After making sure everyone heard him, the Daishinkan swung an arm up, raising it above his head.
"Let the Tournament of Power…" he declared, and brought his arm down with a chopping motion, "...commence!"
Instant chaos ensued. Several explosions occurred at once, and the arena was covered in domes of ki in various colors and sizes. It was if many people started charging their blasts before the Daishinkan spoke and were waiting to unleash them. Goku, Vegeta, Freeza, and Androids 17 and 18 immediately leaped off in their own directions.
Gohan brought his arm out, palm raised. He held his mouth agape. "Guys?!"
"Come on," Piccolo said as he swatted away a blast, "did you really expect those five to stick with the plan? They're going to fight however they want, there's no use trying to corral them."
Gohan sighed. "They could have at least pretended for a minute or two." He kicked away a ball of ki that was coming down at him from an angle. "I just hope my father takes this seriously."
They didn't turn to speak, only glancing at one another before putting their focus back in front of them. With the number of members in their circle cut in half, each of the remaining five would have to cover twice as much area.
Krillin laughed. "Gohan, your father may take fighting seriously, but-" he stopped when he noticed a beam coming towards the group that, if not stopped, would hit the back of Piccolo's head. He leapt into the air and blocked it, and continued speaking. "But he doesn't always take fights seriously."
Several blasts were hitting Buu all over his fat frame, but his rubberlike body was able to reform instantly from any damage. "Buu gonna have fun fighting, too!"
"The Saiyans and the Androids should be fine on their own," Master Roshi assured. He destroyed an incoming flurry of blasts with a Kamehameha. "I just hope Freeza isn't planning anything terrible."
Team Universe 6 was already divided into a few sub-teams, and was rehearsing their strategy one last time. "I'll meet up with you all later," Hit said as he walked away from the team, waving behind his back. "Try not to get eliminated."
"Botamo and I will make a great combo," Auta Magetta said. The apprehensive look in his eyes suggested he might not fully believe this.
"Yes," agreed Botamo, who seemed wholly confident, "I will guard your hearing as you deal damage to the enemy."
Saonel and Pirina were breathing heavily. "We will wait a moment to become accustomed to these bodies," said the former.
The latter chimed in with "Then, we'll show everyone what they are capable of as we overwhelm the enemy with unexpected strength."
Dr. Rota was wearing a mischievous grin. "I will play…" he stifled laughter, "...s-support!"
Cabba gave him a strange look. "Uh, OK. We Saiyans will stick together and-"
"Kale and I can handle ourselves," Caulifla dismissed.
Cabba noted this by snapping his fingers and continued with unabated enthusiasm. "Alright, they will stick together! I'm sure Universe 6 can do this. As for me, Frost, I think we should set aside our differences and-"
He looked around. "Frost?"
All members of Team Universe 9, except for the Trio de Dangers, went off into a different direction. Basil the Kicker had his arms folded and was hopping up and down while kicking. He alternated between kicking his left and right legs, like he was doing the river dance. He had a wide grin on his face as he used his left leg to deflect ki blasts and his right to fire some off in the direction of the attacker.
"Our tactic of splitting up will allow us to whittle down the enemy Universes," he said. "The other teams will have left most of their fighters behind to defend their area, and sent only a few away to play offense. Our seven other fighters will make short work of them."
"Yes," Lavender agreed, launching several small, poisonous energy waves with a sadistic smile, "and when the other teams notice their attackers have been eliminated, they will foolishly send out another small group, which we will defeat just the same."
Bergamo, too, was smirking, holding his arms out and making a 'come here' gesture as incoming ki blasts hit him and increased his size. "We'll eliminate the other Universes faster that way, and if any of our fighters ends up in dangerous situation, they can just find us and regroup. Living in Universe 9 has taught us how important it is to play the offensive. We will be the ones to survive."
