Note: Goku and Jiren's battle uniform remains as it was from the Tournament of Power.

Also hope you like this battle arc so far. This is my first so I hope it's not too horrible! Heheh... okay, on with the story.

---

This was terrifying, unbridled power and they understood that. Hearts was a force to be reckoned with and, even though they didn't want to admit it, deep down they knew that they stood no chance against someone like him.

Someone capable of killing the Omni-Kings themselves. The Attendants? They were barely a challenge to him.

"This is bad." Jiren sweated at the being before him.

"Yeah." Goku replied with a serious tone, although a hint of excitement escaped his mouth, "His ki... it just keeps on growing!"

"Scared?" Hearts asked with an echo to his voice, "This is the power of the Universe Seed!"

Hearts' body had also changed to fit his new 'Ultimate Godslayer' form. His hair had turned sliver-like and flowed backwards. His coat was discarded and his entire body was glowing in a golden hue, a clear orb on his chest. He also had six spikes protruding out of his back and multiple green orbs surrounding them.

As a display of his power, Hearts waved his hand horizontally, causing a shockwave that destroyed the entirety of Beerus' planet, leaving flat land.

"N-No way!" Goku yelled. Jiren turned to Beerus, "We've got to get out of here! It's too dangerous!"

"Don't have to tell me twice!" Beerus quickly flew off towards anywhere that could have been safe place. Jiren flew off towards Beerus' direction but he was stopped by an uppercut and was sent flying upwards.

"Jiren!" Goku exclaimed in horror, but that quickly dissipated like the dust as he too was sent flying upwards with Hearts' kicks. The duo yelled in agonising pain as they were slammed down to the ground with just two punches, barely conscious.

"You are impressive warriors, Goku, Jiren." Hearts praised, "However, it is time for you to go. I will not allow you both to get in the way of freedom. So now..."

Hearts raised his glowing hand, which pulled the rubble from the ground upwards, coming together at a single point and making a massive meteor as big as a Spirit Bomb. Jiren and Goku could barely get up due to how damaged they were from those attacks from before, and they were about to pass out. The duo were close to meeting their end at the hands of this being until...

Someone saved them.

Goku and Jiren felt their wounds heal and their energy restored. They got up only to find a green barrier surrounding them, and a familiar figure standing outside of it, watching the oncoming meteor.

"Whis?!?" Goku looked surprised and somewhat scared as he saw the Angel appear, "Why are you here?"

"To save you of course." Whis smiled, "Though you do owe me for this."

"But why?" Jiren asked, "I thought you had joined the Grand Priest."

Whis looked down, "When I was first created, we Angels only had one goal, and that was to serve whoever created and destroyed in the universes. We were meant to remain neutral. However, with my father's ambitions to kill the Omni-Kings, I can no longer uphold the laws we have kept for so long."

The Angel of Universe 7 looked to Goku, "Goku, I must say, it was an honour to have you as one of my students. In all my years I have never met someone as battle-loving and kind-hearted as you are."

Goku slowly began to tear up as he ran towards the wall of the shield, "W-Wait, what are you saying?!"

"If you get the chance, tell Lord Beerus that I'm sorry and that I have to do this, and tell Vegeta to never stop being that prideful Saiyan that he is."

Jiren banged on the shield as hard as he could, completely disagreeing with Whis' actions, "Don't! You'll be killed!"

A glimpse of a tear slowly fell from his eye, and he turned back to face the oncoming meteor, raising his staff. It glowed green once again, ready to serve its master one last time. Soon enough, it fired a large green beam-attack at the meteor, doing its best to slow it down. However, it was futile, and the best the struggling Whis could do was strengthen the shield surrounding the two mortals behind him. After completing his task he closed his eyes, ready to accept his fate as the meteor finally hit the ground. Normally, this wouldn't have affected him, however...

He broke Angel laws, and thus, he was vulnerable to this attack. As his life faded away, Whis smiled with content as he uttered his final words:

"I know it was only for a short time, but I am grateful to have met you, Goku, Jiren. You taught me just as much as I had taught you. Take care of each other... and thank you."

