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Bangkok Post
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Bangkok Post
The ninja way
Written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto, the Japanese manga Naruto has been popular since it was first published in Weekly Shonen Jump in September 1999. The manga follows the story of orphan boy Naruto Uzumaki who overcomes deadly battles with rivals and confronts his past to become Hokage (chief) of Konoha no Sato (Hidden Leaf Village). The manga kicks off with an attack on Hidden Leaf Village by Kurama, a deadly powerful nine-tailed fox. To protect the village, Naruto's parents Kushina Uzumaki and Minato Namikaze sacrifice themselves and decide to seal Kurama inside Naruto (their newborn baby) and he becomes the host of Kurama. Since Naruto is the host of the beast, villagers despise and fear him. Naruto grows up alone with no parents and friends. To gain attention from others, he becomes a troublemaker. However, despite causing trouble, Naruto's goal is to become Hokage so he can be accepted and gain the respect of others. To pursue his dream, Naruto attends a ninja academy where he is grouped into Team 7, which includes teacher Kakashi Hatake and teammates Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchiha (Naruto's best friend and only survivor of the Uchiha clan massacre). Naruto takes readers and viewers through Team 7's training, dangerous missions and adventures. As a ninja student, Naruto learns the meaning of friendship, team work and perseverance. The manga is a story of self-growth and self-discovery of a boy from a nobody to a great leader. Naruto's popularity extends beyond Japan, with a total global circulation of over 250 million copies and distribution in more than 60 countries and regions (sales outside Japan exceeded 100 million). Although the last episode of Naruto released in 2014 and the animation series ended in 2017, Naruto's popularity has never faded. Toby Lu, director of sales and marketing at River City Bangkok, who is also a fan of Naruto said that the character inspired him. "I watched Naruto when I was in high school. At the time, I was not good at studies. I repeatedly watched Naruto and the story made me realise that I was not a bad person. Naruto is a representation of people who are mediocre or not very talented at first," said Lu. "With determined effort, you can turn your life around. Although you may be a bad kid in everyone's eyes, you still can achieve great things. Throughout the animation, the friendships Naruto makes and love he receives made him a stronger person and that helps viewers feel connected to him." To celebrate Naruto, 54 Entertainment presents "Naruto The Gallery In Bangkok". This exhibition takes fans on a journey of Naruto and Sasuke's intertwined life through seven curated zones. In front of the exhibition are life-sized figurines of Team 7 members -- Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura and Kakashi. Chapter One or the first zone displays signatures from people involved in the Naruto animation, including Tetsuya Nishio, the main character designer, Chie Nakamura, the voice actress for Sakura, and Date Hayato, the animation director. Chapter Two is a cinema room where a two-minute video summarises Naruto's story for viewers who have never read or seen the manga. "Naruto The Gallery In Bangkok" narrates the story of Naruto's journey from beginning to end. Viewers can understand the story through original storyboards, layout models, powerful scenes and pivotal moments from the anime series. Chapter Three introduces Team 7 members and how they work together to pass an exam to become Chunin (an intermediate rank of ninja). The students are challenged to use their leadership skills, strategic thinking and maturity. However, the Chunin exam is interrupted because Orochimaru teams up with Sound Village and Sand Village to invade the Hidden Leaf Village. In this area, there is a white diorama that represents the layout of Hidden Leaf Village with three-dimensional figures. This imported model from Japan depicts venues that viewers will recognise, including the ninja academy, the training area, hero memorials, Konoha hospital and Ichiraku Ramen restaurant. Chapter 4 focuses on Akatsuki -- an organisation with exiled ninjas from many countries. These villains are dangerous criminals since their skills are equal or superior than those of high-ranking ninjas of Hidden Leaf Village. For example, Hidan has the power of immortality obtained by worshipping the God Jashi and the ritual of sucking opponents' blood. Chapter 5 is titled Fourth Great Ninja War. This area of the exhibition is divided into two sections: Naruto and Sasuke. The Fourth Great Ninja War is the climax of the story which unites ninja characters from all over the world to join forces and fight