within his spaceship.

Krillin takes Gohan to see the Grand Elder to have his inner power released. However, Vegeta senses them while they are flying toward the tower, and confronts them. Nail informs the trio of a powerful evil force approaching the planet. Vegeta knows it is the Ginyu Force, Frieza's five most elite henchmen. Reluctantly, Gohan and Krillin agree to ally with Vegeta to use the Dragon Balls to make Vegeta immortal so that he can defeat the Ginyu Force, and Frieza, more easily. Krillin, Gohan, and Vegeta rush to retrieve the Dragon Ball which Gohan had left with Bulma (who wonders why Vegeta stole the Dragon Ball) and meanwhile, the Ginyu Force lands on the planet and meets up with Frieza. Goku completes his training at 100-times Earth's gravity on the way to Namek and discovers his results are much more impressive than he anticipated.

Vegeta, Krillin, and Gohan race to the remaining five Dragon Balls that Vegeta had hidden, in an attempt to grant Vegeta the wish of eternal life in order to stand a chance against the Ginyu Force. The Ginyu Force beats them there, and with speed and a time freeze, swipe the two remaining Dragon Balls. Captain Ginyu takes the seven Dragon Balls to Frieza, and allows the other members to play Rock-Paper-Scissors to decide who gets to fight who. Recoome wins a fight with Vegeta and Guldo wins a fight with Krillin and Gohan. Krillin and Gohan fight Guldo first. After realizing that they are no easy match for him, Guldo paralyzes the two with his ESP-based "time freeze" technique. Vegeta, however, kills Guldo before any harm is done to the Earthlings, so Recoome decides he's next to fight. Meanwhile, Goku is ten minutes away from landing on Namek.

Vegeta begins battling Recoome, the big brute of the Ginyu Force. While the Saiyan prince manages to get in a few good blows, ultimately Recoome doesn't seem to be suffering any damage. Gohan and Krillin enter battle after Vegeta becomes too badly injured to continue fighting, but quickly find themselves similarly beaten and outclassed by the hulking Ginyu Force member. Elsewhere, Frieza attempts to use the Dragon Balls but nothing happens, prompting him to leave Ginyu to guard the balls while he himself goes to look for Namekians to tell him how to activate the Dragon Balls so he can use a wish to become immortal. Just when all seems lost in Vegeta, Krillin and Gohan's fight with Recoome, Goku's Capsule Corporation ship finally touches down on Planet Namek.

Goku enters the battle after giving Senzu beans to Krillin, Gohan, and Vegeta, and things quickly take a turn for the better. Recoome, charging up a deadly attack, is defeated by a single blow from Goku. Jeice and Burter leap into battle trying a variety of techniques - none of which have the least bit of effect on Goku. Burter is knocked out by a few swift attacks from Goku, as Jeice stares in awe at his latest opponent - having never faced someone so powerful. Vegeta comes to suspect that Goku has become the first "Super Saiyan" in over 1,000 years, but has difficulty accepting the idea that a "low-class" Saiyan like Goku could become a Super Saiyan more easily than an "elite-class" warrior like himself.

Goku tells Jeice to take the beaten Recoome and Burter and leave the planet forever. Jeice flees to Captain Ginyu and tells him what has happened. Ginyu has Frieza's men bury the Dragon Balls then sets out with Jeice towards Goku. Meanwhile, Vegeta kills Burter and then Recoome. Also, Krillin and Gohan realize that Frieza is heading towards the Grand Elder in order to obtain the password to summon the Namekian Dragon. Shortly after this, Ginyu and Jeice arrive to battle Goku. Goku tells Krillin and Gohan to leave. Vegeta tricks Goku and flies away, leaving Goku to fight alone. Goku and Captain Ginyu fight, and after a while Ginyu asks Goku to release his true power. Goku abides and begins to power up via the Kaio-ken.

Using the mighty Kaio-ken technique, Goku powers up to his maximum level, at a power level of 180,000 - which is far greater than Ginyu had expected it to be. The captain can do nothing but tremble in fear at his more powerful opponent. The Grand Elder unlocks Dende's hidden powers and sends him off to meet the Earthlings - the Elder has realized the Earth warriors do not know how to use the Namekian Dragon Balls - and Nail begins battling Frieza to stall for time while Dende travels. Frieza is shocked that Nail has a power level of 42,000, though he states that his power level in his current form is 530,000. Frieza decides to use only one-tenth of his power and only one arm to fight Nail. While Frieza is clearly the stronger of the two, he is surprised at Nail's ability to regenerate lost limbs, though this comes at a cost of some his own power. Gohan and Krillin rescue Bulma from a dinosaur attack, and take the dragon radar to find where Frieza stashed the Dragon Balls. As the episode ends, Ginyu makes the strange move of wounding himself, and firing a strange beam at Goku.

The beam Ginyu fires at Goku causes the two of them to switch bodies. Goku is now trapped in Ginyu's wounded body. Krillin and Gohan arrive at Frieza's ship and dig up the Dragon Balls. Ginyu, in Goku's body, and Jeice arrive back at the ship as well, but when Ginyu tries to power up his level is only 23,000, far less than the 180,000 level Goku had before the body switch. Realizing that great strength requires unity of mind and body, Goku (in Ginyu's body) arrives and shouts to Krillin and Gohan that they can easily defeat Ginyu. Vegeta boasts that he is close to becoming a Super Saiyan, before killing Jeice.

After killing Jeice, Vegeta sets his sights on Ginyu (still in Goku's body), who has now begun to master Goku's power and gained the upper hand. Vegeta effortlessly pummels Ginyu, and an attempt by Ginyu to switch into Vegeta's body is thwarted by Goku, who intercepts the beam, sending Ginyu and Goku back to their respective original bodies. Ginyu tries again to switch with Vegeta, but Vegeta simple teleports away each time, while continuing to injure Ginyu even further. Eventually, when Vegata flies in for a final attack, Ginyu manages to lock his beam onto Vegeta, but Goku, although wounded by Krillin and Gohan attacking his body when it was taken over by Ginyu, throws a Namekian frog into the path, resulting in Ginyu switching into the frog's body. Goku convinces Vegeta to let Ginyu go, and Vegeta does so, enjoying Ginyu's humiliation. With the Ginyu Force completely defeated, Vegeta places Goku in a rejuvenation chamber inside Frieza's spaceship, and gives battle armor to Krillin and Gohan. Krillin leaves to find the Grand Elder to learn the appropriate summoning ritual for the Namekian Dragon Balls. Krillin meets up with Dende on the way over, as Dende had been heading for the Earth team already. It is revealed that the summoning has to be done in the Namekian language, so Dende will act as the translator to summon the dragon and request the wishes. Meanwhile, Nail continues to fight Frieza to stall for the time needed for Dende to reach Krillin and Gohan. Nail eventually reveals this to Frieza after realizing he will never any longer last if he continues; the enraged tyrant immediately charges back towards his spaceship to try to regain possession of the Dragon Balls. Krillin, Gohan, and Dende take advantage of the fact that Vegeta is napping, and take the Dragon Balls away from the ship and successfully summon Porunga, the Eternal Dragon of Namek.

Krillin and Gohan discover that although the Namekian Dragon Balls can grant three wishes, they can resurrect only one person per wish, unlike the Earth's Dragon Balls. After consulting with their dead friends via King Kai's telepathic abilities, they use the first wish to revive Piccolo, which also brings Kami and the Earth's Dragon Balls back. They then use the second wish to teleport Piccolo to Namek so he can assist them in their fight with Frieza, but they are not specific enough in their wish; as a result, Piccolo is indeed transported to Namek, but ends up quite a distance away from his friends and the imminent battle with Frieza. At this point, Vegeta awakens and learns he's been duped, and speeds angrily to where Porunga is hovering over Namek. He is about to attack Krillin and Gohan until they tell him there is still one wish left; after some debate, they decide to let Vegeta use the wish to become immortal, as it seems to be the only possible way to defeat Frieza. Dende speaks the wish, but just before it can be granted, the Grand Elder dies and the Namekian Dragon Balls become useless; Porunga disintegrates and the balls turn into plain stone. Just as Vegeta thinks his luck couldn't get any worse, Frieza finally arrives, and is not happy at all that his own plans for immortality have been thwarted.

Enraged, Frieza begins unleashing his power. Piccolo arrives on Namek, following being resurrected and wished there. He begins rushing towards the battlefield, and along the way encounters an ailing Nail, on the brink of death. Piccolo reluctantly performs a Namekian fusion with Nail, which increases his power substantially, and begins rushing back to the battlefield. Meanwhile, Frieza attacks the Earthlings with energy blasts, before charging towards Vegeta, after he mocks Frieza. Both Frieza and Vegeta struggle against each other while powering up, though it turns out that they are both evenly matched, much to Frieza's shock. Following this battle, Frieza transforms to his second form, following some goading from Vegeta - and this increases the tyrant's power level to over a million. With his increased power, Frieza easily destroys most of the island they are standing on, before charging at Krillin in the air, impaling him on one of his horns.

After impaling Krillin, Frieza slings him into the water. A furious Gohan immediately starts attacking Frieza and overpowers him, much to Vegeta's surprise; Vegeta had never seen how strong emotion dramatically increases Gohan's power levels. As Gohan knocks Frieza out of the air and attacks him with energy blasts, Dende saves Krillin from drowning and heals him - this was one of his hidden powers that the Grand Elder had unlocked. Frieza charges towards Gohan to get his revenge, only to be blasted in the back by Vegeta - which, to the Saiyan prince's disappointment, fails. Frieza begins thrashing Gohan, but he is rescued by the healed Krillin, who cuts off Frieza's tail and distracts the tyrant with numerous attacks and escapades - buying just enough time for Dende to heal Gohan. It becomes clear that Frieza outclasses them all, so the three warriors begin blasting him with everything they've got. Once again, it has no effect, but as they are about to charge him in their moment of desperation, Piccolo finally arrives on the battlefield, announcing that he will be the one to win the battle.

