'Boruto' Reveals Naruto's Biggest Sacrifice Yet

It looks like Naruto fans were right to be worried about how its founder is faring. The Boruto sequel may be about the oldest Uzumaki kid, but Naruto plays a big role the in anime. And, as fans just saw, the Seventh Hokage made a massive sacrifice.

So, if you haven't watched the latest episode of Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, you will want tissues coming into it.

Today, the latest episode of Boruto went live, and it was a doozy. Last week, fans watched as Naruto outed his son for cheating in the Chunin Exams, and the man seemingly stripped Boruto of his ninja rank. However, things went south when a host of Otsutsuki ninjas appeared. Momoshiki showed up at the exams to challenge Naruto, and the fight following the declaration was an intense one.

Of course, Naruto put up an intense fight as the Seventh Hokage. He teamed up with Sasuke to ward off the Otstsuki threat, but Kinshiki and Momoshiki were ready to fight dirty. The pair went after civilians and students to catch Naruto off guard, and the whole thing ended with the Hokage making a big sacrifice.

As the episode came to an end, fans watched as Naruto decided to give himself up to Momoshiki to save his home and family. With Sasuke protecting Boruto and Sarada, the Seventh Hokage laid down his arms. He told Sasuke to take care of everyone since he'd be gone, and the episode ended with Boruto screaming after his father as Naruto flashed his Nine-Tails Fox chakra. The self-sacrificial move left Hinata stunned as she ran to stop her husband, and Boruto was forced to watch his dad seemingly give his life for the village.

Of course, fans already know whether Naruto lives through this exchange. Not only does Momoshiki say they need the man taken alive, but this arc was adapted in Boruto: Naruto The Movie. When that movie went live, it informed fans that Naruto was simply taken hostage by the Otsutsuki bunch, and it doesn't seem likely that the anime will change such a big plot point.

For those unfamiliar with Naruto, it has quite a storied history. Originally created by Masashi Kishimoto, the series ran in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump for 700 chapters. The story follows Naruto, a young ninja with a sealed demon within him that wishes to become the leader of his home village. The sequel, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations is set several years after the events of the original Naruto story and featuring the children of many of its key characters such as Naruto and Hinata.

Boruto: Naruto Next Generations recently made TV Tokyo's list of Top 5 Anime in sales and profits, coming third in sales and fifth and profits. The anime has been such a success that the Naruto franchise as a whole stills holds a top spot in many anime profits rankings as well. The series even managed to cross 235 million copies of the manga sold worldwide. Boruto: Naruto Next Generations was even given a major bump of approval as it just took over a more familiar timeslot, airing in the same time and day that its predecessor Naruto: Shippuden once did.

Did this scene make you tear up? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics, k-pop, and anime!