Chapter 51: The Fighting Tournament: The First of the Preliminary Rounds (Part 1)

Dave's POV

Today was the day, the tournament was upon me. I woke up and was determined to win the entire thing to save Draco. Ringo wished me luck as we went to Primp Town for the competition. Arle saw me as we made our way over there. "Dave, I'll be your healer in this, Amitie has told me everything. I can only heal you in between fights, so keep that in mind, I can't do it while you fight another person." She told me. "Alright, Arle… thank you for taking the helm as my healer." I nodded and smiled. "No problem, what are friends for?" She smiled back. I know that I should stay positive in all this, but Rulue's random leave from the group yesterday has me worried. Schezo and Raffina said that things were fine with her, however… Why do I feel like there's something seriously wrong going on…? Eh, I must just be paranoid… If Raffina told us that Rulue was okay, then there shouldn't be anything to be inherently worried about. When we arrived, the tournament was packed with eager competitors. "Daaaamn, look at all these people…" My head turned. "Whatever the prize is, it must have them all be excited." Arle looked just as shocked with the turn-out. "Ah-ha, it's you…" I heard the voice, it was Hohow Bird's. "You…!" I narrowed my eyes, looking at my main rival in this. "Remember, if you want you-know-who back... you need to win this whole thing." He arrogantly reminded me. "Tch. You don't need to tell me twice. Once I come for something... I don't forget it like a fool, Hohow Bird." "And if we do fight in a round, I'll show you my way as a hero to be the correct path." "Same. To. You. Hohow Bird. …" "... That's enough with the serious tension. We want to save that for when we might fight, hm?" "I suppose so…" The two of us walked away from each other, then Ringo and Arle followed me to the tournament registry. The receptionist told me to make a signature of my name, which I did, then a small paragraph describing my background. Next, they asked me who my healer was. I pointed to Arle and she was told to write her signature right below mine. We were then both told to step in front of a camera to have a picture taken. It was explained that the people running this needed to know what the competitors looked like, as well as their healers for the sake of convenience. After that, we were told to follow a man to where other entries waited for the competition to start. Ringo said that she would be watching us from the audience area.

Feli's POV

I walked outside to see Amitie running up to me. "*pant pant* Feli… come with me, everyone else is going to where Dave is." "Huh? Where? It's not the tunnel…?" "No, he's at a tournament because he's trying to save Draco from someone else! He needs to win the entire thing to do so!" "What?! Take me there-! ... Wait, what about Lemres? Does he know?!" "*gasp* Crap, I need to tell him too! Let's go!" "Y-yeah!" We went to Lemres' place, told him, then we all ran to the tournament spot. "*pant* Is this the place?" Lemres looked about. "Ringo's over there in the crowd with the others!" Amitie noticed. We came to be with her and the rest of the gang. "F-Feli!" Ringo noticed me. "I'm here, Ringo. What's going on?" I sat next to her. "It looks like things are about to start…" Ms. Accord came into the conversation, then others followed. "There's Dave, I see him down there." Ex pointed to. "..." I watched Dave as he talked with Arle. "I wonder what those two are talking about… Say, where's Raffina and the dark mage?" Klug realized that those two weren't with us. "Now that you bring it up, Four-Eyes… where are they?" I looked behind me, but neither were around to be seen. "I'm sure they will come in due time. For now, let's see how this unfolds." Accord said. "Heeeeeello, ladies and gentlemen! Welcome, one and all, to the official Primp Town Fighting Zone Competition!" A familiar face turned up with a microphone as the crowd cheered. "O-Oshare Bones?! What's HE doing here?!" Amitie exclaimed. "I suppose they wanted a lively individual to deliver the match coverage." Ex assumed. "Hey look, he appears to be more… extravagant-looking than normal." Klug noticed. "Yeah, he looks different than he did before." Yui nodded. "Maybe because this is a special occasion…?" Tarutaru guessed. "I-I'm not sure how to feel about it…" Lidelle stuttered. "I dunno, but he's lookin' rather fine and his talking throughout will be interestin' to say the least." Lemres sat up.

