"All right." Ken nodded. "I'll head back and help Universe 6 settle on its ten fighters first."
The Grand Priest offered no further comment before disappearing with Instant Transmission, leaving Ken alone in the World of Void.
Ken stared at the empty space where he had been standing.
Seriously? He gets to teleport away, and I'm supposed to fly all the way back to Universe 6?
Fortunately, Universe 6 wasn't particularly far from the World of Void, but Ken still had no intention of wasting time flying there. He would soon be leaving for another timeline to meet Belsai, so with their schedule already tight, he contacted Goku and asked him to come pick him up.
Goku appeared beside him almost immediately and quickly noticed the enormous arena floating in the distance.
"Is that the arena for the Tournament of Power?"
"Yep."
"Can I go check it out?"
"Go bring Champa, Vados, and Fuwa here first," Ken suggested. "Then you can all take a look while we're here."
Goku readily agreed and vanished in an instant. Less than a minute later, he returned with Champa, Vados, and Fuwa, bringing all three directly into the World of Void.
"This thing's huge," Champa remarked as he examined the arena.
Goku had already jumped onto it and begun wandering around, getting a feel for the battlefield and its unusual environment.
"I have somewhere else to be soon, so let's decide our Tournament of Power roster now," Ken told Champa.
"No problem." Champa grinned confidently. "We have Goku. There's no way we're losing. Universe 7 is the one I'd worry about. Beerus probably doesn't have many decent fighters left."
"Don't underestimate Universe 7," Ken warned with a smile. "There are still plenty of powerful people over there."
Goku scratched his head thoughtfully. "It's kind of a shame Moro died. If he were still around, Universe 7 could've used him in the tournament."
"A lunatic like Moro?" Champa shook his head. "He'd probably do something stupid and get erased by Zeno-sama halfway through the match."
"I agree," Vados said.
Champa's thoughts moved in another direction. "Universe 7 might just recruit people from another timeline again. Nothing in the rules says that's forbidden, right? As long as they're from Universe 7 somewhere, they should qualify. Right, Ken?"
"That wouldn't violate the rules," Ken confirmed. "But forget about Universe 7 for now. Let's settle our own team. Vados, who do you have in mind?"
Vados began listing names without hesitation. "Goku, Vegeta, Piccolo, Kale, Gohan, and Hit."
Six fighters appeared in the air before her as she spoke.
"We still need four more." Champa thought for a moment before adding, "Caulifla too. That makes seven."
"Very well."
Goku immediately offered another idea. "What about Android 17, Android 18, and Android 21? That would give us exactly ten."
"Add 17 and 18," Ken said.
Champa glanced at him. "Then who's the last one?"
"We've still got Goten, Trunks, and Zarek," Goku replied after thinking for a moment. "Those three have gotten pretty strong too."
"Aren't all three of them stronger than 17 and 18 by now?" Champa asked.
"Yeah, they've been training a lot. Maybe we should use them instead."
"17 and 18 have limitless energy," Ken reminded him. "Are you sure you'd rather send Goten and Trunks into a battle like this?"
Champa considered the advantages for a moment before making up his mind. "I'd still rather use Goten and Trunks. And if things get bad, those two can fuse, can't they?"
"Yeah," Goku confirmed.
Vados reorganized the images floating before her as they finalized the roster. With Goku, Vegeta, Piccolo, Kale, Gohan, Hit, Caulifla, Goten, Trunks, and Zarek selected, Universe 6 had its ten fighters.
"When you get back, gather everyone together and make sure they're available," Ken instructed Champa. "If someone has something more important to do and refuses to come, just destroy them."
"Easy enough." Champa cracked his knuckles without hesitation.
Goku could only give them an awkward smile.
Fuwa stepped forward once the matter was settled. "Ken, should we head back now?"
"Go ahead."
Fuwa transported the group back to Universe 6, bringing them directly to Capsule Corporation headquarters. As soon as they arrived, Champa turned toward Goku.
"Go round everyone up."
"Got it."
Goku vanished again, leaving Champa looking increasingly pleased with himself.
"Hahaha! I'm more worried about Universe 7 than us. Can Beerus even find ten fighters?"
"You shouldn't celebrate yet," Vados warned, giving him a sideways glance. "Universe 7 has always had enormous potential. Underestimating them would be a mistake."
Her gaze drifted away as another thought crossed her mind. If Universe 6 and Universe 7 had never exchanged Earths, she couldn't help wondering who would have represented their universe in this Tournament of Power.
Hit would undoubtedly have been at the center of the team, but beyond him, their options would have been considerably less impressive.
...
Meanwhile, on Beerus's Planet in Universe 7, Beerus had gathered with Whis, Shin, and the Grand Supreme Kai to confront the same problem.
"This is bad! Really bad!" Beerus clutched his head in frustration. "Who the hell are we supposed to send into the tournament?"
Shin hesitated before bringing up the obvious possibility. "Beerus, didn't we recruit people from another timeline last time? It shouldn't be against the rules this time either. Nobody said we couldn't bring fighters over from another timeline."
Beerus didn't answer immediately. Instead, he looked toward Whis for confirmation, unwilling to gamble their entire universe on an assumption. If Zeno-sama decided they had broken the rules and erased Universe 7 on the spot, there wouldn't be any opportunity to argue afterward.
"It isn't against the rules," Whis confirmed. "Even in another timeline, those people are still residents of Universe 7. As long as they belong to our universe, they're eligible to participate."
Beerus finally relaxed. "Good. That's all I needed to hear."
Shin's expression immediately brightened as he made his decision.
"Then I'll go to the GT timeline right now and recruit some fighters!"
[End of chapter]