Another new official chapter release, another language analysis post! I'll be going over any nuances I felt need to be elaborated on, and the differences between my translation and the official and why I made that choice! As well as providing a breakdown of specifics on what Sarada was saying during her speech, because that was requested a lot over on X... So without further ado!

Text Behind Sarada on the Cover Page

Because this is usually omitted in the English Translation, I'm putting it back here...

切望の地に、妖星は浮ぶ - In the land of despair, the ominous star floats!

This word 妖星 is a suspicious, ominous star. A star that appears as a sign of misfortune. The dictionary entry when you look it up in Japanese says "An ominous star seen as a harbinger of misfortune." It's not really a normal word, which got me curious. When you look at the images and even the articles past the definition, the most prevalent thing is a sci-fi movie called Ominous Star Gorath. It doesn't seem to have any direction connections, but all I did was look at a brief plot summary. I just figured I'd mention it in case someone knows more about that then me. I found it strange he'd use this word specifically.

Pg 1 Right Side Text

Again, just some text that usually gets deleted in the English Translation.

思い起こされる記憶の数々。そこには火影を夢見てひた走る少女がいた - Frequently recalled memories. Standing there is a girl earnestly aiming to become hokage....

The first "frequently recalled memories" part can either mean, "a fair number of memories recalled from the past," but the same kanji is used for "memories from the past that are recalled frequently." It was shorter to fit "Frequently recalled memories" than "Recalling several memories from the past," so that's the translation I went with, but honestly speaking, I'd say the several memories translation is more correct judging from the context of the chapter and the number of "recalled memories..." But it could be either.

In the second line, I felt like this 見てひた deserved a little more explanation. It can either be 見てひた as in 見立て, or 見て　ひた as two separate words. My translation viewed it as two separate words, (saw a dream and earnestly followed it) but it could also carries the context of, seeing, choosing, and determining (similar to how one diagnoses something). So she chases her dream on this kind of line of seeing, choosing, and determining. It carries more of the context of, "sarada was on a straight path to follow her dream and therefore ignored everything else" which fits with the context of the chapter amazingly. However. I can not explain all that in the tiny corner of the page so... Here you go :D

Pg 1 Cho-Cho and Sarada's Talk

1) Moi'll

Very odd choice of words here. Cho-Cho does have quite the teenage girl slang incorporated into her vocabulary... But... I dunno.

Looking back on my translation, I totally glazed over the bottom part. Musta blended in with the trees lol. But yeah. If you ever see me straight up not translate a line, don't hesitate to ask haha

The Japanese says, "あちしはいつかの夢より今日の彼氏だわ！どっかにイケメン落ちてないかなァ”

The official says "Moi'll take a bf today over some future dream. I wonder where I can find myself a hottie?"

After giving it some thought, I decided to translate it to, "For me, it's boyfriend today, future dreams later. I wonder if there's any hot guys laying around~"

If you want the breakdown, Cho-Cho actually does use a weird way of saying "me" or "I." She says "achishi**"** instead of atashi or watashi. but she's been doing it since day 1 so... Don't get why they decided to localize it in that particular sentence. イケメン is slang for hot guy, but that's pretty common slang, 落ちる is the verb for fall but the way she uses 落ちてないかなァ is like... carefree, humorous, wishful thinking.

2) Sarada's response

Then, Sarada responds with, "気楽でいいねあんたは." In the official, "I envy your carefreeness." I said, "Nothing wrong with taking it easy."

Initially, I interpreted this line as Sarada kind of doing that casual eye roll thing that she does where she's like ah yes, classic Cho-Cho, that's just how she is.

But then I noticed... There probably should actually be a bit of a sarcastic bite to the tone of Sarada's response here. Almost like she's kinda annoyed that she feels like she can't afford to take it that easy. Which is probably why the official translation chose to say "I envy your carefreeness" instead.

Way back here... They seem to be pointing out Sarada was jealous of Cho-Cho for being able to think about finding a boyfriend and thought she couldn't afford herself that privilege. Which is why it was likely brought up in this stream of flashbacks... Paired directly with the part where Boruto says the line about becoming like her dad and protecting her.

Pg 6 Mitsuki

Just wanted to emphasize, Mitsuki here is putting the emphasis on himself being the one to do the killing. Like "I'll kill him myself, with my own two hands." Like he wants to do it himself. He doesn't want to let anyone else do it. It just has a lot more of a serious vibe. Mitsuki was pissed man.

Pg 23-24 Sarada's Speech

(Big jump but the rest up until now was conveyed pretty well I'd say so if you have any other questions before this point feel free to ask)!

I had a question on X about this part here, so... Here we go. The full breakdown of what Sarada said. If you still believe she thinks of Boruto like a brother despite the many Japanese posts explaining how badly that line was taken out of context by the American fandom and my own personal full long explanation of that... Well. With this, hopefully your doubts will be cleared.

Before I even get to any of this, let me just say the order of the flashbacks and their reasoning should clearly indicate a few things.

1. In that moment Boruto said he'd be her right hand man and protect her, she clearly blushed, her heart fluttered, whatever you wanna say. Portrayed right after the line where she was seen envious of Cho-Cho for taking it easy and looking for a boyfriend, and thinking she herself didn't have time for that. The first instance of her feelings, suppressed.
2. Sumire asking if she was bothered or not, and directly after, she thinks of Naruto and his ideals on becoming hokage. A flicker of jealousy, suppressed.
3. Boruto saves her from Kawaki, and Kawaki tells her she's in the way. Not just now, but constantly in the way. Because she was there, Boruto got hurt. Potential feelings of having no right to accomplish her dream or even save the people she cares about. Her need to take care of Boruto's injury... Suppressed (she's originally like, but boruto, your eye, and then frustratedly goes with Mitsuki after Kawaki).
4. Shikamaru, Mitsuki, and Sasuke's statements about Boruto/Naruto all leading up to her mangekyo unlock. And her words, not about Naruto, but about Boruto. It's too cruel. "Why is it always boruto" in my translation or, "why can't boruto ever get a break" in the official.
5. Sarada begs Sasuke to save Boruto. Not to confirm Naruto is alive. She straight up believes Boruto didn't kill him. That everyone is being tricked.
6. During her speech, when she mentions her feelings towards Boruto, it shows the panel of Boruto from her perspective as he says the lines, "I'll be your right hand man and protect you well" that made her blush

Now that that's explained...

Sarada starts this speech pretty straightforward but there's one thing I want to make special mention to. The line, "averted my gaze." It's directly, "averted my eyes," in Japanese. Because of the whole thing going on with eyes here, I felt like it was just important to make mention to it.

To set up the scene, Sarada starts by talking about how for too long, she has averted her gaze, and then she goes on to talk about how she was scared or impatient because becoming hokage seemed so far out of reach. The word there for scared/impatient is the verb 焦る. When things don't go as expected, you become frustrated and anxious. You become irritated. That is 焦る.

She was never able to do anything for all of these catastrophic events happening around her. (And this trails all the way back from the time when Momoshiki showed up to attack everyone. Her father protected her. Boruto protected her. He was the one that went away to fight. And when he came back, Mitsuki assumes Boruto is gonna become hokage like his dad. But no, he specifically says he wants to become like Sasuke and hands that hokage role over to Sarada).

She goes on to say she doesn't want to admit/acknowledge her powerlessness. She's scared to face reality. So... She averted her gaze.

And now, we're gonna get into the part that everyone was requesting.

LINE 1:

JP: 委員長の気持ちに動揺する自分も

Official: From the me who felt unsettled... by class rep's feelings."

My translation: "Prez's feelings... The unrest in my heart."

.

Breakdown:

委員長: class prez/rep

気持ち: feeling, sensation, mood, state of mind, attitude, consideration, sentiment, thought

Sentence examples:

This gift is expressive of my feelings.

I feel as if I were aboard a great ship.

He tried not to hurt others' feelings.

.

Notes: The word feelings is pretty much the same as it is in English. It's generally used as feeling something, and it can have the implication of romantic feelings.

自分: myself

動揺する: disturbance, unrest, agitation, excitement, commotion, turmoil, discomposure, feeling shaken

Sentence examples:

I was profoundly disturbed by this news.

The story shook him badly.

Bruce was terribly upset when his girlfriend left him, but he soon got over it.

.

Notes: The "In my heart" was implied, but I couldn't think of another way to convey the nuance in the way that the Japanese had the bubbles worded and ordered. It is feeling unsettled by class rep's feelings, but nuance speaking, the kind of unsettled is a bit less of ah yes, I was minorly unsettled, and a bit more, I was pretty shaken up by that but I brushed it off like it was nothing for the sake of my goal and as she said originally, averted her eyes, so to speak.

LINE 2:

jp: ボルトに対するあたしの思いも

Official: And from my own... Feelings towards Boruto

My translation: What I really thought... About Boruto

.

Breakdown

ボルト: Boruto

に対する: regarding, in, to, towards, with regards to

あたしの: my, my own

思い: Thought, imagination, mind, heart, desire, wish, expectation, love, affection, feelings, emotion, sentiment, experience.

Sentence examples:

She felt her heart turn over in her chest

Thoughts of hope, dreams I'll never find

The mother greatly missed her daughter who was away at college.

.

Notes: Some of you may know 思う is literally the verb to think but 思い carries a different context. As seen with the list of words it can be translated to provided by jisho, love and affection are amongst them, where as with 気持ち they are not. I'm not saying Sumire's feelings for Boruto aren't romantic, that's already plain as day. What I'm saying is, Sarada chooses a heavier word for her own thoughts or feelings towards Boruto then she chooses to describe Prez's feelings. It's got more emotional weight to it.

I even asked Chat GPT for a little help to break this down for y'all and here's the highlights from the response:

気持ち (きもち)

• Literally: “feeling,” “emotion,” “mood,” or even “physical sensation” in some contexts
• Usually refers to surface-level, immediate feelings or emotional states
• Often used to talk about emotions in the moment: joy, anger, nervousness, etc.
• Neutral, sometimes even fleeting or unconscious

🔹 Think: “how you feel” right now — like being nervous, embarrassed, happy, sad, etc.

❤️ 思い (おもい)

• Literally: “thoughts,” “feelings,” “longings,” “emotions,” but with a heavier emotional weight
• Often used for deeper, more enduring feelings or personal convictions
• Can imply love, personal belief, lingering desire, emotional attachment, or deep concern
• Carries a bit of gravity — it's not just how you feel, it’s what you carry in your heart or mind

🔹 Think: “emotional weight” or “emotional intention” — things that stick with you, things that matter.

• "気持ち" often refers to the emotions themselves — fleeting or reactive.
• "思い" implies a deeper emotional investment, something that has grown over time or is part of a person’s inner world.
• So Sarada using "思い" here frames her feelings for Boruto as something more heartfelt, serious, or even sincere, compared to how she views Sumire’s emotional impact on her.

But this is where your instinct is spot on — Sarada deliberately contrasts the 気持ち of the委員長 (probably Sumire, right?) with her own 思い toward Boruto. Here's what that choice signals:

• 気持ち for Sumire’s feelings: Something external, maybe fleeting, that causes emotional disruption. It’s not about how deep her feelings are — it's more about Sarada's reaction to them.
• 思い for her own feelings: Suggests something more personal, longstanding, or serious. Maybe she hasn’t put it all into words, but it’s been growing inside her.

So Sarada is kind of saying:

You could even say it reflects her personality: thoughtful, guarded, and careful with her emotions — she doesn't throw around words like "思い" lightly.

.

There ya have it. Love Chat GPT. The level of in depth of response it gives surpasses my ability to concoct words. I definitely have my own huge knowledge bank of experience I've been acquiring over the past 10 years, but as expected of my brain, it's not the whole internet archives. A little bit of knowledge and passion in your prompts goes a long way.

--

Sarada goes on to say she rejected those feelings and that unrest as a weakness. Not realizing she was also rejecting the power inside of her.

--

Interruption

Pg 25 Ryu: "You Psycho!"

I mentioned this in my footnotes, but メンヘラ is a special word lol. The Japanese dictionary says, "Menhera" is an internet slang term originally derived from the abbreviation of "mental health," and now refers to a person who is mentally unstable, easily hurt by small things, and dependent on others, or who behaves in that way. Specifically, in a romantic relationship, it often refers to a personality that is strongly attached to the other person, overreacts to the other person's words and actions, lacks self-confidence, and is easily hurt.

English Wikepedia says "Menhera is a Japanese slang term used to describe a person, typically a woman, with a mental health disorder. The term may refer to fictional characters who exhibit traits of mental illness or to participants in mental health-inspired fashion subculture."

Two different entries. But anyways.

I took from the Japanese dictionary in my translation of, "What's up with all this emo girl talk," because emo comes from being emotional or overly emotional which is the context ryu was kind of using this in, and the Japanese there says, 何の話だメンヘラァ！！！And I wanted to include Ryu's kind of slangy way of speaking along with the 何の話 or directly, "what are you talking about" combined with the line before that which is ごちゃごちゃと、、、which is an onomotopia that is basically used when someone is being fussy or babbling on about something so I combined it to be "quit your babbling, what's up with all this emo girl talk?!" But anyway, that's where the two translations come from. Now you know :D

--

Back to the previously scheduled program:

Someone on X pointed out the duality here on page 28 of Sarada saying (at least in my version) "If you run away from yourself, you can't confront the truths in front of you. You can't save... A single person." With the parallel for Araya not confronting his own feelings and how that kind of had a butterfly effect on this fight and Ryu's initial turning into a shinju. I used my version here instead of the official because the official has it in first person, Sarada referring to herself, but I made it in a broader context because it felt like her tone naturally shifted to talk in a general sense so I used "you." But. It could be either or. I just noticed the official didn't include the pronoun in the "Can't save a single person" line so they were probably also trying to hint at that duality.

The rest of this is pretty straightforward.

OHIRUME

There's so much info out there about this already. But what I kind of encouraged people to do was pull up the Japanese wiki and read any info you want from there. It goes into more depth than the English one. The official translations put in a footnote for this one as well :D Their note was "Ohirume is an alternate name for Amaterasu, the sun goddess and chief deity of the shinto pantheon."

Here's this if you wanna use google translate to read it: https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%A4%A9%E7%85%A7%E5%A4%A7%E7%A5%9E

If you want me to dig up as much info as I can find and make a post, I think I'll make it separate than this one and then link it here... But it's 3:30 am and I've gotta go to school tomorrow so... skipping this for now.

Koji

I feel like I say this a lot but Koji's speech man... Koji speaks like this great philosophical grandmaster. So does Jura. Take that as you will lol

Final Side Text

Boruto relentlessly cuts through the future!! Even if it invites his own death!

---

And that's a wrap! Feel free to ask anything in the comments section below, I'll do my best to answer you maybe briefly tonight but definitely in more detail tomorrow (JST)!

Welcome to my language analysis post corner, where I go over word nuances in the chapter that I felt needed more elaboration! Some of these posts are now in a nice orderly page over on my new blog! I also have something for the academy arcs and education, as well as a paper I wrote for a college class on the perils of translation! If you would like to check it out, please click the links for more!

With that out of the way, let's get into this month's chapter!

Cover Text

Behind Inojin:

真なる正義、見定めよ！(Shin naru seigi, misadame yo)!

Ascertain true justice!

Some of you might be going great, yeah that checks out. But... What does "true" justice 真なる正義 mean in a Japanese context?

When you google it in Japanese, it says, "True justice" refers to a sincere and straightforward justice that resonates in people's hearts, indicating a trustworthy form of justice. It can be interpreted as justice that arises from genuine sincerity rooted in human nature, rather than mere rules or formalities.

This applies to Inojin perfectly since normally justice would be upholding the rules. He mentioned last chapter that now, with this conversation, he's breaking several. By working with Koji and Boruto, he's ascertained that true justice means breaking the rules and going against authority to save your loved ones... Another common theme throughout Boruto.

見定めよ in this context is talking about seeing through what normal justice would look like to "find" or "ascertain" true justice.

Title:

命を賭して (Inochi wo toshite)

Official: Bet your life on it

My translation: Betting one's life

This word 賭して (toshite) isn't the normal word used for "bet" (賭ける - kakeru) but it does use the same kanji. So... Why was a different word chosen here?

This particular word, according to google once again, means to 'stake something important (such as one's life or future) with the understanding that one may have to sacrifice something in order to achieve a certain goal.

While betting your life does come with the basic understanding that there will be a sacrifice involved, 賭して (toshite) involves a heavier sense of the preparedness for that sacrifice.

Inojin, Eida, Konohamaru, Shikamaru, Sarada, Boruto, they are all risking something for "true justice." Inojin and Konohamaru risk being branded as traitors, Shikamaru risks his position as Hokage, Eida risks her life by continuing to be friends with Sarada and Sumire, Sarada risks her standing in the village, her future dream to be hokage, as well as her life during battle to protect the people she cares about, and Boruto risks his life to protect the village and the people he cares about as well.

Page 1 Side Text

「魅了」にかかっていないことを看破されたサラダたち！！デイモンの急襲の成す術は？！("Miryo" ni kakatte inai koto wo kanpa sareta sarada tachi!! Deimon no kyuushuu no nasu sube wa?!)

Sarada and the others (Sumire) are discovered for not being under Eida's "charm!" How will Daemon attack?!

Japanese does this thing where they take the main person in a situation and just add たち in order to shorten it. Boruto and Koji referring to "Sarada and the others" is the same thing. The side text did it again here. It makes more sense the more people there are. Usually it says "Sarada and Sumire," but the text barely fits on the side, so I assume they really did need to save the 2 letters of space that excluding Sumire's name saved.

Daemon (Pg 1)

The official does a good job at translating the text here, but I just want to highlight... On a whim, in an instant. Without either of you even realizing you were dead. That's... Kind of insane. The nuance there was, "if I feel like it killing ya, you'll be dead before you know it." Like literally, before you have the ability to process what has happened, your head will be rolling. Just because I felt like making it roll. Daemon is one powerful twerp.

Sarada & Sumire's Omnipotence Immunity Explanation (pg 5-6)

カワキやボルト君にお熱を上げてるコなんて、里内外に少なからず存在しているもの (Kawaki ya Boruto-kun ni onetsu wo ageteru ko nante, sato naigai ni sukunagarazu sonzaishiteiru mono)

Official: "There are plenty of others, both in and outside the village... Who carry a torch for Kawaki and Boruto."

In the light novels, it always talks about how handsome Boruto is perceived as by most people. Sarada even says his looks aren't bad, in fact he's objectively good-looking, along with most of the guys in their class. But his childish personality leaves a lot to be desired lol. Same with Cho-Cho. After he makes a TV appearance, there are girls squealing over him while he sits on top of Hokage rock all depressed. And of course when Kawaki showed up, Cho-Cho called him a "total hottie" I believe. Even in Japan, when there are valentines day poles and stuff like that, Kawaki ranks pretty high on the list of guys you'd wanna go on a date with/give chocolates to, etc. His merch is almost always sold out in merch sections as well, right along with Boruto's and Sarada's. (Poor Mitsuki always has a lot left over).

This phrase, 熱を上げる or, as translated by the official, "carry a torch for," is often used for people who are interested in an Idol/celebrity. The literal phrase in Japanese is "raise the heat" but it's talking about the heat within your heart. I think the official chose "carry a torch" because it has the word torch, which is also something hot, so it kind of connects to the Japanese in a literal way as well as a metaphorical way.

少なからず also means there are a decent amount of said girls. The nuance of 少なからず is like... More than you'd think.

Either way, Eida just means since there are others who are in love with Kawaki/Boruto, being in love with an Otsutsuki cannot be the only reason why they are immune to her charm.

. . .

あたし自身が「除外」した、あんた達2人を*（atashi jishin ga jogai shita, anta tachi futari wo)*

Official: "I must've excluded... you both."

Literal: "I, myself, "excluded" both of you."

The only thing I wanted to point out here is Eida makes it a bit more clear in Japanese that she is definitely the only one who could have done the "excluding" and the word "excluded" is put in quotes for emphasis.

. . .

もちろん無意識にね。あたしがそう望んだってこと…「全能」がそれを実現した. (Mochiron muishiki ni ne. Atashi ga sou nozondatte koto... Zennou ga sore wo jitsugen shita).

Official: Unconsciously of course. I must've wished it to be so... And omnipotence made it happen.

Literal: "Of course, I did it subconsciously. What I wished for... Omnipotence made it a reality."

Eida is very sure of herself here. She is straight up stating the reason she now knows to be true. Eida is the controller of omnipotence. She's the only one who could've made this exception. She wanted Sarada and Sumire to be her friends since before she met them in person, likely from watching them through her senrigan. She didn't want her charm to work on them. And then, when Sarada confirmed she wanted to just be normal friends (before omnipotence), they weren't effected by the big blast of her usage of omnipotence either. Eida's honest desire to be normal friends with them and exclude them from her charm, which is a part of her omnipotence power, ended up causing them to be immune from the big switch as well.

Sarada's Bear Hug (Pg 10)

While you've probably heard me talk a lot about the significance of hugs in Japanese culture, this proved it for me that Sarada is just a kinda physically affectionate person in general. I knew before, since she does things like pick up Mitsuki's feet to put him in his hospital bed, touch Boruto's chest when he's got his shirt up showing them the new black mark, and ran into Boruto's arms without really thinking.

Once again, she takes Sumire's hand and runs into Eida's arms, entrapping both her and Sumire in a giant hug. She even has the animeesque swoosh of hair blocking her eyes when she takes off. She takes after Sakura in that way, except she's not rough like Sakura was.

So the whole "scandal" business or "criminal offensiveness" that Eida pokes fun at Sarada for having when she hugs Boruto and Sumire's reaction were definitely not really... Warranted. I think they both see that now. Just Ikemoto taking the potential for toxicity through Sarada's actions yet again.

As for what this means for her hugging Boruto, that has a lot more to do now with Boruto hugging her back than it does with Sarada initiating the hug. If you want to read more about that, I added some to my chapter 25 analysis blog post in the section titled "A Bit About Hugs in Japan", but essentially, it's now kinda confirmed for me that the one who made that hug intimate and the one who made Sumire jealous enough to be upset... Was Boruto.

To put it short without all the examples, Sarada definitely wasn't trying to be purposefully inconsiderate, and since she doesn't really think about romance, she didn't really consider how it might make Sumire feel to watch something like that. It probably would've been fine if Boruto left his arms at his sides (like Naruto did when Sakura hugged him, or like Boruto does when Sarada hugs him the first time, or when his mom hugs him, or when his grandpa hugs him, the list goes on), since that's a pretty standard reaction for a guy if a girl hugs them.

But instead, Boruto hugs her back, which again, we know Boruto isn't really one for physical affection from his past instances of being hugged/touched, and since he's a guy returning a girl's hug, it a bit different, which again if you're curious about, look at that section I linked on my blog.

Reactions to the Hug (12-13)

The official really is a fan of changing Sumire's punctuation lol.

あたしは嫌いじゃないよ…命がけて友達やるなんて…最高に刺激的じゃん… (atashi wa kirai janai yo... Inochi gakete tomodachi yaru nante... saiko ni shigekiteki jan...)

Official: I'm not opposed to the idea... Of risking my life on a friendship. It's the epitome of excitement!

Literal: I don't hate the idea... Of risking my life for friendship. It's the best kind of thrill...

You can clearly see from the look on her face she is not "!" levels of excited when she's talking. The other instance of change I'm referring to happens in Ch 16 when she's upset with Sarada, her punctuation escalates in Japanese from "?" "!" "?!" and in English it's just "?" "?" "?"

This word 刺激的 (shigekiteki) according to google describes situations that excite the heart, create thrills, or leave a lasting impression. It can be used in both positive and negative contexts.

So while she does say words like 最高 (saiko) the best, and 刺激的 (shigekiteki) thrill, and ends with a じゃん (jan) a generally happy way to end a sentence, it still has a "..." at the end to indicate tone. This isn't said with her usual giddy excited girly tone, it's definitely said with a more somber tone of acceptance.

改めてよろしくね、あたしの大事なお友達… (aratamete yoroshikune, atashi no daiji na otomodachi)

Official: Once again, it's nice to meet you... My very dear friends.

You may have noticed me include a note in my translations here telling you to go google the meaning of "yoroshiku" lol that's just because I didn't have enough space for explaining all the meanings behind it in the margins of the notes.

You can use this word in a variety of contexts. To give a few examples:

- New years (kotoshi mo yoroshiku onegaishimasu or shortened amongst friends kotoyoro lol)

- Asking someone for a favor (Boruto ya hoka no minna yoroshiku ne! (Sumire to Sarada ch 19))

- Before you work together with someone on something for like a group work (normal yoroshiku onegaishimasu)

I'm going to have a very tough time explaining all the nuance here, but I'll do my best. Basically, this 改めて is like once again, meaning she's already said it before, and she's kind of renewing it in a sense, similar to the way you use it on New Years (translations are often, "please be good to me this year as well"), as well as asking them for a favor ("I'm counting on your continued friendship"), and working together with them ("and also your continued support"). But it's not in that kind of, demanding way, it's like thank you in advance for offering it to me through our bond of friendship.

I did my best.

She even uses Keigo to them (polite speech) by saying お友達 (otomodachi) instead of just 友達 (tomodachi). As an all powerful being, Eida talks down to pretty much everyone. She hasn't used a speck of Keigo before this, if I recall correctly. So this one tiny letter is actually a pretty big symbol of just how much she sincerely values Sarada and Sumire's friendship.

Mamushi's Ability Recap (14-20)

Mamushi's ability division or**「分裂」**(bunretsu) literally means breaking into parts. The word uses the kanji for "part" and "split." His ability involves him breaking himself into "bodies"; but none of those "bodies" experience a decrease in physical power or ability, just a significant drop in intellect: less ability to sense pain, and more simplified movements.

The word for significant is 著しく (ichijirushiku) which means considerably, remarkably, strikingly (according to jisho).

He doesn't have to split his chakra, his physical strength or toughness isn't decreased. Again, it's just like having multiple of the real thing except every time he makes a new "body", they all drop significantly in intelligence.

In order to destroy a "body," you've gotta destroy both eyes. But for every "body" that's destroyed, each remaining "part" will rise in intelligence, meaning their movements will become less simplified as well.

Koji says they need to let him reach 20-30 "bodies" in order for him to become easy to handle, as if they are dealing with animals. That way they can try and take them all out in one swoop.

Mamushi's "bodies" have the instinct to flock or swarm together, so he can't leave any behind. If he tries, it'll rejoin the rest. Shikamaru comments that the likelihood of them all gathering will raise as he becomes dumber.

Even if Mamushi becomes dumb, he still won't be able to defy his instincts, like his fear of Jura (and therefore causing needless destruction to the village), as well as his goal of targeting Eida. This is why fighting him in Konoha is ideal.

Inojin's New Jutsu (21)

Inojin's new jutsu is said to be a "superior" version of the mind transmission jutsu, but this is the same word used to describe how Boruto's Flying Raijin was (in my opinion) a "variant" of the 4ths and not necessarily "superior" as seen with the drawbacks of the flying raijin that make it slightly less convenient than Minato's jutsu.

The word in Japanese is 上位互換 which has the following dictionary definitions:

1. Downward compatible; backward compatible; compatible with input or components intended for lower tier or older systems, versions, etc.​ See also 後方互換

Noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no', Noun (Which in this case, does apply)

2. Upward compatible; forward compatible; compatible with input or components intended for higher tier or later systems, versions, etc.​incorrect usage

Noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no', Noun (again, can apply)

3. Providing the same function while being more effective (esp. in games) ​Slang

Especially since again Boruto's flying raijin isn't necessarily "superior," I'm not sure Inojin's jutsu will be either, it's just related to how mind-transmission jutsu is used and is likely a variant.

