Morning rose over the peculiar planet that housed Universe 7's Hakaishin, the one known as Beerus the Destroyer. It was here that the Hakaishin spent his days when he was not conducting his duties, or feasting upon the delicacies of other worlds for that matter. In his youth, he was trained excessively by his mentor and attendant, the angel Whis. Of course, these days, Beerus spends more time asleep and eating than actually training. Though, who could blame him? Until just recently, there was no individual capable of providing a challenge worthy of the Hakaishin. That was, until that dream...

"It was a premonition…"

"I saw it in a dream."

"My ultimate adversary…"

"The Super Saiyan God!"

The planet of Earth played host to a titanic battle, between Beerus, and the one that would go on to fulfill the prophecy that the Hakaishin himself foresaw… Son Goku. One that staked the very fate of the planet, and in the process, the universe itself, as those godly energies collided time and time again, threatening to tear the very fabric of reality apart.

Many things had happened after that. And in Beerus, Goku and the others had found a surprising new friend. If one could truly call him that…

Nevertheless, with the power of Super Saiyan God, Goku had once more ascended to a realm beyond all the others in the universe. Suffice to say, this did not sit well with Vegeta, the sole other pure-blooded Saiyan that resided on Earth. However, he was not only the last of the remaining Saiyans, but in fact, the prince of the Saiyans; a man filled with pride in his own strength, and as such, fostered an intense rivalry with Goku, refusing to ever fall behind as the latter's inferior.

This drive to now surpass even the realm of gods that Goku was flung into pushed Vegeta to seek training under Whis, nearly abandoning his very pride in the process so that he could achieve that very same strength, through his own merits as opposed to the Super Saiyan God ritual in which Goku first acquired that power.

As was anticipated, Goku was in no way satisfied with his own current level, and also followed suit a short six months later, with both Saiyans now receiving training directly from the angel that had once mentored Beerus as well.

Though the Hakaishin still slept even as the sun had risen, Whis was already up and about, making his way toward the grassy knolls overlooking the Hakaishin's castle. Once he arrived, he was greeted with the sight of Goku and Vegeta, hard at work with their daily routine of various yardwork chores that was a part of their training. Pulling weeds, maintenance of the castle, even changing Beerus' sheets as he slept; mundane as they sounded, each task held its own purpose for the sake of training.

It was later in the morning that the real training began. Whis often focused their training in sparring bouts, either with himself or between the two Saiyans themselves, as well as other conventional forms of training; weights and resistance training seemed most prominent. The progress was slow, but it was starting to show itself, bit by bit.

"Hyah!"

Vegeta fired a ki beam, erupting from his index and middle fingers, whipping through the air toward Goku, as the latter narrowly dodged. The Saiyan prince continued the assault, firing beam after beam, with what seemed like aimless firing, but it had a purpose. Vegeta was awaiting Goku to get into the desired position, before charging forward, aura aflame, thrusting his foot out in a kick.

Colliding with his own leg, the two Saiyans pushed off from one another and began a high-speed exchange of fists; fierce but targeted, hit after hit, until both backed away to garner distance. And once they did, kicking off from the ground to gain some momentum, they charged full-speed at each other as their fists smashed into one another, an eruption of white ki exploding outwards from not only their arms and hands but from their bodies as well.

"You two are still letting your ki leak out." Whis interjected, "Making your intentions easy to read. As I've told you, keep your heightened energy inside yourself, so as to prevent your opponent from picking up on its movements before you yourself manage to act."

Having heard Whis out, the two Saiyans began their exchange once again, their movements noticeably more elegant now that they were focused on reeling their ki back in with every action rather than simply letting it erupt as they were accustomed. Yet, still…

Once more, when their fists struck one another, white ki blasted forth, albeit to a lesser degree as the two Saiyans landed to the ground, turning their attention toward a sighing Whis who shook his head in disappointment. "Honestly, you two still have a ways to go. Especially you, Vegeta." Whis held his finger out in accusation. "I've told you to relax yourself in moments that do not require intensity, yet all you're doing is slumping and loosening your body, while your mind remains heavily under duress from all the overthinking."

Vegeta simply sneered with arms crossed, Goku snickered a bit, before Whis then pointed towards him as well. "And then you." Immediately, the cocky Saiyan earthling went silent. "You're not even making an effort. After focusing your ki, you let your body relax too much, and you immediately lose your hold on the condensed ki, thus rendering the entire action pointless."

Once more, the angel sighed. "At this rate, you two have no hope of actually mastering god ki."

"Speaking of which." Vegeta interrupted. "I've been meaning to ask you this, Whis. You've been prattling on and on about 'mastering god ki' but, to my knowledge, only Kakarot over here actually possesses god ki. So how am I supposed to master something I don't have, oh wise master?" the Saiyan prince responded with the usual snarkiness that was expected to him.

