The following article contains spoilers for Boruto: Naruto Next Generations and Boruto: Two Blue Vortex.
Boruto: Two Blue Vortex is now heading towards a massive turning point, and as the number of Shinju Clones is going down with each new arc, soon the battle against Jura will come, and after, a brand-new villain will emerge. With so many things happening at the same time, there are many plotlines to explore.
However, the Mamushi Arc, which ended in Chapter 33, seems to have paved the way for one of the most anticipated twists in Boruto: the moment the protagonist shifts from a perceived villain to a genuine one. Nevertheless, there are several other narrative threads the series could pull on in the coming chapters.
10 Strongest Characters In Boruto, Ranked
From the father to the son and all of the many figures in between, these are the strongest characters in Boruto.
Why Jura Will Not Be Defeated So Soon
The Shinju Clones were the first enemies to be introduced in Boruto: Two Blue Vortex, and it seems clear that they will have to defeat each of them before finally taking Jura down. The Shinju Clones, or Human God Trees, are like an evolved version of Claw Grimes, molded from the Ten-Tails and Code’s Otsutsuki-related powers. Instead of mindlessly trying to consume foes, Shinju Clones possess some sort of self-awareness.
They are modeled after a template, a real human being that is consumed and sealed, becoming a God Tree. They seem to inherit some characteristics and the chakra signature of their templates. Each of them also has a target, and Jura’s target is the current Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails, Himawari Uzumaki, although he initially targeted Naruto (due to Naruto being the former Jinchuriki). In their core lies a Thornsoul, a mysterious object that persists even if their bodies are destroyed. The Thornsouls can be used to resurrect them, but it is also key to rescuing their template. If the victim used as the template is rescued, then the Clone is entirely gone.
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Originally, there were five Clones, but three have already been toppled. Two are deceased (Ryu and Matsuri), meaning their victims have been unsealed, and one, Mamushi, is incapacitated. Therefore, only Hidari, modeled after Sasuke, and Jura, modeled after the Ten-Tails, remain. The fate of Mamushi’s Thornsoul will likely be addressed in the next chapter, with fans expecting Bug, his template, to return. However, the Shinju Clones could make their moves before that.
In any case, Hidari is likely to be the next villain, and then Jura, the leader of the Shinju, will finally face his ultimate battle against Boruto and the others. We have already seen that the main characters are currently no match for Jura, so they will need some power-ups before defeating him. Furthermore, given the current situation, Konoha definitely needs some time to rebuild its defenses before they come up with a strategy to defeat him, which might be a great opportunity for Himawari to get more screen time. While it will still take some time before Jura is taken down, the story is already moving, offering plentiful plotlines for potential foes.
Boruto Seems Fated to Become a Villain
While Mamushi was not the strongest Shinju Clone, his ability to massively clone himself presented a huge challenge to the village in his hunt for Eida. With about 40 replicas of him raiding Konoha, Shikamaru had to arrange a major, albeit hidden, operation. Since this could not be done without Koji and Boruto’s help, Shikamaru had to keep it under wraps so as not to expose that he had joined forces with Boruto. However, Mamushi was so powerful that even those who hesitated to cooperate with Boruto ended up conceding.
But it was not only the shinobi from Konoha who had to make concessions. Boruto himself realized that he did not have the power to stand up against Mamushi, even with new techniques like Rasengan Uzuhiko and his own version of Flying Raijin. Mamushi not only outnumbered him with clones, but also every single one of them was incredibly powerful. Seeing himself cornered, Boruto turned to Momoshiki, who sealed inside of him. Despite having implanted his Karma in Boruto, Momoshiki was frustrated that he had no way to take control over Boruto’s body. Therefore, he is just there “sealed” inside him. Boruto then offered to make an agreement with him in exchange for borrowing his power.
Those blue eyes will one day take everything from you.