8 members of Team Universe 4 could be seen standing together in a circle, with their general color scheme of blue and green. Each was firing off a constant stream of attacks and the leader among them, Ganos, was giving a speech.
"The sheer strength of the competitors in this tournament can pose a great risk to our team," he said, with a finger raised. He shot a few blasts here and there with the other hand, but was focusing more on his speech. "My abilities directly increase my power, but that isn't the case for all of you. You must all make the best use of your abilities to defeat opponents who may be stronger than you. Fight cleverly; make this Tournament of Power a Tournament of Skill."
He put more effort into his blasts, using both hands, and spoke more casually. "How will all of you make the most of your abilities?"
Shantza, bobbing up and down in the air, spoke first. "If someone tries to throw me out of the arena, I'll float back in with my airjets."
Caway threw her chest in a way that made her breasts bounce a few times. "I'll make the male fighters think I'm a helpless damsel, and then form weaponry to crush them when they're least expecting it."
Dercori looked at the arena's light source, curling her lip and squinting. "This arena will be damaged in the coming battles. When that happens, I'll lure my opponents into the deepest and darkest cracks, where I will have the advantage."
Ganos nodded. He turned to what seemed to be a gap in the circle. "I understand you two are going to observe the other Universes until you're given the signal. By that time, you'll have learned a lot about the other combatants."
He turned back so he wouldn't be exposed to attacks. "After you make your reveal, the enemy Universes will be on high alert. You'll have to cause as much devastation as you can with that first strike. If we apply our skills, Universe 4 will emerge victorious.
The members of Team Universe 10 stood (and flew) together, each one of them Murichum, legs apart and hands on his hips, was leading a cheer for his team. His muscles had been oiled. "What will we do?" he asked loudly. He spoke without pauses between his words.
"We will win!" replied everyone. They punctuated this by punching and kicking at the air.
"Will we show mercy?" Murichum continued.
"No we won't!" Some of the fighters shook their heads fiercely, and some crossed their arms in front of them.
"Who are we?"
"Team U 10!" They all leaned forward and shot their arms out with open palms (or wings.)
"That's right, men," Murichum agreed, adding "and Lilibeu. Team U 10! We will show every Universe what it means to be macho! One more time..."
They all crouched down and balled their fists and, in unison, cried out "Team U 10!" Everyone charged (and flew) off in their own direction after this, but not without a final battle cry.
"Let's go!" Murichum shouted.
"I won't let you guys down!" Lilibeu promised.
"By the power of flight!" Zium cheered.
"For romance," Jirasen moaned.
"Remember your training," Murisarm advised.
"We're gonna' sweep the competition!" Methiop predicted.
"Time to squash 'em!" Napapa bellowed.
"Oh boy, can't wait to fight," Carl hissed.
"This is our destiny," Jilcol declared.
"My wife, my daughter, I will protect you." Obuni swore.
The robotic fighters of Team Universe 3 went into action immediately, their programming screaming to them the laws that dictate their action, in descending order of importance: Win the Tournament of Power at all costs, Do not get eliminated, Do not kill the other fighters. They split into two groups of two and one solo, then went off to find fighters to eliminate, each making their own series of beeps. This served as both a signal their programming had kicked in, and as a battle cry.
Maji Kayo stretched his legs out so they were three to four times the height of the rest of his body. "I just know I'm going to have a whole lot of fun," he said in a sadistic voice and strode off, covering a considerable amount of distance with each step.
"I'll go and dish out some justice, just like on the streets!" Katopesla announced and smacked his palm. He surveyed the explosions in the arena and jogged in the direction he deemed optimal.
"The numerous modes my suit can offer will each come in handy in different combat situations," he continued, talking to himself at this point. "In one encounter I might require additional speed, and in another, strength. Utilizing the best mode for any given situation will allow me to perform acts of justice more efficiently."
