While Boruto's most disappointing aspects to be addressed in a way which is naturally enthralling and does justice to the world and characters that Naruto has painstakingly built.

The kicker is that it's not exactly intuitive. When it comes to the things about Naruto's ending that most fans would change, the ideas are often along the lines of fixing the power-scaling, showing more of the reconstruction process after the Fourth Great Ninja War, or undoing the controversial Otsutsuki twist. However, I think what actually needs to change is the final battle between Naruto and Sasuke.

Naruto Failed Sasuke In One Huge Way

The Hit Shonen Missed Out On The Growth Of Its Greatest Antagonist

Naruto is a series built on its ambiguity, and no character better represents this than Sasuke. Sasuke serves as the foil to Naruto, of course, but he's also associated directly or indirectly with a whole barrage of people who represent the interests of Konoha. Konoha isn't exactly a wonderful place, perfectly exemplified by Jiraiya and Konoha's relationship to Amegakure. Even Itachi, Sasuke's clan-massacring brother who forms the foundation of Sasuke's entire arc, was acting out of devotion to Konoha.

Sasuke stands alone, in other words—not least because his methods and intentions differ from the Kage system's other opponents. To say this is a shame is an understatement. Against other antagonists like Pain, Madara, or Kaguya, who have their own visions of a world after the village system, Sasuke's intentions are far more grounded (and, it's implied, far less violent). After Sasuke showed such vehement disdain for the positions of Naruto's other antagonists, he almost certainly has a unique take on how the world should look.

Konoha and the village system writ large is founded on a bedrock of ideological moralization that sustains effectively eternal wars, the suppression of minority groups like the Uchiha, and the exploitation of peripheral villages. Whether it's discrimination against the Uchiha or the permanent destabilization of Amegakure, it's natural that villains like Madara and the Akatsuki arise. Likewise, it's only the natural conclusion of Sasuke's character arc as an orphan under the banner of the village that murdered his whole clan ends with him turning against this system. He does just that, too, after the stunning revelation near the end of the series that his plan is to revolt against the Kage System and the political structures of Naruto altogether.

I've noticed fans generally really love Sasuke's revolt arc, and some even wish it would have started earlier in the series. While it's telegraphed heavily, it doesn't fully crystallize until far too late. Rubbing salt in the wound, Sasuke's actual intentions for how the world should be are poorly elaborated. It's as though he had been formulating an idea for a long time and Kishimoto wanted readers to see that in hindsight, but he was also unwilling to spend more time elaborating Sasuke's actual desires.

Sasuke's Revolt Could Have Made A Much Better Sequel Than Boruto

Boruto's Story Kicks Off With A Broken Foundation

Suppose for a moment that fans had the chance to see how trying to build that world might play out. Perhaps Naruto and Sasuke's final battle doesn't end with Sasuke's capitulation to Naruto's ideals, and Sasuke escapes. He still goes into a self-imposed exile, but this time for very different reasons. Instead of repentant soul-searching, Sasuke journeys to build bases of guerrilla resistance in the rebuilding villages and their periphery. After the total devastation of the Fourth Great Ninja War, there would be plenty of disgruntled shinobi to go around. Whether this period is shown or not, it would force Naruto's story to show more of the reconstruction period and its impact on villages outside Konoha.

Where things really get interesting is considering how Sasuke's interactions with Konoha might play out. If Sasuke were presenting an active challenge to Konoha and its dominance, it likely wouldn't have so easily become a superpower metropolis like it is in Boruto. Furthermore, it would force the story out of two key complaints apparent in Boruto: firstly, Naruto's inaction as Hokage; secondly, the brazen sidelining of Naruto's ing cast.

As things stand, by the time of Boruto, the former rows, scuffles, and grudges of Naruto have smoothed over into a domestically saccharine air of friendship. What this means in practice is that characters like Rock Lee, Sasuke, or Sai lose their edge and fall far to the wayside. Naruto and Boruto's respective generations feel detached from one another. However, if Sasuke were to be a primary antagonist, then it would force them back into the spotlight. These are characters who grew up alongside Sasuke and saw him at every point—who fought for and against him in every sense possible. Emotions would run high as those characters are pulled into the story.

Finally, assume for a second that Sasuke's revolt succeeds. The Kage system is overthrown, as is the village system, and some other order dominates the shinobi world. As mentioned before, Naruto's themes—and, by extension, its protagonist's ideals—can be oppressively dogmatic. This isn't corrected in Boruto, where Konoha remains a superpower that devolves into outright authoritarianism. A different state of affairs would give the opportunity to show Naruto's founding ideals actually being challenged, which might just be what the story needs to give them meat, complexity, and persuasive power. I think it's worth seeing whether they can survive in a world where they aren't already the ideology of power.

Naruto Still Has The Chance For An Incredible Spin-Off

The Sasuke Revolution Arc Could Be A Delight For Naruto Fans

There's nothing wrong with Naruto's decision to the torch, but Boruto's execution of its world and original cast leave a lot to be desired. It doesn't have to be that way, though. In fact, it's a situation where Naruto has a great chance for an alternate universe story. Naruto is no stranger to alternate universe stories that consider vastly different narratives. A great example is Road to Ninja: The Movie, which explored a Naruto universe where Minato remained alive.

The Sasuke revolt is a missed opportunity. It wouldn't have just protected Naruto's cast from irrelevance as the franchise makes room for another generation; it would allow for more intricacy in how those different generations interact. It wouldn't just do the uncomfortable work of baring the painful underbelly of the shinobi system to itself as it cedes ground at the same time as it tries to rebuild its own fallout; it would build out its world while making its moral justifications for the system that came before feel less dogmatic. Boruto isn't by any means a bad story, but Naruto prevented it from ever having the same heart by defanging Sasuke right when shinobi life is most vulnerable.