Naruto is one of the most legendary shonen anime of all time that needs no introduction. Kishimoto's incredible worldbuilding ensured that fans would fall in love with the eponymous underdog and his quest to become Hokage at all costs.
8 Best Friendships In Naruto, Ranked
Naruto fans love watching these freinships develop and blossom.
This underdog eventually became strong enough to deal with the toughest characters in the series, taking the help of many allies (and, at times, enemies) along the way. The most compelling characters in Naruto have suffered a lot and overcome these adversities to become stronger than ever.
Naruto Uzumaki
An Orphan Who Grew Up Surrounded by Hatred
- Biggest Tragedy: Growing up alone while being hated by the entire village for being a Jinchuuriki
Naruto suffered from the curse of hatred ever since his birth. His parents died in a heroic attempt to save him, and his status as a Jinchuuriki meant that the entire village looked down on him ever since he was a kid.
However, he endured all this hatred and never lost his headstrong attitude, eventually gaining a bunch of friends along the way and reaching greater heights of power than ever before. Of course, he also endured his fair share of loss during this journey, with Jiraiya and Neji's deaths being just a few of the many instances that traumatized and hardened Naruto at the same time.
Sasuke Uchiha
Lost His Family After His Brother's Rampage And Grew Up With A Ton Of Malice
- Biggest Tragedy: Losing his entire family and clan as a child
Unlike Naruto, Sasuke knew the love of a father and mother, which is why it was so hard for him to accept that they'd been brutally slaughtered. What made things worse was that the perpetrator was his very brother, whom he idolized, which is what led him down a path of hatred.
Even after uncovering the truth, Sasuke was too far gone to walk down a path of light. He swore vengeance upon the leaf for causing the death of his village and carried this burden all by his lonesome, and it was only through Naruto's stubbornness to become his friend that Sasuke finally decided to let go of the past and look to the future.
Tsunade Senju
Lost Both Her Brother And Lover To The Horrors Of War
- Biggest Tragedy: Outliving Dan and Nawaki
Tsunade may seem like a good-for-nothing drunken gambler who isn't fit to be Hokage in Naruto's eyes, but he eventually uncovers the horrible things she endured in the past. The wars that shinobi waged had taken away two of the closest people in her life.
Naruto: Oldest Villains, Ranked
Some Naruto antagonists have been around much longer than others; here are the oldest villains who have appeared throughout the anime and manga.
Nawaki had barely reached the cusp of adulthood but was killed during this conflict, while her lover, Dan, died in her arms after her medical ninjutsu wasn't enough to treat his fatal wounds. This caused her to develop a hemophobia that was only cured after Naruto's headstrong nature reminded her that there was still something to rely on and look forward to in this twisted world.
Gaara
His Father Went Out Of His Way To Traumatize Him
- Biggest Tragedy: Foiling an assassination attempt carried out by his only friend in the world
Gaara seems like a heartless shinobi who is consumed with the thirst for vengeance, but there's a reason why he'd forsaken his humanity as a child. Gaara's mother died after giving birth. He became Shukaku's Jinchuuriki not long after, and Rasa did everything in his power to ensure that his child would be heavily traumatized.
The most heartless thing he did was order Yashamaru, Gaara's one and only friend, to assassinate Gaara while spouting lies about how much he hated him. This was the last straw that broke the camel's back and turned Gaara into a cold, evil shinobi who was finally pulled back into the light after Naruto made it clear just how important companionship was.
Obito Uchiha
Lost The Love Of His Life And Started Resenting The World
- Biggest Tragedy: Losing part of his body and seeing Rin be killed by his best friend
People may laugh at the idea of Obito being such a huge simp that he decided to destroy the world after his crush's death, but his love for Rin was just one of the many factors that contributed to his descent into villainy. He awakened the Sharingan and bonded with Kakashi, only for a cave-in to cause his body to be crushed.
By the time he healed just enough to find his former team members, he was too late and saw an out-of-context moment where Kakashi stabbed Rin and caused her demise. This moment caused him to suffer and develop a warped notion of the world and its suffering, which is why he wanted to enact the Infinite Tsukuyomi plan and trap all of humanity in a near-perfect illusion.
Nagato
Grew Up In A War-Torn Land, Lost A Close Friend, And Started Walking The Path Of Pain
- Biggest Tragedy: Trying to bring peace to Amegakure, only to lose his best friend in the process
Nagato is one of the most iconic villains in Naruto. Pain causes untold death and suffering in the series, but that's because the person behind the scenes had endured his fair share of heartbreak and realized that adversity helped people become strong, which isn't the worst viewpoint to have (even if the way he went about enforcing it was odd).
Naruto: 6 Most Pointless Sacrifices In The Series, Ranked
These characters ended up making sacrifices that ended up being completely pointless in Naruto.
He was born in the war-torn land of Amegakure and lost his parents during this strife in no time. After Jiraiya left, he, Yahiko, and Konan formed Akatsuki in a bid to enforce peace in the region, but this attracted the attention of Hanzo. He kidnapped Konan and forced Yahiko to die by Nagato's hand, causing the Rinnegan user to fall into despair and become the villainous leader everyone loves to hate.
Kakashi Hatake
His Father Killed Himself And Left Him To Fend For Himself In A Cutthroat World
- Biggest Tragedy: Losing his father and his best friends
Kakashi is one of the coolest characters in the series, and it's impressive how he managed to keep such a cool head despite dealing with one tragedy after another. Coming back home to the hanging body of his father should've traumatized him, but he used this memory to become strong and efficient.
Obito helped him see the error of his ways, but died not long after, and Rin got herself killed by stepping in the path of Kakashi's Chidori after a Tailed Beast had been forcibly sealed into her. The deaths of the people closest to him shattered Kakashi, but he strove to honor their memory and became one of the strongest shinobi in Naruto.
Itachi Uchiha
Made The Ultimate Sacrifice To Save His Brother
- Biggest Tragedy: Being forced to kill his entire clan in a bid to save his brother
Itachi Uchiha was the series' biggest villain until one point, and fans had no sympathy for him. All of this changed following his demise, with Obito revealing the truth to Sasuke. Itachi wasn't a genocidal maniac, but a man who loved his brother and would've done anything to save Sasuke from the curse of hatred that plagued the Uchiha clan.
He agreed to annihilate his brethren after being promised that Sasuke would be spared. The tears he shed before killing his mother and father make it clear that Itachi suffered just as much as Sasuke after this moment, and he willingly chose to be labelled as an evil, heartless villain, if it meant that Sasuke could have a chance to live a normal life. However, he underestimated how much Sasuke held onto this hatred, meaning that he failed even after traumatizing both himself and his brother.
- Release Date
- 2002 - 2007-00-00
- Showrunner
- Masashi Kishimoto
- Directors
- Hayato Date
Cast
-
Junko Takeuchi -
Noriaki Sugiyama
WHERE TO WATCH
- Writers
- Masashi Kishimoto
- Franchise(s)
- Naruto
- Creator(s)
- Masashi Kishimoto
