was officially introduced Naruto Chapter 4 On October 25, 1999, Kakashi Hatake was the leader of Team 7 who became one of the most important characters in the entire series. As Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura's teacher, Kakashi played an important role in their overall upbringing and in shaping them into the shinobi they are today. At the same time, Kakashi's own character arc was incredibly brilliant, written to perfection by Kishimoto, the series creator. With the conclusion of the Naruto series at chapter 700 in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump issue #50 on November 14, 2014, Kakashi Hatake's role officially ended.
In the later years after the war, first Boruto In the era, Kakashi officially became the Sixth Hokage, before handing over the position to Naruto Uzumaki, who became the Seventh Hokage. Unfortunately, Kakashi, despite being an active ninja, has not been given much attention Boruto. That said, the proper replacement for the copy ninja in Konoha is in the form of another legendary Uchiha, Sarada Uchiha. With the Mangekyo Sharingan, a kind heart, and on top of that, the will to become Hokage, Sarada is the perfect successor to Kakashi Hatake.
Sarada's demanding partnership and maturity made her the next generation Kakashi
Kakashi Hatake was a brilliant ninja with immense strength. He was considered Minato's best student, and by many both Tsunade and Jiraiya considered Kakashi worthy of becoming the village's next Hokage, which he eventually accomplished. In battle, Kakashi was strong enough to rival Konoha's strongest jonin, but more than that, he could hold his own against even Akatsuki's strongest shinobi. As Naruto's Fourth Great Ninja War continued, Kakashi's overall power also increased significantly, and he displayed enough powers to rival even Obito Uchiha in battle.
What made Kakashi really special was his Mangekyo Sharingan usage. Kakashi received his Sharingan from Obito Uchiha in Naruto Chapter #243, moments before he was crushed by the Iwakakure shinobi. In the following years, he went on to evolve his Sharingan into the Mangekyo Sharingan in Naruto Chapter 605, released on October 29, 2012, in Shueisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump issue #46, and it became his signature ability in the latter half of the story. When combined with the fact that he was not affected by the Uchiha Curse of Hatred, this made him a unique ninja, the likes of which only a select few could hope to rival.
“I told you, don't be so hasty. I don't have as much chakra as you, but it's ready now. Mero Mangekyo Szahan!” – Kakashi Hatake, Naruto Chapter #286
Sarada Uchiha, who is one of the next generation of ninja and the heroine of the Boruto series, is the perfect replacement for Kakashi in that sense. Like Kakashi, Sarada has a powerful Mangekyo Sharingan, and like him, she is not affected by the Uchiha Curse of Hatred. This means that both Kakashi and Sarada are compassionate users of the Mangekyo Sharingan who have never once fallen into darkness. This can also be attributed to the immense maturity shown by both of them as responsible ninjas of the village. Kakashi Hatake is one of the most mature, calm and respectful ninja in Konoha. On the other hand, Sarada Uchiha has shown these same qualities on many occasions. Despite being surrounded by loud characters like Kawaki and Boruto, Sarada is always calm and composed and exudes a similar aura to Kakashi at various events.
Sarada: I decided. I want to be like the Seventh God and become the Hokage of the village!
Boruto: If you become Hokage, I will support you by being your bodyguard!
— An exchange between Boruto and Sarada in Boruto Chapter #11
How Sarada's Ohirum compares to Kakashi's Kamui
Another unique similarity between Sarada and Kakashi is their Mangekyo Sharingan ability. Much to the surprise of fans, both Sarada and Kakashi have Mangekyo Sharingan jutsu that are somewhat similar. In Kakashi's case, his Mangekyo Sharingan was revealed to have Kamui's powers, which debuted on October 3, 2005 in Naruto chapter 276 in Shueisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump issue #42. The Kamui ability allows Kakashi to open a portal in space-time connecting him to the Kamui dimension. Anything targeted by Kamui, including the space around it, is warped in dimension with immense force, and even powerful S-Rank ninjas, such as Deidara, or, later in the line, the Gedo Statue, cannot withstand the pressure generated by Kamui.
“This jutsu is targeting not only my hand, but the space around it! Can such a jutsu happen? It's bad!” — Deidara Kamui, explains Naruto chapter #286
In Sarada Uchiha's case, her jutsu is different, but plays along the same lines. Sarada's Mangekyo Sharingan Jutsu is known as Ohirume, and she is capable of creating four black holes, which she can easily control in size and strength. These black holes have immense gravity, and Sarada can freely choose what gets hit by this gravity and what is completely spared. The gravitational force is such that even the mighty Shinju cannot escape it, and eventually, Sarada can cause the black hole to explode, reducing anything that sucks to smithereens. In terms of their application, these two abilities are very similar and may just be the two most powerful offensive Mangekyo Sharingan abilities we've seen in the story, establishing another key parallel between the two.
“The restrictions are lifted? What's happened? The iron sand is gathering in one place. No, it's been sucked in. Those eyes, that's Mangekyo Sazan!” — Mitsuki tells Sarada Uchiha's Mangekyo Sharingan Awakening, Boruto: Two Blue Vortex Chapter #20
Sarada Uchiha will become Hokage just like Kakashi
Finally, Sarada Uchiha's biggest similarity to Kakashi is that she wants to be Hokage. Kakashi was already Hokage of the village after the Fourth Great Ninja War. After Tsunade abdicated, Kakashi became the sixth Hokage of Konoha. Meanwhile, Sarada wants to follow in Naruto Uzumaki's footsteps, which is very likely to happen at the end of the series. Although Naruto Uzumaki was the Seventh Hokage for a long time, and is currently held by Shikamaru, at some point, Sarada will rise to the occasion and claim the position for herself. In doing so, she will become the village's first Uchiha Hokage, and that's something we're looking forward to seeing in the story.
“I'm going to be the Hokage of the village. My idol is Lord Seventh, not you.” — Sarada Uchiha to Shikamaru Nara, Boruto: Two Blue Vortex Chapter #1
Boruto may not have had Kakashi Hatake play an important role, but Sarada is there to make up for it, and we're very happy for that. Interestingly, the creator of the Boruto series previously stated that he played an important role for Kakashi Hatake in the sequel. So far, the copy ninja hasn't appeared, but we can only hope that he will appear sooner rather than later.
All chapters of the Boruto series by Mikio Ikemoto and Masashi Kishimoto are available to read through Manga Plus and Viz Media.
