With the final 8 fighters ready, the announcer placed them all in a row and had them introduce themselves.
"I'm Ran Fan!" A pretty young woman with bright curly hair and a cute mole on the left side of her face stepped forward. She wore a pink sleeveless shirt and grey track pants, both of which did little to hide her womanly figure. Though on closer inspection her arms, shoulder, and a bit of the neck and clavicle exposed showed well-sculpted muscles born from years of hard work and insane strength training. "I love martial arts and big strong, nice men." She winked, "I hope I win this tournament!" The crowd, well, mostly the men, cheered and whistled for her.
"Give me a break…" Bulma shook her head in annoyance, "at least I don't see Master Roshi though." She looked around, "I couldn't handle being near that pervert."
"I mean, that old guy's a lot like him." Oolong pointed to Jackie Chun, who clapped and whistled along with the crowd. Ran Fan gave him a cheeky smile, and twirled a bit, causing the old man to redden.
"Good grief, they're like twins…" Bulma shook her head, she moved her gaze first to Yamcha, then to Jazz, satisfied that neither seemed to have been captivated by Ran Fan's performance.
The next person to walk forward was Nam.
"I am Nam." The dark-skinned man had a complexion and visage that seemed to be a mix of Middle-Eastern and Indian, he wore clothes reminiscent of Buddhist and Thai monks. "The only thing I have to say is that I dislike violence, but I am strong and I must win the prize money, so to all who enter this tournament, you have my condolences, it will be my win."
The fighters had seen Nam's skills in action, his challenger on his way to the top 16 was the fighter Giran, as a member of the Giras race, pterodactyl-like anthropomorphs, the fighter had given Goku a lot of trouble in the "canon timeline" with his rubbery, gum-like spit and flying ability. Nam had been able to dodge the spit and outmaneuver the monstrous being on the ground, forcing it out with a well-timed body slam and dunk. The crowd clapped and cheered for him, his stoic nature had given him a lot of fans amongst the crowd, and their cheers seemed to have caused the turbaned-fighter to blush slightly.
The next up was Yamcha.
He pounded his scarred fists together. "I'm Yamcha, I'm mostly self-taught, but I've learned a bit here and there." He folded his arms, "I came to this tournament to test my limits and see what kind of amazing fighters are out there, and I thank you all for the support you've given all these amazing fighters."
Jazz shook his head wryly at the young man's natural charisma. The crowd, especially the ladies, and especially Bulma, clapped and cheered and screamed out Yamcha's name. He had definitely left a positive impression on the crowd.
Jackie Chun was next, who pulled off an impressive acrobatic song and dance routine, causing Goku to mimic him, as the two finished, Roshi called out. "That was for all the beautiful ladies in the world hehehe!" He handed the mike back to the bemused announcer.
Next was Goku, who pulled Krillin up with him as the announcer handed him the mike.
"What's this?" He asked, his voice reverberating on the speakers.
"Fool! It's a mike!"
"Oh?" Goku smiled, "Hiiii Mike! How are you!" He turned to Krillin, "hey, Krillin? Why does Mike keep repeating everything I say?"
The crowd burst out laughing at their impromptu comedy routine.
"Goku!" Krillin chuckled. He grabbed the mike and began to speak. "H-hi! I'm Krillin! This is my friend Goku!" Goku stuck his fingers out in the victory sign. "This is our first tournament! And we're super happy to be here!"
"All the strong guys are so amazing!" Goku added with excitement.
"You guys seem really young," the announcer began.
"Yup! I'm 12!" Goku shouted.
"12?!" Krillin asked, "I thought you said you were 14?"
"That's cause I didn't know math Krillin!" Goku replied, causing the crowd to laugh some more.
"A couple of comedians right here!" The announcer smiled, "quick question? Who's your teacher, they must be extremely amazing."
"Master Roshi!" They both shouted at the same time.
Instantly, the crowd quieted.
"Yo…" Someone began, "the legendary Turtle Hermit, no wonder these kids are so great."
