‘Boruto’ Shares Big ‘Naruto’ Vibe With New Missing-Nin

Naruto has done its plenty to separate itself from Boruto as the sequel has grown, but there are some comparisons fans can’t overlook. After all, it looks like one big plot point is connecting the stories, but the missing-nin scare might not be what fans think.

Seriously, isn’t one Sasuke Uchiha enough?!

Recently, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations got fans buzzing when its latest episode set up a new arc. With the Chunin Exams over, Team 7 is getting back into their rhythm, but Mitsuki is here to scrub the flow once again. In fact, the boy seems to have left the Leaf Village, leaving fans scared the boy is about to pull a Sasuke and abandon his village.

Right now, the evidence against Mitsuki doesn’t look great. As the anime’s 71st episode comes to an end, fans watch Mitsuki carefully enter his apartment before he finds a mysterious letter left for him. The paper is burned by the boy shortly afterwards, and the scene cuts to the Leaf Village gates. Two men are seen guarding the door, and they come under attack not long afterwards.

The scene doesn’t show who attacks the duo, but they seen a Leaf Village headband fall to the ground. A moment later, a lightning-based jutsu is used, and the show’s preview for next week sees one of those guards laid up in the hospital. The edit makes it seem like Mitsuki is the one to attack the men as he leaves the Leaf Village, and the preview only pushes that agenda as it talks about the boy’s disappearance.

However, fans of the manga know there is little to worry about with Mitsuki. The boy may have disappeared for now, but he is still around. Even is Mitsuki is conflicted about his own existence, he seems to hold Boruto and the village in high esteem. For now, fans are convinced his disappearance nothing to do with the savage attack on the gate guards, and it will fall upon Team 7 to convince their comrades of Mitsuki’s innocence.

How do you think Mitsuki is going to come back from this twist? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics and anime!

Originally created by Masashi Kishimoto, Naruto ran in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump for 700 chapters. The story follows 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 even 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.