the biggest threat ever. Chapter 6 displays a collection of memorable quotes from the anime. Some of these include: "A guy who cannot even save one friend cannot become Hokage" (by Naruto) and "I admit that I've lost" (by Sasuke). In this zone, two videos also display emotional scenes from the anime. One is when Naruto's parents decide to sacrifice themselves to save the village and the other is a video that reveals the unexpected truth of why Itachi, Sasuke's brother, killed their parents. The Final Chapter, a cinema room, screens the scene in which Naruto fights Sasuke. The scene showcases their complex relationship as friend and foe. The scene also shows how Naruto and Sasuke have different viewpoints. While Naruto believes in peace and understanding, Sasuke believes in changing the world by destroying the old system. Throughout the exhibition, there are exclusive collaborations including five rising stars from the Japanese art scene -- Nina Ai, Kohei Kadowaki, Que, Kosuke Sugimoto and Kohta Morie. Lu believes that both Naruto fans and newcomers will enjoy the exhibition. "People who never watched Naruto can expect to learn how a mediocre person can become successful after working hard, learn how to love and not hate, and give unconditional love to others. Viewers will also get to see interesting and funny plotlines of how a character can become a better person." "Meanwhile, Naruto fans can reconnect with memories of the animation through music and powerful words. Fans who are encountering challenges in life can go back to their childhood and have their spirits lifted." "Naruto The Gallery In Bangkok" runs at RCB Galleria 1-2, 2nd floor of River City Bangkok, until July 31. Tickets cost 450 baht (250 baht for children and seniors aged 60 and above). For more information, visit
Time of India
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Sakura Haruno vs. Usefulness: Still Loading…
Sakura Haruno may be the most 'powerful' character who got outshined by literally everyone else. From yelling 'Sasuke-kun!' to cutting her hair mid-fight like it was a makeover show, her early usefulness was.. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now .well, pending. Sure, she trained under Tsunade and can now punch mountains and heal like a champ, but let's be honest—most fans still remember her for crying and standing in the background while Naruto and Sasuke rewrote ninja history. Is she really that bad? Maybe not. But fandom jokes? Oh, they're eternal. Sakura: Team 7's Punching Bag Credits: Narutopedia Sakura Haruno has long been Naruto fandom's favorite punching bag. Memes and message boards have dubbed her 'one of the most useless characters' in the anime, and even Kotaku quips she's the 'punching bag of the fandom' . In Part I, Sakura didn't have a nine-tailed monster or laser eyes – Naruto literally had a demon fox, Sasuke had fancy eye jutsu, and their sensei Kakashi was the laid-back veteran. Meanwhile, Sakura's big moves were mostly screaming for help and flexing her forehead strength. As one Sportskeeda article notes, even after she trained with Tsunade, 'she was still far from [Naruto and Sasuke's] level' . So when Sakura brags she's caught up to those guys, fans know exactly what meme to make. Image: When Sakura declares 'I've finally caught up with these two,' Naruto and Sasuke's reactions in this meme say it all. Even that war scene is meme gold. Sakura's deadpan line 'I've caught up to you guys' in the Fourth Shinobi War had fans rolling their eyes because the show itself made clear she was 'far from [Naruto and Sasuke's] level' . In other words, Naruto and Sasuke immediately gave her the side-eye pictured above. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Chunin Exam Fiasco: Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow One of Sakura's most infamous blunders is from the Chunin Exams. She gets grabbed by a huge enemy ninja, and what does she do? She panics and snips off her own ponytail instead of attacking! Fans still laugh about it: as Sportskeeda puts it, the meme 'aptly highlights all the vulnerable areas that she could have struck but chose to just cut her hair.' . In other words, Sakura literally solved her problem by going from ponytail to bald. It's a running joke now that Sakura's battle strategy is to style her way out of trouble. Help! Sakura's Go-To Jutsu Credits: Instagram Another frequent complaint: Sakura's default move was to yell for backup. Whenever Team 7 was in trouble, her big contribution seemed to be shouting, 'Help me, Naruto! Sasuke!' . One fan commentary wryly notes that at one point 'all she did was call out for help when the going got tough, and she never really did much in terms of helping her teammates.' . In short, early Naruto had Sakura spending far more time needing her teammates than actually saving anyone. It's almost like she