On the arena stage, after an intense exchange of rapid attacks and power clashes that left the audience breathless, Son Goku and Tien Shinhan suddenly leapt backward at the same time, as if by silent agreement.
They landed several meters apart and faced each other across the center of the ring.
Both of them were breathing slightly heavier as they adjusted the turbulent flow of ki within their bodies.
Goku stood calmly, wearing his signature eager smile, full of fighting spirit—as if the fierce battle just now had been nothing more than a warm-up.
Tien, however, was breathing much more heavily. Beads of sweat had formed across his forehead. The previous high-intensity exchange had clearly consumed a fair amount of his stamina.
"Goku, you're really incredible," Tien said after taking a deep breath to steady himself. A sincere smile appeared on his face.
"Compared to three years ago, you've grown much stronger—far stronger than I expected. I truly admire how much you've improved. Honestly, your strength now might even surpass Broly from three years ago."
"Well… I'm not really sure about that," Goku replied, scratching the back of his head with a grin.
Instead of becoming proud from the compliment, he looked thoughtful.
"I don't know why, but even though Broly never fights and never trains… I still feel like his strength is like a bottomless ocean. You can't see the end of it. Even now, I'm not sure I could beat him."
"You rate Broly that highly?" Tien said with a surprised smile.
"I admit he was amazing three years ago—he defeated Demon King Piccolo with ease. But don't forget, he hasn't trained at all in the last three years! All he does is eat and sleep. How could his strength possibly increase instead of decline?"
"Well… maybe for Broly, eating and sleeping is actually a kind of special training," Goku said with a laugh.
Even he felt the idea sounded a bit strange—but somehow it still seemed possible.
"Come on, don't joke with me! There's no such training method!" Tien laughed as well, waving his hand and ending the topic about the unpredictable Broly.
"Let's forget about that mysterious guy for now. Goku, let's talk about you instead. Your improvement over these three years is incredible… but there's one thing that hasn't changed much."
"Huh? What do you mean?" Goku asked curiously.
"This," Tien said, a confident smile forming on his lips, his voice echoing clearly across the arena,
"is extremely important in battle."
"That is—speed!"
The moment the word left his mouth—
BOOM!
A flash of light appeared in Tien's eyes as he pushed off the ground with explosive force.
The arena floor trembled slightly as Tien shot forward like a blurred afterimage, rushing straight toward Goku at incredible speed.
The powerful wind generated by his movement blew Goku's hair and clothes backward.
Goku reacted instantly.
Almost at the same moment Tien moved, Goku had already taken a defensive stance, preparing to counter.
But—
SWISH!
Just as Tien was about to reach him, the blurred figure suddenly vanished like a ghost.
It wasn't a simple charge.
It was a visual feint created through ultra-high-speed movement.
Goku's expression sharpened.
His battle instincts kicked in immediately. He raised his head and quickly detected Tien high above in the air.
Without hesitation, Goku bent his knees and jumped.
BOOM!
The arena rang with a dull explosion as Goku launched upward like a rocket. He appeared beside Tien in an instant and swung a powerful roundhouse kick toward Tien's waist.
SWISH!
But Tien seemed prepared.
Displaying astonishing speed and agility, his body halted mid-air as if inertia didn't exist. Then he shifted direction at a sharp angle, leaving another faint afterimage behind as he reappeared on the opposite side of Goku.
Goku's kick missed.
A warning flashed through his mind.
Relying on his keen perception of ki, he immediately turned around—and sure enough, Tien had already appeared above and behind him.
"Great perception, Goku!" Tien said with a smile.
"You can follow my movement path even at this speed. But seeing my movement isn't enough."
His eyes gleamed with confidence.
"Can your body keep up with it?"
SWISH!
Tien's figure blurred again.
This time he seemed to cross space itself, appearing instantly above Goku.
BAM!
His elbow came crashing down like a battle axe.
The heavy strike smashed into Goku's hastily raised arm.
The massive force pierced through Goku's guard and struck his head with unstoppable momentum.
Goku felt a powerful shock explode through his body.
His mind buzzed as his body plummeted toward the arena like a falling meteor.
BOOM!
Goku crashed hard onto the stage, shaking the entire arena.
At the moment he hit the ground, he quickly adjusted his posture. Using one hand to support himself, he rolled smoothly to absorb most of the impact, preventing a messy fall—but his arm still trembled slightly from the shock.
However—
Before Goku could fully stand up—
Tien attacked again at ghost-like speed.
A fierce punch shot straight toward Goku's face.
Goku's pupils shrank.
Relying on his battle-honed instincts and lightning-fast reflexes, he attempted to block and dodge.
But compared to Tien's near-teleporting speed—
Goku was still half a beat too slow.
RIP!
The violent wind from Tien's punch tore the edge of Goku's clothing.
The force sent Goku stumbling backward, sliding dangerously close to the ropes at the edge of the arena.
He nearly fell out of the ring and lost the match right there.
Goku quickly regained his footing.
Instead of fear, excitement shone even brighter in his eyes.
"Yeah! You're definitely much faster than before!" Goku said with a serious yet excited smile.
"And I can tell… this still isn't your limit."
He nodded confidently.
"You haven't even used your full speed yet, have you?"
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