"What's Master doing?" Gohan looked up from the ground at Taro in mid-air, who was using a giant Ki hand to grasp the black Great Ape. Noticing they had remained motionless for a while, he wasn't sure what was going on.
"Haven't you figured it out yet, Gohan? Your Master knows far more about Goku's race than we do. He's using the full moon to force Goku to transform. I suppose it's to draw out every last bit of negative personality hidden within him and then…" Hathaway said slowly, arms folded as she gazed at the brutal silhouette cast under the moonlight by Taro and the Great Ape.
"Then bind it with mental techniques and wipe it out completely?" Gohan murmured.
"No," Hathaway shook her head, her voice low as she looked at the large and small figures floating in the sky. "I don't think so... If that were his intention, Taro could've done it from the start. Back when they were still in Goku's homeland, with his abilities, he could've erased the negative aspects in Goku's heart easily. And the younger the infant, the easier and less traumatic it would've been…"
"Then..." Gohan hesitated, squinting his eyes in thought.
"Taro intends to let this part of Goku's nature grow just a little... and then…" Hathaway's expression changed slightly as she seemed to catch the intention. A faint smile appeared on her lips. "And then seal it—seal it away in Goku's mind, right?"
Gohan had sharp hearing, and Hathaway was standing close. Even her low murmuring was heard clearly, and realization struck him instantly. He finally understood what his master Taro was trying to do. The old man shook his head and smiled bitterly. "Master… you really have high hopes for Goku."
"Yeah, I've never seen him care so much about anyone before…" Hathaway smiled gently.
The phoenix flapped its wings and landed on Hathaway's left shoulder. She couldn't help stroking it with her hand, laughing, "Alright, alright, Taro cares about you too. He saved your life, didn't he? What a jealous little thing…"
---
Taro's eyes suddenly shut tight, then reopened with a calm, unwavering gaze. He gave a faint smile—everything was going according to plan.
"Ugh…"
The crimson-eyed Great Ape, dangling in the air by his Ki-crafted hand, looked dazed, like an enormous infant. Taro knew that if this continued, the part of Goku's personality he had just sealed would be reawakened by his bloodline. So, his gaze shifted to the ape's tail. His eyes suddenly sharpened—
Buzz!
A crimson beam—like a laser—burst from Taro's pupils, cleanly severing the thick black tail at its base. The tail plummeted to the ground, creating a loud crash and carving out a trench.
Crack, crack…
The ape's body suddenly began to shrink. Bones and muscles shifted noisily from within. Taro watched as the massive form rapidly diminished, fur receding, muscles fading, until the figure reverted to a bald baby boy with spiky hair—sound asleep in peace.
The Ki hand turned into a white cloud of energy, cradling Goku and lifting him to eye level.
"Wake up, Goku…"
Taro looked down at the infant in his palm and softly called out. His voice seemed to carry a mysterious power, actually waking the sleeping boy.
Goku squinted and slowly opened his eyelids, revealing pure, untainted eyes. As he gazed at the gray-haired Taro silhouetted against the moonlight, the baby inexplicably grinned and reached out with chubby arms toward him.
"Hehe…" Taro lowered his eyes and descended slowly with Goku. As he did, a thought crossed his mind—if he hadn't studied psychic magic on the magic planet, then in this timeline's version of Earth, the Goku he knew might never have existed.
If he hadn't learned mental magic, he wouldn't have connected with most of Earth's minds during the demon invasion, which inspired the design of the virtual Earth network. If not for that, Hathaway probably wouldn't have stayed on his island to help create computers;
If he hadn't studied mental magic, the trauma inflicted by the Mangekyō Sharingan would've only worsened. His research into Muken would've stagnated. Without progressing through Muken's layers, he wouldn't have touched the 50th layer ceiling. Without that, the Grand Kai might never have allowed him into the ancient Kaioshin's training chamber. And if that hadn't happened, unlocking the full potential of the Divine Tree Constitution might've been impossible—or at best, it would've taken far longer to achieve.
If he hadn't studied mental magic, his own cultivation path would still be murky and full of peril. Why would he have bothered with something like the World Martial Arts Tournament? He likely never would've founded the Martial Arts Association or met Gohan. And even if fate had somehow made him cross paths with Gohan, he might not have had the heart to take him in as a disciple. Without Gohan as his student, he wouldn't have felt the carefree spirit to retire to Mount Paozu…
---
"Master."
As soon as Taro landed, Gohan walked over to greet him, eyes filled with concern as he looked at the baby in Taro's arms. The black-haired infant peeked out curiously, blinking wide, bright eyes. Seeing the white-bearded old man walking over, he inexplicably felt a sense of warmth and familiarity.
"Waa waa…" Goku reached out for Gohan from Taro's arms, babbling joyfully.
Flap flap…
The phoenix swooped down, circling over Goku's head with a look of puzzlement—why didn't this human feel hateful anymore? It gave up thinking and simply folded its wings and landed right on Goku's head. Surprisingly, Goku wasn't irritable. He just gazed at Gohan from Taro's arms with wide, curious eyes.
"Hehe… Here." Taro smiled and handed the chubby baby to Gohan.
Gohan received him gently, full of affection. Looking into his grandson's pure eyes, now free of the menacing aura from earlier, he couldn't help but feel relieved. "Goku… oh, Goku…"
"Yiya!"
Goku seemed delighted, flailing his tiny hands at Gohan's face, though this time without the fierce aggression he had when he was still Kakarot.
"Heh…" Gohan wasn't the least bit angry. Holding Goku, he smiled broadly. As he touched the baby's bare bottom, he asked, "So that's why Master asked me earlier how I dealt with Goku's transformation—he meant, as long as we remove his tail, he'll revert back to normal?"
"Or," Taro said casually, pointing up at the full moon, "you could just destroy the moon. Goku's race needs two conditions to transform into a Ozaru—one, to witness the full moon, and two, to still have a tail. Miss one, and no transformation."