Warning! Contains spoilers for The Elusive Samurai Chapter 100!In many Shonen dance In the series, the main character gets awesome powers to make them stronger, but The Elusive Samurai just proved that a hero can be cooler by not getting an upgrade. The Elusive Samurai by Yusei Matsui is a Shonen that recounts the history of Japan’s Kenmu Restoration, following the story of the young warlord Hojo Tokiyuki. While based on real characters and events, this doesn’t stop the series from using classic Shonen stories, it does often twist these clichés to better fit the story. its.
In chapter #100, the legendary swordsmith Masamune makes special weapons for Tokiyuki’s subordinates to upgrade their fighting abilities. This is not the first time The Elusive Samurai has displayed unique weapons. However, when Tokiyuki requests a new weapon, Masamune refuses, stating that Tokiyuki is a monster that has yet to reach its full potential. He goes on to say that Tokiyuki’s fate is too great for one of his weapons to handle and when the boy leaves, he hopes that the young lord will live long enough for Masamune to improve enough to create a sword that matches it. This is a great subversion of the typical Shonen trope that really makes Tokiyuki look even cooler when he gets a new weapon.
Tokiyuki’s future potential is more interesting than upgrading
In many ways, this turning point makes sense because Tokiyuki has never fought in his battles in the typical way. He is a master of escape, who usually does not fight directly, instead, he dodges enemy attacks and inspires his troops and subordinates. So he doesn’t really need weapons, though he has used them in the past, even killing one of The Elusive Samurai’s biggest villains, Shokan, in a sword fight. Most of the major battles in the series focus on his subordinates or generals, who all have simpler fighting techniques. However, while Tokiyuki doesn’t receive a weapon here, Masamune’s ominous prediction implies that he will need a weapon later in the series.
Tokiyuki has led a revolt against the current shogunate that has been quite successful so far, but now the enemy’s large warriors are starting to take notice and join. He even attracts the unsettling attention of the main antagonist Ashikaga Takauji, an extremely powerful warrior. Against these enemies, just running away and inspiring the army may not be enough and Tokiyuki will likely have to join the battle on his own instead of just copying Naruto and using Talk no Jutsu. This will be a perfect spot for him to unleash his full potential and get a great upgrade that can help him win.
The Elusive Samurai uses its history to predict Tokiyuki’s potential
If The Elusive Samurai is true to history, then Tokiyuki will eventually be executed by Ashikaga’s forces. This may be the fate Masamune predicted, but Tokiyuki’s terrible ability to run away might even allow him to escape historical accuracy. no problem tokiyukihis potential really means, it’s only revealed when he doesn’t have a new weapon, which shows that sometimes Shonen dance Heroes can actually be more interesting when they don’t get upgrades.
The Elusive Samurai Chapter 100 available to read from Viz Media.