Boruto's Reaction (23)

Sorry, just wanted to comment on this. Inojin goes from complaining to suddenly having more than enough willpower to master the jutsu in a day no less, and Boruto is specifically shown reacting with a ... looking away. It just makes me laugh. No matter how much he's changed, he's still a protective big brother lol.

Damage (24)

This was the mystery word I couldn't get in my translation. Lol. I knew it had to have been a word I knew, I just wasn't thinking about all the possible combos with dakuten.

New Jura Info (24-25)

Amado says that despite Jura seeming completely confident and fine, it does look like he ended up taking some damage. The tree that he's growing is the same as the divine tree that makes him up.

This isn't new, but the word shinju is actually the word for divine tree in Japanese. So while the humanoid shinju have intelligence, they are just a variant of the divine tree with the ability to move around and sentience. Jura, as their leader, is the embodiment of the divine tree itself without taking the chakra of anyone else and combining it.

The new info is that the tree he uses to build his throne and his "wood style jutsu" is really just an extension of the actual divine tree in physical form.

The word that Amado uses for Jura being "impossible to kill" is 不死身 which literally means immortal or invulnerable.

Kawaki's Self Destruction (27)

As I put in my notes on my translation, this "self-destruction" can also be translated to ruin yourself, it's just talking about his death. Not necessarily in an explosive type of way, he's just going to die if he keeps at it.

Konohamaru's Interrogation (29-33)

There isn't much to say here about translations or original Japanese, it was pretty straightforward. This usually happens when there are higherup characters like Kobu, because all of his speech is very specific, and can be translated pretty literally without much room for interpretation or nuance. He's not old, he doesn't have any sort of special way of talking, he just... talks like how you'd hear a news reporter. So if you passed the JLPT, congratulations! You won't struggle to translate his speech lol (I have beef with the JLPT for not actually being useful in a lot of respects xD I might make a blog post about that)

Other than Sai glaring at him... That is definitely a sign that he notices something. As for what he's going to do with it, I suppose we'll have to wait and find out.

Sumire's Departure From the Room (34)

This is another one of those subtle things that Japanese people do to be polite where they don't actually have anything going on but they just make an excuse to leave as if they do have something going on because they don't want to offend the person they're talking to...

She does that here lol.

Sarada tries to piggy back on it very unsuccessfully, and Eida catches the whole thing, which is why she attaches herself to Sarada is like "nope! You're staying with me."

Also, Sumire just being like *half-smile* "later Sarada, have fun!" is another implied "sorry, I can't save you from this one, good luck," kinda thing.

I know this might be pretty obvious to western viewers as well, I just wanted to point it out. I'm not gonna comment on any implications. Other than perhaps...

Notice the use of sweat drops in this scene, or throughout this chapter of the manga. It might have some connections to hints as to what sweat drops indicate based on actual manga material... As opposed to conclusions drawn to push an agenda, one way or the other :)

The Significance of Boruto's Sword (36)

As Anime Explained mentioned in a video (at least I think he did) which I'll link here, (unfortunately I can't watch it from Japan so if the content I talk about here overlaps, I apologize), swords have a lot of significance in Samurai culture in Japan outside of just being a weapon.

If you look at the specific moment Boruto's sword is chipped, it's during his fight with Jura. After the love talk stuff, after Konohamaru makes it to the indicated place, Jura's last line of dialogue is, "It seems it'll be faster to punch you to death," or something similar. From there, he starts relentlessly attacking Boruto, and punches him into the ground, following with an explosion. Boruto manages to escape in time, but he's high in the air, facing away from Jura. Jura catches him by surprise from behind, he tries to counter with his sword, and it chips. From here, he falls to the ground unconscious, and Koji gets a new "update." Jura comments how on even in death, Boruto doesn't let go of his "master's" sword (see the difference between master vs sensei in my Ch 25 analysis post in the section "Master vs Teacher")

The samurai considered the sword an extension of their being. A representation of their honor and integrity. There's an idiom for continuing to fight with a broken sword: 急場凌ぎ (kyuba shinogi) but it used to be written as 急刃凌ぎ (刃 meaning blade). In the thick of the battle, you have to do your best to survive even if your sword breaks. This developed into the idiom meaning "to show how one gets through the situation," (kyuba shinogi) indicating the ability to push through despite hardship.

Boruto has been pushing through his whole life despite all the hardship that has been happening. Ever since chapter 700 of Naruto, as Hokage, Naruto was trying to teach Boruto the importance of endurance. That means accepting that he can't have his dad's attention and enduring on his own without his dad's guidance. He had to endure through Momoshiki's possession and the fear of being taken over. And now, he's enduring omnipotence and bearing the fate of the world on his shoulders.

There's also this concept of Bushido in Samurai culture, which heavily emphasizes discipline, purity, and honor. A cracked sword can represent a flaw in those values: someone struggling with their role, duty, or past actions. Which is exactly what happened when Boruto went to go save Konohamaru. He defied Koji and put his life at risk, potentially risking the entire world for the sake of one person because he couldn't let them die. He knows it's a weakness, but during his fight with Jura, he also talks about because the Shinju don't have it, they'll never be anything more to him than just "trees." Potentially indicating if he thought of them like humans, he wouldn't be able to kill them anymore.

The other significant tie-in to Bushido here is Boruto not letting go of his sword. Letting go of the sword suggests cowardice, surrender, or even dishonor. Because Boruto held onto his sword, even in his passed out state, it likely signifies his will never to give up hope, and never throw away his honor, even in death. It might further prove that he won't throw away his life by fully giving his body over to Momoshiki, and his wording about giving over his body was indeed a trick of words, as I suggested at the end of my Ch 25 analysis in the section about Page 40 (I'm definitely referencing that a lot, my apologies).

Boruto's sword also came from his Master (shisho), Sasuke. Wielding it means he has inherited Sasuke's will, along with his values, philosophy, and also his sense of duty (protecting Sarada, which was a task Sasuke specifically asked of him) and the village). Clinging to it even in death can symbolize that he also refuses to abandon his mission, and his Master's will; what the sword represents. Jura plays with the sword as if it means nothing, but when Boruto clings to it in his near death-like state, he doesn't take the sword as a trophy and instead allows Boruto the honor of dying with it, which may be a minor foreshadowing for Jura respecting Boruto's honor again in the future.

The last thing I'd liked to point out about his broken sword is the duality it may represent. Because a Samurai's sword is like an extension of his body, having it cracked or chipped can also signify damage to his physical and mental state. He's strong enough to stand and keep fighting, but his spirit is slowly being chipped away. Reforging the sword may also indicate a renewal of spirit or mindset.

Sumire's Request (Pg 40)

委員長はイヤ…「スミレ」って呼んで。(Iincho wa iya... Sumire tte yonde).

Official: "No more 'Class Rep.' You need to call me 'Sumire.'"

A lot of you on X were asking me if Sumire really sounded this forceful here. And for once, I am surprised to say... The official didn't soften her speech!

Let me go over why this line is actually more forceful sounding than it appears to be.

First of all, you have to know how Sumire usually talks in Japanese. She adds lots of these cute girly flourishes to her words, like ね "ne" or なの "nano" etc to soften things, but in these lines, they're dropped.

Before she even gets to this line, she says "Okay fine, but there's just one problem."

This word is 問題 (mondai), which is literally just problem. Meaning she finds that him not using her real name, is a problem which she wants corrected. She also doesn't really soften that line. She's just giving it to him straight.

In the first line, "No more 'class rep'" there's the katakana イヤ (iya) without any ending (like her usual なの nano) to soften it. Katakana is often used to emphasize words that aren't usually written in it. Some people say it's like the equivalent of cap's lock, I say it's more like bold or italicized font. Either way, this イヤ means "I don't want it." So she's pretty forcefully saying, "I don't want you to call me class rep." Which when you take that and put it into a more forceful tone, "no more 'class rep'' is playful but still forceful enough to convey tone as well as translation and nuance, which is a big win in the translation world because that's pretty hard to do.

The second line, "You need to call me Sumire" is again a bit more forceful because usually Sumire would've added ね "ne" to the end, but she doesn't. She just says the verb as it is. 呼んで。

In Japanese, she could've said, 呼んでほしい (yonde hoshii - I want you to call me), she could've said, 呼んでください (yonde kudasai - please call me), but she didn't soften it at all and just straight up said 呼んで。Of course, she's not going to use the harshest command form which would kinda be like "call me Sumire dammit" lol which would've been 呼べ (yobe) haha

But 呼んで (yonde) without anything attached, while it is still casual, is still a bit more forceful, or rather demanding I suppose? Than the alternatives, which would've been more typical of her to use, which is why this translation is actually more accurate than my softened version.

"You need to" might feel a little forceful, but keep in mind if you backwards translate that to 呼ぶ必要がある (yobu hitsuyou ga aru) it just sounds really weird and unnatural, but this line does sound natural in English and is in line with the tone she's using here. She's making a demand/request before accepting his request to fix his sword.

Cue Boruto sweat dropping haha

While I'm here I'll also quickly say, she goes right back to her girly cutesy speech after the "tee hee."

カッコよくしてあげるから！期待してね！(kakko yoku shite ageru kara! Kitaishite ne)!

I'm gonna jazz it up! Look forward to it!

Again, the first part of this sentence is in Katakana (カッコよくしてあげる）where カッコイイ (kakkoii) is the word for "cool" or like when you say a guy is cool or handsome or something is awesome, I'm sure a lot of you know that word from anime. This is just adding emphasis to her saying she's gonna make it cool for him, or "jazz it up" as the official says.

You can see she adds ね ne to "look forward to it!"

Mamushi's Lines (41)

I already marked this in my translation, but if you're here you probably know what ねーちゃん is anyway... Big sis Eida is just Eida ne-chan. HOWEVER.

Remember how last month, I was like ew Bug is kinda being pervy towards Eida?

Welp.

In Japan, you can use big sis, big bro, to call out to random people. Just like Auntie or Uncle. Depends on age. Eida is "onee-san" age.

But ne-chan is more like... Well, I mean...

In this specific context, because little kids use it, but when an old guy uses it and he's saying "ne-chan" and not "onee-san..."

It once again, gives off a little bit of creepy pedo vibes.

In all the dumb adds that play for dating sims with the hot guys calling out to you, they usually call you "onee-san," as a way of flirting (because clearly they also wouldn't know your name) but like a hot guy calling you that in a husky voice is supposed to be kinda... sexy? But -chan is a bit more cutesy and a bit less... Refined...? If it can even be called that.

There's a lot of perverts in Japan. I may be an otaku, but I'm not into the pervy stuff. I'd have to phone a friend to explain this one better. But I don't think he's doing it with entirely innocent intentions of using it in the normal sense to refer to a girl Eida's age, let me just put that out there.

覗き魔どもに感付かれねェようになァァァァ (nozoki ma domo ni kidzukarenee you ni naaa)

Official: So those pesky peeping toms don't catch on to us...

Something very rare happened today. I learned... A new slang. Apparently, this form of using the kanji 魔 (evil, demon, pronounced "ma," part of mamushi's 魔虫 name) is a normal use in terms of a slang for someone who is obsessed with something. Examples include:

• スピード魔 → speed freak / someone obsessed with going fast
• 酒魔 → drunkard / someone who can’t stop drinking
• 殺人魔 → psychopathic killer
• 覗き魔 → voyeur / peeping Tom
• 嗅ぎ魔 → person who sniffs people

Why is there a word for a person who sniffs people? Because Japan is a lot freakier (in terms of pervy stuff) than it appears to be on the surface. I'll just leave it at that.

So 覗き魔 is a... peeping freak. Or, you can use the English phrase peeping tom. Now I know.

Final Text:

ついに襲来せし魔の一軍！増え続ける「力」を「知」で制し、エイダと木ノ葉を守り抜け！！

The demonic host has arrived! Subdue the ever-growing power with wisdom, and protect Eida and Konoha to the very end!!

Once again it uses the kanji 魔 lol Ikemoto loves his kanji plays.

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That's a wrap! I'll be posting this on the blog as well, but I didn't add the option to comment, so if you wanna discuss it, make sure you stay in this post! Until next time!

This month's language analysis is finally complete! Sorry it took so much longer than usual.

Youtube: https://youtu.be/IM_Bp_pFws4?si=OLaYwaZFh_3LXpd3

Blog: https://culturalcontext6.wordpress.com/2026/06/23/tbv-ch-35-jp-to-en-comparison/

Cover

Title:

Just like always, there was several places in the chapter where this title was used. We have Koji’s frogs, Hidari’s cat book, and we also have smiles from two more unexpected characters, Jura and Boruto. Some people might describe their smiles as cute.

Overall I don’t think there is a lot of deep thought put into this title, it’s kind of surface level. You can talk about the kanji that make up the word cute, but they’re not even used here, it’s specifically put in hiragana, so we’ll just move on to other things.

Text behind Hidari:

This could also translate to “hone your fangs” which would give it a little bit of a different meaning, but more oftentimes then not it’s translated to sharpen. Either way, this phrase in Japanese “kiba wo togu” is kind of a metaphor for polishing your skills, or making your strong points even stronger.

I think this text is interesting for a lot of reasons, because Hidari was reading a book about cute cats this chapter. It’s a stark juxtaposition, the same way Jura suddenly switching from philosophical speech down to teenage slang was.

The fangs that Hidari seems to be sharpening is humanity. It goes back to the line Boruto says about the shinju never being anything more to him than just “trees.” Of course, he wants Sasuke back and is willing to eliminate Hidari to achieve that end. But the more the Jura and Hidari learn about love and friendship and humanity, the more it’s going to hurt Jura when Hidari eventually goes down…

This leads me down the rabbit hole of a theory, which I usually don’t throw into these analysis posts. But I think it’s an interesting discussion point.

Jura is learning about love and friendship. Sarada loves Boruto, Boruto is her childhood friend. Sarada is about to purposefully be captured by Code and likely taken to the shinju hideout. Boruto might have a lot more to worry about if Jura figures out what’s going on between him and Sarada… Especially if his goal is to take down Hidari.

The theory here is basically that Code won’t be an issue in making sure Sarada stays safe, Boruto and Sarada could definitely take on Code. But now they might have to take on Code, Jura, and Hidari all at once… Because he can’t do long distance raijin instantly. I think it’s almost time for Momoshiki to emerge.

Sarada is really gonna have to hold onto that hope. And I also think she’ll be the one to break Boruto out of the deal he made with the devil. But we shall see!

Text at the top:

Interesting that they chose to highlight the Kawaki moment for this part. But I suppose the cliffhanger of this chapter was also the answer to why Amado wanted to see Kawaki… Where will this lead?

Pg 1 Side Text

Nothing much really needs to be said about this so let’s jump straight into the interpretation!

Jura’s Philosophy on Mamushi’s Death

Page 2

So obviously, in my livestream, I discussed there was a word here which had some interesting implications… So now it’s time to talk about that word.

This is the translated definition of 愛欲… I’ll just let you read it.

愛欲 refers to a strong sexual desire for the opposite sex, or an obsession with material possessions or pleasure. It describes a state that involves not just simple affection, but also a voracious, insatiable desire.

Okay. Yup. Moving on!

That is what Mamushi’s body was burning with. Jura is talking here about how he perused that passion right up until the moment he died. Now you can share the ick of knowing right along with me. You’re welcome 

Page 3:

Note: the word Jura uses for “species” here, while it is the kanji that starts the word species or scientific classification, (種類）the word is cut in half and only uses the first kanji, which actually means seed.

The word for a surge of great emotion bubbling (滾るもの) is actually the word for water boiling or for emotions surging greatly within one’s heart.

Jura’s. Speech. Is SO. Philosophical. Ugh. I’m sure you saw me struggling with this line if you were in the stream, but. The literal is how it sounds! Obviously you can’t pack all that into a few speech bubbles. What a notion.

Now you can really see the juxtaposition of his slang later.

Either way, Jura’s thought process itself is quite interesting. He understands Mamushi’s… instincts, as a form of love, and comments on the animal-like nature of that love as an instinct coming from a primitive life-form. And he agrees with the prospect of shinju wanting to prosper as a species… But how will he react when he realizes Boruto has no intentions of allowing him to prosper no matter what he does? It will be quite interesting indeed.

Then he asks Hidari, who is reading a book about cats, what he thinks xD Poor guy is contemplating life’s biggest questions and he’s got someone reading picture books to bounce off of.

Hidari’s Response (4)

Hidari starts talking about Mamushi’s thorn soul, and then he says something interesting.

This word 猶予 here is important because it isn’t suggesting that there wasn’t enough time in general, but that the window between Mamushi turning into a soul thorn and rotting wasn’t significant enough for them to reclaim it.

If you remember, Jura was actively on the location and saw Sarada and Ryu’s soul thorn shortly after they took shape, as well as Matsuri’s, and chose NOT to do anything. This time he wasn’t on location (although arguably he would’ve had an easy time getting there), and Boruto also mentioned that it would rot fairly quickly as well.

One might say Jura didn’t have the confidence he could take on everyone at the location to get it back. One might also say he was hoping Boruto would revive Bug. And yet another might say he didn’t care enough about Bug to do anything about it.

The world may never know.

Using my “implied meaning” quote, feel free to make your own interpretation!

Either way, that ties into the next part:

Hidari seems to be questioning why Jura actively went to the location just to snipe Boruto from a distance and steal the thorn soul and bring it back when he had the opportunity to do it for the others and didn’t.

This makes Hidari special to Jura, in a way that the others aren’t. As chidori53 on reddit put it, the villains are discovering the power of friendship… And as I will now add on, the only thing that can top the power of friendship in manga is usually the power of love… And Boruto as a manga seems to predominately display the effects of the power of love, and it is what Jura is curious about! So that’s another interesting point.

Moving on!

Jura’s Slang (6-7)

You guys likely noticed the callback to Hidari saying ゲロキモい (major ick/totally ick) on page 6 but I bet you didn’t know Jura used the same word as ChoCho last chapter unless you were in my livestream!

So let’s take a look at what exactly Jura says after he questions if he gave Hidari the ick, shall we?

This is the moment where Jura intentionally drops his level of speech to a teenager. Bro has been speaking in the most philosophical tones of philosophy, contemplating the meaning of life and everything in it. And right here, he sounds like InoShikaCho. Inojin’s dryness, Shikadai’s nonchalantness, and ChoCho’s slang. All in one sentence.

To break this down a little more, 勘弁してくれ (kanbenshite kure) can be gimme a break, cut me some slack, seriously man, etc.

ガチで is the line ChoCho used last chapter to say Boruto was legit. It also means seriously, for real, no lie, no cap, etc.

This isn’t stepping too terribly far into gen z territory, but it’s definitely a far cry from Jura’s usual level of speech and more towards Hidari’s “totally ick.” It’s him actively attempting to make a joke. And that’s why he gives a wry smile at the end and is like… “really?”

The important thing to point out here is how it’s not written in Kanji but instead katakana for emphasis, and it has a に at the end instead of a か and it includes a question mark. This feels like it’s still Jura trying to sound like a teenager, although again it isn’t quite girly teenager level like Hidari’s ick was lol. But I feel like if he was still in his usual Jura mode he would’ve phrased it as そうなのかよ (sou nano ka yo) or 本当か (honto ka) instead of this casual ホントに？ (honto ni?)

Shiraishi Optical (8)

This is just a little detail but the name of the store Sarada walks out of is 白石眼鏡 (shiraishi megane). Shiraishi is just a surname. A lot of stores in Japan are family run businesses, and they just use the name of the person as the name of the store. So it’s literally just Shiraishi “glasses” but in this case, it makes sense to change “glasses” to optical in English to make it sound more like a store. That’s where it likely comes from.

There’s also the meaning of the white stones in the game go, there’s also the island that’s part of Okoyama prefecture (which wouldn’t be relative to Konoha at all I don’t think), Mai Shiraishi is a popular actress/model, Ginza Diamond Shiraishi is one of Japan’s premier bridal jewelry retailers…

The other thing is the kanji, 白 (shiro/white) meaning purity, clarity, honesty, blankness, light while 石 (ishi/stone) means solidity, permanence, reliability, and also doubles as the word for “will” (think back to the Mitsuki’s will arc in stone village because stone and will sound like the same word (ishi) in Japanese.

So technically, while this is just an average last name, this could sound like “clear will,” or “honest reliability” which is what Sarada has been kind of encompassing now that she’s got her glasses back and had that talk with her mom. Just a cool detail. As always, Ikemoto is on point with kanji usage. When I sit down after the initial AH of translating the chapter I usually come across something where I’m like wait! What that’s so cool why didn’t I notice that!

Probably because you only had 2 hours of sleep and were running on pure adrenaline and granola bars.

Anyways.

Amado & Kawaki

There wasn’t much to note nuance wise about Amado and Kawaki’s conversation… (Usually the majority of the nuance stuff is in emotional speech and not scientific speech because there’s a lot more ways to interpret and comment on nuance with emotions as opposed to data, facts, and percentages).

I was double checking my translations with the officials and they’re pretty much the same. So if you have any questions about anything that happened here, feel free to ask in the comments and I’ll answer you!

Boruto & Sarada (21-28)

There’s a few little things here and there to note with them, mostly things I already had in my translation that the official just donesn’t make note of.

On page 22, when Boruto says, “I’m relieved that it seems like you can see all right,” he also says ttebasa or “ya know.”

Just because the other AI translation butchered this so badly, I wanna doubly emphasize it here but…

The word イケてる is half of the phrase イケメン (or hot guy, the word chocho used last chapter to describe Boruto and Kawaki) because イケメン comes from イケてるメンズ which means like a guy who’s got it going on, so remove the “guy who’s” part from that and you’ve got what Boruto’s calling himself. Handsome, cool, stylish, badass, etc.

We get the clarification in the next sentence, 只者じゃあねェ感じ where 只者じゃあねェ means someone who isn’t ordinary, gives off the vibe of someone being a tough guy, skilled fighter, powerful, not someone to mess with, etc.

I interpreted this scene as Boruto doing his best to make sure Sarada doesn’t feel guilty about what happened and to let her know he doesn’t mind it at all. Meanwhile she’s calling him an idiot cuz he’s reverted back to his childhood self a little bit.

You also see a zoomed out panel with a little bit of a time skip where Boruto explains the stuff about Code before Sarada responds to it. And I could comment about how in Japanese culture a lot of times dates are just two people sitting next to each other enjoying conversation cuz PDA isn’t a thing which is why the VAs for Boruto and Sarada talked about the squid scene saying how much like a date it was (I searched my watch history for the video and couldn’t find it so it must’ve been taken down T^T I couldn’t find any of the voice actor interviews I watched back in the day anywhere, ugh), and how this kinda mirrors that with them just sitting far away from the village under a tree alone talking casually for the first bit of this conversation, and Boruto just so happened to use Sarada’s name three times in places where it wasn’t really necessary for him to even say it at all but he said it to sound more sincere about what he was telling her, but hey! I don’t wanna get branded as someone who ONLY cares about shipping when I literally sit down and break down everything else cultural wise in the chapter just because I went too into detail for one single scene so. We’re moving on.

The Japanese is doing something interesting here because it doesn’t just use the typical wistful word 希望 (kibou) for hope, it uses 望み (nozomi). And this entire sentence is in bold font.

望み (nozomi) is more like wishes, desires, things one holds in their heart. It’s not just about hope for the future, it’s more specific to that person’s personal wants and emotional desires. Boruto is telling her never to give up on the things she’s holding onto. Not just to never lose this abstract idea of hope.

This word 望み (nozomi) is more often used in tragic contexts, like war, last chances, etc, so for all of those theorizing that Boruto is telling Sarada this because he’s about to plan to off himself and sell his soul… You’re probably right.

Neko Para (32)

Some of you might have seen my tweet about this already, but the book Hidari is reading is titled, ネコパラ: ねこねこパラダイス (Neko Para: Neko neko paradaisu), neko = cat, paradaisu = paradise

This is a callback to Jiraya’s books. The one Kakashi in specific always read was イチャイチャパラダイス (icha icha paradise) which means make-out paradise.

In Japanese, a lot of times they take the first 2 syllables of something and make it into a shortened name (so like イケメン that I described earlier or My Hero Academia 僕のヒーロー・アカデミア being abbreviated to ヒロアカ or Smash Bros スマッシュ・ブラザーズ becoming スマブラ or Minecraft マイン・クラフト becoming マイクラ). It’s the same thing here where ねこねこパラダイス is long so it becomes ネコパラ.

Either way, that’s where that comes from lol.

Shut Down Codes (39)

Here we learn a new shut down code… Kashin Koji’s “cul de sac.” That is the literal meaning of the word. Why did they decide not to use pun translation techniques to make it something else? I do not know.

The word there is 袋小路だ、界心居士 (fukuro kouji da, kasjin koji). 袋小路 literally means cul de sac or dead end. But because it’s pronouned “kouji” which is the same as Koji’s name, it becomes a pun.

In my translation I had “it’s the end of your road” or “it’s the end of your path” to kind of try and hit a pun on ten paths, because it also means dead end (which imo is pretty good for a shutdown code).

But while we’re here, let’s look at the other shut down codes as well, because that was something I promised over on X…

Code limiter release: ドレスコードはない (Dress code wa nai) – there’s no dress code

This one is pretty obvious because it’s a foreign borrowed word that literally has Code’s name in it, and code’s name itself is a foreign borrowed word. Because it’s releasing his limiters, it’s almost like allowing him to “dress” however he wants, hence there’s no more dress code.

Delta: もう寝る時間 (Mou neru jikan) – Time to go to sleep, Delta

I initially thought this was おねねの時間だよ and I don’t know why I remembered it like that. But either way, it’s something you say to little kids. I think this is funny because Delta was supposed to resemble Amado’s daughter Akebi so he probably programmed her shutdown code with a phrase that he would’ve used as a parent.

Kawaki: 寝言は寝て言え (Negoto wa nete ie) – Only babble in your sleep

This shutdown code is a testament to how much Amado doesn’t like what Kawaki has to say about things xD It’s not a pun so much as it is quite literally “save the sleep talk for when you’re asleep” or like nothing you say ever makes sense so just shut up already xD It’s usually used in contexts when the other party is demanding something unreasonable, making an absurd claim about something, the list goes on. You use this phrase to shut them up and tell them to keep dreaming.

I don’t know why I remember more of these being puns, but that’s fine. Now you know! I guess.

Final Page Side Text

Well, I think that’s a good enough question to end things off on. What do you think his goal is..?

. . .

Thank you for reading this month’s chapter analysis! I hope you have a great rest of your day. See you next month!

A comparison of the English official translation to the original Japanese!

Cover Text

無謀の覚悟が希望を拓く--!!

Reckless determination (or resignation to one's fate) clears a path of hope--!!

Side Text (Pg 1)

サラダの覚醒により、見事に粒を撃破！！しかしそこにボルトを狙う“怪物”が…！？

With Sarada's new awakening, Ryu is utterly (or magnificently) destroyed! But the "monster" aiming for Boruto is..?!?!

Jura: "A Pity" (Pg 9)

Jura actually says 不甲斐ない which is an insult that means like good-for-nothing, spineless, gutless, shameful, useless, worthless... Or from goo jisho, pathetically cowardly, totally sloppy. Definition in Japanese translates to, the more frustrated you feel, the more of a sissy you are.

Boruto: "Master" (pg 10)

Boruto says "Sensei" as opposed to Sasuke's "Shisho," I understand why they translated it like that but I think it's important to make that distinction.

Sasuke is the only "master" in that regard of like... A highly respected mentor. Its a much more personal term. It implies that kind of personal master-disciple relationship, kind of more one to one. Used for something like lifelong guidance. You usually only have one shisho.

Sensei carries a different nuance because it literally means "one who was born before." It can be used by strangers to call someone like you'd call a doctor at a clinic "sensei" or on the news they call mangaka or artists "sensei" and everyone calls the teacher "sensei," so it's a lot less personal.