A large explosion erupted, creating a massive crater in what was once sacred ground and the entire area was covered in flames, with only a small patch of grass in where Goku and Jiren were, and Whis was nowhere to be seen. The shield that protected them faded, and Goku fell to his knees, tears streaming down his face as he punched the ground.

"Why?!?" Goku's voice was filled with anguish and heartache, "Why did he do that?! Why did he have to die?!"

Jiren looked solemnly at the ground, fists clenched, "He sacrificed his life so we could continue ours. We can't let it go to waste."

"What a shame." Hearts sighed, making the saddened duo look up at him in rage, "He would have had a chance to live if he just followed."

Goku growled dangerously, baring small fangs as he glared at Hearts, flaring his blue aura, "You... You killed him! You murdered my friend!"

The Saiyan was about to lunge at his enemy when Jiren suddenly places a firm hand on his shoulder, "Don't."

Goku looked back at his mate with Jiren's expression pleading with him to not go through with this. He knew that Hearts needed to suffer for what he had done. He knew that he wanted to beat his fist into his face for all eternity if he could. But he wouldn't. It went against everything Whis imparted to him, and he wouldn't waste that wisdom.

Looking away in frustration, Goku immediately teleported off of Beerus' planet, leaving Hearts by himself.

"Well then, we shall see each other again soon."

Hearts suddenly stopped what he was doing as he raised his hand, a clear orb appearing and a figure speaking through it.

"I see you have absorbed the Universe Seed."

"Indeed. However the ones known as Goku and Jiren have escaped alongside Lord Beerus."

"Don't mind them. They won't be much of a threat to us."

Hearts smirked, "If you say so."

"Come to me the moment it blossoms into the Universe Tree. I will need that power soon."

"Fine. I will contact you when it is done."

"Very well."

As the transmission ended Hearts teleported away, ready to create havoc for the Universe Seed.

-On the Lookout-

Meanwhile, everyone was back at the Lookout, having completed their duties. But not all was well. The tension was thick, and hope seemed sparse. They had no idea how to deal with the Grand Priest, he was considered one of the top 5 in terms of strength. They were mere mortals, and would barely hold a candle to him. Things didn't get any better either.

The group were trying to figure out their next plan of attack when they were all greeted with Goku and Jiren teleporting there, the Saiyan looking down with his hair covering his eyes and his mate doing his best to comfort him.

"Goku! Jiren!" Merus cried out, running over to them, "I sensed Whis with you earlier, what happened?"

Goku and Jiren didn't have the heart to tell him, but Merus already knew from the expressions on their faces.

"I... he's gone... isn't he?" Merus looked down, clenching his fists.

This time, Jiren spoke, "He gave his life so we could have a chance at defeating both Hearts and the Grand Priest."

Merus could only look on with grief on his features. Out of all of his siblings, Whis and Vados were the ones he was closest to, and to know that one of them had perished was too much to bear. And worst of all was what happens when an Angel dies...

"We... We can bring him back, right?" Goku looked at Merus for any hope of bringing him back, but the moment he shook his head, his tail slumped and he felt tears return to his eyes.

"We were made as extensions to the Grand Priest. He split himself into 18 parts. When an Angel is eradicated or is vulnerable due to breaking Angel laws, they return to the Grand Priest."

"So we have a chance at bringing him back?" Jiren asked.

Again, Merus shook his head, "Father has to willingly create someone, and even if he made an exact replica of Whis, he would probably not have his memories."

Goku couldn't help but let out a small and quiet sob at that. That was it. They couldn't bring Whis back. And if they could it would only be a shell of what Whis was. Jiren sensed Goku's grief and pulled him close, rubbing his back soothingly. Everyone who knew Whis looked down as if to respect the dead. Despite being an Angel, Whis was still their friend and they all felt as if they had let him down.

