"Hey! Have you decided who you're sending to the tournament yet?" Beerus asked, sounding bored. He still had a cup of lemon tea in his hand.
Goku and Vegeta both looked troubled.
"Why not send Krillin? He's the strongest Earthling now!" Goku suddenly suggested.
Vegeta folded his arms and said coolly, "He's not good enough. His power is limited to Earth. He can't compare to the strong fighters from other universes!"
"Vegeta, that's a little harsh!" Goku said helplessly.
"Hmph! If you want Earth to lose, go ahead and send him. I won't take responsibility for the consequences!" Vegeta snorted.
Goku scratched his head, looking troubled.
"I've got one spot filled. His name is Monaka. You can find the other two yourselves!" Beerus suddenly said.
"Monaka? Who's that? Is he strong?" Goku asked curiously.
Vegeta also looked at Beerus in confusion.
Beerus grinned smugly. "Of course he's strong! He's the strongest opponent I've ever faced!"
As he spoke, he looked at Goku and said, "Remember when I told you that you were the second-strongest opponent I'd ever encountered? Monaka was number one!"
"Whoa! Really, Lord Beerus? Is this Monaka you're talking about really that strong?" Goku asked excitedly.
Vegeta's mouth twitched slightly, and his expression grew serious.
Beerus nodded. "Of course! Why would I lie to you?"
Whis chuckled but said nothing.
"That's amazing! I didn't know there was an opponent like that. Why didn't we meet him when we trained at Lord Beerus's place?" Goku asked excitedly.
A bead of cold sweat trickled down Beerus's face, but he pretended to remain calm. "Obviously, he's a powerful fighter and a busy man! Don't worry about it. Just find the other two fighters!"
"In that case, let's go find someone!" Goku said with a laugh.
Vegeta thought it over, then said, "Piccolo and Gohan are the strongest right now. No, there's also Majin Buu. We should be fine if we choose them!"
Goku rubbed his chin. "Gohan won't work. He hasn't trained in years, and Chi-Chi won't let him compete. Plus, my granddaughter was just born, so he's got his mind completely on her."
Vegeta's mouth twitched slightly. He was about to say something, but Goku suddenly cut him off...
"Great! Let's go find Buu! If that doesn't work, we'll ask Piccolo. I'll go find Buu!" Goku said with a laugh. He was about to use Instant Transmission.
"Goku! Are you back? It's me, Dende!" A voice suddenly called out.
Goku and the others were startled, then looked confused.
Dende? Why was he calling?
"Oh, it's you, Dende! I'm back on Earth. What's up?" Goku asked with a smile.
Dende's voice rang out again. "Well, Mr. Luya is staying with me, and he asked me to have you come see him! It's almost as if he knew you needed to find him. What's going on? Do you know?"
"Luya?" Goku froze. Beerus and the others were just as surprised.
Vegeta suddenly brightened. "Kakarot! Weren't you worried about finding strong fighters? You've been singing Luya's praises. Why not have him join the team?"
Goku and Beerus were taken aback, then both lit up and exclaimed, "Right! Why didn't I think of that?!"
"And Luya, too! If he isn't a Saiyan from Universe 6, then he can represent Universe 7 in the tournament!" Goku said with a grin.
Beerus's excitement faded as he said, "Then it's settled. Go find him yourself!"
Goku nodded. He focused on Dende's ki, then vanished in an instant.
The Lookout.
Goku suddenly appeared and looked at Dende. "Hey, Dende! How are you?"
"Goku!" Dende exclaimed with delight, hurrying over to him.
Goku laughed and asked, "So, have you gotten used to living here?"
Dende nodded. "Yes, I'm used to being Kami now!"
Goku nodded, then asked, "By the way, where's Luya?"
"He's still training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber! Sorry, I didn't explain that clearly earlier, so you came here before he was ready!"
Goku glanced toward the chamber and smiled. "No problem. I'll come back later!"
With that, he suddenly disappeared.
After leaving the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, Goku went to Gohan's house, where he found Piccolo.
Once Goku explained the situation, Piccolo said he wasn't interested in the Martial Arts Tournament and declined. What he was really thinking was that he couldn't stand competing with the Saiyans; they'd only leave him feeling discouraged! He had once wanted to team up with Goku, but Goku was already partnered with Vegeta, so it was hard to get the guy to spar with him. And Gohan was much weaker than before, so there was no point fighting him!
With Piccolo out, they had only gathered three fighters!
Goku, Vegeta, and Monaka...
They still needed two more. After thinking it over, Goku went straight to Satan's house. Majin Buu lived there.
After Goku talked him into it, Majin Buu finally agreed, encouraged by Satan!
With four fighters assembled, Goku had completed his task. He went straight back to the Space Capsule.
"Good. Now that we have enough fighters, you two should focus on training!" Beerus said coolly, looking at Goku and Vegeta.
"Kakarot, I'm not training with you this time. I'm staying here to train. Go do whatever you want. And by the way, you can train with Whis if you like! I'm going to surpass you no matter what!" Vegeta said, his expression aloof.
Goku was taken aback, then refused to back down. "Don't worry, Vegeta. I'm not going to train with Whis, so you can rest assured I won't surpass you!"
"Hmph! Good!" Vegeta snorted and turned away.
Goku smiled slightly and waved to Beerus and Whis. "Lord Beerus, Whis, I'm heading out!"
"Go on, go on! Try to get a little stronger!" Beerus waved him off.
Goku laughed. "Don't worry!"
Whoosh!
The next moment, Goku vanished.
Beerus fell silent.
"Are you worried about the tournament, Lord Beerus?" Whis asked with a smile.
"Hmph! I wouldn't say I'm worried. It's just that the way those guys are acting gives me cause for concern. No, Whis, why are you training them? And why did you train Vegeta first, then train Son Goku after he'd improved? Do you have some plan I don't know about?" Beerus suddenly asked.
Whis chuckled. "Oh, no, no. I wouldn't have any plan like that!"
Beerus: "..."