Hey fun fact, did you know that Naruto, was originally supposed to be about wizards? Kishimoto changed the settings from wizards to ninja's, because he was about to release Naruto, the same time around when Harry Potter released, in 1997. One could say, that Naruto borrowed heavily from Harry Potter, because of sudden late change in settings.

Would it still have been shit?

Yes, other Naba. Yes it would.