After four years of being absent from the manga, Kurama, the Nine-Tailed Fox, has returned to the page, perhaps in one of the most unexpected ways fans could have predicted. Boruto: Two Blue Vortex Chapter 9 officially released on April 18th, 2024, titled, “Nine Tails,” showcasing the new generation Ino-Shika-Cho trio on the cover.

   Continuing from where the previous chapter left off, Jura questioned why he was standing in front of a little girl, Himawari Uzumaki, instead of her father when tracking the chakra signature of the Nine-Tailed Fox. After a bit of back and forth between Jura and Shikadai, the former confirmed that the chakra signature he was picking up was definitely coming from Himawari, leaving everyone in the area shocked. At that moment, using Wood Style, Jura attempted to capture Himawari, but the Ino-Shika-Cho trio was able to quickly rescue her. Jura then claimed that his only target was Himawari and, if the trio continued to resist her capture, then he’d have no choice to attack. Shikadai then reached out to his father, the current Hokage, Shikamaru Nara, informing him of the situation.

   We then switched over to Amado, who was surveying the situation remotely, also able to see Kawaki, who was incapacitated by Jura in the last chapter. After screaming at Kawaki to get up (to no avail), he questioned what exactly Jura was.

   Switching over to Boruto and Kashin Koji, who were in a hideout very reminiscent of the Legendary Sannin, Orochimaru’s, we learned that Kashin Koji kept a toad in Konoha, a toad he could share vision with. Seeing the chaos of everything, Koji ordered Boruto to fly to the village.

   Back in the village, Jura claimed that, by devouring Himawari, some of the answers to his questions may be answered. In the Hokage office, Kashin Koji’s toad made its way to Shikamaru, informing the Hokage that Boruto had entered the village. At that moment, Kawaki regained consciousness, only for Boruto to appear in front of him. Through Shikamaru, Boruto learned that Jura and Hidari had appeared in Konoha looking to capture Himawari and that the Nine Tails was involved, surprising Boruto. Kawaki then attacked Boruto, though the latter easily avoided the attacks and, in one gut punch, put Kawaki on the ground. It was then that Kawaki activated his Karma Seal and, in response, Boruto’s activated, as well. To Kawaki’s surprise, Boruto began to panic and eventually fled the battle, believing that, if things went any further, he’d lose control over his power. Like most fans reading this scene, Kawaki questioned if Boruto was unable to control his Karma Seal.

   Back with Jura, he used his Rinnegan eye to create a huge blast that destroyed a good portion of the village, though Himawari and the Ino-Shika-Cho trio were able to escape, flying away on one of Inojin’s ink birds. Seeing the commotion, Sarada Uchiha and Kakei Sumire began to make their way to the battlefield.

   Back with Himawari, she told Ino-Shika-Cho to drop her and that she’d escape on her own, not wanting to put them at risk since Jura was after only her. It was then that we got a peek into her subconscious, where a voice spoke from behind her. When she turned, what sat in front of her was a baby version of Kurama, the Nine-Tailed Fox, which is how the chapter concluded.

   Chapter 10 drops May 20th, 2024!