- —Tagline
Naruto VS Ichigo is the 85th episode of Death Battle, featuring Naruto Uzumaki and Kurama from the Naruto series and Ichigo Kurosaki from the Bleach series in a battle between iconic shōnen anime protagonists. Naruto was voiced by Dawn M. Bennett, Kurama was voiced by Noel Wiggins, and Ichigo was voiced by Adam Park.
Interlude
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Wiz: The Holy Shonen Trinity. The Big Three. Any long time reader of Shonen Jump will recognize these, some of the biggest titles in manga and anime history.
Boomstick: And it's time for two of those shōnen heroes to throw down.
Wiz: Naruto Uzumaki, ninja prodigy of the Hidden Leaf.
Boomstick: And Ichigo Kurosaki, the enormously powerful Soul Reaper from Bleach. He's Wiz and I'm Boomstick.
Wiz: And it's our job to analyze their weapons, armor, and skills to find out who would win... a Death Battle.
Naruto Uzumaki
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Fushigi by Roger Abaji & Franck Noel
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Wiz: Konoha, the Village Hidden in the Leaves, is a pretty quiet town.
Boomstick: Not what I'd expect for a city full of ninja. Still, there was at least one troublemaker among the bunch: The #1 knuckleheaded ninja, Naruto Uzumaki.
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Doom Games by Per Bluitgen Andreasen & Yannick Kalfayan
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Naruto: I'm home, everyone! Naruto Uzumaki has returned to the Hidden Leaf Village!
Wiz: Orphaned at a young age and ostracized by his peers, Naruto may have been mischievous, but he had great aspirations. His goal was to become the town's Hokage.
Boomstick: Which is a fancy word for "ninja governor".
Wiz: The only way Naruto could reach such a prestigious position was to excel in ninja school.
Boomstick: Like ninja Harry Potter, though he should really find a place that'll teach him not to dress like a clown and run like a real human being. What does he think he is, an airplane?
Wiz: Actually, his posture likely decreases wind resistance, which could be beneficial when moving at superhuman speeds where angular momentum is a smaller factor.
Boomstick: (mocks Wiz) I remember when you ran like that in middle school.
Wiz: Hey, that was for research!
Boomstick: Sure, Wiz.
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Funky Junk by Nigel Glockler & Douglas Scarratt 
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Boomstick: Anyway, while Naruto wasn't the best student, he still tried his hardest to reach his goal, but first, he'd have to learn how to control his chakra.
Wiz: In Buddhism and Hinduism ideologies, chakras are, in simplistic terms, "gates within the human body which can be opened to achieve enlightenment." But, the ninja in Naruto's world had a slightly different interpretation.
Boomstick: I'll say, they weaponized it! Naruto can use chakra for all sorts of flashy attacks. He can heal himself, seal monsters away, walk up walls, or even stand on water like a ninja Jesus.
Wiz: He's learned a number of chakra techniques, or jutsus.
Boomstick: Gesundheit.
Wiz: And even developed a few new ones of his own.
Naruto farts in Kiba Inuzaka's face as the others stare in shock.
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Pirate's Picnic by Joey Peters, Judith de los Santos & Willie Aron
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Wiz: His signature move is the Shadow Clone Jutsu.
Boomstick: Where he can copy and paste himself over and over and over again.
Wiz: Unlike the standard clone technique, shadow clones are tangible, with their own combat capabilities. By dividing his chakra between himself and his clones, it's nearly impossible to distinguish the real Naruto from the fakes.
Boomstick: And he can get pretty tricky when he makes thousands of 'em. But when strategies can't save the day, he can always just beat his opponents down with the Rasengan.
Wiz: By spinning chakra in his hand, Naruto creates a compact ball of energy which can blast through solid stone. While the Rasengan usually takes years to learn, Naruto figured it out after training for just over a week.
Boomstick: He's invented more Rasengans than Willy Wonka's invented candies, but his top pick is the Rasenshuriken. By combining the Rasengan with the element of wind, he uses it to turn the spinning ball into a spinning blade. This baby can trap you in a vortex of wind so sharp, it'll mess you up at a cellular level.
Wiz: Naruto has plenty of other techniques up his orange sleeves, including summoning, substitution, and transformation jutsus. He can even transform into a, uh... a naked woman.
Boomstick: Oh ho ho ho! Looks like he's been studying! I guess that's one plus side to not having parents: you don't need to worry about anyone walking in on you.
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Shisa by Pete Masitti & John Andrew Barrow
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Wiz: While most individuals have chakra, everyone has a limit. The more physical and spiritual energy one possesses, the more chakra they'll have at their disposal.
Boomstick: Just like the gas tank for my chainsaw.
Wiz: Thanks to his heritage, Naruto already has a great deal of chakra. Even still, he has far more than he reasonably should, all thanks to the beast within.
Boomstick: Yeah, he's got a monster in his stomach.
Wiz: Let's backtrack a few years. On the day of Naruto's birth, his village was attacked by a chakra beast known as the Nine-Tailed Fox, a monster so destructive, a mere swing of its tails could level a mountain. In desperation, the Hokage at the time sacrificed himself to split the Nine-Tails in two, sealing one half within his own son, Naruto.
Boomstick: So, his first-ever birthday gift to his son was a giant pet fox that can destroy cities? (sighs) I wish he was my dad...
