Team 7
Uzumaki Naruto
Uzumaki Naruto (Naruto Uzumaki in the English anime) is the main character of the manga and anime series Naruto. He is a student of Hatake Kakashi's and later of Jiraiya.
History
Little is known about Naruto's birth or parentage, and it is very probable that he has no living relatives at all. What is known, however, is that around the time his mother was about to give birth to him, the Nine-tails Demon Fox, or Kyūbi no Yōko, attacked his village, Konohagakure (Hidden Leaf) and the Yondaime Hokage (Fourth Hokage) decided to seal the demon away with a forbidden technique inside him, sacrificing his life in the process. Yondaime's wish was for Naruto to be remembered as a hero by the people of the village.
Things, unfortunately for him, definitely did not turn out that way. The people of the village needed something to blame and channel their bitterness and loss onto, and he was the perfect candidate. The adults of the village, without known exceptions, knew him and treated him as nothing more than the demon fox that has attacked the village; As a result he grew up alone and isolated. It is implied in the manga that he went through very difficult emotional times and often shed many tears, but kept reprimanding himself for doing so and telling himself nothing would be achieved by crying. Eventually he developed into the loudmouth, hyperactive prankster he was at the start of the manga, though as the Third Hokage (Sandaime) observed (and even Naruto himself, in a moment of rare enlightenment, once admitted this), it is only an act to cover up for his deep insecurity in a desperate plight for recognition.
By chance or fate, Umino Iruka, who had felt much of the same desperation as Naruto in his younger years, was Naruto's teacher, and he was the first person to recognize Naruto as a human being and ninja, and not just as a stupid screwup or the Nine-Tails. Naruto, at one point, says that when he is with Iruka, he often wonders whether that is what being with a father is like.
Personality and characteristics
Naruto is very determined and has very strong values that he never once fails to act by, even in hopeless situations. His dream is to become Hokage, as it is the epitome of his ambitions to have the village acknowledge him and live for the sake of protecting his important people.
Naruto has a knack for inspiring people to realise their potentials and resolve to work harder or change their ways for the better; his determination and resolve often earn him sympathy from other characters. One early example of this is Konohamaru, the grandson of the third Hokage, who was inspired by Naruto to stop trying to find shortcuts to becoming Hokage, as there are no shortcuts and the only way is paved with plenty of hard work. Another is Inari, whom Naruto helped by making him see that anyone can make a difference and by confronting him about his refusal to come to terms with his painful past (as Naruto's past was similarly tragic). Both of them have gotten very attached to Naruto and have taken to calling him Onii-chan (big brother).
Though he is naturally impetuous, hyperactive and tends to rush into combat without thinking, Naruto is capable of devising some quite clever plans by creative usage of his jutsu. He has more than once upstaged what looked like a superior opponent by exploiting the element of surprise an unconventional usage of a technique entails; Kakashi even dubs him the "number one ninja in surprising people". Another main driving force behind his otherwise average Taijutsu and Ninjutsu abilities is the huge power and chakra reserves of the Kyūbi. Kyūbi is by no stretch of the imagination a particularly pleasant character, but nevertheless does everything in his power to help Naruto - lending chakra as requested, healing Naruto with his extreme healing ability and so forth - if only for the fact that Naruto's death would apparently mean the Kyūbi's death as well.
There are downsides to the huge chakra load that is Kyūbi; like most of the biggest weapons, it can't be lifted, let alone wielded, with ease. Naruto is a relatively small container that cannot quite handle the whole of Kyūbi's chakra, which might account for Naruto's inability to control and focus chakra consistently for jutsu during his days at the academy. Even later, when Naruto learns to better control his chakra, any technique relying on Kyūbi's chakra to work properly runs a chance of failing, as it takes great conviction or control on Naruto's part to draw Kyūbi's chakra effectively. However, Naruto's Chakra and Kyūbi's chakra are slowly fusing and are expected to eventually become one, which is bound to drastically change this status-quo.
Ninja academy
Up to his academy graduation, Naruto has precious little of the acknowledgement and empathy he seeks. His sensei, Umino Iruka, and to a lesser extent the Third Hokage, are the only positive influence on him in that respect (though Hyūga Hinata thinks very highly of him as well she never actually gathers the courage to address him). He neglects his academy studies so much that he repeatedly fails to graduate (though the Bunshin no Jutsu, the one he is worst at, being the final test every year doesn't help much). That is until he is manipulated to steal the scroll of seals (a scroll belonging to the village containing forbidden techniques) by Mizuki. During the short conflict between Mizuki and Iruka, Naruto acquires his signature technique, Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, by learning it from the scroll. When he demonstrates usage of this technique, Iruka passes him and congratulates him on graduating.
While labeled as dumb at the academy, Naruto shows surprising talent in unexpected areas and often comes up with inventive solutions and strategies. Later in the series, Naruto manages to learn the Rasengan, a technique that took the fourth Hokage three years to develop, in just a month (he takes a couple of days for the first step, three weeks for the second, and one week for the third). An example of Naruto's inventiveness is shown here -- he lacks the chakra control required to execute the technique using only one hand, but he settles for an inferior delivery method which is slower and requires another hand (either by occupying his other one or using a kage bunshin). While not on par with the original, Naruto's version is still very effective.
Later in the manga, Naruto is seen to be able to use Rasengan with only one hand (though this might be a misinterpretation due to the graphic limitations of manga). Early in the Naruto II arc while out to rescue Gaara, Naruto uses a new version of Rasengan called Odama Rasengan- essentially two combined Rasengan spheres from him and a clone requiring only one hand of each, again suggesting that he is now capable of executing Rasengan as originally intended.
Team 7
In order to become a genin, in addition to graduating from the Ninja Academy, one must first undergo an evaluation with a Jōnin; if one passes, they will be assigned to that Jonin for training. Naruto, Haruno Sakura (his crush) and Uchiha Sasuke (her crush) are assigned to Team 7 under the leadership of Hatake Kakashi. The evaluation test is simple. There are three members and two bells: the two who manage to put their hands on a bell win and are awarded with food, and the one who is left out remains hungry. Kakashi easily defends himself from all three, and after a while calls a break and points out their flaws in teamwork; he lets Sakura and Sasuke eat so they can all try again later, but forbids them to feed Naruto, who is also tied to a log for good measure. Sakura and Sasuke decide to go against Kakashi's words and feed Naruto anyway, figuring that if the problem is their teamwork this would be a good way to start working on it; Team 7 thus becomes the first group that Kakashi ever passed to be Genin, as this is exactly the message he was trying to get across - caring for your friends is more important than "the rules".
Though Genin are only supposed to go on D-Rank missions, Naruto insists on doing something more exciting and the Sandaime Hokage agrees to send them on a C-Rank mission to escort a client. During their mission, the team is attacked by two enemy Chūnin- something that is definitely not supposed to happen on C-Rank missions- and Naruto panics and freezes; Sasuke however deals with the attackers quite efficiently. Sasuke rubs his one-upping Naruto in by calling him a "Scaredy-cat"; this name-calling, which Naruto would imitate many times later in the series, is a defining moment in the Naruto-Sasuke rivalry. Team 7 also undergoes chakra training in this arc of the manga, another point of rivalry between the two ninja, as they constantly challenge themselves to try to outdo each other, but instead end up helping and motivating each other to succeed.
Naruto's "hidden power" is also revealed in this arc. In a particularly ferocious battle in which he believes Sasuke has been killed, Naruto loses control and is consumed by Kyūbi's chakra. Its power is so immense that the chakra is visible, all of Naruto's wounds heal near-instantaneously, and Naruto's appearance changes. He completely overwhelms his enemy with this power and speed. Although the power of the Kyūbi is introduced at this point, the full extent of it is not shown yet. Naruto has not communicated with the Demon Fox inside of him; he only subconsciously calls upon this power.
After his graduation, Naruto gradually becomes more acknowledged and appreciated, as more and more people come in contact with the real Naruto behind the "demon" and "idiot prankster" stigmas. From his previous state of isolation he develops friendships with all sorts of people; his relationship with Sasuke grows into a mix of friendship and rivalry, eventually escalating into very strong friendship and a rivalry of epic proportions, while Haruno Sakura's role slowly develops from that of Naruto's mere crush into that of his important friend.
Chuunin exam
Team 7 returns to Konoha to continue with their lives as regular Genin, accomplishing menial missions. Eventually, whilst playing with Konohamaru and his friends, Naruto meets with two of the three Genin from Sunagakure (Hidden Sand), Kankurō and Temari and shortly learns the reason for their presence; Chūnin Selection Exams are in effect. Naruto is thrilled about the possibility of becoming a Chūnin, and though he fails to, various events during the exams drastically affect his ability and enrich his social relations (much later in the manga, when Naruto reminisces on how he was alone but slowly more and more people became his friends, we see a growing line which first contains Iruka, Kakashi, Sasuke and Sakura, and later expands to include people he met on the Chūnin exam).
During the exam, Naruto finds himself for the first time in a truly desperate situation, up against Orochimaru - an S-ranked criminal so powerful that the third Hokage later mentions that there is nobody in the hidden Leaf Village that can fight him equally (even he himself, he admits, cannot). Naruto and Sasuke's reactions to the situation are a complete reversal of what happened in their previous mission - Sasuke is paralyzed with panic while Naruto fights on fearlessly, at one point stopping Orochimaru's huge summoned snake in its tracks on his own, and muttering to Sasuke, in a a moment of glorious comeuppance that marks another milestone in their rivalry, "are you all right... scaredy-cat?". Naruto eventually snaps Sasuke out of his panic, and when Naruto is knocked out Sasuke continues to fight Orochimaru.
Naruto vastly improves in ability during the three stages of the Chuunin exam; beside winning his first true fight (against Kiba) by having shadow replications perform a combo attack, he improves his chakra control by practicing walking on water, learns how to call upon Kyūbi's energy at will and how to use the summoning technique to call a toad to his aid (the former skill essential for the usability of the latter, as without Kyūbi's chakra his summons are generally not much more than tadpoles). He uses these skills to a powerful effect in later battles, and at the climax of the arc triumphs against Gaara, an opponent Sasuke could not face equally, thus reversing their roles and inducing in Sasuke deep feelings of inferiority - though Sasuke still attempts to maintain the same attitude in front of Naruto, in an attempt to cling to his former superiority. At an early point Naruto tells Sasuke that he wants to fight him during the exam; Sasuke acknowledges Naruto in his own way later on when he tells him that he wants to fight him as well.
In the month between the third stage preliminary matches and the third stage main matches, Naruto meets Jiraiya - one of Konoha's legendary three - for the first time. Jiraiya agrees to be his sensei and is the one who teaches him most of the advanced techniques he learns during that time. He also undergoes a brief training period under Ebisu, who earlier saw him as nothing more than the container of the demon fox but after spending some time with him decides that he is indeed a true ninja of the leaf.
Naruto's defining trait of being extremely spirited and never giving up is further emphasised in this arc. During the written test part, when given a choice between taking a question or not taking a question - when not taking it would mean failing the exam, and taking it but not answering correctly would mean failing and staying a genin forever - he not only chooses to take the question but proclaims his resolve to will himself to be Hokage even if he stays a genin forever loudly, inspiring many people in the room to do the same (in a twist, it later turns out that the whole point of the "question" was to see who was fit and who wasn't fit for being a chūnin, an occupation in which one does not have a choice of whether to undertake missions which risk everything or not, and Naruto has answered correctly by merely deciding to confront it). He also faces up with determination to Hyūga Neji and Gaara - Two opponents that, he frankly admits to himself often at various points during the arc, terrify him.
Naruto's encounters during the Chūnin exam arc are characterized by Naruto relating to or opposing to sentiments and outlooks on life, and it is through this relation that he makes many new friends (and on three different occasions, by defeating an enemy). He gradually bonds with Rock Lee, a Taijutsu expert, who represents the ideal of hard work prevailing against all odds and stands up against the much more powerful Gaara during the third stage preliminary exams even while unconscious. Naruto deeply identifies with Lee and feels very sorry for him when Gaara beats him (since he does such a thorough job as to, according to the doctors' first impressions, permanently cripple Lee.)
Another contrast that deeply affects Naruto is the clash between Hyūga Hinata, the forsaken heir of the Hyūga clan head house, and Hyūga Neji, her cousin, who is much stronger but will never be the heir because he is a part of the branch house. Naruto watches the start of the fight with little knowledge of either fighters (apart from that Hinata is a nice person, as she offered to let him copy off of her paper in the written test stage and offered him medicine immediately after his fight with Inuzuka Kiba); however about a minute later, after Hinata mumbles quietly that she just wanted to change herself and Neji lectures her about the supreme rule of destiny and how people cannot change, Naruto is already shouting into the stadium for Hinata to stand up for herself. She loses the fight, much like Lee loses his own fight with Gaara - still standing at a point where she should technically be dead; when she finally goes down, Naruto is so overwhelmed with sympathy for her predicament and antagonism for Neji's attitude that he closes his punch around her overflowing blood and flings it at Neji, promising to her that he will beat the Hyūga prodigy himself.
Naruto's fight with Neji a month later is a very dramatic one. As techniques are used and advantages are gained and nullified, Neji lectures Naruto much like he did earlier with Hinata, telling him that dropouts remain dropouts and cannot change. Naruto suffers somewhat of an emotional impact when Neji gives him a speech about the Hokages being people who were destined to become ones, and how one cannot become one just because they want to; Ultimately, however, he would have none of it and keeps confronting Neji about his attitude, until Neji tells him of the tragedy of his father's death and the Hyūga fate of hatred. Naruto eventually wins the battle through sheer motivation and believing in victory, and in the process changes Neji's outlook on life one-hundred and eighty degrees, inspiring him to create his own fate and forming another important bond ("Stop talking about fate and how it can't be changed," says Naruto sardonically, "you're not like me. You're not a dropout.")
The climax of the arc is Naruto's battle with Gaara. Gaara represents the opposite reaction to Naruto's very predicament than the one Naruto had; Naruto looked for acknowledgement and attention to form his identity, while Gaara built more and more walls around himself, eventually concluding that his purpose in life was to kill everybody that was not him. At first Naruto is clearly outpowered, but later in the fight he gains more ground by using clever tactics and employing the techniques Jiraiya taught him. Most of all what enables him to triumph is his devotion to his important people, which turns out to be a source of much greater strength of Gaara's hatred, contrary to Naruto's first impression that Gaara's state of mind makes him somebody he could not possibly face.
After the battle ends, Gaara wonders whether he'd be able to love again, and appears later in the series as a positive character and another important friend Naruto has made during this arc.
Sasuke arc
Naruto's influence on Sasuke, though profound, is powerless to prevent Sasuke from deciding to become a Nukenin (Missing-nin) and leaving the leaf to receive training from Orochimaru. Sasuke's decision to leave is the result of a chain of events that rekindles his hatred and desire to avenge his clan so much that it overshadows all other influences in his life. This experience is traumatic to Naruto, as he has promised Sakura to bring Sasuke back and this is the first time he is unable to live up to something he promised to an important person. Unlike Jiraiya, however, who from his own experience with Orochimaru believes that Sasuke is too far gone and that Naruto should forget about him and concentrate on his own survival, Naruto believes that there is hope for Sasuke yet. He tells Sakura that he will, one day, bring Sasuke back to the village and live up to his promise.
