One of the biggest twists in Naruto revealed that the deceased father of the protagonist was actually the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze. Still, it’s time to admit that the reveal did not make any sense. Besides being very obvious from the beginning, the fact that Naruto did not know who his father was, nor ever worried about it, it’s incredibly silly and also contradicts some crucial points of the plot.
Naruto is the story of an orphan initially scorned and feared by the rest of his village but grows up to become Konoha’s hero. Initially, it is revealed that Naruto’s parents died in the attack of the Nine-Tails against Konoha, which caused a lot of victims. As the Nine-Tails jinchuuriki (a host who contains the Tailed Beast inside their body), Naruto is feared and loathed by his fellow villagers, especially those who have lost someone in the attack, which, together with his orphan status, makes him experience incredible loneliness. Later in the series, Naruto meets the lingering spirit of his father and learns of his parentage, along with how his parents died to protect him and Konoha.
This big reveal happens in episode #168 of the Naruto Shippuden anime, and chapter #439 of the manga. However, from clues dropped throughout the series and, more than everything, from the look of the Fourth Hokage’s face carved on Konoha’s Hokage Rock, most fans already deduced the truth. What is actually surprising is how little sense this makes for the overall plot of the story. How was Naruto unaware of his father’s identity as one of the most famous people in Konoha’s history? It’s impossible to think that no one mentioned that to him unless everyone in the village was purposefully trying to hide the truth from Naruto, which then begs the important question: why?
Naruto Ignoring His Father’s Identity For So Many Years Makes No Sense
Naruto grew up as a lonely outcast. His pain was evident to the people around him, including Naruto’s teacher and father figure Iruka, but no one ever thought of mentioning it to Naruto to make him less of an outcast. This includes the Third Hokage, who witnessed Minato’s final moments and was asked to make the villagers think of Naruto as a hero and not the container of a monster. Even Jiraiya, who was Minato’s teacher and later Naruto’s mentor, did not mention the truth to him. These weird circumstances are explained in the series through the Third Hokage’s decision to keep the identity of Naruto’s father a secret to protect him from Minato’s enemies, but this doesn’t make sense. Naruto still inherits his mother’s surname, so anyone could make the connection. Also, the pain of the kid growing up alone and shunned should have been enough for the Third Hokage to reconsider his decision.
What is even more surprising is that Naruto never cared about his past, despite the impact that the loss of his parents had on his life. Perhaps this is due to the character’s attitude and part of his appeal too: contrary to Sasuke, Naruto always looked forward and never let his past hinder him. However, this doesn’t change the fact that the “secret” of Naruto’s parentage, along with the Fourth Hokage’s reveal, is one of the series’ biggest plot holes and, after so many years, it’s time to admit that it makes absolutely no sense.