Fortified by his combining with Nail, Piccolo begins battling Frieza - and surprisingly manages to hold his own. The two exchange blows pretty evenly for a good portion of the fight. Piccolo eventually realizes Frieza slightly holds the upper hand, so Piccolo removes his weighted training clothing and begins winning against the tyrant. Frieza finds himself backed into a corner, so he decides it is best to transform again to fight Piccolo. Becoming his grotesque, ugly third form, Frieza once again gains the upper hand and begins obliterating Piccolo with a rapid finger beam blast. Gohan rushes to rescue his mentor, and when Krillin tries to follow suit, Vegeta stops him - revealing to Krillin that he may have a strategy that will allow him to defeat the tyrant.

Vegeta intervenes, using his newfound power and speed to rescue Gohan from Frieza's blast. While Gohan is grateful, Vegeta tells him he only did it as a demonstration of his abilities now that he has declared himself a Super Saiyan. The Saiyan prince powers up, which leaves Gohan, Krillin, and Piccolo in awe - but no matter how much he powers up, and how many deadly attacks he dishes out, Frieza dodges and deflects everything, using only 1% of his full power. When Vegeta unleashes another powerful blast at Frieza in desperation, which could destroy Namek as well, Frieza powers up a little bit further and easily deflects the blast with his foot, which then destroys another planet. Vegeta quickly finds himself on the receiving end of the tyrant's attacks, and is quickly beaten after he realizes he has not actually achieved Super Saiyan status. Frieza pounds Vegeta while berating him for his "ungratefulness" towards Frieza for his "special treatment", back when he was in service of Frieza. Gohan attempts to help but Piccolo tells him would be unable to do anything anyway. However, just as all hope seems lost, Goku emerges from the rejuvenation chamber inside Frieza's spaceship - fully recovered and with his power once again increased beyond his expectations.

Vegeta is no match for Frieza and is quickly incapacitated. Piccolo, Gohan, and Krillin are forced to stand idly by while Frieza continues to thrash the Saiyan prince. However, Goku finally arrives at the battlefield and confronts the tyrant, delivering a powerful kick to Frieza's face when he tries to attack Goku. Frieza then tries killing Goku with a barrage of Death Beams, though Goku easily deflects them all. Frieza finds Goku's appearance very surprisingly familiar, disturbing him. When Vegeta tells Frieza that Goku is the "real" Super Saiyan, the tyrant fires his Death Beam through Vegeta's heart, giving him just seconds to live. Before dying, Vegeta informs Goku that Frieza was responsible for destroying Planet Vegeta and the entire Saiyan race; Vegeta begs Goku to defeat the tyrant and avenge their people, and even sheds true tears, which greatly moves Goku. Goku then buries Vegeta, before setting his sights on Frieza himself - vowing that he will defeat the merciless tyrant.

Goku jumps into battle against Frieza, and quickly proves to be more of a challenge than Frieza thought. The two exchange powerful blows and discover that their levels of strength are nearly equal. As Goku and Frieza attempt to one-up each other, Gohan, Krillin, and Piccolo back away to watch the battle from a safe distance, while Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu watch from King Kai's planet in the Other World. At one point during the battle, Goku is able to take advantage of Frieza's inability to sense another's ki, but Frieza counters this by trapping Goku in an exploding ball of energy that nearly kills him, with Goku managing to break free at the last possible moment. However, Piccolo states that even after all this, neither Goku nor Frieza are fighting at full power just yet.

Goku and Frieza's battle continues, with Frieza offering to refrain from using his arms in the fight. Frieza decides to use a little more of his power, and he fights Goku on the ground using only his feet. However, when Goku manages to land solid blows, Frieza becomes enraged and strikes back with his arm. Goku is in for a shock when he discovers the tyrant has only been using a small amount of his total power. Frieza then boosts his power up to 50%, and Goku is quickly overwhelmed, even with the use of the 10-times Kaio-ken. Meanwhile, Bulma meets the frog Ginyu, and Ginyu steals her body, leaving Bulma in the frog form. Ginyu heads for the battlefield; Bulma has managed to accompany him and both soon arrive at the battlefield where Goku and Frieza are continuing to duke it out - with Goku quickly being outclassed by the powered-up tyrant.

Ginyu tries to steal Piccolo's body, but is foiled by Gohan, who throws the frog body containing Bulma's spirit back in the way, putting Bulma back in her own body and once again trapping Ginyu in the frog body. Meanwhile, Goku continues to be thrashed by Frieza. However, when Frieza attempts to drown him, he sees a vision of Frieza destroying everyone he loves - and as a result, he breaks out and uses the 20-times Kaio-ken alongside a massive Kamehameha against Frieza, who retaliates with his own blast, which leads to their energy beams being cancelled out. However, even this is not enough to defeat the tyrant, as Frieza barely suffered any injuries from their energy clash, and the use of the 20-times Kaio-ken severely weakened Goku. After taking another beating from Frieza, Goku then has another vision, this time of Vegeta and other Saiyans of the past, reminding him that should he fail, Frieza will finally succeed in exterminating the entire Saiyan race. Motivated once again, Goku stands his ground as an enraged Frieza lunges at him.

When an enraged Frieza charges at Goku, Goku powers up once again, and fights Frieza evenly, until the enraged tyrant beats him down again. Despite his renewed confidence, Goku realizes he still has no chance of victory using direct physical attacks against Frieza, who is still using only 50% of his full power. At this point, Goku decides to use his ultimate technique - the Spirit Bomb. With so little ki from living things left to absorb on Namek, Goku absorbs ki from neighboring worlds as well. Creating a Spirit Bomb of this size takes extensive time and concentration, and after a while, an impatient Frieza resumes pummeling him. Piccolo decides to intervene, taking what energy Gohan and Krillin have left, deciding to attack Frieza to draw attention away from Goku and the Spirit Bomb he is creating. While gloating, Frieza notices the light from the Spirit Bomb reflected on the surface of a lake, shocking him. Though frightened by the size of the energy ball, Frieza decides to eliminate Goku before he can complete the attack. Before Frieza can finish off Goku with a beam to the forehead, Piccolo stops him with a full-force kick to the head. The now-distracted Frieza pursues Piccolo, whose attacks do nothing to faze him. The Namekian is quickly floored by Frieza, who decides to eliminate Piccolo, while Goku continues charging the Spirit Bomb.

Gohan and Krillin attack Frieza, saving Piccolo from death. Then, an enraged Frieza decides to destroy the entire planet and begins charging a Death Ball. Goku completes the Spirit Bomb and hurls it down upon Frieza, which also absorbs Frieza's charging Death Ball. The tyrant catches the Spirit Bomb, but cannot stop it from pushing him into the ocean, before exploding on him. The Z Fighters celebrate their apparent victory and start making plans to return to Earth. However, Frieza reappears and, though badly injured by the Spirit Bomb, he is still powerful enough to take them all out. Frieza fires his Death Beam straight at Goku, but Piccolo intervenes and takes the beam to the chest, which knocks him unconscious. Frieza next sets his sights on Krillin and causes Krillin's body to explode from the inside, killing him. Enraged by these sacrifices, Goku undergoes a radical transformation in which his eyes turn from black to green, his black hair turns blonde, and his body is surrounded by an aura of golden light, becoming a Super Saiyan. With his powers now greatly enhanced, Goku orders Gohan to take Piccolo to his spaceship, find Bulma, and leave Namek, while he stays behind to handle Frieza.

The transformed Goku renews his battle with Frieza and proves now to be far superior to Frieza's power. Frieza launches several counterattacks at Goku, but they have no effect at all. As the tyrant stares in awe at his more-powerful opponent, he realizes that his worst nightmare has come true - a Super Saiyan, which Frieza had long secretly feared, has finally been born. Desperate to defeat Goku, Frieza hurls an attack down upon Namek itself, in an effort to destroy the planet and everyone on it.

Frieza's attack on Namek detonates the planet's core, and he says that Namek will explode in five minutes. Super Saiyan Goku is confident that he can defeat Frieza within that time; however, Frieza then decides to power up to 100% of his full power. As their fight continues, Goku yells at Frieza to stop stalling while beating him, and Frieza begins powering up, first to 60% and then 70% of his maximum power. At 70% power, Frieza manages to blast Goku deep into the planet's surface, giving him pause. When Frieza finally begins powering up to 100%, King Kai urges Goku to strike at Frieza and take him down before he can reach full power, which Goku refuses to do. Much to King Kai's amazement, Goku allows Frieza to reach his full power rather than attacking while Frieza powers up, wishing to defeat the tyrant at his best and also avenge his friend Krillin.

With his full power, Frieza gains the upper hand, surpassing Goku in speed. When Frieza claims that he was just warming up, Goku reveals that he hasn't even begun to use his full power yet. As the epic battle between Goku and Frieza continues on the dying Namek, King Kai is informed by Kami on Earth that Mr. Popo has gathered all seven of Earth's Dragon Balls. Upon learning of the Earth's Dragon Balls' ability to resurrect multiple people despite being limited to one wish per use, King Kai asks that they be used to bring back to life all those on Namek who were killed by Frieza and his minions, thus also bringing back the Grand Elder, as well as the Namekian Dragon Balls, which still have one more wish to be used. King Kai plans to use this final wish to teleport everyone on Namek to Earth except for Frieza, leaving the tyrant to be the only one present when Namek explodes. Mr. Popo then summons Shenron to fulfill King Kai's first wish. Failing to defeat Goku, an enraged Frieza gathers all of his energy and charges at Goku, with Goku firing a Kamehameha at Frieza in response.

