"How did Shen get so strong all of a sudden?" Beneath his sunglasses, Master Roshi's eyes sharpened. "It's only been three years. What happened to him in that time?"
The power Master Shen had just displayed far exceeded anything Roshi had expected.
If anyone on this earth knew Master Shen best, it was Master Roshi.
The two had once been fellow disciples under Master Mutaito. They had been comrades-in-arms against the Demon King who sought to destroy the world. They were also rivals, nemeses who had clashed for decades.
"The winner, Devilman!"
While the group had been talking, Devilman had efficiently dispatched his opponent, Toranosuke. The two weren't even in the same league.
Now only the final two contestants remained in the Round of 16.
"The last match, Mr. Shen (Kami) versus the Assassin (Mercenary Tao). Both contestants, please take the stage."
Mercenary Tao was the man who had arrived with Master Shen, his body still shrouded beneath a cloak. He gave a light leap and landed at the center of the arena.
"Shame. Not Turtle School." A middle-aged man's voice emerged from within the cloak. The tone carried no emotion whatsoever, and yet it radiated pure killing intent.
"Mr. Shen. Mr. Shen... has Mr. Shen arrived yet?" When the other contestant failed to appear, the announcer started calling out.
"Oh dear, sorry, sorry!" A flustered voice finally rang out, just as the announcer was about to declare the Mercenary Tao the winner by default.
A comical middle-aged man came rushing over at a brisk trot, one hand holding up his pants, the other waving frantically.
"Stomach trouble. Ended up in the bathroom a little longer than I planned. Sorry to keep everyone waiting."
The man spoke with such theatrical anxiety that the audience burst into laughter.
"Hmph." Tao let out a dismissive scoff and ignored him.
"Mr. Shen, please, get up there," the announcer said, pointing toward the arena.
"Right away!" Shen (Kami) scurried toward the stage, only for his left foot to catch his right mid-stride, sending him sprawling flat on his face. Another round of laughter rippled through the crowd.
"How long do you plan to keep playing the clown with this pathetic act?" Tao's cold voice brought Kami up short.
Kami looked down. Something shifted in his expression. "Ah. You noticed, did you?"
"Didn't think there was anyone in the world who could pick up on me." Kami dropped the goofy grin. He still looked a bit ridiculous, but the air about him was entirely different now. "Tell me, where did I slip up? I thought my acting was decent."
"Haha." Tao let out a soft laugh. Beneath the cloak, the corner of his mouth tugged upward. "Your movements may look sluggish, but that slowness is a front, you've got complete control. Your footwork seems unsteady, but your stance is rock-solid."
"You look wide open everywhere. But in reality..." Tao's voice dropped lower. "You've got no openings at all."
"My eyes aren't just for show. You think this World's Number One Assassin is a fraud?"
"World's Number One Assassin?" Kami nodded thoughtfully. "Truly a title well-earned."
The assassin flung off his cloak.
"That's Mercenary Tao?!" Goku shouted.
Cruel eyes. An inverted-triangle gaze that dismissed all living things. The trademark braid down the back of his head, that pencil mustache.
Who else could it be but Mercenary Tao?
Notably, this Tao's cheekbones sat higher than they had years ago, his jawline sharper and more angular.
"T-Tao" Tien stared, the word slipping out unbidden.
Tao had once been his goal. The figure he admired most.
"Hm?" Naruto studied Tao's fully human appearance and looked genuinely surprised. "Not Cyborg Tao?"
Cyborg Tao was what Master Shen created after finding Tao gravely wounded, blown up by his own grenade during an ambush on Goku. Master Shen spent every last zeni Tao had saved to rebuild him with mechanical parts.
Notably, according to established data, Cyborg Tao's combat power sat at 200.
The Tao standing before them now clearly exceeded 200 by a wide margin. Master Shen's interference had altered Tao's fate.
"You may continue to call me Mercenary Tao." Tao spoke coldly, unleashing his full aura. "But I prefer my other name."
"Android 11."
'Android 11?'
Tao squared off against Kami.
"World's Number One Assassin." Kami's expression hardened as he faced Tao, who had now released his ki. "I have never encountered such evil ki in a human before."
Was Tao evil? His entrance had been framed by a few comedic moments, but the man was truly ruthless. In just a few brief scenes, he had killed multiple people.
First, he killed General Blue of the Red Ribbon Army with his tongue. Upon arriving at the Sacred Land of Korin, he casually took someone's spear and murdered the guardian, Bora. Had it not been for the Four-Star Dragon Ball, young Goku would have died under his Dodon Ray as well.
