『Universe 10, Toppo has been eliminated.』
...
『Universe 10, Jiren has been eliminated.』
These two successive elimination announcements echoed throughout the entire Tournament of Power arena.
In a dense, ancient forest, towering trees stretched toward the sky. Their lush canopies filtered sunlight into scattered patches of light and shadow.
At that moment, Son Goten and Bulla were deep within this mysterious woodland.
Suddenly, a clear announcement resounded throughout the area. The unexpected voice instantly put both Goten and Bulla on alert. They immediately raised their guard and focused all their attention on the words spoken.
Bulla, with her sharp instincts, quickly sensed that something was wrong.
In fact, even before the tournament began, Bulla had secretly taken note of the most remarkable participants from each universe.
She clearly remembered that the powerful Jiren and Toppo belonged to Universe 11. However, the announcement stated something completely different.
Bulla frowned slightly, falling into deep thought as she silently tried to figure out what was going on.
Her eyes wandered uncertainly, sometimes gazing into the distance and sometimes lowering in contemplation, as though she were desperately trying to assemble the missing pieces of a puzzle.
Beside her, Goten quickly noticed her unusual behavior.
"Bulla, did you notice something strange, too?" he asked.
Bulla's train of thought was abruptly interrupted. Coming back to her senses, she looked at Goten and nodded lightly.
"So you noticed it as well, Goten."
Goten thought for a moment before saying, "If I remember correctly, Universe 10 should be made up of the people wearing black robes, right?"
Bulla nodded in agreement and continued analyzing the situation to herself.
"If that's really the case, then why..."
Suddenly, she had a flash of inspiration, as though an important piece had finally clicked into place.
"The Supreme Kai of Universe 10 is actually Zamasu!"
The realization struck her like a bolt from the blue.
At that instant, every lingering doubt vanished. She finally understood why Universe 10 had a Jiren and a Toppo too.
Having suffered under Zamasu's cruelty in the past as well, Goten felt painful memories flood back the moment he heard that name.
"Then that means the ones who were eliminated were Jiren and Toppo after Zamasu swapped their bodies!"
Goten and Bulla were still reeling from this enormous revelation when a dark figure suddenly emerged from the depths of the forest.
The shadow gradually revealed itself before them.
The unmistakable black robe. He was one of the participants from Universe 10.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
A series of crisp claps shattered the surrounding silence, clearly reaching their ears.
They turned toward the sound and saw the mysterious black-robed figure applauding himself lightly. A teasing smile appeared on his face as he slowly shifted his gaze toward Goten and Bulla.
"Heh, how clever. I didn't expect you to figure it out."
Upon hearing the voice, Goten and Bulla turned to look almost simultaneously.
Not far ahead of them, a short figure gradually came into view. The person was draped in a loose black robe that concealed his entire body, making his true appearance impossible to see.
Yet, despite this, the faint aura emanating from beneath the robe felt incredibly familiar to Goten and Bulla.
That's right. The aura was identical to the one they had previously sensed from Zamasu. Clearly, this individual was another result of Zamasu altering his appearance.
With the information currently available, neither Goten nor Bulla could accurately guess who he actually was.
However, as they carefully examined his aura, they unexpectedly noticed something. Besides the powerful and unmistakable aura that clearly belonged to Zamasu, there seemed to be another, faint and almost undetectable aura hidden within him.
It flickered in and out of existence as though it could disappear at any moment yet remained, carrying an air of mystery.
This made Goten and Bulla even more vigilant.
"Be careful, Goten! This guy's aura is impossible to read. We have no idea whose body he swapped with."
Bulla stared intently at the mysterious, black-robed figure ahead while warning Goten beside her. She was completely focused on the enemy, leaning forward slightly and entering a state of maximum alertness.
Hearing her warning, Goten didn't dare lower his guard either. He clenched his fists tightly and fixed his gaze on the black-robed figure. After all, he was currently in a completely unfamiliar parallel universe, and he knew almost nothing about this world.
Encountering so many people from different universes had already made him cautious.
At Bulla's reminder, he immediately nodded.
"Yeah, I know."
Yet, when he saw the two of them acting as though they were facing a formidable enemy, the black-robed figure showed not the slightest hint of fear.
Instead, he became even more arrogant. He crossed his arms over his chest, tilted his head back, and burst into laughter. His voice echoed through the forest.
"Ha! Hahahaha! Are you afraid? But fearing me is only natural. After all, I am the strongest being besides the Gods of Destruction... The undisputed number one in my universe."
"Dealing with the two of you would be effortless."
The black-robed figure's tone was incredibly arrogant, as if Goten and Bulla weren't worth taking seriously at all.
Whoosh…!
Two explosive bursts of energy erupted almost simultaneously.
Goten and Bulla raised their power to its maximum level.
The next moment, golden flames ignited around their bodies.
Two energy lotuses bloomed at the same time. A violent gale swept through the forest, causing the trees to rustle and roar.
Then something happened that neither of them could understand. The short, black-robed figure standing before them began acting strangely.
The aura radiating from Goten and Bulla alone was enough to throw him off balance. His body swayed and staggered from side to side as if a little more pressure would blow him over completely.
The black-robed figure himself even cried out in shock.
"What's going on?!" His voice was filled with disbelief.
Steadying himself, he shouted, "What kind of joke is this?!"
"I am the number one being in my universe! The unquestionably strongest being in my universe!"
(End Of This Chapter)
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