The latest Naruto volume is an action packed blast, showcasing Naruto's powers like never before, and battling it out with Orochimaru in a fight to save Sasuke. I like the progression Naruto is going through and how he's both using (and being used?) by the spirit of the Nine-Tailed Fox that rests inside him. Sadly, however, if you came looking for story, you're not going to find a whole lot of it in this volume.

Following their first run-in with the Akatsuki, Naruto and Sakura have found themselves on a new team, lead by Yamato, and featuring a strange boy named Sai as the third member. Sai's a crafty kid who seems to lack the ability to show any emotions, and who seems to have an ulterior motive. Yamato's plan to portray the Akatsuki member Sasori backfires and soon he is revealed to be a traitor to Kabuto by none other than his master Orochimaru. Seeing a chance to take the fight to Orochimaru to hopefully save Sasuke, Naruto unleashes his new powers in hopes of destroying Orochimaru once and for all.

Naruto Vol. 33

It's Naruto volumes like this that remind me Naruto is a better anime series than it is a manga. I love reading the adventures, but when they're as action packed as this volume was, there isn't much to savor as the volume can be read through at a blitzkrieg speed. There are a multitude of pages where the only thing there is to read is one word or the visualization of a sound effect. I don't mind well choreographed and fine looking action as depicted in this book, but I need story and motive too. The volume relies too much on the back history between Naruto and Sasuke to drive the narrative, but newcomers jumping in won't have a clue why Naruto goes so all out.

The only portion of the book that had a lot of writing was near the end once the battle was completed, and there were parts of this segment that I actually enjoyed more than the fighting. We've got the team discussing what happened to Sai and what he could be up to, Sakura needing to lie to Naruto about what transpired in the fight, and Yamato hinting at that perhaps Sakura now has feelings for Naruto.

While the story did fail to impress me given its brevity, I was completely satisfied by the artwork. Kishimoto does an excellent job of rendering action and being able to portray speed and power on the page. I especially enjoy the rawness when he does Naruto using the Nine-Tailed Fox, as it always feels epic. He also introduces a new Nine-Tailed Naruto too, which has him unleashing the power of four tails; the look is really simple and appears to be nothing more than random ink pen markings, but it's visually creepy when you actually see it.

The latest volume of Naruto is action-packed, featuring a spectacular battle between Naruto and Orochimaru. It's a very fun read, but one that ends too quickly since a lot of the book is made of pictures and little substance in the way of writing.

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