One of the most popular anime and mangas around the world in recent times has got to be Naruto.  With such fame often comes fan fiction, and thanks to the development of easily available production equipment, fan movies are an ever improving art form.

The fledgling American production team Thousand Pounds Action Company has put together a YouTube movie with an original story based on the Naruto universe.  A follow-up to their celebrated Street Fighter X Tekken video, the Naruto movie has been getting an equally good reception and then some.

However, would Naruto fans be offending with their handling of the source material, and could this tiny movie company grab the attention of non-fans with their talents? We take a look at it from both sides to see.

Titled Naruto Shippuden: Dreamers Fight the video centers on two main characters from the series, Naruto and his buddy Rock Lee. In an effort to perfect his skills Rock Lee challenges Naruto to a fight… and they fight.

Japanese Naruto Fan’s Review

Our Japanese reporter who is an avid Naruto fan was understandably skeptical at first but quickly found the small two-man show had engrossing non-stop action, where the 20 minute runtime seems to fly by.

According to his report on the Japanese edition of RocketNews he found himself uttering “whoa…” and felt that it was very respectful to the source material.  What impressed him the most was that the American producers made the film entirely in Japanese.  This conveyed a sense of respect for the Naruto franchise that really won over this fan.

In closing he recommends the video to everyone whether a fan or not, which is where I come in.  Being a fan of anime in my younger years Naruto came after my time so I never got into it.  So I decided to take up his recommendation in my unclouded non-fan eyes to see if it can stand on its own and entertain.

American Non-Fan’s Review

Before starting the video I felt that my expectations were set unreasonably high for a production posted on YouTube. However, it did deliver the goods.  The story is simple enough that you don’t need any knowledge of the series to follow it, although there were probably some references tucked in that I missed.

The martial arts were well done and the special effects were surprisingly seamless.  I did notice a few bad angles where the punches were revealed to go wide. If they had cut those out it would have been a much tighter scene.

I don’t know if I would recommend this to everyone because it’s really just one long fight scene, but for any martial arts fan it’s worth watching and stands up well against major studio productions.  From the Japanese dialog to the smooth CGI and sound, it’s clear the small group at Thousand Pounds put a whole lot of effort into making this production and deserves the high praise they are getting.  So check it out below and let us know what you think.

Videos: YouTube/RivenX3i

▼Here is the complete edition (Parts 1 & 2) of Naruto Shippuden: Dreamers Fight

▼And here is the trailer that was used for Part 2

▼If you enjoyed that, you’re sure to get a kick out of Thousand Pounds Action Company’s take on Street Fighter X Tekken

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Origin: A Naruto Fan and Non-Fan Give Their Impressions of the Naruto Live Action Movie on YouTube
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Fans of the iconic manga periodical Weekly Shonen Jump should be clearing their schedules and marking down July 11 on their calendars. For on this day, the clouds will part and a shaft of light will appear as the doors to a new manga paradise will open, offering five Naruto, One Piece and Dragon Ball attractions, along with stacks of merchandise and themed food to save us all.

Known as J-World Tokyo, the indoor amusement park will be spread out on the third floor of Sunshine City’s World Import Mart Building in Ikebukuro. Three main areas will be devoted to the giants of Shonen Jump: One Piece, Naruto and Dragon Ball.

▼ Shonen Jump character mini attractions and popular goods will be available at the Heroes Arena

▼ UFO catcher crane games filled with goodies at the Amusement Arena!

 ▼ Bag original merchandise at the J-World Store

 ▼ Chow down on original Shonen Jump creations at the J-World Kitchen food court

▼ A Gintoki strawberry parfait!

▼ Majin Bū in steamed bun form!

▼ Ichiban Naruto Ramen

▼ Chopper’s Rumble Meatball Pasta

 There will be five attractions related to One Piece, Naruto and Dragonball:

1. The One Piece Soldier Dock Adventure Ride (800 yen, or US$7.86)

▼ Ride the Mini Merry or the Shark Submerge III and experience the world of One Piece with huge screens

2. The One Piece Shiro mokuba no Kaiten mokuba Carousel Ride (400 yen)

▼ Ride the wavers on a carousel with the Mugiwara gang characters

3. The Naruto “Gekitou! Ninja Taisen Emaki!!” Maze  (800 yen)

▼ Make like a Konoha Ninja and complete the challenge in the labyrinth

4. The Dragonball “Tsukamouze! Dragonball!!” Attraction (800 yen)

▼ Use a dragon radar to find the dragon hidden in the area

5. The Dragonball “Hanatouze! Kamehameha!!” Attraction (800 yen)

▼ Shoot the Kamehameha with Goku using an interactive 3-D clip. “Ka-me-ha-me-HA!!!”

Brought to us by the Bandai Namco Group, entry to the theme park is 1,300 yen ($12.77) for adults and 1,000 yen ($9.83) for children over four years of age. Opening hours will be 10 a.m. – 10 p.m. See you there!

Sources: IT Media Namco

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Origin: J-World Tokyo: One Piece, Naruto and Dragon Ball Attractions at Shonen Jump Manga Theme Park!
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Bessatu Margaret, a spin-off of Margaret, a manga magazine for girls, is coming up on its 50th year of publication and the astounding cover of superstar characters for their special tribute has just seen the light of day. Featuring work by artists from Shonen Jump, Young Jump, and more, it’s a must-see for any manga fan!

The January issue of Bessatu Margaret, or Betsuma for short, comes with a special tribute book in addition to a full-color cover for Stella and Mille Feuille, a new series by Bessatu Margaret veteran Kana Watanabe.

The covers for both the January issue and its special tribute (released on December 13) showed up on Twitter thanks to tweets from the magazine itself. Check them out below!

▼Click for larger version.

▼Click for larger version.

The Bessatsu Margaret Special Tribute features characters from ONE PIECE, Naruto, Gantz, Gin Tama, Terra Formars, Ansatsu Kyoshitsu, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure and many more. The February issue promises to feature a special cover of characters from girls manga.