To that, Whis only rattled off a faint snicker. "You already have it. You have for a while now."

That alone sparked surprise in both Saiyans, their eyes widened in a shock.

"Well, I suppose it makes sense that you wouldn't notice it yet. Right now, the two of you are only just starting to recognize and sense godly energy." Whis remarked, raising his right index finger as he looked at the Saiyans with an amusing expression. "I'm sure you felt it, right? The god ki that flows around this planet."

Both Saiyans could only blink as they looked around the space, Goku in bewilderment as Vegeta glared upwards.

"Although it might be faint to you Saiyans, this planet is actually abundant with god ki. It was this reason, Vegeta, that the initial stages of your training was centered almost entirely on agricultural work. It was meant to have you become adjusted to the god ki that permeates this atmosphere."

Despite the explanation, both Saiyans seemed confused; Goku, in particular, scratched the side of his head.

Whis remained silent for a moment before lowering his head in defeat.

"As I'm sure you are aware, all living beings have ki. Individuals develop their own ki signature over time through personal development. But similarly so, ki can also possess special characteristics depending on that individual's species and entity type. I suppose if I were to give it a name, I'd say you two possess the 'ki of Saiyans'." Whis explained. "In the same sense, we have 'mortal ki' and 'godly ki'. But going back to what I said, it has become clear to me that you Saiyans possess the characteristic of adapting to the environment and your opponents, perhaps an instinctive quality which had a hand in turning you into a warrior race. I surmise that is what happened with Goku, that time. Although his Super Saiyan God power ran out, he was still able to fight on the same level as Lord Beerus. His own 'Saiyan ki' had adapted to the feeling of god ki and began to develop it on its own. The same happened to you, Vegeta, while you trained here. Your own ki was registering the quality of godly ki and, over a significant period of time, was beginning to produce it on its own within your body." He added.

"You both are mortals, however, and therefore, no matter how much god ki you possess, it is a secondary source of ki for you. This is why you two require a transformation to utilize that ki." Whis continued, both Saiyans paying attention rather intently.

Goku, however, crossed his arms with a bit of a dazed expression. "Honestly, this stuff's way over my head."

"Tch." Vegeta spat at his training partner's ignorance. "Let me venture a wild guess then, Whis. That's the reason why you're having us focus so heavily on this whole 'control' nonsense. So that we'll be able to channel that secondary god ki with our primary… 'Saiyan' ki."

"My, my." Whis mused with a bright smile. "Finally, it seems one of you is starting to get it, at least. Yes, that's exactly it. Before, Goku was able to use solely that god ki because of a forced activation. In other words, that whole Saiyan God ritual. And the second time, was when he tried to stop Lord Beerus from destroying the Earth. But that too was as a transformation, the 'Super Saiyan God' as it is so aptly named." The angel remarked, summoning his staff with a flick of his wrist, displaying a visual projection of the event in question, back when Goku, ablaze with a red aura and crimson hair, fought on par with the likes of the Hakaishin Beerus.

Tilting his head, Goku blinked. "I'm still not gettin' it. Primary and secondary…"

"Let me put it to you this way, Goku. If we were to assign the two ki types with colors, your normal ki, the one used to awaken the Super Saiyan form, would be yellow, while the god ki you both possess would be red. Because yellow is your primary accessible ki, red cannot be used unless yellow is somehow drained or suppressed, pulled to the surface by an external factor, such as Lord Beerus' own ki, or it is summoned forth at the same time as the yellow ki. The purpose of this training is to perform the third action, bringing together both yellow and red, merging them together like two separate rivers flowing into one another."

"Flowing into one another… Two rivers…" Goku's eyes widened as he struck his open palm with his other fist as he was beginning to understand. "Fusion! It's like the fusion technique then! The same principle… but within ourselves."

Whis pondered with a rather impressive look. "Even fusion too, I'm astonished mortals are actually aware of such an ability. Honestly, you lot are full of surprises." He responded with a faint laughter. "Then, if we are on the same page, then let's continue with th-"

"Hold on, Whis. I have one more question." Vegeta submitted, drawing Whis and Goku's attention. "It pertains to what you said earlier, about mortal ki and god ki. If our ki, as Saiyans, possesses this… unique characteristic, as you said, then what the hell makes god ki so special then?"

"Hmm… Now how shall I explain this one?" Whis mused, tapping his chin in contemplation as the two Saiyans observed him, Vegeta far more intent than Goku on hearing a satisfactory answer about this. For the Saiyan prince, to be told that there existed a form of energy that made Saiyans inferior in quality was already enough to infuriate him, but as he experienced first-hand when he tried to fight Beerus himself, there was something about god ki that made it so superior. If anything, he would need to master it if he had any hope of rising above his current level.

