Dragon Ball Roshi

Inside the spaceship.

"What a beautiful planet..." Frieza remarked, his cold eyes fixed on the desolate, barren world outside the spacecraft's window. His gaze softened in a rare moment of admiration. Without turning around, he spoke, "I will gain eternal life here, won't I, Vegeta? Kakarot?"

The young man with spiky hair behind him twitched slightly but said nothing, his face expressionless. "Of course, Lord Frieza," he replied.

The short man with a spiked hairdo beside him snorted coldly and remained silent. His haughty and solitary nature was well-known, and Frieza did not care. Vegeta cast a cold glance at the fellow Saiyan beside him, silently fuming: "What a useless fool. How could he have let Frieza get this critical information? If only..."

Vegeta clenched his arms tightly, fists tightening as his thoughts darkened. "If only I had arrived here first, to fulfill my ambitions and acquire immortality. Then Frieza would be nothing! One day, I, the Saiyan Prince, will kill him with my own hands!"

Boom! The spaceship shuddered.

They had landed.

Frieza floated from his pod to the control panel, grabbing a small piece of paper. It depicted seven orange spheres, each adorned with one to seven red stars — the details of the Earth Dragon Balls, as relayed by Kakarot.

Beep. Frieza pressed a button with one finger.

"You all have the diagram, right? Get out there, search every inch of this planet, dig to the very depths... Find me those Dragon Balls!" Frieza's voice was stern and icy, echoing through the entire spacecraft. He released the button and looked out the window, muttering to himself, "Just one... that's all I need." A cruel, deranged grin slowly formed on his lips.

He would be immortal, his power, his invincibility, and his empire would last forever...

The soldiers, clad in their standard combat armor, shivered at the sound of Frieza's voice, understanding the severity of the situation. If they failed, the consequences would be catastrophic. They stared at the diagram in their hands, responding in unison, "Yes!"

Buzz.

The top of the spaceship opened, revealing the planet's dim, gloomy skies. Earth hadn't seen clear weather in ages. Perhaps, even the planet was mourning.

"Spread out in all directions!"

"Search everywhere around Frieza's ship! We must find those Dragon Balls!"

Like a swarm of locusts, the alien soldiers flooded out of the spacecraft.

But at that moment—

A torrent of white energy beams appeared out of nowhere, enveloping the soldiers. Before they could react, most were pierced through by the energy, their lives snuffed out in a blink of an eye. In confusion and shock, they vanished.

"What's going on?!"

"Who is attacking us?!"

Screams filled the air, the sudden massacre reducing the once vast number of soldiers to only a few survivors. Countless bodies rained from the sky, creating a thick carpet on the ground below.

A lone figure slowly descended from above, walking as if strolling through the air.

Beside him hovered another man, his body encased in armor that seemed made of white jade. His hair and beard were messy, and his appearance was unkempt. This was Krillin, unable to fly on his own, carried by the energy of the figure beside him. Krillin looked around in shock at the horrific scene surrounding Frieza's ship.

He wasn't fazed by the carnage — it was nothing compared to the hell he had witnessed before. What troubled him, however, was the identity of the attackers.

"Master Taro... who are they?" Krillin asked, his voice laced with confusion.

"They are the invaders Goku brought from the cosmos," Taro replied calmly, his form resembling Master Roshi. With his vast understanding of the world, he had pieced together the clues Krillin had provided. Coupled with the powerful auras emanating from Frieza's ship — Vegeta, Nappa, Raditz, and Kakarot — it was easy to deduce the situation.

Kakarot, after causing chaos on Earth, had returned to Frieza's base and revealed the existence of Earth's Dragon Balls. However, Kakarot had no idea that, due to Kami's death, the Dragon Balls were no longer functional. He had assumed that the only reason he couldn't find them was the absence of a Dragon Radar.

Moreover, Vegeta had never made the connection between the Dragon Balls and the Namekians. Kakarot hadn't mentioned the peculiarities of King Piccolo, whom he had killed without knowing his true nature. So, Vegeta and his team had arrived, unaware that the Dragon Balls were now useless.

