Chapter 40 — Universe 7
The arrival of three figures—Tachibana Kyūjō, the God of Destruction Arak, and a female Angel named Cukatail—left Ogma, the Supreme Kai of Universe 5, visibly taken aback.
After Arak explained the purpose of their visit, Ogma did seem somewhat puzzled. Still, he went on to give a thorough explanation to the three of them about the power of the creators, a force also known as Natural Ultra Instinct.
Yet even after listening to that long and detailed explanation about the rules and mindset behind Natural Ultra Instinct, neither the God of Destruction Arak, nor the Angel Cukatail, nor Tachibana Kyūjō truly felt they had grasped it. It was as if they were listening to a veil of mist hanging in the sky—vague, distant, and impossible to fully see through.
Three days later, their curiosity had been more or less satisfied. More importantly, deep down, the Ultra Ego possessed by both Arak and Kyūjō—born from Destruction Energy—naturally rejected the power of creation.
Because of that, Arak decided to leave the Planet of the Supreme Kai together with Cukatail.
Kyūjō, however, made a different choice.
He chose to remain.
To be honest, with the level of power he had reached now, across the Twelve Universes of the Dragon Ball world, there were very few mortal beings—or even gods—who could stand as his equal.
Traveling through the universes at this point felt no more than a way to pass the time. There was almost no room left for him to refine his strength through ordinary battles.
The only way for him to continue growing might be to fight Gods of Destruction or Angels themselves.
But therein lay the problem.
At that level of power, once a serious battle broke out, the shockwaves from a single clash would be enough to erase an entire universe.
That was one of the primary reasons Zeno strictly forbade Gods of Destruction from fighting one another.
So did that mean the Gods of Destruction had never fought?
They had. In fact, on one rare occasion, all twelve Gods of Destruction had once taken part in a massive battle together.
The battlefield, however, was the Null Realm—a special domain created personally by Zeno.
In that battle, because of his outstanding performance and his ability to subtly dominate his opponents, Beerus came to be regarded by the other gods as the strongest God of Destruction.
Of course, that was the past.
If one were to ask who the strongest God of Destruction was now, the answer would be Tachibana Kyūjō—the candidate who stood closest to inheriting divine power.
Kyūjō's strength had reached a point where the only remaining path forward was to deepen his understanding of Instinct itself.
He had learned Ultra Ego from the Gods of Destruction.
He had learned Ultra Instinct from the Angels.
All that remained was to refine both, to understand them more deeply, and to unite them within a single body. If he succeeded, he would reach a level of power equal to the Grand Priest, the highest Angel who stood at the very top of the universal hierarchy.
And as Kyūjō had realized, understanding Instinct was something that could be done anywhere.
And so, Tachibana Kyūjō spent another three full years living on the Planet of the Supreme Kai in Universe 5. There, he continued to explore the meaning of Ego, Autonomous movement, and now, under Ogma's guidance, he attempted to grasp the essence of Natural Ultra Instinct.
Even though he still didn't fully understand it, Kyūjō didn't feel impatient.
After all, time was on his side.
But on that particular day, a conversation with Ogma stirred something within him—pushing him to take action.
— — —
"Kyūjō, Natural Ultra Instinct represents the power of the creators. And as you already know, these Twelve Universes are, technically speaking, the result of Lord Zeno's creative power."
"You've stayed on the Planet of the Supreme Kai for quite some time now. As a Candidate God of Destruction, your natural affinity leans toward Destruction, not Creation. In my opinion… there's no need for you to force yourself. You're already incredibly strong."
"Throughout the history of the Multiverse, only a handful have ever managed to wield two types of Instinct at once. Do you truly intend to stand shoulder to shoulder with Lord Zeno and the Dragon God Zalama…?"
Hearing that, Kyūjō merely gave a faint smile.
"Ogma, to me, Lord Zeno is a pioneer. He showed the way forward. Even if mastering three types of Instinct sounds impossible, I still want to try."
"But… your words just now made me realize something. If all Twelve Universes were born from the power of creation, then I need to observe this world more deeply."
The moment those words left his mouth, Tachibana Kyūjō vanished from the Planet of the Supreme Kai, leaving Ogma standing there, frozen in silence.
— — —
In the blink of an eye, Kyūjō arrived at the boundary between Universe 5 and Universe 4…
Twenty years passed as if they were nothing.
Kyūjō had now completed his journey across all Twelve Universes. He had just crossed the border of Universe 8 and returned once more to Universe 7.
Over those two decades, he had met and interacted with nearly every god from each universe—Gods of Destruction, Angels, Supreme Kais, and even other divine candidates like himself.
Some encounters had sparked friction, but overall, he gained countless valuable lessons.
Now, Kyūjō could wield the power of an Angel and a God of Destruction at the same time.
The two Instincts that had once been nearly impossible to control could now coexist within his body.
Only one final step remained—fusing those two divine powers into a single, perfect form. If he succeeded, he would reach the very peak of power, standing equal to the Grand Priest.
As for power levels?
Sorry, but numbers like that were no longer relevant to measuring his strength.
— — —
The moment he returned to Universe 7, Kyūjō immediately sensed two powerful auras clashing violently.
They felt unfamiliar… yet strangely familiar at the same time.
And the location of that battle—
Earth.
— — —
His eyebrows rose slightly. Then, a small smile formed on his lips as he murmured,
"So I was only gone from Universe 7 for twenty years… and it's already reached the Tournament of Power arc, huh?"
In an instant, his body vanished from the boundary of the universe.
— — —
High above Earth's skies.
The God of Destruction Beerus let out a lazy yawn as he raised a single finger, effortlessly stopping Goku's attack.
Goku was in his Super Saiyan God form, further amplified by Kaio-Ken x10.
— — —
"This is it? Super Saiyan God?"
"If that's all you've got, I'm not even interested in fighting. And I absolutely cannot forgive you for daring to call instant noodles a 'luxury dish'! Goku… do you really think a God of Destruction like me has never tasted real food?!"
As he spoke, Beerus's expression gradually turned cold.
If not for the memory of a certain someone—someone who also belonged to the Saiyan race—this planet would have already been erased from existence by now.
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