Spoiler warning: this article mentions how the original Naruto manga ends, including who becomes Hokage. It does not spoil Boruto.
Naruto got two announcements in one evening. At New York Comic Con on Saturday 10 October 2026, which is also Naruto Uzumaki's birthday, a panel called "NARUTO: What's Next?" revealed a crossover anime with an older ninja series called Ninku, and then a new Naruto manga from Masashi Kishimoto himself.
The coverage since has mixed confirmed facts with guesses, especially about the manga. This is my attempt to separate the two: what Naruto x Ninku is, what Ninku is and why it matters to Naruto, and what we actually know about Naruto: Shadow Rising.
The short version
Naruto x Ninku is a four-episode crossover anime from Studio Pierrot in which young Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura stumble into the world of Ninku, the 1990s manga that inspired Naruto. Naruto: Shadow Rising is a new Naruto manga drawn by Masashi Kishimoto. Neither has a release date. The manga's story, magazine and start date are due at Jump Festa on 19 and 20 December 2026.
What was announced at New York Comic Con?
The panel introduced something called Project Rasengan, a multi-year plan for the Naruto and Boruto franchise covering manga, anime, games and events. According to Viz Media's press release, several projects on its roadmap have not been revealed yet. The ones that were:
- Naruto x Ninku, a four-episode crossover anime.
- A new Naruto manga by Masashi Kishimoto, teased in a video and later named Naruto: Shadow Rising.
- A Naruto card game from Bandai, launching worldwide in June 2027.
- A worldwide release for the Naruto mobile game that launched in China in 2016, with no date yet.
- A video message from Destin Daniel Cretton, director of the live-action film, saying it is in production.
Junko Takeuchi and Noriaki Sugiyama, the Japanese voices of Naruto and Sasuke, were on stage. The two projects people are actually talking about are the anime and the manga, so those are what the rest of this article covers.
What is Naruto x Ninku?
It is a four-episode anime with a completely new story, supervised by both Masashi Kishimoto and Ninku's creator, Koji Kiriyama. The official site calls it a "TV Anime Limited Series", according to Anime Trending.
The set-up is simple. Kakashi gives Team 7 a mission but cannot go with them, so Naruto is made acting leader, which he is thrilled about. On the way, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura get lost and end up in another world. There they meet Fūsuke, a boy with a frog-like face, who is the hero of Ninku.
The important detail is which Naruto this is. It is the twelve-year-old from the original series, in the orange and blue jumpsuit, with Sasuke still in the village and on his side. Junko Takeuchi called it the boyhood-era Naruto in her comment. So this is set somewhere in part one, before Sasuke leaves, and it does not need to fit anywhere in particular.
What is Ninku, and why does it matter to Naruto?
Ninku is a manga by Koji Kiriyama that ran in Weekly Shonen Jump from 1993 to 1995 and fills nine volumes. Studio Pierrot, the studio behind Naruto, turned it into a 55-episode TV anime that aired from January 1995 to February 1996, plus two short films.
"Ninku" is a fighting style that combines ninjutsu (ninja techniques) with empty-handed martial arts. Its users were organised into corps named after the animals of the zodiac, and they helped end a great war. By the time the story starts, the corps has been disbanded and its members are blamed for crimes they did not commit. Fūsuke is twelve, a former captain of the first corps, and he controls wind. He travels with a penguin called Hiroyuki and looks for his old comrades: Aichō, who fights with his legs, and Tōji, who fights through the ground and keeps crashing his plane.
If a small, underestimated boy who uses wind and belongs to a group of ninja sounds familiar, that is the point. Kishimoto has said for years that Ninku shaped his work, and in his message for the panel he put it as plainly as he could: "Without NINKŪ, NARUTO would not exist." He also described Fūsuke as something like a secret mentor to Naruto.
