Project Cloud
Chapter 9 — Unwanted Escalation
Being able to see just exactly how far Goku would go in this tournament was what everyone was longing for the most. The stupefying skill that the boy put on display three years ago left many people wondering who in the heck he was and also left many questioning whether or not he'd be the best fighter the world's ever seen by the time he grew up. So to be able to get to see him grow and enter more tournaments as the years passed by was something that everyone saw reason in getting thrilled about. The excitement that came with newcomers such as Upa, Lapis, and others got their intrigue as well, but everyone had a feeling Goku was going to come out on top.
"So that's him?" Tights asks, pointing over to the arena at the boy in the red gi.
"Yeah, that's Goku," Yamcha answers Tights. "Doesn't feel like him, though."
Tights observed the kid.
As far as she could tell, everything did check out. She remembered precisely word for word what Jaco had told her years ago about the race that this kid more than likely came from.
"Their main motive is to take over the planet...the worst part is that they are an evil alien race that loves to fight. Even the Galactic Patrol are no match for them and the extinction bomb has no effect on them, either. If the planet is ruled by a powerless race like Earth, then they will usually send a small child to slowly do away with the people on that planet. They have a very long childhood, so they can deceive the people around them as a child until they grow up. After that, their body will quickly grow into a size that is suited to fight, and they will continue to cause havoc without hardly ever aging. Apart from the fact that they have a tail, they look very similar to you Earthlings."
Seeing the kid brought all of the words right back to her. Despite being 15 years of age, Goku took the size of a five year old, yet she knew he was more than capable of what a normal five year old could do. In addition, he also had a tail.
Bulma and everyone else swore to Tights that Goku was the best kid that could ever touch down on the face of Earth, but Gero changed him for the worst.
But given what Jaco had told her about the Saiyans, Tights was under the impression that Gero merely brought out of him what was always there all along.
"Let's see what he's about."
Yamcha shivers.
He understood that she was insanely curious, but his pre-existing knowledge about Goku just made his body go cold as his heart skipped a beat.
"Presenting match one: Lazuli versus Number nine — A.K.A. — Son Goku. For those of you that remember, Son Goku breezed his way to the final battle last year as a representative of the Turtle School under the great Master Roshi. This time around, after 3 years of what I'm sure to be hard work, he now seems to represent himself only! The odds are in Goku's favor, but I wouldn't underestimate his opponent!"
The host lifts his hand up and shouts, "BEGIN!"
"You get one chance to turn around and put your little ugly tail on the green grass and just let me advance," Lazuli tells him as she smashes her fist together. "Hint: I'd advise you take it."
Goku places left leg back. "I rather you be there."
Goku sprints over to Lazuli as fast as can.
Lazuli is unable to read any of Goku's speedy movements and instinctively covers her face with wide open palms.
Goku had his fists aimed directly for Lazuli's face.
He didn't hold back anything in his punch, yet much to his amazement, the force of impact merely caused her to slide backwards and not knock her totally out of the ring. Lazuli felt a great sting go down her arms to her very shoulders as she was lucky to block on time.
Half of her foot was still on the arena as the back half was just off it. She had a really hard time maintaining balance and panic started to ensue.
Goku didn't think he'd need to send more than one strike her way, but by using his tail to sweep her off her feet, Lazuli's head landed hard on the green grass outside of the ring.
"Victory goes to Son Goku by ring out!"
The crowd roared on.
Seeing this performance from Lazuli causes Yamcha to rub his chin. "There is just no way she should have even been able to block that first attack. What in the hell is she made of — steel?"
"I don't know, but despite the embarrassing loss, I'll still say she did pretty well." Oolong then shrugs his shoulders. "I mean, she's just a normal person after all and to take a heavy hit like that and not be sent flying? Pretty damn good."
Lapis came running over to his sister's aid, picking her up.
Out of anger, Lazuli jacks her arm away from her brother. As far as she went to get into the tournament, she loses the first round in under ten seconds subsequent to the match starting. And to a kid?
No fucking way.
Lapis, while on his knees, watches his sister hop over the small wall that was made as a barrier between the audience and the fighters.
"Get the hell out of my way!"
After shoving people out her path and eventually disappearing into the crowd, Lapis looks back up to Son Goku, smirking with a little sweat on his brow. Just maybe he had more of a challenge to worry about in this tournament than he thought.
"You're pretty good for a chump."
Goku doesn't acknowledge Lapis' comment and walks off the arena. The kid shoulder bumps Jackie Chun as he walks his way over to the arena.
Chun looks back at Goku and sighs.
"So he knows."
Lapis hops on the arena from the grass no sooner than when Chun makes his way up to the arena from the steps.