Wiz: Eventually, Naruto discovered how to communicate with the Nine-Tails.
Boomstick: They didn't get along at first; Foxy would threaten to eat Naruto, Naruto would whack him over the head with a big shrine gate, you know, typical roommate drama. Still, they eventually became friends, and Naruto learned the fox's name was Kurama.
Wiz: Afterward, Kurama willingly shared his chakra with Naruto on a regular basis. And as a being composed of chakra, Kurama's reserves are gigantic.
Boomstick: With so much power at his fingertips, Naruto can enter a bunch of different super forms. First up is Sage Mode, which sounds like something he'd learn from an old wise man or wizard, right? Nope, he learned it from a frog.
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Kanchenjunga by Jordan Gagne
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Wiz: This state increases all of Naruto's physical abilities. Furthermore, Sage Mode allows Naruto to perceive the entire area around him and tap into naturally occurring energy via senjutsu.
Boomstick: He can enhance his chakra attacks by adding natural energy, but if he's not careful, he'll turn into a frog. No, I'm not kidding.
Wiz: With Kurama's chakra, Naruto can enter multiple Tailed-Beast Forms which drastically increase his physical prowess and energy output.
Boomstick: Best of which is the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode; Flame On! It got even better when he befriended Mr. Fox, upgrading to the stronger, faster, tougher, Kurama Chakra Mode.
Wiz: Chakra Mode grants Naruto extra protection, a sense for negative emotions, and the ability to create additional chakra arms.
Boomstick: Whoa, that's a lotta hands! Gotta wonder what kinda things he does with those, right?
Wiz: Overwhelming attacks, extra maneuverability, creating Rasenshurikens, the works.
Boomstick: Yeah, that's not what I was—
Naruto creates two small chakra arms on his finger.
Boomstick: AH! Creepy tiny hands!
Wiz: He can also shroud himself in a Nine-Tails sized-avatar and use Kurama's ultimate attack: the Tailed Beast Bomb. So destructive, it can level a mountain range.
Boomstick: And for his final form, it's spoiler time. Pay attention, 'cause... yeah.
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Heroic Epic Theme (Alt 2) by Marc Andre Dall'Anese
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Boomstick: Ahem, all this chakra stuff started with an alien named Kaguya, who ate a fruit which basically created chakra. Later, she got all murder happy, so her sons stopped her. One of these sons, the Sage of Six Paths, had his own son named Asura, and Naruto is the reincarnation of him. So yeah... Naruto's kind of an alien.
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Arashi by Pete Masitti & John Andrew Burrow
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Wiz: Through this connection, Naruto was gifted the most divine form of energy: Six-Paths Chakra. With it, he can enter Six Paths Sage Mode.
Boomstick: His strength gets boosted even more, he can fly, and he can use Truth-Seeking Balls... which are orbs of chakra that can transform into weapons and destroy anything they touch.
Wiz: He can combine all these forms and further add natural energy to his Kurama avatar to form Six Paths Asura Kurama Sage Mode. Whew!
Boomstick: Good God, that's a confusing amount of forms. Anyway, Naruto is also an expert in hand-to-hand combat, and could run faster than the eye could see when he was just 12 years old.
Wiz: He's dodged a lightning speed punch from the Fourth Raikage, a feat considered comparable to his father, who could teleport.
Boomstick: He even dodged this lightspeed loogie.
Wiz: According to the fourth databook, this Light Fang attack does indeed move at lightspeed, over 670 million miles per hour.
Boomstick: He's tough enough to survive getting stabbed, have his soul ripped out, or get smacked in the face with a beam that can slice the frickin' Moon apart.
The Golden Wheel Reincarnation Explosion is promptly shown on-screen.
Wiz: He's fought multiple Tailed Beasts at once, lifted a statue weighing several hundred tons, survived a fall from the clouds, gone toe to toe with invisible Limbo shadows, and pulverized six falling meteorites simultaneously. His chakra is so tough, he can power through Amaterasu, a fire jutsu with flames so strong, they burn other flames.
Boomstick: He can even make new eyeballs for blind people! What's up with that? Oh, and in his final fight with rival, and possibly closet boyfriend, Sasuke, their opposing power was so great, they obliterated miles upon miles of land, changing the weather and disintegrating a lake.
Wiz: Only then, after defeating Sasuke, saving the world from Kaguya, and reuniting the split halves of Kurama, Naruto finally achieved his dream and became Hokage.
Boomstick: But he's still pretty dumb. I mean, he named his son "Burrito".
Wiz: Boruto.
Boomstick: Ehhhh, close enough.
Naruto: I'm not gonna run away. I never go back on my word. That's my nindō! My ninja way!
Ichigo Kurosaki
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Battle Zone by Kes Loy & Richard Kimmings
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Wiz: Shinigami. It may sound like a foreign word to some, but you all know what it is: the Death God, the Grim Reaper of souls...
Boomstick: And a 17-year-old ginger with a badass sword.
Wiz: Ichigo Kurosaki seemed like a pretty normal kid growing up, doing well in school and learning martial arts from his father. Except there was one little oddity: He could see ghosts.
Boomstick: Whoa-ho, it's like the kid from The Sixth Sense!
The famous scene from the movie plays on the bottom-left side of the screen, only with Ichigo's hair edited over Cole Sear's head.
Cole Sear: I see dead people.
