"Looks like Goku won," Bulma said as she watched the two energy attacks collide, and even though they remained balanced in the middle of the arena, Bulma could tell that Nam's mood was in disarray.
The man had lost the calm that had characterized him, and not only that, his energy seemed to be disturbed by his disordered thoughts, something that made Bulma shake her head before looking at Krillin.
"If you want to create Buddhist techniques, make sure they have nothing to do with your emotional state, fighting Goku is letting your emotions out." Bulma's words made Krillin scratch his bald head with some embarrassment.
"You know, it's not like I'm an ascetic monk like him either," Krillin replied somewhat sheepishly, but he never stopped watching the fight between Nam and Goku, all because he felt quite interested in Nam.
Nam and he could be said to be of the same 'style', though there were many differences, and Krillin was now apprenticed to Muten Roshi, but that didn't take away from one important thing: the influence of Buddhism remained in Krillin.
Fortunately, in this universe, Buddhism was not a religion per se, but rather a martial arts 'path' with its various offshoots, much like the Mutaito school and its resulting offshoots.
Because of this, Krillin could simply change schools without any problem. If it were in these martial arts or cultivation worlds, that would be something impossible, and he might be killed as a heretic, Fortunately, this universe had only slight touches of that style, but only on the surface.
'But that presence...' Bulma looked at the sky with a strange look in her eyes, because before the lightning struck Goku, she felt that something wanted to strike her with lightning as well, without knowing why.
For Bulma, this tournament was a turning point like no other; the whole 'future' that every reincarnate was proud to know had been ruined, and she had a certain feeling that a lot of it had to do with her, but most of it didn't.
Not that she cared, she wasn't in the Dragon Ball universe to repeat the same plots, the same results, the same deaths, or the same endings. She didn't care that the future was unknown or new, because after all, this was a real universe.
One full of surprises! If she had relied on the thoughts that reincarnated people usually had, she would have found everything that had appeared before her in this tournament to be unacceptable.
But since she wasn't looking forward to any of it, she enjoyed the show. For example, watching Goku push the one-handed Kame Hame Ha forward and push Nam out of the arena.
It was an epic ending! If she had insisted on keeping things the same, she wouldn't have even visited Gohan all those years ago. Now she was watching Goku celebrate his victory, and she was happy for him.
'I look forward to seeing how far you can grow, Goku,' Bulma thought as she watched Chi-Chi run into the arena to hug the young Saiyan, who didn't understand what was going on, but just in case, he returned Chi-Chi's hug.
"What an amazing fight we just saw!" the announcer's voice echoed throughout the arena, as the screen showed some replays of the fight, in slow motion so that normal people could better appreciate it.
"Young Nam's techniques are quite interesting. I never thought I'd see a sealing technique used as an offensive technique, although maybe I haven't seen all of them because they are so rare," commented Muten Roshi, who was very interested in the technique Nam used to seal Goku.
Although it failed in the end, such a technique would be quite useful in a death match, even if it can't hold your opponent forever, giving you a few seconds' advantage in such a fight is invaluable.
Especially as fights are fought at high speed, and a small disadvantage or mistake can be magnified in the hands of someone more powerful and experienced.
"Mortals are quite creative, no doubt," Whis said, still watching Goku with interest, but soon his attention was drawn to the next fighters.
Yamcha against Ten Shinhan.
Both young men jumped into the arena at once, and without even speaking, the tension between them grew as never before. Although there wasn't much of the animosity expected from rival schools, there was a certain anticipation.
Yamcha adopted a fighting stance that made him look like a wolf, even the faint aura rising from his body looming behind him like a giant wolf, while Ten Shinhan moved calmly, adopting his fighting pose.
"The youngsters are quite restless, aren't they?" Whis commented actively for the first time, causing the moderator to adjust the black glasses on his face as he smiled.
"Yes! They're from rival schools, the Turtle School and the Crane School. It looks like we're in for a fight full of intensity and fervor!" The announcer's words caused Muten Roshi to look in the direction of a familiar Ki for the first time.
Tsuru's Ki. Although both elders wore dark glasses, both could feel the glee in each other's eyes. The two opponents were quite sure of the reliability of their pupils, certain that they would win the next match.
With the announcer's words and the loud sound of the gong, the match began.
Yamcha and Ten Shinhan faced each other immediately, they didn't need to test each other or anything like that. They had seen each other's power in previous fights, so they got right down to business.
After an initial clash, the two separated; Yamcha brought the index and middle fingers of his right hand together, and a yellow ki-sword appeared, making a buzzing sound as he waved it several times.
He then did the same with his left hand, giving him two energy swords to use. As a person who had used two swords for so many years, how could he leave that knowledge and experience behind?
Having received systematic Ki training and the support of great masters such as Muten Roshi and Son Gohan, Yamcha did not leave his years of swordsmanship behind, but integrated them into his martial arts.
Sensing the threat of these two ki weapons, Ten Shinhan did not hesitate, the energy inside him stirring strongly and tearing the clothes covering his upper body.
Soon another pair of arms emerged from his back and, to the astonishment of the crowd, a touch of electricity appeared on his four palms. Yamcha and Ten Shinhan looked at each other for a moment, knowing they were going all out.