Super Saiyan Goku and Frieza engage in a beam struggle, but when Frieza continues to push forward, Goku decides to power up even further. Meanwhile, King Kai informs Kami of his plan to resurrect the Namekians and then to remove everyone from Namek except for Frieza. On Namek, Goku finally unleashes his full power against Frieza. Seeing that he is unable to overpower Goku directly, Frieza disengages from the beam clash and slams Goku from the side, driving him deep into the planet, which generates a volcanic eruption in the process. Believing that he had finally defeated Goku, Frieza gloats over Goku's apparent fall. After sensing the disappearance of Goku's energy signature, Gohan decides to fight Frieza to stall him until the planet's destruction. Meanwhile, Shenron succeeds in resurrecting everyone killed by Frieza and his henchmen on Namek (minus Krillin), and the Grand Elder and the Namekian Dragon Balls are also brought back. When Frieza spots Gohan, he decides to power down to 50% of his full power to give him more of a fair advantage. Although Frieza initially has the upper hand, pounding the Saiyan, Gohan's rage powers him up even further, and he is able to overwhelm Frieza. Frieza powers up to 100% full power once again, but at that moment, Goku emerges from the ocean. Goku resumes his fight with Frieza, while Gohan flees back to Goku's spaceship. King Kai immediately contacts the Grand Elder and quickly informs him of the situation. The Grand Elder then sends Dende to Porunga in order to use the final wish to teleport everyone on Namek to Earth, except for Frieza. However, Goku requests that he remain on Namek as well, so he can finish Frieza once and for all. Porunga fulfills this wish and teleports everyone to Earth except Goku and Frieza. The two combatants then prepare themselves for the final round before Namek's explosion.

As the battle continues, it seems neither warrior is going to win before Namek's explosion. Although Frieza is able to land some blows, it turns out that Goku is still stronger, and eventually gains the upper hand in the fight. Goku soon notices that Frieza's power is quickly decreasing, due to his 100% full power taking its toll on his body, and also due to the injuries that Frieza had suffered earlier. Satisfied that he has won, Goku decides to call it quits and begins to depart. Unable to accept this, Frieza launches a pair of heat-seeking ki disks at Goku. The Super Saiyan manages to avoid the disks, though Frieza tethers the disks' to Goku's heat signature, using them to chase him down. Eventually, however, Frieza is sliced in half by his own attack.

On Earth, the Grand Elder dies a second time, but before his death, he gives his power to Moori, one of his eldest sons. This makes him the new Grand Elder, thereby preserving the power of the Namekian Dragon Balls. Meanwhile, on Namek, the dying Frieza begs for mercy from Goku. Despite his better judgement, Goku cannot ignore Frieza's pleas for help and gives the tyrant some of his own ki before departing. However, Frieza lets his pride get the better of him and unleashes one final ki blast at Goku, attempting to kill him, but the angered Super Saiyan easily repels the blast right back at the tyrant and seemingly destroys Frieza in the process. Goku then attempts to escape in Frieza's spaceship, but is unable to make it take off, due to the damage from Vegeta's earlier attack when he was stealing the Namekian Dragon Balls from Frieza. Namek finally explodes and it appears that Goku perished along with the planet.

Following Namek's destruction, King Kai informs Bulma and the others on Earth of Goku's apparent death, and that even though the Namekian Dragon Balls can resurrect Goku and Krillin, they will be brought back to where Namek used to be and die again in the vacuum of space. However, Vegeta comes up with the idea of using the Dragon Balls to first bring Goku and Krillin's souls to the Earth's check-in station in the Other World, from where they can be resurrected on Earth. 130 days after their use on Namek, the Namekian Dragon Balls become re-active, and the first two wishes are used to successfully revive Krillin; it is revealed that Goku is actually still alive and that he will return to Earth on his own later. Yamcha is then brought back to life with the third wish. Another 130 days later, the Namekian Dragon Balls are used to revive both Tien and Chiaotzu, and are then used to teleport all of the native Namekians to a new planet. The Z Fighters then return to their peaceful lives, waiting patiently for Goku to return.

A year has passed and still Goku has not returned to Earth. However, it is revealed that Frieza managed to survive his battle with the Super Saiyan, has been rebuilt into a cyborg by his father King Cold, and is heading towards Earth, intending to exact revenge on Goku. The rest of the Z Fighters gather to defend the Earth from Frieza, despite knowing the odds are against them, especially since King Cold is even more powerful than Frieza. However, as soon as Frieza, King Cold, and their army of soldiers arrive on Earth, they are met by a mysterious teenager wielding a sword, who says that he has come to kill them.

The mysterious teenager easily takes out Frieza's soldiers, then surprises Frieza by transforming into a Super Saiyan, also traumatizing him in the process. The evil tyrant attempts to destroy this second Super Saiyan, but is unsuccessful. The teenager urges Frieza to use his full power, but Frieza is hesitant to do so (since he planned to save his full power for fighting Goku), though he eventually decides to unleash a Supernova, his most powerful attack on him. The teenager is able to hold back Frieza's attack, and he manages to avoid Frieza's detonation of the energy ball as well. Soon afterward, he slices Frieza into pieces with his sword, before blasting him away. King Cold tries to defeat the Super Saiyan himself, but the teenager easily kills him and destroys his ship. After reverting to his normal state, the teenager spots the Z Fighters and says that Goku will be arriving nearby soon. Despite their skepticism, the Z Fighters agree to join him in awaiting Goku's arrival.

After three hours of waiting, a space pod crash lands on Earth and Goku emerges from it. There is no time for celebration, however, as the mysterious teenager pulls Goku aside to talk with him in private. After testing Goku's Super Saiyan powers, the teenager reveals that his name is Trunks and that he comes from an apocalyptic future 20 years from the present, as well as that he is the future son of Bulma and Vegeta. He further informs Goku that in three years from now, a pair of deadly androids, built by Doctor Gero of the former Red Ribbon Army, will begin a rampage on Earth and kill all of the Z Fighters, except for Goku, who will have died from a heart virus six months before their assault. Trunks then supplies Goku with a heart antidote made in his future timeline, instructing him to take it when the virus attacks him. Piccolo hears the whole conversation using his special hearing. Goku promises that he and the other Z Fighters will train hard for the next three years to prepare for the androids' assault, and Trunks then returns to the future in his time machine.

At Vegeta's request, Goku explains to the others that he survived Namek's destruction by escaping in one of the Ginyu Force's space pods just seconds before Namek exploded. He further explains that he eventually landed on a planet called Yardrat and was nursed back to health by the friendly inhabitants of the planet. He also reveals that he learned from them a special teleportation technique called Instant Transmission. The Z Fighters then go their separate ways to each begin preparing themselves for the androids' assault. After three years of intense training, they all head off to meet on the island on which Trunks had indicated that the androids would begin their attack.

The Z Fighters gather at the island in anticipation of the androids' attack. However, as the time approaches, the androids are nowhere to be seen. Yajirobe arrives to deliver Korin's new batch of Senzu beans to the others, but as soon as he departs, the androids shoot down his ship and immediately descend into the nearby city before the Z Fighters can get a glimpse of them. Gohan goes to rescue Yajirobe, while the rest of the Z Fighters fly down to the city as well to search out their enemies. After a period of searching, Yamcha becomes the first victim of the androids, after having his energy absorbed by Android #20, and then being impaled. The others arrive just in time to save him, and Goku eventually persuades the androids to move to a new location to fight after a large portion of the city is destroyed.

As Goku, Piccolo, and Tien take the androids to a new location to battle, Krillin revives Yamcha with a Senzu bean. However, once Yamcha reveals the androids' ability to absorb energy, he, Krillin, and Gohan head off to warn the others. Meanwhile, it is revealed to Goku that the androids are a result of years of research conducted by Dr. Gero, in which miniature spy robots were used to analyze Goku's fighting techniques and developments in strength, all in an attempt to exact revenge on Goku for destroying the Red Ribbon Army. However, Gero did not analyze Goku during his time on Namek, and thus the androids are unaware of his ability to transform into a Super Saiyan, which Goku gladly demonstrates in front of them. A battle then ensues between Goku and Android #19, and though Goku clearly has the upper hand, he soon appears to be losing energy. Eventually, Goku is seen clutching the left side of his chest, which Gohan immediately recognizes as a symptom of the heart virus that Trunks had warned Goku of. However, the virus is attacking Goku's heart much later than Trunks had predicted. As Goku struggles to stay conscious, #19 prepares to finish the battle by absorbing Goku's remaining energy. Piccolo tries to intervene, however, Android #20 blasts Piccolo with his eye beams, which sends him crashing to the ground.

Before Android #19 can finish draining Goku's energy, Vegeta finally arrives, saving Goku by kicking the android in the face. Yamcha then escorts Goku back home in order to administer the heart antidote to him. Vegeta then faces off with the androids, and much to everyone's surprise, transforms into a Super Saiyan. It is revealed that, whereas Goku's first transformation was triggered by his rage over Frieza's murder of Krillin, Vegeta's was triggered by his rage at simply being unable to surpass Goku. The battle then begins, and it's clear that Vegeta has the edge over #19. Even the android's energy absorption attack proves futile, as Vegeta tears off the android's hands, making it impossible for it to absorb anymore energy from its opponents. As the android runs away in fear, Vegeta launches his Big Bang Attack and finishes the battle, leaving nothing but the android's head intact. Android #20 then escapes into the nearby cliffs, planning to use the terrain to launch a surprise attack on the Z Fighters.

The Z Fighters split up to search the area for Android #20. Frustrated at his enemy's deceptiveness, Vegeta fires a large ki blast at the cliffs, planning to level the area. Seeing this opportunity, #20 emerges from his hiding place, only to absorb Vegeta's blast and run away before Vegeta can catch up. The android then attacks Piccolo from behind and begins to drain his energy, although this is thwarted by Gohan, who senses Piccolo's fading ki and attacks Android #20. After receiving a Senzu bean, Piccolo then faces off against his attacker, and proves to be more than a match for the android. Meanwhile, Trunks finally returns from the future, and is disturbed to find that the remains of Android #19 are different from the androids that he faced in his own timeline. He then arrives at the current battlefield, and also seems not to recognize #20. Realising that he has no chance of victory, #20 decides to retreat to his laboratory, but not before launching a huge blast that engulfs most of the area - including Bulma's ship, which plummets towards the ground.

