Why Naruto Never Ruled Japan’s Manga Charts
A sales titan that never took the crown: Naruto spent years chasing One Piece, peaking only once with a runner-up finish.
Let me save you the suspense: Naruto was a monster hit, but it never beat One Piece when it came to annual sales. It got close once, finished second, and that was the peak of the chase. The rest of the time, One Piece sat on the throne like it had a lifetime lease.
Why Naruto never snagged #1
The simplest explanation is probably the right one. Weekly Shonen Jump leaned harder into One Piece. That was not an accident. The editors clearly saw what Oda was building and treated it like the crown jewel. And here is the uncomfortable truth for Naruto fans: even if both series got the exact same push, One Piece likely still would have won the long game. Its cultural footprint just spread wider.
Naruto still pulled massive volume numbers year after year. But when you are competing against a generational juggernaut, people tend to put their money on the series with the deeper legacy. One Piece also launched two years earlier, which gave it a head start to build hype and lock in a fanbase before Naruto even arrived.
Pirates vs. ninjas: the appeal gap
Kishimoto crafted an earnest, often life-affirming saga through the lens of ninjas. It is steeped in Japanese tradition, which can feel niche to readers who are not already into that world, and sometimes the story leans into the kind of wild concepts that only really click if you are already on its wavelength.
Oda, meanwhile, built an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink adventure about pirates roaming the seas, chasing freedom, family, and dreams. That premise is instantly legible anywhere. The cast is big, weird, and lovable; the themes are universal. From the jump, One Piece was designed to travel.
2025: still Oda's world
Even this year, One Piece once again took the crown as Japan's best-selling manga of 2025. At this point it feels inevitable, like the series refuses to age.
"We are finally back after 6 years!!"
That celebratory line made the rounds on X on November 28, 2025, as fans (and fan accounts) cheered the latest return to the top. The vibe says it all: everyone is used to One Piece doing this.
Naruto peaked in Shippuden; Boruto never caught the wave
When Naruto was firing on all cylinders — think the Pain arc, Five Kage Summit, and early War arc — its momentum was ridiculous. Shippuden had heat, heart, and weekly cliffhangers that wrecked sleep schedules. Then Shippuden ended, Boruto rolled in, and the spark just was not the same. The sales backed that up.
- Naruto (manga debut: September 21, 1999) — MyAnimeList rating: 8.08
- One Piece (manga debut: July 22, 1997) — MyAnimeList rating: 9.22
- Boruto (manga debut: May 9, 2016) — MyAnimeList rating: 6.78
One Piece keeps adding fuel 28 years in
Meanwhile, One Piece is still dropping bombshells. The recent God Valley reveal arc reminded everyone that, nearly three decades in, Oda can still upend the table whenever he wants. Most long-running manga slow down. One Piece somehow keeps escalating.
And even with newer darlings muscling in — Kagurabachi, Blue Lock, Dandadan, Ichi the Witch, and the like — One Piece has pulled off the trick Naruto could not post-Shippuden: it holds the old guard while onboarding new readers. That is the ballgame.
Where to watch Naruto right now
If you want to revisit the highs (or investigate where the magic shifted), all previously released episodes of the Naruto series are streaming on Crunchyroll.