Chapter 9: Krillin is Eliminated

 Just as Krillin thought he was about to win, he heard distant shouts from the air: "Kamehameha!"

 A dazzling energy wave shot from Master Roshi's hands, and using the recoil from the Kamehameha, he successfully returned to the stage from the brink of elimination.

 Krillin's excitement quickly turned to frustration; he was so close to victory, yet why was his opponent using his own teacher's signature move, the Kamehameha?

 Before coming onto the stage, John had only told him three things, and now Krillin was unsure of what to do next. He instinctively turned his gaze toward John.

 John sighed, knowing that Krillin was panicking. Although Krillin had no chance of winning, John still shouted a reminder: "Krillin, focus! Even if you lose, don't leave any regrets; give it your all."

 Hearing John's words made Krillin realize that the gap in strength between him and Jackie Chun couldn't be closed with just a few strategies; ultimately, it would come down to their abilities.

 As Master Roshi returned to the stage, he looked at Krillin with some appreciation and said, "Your progress has exceeded my expectations. You're still young; there's plenty of room for improvement in the future."

 However, after saying this, Master Roshi lowered himself into an attacking stance and added, "But today ends here. Out of respect, I will use all my strength to send you off the stage."

 Hearing Master Roshi's words filled Krillin with unwillingness; he had worked hard to get here and had hoped to advance to the finals to face John or Goku.

 "Prepare yourself!" Master Roshi said, and with a swift motion left behind an afterimage. Startled, Krillin instinctively lunged forward to dodge an attack from behind.

 However, that was it—Master Roshi charged forward and delivered an elbow strike to Krillin's neck, knocking him unconscious on the stage.

 Master Roshi turned to the host and said, "Count down!" After that, he left the stage without looking back.

 As expected, after counting down from ten, Krillin did not regain consciousness and was ultimately eliminated. Master Roshi advanced to the finals, awaiting his opponent.

 Without any pause or rest, after staff quickly cleaned up the stage, John and Goku stepped onto it.

 Compared to John's calm demeanor, Goku was much more excited. He had been looking forward to this battle with John for a long time; for Goku, winning or losing didn't matter—what mattered was the fight itself.

 With a loud clang of a gong, the host announced: "The match begins!"

 John and Goku immediately took their fighting stances. Goku launched the first attack with his arms moving like shadows toward John.

 John didn't hold back either and countered; they began exchanging blows on stage. Ultimately, John's strength gave him a slight edge as he executed a sweeping kick that sent Goku flying.

 However, Goku had already raised his arms in defense during John's attack and didn't sustain significant damage.

 The first round ended with both fighters showing incredible skill; although many spectators couldn't see every move clearly, they understood how powerful these two were.

 Watching from the sidelines were Krillin, Yamcha, and Master Roshi—all amazed by what they saw. Especially Master Roshi felt that even he could only reach their level.

 Realizing that he was at a slight disadvantage in strength compared to John, Goku decided to rely on technique to overcome him.

 Smiling slightly at John, Goku moved rapidly around him creating numerous afterimages that surrounded John in the center of the stage.

 John observed carefully trying to discern which afterimage was real; one must not assume all are fake because when you think they're all illusions is when one might be real and attack you.

 At that moment—within John's blind spot—Goku flew in with a side kick aimed at him but unexpectedly passed through John's body; it turned out that what remained was John's afterimage as he too had used an afterimage technique.

 Goku hadn't anticipated this outcome; as John emerged from another side with a high kick sending Goku into mid-air followed by a flying kick aimed at knocking him out of bounds.

 The crowd erupted in applause celebrating John's impending victory.

 Feeling confident about winning now, John raised both hands high in response to the audience's cheers.

 But Goku wasn't going down so easily. Although he could no longer use Flying Nimbus, he still had his tail!

 Goku used his tail like a helicopter rotor—spinning it like a propeller—and flew back onto the stage.

 John was speechless; using his tail like that was something he had completely forgotten from his past knowledge of Dragon Ball lore.

 Once back on stage, Goku took a deep breath; he had almost been eliminated.

 After two exchanges of blows made Goku realize that he still fell short compared to John in terms of strength—he hadn't gained any advantage in either round of combat.

 Therefore, Goku prepared to unleash his ultimate technique. He said to John: "John! I'm going to use Grandpa's special move now; I wonder if you know it."

 After saying this, he brought his hands together in a flower bud shape at his waist. Everyone else gasped; seeing Goku's stance made it clear what special move he intended to use.

 John understood as well and mirrored Goku's stance for Kamehameha. Both shouted simultaneously: "Kame... Hame... Ha!"

 Instantly two powerful energy waves gathered in their hands emitting brilliant white light before they both pushed forward with all their might. The two energy waves collided at center stage creating a massive energy sphere radiating intense light.

 Ultimately both fighters were exhausted; after their Kamehameha waves exploded in the center—a powerful shockwave spread outwards knocking both Goku and John back onto the stage.

 "Haha!" Both laughed heartily as they resumed their battle without holding anything back or reserving their strength.

 As time passed by both Saiyans' potential began to ignite further; with a loud impact they exchanged blows mid-air—John landed a punch on Goku while Goku retaliated with a kick—both ultimately crashing heavily onto the stage.