In addition to the special tributes and freaking awesome covers, Margaret has been running a competition for new and young talent called “U-20 Manga Award.” Hosted by Nico Nico Douga, the contest is in its last stage, with the final eight contestants’ work available for the public to the view and vote on. The contest was limited to artists 20 years old and younger–but the skills on display are magnificent! If you want to check out their work yourself, click here! (Japanese only)

▼Some of the characters from the U-20 competition.

In case you’re wondering, Margaret started publication in 1963 and Bessatsu Margaret started in 1964. Basically, they’re getting a two-year-long birthday bash. The best kind of bash there is.

So, RocketNews24 would like to wish a happy birthday to one of the biggest names in girls manga!

Sources: ITMedia
Images: Twitter (1, 2), NicoNico Douga

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Origin: Girls manga magazine celebrates 50 years with a freaking awesome cover
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It’s not too uncommon to hear similar pieces of music in entertainment; accusations of plagiarism seem to pop up every few months. This latest controversy, though, carries with it a heaping helping of irony.

Fans online have noticed a peculiar coincidence in the background music used in episode 33 of the Chinese anti-Japan war drama Blue Wolf… and Yasuharu Takanashi‘s “Man of the World” theme used in certain episodes of Naruto Shippūden.

Here are the two pieces of music, with the Blue Wolf theme first:

Users on Sina Weibo were quick to point out the irony of an anti-Japan drama about the Sino-Japanese war borrowing motifs from a Japanese series.

What do you think? Are the two similar, or is it just a tonal coincidence?

Source: South China Morning Post

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Origin: Anti-Japan drama ironically borrows music from Japanese anime
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Real estate brokerage Movoto generally focuses their interests on, you know, real estate, but every now and again, they’ll also post their estimates on fictional properties. Most recently, they turned their interests to Naruto Uzumaki’s apartment in Hidden Leaf Village. Factoring in location, furnishings, size, and market, they came up with $100,000.

Here’s the listing they whipped up:

Check out some of their other fictional property listings, including Smaug’s lair, Howl’s Moving Castle, and more.

Via Movoto; images from Movoto

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Origin: Naruto’s fictional apartment valued at $100K
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Although most manga artists have a team of assistants backing them up, compared to live-action films, comics allow for a much more direct transmission of the creator’s vision. Movie and TV programming are by nature a collaborative effort, and you can’t really watch a scene go from concept to finished version in real-time.

With manga, though, you can give a talented artist a pen, and within minutes see him or her transform the emptiness of a blank sheet of paper into a character that will inspire and entertain countless fans, like in this video featuring some of Japan’s most popular manga artists and characters.

The first issue of manga anthology Shonen Jump was published in 1968, and one year later the magazine went to a weekly format. It’s been going strong ever since, and while its circulation has dipped since its high-water mark of 6.5 million in 1995, the magazine still regularly sells well over two million copies a week, which is no mean feat for a youth-oriented publication in today’s digital age.

Of course, as an anthology, no one’s buying Shonen Jump because of the title on the front cover, but because of the serials inside. Four of the pillars publisher Shueisha has built the magazine’s success on are supernatural swordfighting saga Bleach, ninja tale Naruto, manga about making manga Bakuman, and pirate epic One Piece.

Collectively, the four series have provided enough material for 226 volumes, with only Bakuman having come to a conclusion. While that’s a ton of back issues to wade through, you can get a taste of their artwork in just about seven minutes with this video showing the artist for each drawing the lead characters of the four hits.

Stariting things off is Tite Kubo, who has perhaps become aware that some fans are tired of Bleach’s protagonist Ichigo hogging the spotlight and so decided to throw in a picture of his laid-back mentor Kisuke Urahara.

Next up is Naruto creator Masahi Kishimoto, the only artist featured in the video who makes a quick pencil sketch before inking his lines.

Takeshi Obata’s Bakuman follows two would-be manga stars, Akito and Moritaka, so naturally both are represented in the clip.

And finally, Eiichiro Oda draws Monkey D. Luffy with the same sort of confidence and aplomb he showed when naming the hero of One Piece.

Seeing the featured artists create such stunning artwork with ease, we can’t help but feel a little inspired by what one can achieve with hard work and practice. On the other hand, we’d be lying if we said we weren’t just a little saddened at how far away we are from anything like the level of talent on display.

▼ This is about as far as we can keep up with them.

Source: FC2
Screenshots: YouTube

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• Quiz: Can you guess which hugely popular manga artists these desks belong to?

Origin: Japan’s most successful manga artists draw their characters for the camera 【Video】
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How much of a good thing is, well, too good? That’s the basic premise behind the debate surrounding a voluptuous Taiwanese model recently marked as “too sexy for cosplay.” 

While the goal of any cosplay is to portray your character to the best of your ability, just where should fans draw the line when it comes to dressing as characters whose special ‘assets’ may bring some questionable costumes into the real world? We welcome your thoughts on the matter after reading through this recent cosplay incident.

The source of the debate occurred at a cosplay event on August 16 in Taichung City, Taiwan when 23-year-old bikini model and self-professed lover of anime Ma You Rong (馬友蓉) decided to attend dressed as one of her own favorite characters–Naruto‘s butt-kicking kunoichi (female ninja), Tsunade.

For those of you unfamiliar with Masashi Kishimoto’s internationally best-selling work (which celebrates its 15th anniversary this year!), Tsunade is a perpetual fan favorite who’s highly skilled in medical ninjutsu and also possesses brute physical strength to boot. As one of the ‘Three Legendary Shinobi’ from Konohagakure Village, she’s actually an older woman who uses a technique to mask her true age and outwardly appears as a young woman instead. But most importantly, she’s currently the Fifth Hokage (village leader) of Naruto’s hometown and mentor to the series’ main female protagonist Sakura. She’s also famous for her explosive temper, and her other, shall we say, ‘well-endowed’ attributes.

▼Don’t let her looks deceive you–this is what she’s really capable of!

▼And here we have Ma You Rong’s take on Tsunade:

Needless to say, her appearance at the venue caused quite the excitement. The resemblance between fictional, 2-D character and living, breathing human being is beyond uncanny–it’s dead-on. And we’re not just talking about that blonde wig she’s wearing.

