adminIt is public knowledge that Masashi Kishimoto is actually a huge fan of Yoshihiro Togashi’s Hunter x Hunter manga. In fact, he has also stated that the series inspired him to create several aspects of Naruto. However, it is the least surprising news given how widespread Hunter x Hunter‘s influence is.
In several interviews, Kishimoto has praised Yoshihiro Togashi and his concepts as well as their portrayal in the manga. Even the facial expressions of Naruto characters were inspired by Yoshihiro Togashi’s works. But one cover art of Naruto Shippuden went too far and looks almost like a copy of Togashi’s idea.
A Naruto Shippuden Cover that Looks Suspiciously Similar to Hunter x Hunter
A still from Kishimoto’s Naruto | Credits: Pierrot
The cover page of chapter 400 of Naruto Shippuden shows a closeup of Sasuke Uchiha’s face along with another shot of his body in the hair of the bigger illustration. Obito is also present in the background. Chapter 37 of Hunter x Hunter shows Killua drawn in the hair of Illumi Zoldyck.
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The cover art style looks extremely similar in both cases, raising concerns about plagiarism. While the Hunter x Hunter cover art looks more simplistic with only Killua in Illumi’s hair, the Naruto cover has far more details with Sasuke’s Sharingan on full display while he stands in a brooding manner, with Obito present as well.
Killua in Hunter x Hunter | Credits: Nippon Animation
It is not possible to know if Masashi Kishimoto simply wanted to pay homage to one of his favorite authors or if it was an unknown mistake. After all, the art is not extremely uncommon. It is unlikely that Kishimoto would want to knowingly plagiarize one of his favorite mangakas, Yoshihiro Togashi.
Yohshihiro Togashi’s Hiei from Yu Yu Hakusho Inspired Masashi Kishimoto to Create Sasuke’s Character
Hiei from Yu Yu Hakusho | Credits: Pierrot
In an interview with Yoshihiro Togashi, Masashi Kishimoto revealed that Sasuke was inspired by Yu Yu Hakusho‘s Hiei. The author admitted that during his initial attempts, he was unable to create a cool character. He had no idea how to begin, so he studied one of his favorite characters from Yu Yu Hakusho, Hiei. This led to the successful creation of Sasuke. In fact, even Sasuke’s Sharingan and other techniques were inspired by Hiei as well.
Hiei is an elusive and aloof character who often likes to be alone. His cynical view of the world is also extremely similar to that of Sasuke. Similar to Sasuke, Hiei also thinks that friendship is useless and that he could be stronger alone. Of course, readers will find it eerily similar to how Sasuke lost all his faith in teamwork to split up and seek revenge alone.
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In fact, Sasuke’s celebrated Sharingan was also inspired by Hiei’s power called the Evil Eye. His third eye lets him use telekinesis and telepathy, while Sasuke’s Sharingan works by reading the moves of an opponent and eventually predicting them.
Hunter x Hunter and Naruto are available to read on Viz Media while their anime are currently streaming on Crunchyroll.
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