— Momoshiki in Boruto TBV
While the contents of their agreement are still a mystery, we know that Momoshiki accepted the offer. He was quite surprised by Boruto’s proposal, so it feels like their pact was something ominous. Given that Boruto knows his biggest battle for now is against all the terrible futures Koji Kashin has seen, it makes sense he would make a high-stakes offer. Since Momoshiki implanted his Karma in Boruto, Kawaki has feared that Momoshiki will eventually take control over his brother and thus wants to kill Boruto before it happens. As this was teased many times, fans also believe that it will eventually happen (or, at least, Momoshiki will attempt it). With this new pact, it seems even more likely that Kawaki’s fear will turn into reality, and it may be right after Jura is finally neutralized.
Code Is Still a Threat to Konoha
Since the story soon shifted its focus to the Shinju Clones, we haven’t seen much about Code since the early chapters. However, as the current leader of Kara, Code still poses a threat to Konoha and is very likely to return, even stronger, in the future, especially considering his will to evolve and become a Celestial Being. Given that he created the Shinju Clones, even if they slipped through his fingers and followed Jura instead of him, it might make some sense to shift the focus back to him after the Shinju are gone.
There are even a few fan theories about someone eventually releasing Code’s limiters. This way he would easily become stronger than Jura, thus making the perfect antagonist for the next arc. Well, once he stops being the pawn of everyone else, he might finally become a formidable enemy, although some might prefer him to get a redemption arc.
There Are More Suspicious Plotlines
The high stakes of these first arcs of Boruto: TBV have already accomplished two things: first, completely dismantling the power system of the franchise with shinjutsu and overpowered techniques like Uzuhiko and Ohirume; second, and perhaps more importantly, using the atmosphere of imminent danger to open many murky plotlines that seem fated to result in even more chaos and the emergence of new, powerful foes.
One of these is Kashin Koji himself. The story has clearly shown that, despite everything, Boruto doesn’t seem to fully trust him, and he is, in fact, quite a mysterious character. Koji was granted the power of Prescience, a shinjutsu that allows him to see the future, or at least a vast number of potential futures. After seeing nothing but destruction, Koji has been mentoring Boruto to avoid the cruel realities he can foresee. However, the latest chapters, especially Chapters 32 and 33, have cast a few doubts on how trustworthy Koji truly is, especially after trying to manipulate Inojin into killing Kobu, the Fire Daimyo’s right-hand man, with no real need for it. While this does not necessarily mean he will become an antagonist, Koji’s gray morals and manipulative attitude suggest he may have his own private reasons for trying to alter the future and that he may have lied about his visions, since no one else can know what he has actually seen. Therefore, there is ample opportunity for Koji to become an antagonist in the future.
Another potential threat is Akebi and her father, Amado Sanzu. Many fans are suspicious of how much Amado seems to know about the Otsutsuki, and some wonder if he is not somehow connected to Shibai. But what’s more alarming is how he convinced Kawaki to help him resurrect his daughter with Karma. Just like Boruto’s pact with Momoshiki, this promise is still to be fulfilled, but given both Kawaki’s past and powers and information Amado likely keeps to himself, it seems likely that this experiment will not end well, and his sweet daughter will come back as a powerful villain.
A Potential Final Villain Has Also Been Teased
Boruto has also already introduced a character that seems to be the perfect candidate for becoming the final villain of the story. Boruto himself has stated many times in TBV that the Otsutsuki clan is the biggest threat to the Earth and has also vowed to wipe them all out. Meanwhile, in Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, Amado revealed that there was once an Otsutsuki so vastly powerful that he was deemed a god among his clan. That was Shibai Otsutsuki, whom he believes to have been able to leave his mortal body, ascending into godhood on a higher plane.
Given how terrifying he is believed to be, it’s hard to imagine the series ending without Shibai making an appearance. In fact, that would be quite disappointing, since fans are eager to see him in action. However, given the extent of his power, he can’t take the stage right now, so he will probably be the final villain of the manga.
Boruto
- Release Date
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April 5, 2017
- Network
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TV Tokyo