Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Manga Issue 23 Review – Karma

Boruto: Naruto Next Generations manga issue 23 ‘Karma’ finally gave me a chapter I enjoyed reading. Not only did the story progress, we also got an amazing revelation at the end.

I have been very vocal about my disinterest in this series’ recent chapters. The battle between Ao and Team 7, instead of being awesome, ended up being all about Boruto, and in a very boring manner, too. Chapter 22 left things with Kashin Koji appearing in front of Team 7, and ‘Karma’ picked the story up right from there.

Mangaka Mikio Ikemoto, continuing his style of dragging out events, still wasted a few panels in ‘Karma.’ But I won’t complain much because this month’s chapter, as a whole, was enjoyable. There’s a lot of mystery surrounding the Kara organization, and ‘Karma’ added to the mystery by raising interesting questions about Kashin Koji’s true identity.

Turns out Kashin knows the Rasengan! This tidbit of information is sure to fan the flames of the theory about Kashin being Jiraiya or there being some kind of relationship between the two.

Also, I don’t know about all of you, but I really thought Konohamaru was going to die during his battle with Kashin. I like Konohamaru as a character. That’s why I let out a breath of relief when he didn’t bite the dust this month. Will he die as the story progresses? Maybe. But for now, I want him to live.

We also got to see Boruto’s cursed seal in action. I don’t know if the seal’s name is Karma or if it’s the ability Boruto used. Anyway, it was interesting to watch Boruto save Knonohamaru with his new power.

What I didn’t like was Salad being way too emotional. I get that she cares about Boruto. However, going after a powerful ninja like Kashin isn’t a smart move. Considering who her parents are and how she was very bright at the Ninja Academy, I want her to be a bit more collected during dangerous missions.

Coming to the reveal, I was not expecting to see Kawaki this soon. A grownup Kawaki and Boruto appeared in the debut of the Boruto manga series in a flashforward. Since his appearance, there have been many theories about his identity, including being Gaara’s adopted son.

‘Karma’ revealed Kawaki to be the mysterious person who escaped from the fallen blimp. Furthermore, Kawaki also has a mark similar to Boruto’s on his palm.

With Kawaki shown as the antagonist in the flashforward, I wouldn’t be surprised if he and Boruto become friends in the present and then certain events make Kawaki switch sides down the line.

The only thing I don’t want is a rehash of the Sasuke and Naruto relationship. Naruto and Sakura continued their desire to help Sasuke in Naruto. And, yes, Sasuke did come back to the good side in the finale. While that’s an acceptable story, I hope Boruto does things differently.

I want the current manga to tell readers that sometimes past friends can turn into bad guys with no redeeming qualities. Having Boruto kill Kawaki because there’s no other way to stop him from doing villainous things would be an interesting theme to explore.

Anyway, what did you think of Boruto: Naruto Next Generations manga issue 23 ‘Karma’? 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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