Boruto Gets Vicious with Another Horrifying Death

Boruto: Naruto Next Generations fans have been waiting to see the anime return to adapting the events of the manga after 80 plus episodes of original anime content, and one of the main reasons why fans have been sticking with the anime for so long are the many benefits that come with adapting in the first place such as filling in some gaps left over from the original telling. The latest episode provides a strong example of this as it shows a particularly notable death that happened off screen in the original manga version of the Mujina Bandits arc.

Episode 149 of the series sees Boruto take on his first ninja student with the young Tento, and the two of them bond over Tento’s shuriken training. It’s here we’re fully introduced to his attendant Yamaoka, and we learn a little more about Tento through Yamaoka’s eyes. But there was no time to actually get attached to this character as he was killed off soon after.

There’s a brief scene in which Yamaoka heads into a secluded forest and is suddenly approached by a few shadowy figures. There’s one figure that has a notably recognizable silhouette, and by the end of the episode it’s revealed that Yamaoka was killed and his body was stolen by the Mujina Gang boss Shojoji.

The end of the Hozuki Castle arc revealed Shojoji has a technique that allows him to steal the body of whoever he chooses, and while we haven’t exactly seen how in the anime just yet, it’s not a secret that Yamaoka’s body was taken over by Shojoji by the end of the episode. This is a smart move for the anime as it added this scene to show the death in action. The manga’s version of the events revealed how Yamaoka was killed until much later, but there’s no point in pretending like fans didn’t just see Shojoji’s technique in action a couple of episodes ago. But what do you think?

Did you expect to see Yamaoka’s death play out like this? What are your thoughts on how the anime’s been treating the Mujina Bandits arc so far? What are you hoping to see over the next few episodes? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or talk to me directly about all things anime and other cool things @Valdezology on Twitter!