After the North Galaxy delegation assembled, they seized the time to train. Except for Vegeta who was still practicing alone, everyone else found a suitable partner to share experience and spar with each other.
Raditz taught the Kaio-ken to Krillin, Tien, and the others. Before, they weren't strong enough to handle the complexity of the Kaio-ken, but now they could withstand the pressure and burden of the technique.
After teaching them, Raditz also pondered about Full Power Super Saiyan and began practicing for his breakthrough.
Two weeks was a very short time, but it was exactly because time was tight that it forced everyone to make progress. For example, the people on Earth had grown very little after years of training, but made huge leaps in the year they faced the Saiyans. Another example was dealing with the androids—they trained for three years but didn't progress as much as in the seven days before the Cell Games.
Pressure really did create motivation.
Not only did Raditz think this way, but everyone else felt the same. Even Master Roshi worked hard every day, preparing to break through his limits!
...
Two weeks flew by, and King Kai contacted Raditz a day early to tell him the exact location.
Raditz gathered everyone together the next day, ready to go.
Besides all the participants, Bulma, Oolong, and others all wanted to watch the tournament. Ariel also wanted to follow Nappa to see it, and Tarble's wife Gure was no exception. So a huge crowd with their families filled Raditz's spacious yard.
Raditz looked around. "There are so many people, I'm afraid we'll fill up the whole venue."
"They can't wait," Zangya laughed.
"Yeah, yeah!" Tumat flew beside Zangya and chimed in.
Raditz rolled his eyes. This guy had gotten friendly with Zangya since coming back, but totally ignored him. He wondered if someone had reprogrammed the Tumatian.
But Tumat didn't take it seriously and flapped his wings, flying around in circles.
"Come here, it's time to go." Raditz grabbed Tumat to stop him from being annoying.
Tumat squawked loudly, making everyone laugh.
At that moment, a white figure descended from the sky!
"Piccolo!"
Everyone was shocked and shouted in unison.
No one thought Piccolo would show up at this time. He stood majestically among the crowd, his cold aura lowering the surrounding temperature by several degrees. Many people took fighting stances and showed hostility, but Piccolo didn't care about any of that and fixed his gaze on Raditz.
Watching from above then suddenly appearing—that was totally Piccolo's style.
Raditz looked at him and walked over casually. "You're welcome here."
"Don't act smart. I'm here to defeat you!"
"Also welcome."
"Hmph, get ready!" Even though Piccolo spoke forcefully, he honestly walked toward Gohan, obviously planning to attend the tournament.
As he walked, many people unconsciously stepped back. Only Vegeta stood to the side and looked at Piccolo coldly. When their eyes met, the air crackled with lightning, like a war had already begun.
"Now everyone's here," Raditz snapped his fingers. "Everyone get close together for physical contact, and teleport with me!"
After his call, everyone held each other's arms and shoulders, with Piccolo leaning on Gohan. Even Vegeta grumbled reluctantly, "It's just teleportation, what's the big deal," but no matter how reluctant he was, he had no choice but to reach out and grab Raditz's shoulder.
"Let's go!"
With a loud shout, the crowd vanished into thin air, traveled through a long stretch of space, and arrived at the Tournament venue!
On Planet Pagoda, the gravity was a bit more than twice Earth's, and the planet's rocks were hard—perfect material for a tournament stage. That's why the Grand Kai chose to hold the martial arts tournament here.
The huge martial arts venue was built in a square shape, nearly a kilometer on each side, extremely spacious. There were stepped viewing platforms built on three sides around it, large enough for tens of thousands of people to sit at once, with a transparent protective barrier over the viewing area to prevent the fierce battles from accidentally hurting spectators.
Raditz had been worried there'd be too many people to fit, but now it seemed like he was afraid there'd be too few.
There was also a special section prepared for the Grand Kai and the four Kais to watch the battles. The tall chairs and spacious seats symbolized the gods' supreme status. On both sides of their viewing section were preparation areas for the respective fighters—Raditz and the others would enter from there soon.
The tournament process was similar to Earth's World Martial Arts Tournament. Draw lots to determine order, then fight in pairs. Winners advance, losers are eliminated, until the final 48 were determined for the finals.
In the vast four galaxies, only 48 people were selected in the end—the elimination rate was already pretty high.
The contestants who made it to the final 48 would get rewards from the Grand Kai, and by winning for their galaxy, they'd also become famous throughout the universe. Some people attended just to show off their strength or gain fame.
When Raditz and the others arrived, many people were already seated, and the whole venue was buzzing with excitement. Fireworks exploded in the sky, ribbons danced, colorful lights lit up the entire space, and the mushroom-headed announcer was adjusting the sound system.
Performance groups from various galaxies were putting on singing and dancing shows for this grand martial arts festival. The beautiful girls made Master Roshi stare with wide eyes.
It really was a grand event!
"Not bad at all! Hehehe..." Master Roshi's drool practically hit the ground, and he almost fell over.
With his eyes shining brightly, Oolong snorted contemptuously. "Old pervert, I hope you get eliminated in the first round!"
"I'll work hard for these young ladies! These past few days, I've been practicing a special technique..."
"Really? If you make it to the top 48, remember to ask the god for the girls' panties." Oolong immediately laughed pervertedly when he heard the old turtle had a special move.
Just as the two were joking and fantasizing, the North Galaxy's performance started, and Krillin somehow appeared on stage and began singing. Krillin's solo voice covered the whole venue, accompanied by the boom of fireworks. The whole place reached a climax—he was really treating the venue like a karaoke bar.
It would've been fine if he could carry a tune, but going off-key from the North Galaxy all the way to the South Galaxy was unbearable.
"This guy..." Vegeta's eyebrow twitched, and he gritted his teeth at the loud noise.
"These people's ears must be really tough to put up with this." Raditz looked at Vegeta and smiled awkwardly. Krillin's singing made him want to hit someone too.
What was even more infuriating was that Tumat was providing backup for Krillin.
Suddenly, louder rock music interrupted Krillin, and an old man wearing sunglasses and carrying a boom box made a high-profile entrance!