The sword used by Future Trunks is one of the most interesting items in the Dragon Ball franchise, but the Dragon Ball Super manga completely skipped its coolest power. While the origins of the sword are sort of a mystery (having different stories in the anime, movie, and manga), the weapon makes Trunks stand out from his fellow fighters, who prefer a hand-to-hand approach to combat. The sword’s greatest power, however, was only seen in the Dragon Ball Super anime.
Future Trunks’ sword appeared for the first time in the Dragon Ball Z manga when Trunks used it to defeat Frieza and his father King Cold. After the end of the Androids Saga, that version of Trunks returned to his future, along with his sword. The item was shown again in the non-canon movie Dragon Ball Z: Wrath of the Dragon, and then in Dragon Ball Super, when the Saiyan made his return during the “Future” Trunks Saga. However, the anime put a lot more focus on the weapon, making it instrumental in the defeat of the evil god Zamasu, while the manga did not. In that part of the story, Goku, Vegeta, and the other warriors of Earth have to fight against two versions of the evil and deranged Kai Zamasu, one from another universe, who steals Goku’s body becoming Goku Black, and one from Trunks’ future timeline.
At the height of the final battle, the two Zamasu merge using their Potara earrings, becoming Fused Zamasu, a creature of unrivaled power. In episode #66, of the anime, Future Trunks unconsciously begins to absorb the energy of Earth’s survivors inside his sword, with a technique similar to Goku’s Spirit Bomb, creating the Sword of Hope. With that weapon, Trunks, in his Super Saiyan Rage form, slices Zamasu in half, killing his mortal form. In the manga, instead, Zamasu’s fusion ends because of its time limit, as seen in chapter #25 of Dragon Ball Super, but the two are unable to completely defuse because they were originally the same being. In that moment of weakness, Trunks cuts him in half. However, this proves to not be enough, as Fused Zamasu regenerates and easily shatters Trunks’ sword.
Trunks’ Sword Channels His Real Power
The anime places a lot more focus on Trunks, making him the real protagonist of this saga. The manga (which followed the anime, for this part of the story) had to necessarily make some cuts and change the story slightly to make it shorter. It is an unintended but still negative consequence that, in the manga, Trunks did not get his chance to shine during the battle against Fused Zamasu. While the “Spirit Bomb” is an often-recycled trope in Dragon Ball, this time it was different and more interesting because it’s connected to an iconic feature of Trunks’ character. The way that, in the anime, Trunks first repaired his broken sword using his ki and then used it to absorb everyone’s energy, puts a new spin on one of Goku’s classic techniques. It also proved that, when Goku and Vegeta failed, Trunks stepped in and saved his timeline, fulfilling his role as the last surviving hero.
Differences between manga and anime are inevitable and, most of the time, they create interesting variations on the same story. On this occasion, however, the Dragon Ball Super manga missed a great chance to show the unique powers of Future Trunks and his sword, and to make one of the franchise’s most appreciated characters prove his worth.
