Source: Wikipedia
“The Enemy: Ninja Dropouts”
“Naruto, Sakura, and Lee are hired to escort a “Ninja Dropout, a criminal ninja named Gantetsu, to prison and guard him against his comrades, who may be trying to free him. They learn that Todoroki, the captain of the guard, has a personal vendetta against Gantetsu for what happened to his parents and younger brother. During an attack by one of the Ninja Dropouts, Naruto, Todoroki, and Gantetsu are separated from Sakura, Lee, and the guards.”
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Analysis
The episode introduced a new set of characters from a group known as the Ninja Dropouts. These include Shura (the leader of the group), Monju, Toki, and Gantetsu.
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The Ninja Dropouts infiltrated a certain mansion to steal the treasure.
At the beginning of the episode, it is nighttime when there is a full moon, which symbolises that something bad is about to happen. The Ninja Dropouts infiltrated a certain mansion when they came out of a pool. Afterwards, ominous music plays in the background when they enter the mansion to kill a man and a woman in their room. After they finished killing the man and woman, they walked around the hallway and came across a huge safe that was locked. So, Shura instructed Monju to open the safe with his Ninja Art: Pattern Link to cut the door. According to the Narutopedia website, this technique uses a metal string strengthened with chakra to make a thread capable of constricting a target and cutting through steel with little difficulty. Monju can also use the wire to form complex string figure designs with his hands and launch the figure from the string as a powerful cutting attack (Narutopedia Website).
So, after Monju finished cutting the safe with his ninja technique, it opened to reveal treasure consisting of gold. While they were stealing it, they heard a kid crying in one of the rooms, so Gatentsu was sent to deal with the kid while the rest of the gang took the treasure. When Gatentsu left the room, Shura, Monju, and Toki set the mansion on fire so that there was no sign of evidence that they had infiltrated the mansion. While they set the mansion on fire, Gantetsu stood outside the room of the kid who was crying and had a blank expression on his face, even though the mansion was on fire. Before the scene can progress to show Gantestu’s next move, the scene switches to the leaf village, which leaves a sense of mystery. The scene acts as an exposition of background events necessary for understanding the plot. Moreover, it is a foreshadowing of certain clues to hint at what is going to happen later in the plot. Therefore, it keeps the viewer intrigued enough to watch the rest of the episode.
Naruto, Sakura, and Lee are hired to escort a “Ninja Dropout, a criminal ninja named Gantetsu, to prison and guard him against his comrades, who may be trying to free him. At the Leaf Village, around the day, Shizune informed Tsunade about a request she received from the police. At the Hokage’s office, Shizune said, “Well, the police have requested our assistance; they need to transfer a prisoner.” The police could have done it themselves, but it was a little more complicated since it involved the ninja dropouts, who were skilled shinobi. Moreover, the Jonin have all been assigned to S-level missions, and most Genin and Chunin are away from the village on different assignments. Therefore, Naruto, Sakura, and Rock Lee were the only ones available to take part in this mission.
When Naruto, Sakura, and Rock Lee arrived at her office, Tsunade informed them about the details of their mission. First, she said, “It’s a group of ninjas who have chosen to leave their villages and give up the life of a shinobi to go live in the wild with others like them. They are a band of savage thieves who use their skills to steal what they want.” Second, she said, “One of their members was captured yesterday at Oggi Mountain Pass in the Land of Forest; this guy is wanted in just about every village you can think of. He was wandering through the woods when he was captured. His name is Gantetsu.” Last, she said, “We are hoping Gantetsu has information that will help us wipe out the ninja dropouts, so he is being transferred to the capital city in the land of forests to be interrogated. We’re assuming the ninja dropouts will try to rescue him somewhere along the way. The police are taking every precaution and have assigned a full escort to ensure he makes it to the capital. Still, since the opponents are ninjas, they have asked me to assign several of our ninjas to ensure the success of this mission, so that’s why you’re all here.” Thereafter, they are sent on a mission to guard the Gantestu convoy, which was supposed to travel by ship.
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Naruto, Rock Lee, and Sakura make plans to travel to the Land of the Forest using a ship.
The reason they are travelling by ship is that the only way to get to the capital of the Land of Forest is by the river. After some time, they saw Gantetsu locked in a cage that was carried by a crane, and a character named Tsuzumi from the correction facility arrived and said he oversaw the convoy. They introduced themselves to each other, and though Tsuzumi expected the security team to handle the situation, he eventually decided to leave it to the Genin to handle it. Afterwards, various guards from the correction facility entered the ship and were placed in charge of guarding Gantestu.
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The Genin meets the captain of the guards, named Todoroki.
Captain Todoroki arrives and is informed by Tsuzumi that the Genin will join them as backup to guard Gantestu. The Genin introduced themselves, and in response, he ignored them and didn’t acknowledge them. He said to Tsuzumi (the chief guard) that they already had enough security, but Tsuzumi said it was out of his hands since the orders came from above the hierarchy. Afterwards, Todoroki said to the genin in a dismissive tone, “If you want to help, stay out of our way; my man and I will guard Gantestu.” He then unleashed his sword and went on to say, “I swear by the power of my sword.” Thereafter, Todoroki, Tsuzumi, and the Genin enter the ship, and Todoroki orders the lowering of the prisoner further down the pit of the ship. So, the guards lowered the crane that was carrying Gantetsu, put him in the deep pit, and then closed the roof, which locked Gantetsu inside.
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Everyone sails on the ship to reach their destination, the Land of the Forest.