Nigrisshi chuckled and said "I'll let unwitting warriors come to me, and eliminate them one after the other." He sprinted and jumped about, firing off blasts from various directions and angles. Although there weren't any opponents in sight, he was also strafing and even doing the occasional bob and weave.
Paparoni and The Preecho were left. They stayed close together as they traveled, not bothering to move very quickly. "You can still give orders to our robots if you are eliminated," The Preecho said, "but it would be preferable for you to command them while you're still in the ring, actually feeling the combat environment. I'll have your back in battle, don't worry."
Paparoni spun his cane to deflect a few wayward blasts. "Good idea, Preecho, and thank you," he said. "I'll protect you from elimination as well. With the robots' programming and my guidance, I'm confident they will avoid elimination. We're going to need them if it ends up being necessary to execute Plan X. And, I don't mean to sound self-important, but it is also crucial I stay in the arena, in case even Plan X is not enough and we must resort to our final tactic. It's highly unlikely we'll have to do so, but if that's what it comes to, I can't imagine any Universe defeating us."
Team Universe 11 was moving as a group. Toppo led the charge, followed by Jiren and Kahseral. Vuon, Kunshi, Kettal, and Cocotte were in a square formation behind them, facing away from one another. Dyspo, Tupper and Zoiray circled them.
"This is a mess," Tupper remarked, blocking a barrage of green blasts with his hands, which he had petrified. "Everyone seems to be attacking non-stop, aimlessly."
Zoiray was rotating his small body at extreme speed while still maintaining the pace of the team's march. A multicolored array of blasts, in various sizes, were blown away by his whirlwind. "They must be testing the waters before any real fighting starts. After all, no one would want to end up using too much power, killing their opponent, and getting disqualified."
Vuon stared at his quadrant with fixed anticipation. Aside from the explosions in the distance, however, nothing of interest presented itself. "I think the goal is to prevent other teams from covering much distance. Denying your opponent progress would give you time to move and allow you to be the one who starts the battle."
Kahseral saw any attacks that got too close to Jiren were stopped by the man's glare. As expected, he thought to himself, Jiren could handle this with ease. "Maybe they're all thinking they can overwhelm each other by constantly attacking. Or, they could just be trying to score easy eliminations on the weakest fighters right away."
Toppo caught one pink ball of ki in each of his massive hands, and crushed them. "It's a foolish way to fight, blindly attacking everywhere at once. Teams who employ that strategy will just tire themselves out. The Pride Trooper's victory is certain."
3 members of Team Universe 2 split off from the rest. Zirloin trudged off, scanning all around him for someone to fight. Vikal took to the air, looking for other flying competitors she could eliminate. Jimeze uses his Instant Transmission, searching for any lone fighters he could pull a surprise attack on. The remaining 7 members had their territory locked down.
Prum leaned from side to side to take a couple of attacks, including an assortment of small blasts and a large energy wave. "Once an advantageous spot opens up, Hermila and I can combine our power and pull a combo attack," he explained, reflecting the attacks. "What do you say, friend?"
Hermila his arms out in front of him, firing with his wrist cannons. "Sounds like a plan, Prum!" he replied, forming a little smile. He turned around to alternate between firing at a few different areas.
Rabanra and Zarbuto kneeled down alongside each other, each holding an arm around the other's back for added stability. They each sent off a thick energy beam with their free hand; Rabanra's was red and Zarbuto's was yellow. After traveling some distance the two beams joined paths and formed into one much larger beam with an elliptical shape, which shifted between different shades of orange as it traveled.
"For love…" Rabanra began. Their beam landed in the area that seemed to be sending out more attacks than anywhere else.
"...and friendship!" Zarbuto finished. By the time the orange glow at where they fired had faded, they began the process again.
Sanka Ku kicked a leg behind her, cocked her head, and winked. With a cheery smile, she said "What is that roar you're hearing?" She held her arms above her head in a V shape, hands turned sideways and palms facing each other. As she charged a ball of ki between her palms, she continued. "The chirping birds and the howling wind, what is this sound?