Naruto II arc
After this failed attempt to retrieve Sasuke, Naruto learns that circumstances have granted him a 3-year window to prepare himself for when the time comes to face Orochimaru (who has switched bodies prematurely and now has to wait 3 years before executing his original plan of transferring into Sasuke) and defend himself against additional kidnap attempts from the shady organisation Akatsuki (who, according to Jiraiya's information sources and for reasons unknown, halt their plans to attempt capturing Naruto for three years). Naruto takes this opportunity for intensive training under Jiraiya, as does Sakura under Tsunade. As Jiraiya was the Fourth's sensei, this places Naruto in a very good position to actually fulfill his dream to become Hokage or at least a ninja of great renown, as most legendary ninjas and hokages are closely tied to one another through student-teacher relations (though she does not tell him this, Tsunade is already certain he will grow up to become Hokage).
When Naruto returns to the village two and a half years later he finds out, much to his chagrin, that he is the only one of his former-Genin social circle (known as the "Rookie 9") who is still a Genin. During his absence, the rest have become Chūnin (and Hyūga Neji even made Jōnin).
In this new arc of the story, dubbed Naruto II, we see the growth of all of the characters, including Naruto. Naruto shows physical growth, sports a new outfit, and appears to not only have increased in strength and techniques, but intelligence as well (the pervertedness of his Sensei also seems to have slightly rubbed off on him). He has little time, however, to wander the village and greet all his old friends, as the Hokage sends him, Sakura and Kakashi on yet another rescue mission, this time to retrieve the helpless Gaara (who, to Naruto's utter awe, has become the fifth Kazekage during his absence) from the hands of Akatsuki, who plan to extract the sealed demon from him for purposes yet unknown. Jiraiya's information sources indicate that Akatsuki has been growing impatient with their lack of success capturing Naruto, and thus this clash with Akatsuki seems to have been inevitable.
Naruto, along with Sakura, Kakashi, Team Gai, and Chiyo, go on a mission to rescue the recently-captured Gaara from the Akatsuki. They are first confronted by Itachi and Kisame, who turn out to be body substitutes by means of Shoten no Jutsu (Shapeshifting Technique), and defeat them. Upon arrival at the grotto where Gaara is being held, the group figures out that a barrier jutsu seals off the entrance. To facilitate entry, Team Gai goes to remove four seals scattered in the area; doing so creates clones of them which copy their every movement. Meanwhile, Naruto and Kakashi decide to confront Deidara while Chiyo and Sakura face Sasori. Both pairs defeat the Akatsuki members, and Gai and company defeat their clones, with help from Neji.
Upon retrieving Gaara from Deidara's clay bird, Naruto undergoes the second-stage Kyūbi transformation, which he used against Sasuke. Because Kakashi knew how to contain Naruto's further transformation using a special seal he received from Jiraiya, it has been implied that Jiraiya also witnessed Naruto's transformation during the last three years.
Trivia
- The surname "Uzumaki" translates to "spiral". The Konoha leaf symbol is drawn with an arrow attached to a spiral, the seal on his abdomen is a spiral, and one of his attacks is Rasengan which means "Spiralling Sphere". One wonders if the spirals surrounding Naruto are a reflection of the main character, or if Naruto's last name is a reflection of the spirals of his village. For Uzumaki may be a generic last name representing the village given to those without a family name.
- "Uzumaki" can also mean "whirlpool". The Naruto whirlpool, named after the city of Naruto, lies between said city and Awaji Island.
- Naruto can mean "maelstrom", and is also the name for a sliced stick of Kamaboko with a pink whirlpool design in the middle which is used as a topping for Ramen (Naruto's favorite food). The Japanese sometimes use it as a nickname for the commercial at (@).
- The Kitsune is a well-known character in Japanese myth, and the influence behind not only the Demon Fox a.k.a. the Kyūbi but many other reincarnations in modern Japanese culture. It likes to play tricks and pranks on people, and on occasions transforms itself into a beautiful woman and seduces a man (obviously the inspiration for Ninja Centerfold (Oiroke no Jutsu, literally Sexy Technique), which is often called "Sexy no Jutsu" by people in the North American Naruto fanbase). Foxes are also known to be especially fierce and resourceful when pushed into a corner, and can even kill a hound or other powerful animals, something which also reflects Naruto's determination. It should also be noted that every time Naruto loses control and is overwhelmed by the Kyuubi's chakra, he seemingly gains another "tail" of chakra. This stems from the Japanese myth that when kitsune reach 100 years, they gain an additional tail, as well as increased powers and intelligence; their powers and number of tails continue to grow every 100 years until the age of 1000 when they receive the ninth and final tail and incredible powers which in some versions even reach up to immortality. The Kyuubi's powers are limited to seep through to how much Naruto can take, though it seems that this limit is severely stretched the older Naruto gets, and will probably be broken altogether when their chakra finishes melding.
- October 10, Naruto's birthday, was "Taiiku no hi" (Health and Sports Day) in Japan when his character was conceived - a holiday full of physical activity fit for a hyperactive kid. The holiday, however, was moved to the second Monday of October during 1999.
- According to the Game Boy Advance game Naruto: Konoha Senki one of Naruto's hobbies is gardening and he is the one who gives Kakashi Mr Ukki, the plant seen on Kakashi's windowsill. According to the official databooks his hobbies are playing pranks and watering plants.
History
Little is known about Naruto's birth or parentage, and it is very probable that he has no living relatives at all. What is known, however, is that around the time his mother was about to give birth to him, the Nine-tails Demon Fox, or Kyūbi no Yōko, attacked his village, Konohagakure (Hidden Leaf) and the Yondaime Hokage (Fourth Hokage) decided to seal the demon away with a forbidden technique inside him, sacrificing his life in the process. Yondaime's wish was for Naruto to be remembered as a hero by the people of the village.
Things, unfortunately for him, definitely did not turn out that way. The people of the village needed something to blame and channel their bitterness and loss onto, and he was the perfect candidate. The adults of the village, without known exceptions, knew him and treated him as nothing more than the demon fox that has attacked the village; As a result he grew up alone and isolated. It is implied in the manga that he went through very difficult emotional times and often shed many tears, but kept reprimanding himself for doing so and telling himself nothing would be achieved by crying. Eventually he developed into the loudmouth, hyperactive prankster he was at the start of the manga, though as the Third Hokage (Sandaime) observed (and even Naruto himself, in a moment of rare enlightenment, once admitted this), it is only an act to cover up for his deep insecurity in a desperate plight for recognition.
By chance or fate, Umino Iruka, who had felt much of the same desperation as Naruto in his younger years, was Naruto's teacher, and he was the first person to recognize Naruto as a human being and ninja, and not just as a stupid screwup or the Nine-Tails. Naruto, at one point, says that when he is with Iruka, he often wonders whether that is what being with a father is like.
Personality and characteristics
Naruto is very determined and has very strong values that he never once fails to act by, even in hopeless situations. His dream is to become Hokage, as it is the epitome of his ambitions to have the village acknowledge him and live for the sake of protecting his important people.
Naruto has a knack for inspiring people to realise their potentials and resolve to work harder or change their ways for the better; his determination and resolve often earn him sympathy from other characters. One early example of this is Konohamaru, the grandson of the third Hokage, who was inspired by Naruto to stop trying to find shortcuts to becoming Hokage, as there are no shortcuts and the only way is paved with plenty of hard work. Another is Inari, whom Naruto helped by making him see that anyone can make a difference and by confronting him about his refusal to come to terms with his painful past (as Naruto's past was similarly tragic). Both of them have gotten very attached to Naruto and have taken to calling him Onii-chan (big brother).
Though he is naturally impetuous, hyperactive and tends to rush into combat without thinking, Naruto is capable of devising some quite clever plans by creative usage of his jutsu. He has more than once upstaged what looked like a superior opponent by exploiting the element of surprise an unconventional usage of a technique entails; Kakashi even dubs him the "number one ninja in surprising people". Another main driving force behind his otherwise average Taijutsu and Ninjutsu abilities is the huge power and chakra reserves of the Kyūbi. Kyūbi is by no stretch of the imagination a particularly pleasant character, but nevertheless does everything in his power to help Naruto - lending chakra as requested, healing Naruto with his extreme healing ability and so forth - if only for the fact that Naruto's death would apparently mean the Kyūbi's death as well.
There are downsides to the huge chakra load that is Kyūbi; like most of the biggest weapons, it can't be lifted, let alone wielded, with ease. Naruto is a relatively small container that cannot quite handle the whole of Kyūbi's chakra, which might account for Naruto's inability to control and focus chakra consistently for jutsu during his days at the academy. Even later, when Naruto learns to better control his chakra, any technique relying on Kyūbi's chakra to work properly runs a chance of failing, as it takes great conviction or control on Naruto's part to draw Kyūbi's chakra effectively. However, Naruto's Chakra and Kyūbi's chakra are slowly fusing and are expected to eventually become one, which is bound to drastically change this status-quo.
Ninja academy
Up to his academy graduation, Naruto has precious little of the acknowledgement and empathy he seeks. His sensei, Umino Iruka, and to a lesser extent the Third Hokage, are the only positive influence on him in that respect (though Hyūga Hinata thinks very highly of him as well she never actually gathers the courage to address him). He neglects his academy studies so much that he repeatedly fails to graduate (though the Bunshin no Jutsu, the one he is worst at, being the final test every year doesn't help much). That is until he is manipulated to steal the scroll of seals (a scroll belonging to the village containing forbidden techniques) by Mizuki. During the short conflict between Mizuki and Iruka, Naruto acquires his signature technique, Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, by learning it from the scroll. When he demonstrates usage of this technique, Iruka passes him and congratulates him on graduating.
While labeled as dumb at the academy, Naruto shows surprising talent in unexpected areas and often comes up with inventive solutions and strategies. Later in the series, Naruto manages to learn the Rasengan, a technique that took the fourth Hokage three years to develop, in just a month (he takes a couple of days for the first step, three weeks for the second, and one week for the third). An example of Naruto's inventiveness is shown here -- he lacks the chakra control required to execute the technique using only one hand, but he settles for an inferior delivery method which is slower and requires another hand (either by occupying his other one or using a kage bunshin). While not on par with the original, Naruto's version is still very effective.
Later in the manga, Naruto is seen to be able to use Rasengan with only one hand (though this might be a misinterpretation due to the graphic limitations of manga). Early in the Naruto II arc while out to rescue Gaara, Naruto uses a new version of Rasengan called Odama Rasengan- essentially two combined Rasengan spheres from him and a clone requiring only one hand of each, again suggesting that he is now capable of executing Rasengan as originally intended.
Team 7
In order to become a genin, in addition to graduating from the Ninja Academy, one must first undergo an evaluation with a Jōnin; if one passes, they will be assigned to that Jonin for training. Naruto, Haruno Sakura (his crush) and Uchiha Sasuke (her crush) are assigned to Team 7 under the leadership of Hatake Kakashi. The evaluation test is simple. There are three members and two bells: the two who manage to put their hands on a bell win and are awarded with food, and the one who is left out remains hungry. Kakashi easily defends himself from all three, and after a while calls a break and points out their flaws in teamwork; he lets Sakura and Sasuke eat so they can all try again later, but forbids them to feed Naruto, who is also tied to a log for good measure. Sakura and Sasuke decide to go against Kakashi's words and feed Naruto anyway, figuring that if the problem is their teamwork this would be a good way to start working on it; Team 7 thus becomes the first group that Kakashi ever passed to be Genin, as this is exactly the message he was trying to get across - caring for your friends is more important than "the rules".
Though Genin are only supposed to go on D-Rank missions, Naruto insists on doing something more exciting and the Sandaime Hokage agrees to send them on a C-Rank mission to escort a client. During their mission, the team is attacked by two enemy Chūnin- something that is definitely not supposed to happen on C-Rank missions- and Naruto panics and freezes; Sasuke however deals with the attackers quite efficiently. Sasuke rubs his one-upping Naruto in by calling him a "Scaredy-cat"; this name-calling, which Naruto would imitate many times later in the series, is a defining moment in the Naruto-Sasuke rivalry. Team 7 also undergoes chakra training in this arc of the manga, another point of rivalry between the two ninja, as they constantly challenge themselves to try to outdo each other, but instead end up helping and motivating each other to succeed.
Naruto's "hidden power" is also revealed in this arc. In a particularly ferocious battle in which he believes Sasuke has been killed, Naruto loses control and is consumed by Kyūbi's chakra. Its power is so immense that the chakra is visible, all of Naruto's wounds heal near-instantaneously, and Naruto's appearance changes. He completely overwhelms his enemy with this power and speed. Although the power of the Kyūbi is introduced at this point, the full extent of it is not shown yet. Naruto has not communicated with the Demon Fox inside of him; he only subconsciously calls upon this power.
After his graduation, Naruto gradually becomes more acknowledged and appreciated, as more and more people come in contact with the real Naruto behind the "demon" and "idiot prankster" stigmas. From his previous state of isolation he develops friendships with all sorts of people; his relationship with Sasuke grows into a mix of friendship and rivalry, eventually escalating into very strong friendship and a rivalry of epic proportions, while Haruno Sakura's role slowly develops from that of Naruto's mere crush into that of his important friend.
Chuunin exam
Team 7 returns to Konoha to continue with their lives as regular Genin, accomplishing menial missions. Eventually, whilst playing with Konohamaru and his friends, Naruto meets with two of the three Genin from Sunagakure (Hidden Sand), Kankurō and Temari and shortly learns the reason for their presence; Chūnin Selection Exams are in effect. Naruto is thrilled about the possibility of becoming a Chūnin, and though he fails to, various events during the exams drastically affect his ability and enrich his social relations (much later in the manga, when Naruto reminisces on how he was alone but slowly more and more people became his friends, we see a growing line which first contains Iruka, Kakashi, Sasuke and Sakura, and later expands to include people he met on the Chūnin exam).
During the exam, Naruto finds himself for the first time in a truly desperate situation, up against Orochimaru - an S-ranked criminal so powerful that the third Hokage later mentions that there is nobody in the hidden Leaf Village that can fight him equally (even he himself, he admits, cannot). Naruto and Sasuke's reactions to the situation are a complete reversal of what happened in their previous mission - Sasuke is paralyzed with panic while Naruto fights on fearlessly, at one point stopping Orochimaru's huge summoned snake in its tracks on his own, and muttering to Sasuke, in a a moment of glorious comeuppance that marks another milestone in their rivalry, "are you all right... scaredy-cat?". Naruto eventually snaps Sasuke out of his panic, and when Naruto is knocked out Sasuke continues to fight Orochimaru.
Naruto vastly improves in ability during the three stages of the Chuunin exam; beside winning his first true fight (against Kiba) by having shadow replications perform a combo attack, he improves his chakra control by practicing walking on water, learns how to call upon Kyūbi's energy at will and how to use the summoning technique to call a toad to his aid (the former skill essential for the usability of the latter, as without Kyūbi's chakra his summons are generally not much more than tadpoles). He uses these skills to a powerful effect in later battles, and at the climax of the arc triumphs against Gaara, an opponent Sasuke could not face equally, thus reversing their roles and inducing in Sasuke deep feelings of inferiority - though Sasuke still attempts to maintain the same attitude in front of Naruto, in an attempt to cling to his former superiority. At an early point Naruto tells Sasuke that he wants to fight him during the exam; Sasuke acknowledges Naruto in his own way later on when he tells him that he wants to fight him as well.
