"Next match: Tien Shinhan versus the Mummy."
"Both contestants, please enter the arena."
Tien, wearing a black vest, stepped onto the arena at the same time as the heavily-treading Mummy.
"Huh? I feel like I've seen that guy somewhere before." Goku stared at the Mummy, sinking deep into thought. Then he frowned. "You're too close, Chi-Chi."
"This is how married couples are supposed to be." Chi-Chi clung to Goku's arm, pressing her body against him with a blissful smile.
"Yeah, but your butt is squishing me."
"That's the Mummy-man from Fortunebeller Baba's place," Krillin recognized him and explained to the others. "Yamcha actually lost to him back in the day."
"It's not Fortunebeller Baba, it's Fortuneceller Baba," Yamcha corrected. But as soon as the words left his mouth, he paused. "Wait, huh?"
"It's not Fortuneceller Baba! It's clearly Fortunebunker Baba!" Oolong and Puar chimed in together.
"What nonsense are you all babbling about?" Master Roshi sighed, unable to watch any longer. "That's my sister, Fortunemuddy Baba!"
But as soon as the words left his mouth, Master Roshi fell silent too.
He knew the correct name in his head, but whenever he tried to say it, it somehow came out as something else.
The Mummy was far stronger than before, but he was no match for Tien. A few moves were all it took to knock him off the arena.
"You're far out of your league in strength. Losing is only natural. Go report to Shura's side when you get back."
He couldn't exactly blame the Mummy for this. Asking someone with a quarter of the opponent's combat power to win was a completely impossible task. And he clearly wasn't a tactical fighter like Krillin to begin with.
"Next match: Ma Junior versus Yamcha."
He almost choked on his own spit. Of all the people he could have faced, it had to be the Demon King's son...
"Both contestants, please step into the arena."
Yamcha's face was miserable, but he didn't forfeit. He chose to enter.
"I'll go scout out Piccolo's strength for you guys."
"Be careful. He is seriously powerful." Goku warned before he left.
'No kidding he's powerful. Bulma said my combat power is a bit over 600, and his is around 1500, almost a threefold gap.'
Staring at the green-skinned Piccolo and feeling his terrifying aura, Yamcha swallowed hard and flashed a polite, awkward smile. "Hello."
"A human martial artist." Piccolo stared coldly at Yamcha. Having inherited Demon King Piccolo's memories, he recognized him. "You were among those who fought my father back then."
Even though Yamcha had just been a background extra to fill the numbers.
"Three minutes." Piccolo raised three fingers. "You get three minutes. In that time, you can use everything you've got. Do your absolute best to entertain me. If you satisfy me, I might consider sparing your life."
"But if you fail to satisfy me, then you can go to Hell and beg my father for forgiveness."
Yamcha's anger surged past his fear. "I'm a member of the Turtle School, I'll have you know. Get careless, and you'll take a bad loss just like your subordinate did."
Piccolo simply nodded. "That method Baldy just used, you can try it too."
It wasn't that Yamcha didn't want to use Krillin's tactic. He just didn't know the Solar Flare at all.
"Damn it..." Yamcha leaned forward, gathering ki between his claws. "Take this!"
"Wolf Fang Fist!"
Yamcha lunged at Piccolo like a lone wolf.
"Oh? A technique that imitates an animal's hunting method."
Another breath. This one nearly shattered Yamcha's bones.
"Hurry up and show me something interesting."
Yamcha unleashed every technique he had learned, but none of them had any effect against Piccolo. His desperate assault yielded nothing. It didn't take long before he was battered and bloody all over.
"Why isn't Yamcha using the Kamehameha?" Krillin watched Yamcha being pummeled and asked in confusion.
Naruto saw through Yamcha's intentions. "Actually, it wouldn't matter if they saw it. The defining trait of the Kamehameha is that a thousand different people will have a thousand different ways of using it. Everyone's ki is unique, so the techniques derived from it end up being completely different too."
"Don't you have any more interesting moves?" Piccolo's expression showed regret as he looked at Yamcha, swaying on the verge of collapse. "Then you have no value left."
Yamcha gave a bleak smile. He'd thought he could probe the opponent's strength, get at least some sense of it, but the guy had blown a few puffs of air and he was already finished.
"I was planning to save this move for Goku." Yamcha clamped his left hand tight around his right wrist. "Looks like I'll have to use it early."
"Oh? Concentrating all your ki into your palm?" A rare flicker of curiosity crossed Piccolo's face.
A pale glow flared, and a perfectly round ki blast materialized in Yamcha's palm.
"Ha!" Yamcha brought two fingers together and pointed at Piccolo. The ki blast shot toward him as if following a command.
"Witness my strongest technique, the Spirit Ball!"
There it was. Technique in the 'Dragon Ball' universe similar to Spirit Bomb which took down many top tier enemies.
*Beep, beep, beep.* Bulma's scouter blared in her ear.
