Cell, Brought to Bay

Gohan's Cruelty

Standing beneath the battered Cell, Gohan surveys the damage from his Kamehameha with visible satisfaction. Vegeta, still in shock, notes that Gohan's blast was even more powerful than Cell's. Goku calls out to his son and tells him to finish the fight immediately. Gohan, however, refuses. He tells his father that Cell deserves to endure more pain before the end. Goku is stunned by this response, and Piccolo wonders what has come over the normally gentle boy. Cell screams in agony above the arena, and Goku urgently warns Gohan to end things before Cell resorts to something desperate.

Cell's Desperate Counterattack

Cell regenerates his destroyed limbs and roars that Gohan will pay for the humiliation. He deliberately inflates his muscle mass, bulking his frame far beyond its normal proportions, then lands on the ground and tells Gohan he will never lose to someone like him. Cell throws a punch, but it sails past Gohan and cradles into the earth, leaving a crater. He attacks again and misses by an even wider margin. Future Trunks immediately recognizes what has happened: Cell has made the same critical error Trunks himself committed earlier in the saga, sacrificing speed for brute strength.

Gohan dashes forward and slams a vicious kick into Cell's face. The blow rattles the bio-android so thoroughly that he stumbles around in a daze for several seconds before doubling over and vomiting up Android 18, who tumbles onto the ground seemingly intact.

Regression

With Android 18 expelled from his body, Cell's form destabilizes and he reverts to his bulkier, less refined Semi-Perfect state. Future Trunks observes that Cell is no longer complete. Gohan tells Cell flatly that this is the end. Consumed by fury and humiliation, Cell screams that he will never accept defeat. As Gohan and the Z Fighters watch with confusion, Cell's body begins to swell grotesquely, expanding like a balloon as he prepares a final, desperate act.