Thanks to the announcer's wildly imaginative commentary and the audience's own anticipation, order was somehow maintained at the tournament grounds.
But for Piccolo, Raditz, Vegeta, Gine, Krillin, and Chi-Chi, their focus was entirely on the opposite side of the planet—toward the world's edge.
Goku had clearly unleashed his final Kamehameha…
Just sensing that level of energy was enough to make their hearts tremble. The Super Saiyan's power was unreal.
And Yamiru, who could rival that Goku, was equally incomprehensible.
"It should be over by now…" Krillin muttered, gazing at the horizon. "Who knows where they even ended up…"
---
WHOOSH…
On opposite ends of the world, two figures hurtled over oceans and grasslands.
Goku's eyes snapped open. Gasping for breath, he forced his exhausted body to flare golden once more. With a grunt, he pivoted midair—BOOM!—and shot forward along his trajectory, accelerating instead of slowing.
Yamiru's golden eyes gleamed. White light shimmered around him as he, too, embraced the momentum, streaking across the sky like a comet.
BOOM—
The golden streak tore over mountains, Goku's bloodshot eyes locked ahead, fist leading the charge.
SWOOSH—
Yamiru's afterimage flickered above cities, his focus unbroken.
CRASH!
Gold and white collided once more—directly above the tournament arena.
A second sun seemed to ignite in the sky!
Blinding light erupted, forcing everyone below to shield their eyes—except the announcer, who frantically wiped his sunglasses and yelled into the mic:
"THEY'RE BACK! YAMIRU AND SON GOKU HAVE RETURNED—!!"
"This is too much… Is this really the World Martial Arts Tournament?" Krillin groaned, rubbing his eyes.
"I actually fought that Goku earlier…" Chi-Chi whispered, half in awe, half in horror.
"Tch…!" Vegeta squinted upward, refusing to look away even as his eyes burned.
As the light faded, the sky was left pristine—not a cloud in sight, just endless blue.
Then—
A golden figure plummeted from the heavens.
Bulma adjusted her sunglasses, a hand over her mouth. Tights gripped her sister's arm, knuckles white.
Goku fell limply, battered and spent, not even enough energy left to pick his nose…
Fragments of false-yet-real memories flashed through his mind—
Planet Vegeta's destruction. Bardock and Gine's final moments. Bulma's terrified face. Yamiru exploding before his eyes…
Through the haze, he saw him—Yamiru, hovering high above, watching his descent with that infuriating calm.
A surge of rage burned through Goku's exhaustion.
His lips peeled back in a grin.
"DON'T YOU—HOLD BACK ON ME!!"
CRACK!
A bolt of golden lightning struck him mid-fall!
Goku halted in midair—
His dwindling energy surged anew, exploding outward like a wildfire!
BOOOOOOM!
A hurricane of power slammed into the earth. Buildings on Papaya Island trembled. The audience was sent sprawling, screams filling the air as Goku's roar shook the heavens.
Golden flames erupted, laced with crackling lightning—a Super Saiyan reborn.
The pressure was suffocating. Gine's barrier strained—until Piccolo flew over, reinforcing it and expanding its reach to shield every spectator.
Vegeta's throat went dry. His knees nearly buckled as he stared at the figure wreathed in lightning—Goku's hair spikier than ever, his profile almost unrecognizable in its intensity.
"What kind of monsters are Saiyans…?" Krillin plopped onto his butt.
"KA…"
Amidst the storm, Goku's cold gaze locked onto Yamiru. His hands cupped at his waist—HUM—a golden sphere forming between them.
"ME…"
The orb pulsed—expanding, compressing, over and over.
"HA…"
Golden lightning snaked around the gathering energy.
Goku's energy peaked—higher than ever before—every last drop poured into this final Kamehameha.
"—MEHAAAAAA!!!!"
When the golden beam, wreathed in lightning, lanced into the sky, the world fell silent and gray. Nothing existed except that pillar of light.
Raditz and Vegeta stood frozen, souls seemingly drained. Gine and Piccolo stared upward, sweat dripping. Tights clutched Gine's arm, lips moving in frantic questions. Bulma murmured something, eyes locked on the golden figure. Krillin, Chi-Chi, the audience, the announcer—all could only gape in stunned disbelief.
A Kamehameha powerful enough to vaporize a solar system roared toward Yamiru—
Reflected in his golden pupils.
White light shimmered around him. One palm extended, one fist clenched. A slow breath—
Then, he punched the oncoming tsunami of energy.
BOOOOOOM…
From space, a perfectly circular hole tore through Earth's clouds, rippling outward in concentric waves…
---
CRACK. CRACK. POP.
The audience dumbly watched the energy barrier fracture—then shatter into glittering motes.
Piccolo panted, drenched in sweat.
Gine knelt, shaken by the backlash.
The announcer, Krillin, Chi-Chi—all stood slack-jawed, eyes bulging, mirroring Raditz and Vegeta's expressions as they stared at the vanished stage.
Only a crater remained, dozens of meters deep.
At its center—
Goku, black-haired once more.
His right arm was gone. Half his face and torso were charred ruin. Smoke curled from his hair and skin.
He looked one breath from death.
WHOOSH—
Yamiru descended, landing silently beside him.
Ignoring the announcer's belated declaration of his victory, Yamiru gazed down at Goku's broken form.
A weak cough. A bloody grin.
"That… was… fun…"
"Yeah," Yamiru agreed, kneeling next to him.
Goku's fading eyes met his. His cracked lips twitched. "Heh… You… lied…"
"GOKU!!" Bulma screamed, lunging forward—only for Gine to freeze her in place with a spell.
'She's pregnant, for heaven's sake. And besides…'
Yamiru gestured to Piccolo, who startled before flying over.
As Piccolo landed, Goku ignored him, his smoldering gaze locked on Yamiru.
"Why… can't I… sense… your… ki?"
Yamiru smiled.
"Want to learn? I'll teach you."