Naruto Vol. 9
- ISBN
- 9781421502397
- Publisher
- Viz Media
- English release
- Pages
- 184
- Chapters
- 73–81
- Anime
- Season 2 (2nd Stage) ep. 36–83
The middle third of the preliminary rounds, and the one of the three books that earns its place. Chapters 73 to 81 finish the match left hanging at the end of Vol. 8, put Naruto against Kiba Inuzuka of Team 8, and then set Hinata Hyuga in front of her cousin Neji, which is the only fight in the bracket with a family structure behind it rather than a draw. Chapter 79 is titled 'The Hyuga Clan' and the title is not decoration. The book closes on the opening of 'Gaara Versus...', so it stops mid-match and leaves the rest of the round to Vol. 10. Buy Vols. 8 to 10 together or not at all. Viz lists 184 pages at $11.99, and 3-in-1 book 3 closes here with Vols. 7 and 8.
Spoilers — why this volume matters. Tap to reveal.
Neji is the first opponent in Naruto whose grievance is institutional rather than personal. He is Hinata's cousin, he hates the family she was born into, and chapter 79 is titled for the clan because the division inside it is the actual fight. He does not fight her to advance. He fights to demonstrate that his own position cannot be changed, and Hinata keeps standing up because the alternative is conceding the point to him. She leaves the floor in critical condition and he shows no remorse for putting her there, which is the least sympathetic the series has been about one of its own. Naruto swears on the blood she leaves behind that he will beat Neji in the finals, and that oath is what Vol. 12 is for. The two matches ahead of it are lighter and both finish: Sakura and Ino knock each other out and start repairing what the exam broke, and Naruto takes Kiba with a shadow clone in front of a crowd expecting him to lose.
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