Boruto: Naruto Next Generations 1×164 Review – ‘The Forbidden Jutsu of Death’

“The Forbidden Jutsu of Death” was another action-heavy installment in the Boruto anime. I liked seeing Team 7, Konohamaru, and Mugino working together to defeat a creature from another realm.

Last week’s episode showed Deepa in combat with Omoi and his two partner ninjas. While I’m still waiting to see Deepa use some unique jutsu or ninja weaponry, it was quite clear Omoi and his team weren’t going to be able to take him down.

Episode 164, “The Forbidden Jutsu of Death,” showed Boruto and his team encountering a demon. Of course, our heroes needed to act quickly to not lose the remaining ninjas from the Land of Haze (they’re in pursuit of) as well as keep their distance from Deepa.

I continue to appreciate the anime writers allowing us to learn more about Mugino. We got to know nothing about him from the manga. That’s why his fate didn’t hold much of an impact. Now that Boruto and his team have spent time with Mugino, I think they (and the anime-only viewers) will experience something different when the current storyline meets up with the manga’s chapters featuring Mugino.

The Jonin-level ninja clearly thought that Team 7 needed more time to mature. And you know what? I have to agree with him. Yes, Boruto, Salad, and Mitsuki are very powerful and they have been through a lot. But there have been instances where they don’t think like Jonin-level ninjas due to their lack of experience.

I liked how Mugino told Boruto it wasn’t necessary to fight the demonic being that one of the Haze ninjas had summoned. Their priority was to escape the barrier and stop the remaining Haze ninjas from taking the Hashirama Cell outside the Land of Silence.

Even though our heroes still found themselves with no choice but to fight the demon, I liked Mugino’s logic. It’s not always about defeating and enemy. Sometime’s not engaging in combat can be the best course of action. 

As for the demonic being, I couldn’t help but laugh at the character design. It looked like a Pokemon to me. It also wasn’t as formidable as I had expected. Yes, it was very fast. However, considering it had to be summoned by sacrificing one’s life, I thought it would have been more durable. The demon’s weak point being a red gem in its chest should have been better protected.

A single punch from Salad was able to crack the gem. Konohmaru and Boruto destroyed it by using a Rasengan on it together. The action sequences looked cool, but I was expecting something more. I did like Salad taking charge of the team. She definitely has what it takes to be a leader.

However, I do have a question. Why didn’t Salad use her Sharingan during battle? I was looking forward to her using it to keep track of the demon’s speedy movements. Also, every time Salad’s used her super-strength in the past, she’s had her Sharingan activated. That’s why seeing her not utilize her special eye-centric ability as she threw a punch at the demon felt weird to me. Perhaps it was an animation error or has she leveled up?

Anyway, with Boruto and the rest running after the Haze ninjas and Deepa coming closer too, I’m excited to see what will happen next.

What did you think of “The Forbidden Jutsu of Death”? 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.

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