But here’s where things start to get a little hairy. Reportedly, staff members with large black cloths were on hand at the event to escort any ‘distasteful’ cosplayers away from the public. While the day eventually ended without a hitch, after the fact a staff member supposedly criticized Ma You Rong’s ‘outrageous appearance’ online, to which the shocked cosplayer voiced her objections, touching off the start of an intense battle of thoughts.

Since she’s a bikini model by profession, one of the main arguments against Ma You Rong (besides being too hot to handle) is that her choice of cosplay outfit seemed too much like personal marketing for a cosplay event, which is supposed to be a place for fans to display their love of certain characters and not to advertise for business. It didn’t help that she was often seen lowering one of the sleeves of her tunic over her shoulder for nearby photographers. On the other hand, others see no problem with her costume, as one of the goals of serious cosplay is to represent your character in real life as well as possible, a task which Ma You Rong certainly does to perfection.

Here are some photos of her from the event. There’s even a YouTube clip available:

 ▼Here are some of Ma You Rong’s other past cosplays:

▼Ma You Rong is the Goku cosplayer on the left

Which school of thought do you belong to regarding Ma You Rong’s Tsunade cosplay? We know one thing for sure–we’d sure rather look at her dressed as Tsunade than Mr. Sato’s version any day!

Original article by Meg Sawai
Sources: ET Today 1, 2, Apple Daily, Facebook 
Top image: ET Today
Insert image: Narutopedia

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Origin: Taiwanese Tsunade cosplayer sparks debate about public decency at events
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What if we told you that Sunday was being discontinued? Like, the day’s just being removed from the calendar forever. You’d be pretty bummed, right? Sure, it lacks the excitement of Friday night, or the pure, 100-percent freedom of Saturday, but most of us still look forward to Sunday as a fun point in our week.

Well, something similar is about to happen for manga fans. Naruto, creator Masashi Kishimoto’s wildly popular weekly ninja series, is just weeks away from its final installment.

When Naruto made its debut in the pages of Weekly Shonen Jump in 1999, it’s doubtful that even the most optimistic editors at the magazine expected it to last as long as it did. Stories about a plucky warrior in training, who teams up with his friends (one he has a rivalry with, and the other he has feelings for) to face evil foes and overcome challenges had already been done by numerous other series before Kishimoto ever drew sketches of main characters Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura.

The devil’s in the details, though, and while readers may have seen the broad strokes before, the fine points of Naruto struck a chord with readers and drew them in. It has had such a strong hold on fans that the manga now stands at 694 chapters, with 70 collected volumes that have sold more than 130 million copies in Japan, and another 70 million overseas.

▼ The complete collection (so far)

And now, after 15 years, it’s all coming to a close. Kishimoto announced two years ago that Naruto would be winding down, and this week publisher Shueisha announced that the manga’s 699th, and final, chapter will be published in the issue of Shonen Jump that hits newsstands on November 10.

Given that Kishimoto is just 39, it’s likely we’ll more manga from the artist after he takes a well-deserved break. Naruto and company aren’t going to immediately disappear altogether either, as there’s a new anime movie, The Last –Naruto the Movie scheduled for release on December 6. Shueisha has also promised some form of “Naruto entertainment” is coming in 2015.

But even though November 10 isn’t going to be a complete and final good-bye, it still marks a big change for fans who have become used to getting together with their ninja buddies once a week for the past decade and a half.

Sources: Shonen Jump, Asahi Shimbun
Top image: Anime Kabegami
Insert image: Mono

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• Anti-Japan drama ironically borrows music from Japanese anime

Origin: Believe it! After 15 years of ninja action, manga Naruto is ending next month
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There’s something about October 10 and the appeal of seeing 10/10 that makes it a particularly popular character birthday. Like CLAMP‘s reuse of April 1, plenty ofcharacters were “born” on October 10 and the day has only gotten more popular since the spread of moe and the day’s unofficial recognition as “Moe Day” (10 October (十日十月), stacked, resembles the character for moe: 萌).

One character’s birthday this year is especially bittersweet. Naruto Uzamaki, everyone’s famous ninja, is celebrating his last birthday this year since his manga run is ending in just a few weeks.

Naruto isn’t the only one celebrating their birthday today. It’s also the birthdays of Lynn Minmay (Macross), Gintoki (Gintama), Tōichirō Izumida (Yowamushi Pedal), Judo Ashita (Gundam ZZ), Sora (Digimon), Shingo Takasugi (Captain Tsubasa), Jun Tao (Shaman King), Hibiki Tokai (Vandread), Hibiki Ganaha (The IDOLM@STER), Yui Goido (The World God Only Knows), Minami Shimada (Baka and Test – Summon the Beasts), Irina Jelavic (Assassination Classroom), and likely even more. Here’s how fans showed their appreciation for their favorite characters!

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Origin: Naruto’s birthday is October 10, along with dozens of other characters
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The Simpsons had some fun last night in their “Treehouse of Horror XXV” Halloween episode, imagining a world where multiple incarnations of the Simpsons family has been created by an evil marketing entity.

Amongst them was a tribute to some popular anime titles, including Attack on Titan, Naruto, Pokémon, Bleach, One Piece, and Spirited Away.

The episode went on to pay homage to Adventure Time, Archer, Despicable Me, and more.

If you want to see the full episode in its entirety, you can catch it on Hulu next week, or watch it now with Hulu+.

Earlier in the year, The Simpsons also made a nod towards the works of director Hayao Miyazaki.

[Twitter, Reddit]

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Origin: The Simpsons Halloween episode pays tribute to popular anime
Copyright© RocketNews24 / SOCIO CORPORATION. All rights reserved.

While the Japanese economy is powered by numerous exports and industries, from cars to computers, perhaps one of its largest, if not most visible, industries is that of entertainment content such as anime, manga and video games. While we all love good content–it is, after all, king–not everyone is necessarily willing or able to pay for it. While in days of yore that mostly meant simply going without the latest publication of your favorite manga, today’s high-speed Internet has made, shall we say acquiring content easier than ever.

