Naruto: Shikamaru''s Story--Mourning Clouds

About Takashi Yano

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 characters son Boruto.   Takashi Yano won the Shosetsu Subaru Newcomer Award in 2008 with Jashu. He has published a number of works as an expert on period dramas. In addition to the Naruto novelizations Shikamarus Story and Itachis Story: Daylight/Midnight he is broadening the sphere of his work with other novelizations such as Street Fighter.