"They must be really hard workers to have gotten this far." Another said. "I'm rooting for you kids! Make it far!"
The crowd let off some healthy whoops and cheers their way. The announcer then turned to PaoPao.
"Hello young lady, you and Ran Fan seem to be the only women who made it to the finals, any thoughts on that?"
PaoPao took the mike and smiled gracefully, causing many in the crowd to murmur.
"Wow… she's like a dainty princess."
"And the way she's been fighting, like a ballerina, so elegant and controlled."
PaoPao waited for the murmuring to quiet down before speaking. "As I'm sure you know, I've been introduced to you all as PaoPao. Though what you may not know is that I once belonged to a clan of wicked assassins." The crowd gasped. PaoPao nodded and smiled sadly, "yes, truly, my people's way had been tainted with greed and sin, but I can stand proudly before you, saying that I am working hard to change our flow! And right our wrongs!" The crowd cheered at her words.
"You go, girl!"
"Amazing! Such a brave and kind heart!"
"That we'd be able to see her fight!"
PaoPao smiled, "thank you for your support in spirit, already, my organization, named Tsukimi, has been able to gain the support of the World King!"
"Oh! I've heard of them!" Someone shouted, "they just cropped up a few months ago, but they've already done some peace-keeping missions, I heard they got rid of a wing of the Red Ribbon Army heading towards Orrin Forrest!"
PaoPao grinned, "already my clan's exploits have reached your ears?" Tears began to fall down her cheeks as she cried out, "I thank the heavens for this opportunity to earn the people's heart!"
Jazz felt his jaw drop as he watched the crowd eating from the palm of PaoPao's hand. Looking at the people who shouted, he realized he recognized some of the ki signatures as members of PaoPao's clan who he saw every once and a while during the four days of rest after the Devil's Island fiasco. Most of them were definitely stronger than the average person.
"But my work isn't done!" PaoPao shouted, "my goal is to bring peace to the people! And for that, I need strength and capital! That is why I came to this tournament, in order to find the greatest fighters, great in strength, spirit, and integrity! Win or lose, I will not waiver in my mission!"
"GIVE IT UP FOR PAOPAO!"
Jazz shook his head ruefully as the crowd cheered for the girl. It was literally only a little over a year ago when he first met her, she truly had changed a lot. His smile dropped as he saw her eyes glance over to her fellow fighters, skipping his entirely. His befuddled, amused emotions were replaced with slight irritation.
"Last but not least!" The announcer turned to Jazz, "young man! You really put on quite a show with all of your techniques and abilities! In fact, I must say I'm impressed with the power you demonstrated even in the preliminary, and you told your last opponent you liked to keep your cards to your chest, do you have anything else to bring forward for these few rounds?"
Jazz took the mike. "I'm normally a very reserved person, so I, unfortunately, don't like to share too much of myself or what I'm thinking, even with my friends." This caused PaoPao to frown slightly. "I… I guess I don't want to worry them. Honestly, though, this habit's bled into my fighting. I don't like to share what I can do, so I plan to keep everyone on their toes." He glanced at the moon, his heart racing slightly, "so everyone! Look forward to it!"
"TRULY A MYSTERIOUS YOUNG FIGHTER! WE'VE GOT A LOT OF YOUNG TALENTS HERE TODAY! THE SPIRIT OF YOUTH SURE IS BURNING BRIGHTLY!"
The fighters retreated back into the waiting booth as they began to pick paper lots to determine the fights.
"ON THE EAST BRACKET! IT LOOKS LIKE THE FIERCE WOLF, YAMCHA WILL FACE THE SILENT MAN OF THE DESERT, NAM! AND AGE VS BEAUTY, SKILL VS YOUTHFUL VIGOR! THE ENIGMATIC MASTER, JACKIE CHUN, VS THE SERENDIPITOUS SIREN, RAN FAN!
The announcer turned his hand with a flourish.
