The Brief: A clip of a man Naruto Running behind a TV reporter near Area 51 is the first meme to come out of the Area 51 'raid' in Nevada.

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DEEP DIVE

At least one person has risen to the challenge of “Naruto Running” near Area 51 the day before the widely-memed “raid” of the area. During an ABC KTNV report on September 19, a man was seen running behind a reporter with his arms outstretched behind him, just like Naruto. Soon after this clip was posted online, it became the unofficial first meme to actually come out of the Area 51 ‘Raid.’

Many pranksters and meme-makers have taken this clip as evidence that some people really do have the audacity to show up at a United States Air Force Facility to make an internet meme a reality.

Area 51 Naruto Run Memes

Particularly popular on the Dank Memes subreddit, many image macros related to this iconic Naruto Run pair a screenshot of the man Naruto running behind the reporter with a reaction image or meme. Other variations of this meme label the reporter and the guy running to represent one thing that’s on topic and another that’s off-topic.

So it begins my comrades from dankmemes

I am so proud of this community from dankmemes

Will I get banned if I post this before everyone dies or am I fine from dankmemes

It is happening my dudes from dankmemes

Im so proud of this community from dankmemes

An International Hero from dankmemes

Some members of the r/memes subreddit are petitioning to have the “Naruto run guy” replace Butter the Bearded Dragon as the official picture of the sub.

Petition to make this legend the r/memes picture. from memes

Others are comparing him to meme heroes and icons like Bob Ross, Keanu Reeves, Stan Lee, and Stefan Karl Stefansson. Way to go, Kyle!

We salute you, Naruto Runner kid. from memes