The latest episode of Invincible season 3 once again highlighted the show’s ruthless interpretation of superpowers. This time, the focus was on duplication, an ability found in many fiction but rarely utilized in a realistic and frightening way.
Multi-Paul’s horrific prison break illustrated the level of physical and psychological tension that duplication imposes on its user, revealing a concealed horror behind a power that is otherwise viewed as a strength. This raises an interesting question for fans: What if Masashi Kishimoto were to depict how the actual effect of the Shadow Clone Jutsu would be on Naruto Uzumaki’s mind?
The brutality of Multi-Paul’s duplication in Invincible
Multi-Paul’s escape from prison during Invincible season 3, episode 5, is the most graphic and disturbing moment on the show. In his desperate attempt to escape, he repeatedly created copies of himself, even though he was aware that they would be smashed or ripped apart during the process.
With each of his copies suffering the pain of death itself, the bare brutality of the sequence causes the audience to wonder about the ethical and psychological toll of duplication powers. In contrast to his sister, Dupli-Kate, who has demonstrated signs of emotional distress over losing her copies, Multi-Paul uses his duplicates as disposable tools.
The fact that each of his duplicates feels pain and fear only underscores the loss of these clones as more threatening. While Multi-Paul manages to break in through the cell door, his technique raises chilling questions: Does every duplicate retain some level of consciousness? If so, what does it mean for the original body and mind?
This level of existential horror has rarely been touched upon in mainstream media, making Invincible a standout in its willingness to push the boundaries of what superpowers truly mean. In Naruto, however, Kishimoto’s refusal to touch on this element while showing the same technique meant that he wanted Naruto to be an inspiring hero instead of one weighed down by the horrors of his own powers.
Naruto’s Shadow Clone Jutsu: Kishimoto made the right choice
In Naruto, the Shadow Clone Jutsu is one of the most versatile and powerful techniques, enabling Naruto to produce many copies of himself to aid combat, training, and espionage.
Unlike Invincible‘s duplication, Naruto’s duplicates disintegrate into chakra upon defeat instead of leaving bodies behind. This effectively eliminates the need to go through the psychological shock of seeing one’s own duplicates getting hurt and killed.
But if Masashi Kishimoto had taken a darker route, Naruto’s story could have been much more terrifying. Think about if all of the clones Naruto created felt fear, pain, and death before vanishing. Because their memories return to the original after dispersing, Naruto would have to suffer every moment of pain, perhaps breaking his mind.
This could have caused severe PTSD, nightmares, or even a phobia of using the technique at all. Therefore, while Invincible presents a grim and realistic take on duplication, Kishimoto’s decision to keep the Shadow Clone Jutsu relatively harmless was ultimately the right call for Naruto.
By keeping the mechanics of the Shadow Clone Jutsu simple, Kishimoto avoided opening the door to unnecessary suffering and allowed Naruto to remain a symbol of perseverance and hope. And for this very reason, as a fan, we should be really grateful.
Invincible season 3 is currently available to watch on Amazon Prime Video and Naruto is available to watch on Crunchyroll.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