The ship sets off on the river, and Genin admires the view while the guards are protecting Gantetsu, who is locked inside the cage. When it was sunset, Naruto and Rock Lee complained about the guards not letting them see the prisoners and that they treated them like pests who were in their way. Moreover, Naruto hopes that if the Ninja Dropouts attack, they can show them their skills. In response to Naruto’s words, Sakura said he shouldn’t say things like that because their mission is to get Gantetsu safely to the capital, not to show how amazing they are. After some time, the Genin gets bored, realising that this is a long journey.
When the ship got close to a certain forest, the kids were observing it from a distance. Who are these kids? Only time will tell.
Meanwhile, the Genin are having dinner, eating the ramen they were given by the guards. While they were eating, Naruto still complained about how they were being treated like pests. Therefore, he decides to go inside a room where Gantetsu is being kept, even though Todoroki says he shouldn’t interfere. So, when Naruto entered the room, it was dark until he saw Gantetsu, who sat silently in his cage. After some time, Naruto sees Todoroki, and since he was warned not to interfere, Naruto hides and observes what Todoroki is going to do next.
They learn that Todoroki, the captain of the guard, has a personal vendetta against Gantetsu for what happened to his parents and younger brother.
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Todoroki memories
Tense music plays in the background when Todoroki, who looks like he is 12 years old, gets home and sees the fire burning the mansion. When he entered the rooms to check if his parents and younger brother were alive, he saw Gantetsu holding his younger brother, Akio, hostage from the other room. After seeing this, the ceiling fell on Gantetsu and Akio, while Todoroki, who was standing in the opposite direction, suddenly felt the pieces of the ceiling on his head, which caused him to pass out. Todoroki’s memories are linked to the title I mentioned in the beginning, “The Ninja Dropouts infiltrated a certain mansion to steal the treasure.” In other words, the Ninja Dropouts infiltrated his home, killed his parents and his younger brother Akio, stole the treasure and burned his home. This explains why he didn’t want the Genin to interfere; he was planning to kill Gantetsu for causing him pain and suffering when he was just a kid. This exposition of his memories helps to understand his motives for killing Gantetsu. Therefore, the element of pain and suffering on the part of Todoroki is evident here.
Back to the present, Todoroki caught his breath and said to himself while Gantestu was still in his cage, “Akio, I will finally avenge you.” So, he prepared to unleash his sword to kill Gantetsu, but Naruto, who saw what was about to happen, stopped Todoroki from killing Gantetsu. In other words, Naruto’s interference saved Gantestu’s life.
During an attack by one of the Ninja Dropouts, Naruto, Todoroki, and Gantetsu are separated from Sakura, Lee, and the guards. Meanwhile, it’s nighttime with the full moon in the sky, which symbolises that something bad is about to happen. For instance, Toki was observing the ship from a distance while he was in a certain forest. So, he activated his Ninja Art: Crimson Mud. According to the Narutopedia website, Toki uses the large mechanical drill on his right arm to fire it in the direction he desires with such force that it can change the geography of the affected area. He uses this technique to create a fork in the river, which he plans to use as a choke point where he can attack his target, the ship (Narutopedia Website).
After Toki used his ninja technique, Sakura realised that it was strange that there was a fork in the river because none of the maps showed a fork in the river.
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The use of dialogue between Naruto and Todoroki.
While there was a fork in the river, Todoroki asked Naruto what he was doing in the room where Gantetsu was kept. In response, Naruto questioned him, wondering what he was going to do to Gantetsu. After Todoroki heard this, he acted dumb, but Naruto said it looked like he was planning to kill him with his sword. Yet he still acted dumb, got up, and said this was ridiculous. Afterwards, a dialogue took place:
Todoroki: It’s my mission to see that this man reaches the capital safely, and that’s what I’m doing.
Naruto: That’s good because no matter what this guy’s done, he still needs to be interrogated and given a fair trial before anything else.
Todoroki (angry): Rat, like you know what he deserves. This guy doesn’t need to be interrogated; he did everything they said.
Naruto (stunned): Huh?
Todoroki (angry): Oh, he did it; he’s the one. A lot of innocent people died because of him, even kids. He showed no mercy at all!
Thereafter, Gantetsu, who was in the cage, opened his eyes.
The dialogue shows that Todoroki still holds hatred for Gantetsu for killing his parents. Will he ever get his revenge, or will he let go and have peace? Only time will tell.
Meanwhile, the ship gets pulled into the current Toki created with his ninja technique. To make matters worse, ominous music plays in the background when Monju activates his Ninja Art: Pattern Links to slice the ship in half, which causes the top half of the ship to fall to the other side and opens the bottom half of the ship where Gantutsu was located. Eventually, due to the current Toki created, the top half of the ship went in the right direction while the bottom half of the ship went in the left direction. In other words, the top half of the ship had Sakura, Rock Lee, and the other guards sailing in the right direction, while the bottom half of the ship had Naruto, Todoroki, and Gantetsu sailing in the left direction.
While this was happening, the kids from a certain forest saw Gantetsu from a distance. It seems they admire Gantetsu. Could it be that Gantetsu has a soft spot for kids and takes care of them? Only time will tell.
When Naruto, Todoroki, and Gantetsu went in the left direction, the rest of the Ninja Dropouts appeared, consisting of Shura (the head of the Ninja Dropouts), Toki, and Monju. Afterwards, Shura opened an umbrella to activate a certain ninja technique and said they should hand Gantetsu over to them. When Naruto and Todoroki refused, Shura planned to activate his ninja technique. What is his technique? Only time will tell.
The episode ends with Naruto having an angry look on his face. What will he do? The viewer is left in suspense until they watch the next episode.
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and then Add to home screen.