I have to agree with Lemres... it'll be intresting. "Now, now… settle down, crowd. ... It is a great honor for me to be here as the commentator of upcoming matches. I am Oshare Bones, for those who do not know. I usually run a clothing shop in town, but I closed it today just for this event right here! And it will remain closed until the champion of this tournament is decided. After all, this kind of thing doesn't happen all the time. And, just look at the excellent turn-out with all of these fighters right here. Seriously, the attendance number is simply unbelievable! *cough* Anyway, I will lay down the rules and whatnot for this tournament. Our staff members are currently working extremely hard to present the exact number of fighters, as well as generating the match-ups for rounds. … Ah! I just got a message that the number of contestants has been counted and finalized. A grand total of thirty-two fighters have entered in this collectively. So, here is how things will go: Today will consist of the first round, which means that we'll go through sixteen separate fights. It might be a bit long, hence why we started this quite early. Winning a round is simple: You fight your opponent until they give up, pass out, or you damage them enough for that fighter to not get back up on their feet after ten seconds of a countdown. The fighter that loses because of one of those three conditions will be eliminated from the tournament. Now, I must stress that there will be no fighting to the death. Any personal grudges to the death that you may have will be left outside and not show until after this event is over. Do you fighters understand that?" He turned over to them.

I suppose this is standard in fighting tournaments... but I'm not entirely sure. I've only been in one so far and that one did not have these rules and such. "Yeah." They all nodded. "Good. There shouldn't be any issues then… By the end of today, there will be sixteen competitors remaining. Those who will be a part of those sixteen shall move on to round two tomorrow. The third round is where things get interesting. Basically, it will be a tag-team round. Randomized teams of two fighters will be constructed. Within the context of starting round three, there will be eight of you left by then and so… four teams! Your team wins the round if both of the other team's fighters are unable to get back up within the ten second countdown, or if they both give up. Round four is the semi-final round, consisting of whatever four fighters that are left. It will function the same as rounds one and two. And of course, the fifth round is the final round... starring the last two remaining competitors. Round three, the semifinal round, and the final round will all occur the day after tomorrow… so keep that in mind. But, with all of that out of the way... we can finally start!" The skeleton finished. The crowd erupted in cheers after Oshare stopped.

"We now have the match-ups listed here. Take a good hard look, because we will be going from left to right on this match board. The first fight of round one is about to take place here. If you are not one of these two fighters... then leave the ring and go inside, behind the scenes, to wait for your match to be featured. Until round one officially ends, no fighter shall leave this place for today..." Oshare displayed. "...! Th-that's Dave! He's part of the start of round one?" Ex's eyes widened considerably. "That's interesting… Did they not think much of him?" Accord wondered. "Probably, he does look like a normal teenager." We heard another voice. "I-It's the dark mage!" Klug turned around and saw. "And Raffina too!" Amitie perked up. "What took you two so long?" I asked. "That's what took us, the crowd down at the bottom is full of goddamn idiots! They didn't let us get to where you all were at!" Schezo pointed and complained. "Hehehe! It looks like you had it fun and rough getting up here, Dark Mage!" Lemres laughed. "Wh-What is that supposed to mean, Comet Warlock?!" He exclaimed. "H-hey… don't you all see that…?" Lidelle gestured to us, then pointed at the match board with her sweater's sleeve. "... Ms. Rulue is on there…? How did I not see that initially? Why is she in this?" Accord looked genuinely stumped. "Is THIS what she was referring to when…?" Ex stopped. "It… must be." Ringo came to the conclusion. "That still doesn't really explain why though…" Yui stated. "Yeah, what the hell's goin' on?" Witch thought to herself out loud. We thought about what the reason could be before being snapped back into reality. "O-oh! It looks like Dave's fight is about to begin, guys." Schezo had us regain our focus.

Dave's POV

I saw Rulue's face on the match board, which concerned me. Before I could stand there and think about it, I was greeted personally by Oshare Bones. "Dave, it's so good to see you again!" "Same to you. Say... you never really stated this in the rules and stuff, but… are transformations allowed?" "Transformations? Is that something that you get most of your power from?" "Yes. Is there a person in the staff that can validate whether or not my big armor is allowed, Oshare?" "Uh… let me see… Hey, I need you over here!" The skeleton holled to this one guy, requesting him to come to me. "I need you to see if Dave's armor of sorts is allowed." He told him. "Okay. Um… Dave, was it? Come with me." The guy told me. "S-sure." I nodded. "This is the behind-the-scenes area. You'll be back here after you finish your match, whether you end up winning or losing. Anyway, let's see this armor of yours." He waited. I engaged it for a second to have him look. "... … … It's powerful and full of energy, but perfectly fine within the context of this. Your armor will be allowed." He concluded. "Thank you." I said, then I briefly disengaged the armor. "Now, go. Your match won't start until you get into the ring." He pushed me lightly. I took his words seriously and made my way back to the ring. As I got within the ring, I saw my opponent on the opposite side. They looked like a bear, but had a beak.

