Boruto: Naruto Next Generations has just started one of the most fan-anticipated arcs of the series with the Chunin Exams, and the series is layering one mystery over another.
As the series catches up with Gaara, fans learn that the One-Tailed Beast Shukaku is still connected with him and are wondering whether or not Gaara has become a Jinchuriki once again.
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When the Otsutsuki Clan remnants make their way to Earth, they completely defeat Killer Bee. Even when he takes on the form of his Eight-Tailed Beast, he is still overwhelmed and is absorbed by the scary new pair of Momoshiki and Kinshiki. When this happens, the series cuts to Gaara as Shukaku warns him of what happens.
Explaining that the tie between he and the Eight-Tailed Beasts has been severed, he warns Gaara that something is definitely wrong. The way the two talk seems like it’s been awhile since the last time they had spoken, which could debunk the Jinchuriki theory, but it could also be that Shukaku has just been dormant this entire time.
Fans remember Gaara losing his ties to Shukaku during Naruto: Shippuden as he was the first Jinchuriki captured and sacrificed in order to summon the Ten-Tailed Beast. While the series had never confirmed whether or not Shukaku had returned to Gaara after the war, this does give a clue that this is certainly the case.
There is visual evidence to this as well as his conversation with Shukaku takes place inside of the same headspace that Killer Bee and Gyuki held their conversations in the very same episode. It’s also a visual call back to Naruto’s many conversations with his own beat, Kurama.
If Gaara is indeed a Jinchuriki again, it seems he’s going to have as much of a target on his back as Killer Bee and Naruto. Although he’s not one of the Jinchuriki the Otsutsuki Clan are aware of, it’s not a clear debunk either.
For those unfamiliar with Boruto’s predecessor Naruto, it has quite a storied history. Originally created by Masashi Kishimoto, the series ran in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump for 700 chapters. The story follows Naruto, 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.
Is Gaara a Jinchuriki? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or talk to me @Valdezology!
