In the sprawling, high-stakes world of Boruto , where gods and cyborgs now dictate the power ceiling, Episode 122, “The Puppet Battle,” is a curious anomaly. On its surface, it is a filler-lite detour: Team 7 (minus Sarada) arrives in the hidden village of Tanigakure—the "Village of the Meteor Hammer"—to retrieve a stolen scroll and encounters a rogue puppet user named Kankitsu.
On paper, he is a Sasori-lite. In execution, however, the episode cleverly avoids the trap of imitation. Kankitsu’s puppets aren’t humanoid masterpieces; they are rugged, utilitarian, and animalistic (a scorpion tail, a spider-like trap). The choreography is rough, scrappy, and refreshingly low-tier. Unlike Sasori’s hundred puppets or the later Otsutsuki dimensional warping, this fight feels like a ninja fight again. Boruto can’t spam Rasengan or vanishing tricks; he has to think, dodge, and use wire strings of his own. The episode’s true strength lies in its protagonist. Modern Boruto (the manga/anime) often struggles to balance the character’s privilege with his growth. Here, Boruto faces a foe who is essentially a mirror: a talented young shinobi who lost his mentor and blames the entire system. boruto 122
But beneath its modest budget and low-stakes premise, Episode 122 succeeds for a simple, almost subversive reason: it stops trying to be Naruto and finally remembers how to be Boruto . Let’s address the elephant in the room. Puppet jutsu is sacred ground. In Naruto Shippuden , Sasori of the Red Sand elevated puppetry from a gimmick (Kankuro’s Karasu) into a haunting philosophy of immortality. Episode 122 invites that comparison immediately. Kankitsu, the villain of the week, is a failed Tanigakure shinobi who uses Kugutsu no Jutsu with a tragic backstory (dead master, destroyed village, desire for revenge). In the sprawling, high-stakes world of Boruto ,
Furthermore, the emotional weight of Kankitsu’s backstory is rushed. We learn of his master’s death in a single flashback of two shots. Compare that to the layered grief of Zabuza and Haku, and the episode feels thin. Boruto Episode 122 is not a masterpiece. It won’t convert detractors who despise the sequel. But for those still watching, it offers a quiet reassurance: the series understands that its protagonist’s strength should not be raw power, but perspective. Boruto wins not because he is the son of the Hokage or a vessel for a god, but because he sees through the self-deception of revenge. In execution, however, the episode cleverly avoids the