Two Shippuden Openings Get the JUMP MV Treatment
The JUMP MV project builds official music videos around Weekly Shonen Jump series and the artists behind their anime theme songs, and it has now reached its 55th and 56th entries. According to Japanese anime news site Anime Anime, the two new videos pair Naruto with Ikimonogakari, the band whose songs opened two separate stretches of Naruto Shippuden. Both will premiere on the Jump Channel, Shueisha's official YouTube channel for Jump properties, which has 2.64 million subscribers.
The songs themselves are pillars of the Shippuden era. "Blue Bird," released as a single in July 2008, served as the anime's third opening theme, running from episode 54 through episode 77. "Hotaru no Hikari," which translates roughly to "Light of a Firefly," followed as the fifth opening across episodes 103 to 128.
Naruto is a JUMP MV regular. Earlier entries in the series set the manga to KANA-BOON's "Silhouette" and Asian Kung-Fu Generation's "Haruka Kanata." Ikimonogakari has history here too, having already appeared with "BAKU" for Boruto: Two Blue Vortex and "Unmei-chan" for Mission: Yozakura Family. The new double feature lands as the band celebrates the 20th anniversary of its debut.
A Manga That Sold 250 Million Copies
Masashi Kishimoto's ninja saga ran in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump from 1999 to 2014, wrapping up with its 700th chapter. The story follows Naruto Uzumaki, a young ninja who battles through deadly rivalries and the grudges of his past on his way to becoming Hokage, the leader of the Hidden Leaf Village. Collected editions have topped 250 million copies across more than 60 countries and regions.
The TV anime debuted on TV Tokyo in 2002, continued as Naruto Shippuden from 2007 until March 2017, and marked 20 years on the air in October 2022. Eleven theatrical films have hit Japanese cinemas along the way, and the anime now reaches more than 145 countries and regions. Beyond the screen, the franchise has spread into games, exhibitions, stage musicals, music festivals, and even kabuki.
Looking Ahead
"Hotaru no Hikari" premieres on the Jump Channel on Saturday, July 18, 2026, at 9:00 p.m. JST (8:00 a.m. ET), with "Blue Bird" following on Saturday, July 25 at the same time. Both premiere pages are already live on the channel, so fans can set reminders now.
The Naruto manga is available in English from Viz Media, and both Naruto and Naruto Shippuden stream on Crunchyroll. No word yet on whether more Naruto entries are planned for the JUMP MV series after these two.