"ON THE WEST BRACKET! THE HOPE OF TSUKIMI, PAOPAO, WILL FACE OFF AGAINST THE MYSTERIOUS YOUNG FIGHTER, JASPER! FOLLOWED BY A FIGHT BETWEEN STUDENTS OF THE SAME MASTER, FRIEND VS FRIEND, BROTHER VS BROTHER, WHO HAS TAKEN IN THE MOST OF THEIR TEACHINGS?! KRILLIN VS GOKU!"
The crowd cheered in the hype and watched as the first two fighters walked onto the stage.
Jazz raised an eyebrow in interest, it seemed like the future did change due to his interference. He wanted to see the results of this fight, Nam was powerful enough to give Goku a run for his money, so he was at least comparable to a power level of around 100, if not more, and despite his obvious lack of ki blast techniques, he did feel a bit stronger than Chi-Chi, and a bit stronger than Yamcha.
Yamcha for his part had a loose, easy-going smile on his face. He bowed to Nam, who returned the gesture but did not smile.
The gong sounded, signaling the beginning of their battle. Both fighters took on stances, shifting slightly here and there, but not approaching each other. Seconds passed by, which eventually became minutes.
"...they're just standing there?" Chi-Chi asked, she, like a few fighters, decided to stay and watch the rest of the fights.
"They are trying to get a feel for each other," PaoPao began, "they want to make the best starting move possible, I'm sure they already know."
"Already know what?" Chi-Chi continued.
"That either fighter could end the battle with their signature moves, and that if they are not careful, they can fall into a trap." Jackie-Chun finished PaoPao's sentence. The young girl smiled at the old man.
"Thank you for your succinct wisdom venerable master."
"I'm surprised you haven't tried to recruit him," Krillin muttered.
PaoPao just chuckled, "I have no need to, imagine, Krillin, would you fish for the same fish a second time after you've already had your meal?"
"What does that mean?" Goku asked. Krillin shrugged and Jazz smirked in humor before turning back towards the battle of wills.
Yamcha was the first to move.
"Wolf Fang Fist!" Jazz smiled as he felt Yamcha's ki spike up, the wolf fang fist was the first technique ever shown in the story and while he had seen it in action before, it was interesting to see it now. He kept low to the ground as he charged Nam, striking with a flurry of open palm strikes. Nam dodged and deflected the strikes, moving back due to the intensity of Yamcha's attacks. The sound of the blocked strikes left solid thwacks in the air, causing Jazz to smile with excitement over the intensity of their attacks. Eventually, Yamcha's ki began to lower to its normal levels and Nam's backpedaling stopped.
Nam's first offensive move was a low leg sweep, which Yamcha leaped over. Before Yamcha could strike from above, Nam twisted his flexible body and attacked with a scorpion kick, extending his hands to the ground and curving his body and legs to strike the former bandit.
Yamcha used both his hands to catch Nam's foot, then using the dark-skinned fighter's body as leverage, flipped over and behind Nam. Yamcha charged forward with a flying kick, but Nam had already leaped into the air.
"Wow!" Yamcha grinned, "you're quite tough."
"You are an admirable fighter," Nam replied simply as he landed. "Tell me, what made you so strong?"
Yamcha raised an eyebrow at the question. "Hmm… I was left in the desert by my shitty drunkard of a dad and had to fend for myself, I grew strong by taking what I needed from anyone who had the bad fortune of passing my way."
Nam frowned, but Yamcha raised a hand.
"Yeah, I know, I was a bad guy, I won't lie about that." he sighed, "but some brats helped me see that stealing wasn't a way to live my life, and I attained some happiness, but then I almost lost that happy because I was too weak." He clenched his fist, "I promised myself that I would never allow weakness to overtake me again, never like that, so that I could protect the one I love."
Bulma blushed at Yamcha's words and swooned when he turned to her and winked.
Nam smiled, "I see, your love for a woman has given you the will to attain strength. I wonder if that can keep up with my love for my people!" He charged forward with renewed speed, catching Yamcha off guard. Now it was the scarred man's turn to be on the back foot.