invented a 'whine jutsu' – wave your arms and hope the big guns show up. Not exactly shinobi discipline, but hey, it became her signature move. Sakura vs. the Kunoichi Guild Fans don't just compare her to the boys; they size her up against every other girl in Naruto – and she usually comes up short. Even minor kunoichi like Tenten or Hinata got more props. As Sportskeeda notes, Sakura 'hardly brings much to the table' in battle compared to the other ladies – 'almost every female character was considered more reliable' than Sakura in the early episodes. Remember Hinata bravely stepping in against Pain, or Temari single-handedly destroying Gaara's sand-golem? Sakura's biggest early win was… a math test. In fan debates, that usually gets the biggest laugh of all. Even the Anime Joins the Roast The running joke got so big that even the show seems to wink at Sakura's helpless image. Just watch the opening animations: almost every intro shows Sakura clasping her hands and looking desperate or panicked. As one write-up notes, 'almost every opening shows Sakura in a sort of helpless state… as if the animators were well aware of just how useless [she] had been.' . Those stills of Sakura praying or wide-eyed have themselves become meme material – as if even Naruto's creators are in on the running joke. Image: Sakura wears many looks – confusion, frustration, shock – perfectly capturing a fan's reaction to each 'Sakura is useless' joke. By the time you've seen her pleading or frozen in panic across four different openings, you can't help but feel the series is grinning along with every meme. Is Sakura Really Useless… or Just Unlucky? Credits: Instagram To be fair, Sakura does eventually grow into a real powerhouse. By Shippuden she can one-shot villains (Sasori's puppet, anyone?) and by Boruto she's the Hokage's right-hand medic. Even Kishimoto gave her moments to shine. But for many fans, the damage was done early: Sakura's first impression was 'annoying useless girl,' and that stuck (even some Sakura fans admit it). That's why the jokes linger: Kotaku even reported that in a recent Naruto poll Sakura shockingly got more than twice the votes of Naruto and Sasuke combined. (Take that, haters!) Finally, maybe the fandom will admit she's not totally worthless – but let's be honest, some memes never die.
Time of India
08-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Why did Kakashi leave the Anbu Cops in Naruto? Full timeline explained
Kakashi of the Sharingan Whenever we talk about Naruto anime, we just can't sleep on the name of Kakashi - the Copy Ninja. He is one of the most skillful Shinobi, Hokage (in the later stages) and the mentor of Team 7 - yes, the legendary team that consisted of both Naruto and Sasuke. He also worked in the Anbu Cops with Itachi, but left after a while. And the reason behind the same is something that is not hidden but still not discussed a lot. Operation Sindoor 'Op Sindoor's precision & execution was unimaginable': Rajnath Singh Operation Sindoor: India repels drone, missile attack across LoC Operation Sindoor: Several airports in India closed - check full list Here we will explore why Kakashi of the Sharingan left Anbu Cops and the things that unfolded in front of him after that. Kakashi and his exit from Anbu Cops To understand why Kakashi left Anbu Cops, we first need to understand why he joined in the first place. So, after Rin's death and Obito out of the scene (everyone thought he was dead), Kakashi lost his purpose in his life. To cope with all the depression, he joined Anbu Cops, where he got involved in different types of missions. However, keeping in mind that most of the missions were nothing but cold-blooded assassinations, Kakashi stopped feeling emotions. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 2025 Top Trending local enterprise accounting software [Click Here] Esseps Learn More Undo And why not, for someone to lose his best friends, Dad, sensei, all of that in a span of a few years will shut the emotion switch down for sure. Now, when Hiruzen Sarutobi, the third Hokage, saw Kakashi's state, he immediately ordered him to leave Anbu cops and connect with people again, especially the younger generation of the village. And once he was familiar with people, Kakashi got assigned the duty of Team 7's mentor. This changed his life to a great extent, along with changing the lives of Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura. Moving forward, he played a major role in the fourth Shinobi war, where we got to see him against his childhood best friend, Obito Uchiha, in one on one battles. Kakashi also showed leadership when he became the sixth Hokage of the Hidden Leaf Village. While some of the fans might have wanted to see Kakashi in Anbu Cops for a longer time, a majority agrees that the character development of Kakashi was one of the best.
