61 Hours until the Tournament of Time
"This is going to be awesome, Lord Beerus!"
The God in question found Goku to be annoyingly close, his onyx eyes shining with glee. He would have wrapped Beerus in a hug if he had not been roughly shoved away in disgust. "Yes, Goku we're all very excited," Beerus replied, his tone laden with sarcasm. "But seeing as you have less than three days to prepare and absolutely no idea what calibre of fighters you'll be up against, I suggest you head back to Earth and get your less inept son to strategise." Beerus was now shaking a fist. "Just because we won't be erased if we lose does not mean I will accept anything less than total victory!"
Giving his standard laugh in response, Goku placed two fingers to his forehead in preparation for Instant Transmission, eager to depart and attend the breakfast likely now underway at his home. "You betcha, Lord Beerus! Given how strong we've all gotten these past few years? There ain't no way we could lose!" The hand to his forehead started to tremble and his grin grew too wide. "This is going to be so cool! There's going to be so many strong guys to fight! And this time we can even bring all our friends to watch." Goku paused and blinked. "Which reminds me. Lord Beerus? Do you think Monaka-"
"Monaka died. Very tragic." Beerus' face was stern. "You can't wish him back. Find another contestant."
Goku's eyes grew wide and his shoulders slumped. "Oh man, that sucks..." He closed his eyes, and Beerus suppressed a groan when he apparently heard a sniffle escape the Saiyan. "I never even got to see him at his full power."
Suddenly rather angry, Beerus got up in Goku's face again. "Oh just go home already!" Beerus then had a sudden mischievous thought. "Maybe they'll be an alternate timeline Monaka at the Tournament you could fight! Or maybe someone even stronger!"
Goku's saddness was immediately forgotten. "You're right!" His fingers returned to his head and he let out a squeak. "So cool!"
After a moment of concentration, Goku vanished from the Sacred Land of the Kai's, leaving those remaining all stood in varying levels of wariness and thought.
"Considering multiverse theory, it is entirely possible that there is a Universe out there where Monaka is indeed the strongest." Whis' tone was as humoured as ever.
"Whis, your sass is unappreciated."
Ignoring his Lord's dour mood, Whis retreated away from the tree they were all stood beneath, Kibito and Old Kai at his side. Since they were already here and together, it was decided a spot of tea was in order before the angel and his apprentice ultimately took their leave.
Shin and Beerus ignored the others as they went off down a nearby path and over a hill; soon enough they were out of sight, leaving the two spirit-connected God's in a state of evident tension. Shin was looking at the large tree lost in thought, while Beerus set his sights on a nearby stream of water swirling through the field. After a seemingly lengthy period, it was Beerus who broke the silence.
"You may lack experience, Kai. But I consider you wise enough to realise there's something else going on here beyond a simple Tournament."
Shin almost found himself releasing a laugh; that was the closest his counterpart had come to complimenting him for quite some time. "I have been wondering..." his tone was quiet, his hesitation to voice himself more than obvious. "Grand Zeno proclaimed that the original Tournament of Power was simply a method to dispense with a number of Universes through competitive elimination. But after our Universe won and the wish was made to revive those erased, he said that had the wish been a selfish request, the winning Universe would have been erased anyway." Shin looked up to the towering Beerus, his gaze uncertain. "In short, the Tournament was not what it seemed."
Beerus snorted. "And you suspect an ulterior motive this time." It was a statement rather than a question. Beerus placed his hands behind his back. "As do I."
Shin joined Beerus in his stance by the river. "I have no doubt that Grand Zeno does enjoy the thrill of watching battles on the scale of Goku and his allies, but to resort to traversing other timelines purely to recruit participants for a sixteen man Tournament?" Shin shook his head side to side. "I'm sorry, but that goes far beyond what is necessary to entertain even the likes of the God of All."
His tail swishing back and forth, Beerus thought on his words carefully. "Even if there is something else going on here..." Beerus looked down to the Kai, who was almost shocked by the apparent look of concern on Beerus' face. "There's not really anything we can do about it."
Neither had anything more to say after that, simply choosing to continue to stand and watch the water flow; their shared sense of foreboding forever lingering between them.
- DB DBZ DBS DBGT -
Two cries of 'Goku,' two yells of 'Dad,' and a single cry of 'Grandpa' greeted the Saiyan in question as he materialised by his dining room table. Goten and Chi Chi being present was to be expected, but to be joined by Gohan, Videl and his recently turned eleven-year-old granddaughter Pan was a pleasant surprise indeed.
"Hey, guys! Did I miss breakfast?"
Chi Chi simply rolled her eyes. "Goku, you were barely gone ten minutes, we haven't even started yet."
As if by instinct, he chuckled in response. Goku promptly took his place at the head of the table. Gohan and Videl to his left, Goten and Pan his right, and a vacant seat at the end ready for his wife, who had stepped into the kitchen to continue plating whatever was casting an alluring aroma.
"We came over after we heard Mom yelling. She told us to stay for breakfast while we waited for you to get back."