As the dust settles, Android #20 is nowhere to be seen, and it is assumed that he plans to return to the laboratory to awaken Androids #17 and #18 - the androids causing havoc in Trunk's timeline. Meanwhile, Trunks rescues his mother and young self, and berates Vegeta for failing to protect his family. Bulma then reveals that #20 may actually be the androids' creator, Dr. Gero, who has seemingly converted himself into one as well. The group then plan to find the lab and destroy the androids before Gero can activate them. Vegeta also sets off to find the lab, but with the intentions of fighting the androids as a demonstration of his power. Trunks leaves to stop his father, while Piccolo finally unveils the truth of Trunks' origin to the rest of the group. He knew this because he overheard the conversation between Trunks and Goku. Meanwhile, Piccolo, Krillin and Tien split up and search the mountains where Gero's lab is rumoured to be located, while Gohan takes Bulma, baby Trunks, and Yajirobe home. Meanwhile, Krillin is attacked by the doctor, but is spared when Gero senses Piccolo nearby and escapes.

Dr. Gero finally makes it to his laboratory, with Krillin in hot pursuit. Tien, Piccolo, Vegeta, and Trunks soon locate him and break into the lab, although by this point Gero has already awakened Androids #17 and #18. Although initially appearing loyal, the duo demonstrate their independence when #17 destroys Gero's remote, ensuring that he cannot deactivate them should they disobey him, and #18 attempts to activate Android #16 - a fully mechanical model deemed a failure by Gero. #17 then kills Gero, by severing and then crushing his head. In an act of desperation, Trunks launches a large ki blast at the androids, hoping to destroy #16 before he is activated. Although the entire lab is decimated, both androids and #16's pod remain intact, and he is awakened anyway. The trio then decide to carry out their initial orders, and set out to kill Goku. However, their plans are disrupted when Vegeta intervenes, challenging the three androids to a battle. After #16 and #17 refuses to fight, #18 steps up to face Vegeta.

Android #18 fights with Super Saiyan Vegeta and wins easily. Super Saiyan Trunks tries to help his father, but is also easily defeated and gets his sword broken in the process. Piccolo and Tien then get beaten down effortlessly by Android #17, while Krillin stays behind and watches the horror, and Android #16 simply observes the nearby birds. After the fight, the androids leave, but before they do #18 kisses Krillin on the cheek.

Krillin feeds the remaining Senzu beans to each of his fallen comrades. Vegeta flies off in anger, having been beaten, while Trunks explains to the others how the androids of the future are different from the ones they just fought. The androids of the present are apparently more powerful, but they seem to be less cruel. There also was not an Android #16 in Trunks' time period. Piccolo then flies off to try to convince Kami to merge with him once again, believing that it is the only way to stop the androids. However, Kami believes that the androids are not entirely evil and that the only reason they fought against the Z Fighters was because the Z Fighters attacked first. Kami then decides to wait and see what happens as Piccolo sits down waiting until Kami agrees to merge with him.

Bulma receives a phone call about one of her company's products from Capsule Corporation. She is sent a photograph of what appears to be Trunks' time machine that he travelled in. Trunks investigates this with the others only to discover that it is the exact time machine that he came in but three years later in his world. He recognizes it because of the word 'Hope' that Bulma wrote on the time machine. Kami realizes that the evil he felt four years ago wasn't the androids but it was the monster that travelled back in the time machine.

Trunks, Gohan, and Bulma are investigating the other time machine when Gohan notices a strange shell that has been cast off by an unknown creature. On the way back to her house, Bulma watches a news broadcast about thousands of people in nearby Gingertown who have inexplicably disappeared, as if they simply melted away in their clothes. Kami also watches in horror as the people are killed, and finally decides to merge with Piccolo. After the merging, Piccolo states that he is neither Piccolo nor Kami anymore, but a Namekian "who has long since forgotten his name." He departs from the lookout and arrives at an empty, ghostly-quiet Gingertown, where the monster steps out of the shadows to confront him.

While staring down Piccolo, the monster pierces the man he'd been dragging and appears to absorb him, leaving only his clothing. The others are confused, saying that the android is emanating multiple ki readings characteristic of Frieza, King Cold, Vegeta, and Goku. Krillin and Trunks head toward Gingertown, where Piccolo and the monster begin fighting. Piccolo has the advantage, but is surprised when the monster uses Piccolo's own Makankosappo technique on him. The two exchange blows, and then the monster states that Piccolo only has the upper hand because he [the monster] has not yet reached his "perfect form." He then surprises everyone by powering up a Kamehameha and launching it point-blank. Piccolo's dodge leaves him open to the monster's follow-up attack, which he uses to trap Piccolo in a hold and pierce his arm. Piccolo manages to escape, but his left arm has been completely incapacitated. Sensing he has won, the monster states that his name is Cell and reveals that he is an android.

Sensing that he has defeated Piccolo, Cell explains that he was created from the cells of the greatest warriors--including Goku's, Piccolo's, Vegeta's, King Cold's, and Frieza's--as a project started by Dr. Gero and continued for 24 years by his computer. Cell furthermore reveals that by absorbing Androids #17 and #18, he will achieve his "Perfect Form," making him "invincible," since Dr. Gero's computer predicted that in his Perfect Form, Cell would be the most powerful being in the known universe. With the androids destroyed in his own timeline, he was forced to travel to the present one in Trunks' time machine, after killing him. Having learned Cell's identity and intentions, Piccolo regenerates his arm and prepares to fight. At this point, Trunks and Krillin arrive, and Cell realizes he has no chance of winning. He surprises everyone by using Tien's Solar Flare technique to blind them, and then flees. Vegeta and Tien arrive, and Piccolo explains everything he's learned. Meanwhile, Cell heads toward Nickytown to absorb more people, until his power exceeds that of the androids'.

After Piccolo debriefs everyone on Cell's objective, Vegeta states that he intends to develop a power that surpasses even that of a Super Saiyan. Trunks and Krillin go to Dr. Gero's laboratory, where they discover a set of blueprints for Android #17. In hopes that the prints will allow Bulma and Dr. Briefs to uncover a weakness in the androids, they take the prints before destroying the developing Cell and the rest of the laboratory. Trunks goes to find Vegeta while Krillin delivers the prints to Bulma. Several days go by, during which Piccolo and the others are unable to locate Cell. However, back at the Kame House, Chi-Chi and Master Roshi start hearing thunderous booms on the island and rush to the window to find a fully recovered Goku launching Kamehameha blasts into the horizon. The three share a joyous moment before Goku turns serious and states that he'd fare no better against the androids than Vegeta did. Also like Vegeta, he states his goal of surpassing the level of Super Saiyan.

Goku uses his Instant Transmission ability to take Gohan, Vegeta, and Trunks with him to the Hyperbolic Time Chamber inside Kami's Lookout. The chamber only has a capacity of two so Goku allows Vegeta and Trunks to go in first. Goku explains a years worth of training in the chamber is actually only one day in the outside world. When Trunks and Vegeta step inside the chamber, all they see is a vast amount of nothingness. While this is going on, the androids arrive at the Kame House and ask for Goku's whereabouts. Piccolo refuses to tell them, which results in a fight between Piccolo and Android #17. Piccolo overpowers #17 and tries to finish him off, but #17 manages to dodge the attack. Back at Kami's Lookout, Vegeta and Trunks are due to be coming out of the time chamber any second now, which will reveal if it is possible to go beyond the level of a Super Saiyan.

Bulma is hard at work trying to figure out Dr. Gero's prints. Meanwhile, Piccolo and Android #17 are fighting each other. After #17 gets serious, it turns out that he and Piccolo are evenly matched. Cell senses the two fighting and starts making his way towards them, stating that his power level is now higher than theirs. Krillin, and the others on a nearby island, receive a call from Bulma saying that she has completed the switch to shut down the androids and prepares to deliver it to the others. #17 states that since his stamina and power level will never drop, he will be the victor of the battle. However, Cell arrives at the scene of the battle, leaving Piccolo shocked. Meanwhile, Goku and Gohan are still waiting for Vegeta and Trunks to come out of the Hyperbolic Time Chamber.

At Chi-Chi's suggestion, Krillin leaves the Kame House to intercept Bulma so he can obtain her shut-down device before Cell absorbs Androids #17 and #18. Unwilling to wait helplessly, Tien leaves the Kame House, as well, to help Piccolo on the battlefield. Meanwhile, #17 refuses to heed Piccolo's warnings about Cell, and is quickly defeated. Piccolo tries to ward off Cell, but Cell has become too powerful for him to handle. Cell quickly breaks Piccolo's neck, before blasting him through the chest at point-blank range, and then Cell tosses Piccolo's body into the sea. Then, Cell turns his attention to Android #17, intending to absorb him.

Android #16 decides to enter the fight in order to prevent Cell from reaching his Perfect Form, because Cell's goal is not to kill Goku, but to destroy life. The two fight at an even level, with #16 landing a massive blast on Cell. However, Cell survives and uses the opportunity to absorb Android #17, to #16's horror. Cell transforms into his Semi-Perfect Form and gains incredible power, after which #16's attacks prove utterly ineffective. Just when all hope is lost, Tien appears and uses his Tri-Beam technique to hold off Cell so Android #16 and #18 can escape.

To Goku and Gohan's great concern, Tien repeatedly fires his Tri-Beam, drastically draining his ki in order to hold Cell down while Androids #16 and #18 escape. Tien eventually runs out of ki and collapses, at the mercy of a furious Cell. Unwillingly to wait idly at Kami's Lookout anymore, Goku uses his Instant Transmission to come to Tien's aid. While confronting Cell, Goku also notices that Piccolo is still alive, and teleports back to the Lookout with the two fallen warriors. Shortly afterward, Trunks and Vegeta emerge from the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, stating that they have successfully surpassed the level of Super Saiyan. They leave to confront Cell, while Goku and Gohan prepare to enter the time chamber for their own training. Meanwhile, Cell begins destroying islands in a bid to make #18 show herself.

Cell continues to destroy islands until only one remains, the one on which Androids #16 and #18 are hiding. Before he can launch his attack, Vegeta and Trunks arrive as Super Saiyans. After some taunting, Vegeta initiates a transformation that produces a form beyond that of Super Saiyan - evidenced by increased muscle size and an intense golden aura. As an Ascended Super Saiyan, Vegeta makes easy work of Cell while Trunks watches from the sidelines. Meanwhile, Goku and Gohan begin their training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, where Goku states that he will not only make Gohan a Super Saiyan, but that he will make Gohan stronger than even himself.

