‘Naruto Shippuden’ Finale: Is March 23 The Last Airing Of Well-Loved Japanese Anime?

After more than 10 years of enjoying global popularity, there are signs the Japanese anime “Naruto Shippuden” may soon end. The newest episode of “Weekly Shonen Jump” hints the finale could air on March 23. The date is the 500th episode of the anime and the 720th installment of the franchise.

Team 7 Reunites

Although the magazine did not explicitly state that “Naruto Shippuden” would definitely end on March 23 or there would be any episodes beyond that date, there are other indicators the anime could end soon. Comicbook points out that Naruto Uzumaki and rival Sasuke Uchiha, after the Fourth Great Ninja War, reconciled, leading Team 7 to reunite after years of being apart. The anime went on and adapted a series of post-manga novels released that focused on other heroes such as Shikamaru.

“Konoha Hiden” is the first of three epilogue novels adapted by “Naruto Shippuden” in December. The first novel, “Naruto: Sasuke’s Story – Sunrise,” was animated, followed by “Naruto: Shikamura’s Story.” In the past weeks, the series began airing “Naruto: Konoha Hiden” with its final episode to focus on the message of Iruka to titular hero Naruto who would marry Hinata Hyuga.

Another confirmation of “Naruto Shippuden” ending is Swimy, the four-person rock band behind the series, uploaded on Twitter a preview of the finale theme song of the anime series, Travelers Today reports. Swimy set Feb. 22 as the date to introduce “Zetsu Zetsu.” “Naruto Shippuden” first aired on Feb. 15, 2017.

Spin-Off Anime

In a related development, a spin-off anime, “Boruto: Next Generations” would debut on TV Tokyo on April 5. The story revolves around Boruto Uzumaki and his pals as they gradually learn about their parents’ reputation. The upcoming series would be happier and more fun than the darker tone of “Naruto Shippuden,” Masashi Kishimoto, creator of the series, says. It would be based on a Japanese manga that Ukyo Kodachi has written and Mikio Ikemoto has illustrated, The Christian Post reports.