Wiz: One day, when he was nine years old, and walking home with his mother, young Ichigo noticed what he thought was a girl about to fall into a river.
Boomstick: So, naturally, he ran over to rescue her, like the brave little kid he was.
Wiz: Except it wasn't really a girl at all. It was a Hollow, a monster spawned from an abandoned human soul, and it promptly killed his mother.
Boomstick: Bummer. Reminds me of how I lost my poor Mama Boomstick. (sighs) She always hated that ghost in the barn.
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Battle Scars 3 by Bob Bradley, Paul Clarvis & Steve Dymond
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Wiz: Right... Well, Ichigo remained ignorant of the truth until years later, when he met a woman named Rukia, who held the illustrious job title of Shinigami, or Soul Reaper, a guardian of the dead who keeps balance in the universe by helping those who have passed move on to the afterlife; otherwise, they turn into violent Hollows.
Boomstick: And if you show up late to work, and it doesn't work out, the Soul Reaper can always cut Hollows down with their awesome swords, like samurai Ghostbusters. Anyway, the two of them got into a bind, and Rukia had to share some of her power with Ichigo.
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Toxic Rage by Adam Drake & Tom Jenkins
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Boomstick: Turns out, he was a surprise Soul Reaper all along. Convenient.
Wiz: When accessing his Shinigami power, Ichigo leaves his physical body for a new one made up of Reishi, or spiritual matter, which makes him invisible to anyone in the living world, despite still being physically present.
Boomstick: And his new powers make him super deadly. He can move with blinding speed, cut through giant monsters with ease, survive being punched through whole city blocks, and even fly through the air.
Wiz: It's more accurate to say he walks through the air, using naturally occurring Reishi as footholds.
Boomstick: But let's get to the dicey part of his getup: that awesome sword! It's a Zanpakutō, a blade connected to its owner's soul. It may look like an oversized steak knife, but it's a Soul Reaper's best friend.
Wiz: Every Shinigami possesses a Zanpakutō spirit within themselves, which manifests as their sword. Ichigo's is called Zangetsu. Well, both of them are.
Boomstick: Ohhhh, here we go... Strap in, 'cause this shit's about to get crazy.
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Battle Scars 3 by Bob Bradley, Paul Clarvis & Steve Dymond
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Wiz: Ichigo actually has two different Zanpakutō spirits, drawn from his weird and confusing heritage.
Boomstick: Alright, so long story short, Ichigo's a Soul Reaper because his dad is, too. But, he's also part Quincy, which is a human with Reishi powers, because that's what his mom was. Buuut, he's also part Hollow, because his mom was possessed by a Hollow called White, and White got passed onto him when he was born. Oh, and he's also part Fullbringer, but nobody cares about Fullbringers.
Wiz: One of Ichigo's inner spirits is a manifestation of his Quincy side inherited from his mother, while the other is a fusion of his Shinigami power and the Hollow. Unfortunately, Shinigami and Quincy go together like oil and water.
Boomstick: While trying to find a balance between these two sides, Ichigo learned plenty of neat techniques, like his bread and butter attack: the Getsuga Tenshō.
Ichigo: Getsuga... TENSHŌ!
Wiz: By concentrating his Reiatsu, or spiritual pressure through his sword, Ichigo can launch a massive slashing attack.
Boomstick: Call it like it is, Wiz; it's a sword beam, and Ichigo can charge it up, fire from up close, or even blast two of 'em at once.
Wiz: From his Quincy side, Ichigo has used Blut Vene, a temporary defense which grants inhuman durability. From his Shinigami training, he developed exceptional sword skills and learned Shunpo, or Flash Step, which greatly enhances his speed.
Boomstick: But there's one really big deal we haven't talked about yet.
Ichigo: BANKAI!
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Battle Tank by Chris Egan & Trystan Francis
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Wiz: Over the course of his career, battling Hollows and protecting his friends, Ichigo has obtained many, MANY different super-powered forms, starting with the base Shinigami form, Shikai. Despite essentially being Ichigo's base, this form is strong enough to block an attack from the Sōkyoku, said to have power equal to one million Zanpakutō.
Boomstick: The next step was Bankai. Normally, it takes 10 years to reach this form, but Ichigo did it in just two days, like a boss.
Wiz: When using Bankai, one's power can grow anywhere from five to 10 times greater. And according to the official databook, while in Bankai, Ichigo moves like lightning.
Boomstick: Wait, why does his sword shrink when he goes Bankai? Shouldn't it be bigger, since he's stronger?
Wiz: Technically, yes, but Ichigo can control its size to keep it more manageable. If Shinigami couldn't minimize their blades, some would have swords the size of skyscrapers.
Boomstick: Awesome! Anyway, the Hollow inside wanted a piece of the action, too, so Ichigo gained a new power boost with a spoopy Hollow Mask! This form is strong enough to lift five iron pillars, each weighing nearly 100 tons.
Wiz: Though, if he's not careful, the Hollow can take control of his body, sending him into a violent berserker state commonly referred to as Vasto Lorde. Despite the lack of consciousness, Vasto Lorde Ichigo could heal quickly and was strong enough to overcome Ulquiorra, who's powerful enough to nuke a city.