Goku continues to train Gohan, who is still trying to achieve the Super Saiyan form. Meanwhile, Vegeta effortlessly pushes Cell around and inflicts significant damage. When Cell uses Vegeta's own Galick Gun to no effect, he realizes that he will not be able to absorb Android #18. Enraged, Cell goes on about how if he was able to absorb #18 then he would become his perfect form and be able to defeat Vegeta easily. He attempts to persuade Vegeta into letting him absorb #18 by appealing to the Saiyan's passion for fighting strong opponents. Not far away, Krillin contemplates whether or not to use the emergency shutdown controller, and he has trouble deciding due to his embarrassing moment with Android #18 during their first encounter (when Android #18 kissed Krillin).

Krillin decides not to destroy #18, and stomps on the controller, which shocks Android #18. Krillin tells her that now is their chance to get off the island, and that she and Android #16 must leave now. Cell successfully persuades Vegeta to let him find and absorb Android #18, but Trunks is determined to prevent this and delivers his own beating to Cell. During a break in the action, Cell spots Krillin, #16, and #18, who are distracted by their own awkward meeting. Vegeta attempts to keep Trunks from interfering, forcing Trunks to attack his own father in order to prevent him from allowing Cell to reach his perfect form. While this is going on, Cell is savoring the moment and leisurely going about picking off Android #16 and Krillin. Despite their best efforts and a sound beating from Trunks, Cell is ultimately able to blind everyone via the Solar Flare, absorb #18, and achieve his Perfect Form.

Gohan asks Goku to get serious in his training, so Goku transforms into a Super Saiyan and fires a Kamehameha on Gohan. Gohan thinks of all the times he has let his friends down and gets angry, resulting in him finally turning into a Super Saiyan for the first time. Back at the battlefield, Vegeta disregards Cell's Perfect Form as nothing special and he is just the same as before. Meanwhile, Krillin is angry at Cell for absorbing Android #18, so he charges towards Cell and attempts to attack him by using his Kienzan technique, but the attack has no effect whatsoever. Cell then lightly kicks Krillin to one side, leaving him almost dead, but Trunks rushes to his aid and feeds him a Senzu bean, saving him from near death. Vegeta starts his fight with Cell and after a short while he soon realizes Cell's power far exceeds his own. In the background, Krillin and Trunks are talking about how Trunks has hidden his own true power, one even greater than Vegeta's but kept secret from him due to Vegeta's towering pride. Trunks plans to fight Cell when Vegeta is unconscious in order to hide his powers from Vegeta to prevent his father from losing his pride.

Desperate to kill Cell, Vegeta resorts to using his ultimate attack, the Final Flash. Vegeta calculates his attack and avoids destroying the entire Earth and also manages to take off Cell's right arm, but with Piccolo's genes Cell easily regenerates his arm. Cell knocks Vegeta unconscious and Trunks takes this chance to unleash his hidden powers onto Cell. Trunks momentarily lets Cell push him around a little in order to create a chance for Krillin to take the unconscious Vegeta to a safe location. Now that Vegeta is out of commission, Trunks and Cell can begin their real fight.

Trunks powers up to Ultra Super Saiyan, which appears to make him significantly stronger than Vegeta. Trunks and Cell seem to be evenly matched at first, but after a while Trunks' attack cease to hit Cell. Trunks decides to power up even more but he is still unable to connect his attacks to hit Cell. In the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, Goku manages to power up to the same bulked-up transformation as Trunks, but decides not to use that form, because in order to achieve that form, even though great power is gained, Goku concludes the decrease in speed is too much - and having power but not being able to hit your opponent is useless, so he decides to focus on mastering his normal Super Saiyan form instead. This turns out to be the same reason why Trunks cannot defeat Cell, and Trunks power level begins to drop due to the strain of maintaining his transformation. Cell learns that Goku is training to defeat him, so in order to waste time he decides to hold his own World Martial Arts Tournament where anyone can enter to fight him.

When Krillin and Vegeta arrive, Trunks informs everyone of the tournament to be held by Cell and Android #16 asks to be taken back to Capsule Corporation where he can be repaired. Bulma also notifies everyone at Kami's Lookout to go there to meet up. After Cell finishes arranging his tournament, he then heads off to a news station to broadcast his message via television announcing details about his tournament, the "Cell Games," and states if that all the warriors lose to him, he will kill every single last human being. Meanwhile, Goku and Gohan are still training.

The people of Earth are in a panic after Cell's announcement of the Cell Games. Meanwhile, Goku and Gohan finish their training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, and emerged as Full Power Super Saiyans. Goku immediately requests that Mr. Popo prepare a meal and Trunks explains the latest Cell developments. Goku then teleports to the site of the Cell Games and confronts Cell. After returning to the Lookout, Goku announces he and Gohan will not be entering the time chamber again. Instead, for the remaining nine days until the Cell Games, they will train in the real world. Goku and Gohan then fly down to the Kame House to greet Chi-Chi and their remaining friends.

As Piccolo completes his training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, and Vegeta takes his place, Goku and Gohan are spending their days relaxing at home. Meanwhile, the Self-Defense Army attempt to launch an offensive strike against Cell, but they are completely wiped out. Hearing about this over the radio, Goku asks Piccolo if it is possible to separate with Kami, so he can use the Dragon Balls to revive all the people Cell killed. Since Piccolo can't separate, Goku theorises that he can convince another Namekian to stay on Earth and create a new set of Dragon Balls, and goes to King Kai's planet so he can find the Namekians.

After getting help from King Kai in locating the new planet where the Namekians are living on, Goku travels there via Instant Transmission and explains the situation. The Grand Elder Moori offers Dende to be the new Kami, and Goku takes him back to Earth. Dende revives the Dragon Balls, revealing that this time they can grant two wishes. During the remaining days leading up to the Cell Games, Goku searches for the newly awakened Dragon Balls, Vegeta and the others finish their training, and the 24th World Martial Arts Tournament champion Mr. Satan announces to the world that he will defeat Cell. On the day of the Cell Games, it is revealed that if the new Dragon Balls are used to revive a mass of people, people who died before won't be revived. Despite the others' concern, Goku remains positive and they all head towards the Cell Games.

As Mr. Satan hypes himself in front of the media, Vegeta, Android #16, Goku, Gohan, Piccolo, Trunks, Krillin, Tien, and Yamcha arrive at the stage. Mr. Satan insists he goes before him first, though when his students Caroni and Piroshki arrive, he allows them to go first, but they are defeated without Cell needing to move. Mr. Satan tries to intimidate Cell by breaking some tiles and then goes on the attack, but Cell knocks him out of the ring with a single blow, not even bothering to kill him. Cell wishes to take on a proper opponent, and Goku steps into the ring.

Full Power Super Saiyan Goku and Cell begin to fight, and despite putting on an impressive performance, Gohan and Vegeta both realize that neither of them is using their full power yet. Both fighters then raise their power level to their maximum. After a brief battle, Cell begins to attack using techniques 'inherited' from other characters--first Tien's Multi-Form technique, then Piccolo's Makankosappo, and finally Frieza's heat-seeking Kienzan attack. When Goku overcomes each of these techniques, Cell prepares a full-power Kamehameha capable of destroying the Earth. Goku diverts the attack away from the planet by taking to the sky, and then uses the Instant Transmission to escape back to the ring. However, when Cell utilizes his full speed, he becomes too fast for Goku to keep up with him.

The battle between Goku and Cell continues, and Goku begins fighting at his max, with the two fighters reaching a pace that is barely visible to most of the onlookers. The power levels of both fighters are equal, and they land powerful blows on each other. Cell then decides to destroy the tournament ring, ensuring that their battle cannot be ended by a ring out and can continue until one of them either dies or surrenders. The battle becomes even more intense, culminating with Goku flying high into the sky building up a powerful Kamehameha. Cell and everyone else states that Goku is bluffing, since from his position in the sky, such an attack would easily destroy the Earth. Goku then unexpectedly uses his Instant Transmission to teleport himself right in front of Cell and executes the blast at point-blank range. While the rest of the world celebrates what they believe to be Cell's ultimate defeat, Goku and company watch as Cell's remaining lower half rises and regenerates his missing parts. While the ki of both fighters has depleted considerably, the battle continues on. Although Goku told Cell that Cell had depleted much of his power to regenerate himself, Goku has used up even more of his power, and the battles begins to turn in favor of Cell. Goku then launches a barrage of ki blasts at Cell in a desperate attempt to finish him.

Despite everyone's hopes, Goku's barrage of ki blasts fails to destroy Cell when the android activates his energy barrier at the last second. Furthermore, it is clear to the rest of the Z Fighters that Goku has spent the last of his own energy. With all eyes and ears glued to this moment of truth for Goku's mysterious plan, the battle-worn Super Saiyan surprises everyone by surrendering. Adding further shock, he announces that Gohan will be the next and last contestant to fight Cell. Piccolo and Krillin protest this decision, but Gohan agrees and takes Cell on. Gohan impresses everyone with his power - which proves indeed to be on par with Goku's - but nevertheless finds himself on the losing side of the fight against Cell.

Full Power Super Saiyan Gohan shows no willingness to fight, and tries to convince Cell to end the Cell Games by explaining that if his hidden powers are brought to the surface, he will lose control and kill Cell. Counter to Gohan's intentions, this actually intrigues Cell, who decides to deliberately enrage Gohan by inflicting enough pain to force him to unleash his true strength. After watching Gohan take Cell's punishment, Android #16 intervenes. Taking advantage of the fact that he emits no detectable ki, #16 grabs Cell from behind and declares that he is going to trigger his self-destruct bomb.