While countries around the world debate the issues of online piracy, free speech, and copyright law, Japan is taking a somewhat more aggressive stance (anti-piracy even has its own figures in Japan!). Nevertheless, stopping piracy completely is an exercise in futility, which is probably why the M.A.G. (Manga-Anime Guardians) Project is aimed more at changing hearts and minds than using legal action to stop those pesky pirates. In fact, they’ll even give you a special-edition illustration if you join!

▼”To all of you who love manga and anime…”

Let’s be honest for a second: Piracy happens. It’s not really a good thing, but it’s not going to disappear ever (probably). It would be great if every content creator got all the money they deserve, but it would also be great if we all had prehensile tails. Still, we do not, in any way, want to support piracy–but we’re not sure that the Manga-Anime Guardians Project will be much more effective than D.A.R.E.

• Triangles: making things official

So, just what is the M.A.G. Project? Well, think of it like a purity ring for piracy–something you promise not to do after getting a bit of a lecture on its evils. The ultimate goal of the project seems to be ending piracy and promoting the use of official, usually paid, sources. The website doesn’t seem to mention much in the way of practical action–it’s more about “thanking” fans who acquire their manga/anime fix through legitimate channels. It does have this nifty image though:

▼Nothing says official like triangles!

• Scary numbers

The M.A.G. Project also offers some alarming statistics that should make you think twice about firing up BitTorrent and grabbing the most recent episode of Attack on Titan. For example, the English version of the site reports the following.

“Regrettably, according to a report of Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) of Japan, a huge number of Manga and Anime fans, over 50% of them in U.S. and 12% in Japan, are watching or reading pirated works.

The estimated cost of damage from online piracy is as much as JPY 2 trillion (approximately US$20 billion). Beside, a report of Agency for Cultural Affairs of Japan indicates that in major cities of China (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Chongqing) the damage cost to Japanese contents is JPY 560 billion (approximately US$5.6 billion) per year.”

As part of their thank you to non-pirate fans, they’re produced this (hopefully) non-copyright-violating video of various characters saying “arigatou.”

▼For subtitles, click the little white box with lines at the bottom of the player once it starts.

• Free stuff

They’re also running a “join” campaign to get people to promote awareness and the enjoyment of official manga and anime. If you join, you can even get a free download of the special-edition illustration below.

As you can see, they’ve successfully gotten over a million people to click the join button–including us! Aside from getting a zip file (which we didn’t open with an expired version of WinRAR, thank you very much!), not much happened except the counter going up a tick and a request to share the site on the social network of our choice.

▼Here are all the characters included in the illustration.

• An own goal?

The site does have one very practical link, though. If you’re feeling motivated to only get your manga and anime online officially, the M.A.G. Project suggests you check out Manga-Anime Here. The site very simply provides links to official sources for your reading/viewing pleasure in both Japanese and English.

Unfortunately, it looks like most of the links are for sites that are region-locked to either the US or Japan, which leaves us wondering what people in, say, Europe or other parts of Asia are supposed to do–which, many would argue, is precisely why so many people choose to get their anime and manga from illegal sources to begin with…

That little hiccup aside, if you’d like to pledge never to access manga or anime through unofficial channels, you can do so here. If you don’t really care about piracy, but just really want that snazzy special illustration, you can still do so here and just feel like a horrible hypocrite by “joining” just to get the illustration. Remember, Santa Claus is watching!

Sources: M.A.G. Project, YouTube, Manga-Anime Here
Images: M.A.G. Project

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Origin: Do you enjoy pirated anime and manga? If so, this “thank you” is not for you
Copyright© RocketNews24 / SOCIO CORPORATION. All rights reserved.

This year’s 50th issue of Shueisha‘s Shonen Jump magazine is a legendary one with the final twochapters of its mega-hit series Naruto by Masashi Kishimoto. In this issue, the 766th chapter (“Smile”) of Eiichiro Oda‘s One Piece manga seems rather normal. However, fans have found a secret message embedded into the One Piece chapter’s title page.

メニューがナルトおつかれさんでしたになってる http://t.co/0UCiJ9sQ9V

—
しぃ (@sIystone) November 06, 2014

As fans pointed out, the first characters on each of the menu signs in the background spell out the Japanese words, “Naruto otsukaresan deshita.” The signs read: “Nasu no itame” (eggplant stir-fry), “Rukkora no sarada” (arugula salad), “Tofu,” “Otsumami” (bar snacks) “Karee,” (Curry) “San,” (written as the character for ‘three’), “Den…,” “Shōyū no” (soy sauce, with the first character reading ‘shi‘), and “tamago” (egg).

The phrase “Naruto otsukaresan deshita” is an informal way to say something along the lines of, “Naruto, good job after working so long.”

That’s not all — the One Piece logo is drawn with a Konoha symbol, a shuriken weapon, and Naruto himself.

Also on the page, you can also see the Konoha emblem in Nami’s dress, Luffy eating a bowl of Ramen Ichiraku, and a ramen-eating fox wearing a shirt with a fish cake. (The word for fish cake in Japanese is “naruto.”) Even more hidden in the image, you can see someone eating with Luffy at the same table … someone with a jumpsuit very similar to an orange ninja we all know.

Finally, the very last page of the Naruto manga itself has a call-back to One Piece, in the form of a graffiti with Luffy’s symbol.

It didn’t take long for one Japanese fan to draw a touching comic strip:

ナルトとルフィ 『お先だってばよ』 『またなー』 http://t.co/Q9adjovnaY

—
たなか (@tanakya123) November 06, 2014

Luffy: Are you going to quit being a ninja?
Naruto: Huh? No…
Naruto: It’s just that one person’s story has ended…
Naruto: But there’s still more ahead of that.
Luffy: I’m still going to adventure!
Naruto: Hahaha! I bet!
Naruto: You’re a straight-forward guy about your dreams…
Naruto: So make them come true, Luffy.
Luffy: Of course!
Luffy: I’m the man who’s going to become the king of pirates!
Naruto: …Yeah! OK, I’m going to go on ahead!
Luffy: Yeah! See you later, Menma- (bamboo shoots)
Naruto: I told you, it’s Naruto! Believe it!

