MERCH
12/11/2025
Celebrating the Start of the 忍界造形列伝 <NINNKAI ZOUKEI RETSUDEN> Series! Modeler Hiroki Akimoto Shares His Figure-Sculpting Way and How He Works His "Likes" into His Designs!!
The new 忍界造形列伝 <NINNKAI ZOUKEI RETSUDEN> series launches December 2025!
Hiroki Akimoto, the winner of BANPRESTO FIGURE COLOSSEUM's Great Ninja Figure War, is the exclusive sculptor for this series! Keep an eye out for these high-quality figures!!
Hiroki Akimoto, the winner of BANPRESTO FIGURE COLOSSEUM's Great Ninja Figure War, is the exclusive sculptor for this series! Keep an eye out for these high-quality figures!!
The Great Ninja Figure War was a fierce battle between figure sculptors in honor of the Naruto TV anime's 20th anniversary!
Five skilled competitors each chose a character to portray, and roughly 20,000 votes from all over the world crowned the victor.
Hiroki Akimoto chose to sculpt the scene where Kakashi activates his Lightning Blade, and the figure's dynamic pose and meticulous details earned him the victory!
Five skilled competitors each chose a character to portray, and roughly 20,000 votes from all over the world crowned the victor.
Hiroki Akimoto chose to sculpt the scene where Kakashi activates his Lightning Blade, and the figure's dynamic pose and meticulous details earned him the victory!
You can read the interview from when he won the Great Ninja Figure War below!
https://naruto-official.com/en/news/01_2155
https://naruto-official.com/en/news/01_2155
This time, we'll be talking to the sculptor for this series, Hiroki Akimoto, along with the project's director from BANDAI SPIRITS, who goes by the alias "Gyao"!
"I Want to Focus On Making a Figure Everyone Thinks Is Cool"
—Hiroki, can you start by telling us a little about the "figure-sculpting way" you're following for the 忍界造形列伝 <NINNKAI ZOUKEI RETSUDEN> series, and any "self-rules" you abide by?
Hiroki Akimoto (hereafter, Hiroki): I want to focus on making a figure everyone thinks is cool. I truly believe that what's "cool" transcends borders and languages, so I try to keep that at the forefront of my mind.
—Is there anything you have to be careful about when designing a figure?
Hiroki: When trying to make something universally cool, I have to be careful not to let my own preferences run wild. At the end of the day, the designs used in the original work are the core of these figures, and I have to work within the confines of the characters' existing designs while sprinkling in my own style during the creation process. I still haven't quite mastered this, however...
—Is there anything you have to be careful about when designing a figure?
Hiroki: When trying to make something universally cool, I have to be careful not to let my own preferences run wild. At the end of the day, the designs used in the original work are the core of these figures, and I have to work within the confines of the characters' existing designs while sprinkling in my own style during the creation process. I still haven't quite mastered this, however...
"The Face Is What Makes or Breaks a Figure"
—Next, let's talk a little about Boruto and Minato, who have already been revealed as the first and second entries in the series.
—This figure of Boruto is referencing his fight against Momoshiki, and Minato's pose is taken from when he headed out to fight against the masked man, correct?
Hiroki: Exactly! Minato's face wasn't actually shown in that scene, so I put a lot of thought into imagining his mental state while I worked. I hope the fans can appreciate this figure from every possible angle!
—It's great that they have the option of viewing it from behind like the manga panel or viewing it from the front!
Hiroki: Exactly! Minato's face wasn't actually shown in that scene, so I put a lot of thought into imagining his mental state while I worked. I hope the fans can appreciate this figure from every possible angle!
—It's great that they have the option of viewing it from behind like the manga panel or viewing it from the front!
—Did you also select the scenes, Hiroki?
Hiroki: The scenes were chosen by BANDAI SPIRITS, so I'll let Gyao answer!
Gyao: Thank you! In most cases the project director is the one who decides which scenes to model. So our workflow starts with finding memorable scenes for each character, suggesting ideas for poses, and then letting Hiroki work his magic in the sculpting phase to make the character's depiction even cooler.
—I see! You mentioned this before, Hiroki, but does the face of a figure require a lot of special attention?
Hiroki: Of course! It's not an overexaggeration to say that the face is what makes or breaks a figure, so it stands to reason that its final design is settled well before the rest of the sculpting process begins. After that, it's a matter of gradually fine-tuning the details while shaping out the rest of the body.
Naruto in particular is a series that stands out for the wide range of expressions used by its characters, and I personally think that fans appreciate that high level of quality. That's why I'm always having a blast wracking my brain to figure out how to map out their faces onto 3D sculptures in a way that preserves character fidelity and meets fans' expectations (laughs).
—It certainly does make sense that Naruto fans would have a keen eye for characters' expressions.
Hiroki: The scenes were chosen by BANDAI SPIRITS, so I'll let Gyao answer!
Gyao: Thank you! In most cases the project director is the one who decides which scenes to model. So our workflow starts with finding memorable scenes for each character, suggesting ideas for poses, and then letting Hiroki work his magic in the sculpting phase to make the character's depiction even cooler.
—I see! You mentioned this before, Hiroki, but does the face of a figure require a lot of special attention?
Hiroki: Of course! It's not an overexaggeration to say that the face is what makes or breaks a figure, so it stands to reason that its final design is settled well before the rest of the sculpting process begins. After that, it's a matter of gradually fine-tuning the details while shaping out the rest of the body.
Naruto in particular is a series that stands out for the wide range of expressions used by its characters, and I personally think that fans appreciate that high level of quality. That's why I'm always having a blast wracking my brain to figure out how to map out their faces onto 3D sculptures in a way that preserves character fidelity and meets fans' expectations (laughs).
