Are the flashback fillers over? According to reports, that may be the case. Sources say the next story arc is going to be called "Sasuke Shinden." This arc is allegedly going to be based on the book titled "Sasuke Shinden: Book of Sunrise," and it will detail Sasuke's journey to seek retribution for his sins after he parted ways with Naruto and the rest of the Konoha shinobi after the Fourth Shinobi World War.
The reports actually make sense. Episode 484 is titled "The Exploding Human," and that is taken right out of the pages of the book where a group of missing shinobi will explode if they get injured. Episode 485 is titled "Colosseum," and in the book, Sasuke was led to an arena called "Coliseum" by Orochimaru in the third chapter.
Some fans probably never heard of the book since it has yet to be translated into English. "Sasuke Shinden" has been out in Japan since 2015, but the English version will come out on March 7, 2017, so now is the perfect time to promote it.
Saiyan Island says the story arc may last four episodes, and then sources say the next arc may put the spotlight on Shikamaru and his activities two years after the war ended. The story is allegedly going to be based on a book called "Shikamaru's Story: A Cloud Drifting in Silent Darkness."
It's interesting to see how many of these upcoming story arcs are going to be based on "Naruto Shippuden" light novels. Well, it's certainly better than putting out random fillers or flashback episodes.
Episode 484 will air on Thursday, Dec. 1, and episode 485 will air a week later on Dec. 8. Fans from around the world can watch the episodes via the official "Naruto Shippuden" online streaming sites: Viz Media and Hulu for the United States, and Crunchyroll worldwide.