"As you can see the next fight comes with these two, Jackie Chun and Lapis!" The host approaches Chun and whispers, "I thought I told you to wait until your name was called…"
"But my opponent is already out here…" Chun says as he points over to Lapis.
"Oh." He fixes his shades. "Good point." He pulls the microphone up to his mouth and speaks to the crowd once more. "And you folks already know of the great Jackie Chun! The winner of the previous tournament! He's come in hopes of proving himself yet again! Give him a great round of applause, everybody!"
And that's exactly what the people did.
Seeing the hundreds of folks clapping in the old man's honor elicits a smug scoff from Lapis. "All these people really like you, old man. Sucks I'll have to crush their hopes and dreams."
Jackie Chun remains with his hands behind his back, showing an emotionless expression at the young man. "You really think that you're good, don'tcha?"
"A good fighter?" Lapis chuckles. "Don't make me la- oh wait - you already di-"
"Shut up," Chun hisses.
"BEGIN!" the host yells.
"You have a little spark to you, don't you, gramps?"
"People like you are the exact reason that people are starting to lose faith in the very heart of Martial Arts and what it stands for as a whole! People like you are the reason as to why people lose faith. The mentally weak who have the promise of being great are put down by posers who like to put on a show! You give no honor to what Martial Arts really is and I'm going to prove why you don't belong here." His eyes then narrows. "And F.Y.I….I'm not going to knock you out, make you plead mercy, or ring you out. I'm going to outright humiliate you."
Just as Chun was beginning his pitiful, righteous speech, the twin had his arms folded and looked in another direction. Lapis had his eyes on a blonde in the audience. "Damn, she's pretty hot."
Jackie Chun's eyes avert over to the audience. He raises his hand over his eyebrows and asks, "Who?"
Lapis rushes in for Jackie Chun, who sees him closing in at the last moment. Raising his forearms, he blocks an attempted haymaker to the face. Chun felt a minor sting go through his arms, which causes him to widen his eyes in surprise.
"He's slow…"
He proceeds to parry away all of Lapis' following punches, consistently driving Chun to the edge of the tournament arena.
"But his punches have umph. Just what in the hell is he using?"
Glancing at his feet, Chun notices that he's beginning to get closer and closer to the edge where he just might accidentally fall on the edge of the ring.
"Lapis has gotten Jackie Chun by the ropes! If he pushes him any further, he'll get a ring out!"
Lapis, though not a professional fighter, sent a barrage of punches as quick as he possibly could. He came with quick jabs at the expense of not rendering full power strikes just so that he could do his best to keep Chun occupied. At first, the old man was effortlessly parrying his punches away, but the powerful blows eventually caused Chun to blocking with his forearms.
"Having trouble, old man?"
Everyone looking on at the fight was on the edge of their seats. Nobody expected to see Jackie Chun lose in the first round and for that to happen would be ludicrous.
So luckily he knew what he was doing.
Chun leans backward, missing a punch from Lapis, albeit his right foot falls off the end of the ring. Just when it seems like he's going down for a ring out, he grabs Lapis by the hand and reels him in, also using the man to pull himself up, which results in Lapis getting headbutted.
Chun maneuvers behind Lapis and claps him on the back to shove him forward. Lapis begins to fall over, but Chun grabs ahold of the back of his shirt and tosses him back over to the middle of the ring.
"Oh, what a way to turn the tables! Just when you thought Chun was out for the count!"
"That's one of the oldest tricks in the book," Chun tells Lapis as he gets back up on his feet.
"Old tricks work on old folk," Lapis chuckles as he spits blood on the ring.
"Try that again, why won't you."
"I've lost the element of surprise. Now I just take you down!"
With his feet carrying him along as fast as they could, Lapis approaches Jackie chun with his left fist cocked. He expects for Chun to have his eyes solely focused on his fist, but the master Martial Artist keeps his gaze on Lapis' overall movement; from his hips to the position of his footing, as well as his eyes.
He saw through the young man's following moves simply by reading his body language. Lapis gave himself away before he even realized it.
Jackie Chun played along and went to block for the attempted punch.
Lapis pulls his fist and makes an attempt to come at him with his knee. Chun raises his knee just in time to block it and ducks under a punch from the right hand.
Upon coming back up, Chun shouts, "HIYA!"
Yet he didn't move.
Lapis, on the other hand, did.
He was nearly blown away off the ring by Chun yelling out loud.
Tien unfolds his arms as he watches on. "This one's no slouch. He pushed him away from simply using a kiai shout…"
But before Lapis could get far away, Chun grabs him by the wrist and holds on tightly, eliciting a pained yell from Lapis, even forcing the young man to his knees as he clutched on Chun's hand to be let go.
Chun looks down at Lapis with a deathly stare. "Ready to be revealed as the poser you are?"
