Orochimaru (Naruto)
Orochimaru | |
---|---|
Naruto character | |
![]() Orochimaru by Masashi Kishimoto | |
First appearance | Naruto chapter 45 |
Voiced by | Japanese Kujira Yuriko Yamaguchi (Shiore) Mayumi Yamaguchi (young) Sachiko Kojima (female body) Masahiko Tanaka (fourth Kazekage)[1] English Steve Blum Mary Elizabeth McGlynn (female body and Shiore) Crispin Freeman (Fourth Kazekage)[2] |
Notable relatives | Mitsuki (son) |
Ninja rank | Rogue Ninja[3] |
Orochimaru (大蛇丸) is a fictional character from
Based on Japanese mythology, Orochimaru was created as one of the series' main antagonists, and was intended to represent the opposite of the protagonists' morals and values.[4] His snake-like appearance features were intended to make it easier for the reader to recognize that he is a villain. Orochimaru is voiced by Kujira in the Japanese version, and by Steve Blum in the English dub.
Several anime and manga publications have praised and criticized Orochimaru's character. He has been praised as one of the series' premiere villains by reviewers for his lack of redeeming qualities and open malevolence. Among the Naruto reader base, Orochimaru has been a popular character, ranking within the top twenty in several polls. Numerous pieces of merchandise with Orochimaru's likeness have been released, including action figures, posters, and plush dolls.
Creation and conception
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/83/YamataNoOrochi.jpg/220px-YamataNoOrochi.jpg)
Most of the traits of Orochimaru's character were taken from Japanese mythology. Orochimaru originates from the
The introduction of Orochimaru to the series was first suggested by Masashi Kishimoto's superiors to improve the series' popularity. Kishimoto believed the series grew personality based on the Chunin Exams story arc and wanted it to end normally with Shikamaru Nara's victory. However, he eventually accepted their advice and Orochimaru was used to interrupt the arc.[8] In an interview, Kishimoto asserted that making the villains "flamboyant" was one of his "guiding principles", and attributed this to his desire to have the villains have a "powerful aura".[4] When asked if Orochimaru was still good, Kishimoto answered that Orochimaru is "truly evil" and that he is one of the several "hopeless evil characters" that appear in the series.[9] Kishimoto originally planned to make Orochimaru look androgynous, but made him creepier due to the concept of him being a strong antagonist.[10] Out of most of the characters, Orochimaru was the hardest one to write. Kishimoto wanted him to be a terrifying opponent, so he wondered if that was really the way to go to make him sound strong[clarification needed]: "Then I started thinking it was good like that, he's strong and creepy, and the creepiness started increasing."[10]
To follow the theme of distinguishing villains, Kishimoto attempted to make Orochimaru's face appear "pasty and sickly", which serves to emphasize the "scary looks" that Orochimaru expresses in the manga. Orochimaru's nature types are fire, earth, and wind. As these occurrences are his "trademark", Kishimoto modifies Orochimaru's appearance and the scene to focus on Orochimaru's face; for instance, highlights that are normally added to Orochimaru's hair are removed and the background is blanked out to create a "creepy atmosphere".[11]
Appearances
In Naruto
Orochimaru acts as the primary antagonist for the first part of the series. After his parents were killed when he was young, Orochimaru's only source of affection was his teacher—
Orochimaru craved more power than could be obtained from training with his master and began abducting Konohagakure villagers for various experiments, with Yamato among his surviving victims. Unwilling to bring himself to harm Orochimaru upon learning of his actions, Hiruzen allowed his former pupil to escape and flee the village.[17][18] Orochimaru eventually joined the criminal organization Akatsuki and became partners with a fellow rogue ninja named Sasori. However, after he attempted to steal the body of Itachi Uchiha through a forbidden jutsu to gain the Sharingan (写輪眼, lit. "Copy Wheel Eye", English manga: "Mirror Wheel Eye") failed, Orochimaru was forced to leave the organization.[19][20] Orochimaru then founded his own ninja village, Otogakure, populated with ninjas loyal to him. They mostly serve as test subjects in his experimentation to become an ultimate being and as pawns to do his dirty work.[21]
During the Chunin Exams, Orochimaru plans the invasion of Konoha with the ninja of Sunagakure to not only kill Hiruzen, but also claim the body of Itachi's brother Sasuke Uchiha.[17] To that end, Orochimaru infiltrates the Chunin Exam during the Forest of Death portion by killing a Kusagakure ninja named Shiore, assumes her identity, and personally tests Sasuke before branding him with a Curse Mark. He also faces Naruto Uzumaki, who effectively resists Orochimaru's giant snake jutsu using the chakra of the Nine-Tail Fox. Orochimaru, using the Five Elements Seal, blocks access to the chakra of the Nine-Tails by disturbing the balance of the original seal. For the duration of the Exams, Orochimaru lays in wait and secretly murders the Fourth Kazekage to assume his identity and get close to his mentor as the invasion begins. However, Orochimaru is forced to retreat when Hiruzen sacrifices himself through the Reaper Death Seal to take away Orochimaru's ability to perform jutsu, with his forces pulling back while Sunagakure later learns of Orochimaru's treachery.[22] Orochimaru attempts to get aid from Tsunade before seeking out another way to cure himself in an attempt to be able to use jutsu again. When all his efforts prove unsuccessful, Orochimaru sends his Sound Four to fetch Sasuke in the hopes that a body-transfer will allow him to use his arms again.[23] When Sasuke takes too long to arrive, Orochimaru is forced to switch to the body of one of his prisoners instead,[24] and decides to train him until the day that he will be able to take Sasuke's body for himself.[25]
