I, Uchiha Hikaru, have joined the chat group.

Chapter 225 Battle at the Martial Arts Tournament

The next morning.

Uchiha Hikaru and his group got up early, washed up and ate breakfast at the hotel, and then arrived at the venue of the martial arts tournament in a grand procession.

Judging from the scene, the venue is quite spectacular.

In the center is a ring spanning several thousand square meters, surrounded by seating for nearly ten thousand spectators. Cameras have been set up in many places, ready to broadcast the battles on the ring and the reactions of the audience in real time to television viewers around the world.

in fact……

In the original work, the martial arts tournament at this time did not have such a grand venue, and its fame was limited to the circle of martial artists. Therefore, even Master Roshi, who had won the championship many times and was known as the "God of Martial Arts", was not well-known to the general public.

There is absolutely no comparison between him and Mr. Satan, who became famous twenty years later through a martial arts tournament and then, by a twist of fate, became a global idol.

But...

After learning about these events from the comics, Bulma used her financial power to donate money to the martial arts tournament in the name of Capsule Corporation, making the tournament much more impressive, both in terms of venue size and audience size.

"...Hikaru, and everyone else, come this way!"

Bulma waved vigorously, beckoning Uchiha Hikaru and his group to walk towards the front row of the audience.

After everyone was seated, Bulma smiled and took out snacks and drinks from the capsule and distributed them to everyone.

"Thank you, Sister Bulma."

Tanjiro thanked him obediently.

Erii also held up her little notebook.

Goku, Krillin, and Launch were also given several bags of potato chips, and they ate a few bites.

Seeing that it was still early, Uchiha Hikaru and the others sat together and chatted for a while—of course, they intentionally avoided mentioning "chat group" in their conversation. After all, there were Master Roshi and the others nearby who were unaware of the truth, and it wasn't appropriate for such a little secret between them to be exposed to others.

More than half an hour passed.

A blond host went on stage, said a few polite words, and then announced the official start of the competition.

then……

"Hmm... these people are martial artists from all over the world, so they don't seem as powerful as I imagined."

It was Yamato who spoke.

Because she was so tall, in order to avoid blocking the view of the audience behind her, this Ghost Princess simply laid out a futon on the ground and sat down, drinking cola while commenting on the contestants.

Brand nodded in agreement: "Indeed, he seems to be on par with the martial arts masters of the Imperial Fist Temple, but he's not quite at the level of the 'Four Demon Rakshasa'..."

"...not as good as my brother and father."

This is Erii.

Seeing Erii holding up the small notebook, Uchiha Hikaru smiled and said, "After all, your two older brothers and the head of the Uesugi family are all 'Emperors.' If you can't even compare to this level, then it would be a bit embarrassing."

"Emperor?"

Esdeath turned her head and glanced at it.

"Yes, it's a respectful title based on lineage. People who can be called 'Emperor' are generally quite strong... If there's a chance next time, I'll take you there to learn from them."

Uchiha Hikaru said with a smile.

The emperors of the Snake Clan are considered top-tier fighters in the world of dragon hybrids. Although they can't compare to Esdeath, they could theoretically give her a run for her money. If they used "Blood Explosion" and "Evolution Drug" and entered a desperate state, they might be able to put some pressure on Esdeath.

but……

Uchiha Hikaru suddenly thought of another question—

If she really took Esdeath to the Dragon World, then... how would the Snake Clan and Natsumi view Esdeath?

This person's ability is related to ice, perhaps...

Could they be mistaken for a descendant of or the very "King of the Ocean and Water"?

—The "White King" and the "Water King" are indeed related. The reason why the former was able to be resurrected from the burial site of the gods is largely due to the Water King embryo that sank to the bottom of the sea with the Lenin icebreaker. So, theoretically, after the White King is resurrected, he can indeed take the Water King out as his follower, which makes logical sense.

If we could use this method to lure out the real King of the Waters, that would be really interesting...

……

The morning passed quickly.

At first, Yamato and the others watched the competition with great excitement and commented on each contestant, afraid of missing any details.

But as time went on, their expressions gradually became numb, and they seemed to lose interest.

no way.

