Highlights
- Boruto's status as a fugitive in Konoha means he may be blacklisted in other Hidden Villages as well, making everyone a potential enemy.
- The Ten-Tails poses a significant danger to Boruto, as fellow Karma user Code wants to use him to achieve godhood.
- Despite possessing unique abilities like the Jogan, Boruto's limited chakra reserves and lack of special abilities hinder him in combat against stronger opponents.
If there’s anything Boruto: Two Blue Vortex has shown Naruto fans so far, it’s that Boruto Uzumaki has the same fighting spirit his father Naruto has had despite facing adversity. With the ending of Boruto practically reversing Boruto and Kawaki’s roles, the now-fugitive Boruto makes his way back to Konoha and comes face to face with people who once treated him as family.
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Holding a sterner expression and a more serious exterior, Boruto became a more serious teenager in his equivalent of Naruto Shipudden compared to cheerful Naruto. However, even if he possesses unique traits such as the Jogan, the Karma, and his Vanishing Rasengan, Boruto has weaknesses that his opponents can still exploit.
8 Everyone Can Be An Enemy
Now that Boruto is practically a fugitive in Konoha after Naruto and Hinata’s disappearance, Shikamaru’s promotion as the Hokage is likely announced to other Hidden Villages. Unfortunately for the Boruto protagonist, this means he’s likely going to be blacklisted in most other locations as well.
Of course, since Kawaki’s Omnipotence Wish simply reverses their places, Boruto could simply “Talk no Jutsu” his way back into a person’s good side with enough effort. However, this does mean potentially having to fight them even before he has a chance to talk. Unfortunately, Boruto likely doesn’t have the skills to contend with some of the Hidden Villages’ strongest, which besides Kage-rankers such as Gaara and Kakashi could include the likes of Orochimaru.
7 Quite Literally The Ten-Tails Target
Building upon the fact that Boruto potentially has the entirety of the Shinobi World on his tail, the missing-nin also faces active danger in the form of the Ten-Tails. Although still in its infancy in another dimension, fellow Karma user Code has a particular interest in Boruto as he’s the only “full” Otsutsuki in the immediate vicinity.
Theoretically, feeding Boruto to the Ten-Tails will help it reach maturity, transforming it into a God Tree that consumes all chakra and may allow Code himself to ascend into godhood. Again, having quite a target on his back can make Boruto a liability to the Shinobi World itself. As Shikamaru stipulated with Amado and Naruto, the potential dangers of a revived Ten-Tails far outweigh Boruto having to live.
6 Chakra Is Still Limited
Prodigious as Boruto might be, the 7th Hokage’s son is far from being as durable as Naruto in combat. What makes Naruto quite the formidable ninja in his series isn't solely due to main character syndrome, but rather the circumstances of his birth. On top of the massive chakra that Naruto's Kurama half provides is his Uzumaki heritage of excellent chakra control, allowing him to use taxing techniques with ease. This explains Naruto's penchant to Shadow Clone and Rasengan his way past most opponents.
Unfortunately for Boruto, his Hyuga genes have filtered the Uzumaki's hereditary chakra reserves and chakra mastery. And with no Tailed Beast inside him, Boruto may begin every combat with limited chakra. While Boruto may have developed tricks up his sleeves like the Vanishing Rasengan, lacking the resources to last for longer periods of combat may prove disastrous to the protagonist.
5 No Resurrections This Time
A major tipping point in Boruto’s storyline is the realization that Boruto and Kawaki’s designations as Karma possessors will facilitate Otsutsuki's resurrections. Kawaki was supposedly Isshin’s backup, whereas Boruto was Momoshiki’s lifeline. Kawaki’s lethal blow to Boruto forced Momoshiki to use a majority of his essence to heal the child. This effectively ruins his plans to get resurrected via Boruto’s body, but sharing consciousness with Boruto is better than dying altogether.
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However, this means Boruto has become 100% Otsutsuki, potentially being able to brand someone with a Karma as well to facilitate his own “resurrection.” The question now becomes: if Boruto dies with another as a Karma possessor, do they become Boruto, become Boruto with Momoshiki as a stowaway consciousness, or the original Momoshiki?
4 Momoshiki Remains A Liability
While the prospect of Momoshiki fully taking over a resurrected Boruto is already a problem for the Naruto successor, things become more hectic considering the nature of their relationship. Despite benefiting from one physical form, Momoshiki lacks the same shackles as Kurama had when he was still a hostile entity in Naruto’s body.
The lack of these restraints can have Momoshiki take control and wreak havoc, as demonstrated during the fight with Isshiki and prior to Boruto’s initial death at the hands of Kawaki. With Ada’s Omnipotence transforming the entirety of the world into an enemy, it’s possible that another Momoshiki rampage is just a few issues away.
3 His Karma May Be Limited
Introduced as a plot device in Boruto, the Karma effectively embeds a part of a dying Otsutsuki’s soul into the possessor and slowly shapes them into an Otsutsuki vessel. In the process, the Karma seal grants its users Otsutsuki-esque abilities such as enhanced combat prowess and even the ability to absorb any chakra-based attack.
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However, while all Karma wielders (Boruto, Kawaki, Code) are using the ability without full interference from their respective hosts, Momoshiki converting Boruto into a “full” Otsutsuki may have limited his access to Karma abilities. Unless Momoshiki teaches Boruto the power of seal-less Shinjutsu, Boruto has to deal with the possibility of setbacks such as a limitation to power absorption before overloading.
2 No Special Abilities Hinder Combat
Building upon the reality that Boruto likely has to fight two Karma users, Naruto’s son is unfortunately outclassed by the Boruto characters from the perspective of additional abilities. Kawaki has been modified on a cellular level to use Scientific Ninja Tools to transform virtually any part of his body into bioweapons. Meanwhile, Code’s DNA infused with the remains of Shibai Otsutsuki grants him access to Claw Marks, special bands that enable him to travel instantaneously to where they are placed.
With Karma being able to absorb chakra, Boruto can only rely on his physical prowess or environment-based attacks to fight the other two Karma users. This caveat severely reduces Boruto’s combat options at the onset, unless the time skip provides him with an ace up his sleeve.
1 The Jogan Remains A Mystery
While the powerful Karma has become a familiar component among Boruto’s major characters, Boruto supposedly has one tool up his sleeve that the others don’t simply possess: the Jogan. While cited as a more “troublesome” dojutsu than Otsutsuki staples (Rinnegan, Sharingan, Byakugan), the Jogan has yet to offer anything unique in the manga.
Its only recognizable difference from usual dojutsu is its capability to see barriers between dimensions and being usable despite Boruto’s eye being stabbed. However, its only other capabilities include seeing the chakra network in the body like the Byakugan. This makes the current Jogan inferior to even the full tomoe basic Sharingan that can still copy techniques and create illusions.