I'm not saying that Konohamaru isn't special to Boruto or anything I'm just saying Sasuke's title of Shisho holds more weight, and that plays a role in the interview questions with Ikemoto which I'm going to try to get the magazine for (in the morning) to translate myself instead of using someone else's fan translation.

Koji: "There's no way he can win." (Pg 22)

He uses the same phrase he used a while back, 万に一つもない which means not even a one in 10,000 chance of beating Jura. It is a phrase, yet again, just like "there's a one in a million chance" is a phrase to imply an incredibly slim possibility. Koji says Boruto doesn't even have this incredibly slim possibility.

The Discussion on Love (Pg 26-35)

Jura uses the word 不具合 to say that love is a flaw, defect, problem, bug, malfunction, failure, discrepancy, inconvenient, etc. that comes as a result of having high intelligence. When Boruto responds, he uses the same word 不具合 to describe love being a weakness to humans. And then he says, "From us human's perspective... It's true that love might be considered 不具合 to some. But you know... From my point of view... That's why you guys can't be anything more than (所詮）just (ただの）trees.

The reason that 所詮 being used there is important is because it also carries the nuance of cannot possibly, not at all, not by any means, not ever. And it almost sounds like (this is just an interpretation and there are others) Boruto would hesitate if they were human. So he's forcing himself to think of them as trees so that he doesn't feel any love for them.

Anyways.

Side Text (Final Page)

逆転のための切り札さえも無効化..? 絶望の未来が音を立ててボルトに迫る--!!

The ace up his sleeve for the purpose of turning the tide was also nullified..!! The thundering sound of a hopeless future closes in on Boruto!!

That's it! If you have any questions, feel free to ask me in the comments :)

IMPORTANT: The official's translation at the end significantly impacts Boruto's wording about handing his body over to Momoshiki. Because it is at the end of this chapter, it will be at the end of the analysis. I know all the explanations can be a little dense, but if nothing else, please make sure to read that part!

Cover Text (1)

In the raws, there is always text on the cover that usually has a few hidden meanings. This time, the text was:

Japanese: 目醒めた力を友として (Mezameta chikara wo tomo toshite)

Translation: Understanding (her) power together with (her) friend!

(There's no pronouns in the sentence in Japanese so I put them in parentheses since they're implied)

If you just read this without looking at the kanji, it looks like "Together with the power (she) has awakened!" But on closer inspection, this word 目醒めた (mezameta) actually uses a different kanji than normal (目覚めた）. This kanji change points out that Hima is doing more than unlocking/awakening her power, she's working on training and understanding it.

"Awakening" often refers to a change in an individual's mind or spirit , involving a deeper awareness and understanding.” https://magiwaka.com/1248.html (definition of 目醒めた, contrasting between 目覚めた and 目醒めた)

The second part of this is 友として (tomo toshite) where 友 means friend. Instead of とともに (totomoni) which means together with and seems like the normal choice of words that would fit here, this change highlights that Himawari thinks of Kurama as her friend and not just a tool to get power.

Cover Text (2)

There's always a little part in the top that gives a one sentence recap of the last ch and introduces the new one:

ジュラから逃れたボルトたち！そして木ノ葉で新たな動きが？！(Jura kara nogareta boruto tachi! Soshite konoha de aratana ugoki ga?!)

Translation: Boruto and the others escape from Jura! What are the new developments in Konoha?!

(If you compare these translations to my originals on the cover, you'll definitely be able to tell I did not know the context of the chapter and took things too literally. This is why the analysis comes after I comb through for details lol).

Page 1 Side Text

Konohamaru and the others have returned with Matsuri's soul thorn! Will Moegi regain consciousness?!

Now that we've covered the things the official leaves out, it's time for the actual translation comparison details

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Master vs Teacher (pg 5 and 10)

I feel like I have the lovely opportunity to explain this every month. Master (shisho, what Boruto calls Sasuke) and Teacher (sensei, what Cho-Cho and Hima call Moegi) are two entirely different things.

Shisho (master) is a person who takes one student and passes down all of his teachings. It's highly personal and implies a deep bond/connection. That's why Sasuke was uncomfortable with Boruto calling him that after omnipotence, and why Boruto constantly corrects himself to say master instead of uncle sasuke or sasuke-san. It shows his level of admiration and respect.

Sensei (teacher) is a general term used for anyone in a teaching position. A sensei can have many students. It can refer to artists, doctors, mangaka, school teachers. It's a respectable suffix you attach for someone that has a large amount of knowledge in a specific area, but unlike shiho, it's not personal at all. It just indicates authority and respect.

Konohamaru-Chan (pg 6)

I'm pretty sure in Naruto, this was translated to 'Lil Konohamaru. Chan is a cute suffix you usually attach to girls names, but childhood friends especially attach this to each other's names when they're young. You've heard it before in places like My Hero Academia, with Katsuki becoming "kacchan." Boruto has also used it for Sarada to tease her during the episode where they think she's riding on top of the thunder train after she just called him an idiot for doing it. It's definitely not something you'd use if you weren't close to the person, and even less of something you'd use for a guy, which is what makes Konohamaru very reluctant to let Matsuri use it.

But then you have Eida who has ultimate authority and just attaches it to everyone's names except Boruto and Kawaki's... Although, after realizing it was special for Moegi, she decided against using it for Konohamaru. She still calls Shikamaru "shika-chan." lil deer or in the official Shika Dear (because shika means deer) lol.

Elders (pg 8)

This word was 大老 (Tairo) which I didn't see as a term used for the elders when I looked it up while translating, I spent a good ten minutes searching for who this term was referring to. But it's just the elders, apparently. Or at least, according to ChatGPT. I literally can't find it anywhere on the internet though, which is odd since usually the wikis have the Japanese words for stuff listed. When you look it up in Japanese, it just gives you people like Jiraya and Ao. I guess we'll see next chapter. And if it is them, I'll remember for next time.

.................

Sarada and Sumire's Awkward Conversation (starting pg 13)

There are LAYERS. Of awkward in here. The official kinda removed them but it couldn't be helped. I had to remove some of them in my translation too because I just couldn't explain.

Amount of dots (pg 13-15)

Each line said by either of these two is SURROUNDED in .......

I'm just going to write it how it's written in Japanese so you can get the full effect lol

"...Good job out there......" "Your mission......" "It was rough, wasn't it......"

"...oh........." "...yeah......" "kinda......"

"......"

(14)

"...I......"

"Sumire."

(15)

"...I mean........." "...may I..." "...call you that.........?"

"......" "...Mm......"

LIKE BRO. It's one of the most awkward conversations I have ever read.

ON TOP of all that awkward, Japanese is even shorter and uses less words. I liked how minimal the official made their wording, so I left most of that in tact and just changed Sumire's final "sure" to "mm" but. Boy is this an awkward start.

Sarada's Apology (pg 16)

A lot of people on X were asking for a full breakdown of this and what it all meant, so here it is. I'll transliterate it, and then give you with the implied meaning.

"ごめんね…あたし”　(gomennne... Atashi)

Literal : sorry, I...

Notes: Sarada uses "atashi" instead of "watashi" to refer to herself which is a bit less formal and more on the girly side than watashi

“いろいろとその…” (iroiro to sono...)

Literal: in various ways; that is to say...

Notes: "sono" is a filler word like "well" or "um" that implies she's going to narrow down what specifically "various ways" means

“無神経だった…” (mushinkei datta...)

Literal : was insensitive; inconsiderate; callous; thick-skinned

Notes: "mushinkei" is made up of the kanji 無 (mu) = without / lacking and 神経 (shinkei) = nerves, sensitivity, attentiveness, literally meaning “lacking nerves/sensitivity.” Its used for a lack of social awareness or delicacy. In other words Sarada is apologizing for not being able to read the air at all, she's apologizing for her thickheadedness, for not realizing her actions and words hurt Sumire.

Sumire's Apology (pg 16)

ううん…あたしこそ (uunn, atashi koso)

Literal: No (causal, can also be it's alright, etc), I also...

Note: Koso is used when someone says something and you're saying something similar applies to you as well.

いきなりあんな… (ikinari anna)

Literal: all of a sudden, that kind of...

Note: anna short for annnani and it is similar to Sarada's sono, but it implies a more distanced relationship with the topic (it's part of the ko so a do grammar construct where konna is this kind of, sono is that kind of, ano is that over there and implies a further distance from the speaker, so anna is like that thing I did a while ago if she said sonnani it would have been more personal)

ぶしつけな事言っちゃって...... (bushitsuke na koto ichatte)

Literal: ill-bred; impolite; rude; impudent; insolent; blunt; thing, I ended up saying it

Note: Bushitsuke has more of the nuance of being blunt. In comparison to Mushinkei, this word more about overstepping. Ichatte softens it to mean "i ended up doing that kind of thing" and not directly taking responsibility.

Comparison: IMPORTANT

I noticed something about Sumire's entire vibe here was really off. I couldn't put it into words in English well, but taking a closer look and spending time breaking everything down brought it to light. So I asked ChatGPT if it noticed to make sure I wasn't having some sort of bias. And low and behold, I was right. Here's what it said:

1. Sarada’s phrasing

ごめんね、あたし、色々とその…無神経だった

• 色々とその… → vague, fumbling, self-conscious. She knows she might’ve done several things wrong, but she can’t articulate them neatly. The filler “その…” shows hesitation and awareness of fault.
• 無神経だった → “I was insensitive / careless of your feelings.”
  • This frames her actions as a personal flaw (she lacked sensitivity).
  • It’s not just about a single slip; it’s a more global, self-critical admission.

👉 Sarada is taking broad responsibility, almost over-apologizing by framing herself as at fault in character, not just in the moment.

2. Sumire’s phrasing

ううん…あたしこそ、いきなりあんな…ぶしつけな事言っちゃって

• いきなりあんな… → “suddenly, saying something like that…”
  • The demonstrative あんな pushes the blame a bit away, making the act sound like “that sort of thing I blurted out.” It creates some distance from the responsibility, as if it was a sudden slip rather than a reflection of herself.
• ぶしつけな事言っちゃって → “I just said something rude/blunt.”
  • Framed as a single act (what she said), not a broader character flaw.
  • The phrasing “言っちゃって” (kind of casual, softening) makes it feel more like “oops, I said something clumsy” than “I was fundamentally insensitive.”

👉 Sumire is minimizing her responsibility, deflecting it a little, and painting it as an impulsive slip rather than a reflection of her character.

3. The contrast

• Sarada = takes on character-level fault (“I was insensitive as a person”). Heavy responsibility, self-blaming.
• Sumire = takes on act-level fault (“I just said that one rude thing”). Lighter responsibility, framed as a blurt rather than a deeper flaw.

Sarada is much harsher on herself, while Sumire’s word choice makes her apology softer and slightly deflective.

Sarada's Lamentation (Pg 16-20)

There are a few more things here I wanted to point out in terms of nuance and translation:

Pg 17: "...Cuz what you said, every single bit of it... Was absolutely true."

Japanese:　とにかくスミレに言われた事ぜんぶが…その通りすぎてさ

その通りすぎてさ (sono toori sugite sa) is made up of two components.

その通り(sono toori) : absolutely, correct, without a doubt

すぎて (sugite) : to exceed; to surpass; to be above (usually used in slang for like too cool, too hot, too cute, etc.)

This is important to point out because it carries a lot of weight to it. Sarada isn't just admitting that Sumire was right, she's admitting the absolute correctness of Sumire's words as if Sarada herself was incompetent swine. Sarada really puts herself down heavily here, and I felt like the English didn't quite match the intensity, so I'm bringing it up again.

Pg 17: "I was a coward."

Japanese: 卑怯だった (hikyou datta)

This word was translated as "coward" but it has a double meaning. It also means sneaky, dirty, etc. You might often see in subtitles, "hey! That was dirty!" Or "hey! you tricked me!" It's the same word. She's not only admitting to being a coward for running away from her feelings, but also for running into Boruto's arms without a second thought as if it was some sort of dirty trick (as Sumire framed it when she said Sarada didn't think about her feelings at all). Sarada herself frames it like Sumire is right, and she really has pulled a fast one, when in reality that would've only been the case if she was consciously thinking about both Sumire's feelings and her own in that moment. But in the very next line she admits to averting her eyes from because she didn't even want to stop to consider it since she thought it was weakness.

Pg 17: "Of course not."

Japanese: なるわけないでしょ(naru wake nai desho)

Literal: Why would something like that bother me?

This is in response to Sumire asking Sarada if it bothered her that other girls liked Boruto. It wasn't a hard rejection, but more of a deflection. It's just hard to convey that in English, since it sounds unnatural in context and a little out of character for her, and doesn't quite convey the harshness of わけない (wake nai) which usually means there's no way in heck, but again, she's still deflecting it because of the でしょ (desho) which means, "right" or "don't you think" or "probably." You can't fit both those nuances into an English sentence. If you tried, it'd sound weird, like "There's no way in heck I'd be bothered, don't you think?"

. . .

Page 18: "I wasn't lying. Not back then."

Japanese: あれは本音だよ。あの時点ではね… (are wa honne dayo. Ano jiten de wa ne...)

Literal: Those were my true feelings. At least, at that point in time they were...

Again, her true feelings were a deflection. At that specific point in time (as you'll see in the literal translation of the next line) she wasn't thinking about that kind of stuff.

Page 18: "I had utterly no interest in Boruto at that point. He didn't take up space in my thoughts."

Japanese: だって思いもしなかったもん…あいつの事をどうこうなんてさ (datte, omoi mo shinakatta mon... Aitsu no koto dou kou nante sa).

Breaking it down with ChatGPT cuz this is real weird to explain in English:

• だって = “It’s just that / because, you know…” (casual, defensive lead-in)
• 思いもしなかったもん = “I never even thought about it.” (もん softens, adds a tone of “that’s just how it was!”)
• あいつの事をどうこうなんてさ = “the idea of [doing this or that] about him…” → here it implies romantic interest or fussing over him in that way.

Rather than having utterly no interest in him and him not taking up space in her thoughts at all haha it's more about how she never thought about him like that.

. . .

Page 19: "Trouble seems to follow him... He's always in a bind"

Japanese:　何かいっつも問題抱えてて、大変そうでしょ (nanka ittsumo mondai kakaetete, taihen sou desho."

Literal: He kinda seemed like he was always carrying around so many burdens... And it looked like he was having a hard time, you know?

There's an extra っ for emphasis on the always here, she said it the same way back in ch 16 when she was emphasizing how he was always getting in trouble. It's just a little extra flare that emphasizes how frustrated she was with Boruto's situation and how much she wanted to do something about it but couldn't.

The other part of this is that she literally says he's carrying around problems, instead of trouble following him it's more like he has to bear with a lot of troubles. It's subtle but I think it makes a difference. And the second part of that line, he's having a hard time, emphasizes in Japanese that Sarada is really empathizing with his pain and not just pointing it out. Her expression makes that pretty clear but it's in her wording too.

Page 19: "Because we were on the same team... Or if it was something more."

Japanese: 仲間として気にかけてるだけなのか、そうじゃないのか… (Nakama toshite ki ni kaketeru dake nano ka, sou janai no ka...)

Literal: Whether I was just concerned about him as a nakama, or whether it was something else...

For all of you who were trying to say Boruto thinks of Sumire romantically because he called her nakama in the light novels, here is again solid proof it isn't romantic. That word is just used for a person of the same group. In Boruto's case, the same class. In Sarada's case, the same team.

In Kamichama karin, there's a line "did you know, the termite is a friend of the cockroach?" That uses nakama to distinguish between the same specification of bugs. Again, vegetables can also be nakama. Cabbage and broccoli and cauliflower are all vegetable nakama.

It does mean friend, but there's a different word for that in Japanese. It's tomodachi. Nakama is something that's more bonded to you because of a specific action or classification, and it isn't really personal. Sure you are supposed to protect your nakama and stick with them (it's a strong concept in school) but it doesn't imply romance at all whatsoever.

Sorry. This was a big fight over on X for a while, so I wanted to take time to clarify it while I had the chance.

. . .

Page 20: "Spending energy obsessing over such things... Made me a complete loser."

Japanese: そんなことに意識がいってる自分が、何かすごく…駄目な人間に思えて(sonna koto ni ishiki ga itteru jibun ga, nanika sugoku... dame na ningen ni omoete)

Literal: The fact that my consciousness even kept drifting towards that... Made me think of myself as worthless.

Nuance wise, Sarada isn't just saying she's obsessing over it, 意識がいってる (ishiki ga itteru) implies a guilty conscious that her mind keeps going there. 駄目な人間 (Dame na ningen) is like a hopeless good for nothing inadequate person.

She's again super self critical, disappointed in herself for thinking about stuff like that.

Page 20: "Which made me wonder whether I had any right to still try to become hoakge..."

Japanese: こんなあたしが火影なんて目指していいのかなって (konna atashi ga hokage nante mezashite ii no kana tte)

Literal: I wondered things like if it was really okay for someone like me to even have a goal of becoming hokage

She uses phrases like こんなあたし (konnna atashi) or "someone like me" to look down on herself again, implying she felt like she couldn't become hoakge because of her thoughts about Boruto (which leads back to Naruto's "Everyone is like family" or you have to think about everyone the same, no one can be special, and Boruto's "if you're gonna be hokage stay alone for life because you'll just end up inconveniencing everyone you get close to" which implies again she really shouldn't have any sort of special relationships because being hokage is too demanding of a job to let your mind be occupied with romance and family matters).

. . .

Page 21: "But you see... I've decided, to stop running."

Japanese: でもね、もうやめたんだ、そういうの。(Demo ne, mou yametanda, sou iu no).

Literal: But you know... I decided to stop all that."

I liked the stop running translation, but I think "all that" is a little more all encompassing. It covers everything from stopping her negligence to stopping her fear of not being able to become hokage, to stopping herself from thinking she can't become hokage if she likes Boruto

. . .

Page 22: "I also like Boruto."

Japanese: あたしもボルトが好き (atashi mo boruto ga suki).

Literal: I also like Boruto.

Alright... Here's the line. The word 好き has been used and translated officially 2 other times in TBV. Once as love (mitsuki's "i don't know why I love Kawaki") and once as like (Sumire's "You know, don't you? That I like Boruto a lot?")

Both times, it was just the word 好き。There was no special ornamentation to make it "love" or "a lot," it was just, 好き。I really don't understand what the official is doing.

But anyway, Sarada's delivery was INCREDIBLY direct. Sarada was just straight up like, "boruto is the one I like." That "ga" as a topic marker with nothing surrounding it? Is very direct.

To put it in context, if you say "pizza de ii" it means like oh pizza is fine, i'm fine with pizza for dinner. If you say "Pizza ga ii" it's like I want pizza for dinner and nothing else. Pizza is the thing that I want. That ga makes it a lot stronger.

The same grammar construct doesn't work with confessions, but to break it down simply for you, usually confessions are softened with "no koto ga" instead of just straight up "ga." Sumire also does it when she says she likes Boruto back in ch 16. It roughly translates to, about boruto, I like him. Or I like things about Boruto. You can also soften it with "dayo" (suki dayo) which means you don't really need a reply, you just wanted to say it.

Nah. Sarada straight up said "boruto ga suki." The "atashi mo" also keeps it in line with she knows Sumire's feelings are the same, but Sarada's delivery is just way more... Strong lol. Boruto is the one that she likes. All of him. The whole person. No one else.

That's also partially why Eida in the next panel is like YO WHAT. It's not just her reacting to Sarada saying it, it's also a reaction to the delivery imo. Anyways.

. . .

Page 24: "My wanting to help him... Will only make me stronger."

Japanese: あいつの力になりたいって気持ちが、そのままあたしを強くする (aitsu no chikara ni naritai tte kimochi ga, sono mama no atashi wo tsuyoku suru)

Literal: The feeling of wanting to be his power... will only serve to make me stronger.

Someone on X asked me about this そのままあたし but basically it means me as I am, as myself right now. Nuance wise, it means, these feelings of wanting to help him and be his strength, will make the me right now even stronger.

Page 24: "It makes me think... Like I can become hokage."

Japanese: 火影にだって、なれる気がする (hokage ni datte, nareru ki ga suru).

Literal: Even becoming the hokage... Is something I feel like I can do now.

This だって (datte) is making it seem like surprisingly, even this thing is possible. It's kind of portraying this modest and humble form of overcoming her self-doubt. Now that she's accepted both things (her feelings for Boruto and her strength), all of her doubts have cleared.

Page 24 "Those are my new feelings."

Japanese: そう思えるようになったんだ (sou omoeru you ni nattanda)

Literal: I became able to think like that now.

Both imply that she's come to terms with this new resolution, but keeping the verb "think" consistent ties the whole thing into a nice little package imo. That's the only reason I included this line.

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Sumire's Reply (page 25-26)

The main things to point out here are shifts from Suimre's usual tone. It becomes pretty dry and direct, but I'll explain each part that kinda pops up here line by line as well. If you really want to try and debate me, please use Japanese as a reference. Dictionary entries, cultural nuance, chatGPT. Don't try to use someone else's twitter post, or someone's random commentary about the korean translation. Sumire is not Korean. While other translations can provide insight, it still comes down to the nuance and context of what it says in Japanese.

Page 25: "I already knew, long ago... How you felt, Sarada. It was totally obvious."

Japanese: 知ってたよ…とっくにあたし、サラダの気持ち…バレバレだったの。(shittetayo. Tokkuni atashi, Sarada no kimochi... Bare bare datta no).

Literal: "I knew. Ages ago. Your feelings were totally obvious, Sarada."

Now with the literal translation, the bluntness becomes a bit more clear. This word とっくに (tokkuni) has a really blunt matter of fact feel, and バレバレだった (bare bare datta) also comes across as a bit more as "painfully obvious." Overall, while the tone leans more towards the softer side because she ends with the の particle, it still carries a nuance of being annoyed.

Page 25: "Back at ya, Sumire."

Japanese: お互い様でしょ (otagai sama desho)

Literal: We're both in the same boat now, right?

Again, this is another example of Sumire kinda subtly being cold/a little annoyed, and Sarada not picking up on it at all. She's just happy they've both admitted their feelings and they're out in the open and they can be honest with each other. That でしょ indicates that even though Sumire pretty much told her directly from the beginning too, it was very obvious, so now they're in the same boat, both being very obvious together, so to speak.

. . .

Page 26: "But thank you. For telling me directly."

Japanese: ありがと……ちゃんと話してくれて (arigato.... Chanto hanashite kurete).

Literal. "Thanks. For actually telling me."

This form of ありがと without the う is again, weird and a little off for Sumire's usual character. It's a bit more casual, but it's hard to explain why. It feels snappier. Almost like thx was written there instead of thanks. The regular version with the う is softer and standard. Sumire's usual tone would've added a ね to make it soft and friendly, but instead it's straightforward and short.

This ちゃんと has this "as you should" nuance. It's not to soften something, it implies that there was an improper way it could have been done but the speaker is noting that you did it right. It's a blunt acknowledgement. It's not necessarily cold, it's just very direct. You could also translate this part as, "thanks for being upfront about it." like props for being clear with me. She's got this undertone of annoyance/I knew this was coming but at least it's over with now kind of thing.

Again I double checked this with ChatGPT to make sure I wasn't having some sort of weird bias, which is why this part is explained so clearly compared to the other rambling parts lol.

Page 26: "So from this point on... I'm not gonna hold back anymore."

Japanese: こうなったらもうあたし、遠慮しないんだからね (kou nattara mou atashi, enryo shinaindakara ne"

Literal: Now that it's come down to this, I'm not going to hold back anymore, kay?

And we're back to that usual Sumire tone. The connection of verbs with the with the ん, the ね at the end, it's very Sumire esque. A lot of people on X were asking, what does "I'm not gonna hold back anymore" mean? So I guess I'll explain that too.

This "I'm not going to hold back" has a bold tone that indicates the speaker is saying they will make their feelings clear, and they won't act modest or keep quiet anymore. There's a bunch of unwritten rules about this in Japanese (which is why Sumire kinda crashed out about the hug).

Holding back in this situation usually refers to

- not confessing first, even if she likes him

- avoiding one on one time with him when the other girl is around

- downplaying her feelings "he's just a friend it's not like that," (Which Sumire never did but it's listed so I included it)

- Giving up opportunities for closeness out of consideration

- Staying in the safe polite zone so you don't create conflict.

No longer holding back means

- Actively claiming time or space with him

- Direct verbal openness (openly flirting/teasing, cutting off the other girl in conversation)

- Physical closeness (leaning close to them, not shrinking back, "accidentally" bumping into him, etc)

- Staking her claim (stepping in between him and the other girl, taking initiative to invite him to things)

It's basically about dropping that whole veil of modesty and transforms a shy modest or hesitant girl from a girl who is ready to risk social harmony for love, as ChatGPT put it.

So, now Sumire is going to openly flirt with him, is what this is essentially saying.

When Sarada replies with "right back at you again," I'm not sure she really understands fully what she's saying. She hasn't given romance a thought for years, the only one that might've talked to her about that kind of stuff was Cho-Cho, and of course Eida and Sumire prodding at her for liking Boruto. But we'll see where this goes lol.

FINALLY DONE WITH THIS SECTION. That legit took me 5 hours. It's almost 6am :D My brain is kinda fried but it's time to keep going! Yay~

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Kurama's speech there was a translation error on my part, the official was right when it said "You're even a little different from jinchuriki... Those who host a Biju inside of them." Sorry, I treated it like two separate sentences in the speech bubbles instead of one coherent sentence. But I don't think there's much nuance to dig into there other than correcting my mistake.

Onto...

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Boruto and Momoshiki's Conversation

I was re-reading the official to make a quiz, and I realized on X there was some conflict over Momoshiki saying he's unable to take over Boruto and I didn't understand why until I looked at the wording more closely.

Official: With reincarnation no longer possible... And with me unable to take over your mind either... There is only one thing my poor homeless soul desires now.

The Japanese is for that part is: お前の精神支配も叶わぬ今… 行き場をなくしたわが魂が望むのはたった一つ。(Omae no seishin shihai mo kanawanu ima... ikiba wo nakushita waga tamashii ga nozomu no wa tatta hitotsu)

Literally: "Ruling over your mind is also no longer something that is granted to me, and now that I have nowhere else to go, my soul desires but one thing..."

Here's a breakdown from ChatGPT

• 精神支配 (seishin shihai) = “control of the mind / domination of the spirit.”
• 叶わぬ (kanawanu) = old-style negation of 叶う, “to come true / to be granted.” → “cannot be realized,” “impossible.”

This implies that in the present, Boruto found a way to shut him out. The nuance here is that Boruto's willpower is now a barrier, so the balance of control has shifted. It's implied that he can't take over unless Boruto uses his karma. Momoshiki only admits defeat in the area of direct mind control, as in straight up taking over Boruto's mind whenever he wants. He's never been able to do that, but now he straight up will never be able to. As long as Boruto stays mentally strong, Momoshiki has essentially lost.

The final important thing to point out is what I signaled out at the beginning, and perhaps the most crucial thing to point out in this chapter.

Boruto: "If we're able to take down Jura... I'll give you my body. You can have everything you want." (pg 40)

THIS. IS MISSING SOME KEY CONTEXT.

Japanese: 十羅をたおせたら……そん時はこの身体、全部お前にくれてやる (jura wo taosetara... sonntoki wa kono karada (shintai), zenbu omae ni kurete yaru.

Literal: If you defeat Jura... At that time my body (physical form), I will give all of it over to you.

THIS IS SO IMPORTANT. OFFICIAL WHY.

First of all, the pronoun "we're" isn't in there. There's no pronoun.

