Son Goku stepped onto the tournament stage.
At the same time, Jackie Chun hurried up onto the ring as well.
Goku took his stance, eyes fixed on Chun, his mind racing.
He went to all this trouble to disguise himself and enter the tournament… all for my and Krillin's future.
If I lose to him, that's fine. But I can't let his good intentions go to waste.
At the very least, I have to make this look right…
Before he could figure out how best to handle it, the referee's shout shattered his thoughts.
"Begin!"
Jackie Chun was the first to move.
He rushed forward, and Goku met him head-on.
They exchanged blow after blow, countering and parrying in a blur of motion. Their speed was so great that afterimages rippled through the air, fists and kicks crashing together with sharp, explosive sounds.
Attacks, defenses, feints, and dodges wove together seamlessly, the marks of true masters clashing.
This was on a completely different level from the previous matches.
The audience leaned forward, eyes wide.
"Incredible!"
"So amazing!"
"These two are on a whole different level!"
Even the announcer was swept up in it.
"This is unbelievable! Son Goku and Jackie Chun are both extraordinary fighters! Their techniques are flawless—there's not a single opening between them! What an incredible battle!"
After only a few exchanges, Jackie Chun's heart started pounding.
This is bad… this kid is stronger than I am.
Those last few blows left my arms numb…
And he's completely fine. His breathing is steady—he's not even strained.
He's fighting like this is effortless…
After a brief moment of thought, Roshi decided he had no choice but to use his ultimate move.
Jackie Chun took the stance for the Kamehameha.
Seeing it, Goku instinctively mirrored the exact same posture.
At that moment, a golden cloud drifted across the sky.
Goku's eyes flicked upward.
"That's… the Flying Nimbus?"
He looked more closely and saw a dark-skinned monk riding on it.
It was Namu—the man Krillin had just defeated.
Namu waved down toward the ring.
He clearly wasn't waving at Goku.
He was saying goodbye to Master Roshi.
In an instant, Goku understood.
So that's it… Roshi gave him a capsule—and even lent him the Nimbus.
As Goku drew his gaze back, something else filled his vision.
A full moon.
The moment it entered his eyes, his heart began to thunder.
A savage, overwhelming instinct surged through his body.
In the next instant, his form swelled—
And he transformed into a gigantic Great Ape.
The entire arena froze.
Jackie Chun looked up, his hair standing on end.
"Oh no… I didn't expect the moon to be visible this early."
"And it's a full moon, too… what terrible timing!"
The announcer was nearly paralyzed with fear, but forced himself to keep speaking.
"W-What… what is this?!"
"S-Son Goku has turned into… a giant ape?!"
"T-That's terrifying! What kind of martial art is this?!"
"It's unbelievable!"
Backstage, the Man-Wolf stared in shock.
"He can transform under a full moon too?!"
Krillin broke into a sweat.
"Goku, what's wrong with you?!"
"Is this… your transformation technique?!"
By then, Goku's transformation was complete.
The Great Ape roared and began smashing everything in sight.
Jackie Chun clenched his teeth.
"Ten-Thousand-Volt Shock!"
Two beams of energy shot from his hands toward Goku—
But the moment they touched the Great Ape, they rebounded.
Jackie Chun's eyes widened.
"Damn it! Even my Lightning Surprise attack bounced back?!"
The Great Ape ripped a chunk of the tournament building apart, debris raining down in every direction.
The referee dodged falling stones and screamed,
"Ahhh! This is too dangerous! But as the referee, I can't just run away!"
Jackie Chun grimaced.
"The worst part is that if I leave the ring, I'll lose the match!"
Krillin leapt onto the stage.
"Goku! Turn back! You're going to hurt people!"
Jackie Chun shouted, "Get away from him! That's not a technique—he turns into a monster whenever he sees the full moon. He's completely lost his mind!"
Krillin was stunned.
"W-What?! Then what do we do?!"
The Great Ape continued rampaging, pushing closer and closer to the spectators.
Jackie Chun's face went pale.
If he reaches them, this will be a disaster.
He gritted his teeth.
"Then there's only one way!"
He ripped off his jacket.
His muscles swelled as he stepped back to the edge of the ring and began gathering energy, hands cupped like a flower bud.
It was unmistakably the stance of the Kamehameha.
Krillin panicked.
"Stop! You'll kill him!"
But Jackie Chun didn't hesitate.
To Krillin, it looked like Chun was going all out, aiming to obliterate Goku.
Krillin screamed at the Great Ape, "Goku, run!"
The Great Ape froze for a split second when he heard Krillin's voice.
But instead of running away from the crowd, he turned—
And lumbered straight toward Krillin, raising a massive fist.
Krillin's blood ran cold.
"He's coming for me!"
At that instant, Jackie Chun's attack was ready.
"Maximum power—Ka… me… ha… me… HAAAA!"
A blinding white light swallowed the arena.
Everyone shielded their eyes.
Krillin covered his head and squeezed his eyes shut.
When the light faded, the giant ape was gone.
The referee crawled out of the rubble and shouted shakily,
"This is… unbelievable!"
"Jackie Chun unleashed an incredible Kamehameha… and the giant ape—Son Goku—has disappeared!"
Krillin couldn't see Goku anywhere.
Tears streamed down his face.
"Goku!!"
He glared at Jackie Chun.
"You killed him! You murderer! Give Goku back to me!"
Jackie Chun's muscles relaxed, shrinking back to normal.
He pointed toward the edge of the rubble.
"Calm down. Look over there. He's not dead."
Krillin froze and turned.
Goku lay there naked, as if asleep, his tail still visible.
Krillin's eyes lit up with relief.
"He's alive! Goku's alive!!"
Jackie Chun smiled faintly.
"Of course. If I killed him, I'd lose the match."
"I knew he transforms when he sees the moon, so my Kamehameha wasn't aimed at Goku…"
"It was aimed at the moon."
"W-What?!"
"The moon is gone?!"
Everyone looked up.
The sky was clear—there was no moon.
"It's really gone!"
"The moon disappeared!"
Jackie Chun said, "Without it, he can't turn into a Great Ape again."
Then he turned to the referee.
"He's outside the ring now. That means I win, right?"
◇ I'll be dropping one bonus chapters for every 10 reviews. comment
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on P@treon if you're interested:
patreon.com/NightShard525