In the month between the third stage preliminary matches and the third stage main matches, Naruto meets Jiraiya - one of Konoha's legendary three - for the first time. Jiraiya agrees to be his sensei and is the one who teaches him most of the advanced techniques he learns during that time. He also undergoes a brief training period under Ebisu, who earlier saw him as nothing more than the container of the demon fox but after spending some time with him decides that he is indeed a true ninja of the leaf.
Naruto's defining trait of being extremely spirited and never giving up is further emphasised in this arc. During the written test part, when given a choice between taking a question or not taking a question - when not taking it would mean failing the exam, and taking it but not answering correctly would mean failing and staying a genin forever - he not only chooses to take the question but proclaims his resolve to will himself to be Hokage even if he stays a genin forever loudly, inspiring many people in the room to do the same (in a twist, it later turns out that the whole point of the "question" was to see who was fit and who wasn't fit for being a chūnin, an occupation in which one does not have a choice of whether to undertake missions which risk everything or not, and Naruto has answered correctly by merely deciding to confront it). He also faces up with determination to Hyūga Neji and Gaara - Two opponents that, he frankly admits to himself often at various points during the arc, terrify him.
Naruto's encounters during the Chūnin exam arc are characterized by Naruto relating to or opposing to sentiments and outlooks on life, and it is through this relation that he makes many new friends (and on three different occasions, by defeating an enemy). He gradually bonds with Rock Lee, a Taijutsu expert, who represents the ideal of hard work prevailing against all odds and stands up against the much more powerful Gaara during the third stage preliminary exams even while unconscious. Naruto deeply identifies with Lee and feels very sorry for him when Gaara beats him (since he does such a thorough job as to, according to the doctors' first impressions, permanently cripple Lee.)
Another contrast that deeply affects Naruto is the clash between Hyūga Hinata, the forsaken heir of the Hyūga clan head house, and Hyūga Neji, her cousin, who is much stronger but will never be the heir because he is a part of the branch house. Naruto watches the start of the fight with little knowledge of either fighters (apart from that Hinata is a nice person, as she offered to let him copy off of her paper in the written test stage and offered him medicine immediately after his fight with Inuzuka Kiba); however about a minute later, after Hinata mumbles quietly that she just wanted to change herself and Neji lectures her about the supreme rule of destiny and how people cannot change, Naruto is already shouting into the stadium for Hinata to stand up for herself. She loses the fight, much like Lee loses his own fight with Gaara - still standing at a point where she should technically be dead; when she finally goes down, Naruto is so overwhelmed with sympathy for her predicament and antagonism for Neji's attitude that he closes his punch around her overflowing blood and flings it at Neji, promising to her that he will beat the Hyūga prodigy himself.
Naruto's fight with Neji a month later is a very dramatic one. As techniques are used and advantages are gained and nullified, Neji lectures Naruto much like he did earlier with Hinata, telling him that dropouts remain dropouts and cannot change. Naruto suffers somewhat of an emotional impact when Neji gives him a speech about the Hokages being people who were destined to become ones, and how one cannot become one just because they want to; Ultimately, however, he would have none of it and keeps confronting Neji about his attitude, until Neji tells him of the tragedy of his father's death and the Hyūga fate of hatred. Naruto eventually wins the battle through sheer motivation and believing in victory, and in the process changes Neji's outlook on life one-hundred and eighty degrees, inspiring him to create his own fate and forming another important bond ("Stop talking about fate and how it can't be changed," says Naruto sardonically, "you're not like me. You're not a dropout.")
The climax of the arc is Naruto's battle with Gaara. Gaara represents the opposite reaction to Naruto's very predicament than the one Naruto had; Naruto looked for acknowledgement and attention to form his identity, while Gaara built more and more walls around himself, eventually concluding that his purpose in life was to kill everybody that was not him. At first Naruto is clearly outpowered, but later in the fight he gains more ground by using clever tactics and employing the techniques Jiraiya taught him. Most of all what enables him to triumph is his devotion to his important people, which turns out to be a source of much greater strength of Gaara's hatred, contrary to Naruto's first impression that Gaara's state of mind makes him somebody he could not possibly face.
After the battle ends, Gaara wonders whether he'd be able to love again, and appears later in the series as a positive character and another important friend Naruto has made during this arc.
Sasuke arc
Naruto's influence on Sasuke, though profound, is powerless to prevent Sasuke from deciding to become a Nukenin (Missing-nin) and leaving the leaf to receive training from Orochimaru. Sasuke's decision to leave is the result of a chain of events that rekindles his hatred and desire to avenge his clan so much that it overshadows all other influences in his life. This experience is traumatic to Naruto, as he has promised Sakura to bring Sasuke back and this is the first time he is unable to live up to something he promised to an important person. Unlike Jiraiya, however, who from his own experience with Orochimaru believes that Sasuke is too far gone and that Naruto should forget about him and concentrate on his own survival, Naruto believes that there is hope for Sasuke yet. He tells Sakura that he will, one day, bring Sasuke back to the village and live up to his promise.
Naruto II arc
After this failed attempt to retrieve Sasuke, Naruto learns that circumstances have granted him a 3-year window to prepare himself for when the time comes to face Orochimaru (who has switched bodies prematurely and now has to wait 3 years before executing his original plan of transferring into Sasuke) and defend himself against additional kidnap attempts from the shady organisation Akatsuki (who, according to Jiraiya's information sources and for reasons unknown, halt their plans to attempt capturing Naruto for three years). Naruto takes this opportunity for intensive training under Jiraiya, as does Sakura under Tsunade. As Jiraiya was the Fourth's sensei, this places Naruto in a very good position to actually fulfill his dream to become Hokage or at least a ninja of great renown, as most legendary ninjas and hokages are closely tied to one another through student-teacher relations (though she does not tell him this, Tsunade is already certain he will grow up to become Hokage).
When Naruto returns to the village two and a half years later he finds out, much to his chagrin, that he is the only one of his former-Genin social circle (known as the "Rookie 9") who is still a Genin. During his absence, the rest have become Chūnin (and Hyūga Neji even made Jōnin).
In this new arc of the story, dubbed Naruto II, we see the growth of all of the characters, including Naruto. Naruto shows physical growth, sports a new outfit, and appears to not only have increased in strength and techniques, but intelligence as well (the pervertedness of his Sensei also seems to have slightly rubbed off on him). He has little time, however, to wander the village and greet all his old friends, as the Hokage sends him, Sakura and Kakashi on yet another rescue mission, this time to retrieve the helpless Gaara (who, to Naruto's utter awe, has become the fifth Kazekage during his absence) from the hands of Akatsuki, who plan to extract the sealed demon from him for purposes yet unknown. Jiraiya's information sources indicate that Akatsuki has been growing impatient with their lack of success capturing Naruto, and thus this clash with Akatsuki seems to have been inevitable.
Naruto, along with Sakura, Kakashi, Team Gai, and Chiyo, go on a mission to rescue the recently-captured Gaara from the Akatsuki. They are first confronted by Itachi and Kisame, who turn out to be body substitutes by means of Shoten no Jutsu (Shapeshifting Technique), and defeat them. Upon arrival at the grotto where Gaara is being held, the group figures out that a barrier jutsu seals off the entrance. To facilitate entry, Team Gai goes to remove four seals scattered in the area; doing so creates clones of them which copy their every movement. Meanwhile, Naruto and Kakashi decide to confront Deidara while Chiyo and Sakura face Sasori. Both pairs defeat the Akatsuki members, and Gai and company defeat their clones, with help from Neji.
Upon retrieving Gaara from Deidara's clay bird, Naruto undergoes the second-stage Kyūbi transformation, which he used against Sasuke. Because Kakashi knew how to contain Naruto's further transformation using a special seal he received from Jiraiya, it has been implied that Jiraiya also witnessed Naruto's transformation during the last three years.
Trivia
- The surname "Uzumaki" translates to "spiral". The Konoha leaf symbol is drawn with an arrow attached to a spiral, the seal on his abdomen is a spiral, and one of his attacks is Rasengan which means "Spiralling Sphere". One wonders if the spirals surrounding Naruto are a reflection of the main character, or if Naruto's last name is a reflection of the spirals of his village. For Uzumaki may be a generic last name representing the village given to those without a family name.
- "Uzumaki" can also mean "whirlpool". The Naruto whirlpool, named after the city of Naruto, lies between said city and Awaji Island.
- Naruto can mean "maelstrom", and is also the name for a sliced stick of Kamaboko with a pink whirlpool design in the middle which is used as a topping for Ramen (Naruto's favorite food). The Japanese sometimes use it as a nickname for the commercial at (@).
- The Kitsune is a well-known character in Japanese myth, and the influence behind not only the Demon Fox a.k.a. the Kyūbi but many other reincarnations in modern Japanese culture. It likes to play tricks and pranks on people, and on occasions transforms itself into a beautiful woman and seduces a man (obviously the inspiration for Ninja Centerfold (Oiroke no Jutsu, literally Sexy Technique), which is often called "Sexy no Jutsu" by people in the North American Naruto fanbase). Foxes are also known to be especially fierce and resourceful when pushed into a corner, and can even kill a hound or other powerful animals, something which also reflects Naruto's determination. It should also be noted that every time Naruto loses control and is overwhelmed by the Kyuubi's chakra, he seemingly gains another "tail" of chakra. This stems from the Japanese myth that when kitsune reach 100 years, they gain an additional tail, as well as increased powers and intelligence; their powers and number of tails continue to grow every 100 years until the age of 1000 when they receive the ninth and final tail and incredible powers which in some versions even reach up to immortality. The Kyuubi's powers are limited to seep through to how much Naruto can take, though it seems that this limit is severely stretched the older Naruto gets, and will probably be broken altogether when their chakra finishes melding.
- October 10, Naruto's birthday, was "Taiiku no hi" (Health and Sports Day) in Japan when his character was conceived - a holiday full of physical activity fit for a hyperactive kid. The holiday, however, was moved to the second Monday of October during 1999.
- According to the Game Boy Advance game Naruto: Konoha Senki one of Naruto's hobbies is gardening and he is the one who gives Kakashi Mr Ukki, the plant seen on Kakashi's windowsill. According to the official databooks his hobbies are playing pranks and watering plants.
Uchiha Sasuke
Uchiha Sasuke (Sasuke Uchiha in the English anime) is a character in the manga and anime Naruto.
A Genin level Ninja, Sasuke is the natural genius offspring of the once powerful Uchiha Clan. One of the most outstanding clans in Konohagakure, the Uchiha Family was known for its Bloodline Limit ability, the Sharingan, and formed much of the Konohagakure's village police force. Sasuke along with his brother Itachi are the only two known remaining survivors of the clan.
Early Childhood
The second son of a Konohagakure police captain, Sasuke grew up in the shadow of his older brother, Itachi, who was acknowledged as a prodigy, mastering the Sharingan by the age of 8, attaining Chūnin rank at the age of 10, and becoming an ANBU captain at the age of 13. As a result, the Uchiha clan took great pride and interest in Itachi and viewed him as a genius whose work will further strengthen the bonds between the village and the clan. In particular, Sasuke's father took an active interest in Itachi's career and his entry into ANBU, largely neglecting Sasuke, the younger son, aside from cursory inquiries into Sasuke's school life. While Sasuke looked up to his brother, aspiring to become a prodigy ninja also acknowledged by the clan and his father, Itachi seemed friendly yet distant. Despite his promises to Sasuke to spend quality time, his work seemed to cause him to break his promises.
After an incident between Itachi and other Uchiha clan members, relations between Itachi and Sasuke's father deteriorate. Itachi's behavior becomes increasingly bizarre, estranging him further from other members of the Uchiha clan. During this time, Sasuke's father, on a whim, decides to spend time with Sasuke, teaching him Katon: Gōkakyu no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique). Sasuke eventually succeeds in performing the jutsu in front of his father, surprising him. At that moment, Sasuke finally receives his father's recognition and the right to wear the clan's emblem on his back, a sign of adulthood. He also receives a stern warning not to follow in Itachi's footsteps.
One day, on the way home from shuriken practice, Sasuke is horrified to find his entire clan massacred by Itachi, who wanted to test his "capacity". Confronting Itachi in their home, his broken, sobbing self is further subjected to intense psychological torture by Mangekyo Sharingan. Itachi tells him to use his hatred of him to grow stronger: "If you wish to kill me, hate me, detest me, and survive in an unsightly way. Run, run and cling to life. And one day, when you have the same eyes as me, come before me."
At the Ninja Academy
Driven to match Itachi and later to kill him, Sasuke excelled in every field of study at the Ninja academy, becoming the #1 Academy ninja and the #1 Rookie Genin of that year. Handsome, extremely talented and from a pedigree background, Sasuke is the most popular student in his class, especially among the girls. However, he is admired from afar and he seems not to have had any personal relationships or any close friends in his Academy years, nor was he interested in these relationships to begin with. Even his relationship with Naruto at that stage is merely that of plain dislike, with nothing more than seeds of slight rivalry, intrigue and identification.
His ambitions
The two things he is interested as explained in his introduction to his Genin team are the resurrection of his clan and the killing of "a certain man", his brother, Itachi, in a hardly unjustified plight for vengeance. These ambitions under the shadow of his trauma and the endless admiration showered upon him had largely forged his character: arrogant, even-minded, apathetic to human inquiry and fixated on revenge at all costs. It is not until his prolonged exposure to Naruto's comradeship that this disposition changes.
Sasuke and Naruto
Naruto and Sasuke are forced to cooperate against their will when they were both put in Team 7 together with Haruno Sakura, who has a huge crush on Sasuke. Naruto initially has a one-sided rivalry with Sasuke, because Naruto aspires to be what Sasuke appears to be, but Naruto was unable to obtain during his time at the Ninja Academy; Unlike Naruto, Sasuke has received recognition for his talent, popularity and admiration while Naruto received ridicule for his apparent lack of ninja talent, and was shunned or scorned otherwise. Sasuke initially looks upon Naruto and his admirer, Sakura, with an equal smug distaste, viewing them as annoyances who would only get in the way. His loner attitude is one of the negative factors responsible for Team 7's initial state of borderline non-existent teamwork, which Kakashi notes and berates him for; however, their relationship slowly shifts from an incompatible mix of frustration and dislike into a mutually positive rivalry. While Sasuke appears to always be one step ahead to Naruto, Sasuke sees Naruto as constantly gaining ground each moment, which results in a state where they push and motivate each other to improve.
Sasuke makes it a point to taunt Naruto on occasion, goading and egging on Naruto with his air of superiority. However, a bond between the two and Sakura forms and Sasuke gradually learns the value of teamwork. As he does, he eventually begins to learn to trust and pushes his thoughts of revenge into the recesses of his mind.
This does not please Orochimaru, who is interested in Sasuke as his potential next body, or more specifically the Sharingan Sasuke has. He decides that it is imperative to somehow counter Naruto's influence on Sasuke and "dye him his own color". To advance this cause he puts his curse seal on Sasuke during the second stage of the Chūnin exam; Sasuke turns out to be strong enough to survive the nine out of ten chance of immediate death and regains consciousness, but the influence of the curse seal is far from over. Just by releasing Chakra the curse becomes active and forcibly pulls out more Chakra, corroding his body and his free will. At this point the small mark on the neck grows to wrap around Sasuke's whole body, like a strange black rash.
