Masashi Kishimoto

Masashi Kishimoto was born on November 8, 1974, in Nagi, Japan. From a young age, he developed an interest in drawing characters from popular anime and manga, citing Akira Toriyama and Katsuhiro Otomo as significant influences. This early exposure fostered a desire to create his own manga. During his college years, after initially focusing on sports, Kishimoto rediscovered his passion for manga and began creating works for various magazine contests. He specifically aimed to develop shōnen manga, a genre targeting young demographics, and refined his artistic style to align with this goal. His twin brother, Seishi Kishimoto, is also a manga artist, and their similar artistic styles often lead to comparisons.

Kishimoto’s career began with his first successful manga pilot, “Karakuri,” submitted to Shueisha in 1995. This initial effort earned him an honorable mention in Shueisha’s monthly “Hop Step Award” in 1996, marking his entry into the professional manga industry. After developing several drafts, including a one-shot version of “Naruto” in 1997, he debuted a serialized version of “Karakuri” in Weekly Shōnen Jump in 1998, though it was quickly canceled. Embracing the feedback and focusing on refining his storytelling and world-building, Kishimoto returned with a re-envisioned “Naruto” for serialization.

In September 1999, the serialized version of “Naruto” premiered in Weekly Shōnen Jump and rapidly achieved widespread popularity. The series ran for over 15 years, concluding on November 10, 2014, with 700 chapters across 72 volumes. “Naruto” has been adapted into two anime series, multiple films, video games, and related media, becoming a global phenomenon. Kishimoto personally supervised anime films such as “The Last: Naruto the Movie” (2014) and “Boruto: Naruto the Movie” (2015), providing story concepts and character designs. His work has received critical acclaim, including the “Rookie of the Year” award from the Agency for Cultural Affairs for “Naruto,” and a Quill Award for “Best Graphic Novel” in 2006 for the seventh volume of Viz Media’s English release. Following “Naruto’s” conclusion, he continued to be involved with the franchise, serving as an editorial supervisor for “Boruto: Naruto Next Generations” from 2016 and later taking over full writing duties for the manga from 2020.