"Invaders? This Earth... is there anything left to invade? Goku, have you truly lost your way?" Krillin muttered, clenching his fists tightly.

The images of Goku's rampage — his destruction and senseless killings — flashed in Krillin's mind. Anger and sadness overwhelmed him, his body trembling in his jade-like armor.

Just then, a hand rested on his shoulder. A deep, powerful energy flowed from the touch, calming Krillin's turbulent emotions. As the clarity returned to his mind, he looked down at the spaceship below, lips pressed tightly together, his eyes clouded with conflicting thoughts.

Taro withdrew his hand and shouted at the spaceship with thunderous intensity:

"Frieza, get out here!"

The force of his voice shook the air.

"Frieza, get out here!"

"Frieza, get out here!"

"Frieza, get out here!"

His voice was so powerful that it made the spaceship itself tremble and hum.

"Who dares?! Are you seeking death?" Several figures emerged from the spaceship. Taro glanced at them — one with long hair, one bald, one with spiked hair, and one with a crab-like head. All wore Frieza's standard battle armor, with fur-covered tails wrapped around their waists.

It was the long-haired one who spoke — the one with the shortest temper. Raditz, one of the last surviving Saiyans, floated with the others in the air, glaring at the elderly figure and the disheveled, white-lighted man.

He pressed the battle power detector on his face, selecting the old man in front of him. Immediately, a string of data appeared on the screen in front of him. Raditz was taken aback and said, "5000?! This native old man... has a battle power of 5000?!"

"He's just a piece of trash with a battle power of 5000..." The bald giant, Nappa, cracked his enormous fists with a cruel, bloodthirsty grin. He completely ignored Raditz's gloomy expression and continued, "Did you just disrespect Lord Frieza like that, old man? You must be tired of living, huh?"

The short, spiky-haired Saiyan and the long-haired one next to him remained silent. Although they, too, wore battle power detectors like the others, they had not activated theirs. At this moment, they were intently watching the gray-haired old man in the air.

"This person... is not simple." Vegeta crossed his arms and frowned deeply. He had practiced the Ki technique taught by Kakarot, the one he brought back from Earth, and could sense the unfathomable power hidden within the old man in front of him.

Of course, while he thought so, he didn't believe that this old man could cause much trouble. With Frieza present, no one could make a wave. There was no one in the universe who could oppose Frieza — everyone who had dared to defy him had already died. In Vegeta's eyes, this person, who dared to challenge Frieza, was already a dead man.

"Raditz," Taro raised his hand, pointing at the black-haired Saiyan, then at the bald giant, Nappa. "Nappa."

His finger moved to the spiky-haired short Saiyan, "Vegeta."

"And..."

His finger hovered over the familiar yet unfamiliar face, paused for a moment, and he said, "You, Kakarot."

"I feel like I've seen you before," Kakarot asked impatiently, with a murderous look in his eyes. "You're really making me want to kill you..." As he spoke, his body trembled slightly, clearly excited by the intense bloodlust.

"Stop talking to him..." Raditz, frustrated by the fact that this native's power surpassed his own, was about to suggest killing this strange guy quickly when his chest suddenly tightened. Looking down, he saw a gaping wound the size of a bowl on his chest.

"Heh..." He coughed out blood, his face filled with disbelief.

Next to him, Nappa casually allowed Raditz's limp body to fall, only glancing at him before sneering, "What a useless piece of trash... Even a native..." He hadn't finished the word "trash" when half his head exploded like a watermelon!

"How... is this... possible..." Before Raditz hit the ground, Nappa followed him, meeting the same fate.

He died without understanding... why a piece of trash with a battle power of 5000 would suddenly attack him? And even more baffling, how he had died?

Vegeta's eyes widened in shock, his arms uncrossed as he took a fighting stance.

Taro, however, remained unmoved, his expression unchanged. He raised one arm in Vegeta's direction, his hand forming a blade. Cold words like shards of ice escaped his lips: "I said... Frieza..."

Whoosh.

A white beam extended from his hand, forming a white sword that soared into the air.

"You... die..."

Boom!

The white sword slashed down toward Vegeta's direction!

