Things aren't looking too good for Gaara in the twenty-ninth volume of Naruto, which is the second release in the post time jump period. Volume 29 is much more action oriented than the last, but featuring two spectacular battles on epic proportions with some of the largest Naruto players being front and center for the action. Is slam-bang action enough for this volume or is something more missing?

The story picks up right where the last one left off. The Akatsuki have captured Gaara in hopes of removing his demon from him, while Naruto and crew are heading towards the Sand Village in helps of saving their comrade. Though that's still the driving force of the narrative so far, the real show stealer this volume are the two main battles, featuring four of the heaviest hitters of the Naruto universe, as readers will be treated to a battle between Guy and Kisame as well as one between Kakashi and Itachi. If those two bouts don't have you flying out to the stores to buy your own copy, maybe you're just not aware of the potential in those blockbusters.

Naruto 29

Each of the battles are excellent, but for two different reasons. On the Guy versus Kisame front – with Rock Lee, Neji, and Tenten thrown in for good measure – you get an action heavy story filled with amazing looking moves, powerful jutsus, and almost everything you could want from a fight. Meanwhile, the Kakashi versus Itachi battle works on a completely different level, succeeding because of the emotional resonance Itachi brings given his relation to Sasuke, and how he uses that to his advantage. Oh, there is some great action in the Itachi battle as well, but its main focus is to put self-doubt into characters like Naruto.

The artwork is once again topnotch, featuring clean, crisp character lines and action heavy panels filled with hurried lines of blistering speed and movement. It's often possible to overdue certain action panels in order to add a sense of speed or power, but this volume of Naruto handles such elements perfectly.

The biggest problem concerning this volume of Naruto is that ultimately it feels more like a temporary stopgap between volumes, as the events and battles are wrapped up too nicely and conveniently for my taste. In the end, though you get a ton of action and bang for your buck, the events inside don't exactly matter besides potentially adding a bit more drive and determination to Naruto in his quest to save Gaara.

Score