Chūnin Re-Examination Arc

The twenty-first arc of the Boruto: Naruto Next Generations anime covers ten episodes and sits between the Kawaki Arc and the Great Sea Battle of Kirigakure Arc. Following Isshiki's fall, the village revives the Chūnin Exams that Momoshiki's earlier invasion had cut short.

Sai runs the written test as Naruto argues publicly for shinobi with varied talents, and the survival stage in the Forest of Death asks each genin to carry an injured subordinate to safety within a time limit rather than fight for scrolls. With far more candidates than rescuable subordinates on hand, judgment rests on overall conduct, which is why Boruto still advances after choosing to save his sneering senior Kaito Kawanami even though it costs him the deadline.

The final round breaks the usual mold by threatening to pit teammates against one another. Hōki repels Inojin's ink beasts and wins their opener, Wasabi unlocks a monster-cat technique to shield Iwabee and take her match, Sarada's Chidori edges out Chōchō's Butterfly Mode, and Denki, wired into a lightning-powered suit, wears down the swordswoman Tsubaki. Boruto and Mitsuki, off chasing a kidnapping tied to Amado, arrive too late and are disqualified, so the four victors are named chūnin.

A later chapter of the arc sends the new Team 7 after their captured mentor Konohamaru, held by the bandit leader Hyōgo, an infamous rogue from Kusagakure. Slipping into a village of hostages under cover of a thick fog, the team frees the captives and downs Hyōgo with a Rasengan, closing out one last mission together before the squad's dynamic shifts.

The arc's closing stretch turns to Kawaki, who flounders on ordinary team assignments until a C-rank escort to the Land of Calm Seas forces him to grow. Guarding the boy Mozuku, he uncovers a scheme in which a corrupt official hoards a plague cure, and he pushes past his own doubts, and his acting captain's orders, to see the medicine delivered.

Notably the first exam-centered arc where no disaster interrupts the proceedings, it ends with the promotions confirmed and the fresh chūnin stepping up as team captains, while new intelligence about killings across several lands hints at troubles still to come.