Does Boruto Have the Byakugan, Tenseigan, or Jōgan?

The story of Masashi Kishimoto’s shinobi world from Naruto is currently being continued in Boruto, which focuses on Naruto’s titular son. Boruto is a different story about a different generation, but while it does have its specifics and novelties, it also retains a lot of the old(er) concepts from the original Naruto franchise.

The dōjutsu are among these concepts. Every major shinobi in the franchise had at least one dōjutsu and Boruto is no exception, but which one does Boruto have?

Boruto currently has the Jōgan dōjutsu, as was seen in the manga and the anime. Kishimoto claims that he had intended for him to have the Byakugan as well, but he eventually forgot to give the ability to him, which also means that he does not have the Tenseigan, as the Byakguan is a prerequisite for the latter.

In the following paragraphs, we are going to discuss Boruto’s relationship with each of the three dōjutsu, explaining why he has one, and not the others. The article is going to contain all the relevant information you need to know, as well as the answers to questions that might trouble you about this topic.

Does Boruto have Byakugan?

The issue of Boruto’s abilities in the series has been talked about online and is a burning question. As the son of Naruto Uzumaki and Hinata Hyūga, he is potentially able to activate several dōjutsu but the series hasn’t shown him being able to use a lot of the techniques. We are going to analyze some of the techniques and tell you whether Boruto has them or not.

The first thing we should know is that Boruto should, by all standards, be able to awaken the Byakugan. The Byakugan is a technique inherent to the Ōtsutsuki Clan. It allows the user to look “beyond things”, crossing any obstacle with a simple gaze, to identify the flow of the chakra anywhere and the vanishing points at the same time, and to possess an almost 359° vision.

The Ōtsutsuki Clan is related to the Hyūga Clan, which means that Boruto is theoretically able to use the Byakugan through his maternal lineage; the Hyūga Clan members have already demonstrated the ability to use the Byakugan in the original Naruto series, so this shouldn’t be an issue for Boruto. So, he can use it, right?

Well… no, he cannot. Masashi Kishimoto is a great, yet very clumsy at times and he tends to give false or misleading information about his work. By all standards, Boruto was supposed to have the Byakugan and it would have made complete sense for him to have it, but for some reason – he does not. Kishimoto even stated that he intended for Boruto to have the Byakugan. So, what happened?

“I thought I’d do it, but I forgot (laughs). If there were three (children) … but that would make things more complicated …”

– Masashi Kishimoto

Back in 2014, Masashi Kishimoto explained the reasons behind Boruto not having the Byakugan in an article published by CinemaCafe. He simply forgot, and that’s really authentic when Kishimoto is concerned. The guy simply forgot to give it to Boruto and that’s it. He could get it sometime in the future, but it seems rather unlikely at this point.

Does Boruto have Tenseigan?

Since he does not have the Byakugan, Boruto also doesn’t have the Tenseigan, as the Byakugan is a prerequisite for awakening the Tenseigan. There is also the issue of being related to the Ōtsutsuki Clan, which Boruto is, though, through his maternal lineage, but his relation to Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki is so distant that the activation of the Tenseigan is purely theoretical.

The Tenseigan is a dōjutsu of the Ōtsutsuki Clan. It is characterized by a blurred, white-blue iris with a blue pupil. This dōjutsu was discovered by Hamura Ōtsutsuki and later used by Toneri Ōtsutsuki. With the help of the Tenseigan, some powerful jutsu are possible.

Powerful attacks such as the Ginrin Tensei Baku and Kinrin Tensei Baku can be used as well as increasing physical abilities through the Tenseigan Chakra mode. In addition, people and things can be attracted and repelled, similar to the corresponding ability of the Rinnegan. The user also receives the Gudoudama and thus control over all elements.

So, as you can see, the Tenseigan is a pretty powerful technique, but no – Boruto doesn’t have control over it. As for the prerequisites, he could theoretically activate it at some point in the future, but knowing Kishimoto – that is more unlikely than not.

