Son Goku

Born on the planet Vegeta as Kakarot, a low-class Saiyan warrior of the House of Bardock and Gine, the child who would become one of Earth's foremost protectors spent his earliest years in an incubation chamber before his parents, anticipating the treachery of the galactic tyrant Frieza, smuggled him into a space pod and launched him toward the distant world of Earth. Landing in Mount Paozu, the wild and aggressive infant was discovered by the martial artist Grandpa Gohan, who named him Son Goku. A severe head injury from a fall down a deep ravine altered Goku's temperament, transforming him into a gentle, pure-hearted boy. He lived peacefully under Gohan's care until a full moon triggered his Saiyan physiology, transforming him into a destructive Great Ape who accidentally crushed Grandpa Gohan to death, leaving the young boy alone with only the Four-Star Dragon Ball as a keepsake. Years later, a chance encounter with the sixteen-year-old Bulma Briefs initiated an odyssey to find the seven mystical Dragon Balls, bringing him into contact with the bandit Yamcha, the shape-shifting Oolong and Puar, and his future wife Chi-Chi. Seeking to refine his combat skills, Goku trained under Master Roshi alongside his rival and friend Krillin; their grueling regime of manual labor—delivering milk, tilling soil with bare hands, and dodging wild bees—forged a formidable physical foundation, culminating in Goku's mastery of the iconic Kamehameha wave simply by mimicking his teacher. This training was tested at the 21st World Martial Arts Tournament, where Goku narrowly lost the final match to Roshi’s alias, Jackie Chun, after Yamcha severed Goku's tail to end an accidental Great Ape rampage. Goku then embarked on a solo quest for his grandfather's Four-Star ball, single-handedly dismantling the corrupt Red Ribbon Army, training under the feline deity Korin at the top of Korin Tower, and defeating the assassin Mercenary Tao. After reuniting with Grandpa Gohan’s spirit during Fortuneteller Baba’s tournament, Goku trained across the globe, returning at age fifteen for the 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament, where he placed runner-up to Tenshinhan. This era of peace shattered when the demonic King Piccolo arose and assassinated Krillin; driven by grief, Goku survived the lethal Ultra Divine Water to unlock his latent potential, ultimately destroying the demon by punching through his torso, though King Piccolo spat out an egg containing his reincarnated son, Piccolo Jr., before dying. Goku trained for three years under Earth's Guardian, Kami, and Mr. Popo—permanently removing his tail—and emerged at age eighteen to defeat Piccolo Jr. in a highly destructive duel at the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament, marrying Chi-Chi and securing his first tournament victory. Five years of peace yielded a son, Gohan, before Goku's biological brother Raditz arrived, exposing Goku’s Saiyan heritage. Teaming with Piccolo, Goku sacrificed his own life to restrain Raditz, allowing Piccolo's Special Beam Cannon to pierce them both. In the afterlife, Goku traveled the million-kilometer Snake Way to train under King Kai, mastering the physical-multiplier Kaio-ken and the spirit-gathering Spirit Bomb. Resurrected to face the Saiyan conquerors Nappa and Vegeta, Goku defeated Nappa and engaged Vegeta in an exhausting clash of energy, ultimately sparing the defeated prince to preserve a future rival. This conflict led Goku to the planet Namek; training in a customized gravity ship at one hundred times Earth's gravity, he arrived to swiftly defeat the mercenary Ginyu Force before a devastating battle with Frieza commenced. When Frieza executed Krillin, Goku's consuming rage triggered the legendary Super Saiyan transformation; he defeated the tyrant on the collapsing planet Namek and escaped in a Ginyu space pod, landing on Planet Yardrat where he learned the Instant Transmission teleportation technique. Returning to Earth, he was warned by the time-traveling Future Trunks of a lethal heart virus and a future threat from Dr. Gero's Androids; though the virus temporarily sidelined him during the battle with Android 19, he recovered and trained with Gohan in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, achieving a refined, calm state of Mastered Super Saiyan. Recognizing Gohan's superior dormant potential, Goku fought Perfect Cell to a standstill in the Cell Games before conceding the match to his son; when a cornered Cell attempted to self-destruct, Goku selflessly teleported him to King Kai's planet, dying in the explosion. Spending seven years in the Other World, Goku achieved Super Saiyan 2 and the immensely draining Super Saiyan 3 forms. Granted a single day to return to Earth for the 25th World Martial Arts Tournament, his return was derailed by the wizard Babidi and the awakening of Majin Buu. Goku engaged a Majin-possessed Vegeta, stalled Majin Buu, and eventually fused with Vegeta using the sacred Potara earrings to form the warrior Vegito, deliberately allowing himself to be absorbed to rescue their swallowed companions. The conflict culminated on the Sacred World of the Kai, where Goku, reverting to Super Saiyan, eradicated Kid Buu with a Super Spirit Bomb fueled by the shared energy of Earth's citizens, wishing for the demon's soul to be reincarnated as a good person. Shortly after this victory, Goku and his allies were temporarily transformed into children by the conspiracy of Demon King Gomah using the Demon Realm Dragon Balls; alongside Shin, Glorio, and Panzy, Goku ventured into the three-tiered Demon Realm to retrieve the native Dragon Balls, relying on his physical martial arts and his trusty Power Pole before reversing the magic and regaining his adult form. The arrival of Beerus, the God of Destruction, marked Goku's transition into the divine hierarchy; utilizing a ritual involving five righteous Saiyans, Goku attained the form of Super Saiyan God. Undergoing rigorous training on Beerus's planet under the Angel Whis alongside Vegeta, Goku unlocked Super Saiyan Blue, which he used to defeat a resurrected Golden Frieza and combat Hit during the Universe 6 vs. 7 tournament by combining the form with the Kaio-ken. This divine power was tested in Future Trunks’ timeline against the rogue deity Zamasu and Goku Black, resulting in another fusion into Vegito Blue and the intervention of the Omni-King, Grand Zeno. Goku subsequently instigated the multi-universal Tournament of Power, during which the immense pressure of battling Jiren of Universe 11 forced Goku to break through his limits and unlock the state of Ultra Instinct—first in its incomplete 'Sign' form, and finally in its completed, silver-haired state, ultimately sacrificing his remaining energy to drag Jiren out of the ring alongside Frieza, securing Universe 7's survival. Soon after, Goku and Vegeta faced the resurrected, legendary Saiyan Broly, forcing them to fuse into Gogeta Blue to subdue him in the frozen wastes. When the ancient, magic-wielding planet-eater Moro escaped the Galactic Prison, Goku trained under the trainee Angel Merus to master Ultra Instinct at will, eventually manifesting a colossal ki avatar to shatter Moro’s Earth-fused body. This was followed by a conflict on Planet Cereal against Granolah and the Heeter force's Gas, where Goku discovered a recording of his father Bardock's voice, inspiring him to adapt the divine technique into 'True Ultra Instinct'—allowing his natural emotions to flow rather than keeping his mind entirely tranquil—before being abruptly incapacitated alongside Vegeta by a vastly empowered Black Frieza. Returning to Beerus's planet to continue his training, Goku observed Gohan and Piccolo's new heights from afar, besting Vegeta in a strict base-form sparring match, before ultimately fulfilling his destiny at the 28th World Martial Arts Tournament, where he encountered Uub, the human reincarnation of Kid Buu, and departed his family to train the young boy as Earth's next guardian.