Spirit Ball combat power, 880!
"A rather interesting technique." Piccolo nodded, making no attempt to dodge, fully intending to take this ki blast head-on. "But the attack pattern is too one-dimensional."
Yamcha's lips curled into a smirk. "The ultimate secret of the Spirit Ball is-"
Just as the ki blast was about to slam into Piccolo, Yamcha shouted.
"-I can control this power freely!"
He flicked his two fingers upward.
'Above!'
*Whoosh!* The ki blast changed trajectory and shot skyward.
Even Piccolo was caught off guard.
Yamcha kept manipulating the ki blast, swinging it in a high-speed loop around to Piccolo's back.
"Go!"
Yamcha slashed his hand forward. The ki blast rocketed straight into Piccolo's back.
"Got him!"
But the ki blast passed straight through Piccolo's body without resistance.
Afterimage Technique!
"Your ki control isn't precise enough." A hand with sharp talons reached out and seized Yamcha's Spirit Ball. "Were you so focused on controlling this ki blast that you lost awareness of your surroundings?"
"An interesting technique. I'm satisfied." Piccolo stared at the captured ki blast for a few seconds, then squeezed. The Spirit Ball, holding all of Yamcha's power, burst effortlessly in his grip.
"Congratulations. You get to keep your life."
He flicked his hand lightly at Yamcha. A fierce gust of wind hurled Yamcha clear out of the ring.
"Winner, Ma Junior."
"As expected of our King." Wu bellowed the moment the announcer made the call. "That elegant fighting style is something we could never hope to learn in a lifetime."
Devilman shot Wu a discreet glance. That shameless flattery technique of yours is something I could never hope to learn in a lifetime.
"Master Shen vs. Chiaotzu. Will both contestants please enter the ring."
"M-Master." Chiaotzu stood before Master Shen, stammering.
"Traitor. Do you have anything to say for yourself?" Master Shen stroked his beard and spoke softly. "Do you have any idea how miserable these past three years have been for me?"
"If you had just listened to me back then..."
"I-I'm... sorry."
Against anyone else, Chiaotzu would never have crumbled like this. But facing Master Shen was different. After all, Master Shen had practically raised Chiaotzu with his own hands.
Master Shen pointed a trembling finger at Chiaotzu. "The most unforgivable part is that neither of you bastards ever had the slightest intention of looking for me."
His eyes flared red in an instant. "Three years. Three whole years. Every single morning I woke up to that brat, that bespectacled demon!"
'And crap.'
Those last words, Master Shen simply could not bring himself to say aloud.
"I'm not letting either of you off easy."
Master Shen ground his teeth in fury. He had assumed his two disciples couldn't find him all these years, that was why they never came. Then he returned and learned that his disciples hadn't even bothered to look for him, instead running off to train at Kami's Lookout. Master Shen's resentment detonated.
"Especially Tien."
"I'll make you both understand the price of betraying your master and forsaking your school."
"Tien." Chiaotzu murmured under his breath. His whole body had been trembling, but the moment he heard Master Shen threaten revenge against Tien, he pulled himself together.
He aimed both hands at Master Shen. An blue light flashed in his eyes.
The sign of his psychic powers activating.
But the psychic ability that caught even Goku off guard, that had never failed before, was utterly useless against Master Shen. As Chiaotzu's master, he knew Chiaotzu's abilities inside and out.
"Give it up. I raised you since you were a child. I know the limits of your psychic powers better than you do."
Master Shen walked toward Chiaotzu, step by step. Each step hammered into Chiaotzu's chest like a sledgehammer. By the time Master Shen stood before him, Chiaotzu had abandoned all resistance.
Even at his current level of strength, with his psychic powers neutralized, he could still have traded a few blows with his master. But his will had broken.
"Chiaotzu." Master Shen reached out and placed his hand on Chiaotzu's head.
In the next instant, Chiaotzu lost consciousness.
"Winner, Master Shen."
"Chiaotzu."
"Relax. I didn't kill him." Master Shen fixed a murderous glare on Tien. "You, on the other hand, I'm not so sure about."
"I know exactly what kind of person Chiaotzu is. The kid has no mind of his own. He would never betray me. He doesn't have the guts. But he did." Master Shen's voice hardened. "So someone got into his head. And the only one who could... is you, Tien."
He looked Tien up and down. "Three years apart has given you and those Turtle School scum a major boost. But you're still no match for me."
Master Shen's body erupted with terrifying pressure.
"Wait and see. I'll show you all a very warm welcome."
An arrogant laugh trailed behind him as he walked away and vanished from sight.
===============
Dear Readers and Fans,
For those eager to dive into next chapters earlier before others, I invite you to join us on Patreon. By becoming our Patron, you not only gain access to exclusive advanced chapters but also help us continue this endeavour and expand it further.
pat reo n.co m /8Ashes8
(no space)
You can read upto 30 Chapters in advance.