Naruto x Ninku Crossover Anime Announced as Four-Episode Project
The four episodes are the same brand-new Naruto anime announced for the franchise's 20th anniversary and postponed from a September 2023 TV Tokyo run, so the crossover resolves more than three years of silence on that project.
Key Facts
- The "NARUTO: What's Next?" panel at New York Comic Con on October 10 revealed NARUTO x NINKU, a four-episode crossover anime.
- Noriyuki Abe, director of the 1995 Ninku anime and chief director of Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, directs the crossover.
- Masashi Kishimoto and Ninku creator Koji Kiriyama both supervise the original story, in which Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura wander into the world of Ninku.
- Studio Pierrot is streaming the first five episodes of the 1995 Ninku anime free on its YouTube channel ahead of the crossover.
- Junko Takeuchi and Noriaki Sugiyama, the voices of Naruto and Sasuke, appeared at the New York Comic Con panel.
Reporting from 2 sources: Anime News Network, Anime Corner.
The "NARUTO: What's Next?" panel at New York Comic Con on Saturday revealed that the previously teased new Naruto anime is a crossover with Koji Kiriyama's Ninku, titled NARUTO x NINKU. The four-episode project is an original story in which Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura wander into the world of Ninku while Naruto is acting captain of Team 7. Masashi Kishimoto and Kiriyama both supervise the story. Noriyuki Abe, who directed the Ninku anime and served as chief director on Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, directs. Tetsuya Nishio, who worked on both franchises, is character designer and chief animation director. Junko Takeuchi and Noriaki Sugiyama, the voices of Naruto and Sasuke, appeared at the panel. A collaboration key visual and celebration illustrations from both manga creators were also revealed. Studio Pierrot is streaming the first five episodes of Ninku free on its YouTube channel ahead of the crossover.
The Ninku connection predates Naruto by six years. Kiriyama's manga ran in Weekly Shonen Jump from 1993 to 1995 and had nine compiled volumes, following Fusuke, a former member of the Ninku Corps who uses a martial art combining ninjutsu and karate. Studio Pierrot adapted it into a 55-episode anime that aired on Fuji TV from January 1995 to February 1996. A sequel manga, Ninku Second Stage: Eto Nin-Hen, ran in Ultra Jump from 2005 to 2011 and has 12 volumes. Two earlier Ninku films opened in 1994 and 1995.
Kishimoto's Naruto ran in Weekly Shonen Jump from September 1999 to November 2014 and ended at 72 volumes. Studio Pierrot's anime premiered in October 2002 and ran 220 episodes, followed by Naruto Shippuden at 500 episodes. The panel did not say whether the crossover is the same project as the four Naruto episodes announced in 2023 for the anime's 20th anniversary, planned for a weekly run from September 2023 but delayed a week before debut to improve quality. New franchise announcements also include a Naruto card game set for 2027 and a non-verbal live-action show at Kyoto's Minamiza Theater from February to June 2027. Lionsgate's live-action film, directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, has begun a global casting search for Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 2 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.