Boruto Episode 171

The Results of Training

Boruto: Naruto Next Generations episode 171 was an alright episode overall. I’m going to assume that if you’re reading this review that you watched the episode, so I’m not going to discuss what the actual results of the training were. Instead, let’s go over some of the extra bits of information we were given.

The first thing is that it still seems extremely inhumane to put Shojoji up against Boruto and his new jutsu. I get that they established that Shojoji agreed to this fight, but I still think he was coerced. Kakashi apparently offered him a reduced sentence if he won.

A reduced sentence for someone who likely has a life sentence is pretty persuasive. So to use coercion like that to get someone to fight — potentially to the death — is pretty unethical. I mean, Kakashi even mentioned that Shojoji would have died if he didn’t use his Zephyr Barrier jutsu in time.

We also have to consider the truthfulness behind Kakashi’s offer. He’s the sixth Hokage, so he probably does have the authority to reduce Shojoji’s sentence if he were so inclined. But would he really do it even if Shojoji won? And if he did, would there not be some technicality that effectively voided the reduction?

For example, it’s not said how much the sentence would be reduced. He could reduce it by a single day and still be holding up his end of the bargain. Or if it was significantly reduced, Shojoji could just be charged with another crime and have another sentence added onto his current one.

In any event, it’s pretty obvious that Kakashi had no intention to let Shojoji go. He knew Boruto would win.

In the Midst of Training

While Boruto’s training is effectively complete now that he’s mastered two new Rasengan variants, Sarada is still in the midst of her training. However, now she’s not only being trained by her father but her mother as well.

This inclusion of Sakura in Sarada’s training is something I predicted might happen in last week’s review. Back then, I mentioned that since Boruto has developed a Rasengan with piercing strength like a Chidori, Sarada may start working towards a Chidori with the power of a Rasengan.

Currently, Sarada is unable to learn Chidori because her Sharingan isn’t honed enough. To newer viewers of the series, this might not make a lot of sense, but Chidori is considered a high-speed, linear attack despite it not always being used as such.

Remember how I said in the past that Sarada could have trained under Kakashi instead of Boruto doing so? Well, Kakashi is actually the one who developed the Chidori jutsu as a teenager. However, it was too difficult for him to handle, which led to both the death of his comrade, Rin, and the awakening of Kakashi’s Mangekyō Sharingan.

Anyway, what I meant to say by all of this is that while Sarada can’t master Chidori right now, she may be able to somehow combine it with her mother’s chakra control to make a new jutsu.

The reason Sakura is so strong is that she funnels massive amounts of chakra into her extremities such as her fists when she fights. If Sarada can learn to do the same on a similar scale, she may be able to develop a slower version of Chidori that’s more manageable, yet which has more destructive power akin to the Rasengan.

I also liked Sakura’s comment about Tsunade training her until her bones broke and then healing her.

Test Tube “Training”

As we’ve known, Mitsuki is the only member of Team 7 who isn’t currently training to become stronger. Obviously, the reason Mitsuki isn’t training is that his body was too badly damaged due to the prolonged use of his sage mode. But, I had previously offered up a more practical theory as well.

It’s very possible that the reason Mitsuki isn’t receiving a training arc right now is that he’s already way stronger than either Boruto or Sarada. By leaving Mitsuki out of this training arc, the author is effectively rebalancing the composition of Team 7.

But, if we look at what Orochimaru says regarding the severity of Mitsuki’s injuries and how he’s going to recover from them, we can see that there may be more to this. Orochimaru says that parts of Mitsuki’s body were so damaged that they’ll need to be replaced — and that they may not work as well as they once did.

To me, this comment about Mitsuki’s body potentially not working as well as it once did seems to imply that his abilities aren’t going to remain static. While his teammates’ abilities are getting buffed, Mitsuki may come out of this “training” arc somewhat nerfed compared to where he was previously.

I’m not entirely sure what these nerfs to Mitsuki’s abilities are going to look like, but I do have some ideas. For starters, I don’t think he’ll be able to use his sage mode anymore. That’s not really a direct nerf because he doesn’t regularly use it, but it does mean he won’t be able to rely on it as an ace up his sleeve.

And, this lack of sage mode could in turn lead to Mitsuki having a training arc of his own later on. Perhaps now that he can’t rely on sage mode, he’ll want to get stronger in other ways to be able to continue protecting his friends.

Conclusion

What do you think about Boruto: Naruto Next Generations episode 171? Would Kakashi really have reduced Shojoji’s sentence had he won? Will Sarada develop a new jutsu as Boruto has? And what kinds of nerfs do you think Mitsuki will receive coming out of his treatment? Let me know in the comments.

If you enjoyed this review, remember to click the like button ❤️ down below. Also, follow me over on Twitter @DoubleSama so you don’t miss out on any future content. And come join our Discord server if you’re interested in discussing anime with other members of the community.

Finally, I’d like to thank HeavyROMAN for supporting DoubleSama.com at the Heika tier this month. To learn more about how you too can become a supporter of this blog, check out Patreon.com/DoubleSama.

My review of the next episode is available here.