Lapis looks at him with murder in his eyes. "Try me!" he hisses.
Jackie Chun doesn't do as much as try to defend himself from the punch that came from Lapis' free hand. The punch landed directly on Chun's kidney, and though it made him flinch, the old man stood firm.
He grabs Lapis' other hand and rips off the boxing wraps. Directly underneath the wraps is revealed to be big, oversized, thick, layered piece of golden brass knuckles.
"Is this what we're doing now?" Chun asks as he kicks Lapis out of the ring. He holds up the brass knuckles for everyone to see. "He's a cheater and cheaters aren't welcome here!"
Immediate boos began to come from the crowd as they all realized Lapis to be a cheater.
The young man, seeing all the angry faces, middle fingers, and hearing all the curse words being directed toward him, scowls. It's not even the fact that he's embarrassed about being exposed, but neither he or his sister were capable of winning so they could play off their super elaborate scheme.
Jackie Chun appears to be a superior authority figure over Lapis as he remains with his arms behind his back, looking down on him. "You can run along now and let the big boys fight."
"Lapis loses this match by disqualification! Using tools and weapons is against the rules! Jackie Chun wins!"
The old man grins as he leaves the arena, giving the audience all a peace sign.
"He's so cool…" one of the kids in the audience said.
And most would have to agree. The way Jackie Chun played his opponent was done beautifully. The entire time he knew he was cheating and he had the fighter played like a total fiddle.
Lapis didn't leave the same way as his sister did. He, instead, walked away through the gymnasium with his head held high and a big smile, all until he left. He wasn't going to let defeat get him down. After all, he was still set. He and his sister just needed to be smart with how they moved from now on.
"Next up, guys, is Krillin vs. Upa!"
The two kids, just outside the arena, looked at one another. Krillin was smirking as Upa was just excited to get to test his skills against his peer.
"You ready for this, Upa?"
"The better question is if you are."
"Best believe it."
Goku, from a distance, watches as Upa and Krillin dap one another up prior to making an extravagant entrance onto the arena, jumping and performing a multitude of flips prior to landing down right on their feet.
He recalled how he himself appeared to be very excited whenever he and Krillin got to participate in the 21st Tenkaichi Budokai. Back then it wasn't about proving to others but themselves that they were capable Martial Artists. The fact that they were growing together as individual students under Muten Roshi, yet still going through their own passage of training, meant that they had a bond, though enough platonic freedom to chase their own personal goals as fighters.
It would seem that his spot's been replaced rather easily.
"The best thing about this match is that these two fighters are both representing the Turtle School as students of none other than Muten Roshi himself! Not only that, but both claim to have also been trained by Korin, the God of Martial Arts himself! Guys, if you know anything about students of the Turtle school, then know that they're one of the most amazing fighters you'll ever see! You're definitely in for a good one!"
Upa and Krillin both proceed to lift their right knee up as they stick their hands out and direct their fingers downward toward the ground, getting into their respective fighting stances.
"Same stance…?" Tsuru fixes his shades with a grin. He realizes for a fact that Tien is watching and seeing both of Roshi's students watching will do well for his own pupil. For regardless of who wins or loses this bout, Tien will be able to get to see the ins and outs out of turtle style, which will also help him know what to expect if he were to get a chance at facing Son Goku or any of the other students.
So everything was going in his favor.
"This will be a good fight," Chaotzu comments.
"We wouldn't have to worry about that if you'd just beat that weakling over there," Tsuru mumbles.
Chaotzu just frowns.
"BEGIN!"
The two students of Turtle school fizzle out.
"They've vanished!"
Perhaps to the normal eye, they were invisible, but to true Martial Artists, Krillin and Upa were merely scatting all over the place in attempt to get an advantage over the other.
Half a minute later, the two kids come right at one another, colliding elbows. Krillin hops away, baiting Upa to come directly for him, which works to perfection.
Once Krillin makes it over to the edge of the ring, he dashes over to his left in hopes of being able to have Upa fall to the ring out. The kid saw this coming though and used his tippy toes to push himself up into the skies. As he soared into the clouds, he turned around, slowed down his momentum, and pushed himself down at Krillin.
The young bald Martial Artist stood still and merely awaited for Upa.
"I've got something for you…"
Upa came down with a direct punch that went through Krillin's transparent after image. The red-skinned boy expected such and had a contingency plan. Krillin attacked from the side with an attempted kick, yet his foot went through Upa's fizzling body as well. Upa reappeared behind Krillin to elbow him, but only the same result.
"HIYA!"
Krillin comes from the sky, both of his feet aimed for Upa's face.
Yet again, another after image.
"A triple zanzoken!?" Tsuru muttered. "These boys aren't too shabby after all."
