Bleach and Naruto, two pillars of the Big Three, have been holding the fort even after so long. While Naruto finished a long time ago, Bleach is still completing its final phase. Still, both series have been at the top of the game for a long time. All thanks to their manga creators, Masashi Kishimoto and Tite Kubo.
Both Kubo and Kishimoto are legends and have inspired many other manga creators. When their manga series was serialized, both of them became rivals to attain the top spot in the industry. However, the rivalry came with mutual respect for each other and their work. This respect was honored by Kubo when he gave a tribute to Kishimoto and his masterpiece.
A few years ago, Kubo decided to honor the Naruto manga creator by drawing an illustration of the characters from Naruto. The two characters that he chose were Orochimaru and the protagonist, Naruto. These illustrations were so good that they shocked Naruto and Kishimoto fans.
Tite Kubo Paid Tribute to Masashi Kishimoto With An Illustration
When Naruto completed its 10th year in the industry, many other manga creators came together to honor the legacy of Masashi Kishimoto. These manga creators decided to draw illustrations of Naruto in their own artistic style and choose characters according to their own comfort. However, most of them decided to draw the protagonist, Naruto.
While all the illustrations were pretty spot on, the one that stood out the most was the Bleach manga creator. Kubo decided to draw Naruto along with the primary antagonist of the first part of Kishimoto’s series, Orochimaru.
so tite kubo made a tribute on naruto to mashashi kishimoto (creator of naruto)and honestly it looks SO COOL and is his best drawing (IMO) and tbh….naruto kinda looks like ichigo’s brother lol
by inbleach
Kubo’s artistic style, combined with one of the biggest anime villains of all time, brought out the most unexpected result.
While Naruto shared a little resemblance with Bleach’s Ichigo Kurosaki (the protagonist), Orochimaru looked menacing and terrifying on a different level. He had long nails and a horrific aura, and his face looked more like a snake than it did in Naruto. Although it was black and white, the illustration still gave a dark impression, for which Kubo is already famous.
Naruto Fans Are Shocked With Tite Kubo’s Illustration of Orochimaru
A Tite Kubo fan shared the manga creator’s tribute to Kishimoto on Reddit, and it attracted both Bleach and Naruto fans. While Bleach fans were well-versed in Kubo’s artistic style, which is mixed with a little grim tone, Naruto fans were baffled to see the new and more villainous version of Orochimaru.
Fans expressed their opinions about Kubo’s drawing and how they were different from what Kishimoto’s manga panels generally look like.
Some fans even pointed out that Kubo’s illustration makes Orochimaru look more troublesome, especially his nails.
Kubo and Kishimoto have been working in the manga industry for a long time and even though they are ideally considered competitors, both of them respect each other’s legacy and have often used each other’s work for inspiration and influence.
You can watch Bleach and Naruto on Hulu.