Sasuke's willpower is surprisingly strong enough to hold back this curse and after Hatake Kakashi, the ninja who is assigned to train him, performs his Evil Sealing Method on him, it becomes even easier for him to control it and use his Chakra normally. However, a series of events unfolds that change his attitude towards Orochimaru - and everybody else, for that matter. His brother arrives in Konoha, searching for Naruto - and when Sasuke challenges him, he gets such a horrid beating that his already manifesting inferiority complex seizes his whole mind and he sets his mind on only one thing, finding more power. For this cause he decides to take the curse seal into the next level instead of attempting to contain it, and turn his back on village without permission to train with Orochimaru, betraying Team 7 in the process. A genin team consisting of Naruto, Inuzuka Kiba, Hyūga Neji and Akimichi Chōji and led by Nara Shikamaru is sent to retrieve Sasuke, but encounter opposition from Orochimaru's "Sound Four".
Naruto manages to reach Sasuke on his own. It is then revealed that in his famous speech after slaughtering the Uchiha clan, Itachi did not only tell Sasuke to "run, run and cling desperately to life", but also that he will only be able to match him in battle when he has the same eyes as him, the Mangekyō Sharingan - which can only be attained by killing one's best friend. This was not revealed the first time Sasuke is forced to recall this scene, which suggests that he refused to remember until this moment in time. He realizes that without a family, he can only exist in rivalry with another, and through that, although he hates Naruto with a passion, he is also his best friend.
Naruto refuses to accept Sasuke's decision, as by his own admission Sasuke is like a brother to him and he can't bear to lose him to the twisted path of self-destruction he has chosen. They therefore engage in battle, and Sasuke soon realizes that the Sharingan he has is not enough to follow Naruto's movements. Forcing premature development of his Sharingan by force of will, Sasuke is able to analyze the tension in Naruto's body in order to predict what Naruto's next move will be. However, that is not enough to win conclusively, so Sasuke resorts to activating Orochimaru's cursed seal.
When Naruto witnesses Sasuke's body deform as a result of the activation of the cursed seal, he realizes that Sasuke has seriously turned his back on not only Team 7 but Konohagakure and, by proxy, Hi no Kuni, solely so he can achieve the ambition of killing his brother Itachi. His disbelief is what allows Sasuke to knock Naruto unconscious.
Witnessing Naruto's body, Sasuke recalls Itachi's words. He is ready to kill Naruto in order to gain the Mangekyō Sharingan, but then realizes that if he does, he and Itachi would be in essence the same person. He desires to kill Itachi in his own way, and not simply use Itachi's own techniques against him. So he chooses to leave Naruto alive, and heads towards the Village of Sound where he is greeted by Orochimaru.
Trivia
- Sasuke is named after the legendary ninja Sarutobi Sasuke.
- "Uchiha" is another way of pronouncing "uchiwa", or a paper fan, which is actually the Uchiha clan logo. In ancient Japan, uchiwa were used in court ceremonies, as souvenirs, and to protect soldiers from arrows.
A Genin level Ninja, Sasuke is the natural genius offspring of the once powerful Uchiha Clan. One of the most outstanding clans in Konohagakure, the Uchiha Family was known for its Bloodline Limit ability, the Sharingan, and formed much of the Konohagakure's village police force. Sasuke along with his brother Itachi are the only two known remaining survivors of the clan.
Early Childhood
The second son of a Konohagakure police captain, Sasuke grew up in the shadow of his older brother, Itachi, who was acknowledged as a prodigy, mastering the Sharingan by the age of 8, attaining Chūnin rank at the age of 10, and becoming an ANBU captain at the age of 13. As a result, the Uchiha clan took great pride and interest in Itachi and viewed him as a genius whose work will further strengthen the bonds between the village and the clan. In particular, Sasuke's father took an active interest in Itachi's career and his entry into ANBU, largely neglecting Sasuke, the younger son, aside from cursory inquiries into Sasuke's school life. While Sasuke looked up to his brother, aspiring to become a prodigy ninja also acknowledged by the clan and his father, Itachi seemed friendly yet distant. Despite his promises to Sasuke to spend quality time, his work seemed to cause him to break his promises.
After an incident between Itachi and other Uchiha clan members, relations between Itachi and Sasuke's father deteriorate. Itachi's behavior becomes increasingly bizarre, estranging him further from other members of the Uchiha clan. During this time, Sasuke's father, on a whim, decides to spend time with Sasuke, teaching him Katon: Gōkakyu no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique). Sasuke eventually succeeds in performing the jutsu in front of his father, surprising him. At that moment, Sasuke finally receives his father's recognition and the right to wear the clan's emblem on his back, a sign of adulthood. He also receives a stern warning not to follow in Itachi's footsteps.
One day, on the way home from shuriken practice, Sasuke is horrified to find his entire clan massacred by Itachi, who wanted to test his "capacity". Confronting Itachi in their home, his broken, sobbing self is further subjected to intense psychological torture by Mangekyo Sharingan. Itachi tells him to use his hatred of him to grow stronger: "If you wish to kill me, hate me, detest me, and survive in an unsightly way. Run, run and cling to life. And one day, when you have the same eyes as me, come before me."
At the Ninja Academy
Driven to match Itachi and later to kill him, Sasuke excelled in every field of study at the Ninja academy, becoming the #1 Academy ninja and the #1 Rookie Genin of that year. Handsome, extremely talented and from a pedigree background, Sasuke is the most popular student in his class, especially among the girls. However, he is admired from afar and he seems not to have had any personal relationships or any close friends in his Academy years, nor was he interested in these relationships to begin with. Even his relationship with Naruto at that stage is merely that of plain dislike, with nothing more than seeds of slight rivalry, intrigue and identification.
His ambitions
The two things he is interested as explained in his introduction to his Genin team are the resurrection of his clan and the killing of "a certain man", his brother, Itachi, in a hardly unjustified plight for vengeance. These ambitions under the shadow of his trauma and the endless admiration showered upon him had largely forged his character: arrogant, even-minded, apathetic to human inquiry and fixated on revenge at all costs. It is not until his prolonged exposure to Naruto's comradeship that this disposition changes.
Sasuke and Naruto
Naruto and Sasuke are forced to cooperate against their will when they were both put in Team 7 together with Haruno Sakura, who has a huge crush on Sasuke. Naruto initially has a one-sided rivalry with Sasuke, because Naruto aspires to be what Sasuke appears to be, but Naruto was unable to obtain during his time at the Ninja Academy; Unlike Naruto, Sasuke has received recognition for his talent, popularity and admiration while Naruto received ridicule for his apparent lack of ninja talent, and was shunned or scorned otherwise. Sasuke initially looks upon Naruto and his admirer, Sakura, with an equal smug distaste, viewing them as annoyances who would only get in the way. His loner attitude is one of the negative factors responsible for Team 7's initial state of borderline non-existent teamwork, which Kakashi notes and berates him for; however, their relationship slowly shifts from an incompatible mix of frustration and dislike into a mutually positive rivalry. While Sasuke appears to always be one step ahead to Naruto, Sasuke sees Naruto as constantly gaining ground each moment, which results in a state where they push and motivate each other to improve.
Sasuke makes it a point to taunt Naruto on occasion, goading and egging on Naruto with his air of superiority. However, a bond between the two and Sakura forms and Sasuke gradually learns the value of teamwork. As he does, he eventually begins to learn to trust and pushes his thoughts of revenge into the recesses of his mind.
This does not please Orochimaru, who is interested in Sasuke as his potential next body, or more specifically the Sharingan Sasuke has. He decides that it is imperative to somehow counter Naruto's influence on Sasuke and "dye him his own color". To advance this cause he puts his curse seal on Sasuke during the second stage of the Chūnin exam; Sasuke turns out to be strong enough to survive the nine out of ten chance of immediate death and regains consciousness, but the influence of the curse seal is far from over. Just by releasing Chakra the curse becomes active and forcibly pulls out more Chakra, corroding his body and his free will. At this point the small mark on the neck grows to wrap around Sasuke's whole body, like a strange black rash.
Sasuke's willpower is surprisingly strong enough to hold back this curse and after Hatake Kakashi, the ninja who is assigned to train him, performs his Evil Sealing Method on him, it becomes even easier for him to control it and use his Chakra normally. However, a series of events unfolds that change his attitude towards Orochimaru - and everybody else, for that matter. His brother arrives in Konoha, searching for Naruto - and when Sasuke challenges him, he gets such a horrid beating that his already manifesting inferiority complex seizes his whole mind and he sets his mind on only one thing, finding more power. For this cause he decides to take the curse seal into the next level instead of attempting to contain it, and turn his back on village without permission to train with Orochimaru, betraying Team 7 in the process. A genin team consisting of Naruto, Inuzuka Kiba, Hyūga Neji and Akimichi Chōji and led by Nara Shikamaru is sent to retrieve Sasuke, but encounter opposition from Orochimaru's "Sound Four".
Naruto manages to reach Sasuke on his own. It is then revealed that in his famous speech after slaughtering the Uchiha clan, Itachi did not only tell Sasuke to "run, run and cling desperately to life", but also that he will only be able to match him in battle when he has the same eyes as him, the Mangekyō Sharingan - which can only be attained by killing one's best friend. This was not revealed the first time Sasuke is forced to recall this scene, which suggests that he refused to remember until this moment in time. He realizes that without a family, he can only exist in rivalry with another, and through that, although he hates Naruto with a passion, he is also his best friend.
Naruto refuses to accept Sasuke's decision, as by his own admission Sasuke is like a brother to him and he can't bear to lose him to the twisted path of self-destruction he has chosen. They therefore engage in battle, and Sasuke soon realizes that the Sharingan he has is not enough to follow Naruto's movements. Forcing premature development of his Sharingan by force of will, Sasuke is able to analyze the tension in Naruto's body in order to predict what Naruto's next move will be. However, that is not enough to win conclusively, so Sasuke resorts to activating Orochimaru's cursed seal.
When Naruto witnesses Sasuke's body deform as a result of the activation of the cursed seal, he realizes that Sasuke has seriously turned his back on not only Team 7 but Konohagakure and, by proxy, Hi no Kuni, solely so he can achieve the ambition of killing his brother Itachi. His disbelief is what allows Sasuke to knock Naruto unconscious.
Witnessing Naruto's body, Sasuke recalls Itachi's words. He is ready to kill Naruto in order to gain the Mangekyō Sharingan, but then realizes that if he does, he and Itachi would be in essence the same person. He desires to kill Itachi in his own way, and not simply use Itachi's own techniques against him. So he chooses to leave Naruto alive, and heads towards the Village of Sound where he is greeted by Orochimaru.
Trivia
- Sasuke is named after the legendary ninja Sarutobi Sasuke.
- "Uchiha" is another way of pronouncing "uchiwa", or a paper fan, which is actually the Uchiha clan logo. In ancient Japan, uchiwa were used in court ceremonies, as souvenirs, and to protect soldiers from arrows.
Haruno Sakura
Haruno Sakura (Sakura Haruno in the English anime) is a character in the manga and anime Naruto. In the beginning of the manga, she is a Genin student of Hatake Kakashi's, but she later becomes a Chuunin under Tsunade's guidance.
Sakura has a crush on Uchiha Sasuke. This appears to be her main characteristic up until advanced stages of the series. She's often self-conscious about the size of her forehead and got teased by being called "forehead girl" at school (Yamanaka Ino, Sakura's childhood friend and now rival for Sasuke's affections, continues this honourable tradition). During the Chūnin exam, Sakura realizes that in her infatuation with Sasuke, she has neglected her duties as a team member - this coincides with her chopping off most of her hair (which she grew long because she thinks Sasuke likes long hair), which an attacking Otogakure shinobi, Kin Tsuchi, used to hold her by, thus symbolically freeing herself from her previous restraining tunnel vision. She still has a way to go before she fully deals with and reconciles her infatuation, however. Sakura starts out extremely disliking Uzumaki Naruto (who has a crush on her much like her own crush on Sasuke), but slowly starts respecting him over the course of their being a team.
In her early school years, Sakura was timid and was occasionally made fun of and bullied. That was until the popular Ino approached her and became her friend. Sakura looked up to Ino's looks and ability a lot; while she appreciated Ino's friendship, she couldn't help the feelings of inferiority she induced in her, as if Ino was a fully-bloomed flower and Sakura only a bud. Their friendship continued until it became clear that both of them liked Sasuke, and Sakura felt that she could never equal Ino, let alone surpass her at anything, while she was trapping herself as Ino's mere sidekick in her mind. She handed Ino her ribbon back and proclaimed that they were rivals from that point on.
And bitter rivals they were, until the second stage of the Chūnin exam, where Ino witnessed Sakura cut her own hair - even though it was "known" (or rather believed by the girls) that Sasuke liked girls with long hair - to set herself free from her captor. It was the moment that both of them were simultaneously stricken with the fact that there are more important things than teenage romance. Later, when they tied on their battle in the third stage preliminaries, Ino told Sakura that she finally had blossomed, and- each acknowledging the other as her equal- they became friends again, although they snap into (mild) rivalry mode again whenever Sasuke is mentioned.
Sakura's main strengths are her intelligence and her great chakra control. She was able to climb trees using her chakra while it took days of constant training for Sasuke and Naruto to manage it. However, Sakura's weakness lies in her lack of stamina and overall talent. She has only used a few skills over the course of the series, the most advanced of which is Kai (Or Cancel, for dispelling Genjutsu). On the other hand, Kakashi does note at one point in the story, that Sakura has a talent for Genjutsu.
In the first stage of the Chūnin exam, she knew the answers to a test designed specifically to be so difficult for Genin to accomplish that they would have to cheat.
Inside Sakura resides the "Inner Sakura", which ridiculously seems to be much more mean-tempered than Naruto's Kyubi. "Inner Sakura" seems to represent an assertive part of her personality and serves mostly comedy purposes as Sakura's typical gentle responses are juxtaposed with the inner Sakura's constant Shannaro, which doesn't mean anything but is usually translated as "Hell yeah", "Hell no" or "Damn it" depending on the situation. Sakura's having 'two minds' actually came in handy when Ino hit her with the Shintenshin no Jutsu ("Art of the Valentine" or literally "Body Mind Switch Technique"), Inner Sakura combating Ino's spirit where in the case of a regular person there would be no resistance. The same occurs in the manga after one of Naruto's inspirational comments causes Sakura's inner self to awaken and subsequently defeat the Art of the Valentine.
Currently, she is training under the Godaime Hokage Tsunade, as a ninja medic. This means that each of Team Seven (Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke) are now training with each of the legendary Sannin (Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru). This causes some to speculate that the three young ninjas will become the successors to the old Sannin.
Sakura, being trained by Tsunade, has learnt the Fifth Hokage's well-known "monstrous strength". After three months of training Sakura's progress makes Tsunade think that Sakura has the greatest talent in Medical ninjutsu she's seen since Shizune. Sakura's talent in medical ninjutsu and genjutsu and her amazing strength and progress in taijutsu and ninjutsu makes Kakashi think she might even surpass Tsunade. She is currently a Chūnin.
In the Naruto II arc, Sakura's skill and personality are shown to have changed drastically. She has developed an antidote for Sasori's poison which she used to save Kankurō's life, and which proved vital during the battle with Sasori.
Trivia
- The name "Haruno" means "spring field". A spring field can be cultivated and orderly or it can be wild, like how Sakura's personality is. "Sakura" means "cherry blossom", which represents loyalty, love, and samurai, in addition to being the national flower of Japan.
