Boruto Shares Kawaki's Dark Diagnosis

Boruto: Naruto Next Generations' latest chapter continued the long saga against the mysterious group Kara, and throughout the last several chapters fans have learned more about Kawaki as he lives with the Uzumaki family and continues to fight alongside Team 7. He had grown a close bond with Naruto as the two of them realized how alike they were with one another, and Naruto even made this bond more tangible when he offered Kawaki a replacement prosthetic arm fueled by his own chakra. But while this helped Kawaki at that time, it seems this is only hurting Kawaki a bit more.

With Kawaki and the rest of Team 7 recover following their battle with Boro in Jigen's other dimension, Kawaki is revealed to be the worse off after the fight. As Katasuke explains, Kawaki's body is beginning to deteriorate after having Naruto's chakra infused prosthetic hand attached to his body for so long. It's like his body is rejecting it.

Chapter 44 sees Katasuke break down the news to Kawaki as they continue to figure out just how Kawaki's scientific ninja tool enhanced body actually works. He theorizes that it could be an adverse reaction to having Naruto's incompatible chakra laced prosthetic, and the forcing of its use is making Kawaki's nanomachine infused bloodstream wear his body down as the two entities fight one another.

He mentions that Kawaki's physical functions will continue to decline little by little, and he'll continue to have the chronic muscular pain he's been having. Katasuke also confirms that because they know so little about how his body works, there's nothing they can do for him but offer the same pain killers that Kawaki refuses to take. It's a reflection of how Kawaki's growth in the series will continue to be challenged.

As he's one of the vessels for the Otsutsuki Clan, he's been built with an indestructible kind of body that could withstand the clan's power. But Kawaki himself has been fighting against this fate, and it seems that this fight has a physical toll to go along with the emotional one. Kawaki can continue to press forward now, but his body is clearly marked with a time limit in which he'll have to make a decision about his future.

What do you think of this grim prognosis for Kawaki? Does this mean he'll begin to change how he's doing things going forward? What does it mean for the flash forward where an adult Kawaki fights an adult Boruto in the ruins of the Hidden Leaf Village? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or talk to me directly about all things anime and other cool things @Valdezology on Twitter!