Ninja father steps into the spotlight for special Shonen Jump anniversary issue.

Two months ago, publisher Shueisha announced the results of a massive popularity poll for the Naruto manga/anime franchise. When the roughly 4.6 million votes were tallied, titular shinobi protagonist Naruto Uzumaki finished in sixth place. His rival Sasuka Uchiha wasn’t at the top either, but two spots further down the list, at number eight.

No, at the very top of the ranking was Minato Namikaze, a.k.a. Naruto’s dad. Strong and determined, but also calm and collected, Minato is, fittingly, a more experienced and mature version of his son, and now Naruto creator Masashi Kishimoto is drawing a new manga with Minato as the star.

Titled Naruto Gaiden-Uzu no Naka no Tsumuji Kaze (“Naruto Gaiden-Whirlwind in the Whirlpool”), the Minato-centered manga will appear in the upcoming Issue 33 of Weekly Shonen Jump as part of the 55th anniversary of the publishing of the magazine’s first-ever issue. Though a one-shot story, Naruto Gaiden-Uzu no Naka no Tsumuji Kaze will be 55 pages long, roughly twice the length of an ordinary Weekly Shonen Jump chapter, and will include a number of color pages, which are generally reserved for only the most highly anticipated series within the predominantly black-and-white manga publishing world. The only plot point that’s been teased is “Minato develops a new type of ninjutsu!?”

Kishimoto ended the Naruto manga series in 2014, and is now the writer, but not the artist, for follow-up manga Boruto (which focuses on Naruto’s son). For the Minato manga, though, Kishimoto is once again both writing the story and drawing the artwork, so it’s sure to be a treat for fans when its issue of Weekly Shonen Jump goes on sale July 18.

Source: Naruto official website via Game Watch via Jin
Top image: Naruto official website
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