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Naruto is one of the most popular manga and anime franchises of all time, and it has had a lot of different influences that have made the series what it is. Author Masashi Kishimoto has drawn heavily from many different sources, including Japanese myths and history. But one point of controversy has been related to another popular shonen manga series, Hunter X Hunter.
Yoshihiro Togashi’s magnum opus has often been contrasted and compared to Naruto, with people often accusing Kishimoto of plagiarizing a lot of different concepts of Hunter X Hunter for his series. However, which series came out first? And how that influenced the other?
Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for Naruto and Hunter X Hunter.
Naruto was published a year after Hunter X Hunter's manga
One inspiring the other
Hunter X Hunter is a manga series written and drawn by author Yoshihiro Togashi, who, at the time, was already quite popular because of his hit 90s series Yu Yu Hakusho, which also had a successful anime adaptation. However, Hunter X Hunter, which started to be published by Shueisha in March 1998, became his most celebrated work.
Considering that Naruto started to get published by Shueisha in September 1999, well over a year after Togashi’s manga, this pretty much settles the discussion about which series came out first. However, the most interesting discussion is why this question exists.
While Hunter X Hunter is very popular and has a worldwide fanbase, there is no denying that Naruto has been way more successful. This leads some fans to read Togashi’s work and find a lot of interesting similarities that beg the question of whether it was a coincidence, an homage, or downright plagiarism.
The similarities
There are a lot of similarities between these two series, which has led to a lot of discussions about where the line is drawn between plagiarism and inspiration.
One of the most notorious is that the character of Sasuke Uchiha draws heavily from two of the protagonists of Hunter X Hunter, Kurapika and Killua Zoldyck. The former is the last survivor of the Kurta clan, who were massacred and known for their special red eyes, and the latter has an evil older brother that has tormented him psychologically for years. Sounds familiar?
There is also how the Akatsuki are quite similar to the Phantom Troupe: they are both terrorist organizations created by high-level criminals and misfits. Plus, both organizations have a member (Deidara and Hisoka) that is there to fight another one (Itachi and Chrollo, respectively).
The friendship between protagonist Gon Freecs and Killua in Hunter X Hunter, the former being cheerful and a bit dumb and the other cold, reserved, and calculative, is very similar to the one that Naruto and Sasuke have, in both cases inspiring the other to change and grow as individuals.
The Hunter Exam is also quite similar to the Chunin Exam, with the former done first and having a similar structure of demanding cunning thinking, a survival area where only the fittest survive, and a final round structured as a 1v1 tournament. And the list goes on with a lot more similarities between both series, and the truth is that Hunter X Hunter did it all first.
Final thoughts
Naruto came out after Hunter X Hunter and took from it. There’s no point denying it. After all, Kishimoto is a fan of Togashi’s work. The Nine-Tails Fox, for example, is named Kurama after the Yu Yu Hakusho character, who also happens to be a demon fox. So there is definitely an admiration, and he has gone on record saying it.
However, Naruto grows and develops in its own story, with its own themes, characters, and ways of working, differing greatly from Hunter X Hunter as both series progressed. And fans, at the end of the day, are the lucky ones as they can enjoy two great series in their own rights.
