I've made a few posts talking about what S.H.Figuarts Naruto figures I want in the Tamashii Nations revived line, with focuses on specific groups or the series as a whole, but this time I will be focusing in on the first series in the franchise which houses some of my personal favorite storylines and character designs. The kid Naruto and kid Sasuke figures that we got pretty early on in the line were fantastic and two of my favorites, with me eager to get more designs from this era of Naruto. Shippuden has continued to be a pretty big focus with characters like Shikamaru, Pain, and the recent Hinata reveal, with characters like Tsunade and Itachi able to interswap between the two series. For this list I will be focusing on designs exclusive to the first Naruto show that do not show up (in a meaningful capacity at least) in the later series.
Honorable mention: Sakura
Starting off with one that I think a lot of fans were expecting to come out at this point will be kid Sakura to complete Team Kakashi's earliest incarnation. I personally don't mind the wait as I've enjoyed getting other characters as opposed to Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura all again immediately after getting their Shippuden designs, but I would quite like to finish out the original version of the trio at some point. An exclusive "Cha!" version of Sakura's inner personality could be a fun variant down the road as well.
5. Kabuto
While he donned some cool Shippuden designs later on, Kabuto's original design is a simple one but one I really enjoyed and he honestly ranked as one of my favorite villains of the series from his appearances in the first show. His part in the Chunin exams and later on during the Tsunade retrieval arc made him a stand out for me, and he would go very well alongside the Orochimaru, Tsunade, and kid Naruto that we already have. Medical ninjutsu hands, an alternate faceplate with whited out glasses, and possibly an extra accessory for either Tsunade (traumatized expression from blood?) or Orochimaru (alternate wrapped arms after his they were sealed?) would make this release a complete winner. And down the road if the line really wants to get deep they can re-use the sculpt with new heads to put out Yoroi and Misumi.
4. Sound Four
As a kid I absolutely loved the Sound Four and the final major arc of the original Naruto series. This was a cool group of antagonists with very distinct abilities and looks, with Tayuya and Kidomaru sticking out the most. Kidomaru alone would make for a great figure given his multiple arms, while there is no doubt that all of their cursed mark forms would be shelf stealers with their uniqueness.
3. Cursed mark Sasuke
One of the most iconic moments in the franchise is one that I have little doubt will be eventually translated into figure form for the Figuarts line, that being Naruto and Sasuke's big fight at the end of the original series. Sasuke's design in particular from this fight would be one I'd love to have in figure form and for the most part they can re-use a lot of the existing sculpt from the kid Sasuke figure. The giant hand-wings are a design point that I've always found very cool about Sasuke's transformation, and would be a stand out in the line which really doesn't have any abstract body formations in it yet.
2. Gaara
A Gaara from Shippuden was released in the first Naruto Figuarts line (and is in need of an update for sure), but before that version I would actually love to get kid Gaara from the Chunin exam arc. As cool as Gaara was in Shippuden, his original appearances are still some of his most iconic when he was a bloodthirsty villain and one of the definite highlights of the OG show. The crazed expressions, the animalistic growls, the freaking fight against Rock Lee, all of it makes Gaara's original design the one I want to see most for the character in the line.
1. Zabuza
I think that this character is one who has some of the highest probability of being made in the line from the original series. Zabuza Momochi was the first big villain that the characters faced, and what an impact he made with his savageness, his cool mask design, and the gargantuan sword that he wielded! For the short time in the series that he had her made a definite impact on fans and I think still stands as one of the coolest antagonists of the series. I would absolutely love this character to go alongside the Kakashi and kid Naruto that we have, and would die for an alternate unmasked headsculpt with a faceplate holding a kunai in his mouth for the finale of the arc.
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