Time to Put up or Shut Up

Goku watched as Krillin knocked his opponent clear out of the stadium to earn himself the final spot in the quarter finals, and couldn't help but admire the other boy's form as he stood post-knockout.

Krillin had come a long way from the bratty child of Orin Temple; he had matured greatly under Roshi's guidance, both as a person as well as a martial artist.

Where before the bald youth would have turned out each strike with a brief moment of hesitation and hint of fear, now the young monk was capable of striking true, raw conviction behind every fist thrown and every leg lifted into a kick.

The boy's attitude had also been given an adjustment.

Sure, Goku found the other boy's slight perversion to be a bother, but the spiky-haired alien didn't let such a thing stop him from noticing that underneath that distasteful quirk Krillin was an honorable individual at his core. It also helped that after being humbled by both Goku and their instructor Krillin's haughty attitude took itself down a few notches; going from bragging, to simply self-assured in his own abilities.

All in all Goku found that Krillin made for a decent example of the human race's male half; Bulma being his look at the inner workings of the female persuasion.

"Winner by knock out; Krillin!" The announcer for the bald youth's block shouted to the crowd that had gathered to witness the final battle of the preliminary rounds.

Krillin himself was now standing beside the man with the microphone, a large grin plastered over his face with his right hand up in victory sign. Goku rolled his onyx orbs at the spectacle, but there was a slight smile tugging at his lips as well; two of the youngest competitors had just beat out hundreds if not thousands of adult fighters, and were now on their way to being in the final eight.

And yet...thinking about his and Krillin's success caused Goku to think about the other two young fighters who had managed to take spots in the quarter finals.

Lapis an Lazuli, the brother sister duo had each defeated every opponent sent their way and clinched slots in the next round.

Although, and thinking of it caused the monkey-tailed alien's eyes to drift, neither twin managed to come away completely unscathed. Lapis had suffered a nasty black eye and bloody lip combo, while the rough teen's sister finished with a number of bruises along her arms, and one on her stomach that Goku had caught sight of when Lapis had pulled her shirt up to inspect the damage done.

But while the plum-like discoloration, which clashed terribly with the blonde's creamy complexion, hadn't even seemed to phase the girl and this silently impressed Goku to the point he unconsciously found his eyes swinging back in her direction.

However before the dark-haired fighter could catch the conversation the blonde as about to have with her brother his attention was nabbed by the main announcer.

He was a young man, with his own head of golden hair, though not the same brilliant platinum of Lazuli, and a boyish face despite being a few years older than Goku himself. The man was dressed in a black suit and tie, with a white dress shirt underneath depicting him as the head of the announcer chain; however Goku paid little mind to this, and instead listened as the young man gave instructions on how things would proceed now that the qualifying matches had drawn to a close.

"All of you who've managed to advance to quarter finals please come forward and draw a number from this box in my hands, this will decide your placement in the upcoming matches as well as your opponent. And just as a reminder; there is to be no switching upon learning who you're matched against, if you don't feel ready then all I can say is better luck next time."

From there Goku watched and listened as names were called and fighters were paired, until finally the announcer seemed to come to his name on the list. "Um, I'm sorry if I butcher this but...K-Karrot?"

"It's Kakarot, but your mistake is forgiven. I understand my name is a bit difficult to mold; it's...foreign." The young alien shrugged as he stepped forward to take his own spot on the board.

Reaching into the plain, yellow box Goku rummaged his fingers around the remaining slips of paper before taking hold of one and pulling it out into the open. Onyx-black orbs scanned the sliver of paper for a brief second before handing it to the announcer and telling him his number.

"Seven; which puts up against...Giren, right?"

The large, flying dinosaur-like fighter in question leered at Kakarot with a malicious gleam in his eye as he stared the boy down from his place in the crowd. He'd seen his much younger opponent fight from the very beginning and had quickly deduced that the spiky-haired boy would no doubt make it at least this far.

'Too bad he's up against me right off the bat though; poor kid will be lucky to be alive after I'm through with him.'

If Goku had any inkling that he knew what his future opponent was thinking, he showed no sign of it, and instead listened as the blonde man with the microphone announced the next series of matches for the tournament.

"Krillin vs Lapis in the first match!"

Which would be followed by, "Yamcha vs Jackie Chun!"

Third would be, "Lazuli vs Nam!"

With "Goku vs Giren" being the final match of the quarter finals.

This, plus the last bit of information stating that competitors would be given rooms to stay in at one of the closer hotels were all that Goku felt he needed to hear before making his exit from the temple.

Once outside however, the young monkey-tailed martial artist nearly lashed out in shock as he was swooped upon, and lifted into a soft but firm hug.

"Aaah! Goku you did it, you made it past the first round; I'm so proud of you!" Bulma gushed as she swung her younger friend around in her embrace. "I mean, not that I didn't think you wouldn't make it of course, but I'm just so happy to have been here to see it."

From there Bulma began rambling about going out to eat to celebrate this accomplishment, and while Goku was more than ready to chow down and fill his newly hungry belly, the boy had to free himself from the blue-haired beauties clutches first. "That sounds great and all Bulma, but first you have to let me down."

An embarrassed blush tinted Bulma's cheeks a rosy pink as she realized her friend was right, as well as the fact she'd practically glomped him like some sort of airheaded fangirl.

A little mortified at her overly familiar gesture, even if they were each others only friends, Bulma gently set Goku back on his feet before taking a step back and scratching her cheek in a show of nervousness. "S-Sorry about that Goku, I guess I just got really excited fro you, ya know? I know how much you wanna win."

"Well if he plans to do that he might be better off skipping the celebrations and getting some rest." Came the voice of Roshi as he stepped into sight with his trusty walking stick.

"The matches from here on out are going to be a lot tougher than the ones you fought today, Kakarot, and you'd do well to pay attention to each and every pair that comes before you. You never know what you could learn, or what small understanding of ones fighting style could do to tip a match in your favor."