Apart from the Turtle School and Crane School, as well as the later Z Fighters, most martial artists on Earth in Dragon Ball were not actually that strong.

Many people haven't even mastered the art of "qi" and can only rely on fists and feet to fight—like the infamous "savior" Mr. Satan, who became famous 20 years later. This level of competition is child's play for seasoned veterans, and even those who haven't personally experienced many battles but have witnessed numerous high-level fights in the group.

In terms of sheer excitement, it probably doesn't even compare to the Chunin Exams in the Naruto world—at least those genin actually used various secret techniques. Leaving aside the question of strength, the visual spectacle is simply top-notch.

at last.

It was Uchiha Hikaru and Tanjiro's turn to compete.

"Go for it, Hikaru! And Tanjiro too!"

Just before going on stage, Bulma gave Uchiha Hikaru and the other two an encouraging look: "We're from the 'Dimensional Pirates,' so we have to make a big splash at a time like this and let everyone know how powerful we are!"

Erii also held up her little notebook and reminded everyone to "be careful."

"Oh."

Uchiha Hikaru smiled helplessly at Bulma, then patted Erii's flowing red hair, glanced at Esdeath who was sitting quietly without saying a word, and then went backstage with Tanjiro to tidy up their clothes before walking onto the arena from both sides.

After we came to a stop.

Hikaru Uchiha gestured with his chin toward Tanjiro, signaling him to make the first move.

The rules of the World Martial Arts Tournament prohibit the use of weapons.

Therefore, Tanjiro's Nichirin Blade is unusable.

However, he had been undergoing special training with the Cat Sage during this period and had also practiced his taijutsu quite hard. At this moment, he simply took a deep breath, took a step forward, and slashed at Uchiha Hikaru with his fingers like a knife.

As the palm strike swept through the air, a tiny ripple could be seen spreading outwards, with faint traces of dark red flames, accompanied by a slightly sharp whistling sound—

"Breathing of the Sun"!

Uchiha Hikaru stood motionless until Tanjiro got within a few meters of him, at which point he suddenly raised his hand and blocked Tanjiro's hand chop, then gently flicked his arm, sending him flying backward.

After just one exchange, Uchiha Hikaru already had a general idea of ​​what was going on.

Well...

Tanjiro's strength has indeed improved considerably compared to six months ago.

Especially in the last two months, after stabilizing his "Mark" with the help of the Neko Sage, his strength, speed, and stamina are incomparable to those of the Demon Slayer Corps member he was before. If he were to return to the Demon Slayer world with his current strength, he could probably single-handedly kill any Demon Moon below Upper Moon Three Akaza.

Akaza himself and Doma Uesugi should be able to put up a fight, but their chances of winning might not be that high.

As for Muzan Kibutsuji and Kokushibo...

It's hard to say.

After all, these two are top-tier powerhouses in the Demon Slayer world. Kokushibo was nearly defeated by three Demon Slayer Pillars working together, and Muzan, despite being 9000 years old, single-handedly suppressed the entire Demon Slayer Corps. While Tanjiro's current strength is considerable, he's only at the level of one or two Pillars, and probably not strong enough to face the former two.

After drawing these preliminary conclusions.

Uchiha Hikaru calmed down, did not activate his Sharingan, and simply used taijutsu to fight Tanjiro for about a hundred moves. After roughly assessing the current true level of this tough guy, he won by a "slight advantage".

In this regard.

The ordinary spectators didn't react much; they just thought they had seen a fairly exciting boxing match. A few of them were amazed by Uchiha Hikaru's age and appearance.

— It's not very common to see a female martial artist of this age in the arena.

Bulma and the others, who knew Uchiha Hikaru's true strength, all showed strange expressions.

"Hey, Hikaru's holding back is way too obvious..."

"This level of 'releasing water' is probably not just 'releasing water,' it's 'releasing the ocean'..."

"Well, whatever, we're all friends anyway, there's no need to fight so fiercely. By the way, it's your turn next, Yamato, right?"

As Bulma spoke, everyone's gaze turned to Yamato.

I also glanced at Master Roshi—unsurprisingly, his seat was now empty.