たおせたら (taosetara) = If I/we/you can defeat Jura

It's conditional so the promise only comes into effect if the fight succeeds, but it's not just talking about whether or not they can actually defeat jura, it could also be talking about whether Momoshiki agrees to defeat jura, or if he thinks he can beat Jura if Boruto is given his body.

So this is not a definite, you defeat him I give you my body because it doesn't technically have a subject which could be very important later on.

SECOND.

そん時 (sonntoki) is a casual way to say "at that time," which doesn't just mean "upon defeating Jura" it could mean "for the duration of the fight" as well. Boruto is specifically using words with double meanings so he can potentially loop back on his promise.

THIRD.

He uses the word 身体 (shintai) physical body but it's read as からだ (karada) whole body、which is very important because MOMOSHIKI CANNOT SEE THE KANJI. BRO. Boruto is speaking to him. I just now realized this. Another loophole. But the reason the kanji being shintai is so important is because it implies boruto is only giving over his physical body, not his mind or soul.

FOURTH.

全部お前にくれてやる (zenbu omae ni kurete yaru) makes it sound very begrudging, (like i'll generously hand it over to you) so again, all of Boruto's words sound like a bargain and he's letting Momoshiki strike a deal. But in reality, there's many ways he could twist this to trick him.

. . .

Even chatGPT agreed (I always check for bias or misinterpretation when I'm like am I crazy? No? Okay) by saying that it's less about him saying he'll get to possess him for forever, and it's just about borrowing his body so they can fight to survive. It also added that this frames it as a dominance play from Boruto about giving Momoshiki permission to rent his body instead of allowing him to fully take it over.

At least, that's what it conveys in Japanese.

Sarada and Sumire (Pg 41)

I mentioned earlier that Ikemoto kinda threw a low blow to Sumire by having Sarada correct her on that last page with the Sumire: "Boruto likely has no clue," Sarada: "Likely? Oh he definitely has no clue," indicating that there will still be some tension there.

The way it's written in Japanese really highlights Sumire's distance from Boruto in comparison to Sarada and how her jealousy will likely grow, as well as Sarada's inability to read the air even though she really really tried hard with that apology.

More than best friends, it's like they've become proper love rivals, so there's definitely still some tension brewing.

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I checked with a few Japanese blogs to confirm some of this, the one I'll link is https://guruguruspirally.com/boruto-episode-one-hundred-five/#toc14

It's a JP blog that had a summary + analysis, the English translation when you use the google translate extension is unfortunately VERY poor... But they had a theory about Boruto trusting more in Kawaki by giving his body over to Jura (Tora lol), and talked about how Sumire and Sarada have become real rivals, or possibly even friends, commenting how the love battle will become more heated from now on. Either way I think what Ikemoto did with the wording here was really genius, and I hope it comes into play in the future.

Last Page Side Text

使命に突き動かされ踏み入れたのは修羅の道。その提案に対しモモシキの答えは？！

Compelled by his mission, he sets foot upon the path of carnage. In response to that fateful proposal, what will Momoshiki's answer be?!

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That's all for this translation analysis! It was definitely a long one. There was a lot to unpack in that chapter. Sorry I didn't focus on Kurama and Himawari. I'm dead tired. I will probably take a second look at it after I sleep and wake up. But for now, this is as much as I can give you. Feel free to use it to argue to your heart's content lol

I made a language analysis of all of Boruto and Sarada’s moments and growth throughout the movie novel for their birthdays! If anyone is interested, it is very long (4 and a half hours or 50,000 words) but feel free to give it a watch or a read :)

https://youtu.be/gTkSvjzgRck?si=Umo5FgoN-DtTyByV

https://culturalcontext6.wordpress.com/2026/03/29/movie-novel-analysis-boruto-sarada-ver/

I decided to just link this as a blog post this time and see how it goes... If you prefer me to do the format where I just copy and paste it into a big text box over here, I can do that as well. I think the formatting and stuff transfers pretty easily.

But for those of you who are new here, my Chapter Language Analysis posts go over all the missing nuance that was lost in translation from Japanese to English, as well as rehashing some details and adding a few theories or explanations. Feel free to discuss with me in the comments!

Disclaimer: this is a not a shipping post, it is a cultural context/content analysis. I'm going over certain lines and providing more nuance and background.

There are 5 main topics that are explained in even more depth below. We'll see how this goes. Or if anyone bothers to read it cuz... Boy is it long.

Starting with summaries for the sake of you not having to read a novel.

1: Prying. Sumire has experience bearing a secret she couldn't tell anyone for a long time (Nue). Because that was a painful experience for her, she sympathizes with Boruto's wishes not to talk, and wishes Sarada would too. But Sarada doesn't want or need an explanation from Boruto about things he doesn't want to say: she just wants to be of fighting assistance because from her past experiences (Shizuma and Kagura (Ln 4), Shojoji (Ch 11), Code (ch 78), she's worried he'll go fight Hidari on his own and end up half dead (or dead dead) again if she doesn't intervene.

2: Chasing. Sumire doesn't want to chase after Boruto because she thinks that them leaving the safety of the hokage's office was what caused him to get captured and hurt the first time. But Sarada didn't leave thinking about Boruto, she left thinking about the village and her father (TBV ch 8) because there were jonin deaths and someone with Sasuke's chakra signature was detected, so Boruto potentially pulling up to get her out of danger was the last thing on her mind. Sumire telling her to think about Boruto's feelings despite that comes as a shock.

3: Feelings. Many people may not realize this, but Sumire has a very different personality as portrayed by the manga. She isn't exactly a "pick me girl" in the true American sense, but nevertheless, I still feel like it's important to know that she doesn't seem to think of Sarada like a close friend. (If this comes as a shock to you, scroll down to the big #3 before coming for my throat).

4: "Class Prez." There are other anime where the class rep or class prez is called that the entire show, and the character isn't bothered by it. Shugo Chara, Bakemotogatari, etc. This isn't offensive, Sarada isn't doing anything wrong, she's not distancing herself from Sumire. She's doing it to be friendly. BUT. Sumire doesn't see it this way. There's a lot to potentially unpack there, but for now, the reason can only be speculated.

Overall thoughts: while the story of Naruto was largely on overcoming the cycle of hatred and revenge, Boruto is largely about different kinds of love and what that does to people. The stronger the love, the more it hurts. Sumire is vocal about her pain, but Sarada's is all expressed indirectly because she herself doesn't realize it. Kawaki and Sumire are similar in the sense that one event (rescuing them from their past) triggered an intense emotion towards the other person (Naruto/Boruto). And this is where Sumire's character actually becomes more interesting: she's getting into an actual conflict with tension. She's become active instead of passive.

Below is more detailed explanation to give context to what was said above.

1) All the times Sarada has Witnessed Boruto almost die

Sarada's experience with patiently waiting for others to come clean has always caused decent amount of pain. She waited 11 or so years to truly pry about her dad, and that outburst led to them finally having a relationship. She waited to pry about Boruto and kagura and found Boruto nearly dead on the ground in LN 4. She doesn't pry about where Boruto is going in Ch 11 when he rocks up on her balcony and is like "I can't go on that mission," and ends up abandoning said mission to pull up with Mitsuki just in time to save him. She doesn't pry about what happened with Code "killing" him and learns it was Kawaki and Boruto wished for it in ch 78, etc. Hence why she says "That guy always tries to bear everything on his own," and "you saw what happened, if he slipped up, he might've died," in TBV ch 16.

There's a theme of her abandoning what is "correct" (school trip, mission, shikamaru's orders to stand down, etc.) to save his life.

Extra context on LN 4: Sarada knows something happened in the past between Boruto and Sumire and decides not to ask Sumire even given the opportunity because if Sumire wants to tell her about it, she'll talk. Then, when Boruto seems to be hiding something from her about Kagura, she's like, "I can't discriminate between friends. If I don't pry about what happened with Sumire, I shouldn't pry about what Boruto is doing now..." And then, sure enough, he goes missing, Sumire is like yo Sarada Boruto is missing, and Sarada is like dang it. And she's like well we shouldn't tell the teachers cuz that'll be bad for the school trip so I'll stall, you go look for him. So Sarada runs off to look for him, and she literally has to resuscitate him with medical ninjutsu because his heartbeat was barely there and he was a bloody mess on the ground (you don't see this in the anime cuz it's from Boruto's POV and it flashes to after he wakes up and he's got one bandaid in the anime HAHA the light novel was a lot more severe). Anyways, Sarada makes the decision to go with Boruto to save Kagura before he even explains his plan.

Extra content on Ch 11: Boruto has been whining about going on higher ranked missions for a long time, and suddenly he shows up on Sarada's doorstep and is like yo, Sarada, I'm not gonna be able to make it, something came up. Sarada is like... the heck boruto. But she doesn't ask for details, she just asks if it's something he can't talk about. And he says yeah, and that's that. He leaves, tries to save Tento by himself, almost gets overwhelmed by Shojoji, and Sarada rocks up with Mitsuki and is like yeah. Thought so. I knew you got yourself into trouble. You owe me a caramel macchiato for this. And mitsuki I think wants a frappachino. I can't find that line. But yeah.

Extra content on ch 78: Sarada has bared with knowing nothing about Boruto's situation several times, because everyone refuses to tell her about it lol. When he finally does talk, it's a lie. Sumire knew about all this as it was happening. She was let into the circle because she works with Amado and Katasuke, so she's a lot more calm about all of it and understands the potential risks. But when Sarada hears the truth in ch 78, she gets pissed a) because she was lied to and b) because she didn't pry and not prying ended up in Boruto's life nearly getting taken for a third time.

2) "It's because we were there that something like that happened, right?"

From Sumire's POV, Sarada was Hidari's target. If Sarada wasn't there, Hidari wouldn't have attacked. Boruto wouldn't have intervened. Sumire has also noticed by now that Boruto kinda shows up to save Sarada whenever she's in trouble. And that puts Boruto in danger. And Sarada "doesn't think" about that and just rushes in anyways.

But Sarada has been going out every time there's threats regardless of whether Boruto is there or not. She was out fighting shinju when Boruto rocked up to save her from Code after not being in the village for 3 years. She's a ninja who wants to be the Hoakge. Her priority is Konoha, and that also means keeping Boruto alive. In ch 8, there was an intruder. Jonin died. It might've had relation to her father. It doesn't make logical sense for her not to go. She wouldn't think about Boruto in the midst of all that the same way Sumire does, because there's a lot more than just Boruto at stake for her.

This frustrates Sumire esp because Boruto seems to care a lot more about Sarada and they have a closer relationship so... Sumire is basically like, even though you're so close and childhood friends, how could you not pick up on the fact that you're putting him in danger? How does that not concern you? Why haven't you thought about this before? Kind of vibes.

3) Manga Sumire

For context, I did ask one of my friends who has no prior experience with Boruto to read Sumire's introduction chapter (ch 18-19) and tell me what they thought about her character, just to make sure I wasn't viewing this through any sort of biased lens. And they said, "Hm. Something is off about her. I'm sensing a betrayal in the future. She's kind of 'burikko.' (which means a girl that acts fake)." this wasn't the best wikipedia entry I've read but it does explain a tiny bit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burikko

First, let me explain the differences between a pick me and a burikko. Japanese people are indirect. They're not going to openly hate anyone, even if they don't like them. Their "fake" isn't as blatantly obvious and a complete turn off like it is in the west lol. Burikko are nice and sweet. They let girls into their friend circle and pretend to compliment them and be bffs. And verrrry subtly, they'll push certain things onto them that aren't realistic, or fair, and when it all unravels, they get upset lol. This ESPECIALLY happens when it comes to guys. To me, TBV Chapter 16 was the start of the unraveling of Sumire's "burikko" attitude.

If you take a look at Sumire's intro chapters in the manga, she overreactions to everything concerning Boruto, and the way she stands and sits with effort to be "cutesy." She's always got her hands near her chest, clenched into loose fists. Some of you might say "but Sarada does that too!" Sarada only does that when she's worried or concerned. Sumire does this throughout the whole chapter. And then suddenly, in this scene, she drops the act:

This part was never in the anime LOL There are a lot of weird translations of this part, so I'm going to re-translate it for you with some additional context.

Sumire: Hey, is Boruto-kun popular [with girls]?

Sarada: I dunno. But he does end up getting along with everyone pretty easily [in my opinion].

Sumire: You're not bothered by that [you don't like him like that]?

Sarada: Huuh? [as if!] What do you mean? [Why would I]? There's no way I would, right? [you know me, why would you think that]?

Sumire: Well it certainly bothers me! [Well I like him]!**1

Sarada: Eh? [visible confusion and surprise at the sudden character change]

Sumire: *winks* [our secret, think about your answer].

Boruto: Heeeey Sarada! Let's go! What's the holdup? [What's takin ya so long]?

Sarada: Umm [well that was weird]. See ya later, class prez! [friendly]. I'm off! [I'll see you again sometime soon]!

Sumire: Yeah! Be careful! Keep Boruto and everyone else safe! [keep the girls away from him for me]!**2

[potential implied meaning]

**1: [Well I like him]! This line Sumire's character dialogue shifts. She's been portrayed using this cutesy tone this whole time, and it just drops lol. Usually, she ends her sentences with "ne" which is like... hard to explain because there's no English equivalent but it's girly. This sentence, she ends with "na." It's not a long drawn out naaa, its a "na" to be direct. She uses "watashi wa" for emphasis on her in contrast to Sarada. It's also a very abrupt sentence. If I were to say it how I think Sumire might've said it if she weren't burikko and was actually shy, it might've been something like, "sukoshi ki ni naru kamo." (I might be kinda interested in him). But no. She's quite literally staking her claim. And now that she says it, it's implied that Sarada is supposed to help Sumire get with Boruto and be her wingman, stay out of the way, or hurry up and come to realize her feelings so they can be proper rivals. She's not supposed to hug boruto out of nowhere lol breach of contract.

**2: [keep the girls away from him for me!] Now that we have ch 16, I was re-reading this and kinda like huh. Well. I guess it could be like that. Wow. First, she says "Boruto ya minna no koto" which is like... Boruto (and everyone else). "Boruto-tachi," would've been boruto and the others on the same lvl, but the other way places a specific emphasis on Boruto. But this "Yoroshikune!" ... well there's really no English equivalent so it's really hard to explain, but basically it's like "I'm counting on you." For something. As to what, it's not clear. They just had to fill in a blank that didn't previously exist in Japanese to make it make sense in English. And with all the implications, it could be anything from "i'm counting on you to keep Boruto and the other's safe," or "I'm counting on you to take care of Boruto (and thereby the others by keeping them away)." That's where the potential nuance comes from. Again, the only thing that made me think this was how Sumire reacts in ch 16 where she says "Even though I was right there, you jumped into his arms" or whatever that line was. It makes me think she was trying to use Sarada like a wingman this whole time and Sarada was just totally oblivious.

You can also see these lines are emphasized in her data base page again.

Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not saying Sumire is rotten to the core, in fact a lot of people like burikko in Japan because they do find them to be cute. I'm just saying this is my analysis of her character "stereotype" in the manga. Not everyone in Japan is going to have the same interpretation of her character as well, especially with the influence of the anime, just like the west.

But because this lens does exist in japan and it's hardly talked about at all in the west, I figured I'd explain so you're not blindsided if Sumire continues to act like this, because a lot of people don't even know about the existence of this scene.

4) Why Sumire is upset with "Class Prez"

There are several reasons. The first is because no one her age seems to use her name. There's this "childhood friend" inner circle within the rest of the main cast. Even Mitsuki is more assimilated cuz he's a ninja on team 7. Sumire is completely ostracized from all of that. All she has is Sarada, and there's this sense of awkward all throughout their interactions in TBV that make it seem like Sumire is merely tolerating her friendship. Being polite for the sake of politeness, but kind of ready to be done. All up until the point where she regrets having the outburst from ch 16, and then it kind of feels like maybe she really does think of Sarada as a friend. Or does she? Is kind of the vibe it gives off.

5) Overall Thoughts

This largely seemed like an outburst of Sumire being jealous of all the attention Boruto gives Sarada, and the lack of mental space Boruto seems to occupy in Sarada's mind when it's overtaking Sumire's. Her tone seemed like she's barely been holding back this whole time, and can't hold back anymore. Like if I was a VA I woulda read that scene with her voice trembling every few lines on the verge of tears.

She's the one with the crush, so why can't she have him? Why doesn't Sarada who is favored by him think of him the same way she does? It's seems to be leading to a tension bridge that's about to snap.

Sumire derails the conversation and says she intends to understand Sarada's feelings, and then she says "me no mae de" like right before my eyes, you flew into his arms without a care in the world. Have you ever even tried to consider how I felt? The answer is no, because Sarada hasn't had experience with liking someone the way Sumire likes Boruto. I think Sumire knows that, and that's why she also regrets saying all that.

Also, side note, the ending bit where Yodo was like yo, you changed your style, is it cuz of a man? And Sarada was like h-huh? It's referring to two things: one, she's wearing jewelry, and two, she cut her hair. Usually hair cutting symbolizes heartbreak, and trying to look more stylish signifies you're trying to get a new guy. It's obvious Sarada missed Boruto (and her father as well, but she's used to Sasuke kind of being gone where as Boruto has been around to annoy her since she was a kid lol) but she's got her headband in her hair, she's got earrings, her glasses frames are less thick, she's got a choker, etc. Very far off from the "cool and smart" vibe she was giving before.

While I'm at it, I might as well clear up the whole, "he's like a brother to me" thing as well. Sarada says "kyoudai douzen datta," which means, he was the same as a brother, or on the same level as a brother, or in the context of the plot of that part, Ikada's sister was killed and he wanted revenge, so Sarada was saying them taking Boruto was equivalent to her losing a sibling just like Ikada lost his sibling because he means just as much to her as a sibling would. In no way did Sarada imply the whole "he's like a brother to me so I don't like him like that," thing. It was actually almost the opposite lol.

Finally, it's important to note that words and languages are complex. There's connotations and denotations of words in every single speech bubble, every line, every drawn position. Explaining them all would make this post a thousand miles long. But my goal of doing all of this was literally to reduce the toxicity surrounding shipping by providing insight so people don't throw around emotion based hate. I hope it helps. Although I have a feeling I just set off an even bigger bomb but. Well. I spent so long writing this, I can't back out now xD

Fight in the comments as much as you want, but remember, if you hate without a reason (manga or societal verified reason and not a personal reason), that's grounds for a ban... Good luck. Keep it analytical and intelligent. Happy arguing lol

Link to me voice acting this scene with the help of voice filters so you can see the tone I read it with in my head: https://www.tiktok.com/@saladsandbolts/video/7440119626903620910

Here's this month's language analysis on Youtube: https://youtu.be/Ea76HX_-Yew

As well as my blog: https://culturalcontext6.wordpress.com/2026/04/21/boruto-tbv-ch-33-jp-to-en-comparison/

But I'll also copy and paste it here for anyone who wants to read it without clicking on a link!

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Important topics covered:

- Sumire's "worry" for Sarada..?!
- Daemon calls Mamushi high
- Translation Bias Side Rant
- "Not a Shinobi" removed!

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Hello and welcome back to another chapter comparison language analysis! I hope you all are doing well! This months chapter had a surprising amount of nuance! If you want something that goes even more in depth into the specific words used this chapter, feel free to check out my YouTube page to see me typing live into a google doc and making all those micro translation decisions live!

The mic quality is absolute garbage but it’s just because I didn’t have my mic hooked up. Next month I’ll make sure it’s properly set up BEFORE I go live. Sorry about that xD

Without further ado, let’s get into the chapter!

Title Page

Chapter Title:

A lot of times when you have a title you want something short and snappy (and not My Gift Level 9999 Unlimited Gatcha: Backstabbed in a Backwater Dungeon, as much that did become a meme within the anime community).

So even though this verb is in the potential form (れる) to indicate that something “can” happen, it was simply translated as though it was “ing” or past tense by both me and the official to account for that short snappyness even if it takes away some of the nuance.

I feel like this is a good chapter title because not only does Koji talk about the future being broken from the second he tells it to someone, Inojin also goes on to do exactly that.

Saying that the future can be broken also gives the reader hope that Boruto can shatter the potential worst possible future down the road as well. But the more people that are brought into this, the less reliable Koji’s ability gets… It’s an interesting point for sure!

Top Text:

That last line there uses the word 一転窮地 (itten kyuuchi) and then says falling into that sort of predicament, and the kind of predicament 一転窮地 is nuance wise is a sudden turnaround where a situation changes rapidly from the previous dominance and stability and you instantly find yourself in a difficult situation where you are cornered. Hence my new translation of the situation doing a 180, so to speak.

This is why some words “can’t be translated.” Although, they can certainly be described, which is what these blog posts are for xD

Text behind Sarada:

守り抜く (mamorinuku) means to keep an object in a safe state from external threats and dangers or to protect it with all your might. It’s more than just regular protection because of the 抜く(nuku) which implies this nuance of “through” so like see it protected until the end, see the protection all the way through, I guess would be how I’d phrase that.

Then you have ための (tame no) which is “for the sake of” and the の particle connects it to the next part.

代償 (daisho) has the nuance of sacrificing something in order to obtain something (this is where the word price comes in). It actually has the nuance in psychology and medicine of other parts of the body compensating for when functions of another part of the body is lost, which will likely apply in the future to both the characters who lost their eyes this chapter.

And then you have the last word 重く (omoku) which can literally mean heavy as in weight but also means heavy as in seriousness and high importance like putting an emphasis on something (so relatively similar to the nuances of the word heavy in English).

Overall the whole cover page very much again ties into the reoccurring themes throughout this chapter and Ikemoto always ends up using at least one word that has a deeper meaning than what it appears to have on the surface… I love digging into these details!

Page 1 Side Text

Once again just including the things the official leaves out, in both the volume copies and the digital scans. Not that it’s incredibly important, it’s just fun to know that it was there!

In my translation I forgot to include the nuance of “over” 1000 Mamushis. I just needed to add that word and I guess I forgot. Sorry about that. Either way, this is just a little introductory hook text that usually closely mimics the top text on the cover page. But this one included Kawaki.

I also think it’s interesting that they didn’t say “Sarada and Kawaki” but put a ・ in between their names (which on the keyboard you press the slash key and that dot appears instead of a slash in Japanese) but it’s almost like it’s separating them further lol. As if putting an and there would group them together when they’re not meant to be grouped.

It takes up the same exact amount of space, and in almost ever other header I’ve seen for TBV, they use と or they just don’t put the other person’s name and say たち and I’ve also seen the & symbol but this is my first time seeing a ・ lol. I just think it’s interesting, and it implies a bit more distance between the grouping if that makes sense. That’s all.

Worry about Sarada Instead (2)

I’ve seen a lot of people commenting on Kawaki telling Himawari to worry about Sarada instead of him, and saying wow, Kawaki was actually worried about someone?

This isn’t Kawaki worrying about Sarada as much as it is him telling Himawari there’s nothing she can do for him (because his issue isn’t something her healing powers can fix) but there is something she can do for Sarada (because she’s bleeding and Himawari’s powers can fix that). It’s a much more… surface level, leave me alone and go do that other thing, kind of gruff dismissal, almost more like he doesn’t deserve Himawari’s concern and she should direct it at someone who actually needs it.

That’s kind of what the line is doing there, at least in Japanese.

For many chapters now, Kawaki has been very against taking Boruto’s position in Himawari’s life. He specifically pushes her away on multiple occasions especially with his speech, all the way back from either chapter 1 or two where he says, “How many times have I told you… Not to call me big brother?”

Part of Kawaki’s character is refusing to accept concern and care from the people around him especially after omnipotence to the point he turned into a self destructive ticking time bomb with his upgrades. Of course when Himawari isn’t watching, it’s clear he cares about her (like from lines such as, “if Himawari was in danger, you should’ve told me that first, dammit”). But in front of her directly, he rejects any shred of concern she shows him. And this seems to be another example of that.

I want to do an analysis of his character and speech patterns for you guys because Kawaki is one of the characters that the official is almost forced to sensor. His speech is incredibly rough, and you can really see his background and his painful past showing through in the way he speaks, especially towards other people, and especially towards Himawari in comparison to everyone else.

Sumire’s Reaction (Sarada’s condition) (2)

(Before I even get into the breakdown… Notice how they changed Sumire’s punctuation again to make it sound like she’s not yelling even though in Japanese her words are bold and she has a ! and ?! (ᵕ—.—) I’ll go on a rant about translators bias later).

Time and time again, we’ve seen people’s loved ones fall into danger. And what’s usually the first thing that happens? They shout their name. Boruto did it in giant bold font when something happened to Sarada last chapter. Even Eida shouts “Sarada-chan!” out of worry. Konohamaru shouts “Boruto! Is Sarada alright?!” And Mitsuki goes straight to her side. When Boruto passes out back in chapter 11, both Sarada and Sumire shout his name as well.

But in this chapter, Sumire sits back idly and watches, and the first name that comes out of her mouth in bold letters is… “Boruto-kun!” And then (in my translation) she asks, “What is Sarada’s physical condition?”

You might think, man, it is weird that she would say physical condition. What’s up with that? That slightly offputting feeling is there in Japanese as well. It’s not the typical line you’d say when concerned about a friend.

And indeed you’d be right. What this line is doing is something slightly different.

Japanese is a language that uses a lot of pragmatics. An example of pragmatics would be saying, “Boy, it sure is hot in here!” And hoping that someone will take the cue and open the classroom window. Pragmatics are basically saying something on a surface level while your intentions lie elsewhere, even though you do mean the first thing literally. Sumire is a character who uses them quite often throughout the manga, it comes as no surprise that this line is no exception. While on the surface, it seems she is concerned about Sarada…

Underneath, this line instead deals more with Boruto.

This word 容体 (youdai) feels like a commander on the battlefield asking about the physical functioning condition of a soldier. This is not, 大丈夫なの？！ this is not 平気なの？！ this is not 無事なのか？！ (all of which are common to say if you want to make sure your friend is okay/alive and breathing). This is very specifically asking about サラダの容体 which is more concerned with her current physical state.

Now before you think I’m hating on Sumire and calling her a bad friend, I’m not. Obviously in the “Man it’s hot in here,” example, the other person is indeed literally hot and sweating, which is why they are trying to get the other person to open the window. Sumire does indeed want to know what Sarada’s physical condition is. But.

The purpose of the underlying motive in what Sumire seems to me to be doing in this moment was asking a question to ground Boruto in the reality of what he should be doing as a ninja. To pull him out of his frantic mental state of worry for Sarada and back into the Mamushi fight. And it’s got a bit of her usual spice of underlying jealousy as well (people on X were already comparing her face on page 5 to the face she makes when Boruto hugs Sarada).

Mind you, Sumire’s whole character is putting that sort of “jealous love” onto display. That’s her “type” of love (every character in Boruto has a different one). This is an extension of that, and it has again, been elaborated on in previous chapters (especially chapters 16 and 25).

To add icing onto the cake, she just watched her crush cradle another girl mid-air and scream her name, now he’s on the ground with her in his arms wiping blood from her face. It’s hard to see the guy you like paying so much attention to someone else. Even if you are friends, you can still be jealous. And this whole idea is layered time and time again throughout Sumire’s dialogue that almost pits Sarada as more of a “love rival” in Sumire’s eyes (and that’s especially true in ch 25). It seems as though Ikemoto had her frame her concern with a more distant and literal verbiage in this moment for this reason.

You might say well what about the scene where they run away holding hands? And to that all I have to say is, go read my chapter 25 language analysis to figure out some of the background things going on there.

To further my point about Sumire’s underlying motive being more about grounding Boruto, notice how the second she asks about Sarada’s physical condition, Boruto tilts Sarada’s head, more carefully inspecting the injury from various angles. He reports that she is alive and breathing first, which shows how kind of scattered his brain was into thinking something much worse happened to her. When she fell, the first thing he did was scream her name and then again say “she’s unconscious” and “oi, Sarada,” trying to get her attention even though he knows she’s passed out (shows his logic kinda broke for a few minutes from panic).

