‘Boruto’ Illustrator Reveals How the Manga, Anime Connect

Boruto: Naruto Next Generations fans have been able to experience the series in two distinct ways. Unlike other anime, the manga often goes in a much different direction than the series it inspired.

But how do the two connect? In a recent interview with Planet Manga, illustrator Mikio Ikemoto explained that the manga and anime have parallel stories that intersect at certain points. Meaning they’re both very important.

Speaking with Mikio Ikemoto, his editor Mr. Taguchi, and Weekly Shonen Jump Editor-in-Chief Hiroyuki Nakano (via translations on Reddit), the interview revealed that the manga and anime series are intentionally being told in two different ways in order to keep the anime from passing up the manga like with its predecessor series. The two are being developed autonomously, with the anime version of the series having plot points parallel to the manga. There’s a plan to have the two intersect at a certain point, but there was no clear answer as to when.

Anime adaptations usually follow the plot of the manga, and many long-running series often run into the problem of catching up to where the manga is and potentially overtaking it. This leads some productions to create brand new stories not seen in the original manga in order to avoid this. Fans have dubbed these episodes as “filler,” and that was a major criticism fans had of the original Naruto series.

The three confirmed that the anime will not skip plot points found in the manga (which was recently seen in the major Chunin Exams arc), and although it’s not stated outright, this does imply that the anime series is indeed in the same canon as the manga run. With the manga’s monthly release schedule, this is good news for fans of the series but it does not save Boruto: Naruto Next Generations from its own adaptation faults either.

It may not technically be filler, but the current Mitsuki Disappearance arc has drawn major ire of fans of the series. It’s a story not seen in the manga, so fans have debated over whether or not it has been successful. Though now that it’s been confirmed that the two versions of the stories are made with parallel stories in mind, fans can hope more of the manga’s story elements will show up soon.

Originally created by Masashi Kishimoto, Naruto ran in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump for 700 chapters. The story follows a young ninja, with a sealed demon within him, that wishes to become the leader of his home village. The sequel, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations is set several years after the events of the original Naruto story and features the children of many of its key characters such as Naruto and Hinata.

via Planet Manga