It was clear that Yamato was itching for a fight, barely able to contain herself.
Right from the start, she skipped the usual probing phase, unleashing her Conqueror's Haki immediately. All three types of Haki—Observation, Armament, and Conqueror's—were on full display as she bombarded Master Roshi with "Thunder Bagua" attacks like they cost nothing.
Roshi, in turn, cranked up his ki, shifting from Afterimage Fist to Shockwave Palm, even firing off a Kamehameha once to clash with Yamato's Thunder Bagua. Each collision tore through the air, sending shockwaves rippling outward in all directions.
The wind howled fiercely.
Some front-row spectators were already scrambling to the back, desperate to escape.
And who could blame them?
The oppressive aura of Conqueror's Haki was intimidating but bearable.
What wasn't bearable were the countless bits of rubble and debris flying like a hailstorm. In just moments, dozens of spectators were left clutching their bruised heads, fleeing in pain. The blonde referee, tasked with commentating the match, wore a conflicted expression as he narrated the chaos.
According to tournament rules, attacking the audience was forbidden, carrying the same penalty as using weapons: immediate disqualification.
But…
What if the attacks weren't intentional, and it was just the fallout from an intense battle accidentally hitting the stands? How should that be handled?
The blonde referee was grappling with this dilemma.
As the situation threatened to spiral further, Uchiha Hikari reached into her pocket for her Blood Coral Jade, ready to raise a barrier around the arena to protect the crowd.
But Esdeath noticed her move and acted first, snapping her fingers. A chilling gust surged, and a massive ice wall, over ten meters tall, rose from the ground. It stretched out from where Hikari's group sat, extending nearly two hundred meters to either side, blocking all the flying debris.
The ice wall was translucent, like a glass curtain, ensuring the audience's view of the match remained unobstructed.
"…Hm?"
The referee blinked for a few seconds before turning to Esdeath. "Thank you so much for your help, miss. After today's matches, please accept a special gift from us…"
"No need," Esdeath replied flatly, glancing at Hikari. "Give the gift to her instead."
"Huh?"
Hikari paused, then smirked. "Well, in that case, I won't say no."
"Whatever."
With the situation temporarily under control, the tournament staff began escorting the injured spectators for treatment. The remaining audience moved to seats farther from the arena, continuing to watch the two fighters duke it out.
The blonde referee regained his enthusiasm, resuming his commentary with gusto:
"…And now Yamato unleashes another fierce assault! A left front kick, a right whip kick—both blocked by Jackie Chun!"
Yamato and Roshi clashed like a meteor hitting Earth, battling intensely for nearly half an hour.
In that time, the thousands of square meters of the arena were reduced to rubble. Several support pillars were smashed, and the sign reading "World Martial Arts Tournament" teetered precariously. The scene looked like a tornado had ripped through a parking lot.
Finally, both realized their opponent wasn't someone they could easily defeat. To conserve energy for later matches, they decided to pull back and settle it with one final move.
Roshi, naturally, went with his signature Kamehameha—a supercharged version capable of leveling a mountain.
Yamato, in that moment, revealed her true trump card—not Haki, but her Devil Fruit.
Inu Inu no Mi, Mythical Zoan: Okuchi no Makami Form!
In theory, this ability counted as an "external tool," against tournament rules. But since the organizers didn't know what a Devil Fruit was, and Yamato's ability was fully internalized, requiring no weapons to activate, they let it slide.
In an instant, Yamato's appearance transformed. She became a white wolf with sharp fangs, her already tall frame growing even larger. She coated herself in icy armor and opened her mouth wide, unleashing a blast of freezing breath:
"Mirror Mountain!"
"Takanotsume!"
The former was for defense, the latter a devastating attack capable of rivaling Kaido, unleashed in her hybrid beast form.
The next second, a massive cloud of dust erupted, and the explosion's roar echoed across the heavens!
It took three or four minutes for the smoke to clear.
When it did, Yamato and Roshi reappeared, both panting heavily, having retreated dozens of steps. Their clothes were tattered, and they were clearly exhausted.
Then…
Roshi raised his hand. "I surrender."
"?"
Yamato was the most shocked.
"Huh? Why give up all of a sudden? I was just getting warmed up… You've still got plenty of ki left, don't you? Wanna keep going?"
"Heh."
Roshi chuckled but said nothing.
Just as Yamato hadn't used her full strength—her empty-handed Thunder Bagua was weaker than when wielding her kanabo, and she hadn't fully tapped into her Devil Fruit's power—Roshi had only used about seventy percent of his strength. As "Jackie Chun," he couldn't show too much of his true power, lest he be recognized.
In an unrestricted fight, the outcome between them was anyone's guess.
But right now…
Roshi felt that continuing might risk his wig falling off.
He wasn't afraid of Yamato's physical techniques, but her stamina and recovery were downright monstrous. Without major mistakes, a decisive win could take over an hour. If his wig slipped and people recognized him, he'd be too embarrassed to call himself the "God of Martial Arts."
