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The opening bit of Boruto episode 1/chapter 1 set a tone of apprehension, with the Hidden Leaf Village decimated and the stone faces of the Hokage shattered. Atop one of the faces, two shinobi looked to be facing off.
In this flashforward sequence, Kawaki declared the end of the "Age of Shinobi," while Boruto, following in his father Naruto Uzumaki's footsteps, stood ready to resist. Since then, numerous events have unfolded in the story.
However, there is a lingering doubt regarding how the situation managed to come to such a point. In the most recent chapter of Boruto: Two Blue Vortex, Kawaki's words could hold the key.
Disclaimer: This article contains potential spoilers from Boruto: Two Blue Vortex chapter 9 and has the author's opinion.
Boruto's opening sequence might have been hinted at by Kawaki in Two Blue Vortex chapter 9
Two Blue Vortex chapter 9 witnessed the Divine Tress enter Konoha and be greeted by the new Ino-Shika-Cho trio alongside Himawari. Their search for Naruto Uzumaki led them to the village and to Himawari, who was seemingly giving off the Nine Tails' chakra signature.
As news of the breach reached Shikamaru and others, Boruto and Kawaki also regained consciousness. Sensing his brother's chakra once more, Kawaki rushed to the concerned area and came face-to-face with the blonde. As always, he attempted to turn the matter onto him and charged into an attack.
However, despite Kawaki's aggression, a single gut punch from the protagonist was enough to incapacitate the dark-haired teen. Enraged, Kawaki activated his Karma and due to resonation, Boruto's Karma activated as well. Since he had the training to avoid using it at all costs, he immediately fled, presumably heading to where his little sister was.
This is when Kawaki has an internal dialogue, stating, "...can't control his Karma?" With this, looking back at episode/chapter 1, a theory can be formulated as to how the Leaf Village ended up in that state.
The crux of the situation lies in Kawaki's activation of Boruto's Karma via resonation. As fans know, Karma activation means risking unleashing Momoshiki. Kawaki's justification for potentially killing his brother, even he though acknowledges it as "crazy." So, by doing so and awakening Momoshiki, Konoha could fall, and we arrive at the opening bit.
Delving into the scene itself, the blonde says, "I guess this was the only possible outcome." This suggests that he was already aware of the events that unfolded prior. By now, it has been established that Boruto intends to mend his relationship with Kawaki. But this dialogue clearly points out that something major occurred.
This leads to one question — if the blonde was confident of straightening out the situation, why does it seem like he knew it would come to this but continued to fight destiny anyway? The answer to this might lie in Momoshiki himself. He is extremely relevant to the plot and lives on through the Karma that fueled Kawaki's hatred for his brother.
Anyway, Momoshiki and Boruto have conversed a fair number of times. Each time they spoke, it was about the latter fighting back against the fate foreseen for him and him forging his destiny. Chapter 75 of the previous series depicts Boruto glimpsing the future Momoshiki had foreseen. It is likely that he saw the future of the 3-year timeskip as well.
If so, it lines up with his words when he warned Code of the "worst possible future" involving losing control of the Shinju. As per Momoshiki's prediction, his Karma and "those blue eyes" (possibly Eida) would be the blonde ninja's downfall. So in essence, the boy knew that Momoshiki taking over would destroy everything he cared for.
Moving back to chapter 9, the teen was visibly worried when his Karma activated due to the resonance and immediately, given that he had been training not to rely on it at all. It is thus likely that the blonde knew what the terrible fate was, not the events that led up to it.
Switching back to episode/chapter 1, Kawaki's affirmative response to his brother, that "this" was indeed the "only outcome." He follows it up by claiming that "The Age of Shinobi is over." It's quite strange of him to announce such a thing when it isn't connected to his previous answer.
Furthermore, when Boruto shows Momoshiki his resolve to endure Omnipotence and the conflict with Kawaki, he does something. He dons Sasuke Uchiha's headband and proclaims to be "a Konoha Will of Fire Ninja." Interestingly, Shinobi, when translated alongside Ninja, also means "to endure."
The Naruto series ended on a similar note. The final pages depicted Naruto handing Sasuke his headband and concluded with Naruto's monologue of what it meant to be a shinobi, i.e., to endure. Similarly, his son wearing Sasuke's headband is a declaration of his continued struggle to endure from the shadows till he carves out a brighter future into the stone of reality.
Moreover, the end of the Next Generations series witnesses Kawaki begin to display anti-shinobi ideals. He feels that the shinobi way is inefficient, and whatever needs to be done needs to be done at the earliest. Relying on future generations was wasteful and hopeless.
This could be why he says what he does in episode/chapter 1. It could be his way of conveying to his brother that he did whatever it took to ensure the bright future that he foresaw was materialized. Simply put, action needed to be taken quickly. In turn, he is also aware of what he must now do.
Kawaki plans to, although it seems insane to even him, take his brother's life. While he might seem set on it, he cannot fully justify why he must do so. Further, in chapter 2, he witnessed firsthand how much his brother had grown and developed and, more importantly, his reliance on his Karma. This implies less risk of Momoshiki running rampant.
The events of chapter 2 go on to solidify that Boruto is only looking to protect Konoha, albeit from the shadows. Most of his life was spent attempting to justify his brother's killing, only to be proven even more mistaken. This shows that Kawaki has reached a stage of no return.
Hence, despite the evidence that Boruto isn't a threat any longer, he is still battling within himself to justify why his brother should die. This is likely because he sees no other alternative. So, coming back to Two Blue Vortex chapter 9, what better way to put his brother on the spot than to activate Karmic Resonance.
Thus, by doing so, Kawaki likely forces the gates open for Momoshiki's arrival. Consequently, the Leaf Village is in line to suffer and be decimated, which ultimately leads to the two brothers facing off.
Final Thoughts
This is quite a detailed theory, but a very plausible one nonetheless. Due to the ideals Kawaki developed before Two Blue Vortex and the timeskip, he would need a strong reason to justify his pursuit to take his brother's life. But the son of Naruto Uzumaki and pupil of Sasuke Uchiha is something entirely different.
Not to mention, at this point, Kawaki stands little chance against his brother. Before Sasuke was rendered comatose and stuck in a tree, he imparted a great deal of knowledge to Boruto, which is on full display presently.
What's also interesting is the return of Kurama through Himawari, more of which will be revealed soon.
