Summary

Jigen's existence dating back over a millennium creates a significant continuity issue for the Naruto franchise.
Jigen's absence throughout major events like the Great Ninja Wars is a glaring plot hole in the series' timeline.
Possible theories, such as Jigen remaining dormant in the Otsutsuki dimension, attempt to explain his lack of involvement in past events.

For any long-running shounen anime, plot holes and inconsistencies are a common element that plague the overall narrative. The Naruto franchise is no different, as its almost 700-episode-long run was laced with retcons, plot holes, and overall inconsistencies. However, the series continuation in the form of Boruto: Naruto Next Generation has further exacerbated these issues. While Boruto already has a few of its own minor plot holes, one major inconsistency pertaining to Jigen extends all the way back to Naruto.

The Boruto series states that Jigen has been alive for over a millennium, as his existence can be traced back to the time Kaguya Otsutsuki ate the Chakra Fruit. However, this fact raises a significant continuity issue for the Naruto franchise as a whole, as a character such as Jigen, or Isshiki Otsutsuki, lying dormant throughout the major events of Naruto, such as all four Great Ninja Wars, doesn't quite make sense. While there are a few speculations that explain why Jigen only decided to show himself about a decade before Boruto’s set time, it's still evident that Jigen's existence is a major plot hole for the Naruto franchise.

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What are Jigen's Origins?

Jigen’s Existence Can be Traced Millenia Back

First Appearance	Boruto, Episode 157 "Kara's Footprints"
Debut Date	July 19, 2020

To understand why Jigen's existence is a major issue for the Naruto series’ continuity, it's essential to take a look at his origins. The Boruto series has already cemented the fact that Otsutsuki clan members travel in pairs, and Kaguya's pair was Isshiki Otsutsuki. Since Kaguya was the subordinate of Isshiki, she was meant to be sacrificed to the God Tree and find a suitable vessel for her Karma. However, she betrayed Isshiki and took the Chakra Fruit’s power for herself.

While she assumed that Isshiki had already died, it was later revealed that he survived this near-death experience by finding a host in the form of Jigen, a monk that happened to be nearby. While Ishiki tried to use Jigen as a vessel for his karma, their incompatibility forced him to remain inside his body and control his mind, similar to a parasite. With Isshiki in control of Jigen's mind and body, along with a pseudo-karma seal on his body, the duo survived for almost a millennium, only to reveal themselves after the Fourth Great Ninja War to form Kara and set their plans into motion.

Jigen is a normal human being and his lifespan would have been severely limited under normal circumstances. However, he was able to survive a millennium thanks to Isshiki Otsutsuki lending Jigen's body his own chakra. However, even with a constant chakra supply, there are limits to Jigen's body, as it would eventually crumble away under too much pressure. This meant that Jigen had to find a new vessel eventually, which led to his plan of forming Kara to find a suitable vessel for himself.

Why Jigen's Existence Is a Major Continuity Issue

Jigen's Absence Throughout the Shinobi World's History Is a Significant Plot Hole

The Boruto series confirms that Jigen has existed for over a millennium, and fans can’t help but wonder where the character has been throughout the course of the shinobi world. While some might say that events that took place throughout the existence of the shinobi world were too minor for Jigen to partake in, it's still quite odd to see that Jigen played no role in any of the major Shinobi wars, an event that embroiled the entire ninja world. This creates a major issue for the Naruto series’ timeline, since the franchise has introduced a character that just happened to appear out of nowhere after the 4th Great Ninja War.

While there are many theories that can mitigate this plot hole, there's still no denying the fact that his lack of participation in any of the shinobi world's major events deems his existence a major issue for the Naruto franchise's continuity. The events of the first three Great Ninja Wars might have nothing to do with Jigen, yet it's certainly odd that he played no role even after Kaguya was released from her seal on the moon.

Considering he was almost killed by Kaguya, he would have likely acted to get revenge on her, or maybe steal the power that she was set to acquire from the God Tree for himself. Moreover, Black Zetsu, who is stated to be the will of Kaguya, has also existed for centuries. Zetsu remained quite active throughout the years in plotting for Kaguya's revival. It makes no sense that Jigen was unable to detect or realize the existence of such an entity in the Naruto world, leading to another glaring plot hole.

Possible Explanations for Jigen's Absence

A Few Speculations Explain Jigen’s Missing Role

It's easy to state that Jigen's absence in the Naruto universe is due to the fact that he was never written in the story at that time. Since Jigen's character came into existence after Naruto's sequel was introduced, it's clear that he was never thought of before Boruto. However, a few plausible explanations can also explain why Jigen never potentially showed up in the storyline.

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While some of these are more plausible than others, they certainly do make the storyline more consistent without breaking the Naruto franchise's timeline altogether. It would certainly have been easier for Ikemoto to come up with a plausible explanation, quelling all doubt among the community. However, the manga never addressed this glaring issue, leading to a few possible theories making their way among the fandom.

Jigen Remained Dormant Inside the Otsutsuki Dimension

Another theory that makes rounds among the Boruto fandom pertains to the Otsutsuki Clan's dimension, where Jigen stored the juvenile Ten-Tails. It's likely that Jigen might have remained in this dimension to regain his power levels and stay dormant. This explanation would explain why Jigen was absent throughout much of the Naruto Universe's events, along with answering why he never showed himself during Kaguya's revival, or his lack of action against Black Zatsu running amok.

This is also backed by the fact that the Otsutsuki's technique of traveling between dimensions requires a considerable amount of chakra, as stated by Kaguya herself. Since he couldn't fully use the technique, it would make sense that he would travel to the Otsutsuki Dimension and stay there until he was reinvigorated. Moreover, he could have spent much of his time hopping between dimensions to find the juvenile Ten-Tails as well. However, this explanation isn't exactly that concrete, as it fails to consider that Jigen had almost a millennium to regain his strength, so staying in the Otsutsuki Dimension for that long still does not add up.

Jigen Wasn't Powerful Enough to Intervene

One plausible explanation that has been making rounds among the Boruto fandom pertaining to Jigen's absence revolves around the fact that Jigen was not powerful enough to interfere with the events of the shinobi world. It's worth considering that Isshiki was severely injured by Kaguya, leaving him in a near-death state. It makes sense that it would take years for him to gain back his strength, leading to him being dormant, though it still doesn't explain why it took him almost a millennium to make his move.

Still, the theory is somewhat plausible since Jigen was only able to make a move after acquiring a few subordinates and conceiving Kara. Amado was the one who populated Kara with all-powerful cyborgs, meaning Jigen would have struggled without his help. Nevertheless, this explanation is still quite half-baked, considering that Jigen would have acquired this strength centuries before Boruto's set time.

Boruto is available to read via Viz Media.

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