Nam attacked with closed palmed strikes primarily and after the first few exchanges, it was clear to see that Yamcha was the weaker of the two. Every block changed to a deflection as Yamcha seemed to lack the ability to fully kill the momentum of Nam's strikes and kicks. Eventually, Yamcha found himself at the edge of the arena. As he did, Nam began to speak.
"In the village I grew up in, the people are poor, but their hearts are as warm and bright as the sun that beats down on us. But one day, a terrible drought consumed our people. Desperate, I turned to this tournament, water in the desert is scarce and extremely expensive, I need the money to save my people." He closed his eyes. Yamcha attempted to swipe the warrior away, but Nam seemed to predict his movements. "I have the hope of my village on my shoulders! I shall not lose to your noble love!" He struck out with a powerful punch, launching Yamcha out of the arena.
"COULD THIS BE THE END FOR OUR SCAR-FACED BANDIT?!" The announcer called out.
Jazz watched with some disappointment. Yamcha had definitely grown stronger, but it looked like it was already over. Then, he felt Yamcha's ki spike up again and watched as the fighter smiled just as his head was about to hit the ground.
Yamcha stopped in mid-air, causing the crowd to erupt in delight.
"I-impossible!" Nam shouted in alarm, backing up.
"I'm sorry, you've got a lot on your shoulders." Yamcha rose his body from the ground and righted himself up as he stared down at Nam. "But I'm not about to just lie down and take a loss!"
"The air dance?!" Roshi stared in amazement, "I mean, I'm not a fan of such parlor tricks, but still, it's astounding that someone his age managed to get the hang of such a technique, but who taught him?"
"I did," PaoPao announced, surprising everyone, even Jazz.
"Huhh?" Jazz was the one to vocalize his confusion.
"Please, you aren't the only one who's picked up techniques here and there." PaoPao laughed. "I learned the air dance from the…" she eyed Jackie Chun, "I learned the air dance from that school", and Yamcha learned it from me.
Jackie Chun grumbled, "I could have taught that kid way more useful things."
"Huh?" Goku turned in confusion, "what do you mean Jackie Chun?"
Roshi caught himself, "hahaha! I mean, if he was my student, listen, kids, flashy moves are all well and good, but a strong foundation trumps everything else."
Jazz rolled his eyes at the words. But, at least in the dragon world, there was some merit to Roshi's words. Though, it looked like Yamcha was going to prove the opposite.
The scarred martial artist landed in the middle of the arena. "I've fought with my life on the line for months now, learning everything I could about my enemies, and raising my senses to their limits, I trained with the sole purpose of attaining greater and greater strength and versatility, and now, I'll test it against you!" He glared at Nam, "give me your strongest attack! I'll take you head-on!"
Nam nodded, "I respect your warrior spirit, and I see the dedication in your eyes, I will pin my village's hope on this final attack honorable foe!" Nam leapt nearly 100 feet in the air. "HEAVEN CROSS!" Like the name suggested, Nam's arms crossed into an x-shape as he sailed down from the sky towards Yamcha.
"AMAZING! THESE TWO FIGHTERS ARE GIVING THEIR ALL! READY TO PUT EVERYTHING ON THIS FINAL ATTACK!"
Jazz remembered the devastating power of the attack on Goku and looked to Yamcha with anticipation. Yamcha began to tense his muscles, as his ki spiked up again. "Hinode Ōkami no Ken!"(Sunrise Wolf Fist!, or, Sunrise Great Deity Fist! The Kanji for wolf and Great Deity are pronounced similarly "Ōkami", so this is a play on words, much like the videogame.)
Yamcha began to rotate, faster, then faster, then faster again until the air began to fill with the sounds of his rotating fists and body, like a helicopter fan. Jazz's eyes grew wide as Yamcha's ki spiked to an all-time high, beyond even the power boost of his own Max Power/ Pump up. Yamcha leaped into the air to meet Nam's strike, and he watched with awe as the two powers clashed.
To his credit, Nam was a powerful, gifted fighter, who likely had gained his strength mostly through his own natural means without reliance on a great master like Roshi. Despite that, Yamcha blew through his attack and knocked him out mid-air. The two of them landed on the ground, with Yamcha standing but tired.
