Few anime are as beloved as Studio Pierrot’sNaruto, and for good reason. Both it and its sequel,Naruto: Shippuden,helped build the anime fandom of the 2000s with their great visuals and writing, and even if the series isn’t without its faults, it’s hard to deny its status as one of the greatest anime of all time.
Narutois a great anime, despite its flaws, but some of its flaws have nothing to do with the quality of its writing and production.Naruto, like many anime, cut out or changed a lot of details from the original manga, and while some of those changes are understandable, others are almost impossible to justify, even after so many years.
10The Akatsuki Uniform Was Originally Completely Different In The Manga
How The Anime Changed The Akatsuki Uniform
One of Itachi’s most iconic poses is from his first appearance, where his left arm was poking out of his uniform, but there was a point to that besides making Itachi look cool. While the Akatsuki uniform is just a regular coat, it didn’t start that way in the manga, as it was originally designed without a left sleeve.
Allegedly, the original Akatsuki uniform was a reference to the myth ofroninwearing only one sleeve to symbolize living in dishonor, which went along with how the Akatsuki were ninja who betrayed their villages. Regardless, the anime ignored that detail, and Masashi Kishimoto went along with the change after the timeskip, likely because it was easier to draw.
9The Hyuga Family’s Curse Mark Was Changed Because Of Nazis
Why Naruto Couldn’t Use A Certain Religious Symbol
InNaruto, members of the Hyuga clan’s branch family are given a curse mark that destroys their Byakugan upon death to keep it from falling into enemy hands. The main family could also use the curse mark to torture the branch family into submission, and that was a major part of Neji’s conflict in the early parts of the story.
In the manga, the curse mark is represented by themanji, a Buddhist symbol that, ironically, represents fortune and kindness. However, because it resembled the Nazi swastika, the anime changed it to an X, a form of censorship that can also be seen in anime likeOne PieceandTokyo Revengers.
Naruto’s Most Hypocritical Censorship Explained
In the Itachi Pursuit arc, Konohamaru showed Naruto the fruits of his training, which, of course, were all about the Sexy Jutsu. Konohamaru showcased a new version that had him turn into a naked Sasuke and Sai about to get intimate, and while it was a harmless joke, it was ultimately cut from the anime.
While it would be understandable for the anime to cut the joke for its sexual nature, the anime left in another version of the joke where Konohamaru turns into two naked women getting intimate, despite it being the same joke. It’s a practice riddled with hypocrisy and sexism, and overall, it’s hard to justify it.
7Hinata’s Character Was Subtly Changed In The Battle With Pain
What The Anime Got Wrong About Hinata’s Last Stand
One of the most iconic moments inNarutowas when Hinata tried and failed to protect Naruto from Pain, confessing her love to Naruto moments before seemingly being killed. Hinata survived the fight, but it still pushed Naruto to allow Kurama to take control, and it remains one of the defining moments in their relationship, by far.
In the manga, Hinata’s fight and defeat were very quick and abrupt, but the anime dragged it out with numerous flashbacks, and it even had her get a few hits in. Doing that missed the point of Hinata being utterly outclassed, though, and as a result, it made her death feel less impactful than it was in the manga.
More egregiously, however, was how Hinata spent the fight trying to remove Pain’s black rods from Naruto, as opposed to how the manga had her focused solely on fighting Pain; because of that, the anime depicts Hinata’s feelings for Naruto as the most important thing about the scene, which does a great disservice to Hinata’s character as a whole.
6The Naruto Anime Slightly Changed How Kimimaro’s Kekkei Genkai Works
What Naruto Changed About Kimimaro’s Powers
Kimimaro was the leader of Orochimaru’s Sound Five and one of his strongest subordinates in part 1. Kimimaro’s signature technique was the Macabre Bone Pulse, a Kekkei Genkai that allowed Kimimaro to turn his bones into weapons, and when combined with his curse mark, it was only due to his terminal illness that he lost to Gaara.
Kimimaro summons his bones by pulling them out of his body, but while the anime created holes for the bones to come out of, the manga had it so that Kimimaro’s flesh ripped whenever he pulled out a bone. That depiction highlighted how violent the world ofNarutocould be, so the anime censoring that is nothing but disappointing.
5Naruto’s Anime Greatly Toned Down The Manga’s Gore And Violence
Naruto Was Meant To Be Far More Violent Than What We Got
Going off of how Kimimaro’s Kekkei Genkai was depicted is another major change theNarutoanime made:Naruto’s general censorshipof blood and violence. Despite being marketed for children, theNarutomanga is surprisingly violent, with characters always suffering massive, bloody injuries that are often treated as just being a regular part of being a ninja.
TheNarutoanime got away with more violence than other anime, but it still toned things down immensely at almost every turn by downplaying especially violent injuries, even infamously censoring a scene where Orochimaru was conducting human experiments. Again, that censorship downplays how violent the world ofNarutois supposed to be, and that’s nothing but disappointing to see.
4Chakra Was Supposed To Be Far More Unique In The Naruto Manga
How The Naruto Anime Changed Chakra
Chakra, as most people know, is the primary power source for jutsu inNaruto. Gathering and weaponizing chakra is how the vast majority of characters fight, and when a ninja builds up enough chakra, it even becomes visible as a sort of aura, and that’s almost always an indication of someone being incredibly powerful.
In the anime, chakra is usually blue outside of unique examples like Tailed Beasts or the Susanoo, but in the manga, most characters were supposed to have different-colored chakra, with Naruto’s chakra even being yellow. Much of that wasn’t perfectly articulated in the original black-and-white manga, so the change is understandable, but it still makesNaruto’s world feel less unique.
3Naruto: Shippuden Completely Changed A Key Moment For Kushina
How Naruto Changed A Key Moment For Kushina
In the story of howKushina and Minatobecame a couple, Kushina was captured by Cloud ninja before being rescued by Minato, who recognized the “beautiful” red hair she used to leave a trail. The manga mentioned that an entire squad went looking for Kushina, but in the anime, Kushina said that she thought no one was coming for her.
The way the anime changed Kushina’s kidnapping was likely to emphasize her relationship with Minato, but it was very illogical, not only because she’s a Jinchuriki, but because it went against the idea of the Leaf Village protecting each other through the Will of Fire. The end result is the same, but it’s far more egregious than one might think.
How Shikamaru Really Honored Asuma
After Asuma was killed by Hidan, Shikamaru took his lighter as a memento, and he even used it in his master plan to defeat Hidan in their rematch, all of which came together for Shikamaru’s best fight scene and one of the biggest scenes in all ofNaruto, by far.
While Shikamaru using Asuma’s lighter was a touching tribute on its own, the manga went further with it by having Shikamaru take up smoking to symbolically keep Asuma alive. Shikamaru was a minor at the time, so it makes sense that the anime would cut it out, but unfortunately, it does make Shikamaru’s tribute to Asuma feel less impactful.
How The Naruto Anime Ruined A Major Relationship
Sasuke and Sakura’s relationship is often viewed as toxic for Sasuke’s increasingly horrific acts inNaruto: Shippuden, but it wasn’t that great in the anime in part 1, either. Nearly every interaction Sasuke had with Sakura had him being as apathetic toward her as possible, so even back then, it was hard to believe that they worked as a couple.
That problem mostly just exists in the anime, though; in the manga, Sasuke repeatedly blushed around Sakura and usually liked being around her, buttheNarutoanime changed Sasuke and Sakura’s relationshipto make Sasuke largely indifferent from day one. It’s unclear why that happened, but it still stands as the biggest manga detail theNarutoanime completely left out.