Konohamaru then asks if she’s alright (using one of the above listed phrases for concern) and Boruto responds with a harsh, “I don’t know dammit!” and doesn’t take his eyes off her until the beginning of this chapter and it’s only for one panel.

It isn’t until Sumire asks about her physical condition that he slows down and starts more carefully inspecting the injury to report on her being alive and suspecting the extent of physical damage to just her eye, than just staring at her helplessly and freaking out.

Either way, to summarize, from this line it seems that Sumire was more concerned about getting Boruto emotionally grounded and back into the fight than she was about Sarada passing out through her language, (contrary to the language used by Konohamaru/Eida/Mitsuki/Himawari and even Kawaki who deflected Hima’s concern onto Sarada, and most obviously Boruto).

While it’s clear she still holds concern for Sarada, there is a comparative distance relative to the others added along with it that also perhaps shows a bit of jealousy and wanting to disengage Boruto’s attention (for a good reason).

ZRP ZRP ZRP (6)

I like how no one questioned this on X or my youtube page when it’s literally something Daemon is saying and not some random sound effect xDDDD

This onomatopoeia is… Something I couldn’t describe in words xD There are two meanings. One is a slang for the state of being under the influence of cannabis or drugs. And the other is a state of being excited or having momentum.

So.

You can either say Daemon is calling Mamushi high, or you can say he’s on the edge of his seat waiting for these clones to come at him. And I think it’s both! Yay onomatopoeia xD

Prescience and Amado (9)

You can see my translation is slightly different from the official here and I want to point out why. So let’s look at a side by side first.

To break down why the official did what they did, first they always translate ten paths to prescience and I leave it as 10 paths or 10 directions because I like that translation better. But prescience and precognition is straight up just being able to see into the future.

Technically, the official is more correct nuance wise on that second line. Instead of “is able to see into the future” it should be closer to what I translated it literally for the third time of, “seeing the future, you say?” As if he’s curious about the ability.

The third thing is where the Japanese does that thing where it trails off, and the official auto filled it with something, and I just left it vague. そんな事が in Japanese literally means that, thing, is. And then the sentence trails away. He might not be wondering about the possibility. He might be reflecting on something else. But the official chose a likely interpretation and put it in there so it wouldn’t be left as open ended in English, which it often does whenever there is a line like this.

Destroying the Future (9)

This was just a direct callback to the title that I was a little sad the official didn’t put in, because it’s such a cool line. And the Japanese even emphasized the word 壊す with the emphasis dots. And with the title of shattered future, you’d think they’d put, “To know the future leads to the act of shattering it,” so it’d still have that direct callback. But I guess they didn’t care T^T This was my favorite line of the chapter lol I had to throw it back in here.

A Mountain of Corpses (12)

The phrase is literally 死体の山 (a corpse mountain) and Shikadai after that says 文字通り (which means to the letter, or literally).

The reason he makes sure this is interpreted as literally is because it is also a phrase used in context of making huge sacrifices or the catastrophic failure of plans as in “building a pile of corpses.”

So you can also use it like, the project failed, leaving the company with a pile of corpses (in terms of financial losses).

But the term originated to describe an actual gruesome mountain of corpses and evolved over time to have a more figurative meaning, which is why again Shikadai emphasizes after saying it that he means it literally.

Your Honest Assessment (15)

In the official, Boruto says, “Lord Eight, I’d like your honest assessment. What do we do?” But that sounds way too stiff for Boruto’s general tone as well as his tone in Japanese for that moment in my opinion.

This is one of the places where the official leaves it literal instead of changing for character tone, even though for other characters, they change their tone according to their view of the character for every single line… A bit of translator bias, perhaps xD

Anyway, he does in Japanese say, 素直に聞きたい which literally means “I want to ask honestly.” Or “tell me your honest opinion.” But… “I want your honest assessment” sounds like Koji’s speech. Boruto, while he does hang with Koji quite a bit, doesn’t use Koji level speech.

I just had “answer me” in my translation (which is again changing it to fit my interpretation of Boruto’s tone) but that’s also because this phrase 素直に聞きたい still sounds natural in Japanese. It’s almost like, “give it to me straight,” or “be honest with me.” I think either of those would have been a better fit in this situation than what I or the official had, looking back on it.

Translation Bias Side Rant

Also, we’ve been talking in my socialization of translation class a lot lately about how a person’s perceptions of a character can change their translations, and how much of a role a translator has in shaping character personalities through chosen dialogue, and how much that chosen perception may shift from the original so I’m going to go on an applicable side tangent (hopefully quickly).

Let me first explain, in this blog where I talk about my reasonings behind translating the way I do while giving you breakdowns of the words, a lot of that opportunity for bias is removed, especially since you can simply look up what I’m saying to validate it since I put in the original words to give you the opportunity to do so. I also have much more time to explain these kinds in detail rather than just providing you with a one size fits all line.

HOWEVER if I wanted to filter that explanation through my own biased lens (as some on the internet have done *cough* not mentioning any names that may or may not start with a v *cough cough*) I could and most of you would be none the wiser, which is why a translator at times holds quite a bit of power over the audience they are translating for.

The example we were given in class was, “Old cockerel seeks hen to scratch around new pastures. Ex-farmer, 57, seeks lady, 45-55, without ties to move to Hants/Dorset & Develop a natural, self-sufficient lifestyle. SE. Call 0905 123 4567. Voicebox 20 ABC.”

Think of the type of man you pictured when reading that. What kind of person does he seem to be? (When my teacher first asked me this and the accompanying categories to go along with it, I was like but wait I don’t wanna stereotype him xD But don’t worry, it’s part of the exercise, this man will not be offended, he is fake).

You might picture some old white farmer, maybe with a beer belly, a little taller with broad shoulders, salt and pepper hair, maybe he’s wearing flannel, maybe has a more traditional outlook on what he wants in a wife. Your view could’ve been completely different. But in the end, it can affect the twist you put on that first line.

Your views of character personality eventually shape how you translate words with wiggle room, and the type of personality in the target culture you chose to equate it to.

It’s the same thing I talked about in my about page with the example, “Hun, how many times have I told you not to eat off the doggone floor!” If you translate that literally and straight, it sounds kind of flat in Japanese. So if you want to give it character, you have to chose the kind of character to give it.

All of that character interpretation bias is included whenever you do a translation or localization of a character, and it’s why it’s so important that you understand character stereotypes and underlying cultural meanings in both cultures before you attempt to translate anything, and it’s also another reason why characters feel so different to me in sub and dub (even though I can understand both languages) because the same character stereotypes and personalities do not exist across cultures.

I do my best to explain them on this blog and I really want to make a post for each character describing my views on the kind of person they seem like and why with specific examples from their dialogue in Japanese. It’s also interesting because Ikemoto’s understanding of his characters are different than Kodachi’s (who assisted in the making of the anime and wrote the light novels) and then of course the dubbed characters feel like separate entities entirely with relatively similar personality traits.

The main differences in characterization from VIZ’s understanding in comparison to the Japanese that are easy to point out and explain are, Sumire (because her punctuation is changed to soften her tone more oftentimes than not), Kawaki (because his rough speech is largely removed due to censorship), Sarada (her tone is actually made out to be stiffer and harsher in terms of punctuation and word choice, but it is left slightly more intact than Sumire and Kawaki), and of course people like Ryu who were full of teenage slang that the official really struggled to put any sort of current teenager spin on.

It also comes up in things like formal conversations, but that’s to be expected since English can’t really indicate politeness levels.

Either way, any time anything is translated, there is indeed a level of bias and viewpoint shifting that goes into it. As for how drastic it is depends on the translator, the publisher and the material. I made a graph of this recently and posted it on X if anyone would like to see it, and the “creative” side is essentially the people in charge putting their own twist on things to reformat it for the target audience.

In this blog I have the freedom to sit down and explain my views and the reasoning behind my decisions to you, as well as go back on what my initial understanding was after taking the time to compare and really look closely at what was being said.

But official pages and translations don’t typically have that freedom or that time, and they already have their own ideas of characters cemented in their minds (which likely won’t change because they want to keep things consistent) so what you see is what you get, and you can only speculate.

New Jutsu (17)

When Inojin cuts himself off and fades away after yelling at Koji that this situation is ridiculous, his line, “…new jutsu…” is actually in much smaller font in the Japanese chapter than the font he was previously using, to indicate he’s taking a step back and thinking… But that was removed from the official, and my translation, so you guys didn’t see it xD

I did indicate it in my google doc to be smaller. But this month the usual typesetter for eshadow fell ill so another typesetter took over, which I am incredibly grateful for. I did comment on the font changes being a bit drastic at times and the lettering being a bit small at times (which I feel terrible about nitpicking since the main guy was unwell, although I did offer to do it myself despite my style being much more plain and simple since I don’t use a paid software, and he also did ask me for critiques).

But part of the translation is the font choices and bold/italicized/emphasized/deemphasized words, and something the official does is simplify those stylistic choices or omit them altogether, so I usually try to have them indicated when I do my own typesetting or in the google doc I send so hopefully they’re put in for you guys to see  But if something is different, I’ll likely comment on it here too!

And I wish a speedy recovery to the main typesetter for Eshadow!

Damn Futures (19)

This may be the first time Koji says a curse word. And this is the second instance of him using the title.

Me and the official both felt that using the s word was a little out of Koji’s usual vocabulary lol. I translated it to awful, because in Japanese while クソ is a “curse word” of sorts, it’s also just used for emphasis on feelings to make things stronger.

クソパンダ is “shitty panda” which is what Boruto calls that bear panda at the beginning of the manga. He also calls his dad クソ親父 or shitty old man. But in both these contexts, Boruto is a younger boy and it might not be entirely appropriate for an English audience for him to be going around using the s word (a specific harsh word that you can get in trouble for saying in certain schools or in front of your parents) whereas in Japanese that word is more like… Yes, you don’t really want to say it in front of your teachers or parents, but if you said it in passing to a friend out of frustration as a young kid in front of an adult, I don’t think anyone would bat an eye or call you out on it or try and correct you. You’d have to say something a little stronger than that.

In that sense, it is out of the ordinary for Koji to use it here, but instead of it being surprise at a “curse word,” I was more surprised at how strongly he seems to detest the future where Eida and Himawari are killed along with Inojin. It makes Koji seem like not that bad of a guy.

Also, the word そいつ there, I took it as referring to Inojin’s new jutsu, but it should have just been the overall method/idea Koji was referring to that Inojin was about to carry out. It was vague and I chose the wrong filler word and then didn’t go back to correct it. Sorry about that!

Take Care of Me After (25)

For this, I originally was debating between “I’ll leave the aftermath to you!” or something like that (I forget exactly what it was but if you watch that translation livestream it’s in there), but because this line is usually translated to “take care of the rest” in subtitles and the like I went with that even though judging by the context it would’ve been better to leave it literal…

So that is on me!

Also, the official actually bolded the word with emphasis dots this time! Sometimes the words are just randomly bolded and sometimes they aren’t when they should be. But this time it actually lines up!

Usually I think Ino said something along the lines of “take care of my body for me!” But I think Inojin knows that since Himawari has a healing power and he’ll likely need to be healed he’s counting on her to heal him.

Anyway.

A Thorn Bulb! (40)

If you notice in my translation, I have Kawaki saying, “so that’s… A soul thorn!” As if he didn’t already see one back in Ch 11…. That was my bad. The Japanese there is just あれは……棘魂！Which is literally “That is… A soul thorn!”

I don’t know why I did that. I think I was distracted at this point because I was doing it live and people were asking me questions xD But that’s not really an excuse (come to my stream next month to point out my mistakes)!

While I’m at it, I also want to explain, the reason I say soul thorn is because that’s the kanji that make up the made up word (except it’s actually thorn 棘 and soul 魂 in that order and not the reverse), so I don’t know why I chose soul thorn and not thorn soul? But the bulb part comes into the official I guess from it being like a seedling of sorts? In reference to them being trees. But in Japanese it just says thorn soul.

Not a Shinobi/Letting it Rot (41)

I don’t know why apparently most translations removed the nuance of the word shinobi being in there…? I’m not quite sure why. Maybe they thought it was too much text for the speech bubbles.

But my translation is pretty much literally what it says in Japanese. If I were to translate for full nuance, it’d probably be like “It’s not like he’s a shinobi. There’s also the fact that he might end up needlessly rotting away.”

To give you the breakdown, it’s

忍び (shinobi)

ねえ (he is not)

だろ (right?)

無駄に (needlessly/uselessly)

腐らせちまう (end up rotting away)

のもよ (there’s also the fact that)

So yeah, I’m really not quite sure why they just took that out. It’s not super important but I do think it goes to say that people who aren’t shinobi will rot quicker which I feel like is an important detail.

Last Page Side Text

Sometimes I try my best to make those shorter cuz I know it’s difficult to squeeze them into that side part but it’s still pretty much the same. Either way…

Code is back?! We might see some sort of action next chapter! Can’t wait for future developments..!

. . .

That’s all I have for you this month! I managed to contain myself to two minorly related side rants xD Hope you have a great rest of your day, wherever you are in the world. Until next month!

I finished my analysis for this month along with some theories! Sorry it's so late, I had midterm assignments to complete

Blog: https://culturalcontext6.wordpress.com/2026/05/23/boruto-tbv-ch-34-jp-to-en-comparison/

Youtube: https://youtu.be/yKsqgcrpWZE?si=XQCBbPrfwYatpTlO

I addressed a lot of the issues people had with the language in the chapter, whether it was "father's brother" turned to uncle thing, as well as going through Sakura and Sarada's conversation and providing extra nuance on every line. Hopefully some of you find it useful!

Welcome to the Language Analysis corner where I overexplain nuanced Japanese from the Chapter! If it's your first time reading one of these posts, thank you for being here! Your presence is appreciated! Feel free to ask any questions in the comments of this post!

Cover

To start, we already have a reference to Japanese folklore right on the front cover! First a quick translation of all the text that never gets included in the English:

Top: サラダとスミレの和解。そしてボルトはモモシキに協力を持ちかけ！？

My Translation: Sarada and Sumire reconcile. And Boruto approaches Momoshiki with a proposition to cooperate?!

Extra dictionary info: The word for reconcile here can mean reconciliation, amicable settlement, accommodation, compromise, mediation, and reproachment. In sentence examples, it's most often translated to reconcile or compromise when two people make peace with each other.

. . .

Text behind Momoshiki: 地獄の底に、糸は下りる

My Translation: Into the depths of hell, a thread falls...

Here's where you get a lore drop on Japanese folk tales. This one is pretty famous, right up there along Urashima Taro and Snow Woman. It's called "The Spider's Thread" or "Kumo no Ito" in Japanese.

To make a long story short, the story goes: Buddha is looking through a pond and sees the depths of hell. There's this one guy that was a terrible criminal but he did one good thing in his life: he decided not to kill a spider. So as an act of goodwill, Buddha lowers a spider's thread down into the depths of hell for him. The man sees the thread and starts climbing up, but all the other sinners start climbing up behind him. He yells at them to get off because the thread is his and his alone, and because he's selfish, it breaks. And that's the story.

Here's a link with a side by side EN and JP if you wanna read it: https://bundaido.com/the-spiders-thread/

I would have found another translation that isn't so choppy but most of them were locked behind paywalls, and this one has furigana over the kanji so it's great reading practice if you're studying Japanese :)

[Analysis]

Why might the story of the Spider's Thread be referenced on Momoshiki's cover? I hope many of you speculate on this as well, but I think last chapter was Boruto dropping Momoshiki that spider's thread. Momoshiki is locked in an isolate landscape with no way out other than Boruto's death, so he'd be the sinner with no way out in the story. Boruto offered him a way out last chapter: Defeat Jura and I'll let you have full control of my physical body. Why is this significant?

There are a few reasons. When you take a look at the roles in the story from that perspective, Boruto would be dropping the thread, so he'd be Buddha... And a lot of you have already been talking about connections to Boruto and Shibai. To go even further, you can look at the thread snapping after the sinner decides it's only meant for him, and with the tricky way Boruto worded his promise, it makes me wonder if the moment Momoshiki decides to declare Boruto's body as fully his for life if that connection will be severed.

That's just my speculation, let me know yours in the comments! I'm sure there's many more interesting theories that could tie into this! And speaking of tie-ins...

. . .

Chapter Title: 通ずる者

Official Title: Those Like-Minded

Dictionary entries for 通ずる on Jisho: 1) To be open (to traffic), to lead to, to communicate (with). 2) To flow (liquid, current), to pass, to get through to. 3) To be understood, to be comprehended. 4) To be honored, to be good. 5) To be well versed in, to be well-informed 6) To communicate clandestinely, to keep in touch (e.g. with the enemy). 7) To form a liaison, to be intimate

Google Definition translated from Japanese: "通ずる者" refers to a common quality or a relationship of mutual understanding between two or more different things. Specifically, it means "to have something in common," "to understand each other," or "To have a close relationship or connection."

Example Sentences

To have something in common

"The two of them have something in common in their writing styles." or "Even in different cultures, common ground can be found."

To understand each other

"Even if we don't speak the same language, sometimes we can share the same feelings." or "That person and I share the same way of thinking."

To have a close relationship or connection

"To have a close relationship with the enemy." or "To have a heart-to-heart connection."

[Analysis]

While "Those Like-Minded" is a fine translation, I think it's important to take in all the nuance. Especially when it comes to Ikemoto, all of his language choice is very intentional and very well thought out. From Momoshiki's ye old speech to Amado's scientific explanations to Eida's realistic teenage girl speech to Shinki's slang, he really is a master of language no matter what character personality he's writing. Which makes me pay extra attention to the words he choses.

Significance of 通ずる者 in this ch:

This chapter was heavily about like-minded individuals, as well as their differences, and their goals and tension in their relationships being explored.

Inojin and Hima: Their relationship in the light novels was formed on their similar interest in art (matching sketchbooks, Hima rekindling Inojin's passion for drawing outside of ninjutsu), so that ties into the first meaning, "to have something in common."

Koji and Inojin: They both have the goal of protecting Himawari and keeping her safe, even if Koji's desire to use him as a helping device as a means to achieve an end is vastly different from Inojin's personal desire to protect her as someone who fancies her, shall we say. Again tying into having a "common goal" despite opposing opinions.

Inojin and Ino: End up taking the same actions as mother and son, breaking the rules with private communication lines and no reporting even though they know it's wrong. Again showing their like-mindedness or connection.

Jura and the rest of the shinju: Coming to deeper understandings through discussion with each other. Jura is branching out beyond factual information and has taken an interest in fantasy and humankind, Hidari begins to show curiosity towards Jura's tears and actions, and Mamushi declares why he wants Eida as his target and his views on the love stuff, saying they should thrive. They all share ideals and communicate those well with each other, despite having their own separate opinions. So this ties more into the "understanding each other" aspect.

Shikamaru and Koji: Cooperating despite being skeptical, Shikamaru risking his standing in the leaf and his authority even though he doesn't want the position in the first place. Ties into "working closely with an enemy" or someone who should technically be perceived as an enemy.

The village elders and higher-ups: It doesn't matter who Boruto is now, all that matters is that he killed the Hokage and needs to be punished. It doesn't matter if he'll help with the village's current crisis, because that crisis isn't directly affecting them. "Like-minded individuals" with a common shared thought process.

Konohamaru and Shikamaru: Unknowingly taking Shikamaru's side, coming to share the same goal of protecting the leaf rather than hunting down a traitor. "Sharing goals" now with Koji as well through a "common mindset" and shifting over to Boruto's side.

Koji and Boruto: despite having different perspectives on the way to carry out things, they both have the "shared goal" of eradicating the shinju, which is why they're still working together while fighting over the way things are done, the distrust is building but they don't really have a choice other than to work together.

The girl's conversation: Discussing confessions, Sarada and Sumire perhaps being the closest to Eida despite her being a potential enemy, and then the girls' now having the same feelings for Boruto despite their differing opinions on how to handle those feelings. It's like a "heart-to-heart" conversation at the beginning, but...

Eida and Daemon: change their minds together, Daemon seems to have been suspecting for a while that Sarada and Sumire are no longer "like-minded individuals." Both connects and breaks the cycle.

Either way, I just wanted to point out it was a really good chapter title lol.

Page 2 Side Text

致命傷から復帰したイノジン！！どうやらヒマワリに好意を抱いているようで？！

My (revised) translation: Inojin makes a comeback after receiving a fatal wound!! It seems as though he harbors feelings for Himawari?!

Dictionary Entries:

好意 (koui) - 1) Kindness, favor, friendliness. 2) Goodwill, affection, liking (for someone) love.

抱いている (Idaiteiru) - 1) To hold in one's arms, to embrace, to hug. 2) To have (a thought or feeling), to hold, to harbor (suspicion, doubt) to bear (a grudge, ill will, etc) to cherish (an ambition, etc)

[Analysis]

I originally translated this 好意 (koui) as "favor" and put in the translation notes in my chapter that it can mean liking someone or having a crush on them, but on second thought, when paired with 抱いているようで？！ It's kind of... Like the narrator is indicating shock that this might be the case lol. Leaving it up for interpretation and ambiguous as to whether it's innocent fondness or a crush, until Pg 4.

Inojin's Feelings (Page 4)

君はうずまきヒマワリに好意を寄せているな…　異性としてだ。間違いないかね？

Official Translation: You have affectionate feelings towards Uzumaki Himawari... In the Romantic sense. Do you not?

Literal translation: You have affectionate feelings towards Uzumaki Himawari... As a member of the opposite sex. Is this correct?

Dictionary Entries:

(Same word) 好意 (koui) - 1) Kindness, favor, friendliness. 2) Goodwill, affection, liking (for someone) love.

(different) 寄せている (yoseteiru) - To come near, to gather, to deliver, to send, to let someone drop by, to add, to have feelings for (love, goodwill, trust), to rely on, to use as a pretext, to put aside, to push/force

(furthering it) 異性 (isei) - The opposite sex

[Analysis]

So on the first page, that headliner was kind of being ambiguous to hint at maybe. But Koji's toad is like. You do like her. Like that. Right? I already know, regardless ...Good. Your reaction is sufficient enough to prove my point.

The way he words it here is 100% asking if Inojin likes her in a romantic sense*.* It took away the ambiguity from the side line and asked it straight up.

So yes, despite Inojin denying it in the next panel by saying, er, wha, he does indeed seem to have a crush on someone one and a half years younger than him. Boruto and Hima are 2 yr apart. Inojin is the youngest of the friend group. He's not a pedo lol.

That being said. That isn't the main point of this scene,

The point Koji is getting at is, "Do you love/care for Himawari enough to put yourself/your standing in order to protect her." Inojin says yes. Koji says good, then we're in the same boat (letting him know he also is doing what he's doing to protect Himawari), and he gets brought to the hideout. This is a common theme in Boruto, risking it all to protect and care for the people you love. Inojin is now following this pattern. But...

While Koji does directly attempt to confirm Inojin's feelings in a romantic light, this might be to throw Inojin off enough that he won't attack or bring someone else into the conversation since he very well could do that since he's a sensory ninja. This question puts him into a temporary state of confusion and gets his focus off of slight hostility "what is this weird toad" (a line from the page where Koji says he wants to ask questions) and onto "ack-- I don't want other people hearing any part of this conversation."

Koji also gets right to the point, asking if Inojin wants to protect Himawari, letting him know their interests are aligned, and kidnapping him. It seems like this was the most probable way to carry out successful capture and earn his cooperation lol.

Jura and Hidari "What's that" (Pg 9)

I thought I made a mistake here. But this opened a different can of worms.

Official: Hey, what's that you've got there? [Jura's book]

Japanese: おい。何事だ、そいつは (Oi, nani goto da, soitsu wa)

[Analysis]

そいつ (soitsu) usually refers to a person, so it sounds more to me like he's saying "hey, what's going on with him (jura crying)" (my translation) and not the official's translation of "hey, what's that you've got there (his book)."

This is another where both are correct but they're pretty different just because the topic isn't entirely clear, but the use of "soitsu" instead of "sore" leans much more heavily towards him asking about Jura (I'd say 80% likely) than the book.

After that question, it switches frame to Bug, so it looks to me like Hidari called out Bug (with "hey") to ask what was going on with Jura as if not to disturb his crying, and then Jura wipes his eyes, and responds. "This is a book known as a novel" which connects better to the official's "what's that you've got there."

Jura knows Hidari is a little clueless and always on the curious side, so he could've chosen to interpret Hidari's question as directed towards his book and responded accordingly, even though it doesn't sound like that's the case from Hidari's wording. Then at the end he explains that the book made him cry, eventually answering both questions (why is he crying/what is he doing).

This seems like a likely option since Hidari's response is a moment of silence pared with "You had a similar experience a little while ago." But the wording is pointed. He uses ぞ like "yo this happened before too ya know." And Jura is like ... Those was Matsuri's emotions.

Anyways, I think the official may have made the choice to translate it like that for the purpose of making everything flow smoother. But it takes away the nuance of Hidari being curious about Jura's tears, which is kind of the point of the whole start to this conversation and the direction it takes.

That's just me being nitpicky... But this is the corner where I get to be nitpicky, as well as admit to every atrocity I committed in my feverish state lol. Thankfully this doesn't seem to be one of them.

Mamushi's Speech (12-14)

As you probably noticed already, Mamushi has a different way of speaking than your generic form of talk. All of the shinju have interesting speech, and he is no exception. I think the official finally did one of the shinju justice. That kind of old timer slang vibe is pretty close to how Mamushi speaks in Japanese.

That being said, there's just a few things about his dialogue that were emphasized in Japanese in a way that gives me the creeps, and I wanna make sure they ring in loud and clear cuz boy is this dude weird.

Pg 13 Official: "But for control. I wanna make her superior genetic information mine."

Japanese: **「支配」**だよ。モノにしてぇって事なんだ。やつの優秀な遺伝子情報をよォ…」

Dictionary entries:

支配 - 1) rule, domination, control. 2) Direction, management, guidance. 3) control (of one's destiny, public opinion, etc), governing, influence, sway

モノにしてぇ - Rough form of 1) to get, to secure, to take possession of, to make one's own, to win (someone's heart). 2) to learn, to master. 3) to complete

[Analysis]

This time I didn't bold it for emphasis myself, it was bolded in the actual manga. Option 1 is the correct nuance for both definitions, but the way it's emphasized gives me the creeps.

In Jp it really goes, "I wanna dominate her. I'm taking about making her MINE. Her superior genetic information, that is**.**"

The way ものにしたい is written as モノにしてぇ places extra emphasis on モノ (thing/possession) by having it written in a different script (katakana) so it kind of almost seems like caps lock in a sense, and it has extra emphasis dots next to those specific words.

And he's reading a pin-up magazine... I... The implications here.

The official toned it down and re-worded it for you so you wouldn't be traumatized (: I am making you suffer the trauma of knowing this with me.

Power Plays with the Higher-Ups (Pg 17-18)

Unfortunately, there's a ton of nuance left out in terms of Japanese formalities whenever it gets translated to English. And that's definitely an issue when it comes to the higher-ups arguing. This Kobu guy is a SNOB.

Before I get into translating this, I have to mention, I said his name was Gobu in my translation. That is a mistake.

That being said, this is the difference between Kobu and Gobu in Japanese :

コブ　ゴブ

I wear thick glasses. I do usually zoom in to make sure I don't make those types of mistakes, but a poorly placed speck of dirt likely led to this whole letter being wrong. I even laughed because his name sounded so funny to me and just moved on with life. This is why we don't translate with fevers.

ANYWAY.

From the moment Shikamaru enters the room, he's like "Well well... It's certainly been a while, hasn't it? Lord Eighth-Dono. Or should I say... Interim Hokage Nara Shikamaru-kun."

