Technology Levels in Naruto Make No Sense

Spoilers ahead!

Summary:

• The Naruto world doesn’t seem to use much modern technology, but there are actually computers and other complicated devices.
• This might be dismissed as early installment weirdness by some, as the early direction of the manga was quite different from what it became.
• Despite that, the issues continue way into Shippuden and are exacerbated further in Boruto.

Naruto is considered a classic by many fans. It deserves its status: despite all its flaws, it is an epic story with many enjoyable characters and a very interesting world. That said, however, it is not above criticism. One crucial flaw of the series is how inconsistent the technologies shown are — one may argue that the tech level in the show makes no sense at all.

Random modern devices in an otherwise medieval-like world

Naruto’s setting, at first glance, looks like a fantasy-adventure setting with a Japanese medieval flavor. A land ruled by feudals, who make contracts with hidden villages — it would be natural to not see any modern technology whatsoever. Except in one of the very first episodes, we can see a computer in Naruto’s apartment. And it’s not a one-off piece of modern tech, either: Naruto world apparently has fridges, as well. During the exams later, we see an intricate surveillance system. Among the biggest immersion breaks, however, is the Land of Waves Mission arc: while nothing is out of place per se at first glance, one of the thugs in it is shown to have a gun.

Early installment weirdness or something else?

Some fans argue these technological inconsistencies can be explained by the fact that earlier arcs were noticeably different in their tone. While such devices clearly have no place in the world of Naruto, the early concepts of the manga were quite different from what it became later. Perhaps Kishimoto wasn’t actually sure himself about the tech level when he was just starting the series.

Issues continue in Shippuden and Boruto

That, however, doesn’t explain the fact that the tech oddities continued way into Shippuden — they’re not only exclusive to the early arcs. With video recording systems clearly existing in the series — they were later used for a daimyo meeting — one wonders why Suna had to send a bird to Konoha during the Kazekage Rescue arc. And during the same arc, Konoha was shown to have walkie-talkies — which were not brought up again.

Another egregious offender is Pain — one of his paths is shown to be able to basically be a living weapon. Which is, apparently, a cyborg shooting missiles all over the place. And of course, Boruto didn’t help with this, with the village becoming basically a modern megapolis in a span of around 20 years. Perhaps the technology levels in the world of Naruto are just an afterthought.