Vegeta's eyes widened in disbelief, but in an instant, his body was cleaved in half from head to toe! The white sword passed through him effortlessly, as if it were just cutting through air, and continued its unstoppable descent, splitting the spaceship below into two with the same ease!

The sword then embedded itself in the ship, causing a massive explosion!

Amidst the blinding white light, charred bodies flew, their screams drowned out by the fiery chaos. The majority of the life forms aboard the spaceship were wiped out in a single blow.

Kakarot, stunned, watched as the proud and powerful Saiyan prince, Vegeta, was split in two, blood pouring from his severed body as it fell to the ground. He murmured, "How... is this possible..."

The world had crumbled. Vegeta, the strongest Saiyan, could not have died like this. So quickly. So tragically.

"Goku..." Krillin's voice trembled. He didn't recognize Raditz, Nappa, or Vegeta, and having been somewhat slow to react, he hadn't realized how dangerous the situation was. Seeing the three of them killed so easily, however, didn't bother him. But looking at his former best friend, who had changed so drastically, his eyes turned red, and he gritted his teeth as he asked, "Don't you see what's happening? Do you even recognize who I am?!"

He ripped his disheveled hair out by the handful, his scalp bleeding, but Taro quickly stopped him, placing a hand on his head, and the hair naturally fell away.

Looking at Krillin, now with a messy beard and hair, Kakarot coldly said, "Oh, it's you. You're still alive?"

"I almost wish I had died back then! At least I wouldn't have to see you sink so low!"

"Who cares if you're dead or alive..." Kakarot said coldly, not even sparing Krillin another glance. Instead, he looked toward Taro and began flying back, retreating farther away. Meanwhile, Frieza finally emerged from the spaceship's explosion, no longer sitting in his flying craft — it must have been damaged in the blast.

"I'll see... who's... seeking death?" Frieza, clearly enraged, flew beside Kakarot, his face like a frozen mask. He glanced down at the bodies of Vegeta and the others, his expression unchanged, and calmly asked, "Kakarot, is it these two who have offended my majesty?"

He raised his hand, pointing at Taro and Krillin.

"That's right, Lord Frieza..." Kakarot replied respectfully. Before he could finish, he witnessed the most unbelievable thing in his life…

A light flashed, and Frieza's head was severed by a perfect strike.

His eyes widened in disbelief as Frieza's head flew off, blood spraying from his chest, splattering Kakarot's face. Kakarot stood frozen, staring blankly as the sound of the Ki Cut reached his ears…

Frieza's body fell limply to the ground, but his head was caught by Taro, who held it in his hand.

Frieza's species had remarkable vitality, and even with only his head left, he still had a bit of consciousness. He let out a hateful screech: "This is impossible... How could you kill me... I'm the emperor of the universe... I'm invincible..." But without a chest or body, his voice could not be heard, and only his purple lips moved in silent rage.

"I hadn't even unleashed his true power yet!"

"How... had i been killed?"

"How is this possible?"

But Taro was not interested in listening to the howls of this defeated dog. He didn't even look at the head he was holding in his hand. A brilliant light, so intense it seemed like the sun was falling, erupted from his hand. A blackened chunk of charcoal formed next to Frieza's severed head, which Taro casually tossed away, and with the wind, it disintegrated into dust...

The once mighty cosmic emperor, in a backward planet at the corner of the North Galaxy, never even had the chance to fully unleash his true form or all of his power before dying an inexplicable death.

"Your turn." Taro coldly looked at Kakarot, who had already intended to flee.

"Dammit..." Kakarot's voice trembled, but he forced himself to calm down, staring intently at Taro's face. It overlapped with the image of an old man he had remembered, and he finally recognized him, shouting, "You're Master Roshi?!!"

"Goku, you recognize us?" Krillin, trembling with emotion, was flying through the sky, carried by Taro's Ki armor. He pleaded with Taro, "Master Taro, let me go. Goku has come to his senses. He regrets his actions..."

"Yes! Yes! I regret it! I'm Son Goku, not Kakarot! Master! Old Master Roshi! I was wrong!" Kakarot kept shouting, quickly admitting his mistake.

