Masashi Kishimoto
Following the conclusion of "Naruto", Kishimoto became involved in the "Start of a New Era Project" commemorating the manga's conclusion and 15th anniversary. On the last page of the final chapter, "Weekly Shonen Jump" announced that a spin-off miniseries, also authored by Kishimoto, would be released in 2015. The series, "", ran from April to July 2015. Beyond this, Kishimoto was also heavily involved with two canonical movies, "" and "", as he personally supervised both movies, and illustrated several light novels. When asked by Boruto Uzumaki's voice actress Yūko Sanpei to continue making "Naruto" movies, Kishimoto stated that he was taking a break and could not physically do so.
Masashi Kishimoto
In August 2015, Kishimoto announced that he already has finalized what he wants to do for his next manga series. A sci-fi manga, the series will feature a unique protagonist, with Kishimoto having already completed the character designs. Kishimoto also plans for the work to surpass "Naruto" in quality, and plans to release the series monthly via the digital magazine "Shonen Jump Plus" due to the taxing effort required for a weekly series. Kishimoto has not yet finalized when he plans to officially announce the series, as he wants to spend time with his family. On December 19, 2015, it was announced that Kishimoto would supervise the monthly series beginning in Spring 2016. The new spinoff will be illustrated by Kishimoto's chief assistant on "Naruto", Mikio Ikemoto, and written by his writing partner for "", Ukyo Kodachi. It was preceded by a "Naruto: The Path Lit by the Full Moon" one-shot written and illustrated by Kishimoto.