Chapter 10
The courtyard was still.
King Kai's voice had barely faded when the match lit up the bracket.
Goku vs. Iroh.
Goku rose from the cot, the bandages around his ribs tugging with each breath. He rolled his shoulders once, slowly. Johnny sat up in his bed, grin crooked.
"Light him up, Goku," Johnny said.
Goku gave him a look. Not a smile. Just a nod.
The door to the hall opened. Kaiden stepped in from the courtyard, his cloak brushing the floor, lightning still faintly whispering along his shoulders from the fight before. He walked past Goku without slowing, but said.
"Don't hold back."
Their eyes met for a split second. Then Kaiden was gone, vanishing around the corner.
Goku exhaled and stepped toward the door.
The infirmary faded behind him. Ahead was the ring.
Monks lined the temple walls, hands folded inside their sleeves. The fighters who'd already competed stood outside the ring, eyes following him.
His ribs still pulled with each breath, but the pain had settled into something steady. Manageable.
I can move. I can fight.
But can I win? Against someone like him?
Johnny's voice echoed in his head, "Light him up."
Then Kaiden's "Don't hold back."
The fights he'd seen over the past day replayed in flashes — Johnny fighting for his life, Gyro's and Zukis' battle, Kaiden's lightning strike that ended in one shot.
The stone ring waited ahead, its tiles cracked and darkened from the earlier matches. Iroh was already there, standing perfectly still, arms behind his back. His long coat shifted once in the wind before settling. His expression didn't change.
That's when Goku noticed something different.
King Kai stepped down from the platform for the first time in the tournament.
No big screen.
He walked onto the courtyard floor, hands clasped behind him, and his presence pulled every gaze toward him.
King Kai's voice carried without effort.
"Next match," he said, looking from one fighter to the other, "Goku… versus Iroh."
The words felt heavier than they should.
Goku climbed into the ring, the faint smell of smoke drifting toward him, though there was no fire yet. He glanced once at Iroh — calm, unreadable.
Alright, Goku thought. Let's see what you've got.
King Kai raised one hand, the air tightening around the ring.
"Begin."
For a moment, neither moved.
The air between them rippled faintly — not from heat, but from the way Iroh's eyes locked on Goku, sharp and hungry.
Then Iroh tilted his head.
"Up close, you're even smaller than I thought."
The corner of his mouth curled.
"That's good. Less to burn."
Before Goku could reply, Iroh was already there — a sudden step in, no wasted motion. His palm came up like a strike to the chest, but a puff of heat blasted outward instantly. Not a fireball — just a flash of hot air meant to stun.
Goku slid back a step, blinking at the sudden wave of heat.
Iroh chuckled.
"Feel that? That's a handshake where I come from."
He didn't wait.
A roundhouse came next — crisp, trained — but flame spiraled off his leg halfway through, forcing Goku to hop back again. The fire didn't aim for him directly; it arced wide, cutting off his angle.
Goku darted forward anyway, slipping into the gap. His fist came for Iroh's ribs—
—But Iroh bent backward just enough to let it pass, the grin never leaving his face.
"Oho… bold."
Then his hands came together.
A sudden whoosh — a short-range burst of fire erupted from his palms, forcing Goku to guard. The impact wasn't enough to knock him down, but the heat made the skin on his arms sting. The edge of his shirt curled slightly, blackened where the fire had grazed it.
'I can't trade blows. He's reading me.'
"Don't worry," Iroh said, circling him now. "I'm just getting started."
"Good," Goku grinned. "Me too."
Goku kept his stance low, eyes following Iroh's hands. He could feel the rhythm already — strike, flame, feint, flame — but the unpredictability wasn't in the fire. It was in him. His movement. His timing. The way he seemed to fight was just off-beat enough to throw everything out of sync.
Another attack came fast — a spinning kick that left a blazing afterimage in the air. Goku ducked, the heat brushing his hair.
"You dodge fast, don't you?" Iroh's voice was almost a purr.
He snapped his fingers. A line of flame snaked across the tiles toward Goku's feet, forcing him to leap aside. The moment he landed, Iroh was there, closing the gap with a palm strike aimed straight for Goku's chest.
Goku caught the wrist.
The fire still flared.
The heat pushed into his skin, but he didn't let go.
"Not bad," Iroh whispered, leaning in just enough for only Goku to hear. "But I'm only warming up."
The first exchange left the air rippling.
Iroh's palm strike had missed Goku's jaw by less than a hair, but the following heat stung his skin.
Goku shook out his hands, grinning. "You're fast."
Iroh tilted his head, a smirk curling wider. "You have no idea."