Time of India
28-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Kakashi and Obito's saga was one of the best in Naruto Shippuden
Naruto Shippuden could be dubbed one of the best anime of all time without any debate. It showed elements like emotions, bonds, war, anger, and more in the same place without mixing all of them. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now We got to see friends, family, loved ones, student teachers, and other things on the show. However, one bond that stands out among the crowd is that between Kakashi and Obito . For those who are unaware, Kakashi and Obito were also part of Team 7 along with Rin. Naruto's father, Minato Namikaze, was the mentor of Team 7 at that time. Moving forward, let's have a look at the bond of Kakashi and Obito and how things developed in the future around them. Kakashi and Obito: A friendship that will be remembered for ages Kakashi and Obito Uchiha became friends in childhood when they both joined Team 7 under Minato. Nonetheless, things took a wild turn when the trio was attacked and to save the other two Obito got his half body crushed under a rock. This was the point when Obito decided to give his Sharingan to Kakashi. Keeping in mind that Obito is going to die, Kakashi agrees to take his Sharingan. But, destiny has other plans for the two as Obito survived the fall with Madara's help. And the Ghost of Uchiha convinced Obito to go rogue and destroy Konoha. After growing up, on one hand, Kakashi became the sensei of the new Team 7 (Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura), and Obito became a member of Akatsuki (a Terrorist organization led by rogue Ninjas from all villages). After that, they met in the fourth Shinobi war where the battle of friends was more than devastating. Eventually, things end in favour of the two with Obito dying and giving Kakashi the power to create Susanoo to fight the final threat. On a concluding note, as the fans say, Kakashi was nothing but Sasuke turned good and Obito was nothing but Naruto on the wrong path.
Associated Press
05-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Associated Press
NARUTO & BORUTO Shinobi-Zato Announces Return of Popular Missions with '2024 Special Mission Grand Revival Festival'
The festival, starting March 27th, comprises Part 4 of the 6th anniversary celebrations of the ninja attraction at anime park 'Nijigen no Mori' AWAJI CITY, HYOGO PREFECTURE, JAPAN, March 5, 2025 / / -- Anime park " Nijigen no Mori", located within Hyogo Prefectural Awaji Island Park in Japan, has announced that its popular attraction 'NARUTO & BORUTO Shinobi-Zato' will host a series of events to celebrate its 6th anniversary. As the fourth installment of the anniversary celebrations, two special missions held at Shinobi-Zato in 2024 — 'Hana-akari no Denrei' ('Message of the Brilliant Evening Cherry Blossoms') and 'Seiran no Yuai' ('Fraternity of the Verdant Winds') — will return for a limited time from Thursday, March 27th to Saturday, May 31st. Visitors who complete both special missions will receive an exclusive original bromide character card as a special reward. These original Shinobi-Zato missions offer unique stories, including the love story of Sasuke and Sakura as a married couple, and an untold tale of Naruto and Sasuke's friendship from their time in Team 7, allowing visitors to immerse themselves in the world of ninja and shinobi. ■Overview: '2024 Special Mission Grand Revival Festival' Event Period: March 27th (Thursday) – May 31st (Saturday) 2025 Contents: Two past special missions, 'Hana-akari no Denrei' ('Message of the Brilliant Evening Cherry Blossoms') and 'Seiran no Yuai' ('Fraternity of the Verdant Winds'), will return for a limited time. Visitors who complete both special missions will receive an exclusive original bromide character card as a special reward. Location: NARUTO & BORUTO Shinobi-Zato within Nijigen no Mori Fee: ¥1,500 each (tax included). Separate admission ticket required. ⓒ2002 MASASHI KISHIMOTO / 2017 BORUTO All Rights Reserved. Nijigennomori Inc. Instagram TikTok Legal Disclaimer:
