Naruto (NARUTO - ナルト -,
Naruto? romanized as
NARUTO in
Japan) is an ongoing Japanese
manga series written and illustrated by
Masashi Kishimoto with an
anime adaptation. The plot tells the story of
Naruto Uzumaki, a loud,
hyperactive, unpredictable, adolescent ninja who constantly searches for recognition and aspires to become a
Hokage, the ninja in his village that is acknowledged as the leader and the strongest of all. The series is based on a
one-shot that Kishimoto first authored in the August 1997 issue of
Akamaru Jump.
The manga was first published by
Shueisha in 1999 in the 43rd issue of Japan's
Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine and it is still being released with forty-four volumes. The manga would be later adapted into an anime produced by
Studio Pierrot and
Aniplex. It premiered across Japan on the
terrestrial TV Tokyo network and the anime
satellite television network
Animax on October 3, 2002. The first series lasted nine seasons, while
Naruto: Shippūden, a sequel of the series, began its first on February 15, 2007 and is still airing.
Viz Media has licensed the manga and anime for
North American production. The
Naruto anime debuted in the
United States on
Cartoon Network's
Toonami programming block on September 10, 2005, and in
Canada on
YTV's Bionix on September 16, 2005.
Naruto began showing in the
United Kingdom on
Jetix on July 22, 2006. It began showing on
Toasted TV on January 12, 2007, in
Australia, which features the
Manga Entertainment TV version and the
German-language dub opening, although it could be watched on Cartoon Network in 2006.
Serialized in Viz's
Shonen Jump magazine,
Naruto has become the company's best-selling manga series. As of volume 36, the manga has sold over 71 million copies in Japan.
PLOTTwelve years before the events at the focus of the series, the
Nine-Tailed Demon Fox attacked the ninja village
Konohagakure.
Powerful enough to raise tsunamis and flatten mountains with a swish of
one of its tails, it raised chaos and slaughtered many people, until
the leader of Konohagakure – the
Fourth Hokage– sacrificed his own life to seal the demon inside Naruto when he was a
newborn. The Fourth Hokage, who was celebrated as a hero for sealing
the demon fox away, wanted Naruto to be respected in a similar light by
being the containment vessel for the demon fox.
Konohagakure, however, shunned him, regarding Naruto as if he were
the demon fox itself and mistreated him throughout most of his
childhood. A decree made by the
Third Hokageforbade anyone to discuss or mention the attack of the demon fox to
anyone, even their own children. However, this did not stop them from
treating him like an outcast and as a result he grew up an orphan
without friends, family, or acknowledgment. He could not force people
to befriend him, so he sought acknowledgment and attention the only way
he knew – through pranks and mischief.
However, that soon changed after Naruto graduated from the Ninja Academy by using his
Shadow Clone Technique, a technique from a forbidden scroll that he was tricked into stealing, to save his teacher,
Iruka Umino,
from the renegade ninja Mizuki. That encounter gave Naruto two
insights: that he was the container of the demon fox, and that there
was someone besides the Third Hokage who actually cared for and
acknowledged him. His graduation from the academy opened a gateway to
the events and people that would change and define his world, including
his way of the ninja for the rest of his life.
The main story follows Naruto and his friends' personal growth and
development as ninja, and emphasizes their interactions with each other
and the influence of their backgrounds on their personalities. Naruto
finds two friends and comrades in
Sasuke Uchiha and
Sakura Haruno, two fellow young ninja who are assigned with him to form a three-person team under an experienced
sensei named
Kakashi Hatake.
Naruto also confides in other characters that he meets throughout the
series as well. They learn new abilities, get to know each other and
other villagers better, and experience a coming-of-age journey as
Naruto dreams of becoming the
Hokage of Konohagakure.
Throughout all of the
Naruto plot, strong emphasis on
character development changes the plot, with very few things happening
because of chance. At first, emphasis is placed on Naruto, Sasuke, and
Sakura, who are the members of
Team 7. However, other characters are developed, such as Kakashi,
Tsunade, and
Jiraiya, as well as Naruto's peers in the other teams and villages. Several major villains come into play as well, the first being
Zabuza Momochi, a
missing-nin from
Kirigakure, and his partner,
Haku. Later,
Orochimaru, an
S-Class missing-nin at the top of Konoha's most wanted list, and his loyal right-hand man,
Kabuto Yakushi, are introduced. During this same arc, three ninjas known as the
Sand Siblings are introduced. These siblings are from
Sunagakure and include
Temari,
Kankuro, and
Gaara. Later still, a mysterious organization called
Akatsuki begins to pursue Naruto for the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox that is sealed inside of him.
Calendar