On Universe 6's spectator stand, Champa grabbed Caulifla by the shoulders and gave her a stern warning.
"Listen, you brat. This fight decides whether our universe lives or dies. You will fight the way I told you to!"
Caulifla slapped his paw away. "Yeah, yeah! Stop nagging!"
Kale stepped forward, worry written all over her face. "Senpai… are you sure you can do this?"
"Of course!" Caulifla grinned with full confidence. "I'm a genius among Saiyans. I'm not gonna be as useless as Cabba!"
Cabba lowered his head in shame. "Sorry… I let everyone down."
"It's fine!" Caulifla waved it off. "If you'd won, I wouldn't even get to go out there. Don't beat yourself up. I'll teach that guy a lesson for you."
"If you've got that kind of confidence, good." Champa's tone turned heavy. "Our universe's hope is riding on you. Honestly… I don't trust Kale at all."
Caulifla hooked an arm around Kale's shoulders. "Relax. I'm not letting anyone bully my underclassman."
"Senpai…"
"The fighters for the fourth round are as follows," the Grand Priest announced, his voice calm as ever. "Universe 6's Caulifla, Universe 7's Levos, Universe 9's Roselle, and Universe 10's Napapa."
The arena was almost fully repaired, and the roster dropped like a hammer.
"Levos, it's finally your turn." Goku patted Levos on the shoulder, his eyes bright with anticipation.
"If Mr. Levos is entering, victory is assured," Supreme Kai Shin said lightly, as if he'd already decided the winner.
Levos's foot slipped. He nearly face-planted.
That "ultimate causality weapon" joke was something Dragon Ball fans always teased about, and Levos had always scoffed at it.
But when it landed on him…
He felt a chill crawl up his spine anyway.
Should I get him to say something unlucky to cancel it out…?
Then he immediately decided he was overthinking.
After all, the one with the special transformation from Universe 6 wasn't up this round.
Everyone around him looked calm too calm. Theiriled with pride. Their confidence was almost stronger than his.
Even Frieza's gaze was strange, like he was saying: Hurry up and reveal yourself already, you brat.
None of them seemed to be factoring in the "split" Vados had forced on him.
"Levos! I can't wait to watch you fight!"
"I'll study every second!"
"Young Master Levos, victory is guaranteed!"
"Let those pathetic clowns witness true power… ohohoho!"
"Uh… thanks, everyone." Levos sighed inwardly. He wasn't about to betray that trust.
The fighters stepped onto the stage one after another.
Levos scanned his opponents quickly.
Caulifla didn't need an introduction. He remembered her well.
The other two were far less familiar.
Universe 9's fighter was a humanoid creature with bat wings Roselle.
Universe 10's was a fat sumo with a pig snout Napapa.
Before the match began, Caulifla looked back over her shoulder.
"Kale, don't just stand there. Watch how I fight. When it's your turn, show some spirit. Don't let anyone look down on Universe 6 Saiyans!"
"Yes!" Kale nodded hard. "Senpai, go fight! I'll be ready!"
The Grand Priest called, "Begin."
All four moved at the same time.
Levos and Caulifla shot straight at each other.
Roselle and Napapa retreated strategically to the corners.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Fists and feet met in rapid, violent collisions.
Their bodies overlapped in flashes, clashing hundreds of times in the blink of an eye.
A moment later, they separated, each sliding back several steps.
Caulifla rolled her shoulder. "Ha. You really do have something, huh? But that was just warm-up. You ready? I'm gonna show you what Saiyan power looks like!"
"Come on, then." Levos smiled.
Caulifla drew in a breath, eyes sharpening. Her muscles tensed, and a fierce energy began to build inside her.
"HAAAAA !"
A faint glow spread over her body. As her energy piled higher, her hair shifted from black to gold, and even the air seemed to tremble in anticipation.
Then burst.
A dazzling light exploded outward.
Golden aura flared around her like fire.
Her presence surged like a storm, sweeping across the arena and forcing everyone to feel the raw might of a Super Saiyan.
Even just Super Saiyan is unexpectedly strong… Champa really did master the art of stacking passive buffs, Levos thought.
