“Boruto: Two Blue Vortex” Manga Issue 17 Review: Wild Beast Cubs

Boruto Two Blue Vortex manga issue 17, titled ‘Wild Beast Cubs’, offered more information about the nature of the humanoid Shinju and the strategy required to defeat them.

With Konohamaru, Salad, and Mitsuki making their way to meet with Araya and Yodo to save Shinki and Gaara in the previous chapter, ‘Wild Beast Cubs’ continued to show their teamwork. Of course, Konohamaru was taking the lead with the plan being to separate Ryu and Matsuri. Fighting and managing to defeat both Shinju at once was more or less impossible for the good guys at this point.

I liked how chapter 17 utilized flashbacks to show Konohamaru’s conversation with Shikamaru before heading out on the current mission. Due to all of the information Shikamaru had gained about the Shinju from Kashin Koji and Boruto’s frogs, Shikamaru had begun to think of the powerful beings as wild beast cubs (as stated in the title of this month’s issue).

The Shinju were infant-like. They weren’t inherently evil. However, due to being creatures of instinct, their immense power was a threat to humankind. Shikamaru’s plan involved appealing to the Shinju’s curious nature and exploiting the strong connection they felt with certain humans. With Konohamaru being sent to confront Matsuri, Shikamaru ordered him to use Matsuri’s crush on Konohamaru to his advantage. Konohamaru was to gain Matsuri’s trust and then stab her in the back.

Shikamaru did realize his orders were harsh and that Naruto would have come up with another strategy to subdue the Shinju. But then again, the fate of humanity was on the line. Also, we have to remember that Shikamaru was acting on what Kashin Koji had foreseen. Konohamaru, Mitsuki, and Salad were supposed to be the ninjas to interact with Ryu and Matsuri to increase the likelihood of the best possible future unfolding. It wasn’t the ideal scenario like the way fighting a single Shinju would have been, but the good guys were running out of time. They had to act.

Pretending to be Konoha ninjas who were tracking down the traitorous Boruto, I liked how Konohamaru’s presence immediately made Matsuri blush. The Shinju didn’t understand the emotions she felt just by looking at Konohamaru. Her shyness forced Ryu to take the lead and speak on the Shinju’s behalf. But, as planned, Salad and Mitsuki managed to separate Ryu from Matsuri who stayed behind with Konohamaru.

The team knew they needed to kill Matsuri and Ryu to obtain the individual thorn bulbs required to awaken Moegi and Shinki from their coma-like state inside the Shinju-created trees. So, it will be interesting to watch how they will handle the situation, especially with Konohamaru being uncomfortable with exploiting Matsuri’s crush on him and Salad being unable to fully focus due to what Sumire told her in the previous issue.

Apparently, the chances of them winning weren’t high but there was indeed a chance to accomplish what was required according to Kashin Koji. However, when Boruto asked for details, Kashin Koji didn’t specify whether or not the foreseen success included the death of a Konoha ninja. The fandom has been speculating that Konohamaru will suffer a grave injury. So, I wouldn’t be surprised if said development did occur during such a mission.

As for Boruto, he was forbidden by Kashin Koji to intervene as our young hero’s appearance on the battlefield at this point would mean Jura would make a move too and if that happened Boruto was going to die. Of course, Kashin Koji wasn’t going to let Boruto die. At least, not anytime soon.

Frankly, I’m okay with Boruto taking a backseat for now. I want to see how strong Konohamaru and the rest of the characters are when facing Ryu and Matsuri. Their current plan involved Salad, Mitsuki, Araya, and Yodo defeating Ryu and then teaming up with Konohamaru to takedown Matsuri. So, I think it’s safe to assume that Matsuri’s supposed to be stronger than Ryu.

Himawari was also supposed to stay inside Konoha as, again according to Kashin Koji’s vision, her leaving the village would bring forth a future that guaranteed their doom.

Coming back to Salad’s emotional state, I think it’s a way for the creative team to give her a mental nerf. We know the Uchiha Clan functioned on strong emotions. Most members of the Uchiha Clan were able to unlock more power due to their strong feelings of love or hate. Salad being unable to focus properly might limit her power levels when taking on someone as dangerous as Ryu. I do think she will come through as the battle intensifies, but her distracted state might lead to some major injuries to her teammates.

I’m looking forward to learning more about her feelings toward Boruto and what she thought of Sumire being in love with him while also being Salad’s close friend. We don’t have enough examples of healthy friendships between two young girls. So let’s see what the creative team has decided to do with Salad and Sumire. Going by Kishimoto’s track record I’m a bit cautious.

As for Jura, as predicted, he decided to visit a Konoha bookstore. Of course, Shikamaru ordered everyone to not engage and treat Jura as a normal civilian. Making Jura frustrated or angry would have guaranteed their defeat. Jura’s quite an interesting villain. I don’t see him changing his ways and deciding not to end the human race anymore. But his current demeanor does add to his appeal.

I am a bit curious about Daemon though. Being someone looking to confront an opponent who would push his limits and make for a fun battle, I’m surprised Daemon complied with Shikamaru’s orders instead of going out on his own to pick a fight with Jura. I guess we can chalk Daemon’s noninterference as a way to keep his sister Eida safe. But still, I would have liked to see Daemon’s thought process on the matter. He’s been awfully quiet for an annoying kid cyborg. 

With Boruto needing Kawaki to grow stronger so they could defeat Jura together, ‘Wild Beast Cubs’ concluded with Kawaki paying a much-needed visit to Amado. Our troubled young ninja had numerous questions he wanted to ask the genius scientist, but his priority was forcing Amado to unlock the full extent of his powers. I do see Amado lifting Kawaki’s current limits. However, because of how cunning Amado’s been shown to be, he’s definitely scheming something. I wouldn’t be surprised if his plans ended up interfering with Kashin Koji’s vision in some manner.

What did you think of Boruto Two Blue Vortex manga issue 17 ‘Wild Beast Cubs’?

Let us know.

Author: Farid-ul-Haq

Farid has a Double Masters in Psychology and Biotechnology as well as an M.Phil in Molecular Genetics. He is the author of numerous books including Missing in Somerville, and The Game Master of Somerville. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime/manga, video games, and movies.

Twitter

Help support independent journalism. Subscribe to our Patreon.

Copyright © The Geekiary