A new series of prose novels, straight from the worldwide Naruto franchise. Naruto’s allies and enemies take center stage in these fast-paced adventures, with each volume focusing on a particular clanmate, ally, team…or villain. A new series of prose novels, straight from the worldwide Naruto franchise. Naruto’s allies and enemies take center stage in these fast-paced adventures, with each volume focusing on a particular clan mate, ally, team…or villain. A year has passed since the Fourth Great Ninja War, and Kakashi’s appointment as Hokage looms. But first he heads to the Land of Waves for a dangerous mission rescuing hostages from a top-secret airship. There he confronts a ninja whose heart is frozen by tragedy. Having lost both his friend’s eye and his greatest abilities, can Kakashi protect anyone from his coldhearted foe? What is the true meaning of the Will of Fire gained in the distant heavens? Kakashi finds these answers and more as he enters a new ninja era. Gr 7 Up—This light novel tells the story of Kakashi, one of the more popular and mysterious characters in the "Naruto" universe. Kakashi suspects sabotage on the first voyage of a new airship and sneaks on board. He soon discovers that enemy forces are taking over the ship, holding passengers hostage, and threatening to kill them unless their demands are met. Kakashi sneaks around for a while and then uses his superior fighting skills to fight the terrorists. But since this is based on a ninja-themed manga, these battles are fought with a mixture of magic and martial arts. Characters fight one another physically but also use a variety of other powers like ice and electricity to battle their enemies. Being familiar with the "Naruto" manga or anime before reading this book is essential, because otherwise teens will not understand the significance of different characters or plot points or even who the good guys and bad guys are. Also, a drawback of the light novel format means that the action and humor are not conveyed as powerfully as they would be in a manga, which is how most fans know these characters. VERDICT For fans of the "Naruto" series who are interested in a more in-depth view of the Kakashi character.—Andrea Lipinski, New York Public Library Author/artist Masashi Kishimoto was born in 1974 in rural Okayama Prefecture, Japan. Like many kids, he was first inspired to become a manga artist in elementary school when he read Dragon Ball . After spending time in art college, he won the Hop Step Award for new manga artists with his story Karakuri . After considering various genres for his next project, Kishimoto decided on a story steeped in traditional Japanese culture. His first version of Naruto , drawn in 1997, was a one-shot story about fox spirits; his final version, which debuted in Weekly Shonen Jump in 1999, quickly became the most popular ninja manga in the world. The series would also spawn multiple anime series, movies, novels, video games and more. Having concluded the series in late 2014, Masashi Kishimoto has kept himself busy this year with the side story Naruto: The Seventh Hokage and the Scarlet Spring and writing the story for the latest Naruto movie, Boruto: Naruto the Movie , both of which will focus on the title character’s son, Boruto.