- Sakura Haruno shares the same name as Wandaba Style's bratty nursery rhyme singer.
Sakura has a crush on Uchiha Sasuke. This appears to be her main characteristic up until advanced stages of the series. She's often self-conscious about the size of her forehead and got teased by being called "forehead girl" at school (Yamanaka Ino, Sakura's childhood friend and now rival for Sasuke's affections, continues this honourable tradition). During the Chūnin exam, Sakura realizes that in her infatuation with Sasuke, she has neglected her duties as a team member - this coincides with her chopping off most of her hair (which she grew long because she thinks Sasuke likes long hair), which an attacking Otogakure shinobi, Kin Tsuchi, used to hold her by, thus symbolically freeing herself from her previous restraining tunnel vision. She still has a way to go before she fully deals with and reconciles her infatuation, however. Sakura starts out extremely disliking Uzumaki Naruto (who has a crush on her much like her own crush on Sasuke), but slowly starts respecting him over the course of their being a team.
In her early school years, Sakura was timid and was occasionally made fun of and bullied. That was until the popular Ino approached her and became her friend. Sakura looked up to Ino's looks and ability a lot; while she appreciated Ino's friendship, she couldn't help the feelings of inferiority she induced in her, as if Ino was a fully-bloomed flower and Sakura only a bud. Their friendship continued until it became clear that both of them liked Sasuke, and Sakura felt that she could never equal Ino, let alone surpass her at anything, while she was trapping herself as Ino's mere sidekick in her mind. She handed Ino her ribbon back and proclaimed that they were rivals from that point on.
And bitter rivals they were, until the second stage of the Chūnin exam, where Ino witnessed Sakura cut her own hair - even though it was "known" (or rather believed by the girls) that Sasuke liked girls with long hair - to set herself free from her captor. It was the moment that both of them were simultaneously stricken with the fact that there are more important things than teenage romance. Later, when they tied on their battle in the third stage preliminaries, Ino told Sakura that she finally had blossomed, and- each acknowledging the other as her equal- they became friends again, although they snap into (mild) rivalry mode again whenever Sasuke is mentioned.
Sakura's main strengths are her intelligence and her great chakra control. She was able to climb trees using her chakra while it took days of constant training for Sasuke and Naruto to manage it. However, Sakura's weakness lies in her lack of stamina and overall talent. She has only used a few skills over the course of the series, the most advanced of which is Kai (Or Cancel, for dispelling Genjutsu). On the other hand, Kakashi does note at one point in the story, that Sakura has a talent for Genjutsu.
In the first stage of the Chūnin exam, she knew the answers to a test designed specifically to be so difficult for Genin to accomplish that they would have to cheat.
Inside Sakura resides the "Inner Sakura", which ridiculously seems to be much more mean-tempered than Naruto's Kyubi. "Inner Sakura" seems to represent an assertive part of her personality and serves mostly comedy purposes as Sakura's typical gentle responses are juxtaposed with the inner Sakura's constant Shannaro, which doesn't mean anything but is usually translated as "Hell yeah", "Hell no" or "Damn it" depending on the situation. Sakura's having 'two minds' actually came in handy when Ino hit her with the Shintenshin no Jutsu ("Art of the Valentine" or literally "Body Mind Switch Technique"), Inner Sakura combating Ino's spirit where in the case of a regular person there would be no resistance. The same occurs in the manga after one of Naruto's inspirational comments causes Sakura's inner self to awaken and subsequently defeat the Art of the Valentine.
Currently, she is training under the Godaime Hokage Tsunade, as a ninja medic. This means that each of Team Seven (Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke) are now training with each of the legendary Sannin (Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru). This causes some to speculate that the three young ninjas will become the successors to the old Sannin.
Sakura, being trained by Tsunade, has learnt the Fifth Hokage's well-known "monstrous strength". After three months of training Sakura's progress makes Tsunade think that Sakura has the greatest talent in Medical ninjutsu she's seen since Shizune. Sakura's talent in medical ninjutsu and genjutsu and her amazing strength and progress in taijutsu and ninjutsu makes Kakashi think she might even surpass Tsunade. She is currently a Chūnin.
In the Naruto II arc, Sakura's skill and personality are shown to have changed drastically. She has developed an antidote for Sasori's poison which she used to save Kankurō's life, and which proved vital during the battle with Sasori.
Trivia
- The name "Haruno" means "spring field". A spring field can be cultivated and orderly or it can be wild, like how Sakura's personality is. "Sakura" means "cherry blossom", which represents loyalty, love, and samurai, in addition to being the national flower of Japan.
- Sakura Haruno shares the same name as Wandaba Style's bratty nursery rhyme singer.
Hatake Kakashi
Hatake Kakashi (Kakashi Hatake in the English anime) is a character in the anime and manga Naruto. The surname "Hatake" means "farmland" and "Kakashi" means "a scarecrow".
Copy Ninja Kakashi
Kakashi is the Konohagakure Jounin assigned in the beginning of the manga and anime to train and look after Team 7, including Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke, and Haruno Sakura. He is also known as Copy Ninja Kakashi (Kopī Ninja no Kakashi) or Kakashi of the Sharingan (Sharingan no Kakashi).
These aliases refer to the fact he copied more than a thousand jutsu (ninja techniques) using his left eye, which possesses the Sharingan, an advanced bloodline trait found only in some members of the nearly defunct Uchiha clan. The three comma-like marks aligned in a wheel in the pupil of his left Sharingan-activated eye indicate that it is fully developed for a normal Sharingan, with only one more level -- Mangekyō Sharingan. However, he is not a real Uchiha, and in fact receives the Sharingan eye from a dying Uchiha Obito, his teammate, during his first mission as a Jōnin. During that mission, Kakashi injured his left eye in a battle trying to protect Obito, leaving behind the scar (which has nothing to do with the transplant operation). The scar comes from a slash that destroyed his original eye. Recently, in chapter 277 of the manga, it was revealed that Kakashi evolved his Sharingan to the Mangekyou...with a twist. His Mangekyou Sharingan can distort time and space...the full extent of its abilities have not been revealed yet.
His history
Chronically tardy, Kakashi initially appears to be flaky and unreliable. He is, however, an exceptionally skillful ninja, a child prodigy who attained Chuunin rank at the age of 6 and became a Jounin at age 13. His father was Hatake Sakumo, known as the "White Fang" of Konoha (Konoha no Shiroi Kiba) and a genius ninja on par with the Legendary Sannin (famous students of the Sandaime Hokage : Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade).
Kakashi Gaiden (sidestory), which began with chapter 239, entitled Gaiden 1: Mission Start...!, introduces the other two members of Kakashi's Genin team, shown in a team portrait in the conclusion of the Chuunin exam arc of the manga. The sensei or teacher in charge of Kakashi's team was the Fourth Hokage, while his teammates were Rin, a girl trained as a medic ninja, and Uchiha Obito, Kakashi's teammate who wears goggles in the team portrait from flashbacks at the conclusion of the Chuunin Exam arc. The gaiden begins on the eve of Kakashi's promotion to Jounin and team leader and the beginning of a mission to the battlefront in the middle of a conflict between Iwagakure (Hidden Rock) and the Konohagakure (Hidden Leaf).
Obito, mentioned by Kakashi several times earlier in the series, is revealed to be a member of the Uchiha clan. But, unlike other noteworthy Uchiha including Sasuke and Itachi, Obito initially appears to be like Naruto in behavior, personality and ninja ability, while Kakashi is the acknowledged genius and leader of the group. Obito initially appears without the Sharingan ability. He manages to awaken the Sharingan in battle in chapter 242.
The gaiden also explains the origin of the scar on Kakashi's left eye. In the earlier arcs, it was believed that Kakashi's left eye scar came from the surgical implantation of the Sharingan eye. However, in chapter 242 of the Naruto manga, entitled Gaiden Chapter 4: Crybaby Ninja, the scar on Kakashi's left eye appears now to have come from a battle with a Rock ninja. Kakashi detects a Rock ninja, and yells his warning at his teammate, Uchiha Obito, who is too slow to react. Kakashi jumps in front of Obito to save him from the enemy's kunai and thus Kakashi's left eye is slashed to form the scar that Kakashi still has today, blinding him in the left side.
In chapter 243, named Present, the mission to rescue Rin from the Rock ninja continues. When Obito throws Kakashi out of the way of a falling rock, caused by a Iwa ninja's Doton: Iwayado Kuzushi (Earth Release: Rock Lodging Destruction), his entire right side is crushed from that falling rock. Mortally wounded, he offers Kakashi his Sharingan-capable, intact left eye as a belated promotion present and final gift to Kakashi. Rin successfully transplants Obito's left eye, replacing Kakashi's useless left eye. Obito's Sharingan eye only has two tomoe, suggesting that Kakashi succeeds in fully evolving the eye to its third stage at a latter time.
Following the war, Kakashi earned renowned fame for his use of the Sharingan and developed a reputation for failing every potential Genin team that took the Survival Training Exam he proctored. Like the Sandaime Hokage, and probably Jiraiya and the Fourth Hokage, Kakashi uses the infamous "Bell Test" to test his potential students. Ostensibly a training exercise with Kakashi, the three Academy graduates each have to take a bell from Kakashi, however there are only two bells. The ultimate goal of the Bell Test is to test the potential Genin's teamwork and self sacrifice. This test is what Kakashi uses as the real Genin graduation exam, weeding out potential Genin selected by their passing of the Ninja Academy's graduation exam with a failure rate of more than 66%. While his exam is generally considered to be more exacting and stringent than those of other Jōnin, the Third Hokage believes that his decisions to fail previous teams ultimately proved to be correct and wise. Team 7 became the first Genin team to pass Kakashi's exam.
Kakashi and Team 7
The initial results of the Survival Training Exam for Team 7 were unpromising. Naruto's impulsiveness, Sakura's tunnel vision focus on Sasuke and Sasuke's arrogant superiority and lone-wolf attitude resulted in a lack of teamwork, which led them to fail the Survival Training Exam. Given a second chance, an uncharacteristic display of teamwork impressed Kakashi enough to pass the team, the first Genin team he had ever passed.
The team improved their skills under Kakashi's training, which included the tree-walking exercise seen in the anime and manga. This exercise, which involves the use of chakra to walk up trees with feet alone, greatly improved the chakra control abilities of the team as they prepared for a final battle in the Nami no Kuni (Land of Waves) against Momochi Zabuza and his student, Haku.
Kakashi's controversial decision to permit Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura to take the Chūnin exam surprised many, who believed that Kakashi should have given the team another year to prepare. Yet, through this decision, the team begins to truly realize their potential to be ninja. By the end of the second stage, the three exhibit signs of extensive growth from their extreme ordeals.
Kakashi, during the tree-walking exercise, is the first one to recognize Naruto's potential to surpass Sasuke and Kakashi in Chakra capacity. Initially considered to be weak and untalented, Naruto's growth as a ninja early in the series is attributed to Kakashi's training and influence. Naruto, in his fight against Inuzuka Kiba, quotes Kakashi's earlier admonition to him: "Use your techniques carefully, after giving some thought to what you're doing! Or it'll be used to the other person's advantage, stupid!"
Through the Survival Training Exam, Kakashi recognizes Sakura's faculty with Genjutsu.
However, despite the training that Kakashi has given to Naruto and Sakura, the one he has spent the most time in training with is Sasuke. After the second stage of the Chūnin exam until Sasuke's defection to Orochimaru, Kakashi takes an active role in training Sasuke, teaching him Chidori and how to use his Sharingan, as well as attempting to seal the effects of Sasuke's Cursed Seal. Kakashi, like Sasuke, has lost many important people in his life including Obito, whose grave he appears to visit frequently. Sasuke's and Obito's relation, plus Sasuke's Sharingan ability and natural talent, lead Kakashi to train Sasuke for the third portion of the Chūnin exam, much to Naruto's disappointment, believing that Kakashi is playing favorites with Sasuke. Kakashi's intention was for Sasuke to learn to use the Chidori to focus on protecting the important friends he has made in the present, rather than seeking vengeance for the loss of his family.
With Akatsuki seeking to capture Naruto, Jiraiya appropriates responsibility for Naruto and his training from Kakashi, while they agree that Sasuke should develop his Sharingan under Kakashi's guidance.
Following his recovery after a confrontation with Uchiha Itachi and his Mangekyō Sharingan, Kakashi awakes to find that much has changed. Sasuke's frustration at his inability to kill Itachi and his growing envy of Naruto's recent growth and success leads him to demand a fight against Naruto in order to prove his superiority. The fight quickly gets out of hand and Kakashi is forced to intervene to protect Sakura from accidental harm.
Despite Kakashi's admonishment about Chidori and his need to end his quest for revenge, Sasuke's frustration and his need for revenge against Itachi lead him to leave the village and seek Orochimaru and his offer of power. Knowing that Naruto and Sasuke have the potential to kill each other, Kakashi attempts to intervene but arrives too late, finding Naruto seriously injured and Sasuke gone, having succeeded in his defection to Orochimaru.
With Kakashi now called on by the village to take more A and S level missions due to the current manpower shortage, Sasuke's defection to Orochimaru, Naruto's three year apprenticeship to Jiraiya, and Sakura's medical apprenticeship to Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage, it seems that Team 7 is currently defunct.
Yet, after two and a half years, Naruto and Jiraiya return to the village earlier than expected because of the impatience of Akatsuki at capturing Naruto for his Kyūbi no Yōko (Nine-Tails Fox Demon). Kakashi forms a team with Naruto and Sakura again. However, the relationship between the three is no longer master and students, but equal teammates.
Kakashi decides to test Naruto and Sakura's skills with another bell exercise, identical to the one they underwent with Sasuke when they first met Kakashi. The exercise reveals that Naruto and Sakura's skills and abilities had improved over the years. However, Naruto and Sakura manage to finally retrieve the two bells by preying upon Kakashi's addiction to the "Icha Icha" ("Make-out") series of books written by Jiraiya, by trying to spoil the ending of the latest volume, Make-out Tactics, which Naruto gave Kakashi, but hasn't finished yet.
His jutsu
In terms of the three main classifications of jutsu: Genjutsu, Ninjutsu, and Taijutsu, Kakashi appears to be balanced in his abilities, as demonstrated in the survival exam. Kakashi is a former member of Anbu (Black Ops in the English version).
His Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning Technique) involves a blood contract with a pack of Ninken (Ninja Dogs) used for searching and tracking, among other purposes, as seen in his battle with Momochi Zabuza. He has a special Kuchiyose called Kuchiyose: Doton: Tsuiga no Jutsu (Summoning: Earth Release: Tracking Fang Technique)
His signature, and only original, jutsu is the Raikiri (Lightning Blade). Another name for it is Chidori (meaning, "A Thousand Birds"), due to the fact that the sound emitted from the chakra is similar to that of the chirping of a thousand birds. Doing the jutsu, he concentrates chakra into his right hand until it becomes visible. At high speed, this jutsu can cut through anything; thus, it serves as an effective assassination technique. Charging at an opponent, the chakra in his hand grows stronger from body activation, while the sound emitted by the chakra begins to resemble the chirping of a thousand birds. Because the jutsu involves a high speed, linear stab, the Sharingan is needed for the technique to be effective and to avoid enemy countermeasures. Developing Chidori before acquiring his Sharingan eye, he is nearly impaled by an enemy countermeasure, and is injured. As a result, the Fourth Hokage forbids Kakashi to use Chidori again. Kakashi resumes his use of Chidori after receiving the Sharingan eye. Kakashi is believed to have been able to use this jutsu to cut through a lightning bolt, which is why his nickname for the jutsu is Raikiri. There is a distinct difference between Raikiri and Chidori. While Chidori is A-rank (an ultra high level jutsu), Raikiri is S-rank (extreme level jutsu). This is due to Kakashi cutting a lightning bolt with it. Uchiha Sasuke, the only other person able to do this jutsu, is still only at A-rank level, thus he still calls it Chidori.
