20 Best Boruto Episodes, Ranked

Summary Boruto episodes balance new mythology with old storylines and character development, pleasing fans of the Naruto franchise.

The best episodes feature epic fight scenes, introduce important powers, and showcase the teamwork of Team 7 in thrilling battles.

Boruto excels in showcasing emotional moments and relationship dynamics, with episodes focusing on sacrifice, partnership, and character growth.

The best Boruto episodes are a mix of those that spotlight the new mythology in the franchise and those that continue old storylines while still developing new characters. Boruto had big shoes to fill thanks to the success of the Naruto franchise, and it mostly succeeds. Starting as a manga serial in 1999, Naruto became an anime and spawned numerous movies. The spin-off series Boruto debuted shortly after Naruto concluded. While a movie debuted first, the anime and the manga are now flourishing.

Debuting in 2017, the anime (available to stream on Crunchyroll and Hulu) hasn't seen all of its episodes get English dubs yet. That hasn’t stopped audiences outside of Japan from devouring the series and discussing just how the Boruto anime compares to the manga. Some fans hate the filler episodes that occur between breaks in arcs based on the manga, while others prefer the episodes with epic fight scenes. The truth is that the best Boruto episodes, however, showcase some of everything the show has to offer.

20 Episode 187: Kāma

Koji Kashin Attack Team 7, Prompting Boruto To Unleash a Terrifying New Power

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Koji Kashin is one of the most enigmatic characters in Boruto, and his first real time to shine comes in episode 187, Kāma. The episode sees Koji attempt to kill Tema 7, only for Konohamaru to intervene and show off just how powerful he's become. Unfortunately, it's not enough, forcing Boruto to activate the power that gives the episode its title. While the power proves too much for the young shinobi, Kāma is one of Boruto's most important powers and will play a much larger role in future Boruto storylines.

Kāma has a lot going for it with the proper introduction of Koji, his fight with Konohamaru, and Boruto unlocking the new power. Ultimately, these elements all come together to create an episode that's just as satisfying to watch as it is to rewatch, easily letting it rank among the series' best.

19 Episode 62: The Ōtsutsuki Invasion

The Otsutsuki Begin Their Attack on Konoha

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Anime arcs that adapt movies are notoriously hit or miss, but Boruto episode 62, The Ōtsutsuki Invasion shows how it's done. The episode sees Momoshiki, Urashiki, and Kinshiki descend upon the Chunin exam arena in order to abduct Naruto so they can steal his chakra. All of the series' legacy characters react in horror to the returning threat of the Otsutsuki. Given that it took the combined efforts of Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura to take Kaguya down, the prospect of facing three is certainly daunting, even for the veteran ninjas.

The Ōtsutsuki Invasion is another great setup episode that establishes a powerful new threat and leaves viewers wondering how the heroes can possibly overcome the new enemies. Of course, Momoshiki, Urashiki, and Kinshiki aren't quite as much of a threat as Kaguya was, but they're still all incredibly powerful beings in their own right. Though Boruto had been running for some time prior, episode 62 is the one where the plot truly starts, making it an important moment in the series' history.

18 Episode 203: Surprise Attack

Naruto & Jigen's Battle Over Kawaki Begins

Boruto has a solid mixture of setup and action, but few episodes do both as well as episode 203, Surprise Attack. The episode sets up more than a few plot points for future episodes such as Boruto's Kama reactivating and Jigen's return, while also providing some solid fight scenes.

knowing Naruto's childhood and the isolation he faced, seeing the 7th Hokage fight so ruthlessly to protect the younger ninja is truly heartwarming

Though Jigen/Isshiki and Naruto's fights in later episodes is far grander, the one present in Surprise Attack is still quite a thrilling brawl. Boruto often gets criticism for its mountain of filler, but Surprise Attack shows that when the series sticks to its main plot, it can do incredible things. Beyond everything else, what makes Surprise Attack so effective is how it puts Naruto's devotion to Kawaki on full display. Kawaki is a divisive character, but knowing Naruto's childhood and the isolation he faced, seeing the 7th Hokage fight so ruthlessly to protect the younger ninja is truly heartwarming.

17 Episode 186: How You Use It

Boruto's Team 7 Unites to Face Off Against Ao

Few episodes show the Boruto generation's Team 7 acting as one cohesive unit quite like Boruto episode 186, How You Use It. The episode sees Boruto, Sarada, Mitsuki, and Konohamaru face the cybernetic ninja Ao. The result is a standout episode that makes a great case for why the new Team 7 more than lives up to the legacy established by their predecessors.

