Boruto: Two Blue Vortex has made its exciting debut as the second part of Boruto, and with it comes a time skip that provides new stylish designs that would however be the worst outfits for ninjas to wear. Much like the transition between Naruto and Naruto Shippuden, the Boruto series has jumped ahead three years after Boruto was framed for killing his father. In those three years, a lot has changed, and Boruto's cast has grown up and found new clothes that don't seem like anything ninjas would wear.
Part 1 of the Boruto series already saw some of its character designs lean more towards style than ninja attire that could be beneficial on missions and battlefields, while the designs of many of Naruto and Shippuden's characters provided a balance of both utility and personality for its varied cast. Boruto: Two Blue Vortex has now completely thrown functionality out of the window for a purely stylish approach. The focus on fashion makes Boruto feel more like JoJo's Bizare Adventure rather than the continuation of Masashi Kishimoto's ninja story.
Boruto Part 2's Designs Prioritize Style Over Functionality
The very first of Boruto: Two Blue Vortex is of the sixteen-year-old Sarada wearing her new high-heeled shoes, incredibly short pants, and an oversized coat. Artist Mikio Ikemoto's choice to address the controversy around the over-sexualization of Sarada by giving her even fewer clothes was bold. Leaving Sarada aside, everyone in the cast of Boruto: Two Blue Vortex looks like they are dressed to impress, rather than in the most practical way for ninja warriors. Long gone are the days of Konoha's Chunnin vests with their many pockets and compartments, they seem to have been completely supplanted by oversized black jackets and untucked belts. Since the days of the First and Second Hokage, the Ninja of Konoha are not known for wearing much armor. Most of the Naruto series character designs provided clothing that allowed ninjas to carry jutsu scrolls, weapons, medicines, and other useful items, even if in some cases the needs of pragmatism gave way to more stylish choices.
However, despite more than a few significant grievances, most of the new designs for Boruto's characters look great. Code's new look takes his usually fancy suit up a notch with an ascot and a new cape that, when combined, makes him look more like a Vampire. Kawaki's baggy dark clothes are clean and stand out even more with the large white coat that feels like a tribute to Naruto's Hokage cape. The best new design is surely Boruto's. His new black outfit feels like a nod to Sasuke, but it's Boruto's taller and more stoic look that helps readers take Naruto's son more seriously, something Part 1 had difficulty doing.
High Heels & Belly Shirts Don't Seem Shinobi Work Day Appropriate
Boruto Part 2's outfits are about as far away from the wartime armor and robes of the village's first shinobi as can be. It's fascinating to see how much of Konoha's new generation is adapting from the past's look to create their own styles, especially for long-time Naruto fans. With the Shinobi World's longstanding history of assassinations and war behind them, the generation that's grown up in Boruto lives in a different time than those in the Naruto series, which may explain why they no longer need to wear clothes that are optimized for wartime. Still, if children are still being trained to be lethal ninjas in Boruto: Two Blue Vortex, they should wear outfits that help them accomplish missions rather than stylish clothing that makes it harder to move.
You can read Boruto: Two Blue Vortex on the Shonen Jump App and Viz Media.
