Frieza sauntered back from his latest kill, hands resting on his hips, his tail swaying with casual arrogance. Smoke and dust parted around him like courtiers making way for royalty. His crimson eyes gleamed with satisfaction—Universe Nine's final warrior had been nothing more than target practice.
"Ah, Frieza..." Raditz shook his head, a bitter smile tugging at his lips. "Some things never change."
"Magnificent!" Beerus leaped to his feet, ears perked forward with excitement. "That's exactly how you handle weaklings! Frieza, excellent work!" The God of Destruction's laugh rang out across the spectator stands. "One universe down! Completely eliminated!"
Universe Seven had drawn first blood, and Beerus was practically vibrating with pride.
The contrast in Universe Nine's section couldn't have been starker. Sidra had collapsed to his knees, teeth chattering as he shook his head in denial. His face had gone ashen. "No... impossible... I can't... I don't want to disappear! I don't want to—"
Supreme Kai Roh stood beside him, strangely composed despite the terror in his eyes. Perhaps he'd seen this outcome coming from the moment the tournament began. His gaze remained unfocused, staring at nothing, already accepting what was about to happen.
Every deity in the stands had turned toward Universe Nine. Whispers rippled through the crowd. The question on everyone's mind: how exactly would a universe be erased?
"So Universe Nine fell first..."
"What will the Omni-Kings do?"
"Sidra completely lost control near the end."
The murmurs carried equal parts relief and morbid curiosity.
On his throne, Grand Zeno tapped the tablet in his small hands. The avatars representing Universe Nine's fighters—all of them—dimmed to grey. The Grand Priest's voice rang out with crystalline clarity, echoing across the World of Void: "All contestants from Universe Nine have been eliminated. They have failed to eliminate any opposing fighters. Universe Nine is disqualified."
"Then... bye-bye!" Zeno raised one tiny hand, his childlike voice carrying absolute finality.
What emanated from his palm wasn't simply power—it transcended energy entirely. This was law made manifest. Concept given form. The fundamental erasure of existence itself.
A thin, almost imperceptible light enveloped every member of Universe Nine. Sidra's scream cut through the silence—raw, desperate, filled with the kind of primal terror that comes from staring into oblivion.
"Quitela, you liar! You betrayed—"
And then... nothing.
The light faded. The space where Universe Nine had sat was simply empty. Not destroyed—absent. As if that section of the stands had always been vacant. As if Universe Nine had never existed at all.
The surrounding universes tensed. The invisible threat had become terrifyingly real.
Whis raised his staff, the gem at its tip glowing as he scanned for traces. After a moment, he lowered it, his perpetually pleasant expression tinged with unease. "I can't detect anything. Universe Nine is simply... gone. Completely."
Beerus swallowed hard, his earlier excitement dampened by the casual demonstration of Zeno's absolute authority. "Right. Well... doesn't matter. Our universe will survive to the end. That's non-negotiable."
"Agreed." Raditz leaned forward, eyes narrowing as he surveyed the battlefield. "And speaking of survival—Universe Four should be next. I noticed something during the elimination. Right before he vanished, Sidra called out Quitela's name."
Beerus's ears flattened against his skull. "So Quitela didn't just refuse to help—he actively betrayed his supposed ally." The God of Destruction's laugh was cold and sharp. "Typical. That's exactly his style."
Before Raditz could issue another command, the fighters of Universe Seven were already moving. Vegeta, Android 17, Tarble—they'd heard Raditz's declaration and made their choice.
Down in the arena, Universe Four's strongest fighter—a grey-furred wolf warrior named Shosa—had sharp eyes and sharper instincts. He'd watched Universe Nine fall in minutes. When he saw golden-haired figures converging on their position, survival instincts kicked in.
"Don't engage that golden-haired one directly!" Shosa barked to his teammates. "He's the same type as the ones who destroyed Universe Nine! Circle around—hit the ones in back!"
The Universe Four fighters scattered with practiced precision, creating a gap in their formation. They let Vegeta's charge carry him through empty space while they redirected toward Tapion, Tarble, and the others behind him.
Vegeta skidded to a halt, slightly thrown off by the sudden repositioning. His lip curled. "Tch. Cowards." Then he smirked, transforming into Super Saiyan with a flash of gold. "Fine. They're stronger than me in this form anyway. Idiots."
Rather than chase them down, Vegeta pivoted and launched himself toward a completely different section of the arena. He hadn't targeted Universe Four out of strategy—they were just close. For Vegeta, one opponent was as good as another.
Android 17 watched Universe Four's remaining fighters rush toward their position. He glanced at Tarble. "You want them, or should I handle it?"
"Let's make it interesting." Tarble cracked his knuckles, a competitive gleam in his eye. "We'll go together. There's eight of them, and I've heard rumors about invisible fighters in this universe. Can't be too careful."
"Fine by me." 17's expression remained cool and composed. "Let's see who can take down more—"
WHAM!