With Boruto being the main character and legacy fighters like Naruto and Sasuke hanging around, it isn't as often that Boruto gives Team 7 an important battle. This is what makes How You Use It such a great episode, as it's fun seeing the team use their various powers together in fun and interesting ways. While the episode doesn't quite have the spectacle or emotional gut-punch of Boruto's top episodes, its solid animation and fight choreography elevate it to something special.

16 Episode 206: The New Team 7

Boruto, Sarada, Mitsuki, and Kawaki Unite Against Boro to Rescue Naruto

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While episode 186 was a great display of the new Team 7's skills, episode 206, The New Team 7 is on another level. The episode sees Boruto, Sarada, Mitsuki, and Kawaki travel to an alternate dimension in order to free Naruto. There, they meet and face off with the Kara member Boro. Understanding that the stakes have never been higher for them as Naruto and their lives are all on the line, Team 7 gives everything they have to beat Boro.

Team 7's teamwork in The New Team 7 is what makes the episode truly shine. While the team has a long way to go before any of them individually is a threat for a skilled shinobi like Boro, as a team, they're far more effective. Naruto's Team 7 spent large portions of their series broken up, so it's great to see the new generation band together to try and take down a threat with capabilities far outpacing their own.

15 Episode 214: Predestined Fate

Koji Kasshin's Battle With Jigen Heats Up and Reveals Isshiki

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Predestined Fate sees Koji Kashin battle Jigen while Naruto, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Boruto, and Kawaki watch on. Though Koji's battle with Jigen is interesting, as is Amado's commentary on it, what really defines the episode is Isshiki's appearance. After Jigen runs out of chakra and options for dealing with Koji's flames, Isshiki appears and proves why he's the franchise's strongest threat to that point. Koji is an incredibly powerful shinobi considering he's a clone of Jiraiya, but even he is no match for the might of Isshiki.

A third party commenting on a fight is nothing new to anime and especially not to Naruto and Boruto. Given that the franchise often incorporates incredibly powerful abilities with complicated rulesets, that commentary is a necessity. In Predestined Fate though, Amado's battle commentary is just as thrilling as the battle itself. The result is a fascinating episode that firmly establishes just how much of a threat Isshiki truly is.

14 Episode 129: Village Hidden In The Leaves

While the original Naruto series explores the idea of other dimensions and universes made from dreams, Boruto features more exploration of time and space, allowing for time travel. Boruto and Sasuke end up in the Konohagakure of the past, specifically during the years of the original Naruto series. The arc in the show is largely filler, but this episode allows Boruto to gain a new perspective on his father.

Boruto thinks he is drastically different from Naruto, but this episode highlights how similar they really are when they both, as children, interact with a young Sakura and an adult Sasuke. While the audience has always known about their similarities, an episode focusing on them gives Boruto a new appreciation for his dad and results in the young ninja shirking some of his more juvenile tendencies, resulting in some solid development for the title character.

13 Episode 23: Bonds Come In All Shapes

Part of the appeal of the Boruto series is exactly that it is a sequel series. It continues storylines started when Naruto was a child and answers some questions that the audience might have had after the end of Naruto. One of those questions is the sustainability of Sasuke and Sakura’s relationship. Though Sakura has always cared for him, Sasuke’s feelings haven’t always been so clear. Even their daughter Sarada is confused by the relationship between Sasuke and Sakura, which Bonds Come in All Shapes highlights in an effective way.

Sarada learns how much they care about one another and her in this episode, making it one of the most emotional of the early episodes in the series, and one of the best Boruto episodes. Though Sasuke and Sakura's relationship would be given a better highlight or two in later episodes, this one was reassuring for any fan who wondered whether Sasuke and Sakura could really work together.

12 Episode 207: Regeneration

Boruto, Mitsuki, Sarada, and Kawaki have to work together in an attempt to defeat Boro in Regeneration. One of the aspects that makes this rank among the best Boruto episodes is the unique fight that results. All four of the young shinobi use their usual attacks, but Boro is either able to easily counter them, or completely regenerate any injured part of himself too quickly for the foursome to keep up. Boruto's new Team 7 might be powerful, but it's clear in Regeneration just how much further they have to go if they want to stop the major threats facing them and Konoha.

Eventually, Sarada is able to remove Boro’s core, the part of him that powers all of his scientific ninja tools. It really ups the science fiction factor of Boruto but also demonstrates how well the group works together despite all of their differences.