"Yoohoo!"
Krillin turns around to render Upa a roundhouse kick to the face, but the boy falls over onto his back, dodging Krillin's kick with genuine finesse. He uses his hand to push himself back onto his feet, executing a kip-up. Krillin pays for his most recently evaded attack by receiving a light jab to the face and a clean hook to the jaw.
He blocks Upa's knee and parries away his karate chop aimed for the side of his face prior to ducking under a spinning kick and hopping off his crouched feet to render Upa a solid elbow to the chin.
Upa stumbles back, albeit manages to maintain balance.
Krillin doesn't let up and continues on with a plethora of punches and kicks. Upa does a great job at blocking them all, though he knows if he doesn't get out of dodge soon, then he'll be overwhelmed.
Krillin fakes a punch to the face and follows with his other hand, which goes directly across Upa's cheek as a smack. He proceeds to wrap his arm around Upa's neck and maneuvers around the boy, leans his body back and utilizes his own body-weight to lift Upa off the arena and slam him back down.
Upa rolls over to avoid a kick and spins around to get back up, only to get an elbow in the face, followed by two quick jabs to the chest and an uppercut that sends Upa off his feet yet again.
Upa sees himself beginning to fall out of the ring. Though without the ability to fly, the kid sees no other choice. Clapping his hands together, Upa charges a blue ball of ki.
"Kamehameha!"
The wave of energy connects with the ground, which propels Upa into the sky. He turns around mid-air, does another Kamehameha, and lands right into the ring. He crouches down and waits for Krillin to come closer. Subsequent to sweeping him off his feet, he pushes him across the ring with a forceful kiai push.
Krillin skids across the arena momentarily until he regains his balance by hopping onto his two feet. It is then that he must block Upa's incessant bicycle kicks aimed for the face. Seeing that it wasn't going anywhere, Upa pushes his foot against Krillin's forearm to bring himself backwards. After flipping over onto his feet, he rushes at Krillin once more for a punch to the face.
Krillin sees it coming, grabs a hold of his fist, and renders him a solid punch to the gut. Upa, clutching his stomach, falls over to his knees with eyes-wide.
"How did Krillin get Upa on his knees with that one hit?" Yamcha asks as he rubs his chin.
Krillin giggles. He shows his fist in which has one of his knuckles outward. Upa, on his knees, can be seen coughing.
"Ugh...Krillin…"
Looking down at his peer with a smile, Krillin speaks. "One thing about battle, Upa. None of it is fair." He then proceeds to cock his leg back.
As Krillin is getting in motion to end the fight, Upa thinks about his father, Roshi, and Korin.
All of them were his masters in one way or the other.
Even though Bora never went to teaching Upa how to fight yet, there were many verbal lessons that Upa always took to heart. His father always told him that people had one mouth and two ears for a reason, meaning that they should spend the first half of their lives listening and gaining knowledge, only to speak when they are the ones to become teacher.
Closing his eyes and fighting through the pain, Upa quickly realizes one common thing his masters have been teaching him.
Lesson from Bora, his father: "Your body isn't the end all be all, son. Your mind is also your greatest strength. Sometimes you must let your mind fight for you instead of relying your body, for that is only as strong as your mental."
Lesson from Roshi: "Your body is the foundation. Your mind is the temple. You don't learn Martial Arts to conquer others, but yourself. As easy as it is to conquer the body, the mind is the hardest. Sometimes all you have to do is let go."
And most recently, Korin's lesson.
Upa catches Krillin's ankle, much to his surprise. Looking up at Krillin while on his knees, Upa smiles and quotes Korin. "Too much wasted movement. That's why we run out of breath quickly."
Krillin cocks an eyebrow and says, "What!?"
Upa lets go of Krillin's ankle and stands there. The pain that was rumbling all over his stomach is something he lets himself be at peace with. "Give me your best shot."
Krillin rushes in at Upa with a cocked fist. He expects Upa to flinch, but to no avail. Krillin then flips over Upa and goes for a kick aimed to the back of the head. Upa leans forward to dodge it, turns around, and uses the heel of his foot to kick Krillin to the side.
The young monk flips over a couple times and bounces right back, hands cupped.
"It ends right here, Upa!"
Krillin scats all around the arena in hopes of intimidating and confusing his opponent. Upa, on the other hand is still, trying his best to not let his instincts take over. He has to wait for the perfect moment.
"Kamehameha!"
Upa swiftly moves his head to the side, just dodging the attack by mere inches. The loud explosion of the Kamehameha making contact with the green grass blows up a bunch of smoke, blinding most of the audience from seeing what's going on.
Once the smoke clears, the one person they see being on the ring is Upa, who's just looking over his body.