Later, when his clothes were damaged by a Kamehameha, he visited a tailor shop to order a custom outfit. Unwilling to pay, he offered to kill someone for the shop owner as compensation. The shop owner had no one he wanted dead, so Tao killed the shop owner.
Couldn't solve the problem? Then solve the person who had the problem. Though that shop owner was truly innocent.
Compared to the later villains who destroyed planets with casual ease, none of them matched Tao when it came to the visceral detail of murder.
Capricious. Self-serving. Killing on a whim.
"So what if I'm evil? What if I'm not?" Tao scoffed. "If you value your life, leave now. You are not my target. I have no interest in wasting energy on meaningless people."
"I have only one goal: kill Son Goku and exterminate every last member of the Turtle School."
Tao turned his murderous gaze toward Goku.
"You are the only stain on my career as an assassin. And a stain must be erased."
'This borrowed body may not be his match.' Kami glanced at Piccolo standing on the rooftop, then back at Tao, making his decision. 'No. There are things that must be done.'
Kami charged. Chops and fists crashed into Tao, holding nothing back. What surprised him was that Tao did not retaliate. He kept his hands clasped behind his back, standing motionless like a wooden post, letting Kami strike as he pleased.
"Is that the full extent of your power?" Tao glanced sidelong at the hand-chop resting against his neck. "It doesn't hurt or itch. About the same as a mosquito bite."
Without a second thought, he threw a punch. Kami had no time to dodge. The fist connected squarely with his nose, and blood streamed down at once.
Kami had never expected Tao to possess such overwhelming strength.
'The borrowed body is injured.'
Injured in the very first exchange. Clearly, he was no match for his opponent.
"His combat power is... 1000 points." Bulma pointed at Tao and shouted.
That figure was the highest among everyone present, aside from Naruto, Goku, and Piccolo. No wonder he could claim he would kill Goku.
"The taste of blood." Tao glanced at the trace clinging to his fist and licked it. The moment the blood touched his taste buds, he spat. "Pathetic. Inferior blood."
He tilted his head up, looking down at Kami with contempt. "Get lost. Staying here serves no purpose."
"Lucky for you, I won't kill anyone before I face Son Goku."
Kami's combat power at that moment was a pitiful 220. He was clearly no match for Tao.
The Kami of Earth, yet weaker than an assassin.
In a sense, Kami had been left behind by the times. He could no longer keep up with the pace of change.
"See that? That's my younger brother's strength." Watching Tao display his might, Master Shen stroked his beard, practically more excited than if he had won the match himself. "Pray. Pray you don't draw us in the next round."
"We two brothers will slaughter every last one of you."
"Interesting Earthling." Piccolo looked at the Crane School brothers, a rare hint of interest on his face. "If they could be corrupted into Demons, taking them as subordinates wouldn't be out of the question."
"Their strength is decent, at least."
'Should I use that?' Kami, skilled at sensing ki, knew full well he was outmatched. He clenched his fists, then let them go a moment later, as if he had made a decision.
'No. That technique must not be revealed here. It was prepared specifically for him.'
Kami raised his right hand and called out to the referee. "I forfeit."
"A wise choice." Tao bared his teeth.
With Tao's victory, the lineup for the Round of 16 was set. Next came the quarterfinals, and another round of brackets would be drawn.
There was still daylight left, so the first match of the quarterfinals began.
"First match: Son Goku vs. Devilman."
"Both contestants, please enter the arena."
Devilman flapped his wings and landed on the arena stage, his gaze fixed on Goku. "Of all the opponents, he's the one I least wanted to face."
Apart from his formidable strength, Devilman held one ultimate hidden card, a power so overwhelming it bordered on broken: the Devilmite Beam.
It stirred the target's inner evil, swelling it endlessly until it destroyed them.
In the manga, Devilman's technique failed to work on Goku, so it looked unimpressive, as if it had no real record to speak of. In truth, that was only because the target was Goku. Against anyone else, the outcome would have been far different. Devilman appeared as a playable character in the game Budokai Tenkaichi 3.
In the Unexpected Savior storyline, when Frieza arrived on Earth, Trunks never came. Goku never came. The Z Fighters couldn't stop Frieza. It was Devilman who finished him.
In that version, the Devilmite Beam was a technique that killed everone alike.
"I remember now. I've fought you before." Devilman stared at Goku, and Goku stared right back. "You're Granny Nano's subordinate."
"Not Granny Nano," Devilman corrected him. "It's Granny Natto, huh?"
"Whatever, either one works. Point is, let's fight again." Devilman's fighting spirit blazed. "This time, I'll settle the score."
"Son! Go! Kuuu!"
Devilman charged in, taking the initiative.
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