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Naruto Gets New 3-Book Novel Series
posted on by Bayleigh Baker
The official website for Shueisha's Jump J Books novel label announced on Monday that the Naruto franchise will get a new three-book novel series. The Naruto Shinden (The New Legend of Naruto) book is slated to ship in Japan on May 2. Sasuke Shinden (The New Legend of Sasuke) and Shikamaru Shinden (The New Legend of Shikamaru) will follow.
Mirei Miyamoto (Saiki Kusuo no Psi-Nan film novelization) is writing Naruto Shinden and original creator Masashi Kishimoto is providing the art. All three books take place in a time when the title characters are parents. The first book will feature short stories focusing on parent/child relationships.
Kishimoto's Naruto manga has inspired three previous novel series: "Naruto Ninden," "Naruto Hiden" (Naruto Hidden Legend), and "Naruto Shinden" (Naruto True Legend). The new "Naruto Shinden" (Naruto New Legend) series has the same title reading as the previous series, but features a different kanji and thus has a different meaning.
Naruto Dokonjo Ninden shipped in 2010 and was followed by Naruto: Dojunjō Ninden in 2015. Shueisha published Kakashi Hiden, Shikamaru Hiden, Akatsuki Hiden, Gaara Hiden, Sakura Hiden, and Konoha Hiden epilogue novels in 2015. Sasuke Shinden (The True Legend of Sasuke) and the two-volume Itachi Shinden (The True Legend of Itachi) novels shipped in late 2015. The manga has also inspired other miscellaneous novels, including Naruto Konoha Shinden: Yukemuri Ninpōchō in in August 2016.
Viz Media has published some of the Hiden and Shinden novels in North America.
Itachi Shinden inspired an 8-episode anime in March 2016.
Kishimoto ended his main Naruto manga after 15 years of serialization in Weekly Shonen Jump in November 2014. He then wrote the one-volume sequel manga Naruto: The Seventh Hokage and the Scarlet Spring. Kishimoto also worked on the script and character designs, and served as the chief production supervisor on the Boruto -Naruto the Movie- film sequel. Kishimoto is currently working on a science fiction manga that will be serialized.
Mikie Ikemoto launched a sequel manga to Naruto titled Boruto in Weekly Shonen Jump in May 2016. Kishimoto is supervising the series. The Boruto: Naruto Next Generations television anime then premiered last April.