"Hey, where did the old man go?"

Little Wukong stood up, shading his eyes with his hand as he looked around.

"He probably went to the bathroom," Klin said dismissively.

"Hmph, I bet he went to spy on some girl."

Bulma pursed her lips and said deliberately.

As someone who had read the Dragon Ball manga, Bulma naturally knew that Master Roshi was disguised as Jackie Chan. However, they shouldn't know about this, especially since Master Roshi's intention was to help his disciples grow. So Bulma didn't say anything and even gestured for Erii and Miko to be quiet.

Until Uchiha Hikaru and Tanjiro, who had just finished their match, returned.

Yamato scrambled to his feet, greeted Uchiha Hikaru and Kikyo in turn, and strode toward the arena.

at this time.

Wearing a white wig and using the pseudonym "Jackie Chan," Master Roshi walked up from the other side of the ring with his hands behind his back, standing there with an imposing and dignified air.

"please."

After a brief standoff.

Yamato suddenly swung his arms, and an invisible aura burst forth from his body, which then surged towards the arena like a tide, quickly sweeping across the entire venue!

—Conqueror's Haki!

At that moment, apart from a few people like Uchiha Hikaru and Esdeath who remained calm, everyone else, including Bulma and Tanjiro, felt a sudden weight on their shoulders and a feeling of being unable to breathe. Some of the weaker ordinary people even slumped in their seats, looking around in horror.

"W-What happened?"

"Could it be that the fighter in the arena released it?"

"How can it have such a fierce aura? It's like a tiger standing in front of you, it's terrifying..."

Compared to the lingering fears of the spectators in the stands.

Master Roshi, standing on the arena, felt the Conqueror's Haki even more acutely. Although with his strength and mental state, he wouldn't be intimidated by it, he couldn't help but feel a slight chill, as if facing a formidable enemy.

"call……"

In just one breath.

Master Roshi's slender frame began to bulge, slightly straining his Zhongshan suit, and his legs were slightly apart in a horse stance, as if he were gathering strength.

next moment.

Yamato took a sudden step forward, his arms already wrapped in layers of dark Armament Haki, and swung high like a human version of a spiked club, smashing down on Master Roshi with tremendous force!

Thunderous Eight Trigrams!!

Almost at the same moment she moved, Master Roshi also suddenly swung his palm forward: "World-Shaking Palm!"

The pitch-black "spiky club" collided with the electric-sparkling palm from a distance!

In the blink of an eye, a violent shockwave erupted, spreading wildly in all directions like flowing water, instantly forming a fierce gale! From the stands, one could clearly see the floor tiles on the arena shattering into pieces, and countless rubble being swept up by the gale, shooting out at high speed like bullets, instantly turning several walls not far away into beehives!

"Again!"

Yamato took a half step back and threw another punch without thinking!

Bang...bang...bang!!

As the daughter of Kaido of the Beasts, Yamato's fighting style is quite similar to Kaido's; there are no fancy maneuvers, just pure head-on clashes.

After parrying a few times, Master Roshi roughly figured out her tactics and immediately used the Afterimage Fist, splitting his body into five or six, attacking Yamato from different angles.

……

"...Shadow clones?"

From the stands, Esdeath glanced at Uchiha Hikaru.

She hadn't joined the chat group, nor had she read the Dragon Ball manga. She simply connected Master Roshi's techniques with the ninjutsu she had seen on Hikaru Uchiha based on what she saw before.

However, this suspicion was quickly denied by Uchiha Hikaru.

"No, it's just the use of 'qi,' it's completely different from 'shadow clones'..."

Speaking of which, Master Roshi's "Afterimage Fist" is actually somewhat similar to another technique—

Shisui's Instantaneous Movement Technique.

When Hikaru Uchiha lived in the Uchiha clan's territory, he had asked Shisui about his Body Flicker Technique, so he knew the principle behind it. It's a kind of genjutsu, combining ordinary Body Flicker Technique, Shadow Clone Technique, and Sharingan genjutsu. It's similar in principle to the technique used by Master Roshi.

It's worth copying.

Uchiha Hikaru carefully observed it with his Sharingan.

(End of this chapter)