When the ball was fully formed, it was a royal blue with shimmers of gold. She sent it up a few feet, made a peace sign with both hands, and went on. "It's the beating heart of nature, the noise of love in all people!" She clapped her hands together and launched her attack across the arena.
Su Roas straightened her glasses, pressing her arms against her chest. She made a dorky grin and wiggled her fingers, and said "What are you learning?" She shot her arms out to the sides, hopped into the air, and landed with one foot a few steps in front of the other. Her fingertips began to glow purple and she continued. "Historical events of romance, tales of friendship inspiring bravery, what are those stories about?"
She tilted to the left and switched the position of her feet, then tilted to the right and did it again. Her hands now had a red glow that became crimson at her fingers, leading to the purple that radiated from the tips, and she went on. "It's the beating heart of information, the library of everybody's love!" She brought her feet together and clapped her hands in front of her, sending out a beam of purple ki from each finger.
Brianne de Chateau had one leg pointing to the side, crossed her arms, and threw her head back. A confident smirk spread across her face and she hollered "What's that force you just felt?" She raised a fist entered a fighting stance, taking some bouncing steps and punching the air. A bright green aura built up around her fists and she continued. "A stinging impact, a flying knockback, what's the point of this fight?"
She struck the air with her knee, backflipped, held out her fists and smacked them together. The radius of their green aura grew with each punch, and she went on. "It's the beating heart of combat, the love of my merciless fists!" She brought her arms back, clenched her fists even tighter, and then delivered punches to her left and right.
Her fists produced a blinding flash, and after a moment, two enormous domes of green ki exploded at opposite ends of the arena. "With the power of our love…" she shouted, striking a victory pose, "...Universe 2 will win it all!"
Get excited! To space, let's go!
The latest obsession, come join the flow!
I hold the power in my hands
I wanna' laugh, I'm crazy amused!
I am used to bein' confused!
I can't get no satisfaction
(woo-hoo) Boredom ain't much fun
(woo-hoo) This stone weighs a ton
Before it gets too heavy, falls from the sky (Let's fly high)
(woo-hoo) Now let's spread our wings
(woo-hoo) As excitement rings
We will go into a whole new world
The door of potential is locked, us mortals are just being mocked
Oh well oh well, I'll break again, right through its foundation of rock
Do it now, Limit⨯Breaker! Shout "this is a piece of cake" for sure!
A better me, I will break free, and then I'll transform on a spur
'cause this is Dragon Ball Super
Zeno-Sama, we will blow you away!
Imagine this! Make it your wish!
Tasty food, good weather, that's bliss
For me this is a dream come true
Epic battles! Come on, strong guys!
Lets fight each other for our lives!
I can't get more satisfaction
(woo-hoo) If you believe in
(woo-hoo) My powerful hands
Then this Kamehameha is for you, so, take it (Let's make it)
(woo-hoo) When you power through
(woo-hoo) What depresses you
This makes you a warrior as well
You think you're tough, then get in line, only the strongest will survive,
Seriously, you kiddin' me, 100 times to stay alive
Hey, let's go, Limit⨯Breaker! We must go full power!
It's the best fight, show off our might, and in the end we'll grow stronger
'cause this is Dragon Ball Super
The Hakaishin are gonna' go insane
The door is frozen shut, we're lost, we have to survive at all costs
Oh well oh well, I'll make it melt, and there'll be nothing left but frost
Do it now, Limit⨯Breaker! Shout "this is a piece of cake" for sure!
A better me, I will break free, and then I'll transform on a spur
Unbelievable Super
I'll pass my limits Super
'cause this is Dragon Ball Super
Zeno-Sama, we will blow you away!
Across the arena, fighters are drawing ever closer to one another. They have only shown a small taste of their abilities. Now, the battles are beginning.
There are 47 minutes left in the Tournament of Power.