Krillin, on the other hand, is confused much like Upa, albeit as to how in the hell he ended up out of bounds.
"AMAZING! Upa takes advantage of Krillin's own attack causing a smoke-screen and knocks him out of bounds. What a fighter!"
"No…" Jackie Chun mumbles under his breath. "To think someone so young would be able to start utilizing the ability of self-mastery in movement..."
Tien, listening, pays attention to Chun. "What in the hell are you getting at?"
"Granted," Chun continues, in his own thoughts, "the boy has a long way to go. But he's destined for greatness if he continues to listen to his teachers." He can't help but smile at this point before looking at Tien. "If you happen to make it to the finals, you'll have your money's worth facing Goku or Upa."
Coming inside, Upa and Krillin are merrily laughing as if they had just got done cracking a few jokes on each other.
"How in the heck did you do that?" Krillin asks. "I was sure that I had you."
Upa just shrugs. "I-I don't know. I just kinda listened to my body."
He didn't understand it, but his father, Roshi, and Korin all put great importance on the mind and how more than anything, it's the most powerful asset that anyone could have. Raw power wasn't the end all be all, but one's untapped mental potential. To let his mind and body become one wasn't exactly a concept he understood, but he felt that his teacher's advice would aid him in winning the battle.
Krillin was initially dumbfounded, sure, but how could he be mad at his friend beating him? He couldn't help but feel proud and use that as motivation to improve his own capabilities.
"Next up! Tien-shinhan versus Hanayome!"
This was something to look forward to at least - like an appetizer before the main dish. Tien felt it'd be a dishonor to lose to someone who defeated his own friend, so he had to show out and humble this mystery lady.
Tien looks at his opponent as she briskly walks on by with seemingly no care in the world, as if her current opponent didn't hold some grudge against her. Did she even care?
"Time to defeat you in the name of Chaotzu. And just so you know, I'll break 15 different bones in your body to represent Chaotzu's number in the preliminaries."
"Good luck."
The two make it over to the arena. Tien, getting into his battle stance, smirks. "Still suppressing your power? No, let me guess, you're just weak and lucky."
If only he knew.
"Begin!"
Tien rushes in for his opponent.
The woman just sits there and takes the elbow directly to the face. Tien pauses briefly, wide-eyed - all before stumbling back, clutching his elbow, yelling out in agony. The three-eyed warrior clenches his teeth, growling as cold sweats fall down his face.
The pain gets to him enough to the point where Tien has to bite his own tongue for half a minute as he holds his arm. He couldn't help but wonder if he fractured something. By the feeling, he could only assume that he did.
"W-What the hell…"
"Broken arm," Hanayome points out. "More than 15 broken bones for yourself."
"What are you doing, Tien!?" Tsuru shrieked. "End that hag!"
Stretching out his finger with his other working arm, Tien calls out his special attack. "Dodon-Pa!"
The blast is taken on at point-blank range. A loud boom comes about prior to smoke covering the entire arena. The audience, as well as Tien himself is at a total loss. Once the smoke clears, Hanayome seems to be standing still.
"I-Impossible!" Tien shrieks.
None of it made sense. Tien had a feel for this person's chi, which was insanely weak. Hell, he wondered just how in the hell she managed to be amateur Martial Artists. The only conclusion he could come to was that this person had her power's suppressed until it was either time for her to defend or attack, in which she would promptly boost her power at the last moment in such a hasty spike that expertise fighters such as himself couldn't get a feel for the sudden jump.
It was either that.
Or
She had something up her sleeve.
There are tears in the yellow track suit that's being worn by Hanayome, revealing there to be some pitch black layer of clothing - or so it would appear to be. Even parts of the yellow mask she has on is torn a bit, showing the same color, though the tears were so small that none were truly able to decipher precisely what it was that remains underneath.
"I'm already hot enough in this suit," she tells Tien. "Now I'm sweating buck shots because of you."
Tien's lips began to shake as veins formed all over his face.
"How dare you mock me!" Tien raises his hands to his face as he closes his eyes. "Taiyoken!"
The bright flashing light blinds everyone, except those that don't have on any shades. Thinking he's caught her by surprise, Tien goes behind her and makes an attempted kick.
KRAK!
Tien howls out in pain, virtually begging for mercy through his echoing cries. Falling over to his side, clutching one leg with his only other arm that isn't broken, Tien proceeds to bite his lip so hard that blood comes oozing out. Hanayome walks over to Tien and taps him with her foot, which was more than enough to send the trip-clops on the green grass surrounding the tournament arena.
"NO WAY!" were the exact words of Chun, Tsuru, Krillin, Upa, and everyone else.
"TIEN IS OUT OF BOUNDS! HANAYOME WINS!"
