Naruto ナルト

  • Published on : 15/12/2022
  • by : bryan@japan-experience.com

The way of the ninja

As a timeless manga that has marked several generations, Naruto has revitalized the action-adventure genre in shonen.  Here is a quick overview of this internationally famous manga, published between 1999 and 2014.

Naruto's story

12 years after the destruction of the hidden village of Konoha by the nine-tailed fox demon, the story follows Naruto Uzumaki, a young ninja bursting with energy. Very quickly, we see that he is rejected by all, hated, and that the whispers of the adults intensify in his presence. At first he puts this down to his extravagant and original character, but Naruto finally learns that he carries within him the demon responsible for the attack 12 years ago, sealed by the Hokage (the most powerful ninja of the village) at that time.

The story then focuses on Naruto's evolution, his apprenticeship and his integration as a ninja, but also on the change of perception of many characters facing the discovery of the personality and the suffering of this endearing boy.

Over the course of the volumes, Naruto, originally alone and rejected by all, begins to find his place by joining Team 7, composed of Sasuke Uchiha, a rival at the opposite of Naruto, Sakura Haruno, a young girl more obsessed by her appearance than by the ninja art and Kakashi Hatake, a mysterious team leader.

Manga Naruto

©sasori2, flickr

Naruto

©NaruHina_Luv, flickr

Kakashi

©alicia Huang, flickr

Sakura

©((d[-_-]b)), flickr

Sasuke

©Deidara's Chick, flickr

Perpetuating the Japanese heritage through a manga imbued with mythological references

Through his manga, Masashi Kishimoto wanted to transmit a traditional Japanese heritage. This is reflected in the theme chosen for the work, which deals with ninjas, true symbols of ancestral Japan. 

The mangaka goes even further by incorporating mythological references throughout. "Amaterasu" ninja technique of the Uchiha clan, which produces eternal black flames, is a reference to the goddess of the sun and light in Shintoism

Also, the author wanted to introduce the duality between Izanagi and Izanami, god and goddess co-creators of the world in the Shinto religion. In the manga, it is through the two pupils of the sharingan, specific to the Uchiha clan, that the deities are referred to. Izanagi is a technique which has the power to modify destiny, while Izanami determines it, thus illustrating the link and the duality between these two mythological concepts

Beyond the Uchiha clan, Mashashi Kishimoto also wanted to create characters that are a direct reproduction of a Japanese myth: Jiraiya Goketsu Monogatari (The Legend of the Gallant Jiraiya).

Izanagi & Izanami

Izanagi & Izanami

©picryl

Jiraya, Tsunade & Orochimaru

Jiraiya, Tsunade & Orochimaru

©Hyuga Mah, flickr

Amaterasu

Amaterasu

©Timothy Takemoto, flickr

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