"Perfect. Let me see the strength of the one who defeated my father for myself." The moment Devilman and Goku clashed, Piccolo's interest sharpened.
He knew exactly how strong Devilman was. After all, Devilman had been his sparring partner for over two years now. By watching them fight, Piccolo could roughly gauge what level Son Goku had reached.
"Hah!"
*Papapapapapa!*
The instant they started, both launched into a rapid-fire sequence of punches and kicks invisible to the naked eye. Devilman's training partner for the past two years had been Piccolo, so his fighting style now leaned toward the Demon Clan.
Goku fought in standard Turtle School form, carrying a touch of that unique aura from his training at Kami's Lookout.
After several dozen exchanges, they broke apart, each retreating to one side. In that first clash, neither had gained the slightest advantage.
"As I thought, you've gotten way stronger over the years." Devilman sighed. Back then, this kid had taken him out in just a few hits.
He'd assumed that he himself had grown far more powerful by now. He hadn't expected his opponent's progress to match his own.
"As I thought..." Devilman rubbed his hands, still faintly numb from the exchange, and weighed his options.
The Devilmite Beam wasn't his only move. Devilman's true specialty was fighting with a trident. Unfortunately, the Budokai Tenkaichi banned weapons, which put a serious dent in his combat ability.
That only left him more outmatched than before.
"Guess I've got no choice but to use that move."
Android 11, Mercenary Tao also originates from Dragon Ball Sai.
"In the past, this move didn't work on you. Probably because you were too young to understand anything." Devilman pointed two fingers at his own temples, his gaze fixed on Goku. "Now you've grown into an adult."
He glanced offstage at Chi-Chi, who was cheering for Goku. "And you've got a beautiful wife to boot."
"The you of now is no longer the pure-hearted, desireless person you once were."
"So this move will definitely work on you."
Emerald light gathered at Devilman's fingertips. The Turtle School fighters trembled. Even Naruto eyed that beam with deep wariness.
"Farewell, Son! Goku!"
The green beam shot straight at Goku.
Piccolo watched the energy wave with curiosity. "Too bad it's so slow."
Indeed, the wind-up for Devilman's move was simply too long. If his opponent were Piccolo instead of Goku, he would already be on the ground by now. Who would just stand there and watch their opponent charge an ultimate move without interrupting it?
Though the Devilmite Beam took an extremely long time to charge, once unleashed, it was guaranteed to hit its target.
Sure enough, Goku was struck by the Devilmite Beam.
"Atatatata!" Acting as if nothing had happened, Goku rushed forward and unleashed a flurry of attacks on Devilman's abdomen, finishing with a flying kick that sent him off the arena.
"Still didn't work... this is the second time..." With those words, Devilman's head lolled to the side, and he lost consciousness.
"The winner, Contestant Son Goku!"
One of the Top 4 was decided.
"Master Shen VS Naruto Uzumaki."
"Hahaha, I've finally been waiting for this moment." Master Shen burst into laughter when he saw the names displayed on the tournament bracket, using Flight to ascend onto the arena.
"I initially planned to deal with that Turtle School trash, but I never expected the first one I'd run into would be you. But this is fine too. I'll kill you first, then go settle things with those bastards."
Naruto also used Flight to land on the arena. He didn't bother refuting Master Shen's words, instead responding with a dismissive, "Yeah, sure, whatever you say."
"It seems you haven't yet understood the gravity of the situation. The one standing before you is no longer the me of before, but a me who has been reborn."
Master Shen was clearly dissatisfied with Naruto's attitude and began boasting about himself.
"Right, right, right. Definitely." Still that dismissive answer. Naruto's gaze began to drift.
"Do you know what kind of experiences I've endured? Don't worry, I'll repay every single one of them upon your body. I'll make you taste what it means to wish you were dead."
"Mm-hmm, mm-hmm." Naruto waved his hand dismissively, turning his back to look toward Piccolo.
"You brat!" Master Shen was thoroughly enraged. He concentrated all his ki into the index finger of his right hand.
"Let me show you my true power now!"
At that moment, Master Shen's combat power shot past 1,200 points, reaching the level of a Saibaman. Even Piccolo and Goku looked at him with grave expressions.