But compared to Levos's base form, it still wasn't enough to matter.
Of course, suppressing his aura had long since become instinct. Unless he truly lost control, he wouldn't reveal it.
Up in the stands, Champa couldn't sit still.
"Hey! Brat! This isn't the plan! You're supposed to go all out and catch Levos off guard!"
"Hah!" Caulifla snapped back, voice firm and unapologetic. "This is my fight. I'll win it my way!"
"Damn it!" Champa nearly choked. "You dare disobey me?! Aaaagh! Just wait until we get home!"
"Shut up, you fat cat!"
"Y-you…!" Champa pointed at her, shaking with rage.
Vados smoothly produced a drink. "Lord Champa, please calm down."
Gulp gulp.
Champa downed it in one go.
PFFT
"Vados! I told you not to give me bitter melon juice!"
"Bitter melon works wonders for 'cooling down,' you know~"
Champa's face twisted. He sulked back into his seat and watched with the enthusiasm of a punished child.
What Caulifla showed was pure Saiyan spirit.
Fight in your own way. Prove yourself with your own strength. Not obsessed with the result just living for the battle itself.
Levos watched her, comparing her to Goku, and found their personalities shockingly similar.
So the fandom calling her "female Goku" wasn't exactly wrong.
Against a fighter like that, he had no reason not to show respect.
"Since you transformed," Levos said, "I'll transform too."
He began gathering energy as well.
His black hair whipped wildly. His bones crackled. Muscles swelled as his frame expanded, his body growing larger and larger.
Caulifla's eyes lit up.
In just a few seconds, the cold-faced young man became a towering brute massive shoulders, thick limbs, over two meters tall.
And those golden eyes…
They carried a pressure that hit like a wall.
"This is a transformation where we store the Great Ape's power in human form," Levos explained. "It boosts strength to ten times my base."
"So that's what it is!" Caulifla looked thrilled. "Can I do that too? I like this looks intimidating as hell!"
"Maybe." Levos didn't commit.
In canon, that form belonged to the new Broly alone. Levos had fused that bloodline into himself and eventually grasped it too.
And he could use it even without a tail.
So whether Universe 6 Saiyans could walk that road… he honestly didn't know.
The next instant, they charged again.
Rumble !
The arena shook as their clash kicked up furious winds.
Roselle and Napapa kept dodging the shockwaves with extreme caution.
At the center, the battle grew more savage by the second.
Faster. Heavier. Sharper.
Until afterimages layered across the ring and it became impossible to tell where either of them truly stood.
As he fought, Levos couldn't help but acknowledge it.
This female Saiyan was no joke.
Her technique and experience were rich still flawed in Levos's eyes, but her learning speed was top-tier.
After every exchange, Caulifla adapted almost immediately to his rhythm, hunting for counters.
That instinct, that control…
He couldn't help but respect it.
They separated again, briefly.
"Caulifla." Levos spoke evenly. "I've seen enough of your Super Saiyan. Go to the next transformation."
Dragging this out would only waste stamina, and when it came to endurance, Levos held absolute confidence.
One reason was his control over ki.
The other was the "infinite energy" he'd inherited from the Android line.
It wasn't literally endless but at this intensity, his recovery rate far outpaced his consumption.
Caulifla wiped sweat from her brow, a confident smile creeping up.
"Fine. I learned a lot from that exchange too. I want to try a new form before we keep going."
She closed her eyes, feeling the energy inside her.
Her body trembled. Her spiky golden hair stood even straighter.
Then her muscle lines started popping swelling, expanding.
Like Levos's human Great Ape form, her size also jumped.
Her clothes strained tight against sudden, dense muscle. Her upper body looked like it might rip straight through her top at any moment.
The crowd held its breath.
Everyone understood this fight would decide two universes' fates. Any breakthrough could tilt the entire match.
Champa's eyes gleamed. "Breakthrough! Yes!"
Thud.
Caulifla took one step, and the arena shivered.
"How's that?!" she said proudly, excitement in her voice. "I've reached a higher level as a Saiyan!"
Levos was surprised she hadn't gone Super Saiyan God.