—It certainly does make sense that Naruto fans would have a keen eye for characters' expressions.
—Can you tell us about how you approach clothes or equipment that a character is wearing?
Hiroki: I like to focus on textures. You have to really zoom in to notice it, but I try to sculpt outfits so that different parts of the same piece of clothing look like they're made of different materials or fabrics. A couple examples would be Kakashi's outfit from the Great Ninja Figure War or the underside of Boruto's jacket. I love picturing the setting of the original story and what materials would be used to make the different clothes and equipment worn by the characters!
Hiroki: I like to focus on textures. You have to really zoom in to notice it, but I try to sculpt outfits so that different parts of the same piece of clothing look like they're made of different materials or fabrics. A couple examples would be Kakashi's outfit from the Great Ninja Figure War or the underside of Boruto's jacket. I love picturing the setting of the original story and what materials would be used to make the different clothes and equipment worn by the characters!
—Hiroki, is it safe to assume you also designed the effect part used for Boruto's Rasengan?
Hiroki: Of course!
Hiroki: Of course!
—In the Great Ninja Figure War contest you sculpted Kakashi activating his Lightning Blade without the use of effect parts. How does that experience compare with your work on this latest series?
Hiroki: You just can't beat the level of quality that comes with effect parts! The only negative thing I can really say is that it splits the subject of your model into two: the character itself and their accompanying effect parts. Making a prototype that properly emphasizes both subjects can be tricky. The bigger the effect parts, the trickier it becomes.
—Is there anything you pay special attention to when crafting effect parts?
Hiroki: Commercial effect parts are mainly made up of clear materials, but when we craft the prototypes we use opaque materials, so we have to visualize what the final version will look like as we work. Also, in general, effect parts are see-through, which means we have to think carefully about how they connect to the main body of the figure so that those connections don't stand out or look obvious.
Hiroki: You just can't beat the level of quality that comes with effect parts! The only negative thing I can really say is that it splits the subject of your model into two: the character itself and their accompanying effect parts. Making a prototype that properly emphasizes both subjects can be tricky. The bigger the effect parts, the trickier it becomes.
—Is there anything you pay special attention to when crafting effect parts?
Hiroki: Commercial effect parts are mainly made up of clear materials, but when we craft the prototypes we use opaque materials, so we have to visualize what the final version will look like as we work. Also, in general, effect parts are see-through, which means we have to think carefully about how they connect to the main body of the figure so that those connections don't stand out or look obvious.
"The Character I Want to Sculpt the Most Right Now Is…"
—So is BANDAI SPIRITS also in charge of deciding which characters are turned into figures?
Gyao: Generally, the project director decides the character lineup! However, upon the creation of this series, I had a conversation with Hiroki where he told me that he really wanted the chance to sculpt certain characters at some point. As a result of that conversation, I made sure to keep those characters in mind as we moved towards development.
So we've heard what characters Hiroki would like to sculpt, but going forward we'd also like to consider feedback from fans as we add characters to the lineup.
Hiroki: The character I want to sculpt the most right now is Shikamaru!
I think I'd have fun capturing one of his languid poses in a way that evokes his signature aura.
Gyao: Generally, the project director decides the character lineup! However, upon the creation of this series, I had a conversation with Hiroki where he told me that he really wanted the chance to sculpt certain characters at some point. As a result of that conversation, I made sure to keep those characters in mind as we moved towards development.
So we've heard what characters Hiroki would like to sculpt, but going forward we'd also like to consider feedback from fans as we add characters to the lineup.
Hiroki: The character I want to sculpt the most right now is Shikamaru!
I think I'd have fun capturing one of his languid poses in a way that evokes his signature aura.
Hiroki: I also really want to try my hand at Kaguya.
I'm a fan of traditional Japanese aesthetics like the kind you see in Buddhist statues, so I think it would be fun to work that element into a figure of her.
I'm a fan of traditional Japanese aesthetics like the kind you see in Buddhist statues, so I think it would be fun to work that element into a figure of her.
—We hate to stop you just as your creative juices are flowing...but do you have any parting words for our readers?
Hiroki: I still have TONS of characters I want to sculpt and different styles I want to experiment with as part of the 忍界造形列伝 <NINNKAI ZOUKEI RETSUDEN> series! We've revealed Boruto and Minato already, but there's still plenty of figures I want to work on that are coming down the pipeline, so sit tight and make some space in your display cases!
—Hiroki, Gyao, thank you so much for your time!
Hiroki: I still have TONS of characters I want to sculpt and different styles I want to experiment with as part of the 忍界造形列伝 <NINNKAI ZOUKEI RETSUDEN> series! We've revealed Boruto and Minato already, but there's still plenty of figures I want to work on that are coming down the pipeline, so sit tight and make some space in your display cases!
—Hiroki, Gyao, thank you so much for your time!
The first entry in Hiroki Akimoto's 忍界造形列伝 <NINNKAI ZOUKEI RETSUDEN> series is "Boruto: Naruto Next Generations 忍界造形列伝 <NINNKAI ZOUKEI RETSUDEN> -Boruto Uzumaki-", scheduled to be released starting from December 18th, 2025 (JST)!
1 Type, Approx. 23cm
Details here → https://bsp-prize.jp/item/2808726/
Details here → https://bsp-prize.jp/item/2808726/
Plus, the second entry in the 忍界造形列伝 <NINNKAI ZOUKEI RETSUDEN> series, a figure of the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, will arrive in February 2026!
Stay tuned for more details!
・Please be aware that some news articles contain machine-translated text. As a result, some expressions may be unusual or difficult to understand. ・Unless otherwise specified, all dates and times are displayed in Japan Standard Time (JST/UTC+9).
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