Goku listened half-heartedly to the elderly man's advice, focusing instead on a scent in the air that he was sure he'd caught before. It had been during the preliminary matches, and it had been feint due to the large crowd of people that had gathered within, but Goku's nose was unlike that of a mere human.

The young alien knew what he smelled, just not where, or why it was so familiar.

Noticing that he was being expected to answer however, the spiky-haired youth went with the only one he figured was worth giving. "Your apparent concern isn't necessary old man; I didn't even break a sweat today. Besides, I'll rest much better after haven eaten, don't you agree?"

It wasn't just that though. Goku knew he fought better after eating a large meal, and in turn struggled mightly if he went too long without eating before engaging in combat.

This was a function of his body that the young teen had quickly figured out after beginning his spars with Gohan, and one he'd kept a secret even from the elderly man to this very day. Something in the back of Goku's brain just flared whenever the thought of revealing this to anyone came to mind, much like how his tail had once been a weakness.

However that furry little problem had been remedied some time ago, before the young alien even met Bulma, so as to completely remove any sort of real weakness that Goku felt an enemy might exploit.

Roshi gave the younger fighter a disgruntled look though in accordance to Kakarot's blase attitude towards his warnings, yet he didn't get the chance to offer a rebuttal because Yamcha soon stepped in to make his own goals known.

"I say let the kid do what he wants, even if it is foolish to not heed the words of a martial arts legend such as yourself. It'll just make my victory over him that much sweeter as he realizes how much he still has to learn about the arts."

"This coming from a former thief, who's style of attack played on the unsuspecting innocence of tourists so that he could slit their throats in the night and make off with their belongings." Goku countered immediately, a grin beginning to play on his boyish face.

"But by all means, please, tell me more about what it means to be a true martial artist Yamcha."

The shaggy-haired older boy ground his teeth as he stared down the younger fighter in front of him.

So bad did Yamcha wish to pummel Kakarot's face in with his Wolf-Fang Fist, yet despite his grudge against the boy with the monkey tail, the former bandit had something more important to deal with at the moment...talking to Bulma.

Something even Yamcha was beginning to find was much easier if he did it before instigating any sort of spar, physical or verbal, with the boy she seemed to have glued to her hip.

And so, swallowing his pride, Yamcha did in deed manage to turn from Kakarot and let his eyes fall on the curvaceous form of his crush.

Managing a small grin the older boy said, "So Bulma did you see how I handled all those wannabe martial artists in there? It was a piece of cake, and I doubt this old guy Jackie Chun is going to offer much more of a challenge. I'll be wearing that championship belt, and taking you out to dinner, by the end of the week I bet."

"I'd rethink that if I were you, Krillin chimed in as he came upon the growing circle of tournament attendees.

The shine on his bald head and fresh scent of soap let everyone know that he had taken a shower after the preliminary rounds were over, probably using the internally facilities provided for the fighters. "I managed to catch a couple of that old guys fights and he's pretty good; Jackie's form each time was excellent, and he seemed to defeat his opponents in less than a minute without even breaking a sweat."

Hearing this Yamcha scoffed, waving his hand through the air as if to shoo away the very notion that this 'Jackie Chun' could defeat him. "Yeah yeah, he beat a bunch of posers and made it to the quarter finals, any fighter worth their salt could manage that. I'll really be impressed if he can stand up to me without breaking down in fear at the sight of my Wolf-fang Fist."

"You love to brag about your silly little technique, but not once have I ever seen you beat anyone with it. "Goku taunted. "Maybe, if you spent more time practicing your martial arts skills instead of chasing Bulma's skirt, you'd be able to come up with a worthwhile attack."

The older boy bristled at that shot to his skills, as well as his character.

"Hey, my Wolf-fang Fist is every bit as dangerous as the Kamehameha wave when I get serious; and the only reason you bested me back in the dessert was because Bulma distracted me! Besides, what does a puny little runt like you know about courting a woman like Bulma, you're just a dumb kid!"

"All right, that's enough!" Bulma demanded as she stepped once again between the two boys. Hands on her hips and elegant eyebrows furrowed into a strong scowl, the beautiful teenage genius let her crystal-blue eyes burn holes into Yamcha's gaping visage.

"I told you once before that I don't like you insulting Goku, Yamcha, so as a guy who's so interested in keeping my attention you'd think you would play nice with my friend. But no, you don't seem to wanna do that; well guess what, until you decide to shape up your attitude the deals off! You want another shot with me, then I'd better see some major improvement once this tournament is over, because I wont be giving you another chance after this."

Yamcha shook with fright at the thunderous display of righteous fury being shown to him by Bulma; never before had the young man had a woman tear into him so deeply. So naturally, the only thing the former bandit could do was nod his head rapidly in understanding before blabbering that he was going to head off to the hotel to get some rest.

Scurrying off however, the older boy would miss the verbal thrashing his self-proclaimed rival would soon be receiving as well.

While Bulma tore into Yamcha, Goku stood off on his side and simply watched. A tingling sensation began to ripple across the boy's skin, raising goosebumps along his forearms as the monkey-tailed alien took in the spectacle that was Bulma Brief's anger.

Her normally melodious voice rose in pitch and took on a much more shrill quality that, while a bit grating on Goku's sensitive ears, stirred something in the pit of his stomach; the no-nonsense tone, and how demanding the girl was being seemed to strike at Goku's core.

And then there was her face; scrunched in a fierce display reminiscent of the large but graceful jungle cats he'd encountered in the mountains. Bulma's eyes especially blazed with a sense of ire that made them sharpen and gleam like the deadliest of weapons while her normally creamy complexion had flushed a slight pink, which only caused her eyes to stand out all the more.

Yes, something primal deep inside Goku liked seeing his friend in such a mood...although he became less sure of this when Bulma turned that look on him after the former bandit went running.

"And you, I recall asking for you both to keep all that dumb rivalry stuff in the ring, so why did you have to let Yamcha bait you into a verbal match?"