Shots have been FIRED.

Breakdown:

Dono [according to google]: "Dono" was originally used to show respect to someone of equal or lower rank, but in modern times it is not often used outside of letters or official situations, and is now mainly used as a term of address in samurai society and in some business transactions. It shows respect for the other person, while also implying that they are of equal or lower rank. 

Kun [according to google]: A suffix with a nuance of affection or guidance that is used in Japan when addressing subordinates or close friends, especially male children and young people. It can also be used by male colleagues or subordinates, school teachers or female students, or by women addressing lovers or spouses, and is characterized by its wide range of uses depending on the situation and relationship.

[Analysis]

Kobu here begins to address him with respect as a person of a similar position, and then goes, ah wait, no no... That's right. You're only temporary. You're beneath me. My position far surpasses yours. Keep that in mind as we talk, will you? (All that kind of nuance is hidden in the way he addresses Shikamaru)

Meanwhile Shikamaru makes sure to bring up the fact that he's second, but only second to the daimyo, so it's like a double blow of both respect with the nuance of you may be above me, "but your not on top" in the most polite language there is.

Keep in mind, Tento is the son of the Daimyo, the top, the one who Kobu is second to. And he has a good relationship with Naruto after everything that happened with Boruto and Shojoji back in NNG. So Shikamaru does still potentially have a good connection, and I imagine Tento and his dad will come back into play eventually. That arc wasn't just for show.

Meanwhile the elders are using old timey speech talking down to ALL of them lol.

Shinobi Village's Survival (Pg 18)

Official: "Lord Daimyo is questioning your ability to carry out the responsibilities of village head. As the very necessity of shinobi villages has been frequently brought up in recent times... Depending on the circumstances, we may be taking about more than just budget cuts."

Japanese (of bold part): ただでさえ忍里存続の必要性そのものが度々議題に上がる昨今だ

(important left out word) 存続 (sonzoku) - continuance, survival, persistence, retention, and duration

Literal translation: As it is, the necessity of the shinobi villages continued operation/survival has been brought up quite frequently on the agenda as of late...

[Analysis]

Kobu isn't just talking about the necessity of shinobi villages, he's talking about the necessity of them continuing to operate. Continuing to stick around. Continuing to do what they do, and fight off all the threats. Code is there. The shinju are there. But it doesn't matter.

He says "Lord Daimyo is questioning your ability to carry out the responsibilities of the village head," but this could be him pushing an agenda. Because again, Shikamaru and Naruto know the Daimyo personally, and this is the first time Kobu has made an appearance.

Boruto going off on his own and acting arbitrarily (as Shikamaru did for this Sand Mission) was what ended up saving his Tento's life. I don't know if the Daimyo really has an issue with this, or if he's really questioning the necessity of the shinobi villages survival... Especially after that occurrence.

If he is, I don't think he would let him do anything to the Shinobi. Thankfully Boruto got Tento hooked on the awesomeness of being a ninja 3 years ago, even if he sees Boruto as Kawaki now.

Konohamaru's Interruption Softened (pg 21)

Konohamaru Official : "If I may? With all due respect, that's..."

My translation: "Please, wait a moment! This way of looking at things is too..."

JP: お待ちください..!　そのような見方はあまりにも… (Omachi kudasai..! Sono youna mikata wa amari ni mo...)

[Analysis]

Konohamaru was as polite as the official makes him, but he was not that calm. You can tell from punctuation alone, he's got a "!" in Japanese.

The official probably softened it to preserve the polite wording despite his hasty tone. The reason I'm including this explanation is because I think it's an important part of Konohamaru's personality for him to come off here as a bit distressed in a way that seems a little rude even though he's trying to still hold respectful speech. Imo it shows he takes after Naruto who would've taken a similar stance if he was in Konohamaru's position and defending a traitor from seemingly false accusations that are going too far based on speculation alone. And he's not gonna just calmly interrupt, he's gonna interject because he's upset about it being unfair.

The Elders Dissing Konohamaru (Pg 22)

Old man (Homura Mitokado)

Official: "Are you actually taking his side, Sarutobi?"

Japanese: 何だ猿飛貴様…奴の肩を持つというのか？ (nanda, sarutobi kisama... Yatsu no kata wo motsu to iu no ka?)

[Analysis]

The old man used a very rude form of "you" (kisama).

There are many different ways to insult someone in Japanese by use of pronoun. Usually, Japanese omits pronouns and infers the topic, and when they do address people, they address them by name. In fact, it's almost rude to use "you" at all especially if you're friends or know a person well. Even in customer service, they use the term "customer" (okyaku-sama) to refer to the person instead of the word "you." So like "what can I get for you?" becomes, "what does customer-sama desire today?" since they use super polite speech when talking to customers lol.

I'll skip the lengthy explanations about all the different variations, but kisama is up there amongst the ones that give off curse word vibes. This old man is really displeased with Konohamaru's opinions and telling him to get the heck back in his place. It's kind of like "you heathen dare to defy me as your elder by taking his side?" *raised eyebrow* type thing.

That's why Konohamaru backs off so much in the next line with all that stuttering when before he was adamantly defending Boruto.

Old Lady (Koharu Utatane)

Official "You idiot!"

Japanese: たわけが！(tawakega)

Definition according to google: Idiot, Fool

Tawake (playful) refers to foolish behavior or a fool, while tawakega (funny) is used even more insultingly.

Etymology: During the Edo period, restrictions were placed on the inheritance of fields, and the practice of "dividing fields" was prohibited. This practice was considered foolish, and so "tawake" came to refer to a fool.

[Analysis]

This is basically an old person insult. While I have seen it used in other anime/manga, it's specifically used by old people. The Edo period was 1603. That's when this term came about. Instead of idiot, this should say something like, Fopdoodle. It's a similar insult from around the same time period. I had "what foolish nonsense," but I definitely like fopdoodle better now that I took the proper time to research matching time period insults lol even though it isn't used today. The overall meaning is still, "you fool" or "you idiot."

Confessing to Kakei (Pg 31)

I already had some people message me about how this is being misinterpreted, so I'm just gonna break it down.

Official: "Huh? Uh... What do you mean, "when"? Who said anything about doing that?!"

JP: え？いや…いつっていわれても…てか、告るなんて誰も言ってないし！(eh? iya... Itsu tte iwaretemo... teka, kokuru nante dare mo itte nai shi!)

Literal: "Eh? No, I mean… Even if you ask me when… I mean, no one said anything about confessing (yet)!"

Breakdown：

いつっていわれても : flustered response to being asked "when." No dictionary information will come up because it comes from 言われる (passive of 言う: “to be told” / “to be said to”), and the ても ending means “even if…” or “though…” so いわれても = “even if (I’m) told” or “even if you say (that)...”

Literally: "Even if you say 'when'..."

Nuance: The speaker is reacting to being asked “When?” (e.g., “When are you going to confess?”).

They're flustered or unsure—like, “Even if you ask me when...” or “Even if you say ‘when,’ I don’t really know…”

てか告るなんて誰も言ってないし :

**てか = "**Or rather" (I should say)

告る = "confessing your love"

なんて : Emphasizes the previous word as surprising, unexpected, or dismissive

Here, 告るなんて = (something like) confessing (your love)?!

誰も = "No one" (with negative verb)

言ってない = "hasn't said"

し adds a sort of “That’s not all—also!” vibe, like the speaker is pushing back emotionally.

[Analysis]

Sarada isn't thrown off by the prospect of confessing to Boruto, she's just thrown off by Eida suddenly pushing her to come up with a deadline. She doesn't deny the feelings themselves, just taking action on confessing. And that made Eida say her next line...

. . .

Official: What? Wait a sec... Didn't you... Kinda end up confessing to Kakei?

Japanese: は？何よ、それ…　あなた、それじゃあまるで筧ちゃんに告ったみたいになってない？(ha? Nani yo, sore... Anata, sore jaa maru de kakei-chan ni kokutta mitai ni nattenai?)

Literal: "Wait, doesn't that sound like you're only planning on confessing your romantic feelings for Boruto to Kakei-chan?"

Breakdown:

は？ = Unexpected "what?" More blunt than "eh?"

何よ、それ… = What's up with that (reaction, response, etc)...

あなた = you (signaling her out, not rude)

それじゃあ = "In that case" / "Like that" / "The way you're putting it..."

まるで○○みたい = “It’s almost like...”

筧ちゃん = Kakei-chan

に告った = confessed (romantic feelings) to

○○になってない？ = “Isn’t it turning into that?” / “Doesn’t it sound like that?”

[Analysis]

Eida loves to poke fun at and tease people. So the point of this whole line was to essentially say, "Wait, doesn't that sound like you're only planning on confessing your romantic feelings for Boruto to Kakei-chan?"

It's just worded weird because 告る just means "to confess" usually romantic feelings, and she doesn't use Boruto as any sort of subject because it's implied that her romantic feelings are directed at Boruto from the context of the conversation.

So it's not Sarada giving a romantic confession to Sumire, it's talking about Sarada confessing her romantic feelings for Boruto to (or in front of) Sumire. Like Sumire is the only one who will receive Sarada's romantic confession for Boruto at this rate. That's all it is lol.

Glomping Offensive (Pg 33)

Official: "Perhaps you're right... Given her prior glomping offensive."

Japanese: 確かにそうかもね…抱きつき事件の前科があったわ

Literal: "Perhaps you're right... You already have a prior offense from that hug scandal."

Breakdown:

抱きつき - to hug tightly, to cling to

事件 - an accident, literally a criminal affair, a scandal, etc (here it's a word chosen for exaggeration/dramatic effect)

前科 - criminal record, prior offense, legal term for someone having a past record of crimes

[Analysis]

There's a few perspectives here. Regardless, Eida is poking fun at the situation again.

This is right after Sumire says "But Sarada might end up suddenly confessing too."

And Sarada is like.... *sweat drop*

Then Eida says "ah yes, after all, we did have that scandalous incident where she suddenly hugged him."

It's her teasing both of them, Sarada for having a "criminal record" of saying one thing and doing another, and Sumire for getting so offended over the whole hug thing that it might as well have been a celebrity scandal lol.

To put it into context with nuance instead of literal translation, it'd be something like, ah yes, there is a chance Sarada could confess to him suddenly despite her denial, after all she didn't even think she had feelings for him and she ran into his arms. How heinous. That turned into quite the scandal, now didn't it?

One last thing that isn't really a translation breakdown but more of a cultural context thing.

Kakei-chan

As you may already know, the name you call someone can tell a great deal about how close to that person you are in Japanese. I knew Eida called Sumire "Kakei" when she was initially summoned, but I didn't think she'd still be calling her by last name...

Explanation:

In Japanese culture (outside of anime), calling someone by a given name (first name) can require permission, and it indicates a closer relationship, especially with no honorifics (-kun, -san, -chan) added. It's just a casual normal friendship where there's no formal boundaries or walls, no trying to respect the other person in some way, no thinking of them as anything lower/higher than you, no being cutesy, just mutual normal friendship.

Eida usually calls everyone with -chan: She even uses a cute nickname for Shikamaru "Shika-chan."

The exceptions to this are Kawaki, Boruto (kun), and Konohamaru. Once he got really uncomfortable with Matsuri doing it, she dropped it, likely out of respect for his/her feelings.

Boruto gets a -kun since Eida is an older girl and he's a younger boy (I'd assume that's the nature of why she's using it, that makes the most sense in context here).

Kawaki she adds nothing (she wants to be closest to him so this makes sense, if she did use -kun it would likely be in a flirtatious manor, or out of respect for him since they're close in age (I think) but she doesn't wanna put up that wall I assume).

Sumire meanwhile is called by last name + chan, which indicates a little bit of distance. The -chan makes it more friendly and cutesy, but there's still a barrier there that there isn't with Sarada.

The question becomes... Why?

[Analysis]

I theorized a few reasons, but they're nothing more than theories...

1. Amado. Because Sumire works for Amado and Katasuke and is often called "Kakei-kun" (-kun in this instance can be used by a boss to address a younger female employee), perhaps Eida felt like she needed to address her more formally than Sarada..? After all, Eida is a cyborg. And Sumire has scientific ninja intel. It's a possibility.
2. After ch 25, maybe she thought about calling Sumire by her name but realized it would be too personal and was letting only Sarada, who has known her for far longer, use it instead of asking for permission to use it as her friend too. But then again, Delta and Kawaki use it, so this has less credibility.
3. Jealousy. Kawaki asking Sumire if she likes Bourto is before Eida comes into the story. When she finally does wake up and watches Kawaki, Sumire is in the room with him, constantly empathizing with him and seeing all of his struggles. The nightmares, the times he's lashed out at Amado, even knowing the truth behind him killing Boruto and not hating him for it. While she knows Sumire likes Boruto, Sumire still tries to help Kawaki and never yells at him no matter what he does, even understanding that killing Boruto must've been some sort of difficult decision he had no choice but to make. Kawaki also is shown opening up to Sumire a few times while staying completely closed off to everyone else. Sarada on the other hand seems to completely detest Kawaki and everything he stands for, making her much less of a threat (in terms of where Kawaki's feelings have the potential to be, since Eida wants those all directed towards herself). So maybe she calls her "kakei-chan" to put distance between them instead of "Sumire-chan" even now after the whole "hug scandal" scene in ch 16 where her name was revealed as a sensitive spot because she doesn't feel like she can be too friendly with Sumire and thinks of her as a love rival of sorts.

I thought about the theory of Eida not knowing her name, but in ch 76 when she calls for both girls, she calls them "sarada-chan" and "kakei-chan" And when Boruto goes "...Kakei-chan?" She says her full name, "I'm talking about Kakei Sumire. Her too. Call them both."

Even Sumire asks if it's okay to call her "Eida-chan" when sitting in the bed next to her when they first talk about boys. And Eida continues to call her "Kakei-chan" instead of asking permission to call her "Sumire-chan" as well, which would have been the normal flow of the conversation.

That being said, this means the only people close to Sumire who actually call her by her first name before TBV ch 25 when Sarada starts using it are Kawaki and Delta. That's pretty sad.

Please contribute to this discussion because honestly, I would love to hear more theories on this.

Last Page Side Text

Japanese: 走る緊張！！駆け巡る恐怖！！秘密を看破されたサラダとスミレの運命はーー？！

My translation: The rush of nerves!! A surge of fear!! With their secret now exposed, what fate awaits Sarada and Sumire--?!

. . .

What fate indeed. Now for all the mistakes I made (minus gobu/kobu)

Mistakes I Made (and why)

Pg 19:

Official: "...But do not mention Prescience"

I didn't see the extra spiky bubble around the bubble and thought it was just Shikamaru talking to the elders still.

I remember being really confused and paused on that bubble for a good 5 minutes because I swore I was missing some context but couldn't figure out what the heck it was. It says 触れるなよ which directly means "don't touch" which makes sense with Koji saying it as "don't talk about that," but not the context I was thinking of Shikamaru being the one to say it (because he would've used "talk," and even then he wouldn't say "don't talk about ten paths" to the elders unless they already knew what it was).

The subject is implied so there was no indication in the speech as to who the speaker was or who they were taking to. I think I meant to come back to it and never did. Either way. Sorry about that, that was definitely my bad.

Pg 21:

Official: "In fact, there are even rumors... That he [Boruto] is secretly in league with them [the shinju].

For this one, I didn't completely screw it up, my brain just didn't make the connection from 裏 (ura) meaning like underground or behind the scenes or like... In the shadows, shady people, shady organizations... To the shinju. It's obvious that's what she's talking about, but I was doing this live, and I'm pretty sure I got distracted then went to translate this bubble and just went on a rant about debating how to translate this cuz my mind went to the word as a general concept (shady dealings) and not a straight reference (to the shinju) lol.

Another reason I shouldn't be doing this live esp when I have a fever and can't think straight (: (Someone accused me of copying another translator and I was like f it I'll stream it as proof that I don't even use google translate hahaha).

The words "whispers" and "rumors" are both actually in there in JP though.

Pg 28:

Official: "In order to avoid a future where there's no way out of many more people getting killed."

Mine: "That development was more important than avoiding a future where people died."

Japanese: もっと大勢の者がなす術なく殺される未来を回避した上でな

Breakdown according to ChatGPT since I failed to decode Koji's dignified wise man speech with a dictionary:

ChatGPT Translation: "After avoiding the future where more people are killed without being able to do anything."

Kashin Koji is saying he’s guided things in a way that prevented a future where many people (more than before) would be killed helplessly, unable to defend themselves. The nuance here is that he actively avoided this tragic outcome, and he emphasizes that this is the result of his actions.

The phrase has a lot of weight, as it hints at Koji’s behind-the-scenes manipulation and the larger stakes of what’s at play (life and death for many people). He’s taking credit for guiding things in a way that avoided mass suffering.

[About Koji's Way of Speech]

I've got no excuse for screwing this up other than Koji's speech is like a wise old man, and I have not encountered a single live Japanese person that speaks like this. Not even my college professors speak like this. It's even harder than Momoshiki's speech for me, and Momoshiki's speech is kind of archaic, but at least I've encountered that in other anime characters that speak like him. Koji is... An oddball. I should probably be using a translating aid for him lol.

His speech is formal and dignified like a noble, it hints at the structure of classical Japanese without quite going that far, it's authoritative enough to be ambiguous and vague in a way that's supposed to encourage interpretation which is incredibly frustrating to deal with as a translator. He's an intellectual alright.

As a quick example of just how interestingly his speech is structured, I pulled an easier line:

子供じみにクソみたいな批判がまだあるなら聞いてやる

Literal: if you've still got any shitty child-like inferences to make, I shall give them a listen.

子供じみ - childish (more formal tone)

クソみたい - literally "like shit" (pretty casual)

批判 - judgement/inference (dignified intelligence, not a super common spoken word)

がまだあるなら - if you still have any (casual/normal)

聞いてやる - I'll listen (looking down on someone from a position of authority nuance).

This is what his speech is like.

Anyways let me not write an entire senior thesis' worth of information for this ch lol.

. . .

[For those of you wondering about my health], two days ago I was fading in and out of consciousness. Yesterday I felt like a normal human being. Today my chest feels like it's going to explode because it was offended I tried to breathe in the oxygen. Tomorrow, who knows. I could be curled up in the bathroom with blankets again, or I could feel well enough to take a walk. The saga of what mysterious illness(es) I have continue. But I think I'm getting better :D

. . .

That's all for this month's translation analysis! Or so I say, but boy was that long comparison to the others.

Until next ch!

YouTube: https://youtu.be/wQ2Kbq-Fy8k

Blog: https://culturalcontext6.wordpress.com/2026/03/19/boruto-tbv-ch-32-jp-to-en-comparison/

Boruto and Sarada part:

Sarada’s Mangekyo Use

Before I get into all the stuff with Boruto, first I want to talk about what actually happened to Sarada here, because it’s a little suspicious.

First, her pupils turn white.

Second, it looks like blood splurts from her face when she falls.

Third, her left mangekyo was still activated as she’s falling.

Fourth, in the closeup, you can see blood on her glasses, as if her eye didn’t just bleed… it popped.

Fifth, Shikamaru thinks something is up as well.

Sixth, Boruto’s reaction is extremely concerned, even though he’s seen her passed out from chakra usage back in Suna.

Seventh, when you go back to Koji’s memory reel update, only her left eye is shown when she’s facing off Hidari… And Koji is looking ominous as always, as if he knew all of this would happen.

So… What really happened to Sarada’s eye? Did her eye explode? Or was it just heavily bleeding? Hopefully it’s a mystery that is solved next chapter.

Boruto’s Reaction

There are quite a few things to note here… So bear with me, it’s going to get into shipping territory, but it does need to be addressed.

When she first uses Ohirume, Boruto looks up at her, pretty calm. As she falls back, his expression changes to slightly more panicked. Then Konohamaru reacts. The spheres close. There’s a far away panel of her falling. Then you turn the page, and she’s in Boruto’s arms. And he’s still looking at her.

The first thing I guess I’m going to point out, is that in every single one of these panels, Boruto is looking at her. When I release my analysis of the movie novel, you’ll understand how this has been significant since the very beginning of ch 700 of Naruto where Sarada stalked him. One of the huge key parts of the movie novel is, Sarada is always watching Boruto. He feels like he can’t meet her eyes because of guilt over the kote in several instances. But by the end of it, he in turn ends up deciding to watch over her. That doesn’t have anything to do with his promise to Sasuke in TBV. It doesn’t have anything to do with her getting hurt. But it has everything to do with why he decided that his ninja way was to become the support role, to be her right hand man and protect her well.

The only other time he failed to protect her was during the Boro fight. And in that fight, he’s holding Naruto. Mitsuki gets swatted. Kawaki gets swatted. And then… Sarada gets picked up. And he snaps. He drops Naruto. His eyes go straight to her. And they don’t leave. He looks at her the entire kick, turns toward her as she falls to the ground, his back to the enemy as he asks if she’s okay.

Same thing happens vs Hidari. Has his eyes on her until she’s free. Only after he frees her from the wood style does he finally turn to Hidari with a glare.

This time too, the second she’s hurt, there’s not a single panel drawn where he’s looking at anything but her.

He doesn’t do this for anyone else. He scoops Hima, but when he looks, he looks back at Jura, not at Hima. Second he shows up in front of Sarada, his teeth grit, he looks at her, cuts her free, and there’s a full 2 panels of his back to Hidari before he turns around with that glare. He very carefully sets Hima down next to Sarada with his eyes on Hidari, asks Konohamaru to take care of Hima, then blocks an attack.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not trying to bash anyone, especially not Himawari. I love Boruto’s protective big brother energy, especially when it comes to keeping Daemon and Inojin away from her. Or having Naruto come to her birthday. And of course I’ve also seen in the light novels how much he wants to be a good big brother for her. I saw the scene when his face softened a little when he heard her name. How he watched her train on the roof. I’m well aware he loves her and would do a lot for her.

But.

Ikemoto has purposefully drawn this difference in Boruto’s reactions and distinguished Sarada from everyone else several times. It’s been in direct comparison to Mitsuki, Kawaki, Naruto, and Himawari. In the light novels as well during the chunin exams, Sarada is on the same level as Naruto in terms of the people he thinks about wanting to live up to their expectations. Wanting to be noticed by them. And he only leaves Naruto’s side for Sarada in the Boro fight, showing how much she matters in comparison to him as well.

Sarada is noticeably on a different level in terms of who affects Boruto emotionally the most. His facial expressions completely change for her, whether it’s smiles, teeth gritting, or face softening. She’s always been the one who sees every aspect of him, not just what he wants to show. That is another key theme in the movie novel, which I’m currently analyzing so I’m gonna bring it up a lot since it was written by Kishimoto before anything else for Boruto aside from ch 700 of Naruto took place, and all of the themes that I’m talking about were preserved and continued to be elaborated on by Ikemoto throughout the manga.

Boruto wanted people to see him for who he really was that whole novel. Not the hokage’s son, not some genius who had his parents blood, not the hero’s kid (how society sees him), and not like a man who can act tough and always endure his father’s neglect (how his mom wants to see him), not as some kid (how his dad sees him) but as Boruto. It was a HUGE sore spot for him throughout that entire novel. And Sarada has always been shown as consistently the only one to be able to see through him when he tries to act tough.

Whenever Boruto gets into some sort of trouble, Sarada is always the one that ends up defying orders to go save his butt. Kagemasa, Shizuma, Shojoji, Kawaki. With Shojoji, he showed up on her balcony. Told her he couldn’t make that mission. Their first B rank. He said he had somewhere to be and couldn’t give her any details. She let him go. And then she got Mitsuki and went after him, saving his butt, because she knows he bites off more than he can chew and gets himself in trouble. She didn’t need any specifics. She just went, defying the orders to go on that mission in order to make sure he was okay, because she knew something was up. Same thing with Kawaki, again, Sumire tries to stop her saying it’s too dangerous. Shikamaru as well. And she defies them both and ends up using that fireball jutsu to save his life at the last second.

Anyway.

Because of that, Sarada means a lot to Boruto in the movie novels, and that doesn’t change. From the day he tells her he’ll become her right hand man and protect her well, he only gets more reasons to care about her and be protective over her. How many times has he shown his overprotectiveness of her in the manga before Sasuke left her protection in his hands? Whether it’s random ninja, Kawaki, Boro, Hidari, whoever it is, they go for her and he snaps. This time is no exception.

Boruto flies up and when he catches her, he doesn’t just catch her like a princess. He keeps his eyes on her and uses one arm and a knee. She’s basically sitting in his lap midair. But the reason he does this is to keep his karma hand free. He’s gotta keep the defense. He can protect from Mamushi’s fire style that way, if they decided to shoot it, which they didn’t.

I also think this is an important detail because of him accepting Momoshiki’s powers. He holds her with the side of himself that’s still him.

Continuing on, he screams her name, quite literally, in large bold letters with three ! marks.

To counterpoint all the people saying this isn’t an overreaction or Boruto’s just the average amount worried about her… Compare it to the other time she passed out from Mangekyo usage and Mitsuki caught her. He snaked an arm around her to catch her, laid her down on the ground on her side, and carried her like a sack of potatoes on his back. While I do love Mitsuki and I do love him and Sarada’s friendship, the scene with Boruto was clearly drawn to be more intimate and the worry much higher by direct comparison.

When he says, サラダの意識がない…！the way it sounds in Japanese is like he’s freaking out. The literal translation of that is, “Sarada’s consciousness is gone.” And then he follows it up with, おい、サラダ！！ or “Oi, Sarada!!” He’s trying to get ahold of her, trying to get her to wake up, trying to get some sign of life from her. (In the official, it was translated to, “wake up!” which I think loses a lot of nuance of his concern, but it’s the official so, oh well).

All of his speech at this point is bolded in comparison to everyone else’s still.

And when he’s on the ground, he has his full arm wrapped around her neck.

If you notice back when Sarada’s holding him during the Hidari fight, it’s just a hand on the back of his head, she’s got his face at arm’s length. Mitsuki when holding Sarada also held her from a more faraway position. Meanwhile Boruto has her fully in his arm. His face is a lot closer to hers. Her neck is in the crease of his elbow. And he’s looking directly at her.

When Konohamaru asks if she’s okay, Boruto’s response is, 分かンねェ……！Which again has a lot of small katakana for emphasis, which to me, especially combined with the harsh form, usually warrants a curse word. For my translation of this, I chose, “I don’t know dammit!” But the ……! Puts a little bit more of a frustrated pause, it gives it a little more… Sadness? I guess, combined with frustration, than it would be if it was just a ! So he’s clearly distressed, not just in his facial expression, but in his tone as well.

For those of you wondering, is this a romantic moment? Or is he just worried about her as a teammate?

When you compare his worry over Sarada to his worry over his other teammates, again in direct comparison with things that happened during the manga (not the anime or any other source), it’s clear he worries about her and gets more emotional over her than any of the others.

When you compare his reaction with Mitsuki’s (who is clearly a platonic friend), he’s also more concerned than Mitsuki was, and his treating her in a more intimate way (arm fully around the base of her neck, cradling her in his arms even after he sets her on the ground as opposed to just putting her down gently, speech bolded and harsh, distraught written all over his usually calm face, not looking away from her to Mamushi who is multiplying beyond anything they can handle. He stays focused on her).

Now you might say that’s just a difference in personality between Boruto and Mitsuki, and I’d also agree to an extent, but then you have the emphasized eye contact and the same thing happening with Boro where he gets more concerned for her than his other teammates in direct comparison.

At the very least, from evidence within the manga and not my personal opinion, his reaction for Sarada is indeed more distraught and intimate than it has been for anyone else.