Goku turned to his eldest son, giving him a simple nod. Despite the years having passed by, Gohan's hair still darted upwards and his eyes still held the same youthful gleam; thankfully un-obscured by his utterly unnecessary glasses. He was almost thirty-three, yet he looked a decade younger.
Goku couldn't say the same for his daughter-in-law; while Videl did not look old, she did look mature, and still just as beautiful. Her face was firmer and her posture more pronounced, her dark hair seemingly forever cropped to just below her ears, and while she was still rather short in stature, the way she held herself now somehow made her appear even taller than her husband, who had long sense outgrown Goku himself.
"Where'd you go, Grandpa? Grandma said a pink alien jumped on your bed and took you."
Practically conditioned to smile at her presence, Goku looked down to the speaking Pan sat at his side. She may have taken after her father in strength, but aside from her black eyes, she may as well have been a clone of her mother. Her short, spiky haircut always reminded Goku of a younger Videl, and Pan had even inherited her mother's height; being that she was perpetually shorter than everyone she had ever met.
Despite how much he tried, and regardless of how much it annoyed her, he would always fawn over her, as was his duty as a Grandfather.
"That pink alien was a guy called Kibito, he took me to the Supreme Kai's world!"
At this, Gohan, Goten and Videl each veered back. Outside of training purposes, Goku being summonded to the domain of the Gods was unlikely to be because of something unimportant.
"Is something up, Dad? Kibito wouldn't just pop in to say 'hi.'" Gohan's eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "There's not something... bad happening, is there?" He chose his words carefully when he noticed Pan's eyes on him, the absolute last thing he wanted to do was unnecessarily worry his daughter.
He was grateful when his father broke out into a wide grin. "Nope! Get this, Zeno's holding another Tournament!"
Gohan was suddenly on the verge of hyperventilating.
"Woah!" Goku intruded, his hands held up submissively. "No erasing or anything like that! Just some good old fisticuffs between strong guys!" He punctuated his words by gripping his fists. "Sixteen fighters going one-on-one, its going to be awesome!"
With the prospect of Universal destruction leaving his thoughts, Gohan rested his hand on the table after he took it off his still beating heart. "That's... slightly less terrible." No erasure or not, Gohan was always wary in matters where either of the Grand Zeno's were involved; after gathering some first hand experience as a participant in the Tournament of Power, Gohan completely understood why even the Gods themselves feared the small beings.
"We got just under three days to prepare, I've got to go tell everybody! We'll all go together to cheer each other on, it'll be just like the good old days!"
Gohan couldn't help but snort; given the amount of parties Bulma had thrown over the years, their small but loyal band of friends had been meeting up consistently for close to a decade. Even so, he too grew excited as he began to ponder the Tournament further. "It does sound interesting, maybe you'll finally get your chance to beat Jiren this time."
Goku rubbed his head in slight embarrassment, his last encounter with the grey Pride Trooper giving rise to some painful memories. "Yeah... That's the thing though, no one else besides three people from this Universe 7 can participate." Goku withheld his grin as he saw his family grow perplexed. "But, Zenni's bringing fighters from other Universe 7's to fill up the bracket. Whis said there's an infinite amount of them to choose from!"
Goten rubbed his head, Videl placed a hand to her chin, Gohan's eyes almost burst from their sockets and Pan was just confused.
"Grandpa, the heck are you talking about?"
She was startled and let out a squeak when Gohan slammed a fist into the table.
"Thats crazy! You mean other Universe 7's, as in alternate Universe 7's? Like a Frieza blows up the Earth Universe? An Android's terrorise the world for decades Universe?" Goku leaned into his father's face. "Zeno's traversing time and space just to find strong guys for a fighting contest?!"
"Hey, you caught on fast! You always were smarter than me, Gohan." Goku said, utterly genuine.
Gohan slouched in his seat, Videl placing a soothing hand on his shoulder. "This is crazy, Lord Beerus must be fighting off a heart attack."
Still not fully understanding, and feeling as if she was being ignored, Pan leaned upon the table as well, though she didn't look nearly as imposing as she thought she did. From what she had gathered; somewhere, somehow, a Tournament was being held, and frankly, that was all she needed to know. "Grandpa, if there's a Tournament happening I want to fight in it!"
Videl broke into a sharp grin at her daughter's eagerness, not noticing her husband gripping his armrests and pushing himself up.
It was to everyone's shock when Goku was the one to speak up. "Sorry, Pan. This is a grown-up's Tournament, they'll be lots of strong guys way above your league, plus I've got to ask around first to make sure nobody... else..."
Goku trailed off when Pan turned her back to him; she crossed her arms, slouched her shoulders, and donned a mixed expression of anger and sadness.
Just like that, she had him.
"Well I guess... I mean three of us can go. Vegeta would literally kill me if I didn't invite him, but Uub hasn't finished his training yet, Broly probably wouldn't like to go anyway and I doubt Cheelai would even let him. So I guess if you really-"
"Dad," Gohan's stern tone interrupted Goku's rambling. He stood up and slid his chair away in one motion. "Need a word." With that he left the room, and Goku, sensing urgency, was right behind him. They entered the living room, far enough away from the table to be discreet but close enough that they intentionally kept their voices down, much to Pan's anger.
