Facts About Ultra Instinct:
The Ultra Instinct is a technique that is truly a “Technique of the Gods”. Throughout the history of the universe, the only mortal who has managed to master it is Goku, the Super Saiyan Warrior of the Dragon Ball Universe. But there are a lot of unknown but amazing facts about Ultra Instinct many Dragon Ball fans remain unaware of.
1. Has Multiple Stages of Transformation
There are two iterations of Ultra Instinct in the Dragon Ball Universe. The first is Ultra Instinct Sign – the initial stage of the Technique of the Gods. Ultra Instinct Sign gives Goku silver tinged hair and a glowing white aura. This form is harder to maintain but has better access to controlling the potent God Ki. Because Ultra Instinct Sign is harder to control, it can leave the user vulnerable at any point of time in battle.
That is what happened in Goku’s fight with Jiren, where Goku reverted to his base form right when the tides turned to his favor. The second version is the Ultimate Ultra Instinct Form called Complete Ultra Instinct., Complete Ultra Instinct is easier to maintain than Ultra Instinct Sign and gives the wielder steady access to Godly Ki. Goku momentarily accesses it when his hair turned completely white and his aura became stronger.
2. Master Roshi is a potential candidate
Master Roshi may not be the strongest of the Z Fighters. But strength was never a criterion for someone to master Ultra Instinct. Since it is a technique that is not necessarily reserved for a particular race like the Super Saiyan power, even humans can master it if they have the skills. Master Roshi once showed Goku how fighting a superior enemy requires not strength and power but agility and dexterity. He put his money where his mouth is when he displayed the power to dodge and evade multiple attacks from Jiren before being knocked out of the arena. Roshi did not win the fight but he showed that he understands what it means to move based on pure instinct. His understanding of the inner workings of the technique is even hinted in the Manga.
3. It is flawed
Ultra Instinct is undoubtedly a powerful technique. It is perhaps the greatest technique that Goku has ever learned. But it is far from being perfect. Ultra Instinct puts the body through tremendous amounts of strain. Even the Gods are advised to use it sparingly since it can leave them vulnerable. Whilst claims that using Ultra Instinct for prolonged periods van be fatal for Goku and he may never be able to fight again. If Goku uses Ultra Instinct Sign for more than the advised one to two-minute duration, his body undergoes painful shocks due to a surge in Dark Ki. He may fall unconscious in the middle of a fight or even worse. That is not a good thing to do when the fate of the entire universe depends on you.
4. Vegeta cannot achieve Ultra Instinct
Vegeta has always been jealous of Goku’s strength. All the life he has lived under Goku’s shadow. That is something he is not proud of. Vegeta trains not to become stronger but to become stronger than Goku, whom he considers the ultimate benchmark. Whatever Goku has achieved, Vegeta has trailed behind and achieved it at a later date. But this time, he probably won’t be able to do it.
Ultra Instinct is not a technique that Vegeta can master because it requires emptying the mind and letting your body’s intuition take over. Vegeta’s primary motivator to become stronger is to defeat Goku. He cannot act on pure impulse because his mind-set has been built over the years that way. Goku will probably be the only Saiyan who will master the Ultra Instinct in all its forms.
5. It is used for defense, not offense
If you think about it closely, it makes all the more sense. Ultra Instinct is based on eliminating thought and letting the body move impulsively based on intuition and instinct. In a fight, instinct allows a person to react only when the opponent moves. In a fight, the reaction is usually a move to defend oneself rather than attack. When Goku had been pushed to the point of total fatigue, his body entered into the Ultra Instinct Form only because it needed a way to dodge Jiren’s punishing barrages. Goku realized Ultra Instinct Sign can also be combined for offensive purposes late in the game. Only after Goku achieved Ultra Instinct Complete, the second stage of the technique is when he could balance out its offensive and defensive gifts in equal measure.
6. Beerus can use Ultra Instinct
In Dragon Ball: Resurrection F, Whis uses Ultra Instinct in battle. The technique comes naturally to him as he evades multiple attacks aimed at him. In the Dragon Ball Super anime, Goku finally achieves Ultra Instinct. For a technique that is called “The Technique of the Gods”, Ultra Instinct has only been shown to have been mastered by a mortal warrior and an Angel. In the manga though, things are a bit different.
Beerus has shown the ability to access Ultra Instinct and use it in battle. It was during the Universe Survival arc when the Gods of Destruction were made to fight alongside Zeno. Beerus accesses Ultra Instinct which proves to be decisive in battle. But the entire scene was a little too monotonous and hence many fans missed the sheer significance of that move.
7. The more Goku uses it, the more he is himself
Using Ultra Instinct means letting your impulsive elements take over you. You become more stoic and silent in a fight, focusing on eliminating wasted movements and evading attacks to fight back with minimum effort. Goku did that in his fight with Jiren. But the Ultra Instinct Goku was not the one we know and love. Goku is loud, angry, and arrogant in a fight. As he kept using Ultra Instinct more and more as time passed, Goku regained his original loud-mouth personality.
He showed anger and started talking like the good old Goku. This proves that the longer one uses Ultra Instinct, the better he or she gets at maintaining his or her original personality. Unlike a greenhorn, Ultra Instinct dos not change a veteran user. It merely gives them a way to fight back.
8. It is what Goku had always desired to achieve
As time passed by, Goku has achieved several levels of power even the Gods could only dream of. Super Saiyan was just the beginning. He then unlocked Super Saiyan2, Super Saiyan 3, and even Super Saiyan God! When Goku achieved Super Saiyan God, he said that he did not like that power simply because it was not a power he him-self achieved but rather was a borrowed one. Ultra Instinct, on the other hand, is a power he not only achieved himself but enhances his skills as a martial artist. Ultra Instinct is not a power-up. It is a martial art technique that hones Goku’s senses and instincts. It is what Goku had always dreamt of achieving and fits Goku’s arsenal like a glove.
9. It proves Zamasu was right all along
Zamasu, the rogue Kaio-Shin, wanted to subdue the mortal realm because of a fear most of his peers believed to have been illogical and senseless. Zamasu claimed that the mortals would one day gain enough power to challenge the Gods and would revolt against them. If the Mortals are left unchecked, the authority of the Gods and the balance of the universe would be at stake. Goku achieving Ultra Instinct proves that Zamasu was right. Since Goku is a mortal and Ultra Instinct is a Godly Technique, there is no way to tell if other mortals would not be able to achieve it. What if a mortal who does not share Goku’s benevolence achieve Ultra Instinct and the power to manipulate the God Ki? It would spell chaos for the universe.
10. It is not a transformation
Sure Goku’s hair color changes and he radiates a different aura when he uses Ultra Instinct, but it is not an actual transformation as many would lead you to believe. Ultra Instinct is a technique that is notoriously difficult to master. Mortals who know how to use Godly Ki can use Ultra Instinct. Much like Kaio-Ken, which is a power enhancer technique that is shown to be exclusive only to Goku, the Ultra Instinct is also responsible for enhancing Goku’s present limits by letting his body remove all the mental blocks he has placed on him-self over the years, allowing him to access his divine intuitive power. It might look like a transformation but in the Dragon Ball Universe, it is just a very difficult but powerful technique.
