Naruto’s Creator Really Wanted to Kill More Characters in Boruto

Naruto creator Masashi Kishimoto has created more heroes than fans can count at this point. From the stars of Team 7 to the Kages and even the Akatsuki, we have met tons of characters in the Naruto Universe. When the world was introduced to its sequel, Boruto was quick to add even more fighters to the franchise, and co-creator Mikio Ikemoto has kept them in line. But according to a recent interview, Kishimoto wanted to kill off way more characters in Boruto than we could have guessed.

The truth was shared as Kishimoto and Ikemoto visited France together for a series of fan events. During one such interview, it was there Kishimoto laid out how Boruto is crafted. Kishimoto says he handles the overarching story and character arcs while Ikemoto fine tunes the tale and does the art. But as the sequel came together, Ikemoto had to talk Kishimoto off a cliff when it came to killing off characters.

According to Kishimoto, Ikemoto negotiated a number of changes to Naruto. It turns out Ikemoto brought characters like Eida and Daemon to life as Kishimoto did not think up the Kara members to start. And as Ikemoto put it, he also suggested changes that ended up keeping characters alive.

As the interview continued, Kishimoto and Ikemoto talked about the discussions they had about Code. The pair were in agreement that the character needed to die, but as the sequel progressed, they couldn’t find a place to kill him off early on. As such, Code developed into a bigger antagonist, and the disagreement between Kishimoto and Ikemoto has happened before. The two rarely agree on which characters need to be killed, but they work it all out in the end.

Naruto Is Many Things But Not Scared of Death

Naruto did kill off a number of characters during its run, so Kishimoto is not afraid to part with faves. From Jiraiya to Itachi and Neji, the shonen series did it all, and Boruto has gone on to have a few losses of its own. Still, the sequel has been softer with its kills than we saw with its predecessor. So as Naruto continues, don’t be surprised if more funerals are laid out for its heroes.

Want to know more about Naruto and its sequel? You can find everything Naruto-related over on Viz Media’s Shonen Jump app. Currently, Boruto: Two Blue Vortex is carrying the franchise as the sequel continues the story of Boruto: Naruto Next Generations. And if the anime is more your pace, you can find Naruto streaming everywhere from Crunchyroll to Hulu to Tubi. 

What do you think about this latest Naruto breakdown? Give me a shout at @meganwpeters with your take! You can also let us know what you think over on Twitter and Instagram.