Snapping his fingers, Whis relayed a smile. "Tell me, you two. As mortals, I'm sure you both are aware of religion and all that, right?"

"Reli-what?" Goku stared in total perplexity.

Whis sighed once more. "It means the worship of deities. In the mortal realm, those unaware of the true existence of the gods often compose their own interpretations of deities and their role in the universe. These teachings are eventually codified in what is known as a religion."

"For once, I share this idiot's confusion." Vegeta added. "We Saiyans had no need for deity worship. We believed only in our own power and we did as we saw best." He stated proudly.

"…And look how far that got you…" Whis muttered softly, earning him the ire of Vegeta.

"What was that?!" Vegeta growled.

"Oh, nothing!" the angel snickered a bit before recovering his seriousness. "But more to the point, people would pray to the gods in response to a tragedy or a disaster. What is the meaning behind the existence of a god if there is nobody praying to one? When you think about it, who's to say… was it the Supreme Kais born in response to a Hakaishin's wanton destruction, or the Hakaishins born in response to the overpopulation brought on by the Supreme Kais' creation? Something to chew on, I suppose…"

While Vegeta nodded, displaying some degree of understanding, Goku just stood there trying to grasp what Whis actually said, let alone actually developing an opinion of his own. Such philosophical debate was far beyond his ability, after all.

"My point in addressing this is that the nature of god ki is identical to the reason for a god's existence. God ki directly responds to a desire. When you think about it, that was how Goku became a Saiyan god, by 'answering' the 'prayers' of the Saiyans who flowed their power into him. Though I'm going on a tangent there." Whis continued, coughing into his fist. "God ki behaves in accordance with its wielder's desires, which is perhaps why it can produce almost any sort of result. The Supreme Kai create with their god ki, the Hakaishin destroy with their god ki, which is because their desire is tied to their purpose. As you yourself experienced, Goku…" the angel noted, once more referring to his fight with Beerus.

"Your desire to fight with Lord Beerus and surpass him was what was causing your Super Saiyan God form to grow in strength nigh infinitely. It's also why you healed miraculously when Lord Beerus stabbed you through. And it is also why you were able to absorb the brunt of Lord Beerus' ki attack, so as to protect the Earth from being destroyed." Whis explained, shaking his head then. "Of course, there were limits to this too. You eventually burned out, because you yourself still had limits. But you see my point, I hope."

Goku, at least now, seemed to understand Whis' explanation. "That would explain it then… The sensation of something pulling at me to keep fighting and my body resurging with more power even as I was tiring out."

"Similarly…" Whis continued on. "For you Saiyans, the god ki can be considered both a blessing and a curse. If you were to use the god ki against someone like a friend in a sparring match, intending not to harm them, then your power will be severely reduced. All the same, the more passionate you are in fighting and winning against your opponent, the far more power your god ki will carry through. In a manner of speaking, you can be at your weakest and at your strongest while utilizing god ki."

Both Saiyans stood tall as they faced Whis finish his explanation as the angel looked toward them as well.

"If that's all settled then… Let's resume the training then."

Clashes rung in the air for the next several hours. The Saiyans continued at it, colliding their fists and their kicks, performing graceful and swift maneuvers as the two tried to get the jump on the other. For the first hour or so, white ki continued leaking from their bodies again and again. Over time, however, they were beginning to catch onto what Whis was telling them, managing to go a full three hours without leaking any ki. Or rather… Goku was.

Vegeta, on the other hand, as he tried to keep his ki under control, found himself outdone by Goku as the latter had struck Vegeta repeatedly in the face and gut whenever they had clashed during these moments of ki control bouts. After each time, Vegeta's rage was beginning to build, as white ki only erupted from his body, while Goku's own power remained sealed within him after every collision.

With another exchange, the two Saiyans struck their fists into one another, with only Vegeta emitting any ki. And following through, Goku's foot was planted firmly into the Saiyan prince's gut, sending him plummeting toward the ground. At the last moment, Vegeta regained his footing, landing with a fierce crash as he growled toward his adversary.

His rage was beginning to boil over. Faint sparks of bioelectricity were beginning to lick at his body as his hair started flickering back and forth from black to yellow. Whis stared on with disapproval, closing his eyes for a moment.

"Goku's beginning to understand, but Vegeta is still letting his obsession with their rivalry get the better of him. At this rate, he'll… Huh?"

But Whis immediately stopped that thought as he observed Vegeta. Suddenly, the golden flares surrounding him dissipated as Vegeta straightened out his back, breathing in deeply. His rage subsided as the Saiyan prince adopted a fighting stance, his face the very essence of composure.