Naruto is ending in Shonen Jump after 15 years of serialization, two main television anime series, a spin-off television series, and a multitude of movies. The film advertised as the final installment, The Last -Naruto the Movie-, will open in Japanese theaters on December 6.

Thanks to Nekorin for the comic strip tip!

[Via Hachima Kikō]

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Origin: One Piece manga sends off Naruto with a classy secret message
Copyright© RocketNews24 / SOCIO CORPORATION. All rights reserved.

This week’s 50th issue of Shueisha‘s Shonen Jump magazine is set to be a legendary issue, as it houses the final two chapters of Masashi Kishimoto‘s Naruto manga. Along with Eiichiro Oda‘s hidden message in the title page of his One Piece manga, all of the manga creators featured in the issue wrote messages in the author’s comments section:

• Yusei Matsui (Ansatsu Kyōshitsu) – It’s an honor to be present to witness the last set of such large footprints. Kishimoto-sensei, really, you’ve done a great job!
• Yūdai Kimura (GARDEN one-shot) – It’s an honor to have my work be published in such a celebrated issue. I’m waiting for comments on my work.
• Eiichiro Oda (One Piece) – Sometimes a friend, sometimes a rival. I’m so grateful to the strength in my heart I was given for serializing together for 15 years!! Kishimoto-san, good job after working so long!!”
• Kōhei Horikoshi (Boku no Hero Academia) – Naruto is my youth itself. Thank you so much for creating the best shonen manga!
• Yūto Tsukuda, Shun Saeki (Food Wars: Shokugeki no Soma) – The manga I encountered in my middle school days is finally…! Kishimoto-sensei, good job after working so long! (Saeki: Completely agreed!)
• Kawada (Hinomaru Zumō) – I read [Naruto] since I was a student. It was my item of admiration. Kishimoto-sensei, good job after working so long!
• Hideaki Sorachi (Gintama) – The exit of the shinobi was truly elegant like the wind. Kishimoto-sensei, I’m saying goodbye to Naruto. Believe it.
• Shūichi Asō (Saiki Kusuo no Psi Nan) – This week’s author’s comments section seems like it’s going to be crazy. (laughs) Kishimoto-sensei, good job after so long!
• Haruichi Furudate (Haikyu!!) – It was an honor to collaborate at the Anime Festa. Naruto‘s coolness is my admiration!
• Mitsutoshi Shimabukuro (Toriko) – Whoa! Kishimoto-san, really, congratulations on finishing up these 15 years! Thank you for Naruto!
• Naoshi Komi (Nisekoi) – I’m very happy to have been present for the end of a legendary serialization. Really, good work on finishing after so long!
• Daisuke Ashihara (World Trigger) – A piece of history from Jump has ended. Kishimoto-sensei, good job on your giant serialization of 15 years.
• Shinsuke Kondō (Judos) – I respect the work that became the bridge for Jump for the past 15 years from the bottom of my heart. Kishimoto-sensei, good work for so long!
• Ippei Gotō (Hi-Fi Cluster) – Kishimoto-sensei, good job finishing after working so long. It’s an honor to share the same pages of this celebrated issue.
• Ryō Nakama (Isobe Isobee Monogatari ~Ukiyo wa Tsurai yo~) – I think the young manga creators are currently passionate in trying to succeedNaruto. I’ll do my best as well.
  Tite Kubo (Bleach) – Kishimoto-san, good work afer so long! I think you’ll still be busy after finishing, but at least take a little rest!
• Osamu Akimoto (Kochira Katsushika-ku Kamearikouen-mae Hashutsujo) – Kishimoto-san, good work on a long, 15-year serialization. I’ll be waiting for you to return with your new work.
• Yūto Kubota (Sporting Salt) – Kishimoto-sensei, good work for so long! I’ve been reading the manga since I was a child. I love Rock Lee.
• Yousaku Shibata (Yoakemono) – Kishimoto-sensei, good work finishing after so long! I’m going to go on a training journey and come back when I’m more skilled! Thank you!

Kishimoto also left a message of his own:

I feel both happy and sad reaching my final chapter. It’s a difficult feeling. Even so, I can say this: My thanks to all the readers. Thank you so much for reading until the end. Thanks for so long, and good work. Believe it!!

A Chinese fan also posted a humorous comic about the send-off:

The text reads:

• Completed works (with Naruto, Bakuman., YuYu Hakusho, Slam Dunk, Saint Seiya, Dragon Ball, Rurouni Kenshin)
• Currently serializing (with Bleach, One Piece, Gintama)
• On hiatus (with Hunter × Hunter)

Naruto is ending in Shonen Jump after 15 years of serialization, two main television anime series, a spin-off television series, and a multitude of movies. The film advertised as the final installment, The Last -Naruto the Movie-, will open in Japanese theaters on December 6.

[Comic via Hunter x Hunter Fan fiction]

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Origin: Shonen Jump manga creators also send off Naruto with comments
Copyright© RocketNews24 / SOCIO CORPORATION. All rights reserved.

Even if you’re not an anime fan, you’ve no doubt heard that the hugely popular ninja series Naruto has finally reached its climax after more than 15 years. It’s never fun when a beloved show or serial comes to an end, and fans are often left searching for something new to fill the void in their lives that opens up when they do, but when you have a back-catalogue as rich and extensive as Naruto‘s, revisiting older instalments is sure to provide hours, if not weeks of pleasure.

Which, it seems, it precisely what Naruto‘s publisher is hoping both diehard fans and latecomers alike will do next, and is providing them with free issues of the manga and anime episodes direct to their smartphones via a brand new app for iOS and Android.

