Masashi Kishimoto Makes An Official Comeback With New Work

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Masashi Kishimoto, the creator of the incredibly popular manga Naruto, is a hugely famous figure. While Naruto finished over ten years ago, he remains a beloved creator. Recently, after a period of quiet following the end of Naruto and the less successful Samurai 8, Kishimoto has started working again, which is great news for his fans.

The new movie, Cosmic Princess Kaguya, is out now, and to celebrate, creator Kishimoto has released a fantastic illustration of the film’s two main characters. One of the characters bears a striking resemblance to Sakura Haruno from his previous work.

Kishimoto Has Been Quiet Since The Conclusion of Naruto

Image via studio Pierrot.

  • Masashi Kishimoto Ended His Naruto Run In 2014
  • Kishimoto briefly returned with a new series called Samurai 8
  • He continues to contribute lightly to Boruto

Masashi Kishimoto is a hugely popular manga artist, best known for creating Naruto. The series, his first major work, began in Weekly Shonen Jump in 1999 and ran for nearly 15 years, concluding in 2014.

Naruto is a massive success story, ranking among the best-selling manga ever with over 250 million copies sold globally. It’s become a hugely popular anime, achieving the same iconic status as series like Dragon Ball and One Piece.

Naruto remains incredibly popular around the world, even though both the original manga and anime have finished. Interestingly, its creator, Kishimoto, did try to launch another manga series called Samurai 8: The Tale of Hachimaru. However, despite his previous success with Naruto, Samurai 8 wasn’t well-received and was cancelled after less than a year in Weekly Shonen Jump, where it first appeared in 2019. Since then, Kishimoto has kept a relatively low profile.

Naruto has a sequel series called Boruto, and while creator Masashi Kishimoto offers some guidance, he’s not the primary author. Boruto is mainly the work of Mikio Ikemoto, who used to be Kishimoto’s editor. Kishimoto provides input and oversight, but he doesn’t do most of the illustration or story writing – he’s letting Ikemoto lead the new series.

Kishimoto Returns With New Artwork for Cosmic Princess Kaguya!

  • Fans Get a Brand New Illustration With Kishimoto’s Iconic Art-style
  • Kaguya and Iroha Sakayori are Illustrated

After Naruto concluded and his follow-up manga wasn’t well-received, fans have been eagerly waiting for Masashi Kishimoto to create another major work.

Unfortunately, that hasn’t happened yet, and it doesn’t look like it will anytime soon. However, Kishimoto hasn’t disappeared completely. Just earlier this month, on January 22, 2026, he released a new illustration that surprised many fans.

To celebrate the new Netflix film, Cosmic Princess Kaguya, creator Kishimoto shared an illustration of the movie’s two lead characters, Kaguya and Iroha Sakaiyori. Fans were thrilled to see Kishimoto’s artwork again, and many Naruto fans noted the strong resemblance between Iroha and Sakura Haruno. You can view the illustration here:

Cosmic Princess Kaguya Is 2026’s New Big Hit Movie

  • It was released on January 22, 2026
  • Movie Available to stream online

While Kishimoto recently contributed a new illustration, many people aren’t familiar with the new anime movie, Cosmic Princess Kaguya. Released on January 22th by Netflix, it’s a reimagining of the classic Japanese folktale, The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, but with a modern twist and a science fiction setting.

Even though this movie isn’t playing in theaters, it’s a fantastic film you shouldn’t miss, thanks to its amazing music and deep roots in Japanese folklore. Luckily, it’s available to stream on Netflix worldwide, so everyone can enjoy it!

The trailer for this movie has been quite captivating! It wasn’t just Kishimoto who created new artwork – Gege Akutami, the author of Jujutsu Kaisen, also contributed, along with other talented artists. Fans are really excited to see these characters reimagined in different styles.

Kishimoto Could Return To Drawing Manga Soon

Image via Pierrot.
  • Kishimoto Hinted At Doing A New Series Recently

Fans always enjoy seeing new artwork from Kishimoto, but they’re hoping for something more substantial. Considering the high quality of his past work, they’d love to see him create a completely new project, or even expand on his popular Naruto series with fresh content.

More than a year ago, Masashi Kishimoto mentioned he intended to create more manga when he felt ready, and that spending time with his family would be a source of inspiration. He specifically suggested he might do a one-shot story focusing on Itachi Uchiha. His most recent Naruto-related work was in 2023, when a global popularity poll revealed Minato as the most popular character. This led him to create a well-received one-shot story featuring Minato.

Many fans are hoping Masashi Kishimoto, the creator of Naruto, might one day create another sequel. While Boruto hasn’t been as popular with fans, there’s a desire to see more stories featuring the original characters and to explore the years between the end of Naruto and the start of Boruto. Fans believe Kishimoto could expand on this period and potentially revive the franchise.

Boruto: Two Blue Vortex is the continuation of the Boruto story, created by Mikio Ikemoto and with supervision from Masashi Kishimoto. The series picks up three years after the events of the Omnipotence arc, following Boruto Uzumaki as he strives to protect the world and navigate his relationship with his brother, Kawaki. Chapter 31 of Boruto: Two Blue Vortex will be released on February 20, 2026, at 10 AM EST / 3 PM UTC. Fans can read it for free on the Manga Plus and Shonen Jump apps.

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2026-01-29 23:36