Boruto: Naruto Next Generations 1×230 Review – “A Wish”

Boruto anime episode 230, ‘A Wish’, offered some interesting character development for Kawaki. Our poor young hero got to experience something quite heavy. But at least, he’s determined to become a ninja.

I have to say that while I was expecting Kurobane vs Kawaki and Mozuku, I was very surprised by the events that occurred during their fight. The fact that Mozuku sacrificed himself to protect Kawaki was just wow. Mozuku’s been through a lot to ensure his people got the cure they needed. And seeing his journey end in death, like the rest of his teammates, was quite sad.

Mozuku’s death took an emotional toll on Kawaki. Seeing people willing to put their lives on the line to protect their homeland was a very foreign concept for Kawaki. He grew up in an environment where everyone looked out for themselves. Not only that but Kawaki was never treated as an actual human being. He was merely a vessel for Isshiki‘s resurrection. In Kawaki’s world, you didn’t hurt yourself for the sake of others.

Also, Mozuku’s death made Kawaki feel he had failed the mission. He had promised to take Mozuku and the cure to the Land of the Calm Seas. Kawaki’s already feeling a bit insecure due to losing the Karma Mark. And realizing that he wasn’t powerful enough to protect Mozuku is only going to worsen his emotional state, slowly leading him toward a specific path (already shown in the manga).

Even though Kawaki hadn’t been taking becoming a ninja seriously, I’m kind of glad to see that the current mission made him rethink his initial stance. Turns out, he is interested in becoming a ninja. He even pleaded to Naruto to give him another chance even though he failed his most recent mission.

While in the beginning, I did side-eye the anime’s decision to have Kawaki be sent out of the Hidden Leaf Village on missions with Code still looking for him, I have grown to accept said creative decision. I’m even looking forward to seeing Kawaki be sent on a mission with Wasabi’s team. He had failed to help them before. However, now that he wants to become a proper ninja, I think things will turn out differently during the team’s upcoming mission.

Naruto also told Kawaki that he will be accompanying him on Hokage-centric missions. So, that’s something I’m interested in seeing as well. Whether or not Kawaki will continue being a Genin-level ninja remains to be seen. Maybe Naruto will realize how dangerous going out on missions can be for Kawaki with a target on his back?

As for the political stuff featured in ‘A Wish’, I had been wondering about what Naruto would do to help the people suffering in the Land of the Calm Seas. In my opinion, the writers handled the situation quite well. Even though he wanted to, Naruto couldn’t overstep certain political boundaries. As Hokage, he didn’t have the option to enter another territory to overthrow the Feudal Lord.

However, it was still nice to see Naruto and Shikamaru planning to send a medical team from Konoha to access the situation and offer aid. I liked how Boruto was mature enough to understand the gravity of Naruto’s predicament and realize that his father was doing the best he could. Even if the Feudal Lord didn’t accept Konoha’s aid, I think Konoha’s ninjas could still figure out a way to look after the ill.

‘A Wish’ also showed Kawaki bonding a bit with Shikadai. Shikamaru’s son helped Kawkai cope with Mozuku’s death. After taking Kawaki to the cemetery commemorating those who died to protect Konoha (and the world) during the Fourth Great Ninja War, Shikadai made Kawaki realize that death would always be a very likely possibility in their line of work. What mattered was for those still alive to keep moving on and play their role in protecting their home and loved ones.

Am I the only one who sees the possibility of Shikadai and Kawaki being a ship down the line? Ha!

As for the action sequence, Kurobane had a bunch of annoyingly formidable Jutsus. His Infinite Sea Watchtower Jutsu used moisture from surrounding plants to cover opponents in a thick mist. While his opponents tried to figure out the location of his real body in a bunch of illusions, Kurobane could attack them with a blade. Not only that, but the mist also absorbed moisture from his opponents until they dried up and died. It’s a good thing Boruto and Shikadai arrived to lend Kawaki a hand after how Mozuku’s death impacted his emotional state.

What did you think of ‘A Wish’? Are you glad to see Kawaki become a Genin?

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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