Warning: spoilers ahead for Boruto: Naruto Next Generations chapter 71!
Romance was an important part of Naruto, and Boruto is bringing back this key plot mechanic in a way fans are celebrating. Boruto's romance is being hailed as gelling well with the current story arc and recreating the dynamic between Hinata and Naruto during the original series. But the Naruto spin-off series is still stuck way behind what the original offered fans.
Though Boruto tends to be considered a lesser version of its predecessor, its recent incorporation of romance is something that almost every other big-name Shonen Jump title avoids like the plague, much to their own detriment and Boruto's ongoing success. How the villain Eida approaches love not only addresses Naruto's mistreatment of Sakura by empowering the female Boruto antagonist but also imposes a type of threat on the shinobi world that's something other than sheer power.
By chapter 71 of Boruto, Eida's companion Code has already fallen victim to Eida's ability, which essentially causes any shinobi to fall in love with her (so long as they aren't blood relatives with her or a member of the Ōtsutsuki clan.) Until this latest chapter, Code had never truly articulated how he felt about Eida except saying that something was wrong when he first met her. But when Eida ends their partnership, Code responds by saying that he loves her from the bottom of his heart, trying to prove that he's the only knight for her (instead of her brother Daemon) and then later vows to Eida that he will find out for sure if he loves her for real or if it's a result of her powers.
This latest development would have been absolutely incredible if readers had seen this side of Code before he was cast aside. Although Code has been under her spell this whole time, he never truly showed signs that he was as deeply enthralled by Eida as he reveals in the latest chapter. Unfortunately, the portrayal of past events makes his latest reactions feel out of character for him, since every other time that Eida has almost cast him aside, Code's responses have come across as agitation over the practical implications to his own goals. At the time, it appeared as though he just needed her abilities to achieve his ends and that the only thing keeping him from double-crossing her was her power over him, as opposed to a sense of love rooted in who Eida actually is.
Now it's clear that Code has been experiencing these types of emotions and, unfortunately, they don't come across as genuine. This is a shame because the idea of a seemingly powerful villain being reduced to such a vulnerable state that could jeopardize his own ambitions further accentuates Eida's influence over others. This should be a highly impactful moment, not one where readers are left feeling as though the creators missed the mark.
Of course, these doubts will hopefully fade as consecutive chapters show Code desperately trying to prove his feelings for Eida. Even more excitingly, Eida is apparently taking Amado's bait to make peace with Konoha so she can meet the love of her life, Kawaki. For readers who have been eating up all of these romantic developments so far, this has been a long time coming, and Code's confession only makes things more thrillingly complicated. Boruto's romance isn't perfect, but it's a unique and compelling aspect of its story that will hopefully continue to improve with time.
Boruto: Naruto Next Generations chapter 71 is available now from Viz Media.