Eyes wide, Tien was left utterly dumbfounded by the fact that he could even lose. And in such humiliating fashion. He couldn't even be mad. Just ashamed.
"YOU WEAKLING!" Tsuru scowls. "How in the hell do you come so far just to lose in the first round! You're no true student of the crane school! You're nothing but a disgrace!" He grabs Chaotzu by the arm. "We're out of here!"
Chaotzu decides to hold on, though. "B-Bu-"
"Don't disobey me, brat!" Tsuru grips Chaotzu tighter by the arm and pulls him close in to his face. "By staying along with that failure, you're just as bad as he is - if not - worse! You either come along or I kill the both of you!"
Chaotzu looks on at Tien, teary-eyed. Though they come from a harsh school where they were trained by killers, the bond that he has with Tien couldn't just be suppressed by the outside forces of evil.
"It's okay…" Tien says as he hops up on one leg. "I lost fair and square. Go with Master Tsuru, Chaotzu."
"And one other thing," Tsuru adds. "You're BANNED from Crane School. I'll teach Chaotzu to be a true master of Martial Arts - unlike someone I know."
The audience was so quiet that Tien felt as if he was all alone as he sat there, completely bewildered. All eyes were on Tien as the tri-clops looked down at his own feet in shame. He couldn't even surpass the first round, defeat Hanayome in Chaotzu's name, preventing him from ever getting to Son Goku to avenge Tao's death.
Before anyone could see a single tear go down his face, the three-eyed warrior used his energy reserves to uplift himself off the ground and fly away.
Through his lifetime, the old turtle hermit had seen many young, aspiring Martial Artists put to shame. Some of them used the shame as motivation to come back stronger as most just let that override their ego and crush their dreams - only for them to lead down a bad path. He was unsure of what was next in the young man's life, though he did hope to be able to help.
Chun sighs. "With nobody left to turn to...I fear the worst for him."
"These first matches were nothing short of sweet!" the host yells. "As much as it sucks to be see such a disappointing loss, we must continue to move on!"
"Wow, this Hanayome chick is brutal," Oolong comments. "I'd be scared to go against her! She must be some super alien!"
"Nah, she's not super alien…" Yamcha tells Oolong.
"You never know these days, though," Shuu says. "There are just things you haven't seen with your own two eyes yet."
"Yeah...sure," Yamcha mumbles.
"As Number Nine - or as we all know - Son Goku, won the first round, he has to go up ahead against Jackie Chun, who's won the second! Guys we are getting a rematch of last tournament's finals! We should expect to see an exciting match! Get yourselves ready for a great one!"
Goku and Roshi walk side by side to the ring. The latter of the two eyes Goku as they walk up the arena, yet the boy doesn't show any concern for the old man. He has his mind set on one thing.
"Tell me this, Roshi."
Chun's body tenses up. He doesn't immediately respond to Son Goku as his thoughts carry over to a plethora of hypothetical scenarios that could come up within the next 30 seconds. He had to calculate his responses, as well as his actions. But then again, there was truly no way to be sure. Goku - how he used to be before - was boringly predictable. But now?
A quiet, suppressed, ballooning, erratic hazard.
As the two face one another just five yards away in the arena, the announcer shouts for them to begin.
"What?" Chun finally asks.
"Just tell me where the last Dragon Ball is and I won't kill you right here in front of everyone."
Roshi's eyes narrow. He was aware of Son Goku's strength. It was one thing to give up the last Dragon Ball and just allow the Red Ribbon Army to wish for World Domination, though it was also another thing to fight and die.
But if Roshi truly had to pick…
He'd rather fight for what's right.
The way he saw it, there was always a small chance to overcome big obstacles and prevail. Even on the off chance that he outfought Son Goku with his enhanced strength, he just had to try.
"Over my dead body," Roshi says as he gets in his fighting stance.
"Fine."
Goku rushes in at Roshi with blinding speed. The master makes an attempt at a punch, but it only goes through the after-image. He goes for a back-kick, only to find the same result. Goku comes from above and knees Roshi on the top of the head, digging his knee into the old man's cranium prior to spinning around while top of him.
After landing on his feet, Goku grabs Roshi by the shoulders and slams him down onto his back mercilessly.
"Whoah! Contestant Goku is pulling no punches from the start!"
Goku looks over to Pilaf, Tights, Yamcha, and the others in the audience. "I know you all have the Dragon Ball! It's your last chance to give me what I want right now or the old man dies!"
This leaves everyone confused. None of them had any idea just exactly why Chun's life would matter for the Dragon Ball.
It is then that Son Goku rips the wig off Roshi's head, exposing him. He kicks Roshi to the other side of the ring as he holds the wig. "I won't repeat myself."