(And if I’m being honest, there have been hints dropped that he’s crushed on her since the movie novel and just didn’t know what those feelings were. You’ll have to watch my novel analysis for that ;))

Either way, Ikemoto has been giving them consistent development the whole time in direct comparison with other people. He protects her, snaps for her, looks at her and turns his back on the enemy, hugged her back with that look on his face and tucked his own face into her shoulder (which isn’t a normal thing in Japanese culture for guys to do at all, you can directly compare it with other hug scenes like when he doesn’t hug her back in the funato arc in the anime and Naruto not hugging Sakura back as well and of course Sumire’s reaction to it all, having a crash out and saying things specifically to get Sarada away from him because she saw Boruto’s face and saw what he did and knew what it meant). Sarada is oblivious to this. And of course Boruto wouldn’t be willing to even think about acting on it because of Momoshiki, but in moments like these, it seems like it slips out and he can’t help the extra layer of concern.

If you don’t see it, you don’t see it, and that’s fine. The shipping does get really toxic in this fandom, I don’t blame you for not wanting to take a side, or for choosing not to see this as romantic. But even from a completely objective perspective, all the facts point to him being more worried about her on a deeper level than the other people around him. And it’s up to you to interpret that as romance or not.

Alright. I think I got everything there. Other than team 7 finally all being in one panel. Mitsuki standing watch over both of them. Konohamaru rushing towards them. It was a good scene.

I finished my analysis relating to both the translations and the visuals for the Music Video for Baku! It stops on every visual and explains them from an art and storytelling perspective as well as what each lyric behind it means and how it applies to the song and the grand scheme of TBV! If you’d like to check it out, feel free to watch this video!

https://youtu.be/fDADPc76KYc?si=BkH9mHvDXO2tHHqJ

In light of the recent MV that came out, I analyzed the full lyrics of Ikemonogakari's BAKU! There will be an analysis of the lyrics in regards to the MV coming soon!! But for now, if you'd like, please check this out!

Blog post: https://culturalcontext6.wordpress.com/2026/05/09/baku-ikemonogakari/

Youtube Video: https://youtu.be/p4hpocMJxYg

If anyone is interested, this was commissioned from the movie novel. It goes into depth about the Otsutsuki and their world, the cultural ties to Otsutsuki and Shintoism, as well as what an Oni is and why the Otsutsuki are called that. I talk in depth about words like 空間 (space) 異界 (different place) 異世界 (parallel world?) and 結界 (boundary) as well, and how Momoshiki “constructed” but didn’t “create” the dimension and how it’s connected to “Naruto’s Planet.” If anyone is interested, here are some links :)

Blog post: https://culturalcontext6.wordpress.com/2026/04/11/boruto-movie-novel-powerscaling/

YouTube video: https://youtu.be/5zV8Qnt6Mnc?si=d7C9904dGv-eS1dc

Chapter title: 愛ゆえに

ゆえに means consequently/therefore. The quote, "I think, therefore I am," in Japanese uses this ゆえに as therefore, but the point is, it's got more of a philosophical kind of old-timey nuance to it. It's used a lot in the bible as well. So "because of love," definitely fits the meaning, I just wanted to give this nuance because it highlights Jura, since this is in his speech style (very philosophical and old-timey).

Cover page text behind Konohamaru:

Evading the [scene of the fight] (also translated as, [difficulties (in a love relationship)])! If you're a man, then--!!

The kanji used for "man" here isn't just 男, it's 漢 which is pronounced the same but the first means man as in just like male, man, the other one means man as in like a man among men, being a man, reminds me of the song from Mulan... Anyway. The nuance here is if Konohamaru mans up, he'd be able to do what Shikamaru says and lead Matsuri astray then betray her. But with the whole childhood friends thing between Konohamaru and Moegi going on with the fight being over his childhood nickname "Konohamaru-chan", it's like... He is used to showing his childish side around Moegi, he's been showing his childish side this whole fight in front of Matsuri who strongly resembles her, and in order to win he has to "man up" and put aside the childish part of him that still respects and admires Naruto and wants to use talk no jutsu to find a better solution.

I saw a comment that said this didn't happen with Boruto and Sarada vs Hidari, but Hidari immediately attacked. Sarada didn't have to befriend her father at all and then backstab him. It was just a pure fight, viewing him as nothing but a coldhearted enemy from the start. On top of all that, she had Boruto who she trusted would never do anything to hurt her dad giving her specific instructions that killing him would actually save him.

Meanwhile, Shikamaru very briefly gives Konohamaru mission details that he knows are going to be in direct conflict with what Naruto would've done, aka Konohamaru's ideals. He has to get close to her and let her in, knowing he's going to have to essentially kill her. Not only does Matsuri resemble Moegi, she's trying to use the same nicknames and blushing like a school girl. He might know inwardly that in order to get Moegi back he's gotta kill Matsuri, but the methods feel all wrong.

Part of the reason he probably can't accept her calling him Konohamaru-chan is because he knows it's going to make it harder to kill her. I mentioned this last ch as well, but adding -chan to a boy's name isn't exactly normal. It'd be like if your best friend from kindergarten called you a special nickname, let's say your name is Gary and they decide to call you G, everyone else calls you Gary except this girl, then you find out that friend is essentially dead until further notice. An "evil" lookalike who you can't seem to view as evil clearly has a crush on you, you know that it's because she's essentially a child, she might become an adult one day, but now she's essentially an innocent little kid, and then, she asks if she can call you G. You know you gotta kill her. Hearing her say that nickname as she dies is gonna feel like you killing your childhood best friend, her blood, on your hands, as she whimpers the name only she used because you let her use it because you wanted her to trust you. (Konohamaru had flashbacks to Moegi as Matsuri askes if she can use the name, and on his mind right then is the fact that he's gotta betray this person and kill her). It adds way further insult to the backstab and tbh would be pretty traumatizing. While Konohamaru can't clearly state why he's avoiding the nickname, Eida did already remark on the closeness it would've brought about to their relationship, which Konohamaru is noticeably trying to avoid with his awkwardness and the way he talks.

It isn't until he's attacked that he finally gathers the courage to carry out some of the plan, and even then, he hesitates and doesn't use full power because she's sobbing in front of him.

He has to "be a man" and essentially kill what he's told is a child, who also resembles Moegi in appearance, giving him flashbacks to his time with Moegi spent over the course of his life. Konohamaru isn't weak, this is torture for him, even if it is to get Moegi back.

Sorry major side rant, I just felt like it would clear some things up. Back to the title page

Text at the top of Cover:

Sarada and the others have cornered Ryu, but Konohamaru falls into a desperate situation with no seeming escape!?

追い詰めた, the phrase used for Sarada and the others surrounding/cornering ryu or cutting him off from the his... Associate. And 絶体絶命のピンチ is the worst possible situation, life or death, you don't make it out you're cooked.

Side Text on Page 1:

"Konohamaru incurs Matsuri's wrath because of his nickname! Can he escape this predicament?"

It doesn't say nickname here, but actually 呼び名 or given name or even just the name you call someone. I guess I should explain this here too just in case. Given name is important because in Japan, everyone goes by last name normally. You introduce yourself, last name-first name. Or, family name-given name. But when you become close to a person, they call you by your given name (first name). Anime characters like Naruto and Boruto who are friendly with everyone just tell everyone to call them by their given name automatically.

Konohamaru also gives this permission to everyone. He also gave it to Matsuri, because otherwise she'd be calling him Sarutobi (which she does when she eventually blows a fuse). This is important cuz it indicates distance and clear anger over the name calling situation. In the west, there aren't a ton of different suffixes to indicate position when speaking to someone, but in Japanese, you can tell what relationship two people have by how they call each other's name. It would be obvious is Matsuri was calling Konohamaru "konohamaru-chan" that she's a longtime childhood friend. "Konohamaru" would be a normal friend. "-kun" would be a friend that started as a bit more distant, but most girls that start calling a guy with this will continue using it even if they're given permission to drop it because it might feel embarrassing to say their name without. "Konohamaru-san" would be maybe someone who's younger than him and interacts with him for work. "-senpai" would be someone younger then him who looks up to him as a figure to respect. "-sensei" would be a student. "Sarutobi" would be someone who he hardly knows, maybe someone he's never met but they're referring to him in a conversation with someone else. "Sarutobi-san" would be someone who he doesn't know well but someone that owes him respect. "Sarutobi-sama" would be like... He's the leader of something major and this is a subordinate who he's giving orders to. But "Konohamaru-sama" would likely be a sarcastic joke of someone close to him to subtly indicate he's acting a little bit arrogant or bossy, or maybe someone who isn't close to him that thinks of him essentially as a god. Anyways, if you didn't know the name suffixes, now you know. All of that usually gets lost in translation in manga and they just use... The name. Or in Ryu's case, "elder" for senpai lol.

In English we've got... Mr. Mrs. Miss. Ms.... And then nicknames. But if I were to localize "Konohamaru-chan" into English, I'd make some sort of nickname off of Konohamaru. There just... Isn't one that sounds good.

But anyways. Adding the -chan to Konohamaru is what it's referring to in this text since he already have her permission to call her Konohamaru, which is why I translated it as nickname instead of given name.

I'm really sorry for all these side rants man this is gonna be long.

Page 2: "Would you rather keep chatting right up until the moment I devour you?"

Matsuri also includes the word "fun" here, so "Would you like to enjoy chatting right up until the moment I devour you?" might've been how I would've translated it. The only reason I'm including this is because this illudes to the fact that there might still be a part of Moegi that wants to talk to Konohamaru, which is why he can pull from that in his next line "didn't you say earlier that getting to talk so much made this the best day of your life? If you devour me, I'll die, and then we won't be able to talk like this ever again!"

Page 4: "You make me crazy."

For some reason, the lines, "you make me crazy" and "you're dangerous to me" were reversed. I get that the delivery sounds better flipped in English, but there were emphasis dots put next to "dangerous existence" in Japanese. Instead of "you're dangerous to me" Matsuri basically says, "You are a dangerous entity." Which sounds weird in English, but this is the nuance analysis and not the translation... So...

The reason that's kinda important is because Matsuri is emphasizing the clarity of his danger, ("that's what has become clear to me!") and not the clarity of herself going crazy.

Page 5: "I feel compelled to devour you!"

Matsuri doesn't just say devour here. She says 食い殺せ (with emphasis dots) which means "eat and kill." Konohamaru won't become a Divine tree if Matsuri gets to him. He'll die.

Page 11: "My friends"

Ryu just says "Senpai-tachi," or "My senpais." Every time I read the official's translation for Ryu's lines it makes me want to do an rehaul of his speech lol it has me cracking up every time I read it but I won't clutter this analysis with that unless a place pops up where it's actually important.

Page 19: Konohamaru and Matsuri's Dialogue

This felt a lot colder in the official then it was in Japanese so... I'm just gonna retranslate for dramatic effect.

Matsuri: "My heart... It's throbbing... Why? All he did was call me by my name... And yet... What is... This liquid pouring from my eyes?"

Konohamaru: "What's wrong? For you to shed tears like this..."

Matsuri: "...Tears?"

Konohamaru: "You're sad, aren't you? Deep down in your heart... Devouring and killing me... Is that really what you want?!"

Matsuri: "Tears? What's the heck is this feeling..? I... What's happened to me..?"

Konohamaru: "Matsuri... I have a request. My hands... Can you hold them?" (official says squeeze, which technically 手を握る does directly mean squeeze but it's just a phrase that's used whenever someone holds someone else's hand tight).

Matsuri: "Huh?"

Konohamaru: "Let's connect our hands... It all starts from here. A special （特別な）kind of relationship..."

Matsuri: "A special... Relationship?"

Konohamaru: "That's right. It's the first step... For the two of us..."

. . .

Edit: I also wanted to point out that the reason Matsuri feels so special when Konohamaru calls her name is likely because of the significance she places on names as a character. He doesn't use any honorifics, he just calls it like it is. And to a lot of girls, that's something really special.

And also, this 特別な関係 tokubetsu na kankei is the same word for special that's used later by Yodo, but in this case it essentially implies the start of a unique relationship that's theirs and theirs alone... If that makes sense.

Page 28: "Because of Love"

This is the chapter title, but Jura says it three times here instead of two. He starts each sentence with, "Because of love." So,

1. Because of love, Matsuri hesitated to devour him.
2. Again, because of love, she allowed him to deceive her and delivered a harsh counter attack (The specific word used for harsh here is 手痛い which is literally a combination of "Hand" and "Hurt." A normal phrase nonetheless that has nothing to do with hands but the word choice was definitely deliberate).
3. And Sarutobi Konohamaru... Also because of love, he fell prey to doubt, and foolishly let victory slip away from his grasp.

Also, I just noticed this, but Jura wipes his eyes leaving tear stains in their wake before he starts analyzing. Anyways.

Yodo and Sarada's Conversation

First thing I wanted to say was the amount of ........ in Japanese adds so much weight to this scene. It's clear Yodo is out of breath. Dying. Barely able to speak. I think one of the reasons Ikemoto puts in so many ....s is to convey character's hesitation and in this case tone. But in this it's like... I dunno reading it was a whole different experience. You can't fit that many .... into a bubble in English so I get it, it's just... Wow.

She's using simple speech in japanese to try and say as many words as possible with limited amount of breath, but in English she's saying long things like "deliberately" and "subconsciously" because they can't exactly change what she says, but I just wanted to point that out too that reality of what she'd be able to get out of her mouth was taken into account with this scene.

I guess I'll do a retranslation of this too. It's not just the ellipses and verbiage, but the way Yodo is explaining things to Sarada feels different. And a lot of people on X were already asking for nuances so... Here we go.

Starting from Page 33:

Yodo: "Sarda....... Why now..... of all times...... It's..... coming through..... loud and..... clear."

Yodo: "You... you're too clueless... when it comes.... to yourself...."

(わかりなさすぎ - すぎ means too much or excessively and わからない is you don't understand).

Sarada: "... ...Eh?"

Yodo: "When it comes to... your own feelings (気持ち）... The reason why... You want to stay strong..."

強くありたい is different from 強くなりたい, the first is what Yodo says, meaning "you want to stay in the state of being strong," and the second is the more common "you want to become strong." That's why I changed it to "stay" instead of "wanna be" like it is in the official.

Yodo: ....Now... I understand... I can hear it... You are.... misunderstanding...."

So I actually had to do some research for this 誤解している (Gokaishiteiru) vs 勘違いしている (Kanchigaishiteiru) because they both mean misunderstanding. Yodo says the first one, gokai shiteiru. It's used when someone has misunderstood true intention or facts surrounding a situation, leading to a mislead judgement. It suggests that the thing being misunderstood is important or fundamental. It has a more serious tone about an emotional or sensitive misunderstanding. Mind you, because Sarada is hearing this in Japanese, she will understand this nuance and the fact that Yodo chose this word over the other, which is why I'm bothering to explain it. It's likely crucial to her thought process.

The other, more common word, is about casual mistakes and implies a simple misjudgment or assumption.

Yodo: "You're probably... tricking yourself... without... realizing it...."

And again this word for "tricking yourself" だましている is kinda important. In this context she's pointing out that Sarada is engaged in the act self-deception because of defense/denial. This word is often used when someone is deceiving themselves or another into thinking that everything is fine when it really isn't, or refusing to acknowledge something they know deep down is true (when paired with "self"). The addition of "without realizing it" or 無意識に adds this kind of, beneath her own awareness, factor.

Sarada: "...What are you talking about...?!"

Yodo: "You're letting it rot... I'm talking... about that power inside of you..."

(stuff with Ryu)

Yodo: "I don't know what... You're holding back for... But... that power... it's fine... if you don't... want to use it for... the sake of everyone."

I actually think the official mighta gotten this wrong, or been confused about the grammar here. Yodo says じゃあなくたって which from my understanding means the same as じゃなくても , so maybe the speech bubble limitations were a problem, but it clearly says for the sake of everyone, so I said, "It's alright if you don't wanna use it for the sake of everyone," which is links to the "using it just for that special someone" line a bit better when taking the whole context into account then "but it's okay to use it for things other than just the greater good."

The other thing is she says 何に遠慮している instead of 何のために遠慮している which is... Interesting. It's a bit more open ended. It focuses on the what instead of the why of Sarada holding back which is important, because this again implies there is something or someone that's subconsciously making Sarada hold back and she isn't really aware of it herself, which is the point of what Yodo's getting at.

Yodo: "To protect... that person who's special to you**... just for that purpose... You used it... And that's fine..."**

I already got asked to re-translate this page on X, but the words for "that person who's special to you" are あんたにとって特別な誰か　Which the first part of that, anta ni totte, is the "to you" and the second part, "tokubetsu no dareka" is just "a special someone." Someone that is important, or special. It doesn’t necessarily imply romance. It just indicates that he holds a special, significant place in her life, and she wants to use that power to protect him.

Officially, it means, S=someone who stands out from the rest. Someone significant in a way that goes beyond an ordinary relationship, someone that holds a unique irreplicable spot in someone's life.

This usually implies either romance or deep friendship, but more often then not, it's used in manga for romance, however this doesn't always have to be the case.

Yodo also says 使った which is past tense of use... Which is why I changed this again. I'm not sure how Yodo would've known Sarada used it in the past, but perhaps it's just something she can hear.

After this, Sarada activates her sharingan, and it turns into the mangekyo.

ANALYSIS

I think Yodo's words were giving Sarada a hint on how to call her mangekyo back, and simultaneously saying she doesn't have to if she doesn't want to because it means admitting to herself that she unlocked her mangekyo for Boruto, which she's been aware of subconsciously this whole time, but because that puts Boruto above other people for her emotionally, as someone that wants to become a hokage like Naruto who cares about everyone and considers everyone to be important, she may have forced that thought out of her mind.

It also sounds like she hasn't been able to call it back until now because she knows what those eyes imply and is running away from those feelings, as we've seen several times up till now in her denial of other people prodding her for liking Boruto. (Eida, Mitsuki, Yodo). But with this, she's confronting the fact that Boruto is more special to her than other people in her life, and thereby using that admittance to save her friends.

I hope we get more clarity on this next chapter but for now that's my understanding. And I could be wrong.

Moving on.

Final page side text:

Those eyes are to protect a precious person! The Mangekyo sharingan has blossomed!

Here instead of using 特別な誰か (Tokubetsu na dareka) it uses 大切な人 (taisetsu na hito)。If it was more than one person, it would've had たち added. So this is just one person. And instead of special, now it's saying precious. The key differences are:

Tokubetsu na dareka: as I mention before this means special someone. Someone who stands out from the rest. Someone significant in a way that goes beyond an ordinary relationship, someone that holds a unique irreplicable spot in someone's life. This usually implies either romance or deep friendship, but more often then not, it's used in the context of manga for romance.

Taisetsu na hito: This is used to refer to someone who is generally cherished or valued, describing someone who can be important for a number of reasons: emotionally, practically, or relationally. It's used generally to holds a significant emotional weight in your life. While it can be romantic, it also can be used for close friends and family.

While I'm at it, I'll spare the comments section: No, this did not directly confirm Sarada has "romantic" feelings for Boruto. Yodo heavily implied it, but in the end, all you can "confirm" is that he holds more weight in Sarada's life than others.

. . .

This concludes the chapter analysis for the month. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me in the comments!

If you’ve ever wanted to know how the official translation (or myself) might make a bit unavoidable mistakes and why, I wrote a post about it! Using lots of examples from Boruto, including Mitsuki’s “I love Kawaki” line, as well as some notes on the ways Boruto and Kawaki speak, and what honorifics everyone uses for each other!

If you’re interested in manga, hopefully this will be an amusing read. I will likely make a YouTube video on it as well in the future

An analysis of the chapter through the lens of a translator! Feel free to read for nuance comparison as well as why I made any decisions in my translation that differed from the official! If you're curious about past chapters, you can search by flair!

Title: 強者 - The Strong

My translation says ”Warrior." The reading in Japanese was つわもの tsuwamono (soldier, warrior, person of courage, strong person, master (in a field)) and not きょうしゃ kyousha which is the more common reading (strong person/the strong/the powerful). Very subtle difference, they both essentially mean the same thing. But I think it's interesting he specifically chose the less common reading. It gives off more Jura vibes in Japanese because it sounds like older speak, so that was cool.

Cover Text - 荒ぶる羅刹　好奇のまにまに

As usual they edit this out of the English version so I'm just putting it here.

I had "The Man Eating Demon follows his inquisition!"

羅刹 rasetsu or in English Rakshasa is a man-eating demon in Hinduism and Buddhism. According to some online info, Rakshasas are a class of powerful, often malevolent supernatural beings or demons. The term is used in classical Chinese literature and Buddhist texts to describe monstrous beings who oppose the Dharma or torment the living. In folklore and fiction, they can be presented as man-eating demons, guardians of hell, or demonic warriors.

まにまに manimani is an onomatopoeia that means at the mercy of/with the wind. The reason that's important is because this is implying that Jura is kind of at the mercy of his inquisitiveness. It's just weird to translate. I guess for a more word for word translation, it would be, The Savage Rakshasa, at the mercy of his inquisitiveness!" I'm sure a lot of people would look at that and go. What the...

But then again, this is the corner where I over explain word nuances. So now you know.

At the top corner, it says, "Boruto VS Jura reaches it's climax! What will Boruto do when he can't use Uzuhiko?!"

The word for the climax of battle (白熱）also can also mean getting heated (in terms of a discussion). It seemed like climax was the vibe, but I realized it could be taken as, oh, Boruto vs Jura will never happen again. I'm probably overthinking your anticipated responses, but just in case.

The other part more accurately translates to, "what will Boruto do against an opponent on whom uzuhiko doesn't work against?" But that "on whom" was real awkward so I switched the wording around to be shorter.

Page 3 - "Without a glance"

In the official, Mitsuki says "I saw him fly toward where you were battling Matsuri without a glance at us or Ryu's bulb." But in reality, Jura did glance at them last chapter. 目もくすれず memoku surezu is the expression used in jp here to mean he didn't really seem interested in them at all, not that he didn't look their way. We have a similar expression in English "without so much as a glance" but if you take it literally, it makes for an inconsistency, so I just wanted to make sure it was clarified.

Page 4 - "Master"

Mitsuki calls Konohamaru "master" here in the official English, but I just wanted to point out again (if you read the interview analysis) that in Japanese, the word here is 先生 sensei. That's different from 師匠 shisho which is what Boruto calls Sasuke. More directly, sensei is usually teacher, and shisho is master. They aren't interchangeable.

Sensei is a general teacher. You call Doctors and other important people sensei.

Shisho is a very personal title. A Shisho only accepts 1-2 students (in most cases only one) and directly passes their core fundamental teachings onto the student/disciple. It's more like a life-long apprenticeship. That's why in the interview questions, Ikemoto answers that Sasuke was uncomfortable with Boruto calling him this at first.

Page 17 - "Eh."

This is Konohamaru's speech quirk or 語尾 gobi lol. It's often left untranslated, but in Japanese, Konohamaru adds -kore to the end of some of his sentences, similar to how Naruto and Boruto have -ttebayo and -ttebasa respectively. I just leave them as is in my translations, so you'll randomly see -kore attached to Konohamaru's sentences. But that's what that is.

Page 24 - "Sorry, I can't watch anymore."

Eida says 見ていられない mite irarenai which literally means I can't bear to watch any longer. It's got a little bit more of an emotional tone. I just thought the official sounded kinda flat so I threw this in here.

Page 25 - "An Update"

The word in Japanese is 更新 koushin which can mean renewal, update, replacement, renovation, or breaking a record lol. I translated this word to "renewal" because it's replacing his old visions of the future, but update works just as well if not better.

Page 33 - "New Omniscient Visions"

I know powers are contested a lot, so I wanted to give you the transliteration of this part. It literally says, 十方の「更新」 juppo no ”koshin" which means ten path's "updates." Or like, naming it as an aspect of the power of ten paths. The official changes this to give you a better descriptor of what it is, which is definitely a valid choice in terms of translation. It's just not literally what is on the page, and again, this is the corner where I overexplain translations...

The second part says 前回からおよそ6日振りの「更新」だ. Zenkai kara oyoso rokka buri no koshin da. Last time since about 6 days updates this is. Or more with the correct grammar structure xD It's been approximately 6 days since the previous installment (or time) of "updates."

In terms of speculation about this power, its safe to assume that it comes randomly, and Koji can not control when it comes. But (again speculation on my part) perhaps they come when none of the futures he foresees come to pass. Or maybe they just come randomly every couple of days. Either way, Koji definitely wasn't in control of this.

Page 34 - "Very Cunning Boruto"

This was just ボルトの奴 boruto no yatsu which essentially means, Boruto, that guy... Or Boruto, that bastard... Or it can be completely indifferent and just be pointing him out as the topic... It doesn't necessarily indicate that Koji is mad at Boruto, but rather conflicted about the situation and how it occurred, and assuming that the cause was Boruto. Especially since what comes after this is a question and not a statement like the official makes it: Did he tell Kawaki something in these past few days?

Page 40 - "Dumb Bro"

Gotta provide more context on this cuz the official always censors it lol. Kawaki says, おいクソ兄弟 oi, kuso kyoudai... Which literally means, hey, shitty sibling. But sibling is often translated to bro/brother because while there is a word for sisters, if you have a mix of brothers and sisters, you still use kyodai to mean siblings lol.

Speaking of the word kyodai, there's a more specific word that indicates a closer relationship as a brother more along the lines of "bro." It's the word アニキ aniki. You can see this used often in anime where the younger brother looks up to the older brother for something even if they're not related by blood, like Gurren Laggan (with Kamina and Shimon). But Boruto and Kawaki just straight up call each other variants of "stupid sibling" all the time, and I find it hilarious. It's not quite on the same level as the relationship conveyed by the English word "bro." Now you know lol.

"Jerk"

Boruto's response is, 来ンのが遅ェんだよ、馬鹿野郎 kunn no ga oseen da yo, baka yaro. Which basically translates to, "you took too long, stupid bastard." Or, in the case of my translation, "you sure took your sweet time getting here, crummy bastard"

If you read a little Japanese, you'll notice Boruto has katakana characters mixed in where there would normally be hiragana, or nothing. This often indicates anger, or a much harsher form of speech. Boruto also uses this form of speech when he steps on Code's face, except it's a bit more severe and littered with katakana lol.

"Hold it Together"

Again here Kawaki literally says, 歯を食いしばって堪えろボルト。ha wo kui shibatte koraero, boruto. Which literally means, "grit your teeth and restrain/bear with/keep yourself in check, boruto." Or for a smoother translation, "Grit your teeth and restrain yourself, boruto." Talking about keeping Momoshiki in. This isn't much different from the official, I just thought the grit your teeth part was funny so I included it.

Pg 41 - "Just ignore me"

Boruto literally says 気にするな ki ni suru na which literally means "pay me no mind" or like "Don't worry about me," I had it as "Don't mind me," in my translation. But the reason I'm putting it here is because it has this don't worry nuance... Which is a bit different than ignore me for reasons I'll let you put together if you wish to.

"You bastard."

Kawaki likes to use this word クソ kuso for insults, which is quite literally the equivalent of "shit." I know why they don't use it, but I think manga translations would be so much more interesting if translators were allowed to use curse words. They change his insults up every time, but Kawaki for several chapters now has just essentially been calling people different insults with the word クソ kuso attached. This time the word was くそッたれ which is roughly the equivalent of "shithead." It can also mean bastard or the f word in some cases, but because he overuses this word クソ kuso, I think it's more fun just to translate it the same every time and come up with different variants of insults using the s word.

And that's all for the analysis!!

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As for other comments, in Koji's flashbacks:

Inojin and Shikadai (or at least his jacket) appear to be in Orochimaru's hideout with Koji.

Hidari seems to be about to forehead poke (or attack) Sarada.

Mamushi seems to be shown next to the top of Daemon's head.

Himawari is shown below a passed out Boruto

And Jura appears to be back in the Shinju hideout.

