Naruto Shippuden the Movie 3: The Will of Fire

ナルト- 疾風伝火の意志を継ぐ者 (Naruto: Shippuuden Movie 3 - Hi no Ishi wo Tsugu Mono)

9.0(1)

OtakuDen

7.3(125,655)

MAL Score

Ranked #2973

Popularity #1265

Action
Adventure
Fantasy

Episodes: 1
Duration: 1 hr 35 min
Aired: Aug 1, 2009
Status: Finished Airing

Synopsis

Kakashi Hatake, Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, and Sai are dispatched to look into the troubling vanishing of four shinobi from different nations, each possessing a powerful bloodline limit. Their investigation leads them to the culprits’ location, and they report back to the Hokage—only for the situation to escalate when Hiruko, a former Konoha ninja obsessed with gaining strength, steps into the open. Having already taken the missing ninjas’ abilities for himself, Hiruko sets his sights on one final bloodline limit before igniting a war to seize control of the world.

With Hiruko’s ties to Konohagakure stirring suspicion among other countries, Tsunade is handed an ultimatum to bring the crisis to an end. Kakashi proposes a bold plan that could cost him his life, and Tsunade agrees to proceed—yet Naruto refuses to accept that outcome. Determined to protect his teacher, Naruto charges forward, prepared to confront allies and enemies alike to stop Hiruko and keep Kakashi alive.

Otaku Consensus

The Will of Fire lands as one of the more watchable Naruto theatrical side stories because Masahiko Murata keeps the pacing mission-driven and gives the Konoha ensemble, especially Naruto, Kakashi, and Shikamaru, more to do than simply run toward the final fight. Its strongest pull is the teacher-student emotional arc and Studio Pierrot’s feature-length action showcase, backed by Yasuharu Takanashi’s reliably martial score. The recurring criticism is real: Hiruko’s “perfect ninja” concept feels like another movie-only escalation device, and detractors rank it among the weaker Naruto films for leaning on the franchise’s familiar world-ending formula.

Why You Should Watch

Watch The Will of Fire if your favorite Naruto material is the squad-era balance of tactical bickering, loyalty tests, and flashy jutsu payoffs, but you do not want to commit to a full television arc. It is especially rewarding for Kakashi fans: the film treats him less as an untouchable mentor and more as a person whose value to the village creates a moral dilemma. Viewers who enjoy shounen ensemble movies like My Hero Academia: Two Heroes for cast-wide momentum, or Naruto films that put the Konoha 11 on the board instead of isolating Naruto, will find the appeal here. The selling point is not canon consequence; it is a compact 90-minute burst of ninja-team friction, comedy beats, and theatrical combat staged for fans who already care about these relationships.

Key Characters

N
Naruto Uzumaki
This film spotlights Naruto at his most emotionally direct: the kind of lead who treats orders, politics, and fatalism as obstacles to be punched through when a mentor is on the line.
K
Kakashi Hatake
Kakashi becomes the movie’s emotional pressure point, shifting from cool squad captain to a shinobi whose usefulness to Konoha carries a personal cost.
S
Shikamaru
Shikamaru’s appeal here is the contrast fans expect from him: tactical clarity and reluctant responsibility cutting through Naruto’s instinctive charge-forward energy.
H
Hiruko
Hiruko is built around a blunt but memorable shounen-villain idea, turning bloodline-limit envy into a chimera-style obsession with manufactured strength.

What Makes It Stand Out

1
Studio Pierrot produced the film as the third Naruto Shippuden theatrical entry, giving it a broader cast canvas than many single-team franchise movies. Web reception specifically notes its use of the Konoha 11 rather than limiting the drama to Naruto alone.
2
Masahiko Murata is credited as both director and storyboard artist, a production detail that helps explain the film’s clean mission-to-climax momentum. Reviews that respond positively to the movie often single out its direction and ability to blend action, comedy, and drama within a tight runtime.
3
Yasuharu Takanashi handled the music, bringing the same percussion-heavy, high-impact sound associated with Naruto Shippuden’s action identity. The score supports the film’s war-scare atmosphere without requiring the slower build of a TV arc.
4
Character design is credited to both Tetsuya Nishio and Hirofumi Suzuki, with Suzuki also serving as chief animation director. That combination anchors the movie in the recognizable Shippuden look while polishing it for a theatrical action format.
5
The film’s hook is unusually tailored to franchise mechanics: bloodline limits are not just special attacks here but the organizing idea behind the antagonist’s threat. That gives long-time Naruto viewers a power-system-focused movie rather than a generic rescue or tournament premise.

Fun Facts & Trivia

Fun fact 1: The film opened in Japan on August 1, 2009, and is listed as a single completed theatrical episode rather than a television special or OVA.
Fun fact 2: Its database footprint shows durable fan interest: MyAnimeList lists a 7.33 score from 125,655 votes, with a popularity rank of #1265, while AniList records a 71/100 score and 360 favourites.
Fun fact 3: AniList’s tag breakdown is unusually concentrated: Ninja sits at 100%, while Shounen and Super Power both register at 79%, and Male Protagonist appears at 20%. That reflects how strongly the film is categorized by franchise identity rather than by separate thematic labels.
Fun fact 4: The theme song was performed by PUFFY, adding a mainstream Japanese pop-rock presence to a film otherwise driven by Yasuharu Takanashi’s orchestral and percussion-led Naruto Shippuden sound.
Fun fact 5: The staff list pairs Masashi Kishimoto as original creator with Studio Pierrot’s established anime team, including art director Mio Isshiki and sound director Yasunori Ebina, making it a franchise-original movie built within the core Shippuden production ecosystem.