Comics / Manga

Naruto: Volume 64 manga review

By Leroy Douresseaux
January 8, 2014 - 16:29

Naruto Volume 64 cover image is courtesy of barnesandnoble.com.

Rated “T” for “Teen”

Uzumaki Naruto, the young shinobi (ninja), had a knack for mischief, and he was the biggest troublemaker at the Ninja Academy in the shinobi Village of Konohagakure.  Naruto was also two things:  special and an outcast.  When he was a baby, his parents (father Minato and mother Kushina) imprisoned a nine-tailed fox spirit (Kurama) inside his infant body.  Now, 16-years-old and incorrigible as ever, Naruto is still serious about his quest to become the world’s greatest ninja.

Akatsuki villains Uchiha Madara and Kabuto declare war on the Five Great Nations.  This begins the Fourth Great Ninja War.  The five great shinobi leaders, called the Gokage, form the Allied Shinobi Forces to fight back.

Naruto, Vol. 64 (entitled Ten Tails – Chapters 608 to 617) opens in the aftermath of a shocking revelation.  The face behind Tobi’s mask is Uchiha Obito, an old teammate of Hatake Kakashi, Naruto’s teacher and mentor.  Embittered by the death of young female teammate (which he blames on Kakashi), Obito wants to destroy the ninja world as we know it and the ability to make war.

With his partner, Madara, Obito revives the monstrous Ten Tails.  The Allied Shinobi Forces attack with their surprising Allied Shinobi Forces jutsu.  Now, Naruto must fight back in the shadow of loss, for he is the only one who can stop Obito, Madara, and Ten Tails – with a little help from his friends.

THE LOWDOWN:  There is rarely a volume of the Naruto manga that I do not absolutely, unequivocally love.  Naruto Volume 64 continues the Naruto-Leroy romance.  Seriously, creator Masashi Kishimoto delves into some of the series main themes:  camaraderie, loss, and unity in Vol. 64.

Kishimoto casts Naruto against Obito.  The former is the boy-hero and chosen one, who is learning to embrace and accept the loss of a loved one or teammate as part of the natural order.  The latter is a villain who seeks to create a world that is counter to the natural order of things and who only wants love without the threat of loss.  That’s some heady stuff for a ninja manga.

POSSIBLE AUDIENCE:  Readers who want the world’s best ninja manga/comic book must have the Shonen Jump standard bearer, Naruto.

 

Rating: A+ /10

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12