What the fuck…? I've never seen a bear like THAT before… "So, Dave… did he say that you can use it?" Oshare Bones came to me just before the fight began. "He did." I answered "Okay! If he thinks it's fine, then there's no reason for me to say that you can't use it." He got himself ready and walked back to the area in between my side and my opponent's side. "Alright folks, the first fight of round one is about to begin! Over here on my left is the strong creature of the woods. He is usually very adamant about keeping his honey stash to himself, Owlbear!" Oshare introduced the crowd to. The crowd cheered when they saw the poses this less-avian, and more bear abomination did. "Thank you, thank you everybody! I'm gonna wreck the competition today!" He screeched. "And over here… is someone that I know as an acquaintance. Don't let his normal look deceive you all, he is what you would call the Demonic Dragon Warrior. The armor that he goes into seems very tough and it allows him to fly. He may be young, but he has great strength. With physical training and magic spells to his name, give it up for Dave!" He turned to me. "Uh… hi." I waved, feeling somewhat awkward. "With competitor introductions out of the way… LET US BEGIN!" Oshare declared. "Heh. I don't care what you are, there's no way that you can be as strong as me, boy." Owlbear arrogantly pointed his talon at me. "Are you sure about that, Owlbear? As soon as you see my armor, maybe you'll eat your own words." I told him. "Ha! I'm not scared of you! I've never been scared of facing any opponent before." He readied. "Alright, but don't say that I didn't warn you… Hrrrah!" I unleashed my armor. "Well, would you look at that, folks. Dave is already setting the bar pretty high for Owlbear here. Can our crossbreed animal friend reach that level?" Oshare began commentating. "O-okay, so maybe you have made me shake a little… but I'm still not afraid, I got this! Talon Slash, go!" He jumped at me. "Ooooh! Owlbear takes the first strike on Dave!" Oshare noted. "... Hrrr-!" I grabbed Owlbear's arm. "H-huh? What the hell?!" He reacted. "-RAH!" I slammed him down on the ring. "Oof-!" He collided with it.

Thanks for the CQC lessons from a good while ago, Rulue... they'll definitely help me out here. "H-heh, not bad… It's not often that I actually get hurt from a physical blow." He got up. What…? He's almost fine? Impossible, I placed all of my possible strength on slamming him to the ground! I-is his fur coat softening any physical blows that I deal to him? It IS a pretty thick coat of fur… Owlbear took several steps back and initiated another attack. "Beeeeear Charge!" He made a mad-dash towards me. "...! That spee-" I had little time to react. I stood my ground and hoped that I could nullify his charge. I held on to his body as best as I could, preventing him from moving any further. "Rrrr… Dammit, even I can't hold on like this... for very long…! Cryogenic… Bomb!" I acted quickly. "What the-?! Aaaaaaaagh!" He flew backwards. "Rrrrr! …" I was pushed back from the impact of my own attack. "... Iiiincredible! Let's see that instant replay! Dave held off Owlbear like a champ and launched a mighty counteroffensive!" Oshare presented a replay of what just happened to the audience. "Heh. Everybody, this is just the beginning. Don't look away for even one second, because I'm about to make this a show that no one will forget!" I threw my fist in the air. "YEAH!" The audience screamed.

