Future Trunks

Lore & Background

In a timeline where Goku succumbed to a heart virus, Future Trunks was raised by Bulma while secretly training under Gohan. After the Androids murdered Gohan three years later, Trunks awakened the Super Saiyan transformation in a rage, assuming the mantle of Earth's protector until his mother finished the time machine. He traveled back to give Goku medicine and share his story, but learned his actions only created a new future timeline; his original world remained unchanged. Returning to his own era, he defeated Androids 17 and 18, then later the Cell of his time. Years later, facing Goku Black (a rogue Supreme Kai named Zamasu), Trunks was provoked into a rage that unlocked Super Saiyan Rage. He gathered energy from all remaining life into his sword—the Spirit Bomb Sword—to cut Fusion Zamasu in half before Zeno erased the multiverse.

In Their Own Story

The ruins of West City stretch endlessly under a gray sky where the wind howls through broken skyscrapers. Future Trunks stands atop a collapsed highway, his green vest tattered by years of combat, gripping the hilt of his longsword mounted across his back. He is seventeen when he first appears in chapter #331, singlehandedly killing Frieza and King Cold. In his timeline, Androids 17 and 18 eradicated humanity after Goku's death; only Gohan survived until his own murder by the androids. Trunks trains for three years alone before returning to the past. There, he trains with Vegeta in the Room of Spirit and Time, achieving two new Super Saiyan grades (later abandoned due to speed loss) and eventually Super Saiyan 2. After Cell kills him in the present timeline's tournament, he is revived by Dragon Balls and returns home to defeat his era's threats. Later, stuck in the present after his time machine was destroyed, he reunites with adult Gohan and reformed Android #18. Provoked by Zamasu's claims that his time travel caused their actions, Trunks transforms into Super Saiyan Rage. Gathering energy from all surviving life on Earth, he channels it into his sword to cut Fusion Zamasu in half before escaping with Goku to a new future timeline.

Reader's Guide

Future Trunks is distinguished by his stoic determination and unique combat history. He achieved the Super Saiyan transformation as an early teen, unlike Present Trunks who gained it at age eight. His signature attacks include the Burning Attack and Super Buster Cannon. During training with Vegeta in the Room of Spirit and Time, he accessed two additional Super Saiyan grades that increased strength but severely reduced speed, leading him to abandon them after his fight with Cell. He later attained Super Saiyan 2 during battles against Babidi and Dabura. In Dragon Ball Super, he unlocked Super Saiyan Rage when enraged by Zamasu's accusations regarding time travel interference. His primary weapon is a longsword kept in a scabbard across his back; his main conveyance is the Bukū-jutsu flight technique, though he also pilots crafts from Capsule Corp, including the time machine. Unlike Present Trunks, he does not fuse with Goten but stands as Earth's sole protector for years.

Did You Know?

• Future Trunks was the first character to debut as a Super Saiyan in the series, achieving the form in his early teens.
• He abandoned two unique grades of Super Saiyan after discovering they decreased his speed despite increasing strength during his fight with Cell.
• His rage against Zamasu and Goku Black fueled a new transformation called Super Saiyan Rage, allowing him to cut Fusion Zamasu in half with the Spirit Bomb Sword.
• Unlike Present Trunks who fuses with Goten to become Gotenks, Future Trunks spent three years alone as Earth's sole protector after Gohan's death.
• The infant cries for Trunks in the original Japanese anime were provided by Hiromi Tsuru in an uncredited role.