Then they returned to face each other. Though for many it might be inconvenient to have an extra pair of limbs, for Ten Shinhan it was not; he could manipulate his four arms with great sensitivity, and his speed was not affected either, as he was able to deftly dodge Yamcha's cuts.
He also used his two extra arms to launch small ki attacks; they were not powerful, he knew he had to conserve his stamina, but they were timely and annoying enough to prevent Yamcha from cornering him or harassing him with his energy swords.
Ten Shinhan's third eye was no ornament; it was something special and helped him to coordinate his attacks, so Yamcha was constantly seeing his attempts to harm Ten thwarted, but the young man was nonetheless calm.
He had grown up in the wilderness, and his characteristic animal was the wolf. He knew how to hunt and wait for an opportunity, and although he was unable to harm his opponent, he did not despair; on the contrary, he became increasingly calm.
This display of unusual patience frightened Ten Shinhan a little, who still did not have as much combat experience as Yamcha. Even though he had fought a few battles on his training journeys, they had been with people or creatures weaker than himself, so his courage was underdeveloped.
In the end, he was the one who became desperate when he realized that he couldn't get more out of Yamcha than his meagre attempts, so he decided to push the matter further. Ten Shinhan pointed at Yamcha with his four index fingers.
"Quadruple Dodonpa!" Without having to load Ki's attack too much, four golden rays shot out of his fingers towards Yamcha.
Sensing the danger of these attacks, Yamcha swung his swords, cutting the energy beams. But Ten Shinhan used this to get close enough and, with two hands outstretched towards him, fired a powerful ki cannon.
The energy attack hit Yamcha squarely, knocking him back, but his feet never left the arena floor, cracking it as his body recoiled.
"Now... my turn," Yamcha said, and even though his clothes had been torn off around his abdomen, leaving an ugly burn because no defensive clothing was allowed in the tournament, he did not hesitate to slash at the air with his two Ki swords.
Though foolish for anyone using only their eyes to perceive this fight, Ten Shin Han was forced to move aside, and soon two rather deep marks appeared on the arena floor.
"Sword Ki?" asked Ten Shin Han, and Yamcha nodded.
"I never thought I would meet a sword master here, they are rare," Ten Shinhan said, genuinely surprised.
"I'm not a sword master, I just took a shortcut," Yamcha shook his shoulders as he replied. he would never give himself false fame.
His attack was simply a clever use of Ki, he still had much to see and do to become a legendary swordsman. So, without dwelling on these thoughts, Yamcha quickly attacked the air again.
The invisible attacks travelled at great speed, and although Ten Shinhan managed to dodge most of them, a diagonal line was drawn across his chest, leaving a scar that soon began to bleed.
For Ten Shinhan, this wound was special because it was the first time he had been injured in this way outside of his training. So he looked at Yamcha with strange emotions in his eyes, but mostly anger.
Noticing this, Yamcha released his ki swords, knowing they would be useless in the next round, so his hands took on a shape that resembled a pair of claws as his body bent forward.
The image of the wolf behind him, blurred before, seemed to solidify at that moment. Everyone could hear a phantom howl, and without waiting for Ten Shinhan to prepare, Yamcha's figure flashed.
Soon, the crowd heard a loud bang from the arena, which had been slightly destroyed, leaving a small crater. Ten Shinhan used all four of his arms to stop the rapid blows from Yamcha, who seemed to have no pause or rest as he punched and kicked with all his might, causing the sand beneath his feet to crack even more.
Fueled by his rage, Ten Shinhan's movements were somewhat uncoordinated but quite powerful. A whitish aura surged from his body, increasing his strength, but although Yamcha also seemed to be attacking like a savage, there was a great coldness in his eyes.
As a forest predator, he knew when to show his ferocity, but unlike the inexperienced Ten Shinhan, he did not let his emotions run wild. Yamcha sensed his opponent's lack of experience, as if he didn't know how to react to a fighter of his level.
Yamcha, who had fought on the brink of death since childhood, could feel this more than anyone else. So he waited, even though Ten Shinhan outmatched him in strength and took heavy blows to his body, he continued to wait, his eyes never trembling, his gaze always on his prey.
Perhaps due to the disturbance of the wound on his chest, one of Ten Shinhan's attacks was miscalculated, and although it hit Yamcha, it didn't do the damage it should have.
Taking this as a sign, Yamcha attacked ruthlessly. The wolf behind him was no mere image, as Yamcha launched an attack directly at Ten Shinhan's neck, followed by the Ki-made wolf.
It dealt Ten Shinhan a severe wound that threw him dozens of meters backwards, sliding him to the edge of the arena. Four scratches on his neck, almost missing vital points.
Ten Shinhan looked up to see Yamcha running towards him, and in a trance, he seemed to see a ferocious wolf running with its mouth open, full of saliva, eager to bite him.
"Wolf Crush!" Yamcha punched Ten Shinhan's chest hard, his energy piercing through his body and exploding inside him, always taking care not to hurt him badly, but rather to incapacitate him.
Yamcha never forgot that this was a tournament and not a fight to the death. His punch was powerful enough to cause Ten Shinhan's eyes to roll back in his head, knocking him out.
"Fighter Ten Shinhan has been disqualified! The winner is Fighter Yamcha!"