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Hellfire by Adam Drake & Tom Jenkins
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Boomstick: After some quality training with his dad, Ichigo got a sort-of second Bankai, which most people call Dangai Ichigo. In this form, he shattered mountains without even trying. He broke through the Black Coffin attack which distorts time and space, which sounds like a black hole. Right after that, he survived a shot so freaking big, the explosion could be seen for miles.
Wiz: By comparing this crater to those left by real-life bomb tests, I'd estimate the attack to have a maximum explosive yield of 814 kilotons of TNT. That's like Ichigo surviving 54 Little Boys to the face.
Boomstick laughs as the music is abruptly cut.
Wiz: No! No no no no no! I meant... I meant the bomb, f-from 1945, not the... Oh, God...
Boomstick: Ahhh...
The music resumes.
Boomstick: Well, try as those "Little Boys" might, all it did to Ichigo was burn his arm, and he didn't even care! This guy isn't the type to give up.
Wiz: For his ultimate attack, Dangai Ichigo literally becomes the Getsuga Tenshō itself... — I know that's confusing, just roll with it — to summon the incredibly powerful Mugetsu.
Boomstick: Which busted up one of the biggest baddies in the whole series. Buuut, it also sacrificed all of Ichigo's powers. Wow, that's a raw deal. But, 17 months later, he managed to get them back with Fullbringer powers, which enhanced his physical abilities... But then he lost those, too.
Wiz: It's worth noting that while in Fullbring Shikai, his normal sword swings were as strong as his old Getsuga Tenshō.
Boomstick: But he still didn't give up. After training with some top-tier Soul Reapers and eating some food which gave him super Reiatsu, the moment came. In the most epic quenching of all time, an entire sea disintegrated to form his new True Shikai, complete with not one, but two Zangetsu swords.
Wiz: Finally balancing the Shinigami, the Hollow, and the Quincy within, Ichigo had reached his full potential. He tamed his Vasto Lorde form, merging it with his Quincy side. In this form, he can combine his Getsuga Tenshō with one of the strongest Hollow attacks, the Gran Rey Cero.
Boomstick: He also made a trip that normally takes a week in only nine hours and 15 minutes.
Wiz: And last but not least, he achieved a brand new level of Bankai.
Boomstick: Which was immediately crushed by some old dude who wanted to destroy the universe named... "ye watch"? "You watch"? Eh... "Ewok"?
Wiz: Hmm... It's probably inspired by the Hebrew name for God, 'Yahweh', and the katakana ends with a sharp "kuh" sound, so... "Yuhwach"?
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Call to Action by Adam Brown & Paul Clarvis
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Boomstick: Yeah, "Yuhwach" gonna do? Well, we can assume this Bankai worked similar to his old ones, increasing his physical speed and strength along with his Reiatsu tenfold. Even without his Bankai, he still cut moustache man to shreds.
Wiz: And then he lived happily ever after... until his kid became a Soul Reaper.
Boomstick: Yeah, what'd he name him? "Bitchigo"?
Wiz: What?! No! It's Kazui!
Boomstick: Huh. I might have gotten it mixed up with the other, uh, enchilada kid or whatever.
Wiz: Ehh... close enough.
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Kanchenjunga by Jordan Gagne
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Ichigo: Now I'm Ichigo Kurosaki, substitute Soul Reaper. And I'm combining my powerful spirit energy with this blade in order to protect my friends!
Prelude
Wiz: Alright, the combatants are set. Let's end this debate once and for all!
Boomstick: But first, did you know that Naruto and Ichigo are named after food? Maybe you can find 'em in your next box from Blue Apron!
Wiz and Boomstick read out an advertisement for Blue Apron.
Boomstick: But right now, IT'S TIME FOR A DEATH BATTLEEE!!!
Wiz: Alright, the combatants are set. Let's end this debate once and for all!
Boomstick: IT'S TIME FOR A DEATH BATTLEEE!!!(The transcript below is exclusive to the YouTube version of the episode.)
Wiz: Alright, the combatants are set. Let's end this debate once and for all!
Boomstick: But first, did you know that Naruto and Ichigo are named after food? Maybe you can find 'em in your next box from Blue Apron!
Wiz and Boomstick read out an advertisement for Blue Apron.
Boomstick: But right now, IT'S TIME FOR A DEATH BATTLEEE!!!
(The transcript below is exclusive to the Rooster Teeth version of the episode.)
Wiz: Alright, the combatants are set. Let's end this debate once and for all!
Boomstick: IT'S TIME FOR A DEATH BATTLEEE!!!Death Battle
In the middle of a peaceful forest, Naruto Uzumaki is seen meditating under a waterfall as a bird flies by.
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Shonen Showdown by Brandon Yates
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However, Ichigo Kurosaki arrives and observes him behind a tree.
Ichigo: (thinking) What's that energy? Is that a Hollow?
Kurama: Naruto, I sense a presence.
Naruto is unable to hear Kurama's warning as he had fallen asleep during his meditation.
Kurama: Naruto! Wake up!
Naruto opens his eyes and wakes up to see Ichigo ambushing him with his Zangetsu.
Naruto quickly leaps out of the way as Ichigo slices at him and throws three kunai at him, but Ichigo takes out a smaller blade from his robe and deflects them. Naruto lands on the ground and cannot seem to find his opponent.
Naruto: Woah! He's invisible!
Ichigo lunges straight at Naruto once more, with him only able to dodge the attack thanks to hearing the Zangetsu blade and start running forward.