Two and a half years later, in the second part of the series, Orochimaru confronts Naruto and his friends when they attempt to track down Sasuke. When Sasuke attempts to kill Naruto, Orochimaru dissuades him by pointing out the Naruto's use in taking down Akatsuki and thus reducing the number of enemies he has. Sasuke eventually uses his Sharingan to void Orochimaru's technique and retains control of his body while trapping Orochimaru's soul within him,[26] which gives Sasuke access to many of Orochimaru's abilities in the process.[27] During Sasuke's later fight with Itachi, Sasuke is left too weak to continue suppressing Orochimaru's soul, allowing Orochimaru to escape and try to take his body again. Before he can do so, Itachi seals him away.[28]
After Kabuto's defeat, Sasuke learns of Orochimaru's survival, as the Cursed Seals are revealed to hold copies of Orochimaru's consciousness in them, along with Orochimaru's cells that Kabuto injected into himself and subjugated. Using the Cursed Seal Orochimaru placed on his former student Anko Mitarashi, Sasuke releases Orochimaru and gives him a new body that Jugo provides with an absorbed part of Kabuto's flesh.[29] Despite expressing no interest in the ongoing war and still desiring to claim Sasuke's body, Orochimaru joins Sasuke in his quest for answers over the nature of ninja, taking him and Taka to the Nara Shrine, where he undoes the Reaper Death Seal and regains the use of ninjutsu before transferring his being into a White Zetsu clone placed on Sasuke. In his new body, Orochimaru brings the first four Hokage back to life with the Reanimation Jutsu to give Sasuke the answers he wants. Seeing that his methods were flawed from inside Kabuto and interested in observing his former apprentice's new path, Orochimaru aids the Allied Shinobi Forces by helping Tsunade and the Kage, and assists in subduing the Shinju. After the Fourth Great Ninja War ends, among those caught under Madara's Infinite Tsukuyomi before being freed[clarification needed], Orochimaru resumes his experiments, albeit in a more humane manner, with Sasuke's Taka teammates supporting him as lab assistants, though Konoha remains suspicious of him and keeps tight surveillance on him in case he resumes his former human experimentation activities.
In Boruto
In the sequel series
Appearances in other media
Out of the five films on the series, Orochimaru so far has only appeared in the fifth Naruto film,
Orochimaru also appears in two light novels from the franchise: in Sasuke's Story, he aids Sasuke in a mission by providing him information about his target,[38] and in Konoha Hiden, he makes a cameo congratulating Naruto Uzumaki and Hinata Hyuga's wedding.[39]
Reception
Orochimaru has been featured consistently in the
Several publications for manga, anime, video games, and other related media praised and criticized Orochimaru's character.
After Orochimaru's fight against the Hokage,
Despite the character's minor appearances in Part II, most of them were well received. The way Orochimaru angers Naruto Uzumaki in their battle and his management over events ever since his reintroduction are deemed as "near perfect" by Mania's Chris Beveridge.[61] Orochimaru's fight against Sasuke in later parts of the series is praised by Manga Life's Park Cooper due to how it changes "the nature of things" in a short time.[62] While Beveridge agrees with Cooper, he finds that the fight did not bring a certain end to Orochimaru, which he thought would have made it more entertaining. On the other hand, Beveridge likes how a flashback showed Orochimaru's backstory in Konoha, which helped explain the reason for his character during the fight between the two.[63] His apparent redemption to follow Sasuke in later parts of the story is criticized by writer Jason Thompson during a review of the manga.[64] On the other hand, Bryce Coulter from the Fandom Post finds Orochimaru's change based on Sasuke's new interest intriguing due to the future possibilities of becoming Konohagakure's ally.[65] Ramsey Isler from IGN praises the relationship between Orochimaru and his ally Kabuto as the former often wondered if Kabuto was ever going to betray him.[66] In the final episodes of the anime Naruto Shippuden, Orochimaru made small cameos during the preparations for Naruto and Hinata's wedding which Amy Mcnulty from Anime News Network found hilarious.[67]
References
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- ^ Studio Pierrot (April 22, 2006). "The Sharingan Revived: Dragon Flame Jutsu!". Naruto. Episode 30. Cartoon Network.
