I've heard that you are a fan of traditional Japanese adventure stories. Do you like chanbara eiga [sword fighting movies set in Japan's feudal period] or historical fiction?
I like chanbara, but the recent chanbara films don't have the feel that the older movies have, and I'm not a big fan of the recent ones. I'm hoping a much cooler director comes out and creates an awesome chanbara film. (In Japan, chanbara films are typically produced by aging directors who are completely behind the times. It's difficult for new directors with fresh ideas to be accepted by the old-school Japanese film industry.)
Especially since the early 1980s, ninja have been very popular in American movies and comics. Have you been inspired by any American ninja stories?
I know a little bit about the popularity of Sho Kosugi [star of many action movies] during that period, as well as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I'm happy, from the perspective of someone from Japan, to see the new way ninjas are perceived in America. Although I hear there are some people who are upset about how the entire "ninja mythology" has been screwed up because of it.
This may be an American misconception, but when I think of "ninja" I think of figures wearing completely black outfits, usually with masks. But the ninjas in Naruto look completely unlinke this old stereotype. How did you come up with the interesting "Konoha Style" of the ninjas in Naruto?
If I created a world that recycles the traditional concept of a ninja it would have ended up just like all the other ninja manga. I wanted to create a ninja world with a twist, something fresh, so I completely threw out the preconceived notions of what a ninja should be like. Besides, Naruto is a blond-haired ninja wearing yellow clothing, who is supposed to be part of a secret intelligence gathering organization. There's no way that a ninja who stands out that much would really exist. (laughs)