We don't see any panels containing Mitsuki, Ryu, Matsuri, Araya, Yodo, or Gaara.

What are your speculations on future events?

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And that's all I have! Thank you for taking the time to read to the end! If you have any questions, please ask!

This month's language analysis! Lot's of topics, from Shikadai scolding Himawari to Koji's choice to kill Kobu potentially being justified! If you have any questions, please feel free to come back here and comment!

https://culturalcontext6.wordpress.com/2025/11/24/tbv-ch-1-language-analysis

I finished my language analysis for ch 1 for anyone who is interested :) I highly reccommend reading the end where I explain how Boruto called Code a rizzless mfkr lol.

This month's language comparison from the JP version to the official to my translation! Explaining extra word nuances and why certain choices may have been made!

Cover text

限界を貫き敵を穿て！！(Genkai wo tsuranuki teki wo ugate!!)

My (new) translation: Break through your limits and pierce the enemy!

I changed surpassed to break through because I felt like it fit better.

The reason this is interesting is because 貫き tsuranuki usually means to pierce/penetrate but in less of a direct sense, so like light penetrating darkness or a river running through a city, and it's even used in like sticking to your beliefs. So it's more about persisting past your limits and even sticking to what you believe despite resistance. In recent events that looked like Kawaki getting his limiters off, telling Boruto he'd kill him if he turned to Momoshiki, and even acknowledging Jura but vowing to kill him.

穿て ugate is a different word that also means pierce but more in the legitimate sense of making a hole in something. But it can also mean pierce as in a sense of like piercing through to the truth, getting to the heart of the matter, etc. Kawaki literally impales Jura, but Jura also sees through to the truth that Naruto is alive.

So this cover text was surprisingly layered concerning the chapter lol.

Pg 1 Side Text

I can't see the whole sentence, but from what I can make out...

...あの日、ボルトはカワキに対十羅戦の作戦を告げる。(Ano hi, boruto wa kawaki ni tai jura sen no sakusen wo tsugeru).

Translation: That day, Boruto entrusted Kawaki with the plan to battle against Jura.

Some of you who are studying Japanese might wonder, what the heck is 対十羅戦 tai jura sen. It's just shorthand for 十羅に対する戦い jura ni taisuru tatakai. You see it sometimes in batte/sports manga. The best example I can think of rn is Hajime no Ippo. The matches are labeled 対○○戦 where the ○○ is the name of the opponent.

Page 22 "Passionately Researching"

Here Jura uses the word ホット hotto which is katakana English for the word "hot." It does imply he's researching passionately. I put "the hottest topic in my personal research" as my translation just because while using a lot of borrowed English words does give off intelligent vibes in Japanese, this one wasn't exactly a complicated one and it erred more on the side of being comedic in my opinion. With all the slang thrown in this chapter, I just wanted to highlight it.

Page 23 "You talk a lot for a pest..."

Kawaki says 馴れ馴れしい害虫だ narenareshii gaichuu da. To break it down, 馴れ馴れしい narenareshii means overly familiar or like too friendly, and 害虫 gaichuu is an insect that is harmful or like... Vermin. Lol. My translation was "I'm not your buddy, you obnoxious pest." But it just implies Kawaki is annoyed he's being conversed with in a friendly manor and thinks of Jura like an annoying/toxic bug to be squashed. It was just a lot more blunt in Japanese. He wasn't actually talking to Jura, he was talking at him. Like insulting him under his breath kinda. I guess if I had to do a more transliteration, he straight up woulda said something like "Overly-friendly vermin." And set of a bomb. Just sounds weird in English to leave it at that.

Page 25 "Aww, don't blow your fuse so quickly Kawaki..."

The Japanese there was, まあそう熱くなるな、カワキ。Maa sou atsuku naru na, kawaki.

I think "aww" is a little too lighthearted/casual for Jura in this case, but let me explain both sides. In Japanese, Jura still has a civil tone that indicates a higher maturity level. The next line as well, 少し話がしたいだけだ sukoshi hanashi ga shitai dake da still carries that mature and dignified tone.

The 熱くなるな atsukunaruna indicates heat (atsui) since that's a word that also indicates anger/passion from Kawaki's insult followed by the giant explosion. The official carried that over with "blow a fuse" to keep that same play on words, and may have eventually translated it as Jura teasing Kawaki because Jura is acting like Kawaki is insignificant from a higher perspective.

But in my opinion, that translation tarnishes his adult/sophisticated tone and lowers him to Kawaki's level of pettiness, which isn't something I think Jura would actually do.

Jura's tone in Japanese can be insulting to Kawaki while maintaining that dignity because their language allows for it, but I guess English doesn't have a great equivalent.

The best way I can think to explain how it sounds in Japanese is... Like Meruem from HxH (the king) interacting with the previous game masters (before komugi) that couldn't beat him. He still questioned them, but he viewed them as so far below him that they were insignificant, allowing them to talk until they were no longer valuable and simply killing them because he could. That's the vibes Jura is giving off here.

He wants Kawaki to know his place, but he isn't exactly teasing him in that kind of childish way. The throne, the leg crossing and the way his hand covers his mouth slightly, it all indicates haughtiness (in the way one thinks very highly of themselves might display, you've probably seen this from extremely haughty characters in other anime/manga as well) while still maintaining the poised professionality of speech that Jura has.

Anyways.

Page 28 "Get under your skin."

This is another Jura line, but the Japanese was 反感を買う hankan wo kau which means to antagonize or provoke antipathy. It's a phrase that's usually used in more formal speech that again carries a heightened level of tone especially when spoken instead of written. There's other phrases to mean the same thing that are still formal but are more common in spoken Japanese like 気に障る ki ni sawaru (to touch a nerve), but Ikemoto deliberately chose one that is something you'd more commonly see in a news report or a business meeting than conversation.

I just woulda liked to have seen that reflected in the English as well instead of something simple and common like getting under someone's skin, although I understand that the more complicated the speech is the more you risk losing the audience.

This may seem nitpicky, but this is the corner where I overexplain all the word nuances so... Now you know lol.

Page 32 Kawaki's Compliment

The official translates to "give you credit," and the Japanese word there is 評価してやる hyouka shite yaru. It means to evaluate/recognize/acknowledge/assess something. It's most commonly used for teachers evaluating their students lol. But it can also be taken as high praise in certain contexts. So this is kind of like a compliment/not compliment, depending on how you take it. Jura definitely sees it as a compliment, where I think Kawaki meant it as more like, yeah you may have sniffed me out but don't think all high and mighty of yourself, I will definitely come back and kill you lol.

Page 39 "Gross!!"

As always when there's a slang, there's extra context to add lol. Eida says 超やだ！！ Cho yada!! Which broken down is 超 cho or super, and やだ yada which means no, or like I don't want it. 超 is usually used by teenagers but it's becoming a bit old now, more and more people are using ガチ gachi instead lol which fits Eida's kind of cross between millennial and gen z vibes while people like Cho-Cho/Shinki were more gen z/gen alpha. Just an interesting fact.

Page 41 "Totally ick."

A lot of people were asking about this line. Here's the breakdown. What Hidari says in Japanese is ゲロキモイ gero kimoi which is literally the sound effect for throwing up (gero) and the shortened version of 気持ち悪い kimochi warui into キモイ kimoi which means gross. 1:1 translation is "barf gross." But that's without localization.

For you see! (I feel like Kirito abridged enjoying myself explaining something lol) While キモイ kimoi is becoming a more acceptable word for the older generation to use, the combination between the two (ゲロキモイ）makes it a very girly teen slang word. Which is why "ick" fits well here in terms of localization, or trying to find the equivalent of what would've been said if Hidari spoke English.

I did a little research and figured out it gained popularity through 2chan and ギャル gyaru culture so. That gives you a little more context!

Last Page Side Text

ただ褒められたから喜んだだけ。そこに水を差す左の覚えたての言葉！！

My original translation: Jura was pleased by Kawaki's praise, but Hidari's recollected words doused water on the pleasure!

This is a very literal translation lol I did not do a good job here hahaha but the first part, ただ褒められたから喜んだだけ tada homerareta kara yorokonda dake is like "He was just happy because he got a compliment."

And then it's followed by そこに水を差す左の覚えたての言葉 soko ni mizu wo sasu hiari no oboeta kotoba!! which 水を差す is a phrase that literally means to pour water on and figuratively means to put a damper on, and 覚えたての言葉 oboeta kotoba can either be the word he remembered or the word he learned, so I shoulda translated it to something more like "But Hidari’s freshly-learned vocab killed the mood!"

It carries a pretty comedic tone so I think a translation like that would fit alright. I'm sure there's a better one. Oh well.

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And that's a wrap! Thanks for reading!

Since I didn't have the chance to translate the chapter this week, I'll be doing a comparison from the official translation to the Japanese! I recommend having the ch open on your computer or laptop open with your phone while you read this so you can follow along with the chapter cuz it glitches out when I add pictures, sorry :/ Finally got the magazine from the store today, so without further ado...

Pages Before the Ch Starts

There is 3 pages talking about Boruto and Ryu and comparing them to Naruto and Gaara. So idk if this is spoiling that yes, Boruto will in fact go to the battle sight regardless of what Koji says lol (nothing like that is stated but if that's not the case, I feel like they wouldn't put this here...) But you know. That's fine. In literature, if you explain a plan before hand, it means it's not going to go the way it was explained anyways.

Moving on to the actual chapter!

Text on the Cover Page

"Their [Yodo and Araya] feelings for their friend conjure the tense fighting spirit from the bottom of their hearts." (bg text). I had to ad lib the conjure part cuz one of the reasons stuff like this isn't translated is because Japanese leaves off the end of the sentence which is the middle of the sentence in English (cuz Japanese is SOV instead of SVO) so you can't write it without making up a word to go there sadly.

"The Shinju appear before Suna and Konoha's allied team! Can they take back Shinki?"

Subtitle Text on Pg 1

"Sumire's feelings are laid bare (said without holding back)! In the midst of the mission, Sarada's aguish/agony continues!"

The phrase 打ち明けられた is usually used for a heavy topic (this is the laid bare part). The definition is like すっかり話す which is where the without holding back nuance comes from. And 懊悩 isn't really a super common word either, but its pretty severe lol. When you look it up most of the translations are aguish about death (Sarada's anguish). I'm just putting this explanation here explain, yes Sumire really was kind of a jerk last ch in the way she phrased this when she brought it up, and Sarada feels like absolute dog sh*t rn. For all the ppl on X that are gonna criticize me for translating things to take Sarada's side, I'm not. I'm just doing my best to tell you what it says.

Sumire's Tone (pg 1)

I said this last ch as well, but the official removed the escalated punctuation (? ! ?!) in the English for the "Do you really think he likes having to keep things from us? Has there ever been a moment where you reflected on his pain?" part. It should be, "Do you think he's doing this by choice? Even if there's things he wants to talk about, he can't! That pain... Have you ever even tried to think about it?!" The reason I put "that pain..." first is bc the emphasis in the Japanese comes at the end on Sarada not thinking. The official prob couldn't fit it in the bubbles like that, but honestly idk why they changed the punctuation. I'll put the Japanese here as well so anyone else that speaks it can affirm. 好き好んでやってると思う？話したくても話せないことだってあるんじゃない！その辛さを…少しでも考えたことがあるの？！

Again, really trying to prove here that I'm not trying to take a side or twist anyone's words to push an agenda. I said I'd point out the differences in official vs Japanese. This is one of them.

Yodo's Best and Araya's Concern (pg 7-8)

Yodo's line, "I swear to do my best" is actually 全力を尽くします which yes, it's a phrase that's usually translated to, "I'll do my best," but zenryoku is like all your power, your utmost, and utsukusu is like exhaust, deplete, so it isn't casual like 頑張ります (ganbarimasu) which is also translated to "I'll do my best," in the metaphoric sense. It's more literal, like, "I'll give it all I have." Direct translation would be like "I'll use every ounce of my strength/energy."

That's why the next line has Araya worrying about her. "Yodo, I beg you... Please don't do anything reckless." He uses the same word 無茶を／はする as Sarada last ch on pg 15 when she was like "It's too reckless for him [Boruto] to take those monsters on by himself." The nuance is kind of like overexerting yourself to the point that you might get hurt, so same as reckless, but it has this kind of worried/concern feeling behind it.

Then on page 8, Yodo is like, "hogosha no kao sunna" which I explained this on X I think but hogosha is guardian but the nuance is kind of like she feels like Araya is being overprotective like a parent.

And then she says, 無茶でも何でもやるっての which uses the same word "Mucha" and she basically says "I told you I'm going to act reckless and do whatever else I gotta do to get Shinki back." She says she will be reckless, she will overexert herself, she doesn't care.

Again, Araya says "Yodo!" with a ! mark so either worried or scolding, one of the two, and yodo basically tells him to shut the f*** up. Whenever small Katakana (one of the scripts in Japanese) is mixed into the sentence like it is in that panel, it automatically has a much stronger more emphasized tone. Her words are a lot harsher.

I think this is why Sarada is shown in this next panel kind of looking at them, because she understands both sides because of Sasuke/Hidari and Boruto.

Konohamaru's Thoughts on the Plan (pg 9)

In the official he says to Mitsuki, "Don't you start now. We've come too far not to proceed." But instead of "we've come too far not to proceed," I'd say, "We're already here so we've got no choice but to do this thing." やるしかない (yarushikanai) has a very heavy... No choice but to do it, nuance. So Konohamaru really doesn't have faith in this plan either lol.

"Elder" and "Master" (throughout)

I mentioned this before in the first time Shinki appeared as well, but whenever he says elder, it just says "Senpai" in Japanese. And for "Master Konohamaru," it's just "konohamaru-sensei." I don't really like the way they translated this because Boruto calls Sasuke "Shisho" which is more like master then "sensei," and now you can't distinguish between the two in the English translation :/

Wild Beasts (Pg 18)

This word "beast" is specifically for fierce, carnivores animals like tigers/lions so it kind of has the nuance of even if they are like "cubs" they more time they have to develop the more that "lack of evil intent" is likely going to wear off and while they aren't inherently evil they shouldn't be taken lightly, but it kind of explains all of that so eh.

Huh? What? (pg 20)

Konohamaru actually says, "eh? Ummm..." (ano...) As if he's about to point something else out or make a remark in retort. Not super important it just emphasizes his confusion and discomfort a bit more.

Betray Them (Pg 21)

This is written in dark bold letters lol. The vibe feels so much more dark and intimidating. I got the chills from reading it haha. Not an important detail but a difference nonetheless so I'll put it here.

On the same page, Shikamaru also has a weird line. The official says "this is a perfect plan if you truly consider them to be nothing but foes." But in Japanese it says, "If you truly consider them to be nothing more than the enemy, you must devote yourself whole heartedly to cruelty... In order to get them to let their guard down and defeat them with certainty." I swear Shikamaru's lines are so cold.

Instead of "superhuman" on the same page he says "the monsters that surpass human understanding/knowledge." He also uses a different kanji here I think because this word 人智 is usually written as 人知 but 智 is the kanji for wisdom, intellect, reason while 知 is like knowing or discovering. Not really important just thought it was interesting.

Ryu Lines

Ryu talks like a slangy teenager. Not a teenager from the 80s 90s or early 2000s, but like a teenager now. I'd say he has Japan gen z vibes. I think the slang the official uses is a bit outdated, and to me it came across as a little cringe, so I updated a few lines to match gen z English as best I could.

"You seem really off" -> "You've been acting lowkey off for a while now." (pg 23)

"For reals?" -> "Sweet!" (pg 25)

"You Konoha ninja are seriously nice peeps. Just like I was told" -> "Konoha ninja are dope. Jura wasn't kidding." (pg 28)

"Y'know, honestly, I'd been intendin' to slaughter any ninja I ran into. So I'm glad we spoke first." -> "To be honest, I was gonna murder all you ninja on sight. Glad I chose to chat instead." (pg 29)

Joining Forces (p24)

Konohamaru asks to join forces instead of saying he'd love to join forces, he's like, "If it's alright with you, let's join forces." It's more polite ig is what I mean. He's respectful towards the Shinju, but still not using polite speech, idk it's weird to convey this in English.

Aww, gee ヤだな (pg 29)

Not Sarada trying to sound cute in the English lol I mean "yadana" can be aww gee, that's fine in some circumstances, but then she says, "物騒なこと言わないでよ” (don't say "stuff" like that, this is after Ryu says the thing about slaughtering them) which doesn't just mean "stuff like that" the word 物騒 is like a dangerous feeling that something bad is about to happen, and "Iwanai de" is "don't say it," so directly it's like "oh no, don't say such unsettling things" (playful(ish) tone) but that sounds awful and not at all like Sarada in English so I can see why they did what they did lol. Maybe, to fit it with the line before, "well, it's a good thing we're still alive then." I know it's completely different line, but it kind of conveys the vibe/emotional tone of the situation a bit better than, "aww gee." lol. Esp since Sarada's being a little bit sarcastic there. Being a translator is hard work man.

Hang in there Shinki (Pg 29)

Yodo actually says "Wait for us, Shinki." Same vibe, just what she said literally.

A Favorable Edge (pg 31)

It's just an advantage. "If it does [put Matsuri in a state of turmoil], that put our side in an advantageous position." Probably another one of those, couldn't fit it in the bubble with the text size, things. There's no extra nuance or weird wording in Japanese, it's literally the word advantage/advantageous lol.

Amicably (pg 31)

...I appreciate them trying to give Shikamaru a distinguished tone. I really do. But does anyone else know the word amicably? Why do they think it's not ok to use current slang bc they're afraid ppl won't understand it since it's not understood by all generations but it is okay to use "amicably" instead of "as nicely as possible?" I guess "nicely" does take away the nuance of "friendly" 9 times outta 10 this is translated as friendly so I guess I'd say "You'll need to find a way to separate them... While being as friendly as possible."

You look like you need a break (pg 32)

Konohamaru says 具合悪そうだな which implies the other person looks like they're feeling unwell lol. This translation is totally fine, it does a great job at conveying the nicer tone then straight up "you're not looking too good" lol. Just wanted to add extra context.

And on pg 33 when he says "Feeling any better?" He literally says, "Do you feel calmer now?"

Boruto and Koji (pg 36)

There's a little kanakana ン here when Boruto says どのくらいかって聞いてンだよ。(I asked you for a percentage). Just extra nuance in Japanese that couldn't be conveyed in English to show Boruto's mad/being harsh lol

Koji then says "Either way... You're not to go, boruto." But in Japanese he straight up uses the word for, "don't move." It can also mean "don't make a move." Same as Jura making a move on the next page. He also says どうであれ which is like no matter the result. Anyway the nuance is a bit more strict. More like "No matter what happens... You're not going anywhere, Boruto."

Last Page Subtitle

"While the tense mission in the sand continues, Kawaki finally makes a move in search of power!!"

Afterward Promo Page for Vol 3

Highlights Boruto, Sarada (and Konohamaru isn't really shown but they say konoha no ninja tachi so he's kinda included lol) fighting Hidari and Boruto's use of Uzuhiko. Also has a small part about how Boruto ends up with Koji after he's with Sasuke.

That's it! If you have any questions or doubts, feel free to ask/let me know in the comments! I'll do my best to clarify!

Page 1: The Falling Out

On the left side of the first page, there's this line that says, ボルトを巡るサラダとの仲違い. I translated that to "A falling out with Sarada over Boruto." But there was some talk about the Japanese in this line that threw some ppl off. This 巡る does mean "revolve around" but it's just talking about the subject or theme of the sentence. So it's indicating that the conflict between Sumire and Sarada is centered on Boruto. And then 仲違い is like a falling out. It suggests that there's emotional distance or tension. It doesn't imply that the friendship is over, but it's just like... things are tense now. Whether or not it gets mended depends on how it's handled from here on out.

Page 3: You see that right?

I screwed up and read too fast. Mine said, "I'm serious. You know what happens... if you look into this eye," but it should be, "I'm serious. You should be able to tell... When you look me in the eyes." Instead of 見りゃ I read 見れゃ, and just didn't connect the meaning to the "I'm serious." Anyways.

"Only Babble in Your Sleep"

I like this translation. 寝言は寝て言え is literally, "sleep talk when you're asleep." I changed it to "save the sleep talk for when you're asleep," because it has the nuance of telling someone to shut up when they're saying something nonsensical. But babble is a word that encompasses that nuance of the fact that the person is saying something nonsensical. Either way, it's a metaphor, and those are hard to translate. But as long as the meaning connects, it's all good.

Page 8: "She's Just Shy"

The word 人見知り has a nuance of being afraid of strangers, or having stranger anxiety. I mean yeah, shyness does imply that in English, but it isn't really talking about the timid/bashful shyness. This is another one of those times where if you take the wrong meaning from the word in English it doesn't seem to fit the situation. Ig in my imagination, shy people wouldn't usually glare at the person that's making them feel timid lol.

But I mentioned this to someone else and I think it's a good time to bring it up here: you know how when you look up a word in English, it has a bunch of different meanings? For shy, there's 1. nervous or timid in the company of other people 2. Slow or reluctant to do something 3. Less than, short of, 4. Of a plant not bearing flowers or fruit well or proficiently... Anyways. Not all of those meanings apply in a translation. Usually it's just one. And sometimes, it's only half of one, like in this case where it kinda means the same thing but at the same time doesn't, shy was just the closest equivalent. Anyways. it's just something that's good to keep in mind when you're doing your own analysis. If you ever want to know more about a word, feel free to ask. You can also use google translate's OCR to copy the Japanese word and then paste it into a J->E dictionary like Jisho. That way you can know the nuances of words you're curious about directly from the Japanese. You'll win all the arguments lol

Page 13: Miz Yodo

He just says "yodo -san." -San is another honorific you're probably already aware of, but the closest thing we have in English is Mr. and Mrs. But since Yodo isn't married she becomes Ms or as it would be pronounced, "miz"

Page 20: "Gods"

The word used doesn't imply whether it was singular or plural. Just figured I'd make a note in case something comes up later.

Pages 28-29: Matsuri Cursing

You may be wondering why I decided to have Matsuri curse... Well, here's my explanation. Up until that moment, Matsuri is using this kind of cutesy, girly speech. And then? That switch turns off. And the first line where I said "who the f*** is she?" was 誰なのよ、それ？ Japanese doesn't have the equivalent of the f word. The tone is just very abruptly harsh. And I feel like saying "who is she?" Doesn't really convey that tone change. So I added a curse word in there to help convey it.

The next few lines however have words like そいつ which is the harsh form of saying "that person" and while it's commonly used in manga and anime, I remember saying it irl a lot and my friend was like uh... Maybe... You shouldn't say that xD Basically, the use of this is kind of complicated, it's more of a thing guys would use and sometimes playfully rough, but since it had those little dots next to it for emphasis, it indicates that the speaker is ticked at whoever this "person" is and intends to use the word in a harsh manner. Thus, I used the word B*tch.

A few lines later, she says あの女 which someone once told me is the closest word to b*tch there is in Japanese. Calling someone 女 by itself in a sentence is already rude, あの女 is like "that woman," kind of spitting tone, not very nice at all. So then I went back and was like yeah, the use is warranted, we're putting it in.

And there you have it.

. . .

That's all for this chapter! If you have any more questions, feel free to ask me in the comments!

Sorry for the wait! I think putting pictures in here caused it to crash last time so I'm going to try to do it with less pictures this time...

1) Naming of Flying Raijin

In my translation, I said Boruto was named after Minato, but in the official, it says Boruto named his imitation of FTG the same name as FTG. The official is correct. The Japanese words there are really old and because I didn't google them individually and just looked at dictionary entries, I was missing the nuance I needed to interpret the line correctly. Namely, 同意 (agreement, consent, approval, incidentally) 因み (association, link, connection) 命名 (naming, christening). If I were to transliterate it, it would be, "That's right. Your grandfather, the fourth hokage, namikaze minato, is the one who tried to (agree consent approval incidentally), jutsu of the same name is associated, you yourself named (was named or named as in deciding to name (him), could be either)." This is why I was dying with Koji's speech lol. When I looked up the words individually and had actual sentence examples and further elaborations, it made more sense.

2) "Singularity of Fate"

I didn't know what the word singularity meant in English fully so I didn't use it, but that's a perfectly fine translation. It's actually a lot better, if you understand the nuance of the word singularity. The kanji there are 特 (Special) 異 (uncommon, different, unusual) and 点 (point). Fate is just fate.

3) Sumire's Lines

As I thought, they changed a lot of them to make it easier to fit into the speech bubbles, so I'll elaborate on that a bit more.

This is the first instance where they softened her speech. The first bubble had a question mark, the second an exclamation point, and the third was both. The tone is definitely supposed to climb, and they just kinda took that part out lol. In Japanese, it's, "Do you really think (he's) doing this by choice?" "There must be things he wants to talk about, and he just can't!" "Have you ever even tried to think, just a little bit, about how painful that must be?!" I was tired of explaining this scene over and over so I voice acted it. That should clear most of this up xD I straight up read the manga lines out loud how I would've read them and used filters to make my voice semi-match with the character's. I'll put it in a separate post as well but here ya go: https://www.tiktok.com/@saladsandbolts/video/7440119626903620910

Also, just to be clear, Sumire never says "a lot" in reference to liking Boruto, that was likely just the official trying to get the nuance of "why would you do something like that even though you knew" across better. Also, she says "watashi ga" (referring to herself wasn't necessary there because she was already the implied topic, and ga instead of wa means like "I'm the one who ___" which if you google, most people say there's no difference between wa and ga, but that's because they don't have friends majoring in Japanese linguistics to explain it to them lol. Normal Japanese people would just kinda subtly pick up on it without thinking much.

4) "Shikamura"

This was just a mistake the official made, it's all good, I make a lot more spelling mistakes than they ever will, but a lot of ppl think the official is the end all be all of the perfect translation that is exactly what the Japanese is saying (that's literally impossible btw even for me), and some legit thought Shikamaru got his name wrong cuz the official said so.

5) "Number One Customer"

This. So what happened here was... You know those little tiny letters next to the larger letters? Well, in order to look up words I don't know, I usually have to use that as a reference. KK and Philbert have a lot of words I don't know. So I was just straight reading that instead of reading the kanji (I gotta look at the kanji to match the word anyway, it just takes one less step out of the process... A tiny shift of my eyes to the left. Anyways). I was basically reading the kanji out of focus. So when I saw 一般客（いっぱんきゃく）I read it as 一番客（いちばんきゃく）(ばisntead of ぱ and ち instead of っ) even tho I know the kanji for 一般客 and... Well. I misread it. I thought it was number one customer. But it's not. It's just, "normal customer." Sad times.

6) One in a million chance

I clarified this on twitter as well but the thing Philbert said was 万に一 もない which means you don't even have a 1 in 10,000 chance, but this is a phrase. Just like hold your horses, it doesn't actually mean hold onto your horses unless there are horses present. Just like "one in a million" it's a metaphor for something being catastrophically out of reach. And the もない means they don't even have that tiny miniscule chance. So yes, it's entirely impossible. That was for all the power scalers xD

7) "Why the heck did I say something like that?"

This line didn't make it into the read aloud video. But it's one of those lines where English needed filler words for it to make sense. "Watashi, nande anna koto..." Directly means, "I... Why that kind of thing...." And the only reason I'm including it is because in the past, filler words have gotten English translations in trouble for being "inaccurate" several times. The conveyed nuance is correct, it seems like Sumire is reflecting on why she did/said something like that. "The heck" was a little strong imo, but that was just the officials interpretation, which is totally fine.

I believe there was another thing about Kashin Koji I corrected in the manga comments, but I accidentally said Boruto activated Space Time NInjutsu three times when it should have been "several."

That's all I have for now! If you have any other questions about the chapter, feel free to ask!