The next wave came sharper — heel kicks that cut the air, flames blooming at the point of impact. Goku ducked, rolled, and sidestepped, feeling the tile warm under his feet.
At first, he just avoided. Watched.
Then he started stepping into the attacks.
A low sweep — Goku jumped, spun, heel skimming the top of Iroh's head—a backfist — blocked and redirected into open space.
Iroh's eyebrows twitched. "Oh… you're learning."
Goku smirked. "Kinda what I do. Start getting used to it."
Iroh feinted high, then dropped low with a palm strike to the gut — flame sparking between his fingers. This time, Goku caught the wrist and shoved it upward, the blast snapping harmlessly into the sky. The flare still kissed his back, leaving a faint scorch along the fabric.
That was the first time the sound in the courtyard shifted — a faint murmur from the watching fighters.
Iroh stepped back, rubbing his chin like a painter inspecting a half-finished canvas. "You're not just fast. You're slippery."
Goku bounced on his feet, light now, breathing steadily despite the heat.
Every exchange was loosening him up.
Every strike he dodged, blocked, or redirected made the next one easier.
"Let's see how long you can keep that up," Iroh said, grinning. Then he blurred forward again — but now, Goku met him head-on.
The ring lit up in bursts — fire clashing against raw force, shockwaves rolling across the stone.
For the first time, Iroh staggered back.
Iroh's smirk faltered.
He flexed his fingers, and heat bled into the air in slow, rolling waves. The tiles under his boots darkened. A faint, sulfur-like tang crept into Goku's nose.
"Alright, boy," Iroh said, his voice a low hum. "Let's get serious."
The flame in his palm didn't flare outward this time. It folded inward, curling tighter, hotter until the glow was nearly white.
Goku's grin flattened. That's different.
Iroh's eyes stayed locked on him as he stepped forward — not rushing, not lunging — but each footfall left a brief scorch mark in the tile. His coat shifted in the heat, the edges starting to fray.
Then he moved.
A single sweep of the leg, and flame rolled outward in a spiraling wave, curling toward Goku from three directions at once.
Goku darted left — the flames closed the gap. He cut back right — another spiral met him.
"Not a lotta room in here, huh?" Goku muttered under his breath.
He planted his feet and jumped, clearing the spiral — only to see Iroh's palm snapping upward mid-spin.
The blast caught him across the ribs. Not enough to drop him, but the impact forced the air from his lungs and sent him tumbling into the edge of the ring.
He hit the tile, rolled, and came up on a knee.
Iroh chuckled. "Thought you were getting serious."
"Guess I'm still stretching," Goku said, forcing air back into his lungs.
Iroh didn't wait.
This time, he blurred forward, strikes coming quickly — palm, elbow, heel kick, all laced with tight bursts of flame that popped like firecrackers. Goku blocked the first two and slipped past the third, but the fourth caught his shoulder, searing the bandage beneath his shirt.
The sting made his teeth grit, but his eyes stayed on Iroh's hands. The pattern was still there. Faster now, but there.
He stepped inside a palm strike, forcing Iroh's wrist upward — but Iroh let it go, spinning into a backhand that whipped a crescent of fire across Goku's chest.
It didn't land clean, but the heat alone made him stumble.
"You're good," Iroh said, pacing. "But you've got nothing to keep the fire out."
Goku straightened, wiping sweat from his brow. "Yeah… not if I hit you first!"
The corner of Iroh's mouth twitched.
The air between them tightened again, and for the first time, Goku shifted his weight forward, inviting Iroh in.
Iroh's grin spread wide again.
He clapped his hands together. The sound cracked like a whip.
The ground shimmered. A ring of fire burst from the tiles, curling upward into a wall that sealed them inside. Heat slammed into Goku's skin instantly, making the air feel heavier.
No more running.
From the sidelines, Johnny leaned forward in his chair. "That's… not good."
Zuki tilted her head, eyes narrowing. "A trap. Smart."
Kaiden said nothing, but his face turned serious.
Inside the ring, Goku turned in a slow circle. The flames weren't just heat — they were alive, bending inward, hissing like they wanted to taste him.
"You like it?" Iroh's voice carried over the roar. "Keeps my guests… busy."
"Feels like a sauna," Goku muttered under his breath.
Iroh's hands moved now, slow but deliberate — circling, folding, twisting the fire inside the wall. It bent toward him, swirling at his palms, pulling tighter, hotter, until even the floor glowed faintly.
From the edge of the courtyard, Gyro's voice was quiet but certain. "He's condensing it. All that heat into one point."
Goku could feel it. The hair on his arms prickled, and sweat rolled down his temples. The heat wasn't just in the air — it was pressing into him, crawling over his skin.