Ichigo: He can't see me? Good...
Ichigo pursues his enemy on foot and launches several projectiles with his spiritual blade. Naruto continues running and avoiding the attacks before hiding behind a tree for cover.
Ichigo: Quit running, coward!
Naruto connects with his inner beast to seek Kurama's advice, his eyes turning into those of Kurama.
Kurama: Naruto, keep moving! I'll direct you...
Ichigo charges up his blade to launch a Getsuga Tenshō. Naruto is barely able to avoid the attack and stumbles, giving the nimble Ichigo a wide opening.
Ichigo: You're dead!
Ichigo seemingly ends the fight early by stabbing Naruto in the back, but he disappears in a puff of smoke leaving behind a bomb, revealing it to be one of Naruto's Shadow Clones.
Ichigo: How the heck-!?
Before Ichigo can react, the bomb goes off and covers the area in smoke. Multiple Naruto Shadow Clones ambush Ichigo from the trees with his signature move, the Rasengan.
Naruto clones: Rasengan!
The clones launch Ichigo in the air, whom Naruto leaps after as he transitions into his Kurama Mode.
Naruto: I see you..!
Now able to see his opponent, Naruto meteor smashes Ichigo into the river.
Naruto: Believe it!
As Ichigo recovers from the attack, Naruto creates a massive army of Shadow Clones.
Ichigo: Bring it on!
Ichigo places the Hollow Mask on himself and launches his signature attack.
Ichigo: Getsuga Tenshō!
Ichigo eliminates several of Naruto's clones, but still stands face to face with a large group of powerful copies. One Naruto leaps at him with a Rasengan that he dodges. Another attacks him using a Tailed Beast Chakra Arm that Ichigo consistently counters. Ichigo manages to take a number of them out with the fast movements of Shunpo.
Naruto: Transform!
One of the clones confuses Ichigo by using the Sexy Jutsu, but all it does is irritate him.
Ichigo: Really?
Ichigo slices the sexy clone in half, but it proves to be a trap, as three Narutos emerge from the ground to launch three Rasenshuriken.
Naruto: Rasenshuriken!
Ichigo: Bankai!
Ichigo roars as he enters his True Bankai state to counter the wind shuriken. Naruto runs over to see his opponent's new form.
Ichigo: Yo! Not bad, but I'm still gonna beat your ass!
Ichigo launches a Gran Ray Cero at Naruto, which launches him far back. Naruto stops careening by activating his Tailed Beast Mode.
Ichigo: Give me a freakin' break...
Ichigo manages to dodge a couple of the Kurama avatar's punches, but eventually is pounded into the ground by the large fox. Despite his exhausting and heavy bleeding, he refuses to give in.
Ichigo: Is that the best you can do?
Determined to win, Ichigo enters his Final Getsuga Tenshō form. The transformation is powerful enough to send Naruto out of the Kurama avatar state. Ichigo covers the sky in darkness as he unleashes his ultimate attack.
Ichigo: Mugetsu!
The attack obliterates most of the forest and most of Naruto's clones. Naruto, however, does not succumb to the darkness.
Naruto: KURAMA!!!!
Naruto endures the attack by entering into his ultimate form: Asura Kurama Mode. The shocked Ichigo is reverted back into his human form due to the Mugetsu eating up all his power. Despite being powerless, Ichigo grabs a nearby stick to make one final stand. However, all is lost for him as Naruto unleashes his largest attack, the Six Paths: Ultra-Big Ball Rasenshuriken, and compounds it with a Tailed Beast Bomb. The massive explosion caused by the attack obliterates Ichigo in one fell swoop. Before he dies, Ichigo lets out one final cry.
Ichigo: Screw you... BASTARD!!!
As Ichigo is disintegrated, the explosion reaches the size of a continent, ensuring Naruto a well-earned victory as he reverts to his normal state and looks at the crater.
Naruto: Phew! Who was that guy?
Naruto treats himself to a bowl of ramen, but it is stolen by the stretchy arms of the protagonist of the third member of the trinity, much to Naruto's ire. Meanwhile, the explosion that killed Ichigo briefly interrupts the never-ending battle between Chuck Norris and Segata Sanshiro before they get back to it.
Results
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Ninja Style by Gareth Johnson & Chris Bussey
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Boomstick: Damn. Even without his powers, Ichigo never gave up. What a badass.
Wiz: Sorry, Bleach fans. I know you all really wanted to win, but unfortunately, this wasn't it.
Boomstick: Naruto had better training, a broader arsenal, and a better healing factor. And Ichigo's invisible ghost body didn't really matter.
Wiz: Shinigami may be invisible, but they're still present in the physical realm and can be touched by normal people. Kurama can locate individuals by simply sensing their emotions, and Naruto's even seen his own soul before.
Boomstick: And with Six Paths power, he could see and fight Madara's Limbo Clones, even though they were on a totally separate plane of existence.
Wiz: Also, keep in mind that while chakra and Reishi have fairly different uses, they both contain spiritual energy.
Boomstick: Let's talk speed. Naruto can dodge lightspeed attacks and can move faster than lightning. A lightning bolt's return stroke is 220 million miles per hour, about one-third the speed of light. Ichigo has also displayed lightning-fast speeds and even greater.
Wiz: Near the end of the series, Ichigo took a trip that should have taken seven days, but instead took nine hours and 15 minutes.
