Naruto Uzumaki

Naruto Uzumaki (Japanese: うずまき ナルト, Hepburn: Uzumaki Naruto) (/ˈnɑːrutoʊ/) is the titular protagonist of the manga series Naruto, created by Masashi Kishimoto. He is a ninja from the fictional Hidden Leaf Village (Japanese: 木ノ葉隠れ, Hepburn: Konohagakure). As a boy, Naruto is ridiculed and ostracized on account of the Kurama the Nine-Tailed Fox—a malevolent creature that attacked Hidden Leaf Village—that was sealed away in his body. Despite this, he aspires to become his village's leader, the Hokage, in order to receive their approval. His carefree, optimistic, and boisterous personality enables him to befriend other Hidden Leaf Village ninja, as well as ninja from other villages. Naruto appears in the series's films and in other media related to the franchise, including video games and original video animations (OVA), as well as the sequel Boruto series, where he is the Seventh Hokage, and his son, Boruto Uzumaki, is the titular protagonist alongside with Kawaki, Naruto's adopted son.

When creating Naruto for the initial part of the series, Kishimoto kept the character "simple and stupid" while giving him many attributes of an ideal hero. Kishimoto gave Naruto a dark side by adding tragedy to the character's past. He has revised Naruto's image many times, providing the character with simple clothes to fit the young demography. Kishimoto changed his design for Part II of the storyline, which starts two-and-a-half years after Part I. Naruto is voiced by Junko Takeuchi in the original animated series and Maile Flanagan in the English adaptations.

Merchandise based on Naruto includes figurines and keychains. Naruto's character development has been praised by anime and manga publications and has drawn scholarly attention. Although some initially saw him as a typical manga and anime protagonist comparable to those in other shōnen manga, others have praised his personality and character development as he avoids stereotypes typically seen in similar media. The character has also been the subject of research in literature, making him stand out in fiction based on his traits and growth.