"Goku! You've still got two transformations left! Hurry up and show them!" Champa shouted from the stands.
"Okay." Goku glanced over and nodded before letting the blue aura around him fade. He took a deep breath while Toppo immediately raised his guard, watching him much more carefully than before.
"The next two aren't really transformations in the usual sense," Goku explained. "They're divine techniques. Using them this way just makes it easier for me to bring out their full power."
Over on Universe 7's platform, Beerus's expression darkened as the implication finally sank in.
"Whis... if Goku still has two left, then that means he..." Beerus trailed off, already knowing the answer.
"Yes." Whis nodded. "He has mastered true Ultra Instinct."
Beerus clenched his fists. "Then who's supposed to fight him in the Tournament of Power if the Gods of Destruction aren't participating?"
"Oh, I'm sure we'll find a way," Whis replied with an enigmatic smile.
Beerus immediately leaned toward him. "You already have someone in mind?"
"My, my. You shouldn't ask me to solve everything for you. You should think about that yourself."
Beerus clicked his tongue and turned on Shin and the Grand Supreme Kai instead. "Then you two start looking for suitable fighters too!"
"The Universe 7 fighter named Moro was quite powerful," the Grand Supreme Kai said thoughtfully. "Unfortunately, Goku defeated him not long ago."
"What good is somebody Goku already beat?" Beerus snapped. He knew enough about Moro to dismiss the idea immediately.
"There's no need to panic yet," the Grand Supreme Kai said with a smile. "The Tournament of Power hasn't even been finalized."
Beerus glared at him. "And next time, before you die, teach your student everything a Supreme Kai is supposed to know. Don't leave this idiot clueless about everything."
Shin scratched his head with an embarrassed laugh while the Grand Supreme Kai simply nodded. "Understood."
Back in the arena, a brilliant aura suddenly blossomed around Goku as he entered Ultra Instinct Sign.
Future Zeno leaned forward in surprise. "Huh? What's that?"
"That is Ultra Instinct Sign," the Grand Priest explained with a smile.
Toppo stared at Goku, and the sight immediately reminded him of Ken. Long ago, Ken had undergone a similar change. If Goku was now walking the same path, did that mean he might eventually become an Angel too?
"This is Ultra Instinct Sign!" Goku said with a grin.
Toppo's expression tightened. It was already difficult enough to accept that a Supreme Kai apprentice had surpassed a God of Destruction apprentice. The whole thing felt completely backwards.
"All right, I'm coming!"
Toppo braced himself.
Goku threw a punch from a distance, compressing the air with divine power and turning it into a violent shockwave. The blast struck Toppo head-on and sent him sliding backward, his feet digging two long grooves into the arena as he fought desperately to stop himself.
When Toppo reached the very edge, Goku immediately pulled back his power and used the same force to catch him from afar, stopping him just before he fell out.
Toppo glanced behind himself, then slowly looked back at Goku. Whatever confidence he had left was rapidly disappearing.
"And I've still got one more," Goku said. "Same as before, though—technically, this last one isn't really a transformation either."
Toppo said nothing and simply tightened his guard.
A far more intense aura erupted around Goku, and his hair turned silver in an instant.
The reaction from the assembled gods was immediate. Even the Angels watched him with complicated expressions as unmistakable Angel power spread outward from Goku's body.
This mortal really was following the same path Ken had once walked.
Goku's Angel power washed across the arena and crashed into Toppo. Toppo crossed his arms and tried to withstand it, but the pressure tore through his defense almost effortlessly and forced him backward until he fell cleanly out of the ring.
Belmod let out a helpless sigh from Universe 11's platform.
Marcarita watched Goku with clear admiration. "My, my. I didn't expect Goku, the mortal who stays around Ken, to have already reached this level. Impressive."
Belmod gritted his teeth. "If the Tournament of Power really happens, can Jiren beat him?"
"Judging only by their current levels, I don't think Jiren has much chance of winning," Marcarita replied.
Belmod fell silent.
Beerus had reached much the same conclusion. His fists tightened as he stared at Goku. "I knew it. This is bad."
"There will be a way..." Whis said calmly.
"Toppo has fallen out of bounds. Goku wins the match," Ken announced.
Both Zenos immediately burst into applause.
Goku jumped down from the arena and landed beside Toppo, offering him a hand. "You okay?"
Toppo ignored the hand and stood up on his own.
"Jiren's coming to the real tournament, right?" Goku asked eagerly.
"Of course he is!" Toppo snapped. "Jiren will beat you!"
"Good!" Goku's face lit up. "I've been waiting a long time for that fight."
Toppo said nothing else and returned to Universe 11's platform, where he immediately bowed before Belmod.
"I'm sorry, Belmod. I lost."
"Don't worry about it. When the time comes, we'll have Jiren deal with him."
Toppo hesitated. "Can Jiren really beat him?"
"Of course!"
Belmod's answer came quickly, but even he didn't sound especially convinced.
Meanwhile, the Grand Priest called Ken over to the two Zenos so they could finally discuss the Tournament of Power in detail. Ken laid out his ideas, and after hearing the proposal, both Zenos nodded enthusiastically in agreement.
[End of chapter]