After 15 years of serialization, Naruto has finally come to an end, another Shonen Jump juggernaut has closed it's pages for good following the likes of Dragonball, Yu Yu Hakusho, Death Note and Rurouni Kenshin into the archives of history. This entry dives into how the Orange Ninja ended his story and what kind of legacy we can expect.
Sequel Confirmed
Literally hours ago, a news report doing the rounds is that Shippuden will get a sequel, in what form this takes is anyone's guess but may relate to the events between the last two chapters or like Dragonball GT, follow a new story which may or may not be canon.
How Did It End?
Spoilers, if you don't want to know then skip to the next paragraph.
After a grueling battle between leads Naruto and Sasuke, the battle ends in a draw leaving both combatants missing an arm; after the war ends, Kakashi becomes 6th Hokage and Sasuke is spared a death sentence but then he goes off traveling in which Naruto says his goodbyes. Final chapter takes place 15 years later as we see the young ninjas grown up as Hinata is now married to Naruto with two kids while Sakura married Sasuke and has one kid, (I can already hear one half of the fanbase squeeing while the other half are crying) but the major event is that Naruto is now the 7th Hokage and the series comes full circle as Naruto's son paints graffiti on his father's head statue much like Naruto himself did in the very first chapter to the 3rd Hokage and to be honest, I wouldn't have ended it any other way
Is The Ending Satisfying?
It ended at the right time, popularity was starting to drop as the final battles were getting harder and harder to follow and eventually it would've been a choice between "Bleach style make up random crap" or "Dragonball GT bow out while you still have same dignity left", as for how it ended, this is probably how most people would've predicted it. I have been critical of some of Naruto's shortcomings such as it's reliance on fillers to pad the universe, the constant emo motives shoved down your throat, making the most predictable plot twists, resorting to gods and other worldly powers overshadowing the ninja parts of a "ninja" anime; But despite all it's issues, the ending reminded us why we enjoyed Naruto in the first place and I'm going to miss it.
What Now For Shonen Jump?
What came as unexpected was that Naruto was the first of the big three to finish when many predicted it would be the last or at least the second. Equally Bleach has been looking at finishing for a while and will probably follow Naruto out next year, leaving only One Piece still going, so who could succeed Naruto?
Well three titles are lined up for 2015 Shonen Jump, two of which are debuts greenlit from successful one shots.
Takujo no Ageha
By Furuya Itsuki, described as a hi-tension ping pong manga.
E-Robot
By Ryōhei Yamamoto, about a sexy and powerful robot girl.
Gakkyuu Houtei (School Investigation Court)
By Takeshi Obata of Death Note fame and Enoki Nobuaki, which looks like Shonen Jump's answer to Phoenix Wright.
Failing that, Toriko has gained enough popularity to sit amongst the best and will likely stay there for a good couple of years.
How Does It Rank Amongst Other Long Running Manga?
Not very high, at time of writing it's only the 36th longest running manga and since it's ended it will likely drop, even One Piece is only 27th. Kochikame is still the longest running manga of all time being active and still going for 38 years of who ironically is a Shonen Jump title, against Japan's regular manga that have been running longer than I've been alive? Doesn't even compare; but Naruto is still popular and will likely get a worthwhile legacy especially over in the west where the headbands and kunai will keep flying for years to come, so it's time we say thanks to 15 years of Naruto and to play us out, Naruto's 1st opening.
