Crunchyroll is featuring a wide variety of new anime this Summer season. Unlike the previous two seasons, this one is defined more by its new debuts than by returning series. It has already delivered one of the darkest anime of the year, which is arguably an Anime of the Year contender, while Tomb Raider King, a replacement for Solo Leveling, is also proving to be an epic series. However, the genre generating the most buzz among fans is undoubtedly shonen.
Shonen anime has become the foundation of the anime industry, with series like Naruto, One Piece, Bleach, and Dragon Ball helping define the genre. As a result, every new shonen anime is inevitably compared to these classics, and this Summer’s latest debut, Black Torch, is already proving that it carries elements from many of them. The earlier episodes made it clear that the series shares a similar action-driven narrative pace with Jujutsu Kaisen. Now, as newer episodes are released, it is also proving to feature compelling elements from Naruto, with the latest episode solidifying that it has its own version of Team Seven, this time with a Sakura-like character who has the kind of foundation many fans wish the original had.
Black Torch shares many elements with Naruto, starting with its main character. Jiro is a ninja who comes from a family with ninja roots, and the first episode sees him gain an inner demon power, much like Naruto with Kurama. The latest episode also establishes that Jiro has a strong narrative connection to his father, who plays a major role despite Jiro knowing almost nothing about him. Meanwhile, the second male member, Reiji, is introduced with a conflict involving his brother, drawing obvious comparisons to Sasuke. That naturally leaves the third member of the group, Ichika, inviting comparisons to Sakura, especially since she also shares a similar character design.
What makes Ichika’s role in the team more compelling, however, is that she doesn’t feel like a direct copy of Sakura. Instead, she comes across as the kind of character many fans wished Sakura had been. Black Torch achieves this by giving Ichika a genuine reason for joining the organization that hunts Mononoke. It is revealed that her mother was turned to stone by a Mononoke, and her goal is to find a way to save her. At the same time, Ichika avoids being defined by admiration for a male teammate.
Instead, she is strict with both of her teammates in a way many fans hoped to see from Sakura. Likewise, Ichika’s belief that she stands on the same level as Jiro and Reiji feels far more believable than Sakura claiming she was on the same level as Naruto and Sasuke. With these elements, Black Torch is emerging as one of Crunchyroll’s most compelling new shonen anime of 2026, borrowing ideas from classics like Naruto while improving on them in meaningful ways, making it a series fans shouldn’t miss at all.