To Android #16's surprise, Krillin reveals that Bulma had removed his self-destruct bomb during his repairs. With the risk of setting off the bomb gone, Cell blasts through #16--causing his body to shatter and leaving only his head intact. Cell realizing that Gohan cannot unleash his hidden powers in response to physical pain, he devises a plan to kill Gohan's friends by spawning seven offspring--the 'Cell Juniors'. Only Vegeta, Trunks, and Piccolo are able to hold their own against the Cell Juniors, while Krillin, Yamcha, Tien, and the fatigued Goku are unable to fight back. Gohan wants to unleash his power, but cannot figure out how. Meanwhile, #16's head has Mr. Satan carry him to Gohan. He sympathizes with Gohan's desire not to kill, but encourages him that it is okay to unleash his anger to save those that he loves. Cell crushes #16's head--an action that finally pushes Gohan over the edge, and triggers his transformation into a Super Saiyan 2.

After witnessing the death of Android #16 at the hands of Cell, Gohan's anger is ignited and causes him ascend to the level of Super Saiyan 2. Cell is excited that the fight will be more interesting, but Gohan is unamused and snatches the stolen Senzu beans from Cell. Gohan then proceeds to take on all of the Cell Juniors, proving himself impervious to their attacks and effortlessly destroying them. He then throws the Senzu beans to Trunks, who distributes them to his injured comrades. Gohan now focuses his attention on Cell, and from the onset of the battle, it is clear that Gohan holds the advantage.

Cell finally unleashes his full power against Gohan, but even at maximum strength his attacks have no effect on the Super Saiyan 2. Gohan cripples Cell with 2 powerful punches, leaving him in shock. Cell resorts to using two heat-seeking Kienzans, but Gohan is able to catch and destroy them. Then, Cell uses his Makankosappo, which Gohan easily deflects, and Cell's Death Beams are absorbed by Gohan. After being easily bested in battle, Cell attempts to destroy Gohan and the Earth with a giant, full-power Kamehameha, but Gohan produces an even stronger wave and reflects Cell's attack with ease. Gohan's attack absorbs Cell's, and the blast eventually overcomes Cell when he fails to deflect it. As the rest of the fighters predict an easy victory, Goku recalls that even in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, Gohan displayed strength far beyond that of a normal Super Saiyan, recalling how Gohan had briefly transformed into a Super Saiyan 2 during their training (before passing out). Gohan's attack has also taken off Cell's legs, and parts of his arm and head. Goku then tells Gohan to deliver the finishing blow to Cell, but Gohan insists that Cell must suffer first. Cell regenerated his missing limbs, then utilizes his bulked-up form, but the increase in muscle mass lowers his speed greatly, and as a result none of his attacks connect with Gohan. Gohan counters with a powerful blow to Cell's head, and to his stomach, causing Cell to regurgitate Android #18 and revert to his Semi-Perfect Form. As the fighters assume that this means victory for Gohan, Cell's body begins to expand to a gigantic size.

Desperate to destroy Earth, Cell begins to self-destruct. With mere seconds left, Goku says goodbye to everyone and his son and teleports himself and Cell to King Kai's planet, the only safe place he could think of. Upon arrival, Cell finally explodes, destroying the planet and killing everyone there. As Gohan and the rest of the Z Fighters are left on Earth to grieve, Goku and King Kai realize that Cell has not accompanied them to the Other World, and therefore must have survived the explosion. Using Goku's Instant Transmission technique, Cell returns to Earth, where he kills Trunks with his Full Power Death Beam. Cell then reveals that not only did his nucleus survive the explosion, but he was able to regenerate into his Perfect Form - and thanks to his Saiyan genetics, he is far stronger than ever before (Cell's Super Perfect Form). Enraged by the death of his son, Vegeta unleashes a furious ki blast barrage at Cell, but is easily defeated, and is only saved from certain death when Gohan intercepts Cell's blast and takes the full force of the attack. With Gohan injured and his left arm broken, and nobody left to challenge Cell, Cell prepares one final Kamehameha to destroy Gohan and the Earth once and for all.

Super Perfect Cell continues charging his Kamehameha, and reveals that not only has he gathered enough energy to destroy the Earth, but he also now has enough power to destroy the entire solar system with this blast. Cell also reveals that he will be able to use Instant Transmission to teleport away to safety before the blast detonates, allowing him to escape the Earth's destruction unscathed. Meanwhile, Vegeta apologizes to Gohan for his recklessness. As Gohan and the others watch on hopelessly, Goku contacts his son from the Other World via King Kai's telepathy and tells him that even in his injured state he has enough power to defeat Cell. Reinvigorated, Gohan prepares a final, one-handed Kamehameha to repel Cell's blast. As the two warriors struggle to overpower each other, Piccolo, Tien, Yamcha, and Krillin bombard Cell with ki blasts in a knowingly futile attempt to help, but are easily repelled. As Goku coaxes Gohan to release his full power against Cell, Vegeta launches one final Big Bang Attack, which temporarily distracts Cell. Seeing the opportunity, Gohan finally releases his full strength and overpowers Cell's blast, obliterating Cell and saving the Earth from destruction. Gohan has won and the Cell Games are finally over.

Following Cell's defeat, Gohan and the others return to Kami's Lookout. Mr. Satan, however, takes credit for defeating Cell, and the public celebrates Mr. Satan's "victory." At the Lookout, Dende heals Gohan and then summons Shenron. The first wish is used to successfully revive everyone killed by Cell, including Trunks. However, Goku cannot be revived, as Shenron has already brought him back to life once before. Dende suggests they can use the Namekian Dragon Balls, but at that moment, Goku contacts them from Other World through King Kai once more. Goku states his wish to remain dead, believing that the Earth will be safer without him attracting anymore villains there. With that, Goku bids his son and friends a final fond farewell. Krillin then asks Shenron to use the second wish to remove the bombs from inside Androids #17 and #18. The Z Fighters go their separate ways, and Gohan informs a heartbroken Chi-Chi of Goku's fate. The next day, Trunks bids farewell to everyone and begins his journey back to the future. As Trunks departs in his time machine, Gohan is seen smiling at his father's spirit in the sky.

Trunks returns to the future and is reunited with Bulma. As tranquility seems to return, the androids are attacking again. Trunks saves an elderly man from being killed by Androids #17 and #18. Thanks to his training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, Trunks easily destroys the two androids. Three years later, Trunks prepares to head back into the past to tell everyone of his victory. However, there is still one more android to stop: Cell, in his Imperfect Form. After a brief fight, Trunks launches Cell into the air and destroys him with ease as well. Peace is finally restored to the future timeline. Back in the present, Goku begins his new "life" in the Other World.

Seven years have passed since the battle with Cell. Gohan is now a high school student attending Orange Star High School, in Satan City. Gohan also has a younger brother named Goten, who was born after Goku died. On his way to his first day of high school, he comes across a bank robbery in the city and stops it with his Super Saiyan form. As rumors spread about a "Golden-Haired Warrior", Gohan gets to know his new classmate and Mr. Satan's daughter, Videl. After a day of trying not to act suspicious in front of his classmates, Gohan travels to Capsule Corporation to talk to Bulma about his problem.

Gohan approaches Bulma, who gives him a transformation watch to hide his true identity. On his way home, Gohan encounters two people driving recklessly. This is where he comes up with the alias "Great Saiyaman", and scares the people into driving more safely on the road. Gohan returns home later that night, where Chi-Chi and Goten discover that Gohan now has a costume to conceal his identity while fighting crime. The next day, Videl is called in to stop a bus hijacking and handles the criminals, but the bus falls off a cliff, as nobody is driving the vehicle. Gohan uses the alias "Great Saiyaman" once again and pitches in to save Videl and the passengers.

Gohan starts her off with the basics of learning how to control her energy. Within a day, Videl has managed to learn how to float, while Goten has managed to learn how to fly. Following a remark from Gohan, Videl comes back the next day with her hair cut. Videl is determined to learn more from Gohan. Meanwhile, Vegeta is also surprised to find that Trunks is also capable of becoming a Super Saiyan, whose strength is slightly higher than Goten's. Goku trains fiercely in anticipation for the tournament.

After ten days of training, Videl manages to master flight. This finally gives Gohan and Goten the opportunity to resume their training for the tournament. On the day of the tournament, Gohan suggests to Vegeta, Goten, and Trunks that they do not use their Super Saiyan forms to avoid hassle from the press. Arriving at the island where the tournament will take place, Gohan and the others are greeted by Goku, whom Fortuneteller Baba had granted 24 hours visit to Earth. Goku meets Goten for the first time, while Piccolo destroys all the cameras in the area to keep Gohan's identity a secret. After the participating fighters register for the tournament, Goten and Trunks are forced to participate in the juniors division.

While Gohan and Videl wait to take their preliminaries, Goku, Vegeta, and the others go to spectate the junior division, where Goten and Trunks effortlessly progress through each round until they face each other in the final round. The battle gets more intense. Goten and Trunks surprise the audience with advanced techniques. The fight between Goten and Trunks continues.

During an intermission, Trunks and Goten decide to take out one of the participants and steal his clothes. Trunks and Goten take his place in the adult division. As Goku and the others get something to eat, they encounter a pair of mysterious participants named Shin and Kibito, whom Piccolo determines as not being from Earth. As the sixteen qualifying participants gather together to decide the drawings for the first round, Gohan is paired up against Kibito. Goku gets paired up against Vegeta.

As the drawings come to a close, Piccolo is put up against Shin. Android 18 is put up against Mr. Satan. After Krillin wins his first match against his opponent, Piccolo and Shin face off against each other. As Piccolo senses an overwhelming power coming from Shin, he decides to forfeit the match before it even begins. Piccolo feels Shin's power is far beyond his own. Videl prepares to go up against a man named Spopovitch.

As Spopovitch nearly beats Videl to death, Gohan loses his temper and prepares to storm onto the field. Spopovitch's partner, Yamu, convinces Spopovitch to end the fight by pushing Videl out of the ring. With Videl heavily injured, Goku uses his Instant Transmission to gather some Senzu beans from Korin. Videl is sent to the infirmary to recover from her injuries. Gohan prepares to fight against Kibito.

