Kishimoto Returns To Write And Draw Naruto: Shadow Rising Manga
Kishimoto taking the pen back for a serialized Naruto story for the first time in over 12 years moves the franchise's anniversary push beyond merchandise and reprints into new canon, anchored to the Blank Period that the original run left unfilled.
Reporting from 1 source: Animehunch.
Masashi Kishimoto is writing and illustrating an original manga, Naruto: Shadow Rising, set to debut in 2027. It was announced on Oct. 10, 2026 during the Naruto panel at New York Comic Con as part of Project Rasengan, a 25th anniversary initiative. A teaser shows Naruto Uzumaki at about 21 and a clash with Sasuke Uchiha. Further details are set for Jump Festa later this year.
The teaser sketches place Naruto Uzumaki at roughly 21 years old, with the first carving of his likeness going into the Hokage Rock monument, and a preview video shows Sakura Haruno holding an infant Sarada Uchiha. The story is expected to sit in the Blank Period, around ten years before the sequel era, during Kakashi Hatake's tenure as Sixth Hokage, with the village working through post-war activity.
Project Rasengan also carries Naruto x Ninku, a four-episode crossover anime miniseries directed by Noriyuki Abe, with character designs by Tetsuya Nishio and co-supervision by Kishimoto and Ninku creator Koji Kiriyama. Those episodes are the delayed 20th-anniversary broadcast originally set for September 2023.
- Naruto: Shadow Rising: Original manga written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto, set for a 2027 debut
- Naruto x Ninku: Four-episode crossover anime miniseries directed by Noriyuki Abe
- Hollywood live-action Naruto feature: Produced by Lionsgate and Arad Productions, with open casting searches for Team 7 ongoing
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 1 cited source below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.