“You need to judge the way…”: Masashi Kishimoto’s One Unique Quality Caught Hunter x Hunter Writer Yoshihiro Togashi’s Eye
Masashi Kishimoto’s work has been heavily inspired by another successful manga. Naruto’s Shadow Clone Jutsu or Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, one of the most well-known techniques, actually came from Yoshihiro Togashi’s Yu Yu Hakusho.
Togashi is the creator of numerous hit series, such as Hunter x Hunter and Yu Yu Hakusho. Kishimoto and Togashi have great admiration for each other and it is no secret that Kishimoto has taken inspiration from Togashi’s works.
Yoshihiro Togashi Was Impressed By Masashi Kishimoto’s Work
In an interview, Kishimoto is asked what is impressive about Togashi’s work, to which he says:
“His way of surprising the reader. The way he can create unexpected scenes that can show the threat that the enemies represent, the Kagebushin no Jutsu of Naruto is strongly inspired by Suzaku’s technique in Yu Yu Hakusho. The idea of having after-images be real was very innovative, I was excited and though ‘how will they beat this guy.’“
In a 2009 interview, during the 10th year anniversary of Naruto, Yoshihiro Togashi and Masashi Kishimoto sat down to answer some interesting questions. When Togashi was asked whether something caught his eye while reading Naruto, he replied:
“When I read the scene where Kakashi fights Team 7 while holding his book, I couldn’t help but compliment Kishimoto-sensei, using that little detail to show the difference of experience between the characters made me realize that the author was really creative. Also Kishimoto has some really impressive drawing skills, I heard that in order to understand or evaluate the skills of an artist, you need to judge the way they draw hands, and the way his characters hold things in hand is impressive.“
Kishimoto responded that he liked concentrating on a single body part and that in high school he had a notebook filled with drawings of hands and legs in different angles. The interviewer also asked Kishimoto what he found interesting about Togashi’s works, he replied that he liked Togashi’s way of surprising the readers. Kishimoto said firstly, he was impressed by the way Togashi can create unexpected scenes that showcase the threat that the enemies represent. He clarified that the Kagebushin no Jutsu is strongly inspired by Suzaku’s technique in Yu Yu Hakusho.
Kishimoto continued to say that he liked the characters’ expressions during the scenes where they witness their opponent reveal their true power, explaining that he’d studied extensively about the delicate balance of expressions of the characters when they are surprised or find themselves in tough situations. Kishimoto continued:
“Back when I’ve started the serialization of Naruto, my inspiration for these kind of facial expressions was Hunter x Hunter, even to this day it still has a special place for me and I often re-read it. next there’s the character Hiei who’s been developped in a fantastic way.“
Kishimoto further revealed that he took Hiei as a source of inspiration when he started creating his characters for Naruto. Since he wanted to create a cool character, he studied Hiei’s character and thus, he created Sasuke.
Hunter x Hunter Influenced Naruto
There’s no point in denying that Naruto was influenced by Hunter x Hunter, given that Naruto was serialized after Togashi’s magnum opus. From character designs to shinobi techniques, Kishimoto never shied away from admitting how much he admired Togashi’s work.
The Nine-Tails named Kurama is named after the Yu Yu Hakusho character, who is also a demon fox. While it is true that Kishimoto is heavily influenced by Togashi’s works, it is equally important to note that despite the similarities Naruto has taken on a life of its own.