"It's not much of a battle when my opponent lacks any basic common sense or wit, Bulma. Besides, it's only Yamcha who sees us as rivals; I personally couldn't care at all about anything he does. The guy's an average fighter at best, and is therefore not worth my time. I need to be fighting real opponents, fighters who can actually push me to limits so that victory will be that much more satisfying after I've ground them into the dirt; that wimpy wolf offers nothing of the sort."

Bulma was left a little speechless by her friends response to her attitude.

Instead of breaking down into a tantrum like she'd expected, the young alien instead rebuffed the brilliant teen's words with his own personal beliefs and views so as to render her words moot.

And yet, something about the way Goku had spoken bothered Bulma; he sounded a touch too arrogant.

As if he'd already decided he was going to win the tournament no matter who his opponent was. This caught the blue-haired beauty's attention because, while Goku had always taken pride in his skills as a martial artist, the younger teen had never gone so far as to proclaim himself the strongest fighter on the planet; the other martial artists merely reduced to essentially training dummies for the spiky-haired alien's personal growth.

This new side to Goku caused Bulma to take a step back mentally and really look at her friend, hoping that this dark mark didn't spread throughout his whole personality.

However before the young heiress could do too much pondering, Roshi chimed in with his own two cents, his words acting as a warning to the monkey-tailed youth standing in front of him.

"I'd be careful of that sort of attitude Kakarot, I've seen a great deal of promising young fighters destroy their own careers with pride like that, and with your potential I'd hate to see it happen to you."

Goku raised an eyebrow at that. "I've seen just about every single one of the other contestants fight already Roshi, so I know a enough about what their capable of to stand firm in my belief that none of them are going to defeat me, with Krillin being the only viable threat to that claim due to his training under you."

"Just be careful Kakaraot," Roshi admonished lightly with a shake of his head. "I'd hate to see you let yourself be blinded by your own ability, and lose sight of the true meaning behind martial arts." With that the old man excused himself before turning and ambling away into the crowd, throwing back that he'd meet them at the hotel.

With Krillin quickly following on the footsteps of his sensei, Goku and Bulma were left alone together in the crowd of tournament watchers. Silence reigned for only a moment before the girl turned her eyes down and addressed the boy at her side.

"Well I guess that means it'll just be you and I celebrating tonight Goku; if you're still up to it, I mean."

The thought of getting away from Roshi and the words that he'd used to stick a thorn in Goku's side, the young alien let his gaze fall away from the elderly fighter's retreating form and turn upwards to look Bulma in the eye. "Sounds good to me; I'm definitely starving. And at least this way I'll be able to eat in peace."

With that the pair began exiting the tournament grounds, unaware of the azure eyes that stared after them.

It was the following morning that found a young Goku standing stoically, arms crossed, staring out at the fighters ring no more than a stone's throw away. A small path of only a few feet separated it from the fighter's box that housed all those still waiting for their turn.

And while his own match wasn't until the end, the spiky-haired martial artist decided that watching Krillin's fight with Lapis would be a good learning experience for him.

The match had only just been called, so the pair were consequentially only now entering the ring.

The dark-haired boy had changed his outfit from the one he'd worn during the preliminary rounds. Gone was the long-sleeve shirt and fitted jeans; in their place were a baggy tee with the sleeves ripped off and cargo shorts. His snow boots had also been replaced by a pair of athletic sneakers, although Lapis still wore his bandanna tied around his neck.

Krillin, much like yesterday, sported the orange and blue uniform of the Turtle Hermit school of martial arts. His bald head gleaming against the morning sun, and a confident smirk playing at the corners of his mouth. Looking across the small gap that separated him from his adversary, the boy from Orin Temple offered a greeting.

"I didn't get the chance to see you in the preliminary rounds, but I'm guessing you're good if you made it this far; I hope we can have a good match, and can give these people a good show."

Lapis response came with a stern disposition, making Krillin flinch at its level of harshness. "A good show? I'm not here funnel cakes and silly games kid; this is all about the win for me. So I hope you're ready to lose."

Krillin was baffled by Lapis' stone-walled response, but before the bewildered balled youth could make a rebuttal however the announcer standing outside the ring announced that the match had begun, and Lapis took that as the perfect time to rush him.

Immediately being put on the defensive, Krillin's training kicked in and he shifted his body to better deflect the curled fist that came shooting at his face. Letting out a strangled grunt as he swatted the first attack to the side, Krillin answered with a palm-strike that grazed Lapis' shoulder as the dark-haired boy twisted out of its path.

Seeing an opening from there Krillin quickly pulled his open hand back and took hold of his opponent's lightly muscled shoulder; gripping the skin tightly, Krillin heaved himself into the air, and then proceeded into an attempt at driving his knee up under Lapis' chin. The other boy wasn't able to catch it in time, so the dark-haired fighter reeled back from the pain before beat a hasty retreat to the farther side of the ring.

However, Krillin wasn't keen to give his opponent any time to recover, and followed right behind in a swift fashion.

Lapis took note of his pursuer and reacted accordingly. Falling back onto his back foot, and placing his weight there, the dark-haired boy jumped up into the air so as to get himself out of Krillin's immediate line of sight.

That brief break in the action proved to be invaluable, as when the bald student of the Turtle-Hermit style came leaping after him Lapis was ready to receive him.

Catching the other boy's kick at the knee Lapis then used his other hand to stop Krillin from freeing himself by way of a spartan-kick to his chest, which gave the young thug an opening to then headbutt Krillin. Following up with a devastating knee to his stomach, a hammer-fist to the back that sent the former monk plummeting to the hard tile of the arena floor.

Krillin hadn't expected his opponent to recover as quickly as he had, nor the impressive offensive onslaught in return, but as the ground came closer and closer the slightly younger boy managed to regain control of his body so as to keep from smashing into the arena.

Catching himself on his hands, angling carefully so as to not damage his wrists, Krillin then sprung off to the side to avoid the incoming fist that Lapis was attempting to lance him with.