"Tch… I have to give you props, kid. You quite possibly have the biggest guts that I've ever seen, but all that does is make me pumped up to fight you head-on!" Owlbear stood back up and screamed at me. "Bring it on! Give me your best shot! Claw of Shadows!" I charged at him. "Hiiiiiiii-Raaaah! Talon Slash!" He charged at me as well. My claw and his talons clashed, neither of us moved forward or backward for a while. "Beeeeear Smash!" He suddenly smacked his face against mine. "Oof-!" I stumbled. "Beeeeear Uppercut!" He continued. "Ough-! Yyyyyaaaah!" I shot up in the air before I used my wings to stabilize myself. "Shit… even my armor didn't come out of that unscathed…" I muttered. My helmet had received a few cracks from those last two attacks. Looks like I gotta bring out the big guns… "Lightning Clap!" I unleashed. "...!" Owlbear's eyes widened. He knew that he couldn't dodge it, I saw the hesitation in his eyes. "This boy can fire out electricity? Gh-!" He was electrocuted by it. The bear fell over from the overwhelming amount of energy encased in the lightning. He had trouble getting back up from it, but he eventually mustered the strength to do so. I was able to see sparks roaming all around his fur. "There goes Dave again folks, showing off his impressive power on both the physical and magic side by the use of lightning!" Oshare hyped the audience up more. "Hell yeah!" I pounded my chest with one hand and landed on the ground. "*pant pant* Hehehe… Yeah, you certainly don't screw around… *pant* But, you know what? Your last blow to me gave me a great idea to throw out at you… *pant*" Owlbear said to me. "Eh...? What idea?" I asked. "Oh, you'll see… *chuckle* But, by the time that it happens... you'll lose this match for sure!" He started rubbing his fur with crazy speed.

I noticed this and I became worried. "Wh-what?!" I exclaimed. "This is unreal! Owlbear is rubbing his fur to generate electricity for his own benefit!" Oshare noticed. His OWN electricity supply?! Uh-oh, that can't be good! "Eat this! Thunder Cannon!" Owlbear launched at me. To think, he's using my own electricity against me! I don't even think that I can intercept it with Lightning Clap... What am I supposed to do?! I can't dodge or block it… Okay, what would Rulue do in a situation like this? Surely there must be a counter to employ here, but what? Maybe do the same thing… But, my electricity is nothing compared to what he just generated. No... I need to believe in myself, I must save Draco and I'll never do so if I lose! "Thuuundeeeeer... CANNON!" I poured all of my effort into manifesting my own electricity-filled powerhouse attack. "Hold on, what's this?! Dave has made his own take on the Thunder Cannon move that Owlbear just invented?! This is unprecedented! Don't leave your seats to go to the bathroom just yet folks. We are about to see a clash between two similar blasts of electricity!" Oshare's eyes widened. The two Thunder Cannons met and clashed. "Rrrrrrrrr!" Owlbear struggled. "Hrrrrgh!" I struggled just as much before my blast slowly overtook his. "Wh-what?! NnnoooOOOOOOO!" He screamed as he was enveloped in my Thunder Cannon. Owlbear fell to the ground several feet behind where he was before being hit. "D-damn… What's up with my arms and legs…? Wh-why won't they… move?" He was unable to get back up. Holy shit… ... I think my Lightning Clap just got a permanent upgrade…

Amitie's POV

"...! Wh-what did I just see...?" Klug's jaw dropped. "Apparently, Dave has learned to enhance one of his already existing magic spells… You kids all saw it yourselves, that Lightning Clap turned into Thunder Cannon." Ms. Accord said. "Amazing…" Ringo was in awe. "It's impressive that Dave has achieved this level of power." Satan commented. "Huh... I would have expected you to say something before all of this started, Satan." Schezo turned to him. "O-oh, um… I had my mind on other things, so I wasn't really paying attention until I heard Oshare Bones' voice. And then… I was only listening." He said to him. "I agree with Satan, it's impressive just how far Dave has gone with his past battles and training." Ex nodded and smiled. "Hold up guys, look down there." Feli pointed to this Owlbear guy.