So this was a mid-battle breakthrough and she'd jumped straight to Super Saiyan's third grade.
…Unfortunately, it was the wrong path.
"Then let's test it," Levos said.
Her size, strength, and aura had all clearly increased.
They collided head-on.
Caulifla's power had multiplied several times over.
As expected, Levos was forced back in the exchange but he immediately shed the force cleanly, taking no real damage.
"Your strength isn't just this, is it?" Caulifla demanded.
"No need to show more than necessary," Levos replied calmly. "You use one level, I match one level."
"Don't look down on me!"
Caulifla snapped, whipping a right roundhouse at him.
Levos tilted aside and avoided it, then gently shoved her from behind.
Plop.
Caulifla face-planted.
She lunged again, furious, but her next string of attacks couldn't touch him at all.
"Stop dodging!"
After chasing him for a moment, she felt the fatigue creeping in and instantly realized the issue.
"This form is garbage." She scowled. "It eats energy like crazy, and my speed's dragged down by the size."
She dropped back to normal immediately.
"I get it now." Caulifla stared at him. "What I just did and what you did aren't the same thing at all."
"Right." Levos nodded.
Then he explained.
What she'd used was Super Saiyan Grade 3, an in-between form on the road from Super Saiyan to Super Saiyan 2.
Grade 2 the one she skipped only slightly increases muscle mass, raises power, increases consumption, but doesn't sacrifice speed nearly as badly.
(That stage had once been proudly declared by a certain familiar prince as: I'm Super Vegeta!)
Grade 3, meanwhile, gives massive power… at the cost of huge speed loss and brutal stamina drain.
Cell, Vegeta, and Goku all agreed it was the worst possible state, because you simply can't hit anything.
Future Trunks had once mistakenly believed Grade 3 meant he'd surpassed the prince.
And above those is Super Saiyan Full Power stable, sustainable, and low-consumption.
Caulifla's eyes widened as she listened.
"So that's how it works…" She clicked her tongue. "Looks like your universe's Saiyans are ahead of us."
Then she smirked, lifting her chin.
"But for a genius like me, it's nothing. I'll surpass you all soon and carve my own path!"
Levos almost laughed.
Talent alone wasn't enough.
You had to grind like a monster.
Just look at Frieza he never stopped plotting progress, even when he was quiet.
After a short recovery, Caulifla's gaze sharpened into something serious.
"Warm-up's over. Now I'll show you my real power. Don't go down too easily!"
She closed her eyes and focused.
A moment later, her aura suddenly changed.
A red flame wrapped around her body.
She opened her eyes. A faint, icy-blue flicker passed through her pupils.
Super Saiyan God.
Red hair flowing, Caulifla looked even more youthful almost delicate.
Levos thought for a second, then transformed into a Super Saiyan.
Human Great Ape stacked with Super Saiyan
His hair turned golden.
He still hadn't activated Broly's unique form, but the power increase had already soared to five hundred times his base!
Caulifla stared, startled. "You can stack a golden transformation on top of that?!"
"Which one of them is stronger?" People in the stands couldn't tell by aura alone.
One radiated divine ki.
The other was tightly restrained, like a blade still sheathed.
Only the battle would reveal the answer.
Caulifla's momentum surged.
Levos's ki remained calm, but his presence didn't lose an inch.
Super Saiyan God gave Caulifla a qualitative leap far beyond Cabba's limits.
With passive unlocking, talent, and experience added on, her practical combat power dwarfed Cabba's by a huge margin.
But to Levos…
It still likely wasn't enough to threaten him.
His base level was already the result of fusing and absorbing Gogeta.
And with double-stacked transformations, his power had climbed into something that was hard to quantify.
Still below Cell Max, sure
But in a league of its own, second only to the body Puer possessed in that "Kefla-Broly" configuration.
They moved at the same time.
Their fists met again.
BOOM !
A crater detonated across the divine-metal arena, stone and debris spraying in every direction.
Before the aftershock even fully spread, Universe 9 and Universe 10's fighters vomited blood and were blasted off their feet, knocked unconscious from the collateral force alone.
"Terrifying…"
Even the fighters watching from the sidelines felt cold dread creeping into their bones.
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