Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama dies aged 68; Naruto, One Piece artists mourn loss of ‘a hero, a carefree man’

livemint.com:

Masashi Kishimoto, the creator of Naruto, put out heartfelt statements, mourning the loss of their "inspiration". The news of Akira Toriyama's death was confirmed by Bird Studio, the manga company that Toriyama founded in 1983. “It’s our deep regret that he still had several works in the middle of creation with great enthusiasm," the studio wrote in a statement.

“Also, he would have many more things to achieve." The studio remembered his “unique world of creation". “He has left many manga titles and works of art to this world," the statement read. “Thanks to the support of so many people around the world, he has been able to continue his creative activities for over 45 years." Eiichiro Oda, the creator of One Piece, and Masashi Kishimoto, the creator of Naruto, put out heartfelt statements, moruning the loss of Akira Toriyama.

One Piece creator, Oda, credited Toriyama with revolutionizing the manga industry. "Toriyama proved to a disbelieving audience that “manga can be fun for both children and adults," wrote One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda. “He showed that manga could travel the world." Naruto author Masashi Kishimoto said he read Toriyama’s stories every week from grade school to college and was inspired by the characters to become a manga artist.

“I wanted to make manga like yours! I wanted to be like you!" he said. Toriyama was born in Nagoya, Japan in 1955. After drawing throughout his childhood, he decided to forgo tertiary education and, after high school, began to work at an advertising agency where he designed posters.