Boruto: Naruto Next Generations 1×215 Review – “Prepared”

While the Boruto anime Episode 215, titled ‘Prepared’, had some interesting character beats, there were a couple of anime-only scenes that I didn’t care for.

‘Prepared’ was all about the Hidden Leaf Village being on high alert due to the incoming threat posed by Isshiki. But before I get to what the Konoha shinobi did to ensure the safety of the villagers, I have to talk about the opening of this episode.

‘Prepared’ had Isshiki mocking Kashin Koji for being foolish enough to fight him. Kashin Koji knew he couldn’t defeat Isshiki, and yet he still tried his best. According to Isshiki, it was Kashin Koji’s humanity that made him act in such a manner. As far as Isshiki’s concerned, a human being’s will to keep standing up against stacked odds was a weakness.

With Kashin Koji being able to escape from Isshiki, I’m looking forward to seeing what he will do next. The manga has yet to reveal Kashin Koji’s current whereabouts. Perhaps the anime might drop a hint or two earlier?

Anyway, coming to Konoha being evacuated, I liked Naruto’s interaction with Boruto. We don’t always get to see Naruto’s stricter side. He clearly put his foot down as the Hokage and Boruto’s father, forbidding his son to join the upcoming fight with Isshiki. I understood where Boruto was coming from when he mentioned how he aided Naruto, Sasuke, and the rest of the Kages during their fight with Momoshiki. However, Naruto’s not going to take any risks right now. With Momoshiki being able to possess Boruto’s body, Naruto didn’t want his Momoshiki-possessed son to get in the way. Naruto doesn’t have it in him to strike down Boruto to prevent Momoshiki’s rampage. So, the best course of action was to sideline Boruto.

In contrast to Naruto, Sasuke’s willing to give Boruto a chance to prove himself. I liked his conversation with Boruto. Sasuke outright questioned Boruto’s resolve and whether or not he was willing to die for Konoha. Boruto being worried about causing harm to the village and his loved ones if Momoshiki took over his body again made for a nice dose of internal conflict for our young hero. Boruto’s got access to a whole lot of power through the Karma Mark, but using said power meant he was tapping into Momoshiki’s DNA that was slowly overwriting his body from the inside.

Sasuke is ready to kill Boruto if need be. And while I know Boruto’s not going to die anytime soon, I would like to see Sasuke go all out against his young student to stop Momoshiki from using Boruto’s body to cause harm.

The Isshiki vs Naruto, Sasuke, and Boruto fight, while short, reminded me of the strategic thinking that was featured in the early days of the Naruto franchise. The way Boruto used the Transformation Jutsu to turn into Sasuke’s sword in order to get closer to Isshiki reminded me of the similar attack a young Sasuke and Naruto used against Zabuza decades ago.

With Boruto activating his Karma Mark to teleport Isshiki to another dimension, I’m ready to see Naruto and Sasuke go all out against the evil Otsutsuki without having to worry about collateral damage in the next episode.

Another scene I liked involved Shikamaru addressing the Konoha shinobi. We didn’t have such a scene in the manga and I’m glad the anime’s writing team decided to create it. Everyone’s been dependent on Shikamaru’s smarts for a very long time. Even when faced with a threat like Isshiki, the ninjas turned to Shikamaru for guidance. However, this time, Shikamaru had no plan to ensure victory. He couldn’t even guarantee if all of them would make it out alive. It was nice to see such a vulnerable moment from Shikamaru and how the Konoha shinobi stood with him. All of them were ready to go down fighting to protect the village even if Shikamaru didn’t have a brilliant strategy to offer them.

As for the parts of ‘Prepared’ that I didn’t like, the episode had Salad trying to make her way to the battlefield. Still recovering from her injuries, Mitsuki had to stop her from going there. While I liked seeing Salad’s determination, the fact Sakura hasn’t summoned Katsuyu to quickly heal her daughter continues to be an annoying plot convenience to keep Salad in the background.

I also didn’t like seeing Tenten, Choji, Kiba, Rock Lee, and Konohamaru attacking Isshiki without a plan. In the manga, Isshiki walked up to two random shinobi because he wanted to know where Naruto was hiding Kawaki. Even though the two ninjas attacked him, Isshiki still didn’t kill them because he’s not one to willy-nilly kill people. However, in the anime, Isshiki’s ready to start making bodies drop to force Naruto to reveal Kawaki’s location. Giving Isshiki such a change in his personality felt weird and went against the cool demeanor he demonstrated in front of Kashin Koji, complete with a wine glass in hand. 

Isshiki’s so-called fight with Konohamaru and the rest was poorly handled. There’s no reason for the older ninjas to jump toward Isshiki without a powerful jutsu activated, especially because they knew they were facing an OP being. The fight occurred off-panel with Isshiki somehow taking everyone out with giant pillars in one move.

You’re telling me that a giant pillar that can be disintegrated by a Massive Rasengan by Naruto (while he’s in base) couldn’t be broken by a punch or kick from Rock Lee after opening a Gate or two? Sigh! Disappointing.

Ino also didn’t fare much better. As a teenager, she was able to telepathically connect thousands of ninjas during the Fourth Great Ninja War. However now, as an adult in her prime, Ino was experiencing trouble connecting a bunch of ninjas located inside Konoha. Make it make sense!

So, yes, while I enjoyed certain character-centric moments in ‘Prepared’, there were a handful of scenes that made me roll my eyes.

Some other thoughts and questions:

• We got a nice little callback to Danzo as Naruto and Sai walked Amado, Katasuke, Sumire, and an unconscious Kawaki to a secret Byakugan-proof hideout Danzo had created. Of course, Danzo would think the Hyuga Clan would turn against the village one day.
• I let out a sigh of relief when Sakura wasn’t part of the ninjas that tried to fight Isshiki. I didn’t want to see her sprawled on the ground like the rest of them.
• Even though I know he can’t win, I would like to see Shino face off against Isshiki. I wouldn’t mind a scene where Isshiki’s immensely annoyed by Shino’s bugs because Isshiki’s jutsu can’t shrink living beings (except for himself).

What did you think of ‘Prepared’?

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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