Over ten minutes had passed.
Papaya Island, the venue for the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament, had been ravaged by the continuous bombardment from Goku and Piccolo.
It was now a scene of devastation, with countless craters large and small.
But what was truly astonishing was that the square fighting ring remained relatively intact!
Even so, a huge crater now marred the left side of the ring.
Piccolo was buried within it, unknown whether dead or alive.
But everyone knew Piccolo wasn't dead.
The presence of Kami standing next to Master Roshi was the most definitive proof!
"One, two, three..."
The sunglasses-wearing referee mustered his courage, walked to the edge of the crater, peered down at Piccolo buried up to his head and most of his torso in sand, and began the countdown into his microphone.
Countless viewers in the Universe Chat Room also whispered the countdown along with their screens.
It was true that Goku's performance wasn't as awe-inspiring as the protagonists in the first two videos-
But everyone could see that he was a truly kind-hearted Saiyan who wanted to protect Earth!
If nothing else, at least the hot-blooded protagonists from various planets were moved by this battle.
"Six!"
On the Planet Ninja, Naruto, who had just joined Team 7 and hadn't officially started missions yet, suppressed his excitement and shouted.
"Seven!"
Luffy, not yet 'possessed' by Nika, wise yet appearing simple, brave and resourceful, punched the air and yelled.
"Eight!"
Kurosaki Ichigo, who had recently rescued Rukia from the Soul Society and briefly returned to school life, couldn't help but shout out in class.
But the teacher on the podium didn't scold him, as everyone was watching anyway.
"Nine!"
In the Fairy Tail Guild, a bunch of hot-blooded idiots felt their heartbeats quicken.
And finally, the very Earthlings who had morally blackmailed Son Goku earlier, found themselves shouting through their screens as well:
"TEN!!!"
The referee on the scene cried out at the top of his lungs:
"The winner is decided!"
"The winner of the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament is… Contestant Son Goku!!!"
When they heard the referee's announcement, across planets throughout the universe, whether it was hot-blooded protagonists like Naruto and Ichigo, or old schemers with shifting allegiances but a shred of goodness left, like Hisoka or Giovanni, none could resist clapping a couple of times in front of their screens.
After all, it was a truly brilliant fight.
Even Lott, the spectator, on Planet Terra, a galaxy away, showed an appreciative smile.
Although the path he walked was completely different from Goku's-
He had to admit, this man represented his entire youth.
Immediately after, Yajirobe arrived on the scene, bringing Goku a Senzu Bean, allowing Goku, who had nearly lost half his life, to spring back to life and jump up from the ground the very next second.
This made the inhabitants of many other planets light up once again.
'What kind of treasure was this!?'
The Dragon Ball's main cast was a scene of harmonious joy.
Just then, Kami walked over to Piccolo.
He prepared to deliver the final blow to his other half.
But Goku noticed in time and stopped him.
"Yajirobe, do you have any more Senzu Beans?"
Under the confused gazes of everyone present and viewers across the universe, Goku waved to Yajirobe.
"Huh? Yeah, I do, but what for?"
Although puzzled, Yajirobe still handed over another Senzu Bean.
The next second, Son Goku turned and gave the Senzu Bean to the barely breathing Piccolo.
Krillin and the others, along with the spectators watching the live stream, were utterly dumbfounded.
[Akainu: WHAT ARE YOU DOING!? I'M ASKING YOU WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!]
Akainu couldn't help but curse.
'After all that effort to defeat him, you're going to save him now?'
'What the hell is wrong with you!?'
Kizaru and Aokiji in the same office scratched their heads.
They understood why Akainu was so agitated.
After all, Akainu, who upheld [Absolute Justice], had only one attitude towards enemies: annihilation.
And Son Goku's current actions were the complete opposite of Akainu's.
Just as everyone was both angry and bewildered, Goku offered his explanation:
"Piccolo, you and Kami are one. If you die, Kami will die too. We can't have that."
"Besides, if you die, I'll be bored without a rival. Get stronger, and let's fight again in the future."
Well, that was a reasonable explanation, even if radicals like Akainu and Danzo still couldn't accept it.
'Aren't you afraid of letting the tiger return to the mountains!?'
"Pfft- Hahahaha!"
Lott couldn't help but laugh.
There it was, Goku's 'Release the Boss' rule.
From Piccolo to Vegeta, from Frieza to Majin Buu.
Every time Goku defeated a boss, he let them go without fail.
This reminded Lott of those Isekai Protagonists.
They also never finished off villains cleanly, always letting them go.
But the difference was, after those Isekai Protagonists let enemies go, some of them would train to become stronger and return for revenge.
But after Goku let enemies go, 99% of the time they became allies the next time they met.
Forget Piccolo and Vegeta… even Frieza teamed up with him once in the future, didn't he?
Lott felt numb watching that plotline.
What kind of causality weapon was this?
Anyway, he wouldn't play like that himself.
Turning enemies into allies? Aren't you afraid of them stabbing you in the back?