When his feet touched back to the ground Krillin used what little grip he had to try and propel himself back into the fight, and hopefully catch Lapis with a counter-attack.

Twisting his body in mid-air, the bald fighter attempted to bring his knee down hard onto the crown of the other boy's head; he missed by mere inches. Quickly working with the momentum of his last move though Krillin did manage to spin on the ball of his foot once it returned to the arena floor and slam a swiftly thrown roundhouse into Lapis' stomach.

For Lapis this only served to fuel his growing anger at the situation as a whole. While the match hadn't been going on for long, he had been on the defensive for the most of it, and this was grating on the young teen's nerves.

Never in his village home had anyone ever given him so much as a black eye, and while he'd managed to catch a few bruises during the preliminary rounds, Lapis had assumed that had been the extent of any participants skill level, and the rest of the tournament would flow much the same way.

Yet here was this kid, Krillin, forcing the fifteen-year-old gang leader to push himself to the limits of his bodies ability just so as to keep up! Being struck by the bald boy's last kick had sent Lapis stumbling back a number of steps, sure, but the boy with the red scarf only tensed his stomach muscles to fight the pain and threw himself back into the fight.

Hopping into the air Lapis threw a scissor-kick at his opponent before coming down and lashing out with a viscous left-right combo. Azure eyes narrowed though when Krillin managed to deflect both punches after avoiding his kicks, and this tunnel vision almost cost the boy his footing when Krillin went low for a sweep-kick. Luckily Lapis managed to overstep most of the attempt, earning only a slight stumble rather than being knocked totally off his feet.

However this didn't bother Krillin, instead the bald former monk only played into this by pressing his opponent with a quick series of punches.

Half made it past Lapis' guard, leaving what both boys knew were the beginnings of more bruises, while the last one was used as a feint to set up for an uppercut.

Somehow the dark-haired boy managed to swing his torso back fast enough to keep his jaw intact, and this surprise caught Krillin so swift that he was ill prepared to put up a real defense against the other boy's snap-kick that came right on the heels of the failed attack.

A hasty cross-block was what saved Krillin from having his ribs stomped, and allowed him to only take a step back to brace himself rather than curl over in breathless agony. This single change gave the squat, orange-clad youth the opportunity to duck the heavy right-hook that came calling for the side of his head.

Months of training with Roshi kicked in here and Krillin's right fist shot out almost without his realization to catch Lapis in the ribs.

Pain exploded from Lapis' torso and filled his sight with a blinding white light for a moment as the message shot to his brain. That pain distracted the young village boy enough however for his opponent to pivot on one foot, to deliver a debilitating kick to Lapis' sternum; the force sending him shooting clear out to the edge of the ring!

Coming down onto his back and then tumbling painfully the rest of the way, Lapis' unfocused blue eyes barely managed to take note of how close he was to being rung out, so in an act of desperation he scrambled his limbs to catch the lip of the arena as his body went rolling over it.

Muscles screaming at him to let them rest, and a thundering torment in his chest were actively ignored in favor of hanging on to the edge of the ring; the edge of hope. The safety of his village was on the line, and Lapis used this, and the anger he housed towards his father and the Red-Ribbon Army, to haul himself back into the ring.

From the sidelines Goku had to say that he was impressed with both Lapis' sense of resolve, as well as his obvious raw talent. It was only with careful, trained eyes that allowed the spiky-haired martial artist to see that during the entire match the equally dark-haired Lapis' was no real match for Krillin.

Sure, the boy with the scarf had landed a number of blows, but they were hasty and lacked any true semblance of balance between power and technique.

Add to that Krillin's obvious speed advantage, and it was easy even for an amateur to see that only a lucky shot would grant Lapis victory in this fight...something the boy's sister seemed to understand.

From the corner of his eye Goku had watched the pretty blonde's reactions as she watched her male double duke it out with Krillin, and he could see it clear on her face that Lazuli knew; her brother was about to lose.

'And even if he doesn't,' the young alien thought as he watched the battered boy struggle to his feet, 'this in only the first round of fighters that are at least equal to Krillin, so whoever he faced next would surely be enough of match for him and toss him from the tournament. He's finished.'

Just as Goku thought this however, his eyes widened in disbelief as Lazuli's gasp of shock drew his attention fully to the ring...where Lapis had Krillin wrapped in a bear-hug, and was tossing them both out of the ring!

Krillin wasn't entirely sure what had just happened; one minute he was charging his opponent, intent on winning their match, the next he was being dragged down out of the arena.

Realizing just what Lapis had in mind Krillin began to struggle with all his might to escape the other boy's hold, he thrashed and kicked while yelling for Lapis to let him go. Unfortunately, while the bald teen had the more practiced fighting style, it would seem the dark-haired village boy was the one who possessed the greater physical aptitude.

And even with his obviously painful injuries, it would seem winning was more important than his health, because Lapis was grimacing in immense pain the whole way down until finally he turned...and landed underneath Krillin as he hit the grassy lawn outside the ring!?

"Despite a desperate move it would seem Lapis' strategy has backfired!" The announcer shouted into his microphone, the surprise clear as he continued on. "As per tournament rules, since Lapis has landed outside of the ring, he has lost the match; Krillin is the winner!"

Back on the sidelines Goku could fee a slight tugging at his lips as they creased into a nearly imperceptible smirk. Krillin had won. In the face of very real defeat, even if it had been underhanded and sneaky, the other boy had managed to twist himself just enough during the fall to make sure Lapis would be the one to hit the ground.

A truly brilliant display of resolve, following behind a fair showing of skill.

'Yes,' Goku thought with a nod of his head. 'Krillin is definitely becoming a much more respectable fighter. However...'

Here the spiky-haired boy with the monkey tail peered over at the blonde girl standing only a few feet away, and was interested to find that instead of being distraught at her brother's loss Lazuli was...a strange mix of smarmy and relieved?