"Oho…"

"He was about to abandon his heart to rage, but at the last moment, he absorbed the wrath entirely and used that to completely reinvigorate his concentration. I didn't think he would be able to do that now, but what do you know…"

Both Saiyans stood tall, assuming their fighting stances, their hearts calm as the surface of an undisturbed pond, their bodies relaxed, and their hearts focused entirely on the battle. Once more, the Saiyans charged at one another, matching hit for hit, as their fists thrust out for another forceful impact. Only this time…

Blue streaks flowed from the point of impact, fluttering about peacefully as the two Saiyans momentarily stared in awe. Pulling back, Goku stared intently at his right fist, and Vegeta at his left, the latter smirking as Whis himself appeared rather captivated.

"They've advanced so far already… I'm starting to understand what Lord Beerus sees in these Saiyans."

"Again, Kakarot!"

Vegeta charged in, his aura entirely reeled in as he sought out Goku.

"W-Wait a minute, Vegeta!"

The two were exchanging blows once again, but this time, it appeared as if Goku was on the defense entirely. Vegeta, his mind serene and his body naturally moving forth, was starting to overtake Goku, who similarly tranquil, was parrying hit for hit the best he could. Once more, the two traded fists, causing the very same blue streaks of ki to vent forth.

"Almost…! I've almost grasped it…! Almost!"

"Again!"

Vegeta continued his attack, focusing entirely on the sensation he was feeling whenever that blue aura manifested for the briefest of moments. Although Goku found himself perplexed as to what Vegeta was trying to do by repeatedly trigger that flash of azure, he was determined to also recognize what that light signified.

Repeatedly swapping blows, once more the azure light shone forth, with Vegeta pulling his fist back immediately and tensing his body up.

"Hold onto it…! Remember that feeling, don't let it go…! Cling to it, hold it, and make it mine! It's my power! I am the Saiyan prince! Vegeta-sama!"

As if driven purely by sheer pride, abandoning even rage and envy, the entirety of the soul belonging to the prince of all Saiyans was devoted to that singular thought as the god ki responded. While he clung to that that sensation, everything that he was aimed solely in that direction, the skies above started to darken, much to Whis and Goku's surprise as the very same azure streaks of light started to well up around Vegeta's body. His hair was flicking back and forth, changing colors now from black… to a bright blue.

And with a single kiai… Short yet powerful, like the clap of thunder itself.

His aura shot out, a tremendous flare of azure ki overtook the entire battlefield as his hair became a solid blue. The ground trembled, cracking apart even, as Vegeta had done it. Yellow and red, the Saiyan ki and god ki… They had become one. And this was the result.

"Vegeta…!" Goku called out in amazement.

"Interesting." Whis commented. "He actually did it."

Though it lasted only for a brief handful of moments, before the blue color dissipated entirely, and Vegeta had collapsed to the ground, on one knee with his head lowered as he panted exhaustingly.

"Well… almost, that is."

Whis began making his way toward Vegeta as Goku had already went over.

"Impressive, Vegeta. That time, although it lasted for just a few seconds, was indeed the proper merger of your normal ki and the god ki. Tell me, how did it feel?"

Taking a moment to catch his breath, although he was still weathered considerably, Vegeta nodded softly. "I could feel it. It was the same pressure I felt when watching Kakarot fight with Beerus. But at the same time, it was like I was using Super Saiyan too. Super Saiyan… and Super Saiyan God…"

Goku blinked for a moment as he nodded in acknowledgement. "A Super Saiyan with the power of Super Saiyan God."

"Hm… Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan. It's a bit of a mouthful but that does seem to be what it is." Whis interjected.

Vegeta, who stared toward the ground with a subtle smirk, and Goku, who grinned with sheer excitement, they could not contain themselves. The next level had finally revealed itself to them. It was visible to them, their goal: this blue Super Saiyan form. With their objective set in front of them now, it was only a matter of pushing themselves harder to reach it. To reach where the gods were.

But before that, they had another problem to deal with…

"Are you punch jockeys still at it?! I'm trying to sleep, you morons!"

A/N: So this chapter was more or less something I wanted to do to express my thoughts on what god ki is in the Dragon Ball universe and ultimately how Super Saiyan Blue came to be. Ultimately, I wanted to address certain things like… how did Goku and Vegeta become stronger in Blue through rage against Zamasu and Black. With my explanation, they didn't. What was strengthening them was their resolve, which can be misconstrued as rage, and the god ki responded to that heightened resolve. Also, this should hopefully give some people an explanation as to the entire issue the fanbase is dealing with in regards to how strong Goku's Super Saiyan Blue form really is. We've seen him use it against Krillin and others prior to the Tournament of Power, and everybody is pissed off about it. Well, hopefully this chapter I've written will put that nonsense to rest. If it doesn't, well, to each his own; this chapter was just my own thoughts, so you're free to think what you want.

Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this one-shot.