The energy at Master Shen's fingertip condensed to the size of a dragon ball. Seeing Naruto's distracted attitude, Master Shen could no longer contain himself. He thrust his finger toward Naruto.
"Repent in hell!"
"Super Dodon Ray!"
A beam over ten times thicker than an ordinary Dodon Ray erupted from his fingertip, shooting straight toward Naruto.
The moment Master Roshi sensed the unusual ki at Master Shen's fingertip, he knew something was wrong. When he heard the technique name, his face went pale with shock. "Look out! It's the Super Dodon Ray! No, Naruto, dodge it now! That's not something you can handle, huh?"
Before he could finish his warning, in the very instant the beam was about to pierce through Naruto's body, Naruto casually swatted it aside with a lazy swing of his hand.
That supercharged Dodon Ray, packing the power of a Saibaman, had been swatted out of existence with one slap.
Master Shen was so stunned that literal snot bubbles popped from his nose. His expression matched the one Mercenary Tao wore when Goku blocked his Dodon Ray, brothers through and through.
"What? Are you talking to me?" Naruto turned his head, looking completely innocent.
'He's doing it on purpose. This brat is definitely doing it on purpose.'
The thought flashed through Krillin and the others' minds simultaneously.
"Im... impossible... My Super Dodon Ray... impossible..." Whether from shock or a broken mind, Master Shen kept repeating the same words.
The Super Dodon Ray was his ultimate technique. It had failed against exactly one person before, the kid in the glasses and suspenders.
"You're thinking about Arale Norimaki? Oh, I get it. You want to go back to Penguin Village." Naruto seemed to see straight through him. "Should've said so. I bet she misses you too."
"No, I don't, " The moment he heard that name, Master Shen's head shook back and forth like a rattle drum. "You can read minds?"
"No, I can't," Naruto denied immediately, spreading his hands. "I just happen to be able to see things."
"Hold on tight then."
In the next instant, Naruto appeared behind Master Shen, his right hand clamping onto the old man's shoulder.
"The Naruto Express Train is about to depart. Passengers, please prepare for departure."
"No, I don't want to go back. Please stop!"
Master Shen tried to flee, but before he could move, the space around them twisted. The world spun violently.
Then, *WHAM*, the same landing as always, the same familiar scene.
"Oh my, you're finally back."
That voice. That nightmare.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!" Master Shen shrieked. His composure shattered completely. He bolted forward without a second thought, screaming, "Help me! I don't want to be in this hellhole ever again!"
"Ooohohoho." Arale tilted her head, watching Master Shen's figure vanish over the horizon. Her wide mouth stretched into a grin, showing two rows of gleaming white teeth. "I get it, this is a game of tag now."
"So I'm the one who's It! Hahahaha."
"This is fun, so much fun."
"Here I come!"
Arale transformed into a flash of lightning and shot after him, moving at over three times Master Shen's speed.
"Naruto, where did Master Shen go?" The announcer stared dumbfounded at the arena, where Naruto now stood alone.
"Him? He went where he belongs."
"So... he's out of bounds?" the announcer asked, unsure.
After getting Naruto's confirmation, the announcer explained the situation to the audience. But he couldn't just take Naruto's word for it. He began a countdown. If Master Shen managed to reappear in the arena before time ran out, the match would resume.
Unfortunately, by the time the announcer finished counting down, there was still no sign of Master Shen.
"The winner, Naruto!"
"Master Shen has a power level over 1200 and Naruto still beat him?" Bulma fumed. "And here I was worried he couldn't win. That damn liar tricked me into thinking his power level was only 500."
Naruto had never actually told Bulma his power level was 500, that number came from Bulma scanning him in secret.
"Tien Shinhan VS Krillin"
This match was far less exciting. Both had trained together at Kami's Lookout, and they knew each other's strength inside and out. Calling it a fight was generous, it was more like two fellow students who knew every move the other had, just feeling each other out.
In the end, Tien's power edged out by the slimmest of margins. Krillin had plenty of tricky moves up his sleeve, but Tien knew him far too well for any of them to land as a surprise.
Since he'd burned through most of his ki, Tien had no choice but to take a Senzu Bean to restore his stamina. Without the Senzu Bean Killer around, Master Korin's stock was completely full.
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