- ISBN 4-08-873734-2.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-4215-1407-9.
- ^ ISBN 978-3-643-13514-8.
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- ^ Bagwe, Tejal Suhas; Salian, Shweta (February 2020). "Chapter 1". The relevance of the Japanese myth of creation and the Tale of Jiraiya in the anime manga series Naruto. Mithibai College of Arts, Chauhan Institute of Science & Amrutben Jivanlal College of Commerce and Economics. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
- ^ 漫道コバヤシ第13号「NARUTO完結!岸本斉史SP」 [Kobayashi No. 13 'Completion of Naruto! Masashi Kishimoto SP'] (in Japanese). Fuji Television. December 13, 2014.
- ^ "Interview: Tracking Down the Source". Shonen Jump Naruto Collector 3. Viz Media. August 2007.
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- ^ Naruto Shippuden: The Movie - Bonds (DVD). Viz Video. 2011.
- ^ Bozon, Mark (2006-09-29). "Naruto: The Complete Fighter Profile". IGN. Retrieved 2008-02-08.
- ^ Alfonso, Andrew (2004-09-26). "TGS 2004: Naruto Gekitou Ninja Taisen! 3 Hands-on". IGN. Retrieved 2008-02-08.
- Namco Bandai. 2006. p. 26.
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- ^ "NARUTO-ナルト- 疾風伝:TV東京 - Goods". TV Tokyo. Archived from the original on March 21, 2008. Retrieved 2008-03-16.
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- ^ "Naruto Battle Packs > Sannin Battle Action Figure Multi-Pack". Amazon. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
- ^ "Amazon.com: Mattel Naruto Battling Basic Figure Orochimaru". Amazon. Retrieved 2008-03-16.
- ^ "Naruto Orochimaru 12" plush". Amazon. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
- ^ "NARUTO: Orochimaru figure Cellphone / Key chain Charm + Pin". Amazon. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
- ^ "Friday Feature". AnimeCentral. Archived from the original on October 13, 2010. Retrieved November 14, 2011.
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- ^ Van Horn, Jason (2007-01-29). "Naruto: "A Mistake from the Past: A Face Revealed!" Review". IGN. Retrieved 2008-02-25.
- ^ "Mania.com > Disc Reviews >> Naruto Box Set 03 (also w/special edition)". Mania.com. Archived from the original on December 6, 2012. Retrieved 2008-03-11.
- ^ "Naruto Uncut Boxed Set, Volume 3". DVDTalk. 2007-06-14. Archived from the original on 2007-10-17. Retrieved 2008-03-11.
- ^ Kimlinger, Carl (November 2, 2006). "Naruto G.novel 8-10". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on February 4, 2010. Retrieved April 5, 2009.
- ^ Lugo, Javier. "Naruto v. 14 Review". Mangalife.com. Archived from the original on June 29, 2007.
- ^ Bamboo Dong (2008-04-28). "Shelf Life Funky Town". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2008-04-28.
- ^ White, Charles (March 10, 2008). "Naruto: "Orochimaru's Shadow" Review". IGN. Archived from the original on May 25, 2014. Retrieved 2008-04-28.
- ^ Sparrow, A.E. (February 27, 2007). "Naruto Vol. 13 Review". IGN. Archived from the original on July 3, 2012. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
- About.com. Archived from the originalon February 4, 2009. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
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- ^ Ellingwood, Holly. "NARUTO UNCUT BOX SET 7 LIMITED EDITION". Active Anime. Archived from the original on April 23, 2008. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
- ^ Carl Kimlinger (2008-08-04). "Naruto DVD - Uncut DVD Box Set 9 Review". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2008-08-06.
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- ^ Beveridge, Chris (November 17, 2010). "Naruto: Shippuden Box Set 04 (also w/LE)". Mania Entertainment. Archived from the original on November 19, 2010. Retrieved November 17, 2011.
- ^ Cooper, Park. "MangaLife Spotlight on: Naruto v34-v40!". Manga Life. Silver Bullet Comics. Archived from the original on April 12, 2009. Retrieved September 4, 2009.
- ^ Beveridge, Chris (May 21, 2012). "Naruto: Shippuden Box Set 10 Anime DVD Review". The Fandom Post. Retrieved April 24, 2012.
- ^ Thompson, Jason (November 13, 2014). "House of 1000 Manga - Naruto Part II". Anime News Network. Retrieved November 14, 2014.
- ^ Coulter, Bryce (July 14, 2017). "Naruto: Shippuden Set 29 Anime DVD Review". Fandom Post. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
- ^ "Top Ten Naruto Characters". IGN. November 12, 2014. Archived from the original on July 12, 2017. Retrieved June 12, 2017.
- ^ McNulty, Amy (March 4, 2017). "Naruto Shippuden Episode 497". Anime News Network. Retrieved July 7, 2017.
External links
Media related to Orochimaru at Wikimedia Commons