This bit of information threw Goku for a loop as he couldn't understand what could cause the blonde to root against her own brother; as even if they'd been in a personal competition Goku believed the two would want to claim the two top spots for themselves.

The girl's odd behavior only became more of a mystery when Goku noticed she was beginning to walk over to him! However, all his time with Bulma allowed Goku to keep his face straight as he too gave the girl his full attention, only briefly noticing that her brother was being carried away on a stretcher.

"Is there something I can help you with, Miss Lazuli?" Goku spoke once she was only a few inches from him. And while he didn't allow his eyes to stray to anywhere below her neck, the gi-clad teen did observe the pretty blonde with an intense focus. "Your brother looks like he's in pain, don't you think you should go to him?"

For her part Lazuli was more than a little shocked that the boy in front of her knew, or at least remembered, her name.

However the girl didn't allow this to stun her for long, and after taking a deep breath to center herself began to speak.

"I'm sure he his, and I will, but this is the best chance I have to speak with you about something very important. You see, Kakarot, my village needs help...and I believe you are that help. My brother believed that he and I could enter this tournament and win all the money, to buy mercenaries, but I always knew his plan was doomed to failure somehow, from the start.

Before he and I arrived here I believed that my village would never be free, but then I saw you and something just...spoke to me. I truly think I was brought here to meet you, Goku."

Goku had listened to Lazuli's speech with half an ear, but once she said his earth name the boy's eyes sharpened in focus, and he leaned close so he and the girl's noses nearly touched.

"Alright, listen and listen good, I don't know where you heard that name but only my friends call me Goku. People I don't like, let alone even know, they call me Kakarot; understand? Now I don't know what trouble your village is going through, but I really don't see what any of it has to do with me, so why don't you just drop out and carry that brother of yours home so that he can lick his wounds?"

"Because I know, somehow I just do, that if you come back to the village with me everything will come to an end. I feel it in my core, Kakarot, that you are the one who will defeat the Red-Ribbon Army. They have plagued my home for years, terrorized the people of my home, and caused the deaths of a number so great across the world that I can't even imagine it.

You say that my village's problem is not your own, and that may be true, but what about when they're done with my home and they move on to yours? Will you ignore them then? Kakarot I'm asking you, please, come back with my brother and I when the tournament is over and put an end to the Red-Ribbon Army and their madness...please."

Goku didn't move; he almost felt as if he couldn't move. Or breath.

Being so close to Lazuli gave him a clear view of the depths that were her eyes. The brilliant sapphires shone with such intense emotion, only enhanced by the unshed tears that gave the pretty blonde's eyes an almost vibrant glow.

This effect, and its subsequent expression of Lazuli's raw honest emotions was only impressed upon by the way the girl's shoulder-length blonde locks framed her soft face, the shadows playing across the smooth plains vamping the almost ethereal glow of Lazuli's eyes.

Goku found that his heart seemed to skip every other beat as his throat closed around every breath he attempted to take. Never before had the young alien ever experienced another person's emotions on such a scale; it left him speechless.

At least until the boy's instincts seemed to take over, and he leaned away from the imploring beauty. L

etting his back rest against the archway that lead to the arena, Goku folded his muscled arms over his chest and wrinkled his nose in distaste at what had just occurred.

"...I'll think about it." The monkey-tailed teen bit out, his eyes trained solely on the empty arena. "But you'd better not bring this up again until the tournament is finished; I came here to win, not be drafted into playing hero."

Lazuli's eyes lit with hope at those words, and the blonde offered a deep bow.

"Of course, thank you Kakarot, this will mean so much to my village." And with that she was off to visit her twin in the infirmary, even though Goku called out that he hadn't actually accepted the plea to help yet.

Goku didn't see Lazuli again until her match was called against a frail-looking man whose name seemed to be Nam. Their match came directly after that of Yamcha and the mysterious Jackie Chun.

That match had been a fairly quick one though, but afforded Goku the opportunity to finally see the older man in action. Going off what Krillin had managed to glean about Jackie's skills Goku found he had to agree; there wasn't a single move wasted, no over extension or exhausted power.

The man in the black fighter's robes moved with precision and practice, a true practitioner of the arts, and someone Yamcha stood zero chance against.

The match ended with Jackie Chun being declared the winner by knocking Yamcha out of the ring, ending the former bandit's plans woo Bulma with his winnings.

Something the younger fighter seemed to realize immediately as Goku had seen his eyes swiftly search out the blue-haired beauty...only to find her talking to another girl standing beside her in the crowd. There was a part inside the monkey-tailed teen that couldn't help but enjoy the defeated look on Yamcha's face as he slunked his way back to the fighter's box, even as his face remained impassive.

However that was then, and this was now.

Goku watched as first the man Nam walked out into the ring, followed by Lazuli, who locked eyes with the boy even as she moved out to face her opponent. The young alien decided to give the girl a swift nod of good luck, although if asked about it later he would deny it.

Lazuli had offered her own nod in return to Kakarot's offer of luck in silent thanks before she finished her silent trek towards the tournament arena, where she stood only feet away from her fully grown opponent.

'I'm gonna kill Lapis for talking me into this.' The blonde thought as she settled into a basic fighters stance she'd seen from television. Across from her, Nam simply stood tall as the announcer called for the match to begin.

Unlike her brother, Lazuli chose to use her brain in battle rather than go all in swinging. As such, the blonde only stared down the brown-skinned man a few feet before her.

"I suggest you make the first move, because otherwise we'll be here all day." Lazuli called out.

"I cannot; it would be unsportsmanlike to not give you a chance at victory. As once I begin, there is but one path for you...defeat." Nam responded, his eyes closed of all things!

This pinched at Lazuli's nerves a bit, but unlike her brother the pretty blonde knew it was always best to keep a cool head when faced with the unknown.

So instead of rushing in out of anger, Lazuli carefully shuffled around her still opponent until she was standing behind him; it was here that the female twin made her move.