Another famous "jutsu" of his, is the Konohagakure Hiden: Taijutsu no Ōgi: Sennen Goroshi (Hidden Leaf Secret: Taijutsu Supreme Technique: A Thousand Years of Death) (kancho), a verbose title for an extremely sharp, simple poke to the rectal region of an opponent with the index and middle fingers of both hands, launching him into midair with humiliating pain. This is first demonstrated by Kakashi on Naruto during the Survival Training Exam. Naruto "inherits" this jutsu and uses it in modified form later in the series.
In addition to the three main types of techniques, Kakashi had been developing faculty with seals. This is seen in Kakashi's ability to restrain the effects of Orochimaru's Cursed Seal on Sasuke with the Fūja Hōin (Evil Sealing Method). Because of Kakashi's current skill level with seals, the seal's power to restrain the Cursed Seal depended on Sasuke's willpower and determination to forsake it and control his emotions. Otherwise, the seal is rendered ineffective.
In serious confrontations, however, Kakashi uncovers and uses his Sharingan eye. With the Sharingan, he is able to use its various abilities, which extend beyond its notorious copy ability, as demonstrated in his fight against Zabuza early in the series. Although not a member of the Uchiha clan, we see in chapter 142, entitled Kakashi vs. Itachi, that Kakashi's ability to use the Sharingan is nearly as skillful as Uchiha Itachi, who mastered the normal capabilities of the Sharingan at a very early age. Since Kakashi is not a Uchiha clan member, he should not be able to develop the Mangekyō Sharingan and thus cannot counter it. However, after the time skip, Kakashi is able to use the Mangekyo Sharingan, though his looks different from Itachi's. Also, Kakashi receives more adverse effects from prolonged use of the Sharingan as it drains more chakra energy from him then from an Uchiha. Additionally, he cannot activate or deactivate it at will. The result is Kakashi normally appearing with his forehead protector covering the left eye, to avoid activating the Sharingan in order to conserve chakra.
In Part II, Kakashi reveals he has developed a kind of Mangekyo Sharingan, although it looks different from Itachi's Mangekyō Sharingan. With it, he can manipulate space-time, even to a focus, and utilize it to conduct long range attack. In the jutsu's premiere, he managed to destroy Deidara's right arm. Later on, when Deidara's Bunshin attempted to blow himself up and take everyone around with him, he used the Mangekyo Sharingan to banish him out of existence.
His emphasis
Kakashi is also a stickler for teamwork, as seen in his design of the survival exam for Team 7. Based on Kakashi Gaiden, Kakashi appears to have been a stickler to ninja rules and regulations, because of his father's suicide over guilt of breaking village rules to save his teammates, which lead to the failure of a vital mission. He seems to have mellowed out a bit, however; apparently with some help from the 4th Hokage and Obito.
The letter, disagreeing to Kakashi's previous inflexible attitude towards rules and regulations, says to Kakashi:
Ninja no sekai de rūru ya okite o yaburu yatsu wa kuzu yobawari sareru...
Kedona... nakama o taisetsu ni shinai yatsu wa sore ijō no kuzu da
"In the world of the ninja those who violate the rules and laws are called trash
However... those who don't take care of their comrades are worse than trash" (Original Japanese version)
or
"In the world of ninja, those who don't follow the rules are scum, that's true. But, those who abandon their friends are worse than scum." (Adapted US anime version)
Kakashi, who has taken these words to heart in the following years, repeats these words to Team 7 after they pass the survival training, becoming the only Genin team to pass survival training with Kakashi as their proctor.
His life
Kakashi has an ongoing rivalry with Maito Gai; Kakashi's current record stands at 49 wins, 50 losses. It is later revealed that these battles are diverse in nature, including sprints and Rock, Paper, Scissors. Gai serves as a perfect antithesis for Kakashi in personality, appearance and in technique. Unlike Kakashi, Gai has had to work hard to achieve success as a ninja and mainly uses taijutsu, which is the natural counter to the Sharingan.
Another ninja has proven to be a match for Hatake Kakashi: Yakushi Kabuto, Orochimaru's spy, lieutenant and medical ninja, who manages to elude Kakashi in several confrontations. Initially posing as an undistinguished Konoha genin, he proves to be a Jōnin level ninja with skills and abilities on par with Kakashi. His encounter with Uchiha Itachi demonstrated that while Kakashi has one Sharingan eye, he may not be able to match the eyes of a natural Sharingan user. While he could resist the Mangekyō Sharingan, it was the Tsukuyomi technique that ended up not only defeating Kakashi, but rendering him unable to fight for a very long time.
Kakashi's personal life appears to be as much of a mystery as the face behind the mask he has worn for most of his ninja career. He has no living family, or at least none he cares to acknowledge (telling Sasuke in chapter 177 that everyone he loves is already dead), though he is immediately recognizable as the son of (or mistaken for) the 'White Fang' of Konoha, Hatake Sakumo. Whether the mask he wears is because of this resemblence or for some other reason is unknown. However, despite Naruto's theories to the contrary, the special chapter "At the Ichiraku Ramen" implies that he is in fact quite handsome.
Though he reportedly has many hobbies, the one pastime most seen in the series is his reading of Icha Icha Paradise (Icha Icha Paradaisu, "Make-out Paradise"), the adult, probably pornographic novel authored by Jiraiya that is a runaway best seller in the Naruto mythology. He reads this book when testing Naruto , Sasuke and Sakura. In the first Naruto movie the new daimyo of the Snow country, Fujikaze Yukie, tells team Kakashi that she can be both the Snow Country's monarch and an actress. The fact that she's holding Icha Icha paradise while saying this probably means she'll be playing in an Icha Icha Paradise movie. Later on in the series, Kakashi is reading the second volume of the Icha Icha series, "Icha Icha Violence" ( Icha Icha Baiorensu, "Make-out Violence"). In episode 101, Kakashi sees an advertisement for a movie under that same title. The picture shows a woman kicking a man. With the beginning of Part 2 of the Naruto manga, Kakashi receives the third installment of the Icha Icha series, "Icha Icha Tactics" ( Icha Icha Takutikusu, "Make-out Tactics"), which has yet to be released in the Naruto world. He has also been reading Icha Icha Violence. Otherwise, Kakashi visits Konoha's memorial site, where the dead heroic ninja are remembered. In particular, he visits for Obito's sake.
One past manga arc, Kakashi Gaiden, is a side-story, which focuses on Kakashi's past, his relationship with Obito and answers many of the mysteries of Kakashi's life, most notably the origins of his trademark Sharingan eye and Raikiri attack.
Trivia
- According to official handbook his favorite foods are Broiled saury (a fish) with salt, miso soup with eggplant. His least, Tempura.
- Favourite phrase: "Teamwork"
- Though his name is written in kana in the manga, the family name 'Hatake' can be written in kanji either as 'farmland' or 'leaf warrior'
Copy Ninja Kakashi
Kakashi is the Konohagakure Jounin assigned in the beginning of the manga and anime to train and look after Team 7, including Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke, and Haruno Sakura. He is also known as Copy Ninja Kakashi (Kopī Ninja no Kakashi) or Kakashi of the Sharingan (Sharingan no Kakashi).
These aliases refer to the fact he copied more than a thousand jutsu (ninja techniques) using his left eye, which possesses the Sharingan, an advanced bloodline trait found only in some members of the nearly defunct Uchiha clan. The three comma-like marks aligned in a wheel in the pupil of his left Sharingan-activated eye indicate that it is fully developed for a normal Sharingan, with only one more level -- Mangekyō Sharingan. However, he is not a real Uchiha, and in fact receives the Sharingan eye from a dying Uchiha Obito, his teammate, during his first mission as a Jōnin. During that mission, Kakashi injured his left eye in a battle trying to protect Obito, leaving behind the scar (which has nothing to do with the transplant operation). The scar comes from a slash that destroyed his original eye. Recently, in chapter 277 of the manga, it was revealed that Kakashi evolved his Sharingan to the Mangekyou...with a twist. His Mangekyou Sharingan can distort time and space...the full extent of its abilities have not been revealed yet.
His history
Chronically tardy, Kakashi initially appears to be flaky and unreliable. He is, however, an exceptionally skillful ninja, a child prodigy who attained Chuunin rank at the age of 6 and became a Jounin at age 13. His father was Hatake Sakumo, known as the "White Fang" of Konoha (Konoha no Shiroi Kiba) and a genius ninja on par with the Legendary Sannin (famous students of the Sandaime Hokage : Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade).
Kakashi Gaiden (sidestory), which began with chapter 239, entitled Gaiden 1: Mission Start...!, introduces the other two members of Kakashi's Genin team, shown in a team portrait in the conclusion of the Chuunin exam arc of the manga. The sensei or teacher in charge of Kakashi's team was the Fourth Hokage, while his teammates were Rin, a girl trained as a medic ninja, and Uchiha Obito, Kakashi's teammate who wears goggles in the team portrait from flashbacks at the conclusion of the Chuunin Exam arc. The gaiden begins on the eve of Kakashi's promotion to Jounin and team leader and the beginning of a mission to the battlefront in the middle of a conflict between Iwagakure (Hidden Rock) and the Konohagakure (Hidden Leaf).
Obito, mentioned by Kakashi several times earlier in the series, is revealed to be a member of the Uchiha clan. But, unlike other noteworthy Uchiha including Sasuke and Itachi, Obito initially appears to be like Naruto in behavior, personality and ninja ability, while Kakashi is the acknowledged genius and leader of the group. Obito initially appears without the Sharingan ability. He manages to awaken the Sharingan in battle in chapter 242.
The gaiden also explains the origin of the scar on Kakashi's left eye. In the earlier arcs, it was believed that Kakashi's left eye scar came from the surgical implantation of the Sharingan eye. However, in chapter 242 of the Naruto manga, entitled Gaiden Chapter 4: Crybaby Ninja, the scar on Kakashi's left eye appears now to have come from a battle with a Rock ninja. Kakashi detects a Rock ninja, and yells his warning at his teammate, Uchiha Obito, who is too slow to react. Kakashi jumps in front of Obito to save him from the enemy's kunai and thus Kakashi's left eye is slashed to form the scar that Kakashi still has today, blinding him in the left side.
In chapter 243, named Present, the mission to rescue Rin from the Rock ninja continues. When Obito throws Kakashi out of the way of a falling rock, caused by a Iwa ninja's Doton: Iwayado Kuzushi (Earth Release: Rock Lodging Destruction), his entire right side is crushed from that falling rock. Mortally wounded, he offers Kakashi his Sharingan-capable, intact left eye as a belated promotion present and final gift to Kakashi. Rin successfully transplants Obito's left eye, replacing Kakashi's useless left eye. Obito's Sharingan eye only has two tomoe, suggesting that Kakashi succeeds in fully evolving the eye to its third stage at a latter time.
Following the war, Kakashi earned renowned fame for his use of the Sharingan and developed a reputation for failing every potential Genin team that took the Survival Training Exam he proctored. Like the Sandaime Hokage, and probably Jiraiya and the Fourth Hokage, Kakashi uses the infamous "Bell Test" to test his potential students. Ostensibly a training exercise with Kakashi, the three Academy graduates each have to take a bell from Kakashi, however there are only two bells. The ultimate goal of the Bell Test is to test the potential Genin's teamwork and self sacrifice. This test is what Kakashi uses as the real Genin graduation exam, weeding out potential Genin selected by their passing of the Ninja Academy's graduation exam with a failure rate of more than 66%. While his exam is generally considered to be more exacting and stringent than those of other Jōnin, the Third Hokage believes that his decisions to fail previous teams ultimately proved to be correct and wise. Team 7 became the first Genin team to pass Kakashi's exam.
Kakashi and Team 7
The initial results of the Survival Training Exam for Team 7 were unpromising. Naruto's impulsiveness, Sakura's tunnel vision focus on Sasuke and Sasuke's arrogant superiority and lone-wolf attitude resulted in a lack of teamwork, which led them to fail the Survival Training Exam. Given a second chance, an uncharacteristic display of teamwork impressed Kakashi enough to pass the team, the first Genin team he had ever passed.
The team improved their skills under Kakashi's training, which included the tree-walking exercise seen in the anime and manga. This exercise, which involves the use of chakra to walk up trees with feet alone, greatly improved the chakra control abilities of the team as they prepared for a final battle in the Nami no Kuni (Land of Waves) against Momochi Zabuza and his student, Haku.
Kakashi's controversial decision to permit Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura to take the Chūnin exam surprised many, who believed that Kakashi should have given the team another year to prepare. Yet, through this decision, the team begins to truly realize their potential to be ninja. By the end of the second stage, the three exhibit signs of extensive growth from their extreme ordeals.
Kakashi, during the tree-walking exercise, is the first one to recognize Naruto's potential to surpass Sasuke and Kakashi in Chakra capacity. Initially considered to be weak and untalented, Naruto's growth as a ninja early in the series is attributed to Kakashi's training and influence. Naruto, in his fight against Inuzuka Kiba, quotes Kakashi's earlier admonition to him: "Use your techniques carefully, after giving some thought to what you're doing! Or it'll be used to the other person's advantage, stupid!"
Through the Survival Training Exam, Kakashi recognizes Sakura's faculty with Genjutsu.
However, despite the training that Kakashi has given to Naruto and Sakura, the one he has spent the most time in training with is Sasuke. After the second stage of the Chūnin exam until Sasuke's defection to Orochimaru, Kakashi takes an active role in training Sasuke, teaching him Chidori and how to use his Sharingan, as well as attempting to seal the effects of Sasuke's Cursed Seal. Kakashi, like Sasuke, has lost many important people in his life including Obito, whose grave he appears to visit frequently. Sasuke's and Obito's relation, plus Sasuke's Sharingan ability and natural talent, lead Kakashi to train Sasuke for the third portion of the Chūnin exam, much to Naruto's disappointment, believing that Kakashi is playing favorites with Sasuke. Kakashi's intention was for Sasuke to learn to use the Chidori to focus on protecting the important friends he has made in the present, rather than seeking vengeance for the loss of his family.
With Akatsuki seeking to capture Naruto, Jiraiya appropriates responsibility for Naruto and his training from Kakashi, while they agree that Sasuke should develop his Sharingan under Kakashi's guidance.
Following his recovery after a confrontation with Uchiha Itachi and his Mangekyō Sharingan, Kakashi awakes to find that much has changed. Sasuke's frustration at his inability to kill Itachi and his growing envy of Naruto's recent growth and success leads him to demand a fight against Naruto in order to prove his superiority. The fight quickly gets out of hand and Kakashi is forced to intervene to protect Sakura from accidental harm.
Despite Kakashi's admonishment about Chidori and his need to end his quest for revenge, Sasuke's frustration and his need for revenge against Itachi lead him to leave the village and seek Orochimaru and his offer of power. Knowing that Naruto and Sasuke have the potential to kill each other, Kakashi attempts to intervene but arrives too late, finding Naruto seriously injured and Sasuke gone, having succeeded in his defection to Orochimaru.