Already up on Google Play and iTunes, publisher Shueisha’s Naruto Muryou Manga Rensai & Anime Housou Koushiki Apuri (Naruto Free Manga Serial & Anime Broadcasting Official App) promises to deliver free episodes of the original 220-episode anime series every Monday and Thursday direct to users’ phones and tablets, allowing them to go right back to the show’s humble beginnings and experience it all over again. Between broadcasts, users can also download one free issue of the manga series per day as well as receive a bevy of Naruto-related news and offers for (paid) content, so there really is no reason why the ninja fun has to end just yet.

Sadly, the application currently appears to be available in Japan only, so short of sending Shueisha thousands of letters begging for a localised version (or perhaps accessing the store via VPN?), fans outside of Japan will have to make do with their existing collection.

For those of you who are able to get at it, the application is currently available to download for free via iTunes and Google Play. If you do download it, be sure to let us know what you think in the comments section below!

Source: Kinisoku
Screenshots via Google Play

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Origin: Japanese Naruto fans to get every episode, issue for free via new iPhone/Android app
Copyright© RocketNews24 / SOCIO CORPORATION. All rights reserved.

Very few Japanese homes have installed carpeting. Older houses and apartments often have tatami reed mats, and in newer places you’ll usually find tile, wood, or rubberized flooring.

That’s not to say people in Japan can’t appreciate a nice bit of soft fuzziness between their toes, though. Even without permanent carpeting, many people will toss a carpeted mat on the floor to make their living or bedroom extra comfy, especially during the colder part of the year.

Of course, cold weather also means spending more time indoors, with extra time on your hands, and sometimes that patch of carpeting becomes a canvas for some seriously cool fan art.

There are a couple of advantages to working in this unusual medium. Since all you’re doing is using your fingers to make rows of fibers stand up and form lines, there’s no need for a pen or brush. Likewise, you won’t need to use an eraser or start over if you screw up, since you can just brush the carpet back the other way to quickly undo as little or as much as you want.

Given Japan’s deep love of animation and video games, it’s no surprise that those two fields provide plenty of inspiration for carpet fan art.

▼ Would Pikachu generate enough electricity to power an electric heated carpet?

弟がカーペットに描いたピカチュウ！ http://t.co/peFfPyGge9

—
むしとり (@0611AmiGo) January 22, 2014

▼ With the Naruto manga now over, can we expect a carpet comic spinoff starring Kakashi?

カーペット的なやつで描いたら こうなった http://t.co/xsB1mn4sO6

—
たそがれ (@green8773) January 01, 2014

▼ Like something out of an Escher painting, here’s Nintendo’s Kirby, rendered on a 2-D carpet jumping out of the 3-D enhanced 2-D screen of the 3DS.

カービィをカーペットで描いてみました。 http://t.co/NA0kD6bu29

—
柚木水 (@0604kisui) November 05, 2013

▼ One impressive rendering of One Piece’s one and only Luffy

モンキー・D・ルフィ カーペットで描いてみた http://t.co/KyjRhGKMfF

—
タイムマシン (@koonico) August 27, 2013

We’re not trying to imply that everyone who listens to Hatsune Miku is a shut-in, and we’re actually fans ourselves. Still, there do seem to be a lot of people kicking it at home and carpet doodling her.

カーペットに絵かきだした http://t.co/002YqAgoYe

—
μ鼠@猿 (@oT_souna_To) March 28, 2014

カーペット新しくなって嬉しいからカーペットにミク描いてみた http://t.co/SXWC79z4yU

—
ぼんうぃ@チャアク勢 (@bonwish) December 01, 2013

カーペットのやつに 絵を描いてみた_(:3 」∠)_ http://t.co/YcuA2h9YPi

—
とらぴ (@NekoLuv_1101) December 30, 2013

It’s not just the homegrown heroes who’re showing up in rugs across Japan, though. For example, Winnie the Pooh is pretty easy to draw, but definitely cute and just the sort of character who makes sense for a soft, fluffy mat.

本間家のカーペットにプーさん描いた。まじでこれは傑作だから。 http://t.co/esEGG2yl53

—
すずき (@prc_fxxker) July 25, 2013

▼ The absorbency of the fibers will come in handy if Donald launches into one of his spittle-spewing temper tantrums.

暇過ぎてカーペットにドナルド描いたw http://t.co/4khSVJYdim

—
かつや (@katsuyaXmas) April 09, 2014

▼ In contrast to Disney’s biggest hot head, here’re living snowman Olaf and ice queen Elsa.

うちの新しいカーペットの繊維で お絵描き笑 http://t.co/widYcCnwcR

—
はるな (@HaruEay0201) November 09, 2014

Some people eventually outgrow their love of video games and cartoons, though. Many cast off those hobbies when they hit puberty, which also happens to be when they start to notice the opposite sex.

▼ Between the bikini girl, airsoft gun, and dumbbell, all this room needs is a barbeque and a set of hammers or wrenches to complete its macho bingo card.

あまりにも暇すぎて カーペットの毛の向き変えて 水着美女のシルエットを 浮かび上がらせてしまった http://t.co/rDfqJ5z8ls

—
ｶﾑﾊﾟﾈﾙﾗ (@Daiking_G) November 09, 2014

Still, ask yourself which you’d rather walk into someone’s room to find: an insight into their love of sexy ladies, or a window into the latent violence of their punch-filled psyche?

▼ Sure, getting hit by a single carpet fist probably wouldn’t hurt very much, but this many times?

とまぴがカーペットで描いたパンチ今更やけど載せますよ(^O^)笑 http://t.co/IKU4Z5ZUkm

—
土井 英一 (@24aaaichi) August 30, 2013

We can’t help but think that something else, like this elegant dandelion, would be a more soothing site to have greeting you every time you look down.

カーペットにお絵描き〜♪るん タンポポ〜(=^x^=)♡w http://t.co/GvkjZD79cB

—
ありぞー (@l_v_lo) October 19, 2013

Of course, as with any project, the more time you spend on your carpet art, the better the result you can expect. Maybe that’s why one Twitter user who was stuck resting at home with a fever managed to create this impressive piece.