"WITH A HOWL SENT STRAIGHT TO THE HEAVENS! YAMCHA TAKES THE VICTORY!" The crowd cheered and clapped for the young man, who waved and smiled.
Jackie Chun for his part gave off a chill smirk. "I'm amazed." He began, "that young man is truly skilled, I'm surprised he was able to make it this far without an established master. But he needs some structure, or else, like a tower without foundation, he may collapse."
"Perhaps a wise, powerful master would be able to teach him." Jazz said out loud.
"Yeah! Like Master Roshi! He's the best!" Goku announced.
This caused Jackie Chun to blush slightly, though he turned his face before the others could see him.
Yamcha walked back to the fighter's stand. "Woo… I'm beat." He sighed, turning to PaoPao and Jazz, "I hope the two of you have a good fight."
"Actually," Jazz began, but before he could speak, the announcer continued.
"NOW WE SHALL SEE WHO WILL WIN OUT!? AGE OR BEAUTY! EXPERIENCE OR YOUTHFUL VIGOR!"
Jackie Chun tutted, "I'm plenty beautiful, they should just say experience vs. youth…"
"Good luck out there old guy!" Goku shouted, "and do your best to… uh… Ms?"
Ran Fan smile, "well aren't you a polite young man."
Jackie Chun giggled, "he's got a great teacher too."
"Well, I'd love to meet him." Ran Fan giggled, "take care of me up there, don't go too hard on widdle ole' me alright?"
Jackie Chun turned redder than a cherry and nodded profusely.
Jazz sighed and turned towards the kitchen. Roshi would probably play up his pervertedness to an 11, and Ran Fan's style of fighting and trickery would make the fight a bit ridiculous for him to behold with a straight face.
"Where are you headed?" PaoPao asked suddenly.
"To eat, I already know how the fight's going to end."
"To eat?" PaoPao asked.
"Healing and regeneration take a lot of calories. So I want to be ready for our fight PaoPao."
"Hmph, suit yourself." She turned away.
"Hey… you…" Jazz was about to say something, then shook his head.
He wasn't the only one who was leaving the main grounds. Nam, with a downtrodden smile, began his walk out of the arena.
"Leaving so soon?" Yamcha asked.
"Thank you for your concern, but since I've lost, I need to find some other way to gain water for my village."
"Oi! Young man!" Jackie Chun turned to Nam, "don't leave just yet, after the fight, I want to do something for you."
Nam looked conflicted, but bowed, "this young warrior will respect his elder's decision." Despite saying that, he looked conflicted as he remained to watch the battle.
Jazz walked into the cafeteria. "Hey." He asked, "can I eat some stuff?"
"Don't you want to wait until after the fights?"
"Nope." Jazz announced, "I need to fill up a bit."
He ordered a veritable buffet table of food and began to scarf it down with extreme ferocity and gusto. He then noticed that Goku was at another table doing almost the exact same thing, only his was even more.
"Oh? Jazz? You had the same idea?" Goku said in between mouthfuls. Jazz nodded slowly, gaping at the sheer size of the meals before the Saiyan child.
"You certainly have an appetite Goku."
"Well… I wanted to have a snack before my fight with Krillin!" Goku announced.
"Who do you think will win?" Jazz asked curiously, surprisingly, Goku and Krillin's ki were almost at the same level, to the point where he couldn't tell the difference, though he often noticed those stronger than him at his strongest were a bit harder to tell apart.
"Hmm… I don't know." Goku announced. "But it will be fun either way!"
"I guess you're right." Jazz smirked. After finishing his meal, he returned to the arena, just in time to see Ran Fan running around the tiled floor as Jackie Chun chased after her.
"Come on! Stop being a tease little lady! Take off some more!"
It looked like Ran Fan had attempted to embarrass Roshi, which, unfortunately for her, was impossible. Jazz shook his head, already predicting the eventual resolution to the fight, and walked out of the fighter's area and towards his old teachers Ebizu and Warrick and Warrick's elder sister Dealla.
