Boruto has had some amazing fights so far, and the anime’s first major battle proved how Naruto Shippuden wasted Sakura. While not as crucial to the story in the long term as the Otsutsuki setups, the Shin arc was arguably the most important arc in early Boruto. For the first time in the Naruto sequel anime, the focus was no longer on the small-scale adventures of Boruto and his friends in the Ninja Academy. Instead, the Shin arc raised the stakes by revealing an army of Uchiha clones who wanted to restore the Akatsuki – the perfect setup to bring the original Naruto characters into the action.
While the young Boruto characters have been at the center of incredible fights, such as Boruto vs Boro, it cannot be denied that action sequences involving the original Naruto characters are always a highlight. Not only names like Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura are far more powerful and experienced than most of the Boruto characters, the nostalgia element makes their fight sequences even more special. Boruto is very aware of it, as the fight scenes involving the original Naruto characters do not happen that often – thus adding to their impact.
Given how much more powerful characters like Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were compared to the young Boruto characters at the beginning of the series, it made sense that Boruto’s first major fight was focused on the classic Team 7. Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura all fought Shin and its many clones – with Sakura’s solo fight against Shin being a highlight of the arc. The Sakura vs. Shin fight was the first example of a high-stakes, exceptionally well-animated Boruto fight, and it made clear how powerful Sakura’s special Taijutsu is. With sheer strength, chakra control, and Taijutsu combined, Sakura delivered one of the best hand-to-hand fight sequences not only in Boruto but in the entirety of Naruto. In fact, the Sakura vs. Shin fight is a great reminder of how much Naruto Shippuden wasted Sakura in terms of fight sequences.
Sakura’s Boruto & Naruto Fights Are Always Great (So Why Are There So Few?)
The Sakura vs. Sasori fight at the beginning of Naruto Shippuden and the Sakura vs. Shin fight in early Boruto are both examples of how great fight sequences centered on Sakura can be. Whereas most of Naruto's characters use a series of different special Ninjutsu, Sakura’s fighting style is much more physical – which leads to hand-to-hand combats that are usually more interesting to watch. The problem, however, is that Sakura’s fight sequences in Naruto Part 1, Naruto Shippuden, and Boruto were rare, which is disappointing. While an argument could be made that Sakura wasn’t skillful enough in Naruto Part 1, Naruto Shippuden had no excuses to sideline Sakura. It is a good thing Boruto gave Sakura a key fight early in the series, but still, Sakura’s fighting skills ask for more moments like the Shin fight.
Naruto and Naruto Shippuden failed Sakura not just as a fighter but as a character. Compared to her teammates Naruto and Sasuke, Sakura only had a couple of moments in the spotlight. Naruto Shippuden established right away how powerful Sakura had become after the time skip, and there was no reason for the anime not to give Sakura more fights. Fortunately, the Boruto Shin arc delivered the Sakura-centered fight audiences had been waiting for since the Sasori fight in Naruto: Shippuden.