A monthly sequel series titled ' began in the Japanese and English editions of "Weekly Shōnen Jump" in early 2016, illustrated by Mikio Ikemoto and written by Ukyō Kodachi, with supervision by Kishimoto. Ikemoto was Kishimoto's chief assistant during the run of the original "Naruto" series, and Kodachi was his writing partner for the ' film screenplay. The monthly series was preceded by a one-shot written and illustrated by Kishimoto. The staff from Shueisha asked Kishimoto if he would write a sequel to "Naruto". However, Kishimoto refused the offer and offered his former assistant Mikio Ikemoto and writer Ukyo Kodachi write "Boruto: Naruto Next Generations" as the sequel to "Naruto".