Breaking into a run Lazuli quickly closed the gap between herself and Nam, but just as she drew within striking distance of the man's longer limbs the girl pushed off with her leading foot to leap over to the left-hand side.

This allowed her to narrowly miss being smashed by a donkey-kick from the turban wearer, and gave her the chance to capitalize on the opening it left behind. Lazuli made a mad dash to try and land a punch against Nam's open ribs, but was batted away when the man hopped with his single planted foot, twisted over her attack, and kicked Lazuli away.

The young beauty managed to right herself and land safely, but the moment her feet touched down on the arena floor Nam was right behind her with a swift chop, that he aimed at her neck in an attempt to knock her unconscious.

Knowing there was no time to block Lazuli instead threw her shoulder in the way and took the blow with it.

A definitive 'crack' could be heard as the bone was broken, followed immediately by a cry of pain from the young girl. However Lazuli didn't have time to concentrate on that pain, because Nam immediately followed this up with a sharp kick to the center of her back which sent her flying, and then tumbling after she collided with the tiled floor.

Scrapes that dribbled crimson tears littered the pretty blonde's face while the pain of swiftly forming bruises erupted across the vast canvas of Lazuli's slender body. The worst of which was the heavily damaging one that was building across the space between her shoulder blades.

Yet none of this mattered more than the nearly blinding pain that radiated from Lazuli's shoulder area.

Even a tender shifting of those bones sent arcs of pain shooting straight to the female twin's brain, forcing her to grit her teeth in agony. This fact only brought to light one very important bit of knowledge; one that Lazuli had already been prepared for, but the truth stung just the same. She was going to lose.

Going into this, and agreeing with her brother's idea, Lazuli had no illusions of how the tournament would play out like Lapis' had.

The teenage blonde knew that she and her dark-haired twin were no match for fighters who spent hours, days, and months training specifically for the Tenkaichi Budokai. Especially not with nothing but their raw, untrained talent for fighting to back them up.

In fact, Lazuli was shocked she and her brother had even made it past the preliminary rounds!

'But I guess we were only gonna get one miracle today.' She thought bitterly as her beautiful blue eyes took in the thin, robed man standing before her; he could at least open his eyes!

That was what irked Lazuli the most about her match, the fact that her opponent didn't even feel the need to look at her to defeat her. It soaked the burning coals within her to the point her simmering anger built into a raging inferno. She would make that fool open his eyes, make him acknowledge her, before the match was through!

It was with this renewed vigor that Lazuli went on sprinting at Nam, her broken bones shoved to the darkest corners of her mind and the pain drowned out by waves of adrenaline and anger.

Not even bothering to keep track of her breathing Lazuli charged forward, until she was within reach of her copper-skinned opponent's hands. Just as he expected Nam lanced one of his hands forward in an effort to catch her with a knife-hand strike, but Lazuli ducked it and went low.

Falling into the shoulder that wasn't broken, the young blonde shoved that soft slope into the arena floor and rolled over it to get inside Nam's guard.

Coming up onto a single knee Lazuli threw her and out in a ferocious punch, only to seethe as it was blocked by her opponent's open palm. However this didn't stop the girl, and instead Lazuli twisted her body around on the floor to execute a sweep-kick that, while it didn't catch the man, forced him to let go of her hand.

Such a thing allowed Lazuli to spring into a rising uppercut once her spin was finished, one that was backed by the momentum of her previous maneuver and actually managed to succeed in landing across Nam's pointed chin!

A deep grunt of pain followed the man's cry of surprise, and Lazuli had just enough time to bask in the glorious fact that she'd made her opponent look at her before the man retaliated with a swift but fierce palm-strike to her stomach.

One that held such power that the pretty blonde was sent sailing across the arena...and out of the ring.

"Oh! And despite her fierce last ditch efforts, Lazuli has been knocked out of the ring by a devastating blow by Nam, and had her journey in this tournament cut short. With this Nam is the winner, and will be advancing to the semi-finals!"

While the crowd around her cheered and clapped however, Lazuli was busy fighting back the pain that filled every fiber of her being while laying prone in the soft grass that bordered the arena.

This physical pain, coupled with the emotional pain of letting down her village, had the blonde girl breathing heavy breaths in an effort to stem the tears building behind her eyes. So lost in her devastation, that Lazuli didn't even notice when the medics hauled her onto a gurney and began carrying her away.

Nor did she see the way Kakarot looked at her as she was carried past him.

As he watched the clearly distraught girl being taken away Goku silently promised that he would visit with Lazuli after his own match, and speak with her again about the possibility of him returning to the blonde's village to lend them his strength.

'Besides,' the spiky-haired alien thought as his name was called for the final match. 'It's not as if I'll have much else to do after this is all over; and it may just prove to be a decent challenge anyway.'

Walking into the arena Goku's thoughts on Lazuli and her earlier plea fell away as he got his first good look at the first opponent to truly stand in his way of becoming the World Champion.

Giren, if his memory served correctly, turned out to be a large dragon-like creature with dark-blue scales and an almost acid green underbelly. Two large wings stretched out from his back, and beady little black pupils stared out of large, white eyes.

Goku also took note of the fiercely sharp teeth and claws that the walking reptile possessed, as well as Giren's thick meaty tail that lumbered behind him. All in all, the boy found his first real opponent to be a bit...underwhelming.

"Let the final match of the quarter finals...BEGIN!" The announcer called out excitedly, drawing forth a vast wave of eager cheers and thunderous applause.

Amidst it all, both fighters stared each other down; one thoughtful, the other almost seeming bored. Goku had taken a lax fighting stance, making sure not to leave himself completely open but not putting in the effort to be fully aware of the enemy in front of him.

Giren on the other hand looked as if he were trying to solve a puzzle, finally choosing to voice his confusion after another moment of silence.

"So what, did you take one look at me and freeze in fear? I watched your matches in the preliminary rounds, and remember more than a few fights that you kicked things off pretty quickly. Could it be that big, bad Giren has the poor monkey boy ready to run with his fuzzy wuzzy tail between his legs?"

