Naruto Shadow Rising is the new Naruto manga written and drawn by Masashi Kishimoto, his first full return to Naruto’s story since the original manga ended in 2014. It was revealed on October 10, 2026, Naruto’s birthday, at New York Comic Con, alongside a four-episode crossover anime called NARUTO x NINKŪ. Here is everything announced, when the story is set, and what to expect at Jump Festa in December.
What is Naruto Shadow Rising?
Naruto: Shadow Rising is a brand new Naruto manga by series creator Masashi Kishimoto. Naruto’s official site describes it as “an all-new story drawn completely by Masashi Kishimoto”, and the title was confirmed by the official Naruto and Boruto anime account and by Shonen Jump.
That detail is why fans reacted so loudly. Kishimoto wrote and drew all 700 chapters of the original Naruto, which ran in Weekly Shonen Jump from 1999 to November 2014. The sequel, Boruto, is drawn by Mikio Ikemoto. Naruto Shadow Rising puts Kishimoto’s own art back on Naruto, Sasuke and the rest of Team 7.
It is part of PROJECT RASENGAN, a long-term plan for the franchise announced at the same panel that covers manga, anime, card games and mobile games.
When is Naruto Shadow Rising set?
Naruto Shadow Rising is set in the gap between the end of Naruto and the start of Boruto. The teaser, built from Kishimoto’s storyboards, gives the clues:
- The six past Hokage are carved into the mountain above the Hidden Leaf, and a seventh face is still under construction.
- Naruto holds up the Hokage hat.
- Kakashi smiles, Sasuke stands apart, and Sakura looks down at a baby. Kotaku and Screen Rant both read the baby as Sarada, which places the story roughly a decade before Boruto begins.
- The teaser ends with Naruto and Sasuke clashing once again.
Game Rant places it just after the Fourth Great Ninja War, when Kakashi is Hokage. An unfinished seventh face fits that reading: Naruto is on his way to the job but not there yet. No plot details have been released beyond the teaser.
The official Naruto Shadow Rising super teaser, from the NARUTO / BORUTO Official Channel.
When does Naruto Shadow Rising come out?
There is no release date yet. Kotaku and other outlets expect the first chapter in 2027, but Shueisha has not announced a date, a magazine or a schedule. Naruto’s official site says more details will be revealed at the Jump Festa 2027 Naruto Jump Super Stage on December 19 and 20, 2026, at Makuhari Messe in Japan. That is the date to watch.
What is NARUTO x NINKŪ?
NARUTO x NINKŪ is a new four-episode anime that crosses Naruto over with Ninkū, the 1990s Weekly Shonen Jump series that inspired Kishimoto to create Naruto. Naruto’s official site lists it on the PROJECT RASENGAN roadmap as a new Naruto TV anime limited series.
The story, from the official synopsis:
- Kakashi gives Team 7 a mission but cannot join them, so Naruto is made acting leader.
- On the way, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura get lost in another world.
- There they meet Fūsuke, the frog-faced hero of Ninkū.
Kishimoto and Ninkū creator Koji Kiriyama are supervising every episode. Kishimoto put it plainly: “I created NARUTO because I personally wanted to see the continuation of NINKŪ… Without NINKŪ, NARUTO would not exist.” He also called Fūsuke “Naruto’s secret mentor”.
Anime Corner reports that this is the long-delayed four-episode special first announced for Naruto’s 20th anniversary. It was due on TV Tokyo from September 3, 2023, then postponed shortly before broadcast to improve its quality. No release date or streaming platform has been announced, and follow-up news is also promised for Jump Festa.
What is Ninkū?
Ninkū is a manga by Koji Kiriyama that began in Weekly Shonen Jump in 1993. It follows Fūsuke, a young fighter from the Ninkū Corps, a group of warriors trained in a martial art built on ninjutsu. Studio Pierrot, which later made the Naruto anime, adapted it into a 55-episode series that aired in Japan from 1995 to 1996. It never caught on outside Japan, which is why many Western fans had not heard of it before the announcement.
The official NARUTO x NINKŪ teaser, from the NARUTO / BORUTO Official Channel.
Everything else announced for Naruto
- NARUTO CARD GAME: a new trading card game launching worldwide in June 2027.
- Naruto Mobile: the mobile fighting game, popular in mainland China since 2016, is going worldwide. Its release date has not been set.
- Live-action Naruto movie: director Destin Daniel Cretton sent a message to the panel. A worldwide casting search for Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura is under way.
Our take
Kishimoto drawing Naruto again is the real news here. For years fans have argued about Boruto, and Naruto Shadow Rising sidesteps that argument by going back to the characters people grew up with, in the years nobody has properly seen.
The worry is the last shot of the teaser. Naruto and Sasuke ended the original story at peace, after one of the best fights in the series. Another clash needs a very good reason, or it undoes the ending that made the Valley of the End matter.
NARUTO x NINKŪ is a lovely gesture from Kishimoto to the series that made him, and seeing young Team 7 animated again is a treat. But it is four episodes, it has already been delayed for three years, and most international fans have never seen Ninkū. It is a curiosity. Naruto Shadow Rising is the main event.
Naruto Shadow Rising: quick answers
Is Naruto Shadow Rising canon?
Game Rant calls it canon. It is written and drawn by Kishimoto himself and announced through the official Naruto channels, but no official announcement has used the word yet.
Is Naruto Shadow Rising a sequel to Boruto?
No. It is set before Boruto, in the years after the Fourth Great Ninja War.
When will we hear more?
At the Jump Festa 2027 Naruto stage on December 19 and 20, 2026.
New to Naruto or coming back for this? Start with our Naruto watch order and filler guide, then see the 15 strongest Naruto characters, the 10 greatest Naruto fights and every Naruto arc ranked.
Do you want another Naruto and Sasuke fight, or should Kishimoto leave them at peace? Tell us in the comments.
Sources: NARUTO official site (NYCC 2026 roundup), PROJECT RASENGAN, NARUTO x NINKŪ official page, Kotaku, Game Rant, Screen Rant, Anime Corner, Cartoon Brew, Wikipedia. Naruto is created by Masashi Kishimoto and published by Shueisha; Ninkū is created by Koji Kiriyama. Images and teasers: NARUTO / BORUTO Official Channel. All rights belong to their owners.
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