WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Chapter #60 of Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, “A Place to Belong,” by Masashi Kishimoto, Mikio Ikemoto, Mari Morimoto and Snir Aharon, now available in English from Viz Media.
Lately in the Boruto manga, Kawaki has been more despondent than usual, the exact opposite response many expected he'd have in the wake of Ishikki's death. Sadly, Kawaki realizes that, without his Karma mark, he won't be able to protect Naruto, someone he sees as a father, as well as Konoha -- a place he wants to call home. Come Boruto Chapter #60, Kawaki is officially made a resident of the Hidden Leaf, but it could spark something darker to come.
Kawaki's struggling emotionally after Amado hinted that there's a chance a new Karma mark could power him up enough to save the Hokage from future threats. With Boruto still running the risk of being possessed by Momoshiki, he can't trust his friend either, leaving Kawaki seriously considering whether he should buy into Amado's plan.
It leads to him hanging out on Hokage mountain, refusing to come home for dinner. Naruto comes for him, only to find that Kawaki's been brooding. The people of Konoha keep whispering about him, acting in a way towards him that makes him feel uncomfortable. Despite Shikadai telling him to ignore the haters, Kawaki can't, even getting to the point where he's not sure he'll ever feel at home in Konoha.
Naruto, though, picking him up like the spoiled brat he is, makes it clear that Kawaki is "his son." He takes him home and much to Kawaki's shock, the Uzumaki's have put together a little party for him. The reason: he's now officially a member of Konohagakure. Hinata's cooked up a feast, but also on the table is the vase Kawaki broke when he first came to the village many chapters back. It's been pieced back together and Himawari says she wants it, flaws and all, on the table rather than a new one. It's enough to move even Kawaki.
The crowning moment comes when Boruto loans his old Konoha shinobi headband to Kawaki, as he'll be using Sasuke's. Boruto is adamant this will make Kawaki even more official, creating an air of acceptance like never before. Kawaki tries to hide his feelings, but it's clear that this display of love means a lot to him, as it's something he never got from Ishhiki.
Kawaki doesn't even know how he should wear the headband or what he'll do when he earns his own, but everyone just laughs and reminds him that this is experience will be fun, after all. But the end of the chapter hints at something twisted to come, whether it's Amado's offer or something worse, Kawaki's going to transform in some way to save the village from Code and his new army.
This might be what causes him to turn evil in Boruto's future as the start of the series showed, and ironically, seeing as he tells Naruto how much he loves the mountain, it foreshadows when he eventually destroys it. Naruto and his family have tried their best, but -- despite all the love -- this chapter makes it feel like disaster and death is inevitable.
