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Naruto Franchise Gets 3 More Novels

The official website for Shueisha's Jump J Books label of novels announced on Thursday that the Naruto franchise will receive three more novels. The novel Naruto: Dojunjō Ninden (Naruto: The Tale of the Utterly Purehearted Shinobi) is slated to ship in Japan on August 4, and the novels Itachi Shinden (The True Legend of Itachi) and Sasuke Shinden (The True Legend of Sasuke) are slated to ship this fall.

Masashi Kishimoto's original Naruto manga is inspiring Akira Higashiyama's Naruto: Dojunjō Ninden novel. Higashiyama wrote the first of six planned Naruto epilogue novels, Kakashi Hiden, as well as the script for the anime film Naruto Shippūden: Blood Prison.

Naruto: Dojunjō Ninden will tell the origin of the character Jiraiya's "novel" Icha Icha Paradise (Make-Out Paradise). In the youth novel's story, two people move towards a battlefield while pursuing true happiness. The story depicts an extraordinary and naive battle between a man and a woman who are not used to being upfront with each other.

In the Naruto franchise, Icha Icha Paradise is the first in Jiraiya's Icha Icha erotic novel series. Jiraiya also wrote another novel with a similar name to the one coming out in August — Dokonjō Ninden (The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi) — whose protagonist is named Naruto. The Naruto franchise's title character, Naruto Uzumaki, is named after the character because his father liked Jiraiya's book.

Itachi Shinden and Sasuke Shinden will be the first two installments in the Naruto Shinden (Naruto True Legend) novel series. The story will focus on the brothers who have eyes that see through to the truth and who live on the threshold of hope and despair. Itachi's past and Sasuke's future will be made clear.

The J Books website also revealed cover art on Monday for the sixth and final Naruto epilogue novel, Akatsuki Hiden. Shin Towada's novel titled Naruto: Akatsuki Hiden - Sakimidareru Aku no Hana (Naruto - The Akatsuki's Hidden Story: Evil Flowers in Full Bloom) is slated to ship in Japan on July 3.

The 240-page book will retail at 650 yen (about US$5.30). The fifth novel, Gaara Hiden, shipped in Japan on June 4.

The J Books website is hosting a timeline that informs readers of the point in time that the various novels take place. The timeline has been updated until the Akatsuki Hiden novel:

[Warning: These summaries contain spoilers for the Naruto manga and anime. Please highlight the white space to read.] Naruto - Kakashi Hiden: Hyōten no Ikazuchi (Naruto - Kakashi Hidden Legend: Lightning of the Frozen Sky) takes place a few months after the second-to-last chapter of the original manga, and a short time after this, Sasuke leaves the village. Naruto - Shikamaru Hiden: Yami no Shijima ni Ukabu Kumo (Naruto - Shikamaru Hidden Legend: The Cloud That Floats in the Silence of the Darkness) and the The Last -Naruto the Movie- film and its novel adaptation take place two years after the chapter, and Naruto - Sakura Hiden: Shiren, Haru Kaze ni Nosete (Naruto - Sakura Hidden Legend - Feelings of Love, Riding on the Spring Wind) will take place a few months after those novels. Shortly after Sakura Hiden, the shinobi of the Hidden Leaf Village look for presents for Naruto and Hinata's wedding in Naruto - Konoha Hiden: Shūgen Biyori. Shortly after this, the couple is wed.

The stories of these six novels is as follows:

Spoiler (highlight the following white text to read) [

• Naruto - Kakashi Hiden: Hyōten no Ikazuchi revolves around Kakashi Hatake, who is melancholy despite his new position as the Sixth Hogake. In addition, an incident has occurred in the new peaceful, orderly ninja world.
• Shikamaru Hiden is hinted to feature a battle between Shikamaru and the "strongest genjutsu-user."
• Akatsuki Hiden is listed to reveal the "truth of the Akatsuki," and features images of Deidara, Kisame, Kakuzu, and Hidan.
• Gaara Hiden is hinted to be a story of love, something the Kazekage does not know very well.
• The preview for Sakura Hiden hints that the result of Sakura's feelings will be revealed.
• Konoha Hiden will look at the other ninja in Konoha and what happened to them "after the original manga." The preview image shows Shino, Kiba, and Rock Lee.
  ]

  Viz Media has licensed the first three epilogue novels — Kakashi Hiden, Shikamaru Hiden, and Sakura Hiden — for English release in North America.

  Kishimoto had said in an interview in November that he will still have other work left to do in the Naruto franchise until summer, so he will not begin preparing his next non-Naruto title in earnest until after that. A new film following [Highlight white text to read spoilers] Naruto and Hinata's son Boruto and Sasuke and Sakura's daughter Sarada will open in August, and a manga mini-series focusing on a "new generation" launched in the combined 22nd and 23rd issue of Shueisha's Shonen Jump magazine.