There is a production link as well. Noriyuki Abe directed the Ninku anime in 1995, and Tetsuya Nishio designed its characters before going on to design Naruto's. Both are back for the crossover. That is the part that makes me take this seriously. It is being made by the people who were there.
Naruto x Ninku cast and staff
| Role | Name |
|---|---|
| Director | Noriyuki Abe |
| Character design, chief animation director | Tetsuya Nishio |
| Supervision | Masashi Kishimoto and Koji Kiriyama |
| Animation | Studio Pierrot |
| Naruto Uzumaki | Junko Takeuchi |
| Sasuke Uchiha | Noriaki Sugiyama |
| Sakura Haruno | Chie Nakamura |
| Kakashi Hatake | Kazuhiko Inoue |
| Fūsuke | Rica Matsumoto |
| Aichō | Mitsuaki Madono |
| Tōji | Jurota Kosugi |
| Rihoko | Megumi Hayashibara |
The Naruto cast are the original voices, and Rica Matsumoto played Fūsuke in the 1995 series. The full cast list beyond Naruto, Sasuke and Fūsuke comes from Anime Trending's report of the official site; the Viz press release names only those three. English dub details have not been announced.
Do you need to watch Ninku before the crossover?
I don't think so. The story is told from Team 7's side: they arrive in a world they know nothing about, so the audience can know nothing about it either. Four episodes also leaves no room for 55 episodes of backstory.
If you are curious, Anime News Network reports that Studio Pierrot has put the first five Ninku episodes on its YouTube channel for free ahead of the crossover. Beyond that, the series is hard to find legally in English. Only the short 1995 film ever had an English release, on home video, and I could not confirm any service that carries the TV series in India.
What is Naruto: Shadow Rising?
It is a new manga in the Naruto series, and Masashi Kishimoto is drawing it. That is the confirmed part. The panel ended with a short video titled as a new Naruto manga by Kishimoto, and the franchise's Japanese X account confirmed the name Naruto: Shadow Rising afterwards, according to Anime News Network.
The drawing matters. Kishimoto has written Boruto since 2020, but Mikio Ikemoto draws it. The original manga ended in November 2014, and apart from a short spin-off about Sarada in 2015, Kishimoto has not drawn Naruto as a series since.
The teaser is made of rough pencil sketches. Going by the descriptions from Tbreak and ScreenRant, it shows:
- The Hokage monument above the Hidden Leaf Village, with the existing faces and scaffolding going up for a new one.
- Naruto with the Hokage's hat.
- Kakashi smiling, and Sasuke standing alone.
- Sakura looking down at a baby.
- Naruto and Sasuke colliding in mid-air.
When is Naruto: Shadow Rising set?
Nobody official has said. Everything about the setting is being read off those sketches, so treat it as inference.
The inference is reasonable, though. A monument with a new face under construction, plus Naruto and the hat, points at the years between the end of the Fourth Great Ninja War and Naruto becoming the Seventh Hokage. The original manga skips that whole stretch: chapter 699 ends just after the war, and chapter 700 jumps ahead to Naruto in the Hokage's office with a son. Kakashi's time as Sixth Hokage, Sasuke's years of wandering and the start of everyone's families were left to films and novels.
The sources disagree on the details. Game Rant states that the manga starts directly after the war and returns to Weekly Shonen Jump. ScreenRant says the magazine and schedule are unknown and lists five possible homes for it. Viz's own press release gives no title, magazine, date or story at all. I am going with the cautious version until Jump Festa.
The baby is being called Sarada, Sasuke and Sakura's daughter, in most reports. That is a fair guess, but it is a guess. If it is right, the story covers several years and not one moment.
What does this mean for Boruto?
Nothing has been said to suggest Boruto: Two Blue Vortex is ending or changing. It is still running in V Jump with Kishimoto as its writer. If Shadow Rising really is set before Naruto becomes Hokage, it sits earlier on the timeline and the two can run side by side.
