Dragon Ball Roshi

"That's way too rough!" Krillin complained, and by now, the two of them had already run up to Taro.

"Run two laps first." Taro didn't waste any words. He casually gave the order, then leapt toward Mirror Lake ahead of them, lightly walking through the air as he crossed toward the forested island on the other side.

That effortless and graceful display left Krillin starry-eyed. He yearned deeply—when would he be that cool, that impressive like his master? He silently encouraged himself: for now, he could only run, but one day, he would fly too!

"Let's go!" Goku took off running.

"Wait for me!"

---

At noon, lunch was as lavish as ever. Bulma had suggested a grassy barbecue. She and Hathaway busied themselves preparing everything, even sending Phoenix into the city to buy a huge stockpile of ingredients and seasonings, all to show off their newly learned cooking skills.

The result? Krillin turned green from eating, and Goku kept spitting it out. Only Taro continued chewing without changing expression. Krillin was filled with admiration—how could their master swallow such weird-tasting meat like it was nothing? Truly, he must be a sage of divine caliber.

As for Goku… he was simply too hungry. In the end, he gave up on caring about the taste and just kept shoving food in his mouth. That finally turned Bulma's frown into a smile.

Hathaway chuckled at the sight and exchanged a subtle glance with her husband, eyes shimmering. All the roast meat that Taro ate came from the portion Hathaway had made herself. She secretly passed it to him. Taro didn't care much, but he didn't refuse either.

Just as Hathaway had once told Kami and Mr. Popo at the temple: if one could eat both the finest delicacies and the coarsest gruel without complaint, then food truly didn't matter anymore. Taro simply didn't concern himself with such things.

In the afternoon, they resumed training with mud pellets...

At night, a little over two hours after Goku fell asleep, his eyes opened again—it was Kakarot taking over the body.

He glanced through the translucent crystalline wall. The moonlight was dimmer than it had been the night before. Kakarot didn't care. Swaggering, he walked right out the door. After a round of mental chess with Phoenix in the dark hallway, he once again made it outside.

Grinding his teeth at the figure suspended in the air, seemingly never gone, Kakarot grumbled and started climbing the mountain again.

Truthfully, there wasn't much else he could do besides going up there to catch some wind.

Once he reached the cliff at the top, Kakarot was surprised.

"Huh?" He walked toward the round boulder he had leaned against the night before and noticed a lot of small rocks scattered around its base.

Kakarot stepped on the debris, looked up at the towering boulder—taller than a man—and gave it a few pats... but then shrugged it off, assuming some wild animal had bumped into it.

He sat down again, leaning against the rounded stone, gazing at the sky. As usual, he could only come out for a breath of air after Goku had trained all day and collapsed into deep sleep. His body was sore and heavy, but breathing in the night wind from the mountaintop made him feel… free.

Then came the surge of anger and resentment—

Why? Why did he have to be imprisoned in that dark place?

Why did he have no freedom, forced to sneak around in secret?

Why… choose that Goku over him, Kakarot?

Hmph… whatever. Just wait. One day, he would kill everyone in this world.

Let them hate him. Let them hate all they wanted.

"Tch..."

The mountaintop was heavy with resentment.

Halfway up the mountain, floating in midair, Taro glanced upward, then closed his eyes and continued meditating.

---

And so, Goku and Krillin's training on Muten Island continued day after day.

It was indeed exhausting, but there was no time to dwell on that. All they felt was a fulfilling sense of growth, the clear feeling of surpassing themselves each day.

Under Taro's direct guidance, they barely ever strayed off course.

Bulma stayed for a few days before returning home.

Days flipped by on the calendar… and as the full moon slowly waned to a crescent, it became harder and harder for Kakarot to break through the seal.

Even when Goku slept like a log from exhaustion, Kakarot remained trapped inside.

He showed up less and less. Once, during a climb, he passed out halfway up and would've been injured if not for a ki blast from Taro cushioning his fall.

By the end of the month, he didn't emerge at all. It was as if he had never existed.

---

That day, the three—master and disciples—sat resting beneath a tree during a break in their training.

Amid the casual chatter, Krillin suddenly let something slip. They were talking about their last journey to collect the Dragon Balls, and the dangerous events that had happened in the Castle of Stew. Goku asked offhandedly, "So how did we get out of there?" He vaguely remembered that he and the others had been rendered powerless by the stew gang's underhanded tricks and trapped in a sealed chamber.

"Uh, well…" Krillin scratched his head, unsure if he should say what happened next. He glanced toward their calm master for guidance.

Taro didn't think much of it and simply told Goku, "You transformed into Ozaru and destroyed the castle. That's how you all got out."

"Ozaru?" Goku looked confused.

Krillin took a deep breath, clearly still shaken by the memory, and nodded. "Yeah, you have no idea… it was terrifying!" He recalled, "You looked up at the full moon, and suddenly froze. Then your body started to change—your limbs got huge, fur started growing all over you. In the blink of an eye, you turned into this massive black gorilla… it was seriously scary!"

"That strong?!" Goku imagined the scene, wide-eyed with amazement.

"Strong?! You almost crushed us to death if Master hadn't shown up in time!" Krillin said exasperatedly.

"But I didn't crush you, right?" Goku replied with a sheepish laugh.

Krillin was speechless.

At that moment, Taro shook his head and said, "Goku isn't a human from Earth. He's a child I brought back from a distant planet. His race has the ability to transform into Ozarus under the light of a full moon. Before reaching a certain level, that transformation gives about a tenfold boost in power…"

"Ten times?!" Krillin was shocked. It sounded impossible, but after recalling how terrifying Goku had looked in that form, he had no choice but to believe it. Then something occurred to him. "But… Master, when Goku transforms, his personality changes completely, doesn't it? In that case, what's the point of such a transformation?"

"That transformation… with proper training, it's possible to retain full self-awareness," Taro replied, shaking his head. Then he looked at Goku, who was listening intently, and beckoned to him. "Goku, come with me."