Expectations for a longer "Naruto" series are now dismissed as a report in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump on Oct. 6 revealed that the well-loved series will be officially wrapped up after five episodes. Naruto's last battle will commence in four weeks, and fans in Japan will get to read its final chapter tearfully on the magazine's golden issue to be published on Nov. 10.
Fifteen years ago, Masashi Kishimoto's "Naruto" debuted on the 43th issue of Weekly Shonen Jump. By 2012, Kishimoto told Asahi Shimbun that the series is rising toward the climax and that he has it all figured out, saying that "how story will end has already been set in his mind." Yet the creator waited for two more years before making that ending known.
The series went on to be one of the biggest and most followed anime titles in history. It occupied the fourth spot in the list of Top 10 Shonen Jump in 2012. To date, the manga has a whopping 200 million sales of all its 70 volumes and the 71st, set to be launched on Nov. 4 in Japan, will conclude all the happenings in the ninja world.
But after the manga chapters formally draws to what is described as a sudden, unprepared close for loyalists, the creators will make it all painfully official with an anime movie entitled "The Last: Naruto The Movie" that will be aired on Dec. 6.
Naruto's accomplishments over the years include a long-running anime adaptation with the same name that started in 2002. By 2007, the anime evolved into "Naruto: Shipuuden." Animes from the 2000s like "One Piece" and "Bleach" are also very dear to fans' hearts, and "Naruto" no doubt shared that same glory.
With various game adaptations and widely-popular merchandise that bear the anime's characters and logos, many will have a tough time moving on.