It took a few seconds for everyone to get back on their feet, and when they did they knew that they had to continue forward... for Whis' sake.

They all gave their reports and luckily for them, all of Hearts' teammates had been defeated, and both the Gods of Destruction and the Supreme Kais of every universe had been taking to a safe space with the Pride Troopers for defense.  However, universes such as 1, 12, 5 and 8 weren't so lucky as their Angels were far too strong and they sadly succumbed. But that was the least of their problems, as Hearts was still on the loose and working for the Grand Priest.

"Hearts... somehow, he absorbed the power of the Universe Seed into his body." Jiren recounted.

Goku continued, "Yeah, we didn't even get any hits on him before we got knocked down."

Old Kai walked towards them, "With that much power, he's sure to be able to take down the Omni-Kings and even take down the Attendants, albeit with minor difficulty."

"Are you serious?!" Bulma, who had came up to the Lookout after hearing the news, "But can't that guy erase universes?"

"Just because someone can erase universes doesn't automatically mean that they will be able to fight."  Hit stated, "The Omni-Kings aren't fighters and without their erasing powers they're pretty much helpless."

Gohan growled, "We have to do something! The entire Multiverse is at stake here!"

Merus looked down, trying to think of ways to increase their chances at victory. He knew many techniques, but he doubted that any of them would be of any use. However there were techniques and transformations that could be useful...

Suddenly, Merus' eyes widened and he almost jumped up, "That's it! Maybe that could work!"

"What? What could work?" Jiren asked.

Merus turned to both Goku and Jiren, "I'm not so sure about it myself, but I believe that there may be something for you two."

"Spit it out already." Hit stated impatiently. Merus, however, seemed unfazed by this, "Let me finish. I believe that there may be something past what can be achieved. Something... greater than Ultra Instinct."

At that, Goku's eyes widened slightly in surprise and excitement, "Hold up, you're saying I can get even stronger than Ultra Instinct?!"

"Indeed." Merus replied, "It is extremely hard to comprehend, and no Angel in existence has been able to do it. However, it is possible, and with your experience, I'm certain it will come to you much easier than it had to us."

The Angel then turned to Jiren, "As for you, I'm not entirely familiar with this, but I have heard that there is a secret transformation of the Grays that increases a person's strength tremendously."

Now it was Jiren's turn to be surprised, "Is... Is there even such a thing? I had never heard of it before."

"There is. It was merely a myth, forgotten by your people, but I believe that you have the power within you to achieve it. I trust that you two will succeed and defeat Hearts and my father." Merus gave a small smile, "And I know just the place where we can go to learn these new powers."

Goku and Jiren immediately knew what he was talking about, "The Hyperbolic Time Chamber."

Dende smiled as he walked forward, "Mr. Popo's restocked the Time Chamber. There's enough in there for at least a year or so."

Goku grinned and gave Dende a thumbs up, "Gee! Thanks Dende, you're the best!"

At that, the Guardian of Earth couldn't help but blush, but Merus quickly interrupted this exchange, "I will go in with you two so that I may help you achieve new levels of power."

Meanwhile, Vegeta scowled. He should be the one to defeat the Grand Priest and Hearts! He deserved the chance to destroy them! Nevertheless, he sighed in resignation. He got his time in the spotlight with Moro, and that was good enough.

Merus soon followed the two mates into the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, looking towards the group, "Make sure that neither Hearts nor my father gets up here and interrupts our training. We're counting on you."

Gohan nodded, "We won't let you down!"

The Angel smiled, then walked forward to catch up with the duo. After he was out of sight, Krillin groaned in joking exasperation.

"Please don't tell me the whole 'waiting until the last second' has affected Jiren too! Seriously, why is this a habit?"

Despite everything, they all couldn't help but laugh at that. It was best to have some good and memorable times, especially considering what was going on. One thing was for sure, however, and that was that hope still remained in their hearts, and that they believed that they all still had a chance to succeed no matter how slim their chances were.

They had the Strongest Mortals in the Multiverse on their side, after all.