"AH, SHIT!" Yamcha hops over the audience wall and hops right onto the arena.
"Hey, what are you doing!" the announcer yells. "You're interfering with the tournament!"
"At this point, it's no longer a tournament!" Yamcha yells. "It's a fight for our lives!"
"Yamcha, don't!" Hanayome yells.
"If it comes down to this." Yamcha gets into a fighting stance. "I'll risk my own life!"
Goku doesn't utter a word and rushes in for Yamcha, rendering him a lethal blow right in the face. The snap could be heard from all around the world as Yamcha's body was sent off the ground and sent over on the green grass. He lands with a thud and appears to be totally paralyzed.
"YAMCHA!" Hanayome yelled.
With the click of a single button, the yellow track suit that was being worn had been replaced by nothing but pitch black, malleable metal armor so shiny that everyone's reflection could be seen through it. The lady was revealed to have purple hair and the same color eyes as none other than…
"BULMA!?"
The young woman could be seen with her face hot red, fuming.
Roshi, who's crouching down beside Yamcha, feels for a pulse. "He's still breathing but it won't be long before he dies. It'll take a miracle to save him."
Hearing this, it's right then and there that Upa runs over to Roshi, with a green bean in hand. "Give him this!"
Roshi looks at the senzu bean handed to him, which elicits a soft smile. It had been years since he trained under Korin, which also meant years since he laid eyes on one of those sanative senzu beans.
Roshi feeds Yamcha the senzu. After forcing him to chew and swallow, Yamcha manages to turn his head back to normal, still wide-eyed. The fact that he was just seconds away from certified death was traumatizing. Sure, he had been in more than enough situations of the past that could have meant certain death, but to be this close?
His heart just wanted to pop out his chest.
What really surprised him though was the fact he was instantly sucked away from death's door-step due to some agricultural sustenance. His bones were healed - energy restored - stomach fed.
Everything felt perfect.
"He's alive, Bulma!" Roshi tells her.
But Bulma doesn't listen. She didn't even listen to Oolong and Puar, both of whom were telling her to get the hell out of the ring.
"You've taken enough lives, Number nine," Bulma hisses.
"Not calling me Goku anymore?"
"You're NOT Goku!"
Bulma's entire face, save for her eyes, is then covered by a black helmet prior to her jumping off her feet and initiating the rocket sequence. The feet of her armor open up and shoots out fire, which propels her over to Son Goku, punching him dead center in the stomach, knocking him through the wall between the audience and the tournament ring.
"I think this has gotten out of hand…" the tournament announcer mumbles.
Goku hops back up onto his feet and goes to punch Bulma, who takes it head on. His punch doesn't faze her in the slightest as she just stands there, completely undeterred. Goku instead receives a blow to the stomach and is elbowed down on the ground prior to having his face stomped on by her foot.
The stomp isn't enough to squash Goku's head like a can of worms, but enough to make him feel some semblance of physical pain.
"H-How is Bulma winning…" was all Roshi, Krillin, Upa, Puar, Oolong, Pilaf, Mai, and Shuu could ask.
"This armor I have on is from a piece of the strongest metal in the universe," Bulma explains to Goku, "given to me by the man who came from a different planet with the mission of killing you all those years ago when you were sent to Earth."
"Never knew I was an alien…" Goku says as his face is being squashed.
Bulma proceeds to kick Goku upward and grabs him by the collar shirt. "Even if it means killing you, someone with the face of an old friend...I will."
"No," Gero says quietly to himself. "You won't."
With the simple click of a remote, Goku goes into an automatic state of shock, though this time, the electric volts are external rather than internal. Bulma, who is making contact with Goku, is immediately starting to get electrocuted as well.
Gero, while holding the button, steps onto the ring arena as both Goku and Bulma fall over on their sides. "This metal, I couldn't help but assume to be a rather superior conduction for electricity. Your plan backfired."
Goku gets right back up on his two feet once Gero lets go of the button, regaining his composure. "That was close."
Gero chuckles. "So now, with nothing able to stand in our way...we'll be taking that Dragon Ball now."
Gero didn't expect it to exactly go like this. From what he imagined, he was under the impression that Son Goku would breeze through the tournament and try to go and retrieve the Dragon Ball after it all was said and done. Though it would appear that the young chap grew impatient and decided to get it as soon as possible. Nonetheless, he didn't care about his method's - solely as long as they got that last Dragon Ball.
But what he didn't expect was there to be more than one enemy to fret over.
"Sorry, but that last Dragon Ball now belongs to us!"
Two green creatures come crashing down on the tournament arena.
Both of them with wings, dark green, yet one skinny and the other really fat.
"And just who in the hell are you!?"
"The sons...of King Piccolo! We're taking back this pathetic world!"
