Lesson Number One

Despite being thoroughly outclassed, Nappa stubbornly attacks Goku again and again. Goku dodges every strike with minimal effort, delivering precise blows dedicated to each of his fallen friends. Vegeta orders Nappa to calm down and fight with discipline, but the gap between the two warriors is too wide. Nappa powers up to his maximum and fires a Break Cannon, which Goku cancels with a Kamehameha without breaking a sweat.

Vegeta, furious at the display, orders Nappa to stand down. Consumed by humiliation and rage, Nappa disobeys and charges at Krillin and Gohan instead. Goku realizes he cannot reach them in time by conventional means and activates the Kaio-ken Finish, slamming into Nappa and shattering his spine. He tosses the paralyzed Saiyan at Vegeta's feet.

Goku warns Krillin that the Kaio-ken's extreme strain could have destroyed his own body, which is why he hesitated to use it. He tells Vegeta to leave Earth and get Nappa medical help. Vegeta refuses, and when Nappa pathetically begs for his hand, Vegeta takes it only to hurl his former partner into the sky and obliterate him with a single blast. With Nappa erased, Vegeta turns his attention solely to Goku. The real fight is about to begin.

Goku dedicates each hit against Nappa to a fallen friend, then counters the Saiyan's strongest attack with ease. When Nappa disobeys Vegeta and charges Gohan and Krillin, Goku unleashes the Kaio-ken Finish and snaps Nappa's back in a single devastating strike.

Vegeta's execution of his own partner is as cold as it is swift. He launches the crippled Nappa into the air and vaporizes him without hesitation, calling him a disappointment. Goku orders Gohan and Krillin to retreat to Kame House as he prepares to face the Saiyan prince alone.

This episode features the first use of the Kaio-ken in combat, the technique King Kai warned could destroy Goku's body if pushed too far. Vegeta's cold execution of Nappa reveals the prince's complete lack of loyalty to anyone he considers beneath him, establishing the ruthless character who will evolve dramatically across the series.