Dave's POV

"I-Is he paralyzed?" I looked at him. "... ... … Folks, if Owlbear fails to get back up in the next ten seconds, he will lose the match. Can he pull through having his body be exposed to so much electricity?" Oshare placed down the million dollar question. "Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five. Four. Thr-" A countdown went before Owlbear surprised everyone. "W-wait… rrrrrgh… I'm… not... out yet!" He stood back up. The countdown stopped and I couldn't believe my eyes. "How in the-?! But, that was a direct hit! There's no way that he should still have the ability to fight. I thought his arms and legs were completely paralyzed! What the hell is going on here?! "I won't go down… so easily!" He panted. "This is unreal... Folks, Owlbear just overcame his own paralysis and is standing!" Oshare stated the obvious. The crowd was going ballistic from this turn of events. "It's a miracle that you're able to stand like that after your arms and legs just shut down on you… Heh. I guess I do have to praise your resilience, Owlbear." I said. "Same to you… but, I think it's time for me to end this. I still have enough power to eliminate you from this! It's rubbing time again!" He charged up. ...! He's charging up again?! … There's no way that he can be stupid enough to try pull the same stunt twice. "Alright, here we gooooo! Electrical Hunter Punch!" Owlbear dashed toward me with a fist covered with electricity. He ended up aiming for my stomach area. "...! Oough-!" I uttered. His velocity was too great for me to dodge or block. All I could do was take the hit, and it was a whopper. I coughed out blood and kneeled on the ring. One of my hands was on the ground, and the other was pressing against my chest. I was panting from the insane blow that I just took. What in the world?! This shit is so painful! "Gh- AAAAAAAAUGH!" I screamed. My armor around where Owlbear punched me cracked majorly. "Oh my, Dave is in major pain! It seems like his armor isn't as tough as it looks…" Oshare announced. "... … G-goddammit…! The combo of that raw strength and electricity is... completely bonkers…!" …! My body's-! My entire body slumped to the ground, unable to move. I can't believe that my armor is still up here… Not like that matters though, I can't get back up. "... If Dave is unable to get back up in the next ten seconds, he'll lose the match." Oshare continued. "Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven…" The countdown started.

Is this how it ends…? Me losing in the first round…? … NO! LIKE HELL I'M GOING TO LOSE ALREADY! Draco wanted me to save her and I made a promise to myself that I would. "Three. Tw-" I interrupted the countdown. "Gh- *hack* I'm not... down for the count… I may be coughing up blood, but as long as I- *cough* *hack* -have the will to keep on fighting… I'll never stay down!" I persevered and stood back up. "Such tenacity… Even though Dave is clearly injured internally, he's still wishing to continue this fight. Folks, I think that deserves a round of applause!" Oshare told the audience. *crowd cheer* These people… they're cheering for me… … I can't let them down now. And, I can't fail on Draco now either. Time to try out something new! "... Here I come, Owlbear!" I ran toward him. "Ha! Give it everything you got!" He playfully taunted. I appeared behind and grabbed him from there. "Ah-! The hell?! How did you grab-?!" He panicked. "Time to take this to the sky!" I flapped my wings. Owlbear desperately tried to wriggle his way out of my grip, but to no avail. When I reached the height that I was satisfied with, I quickly flew downward. "Seismic… SLAAAAAAM!" I threw him down. "N-nonononono- -GYYYAAAAAAAH!" His body impacted the ring with a big shockwave.

A lot of dust covered us up when this happened. The crowd became silent when they couldn't see anything. "*cough cough* What happened…?" Oshare fanned the dust away from him with his free hand. When the dust subsided, Owlbear's current state was visible. At this point, I decided to let go and his body slumped to the ground. As it did, he groaned in pain. "..." The audience remained quiet. "Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five. Four. Three. Two. One. Zero." The countdown finished. "... Th-there you have it! The first fight of this round is over! Dave has managed to take down the behemoth bird-brained bear with a stunning finisher! Let's see that fantastic instant replay!" Oshare presented. The crowd roared in cheers and applause as I helped Owlbear back up. "Ugh, man… I don't think I've ever lost a one-on-one fight like that before… but good on you, you're something else!" Owlbear praised me. "Thanks. Make sure that you get some much needed rest." I nodded. "Yeah. After all, it's pretty much hibernation time for me anyway. See ya." He left. "With that, Dave will move on to round two tomorrow!" Oshare noted. I looked up at the crowd, eventually seeing Ringo, Feli, Amitie, and the others. Ringo and Feli saw me looking at them and threw out smiles. "So Dave, time for you to go back to behind-the-scenes to wait out the rest of the day." Oshare said to me. "Okay." I nodded to him.

