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When Sarada Uchiha finally acknowledges her love for Boruto Uzumaki in the events ofBoruto: Two Blue Vortex, the young Uchiha also begins to consciously manifest the power of her newly-awakened Mangekyo Sharingan - granting her the power of Orihume, a seemingly spatially-controlling ability. And while this Sarada power-up can become a much-needed ace in the hole in the fight against the Shinju, it’s the confession that had come with it that became a hot topic among fans.
Although the NaruSasu ship didn’t manage to sail in the OGNarutofandom, the BoruSara ship might finally give fans the “Naruto-Sasuke” partnership they may have been yearning for. And with Boruto and Sarada adopting the mannerisms of their idols Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki, respectively, a romance between them might not be too far-fetched. However, the story might be better off not having these two protagonists together.
A Romantic Red Herring
Not Everything Should Be What It Seems
Although it’s true that the OGNarutocast did establish deeper connections with characters they will eventually have as partners (such as Sakura and Sasuke, as well as Shikamaru and Temari), the trend withinBorutoto both call back and subvert its predecessor’s tropes means fans shouldn’t immediately assumeBoruto and Sarada will be the endgame.
After all, with the OGNarutoseries not having its version of a declared love that ended in a different way (meaning, all of its implied ships ended up together), it’s perfectly plausible for Sarada to end up with someone else - even if she feels she’s in love with Boruto. Many things come into play: now that it’s been a few years, is she just in love with her “vision” of Boruto? Is she misplacing her longing for Sasuke to Boruto, who has become much like her father?
This Will Not Beat The Elitism Allegations
Should Elite Families Only End Up With Each Other?
While “nepo babies” is quite a strong term to use to describe the current generation of ninjas inBoruto’s New Era, one can’t deny that much of its main cast have come from “elite” romances in the OG series. In fact, Boruto himself has come from such “royalty” - as not only was hismother’s Hyuga clanpart of Konoha’s leadership, but his father, Naruto, also had another Hokage as a dad. Meanwhile, Sarada herself is a product of the Uchiha legacy, this time hailing from Madara, one of Konoha’s fathers. In short, both Boruto and Sarada are part of the village elite, Omnipotence aside.
The two ending up together defeats the very subversionBorutohas tried to do with its new cast. After all, many of the sequel’s new characters - especially from Boruto’s own batch - didn’t come from established backgrounds. BoruSara being a thing just affirms one of the current problems in the series, in that its only relevant characters still have direct ties to power players - in this case, Otsutsuki connections (Jura, the Shinju), Kama bearers (Kawaki, Code), or genetic experiments (Eida, Daemon, Kashin Koji). If BoruSara becomes the endgame, fans will inevitably have to ask: do characters in theNarutouniverse only deserve to be romances with people of the same social stature?
Sumire Should Be Developed Into A Strong Candidate
Sarada And Sumire Should Get A Stronger Rivalry
While Sarada’s “sudden realization” of her feelings towards Boruto became somewhat of a big reveal in recentBorutoissues, it shouldn’t overshadow the fact that one other character had seen Boruto in a romantic light:Sumire Kakei. Their class representative and now serving as Amado’s assistant during his stay in Konoha, Sumire has proven to be more than just a “new” character inBorutobut also an integral element to the plot. After all, she’s also among those immune to Omnipotence as well. No one knows if this immunity has anything to do with Boruto, but fans should definitely pay closer attention to her character and her interactions with the protagonist.
More than that, Sumire’s interactions with Boruto on the sidelines of the manga are also worth noticing. Sumire and Boruto has developed quite a “puppy love” chemistry beyond Boruto’s platonic rivalry with Sarada, and far from the distant affection of young Hinata to Naruto as well as young Sakura’s devotion to Sasuke. With these elements in mind, theBorutostory should consider boosting Sumire’s appeal to the fans - either with fight scenes that showcase her prowess, or perhaps giving her more emotional sequences that strengthen her bond with Boruto. Even if BoruSara becomes the endgame, the Sumire angle will at least catapult the ship to stronger heights.
Better Off As A Stronger Friendship At A Distance
Something Naruto And Sasuke Never Experienced
Thanks toSarada’s immunity to Omnipotence, she knew the “true” history of Boruto’s life even when the whole world seemed convinced of his “false origins.” As such, Sarada remains dutiful to Konoha but was never convinced of anything Boruto was accused of, and the “rogue” Boruto always put Konoha’s best interests first - including protecting Sarada and his other “former” comrades. There’s no indication on Boruto’s part that his willingness to protect Sarada is romantic in nature, and Sarada had only recently come into terms with her feelings for Boruto when she started to accept her Mangekyo Sharingan.
Putting Sarada’s feelings aside, such a strong friendship at the beginning ofTwo Blue Vortexis a welcome sight to see - and quite the aspirational scenario, too. To have friendship and trust unhindered by distance is the mark of a true bond - something only Naruto managed to share with Sasuke in the OG series but not the other way around. While it’s true that Sasuke has become the ever-loyal diplomat-spy variant of Konoha after Naruto became the Seventh Hokage, younger Sasuke was still more interested in revenge than reconciling with Naruto. Seeing “the next generation” of Naruto and Sasuke have such a strong friendship - sans the romance - can redefine what it means to have a platonic girl-boy relationship.
Boruto
Boruto is an action anime series that continues years after the events of Naruto, now in the shoes of the next generation - many of which are the children of the protagonists from the original series. Boruto follows the titular character, the son of Naruto, who seeks to impress his father. Together with the other ninjas-in-training, Boruto will battle to overcome trials and threats even more significant than his father ever faced.
