Naruto Reveals How the Rasengan Got Its Name
Naruto has returned to the pages of Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump magazine after many years with a new story all about Minato Namikaze, and the new one-shot manga has revealed how the Rasengan jutsu first got its name! As part of the celebration for the Naruto anime's 20th Anniversary, original Naruto series creator Masashi Kishimoto has released a special new manga one-shot all about Minato after fans around the world voted him as their favorite character in the series overall. Now that this new story has made its debut, fans have gotten an intimate new look at Minato's past after all this time.
Naruto: The Whorl Within the Spiral is a special new one-shot manga series showcasing a piece of Minato and Kushina Uzumaki's past before Naruto Uzumaki came into the picture, and it actually showcases how the Rasengan jutsu was developed in the first place. Inspired by the Bijuu bombs from a recent fight against the Jinchuriki, Minato develops this new swirling technique but ends up coming up with a terrible name for it. It's here that Kushina helps Minato figure out the true name for this technique moving forward, and ultimately inspires Rasengan's name.
Naruto: How the Rasengan Got Its Name Explained
Naruto: The Whorl Within the Spiral dives into the Uzumaki's plans and explains that their logo is not really a spiral, but instead is a Rasen, a helix. While the Uzumaki spiral itself remains flat and unchanging the helix is three dimensional as Kushina's grandmother explains that one could rise up within it and form the helix should the person have the will to climb. Kushina carries this lesson with her through her life, and after being saved by Minato when he uses this technique, Minato tells her his terrible idea to name the new jutsu the "Ice Pop Inspired Nimbus Jiraiya Twin Whorl Sphere."
As Kushina learns that Minato developed this jutsu for Kushina's protection specifically, and was inspired by her in crafting it, Kushina takes Minato to the same staircase where her grandmother once told her about the Rasen. She's then inspired to call this new jutsu the Rasengan, and Minato loves it so much he decides to go with this name for it. Now this part of Naruto's history has been filled in with one of its most emotional stories yet!
What do you think of the way Rasengan got its name in Naruto? Let us know all of your thoughts about it in the comments! You can even reach out to me directly about all things animation and other cool stuff @Valdezology on Twitter!