Roshi's goal in joining the tournament wasn't fame but to keep his disciples, Goku and Krillin, from getting too cocky with high rankings. With Yamato and Esdeath as gatekeepers, Goku had no shot at the championship and would struggle to even reach the finals. Roshi saw no need to keep up the act.
"See ya. Maybe we'll meet again."
Roshi casually hopped off the stage and vanished into the crowd.
"Uh…"
The blonde referee hesitated before grabbing the microphone. "In that case, Yamato is the winner by Jackie Chun's forfeit! Their battle has destroyed much of the arena. To continue the tournament, we'll need a day or two to repair it before resuming matches…"
Strictly speaking, the arena's damage was Yamato and Roshi's fault.
Though the organizers were gracious enough not to demand compensation, planning to cover repairs themselves, Hikari, as a friend of one of the culprits, felt a bit uneasy.
"I've got this."
Hikari stood, walking to the edge of the arena. She crouched, placing her hands on the shattered stones. "Earth Style: Mud Wall!"
Chakra surged.
In that moment, the crushed stone slabs began to writhe.
Then, the debris floated upward, piecing themselves back together like building blocks, restoring the damaged areas.
A ninja technique from the Naruto world shone at the Dragon Ball World Martial Arts Tournament.
This wasn't a standard use of Mud Wall.
Though it seemed simple, it required exceptional chakra control.
An average Jonin or even Kage-level ninja likely couldn't pull it off. But Hikari had been training her chakra control, and her chakra reserves had grown significantly since last year's awakening, making it manageable.
In about ten minutes, the wrecked arena was mostly restored. Pits and craters were filled with earth, though the color and hardness differed slightly. At least it was no longer uneven underfoot.
The blonde referee, witnessing this, looked like he wanted to say something but held back.
As the tournament's dedicated commentator, he wasn't a martial artist but knew enough. He'd seen masters like Roshi and understood ki could do incredible things.
But…
First the ice wall, now this earth-filling trick… Was this not straight-up magic?
Could ki really do this?
"…All done."
Hikari stood, glancing at her handiwork before brushing the dust off her clothes. "You can keep going now."
Maybe she'd rename this move "Earth Style: Arena Restoration Technique," like Yamato's Wood Style: Three-Bedroom-One-Bath Technique from the Naruto world.
"Huh? Oh!"
The referee snapped out of it, nodding quickly and grabbing the microphone to announce the next matches.
With Yamato and Roshi's match setting the tone, the following fights were just as intense.
Take Brand versus Giran. Bound by rules against using Teigu, Brand relied purely on physical prowess, pummeling the dinosaur-like human into submission until Giran tearfully surrendered.
Then, Akame took down Yamcha with ease.
—Yamcha had entered the tournament but couldn't escape his first-round knockout fate.
Goku defeated the barbarian.
And one match worth noting was Esdeath versus Tazmi…
To be fair, Tazmi's talent was impressive—exceptional, even.
In the Akame ga Kill original story, he went from a rookie village swordsman to facing off against a top-tier boss like Esdeath in under a year. His growth was astonishing, rivaling even battle-hardened elites like Akame and Brand, if not surpassing them.
But…
The current Tazmi had only trained with Night Raid for two months. Since Brand was still alive, Tazmi hadn't inherited the "Demon Cloak" Teigu. Against an even stronger Esdeath than in the original story's finale, he stood no chance and was taken out in a few swift moves.
Esdeath returned to the stands calmly, as if she'd done something trivial.
"…How was it?" Hikari asked quietly.
"Fine."
Esdeath's expression didn't change. She glanced at Hikari, then at Tazmi, who'd just left the stage. "For his age, his skill's decent. In the army, he'd be moldable talent… but compared to you, he's nothing special."
"Huh?"
Hikari gave her an odd look.
Was Esdeath saying that after seeing a "genius" like her, other so-called prodigies felt lackluster?
"Once you've seen the ocean, rivers seem trivial" kind of thing?
Well, that worked out.
In both the original story and now, Tazmi clearly had no interest in Esdeath. According to Brand, he'd been getting close to Mine lately—proof that even with the timeline heavily altered, Tazmi and Mine's connection held strong. If Esdeath had fallen for him like in the original, that could've been messy.
That night, Hikari's group returned to the hotel for another big meal. After eating their fill, they washed up and headed to bed.
Over the next two or three days, the tournament continued its eliminations.
By the evening of the fourth day, the top eight were finalized—
Five of them were from Hikari's group: Esdeath, Yamato, Brand, Akame, and Hikari herself.
The other three were Goku, Nam, and Krillin.
Hilariously, Master Roshi, the founder of the Turtle School and their master, was knocked out in the first round. Meanwhile, his disciples, Goku and Krillin, had avoided facing Hikari's crew and fought their way to the top eight.
But… their luck would only carry them so far.