The quarter-Saiyan continued to sit with her arms crossed and eyes down, her uncle and mother awkwardly deciding to make conversation at her side which she promptly ignored. She cast her thoughts to this mysterious Tournament; her Grandpa was pretty much guaranteed to be participating, and he fully intended to invite Mr. Vegeta, leaving one space available out of a possible three... and Pan wanted it.
She'd been fighting in Tournament's almost as long as she could walk, mostly at both her Grandfather's insistence. But this time, for this Tournament, her Grandpa Goku was suddenly against her participating? That completely went against everything she knew about the man! He'd been training her along with her father and Piccolo for as long as she could remember. If anything, he would've signed her up before himself!
Grown-up's Tournament, what a load of-
"Pan." She jumped, it was her father, and for a moment she thought he had heard her thoughts. She looked at him, seeing he had his 'business' face on. "Can we talk for a minute?" His tone was as kind as ever, she knew that whatever it was he was feeling at that moment, it wasn't directed at her. She simply nodded and jumped down from her chair, following Gohan as he made his way back into the living room, her Grandpa Goku gave her a quick wave as he walked past which she returned.
Once they entered, she promptly jumped on the nearby red couch, Gohan choosing instead to go on one knee if front of her. Even when boosted by the seat, they were still only at eye level.
"What is it, Papa?"
"Pan, you're not allowed to enter the Tournament."
Even though she was already, in the back of her mind, expecting to hear that, she was still fuming. "Why not!" she half-yelled, half-whined, conscious of the group that was more than likely listening in next door. "I've entered Tournaments before and you and Mom always let me!"
If Gohan had a reaction to his daughter yelling at him, he didn't show it. "This won't be like Grandpa Satan's Tournaments, Pan. We let you enter those because we know you won't get hurt."
Pan rolled her eyes; if Videl saw that, Pan knew she wouldn't have gotten away with it. "You know how strong I am, I wouldn't get hurt."
Gohan sighed. He knew all too well of the strength and power Pan possessed; able to fly before she could walk, able to break rock before she could speak, able to fire a Kamehameha before she could read. She was a prodigy, pure and simple, and she was all too aware of it; aware enough to be too sure of herself. Reflecting on his prior conversation with his father, Gohan decided to not pull his punches any further.
"Pan, killing is allowed in this Tournament."
If Pan had any argument, she doubted it would stand up to that. Suddenly she felt very uneasy under her father's stare, enough to avert her own gaze away. Grandpa Satan's World Tournaments didn't allow killing, and at present that was her only point of reference to draw from. In fact in retrospect, fighting opponents even stronger than herself with no restrictions on killing did not sound like the good time she had first envisioned.
"Now is that enough or do I need to explain why I take issue with that?"
Pan huffed; her father may have had a point, but that didnt mean he had to be up in her face about it. "Yeah, I get it," she stated frankly, before she collapsed back with an exaggerated sigh. "Fine, I won't compete. Happy?"
"Not if you aren't," Gohan was quick to retort.
Past her inital bout of stubbornness, Pan could feel herself growing upset to compensate. "But it's going to be so cool though! Grandpa and Vegeta are going to get to fight a load of strong guys and look awesome! It's not fair." Her tone quietened down at that, and she once again turned away with her arms crossed.
Gohan suppressed a smile; in moments like these, Pan really couldn't look any more like her mother. "I know it can be difficult feeling like your decisions are always being made for you, Pan, but its only because we want what's best for you." He ran his hand through her hair, she fidgeted, but didn't protest. "It's not that we don't want you to have fun, heck I wouldn't mind entering myself, but when you're a little older it will be easier to understand that-"
"Why don't you?" Gohan paused, Pan's eyes shining with wonder and curiosity. "Enter I mean?" Pan broke into a grin. "Yeah! You should enter too, Papa!"
Of all the ways Gohan thought this conversation would go; this was not one of them. "No no no, Pan! I can't fight... I got... things, and I can't just-"
"Please?" She was now stood on the sofa, hands clasped together at her front. "I never get to see you fight seriously! Pleeease, Papa? You can even win! You're like the strongest in the Universe!"
Now that is just incorrect Gohan stated in his mind, in denial but still flattered she thought so highly of him. Pan didn't leave him to his thoughts for long, now bouncing up and down in a tried and tired method she utilised to get what she wanted. "Pan, just, Pan-" Gohan groaned. Realising he was getting nowhere, he gently grabbed Pan mid-jump by the waist, setting her back down, the springy cushions taking a moment to even out. He prepared his words in his head, ready to inform her that despite what she wanted, no, he would not volunteer to once again act as one of Grand Zeno's personal dancing monkeys.
It was when he once again met her gaze that, with great horror, he noticed her secret weapon had been unleashed.
It took a record four sobs before Gohan caved.
"Alright, I'll compete."
If Gohan had any second thoughts or doubts, they faded away the second Pan leapt at his torso and hugged his neck.
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