Through his maternal lineage, Boruto is related to the Ōtsutsuki Clan, and while the lineage has been diluted, he could theoretically satisfy that prerequisite. While we’re theorizing, there is a greater chance for a hypothetical child of Boruto and Sarada to have this prerequisite than Boruto himself, but that is just one of the possible outcomes.

The second prerequisite is the Byakugan which, as we know by now, Boruto does not have. Okay, sure, it’s just a mistake on Kishimoto’s side and it can be activated at any point later in the franchise, but knowing Kishimoto’s writing, we don’t think that’s going to happen in the main story, which means that Boruto won’t be able to activate the Tenseigan.

Theoretically, it could happen at some later point in the series, but don’t hold your breath.

Does Boruto have Jōgan?

Finally, we reach Boruto’s only known technique – the Jōgan. This technique was seen in the first episode of the Boruto anime series and it caused a lot of confusion among fans, who initially suspected it was a Byakugan or Tenseigan, before it was revealed that it is a completely new technique known as the Jōgan. The technique has since become Boruto’s trademark.

The Jōgan is still a largely enigmatic dōjutsu, mainly because it has appeared only recently – in actually debuted in the Boruto series – and there still hasn’t been enough time for it to establish its presence in the franchise, especially since it was shown during a scene set in the future. Still, there are some things we know about the Jōgan and its abilities.

In the anime and the manga, before Boruto seemingly gained control of the technique, the eye was activated independently in the presence of dangerous, hidden, or evil targets. The Jōgan is capable of perceiving the flow of chakra, allowing Boruto to observe the visible changes in an individual’s chakra and also trace it through.

Also, in Boruto it had an effect causing an increase in vision and speed, it is also able to observe the Chakra Circulation System and determine a key point in it, in addition to showing the ability to see through the invisible barriers that connect between dimensions.

The manga and the anime still haven’t properly explained how Boruto actually got the Jōgan, which is even more interesting, as the Jōgan is a technique inherent solely to the Ōtsutsuki Clan, and Boruto is not a direct descendant of the Clan, as we have established above.

Toneri Ōtsutsuki might have helped Boruto activate the technique via the famous prophetic dream, but it is heavily implied that he only accelerated the procedure, meaning that Boruto would have been able to activate the Jōgan naturally, but it would have taken him some time to do so.

So, how does Boruto eventually master a technique inherent to the Ōtsutsuki Clan? The exact mechanisms are unknown, but there are some theories that might account for it.

The important factor here is Boruto’s mother, Hinata Hyūga, who is a direct descendant of Hamura Ōtsutsuki and received his chakra in Naruto: The Last Movie. Hamura’s chakra, as we have already seen, is essential for the activation or destruction of the Tenseingan.

In order to do activate the Tenseigan one has to combine the Ōtsutsuki chakra with a pureblood Hyūga chakra, which has been met in Hinata. So theoretically, Hinata is able to activate the Tenseigan, a technique powerful enough to destroy and rebuild the Moon.

And while chakra cannot be inherited in most cases, Hamura Ōtsutsuki’s chakra is an exception. There is a running theory that Hamura’s chakra has been passed down to generations in the Ōtsutsuki and Hyūga clans.

Another important fact is that Naruto, Boruto’s father, is a reincarnation of Ashura Ōtsutsuki. He also received his chakra from Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki and has chakra of all the tailed beasts inside him. Along with that, his life force is extremely strong thanks to his Uzumaki lineage. As we have explained, the dilution is related to the activation of the Tenseigan.

So, basically, he and Hinata could have passed their immensely powerful chakra over to Boruto. This passing of chakra has been seen in all Kyuubi Jinchurikis and their offspring, so it’s applicable here as well.

Whether our theory is true or not remains to be seen, but all these facts could account for Boruto being able to use the technique and we’ll just have to see whether our theory turns out to be correct or not.