Boruto: Naruto Next Generations was a sequel to Naruto and, now, a sequel to this manga, called Boruto: Two Blue Vortex, has finally been released. Both stories focus on the life of Boruto Uzumaki and the next generation of ninjas. However, the fact that both of these series are built on the world that was created by Naruto Uzumaki, who is still the face of the series, meant that Naruto and his close associates, such as Sasuke, would receive massive roles in the story.
Both Naruto and Sasuke have been somewhat relevant in Boruto, however, as the series progressed, their roles have started to diminish. In fact, it can now be said that the Boruto series has failed Naruto Uzumaki, the person who made it possible for the series to even exist and is the only reason why it is popular in the first place.
Naruto's Role As The Seventh Hokage In Boruto
One of the most exciting things about Boruto during its beginning phase was that fans were excited to see Naruto Uzumaki as the Hokage of the village. As sad as it is, fans barely got to see Naruto as the Hokage in his own series. In the Naruto manga, Naruto became the Hokage towards the end of the series in the very last chapter and it barely lasted for a bunch of pages before the series wrapped up. The anime was even worse as it didn't even get to show Naruto becoming the Hokage. Instead, the Naruto anime ended with his marriage to Hinata at a time when he wasn't even the Hokage in the first place, which was really a bizarre way for the story to conclude.
As such, fans turned to Boruto to see their favorite take on the position of Hokage and live his lifelong dream. It would only make sense for them to focus more on Naruto Uzumaki, given that he was now getting to know the true responsibilities of being a Kage and, at the same time, living out his lifelong dream that he grew up with. Of course, the series was still about Boruto Uzumaki and the next generation of ninjas, however, at the same time, fans fully expected the series to respect its legendary figures, such as Naruto and Sasuke, and even the likes of Sakura, Rock Lee, Hinata, among many others. Sadly, as the series has continued, it has become clear that it has failed not just the side cast, which was already expected, to begin with, but also, surprisingly, Naruto Uzumaki as well.
How Naruto Was Cruelly Stripped Of His Power
Naruto Uzumaki was somewhat relevant at the beginning of the story, however, the more the plot progressed, the more he lost his importance. Naruto was first stripped of importance by taking his powers away. Fans know Naruto Uzumaki to have been the strongest ninja of all time. He gained tremendous power during the 4th Great Ninja War and, as he grew up, he only solidified this power even further. In Boruto, his power was considerably waning. Not only did he waste away quite a lot of his powers by just sitting at the Hokage desk without training usually, but, what's even worse is that the author had a strongest source of power, Kurama, die.
In the fight against Isshiki, Naruto ended up tapping into the power of Baryon Mode and this power led to the death of Kurama. Naruto was able to overwhelm Isshiki in combat and this was the last time that he was significantly relevant to the plot of the story. After the fight was concluded, Naruto lost Kurama and his role diminished ever since. Naruto became a liability in his own world where he should have been the strongest and the protector of the world, given that he was the child of prophecy.
Naruto: 5 Powers That Rival Baryon Mode
Baryon mode is extremally powerful. These abilities can rival it.
When Code attacked the village, it was quite clear that Naruto was simply a hindrance to the next generation in many ways. They wanted to protect him and they didn't think of him as weak, however, it was quite clear that in a confrontation with these powerful monsters, Naruto would end up dying and this was really surprising for the fans.
Naruto's Diminished Role In Boruto
From the point that Naruto ended up losing his powers to where the story is right now, Naruto has largely been irrelevant. Of course, the plot still spins around Naruto Uzumaki in some ways, given that he's sealed away and there needs to be a rescue led for him, however, he isn't actively involved in the plot anymore. Essentially, he was nerfed severely by the author of the story simply because he wanted to give the limelight to the next generation. While some may think of it as not that big of a deal, since Boruto is about the next generation of ninjas to begin with, it is clearly not the proper approach that an author should take.
Butchering one character, especially the one that forms the basis of the entire world, for the sake of the next generation is never right. The author should be skilled enough to find a way where Boruto gets his shine, as do the side characters of the new generation, and Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha, and Sakura, among all the other side characters from Naruto that are present in the story are respected as well. Unfortunately, that was not to be.
Instead, the author used the method of weakening Naruto tremendously and making a fool out of him on many occasions to give a pedestal for the next generation to showcase their powers. What's even worse, Naruto was completely cut out of the story once he was sealed away by Kawaki. It has been almost a year since Naruto was sealed away and it is likely going to continue this way for quite a while.
Will Naruto Be Relevant In Boruto Again?
The question of whether Naruto will ever be relevant in Boruto again or not is a very big one and something that the fans think of with each passing chapter of Boruto. Of course, fans would love to see Naruto be relevant once again, however, based on what they have seen in the story so far, Naruto is likely not ever going to be as strong as he once was. This isn't just about strength, however. Naruto has a very minor role to play in the story from here onwards and fans have every right to fear that he will never be as relevant to the plot as he was before. Boruto has strayed from its proper path and, from here onwards, all the focus will be on the likes of the cyborgs created by Amado, along with the likes of Boruto and Kawaki, who are at the center of it all. Even if Naruto Uzumaki is freed, the chances of him receiving a proper role in the ongoing arcs of the story are very low.
That said, the chances are certainly not zero. If the author does, in fact, decide to give Naruto a bigger role and ways to compensate for his loss of power, then fans can once again expect the series to be respectful towards the 7th Hokage. Even if he isn't compensated for his power, Naruto should receive bigger roles in Boruto, as should many other side characters, especially those of the Konoha 11, in the Boruto series. Whether that will happen or not is something that fans will have to wait to see.
Boruto is available to read via Viz Media. The series can be read by the fans officially and for free on the Shonen Jump and the Manga Plus app. The release date for the next chapter of Boruto, Boruto part 2 chapter 4, is set to be November 20, 2023.