The Last of Mercenary Tao

After dinner with Upa, Goku sleeps peacefully, unconcerned about Tao climbing Korin Tower. His confidence is well-placed, because Korin has plans of his own. When Tao reaches the summit, Korin draws water from a barrel, picks his nose, drops the booger in, and spits in the cup several times before handing it over.

Tao tests his power before and after drinking by firing Dodon Rays at a pillar. When the pillar merely cracks instead of shattering, Tao accuses Korin of cheating. Korin destroys the pillar himself, claiming the ray just needed time to take effect, then offers Tao a Dark Nimbus cloud to ride down. Halfway to the ground, Korin yanks the cloud out from under him, sending the assassin plummeting.

Tao survives the fall and, convinced he is now stronger, challenges Goku. He seems to have the upper hand at first, but Goku reveals he was toying with him and turns the fight around completely. Every technique Tao throws fails: his Crane Style Assassin Strike misses, his speed cannot match Goku's, and his power has not actually increased at all. Cornered and desperate, Tao drops to his knees and begs for mercy. When Goku lowers his guard, Tao hurls a fragmentation grenade. Goku kicks it back at him, and the explosion seemingly ends the world's most notorious assassin. With Tao defeated, Goku sets his sights on Red Ribbon Army Headquarters to recover the remaining Dragon Balls and fulfill his promise to revive Bora.

The moment Goku kicks the grenade back at Tao is the definitive end of the assassin's mystique. A man who killed with his tongue, rode pillars through the sky, and terrorized the world for twenty years is undone by his own cowardly last resort. His false surrender followed by the grenade toss reveals that beneath all his deadly skill, Tao has no honor whatsoever.

Korin's Masterful Deception

Korin's treatment of Tao is a brilliant piece of comedic justice. The nose-picking and spitting into the cup, the fake demonstration of the water's power, and the Dark Nimbus betrayal are all delivered with the deadpan calm of someone who has been reading minds for 800 years. Korin does not just deny Tao the Sacred Water; he humiliates him without Tao ever realizing it.

Mercenary Tao's defeat marks the end of Dragon Ball's first encounter with a truly elite-level opponent. His Crane Style Assassin Strike and Ultimate Final Strategy (the grenade) both debut and fail here. Though seemingly killed, Tao will return later as a cyborg during the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament.

Goku's decision to head directly for Red Ribbon Army Headquarters, alone, sets up the saga's climax. Rather than retreating to his friends for help, he charges forward on the Flying Nimbus with four Dragon Balls in tow, ready to take on an entire military organization by himself.