I find the entire "canon" discussion patently absurd to begin with, but as far as this wiki's concerned, anything that doesn't have Kishi's fingerprints all over it isn't canon. As Windstar said, it's why we note in artices "In the so and so novel, such and such happened". This way we can document the entire series while keeping it separate from the original work.
Seelentau wrote: Exactly. The Last was called chapter 699.5 => canon. Boruto: The Movie was said to be a continuation => canon. The novels were never stated to be canon. The timeline was specifically made for the novels, it doesn't show how the novels fit into the manga timeline, but how the manga timeline fits the novels. There's also a timeline which shows how the canon movies fit into the canon manga timeline and the novels aren't mentioned there, in that entirely canon timeline. I think that says it all, doesn't it?
Maybe.
Shock Dragoon wrote: From what I remember the Hiden (and Shiden for that matter) were worked on by the authors with heavy involvement from Kishi. So that would make them as close to canon as possible. However, it appears that they are left up to read interpretation as well so it can go either way.
Regardless, given Kishi was involved with their creation doing illustrations for them, he reviewed them and gave the seal of approval, these books are as canon as we're gonna get for a Part III since the next Gen is Part IV so I'd vote "as close to canon as we can get"
By the Nine, there is No. Part. III. None. It doesn't exist. It never shall. Part IV doesn't exist either. They don't. Kishi said Boruto: Naruto the Movie was the best writing he could give to the series so that pretty much confirms he's done with it. The anime could go on for the next 10 years for all we care, and there would still never be a Part III.
Part I and II were named such by Kishi. Any other names are fanon.
I'd also like to point out that Kishi literally wrote the plot for Road to Ninja. He had the same involvement he had in The Last. Road to Ninja isn't canon. The Last is. Even if Kishi wrote the novels himself, unless he declares it to be part of the manga continuity like he did with The Last and Boruto, they're non-canon.
@Ten-Tailed Fox How do you explain the official novel timeline chart listing them in the same timeline as chapter 699, The Last, and chapter 700?
Legendary Super Saiya-Jin 4 wrote: @Ten-Tailed Fox How do you explain the official novel timeline chart listing them in the same timeline as chapter 699, The Last, and chapter 700?
You've got it backwards. The timeline is not showing how the novels fit into the manga, rather how the manga fits into the novels. It's literally just the project's way of showing where they would be.
Furthermore, Kishimoto did not write that timeline. It is my understanding that at least three manga/anime companies are working on the so-called Naruto project. They commissioned the authors, they engineered the timelines, and they are calling all the shots. The only thing Kishi is doing is drawing covers for them.
Ten Tailed Fox wrote:
Legendary Super Saiya-Jin 4 wrote: @Ten-Tailed Fox How do you explain the official novel timeline chart listing them in the same timeline as chapter 699, The Last, and chapter 700?
You've got it backwards. The timeline is not showing how the novels fit into the manga, rather how the manga fits into the novels. It's literally just the project's way of showing where they would be.
Furthermore, Kishimoto did not write that timeline. It is my understanding that at least three manga/anime companies are working on the so-called Naruto project. They commissioned the authors, they engineered the timelines, and they are calling all the shots. The only thing Kishi is doing is drawing covers for them.
I don't really see the purpose of their existence then? The live-action Naruto play was done as a celebration of 15 years of Naruto. The Last, Gaiden, and Boruto are all apart of the main story. If the Naruto Hiden and Shinden series aren't non-canon, what is the purpose of them being around and added to such a grand project?
Dragon Ball did the exact same thing a few years ago. It was called the Dragon Force Project where they cramed all of the non-canon anime specials into the manga timeline. Guess what? Anime specials are still non-canon. A timeline doesn't mean jack-crap unless the author themselves writes it and says: "Here's a timeline for my work". The anime company that has given us "The Year of Filler" is certainly no authority on what is canon or not. The novels are supplementary material, like the anime and like the play. That's why they exist.