"..." Taro glanced at Krillin, then spoke to Kakarot, "Well, since you've repented, you can stay here."

He walked towards Kakarot, who obediently bowed and waited. But as Taro got closer, Kakarot's face twisted with rage, and he raised his hand, attempting to stab him. Taro calmly sidestepped, and with a soft sound, Kakarot's palm pierced through Taro's left shoulder.

"Die!!" Kakarot's other hand aimed at Taro's heart.

"Goku!! You can't do this!!" Krillin shouted.

Taro coldly said, "If you kill someone, you must pay with your life." In the next moment, his eyes erupted with boundless, blinding light, as if a blazing sun had penetrated into Kakarot's mind... Everything melted away. Kakarot's consciousness was gradually dissipated in this overwhelming spiritual torrent.

"Hmm?" Just as Taro was about to erase Kakarot's spirit and soul, he suddenly sensed something within his consciousness. It was a pure white soul, but it was incomplete, like a helpless child who had lost everything, aimlessly wandering in solitude.

---

"Who are you?" The child looked up, feeling a warmth enter. "It's so cold here. Can you take me out of here?"

Splashing waves, suddenly the small house of Master Roshi appeared.

The child, somewhat puzzled, walked over to the house on the beach and knocked on the door, knock knock knock, knock knock knock. "Is anyone there?" Creak, an old man carrying a turtle shell appeared. The child smiled and asked, "It's so warm here. Can I stay here?"

"Of course, you can stay as long as you want."

"Thank you. You're such a good person, old man."

"What's your name?"

"I don't know. What should I be called?"

"Let's call you Son Goku."

"Hehe, that's such a fun name. I'll be Son Goku then!"

---

Krillin looked at Kakarot, now sleeping like a child, or rather Son Goku, shedding two lines of tears. The white Ki armor on him dissipated, and he staggered over to lie beside Son Goku. Meanwhile, Master Taro seemed to have disappeared.

"Master Taro... thank you..." Krillin hugged the sleeping Son Goku, tears streaming down. He didn't understand why Master Taro came back from the afterlife, nor did he understand why Master Taro had become so powerful, just as he didn't understand... why Master Taro suddenly disappeared again.

How much time passed, no one knew.

The clouds that had been covering Earth began to disperse, and golden sunlight poured down on the Earth God Temple high in the sky. Suddenly, a green-skinned, white-robed creature appeared on the Lookout floor. The Earth God murmured in confusion, "Who... resurrected me?"

In the ruins of West City, a girl with purple, medium-length hair crawled out from the wreckage. She was confused, not understanding what had happened. It was Bulma, who should have been dead. She stood in the ruined city, dazed, when a gentle voice suddenly rang in their minds, "Child, do what you must do..."

Tap tap tap...

An orange-yellow orb rolled to Bulma's feet. Her heart skipped a beat as she staggered over and picked it up. Tears uncontrollably fell as the light on the orb flickered, revealing four red stars, a symbol of hope.

"I suddenly feel... Goku, that fool, he's back..."

---

Taro visited Namek. His first wish was to resurrect Kami, his second wish was to resurrect Bulma, and his third wish was to bring the Four-Star Dragon Ball to Bulma. Once everything was done, time seemed to shift again, and the environment suddenly changed—

Mist covered the surroundings, and soft light glimmered.

It was the Kaioshin training room.

"How did I get back here?" Taro furrowed his brows, muttering, "That world just now... other than some sentiment, what did it really mean for my training? Could it be that time has caused a malfunction?" As he thought, a soft, ethereal sigh echoed around him.

Who was it?

Taro turned his head, searching, but couldn't find the source of the sound. Suddenly, the mist in front of him began to gather into a figure... someone with their back to him!

And judging by the person's attire and hairstyle..

"Kaioshin?" Taro was surprised, then thought, "Only now you show up... Could it be network delay?" Just as he was thinking, Taro seemed to see the Kaioshin's back move, and he turned around to look at him—

"What kind of gaze is this..."

It was as if the infinite truth of the universe, the origin, development, and destruction of all life, the creation and condensation of all worlds, the true meaning of heaven and earth, were all contained in this one gaze.