11 Episode 208: Momoshiki’s Manifestation

Is the Episode Where All the Puzzle Pieces Start to Fall Into Place

While Momoshiki's Manifestation features the tail end of the fight from the previous episode, it’s the kind of episode that occurs in the climax of a mystery. It’s where all the parties involved in trying to solve the case put their clues together, but they still don’t have all the puzzle pieces. In the case of Momoshiki's Manifestation, the mystery of what Kara is and what the mysterious group wants is put into the spotlight as the series' characters try and figure things out.

Sarada, Boruto, Mitsuki, and Kawaki give their different perspectives on the fight that occurred while Shikamaru speculates about the potential dangers of Kara. Naruto and Sasuke compare their own notes about the organization. It’s as though almost all the puzzle pieces are there for the audience to fit together, but a few are still out of reach.

10 Episode 132: Jiraiya's Assignment

Boruto & a Younger Naruto Train Together in the Timseslip Arc

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Fanservice can take many forms in anime, but one of the trickiest to pull off is bringing classic characters back from the dead. Boruto manages to thread that needle successfully in its Time Slip arc, as it gives the young Boruto a chance to interact with many characters he never would have been able to meet otherwise. Jiraiya's Assignment is about Boruto and Naruto training together, with the former still scared of Kurama's chakra.

Though Boruto and Naruto's training together forms the bulk of the episode, what really makes Jiraiya's Assignment stand out is Boruto's conversation with Neji. Boruto is subtly named after Neji, actually, so the two finally getting a chance to meet is heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time. Despite how much Neji had resented Naruto in their early interactions, the Hyuga's meeting with Boruto shows how much he came to respect the future 7th Hokage. The meeting is a great moment that manages to be meaningful for both Boruto and Neji, making Jiraiya's Assignment a great episode for fans of Naruto.

9 Episode 189: Resonance

Displays Kawaki's True Ruthless Power for the First Time

For fans who were waiting to see just how truly powerful Kawaki is in Boruto (and hadn't read the manga yet), this is the Boruto episode they were waiting for. When Kara member Garo comes after Kawaki, intent on retrieving the "vessel" for the organization, Kawaki doesn't go down lightly. Konohamaru, Boruto, Sarada, and Mitsuki can do little more than watch the carnage unfolds.

Leaving no doubt left about his incredible power, Kawaki literally punches a hole in his opponents' stomach with an arm that changes shape. Then, when all is said and done, he blows up his enemy before his energy is depleted, warning everyone else he'll do the same to them if he finds out that they're enemies. Not only does the moment establish Kawaki's raw power, but it also establishes just how dangerous and ruthless he can be when he really puts his mind to it.

8 Episode 292: Hunger

Features One of Boruto's Most Dramatic Moments

Regardless of how Naruto fans feel about Boruto as a character, it's undeniable that his 'death' in Hunger was one of the series' most shocking moments. The image of Kawaki blowing a hole straight through Boruto is powerful enough on its own. The image of Boruto having a hole blown through his stomach is iconic for all the right reasons. Beyond just how well done the actual 'death' itself is though, what's most exciting is what's implied.

Any fan who watched Boruto: Naruto Next Generations' first episode knows that the young ninja lives to see Boruto's mysterious flash-forward opening, so the question becomes how he survives and what this means for his future fight with Kawaki. Boruto and Kawaki's final battle has been foreshadowed for so long that it's satisfying to see the first real hints of why that might happen. All of it is compelling stuff, leading into the next episode and next part flawlessly.

7 Episode 286: Sasuke's Story: The Ring

Is Boruto's Best Display of Sasuke & Sakura's Relationship

Sasuke's relationship to Sakura has always been controversial among fans of Naruto, and unfortunately, Boruto made it worse in some respects. This is why the Sasuke's Story sub-series is such a breath of fresh air. The mini-arc sees Sasuke infiltrating a prison in order to find a cure for a mysterious illness afflicting Naruto. Using her own skills, Sakura also infiltrates the prison by becoming its doctor.

The entire arc is quality from the start, but it's the final episode The Ring which is the best of the bunch. Any fan of Sasuke and Sakura's relationship owes it to themselves to watch The Ring as it finally shows just what makes the duo work so well together. Despite all of Sasuke's many problems when he was younger, age has made him much kinder, and a much better partner to Sakura.

6 Episode 216: Sacrifice

Reinforces its Main Theme of Sacrifice With Aplomb

As the title Sacrifice implies, one of the best Boruto episodes is all about heroes who are willing to sacrifice themselves for the greater good. In this case, it's Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki, and Boruto Uzumaki. The trio goes up against Isshiki, and when Boruto finds that his father and his mentor are both down and out, he makes a pretty gutsy choice. Boruto banks on the fact that Isshiki won't kill him and threatens to take his own life to protect the rest of the world. It's a big gamble, and it doesn't win the fight, but it buys him time.

