Jiren looked like the 'little grey men' of Earth legend — smooth skull, black eyes, grey skin.
Unlike the classic 'little grey men,' however, Jiren was powerfully built, muscles coiled tight, every inch of him radiating explosive force.
Where Super Saiyans were defined by their wild, battle-hungry ferocity after transforming, Jiren had spent years cultivating his inner world. His mind was utterly calm, and not a single wisp of energy leaked from his body.
On the surface, it wasn't an impressive look — but his mastery over his own body was hundreds of times greater than Son Goku's. When Jiren put in one unit of effort, one unit of force came out. Son Goku, by contrast, had such poor control that ten units of power might only yield one unit of actual output.
Now, Jiren waited in silence for his opponent to finish transforming, then threw a single, wordless punch.
Son Goku clashed with Jiren, and the shockwaves from their battle swallowed nearly half the arena. Even reinforced by the Grand Minister himself, the stage groaned under the strain — spider-web cracks erupted across its surface, and chunks of debris of every size broke free and tumbled into the void below.
"Heh heh heh — the Son Goku from your universe is no match for Jiren whatsoever." Vermoud, the Destroyer of the Eleventh Universe — big red nose, red lips, dressed like a circus clown — shot a smirk toward Beerus's side.
Beerus leaped up like a cat that had its tail stepped on. "What would an ugly mug like you know about fighting? A Destroyer who got beaten by a mortal — you're a disgrace to the very title! Hmph!"
He then spun toward the arena and bellowed: "Son Goku, hurry up and knock that guy out! If you dare go easy on him, you're dead!"
Champa pursed his enormous lips and joined in: "Bag of bones, just admit it already — Son Goku's burning through his stamina fast, and Jiren's barely broken a sweat. He can't beat him."
Quitela, the Fourth Universe's Destroyer — who looked rather like a mouse — crept over to taunt Beerus the cat: "Beerus, you've got no eye for talent and no class whatsoever. Looks like Grand Zeno is going to erase you pretty soon. Hee hee hee."
Beerus didn't flinch one bit. He stood up on his seat and went head-to-head with all three of them — Quitela, Champa, and Vermoud — trading insults alone.
The other Destroyers nearby didn't join the squabble, but they were clearly enjoying the show.
Beerus really did have terrible social standing. When he was getting dogpiled, not a single soul came to his defense.
"Hah — hah — hah —" After more than thirty exchanges with Jiren, Son Goku was gulping air, forehead drenched in sweat. He'd studied Ultra Instinct, but unfortunately had never managed to unlock it. For now, he was still fighting the traditional way — stacking transformations to boost his power.
When Super Saiyan Blue alone couldn't bring down Jiren, he went all in: on top of Super Saiyan Blue, he stacked Kaio-ken x10. Around his body, alongside the blue divine aura of God Power, a second layer of deep crimson flame erupted into being.
Battle power increased tenfold. Stamina consumption increased tenfold as well.
Under that relentless storm of attacks, Jiren's shirt tore in places. The mighty warrior glanced at his own shoulder, where a massive bruise had bloomed — the mark left by Son Goku's Super Saiyan Blue Kaio-ken combo.
Jiren was silent for two seconds. Then he ripped off his shirt.
"You are powerful," he said. "Since I defeated Lord Vermoud, the Destroyer of my own universe, you are the first opponent I have faced who was this strong. And yet — the combat ability you're wielding now is bought with a massive drain on your stamina. You are not my equal."
Son Goku grinned, eyes blazing with the pure joy of battle. "You're the strongest opponent I've ever faced too. This is incredible. My family and friends are waiting for me — I'm not going to lose."
Even though he could feel that his stamina was draining at an unnervingly rapid pace, Son Goku's mind wasn't built for complicated analysis. He let out a roar and hurled himself at Jiren again.
Ino, serving as referee, looked off into the distance. How strange.
The stamina Son Goku was burning through was enormous by any personal measure — but on a universal scale, it was negligible. Yet Ino wasn't watching the arena right now. She was watching the space outside the World of Void, and she could sense that the energy bleeding off from Son Goku's exertion — along with some portion of the energy from the two universes Grand Zeno had erased earlier — was flowing somewhere unknown.
Is someone using that energy to create a brand-new universe?
The Grand Minister was a man of deep schemes, and Grand Zeno was still just a young child. How universes were built and how the cosmic balance was maintained — all of that was Grand Zeno's domain, nothing to do with the Supreme Kai of Time. Ino felt it wasn't her place to intervene.
She looked for a moment, then said nothing.
The tournament continued.
Twenty-two minutes into the Tournament of Power, only a third of the original competitors remained on the stage.
The Seventh Universe's warriors had been scattered after Son Gohan engaged Hit, and everyone was left to fight on their own. Vegeta and Nappa, after years of flying solo, teamed up again.
It had to be said — fighting side by side once more, the two of them fell into sync with almost no effort at all.
To conserve his stamina, Vegeta held back at Super Saiyan 2, leaving Nappa to charge the front lines on his behalf.
The Nappa of today had truly come into his own. He still rocked the bald hard-man look, but when he hit Super Saiyan 3, a massive golden beard cascaded all the way down to his stomach — an imposing sight, paired with his enormous, powerful frame. He looked every bit like a war god descended from the heavens.
Super Saiyan 3 demanded exceptional physical conditioning, and Vegeta had always been held back by his shorter stature. He'd never cracked that transformation. Nappa, at two and a half meters tall with a constitution to match, could sustain Super Saiyan 3 for a very long time.
As the two fought on, they found themselves squared off against the Eleventh Universe Pride Troopers' two other top fighters — everyone except Jiren, that is.
Captain Toppo and member "Sonic Warrior" Dyspo, a humanoid creature that resembled a rabbit.
Vegeta vs. Toppo. Nappa vs. Dyspo.
Dyspo was fast; Nappa was strong. After more than ten exchanges, neither could gain the upper hand.
Vegeta's side was the one struggling. With only Super Saiyan 2, he simply couldn't match Apprentice Destroyer Toppo. He hesitated, unsure whether he should commit his full power to the fight.
Ino, as referee, glanced toward Grand Zeno.
"Your Majesty Grand Zeno — that Toppo appears to be the Eleventh Universe's Apprentice Destroyer. Under the tournament's rules, he shouldn't be eligible to participate in the Tournament of Power."
The Grand Minister clasped his hands behind his back, smile serene, as though he hadn't heard a word.
Grand Zeno blinked, then nodded blankly. "Mm, Little Ino is right — that is indeed a violation. So then, let's…"
He raised his hand, ready to erase Toppo on the spot.
Vermoud, the Eleventh Universe's Destroyer, abandoned his shouting match with Beerus mid-sentence and scrambled to Grand Zeno's side in two desperate strides.
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