For the first time in seven years, mangaka Masashi Kishimoto will be releasing a one-shot manga story. It will be released in the special 55th Anniversary issue ofWeeklyShonen Jumpmagazine. The story will be all-new, though it is a prequel for Kishimoto’s most famous work -Naruto.
The last time Kishimoto published a one-shot manga was back in April 2016, when he published wasNarutoGaiden: The Road Illuminated by the Full Moon. It was also published inWeekly Shonen Jump. It was created to promote the new anime seriesBoruto: Naruto Next Generations, and get fans ready for a whole new story with some new characters. Since then, Kishimoto has not published any further “omake,” or one-shot manga - until now.
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Narutois one of the most internationally famous manga and anime of all time. Kishimoto began publishing the story inWeekly Shonen Jumpin 1999, where it continued to be published until it concluded in 2014. It inspired two anime series,Narutoand its sequelNaruto: Shippuden, which were 220 and 500 episodes respectively.Narutohas also been adapted into movies, and even video games, and remains one of the mostrecognizable anime characters ever.
BothNarutoandNaruto: Shippudenfocus on themain character, Naruto Uzumaki, and his journey. Another series, calledBoruto: Naruto Next Generations, followed Naruto’s son. But this upcoming one-shot manga is delving into previously unexplored lore in theNarutouniverse. As a prequel to the originalNarutostory, it will focus on Naruto’s father, Minato Namikaze.
Minato Namikaze does appear in the originalNarutostory, both in the anime and manga, but this will be an all-new story from Kishimoto. He chose this character based on the results of the first worldwideNarutopopularity contest, NARUTOP99, which announced its results in April forthe most popular character. The winner was Minato Namikaze, which motivated Kishimoto to give this character a special story for the fans that love him.
Right now, Kishimoto has not released any details about what the story, or even the title, of this one-shot manga will be. All we know is that it will be a prequel set before the events of the originalNaruto, and thatMinato Namikaze will be the main character. One piece of art was also released, depicting a much younger Namikaze than anyone has ever seen before, which has fans already guessing about exactly when the story will take place.
MORE:Naruto: 5 Most Iconic Minato Namikaze Scenes
The new one-shot manga by Masashi Kishimoto, creator ofNaruto, will release on July 18th, 2023 in the 55th Anniversary edition ofWeekly Shonen Jump, No. 33.