Naruto also chooses to take on a powerful new form, even though Kurama makes him aware it will likely kill him. Father and son have no qualms about dying to make sure everyone else lives, and it's both heartbreaking and a reminder of just what great heroes they've become.

5 Episode 217: Decision

Is the Perfect Showcase for Baryon Mode

Picking up right where Sacrifice leaves off, the bulk of episode 217, Decision, centers on Naruto in his new Baryon Mode battling Isshiki. There are a lot of slick moves for fans of the fight scenes to playback, but the episode is also an emotional one. The truth is that the harder Naruto fights, the quicker he depletes his and Kurama's chakra, and his Baryon Mode consumes all chakra, meaning the longer the fight goes on, the closer to death they are.

Kawaki's arm being tied to Naruto's chakra also means that Isshiki is able to summon him to the battle site, reminding him of all the trauma from his childhood. The episode provides a great balance between action-packed moments and emotional ones. Ultimately, Baryon Mode is Decision's real star as it shows just how much Naruto has grown after the end of his series.

4 Episode 204: He's Bad News

Gives Boruto One of its Best Fights of All Time

The Boruto series has many big battles in alternate dimensions as a way to prevent Konoha from facing serious destruction as it often did in Naruto. He's Bad News does that again with Naruto and Sasuke fighting Jigen. He's Bad News makes for one of the best Boruto fight episodes as it brings in a lot of interesting elements. Naruto and Sasuke are smart about taking on their opponent with Naruto using shadow clones to fight him, if only briefly, so Sasuke can analyze what they're up against.

They discover that Jigen is the Naruto franchise's answer to Ant-Man. He can shrink himself and other matter during their fight. It's an interesting technique to see employed in the Naruto world, and one that makes battling him very difficult for two people who are used to using larger-than-life protections.

Related Boruto: 5 Reasons Orochimaru Is A Better Person Now (& 5 Reasons He's Not) Orochimaru isn't exactly a good guy by the time Boruto and his own son are going to school. These are reasons why he is (and isn't) better now.

3 Episode 65: Father And Child

Was an Early Sign of Just How Good Boruto Could Be at its Best

Centered on the leader of the new generation and the leader of the old generation, "Father And Child" is one of the best Boruto episodes. It takes Boruto a long time to see how like Naruto he is. “Father And Child” sees the two of them finally understand one another and work together. Though a team-up between Naruto and Sasuke does most of the work to defeat Momoshiki, it’s Naruto sharing his power with Boruto that allows his son to finish the enemy.

This episode leads off the major mystery for the next run of the series, as Momoshiki imparts a mysterious seal on Boruto before he passes. Long before the series would put things into high gear, Father and Child showed just how great the series could be. It's truly the episode that kicks off what Boruto is as a series with the family bonds and the beginning of new mythology.

2 Episode 293: Farewell

Boruto goes out on a massive high note with the appropriately titled Farewell. After Boruto's dramatic death in the previous episode, things slow down just a bit for Naruto to grieve over his son and Shikamaru to ask what to do about his murderer. It's a brilliant bit of characterization that Naruto wants to give Kawaki leniency despite what he'd just done.

All of it works, setting up Boruto and Kawaki's future conflict and where the series will go in its second part. Regardless of the episode's many strengths though, nothing in Farewell can top the image of a heartbroken Naruto cradling his dead son Boruto, changing the Seventh Hokage forever. While it's weakened slightly by the knowledge that Boruto will live, it's still enough to make Farewell one of Boruto's best episodes.

1 Episode 218: Partner

Has the Franchise's Most Emotional Moment

The partnership focus in the best Boruto episode is two-fold: that of Kawaki and Boruto, and that of Naruto and Kurama. Naruto has always had Kurama as a part of him, even when he wasn't aware as a child, and Kawaki and Boruto have come to think of themselves as brothers. Kawaki is willing to do anything to save Boruto and his family in this episode, just as Boruto is ready to end his own life to save the world a few episodes earlier.

While Kawaki doesn't have to and is able to defeat Isshiki, Naruto does lose his partner in what might be one of the most emotional losses the franchise has ever had. Kurama admits that he didn't tell Naruto the entire truth because he knew he would die. Naruto is willing to die with him, but Kurama doesn't let that happen. It's a tragic Boruto episode, whose depth is complemented by the animators deciding to feature key Kurama moments in Naruto's life throughout the credits. Without Kurama, Naruto's power levels take a hit going forward, but he also loses a part of himself.