As Goku and the others set off to join the Supreme Kai, Kibito uses his unique ability to restore Gohan's energy. Kibito, Gohan, and Videl set off after the others. Along the way, the Supreme Kai and Kibito explain to the others about how an evil wizard named Babidi is seeking to revive an evil being known as Majin Buu, who was responsible for the death of four Supreme Kais long ago. To accomplish this, he manipulated Spopovitch and Yamu to join the tournament and steal the Super Saiyan energy needed to break the seal placed on Buu. Unable to push her flight any further, Videl places her faith in Gohan and returns to the tournament grounds. Videl comes to understand that Gohan was the one who defeated Cell seven years earlier. Gohan and Kibito catch up to Goku's group. They arrive at the site of a buried spaceship. The Supreme Kai, Kibito, Goku, Vegeta, Gohan, and Krillin watch as Spopovitch and Yamu deliver Gohan's energy to Babidi and his partner, Dabura, the Demon King.

Supreme Kai and Kibito warn Goku and the others about the malicious pair. Dabura is the strongest being of the Demon world. Babidi possesses magic powerful enough to sway Dabura to become his henchman. Babidi obtained the energy from Spopovitch and Yamu. Babidi deems Spopovitch and Yamu to be of no further use to him. Babidi kills Spopovitch with his magic. Babidi's other henchman, Pui Pui, kills Yamu. Babidi, Pui Pui, and Dabura detected the presence of the Z fighters. Babidi and Pui Pui head inside the spaceship. Dabura attacks Goku and the others. He immediately kills Kibito. Dabura fires his spit at Krillin and Piccolo, which turns them into stone. Goku and the others learn that they can only free Krillin and Piccolo by killing Dabura. Goku, Vegeta, Gohan, and the Supreme Kai chase after Dabura into the spaceship despite the Supreme Kai's warnings. Upon reaching the first floor, they are confronted by Pui Pui, who informs them they must face several floors before they can reach Babidi at the bottom. Goku, Vegeta, and Gohan do not think much of their opponent and play a game of rock-paper-scissors to decide who should fight him. Vegeta prepares to fight Pui Pui.

Vegeta outmatches Pui Pui in terms of fighting skill. Babidi changes the stage to match that of the high gravity planet, Zun, where Pui Pui is at his top fighting form. This makes no difference to Vegeta, who obliterates his opponent and opens the way to the next floor. Believing that the Saiyans should not be underestimated, Babidi sends in his next warrior, Yakon. Babidi changes the stage to match that of Planet Ankoku. Even with the aid of the pitch black darkness, Yakon is no match for Goku's keen senses. When Goku turns Super Saiyan, Yakon uses his ability to consume light and sucks in Goku's energy, which causes Goku to revert to his normal state. Rather than finding an alternative way to fight, Goku feeds him more Super Saiyan energy until Yakon explodes from being overloaded. This allows Goku and the others to move onto the next stage.

As Babidi fears the power of the Saiyans, Dabura decides to face them himself. He goes inside a meditation chamber to raise his power before his battle. Meanwhile, back at the tournament, Goten and Trunks take a break from their Mighty Mask disguise to get some drinks. They barely avoid having their cover blown. With Goku and the other members still missing, Mr. Satan suggests that a battle royal be held between the remaining contestants. As the match begins, Killa and Jewel are quickly dispatched by Android #18 and Mighty Mask. Android #18 and Mighty Mask ignore Mr. Satan and fight each other.

As the battle between Android #18 and Mighty Mask continues to escalate, Android #18 struggles to keep up with her opponent's unpredictable moves. She manages to land a critical hit against Goten and Trunks and knocks them into the center of the stage. Goten and Trunks decide to switch places with Goten now on top and Trunks now on the bottom. This pushes Android #18 to the point, where she starts using energy blasts against them. Android #18 manages to hit back with support from her daughter Marron. Goten and Trunks decide to go Super Saiyan and launch a powerful blast at Android #18. She manages to dodge it and reveal their true identity. This results in the disqualification of Goten and Trunks, who was disguised as Mighty Mask and had also broken the rules of the Tournament and Goten and Trunks are forced to flee. Android #18 and Mr. Satan are the only remaining fighters left in the battle royal. Goten and Trunks come across Videl upon her return. Dabura emerges from his meditation chamber. He is ready to face off against Gohan.

Noticing his complete lack of fighting skills after putting Mr. Satan in a headlock, Android #18 makes a deal with Mr. Satan to let him win the match and maintain his dignity in exchange for twice the prize money. Meanwhile, Goten and Trunks hear about the current situation from Videl. They become interested and head towards the action. Back at the spaceship, Dabura appears before Gohan and decides to give him a handicap by choosing an arena similar to Earth's environment. As the fight gets underway, both Gohan and Dabura bring out their full power against each other. Despite being hit by some of Dabura's powerful attacks, Gohan refuses to lose against him.

As the battle between Gohan and Dabura continues, Vegeta's impatience to settle things with Goku catches the attention of Dabura. Dabura decides to abandon the fight and report to Babidi. Babidi and Dabura learn Vegeta still retains a lot of evil in his heart. Babidi uses his magic to target Vegeta's mind and sway him over to his side. To make matters worse, Babidi transports everyone to the tournament grounds, where Vegeta is still focused on his desire to defeat Goku. Majin Vegeta prepares to face off against Goku even with innocent bystanders watching.

Majin Vegeta begins his attack on Goku. Majin Vegeta kills many innocent people in the crowd without any remorse. Goku realizes that Vegeta had fallen under Babidi's spell on purpose for the sake of his grudge against Goku. Goku is left with no choice but to fight against him despite Supreme Kai's attempt to stop him. Goku asks Babidi to warp them to someplace else, where they can fight alone. Supreme Kai and Gohan decide to go on ahead and leave Goku and Majin Vegeta to their fight. Babidi attempts to command Majin Vegeta to kill them. Majin Vegeta's pride allows him to defy even Babidi's demands.

While Goku and Majin Vegeta's fight gets underway, energy builds up for Majin Buu each time Goku takes damage. Gohan and Supreme Kai arrive at Majin Buu's egg, where they are confronted by Babidi and Dabura. Before the fight between them can begin, Majin Buu's egg reaches full power because of the energy released during Goku and Majin Vegeta's battle.

Goku and Majin Vegeta's fight continues to escalate. Majin Vegeta reveals he chose to go under Babidi's control to gain the strength to face off against Goku, and also since Vegeta felt that he needed to get rid of his gentle side. As the seal containing Majin Buu starts to break, Gohan attempts to stop Majin Buu from reaching full power by shooting multiple Kamehameha blasts at the egg in an attempt to destroy it. Following the attack, the egg splits apart, but only pink smoke comes out of it. Supreme Kai presumes that Majin Buu had been destroyed. However, Gohan senses a powerful energy from the pink smoke, which coalesces together to form Majin Buu, who appears to be nothing more than a mere fat child.

Everyone seems to be bewildered by Majin Buu's childlike behavior. They are curious as to whether his rebirth was actually unsuccessful. However, Majin Buu soon shows off his frightening strength when he effortlessly beats Dabura. The rise in Majin Buu's power level catches the attention of the other Saiyans. Although Goku tries to convince Majin Vegeta to postpone the fight in order to stop Majin Buu, Majin Vegeta knocks out Goku when he drops his guard, after Majin Vegeta realized that he let Buu out of his shell and decides to make the right decision for himself. Majin Vegeta takes Goku's last Senzu bean and sets off to fight Majin Buu himself. Gohan and Supreme Kai attempt to flee from Majin Buu, but he easily catches up to them. Majin Buu proves himself to be immune to Supreme Kai's attacks.

Majin Buu completely overwhelms Supreme Kai and Gohan. Supreme Kai uses the last of his strength to make sure Gohan survives Majin Buu's attack. Majin Vegeta has witnessed that Gohan has been killed and decides to blow up Babidi's spaceship. Before Majin Buu can destroy Supreme Kai, he is attacked by Dabura, who believes Buu cannot be made to obey anyone. Meanwhile, Goten and Trunks arrive nearby, and Trunks inadvertently breaks the petrified Piccolo. Unfazed by Dabura's attacks, Majin Buu uses his unique ability to turn Dabura into a cookie and eats him. This nullifies the petrification on Krillin and Piccolo. Piccolo survived being broken, thanks to his regenerative abilities. Before Majin Buu can do the same to Supreme Kai, Majin Vegeta arrives on the scene.

Majin Vegeta is willing to put his life on the line to destroy Majin Buu. Majin Vegeta begins his assault on Majin Buu, after confronting him for killing Gohan, as Piccolo becomes shocked and horrified by what Vegeta has said. He manages to blast a hole through him. However, Majin Buu manages to regenerate himself and builds up his anger to create a giant explosion. This deals a great amount of damage to Majin Vegeta.

As Majin Vegeta is ensnared by Majin Buu, Trunks and Goten can no longer stand by. They rush to the scene to rescue him. Piccolo attacks the defenseless Babidi and rips him to pieces. Feeling he cannot defeat Majin Buu with conventional means, Majin Vegeta says his farewells to Trunks before knocking both children out. Majin Vegeta instructs Piccolo to take them far away and Piccolo warns Majin Vegeta that he is going to die. Majin Vegeta tells Piccolo if he is still going to see Goku in Otherworld, but Piccolo tells him no, because of his selfishness, he will lose his body when he dies, but Majin Vegeta doesn't care and tells Piccolo to leave. Once everyone is cleared from the scene, Majin Vegeta uses his last resort move. Majin Vegeta overloads his Super Saiyan 2 form and sacrifices himself in a massive self-destructive explosion in order to obliterate Majin Buu.

