Hi everyone!
Around 2022 I had really gotten into watching anime, and by the summer of 2023 I had watched all the popular shows like Naruto, Demon Slayer and Jujutsu Kaisen (whatever was released till then).
I know it’s going to be very few people whose love for anime and books overlap. But I wanted to make this post anyway because I love Naruto, despite its plot holes and flaws.
The anime Naruto explores several themes, including friendship, perseverance, hard work, loyalty, sacrifice, and the pursuit of dreams. It also deals with more complex themes such as discrimination, war, trauma, and the consequences of one's actions.
It makes the viewer question their morals and the system, and they are worth just sitting down with and dissecting.
I would like to pitch this book as “What if Sasuke had been the jinchuriki instead?”
That should be enough to hook you.
2. Sword of Kaigen by M.L. Wang
If you were ever curious about exploring the Konoha and Shinobi system more- a whole village dedicated to creating soldiers and glorifying it- then Sword of Kaigen does a great job of exposing the fallacies and moral ambiguity of that sort of a system.
We follow two main characters, a mother and her son, both of whom have to grapple with this inescapable fate of being turned into a weapon of the state.
3. Wolfsong by T.J. Klune
Perfect for Sasu/Naru fans who love the angst and yearning, Wolfsong is a werewolf mm romance, the first in a series.
If you are craving a story focusing more on Sasuke/Naruto and lots of pining and found family; specifically, the element of Sasuke leaving Naruto behind for revenge- then groveling for forgiveness when he comes back after 3 years. This book will give that to you.
4. The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang
The Poppy War is another series that has the consequences of war, violence and young people’s involvement in those events as one of its main themes.
By the end of Naruto, you catch on to the fact that the author is trying to show the flaws of the Shinobi system. Of putting 12 year old kids in war schools, putting weapons in their hands. Of lives lost to pointless violence and hatred.
There are these mythical creatures called Jinchurikis in Naruto, and quite similar to that there are some supernatural creatures or “gods” in The Poppy War that inhabit human beings. The way these gods lend their power to humans, how they hunger for destruction and blood, how difficult it is to control them. It’s very reminiscent of Naruto.
There’s also an Orochihamaru equivalent character who is a creepy, Christian-coded fanatic scientist.
If the idea of a Naruto that succumbs to Kurama and a love interest/enemy who is a Sasuke + Madara combo sounds interesting, you NEED to pick up this series.
5. The Stardust Thief by Chelsea Abdullah
The Stardust Thief is travelling story, with found family, magic and Middle-Eastern lore.
Aside from the big overarching plot lines and themes, another thing that for me so emotionally attached to the series were the action-filled missions and adventures Naruto and the Konoha 12 would go on.
Similar to Konoha 12, you find a wholesome cast of characters that are unique and fun in this book.
There is also a hint of a mentor-student relationship between the characters of Layla and Qadir.
The setting is extremely vivid and captivating, and superb Arab rep!
6. Art of Prophecy by Wesley Chu
My main reason for drawing the comparison between Art of Prophecy and Naruto is the hilarious and quite wholesome and heartwarming at times mentor-student relationship between the two main characters, Taishi and Jian from Art of Prophecy.
Interestingly, Taishi, the mentor figure is a woman in her late thirties, a renowned war artist through the kingdom and only has one arm. She’s also brash, bold and incredibly sassy. She’s a little prideful and has a whole lot of deadly talent.
Her character profile was enough to get me interested.
There are also some epic fight scenes- everything from hand-to-hand combat, battles with staffs, broadswords and scythe to fighting with magic.
As this book is written by an East-Asian author, you can find certain familiar sounding ways that magic works in these worlds.
Instead of chakra, the magical force in this world that lives inside people is called jing.
Naruto is the perfect show to watch if you want to laugh out loud and cackle enough times to give people around you give you a side-eye ; )
Wesley Chu entertains with her sense of humor, and it’ll be a hit with Naruto fans for sure.
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That’s it for today. Thank you so much for reading till the end!
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