Dragon Ball Roshi

Dart remained silent, understanding... if that last strike had been aimed at his head instead of his waist, he would already be dead.

He had been defeated by such a weak force?

"You're something else, old man! You actually defeated him!! You only have a combat power of 300, but he's at least 60,000! What gives you the right to beat him?!"

The shocked voice of North Kai reverberated in Taro's mind.

"Heh..."

Taro weakly chuckled, saying nothing. His eyes were ghostly white, and in his vision... the Namekian across from him was nothing more than a blurred shadow. Though he hadn't gone fully blind yet, in preparation for his next wish, Taro fumbled through his belongings and found a Senzu Bean.

Pfft—

He dug his fingers into his eye sockets, the sickening squelching sound of blood moving sending chills down his spine.

"What is he doing? Is he gouging out his own eyes?"

The tribe elder, the warriors, and the remaining upper half of Dart were all shocked, unable to understand what Taro was doing. The Great Elder squinted, seemingly deep in thought.

The two blood-soaked eyeballs were casually tossed aside by Taro, falling to the ground.

Seeing him gouge out his own eyes with such calmness, without a single flinch or even a grimace, Dart felt a sense of dread. This Earthling was terrifying. Was his will made of steel?

With that thought, Dart activated his racial ability, channeling his internal power to regrow his lower half from where it had been severed. A special fluid flowed through his new lower body, and Dart moved his legs, now fully restored.

Taro popped the Senzu Bean into his mouth, crunching it a few times before swallowing.

His eyelids, once limp, began to swell again.

Taro opened his eyes again, and saw that Dart had fully restored himself. "You've already recovered? I was planning to give you a Senzu Bean."

Dart shook his head. "The Senzu Bean you just ate? No need." He looked at Taro's newly regenerated eyes, which were so bright, so clear, like two serene springs.

Taro nodded and glanced at the Great Elder.

The Great Elder descended to the ground, and Taro sighed before following.

Dart and the two other Namekians slowly landed behind the Great Elder.

---

On King Kai's Planet

North Kai muttered to himself: "This old man is so skilled, and he always carries Senzu Beans with him... looks like he's been doing the same thing for years!" He stroked his chin thoughtfully. "And those strange eyes of his... are they slowly going blind? From that terrifying ability? He said it was due to mutation... is that really the case?"

Finally, North Kai sighed deeply. "This old man... who knows how many secrets he's hiding! Oh well, let's just see what wish he's about to make!" He adjusted his little sunglasses and once again used his special Kai abilities to observe what was happening on Namek in the distant Eastern Galaxy.

"I have a feeling... he's going to give me quite a surprise..."

---

Hum\~

The Great Elder raised his hand and pointed into the air. The seven Dragon Balls scattered across the ground slowly floated towards him and, after a brief wobble, landed in front of him with a soft thud.

Hum\~

Hum\~

The seven massive Dragon Balls emitted a flickering light, pulsating in unison as their energy resonated.

Taro stepped up beside the Great Elder. Seven colorful birds flapped their wings and landed gracefully on his shoulders, one by one. Dart glanced at the birds perched on Taro's shoulders, calm and unbothered, and thought to himself: "Anyone who can make birds this comfortable must have a heart free of evil."

"Seven Dragon Balls..." one of the tribe warriors behind the Great Elder muttered, in awe. It was the first time in his life he had seen all seven Dragon Balls gathered together.

"Take a good look. The Namekian dragon, Porunga, will soon appear!" The Great Elder patted the warrior's shoulder, his voice filled with anticipation.

The Great Elder calmly began chanting an incantation in the Namekian language, a string of words Taro could not understand. The seven Dragon Balls erupted with blinding, brilliant light.

Boom!

A dazzling golden pillar of light shot up from the Dragon Balls, piercing the heavens!

At the same time, the entire sky over Namek was suddenly shrouded in an endless, pitch-black night. In the next instant, amidst the vast golden light reaching into the sky, a dragon far larger, more majestic, and more awe-inspiring than any Earthling could imagine appeared. This was the true form of Porunga, the mighty Namekian Dragon.

It looked down upon the beings who had summoned it.

Taro looked up at the colossal, divine dragon of Namek, as did the seven birds on his shoulders, curiously glancing around.

Everyone, except for the Great Elder, was awestruck by the presence of Porunga. It was the kind of reverence and respect one instinctively feels in the presence of something truly divine and sacred.

Porunga slowly spoke, and His voice seemed to resonate across all of Namek's darkened sky: "Great Elder... Speak your wish, any wish. I can grant you three..."

The Great Elder stood in front of the seven Dragon Balls, their brilliant light causing his aged face to shift between brightness and shadow. He turned to see Taro, who was staring upwards without blinking, and asked, "Earthling, what is your wish? The dragon can only understand Namekian. I can relay it for you."

What is my wish?

What is my wish…?

Taro took a deep breath, exhaling slowly, feeling the weight of years of joy, sorrow, and all the bittersweet moments he had experienced. It felt as if all of his emotions were released from his chest in that single breath. He gazed intently at the towering divine creature above him, his mind drifting back over sixty years to a cold, isolated day on the Korin Tower, staring up at the night sky and the stars. On that day, he had silently made a wish in his heart.

---

He recalled how many years ago, by the shores, in the Muten school Dojo, in the deep mountains, in the dense forests, on high peaks, and in countless corners of Earth, he had repeatedly felt the limitations of his body, and more than once, he had worried about the future. He had longed for moments like this, moments like today.

He remembered back on Earth, where he had suppressed the wish he could not voice, out of concern for the Earth's gods.

How many years had it been? How many years had passed since he came to this Dragon Ball world?

Had he finally reached this point? Was he finally... going to speak that wish?

Yes, to avoid being surpassed by those incomprehensible beings in the future, to avoid being seen as a weakling, to grow stronger, to have the strength to protect what he wanted to protect... Taro knew, he had to make this wish, and he had to make it come true!

Countless thoughts and chaotic emotions flashed through his mind.

Suddenly, Taro's dark eyes turned blood-red, transforming into the three-tomoe Sharingan. As they spun, they changed into the unique four-pointed shuriken pattern.

He looked up at the waiting Porunga, and with unwavering resolve, he spoke in a voice full of conviction:

"My wish is... for the Dragon to take the genes, bloodline, and hereditary factors hidden in these imperfect eyes of mine—however you see fit—and trace them back to their origin, to restore them to their most perfect and primordial state!"

The Great Elder looked at Taro in surprise, seeing him still gazing up seriously at Porunga without any intention to explain further.

Although confused, the Great Elder proceeded to relay the wish to Porunga as requested.

Taro fixed his gaze on Porunga, watching the immense red dragon eyes and its unblinking mouth, fearing that the next moment, it might utter something like "Sorry" or "I can't do that."

This moment, for Taro, felt endless.

It seemed as if Porunga took an entire century to finally speak… His voice was calm and devoid of any emotion: "This wish... is very simple."

Hum\~

Porunga's massive red dragon eyes flared with even brighter red light, signaling the divine power at work, interfering with the flow of causality to fulfill the mortal's wish.

Taro looked up, waiting.

Suddenly—

Bang! Bang!

His heart tightened, and his pupils contracted sharply!

In the astonished gaze of the Great Elder and the other Namekians, Taro's eyes, once blood-red, began to change rapidly, the four-pointed shuriken pattern disappearing and transforming into ripples. Meanwhile, the deep wrinkles on his aging face started vanishing, one by one, at an astonishing speed! His white hair, once so prominent, instantly turned pitch-black!

A powerful surge of life energy radiated from Taro's body.