The practical question is workload. Kishimoto would be writing one monthly series and drawing another. That is one reason I would not assume Shadow Rising is a long weekly serial. A short series or a monthly one fits better, but that is my reading and not something anyone has announced.
Naruto x Ninku and Shadow Rising release dates
Neither has one. For the anime, no broadcast date, channel or streaming service has been announced, in Japan or anywhere else. For the manga, no magazine or start date has been given.
The next update has a date: the Naruto stage at Jump Festa 2027, held at Makuhari Messe on 19 and 20 December 2026. The manga's details are promised for that event.
One thing I keep coming back to. In 2023 Pierrot announced four new Naruto episodes for the anime's 20th anniversary, then delayed them a week before they were due, to improve their quality. Nothing has been heard of them since. Naruto x Ninku is also four episodes, also young Team 7, also Pierrot. Anime News Network says it is unclear whether the two are related. My guess is that they are the same slot, reworked, but it is only a guess.
What I make of it
The crossover is the safer bet of the two. It is short, it has the original director and designer, and it exists because Kishimoto wanted it to. The risk is that it is a tribute most Naruto fans cannot read, because they have never seen Ninku. Four episodes of in-jokes would be a waste. Team 7 as outsiders in a strange country is a good enough premise to avoid that.
Shadow Rising is the one with more to lose. The gap after the war is the part of Naruto that fans have wanted for twelve years, and Kishimoto drawing it himself is the best possible news. But a prequel where we know every ending, who marries whom and who gets the hat, has to find its tension somewhere else. The sketch of Naruto and Sasuke fighting again suggests Kishimoto knows that.
FAQ
How many episodes is Naruto x Ninku?
Four. It is described as a limited TV anime series with an original story.
When does Naruto x Ninku come out?
No release date, channel or streaming service has been announced as of 12 October 2026.
Is Naruto x Ninku canon?
It has not been called canon. It is an original story supervised by both creators, in which Team 7 visits another series' world, so it is best treated as a side story.
Who is Fūsuke?
Fūsuke is the twelve-year-old hero of Ninku, a former captain of the first Ninku corps who controls wind. Kishimoto has described him as a kind of secret mentor to Naruto.
Who created Ninku?
Koji Kiriyama. The manga ran in Weekly Shonen Jump from 1993 to 1995, and Studio Pierrot's 55-episode anime aired in 1995 and 1996.
Is Naruto: Shadow Rising a sequel to Naruto?
It is a new manga in the Naruto series, but its place in the timeline has not been confirmed. The teaser suggests it covers the years between the end of the war and Naruto becoming Hokage.
Is Masashi Kishimoto drawing Naruto: Shadow Rising?
Yes. The announcement says Kishimoto is drawing it. He writes Boruto but does not draw it, and his last Naruto series as artist was a short spin-off in 2015.
When does Naruto: Shadow Rising start?
No start date or magazine has been announced. More details are due at Jump Festa 2027 on 19 and 20 December 2026.
Is Boruto ending because of Naruto: Shadow Rising?
No such announcement has been made. Boruto: Two Blue Vortex is still being published.
What is Project Rasengan?
It is the name for a multi-year plan for the Naruto and Boruto franchise, covering manga, anime, games and events. Naruto x Ninku is its first anime project.
Is the Naruto live-action film still happening?
Yes. Director Destin Daniel Cretton sent a video message to the panel saying the film is in production. No cast or release date has been confirmed.
Where can I watch Ninku?
Studio Pierrot is reported to be streaming the first five episodes free on its YouTube channel. I could not confirm a legal service carrying the full series in India.
Where I stand
Of the two, I am more interested in the manga and more confident in the anime. Naruto x Ninku knows exactly what it is: a short thank-you from Kishimoto to the series that made him want to draw. Shadow Rising could be the missing chapter of Naruto or a victory lap, and a handful of pencil sketches cannot tell us which. I will believe the confident summaries of its plot when Kishimoto gives one in December.