Many had heard stories as the times of King Piccolo was hundreds of years ago. Only one current person at the tournament lived through the terror that was King Piccolo and couldn't believe a word he was saying. Others begin to grow worried as there was actual evidence of King Piccolo existing and bringing hell on Earth, though others simply believed that they were just stories - nothing other than scary tales.
The mere sound of King Piccolo's name caused a few people to scatter as others stood still, not sure whether or not they should believe this. Every second that passed, the more out of hand that this tournament was getting.
"I am Tambourine. And this is my brother, Cymbal."
"No way you're the sons of King Piccolo!" Roshi calls out. "He was taken down long ago - trapped forever in a rice cooker!"
Tambourine and Cymbal both chuckle out loud. The former of the two points over to Pilaf. "You can thank him for being of great service." He opens his hand. "Box, please."
Pilaf, Mai, and Shuu, all a nervous wreck, go over the wall and hand them the last Dragon Ball.
"No…" Puar mumbles.
"TRAITORS!" Oolong screams. "How could you!?"
Pilaf just smiles. "Always playing the winning team, old friend. That's how life is."
"Fools," Gero chuckles. "You only still have just one Dragon Ball. What in the hell makes you think you can get a wish with one when you require all seven?"
"Because…" Tambourine's tongue slithers. "We infiltrated the Red Ribbon Army."
Pilaf, Mai, and Shuu are all then grabbed respectively by Tambourine before he flies off.
"Number nine…" Gero says, eye twitching.
"On it…"
Just as Goku begins to go and take off, his ankle is grabbed by Bulma, who gets up and tosses him right into the world tournament gymnasium.
"Our fight continues here and now!"
"I think this is our cue to go and follow those guys as Bulma handles Goku," Yamcha comments.
"Are you all forgetting that I'm here?" Cymbal asks. "I'm supposed to kill each and every one of you!"
"You stay here and keep an eye on Bulma and watch out for Gero and that thing," Roshi tells Yamcha. "You, Upa, and Krillin all stay put and take care of him."
Cymbal, at this point, starts to feel really disrespected at not getting the amount of attention that he inherently desired. He continues to speak up.
"You're not going any-"
Krillin comes forth, kicking Cymbal into the green grass to keep him distracted. He gives Roshi a thumbs off so that he could leave.
Tights clicks a capsule of a copter, allowing Oolong, Puar, and Roshi to enter. The blonde enters the copter as well and they all take off to go in pursuit after Pilaf.
Gero growls. As he is, there's no way he'd be able to stop the humans or those demons from being able to go after the ones to take the Dragon Ball. Not only that, but he's already exposed his hand to Bulma. She'll more than likely be able to deal with him accordingly as he's unable to do anything.
Never before had he been in such a pickle.
Gero, though beginning to feel himself being fueled by rage as to how shitty everything was getting by the moment, calmed himself. The evil scientist had to think of something.
And he had to do it quickly.
He looks at Yamcha, Krillin, and Upa. Most of the audience has scurried away in a panic already, leaving very few people left.
"We won't be letting you go anywhere, old man, so don't even think about it."
Gero chuckles. "Is that right?"
He grabs an odd cellular looking device and presses a few buttons. Out of nowhere, two giant machines in the sky come pick Gero up and take off. "HOLD OFF ON YOUR OWN FOR NOW, NUMBER NINE! STAY ALIVE AND MAKE SURE YOU GET THAT DRAGON BALL AT ALL COSTS! I'll BE BACK!"
Goku, who's just gotten smashed into the wall, gets back up, only to get punched down yet again.
Bulma stomps on his chest to keep him down. "Give up!"
Goku, gritting his teeth, does his best to pull Bulma's foot off, though such is only futile. "Never…"
Bulma just seethes her teeth.
Sure, Goku was different - though only for the most part. He still had that stubborn attitude of his that used to get on her nerves. Now it just really pissed her off.
Cymbal gets back up on his two feet. While rubbing his head and shaking it, he comes back to his senses. Before him are Yamcha, Krillin, and Upa, all willing to take him on.
"You all truly have a death wish…"
As they're riding out in the copter, Tights can't help but wonder something.
"Why leave Yamcha and the others behind? We all saw that Bulma has Goku beat, so why not get extra help yourself?"
"Because…" Roshi takes a deep breath. "If what those things said happens to be true...then Yamcha and the others aren't ready for the sight of true carnage." He looks at them. "Whenever we make it to their destination, you're going to drop me off and head right back to the tournament, understood?"
The three saw no reason in disobeying Roshi. He, after all, was much stronger and wiser than them, so of course they had no choice but to follow.
With all of this happening, Roshi couldn't help but wonder
Just how much worse do things have to get before matters actually got better?
