Is Boruto the Only Anime Protagonist Who Loses More Than Luffy?

I knew Boruto had it rough, but I did not expect his win-loss record to be this grim compared to his dad and Luffy. If you have ever felt like those two take a lot of Ls, Boruto somehow slides in lower. Yes, the kid with god-tier hand-me-downs.

First, the two OGs: Luffy and Naruto

Luffy has a reputation for getting flattened the first time he sizes up a new big bad. On paper, that shakes out to a 61% win rate. Think Crocodile, Aokiji, Magellan, Kaido... and the whole 'first encounter is a beatdown' tradition. The rematches are where he shines; the opening rounds, not so much.

Naruto fares better, but he is not exactly spotless. He lands at roughly 71%, dragged down by two losses to Sasuke, getting dropped by Pain in round one, and a bunch of early-series humblings (yes, including filler).

And then Boruto shows up with a 60% win rate. Lower than Luffy. Lower than Naruto. Oof.

How the new gen stacks up against everyone else

Outside the Leaf and the Grand Line, win rates skew way higher. Asta in Black Clover is pushing 90% while throwing hands with devils and captains like it is arm day. Tanjiro almost never stays down, and when he does, he gets back up like a polite buzzsaw. Natsu? The man basically operates on a studio policy: show up, power up, yell, win. Even within Naruto's world, Kakashi rarely drops major canon fights. Meanwhile Boruto is still collecting battle scars.

The chart everyone is arguing over

Worth noting upfront: these tallies come from a fan-compiled chart, and the formatting is a little messy in places. Some wins/losses are cleanly listed, others are partial, but the win percentages are the headline.

• Saitama (One Punch Man) — 44-0, 100%
• Natsu Dragneel (Fairy Tail) — 50-4, 92%
• Asta (Black Clover) — 30-3, 90%
• Tanjiro Kamado (Demon Slayer) — 15-2, 88%
• Deku (My Hero Academia) — 16-4, 80%
• Goku (Dragon Ball) — 79-28, 73%
• Naruto Uzumaki (Naruto) — listed at 71% (wins shown as 239; losses not clearly listed)
• Gon Freecss (Hunter x Hunter) — 10-4, 71%
• Ichigo Kurosaki (Bleach) — 16-7, 69%
• Yuji Itadori (Jujutsu Kaisen) — 5-3, 62%
• Monkey D. Luffy (One Piece) — 61% (the raw W-L count is jumbled in the chart, but the percentage is the takeaway)
• Boruto (Boruto: Naruto Next Generations) — listed at 64 wins and a 60% win rate

So... why is Boruto's number this low?

He has been eating losses since early days, took the L against Kawaki, got put on the floor by Code, and the time-skip era never really stopped the bleeding. He is basically the one main character who might be having a tougher go than Luffy.

Now, whether you count filler, sparring, offscreen dust-ups, or what even counts as a 'fight' can swing these numbers a bit. But the shape of it stays the same: the flashy newer leads win more often; Naruto and Luffy grind through a lot of setbacks; and Boruto is currently bringing up the rear.

Does seeing the percentages change how you feel about Boruto as a protagonist? Or does the way he loses (and why) matter more than the scoreboard? I am curious where you land.

If you want to revisit the carnage yourself: One Piece, Naruto, and Boruto: Naruto Next Generations are streaming on Crunchyroll.