Boomstick: It's likely Kirinji here was referencing his accomplice's speed, like Ichibei, who can knock his foes 2,440 miles away and appear next to them in a second. Yhwachy guy beat him by going twice as fast, so we'll use that as Ichibei's limit.
Wiz: With that, we can get the trip's total distance and conclude Ichigo's top speed is 319 million miles per hour. That's massively hypersonic, but not quite lightspeed.
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Bullet Dodger by Adam Drake & Gareth Johnson
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Boomstick: Still, there's a difference between travel speed and reaction speed, as Naruto's already shown. Comparing them directly, Ichigo's best reaction should clock in at around 970 million miles per hour, 40% faster than lightspeed and Naruto's reaction time. All right, point for Ichigo!
Wiz: Speed alone wasn't enough, though, especially since Naruto's sage powers gave him superb field awareness, making it difficult for Ichigo to land a fatal blow.
Boomstick: If he could even land something fatal at all.
Wiz: Ichigo has always had a tough time damaging foes who have stronger spiritual energy than him. With that said, let's compare his Reiatsu to Naruto's chakra.
Boomstick: Bad news is, across both of them, the only multiplier we know for sure is Ichigo's times 10 Bankai. The times 10 is difficult to achieve, but for Ichigo's sake, let's assume he gets the maximum possible boost from every transformation.
Wiz: His other forms likely don't boost his stats this much. For example, when he used his Hollow Mask to barely overpower an Arrancar, the situation and its results were similar to his then-comparable Shinigami friends releasing their limiters, which gave each of them a boost of times five. However, let's give the benefit of the doubt and apply the maximum times 10 increase to all of Ichigo's forms that clearly increased his fighting potential. As well as stack them, even though many forms were in separate, unconnected power sets.
Boomstick: For the sake of argument, we're deliberately overestimating Ichigo's power. You'll see why.
Wiz: So here's our formula! But, where do we start? Ok, Bankai Ichigo with his Hollow Mask was on par with Ulquiorra's first transformation, correct?
Boomstick: Well... nearly.
Wiz: Ulquiorra states his new form can destroy the city of Las Noches in the Hollow World of Hueco Mundo.
Boomstick: What's that? Like, Mexican Hell?
Wiz: Well, there is a wall...
Boomstick: Haha!
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Groove Your Body by Adam Drake & Tom Jenkins
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Wiz: Las Noches is square in shape and takes three days to walk from one corner to a gate in the center of the wall. So, it has a total area of 200,000 square miles.
Boomstick: That's bigger than California! And destroying it in one go needs over 400,000 megatons of TNT.
Wiz: So, plug that into the formula, and there you have it! Ichigo's Reiatsu is equal to over 440 billion megatons of TNT.
Boomstick: Thankfully, Naruto's chakra level is much easier to figure out.
Wiz: His chakra was once extracted and burst a hole through the hollow Moon. He survived the explosion, and it was explicitly said that this was nearly all of his chakra.
Sakura: Most of his chakra has been siphoned off.
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Arashi by Pete Masitti & John Andrew Barrow
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Wiz: By measuring the aftermath from both sides, we found the blast to equal at least 480 billion megatons of TNT; 40 billion more than Ichigo.
Boomstick: And don't forget, we were deliberately overestimating him.
Wiz: Also, this was BASE form Naruto, not including any increases from additional modes, which allowed him to block an attack that cut the Moon in half, a force that had to be over 27 trillion megatons. This proves Naruto can both output and survive a blast stronger than Ichigo is capable of.
Boomstick: If you're thinking, "Wait, Boomstick, Ichigo survived a black hole in a box!", that move doesn't really work like a black hole.
Wiz: Plus, the 814 kiloton Fragor blast did hurt him immediately after, so it must have been weaker than that.
Boomstick: "But Wiz, weren't Kaguya and Yh-waka-waka planet busters? Don't they scale to them?"
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Bears Party 2 by Igor Dvorkin, Duncan Pittock & Ellie Kidd
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Wiz: Nope! Kaguya's planet-busting attack required chakra from nearly the entire Earth's population, not just her own. And while Yhwach's power was pretty OP, he couldn't destroy the world through his own destructive capability. He only planned to manipulate the delicate balance between life and death by stopping the flow of souls. Like a plate spinning on a stick, if one side gets too heavy, the whole thing comes crashing down.
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Arashi by Pete Masitti & John Andrew Barrow
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Boomstick: To sum it up: Ichigo had the speed, they both had the guts, and Naruto had the strength, durability, training, and abilities for days. Naruto sure got the Shonen Jump on Ichigo.
We cut to the "Winner" card.
Wiz: The winner is Naruto Uzumaki.
Original Track
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Shonen Showdown by Brandon Yates
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Composition
The track for this fight is "Shonen Showdown" by Brandon Yates. It is a fast-paced heavy rock track featuring shakuhachi in the background. While both of these musical styles have been featured in both series, the rock is more of an homage to Bleach while the shakuhachi is for Naruto. This is further emphasized in the climax of the fight, where the bamboo flutes are louder and the rhythm and melody match more closely to the main theme of the Naruto anime as Naruto prepares to land the finishing blow.
Title
The title is a reference to how Naruto and Ichigo are both Shonen Jump protagonists and two-thirds of the Holy Shonen Trinity, all the while the fight itself is a showdown to the death.
