Is Naruto Responsible for Boruto’s Disgrace?

The latest episode of Boruto: Naruto Next Generations is all about the attempt to rescue Naruto from the clutches of Momoshiki and Kinshiki Otsutsuki, before the villains can completely drain the chakra of Nine-Tails from his body. However, before we got the action highlights of Sasuke, The Five Kages and Boruto throwing down with the Otsutsuki, there was enough time for Naruto to do some important thinking.

After reflecting back on various moment from the Boruto series leading up to this, Naruto decides that he plays a bigger role in Boruto’s recent disgrace at the Chunin Exams, than he’d maybe like to admit. Naruto revisits the moments where Boruto distinguished himself on a mission, or displayed great potential (like the Byakugan), only to have those matters brushed off or overlooked by his father. That realization weighs on Naruto, and when he finally reunites with this son, he has the following apology:

“Boruto… I’m sorry for everything up until now. by trying to protect you and everyone in the village… I ended up ignoring my family… And I didn’t even try to understand you. When I was a kid, I wanted attention too, and kept getting into mischief. I’m the last guy who has the right to lecture you.”

It’s admittedly a breakthrough moment for father and son, but it does beg a larger question: Is Naruto actually responsible for Boruto’s disgrace? Or is Boruto the one who deserves to shoulder the weight of blame for his own actions?

This subplot of Boruto actually touches upon real social study of so-called “great men” or “great leaders” throughout history, and the common dichotomy of family vs. duty that they struggled with. It’s why certain major leaders (George Washington, Abraham Lincoln) never had families of their own – and why so many others are revealed to have had complicated relationships with their children (to put it mildly), due to a perceived lack of attention and care in face of other obligations. There is no right answer to the dilemma – just the perspective you take on it.

On the one hand, Naruto Uzmaki always wanted to become the Hokage, and never had a proper family of his own growing up – certainly not his father, to serve as example. It’s hard to fault him for doing his duty as Lord Hokage, knowing what kind of threats are out there – especially since it was Naruto’s watchful eye and Sasuke’s investigative prowess that first uncovered the new Otsutsuki threat. At the same time, it’s easy to make the argument that protecting a village without also nurturing and protecting your own family is a case of putting the art before the horse. It clearly spurned Boruto into angry rebellion, which led him to accept other father figures as guides, be it a wise and demanding teacher like Sasuke, or the manipulative Katasuke Tono, who sacrificed Boruto’s honor in order to further his own scientific agenda.

What’s nice about the series is that it doesn’t make any easy assertion about whether Naruto or Boruto is “wrong,” but instead has both father and son weigh their side of the blame. After hearing his father’s apology, Boruto makes one of his own, stating:

“I don’t anything about you, Dad… Actually… I wanted to know all the time. But my pride held me back, and I didn’t try to see your side… and kept pushing back at you… But now… I want to know. So… It’s fine the way it’s been. Yeah… It’s okay to keep things just as they were… Just… When you have time, instead of lecturing me… I want you to tell me stories from your past.”

Naruto agrees with a handshake, hopefully turning around the downward trend in their father/son dynamic. After all: he doesn’t want to end up with Goku levels of “bad dad” karma!

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Do you think Naruto is responsible for Boruto bieng such a punk for so long? Or is Boruto just a brat that’s finally getting some much-needed maturity? Let us know how you feel in the comments!

Catch Boruto: Naruto Next Generations streaming every week on Crunchyroll or Hulu.