The staff were still working like diligent ants, repairing the arena that Goku and Tien had completely demolished.
Debris was cleared away, new stone slabs were put in place.
Though the patches looked mismatched, like a worn quilt stitched together, at least they provided solid footing.
"Okay… thank you all for waiting!"
The host wiped the sweat from his brow, his sunglasses sliding down his nose.
"Second semifinal match! Krillin versus Mr. Shen!"
Krillin shoved the last handful of popcorn into his mouth and patted his hands together. The crumbs were pulverized instantly by the invisible aura surrounding him.
"Go, Krillin! Send that guy flying!"
Bulma waved her fists from the second floor.
Krillin turned and gave a smile that could make any female heart skip a beat.
Then, with a light tap of his toes, he floated onto the arena like a feather with no weight.
Across from him, the man known as "Mr. Shen" walked slowly forward.
He wore thick glasses that looked like the bottoms of beer bottles, a cheap suit, and carried a briefcase.
He looked like a tired office worker heading for a drink after work.
But Krillin knew better.
Beneath that disguise was the god of Earth Kami.
The half of the Namekian associated with good, coexisting with King Piccolo's malevolent half.
They stopped at the center of the arena, barely two meters apart.
Mr. Shen pushed up his glasses, the lenses reflecting light and hiding his eyes.
The noisy crowd, the host's shouting, the distant waves all seemed to vanish in the space between them.
"Young man."
Mr. Shen's voice was low, not spoken aloud, but echoing directly in Krillin's mind.
"Thank you for what you did about Piccolo."
Telepathy?
Krillin raised an eyebrow but responded the same way in his mind.
"No need to thank me. It was just a favor."
"If he had blown up this island, my master would have been justified in cracking my head with his staff!"
Mr. Shen paused for a moment, clearly unprepared for such a down-to-earth reply.
"You don't seem surprised I know who you are, nor that I know what you've done."
His tone grew serious.
"More importantly… I cannot detect the 'flavor' of this world in you."
Krillin paused, hand in his pocket.
The gods of this world really were something else.
He had assumed that with the Saitama template, he could stroll through this early Dragon Ball era on raw power alone.
But in this world, battle power was only the surface.
The real depth came from hidden techniques and high-dimensional tricks: the Namek elder's potential-activating methods, Kaioken, and advanced Ultra Instinct.
If the god of Earth could sense that he was an outsider, a "traveler" from another world, then what about the Kai, or the Supreme Kai?
Even Beerus, the sleepy God of Destruction?
Krillin's mental alarms blared, though his expression remained bored.
He picked at his nonexistent earwax and flicked it away.
"Old man, sometimes the secret to a long life is seeing through things but not saying a word."
"You've got a long life yourself. Possessing this mortal body isn't easy. What if you throw out your back?"
"Of course,"
Mr. Shen sighed.
"Your soul and body are perfectly fused, but that innate 'otherness' is like ink in clear water too obvious."
"I came merely to seal Piccolo. With the current situation, as long as you are here, he can't cause trouble."
"Though Piccolo's problem is resolved, I need to confirm something…"
The aged eyes behind his thick lenses suddenly sharpened.
"This power of yours, not belonging to this world is it good or evil?"
Krillin glanced at the system panel.
[Host: Krillin]
[Current Fusion Level: 16%]
[Power: 1200 (normal suppression; unlimited burst)]
[Agility: 1050]
[Intelligence: 500]
[Charisma: 95]
[Special Skills: Serious Mode, Bald Authority, Beast Instinct, Genius Intellect, Namekian Regeneration (Basic)]
"Good or evil?"
Krillin laughed, recklessly.
"That's a question for kids taking multiple-choice tests. What does it have to do with me? I'm just a bald guy trying to get stronger and enjoy life."
"As for harming Earth…"
"As long as no one disturbs my meals, sleep, or girls, Earth is the safest place in the universe."
Mr. Shen stared at Krillin for ten seconds.
"Let's hope so. But since I'm here, I'll take a few moves first."
He gently set his briefcase at the edge of the arena and neatly folded his suit jacket.
"I want to see what level of strength you truly have, the same guy who can incapacitate even Piccolo with one punch."
"Testing me?"
Krillin cracked his neck with audible pops.
"Sure, I want to see what this 'god' has besides living longer."
"Fight begin!"
At the referee's command, Mr. Shen's aura shifted.
If he had seemed like a weary middle-aged man moments ago, he now resembled a mountain, an ocean.
Though his battle power scanned by the system registered only a few hundred, his presence alone conveyed immovability.
"This feeling…"
Master Mutaito, watching from the sidelines, removed his sunglasses, eyes wide with disbelief.
"It's not just ki… it's… a state of being?"
"So strange."
Goku clutched his hair.
"That guy's ki isn't strong, so why does it feel like it's everywhere?"
Krillin didn't move.
He was waiting.
Mr. Shen moved.
No warning, no explosive stomp, just a calm step.
The motion created a massive visual displacement.
It was as if space shrank, and he appeared instantly in front of Krillin.
One finger.
Mr. Shen lightly pointed at Krillin's forehead.
The gesture seemed slow, but it blocked all ki flow around him.
To any martial artist, it was a guaranteed hit, inescapable.
"You underestimate me too much,"
Krillin didn't even take his hand out of his pocket, just leaned back slightly.
The finger brushed past his nose.
"Hm?"
Mr. Shen murmured.
Though the move appeared simple, it followed divine rules, predicting the opponent's ki flow.
Logically, Krillin should have dodged left, colliding with the god's rear hand.
But Krillin's ki didn't move.
Or rather, it was too vast and solid to flow, like a sheet of iron.
"This is the first move."
Krillin straightened, facing Mr. Shen.
"Out of respect, I'll let you have three moves. Two left."
A cold glint flashed across Mr. Shen's lenses.
Being so lightly dismissed by a kid… even a god felt a little embarrassed.
"Arrogant boy."
Mr. Shen formed a strange hand sign. Suddenly, a windstorm swirled around his ordinary frame.
This wasn't normal ki it was a mental-pressure storm.
"Divine Technique: Ki-Converged Cannon!"
Not a direct energy wave, but an invisible force acting on the opponent's nerves and organs.
The arena debris stayed still; no explosion occurred, but the stone slabs under Krillin quietly crumbled to dust.
"Oh? Interesting."
Krillin felt countless invisible needles prick his skin.
But it was merely "interesting."
Inside him, the Saitama template's absolute defense activated automatically.
The mental shock that would stun any ordinary martial artist struck Krillin's biofield like raindrops on tank armor.
Not a sound.
"Second move, holy one."
A bead of cold sweat appeared on Mr. Shen's forehead.
Piccolo might have pushed with brute force; Goku might have dodged with speed.
But this bald guy… absorbed it?
Without a scratch?
This defied martial logic!
"How is this possible…"
Mr. Shen murmured.
"Even Master Popo couldn't ignore my mental impact completely."
"Because your scale is too small,"
Krillin tapped his head.
"To shake an elephant, an ant's scream isn't enough."
"Now, the last move. Don't hold back. Let me see what a 'god' is really capable of."
Begin!