Boruto Gives Kawaki a Terrifying New Power

Boruto: Naruto Next Generations manga chapter 39 picks up from the immediate aftermath of Naruto and Sasuke's epic battle with Kara leader Jigen. Shikamaru is understandably skeptical, as Naruto's disappearance just-so-happens to coincide with Jigen's young "vessel" Kawaki coming to stay at Naruto's house. Shikamaru locks down the Uzumaki household in a barrier seal, effectively placing Kawaki on house arrest. Kawaki acquiesces to the mandate from Shikamaru - that is until he gets a signal that Naruto is alive and well. Kawaki decides to lead his own rescue mission to recover Naruto, but to escape Shikamaru's cage, Kawaki must unlock a terrifying new power!

Warning: Boruto Chapter 39 SPOILERS Follow!

Naruto gave Kawaki his old prototype prosthetic hand, as replacement for the one Kawaki lost saving the Uzumaki family from Kara member Delta. The hand only operates when activated by Naruto's chakra, and since it had been inactive since Naruto's disappearance, Kawaki feared the worst. When the hand suddenly comes back online again, Kawaki realizes that Naruto must be alive and well. To get to Naruto (and away from Shikamaru), Kawaki enacts a bold plan: he manifest the Karma seal on his hand into an inky energy source, and recruits Boruto to do the same. The pair of them are able to manifest a space/time jutsu portal, as means of following Jigen to the dimension where he trapped Naruto.

Needless to say, both Kawaki and Boruto (and everyone onlooking) are shocked that this is even possible. He follows up that feat by single-handidly draining the chakra from Shikamaru's Shadow Paralysis jutsu, breaking its hold on him and Team 7 as they try to escape. As Kawaki is thinking it over, he comes to a startling realization:

"I'm finally starting to understand why Jigen chose me. I didn't want to admit it, but... In the end, I'm like him. It's the whole being on the same wave-length thing... Except it's nauseating but I can't deny it. Whatever he can do... I've got the ability to do too!"

So, for better or worse it seems that Kawaki is embracing the power that's inside him - an awakening that could quickly become a double-edged sword. Boruto's opening sequence showed a flash-forward scene of teenage Boruto and Kawaki battling in the ruins of Hidden Leaf, with their respective Karma seals much more elaborate and extensive than they are now. So maybe Kawaki leaning into his power isn't such a good thing, after all?

Originally created by Masashi Kishimoto for Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump in 1999, Naruto follows a young ninja, with a sealed demon within him, that wishes to become the leader of his home village. The series ran for 700 chapters overall, and was adapted into an anime series by Studio Pierrot and Aniplex that ran from 2002 to 2017. The series was popular enough to warrant a sequel, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations which is set several years after the events of the original Naruto story and features the children of many of its key characters such as Naruto and Hinata.