Chapter 3: Preliminary Rounds

The four of them drove to the airport and boarded a plane to Papaya Island.

After arriving at around seven in the evening, they finally reached the venue for the World Martial Arts Tournament, which was scheduled for the next day. Therefore, John and his friends needed to complete their registration that night.

While they were registering, the staff member filling out the forms looked at the young Goku and Krillin and confirmed again, "Are you sure these two kids are registering? We don't have a junior division or an adult division here."

Master Roshi nodded in confirmation, saying, "Yes, they will compete as well."

Seeing their insistence, the registration staff had no choice but to include Goku and Krillin on the registration form.

Just as Master Roshi was about to take John and the others to rest, several voices called out to them, "John, Goku!"

Turning around, they saw Yamcha approaching with Bulma, Oolong, and Puar.

At first, Goku did not recognize the short-haired Yamcha until he struck a pose for his Wolf Fang Fist. Goku then excitedly shouted out his name.

Seeing Bulma also arrive made Master Roshi excited; recalling their friendship from years ago at Fire Mountain, he approached her wanting to give her a friendly touch. However, Bulma suddenly pulled out a hammer from somewhere and knocked Master Roshi down.

The group gathered at a tea shop where they chatted until ten o'clock before heading to a hotel partnered with the organizers for rest.

The next morning, Master Roshi took John and the others to the venue of the martial arts tournament.

Master Roshi brought out three sets of Turtle School martial arts uniforms for John and Goku to change into since suits were not suitable for fighting.

Once they were all dressed in martial arts uniforms, Master Roshi said: "From here on out it's up to you all. I won't be going in. John, look after Goku and Krillin. There are over one hundred competitors, but only eight will advance to the finals. The champion will be determined among these eight in front of an audience."

"So during the preliminary rounds, do your best! I hope to see you all make it to the finals."

John nodded; he felt no pressure. Goku was thrilled about the upcoming battles in the preliminaries. Meanwhile, Krillin felt somewhat nervous as he was unsure about his own strength.

The three entered the competition area where numerous competitors were training their bodies. Some strongmen were lifting heavy barbells weighing dozens of kilograms without fear of exhausting themselves before the match.

Seeing these muscular opponents made Krillin very anxious. Noticing Krillin's nervousness, John placed his hand on Krillin's shoulder and said: "Krillin, don't be nervous. Trust Master Roshi and believe in your training over these past eight months; you're stronger than anyone here."

Feeling John's reassuring grip, Krillin calmed down.

At that moment, a gong sounded—it was time for the draw.

John, Goku, and Krillin lined up at the drawing box for their matches. There were four rings in total for 152 competitors; the top two from each ring would advance to the finals.

Soon it was their turn to draw lots. John reached into the box and randomly pulled out a number tag that read 36—indicating he would compete in Ring One.

Next was Goku who drew number 80 for Ring Three. Krillin drew number 110—also in Ring Three—but they wouldn't face each other unless someone got eliminated along the way; they should be able to advance together if they didn't get knocked out by others.

Yamcha then approached them asking about their draws; he hoped not to face John or Goku in the preliminaries.

John didn't reveal his number but asked Yamcha what he had drawn—number 5—which meant he would also be in Ring One but wouldn't clash with John in the preliminaries.

Hearing this good news made Yamcha very happy; it would be unbearable if any of them faced elimination early on.

Before long, all draws were completed. John and Yamcha bid farewell to Goku and Krillin with plans to meet again in the finals as they headed towards Ring One.

After three matches were completed ahead of him, it was finally John's turn to take the stage while Yamcha cheered him on from below.

John's opponent was a tiger-like Earthling—tall and extremely muscular with tiger paws for hands.

Seeing John's slender frame before him, this tiger-headed fighter advised: "Kid, with your weak body, I suggest you surrender; I'm afraid I might cripple you with one slap."

Surrounding competitors began shouting loudly at John after hearing this tiger-headed guy's words—whistling and urging him to give up quickly.

However, John remained calm as still water; his expression showed no emotion like a bottomless pool. He replied coolly: "Don't take big talk too seriously; otherwise one day you might not know how you met your end."

Furious upon hearing John's response, the tiger-headed man yelled at the nearby referee: "Aren't you going to start?!"

The small referee jumped in fright and quickly shouted "Start!" before jumping off the ring to avoid being caught in any crossfire.

The tiger-headed man grinned menacingly: "Kid, I just gave you a chance; too bad you didn't appreciate it. Now I'll personally send you down—but after I strike, I can't guarantee you'll come out unscathed."

With that said, he suddenly lunged toward John with his massive claws raised high to strike him down.

However, when he swung downwards, he found himself hitting nothing but air as John had suddenly vanished from right before him.

He immediately looked around trying to spot where John had gone.

Although he couldn't see clearly himself, those watching from outside could clearly see that John was rapidly moving behind him. They began shouting warnings at the tiger-headed fighter below.

"Idiot! Look behind you! The enemy is right behind you!" The crowd's noisy shouts finally alerted him as he turned around quickly.

Unfortunately for him, he still couldn't spot John because John's speed was too fast—he remained just outside of Tiger Man's line of sight.

Cold sweat began pouring down Tiger Man's face as he realized his opponent was extraordinary. He shouted loudly: "Come out! Come out! You little…"

But before he could finish cursing, John struck swiftly with a knife-hand blow directly hitting Tiger Man's neck.

Instantly Tiger Man collapsed unconscious onto the ground. After ten counts from the referee confirming his knockout status, Tiger Man was eliminated while John advanced to the next round.