With Kakashi now called on by the village to take more A and S level missions due to the current manpower shortage, Sasuke's defection to Orochimaru, Naruto's three year apprenticeship to Jiraiya, and Sakura's medical apprenticeship to Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage, it seems that Team 7 is currently defunct.
Yet, after two and a half years, Naruto and Jiraiya return to the village earlier than expected because of the impatience of Akatsuki at capturing Naruto for his Kyūbi no Yōko (Nine-Tails Fox Demon). Kakashi forms a team with Naruto and Sakura again. However, the relationship between the three is no longer master and students, but equal teammates.
Kakashi decides to test Naruto and Sakura's skills with another bell exercise, identical to the one they underwent with Sasuke when they first met Kakashi. The exercise reveals that Naruto and Sakura's skills and abilities had improved over the years. However, Naruto and Sakura manage to finally retrieve the two bells by preying upon Kakashi's addiction to the "Icha Icha" ("Make-out") series of books written by Jiraiya, by trying to spoil the ending of the latest volume, Make-out Tactics, which Naruto gave Kakashi, but hasn't finished yet.
His jutsu
In terms of the three main classifications of jutsu: Genjutsu, Ninjutsu, and Taijutsu, Kakashi appears to be balanced in his abilities, as demonstrated in the survival exam. Kakashi is a former member of Anbu (Black Ops in the English version).
His Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning Technique) involves a blood contract with a pack of Ninken (Ninja Dogs) used for searching and tracking, among other purposes, as seen in his battle with Momochi Zabuza. He has a special Kuchiyose called Kuchiyose: Doton: Tsuiga no Jutsu (Summoning: Earth Release: Tracking Fang Technique)
His signature, and only original, jutsu is the Raikiri (Lightning Blade). Another name for it is Chidori (meaning, "A Thousand Birds"), due to the fact that the sound emitted from the chakra is similar to that of the chirping of a thousand birds. Doing the jutsu, he concentrates chakra into his right hand until it becomes visible. At high speed, this jutsu can cut through anything; thus, it serves as an effective assassination technique. Charging at an opponent, the chakra in his hand grows stronger from body activation, while the sound emitted by the chakra begins to resemble the chirping of a thousand birds. Because the jutsu involves a high speed, linear stab, the Sharingan is needed for the technique to be effective and to avoid enemy countermeasures. Developing Chidori before acquiring his Sharingan eye, he is nearly impaled by an enemy countermeasure, and is injured. As a result, the Fourth Hokage forbids Kakashi to use Chidori again. Kakashi resumes his use of Chidori after receiving the Sharingan eye. Kakashi is believed to have been able to use this jutsu to cut through a lightning bolt, which is why his nickname for the jutsu is Raikiri. There is a distinct difference between Raikiri and Chidori. While Chidori is A-rank (an ultra high level jutsu), Raikiri is S-rank (extreme level jutsu). This is due to Kakashi cutting a lightning bolt with it. Uchiha Sasuke, the only other person able to do this jutsu, is still only at A-rank level, thus he still calls it Chidori.
Another famous "jutsu" of his, is the Konohagakure Hiden: Taijutsu no Ōgi: Sennen Goroshi (Hidden Leaf Secret: Taijutsu Supreme Technique: A Thousand Years of Death) (kancho), a verbose title for an extremely sharp, simple poke to the rectal region of an opponent with the index and middle fingers of both hands, launching him into midair with humiliating pain. This is first demonstrated by Kakashi on Naruto during the Survival Training Exam. Naruto "inherits" this jutsu and uses it in modified form later in the series.
In addition to the three main types of techniques, Kakashi had been developing faculty with seals. This is seen in Kakashi's ability to restrain the effects of Orochimaru's Cursed Seal on Sasuke with the Fūja Hōin (Evil Sealing Method). Because of Kakashi's current skill level with seals, the seal's power to restrain the Cursed Seal depended on Sasuke's willpower and determination to forsake it and control his emotions. Otherwise, the seal is rendered ineffective.
In serious confrontations, however, Kakashi uncovers and uses his Sharingan eye. With the Sharingan, he is able to use its various abilities, which extend beyond its notorious copy ability, as demonstrated in his fight against Zabuza early in the series. Although not a member of the Uchiha clan, we see in chapter 142, entitled Kakashi vs. Itachi, that Kakashi's ability to use the Sharingan is nearly as skillful as Uchiha Itachi, who mastered the normal capabilities of the Sharingan at a very early age. Since Kakashi is not a Uchiha clan member, he should not be able to develop the Mangekyō Sharingan and thus cannot counter it. However, after the time skip, Kakashi is able to use the Mangekyo Sharingan, though his looks different from Itachi's. Also, Kakashi receives more adverse effects from prolonged use of the Sharingan as it drains more chakra energy from him then from an Uchiha. Additionally, he cannot activate or deactivate it at will. The result is Kakashi normally appearing with his forehead protector covering the left eye, to avoid activating the Sharingan in order to conserve chakra.
In Part II, Kakashi reveals he has developed a kind of Mangekyo Sharingan, although it looks different from Itachi's Mangekyō Sharingan. With it, he can manipulate space-time, even to a focus, and utilize it to conduct long range attack. In the jutsu's premiere, he managed to destroy Deidara's right arm. Later on, when Deidara's Bunshin attempted to blow himself up and take everyone around with him, he used the Mangekyo Sharingan to banish him out of existence.
His emphasis
Kakashi is also a stickler for teamwork, as seen in his design of the survival exam for Team 7. Based on Kakashi Gaiden, Kakashi appears to have been a stickler to ninja rules and regulations, because of his father's suicide over guilt of breaking village rules to save his teammates, which lead to the failure of a vital mission. He seems to have mellowed out a bit, however; apparently with some help from the 4th Hokage and Obito.
The letter, disagreeing to Kakashi's previous inflexible attitude towards rules and regulations, says to Kakashi:
Ninja no sekai de rūru ya okite o yaburu yatsu wa kuzu yobawari sareru...
Kedona... nakama o taisetsu ni shinai yatsu wa sore ijō no kuzu da
"In the world of the ninja those who violate the rules and laws are called trash
However... those who don't take care of their comrades are worse than trash" (Original Japanese version)
or
"In the world of ninja, those who don't follow the rules are scum, that's true. But, those who abandon their friends are worse than scum." (Adapted US anime version)
Kakashi, who has taken these words to heart in the following years, repeats these words to Team 7 after they pass the survival training, becoming the only Genin team to pass survival training with Kakashi as their proctor.
His life
Kakashi has an ongoing rivalry with Maito Gai; Kakashi's current record stands at 49 wins, 50 losses. It is later revealed that these battles are diverse in nature, including sprints and Rock, Paper, Scissors. Gai serves as a perfect antithesis for Kakashi in personality, appearance and in technique. Unlike Kakashi, Gai has had to work hard to achieve success as a ninja and mainly uses taijutsu, which is the natural counter to the Sharingan.
Another ninja has proven to be a match for Hatake Kakashi: Yakushi Kabuto, Orochimaru's spy, lieutenant and medical ninja, who manages to elude Kakashi in several confrontations. Initially posing as an undistinguished Konoha genin, he proves to be a Jōnin level ninja with skills and abilities on par with Kakashi. His encounter with Uchiha Itachi demonstrated that while Kakashi has one Sharingan eye, he may not be able to match the eyes of a natural Sharingan user. While he could resist the Mangekyō Sharingan, it was the Tsukuyomi technique that ended up not only defeating Kakashi, but rendering him unable to fight for a very long time.
Kakashi's personal life appears to be as much of a mystery as the face behind the mask he has worn for most of his ninja career. He has no living family, or at least none he cares to acknowledge (telling Sasuke in chapter 177 that everyone he loves is already dead), though he is immediately recognizable as the son of (or mistaken for) the 'White Fang' of Konoha, Hatake Sakumo. Whether the mask he wears is because of this resemblence or for some other reason is unknown. However, despite Naruto's theories to the contrary, the special chapter "At the Ichiraku Ramen" implies that he is in fact quite handsome.
Though he reportedly has many hobbies, the one pastime most seen in the series is his reading of Icha Icha Paradise (Icha Icha Paradaisu, "Make-out Paradise"), the adult, probably pornographic novel authored by Jiraiya that is a runaway best seller in the Naruto mythology. He reads this book when testing Naruto , Sasuke and Sakura. In the first Naruto movie the new daimyo of the Snow country, Fujikaze Yukie, tells team Kakashi that she can be both the Snow Country's monarch and an actress. The fact that she's holding Icha Icha paradise while saying this probably means she'll be playing in an Icha Icha Paradise movie. Later on in the series, Kakashi is reading the second volume of the Icha Icha series, "Icha Icha Violence" ( Icha Icha Baiorensu, "Make-out Violence"). In episode 101, Kakashi sees an advertisement for a movie under that same title. The picture shows a woman kicking a man. With the beginning of Part 2 of the Naruto manga, Kakashi receives the third installment of the Icha Icha series, "Icha Icha Tactics" ( Icha Icha Takutikusu, "Make-out Tactics"), which has yet to be released in the Naruto world. He has also been reading Icha Icha Violence. Otherwise, Kakashi visits Konoha's memorial site, where the dead heroic ninja are remembered. In particular, he visits for Obito's sake.
One past manga arc, Kakashi Gaiden, is a side-story, which focuses on Kakashi's past, his relationship with Obito and answers many of the mysteries of Kakashi's life, most notably the origins of his trademark Sharingan eye and Raikiri attack.
Trivia
- According to official handbook his favorite foods are Broiled saury (a fish) with salt, miso soup with eggplant. His least, Tempura.
- Favourite phrase: "Teamwork"
- Though his name is written in kana in the manga, the family name 'Hatake' can be written in kanji either as 'farmland' or 'leaf warrior'
Team 8
Inuzuka Kiba and Akamaru
Kiba Inuzuka (犬塚 キバ, Inuzuka Kiba?) is a member of Team 8 characterized by a number of dog-like traits, such as being very protective of his teammates and enjoying any food he can chew on. Most apparent of his connection to dogs is the constant presence of his ninja dog (忍犬, ninken), Akamaru. Kiba is fiercely loyal to Akamaru, unwilling to abandon him and putting himself in harm's way for Akamaru's sake. In exchange for Kiba's devotion, Akamaru fights with him in battle; he uses his heightened senses to Kiba's advantage, and helps to double-team opponents with volleys of physical attacks. Since Akamaru is naturally better equipped for combat, Kiba usually modifies his own abilities at the start of a battle, growing claws and traveling on all four limbs to increase his speed. He can also drastically increase his sense of smell, and by the second half of the series he can use it to track things dogs cannot. Kiba's seiyū in the Japanese anime is Kōsuke Toriumi, and his English voice actor is Kyle Hebert.
Akamaru (赤丸) is Kiba Inuzuka's ninja dog (忍犬, ninken), best friend, and constant companion. At the start of the series, Kiba carries Akamaru around on his head or inside his jacket. By Part II of the Naruto storyline, Akamaru grows large enough for Kiba to ride atop his back, but since Kiba spends so much time with Akamaru, he fails to notice this drastic difference.With his heightened sense of smell, hearing, and the ability to detect others' chakra levels, Akamaru acts as a valuable tool for Kiba in hostile situations. To help Kiba keep track of opponents, Akamaru can urinate on them, giving them a strong odor that can easily be tracked. In battle, however, he relies on Kiba to provide the chakra for the combination attacks they execute, which requires Akamaru to transform into a clone of Kiba. In the original Japanese anime, Akamaru is voiced by Junko Takeuchi, who is also the seiyū for Naruto Uzumaki, and Kōsuke Toriumi, who voices Kiba, when Akamaru transforms into a clone of Kiba. In the English adaptation of the anime, he is voiced by Jamie Simone, but when Akamaru transforms, he is voiced by Kyle Hebert, who additionally acts as Kiba's voice actor.
Akamaru (赤丸) is Kiba Inuzuka's ninja dog (忍犬, ninken), best friend, and constant companion. At the start of the series, Kiba carries Akamaru around on his head or inside his jacket. By Part II of the Naruto storyline, Akamaru grows large enough for Kiba to ride atop his back, but since Kiba spends so much time with Akamaru, he fails to notice this drastic difference.With his heightened sense of smell, hearing, and the ability to detect others' chakra levels, Akamaru acts as a valuable tool for Kiba in hostile situations. To help Kiba keep track of opponents, Akamaru can urinate on them, giving them a strong odor that can easily be tracked. In battle, however, he relies on Kiba to provide the chakra for the combination attacks they execute, which requires Akamaru to transform into a clone of Kiba. In the original Japanese anime, Akamaru is voiced by Junko Takeuchi, who is also the seiyū for Naruto Uzumaki, and Kōsuke Toriumi, who voices Kiba, when Akamaru transforms into a clone of Kiba. In the English adaptation of the anime, he is voiced by Jamie Simone, but when Akamaru transforms, he is voiced by Kyle Hebert, who additionally acts as Kiba's voice actor.
Aburame Shino
Shino Aburame (油女 シノ, Aburame Shino?) is one of the members of Team 8 and is fascinated with insects; he spends his free time capturing and studying insects and often uses them as analogies during conversation. A deep connection with insects runs in Shino's family, as each person born in to the Aburame clan is infused with a special breed of insects known as "destruction bugs" (寄壊蟲, kikaichū) during birth. In exchange for using Shino as a hive and feeding on his chakra, the bugs do as he commands. During a battle, Shino directs his bugs towards an opponent, boxing them in without their knowledge and absorbing their chakra once they have been surrounded. Shino's merciless tendencies, in regards to opponents as well as his attachment to insects, have caused other characters to label him as "creepy". Nevertheless, Shino cares deeply for his teammates, being acutely aware of their inner workings and always regretting when he is unable to help them.In the Japanese anime, his seiyū is Shinji Kawada. His first voice actor in the English anime was Sam Riegel, who voiced Shino in episodes 23 and 24, but in all following appearances, he has been voiced by Derek Stephen Prince
Hyuga Hinata
Hinata Hyuga (日向 ヒナタ, Hyūga Hinata) is a member of Team 8 who suffers from a lack of self-confidence throughout the series. She is always reluctant to speak her mind or to do something that might antagonize another character, causing her difficulties whenever she is on a mission.This results in her effective expulsion from the Hyuga clan even though she is the eldest daughter of the clan's leader and thus its heiress. Hinata's inability to stand up for herself caused her father to disown her at a young age, leaving her in the care of her teacher, Kurenai Yuhi.Soon after her introduction, Hinata begins training to become stronger, both to overcome her own weaknesses and to prove her worth to her father. Her efforts begin to prove successful towards the end of Part I, as her father takes a greater interest in her training.
