The Naruto manga and anime series has emerged as one of the most iconic franchises in the industry, and there is no doubt that it will remain so for many years to come. As a result, many new series are inevitably compared to Naruto, but few have come close to matching the ceiling the series has created. While fans are still searching for a perfect replacement for Naruto, the franchise itself produced an heir in the form of Boruto, a literal successor to the original series with its new protagonist being the son of its iconic hero.
With this premise, fans naturally rolled their eyes at the concept, especially as the Boruto: Naruto Next Generations anime was propelled by a significant amount of original content. However, the series ended on a grim note, introducing several twists and taking the story into a much more ruthless territory with its follow-up manga, Boruto: Two Blue Vortex. Much like Naruto: Shippuden, Two Blue Vortex features a three-year time skip before diving back into the story. Coincidentally, it has now also been three years since Two Blue Vortex was first released, and across these three years and 36 chapters, the series has defined itself as the best successor to Naruto while improving certain elements of the original series in the process.
Ever since Boruto: Two Blue Vortex started, the series hasn’t taken a break to focus on trivial matters, instead featuring new compelling elements and surprising twists that continue to keep fans on the edge of their seats. The series immediately showcased significant development following its time skip, which was longer than Naruto‘s. It features Boruto returning with improved skills on multiple levels, including his grandfather’s iconic Flying Raijin technique and a Rasengan of his own that puts the major villain from the first installment in a predicament, proving that Boruto is ready to face new and stronger villains.
Essentially, this time skip proved that Boruto emerged far stronger than his father did after his own time skip, highlighting the difference in the scale of the threats he faces. The series then introduced compelling villains through the Divine Tree entities, with Hidari emerging as a foe for Sarada and giving her a significant personal antagonist, something the original series never truly did for its female characters. This isn’t the only instance where the series improves upon the original’s handling of female characters. While the original series used Sakura and Ino’s rivalry over Sasuke largely for slapstick comedy, Two Blue Vortex sees Sarada and Sumire openly discussing their mutual feelings for Boruto with greater maturity.
This bond only brings them closer and showcases how love can serve as a major driving force behind compelling actions. This is highlighted in other ways as well, with even the leader of the Divine Tree entities, Jura, pondering this very question. He understands that this driving force holds great significance, making two of Naruto‘s weaker elements, its female characters and its handling of love, some of the strongest aspects of its successor. While these are some of the strongest elements that make Boruto stand out on its own, there are other elements that further complement and make it even better.
While Naruto Shippuden was great, especially because of Naruto’s unwavering spirit, his characterization has essentially been employed by countless shonen anime, and simply recreating the same hero would not make Boruto great. This seems to be the key reason the Boruto series portrays its protagonist as a cooler and riskier character. Boruto is far more determined to achieve his goals and does not rely on hope for his success. Instead, Boruto is bolder and willing to take risks. Every plan he has followed so far has relied on Koji’s Prescience, which has involved major risks, yet Boruto has willingly taken them and is prepared to make even greater sacrifices.
This is shown in his latest suggestion of using Sarada, the person closest to him, as bait to lure out a villain, despite knowing the risks involved. Naruto in his position would never do something like this, as he constantly put himself in harm’s way to save others, most notably Sasuke, repeating the same trope throughout the series. Therefore, it is refreshing to see Boruto taking risks on multiple fronts, from villains to even heroes, ultimately allowing Boruto: Two Blue Vortex to emerge as a successor to Naruto that has improved upon many elements of the original while also shaping its own identity that has more than satisfied the fandom.