熱で寝込んでますが、最近新しくなったカーペットがもふもふで超気持ちいいです！ もふもふなんでお絵描きできます！ http://t.co/APmAKvfExW

—
shun@APOCALYPSE (@shunskpir0pir0) October 23, 2014

That’s the kanji for netsu. What’s it mean? Fever.

Apparently the old piece of advice, “Write what you know,” doesn’t just work for books and movies, but calligraphy too.

Source; Naver Matome
Top image: Twitter (1, 2)

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Origin: Fans on the floor create awesome anime and Disney carpet art in Japan【Photos】
Copyright© RocketNews24 / SOCIO CORPORATION. All rights reserved.

If you’re a gamer who’s too young to remember when Sega made consoles or having six buttons on a controller was a big deal, you might look back on 8-bit video game artwork and chuckle. With everything made out of blocky pixels, it’s impossible to create the sort of fine details that modern hardware easily renders to differentiate one character from another, isn’t it?

Maybe not, as one fan has put his old-school pixel art skills to use to recreate 50 different famous manga heroes, all in the style of the original Mega Man.

It’s a little odd that a Twitter user with the screen name Namcophillia, which would mean “the love of Namco,” didn’t use one of the many classic characters under the Bandai Namco umbrella as his muse. Instead, he used Capcom’s Blue Bomber, Mega Man, as the model for his collection of decades worth of manga stars.

大作完成 #ジャンプ http://t.co/Udm8i8pxXd

—
ナムコフィリア＠超人凶器 (@NAMCOPHILIA) November 14, 2014

Older characters are clustered at the top, with more recent favorites popping up the further down you go. Let’s see how many we can identify from the 50-strong roster.

Along the top row of our first block, we’ve got Kochi Kame’s gruff but loveable Ryo, space adventurer Cobra, and fin-headed wrestler Kinniku Man. Below them are three more perennial favorites, Arale from Dr. Slump (Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama’s first big hit), soccer sensation Captain Tsubasa, and man-of-few-words-and-many-head-exploding-punches Kenshiro, star of Fist of the North Star.

▼ Kenshiro isn’t quite as cute in his original form.

Dragon Ball Z’s Goku is unmistakable in his Super Saiyan form, and Pegasus Seiya at the top right also stands out in this block. Of course, it’s always easy to pick the flamboyant Jotaro Kujo out of a crowd, even if he isn’t presently engaged in one of his bizzare adventures, and that blond, shirtless individual at the bottom right must be the star of Jungle King Tar-chan.

▼ Like Kenshiro, Jotaro is a little more chiseled in his normal appearance.

Magical Taruruto-kun’s dual-pointed hood is a dead give away, as is the armor of Dragon Quests’s Dai and the fiery red hair of Slam Dunk’s Hanamichi Sakuragi, who apparently got Mega Man-ized sometime after the point in the manga where he ditches his pompadour for a close-cropped style (but before he got his own custom Nikes). In the bottom right corner, we almost missed the star of Hell Teacher Nube, but his cowlick and cursed left hand blew his cover.

Moving on to characters from after anime and manga established a foothold overseas, the characters become even more recognizable. Reformed swordsman Himura Kenshin, Hoshin Engi’s Konron are standing in the top row, with One Piece’s Luffy and Hunter X Hunter’s Gon along the bottom, plus the prince of tennis himself, Ryoma Echizen, and recently retired Naruto.

▼ What kind of pension package do ninjas get?

Finally, our very last batch features supernatural swordfighter extraordinaire Ichigo Kurosaki from Bleach and all-star tailback Senna Kobayakawa from Eyeshield 21 along the upper edge. Lined up beneath them are Gin Tama’s crafty Gintoki, To Love-Ru’s devil-like alien Lala, adventuring gourmand Toriko, basketball player Kuroko, and, perhaps the easiest character to identify in the whole set, Assassination Classroom’s Koro-sensei.

▼ Sena Kobayawaka, who combines the hairstyle of Astro Boy with the running style of LaDanian Tomlinson

As awesome as Namcophilia’s artwork is, though, we can’t help but feel a little irked that our only perfect section came on the very last line of five characters. If you beat our score of 27, give yourself a pat on the back, and if you’ll excuse us, we have some research/manga-binging to attend to.

Source: IT Media
Top image: Twitter
Insert images: Comic Vine, Anime Vice, Tatsumon, Dengenki Online, Wikipedia

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Origin: Talented fan artist reimagines 50 famous manga heroes as 8-bit Mega Man characters
Copyright© RocketNews24 / SOCIO CORPORATION. All rights reserved.

November 10, 2014 went down as one of the darkest days in manga fandom history as popular manga Naruto finally came to an end. The manga has brought joy and tears to fans over the past 15 years, so to send off the series and express gratitude to its creator, Masashi Kishimoto, fans around the world have taken to the internet with messages of thanks and fan art. And among them is a series of renditions of Naruto characters so beautiful and realistically portrayed that we almost had to get out our box of tissues again.

Drawn by Canada-based artist ‘Sakimi chan’, who is best known for her gender-bending Disney character portraits, these re-imaginings of the cast of Naruto are unlike any we’ve ever seen before.

As you might expect, Netizens had nothing but praise for the talented artist:

“Kyaa!! This is super perfection!”

“Unbelievable!”

“The lips are so sexy!”

“This is a blessing!”

Sakimi chan’s paintings not only capture the power and charisma of each of the manga and anime’s characters, but also bring forth their most refined and beautiful sides. This is indeed fan art in its finest form.

The artist has also shared her artistic process with the world via an equally fantastic video detailing how she drew Hinata. From the basic sketches to the finishing touches, the video is not only amazing, but also shows us the amount of time and energy that go into such mastery.

If you want to support Sakimi chan in her art, be sure to check out her profile on crowdfunding platform ‘Patreon’ so that she can produce more beautiful illustrations. Once she reaches her target, she will begin giving workshops on illustration too! We can’t wait.
[ Read in Japanese ]

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Origin: Canada-based artist stuns with new realistic take on Naruto characters
Copyright© RocketNews24 / SOCIO CORPORATION. All rights reserved.