Giren finished his taunt with a boisterous laugh, his large belly shaking with mean-spirited mirth as he threw his head back to let it out.

Unfortunately for the large reptilian anthro this meant he didn't see the way Goku's eyes narrowed in focus, or the sly smirk that tugged at his lips. Shifting his body quickly, the spiky-haired alien boy was soon springing off his back foot and shooting towards Giren with his elbow cocked back.

Burying that thick bone into his opponent's belly, Goku was rewarded with the sound of Giren choking on his own laughter before snarling in pain as the young fighter quickly replaced his elbow with a left jab. Feeling the way his fist sunk into the talking dragon's underbelly Goku made sure he freed it quickly, so as to avoid getting caught by the big-boned reptiles absorbent flesh.

Following this though Goku found himself needing to duck, as Giren seemed to recover quickly enough to swing his heavy tail at the boy.

Goku found himself impressed with how fast his lumbering opponent seemed capable of moving, even if it was slower than the monkey-tailed youth knew he himself could go.

However the yung alien found himself content not to use his full power just yet, and instead toy with Giren so as to better test his own strength. 'We'll see if I can beat him with only a quarter of my full strength.'

With his personal limit set, Goku dodged back out of Giren's reach as the large dragon-like creature reached out to lash at him with his claws.

Yet the boy's opponent didn't stop there.

Goku's eyes danced with intrigue as he ducked and weaved out of the way as Giren's large hands whipped about wildly in an attempt to land even a single blow. In an apparent effort to catch the spiky-haired youth off-guard Giren even resorted to working his tail into the varying combinations that he sent at the younger fighter.

These attempts were thwarted however by the fact that Goku just seemed far too fast for the oaf of a dragon.

Something, Goku could see, that was making Giren very angry.

"Why don't you hold still monkey-boy!? All this jumping around, like a circus animal, all you're doing is delaying the inevitable; I will get my hands on you, and when I do it isn't going to be pretty!"

"In that case," Goku taunted back as he moved to twist away from another swipe at his chest. "I think it's better that I keep up my performance, don't you? After all, an animal as rare as me, it'd be a shame if I let myself be extinct!"

Finishing his retort Goku went ahead and actually grabbed a hold of Giren's tail the next time it came around to try and knock him aside, his small but powerful fingers wrapping around the meaty appendage like steel bands before he gave a sharp jerk, which lifted a stunned Giren off his heavy feet and into the air where Goku then proceeded to spin the dragon-like fighter around!

Around and around the two fighters spun; Giren roaring for the smaller of the pair to put him down. It must have been the fifth or sixth turn before Goku complied with his opponent's wish and sent him tumbling through the air.

Unfortunately, Giren's wings proved more than just for show when he used them to keep himself from being rung out. Heavy gusts of wind formed with every beat of those thick, leathery wings while a superior sort of smirk edged its way onto the ferocious reptile fighter's snout.

"Aw, too bad, you were so close to ringing me out too." Giren broke out into a barking sort of laugh this time before managing to continue. "And now that you've made me mad there's no way you're ever going to defeat me; you should have given up when you had the chance!"

The lumbering, dragon-like fighter's eyes narrowed dangerously into slits as veins of red crept inward from the surrounding whites.

Fangs and claws sharpened and grew in thickness as well as length, and everybody watching could see the way the reptilian anthro's body seemed to bulge even heavier with added muscle; even Giren's tail thickened to such a degree that there was no way Goku's last trick would work a second time.

Something flared in the back of Goku's brain right before he lost sight of Giren. However he didn't get any time to analyze what it was before he was struck by the aforementioned fighter's overly large fist.

Those thick, scaly knuckles dug into the flesh of Goku's cheek before the force of the blow sent him rocketing off of his feet and careening through the air. Trying to right himself the spiky-haired alien caught the barest hint of wings flapping before he felt what he was sure to be Giren's tail smacking him hard in the center of his back.

Gritting his teeth in both pain as well as anger, Goku tensed every muscle in his body after being struck and managed to regain control of his limbs enough so that he was ready to block the devastating elbow that came at him the next time Giren appeared.

Catching the talking reptile's cumbersome strike with both hands Goku was surprised to find that he very nearly couldn't hold it! The moment his palms met with the rigid bone, Goku immediately poured more of his strength into his muscles to keep it from crushing his fingers against his skull; the brute's physical prowess matched that of the Ox-King!

However instead of frighten Goku, this knowledge only got the boy's blood pumping that much faster, that much hotter. The fools in the preliminary rounds had posed little to no challenge for the young alien martial artist, and not since Roshi had Goku truly felt tested in his strength.

So, using fifty percent of what he knew was his full strength, the monkey-tailed fighter threw aside Giren's elbow and moved swiftly into the dragon's guard to deliver a powerful knee to the stomach.

Having thrown his leg at such an intense velocity, Goku found himself shocked that all it did was cause Giren to stop in his tracks; there was no overpowering of the larger fighter, nor animated backward stumble. The dragon simply let out a pained 'oof', and hunched forward slightly.

Yet this did not deter the younger, alien fighter for long and instead only added to his excitement. Reacting quickly Goku followed up that knee with double jabs, before finishing with a swift uppercut that caught the spiky-haired youth's opponent clean in the chin.

Through it all Goku's keen eye watched Giren's reactions to his attacks, and the boy with the monkey tail was impressed to find that the mighty dragon-like creature flinched upon impact, but otherwise seemed fine.

'Good,' Goku thought as he went to duck around for a shot at Giren's back, 'I am causing damage. He's just tougher than before so it's harder to tell.'

And yet just as the wild-haired martial artist made this deduction his reptilian foe seemed to have had enough with being knocked around. Faster than Goku had time to react to, Giren turned sharply at the waist, and delivered a debilitating elbow down and crashed it into the crown of the thirteen-year-old boy's skull.