Cover Art
The cover art depicts Ichigo's Zangetsu going through Naruto's forehead protector.
Trivia
Production
- The connections between Naruto and Ichigo are that they are both the main protagonists of shōnen anime/manga which are part of the Big Three. Both are teenage heroes who are abnormally powerful in their respective universes, harboring unnaturally large amounts of their universe's spiritual energy (chakra and Reiryoku/Reiatsu, respectively), initially struggling to properly control them due to their sheer amount before eventually learning to do so. Both are also reimagined versions of Japanese warriors (ninja and samurai, respectively), have a sealed monster inside of them who would attempt to take control of their bodies on multiple occasions (Kurama and Zangetsu, respectively), and have multiple increasingly stronger super modes, one of which causes them to go berserk and attack everything and everyone around them (Version 2 and Vasto Lorde), whereas another sacrifices their power through consistent use to the point of losing it permanently (Baryon Mode and Final Getsuga Tenshō, respectively). Both are also allied with skilled female tsunderes (Sakura Haruno and Rukia Kuchiki, respectively) and were mentored by snarky, but skilled and highly respected figures with ties to their parents (Kakashi Hatake, who was on a team led by Naruto's father and later became the Sixth Hokage, and Kisuke Urahara, who helped Ichigo's mother overcome her inner Hollow and was the former captain of the 12th Division). Both also have mothers who died protecting them, had strong ties to their unique bloodline, and had a sealed monster inside of them before passing them on to their son (Kushina Uzumaki, who comes from the Uzumaki Clan and was the former Jinchūriki of the Nine-Tails, and Masaki Kurosaki, who was a Quincy and had been infected by the Hollow White, respectively). Both are also chosen ones in some way (Naruto is considered one of the two Children of the Prophecy along with Sasuke, having been chosen along with him by the Sage of Six Paths Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki to inherit part of his power, and is the reincarnation of Asura Ōtsutsuki, Hagoromo's son who was selected by him to be his successor in leading Ninshū, while Ichigo is a rare Shinigami-Quincy hybrid as well as being chosen as one of the candidates to become the next Soul King). Both have also fought in major world-threatening wars (the Fourth Shinobi World War and the Quincy Blood War, respectively), serving as the catalysts for their side's victory, and against evil organizations with similar members (the Akatsuki and both the Espada and Sternritter, respectively) and manipulative illusionists whose plans lead to their birth (Madara Uchiha and Sōsuke Aizen, respectively). Additionally, both come from a famous clan (Uzumaki Clan and Shiba Clan, respectively) and are also descendants of their series' final antagonists (Kaguya Ōtsutsuki and Yhwach, respectively) stemming from their mother's side. Furthermore, at the end of their series, both had a son who has the potential to surpass them (Boruto Uzumaki and Kazui Kurosaki, respectively).
- Both also have dark-haired, aloof, stoic, and brooding rivals who challenged their ideals and later became evil before joining their side again at the end of their series (Sasuke Uchiha and Uryū Ishida, respectively), both of whom are voiced by Noriaki Sugiyama in Japanese.
- Both also have fathers who were of a highly respected position (Minato Namikaze, who was the Fourth Hokage, and Isshin Kurosaki, who was the former captain of the 10th Division, respectively), both of whom are voiced by Toshiyuki Morikawa in Japanese.
- Both also married their shy, but kind-hearted love interests who had a crush on them (Hinata Hyūga and Orihime Inoue, respectively) at the end of their series, both of whom are voiced by Stephanie Sheh in English.
- Both have confronted dark counterparts of themselves in pivotal moments of their lives (Dark Naruto, the Nine-Tailed Naruto Clone, and Menma Uzumaki for Naruto, and Zangetsu for Ichigo).
- Both have appeared in multiple Shonen Jump crossover video games together, including Jump Super Stars, Jump Ultimate Stars, J-Stars Victory VS, and Jump Force.
- Both are named after foods ("Naruto Uzumaki" is derived from the Japanese dish narutomaki, and "Ichigo" is the Japanese word for "strawberry"), a point Boomstick brings up in the YouTube version of the episode's prelude.
- Naruto was originally planned to fight against Luffy from the One Piece series in Season 1 as part of the original planned 26 episodes.[1] Luffy was also considered to be an opponent going forward due to being part of the Holy Shonen Trinity before the crew decided on Ichigo.
- As part of Death Battle's paid YouTube membership, members were able to vote in the Tournament of Champions for one matchup to be made in Season 11, with one of the matches for Week 5 being Naruto VS Luffy, though it lost to Kratos VS Asura.
- This is the first episode to feature pop-up boxes containing additional information in the analyses.
- Ben Singer revealed a number of facts about this episode's production in one of the Road to 100 blogs:[2]
- If Bleach were to get a sequel series in which Ichigo gains an increase in power, a remake of this episode would be possible.
- After miscalculating Android 18's speed in Android 18 VS Captain Marvel, the Research Team took several steps to ensure their analyses and mathematics were correct, which proved to be very useful whenever an error was made in their future calculations.
- Due to Las Noches' vaguely defined size, there was a lot of work that was put into Ulquiorra's ability to destroy it in order to determine Ichigo’s maximum destructive capacity. The crew had initially mistakenly believed the fortress to be circular in shape before realizing it was actually shaped like a square. This meant that not only Las Noches' dimensions were much different than the crew previously thought, but also that Ulquiorra would be far less powerful if it was circular.