The Meitetsu Department Store in Nagoya, Japan has a distinctive mannequin outside its men’s department. Nana-chan is a popular meeting spot because she’s easy to spot in the shopping district — she’s 20 feet tall. The staff change her outfits monthly, but recently she’s wearing an orange jumpsuit that fans of a certain ninja will recognize.

変化完了！11月25日（火）まで変化してるので、名古屋にお越しの際は、名鉄百貨店メンズ館前ナナちゃん人形を見に来てください！中部地区N http://t.co/ERkxFtWFdJ

—
劇場版NARUTO-ナルト-【公式】 (@naruto_movie) November 18, 2014

Until November 25, visitors can see Nana-chan dressed as Naruto Uzumaki to promote the The Last -Naruto the Movie- film before it opens in theaters on December 6. Nana-chan is fully dressed now, but you can imagine getting a 20-foot tall immovable woman ready in the morning is difficult.

[Via Nijimen]

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Origin: Nagoya store’s lanky mannequin gets Naruto makeover
Copyright© RocketNews24 / SOCIO CORPORATION. All rights reserved.

The serialized nature of manga means booming success can really sneak up on artists and publishers alike. When Masashi Kishimoto turned in his pages for the very first chapter of his new series Naruto back in 1999, he probably didn’t know he was about to create one of the most popular manga ever, but that’s exactly what he did.

Kishimoto didn’t just earn himself 15 solid years of steady work, though, but also the continual march of tight deadlines that come with writing and drawing a hit manga. Despite being one of the biggest names in the industry, Kishimoto had only found time to give one TV interview during Naruto’s serialization, but now that the series has finally come to a close, he’s appeared before the camera again, in a special interview held in the studio where he put pen to paper and brought one of Japan’s most beloved comics to life.

Fuji TV’s Mezamashi TV morning talk show recently sent on-air personality and idol singer Rina Ikoma to visit Kishimoto’s studio.

The good-natured and gallant manga artist gave her a warm greeting, and even offered her a handful of tissues when Ikoma, who’s previously dabbled in Naruto cosplay, teared up from the emotion caused be where she was and who she was talking with.

▼ Kishimoto

In contrast to the colorful and energetic art that characterizes his series, Kishimoto’s workspace is well-organized and sparsely furnished. There aren’t any racks of ninja uniforms or shuriken sticking out of the walls, and the only glaring anime accent is the glaring statue of Dragon Ball Z’s Frieza standing watch over Kishimoto’s personal desk.

Frieza’s reputed managerial skills notwithstanding, the entire comic wasn’t produced under his watchful eye, though. Kishimoto admits with a laugh the he received the statue as a gift, and specifically set it out after Mezamashi TV said they’d be coming for an interview, since the studio doesn’t really have any permanent interior installments with much dramatic impact. We’re sure his team of assistants appreciate their spacious desks and comfy chairs more than decorations with visual flair, anyway.

Aside from the neatly arranged art supplies, another tip-off that this is a manga studio is the large stack of Naruto collected volumes on Kishimoto’s desk. They aren’t there so he can smugly look over his past successes, though, but as reference materials. “Sometimes, I don’t remember certain characters or their exact designs so well,” he admits, shedding light on one of the difficulties of a 700-chapter epic. As a matter of fact, the series became so long that this analogue search method wasn’t always the most efficient, as Kishimoto comments it’s actually faster to just look up the information he needs on the Internet.

▼ We’re here if you need us, Mr. Kishimoto!

Speaking of character designs, during the interview Kishimoto lets viewers in on a little secret. The manga original had been running for about three years when the Naruto anime started. Wanting to make the manga as accessible as possible for fans who say the anime version first, and also vice-versa, Kishimoto made a conscious effort to shift his drawing style so that his art more closely resembled that of the anime series after its premiere in 2002.

The artist also opens up about his love life. When asked if any of his personal experiences influenced scenes in the upcoming The Final -Naruto the Movie- theatrical feature, Kishimoto recalls the staff talking about the believability of a scene where a girl knits a muffler for the titular ninja. “’Do girls still do that in this day and age?’ someone asked, and I said, ‘Actually, my wife made a scarf for me…’ The room got really quiet after that.”

Finally, Ikoma asks about the decision to give Naruto, a Japanese ninja, blond hair. “The original world view of the manga was ‘Japan as seen by other countries,’” Kishimoto explains. Not being bound by reality, he “wanted to do something unusual, that would stand out and make people take notice.”

With 200 million copies of Naruto sold around the world so far, we’d say he succeeded.

Source: Livedoor
Images: YouTube

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Origin: Where the ninja magic happens – Naruto creator gives interview, peek into his manga studio
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Talented digital artist Sakimichan is back with more gorgeous fanart! You may remember her for her other incredible Naruto fanarts or her gender-bent Disney portraits. Here we’ve got three more new portraits of Naruto characters done in her distinctive style, as well as timelapse videos showing exactly how she creates her masterpieces.

In this time lapse video you get to see Sakimi chan actually creating her sexy female Naruto piece. Apparently the original filming duration is 3 hours which is actually far less time than I would have imagined these beautiful and detailed pieces took to create.

It’s fascinating to watch an artist at work, seeing them redoing bits again and again to arrive at the vision they have in their head, especially in a sped-up video where you can see everything coming together fairly quickly. Watch in awe as she coaxes the face to life, along with female Naruto’s… other noticeable features. Another surprise was how few layers she seems to work on in Photoshop, speaking as someone who obsessively creates new layers for every single little change even when doing something as mundane as adding a caption to an image.

▼ The final Sexy Naruto piece, based on his ‘sexy no jutsu’, a ninja technique where he transforms into a naked lady to distract his opponent.

▼ Ino Yamanaka, of Team 10.

▼ Itachi Uchiha, everyone’s favorite emo older brother.

If you’re impressed by Sakimichan’s work and want to see more, you can support her here on Patreon, where she offers bonuses to patrons such as exclusive access to doodles and works in progress.

Source: news.gamme.com
Sakimichan: Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook, Deviantart

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Origin: Ridiculously talented artist shares timelapse videos of sexy new Naruto fanart
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