Goku's vision filled with white as pain exploded all across his cranium, and his body hitched before slumping the boy down on his hands and knees.

However Giren didn't seem satisfied with just this; as shown by how he literally punted Goku across the arena with a quickly followed kick to the monkey-tailed boy's backside. Goku went flying and tumbling through the air, only to be stopped short as Giren appeared in his aerial path and stopped him short with a large meaty fist to the face!

What happened next surprised not only Goku, but the rest of the crowd as well.

Because instead of allowing the young teen the chance to fly off again from momentum, Giren quickly opened his clawed hand and wrapped his thick fingers around Goku's face before swinging him down and slamming him into the arena floor!

A serious dent made itself known in the tiles integrity as a large series of fissures arced out from underneath the downed youth's aching back. However this didn't prove to be the most surprising thing; it was what the dragon-like fighter did next that had everyone watching shriek in alarm.

"I've enjoyed this little game kid, but I think now it's time I showed you why they tell you to never poke a sleeping dragon! But don't worry, I'll only hit you witth my next attack hard enough to give you a permanent sunburn; Fiendish Flamethrower!"

What followed was a moment of Giren opening his maw wide, his razor sharp fangs glistening with thick coats of saliva, and Goku noticing the briefest flicker of a light in the creature's mouth reminiscent of a flint spark, before a burst of hot orange fire came barreling out of Giren's mouth and crashing down directly atop young Goku's body entirely.

Heat licked across Goku's body as the flaming tsunami washed over him.

Fiery tongues lapped at his skin, sizzling and warming his flesh to a degree he wasn't used to, and scorching his clothes which slowly began to give out under the intense punishment. With his dark eyes closed tight, Goku could feel the way his gi was slowly drying out and crumbling under the barrage of flame that assaulted the delicately woven thread.

Amidst the whirlwind of orange fire Goku frowned; he had liked this gi.

However all thoughts like these were brushed aside when the pinned alien boy's ear caught the very familiar scream of one Bulma Briefs. "Goku! Hey, Mr. Announcer, isn't that against the rules!? That overgrown handbag is cooking my friend alive out there!"

The announcer's voice filled the air for the first time in what felt like hours, as he stammered a reply to what Goku was sure to be an irate blue-haired girl.

"U-Unfortunately, Miss, it's not. Giren's flames are a product of his own physical ability, and as such are legally allowed within tournament restrictions. As well, so long as he does not kill young Goku then Giren is well within his rights to use those flames; it's all in the waver the young boy signed upon entering the tournament, I'm sorry."

Even with the whooshing of flames filling his ears Goku still heard the literal growl that superseded Bulma's next words; it made him smile despite the annoying itch that the flames had given him.

"Oh, you're going to be sorry if anything happens to Goku you out-of-a-box blonde, do you have any idea who I am!? I am Bulma Briefs, and I'll have this whole tournament thing shut down permanently if I wind up carrying my friend out of here in a body bag!"

Goku decided that this was as good a time as any to prove that he was alright.

So, reaching out his hand, the pinned youth took a strong hold of what he assumed was Giren's pointer finger...and proceeded to break it with a harsh 'snap'.

The sound was heard in the brief lull that came after Bulma finished speaking, and even managed to overcome the roaring of the flames that had just been pelting Goku nonstop. However this was ground to an instant halt as Giren's head shot up into the air, and a loud cry of pain dowsed whatever fire he had left in his belly.

"RRRAAAAAAAWWWWWRRRR!"

However Goku didn't stop there. The very instant Giren snatched his large hand away, the downed alien boy delivered a powerful kick to the talking dragon's kneecap.

At full strength, the monkey-tailed fighter hadn't doubted for a second that he'd hear the sweet sound of cartilage giving out under the weight of his foot. And he wasn't disappointed. With a sickening 'crunch' Giren's beefy leg seemed to go completely limp, forcing the creature himself to tumble onto his remaining good knee for support while he howled even louder than before in agony.

Sadly for the once mighty beast, this placed his snout directly in Goku's line of attack, leaving the pain riddled fighter open for another attack; something Goku made sure to take advantage of.

What came next was the definitive victory shot, as Goku wound back his fist before sending it forward like a speeding bullet and ramming his knuckles clean against Giren's snout.

The resulting kickback sent the reptilian fighter's head snapping back as his nostrils gushed blood, right before the momentum of the attack replayed the earlier scene of someone's feet leaving the arena floor; only this time it was Giren rather than Goku.

The larger fighter was in so much agony however in comparison, that he wasn't even aware of how close he was getting to the edge of the ring until Goku appeared again above him and finished the job by wheeling his leg around into a triumphant roundhouse-kick.

From there it was simply a matter of watching from the edge of the arena as Giren flew out of bounds, and collided painfully with the wall that kept back the audience. This time though, the cracking sounds were merely the evidence that the collision had damaged the integrity of said barrier, and not another one of Giren's bones.

A hush fell over the crowed for a moment after that.

Then, the area was filled to the brim with cheers and applause as the spectators looked upon the boy they knew as Kakarot; the unlikely victor of what many believed to be a major mismatch.

Even further still, Goku could easily make out Bulma's own cheers as they seemed to overpower even this rowdy bunch. Looking at the blue-haired girl though caused a swelling to fill the young alien's chest again; one he hadn't experienced since the day he'd tried on his suit in her home.

What was that feeling? Was it pride; did it make him feel good to know he'd brought such happiness to his only friend? Goku wasn't sure.

And even then he was unable to dwell on it for long, as the feeling of being watched quickly took its place, which had young Goku shift into a tighter form even as the announcer was holding up his hand and declaring him the winner.

Yet when the feeling did not vanish, and instead intensified, Goku allowed his dark eyes to take a hidden sweep of the surrounding area. Finding the culprit proved simple, yet upon learning their identity a sense of confusion soon filled the boy's mind, and had him wondering what they could be looking so intently at him for.

After all, what could Jackie Chun want with him?

xXx