I walked back in there and Arle grabbed my hands with hers. "That was awesome, Dave! Just… don't be coughing up any more blood, alright? I was worried for you." She told me. "Y-you saw my win?" I deactivated my armor. "Didn't you notice? There's a screen here showing the ring." She pointed me to it. "Wait… is this being televised?" I squinted. I saw multiple cameras hidden about as the screen switched to different angles. "Huh?" Arle didn't seem to know what I was talking about. "N-nevermind." I shook my head. "Well, in any c-" Arle suddenly stopped. "A-Arle? What is it?" I asked. "Look over there." She showed me. "Ah-!" My eyes widened. It's Rulue! So she IS here… Rulue noticed us and frowned before going to a different part of the area. "Jeez, she had that sad face since yesterday. It doesn't make any sense… shouldn't she be happy to be participating in something like this?" Arle scratched her head. "I dunno… Anyway, you should probably heal me before the next match starts. I want to be able to study possible opponents as much as possible." I suggested. "Yeah, I'll do it." She had me sit down on a chair. As she healed me, I breathed in and out, bearing any pain that I had. A figure had approached us while this happened. "You must be hurting pretty bad if you're almost lying down." I heard a feminine voice ring. "Wh-who…?" I looked and saw. "I'm Jarne, a djinn. It's nice to meet you!" She introduced herself. "Jarne… *gasp* I know you! Remember me? I'm Arle!" Arle seemed to remember. "Well… didn't see this coming, you two happen to know each other?" I guessed. "Yeah, Dave... it was several years ago when we met. At the time, she was causing a lot of trouble for me and such in my world. That's mostly because something made her all screwy; smoke from a wicked seed. After we dealt with her, she apologized for everything she did and I haven't seen her since." Arle explained. "Until now it seems!" Jarne finished for her. "You… said that you were a djinn, right? Mind telling me what one is?" I asked Jarne. "You're kidding, right? You don't know?" She lowered her eyelids, as though it was an insult. "Well… I came from a world different from both this one, and Arle's world…" I stated. "Oh-! Well that explains everything then, Dave! Lemme tell you all about what a djinn is before the next match starts…" Jarne began. I was told of what djinns are and what they do. I found them to be… interesting to say the least. "Huh… that's intrig- … Hey, looks like I feel like new again…!" I felt. "*sigh* Good, I wanted to stop…" Arle looked somewhat drained. "Anyway... I won't be going out there for a while, so we can watch every match before then together!" Jarne suggested. "I guess, I don't see the harm in it…" I agreed. "Niiiice." She grinned and sat right next to me, almost creepily. I was somewhat disturbed by her doing that. But then, I quickly forgot about it; however, not before I saw Arle narrow her eyes suspiciously at Jarne.

The screen then zoomed in on Oshare Bones as he said that the next match was now going to happen. "As we can see on the board… our next match will be an interesting one. And here come our fighters for this one! Coming in on my left is the wolf that supposedly has more bite than bark based on his clothing style, Lycanthrope!" He described. "Aw yeah! Lycanthrope is in the HOUSE!" Lycanthrope hyped himself up. "And from my right… is the narcissistic demon who constantly throws himself into doing anything for women; the one and only Incubus!" Oshare continued. Women in the crowd swooned from Incubus' "grand" entrance. "Just remember ladies, I'll be fighting for all of you~!" He charmed them. "Ugh… I hate him… and yes, Dave, I know Incubus. He tried to seduce me quite a bit in the past." Arle said. "Say, I know that I might be late in pointing this out… but where's Carbuncle?" I wondered. "Carby? He's back at home, there was no point in bringing him here. He'd probably just cause a bunch of chaos." She answered. "O-okay…" I turned back to the screen. "With the introductions to these two over… LET'S BEGIN!" Oshare started the match.

Author's Notes: Dave is chosen for the first match of round one, along with this guy called Owlbear. Dave took an early lead in the fight, but then he sustained a lot of damage from Owlbear's Electrical Hunter Punch. This attack left our main character in a tight spot as he slumped to the ground, coughing out blood. When time was almost up, Dave persevered and got up. Using whatever he had left, Dave ran behind Owlbear, grabbed him, and took off in the air. Dave initiated his finishing blow, slamming the bear from up in the air and onto the ring. This was what ultimately led Dave to winning the match. The crowd cheered for him and he went back to the behind-the-scenes area to stay for the duration of round one. He met back up with Arle, who healed him and they were greeted by a djinn named Jarne. With Arle finished healing Dave, the three of them began to watch the second match of round one. This tournament has a lot more in store for Dave, Jarne, and Rulue. Just what could "more" relate to? Next chapter, Chapter 52: The Fighting Tournament: The First of the Preliminary Rounds (Part 2).