Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Episode 268

Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Episode 268

Hana-sensei’s Late Night

Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Episode 268 makes Hana-sensei look extra suspicious. And as you may recall, at the end of my Episode 267 review, I said she’d make the perfect assassin. She’s so unassuming that she can slip under the radar — especially since everyone thinks she’s weak.

So, how does Episode 268 make Hana-sensei more suspicious? Well, the first thing is that she’s tired. After yawning, she mentions that she was up all night preparing for the school festival. How was she preparing, though? Was she preparing by planting paper bombs all over the campus?

Also, she disappears every time something happens and then shows up right afterward. For example, the first time we see the assassin in this episode is after Hana-sensei goes to the infirmary. And she only reappears after the first explosion occurs. But, that’s not the only time this happened.

Hana-sensei getting a headache from the anime series Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Episode 268
Hana-sensei getting a headache

Later in the episode, Hana-sensei disappears right before smoke bombs go off backstage. And who shows up after that? The masked assassin. Also, after the assassin escapes from Kawaki by destroying a wall, Hana-sensei is in the rubble. Was she caught up in the blast? Or did the smoke hide her transformation jutsu?

As you can see, the episode really makes Hana-sensei look like the prime suspect. But, it’s for that reason I think she’s innocent. I get that Boruto is a kids’ show. And I get that filler arcs often don’t have the most shocking twists. But Hana-sensei being the culprit seems too forced here.

In my mind, this is a red herring. All the suspicious circumstances involving Hana-sensei are there to mislead us. So, as of right now, I’m going to strike her from my list of suspects. She’ll probably come out of the arc as a hero.

Who Is the Masked Assassin?

If Hana-sensei isn’t the masked assassin, then who is? Well, before I explain my new theory, we need to go over some new information. Last week, I assumed the person who sent the letter and the assassin were 2 different people. I no longer believe that to be the case.

Sōsha Amino was my main suspect when it came to the mysterious letter Eiko received. I thought she could have done this so that she could write a story about it for her tabloid. But, the new letter in this episode makes me doubt that.

This new letter wasn’t about Kawaki having some secret that could get him expelled. It was about the paper bombs scattered around campus. That’s not something Sōsha would do just to write a story. Rather than her being a suspect, I now think she’ll be the key to solving the mystery.

The masked assassin from the anime series Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Episode 268
The masked assassin

Kawaki mentioned that Sōsha was taking a lot of pictures. Could she have inadvertently captured the assassin’s identity in one of them? I’m expecting that to be the case. But, if not Hana-sensei or Sōsha, then who is the masked assassin? My new guess: Batora.

Batora is Kae Yukiwari’s butler. His name (バトラー) actually translates to “butler.” Well, translates is a strong word. His name is literally the English word for butler but written in katakana. So, is this his real name? Or is this the name he’s taken on for this mission?

Anyway, he hasn’t been around recently despite his one job being to attend to and protect Kae. And as for why he’d go out of his way to kill her like this, it’s to make it look like the work of an outsider. He’d be the obvious culprit if she died while alone with him.

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Kawaki Finally Uses a Jutsu

In my review of Episode 266, I mentioned that Kawaki never uses jutsu. Now that he doesn’t have his Karma anymore, he uses his fists to fight. But, what we saw from Kawaki both in the previous episode and this episode goes against my assertion.

We’ve seen him use ninja tools, specifically kunai. Though, I still don’t feel like he used them very often until now. But, the big surprise in this episode was seeing Kawaki use the Shadow Clone jutsu. Is this the first time he’s used it? I can’t recall another time.

This may be the first time Kawaki’s ever used any jutsu. Well, unless you consider walking up a tree to be a jutsu. There’s an argument I could make for that being the case. But, I’m not going to make that argument here.

Kawaki using the Shadow Clone jutsu from the anime series Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Episode 268
Kawaki using the Shadow Clone jutsu

So, why am I bringing up Kawaki’s use of the Shadow Clone jutsu? Because it’s another example of him becoming more “shinobified.” At some point in the series, Kawaki becomes anti-shinobi. But, for now, he’s still becoming more and more shinobi-like. His use of jutsu is another example of this being the case.’

However, we know from the preview for next week’s episode that Naruto “fires” Kawaki. Or, at least, he threatens to take him off the mission protecting Kae. Once again (I’ve been wrong every time so far), I’m going to guess that this could be what causes Kawaki to lose faith.

Maybe the assassination is successful after he’s taken off the mission. If that’s the case, he could view the shinobi way of doing things the wrong way. He might think he could have saved Kae if he had done everything on his own. But, I’m pretty sure this is filler. So maybe not.

Conclusion

What do you think of Boruto Episode 268? Do you think Hana-sensei is the assassin after all the suspicious circumstances? What about Batora? And, do you think Kawaki is actually going to be removed from the mission? Let me know in the comments.

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My review of Episode 269 is available now.

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