A massive tail swept past both their heads, the displaced air ruffling their hair. Before Universe Four's powerhouse Harmonic could even process what was happening, the tail strike launched him clear across the arena. He tumbled through the air like a ragdoll before crashing down hard.
Tarble and Android 17 turned slowly. Hirudegarn loomed behind them, the phantom beast's massive form already shifting into its next attack. They exchanged helpless smiles.
"Right," Tarble muttered. "Forgot about him."
"He does tend to make an impression," 17 agreed dryly.
In the arena, Hirudegarn was by far the largest combatant—a living siege weapon. When the ancient monster moved, wind followed in its wake like a hurricane's breath.
"What the—that thing's with Universe Seven too?!" Ganos, Universe Four's squad leader, skidded to a stop. He stared up at Hirudegarn's towering form, and fear flickered across his face despite his best efforts to hide it.
"Shosa! Mona! Majora! Don't let your guard down!"
"Too late for warnings," came an ice-cold voice directly in their ears.
Android 17 had already closed the distance. His movements were economical, precise—each punch and kick delivered with the cold efficiency of a machine. He didn't waste energy on flashy displays. Every strike served a purpose, breaking guards, crushing defenses, forcing his opponents into impossible positions. When words failed, she let loose barrages of ki blasts that lit up their section of the arena like fireworks.
Hirudegarn rampaged through the chaos, each thundering step shaking the ground. The beast's tail carved through the air with devastating force. Its massive fists pounded down like hammers. The strangest part—and the most infuriating for Universe Four—was that attacks passed straight through the phantom creature's body. Punches, kicks, energy blasts—they all phased through Hirudegarn as if striking smoke.
Under cover of the monster's assault, Tarble pressed his advantage. His fists moved like a storm—fast, relentless, overwhelming. Each combination flowed seamlessly into the next, never giving his opponents a moment to breathe or regroup.
The Universe Four fighters were scattered, disorganized, getting picked apart piece by piece. In the stands, Quitela screamed encouragement, but his voice couldn't change the brutal reality unfolding below.
BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!
Four figures blurred through the air in rapid succession. One by one, fighters from Universe Four materialized in their spectator section, eliminated from the tournament. "Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh." The sound became almost rhythmic.
Only Ganos remained on the battlefield, and he was barely hanging on.
Ganos might have been the strongest warrior Universe Four could field, but his power topped out around Super Saiyan 2 level. Against Tarble's relentless assault—backed by Hirudegarn's overwhelming presence and Android 17's surgical strikes—he had no chance.
A final kick caught him in the chest. Ganos's eyes widened as his feet left the ground. He sailed backward, past the arena's edge, and tumbled into the void. Darkness swallowed him whole.
Another flash of light. Another fighter appeared in Universe Four's stands—their backbone, their strongest warrior, gone.
Quitela's face froze. For several heartbeats, he simply stared, unable to process what had just happened. Then his composure shattered.
"WHY?!" The rat-like God of Destruction whirled toward Universe Seven's section, whiskers trembling with rage. "Beerus! Your universe is deliberately targeting me! This is—"
"Oh, really?" Raditz's laughter cut through Quitela's protests. "You've got some nerve. Did you forget how you tried targeting us during the Gods' Tournament?" His grin turned sharp and mocking. "So what if we're focusing on you? What are you going to do about it? Hit me?"
Hit him? Quitela couldn't even beat Raditz in a physical confrontation, let alone with Beerus right there. Frustration and impotent rage flashed across the deity's features. His teeth ground together audibly, but what could he actually do? Even if his anger burned hot enough to incinerate his own liver, it wouldn't change the situation in the arena.
Beerus leaned back with a satisfied smirk. "You know what I see, Quitela? I see a universe with barely any warriors left. You even sent someone just to fill the roster!" His laugh was cruel and delighted. "Did you seriously think someone that weak could survive here? Pathetic!"
Beerus's observation was devastatingly accurate—he'd instantly identified the weakest living fighter from Universe Four. The comment made Quitela want to vomit blood. And the worst part? That fighter had only been lost because of Raditz's interference earlier!
Quitela turned his bitter gaze toward Nink, the warrior he'd been forced to include just to meet the minimum roster requirement. His heart ached at the waste.
"Damom... Gamisalas..." Quitela's voice dropped to a desperate whisper. "Stay hidden. No matter what happens, don't reveal yourselves until the very end."
It was his last card to play. As long as those two remained undetected, Universe Four would survive until the final moments. They were invisible, intangible—the perfect assassins to wait out the chaos and strike when no one expected it.
"They won't be eliminated easily," Raditz muttered, watching the arena with sharp eyes. "I know Universe Four has invisible fighters. We won't find them until they choose to reveal themselves. We'll have to be patient."
Still, Universe Four's complete elimination was inevitable. It was only a matter of time.
On the far side of the battlefield, Universe Six was finally showing its teeth. Cabba, Caulifla, Kale, and Renso had all transformed into Super Saiyans, their golden auras blazing bright. They clashed against the mechanical warriors of Universe Three, the arena echoing with the sounds of battle cries and metal grinding against unstoppable force.