That evening, everyone gathered for a meal, celebrating their reunion after three long years.
Later that night, as Goku and Krillin shared a room, Krillin reminded him, "Goku, I fought Piccolo the Demon King today. His strength felt bottomless. You need to be careful when you face him."
"Don't worry, just rest," Goku replied with a smile, closing his eyes.
The next morning, the plaza for the World Martial Arts Tournament was packed with spectators. The semifinals had arrived—the closest battles before the grand finals.
The excited host stood in the ring and shouted, "Now for the first match of the semifinals: Son Goku versus Tien Shinhan! Please welcome them to the stage!"
The crowd roared in excitement.
Tien glanced at Goku beside him and asked firmly, "Goku, will you use your full strength from the very start?"
"It depends," Goku replied with a calm smile.
Both leapt into the ring.
From the sidelines, Yamcha said, "Krillin, Tien should be able to force Goku to fight seriously, right?"
"He should…" Krillin answered, though not fully confident.
Tien Shinhan was strong, no doubt—but Goku's strength was on another level.
Chi-Chi clasped her hands together and cheered brightly, "My Goku will definitely win!"
Far away, from a rooftop, Piccolo watched intently.
"This is the perfect chance to measure Son Goku's true strength," he muttered.
In the front row of the audience, Master Roshi smiled faintly.
"Those two… they've already surpassed this old man."
The host raised the mic. "Let the match begin!"
Goku took a relaxed stance and said, "Tien Shinhan, don't hold back. Come at me with everything you've got."
"Goku, are you underestimating me?" Tien replied, though he wasn't offended. He simply intended to prove himself with action.
With a stomp of his foot, Tien rushed forward, unleashing a fierce barrage of punches.
But Goku remained calm. Using his keen Qi perception, he read every movement and dodged effortlessly.
Even with his weighted training clothes suppressing him, Goku's battle power stood at 340—a full hundred points higher than Tien's. Seeing through his opponent's moves was child's play.
Realizing all his strikes were being read like an open book, Tien broke away and admitted.
"Goku, you're incredible! I never thought every single movement of mine would be predicted by you. I thought after three years of training, I could catch up… but your improvement is even more terrifying."
"You're also very strong, Tien," Goku replied sincerely.
Of course, only Goku knew the truth—if not for spending four days inside the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, his strength under the weighted clothes would've barely been enough to defeat Tien. But now, things were different.
Watching from the sidelines, Krillin and Yamcha gasped.
Yamcha shook his head in disbelief. "Tien's already this strong, but against Goku he looks completely helpless."
Krillin sighed deeply. "Yeah… I trained just as hard, but the gap between us keeps growing wider. Back then, we weren't so far apart. Now… it feels impossible to catch up."
Yamcha nodded in agreement, his expression equally bitter.
On the rooftop, Piccolo narrowed his eyes.
"Son Goku… this fight with you might actually be worth my time."
Judging from what he'd seen, Goku's battle power was already close to his own. But Piccolo also knew—Goku still wasn't using his full strength.
In the audience, Bulma leaned toward Roshi. "Master Roshi, from the way things look, does Goku have this match in the bag?"
"If nothing unexpected happens, yes," Roshi answered, though even he was amazed by Goku's growth.
In the ring, Goku kept smiling casually. Up to this point, he had only displayed 300 battle power—still below what his weighted clothes allowed. His maximum under suppression was 340, and without the weights, his true strength reached 430.
Tien Shinhan exhaled heavily, his mind made up.
"Goku, normal fighting won't work against you. So next… I'll use my ultimate technique!"
"Good," Goku grinned. "Show me something fun. I could use a warm-up."
This was his first official battle since transmigrating into Son Goku's body. He intended to savor every moment, using it to help his body adapt better to combat.
Tien crouched slightly, his aura flaring.
"Four Witches Technique!"
His body split—first into two, then into four—until four identical Tien Shinhans surrounded Goku on all sides.
The audience was stunned.
The host nearly dropped his mic. "Wh-what is this?! Contestant Tien Shinhan has multiplied into four people! How will Son Goku deal with this?"
Yamcha gawked. "He had such a hidden move?!"
"Unbelievable," Krillin muttered. "But… Goku should be able to handle it."
The four Tiens closed in, circling Goku like predators.
Goku, still calm, analyzed the situation.
"Tien, this technique of yours is impressive… but it has one fatal flaw."