Namekian fusion: how does Dragon Ball's assimilation work?

Namekian fusion was the first type of fusion we saw in Dragon Ball, and it's one I find fascinating. Since it first appeared, we've learned some interesting things about it. Its name, how its power works, what happens to the soul of the Namekian who gives himself up, and whether it can ever be undone all deserve a closer look.

The first point is that it isn't really called Namekian fusion at all.

Namekian fusion is officially called Namekian assimilation

The technique is properly called Namekian assimilation. In fact, the guidebooks describe it simply as assimilation. It isn't called fusion, but it is fusion. The series just wouldn't use the term fusion until many years later.

The first time we saw Namekian assimilation was on Planet Namek, in Dragon Ball manga chapter 295, titled "An Unexpected Super Power Up." In the anime, it happens in Dragon Ball Z episode 77 and Dragon Ball Kai episode 37.

In those chapters and episodes, Piccolo discovers Nail on the brink of death after his fight with Frieza. Nail recognizes Piccolo as the Namekian the Earthlings had spoken of, the one who had gone to Earth. A big part of Piccolo's story in this arc is that he's rediscovering his birthright and learning more about himself. That began when Nappa and Vegeta revealed he was a Namekian, of Namekian blood, and not just a demon like we had originally thought. That was a Toriyama retcon, but a good one.

Piccolo and Nail's fusion had no set multiplier

In this chapter we find out that Namekians are born with a mysterious power. They can power themselves up by becoming one with an ally. They gain incredible power, and they also gain the memories of that ally.

One of the mysterious things about Namekian fusion is that there's no set multiplier. I think Toriyama did this on purpose because he didn't want to overthink the power levels or the scaling. In theory, Nail's power added to Piccolo's, or even multiplied by Piccolo's, might not be enough to beat second form Frieza, whose power level was over a million.

It works here because it's a magic, mystery technique. That's how Toriyama got around the problem. If you apply any kind of multiplier, it wouldn't make sense unless you just ballpark it. So it's best not to overthink the scaling of Namekian fusion.

Nail's memories and soul live on inside Piccolo

The first time Piccolo references having Nail's memories is during the fight with second form Frieza. He smiles at Frieza and tells him, more or less, that he knows his technique and how he fights. That was Nail speaking through Piccolo.

That's something I've always found interesting, and Team Four Star made a running joke out of it, a very funny one. In their version, when you fuse with a Namekian, they're still inside you and, in a weird way, still alive.

This is all theory, but it makes sense to me. The soul of that Namekian is fused with yours. So when Piccolo died later on in the Buu arc, his soul was not just his soul. It was also Nail's soul, because they had merged into one. You merge mind, body and spirit, an idea taken from Buddhist and Taoist beliefs. We can't fuse in real life, but this is where the core idea Toriyama put in the series comes from. Think of it as the two literally becoming one being, in mind, body and spirit.

The way TFS has them always talking to each other also makes some sense, because I've wondered since I was a kid whether they have conversations. Does Piccolo Jr. still talk to Piccolo Sr.? I assume not, because he's not a demon anymore, but it's fun to think about.

Namekian assimilation is permanent, unless something can reverse it

The guidebooks state that by deciding in advance who will become the personality of the merged body, Namekians can determine whose body it will be afterwards. You don't just fuse and make a new being. You give your soul up to somebody else and cease to exist as an individual. You're no longer yourself. You're part of someone else, and they're in control. That's a scary thought, but for Namekians it seems to be a normal thing.

We later found out in Dragon Ball Super that the Universe 7 Namekians aren't the only ones with this power. It's a Universe 6 Namekian ability too.

The guidebooks also state that the two can never return to being their former selves. With the introduction of the Super Dragon Balls, which are limitless in theory, you'd assume they could defuse them. Maybe even the Earth Dragon Balls could, though I'm not entirely sure they're powerful enough. The Super Dragon Balls could do it, though.

In the Dragon Ball Super manga, Vegeta learned Forced Spirit Fission, a technique from the Yardrats. Apparently it can defuse Namekian fusion, or so he says. If that's the case, it would be a way to reverse Namekian assimilation.

As for Piccolo and Nail, the fusion gave Piccolo a power up that let him fight second form Frieza for a while, until Frieza transformed and Piccolo had no chance.

Piccolo and Kami's fusion reunited the Nameless Namekian

Later in the series came an even more powerful and insightful merger: Piccolo fusing with Kami, the god of Earth. We were told earlier in the series that King Piccolo, the demon king who was Piccolo's version of himself before reincarnation, once shared the same body as Kami.

They came to Earth many years ago as the child of Katas. That child had no name and is called the Nameless Namekian. To ascend to being the Kami of Earth, he had to expel all his evil. That evil manifested as its own consciousness and became King Piccolo. Piccolo Jr. had reformed his ways and wanted to fuse with Kami again to gain his ultimate power.

Nail was stronger than Kami in physical power. We know that for certain. But Kami was literally the other half of Piccolo, so their fusion created an ultimate being, stronger than Imperfect Cell when we first see him and stronger than the androids, or at least close to their level.

Once again, there's no set multiplier. It doesn't matter how strong the person you merge with is. You get a power up, and it presumably depends on other factors, like what clan you're from, or in this case, the fact that the two used to be one very powerful being.

Saonel and Pirina took Namekian fusion further in the Tournament of Power

Dragon Ball Multiverse, the fan manga, introduced the concept of a Namekian fusing with a large number of Namekians to create an incredibly powerful character. We don't know for sure whether Dragon Ball Super got the idea from Multiverse. Some people think so, but maybe not. It could be a coincidence.

Either way, Dragon Ball Super upped the ante with Saonel and Pirina, two Namekians from Team Universe 6. They revealed they had fused with a large number of Namekians from the Universe 6 Planet Namek. We don't have the exact number, but it gave them a huge power boost to compete with Universe 7's fighters and the others in the tournament.

There's a very interesting twist here. Because they fused with so many Namekians, it must have happened shortly before the tournament began. They couldn't use all that power until their bodies stabilized later on, which is when they got a huge boost while fighting Gohan and Piccolo. Piccolo merging with one person gave him a boost right away, but merging with many people in a short span means your body needs time to stabilize. That's pretty interesting if you ask me.

We also see a little Namekian fusion during the Moro arc, where Namekians fuse together to combat Moro. They didn't win, but it was still a good try.

Kami's knowledge shaped Piccolo's fights against Cell and Buu

The fusion with Kami gave Piccolo knowledge of things he otherwise had no idea about. When he confronted Imperfect Cell, playing possum to get information out of Cell was Kami's idea, Kami's tactic.

In the Buu saga, the fusion meant Piccolo had knowledge of the god hierarchy. That's why he knew who Kaioshin, the Supreme Kai, was. On his own he would have had no idea. Because he had Kami's memories and knowledge, he recognized the Supreme Kai and was surprised to see him on Earth.

Piccolo and Kami became a Super Namekian

Super Namekians are a class in Namekian society, a legendary warrior similar to a Super Saiyan. It's the same concept, except there aren't many Super Namekians, just as there aren't many Super Saiyans.

When Piccolo and Kami fused, they were referred to as a Super Namekian, because the child of Katas had been classified as a Super Namekian long ago. At that point, Super Namekian Piccolo's power was way beyond a regular Super Saiyan, and he was stronger than all the Super Saiyans of that time. Vegeta, Trunks, Goku and Gohan would surpass him once they trained, but right after the fusion he was the strongest Z Fighter.

It's a class system, but it's a similar idea to the Super Saiyan: a legendary warrior with great power. The same concept works here as well.