Is Kurama dead? Naruto fans have been scrambling to discover the answer to that question after Kurama’s name began trending on social media thanks to Boruto: Naruto Next Generations Chapter 55 in the manga series.
The Boruto 55 chapter is officially scheduled to release in Japan today, February 19, 2021. Already, some fans have leaked scanned images of the pages on to the internet.
Warning: The following news story has major spoilers for Boruto Chapter 55.
The latest manga chapters had many fans wondering what would happen to both Naruto and Kurama. The Nine-Tailed Fox told Naruto that if they entered Baryon Mode that it was possible they would both die, so even Naruto’s death seemed possible.
“This [Bayon Mode] is a totally different beast,” Kurama explained in Boruto Chapter 52. “As the raw materials to create this energy, my chakra and yours, get consumed until one or both our lives run out…”
Notably, Kyuubi creatures such as the Nine-Tailed Fox Kurama are made of chakra. Thus, Kurama’s death seemed to be foreshadowed by the manga chapter.
In Boruto Chapter 53, Baryon Mode ended with Naruto alive still, but Kurama was missing in action. The character didn’t even show up once in the chapter.
Kurama’s death was foreshadowed in Boruto Chapter 54 when Sasuke could not sense Kurama’s chakra in Naruto.
Boruto 55 confirms Kurama’s death
In the new Boruto Chapter 55 manga, Kurama’s death was confirmed.
It also turns out Kurama lied about the effects of the Baryon Mode.
“Normally, when a Bijuu is extracted from a Jinchuriki’s body, the Jinchuriki dies,” Kurama explained. “However, this is not the case this time. It’s simply the chakra of the Bijuu being gone. From the outside, it may look like you’re dead, but it’s only a temporary state of shock. Don’t worry. You’ll open your eyes soon.”
With no chakra left, Kurama is shown fading away into the sky and his last words are, “Have a good life, Naruto.”
Naruto nerfed similar to Dragon Ball’s Goku
Now, we have Naruto without his Kyuubi. Notably, Naruto’s mother Kushina Uzumaki managed to survive a Bijuu extraction in the past. But Naruto’s power level will definitely be impacted.
With Naruto nerfed, some fans are irate at Naruto/Boruto manga creator Masashi Kishimoto.
“Nobody wanted to have Sasuke and Naruto nerfed if anything we wanted them to risk their lives and die protecting the village,” Bomberbih wrote on Reddit. “Even [Dragon Ball creator] Toriyama knew not to [expletive] Goku over. He let God die to Cell to save everyone and then have Gohan go to be the most powerful. Which ended up being re-conned after fan backlash, but still. He at least let Goku go out with decency instead of having Goku go blind and chop off his [expletive] limbs to make him irrelevant.”
Naruto’s death would have been more shocking, but by sacrificing Karuma Kishimoto figured out a way to let Naruto live while also paving the way for the next generation to eventually become more powerful. After all, that is presumably the entire point of the new Boruto manga series.
Still, a more powerful Boruto would have been more satisfying if Boruto managed to step out from under his father’s shadow based on his own efforts rather than the creator simply taking away Naruto’s source of power. But is it possible that power itself could return?
Kurama’s return possible in the distant future?
As previously noted, Bijus like the Kyubi Kurama are literally an embodiment of chakra. Thus, the tailed beasts can never truly die since their chakra changes form, disperses, and then the Biju regenerates over a long period of time.
For example, when Rin Nohara was killed the three-tailed beast Isobu was similarly destroyed. Eventually, Isobu revived after decades and was sealed within its next Jinchuriki, Yagura.
We don’t know Kurama’s age but we know he’s been around for thousands of years. Thus, Kurama’s death may be more of a short-term setback from his perspective. And since Naruto’s age is at least 32 he might be alive to see Kurama’s return.
Still, with Kurama “dead” in regards to the current Boruto timeline, manga fans won’t be seeing the Nine-Tailed Fox any time soon.