WHAT IS AUTONOMOUS ULTRA INSTINCT?

ULTRA INSTINCT

" It's an ultimate technique that severs the consciousness from the body in order to allow the body to subconsciously move it to even attack and evade. It's called 'Ultra Instinct'. "

- Whis explaining the technique in "The Omen of Son Gokū's Awakening"

Ultra Instinct is an ultimate technique that separates the consciousness from the body, allowing fighters to move and fight independent of a martial artist's thoughts and emotions. It is an extraordinarily difficult technique to master, even for the GOD OF DESTRUCTION. However, angels like Whis appear to have mastered it. As a result, it is known as the "state of the gods" (神の領域, kami no ryōiki).

This technique uniquely manifests as a transformation in Son Goku and is his most powerful form, transcending Super Saiyan Blue. Despite this, other gods recognize the transformation's completed form, hinting that it might not be completely unique to Goku.

Goku, has seen some wild transformations that propel his power far beyond the expected, usually accompanied by a slick new hairdo. Much to Vegeta's dismay, it seems that every time he or another character comes close to surpassing Goku in power, Goku experiences another awesome transformation that leaves everyone else in the dust.

Whis, who has completely mastered the technique, was able to fend off two Saiyan beyond Gods with no trouble, handling them as if they were children. Goku would later show off a mastered version of this technique as well, accompanied by a new form that incorporated this style on instinct. Whis states that, if one were to master this technique, they could, in theory, avoid any threat. Recognizing whether someone is using Ultra Instinct seems to be rather difficult as it requires someone to know about Ultra Instinct and be familiar with a person's fighting style.

Goku achieved "perfect Ultra Instinct” by focusing completely on his fight with Jiren and building up heat within himself throughout the match. He also abandoned the idea of allowing his emotions to rule over him, as they often did in his Super Saiyan transformations, and instead focused on making his heart calm and gentle. Releasing the heat in a galaxy-like disc of energy, Goku then absorbed it back within himself, allowing him to manifest the completed technique, which granted him a power that surpasses that of a God of destruction.

While the Super Saiyan form is obviously limited to Saiyans, Ultra Instinct is theoretically feasible to anyone - yes, even Yamcha. After all, Ultra Instinct isn't technically a transformation into a new form, but rather a technique or state of mind which requires incredible discipline and concentration. In fact, it doesn't appear that Ultra Instinct even requires any specific level of power, but rather the right mentality.

 

The fact that Ultra Instinct is limited to neither Saiyans nor immortals proves that within the laws of Dragon Ball  universe, there's nothing stopping Yamcha, Krillin, Chi-Chi, and master roshi from reaching Ultra Instinct through sheer will and desperation.

“ …When Gokū's body just reacts, it takes quite a toll on him. He may have obtained Ultra Instinct, but Gokū hasn't trained enough to wield it properly.”

—Whis explaining Ultra Instinct's drawbacks, Dragon Ball Super chapter 41

The largest drawback of Ultra Instinct is the difficulty in which the technique is to master. For instance, the God of Destruction  Beerus spent millions of years in training and still has not mastered the technique. A significant part of this difficulty comes with the technique's massive stamina drain. For one who has not trained enough with Ultra Instinct, the forcible instinctive movements of the body in combat exact a terrible toll. As a result, novice users of Ultra Instinct cannot maintain it long.

 

Like his Super Saiyan and Super Saiyan Blue transformations, Ultra Instinct was susceptible to Goku's rage, allowing him yet another explosive increase in power and speed whenever Jiren angered the Saiyan. However, because this explosion of emotion disturbed the calmness of his heart that allowed him to obtain the technique in the first place, Goku's ability to use Ultra Instinct expired rather painfully shortly thereafter.

 

Finally, though Goku can activate the omen of Ultra Instinct at will, he cannot use the true technique at will; he told Vegeta at the end of the Tournament of Power that this form was the result of him being backed into a corner, and he currently cannot use it of his own accord.