- Because Naruto and Ichigo's upper limits were very hard to determine, and "their upgrades and alternate modes don’t scale linearly like the Super Saiyan forms," there was some discussion about how this episode's fight animation would end with Ichigo losing. Although his merged Hollow form could be more powerful than Mugetsu in theory, because the attack completely drains Ichigo of his power, the only instance where it would fit would be at the end of the animation, and the team thought that if Mugetsu wasn't included, a number of Bleach fans would argue about Ichigo not using it.
- Ichigo's voice actor is credited as "Adam Park", but it is heavily implied to be his original voice actor, Johnny Yong Bosch. Not only is the name Adam Park and the Wikipedia link to frogs in the episode's description a reference to the Power Rangers character portrayed by Bosch, but Bosch also promoted the fight on Twitter,[3] complimenting Ichigo's voice actor and retweeting other promotional material related to the episode (though said tweet has since been deleted and is currently unarchived). Ben Singer responded to his tweet by saying "Thanks! And I know, right? Maybe it's just me, but I don't think we could've found a better actor for the role!"[4] (though said tweet has also since been deleted and is currently unarchived as well). It is likely Bosch may not have been credited to avoid the legal issues surrounding getting him to voice a character that he would legally and contractually not be able to voice.
- If this were the case, this would be the fourth episode in which one or more of the combatants are voiced by their official voice actors, after Iron Man VS Lex Luthor, Yang VS Tifa, and Meta VS Carolina, and with the next seven being Raven VS Twilight Sparkle, Ultron VS Sigma (unconfirmed), Weiss VS Mitsuru, Zuko VS Shoto Todoroki, Red VS Blue, Trunks VS Silver (unconfirmed), and Rick Sanchez VS The Doctor.
- This would also mean that this is the second episode where a non-Rooster Teeth character is voiced by their official voice actor, after Iron Man VS Lex Luthor, and with the next five being Raven VS Twilight Sparkle, Ultron VS Sigma (unconfirmed), Zuko VS Shoto Todoroki, Trunks VS Silver (unconfirmed), and Rick Sanchez VS The Doctor.
- Naruto's official voice actress, Maile Flannigan, jokingly responded to Bosch's tweet, saying "Duh NARUTO! Lol."[5]
- If this were the case, this would be the fourth episode in which one or more of the combatants are voiced by their official voice actors, after Iron Man VS Lex Luthor, Yang VS Tifa, and Meta VS Carolina, and with the next seven being Raven VS Twilight Sparkle, Ultron VS Sigma (unconfirmed), Weiss VS Mitsuru, Zuko VS Shoto Todoroki, Red VS Blue, Trunks VS Silver (unconfirmed), and Rick Sanchez VS The Doctor.
Easter Eggs
- During the KO screen, Luffy from One Piece makes a cameo stealing Naruto's ramen bowl, a reference to how One Piece is the remaining third of the Holy Shonen Trinity, as well as how Luffy was originally planned to fight against Naruto in Season 1 as part of the original planned 26 episodes.[1]
- Chuck Norris and Segata Sanshiro are also seen continuing their eternal fight after they got briefly distracted by Naruto's finishing attack.
Errors
- In Naruto's "Background" slide, "Uzumaki" is misspelled as "Uzukami".
- In Ichigo's analysis, after Wiz brings up the death of his mother, Boomstick mentions the death of Mama Boomstick at the hands of a ghost in their barn. However, this would eventually be contradicted by her appearance near the end of Macho Man VS Kool-Aid Man, where she's very much still alive.
- When analyzing the square miles of Las Noches in the post-analysis, Wiz states that it's 2,000 square miles, whereas on-screen it says that it's 217,500 sq and 350,000 sq. km instead.
Other
- This is the fourth Anime-themed episode, after Zoro VS Erza, Natsu VS Ace, and Lucario VS Renamon, and with the next 15 being Jotaro VS Kenshiro, Roshi VS Jiraiya, Sasuke VS Hiei, Mob VS Tatsumaki, All Might VS Might Guy, Gray VS Esdeath, Beerus VS Sailor Galaxia, Sanji VS Rock Lee, DIO VS Alucard, Madara VS Aizen, Tanjiro VS Jonathan Joestar, Deku VS Asta, Gogeta VS Vegito, Killua VS Misaka, and Gojo VS Makima.
- This is the first Hitotsubashi-themed episode, with the next 11 being Jotaro VS Kenshiro, Roshi VS Jiraiya, Sasuke VS Hiei, Mob VS Tatsumaki, All Might VS Might Guy, Sanji VS Rock Lee, Madara VS Aizen, Tanjiro VS Jonathan Joestar, Deku VS Asta, Gogeta VS Vegito, and Gojo VS Makima.
- This is the first Naruto VS Bleach-themed episode, with the next one being Madara VS Aizen.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 User blog:CrossoverKing96/Road to 100 (Archive) Haggar vs Zangief
- ↑ User blog:CrossoverKing96/Road to 100 Archive: Thor vs Wonder Woman, Naruto vs Ichigo
- ↑ https://twitter.com/johnnyyongbosch/status/928809955674787841
- ↑ https://twitter.com/BenBSinger/status/928815277818695681
- ↑ https://twitter.com/maileflanagan/status/928814749650886657