As Bulma and the others from the stadium follow Videl's directions in pursuit of Goten and Trunks, they are hit by the shock wave from Majin Vegeta's attack and almost crash. They are saved by Android #18. After Majin Vegeta's body turns into stone and disintegrates following his self-destructive explosion, Piccolo leaves Goten and Trunks with Krillin. Piccolo tells Krillin to inform the others that Majin Vegeta and possibly Gohan have been killed. He investigates the site of Majin Vegeta's sacrificial attack and finds various charred fragments of Majin Buu. Babidi narrowly survived the explosion. However, Piccolo is shocked to witness Majin Buu's fragments suddenly come to life and reassemble to bring Majin Buu back to his normal form. Majin Buu uses his power to heal Babidi, who vows to make the planet suffer. Piccolo decides to take Goten and Trunks up to Dende's Lookout. Goku regains consciousness and tries to determine the situation after learning that Vegeta knocked him unconscious and decided to fight Buu alone and also took the last sensu bean and decides to teleport to Kami's Lookout as he witnessed that Piccolo and Krillin are restored to normal. A weakened Supreme Kai searches for Gohan, whose fate is still unknown.

Bulma's group goes to seek out the Dragon Balls so they can revive all the spectators that Majin Vegeta killed. They come up against a large dragon while trying to get the last Dragon Ball. Piccolo and Krillin leave Goten and Trunks in the care of Dende and Mr. Popo. They are soon joined by Goku, who learns about the situation. Goku states he is not strong enough to defeat Majin Buu. He mentions having learned a technique known as Fusion, which allows two similarly built fighters to merge to become a single powerful fighter. Goku had originally planned to do this himself with either Gohan or Vegeta. Goku realizes from Mr. Popo that he can instead teach this technique to Goten and Trunks due to their similar size.

Bulma uses the Dragon Balls and summons Shenron. She uses one of its wishes to bring back everyone who had been killed that day. As using all three wishes would mean they would have to wait another year before they can use the Dragon Balls again, Goku warps over to Bulma's group and convinces Shenron to postpone the other two wishes. This shortens the time to four months when summoning Shenron again. Kibito was revived by the wish. Kibito manages to find Supreme Kai and heal his injuries. Supreme Kai and Kibito manage to find Gohan. They decide to bring him to the Sacred World of the Kais. Goku uses his Instant Transmission to teleport Bulma and the others to Dende's Lookout, where he informs them of the grim situation concerning Gohan and Vegeta which shocks the others, including Chi-Chi, Videl and Bulma. Afterwards, Babidi announces his message to the world.

Babidi announces that he will have Majin Buu destroy the planet unless Piccolo, Goten, and Trunks are brought to them within five days. Piccolo almost sets off, but Goku convinces him to stay. He says they can bring back everyone who dies with the Dragon Balls. Supreme Kai, Kibito, and Gohan arrive in the Sacred World of the Kais, where Supreme Kai reveals he wants Gohan to master the legendary Z-Sword in order to defeat Majin Buu. Back at Dende's Lookout, Goten and Trunks wake up and are given a crash course in Fusion by Goku, after learning about the demise of Gohan and Vegeta.

Using his Super Saiyan 2 strength, Gohan manages to pull the Z-Sword from its resting place. He finds it to be incredibly heavy. Meanwhile, Babidi makes another broadcast of Majin Buu laying waste to another city. This prompts Goten and Trunks to contact him. Goten and Trunks inform him that they will soon grow strong enough to defeat them. Goten and Trunks begin their Fusion training. They learn how to match their Super Saiyan energy with each other. Meanwhile, Babidi learns where Trunks lives. He announces his plans to attack Capsule Corporation in West City.

Realizing that they will not be able to find the Dragon Balls if the Dragon Radar is destroyed, Goku orders Trunks to fly to West City to retrieve the Dragon Radar from Capsule Corporation. Goku leaves to delay Majin Buu and Babidi. In order to buy Trunks some time, Goku builds up a large amount of energy. This also uses some of his remaining time on Earth. Goku transforms into his ultimate form that follows Super Saiyan 2 known as Super Saiyan 3. The immense power of Super Saiyan 3 is felt even in the Sacred World of the Kais.

Goku begins his battle against Majin Buu, who demonstrates an ability to copy other people's techniques. Trunks arrives at Capsule Corporation, but he struggles to find where the Dragon Radar is. Bulma realizes that she had left the Dragon Radar in her airplane. She manages to inform Trunks about it. Goku senses Trunks has accomplished his mission. Goku undoes his Super Saiyan 3 transformation once more. He takes his leave after informing Majin Buu that Trunks and Goten will be ready to fight him in two days. Shortly after Goku leaves, Majin Buu decides he has no further use for Babidi. Wanting to be free of Babidi's control, Majin Buu turns against him and kills Babidi.

Without Babidi to order him around, Majin Buu continues to freely destroy cities while waiting for his opponents. Goku has less than thirty minutes left on Earth due to the energy spent in the Super Saiyan 3 form. Goku wastes no time teaching Goten and Trunks the key to the Fusion technique. The Fusion technique is a somewhat embarrassing-looking Fusion Dance.

Majin Buu lays waste to another village and turns its citizens into clay in order to build himself a house for a brief rest. Meanwhile, Goten and Trunks are slightly bored from their training. They ask Goku to show them his Super Saiyan 3 transformation. Upon doing this, Goku uses up the remainder of his time on Earth. After saying goodbye to everyone, Goku returns to the afterlife and leaves the Fusion training in the hands of Piccolo. Meeting up with King Yemma, Goku is relieved to hear that Gohan is not dead, and he decides to follow his energy trail.

Goku arrives in the Sacred World of the Kais, where Gohan is training with the Z-Sword. Goku decides to help Gohan with his training. Meanwhile, Majin Buu has already killed two thirds of Earth's population. He comes across a blind young boy and heals his vision. Majin Buu becomes surprised when he thanks him instead of being afraid. With Gohan growing more proficient with the Z-Sword, Goku tests out the sword's sharpness by throwing a metal cube at it. Gohan inadvertently breaks the sword in half instead. From the broken sword emerges the Supreme Kai of fifteen generations ago, Old Kai.

After some dubious persuasion from Goku, Old Kai reveals he has the ability to draw out someone's true power beyond their limits. This turns out to be a lengthy process that can take over a day to complete. Meanwhile, Goten and Trunks try out the Fusion Pose for real, but an error in the Fusion Pose results in the merged fighter, Gotenks, ending up with a failed transformation. After another failure, Goten and Trunks eventually perform a successful fusion and transform into the true Gotenks. Gotenks is confident that he can defeat Majin Buu with his current power level. He goes off in search of Majin Buu despite Piccolo's warnings.

Gotenks arrives to fight against Majin Buu. Despite showing a great amount of strength, Gotenks is overwhelmed by Majin Buu's power. Gotenks barely manages to escape from Majin Buu after he launches an all-out attack against the armed forces. Meanwhile, Mr. Satan reluctantly confronts Majin Buu, who becomes amused with his traps disguised as presents. Majin Buu decides to befriend Mr. Satan.

After completing his ceremony, Old Kai instructs Gohan to sit still for the next 20 hours in order to complete the power-up. Meanwhile, Goten and Trunks learn how to perform the fusion while in Super Saiyan form to become Super Saiyan Gotenks. Super Gotenks's cockiness almost leads him to confront Majin Buu again, but he ends up retreating when the fusion time runs out. Elsewhere, Majin Buu inadvertently befriends a small dog after healing its injured leg, while Mr. Satan almost manages to convince Majin Buu to stop killing humans. However, a hunter looking to take down Majin Buu for himself relentlessly shoots the dog, which leaves Majin Buu shocked and infuriated.

After managing to calm down Majin Buu's rage by dealing with the thugs himself, Mr. Satan discovers that the dog is barely alive. Majin Buu manages to heal the dog just in time. As Majin Buu, Mr. Satan, and the dog start becoming closer, Mr. Satan decides to stop taking advantage of Majin Buu's innocence and becomes his earnest friend. However, one of the thugs from earlier shows up and shoots Mr. Satan, which causes Majin Buu to be overcome with anger. After healing Mr. Satan, Majin Buu instructs him and the dog to get away from him. The evil in his body escapes and transforms into a tall, grey, emaciated and evil version of Majin Buu.

Good Buu attempts to fight against the Evil Buu, but he finds out that he is much weaker, since most of his power had been transferred over to his evil side. As a result, Evil Buu manages to reflect Good Buu's candy attack back at him, which turns him into chocolate, and then eats him. This allows Evil Buu to absorb his benign counterpart and assume a more complete form, Super Buu. However, traces of Good Buu prevents him from attacking Mr. Satan and Bee. Sensing the energy of Piccolo and the others, Super Buu arrives at Dende's Lookout and demands to fight against Gotenks. Piccolo attempts to stall for time by telling Super Buu to wait until all of the Earthlings are killed. Piccolo instructs Krillin to bring Goten and Trunks to the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, in order to make use of what little time they have.

Piccolo's hopes of being able to buy some time are dashed when Super Buu unleashes a powerful homing attack, which targets and kills every human on the Earth except for Mr. Satan, Tien, and Chiaotzu. Piccolo, along with Videl, manages to convince Super Buu to wait for an hour so that Goten and Trunks can train. Meanwhile, Gohan is tired of waiting any longer for Old Kai's power-up. However, he discovers that he has indeed managed to increase his power, so Gohan agrees to wait for the power-up to be completed. Becoming further angered when Super Buu kills an impatient Chi-Chi, Goten barely holds in his anger and joins Trunks in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber after Piccolo informs Goten that Chi-Chi and Gohan will be brought back to life with the Dragon Balls. With Super Buu growing impatient after only thirty minutes, Piccolo tries to buy as much time as possible as he slowly leads Super Buu to the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. Piccolo believes that even if Goten and Trunks fail, they can destroy the Hyperbolic Time Chamber's entrance and trap him there.

Piccolo še naprej vodi Super Buuja do Sobane duha in časa, medtem ko Goten in Trunks trdo trenirata, da bi maščevala bližnje, ki sta jih izgubila. Po na videz neskončni hoji Dendejevega labirinta, se Super Buu ujezi in prične besneti. Piccolo je zato prisiljen, da ga odpelje neposredno do Sobane. Super Buu in Gotenks se končno udarita. A boj je daleč od pričakovanjega, Gotenks se namreč prične dolgočasiti in odloči preizkusiti nove oblike tehnik.