Boruto: Naruto Next Generations

Episode 150

The Mujina Gang sets their plan into motion and Tento finds himself in mortal peril as Boruto's latest adventure heats up. After Shojoji uses his Corpse Clone jutsu to trick Tento, the boy finds himself the unwitting captive of the Mujina Gang. In exchange for Tento's safe return, Shojoji is demanding 500 million in cash and the release of every prisoner in Hozuki Castle. However, unbeknownst to Ikkyu, Shojoji intends to eat Tento's brain and assume his form via the Corpse Clone jutsu—and subsequently do the same to Ikkyu. Since this was able to occur right under the Hokage's nose, Ikkyu surmises that the gang has a spy in the Hidden Leaf and decides against reporting the kidnapping to Naruto. Fortunately, Boruto is able to overhear Ikkyu discussing the situation with one of his bodyguards and mounts a solo rescue mission—even though this means skipping out on Team 7's first B-rank mission. After discovering the location of Shojoji's hideout, Boruto is able to arrive just in time to prevent the aforementioned brain-eating.

Like the previous two entries in this arc, episode 150 plays out fairly predictably, but the pacing, presentation, and general energy help make for another entertaining watch. While Shojoji is far from the franchise's most original villain, he comes off as genuinely ruthless, and the mechanics of his signature technique are downright nightmarish. (The image of him preparing to bite into Tento's cranium feels like something straight out of a horror movie.) While it's easy to see his menace losing its edge if the character lasts past this arc, he's the perfect antagonist for this type of story. Since the arc's principal guest character is a young child, it makes sense for the villain to be something straight out of a kid's bad dream. That being said, the cartoonish manner in which he explains his master plan to Tento—going so far as to claim he'll create a comfortable world for “evil people”—is extremely two-dimensional. Even in the Naruto-verse, a villain gleefully calling themselves “evil” while preaching the merits of an evil utopia is a bit much.

While his rationale is somewhat understandable, Boruto not alerting anyone else about Tento's plight feels misguided. The fact that there's potentially a spy in the Hidden Leaf doesn't mean he can't trust Sarada, Mitsuki, or his own father. Since going it alone has never really worked out for Boruto in the past, one would think he'd know better at this point. At the very least, he should have realized that offering Sarada only the vaguest explanation as to why he'd be skipping the mission would raise her suspicions. However, in fairness, the final showdown wouldn't be as dramatic if Boruto arrived at the Mujina Gang's base with the full force of the Hidden Leaf behind him.

This week's installment manages to entertain and excite despite its clunkier aspects, as the fear Tento experiences is palpable and Boruto's race against the clock to save him is genuinely tense. The bond the boys established over the last couple of weeks pays off in a big way, with Boruto's single-minded drive to save Tento seemingly clouding his judgment. Fortunately, it looks like the other two-thirds of Team 7 aren't about to let Boruto face Shojoji alone.

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Boruto: Naruto Next Generations is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Amy is an author who has loved anime for over two decades.