Is This What an Adult Naruto Should've Looked Like?

Of the many debates that have hounded Boruto: Naruto Next Generations in its initial run, the look [...]

By Kofi Outlaw

Of the many debates that have hounded Boruto: Naruto Next Generations in its initial run, the look of the adult version of Naruto Uzumaki has been a big one. A lot of Naruto and Naruto: Shippudenfans have been (overly?) critical of the character design for adult Naruto - and fans on Reddit clearly have a different look to the character they love:

Adult Naruto Shippuden 155 Ninja Dream Sequence

The image above is from "The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi", the novel Jiraiya wrote, and which inspired Minato Namikaze to give his son with Kushina Uzumaki the name "Naruto," who is the hero of the novel (and an avatar for Jiraiya himself). In episode 155 of Naruto: Shippuden, "The First Challenge", Naruto is given a copy of "The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi" by Jiraiya's senjutsu teacher, Fukasaku the elder toad, who is also training Naruto. When Naruto reads the novel, and realizes its connection to both Jiraiya and himself, it bonds him closer to his friend and mentor in a very touching moment.

Boruto: Naruto Next Generations took a big risk in advancing the Naruto saga in such a significant way, with no guarantee that fans of the franchise would connect with this new era of the characters and storyline. While the series seems to be hitting its stride now, many fans who have been with the Naruto franchise throughout Shippuden still think Naruto as the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi is the true portent of what the character should be. Not just the look, but also the heroically commanding voice - which a lot of fans mention as being much more heroic than the more nasally coarse voice that comes with Boruto's version of adult Naruto.

Of course, right about now its hard to criticize Mr. Uzumaki too much: the latest episode of Boruto saw Naruto make a major sacrifice in order to save his son and the rest of the Hidden Leaf and its guests for the Chunin Exams. In a nostalgic throwback moment, Naruto unleashed Nine-Tails for a full on blockage of the deadly energy blast from Momoshiki Otsutsuki. The resulting explosion seemed to consume Naruto, leaving Boruto screaming in horror.

SPOILERS FOLLOW!!!!

Episode leaks have already revealed that Naruto isn't dead, but was instead captured by the Otsutsuki clan, leaving his fellow Hidden Leaf Shinobi the (led by Sasuke) the challenge of mounting a rescue. Meanwhile, Nartuo will have to endure some torturous techniques, as Momoshiki attempts to extract Nine-Tails' chakra from Naruto's body.

Boruto: Naruto Next Generations airs new episodes weekly on streaming sites like Crunchyroll and Hulu.

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