…
...
Jasper(Jazz) Duncan
Age: 15 (and 11 months), physical appearance: 15-16
Hair color: Red
Skin color: white
Race: Quarter Caucasian(White American of English-Irish descent), Quarter Asian (Korean), Quarter Black(African-American), Quarter Hispanic (Cuban)
Height: 5ft 9inches | 175 centimeters (69 inches, nice)
Weight: 161 lbs | 72 kilograms (the namekians granted him a pair of 10, 15, and 20 kilogram wrist and ankle weights. (3 sets of weighted clothing in total, 4 parts each, 22 pounds, 33 pounds, and 44 pounds respectively, currently using 15 kg (33 lbs) weights.
Skills: Decent Sports Talent for Age, Semi-Above Average Intellect for age, intermediate martial arts skills, average ki control, good pain tolerance, trap building, intermediate weapons mastery, basic boxing, basic MMA, street fighting skills
Powers: Magic Materialization (Fire) (Intermediate Understanding), Magic Materialization (Water) (Basic Understanding)
General magic: Rudimentary Understanding
Max Power/ Pump Up (1.5x (mastered), 2x (capable),
Shapeshifting, Mastered Skill level (indefinite)
Noble Werewolf (On the Cusp of Awakening)
Powerlevel: 66(80), will raise to 99(120) temporarily when using Pump Up/Max Power
…
…
Afterword:
The first two battles of the Quarter-Finals have been completed, now, we'll have Jazz vs. PaoPao and Goku vs. Krillin. If you've noticed, I don't really give anyone else's power levels, that's because, at least in Dragon Ball, Power Levels don't matter nearly as much. While a difference in 10 between a 10 and a 20 is massive, it is not as different for a 90 and 100, let alone a 190 and 200, or even beyond, the same way now. The numerical difference between power levels can be expressed in the tens or dozens at most, and at times only in the single digits for most fighters, and technique reigns supreme. Yamcha, as I'm sure you've noticed, has had the most drastic change out of all the fighters in the original, I always felt one of his weaknesses was in not training before the tournament. He literally lived in the city with Bulma and likely didn't train very hard, yet he was powerful enough to be a finalist and strong enough with the Wolf Fang Fist that Roshi used a tiny bit of seriousness to beat him in the original. I'm also sure you've noticed that I've removed some characters but kept others in the finalist corners. Namely, I've removed Giran and Bacterian from the forefront. Basically, in my opinion, both were gimmick fighters who would have likely won had their opponents switched, but for unfair reasons. Goku was unable to tear out of the rubber spit until he grew back his tail, and his kintoun saved him from an untimely out. Krillin on the other hand beat Bacterian because he lacked a nose, and Goku with his enhanced smell was especially weak to such a thing. Neither fighter had much outside those gimmicks. On the other hand, Nam was strong enough to seriously threaten Goku's chances of winning, and Ran Fan was strong enough to land some solid blows on Nam, while Ran Fan had her pervy gimmick, it would have no effect on Goku, Jazz (who'd expect it), or PaoPao (a fellow woman, who's probably straight), Yamcha would likely act similarly to Nam, especially after Bulma's goading, and Krillin is along sides the same strength level as Goku and Roshi, meaning Ran Fan likely won't be able to damage him nearly as much as she did Nam. Though, I also did roll dice and flip coins for who would fight who, as in my opinion, it wouldn't change too much. Ultimately, it still will end as a fight between Roshi and Goku. Jazz would have no desire to fight Roshi all out if he made it to the end, and the Roshi-Goku fight is important to Goku's development due to Goku acknowledging that there would always be someone stronger. More than anything else, Jazz is tied up in the idea of Dragon Ball as a narrative, and he feels uncomfortable rocking the boat too much, even though his nature screams at him to also embrace and become the center of change in this universe.
Ooh… also, notice Jazz's weight change, he just ate 4 pounds in food (the fatty), this is for a reason, that you'll see next chapter.