From the back cover:
There comes a time in every ninja’s training when he must put aside his morals and face the truth: ninjas are tools for killing. For Naruto, seeing Sasuke dead, that time is now. Rage awakens the nine-tailed fox spirit within Naruto, giving him the strength to overcome Haku—but can he bring himself to finish the job?

As the battle for the Land of the Waves comes to a tragic ending, our heroes return to the village of Konohagakure in time for the chuunin (journeyman ninja) exams. But junior ninjas from around the world have gathered to take the exam, bringing their own strange ninjutsu and mysterious goals…

Review:
Even though I thought elements of Kakashi and Zabuza’s fight were rather silly (ninja dogs? really?), I mostly liked the first half of this volume. Haku’s an endearing character, one of those who dedicates their life to being useful to their villainous friend/savior, reminding me of a couple of similar types from Kenshin. So, pretty much—if Haku was in the scene, I liked it.

I also liked that the nature of a shinobi is questioned—are they really just the killing tools of their government, or can they be people too? And Naruto’s reaction to Sasuke’s recovery actually made me kind of sniffle.

But… the last two chapters are kind of meh. I actually thought the journeyman exams sounded neat, and maybe it’ll shape up to be so, but so far it’s just a lot of posturing and prospective rivals eyeing Sasuke. At least Sakura has now openly acknowledged her uselessness. Dare I hope a power-up of some kind is in store?

From the back cover:
Zabuza, the ninja assassin, was stopped from his first try at killing Tazuna the bridge-builder—but Zabuza still lives! While the ninjas recover from their injuries, Kakashi puts Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura on a strict training regimen to protect Tazuna’s family—including Tazuna’s embittered grandson Inari—and prepare for Zabuza’s next attack.

But the next time won’t be as easy, because joining Zabuza is his deadly apprentice, Haku. And as the bridge comes closer to completion, our heroes must be willing to die—or kill—to protect the ones they love…

Review:
The ninjas recover, train, and discover new abilities in this volume. Par for the course for shounen manga, in other words. I started to think something might finally happen with Sakura, after her uselessness in previous volumes, when she was the first to master a new technique. But no—Kakashi mentally states that the boys have much greater reserves of power than she does and, after some practice, they’re able to duplicate the feat. Later, in the battle with Zabuza and Haku, Sakura continues to stand around and do nothing. Sigh.

While Naruto pushes himself to improve so he can protect those he cares about, he ends up inspiring a little kid who’d lost the dad who fought the anti-bridge thugs to protect his son and his town. It’s about as exciting as it sounds.

The final battle itself is pretty good—Kakashi’s ability of hypnotic mimicry is thwarted by some new techniques of Zabuza’s, and the fight with Haku (whom I quite like) awakens some latent power of Sasuke’s that allows him to see through the illusions that Haku creates. I think those two are probably related, since much is made of how Sasuke is the last of his tragic clan and he makes some reference to an older brother that could be interpreted to mean Haku.

So, this volume was okay—I was sufficiently entertained—but it wasn’t great.

From the back cover:
It’s the first game of the season and Josui Junior High is matched up against cross-town rival, Musashinomori. Without question the elite private school has the better soccer players, but Shou Kazamatsuri and the rest of Team Josui are hoping to steal a win with extra hustle and desire.

But at halftime it doesn’t look too good. The kids from Josui find themselves down by two goals. For Shou, losing to his former school is not an option. Even when he suffers a debilitating injury, Shou is determined to lead his team to victory!

Review:
It took a few chapters for me to get back into the flow of the Josui vs. Musashinomori match. Of course, the team gets inspired and manages to hold their own, though they’re running themselves ragged in the process.

The game was well-drawn as always, and easy to follow. For the most part, the shots made seem plausible enough, though I wasn’t entirely sure something the goal keeper did at the end is legal. Mistakes were made by players, there were a couple of fouls, a penalty kick, a non-villainous rival, etc. This part was fun.

What was pretty cheesy was a chapter near the end where every exhausted Josui player had to have a flashback of why they had something to prove, and had to declare aloud their love for soccer as they managed to successfully complete a pass to their teammate.

Despite the flaws, Whistle! is still a good series and definitely recommended.

From the back cover:
Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura have passed the final test to become junior ninja—but now the real challenge begins. Tired of menial tasks, the young ninja ask for a tougher assignment, and find themselves—together with their teacher, Kakashi—bodyguarding a cranky old man from the Land of the Waves. But Tazuna the bridgebuilder is in more danger than anyone realizes: he’s the target of elite ninja assassins, including Zabuza, “the demon,” and our heroes are about to face a trial by fire…

Review:
I’m happy to report that there were no crude gags or nosebleeds whatsoever in this volume. Instead, the team gets a new assignment that, besides having fun ninja battles, opens Naruto’s eyes to a few things. He’d held a very idealistic dream of becoming a ninja leader, without having the slightest idea of what a real battle is like or considering that sometimes a hero must sacrifice their life for the sake of others. I liked that he wasn’t instantly the hero of the conflict.

Sasuke and Kakashi completely steal the show for me. Sasuke is silent and competent, and I like that sort of character. Kakashi is the rational adult with an occasional silly side, teaching the children sternly and fairly, and also completely awesome when he is actually compelled to fight. He kind of reminds me of Remus Lupin. Like… if he were a ninja.

I am glad I gave this series one more try, because the second volume is loads better than the first. The one thing left that bugs me is Sakura’s apparent utter uselessness. I hope she begins to serve some purpose eventually.

From the back cover:
Shou Kazamatsuri and his pals finally hit the magic number 11 and that means they’re ready for high-kicking, goal-to-goal soccer action.

Unfortunately, Team Josui’s first game is against the powerhouse private school, Musashinomori. Shou’s crew may have boundless pluck and enthusiasm but do they have the talent to compete with last season’s reigning champions? Maybe not… but this year they have a secret weapon by the name of Tatsuya Mizuno. Not only is Mizuno the best player on Josui’s squad, he’s also the son of the opposing team’s coach. Soccer action and familial complications collide when father and son meet on opposite sides of the soccer field!

Review:
I am really enjoying Whistle!, and would compare it favorably to Hikaru no Go in terms of a sports manga with fun, likeable characters. Fans of the latter would enjoy this. Artwise, it’s kind of similar too, with a variety of faces and character types so that everyone is distinct. That really helps avoid confusion during the games, which are themselves drawn clearly enough that even a soccer neophyte can easily follow what’s going on.

We see a lot more of two characters I really like in this volume. One, Hiroyoshi, is a chubby little kid who loves soccer but is kind of wimpy. He is adorable, especially on pages 46 and 47. I appreciate how he wasn’t forgotten in the chaos of that scene. Another is Satou, a lively kid who brings the bishounen total up to two. His interactions with the serious Mizuno must surely have inspired some slashy fanfic!

Another bonus to Whistle! is that it’s a shounen manga that’s finished, with 24 total volumes, rather than one of those with 35+ and no end in sight. And I’m sure we’ll see all of it before HnG even hits 15.