"Let's see if you're still smiling after this," Iroh said, and thrust his palms forward.
The fire shot out in a tight, spinning column — not wild, but sharp, aimed straight for his chest.
Goku's muscles tensed. Instinct screamed move, but the wall behind him blazed orange. Nowhere to go.
I can't push it back. I don't know how.
The fire was on him. 'Come on, Goku, do something!'
He planted his feet. Threw his hands up.
It wasn't a technique. It wasn't anything Roshi had taught him.
'I don't know what I'm doing. But I can't run! Move dammit!'
Light burst from his palms, wild and uneven, bending the air in a shimmering curve.
The heat rushed in, and something inside Goku pushed back.
Ki.
It flared raw from his palms, in front of him, a shimmering layer that bent the air.
The fire slammed into it.
The sound was a deafening whoomph, and the tiles beneath his boots cracked under the force. Goku gritted his teeth, arms trembling, and the barrier flickering — but it held.
The blast split around him, flames curling harmlessly into the wall behind.
It was just heat, pressure, and the pounding in his ears for three long seconds.
Then it was over. The barrier flickered twice more, then vanished.
On the sidelines, Johnny's mouth hung open. "He… blocked it?"
Zuki's eyes sharpened. "He created a barrier."
Kaiden's gaze narrowed. 'Goku is still learning to use ki, yet he managed to create a barrier.'
Back in the ring, Iroh stared for a moment, just a flicker of surprise before the grin came back sharper than before.
"Well… that's new."
Goku flexed his fingers, still tingling. His heart was pounding, breath sharp in his chest — and for the first time in minutes, the blistering heat was gone, leaving the air almost cold against his sweat. What was that? He'd never felt ki move like that — raw, wild, and answering without thinking. He didn't fully understand what happened, but he knew one thing.
"I can keep the fire out."
Iroh chuckled low. "Then I'll just have to make it hotter."
Iroh didn't waste another second.
He stepped in, feet gliding across the heated stone, drawing the fire wall inward. The flames bent to his will, curling like snakes around his arms and shoulders.
Johnny squinted from the sidelines. "What the hell's he—"
Zuki cut him off, voice tight. "He's feeding it back into himself."
The fire condensed until it wasn't fire anymore — not the way it was before. It was white at the core, humming like molten metal. The air around it wavered so hard that the ring looked underwater.
"This," Iroh said, his voice sharp now, "is where the fun starts."
Goku crouched low, sweat pouring down his back. The barrier had worked before — barely. But if he tried to block this, he'd get cooked from the inside out.
No running. No dodging.
The fire dragon roared to life around Iroh's arms, spiraling upward before snapping forward in a lunging strike.
Goku planted his feet.
He didn't think — he remembered.
Roshi's voice in his head, clear as day.
"Focus on it. Shape it. Then let it go."
His hands came to his side, palms cupped. Ki pulled inward, hot and tight in his chest, then flowing into his arms. The hum grew louder, his fingertips buzzing with energy.
From the stands, Kaiden's eyes narrowed. "He's charging something."
Blue light spilled between Goku's fingers.
"I think," Johnny whispered, "he's about to—"
"Kame…" Goku's voice was steady now, cutting through the roar of the flames.
Iroh's fire lunged, fangs bared, heat flooding the ring.
"…ha…" The light swelled, crackling like it wanted to explode out of him.
Iroh's grin widened. "Too slow!"
"…me…"
The fire was almost on him. His hair whipped back from the heat. His ribs screamed.
"…ha!"
Goku thrust his hands forward.
The beam exploded out, pure blue ki tearing through the heat like a blade. It met the fire dragon head-on, the impact shaking the ring and the sound a single deafening BOOM.
For a heartbeat, neither gave way.
Blue light and molten white fire twisted together, sparks snapping off in every direction. The tiles beneath them split from the pressure.
Then Goku roared — a sound from deep in his chest — and the Kamehameha surged forward. The fire dragon shattered, bursting apart into harmless embers that scattered into the wall before vanishing completely.
When the light faded, Iroh was on one knee at the far edge of the ring, his coat smoking, a long scorch mark running across the stone between them.
King Kai stepped forward slowly, eyes scanning the two fighters.
"Winner… Goku."
Goku let his hands drop, chest heaving, the faintest grin on his face.
"…Guess that worked."
'Master Roshi… I finally did it.'
Johnny was laughing from the sidelines. "Worked? You almost burned the place down!"
Zuki just watched silently.
Kaiden's gaze stayed fixed on Goku, not the beam or the win, and on the tail wrapped loosely at his waist, now visible through the torn fabric at his back.
Something in his expression shifted.
"…Of course," he whispered. "It was you."