Though Hinata's training has in large part been to prove herself, she also trains to try and win the attention of series protagonist Naruto Uzumaki. Inspired by Naruto's confidence and determination, Hinata becomes infatuated with Naruto to the extent that she immediately blushes or faints upon seeing him. However, as the series progresses, she goes out of her way to help him.While Hinata is hesitant to openly admit her feelings for him, most characters (except for Naruto, who only considers her behavior "weird") are aware of her feelings.In the anime, Hinata's attempts to impress Naruto result in her creation of a new ability capable of instantly blocking or attacking anything in her extended field of vision. During Part II, Hinata finally admits her feelings to Naruto while protecting him from Pain. Her seiyū in the Japanese anime is Nana Mizuki, and her English voice actor is Stephanie Sheh
Though Hinata's training has in large part been to prove herself, she also trains to try and win the attention of series protagonist Naruto Uzumaki. Inspired by Naruto's confidence and determination, Hinata becomes infatuated with Naruto to the extent that she immediately blushes or faints upon seeing him. However, as the series progresses, she goes out of her way to help him.While Hinata is hesitant to openly admit her feelings for him, most characters (except for Naruto, who only considers her behavior "weird") are aware of her feelings.In the anime, Hinata's attempts to impress Naruto result in her creation of a new ability capable of instantly blocking or attacking anything in her extended field of vision. During Part II, Hinata finally admits her feelings to Naruto while protecting him from Pain. Her seiyū in the Japanese anime is Nana Mizuki, and her English voice actor is Stephanie Sheh
Yuhi Kurenai
Kurenai Yuhi (夕日 紅, Yūhi Kurenai) is the leader of Team 8. Of all her students, Kurenai is closest with Hinata, acting as a surrogate parent in the absence of Hinata's father and helping Hinata overcome her weaknesses.Whenever Kurenai appears in the series, she is usually accompanied by Asuma Sarutobi. Because of this, many other characters assume them to be a couple, though they both deny this. During Part II of the series, Kurenai is revealed to be pregnant with Asuma's child, making their relationship clear. In battle she specializes in casting illusions, and is shown to be particularly skilled with illusions involving plants. In the Japanese anime, her seiyū is Rumi Ochiai.In the English adaptation of the anime, she was voiced by Saffron Henderson in episode three, and Mary Elizabeth McGlynn in all subsequent appearances
Team 10
Nara Shikamaru
Shikamaru Nara (奈良 シカマル, Nara Shikamaru) is one of the members of Team 10. Creator Kishimoto has noted that he "likes" Shikamaru due to his easygoing nature despite being a genius, and contrasted him against Sasuke Uchiha's intelligent but abrasive personality. Shikamaru's intelligence is such that Asuma Sarutobi, Team 10's leader, has never been able to defeat Shikamaru at games such as shogi or go, and he can devise complex strategies even in the heat of battle. However, his laziness frequently prevents him from effectively utilizing his intelligence. Shikamaru is a longtime friend of Choji Akimichi, his fellow Team 10 member, as he chooses to look upon Choji as a person rather than only considering his large girth. In battle, Shikamaru can manipulate his shadow, and by extending it into another person's shadow he can force the target to mimic his movements.In the Japanese anime, Shikamaru's seiyū is Showtaro Morikubo, although Nobutoshi Canna acted as a stand-in for Morikubo in episode 141.His English voice actor is Tom Gibis
Akimichi Chouji
Choji Akimichi (秋道 チョウジ, Akimichi Chōji) is a member of Team 10 who is typified by his deep love for food to the extent that he always has a snack with him during the series. Though his habit of always eating gives him a relatively large appearance, Choji insists he is not fat, instead using explanations like being "big-boned". If someone refers to him as fat, Choji instantly becomes hostile and increases his resolve to battle.Shikamaru Nara has never found an issue with Choji's weight, instead choosing to look upon Choji's inner strength. Because of this, Choji regards him as his best friend, stating he would willingly give his life to defend Shikamaru.In battle, Choji can increase the size of his body to improve the amount of damage his strikes deal upon impact. His seiyū in the Japanese anime is Kentaro Ito, and his English voice actor is Robbie Rist
Yamanaka Ino
Ino Yamanaka (山中 いの, Yamanaka Ino) is the only female member of Team 10. She has known Sakura Haruno since they were children, befriending and helping her to develop her own identity. When they discovered that they both liked Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura ended their friendship so they could properly compete for his affection.The two eventually make amends and rekindle their friendship, but still maintain a competitive attitude towards each other. In the anime, when Sakura begins to excel in healing techniques, Ino becomes her surrogate apprentice, hoping to be more useful to her friends and teammates as an able medical ninja.In terms of combat abilities, Ino specializes in mind-altering techniques. To use these techniques, Ino transfers her consciousness to her target's mind, gaining control over their body which she can then use to attack others. In the Japanese anime, her seiyū is Ryōka Yuzuki, and her voice actor is Colleen O'Shaughnessey in the English adaptation.
Sarutobi Asuma
Asuma Sarutobi (猿飛 アスマ, Sarutobi Asuma) is the leader of Team 10 and son of Hiruzen Sarutobi. He had a falling out with his father when he was younger, and briefly left Konohagakure in protest. The two had not completely reconciled by the time of the Hiruzen's death.Asuma is usually seen smoking a cigarette, but will temporarily drop the habit when something is bothering him, such as when his father died.Among all his students, Asuma shares a particularly close relationship with Shikamaru Nara, and the two often play shogi or go together. Asuma frequently appears alongside Kurenai Yuhi, leading many characters to assume the two are a couple. Both deny this and promptly try to change the subject whenever it is brought up. During Part II of the series, however, Kurenai is revealed to be pregnant with Asuma's child, making their relationship clear.In battle, Asuma wields unique brass knuckles equipped with blades that can be infused with chakra. When infused with his wind-based chakra, Asuma can extend the blades' length and easily pierce through rock. After Asuma is killed by Hidan, a member of the criminal organization Akatsuki, these knuckles fall into Shikamaru's possession, and he uses them to defeat Hidan and avenge Asuma.Asuma's seiyū in the Japanese anime is Jūrōta Kosugi, and he is voiced by Doug Erholtz in the English adaptation.
Team Guy
Hyuga Neji
Neji Hyuga (日向 ネジ, Hyūga Neji) is a member of Team Guy and a child prodigy of the Hyuga clan. Despite his natural talent, Neji's membership in one of the clan's lower houses leaves him ineligible to learn the clan's most secret techniques.At the start of the series, Neji openly hates the main house because of this, readily attacking its members verbally or physically when given the chance. At this point in the series, Neji believes in a fatalistic philosophy: that one's destiny is inescapable and that a weak person will always be weak. After being defeated in battle by Naruto Uzumaki, a character that has proven his "destiny" wrong by getting stronger, Neji has a change of heart. He abandons the idea of a predetermined fate, and resolves to get strong enough to never lose a battle.He also tries to remedy the estranged relations between himself and the members of the main house, resulting in his training with the leader of the main house at the end of Part I.
Neji displays his title as a prodigy of the Hyuga throughout the series; when first introduced he is highly proficient with the Gentle Fist style of combat, with which he can directly attack an opponent's internal systems. Though never having been trained in the form, Neji has been able to replicate it and its most powerful attacks through simple observation.As the series progresses, Neji refines these abilities into more powerful counterparts, either to increase their potency or to fix an inherent flaw. One such example is his Byakugan, an eye technique that by default grants the owner a near-360-degree field of vision within a fifty meter radius. Neji constantly trains to overcome a small blindspot and to increase the Byakugan's range of sight. In the Japanese anime, his seiyū is Kōichi Tōchika, and when he is featured as a child, he is voiced by Keiko Nemoto.His voice in the English anime is provided by Steve Staley, and Wendee Lee provides his child voice
Neji displays his title as a prodigy of the Hyuga throughout the series; when first introduced he is highly proficient with the Gentle Fist style of combat, with which he can directly attack an opponent's internal systems. Though never having been trained in the form, Neji has been able to replicate it and its most powerful attacks through simple observation.As the series progresses, Neji refines these abilities into more powerful counterparts, either to increase their potency or to fix an inherent flaw. One such example is his Byakugan, an eye technique that by default grants the owner a near-360-degree field of vision within a fifty meter radius. Neji constantly trains to overcome a small blindspot and to increase the Byakugan's range of sight. In the Japanese anime, his seiyū is Kōichi Tōchika, and when he is featured as a child, he is voiced by Keiko Nemoto.His voice in the English anime is provided by Steve Staley, and Wendee Lee provides his child voice
Rock Lee
Rock Lee (ロック・リー, Rokku Rī) is a member of Team Guy and the favorite student of team leader Might Guy. Guy spends much of his free time training with Lee to help him accomplish his dream of becoming a respected ninja by using only taijutsu. Lee has adopted several of Guy's habits because of this, such as his wardrobe and his perseverance.Guy has taught him a number of powerful, even forbidden, techniques. Because some of these techniques, such as the ability to open the eight chakra gates, can pose a severe risk to Lee's body, he is only permitted to use them to protect something or someone dear to him. In the Japanese anime and manga, he always utilizes honorifics such as "san and "kun". In the English adaptations, he never uses contractions. In the Japanese anime, his seiyū is Yoichi Masukawa, and his voice actor is Brian Donovan in English
Tenten
Tenten (テンテン) is the only female member of Team Guy, and longs to prove that female ninja can be just as skilled as male ninja. Of all the Naruto protagonists, Tenten receives the least amount of screen time, such that her only fight in Part I of the manga is almost entirely skipped; the battle's start and her eventual defeat are the only portions shown.Despite her lack of appearances, series creator Masashi Kishimoto favors her design more than those of any of the other female characters he has created. In battle, Tenten specializes in weaponry, ranging from projectiles to close-combat weapons and even explosives by the second part of the series. During a fight she uses the hundreds of weapons kept stored in scrolls she carries with her to bombard opponents with pinpoint accuracy. Tenten uses this expertise to help Neji Hyuga train his defensive techniques, and she holds him in high regard since he can always block her attacks.Her Japanese seiyū is Yukari Tamura, and her English voice actor is Danielle Judovits
Might Guy
Might Guy (マイト・ガイ, Maito Gai) is the leader of Team Guy, and dedicates most of his time to only one of his students, Rock Lee. Because of Guy's dedication to him, Lee has modeled himself in his master's image, mimicking Guy's distinctive green jumpsuit and shiny bowl haircut. Lee has also adopted many of Guy's mannerisms, including his "My Rules" philosophy, which involves setting tough self-imposed penalties for failure in the belief that the punishment will make him stronger. Series creator Masashi Kishimoto likens Guy's passionate personality to that of a physical education teacher he had in junior high school, but notes that the teacher was not a model for Guy's character.
In battle, Guy specializes in physical attacks, which he constantly tries to teach to Lee. While Lee is forced to concentrate on physical attacks due to his inability to use other types of techniques, Guy deliberately chooses not to use techniques other than physical attacks. When not teaching Lee a new ability, Guy is usually found in competition with his self-proclaimed rival, Kakashi Hatake. Throughout the series, Kakashi has never displayed a particular interest in their rivalry, which only further motivates Guy to defeat Kakashi and his "coolness".In the Japanese anime, his seiyū is Masashi Ebara, and his English voice actor is Skip Stellrecht
In battle, Guy specializes in physical attacks, which he constantly tries to teach to Lee. While Lee is forced to concentrate on physical attacks due to his inability to use other types of techniques, Guy deliberately chooses not to use techniques other than physical attacks. When not teaching Lee a new ability, Guy is usually found in competition with his self-proclaimed rival, Kakashi Hatake. Throughout the series, Kakashi has never displayed a particular interest in their rivalry, which only further motivates Guy to defeat Kakashi and his "coolness".In the Japanese anime, his seiyū is Masashi Ebara, and his English voice actor is Skip Stellrecht
Hokage
Sarutobi Hiruzen
Hiruzen Sarutobi (猿飛ヒルゼン, Sarutobi Hiruzen), the Third Hokage (三代目火影, Sandaime Hokage), has been the longest-ruling Hokage, having served two separate terms. He is a peace-loving leader, preferring nonviolent discussions to his advisers' more militaristic suggestions. Throughout the series, he acts as a source of wisdom to younger generations and is one of the few characters to treat Naruto Uzumaki as a person and not just the container of the nine-tailed demon fox. In his youth Hiruzen was known as "The Professor" (プロフェッサー, Purofessā), as he purportedly knew every jutsu in Konohagakure. He was also the teacher of Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Tsunade. Orochimaru had always been his favorite student, and Hiruzen could never bring himself to recognize Orochimaru's evil qualities. When Orochimaru invades Konoha years later, Hiruzen fights him to repent for never prosecuting Orochimaru as he should have.When he is unable to win, he robs Orochimaru of his ability to use jutsu, bringing an end to the invasion and thus allowing Hiruzen to die happily.In the Japanese anime, his seiyū is Hidekatsu Shibata, and his English voice actor is Steve Kramer.
Namikaze Minato
Minato Namikaze (波風 ミナト, Namikaze Minato), the Fourth Hokage (四代目火影, Yondaime Hokage), is the father of Naruto Uzumaki. Although Naruto and Minato are noted to have a number of similar traits throughout the series, their familial relationship is not revealed until Part II of the series. He was the student of Jiraiya and the teacher of Kakashi Hatake. Minato was a prodigy among ninja, such that enemy villages issued flee-on-sight orders if ever he appeared on a battlefield. He developed a jutsu that was in essence a teleportation jutsu, allowing him to wipe out whole armies in the blink of an eye, thus earning him the title of "Konoha's Yellow Flash" (木ノ葉の黄色い閃光, Konoha no Kiiroi Senkō).Before the start of the series, he gave his life to seal the nine-tailed demon fox into Naruto's body, saving Konoha from destruction and giving Naruto access to its great strength.His seiyu is Toshiyuki Morikawa
Tsunade
Tsunade (綱手), as well as her former teammates Jiraiya and Orochimaru, is a former student of the Third Hokage. She is also the granddaughter of the First Hokage, and so many characters in the series refer to her with the Japanese honorific "hime" (meaning "princess"). Despite her connections to past Hokage, Tsunade hates the position when she is first introduced. After her brother and boyfriend died in pursuit of their dreams to become Hokage, she lost faith in the title and the concept of dreams. She regains her faith in both after meeting Naruto Uzumaki, who consistently overcomes any obstacle in his own dreams of being Hokage.As a result, Tsunade accepts the position of Fifth Hokage (五代目火影, Godaime Hokage) to protect Konohagakure on behalf of everyone she has loved.Despite the importance of her position, Tsunade tends to avoid her duties, instead leaving them for her assistants. She will fulfill her role to address matters important to the village, and throughout Part II leads Konoha in combating Akatsuki.When Konoha was invaded by Pain, she used up all her energy summoning Katsuyu, her slug summon, to protect the villagers, and has been in a coma ever since. She was then dismissed as Hokage and was replaced by Danzo.
Tsunade possesses a number of traits that set her apart from other characters in the series, such as being a compulsive gambler with terrible luck. On the rare occasions that she hits a winning streak she perceives it as a bad omen, and makes it a point to fortify her defenses when it occurs. Additionally, although she is in her fifties, she constantly assumes the appearance of a twenty-year-old woman, retaining only her characteristically large breasts. Despite her odd personality Tsunade is a talented ninja; she has superhuman strength that allows her to reduce buildings to rubble and can heal injuries that most others would consider incurable. Her healing abilities are such that she has devised a method of regeneration for herself, making her all but invincible in battle. At the conclusion of Part I, Tsunade takes Sakura Haruno as an apprentice, teaching her how to use both of her trademark abilities. In the Japanese anime, Tsunade's seiyū is Masako Katsuki, and her English voice actor is Debi Mae West
Tsunade possesses a number of traits that set her apart from other characters in the series, such as being a compulsive gambler with terrible luck. On the rare occasions that she hits a winning streak she perceives it as a bad omen, and makes it a point to fortify her defenses when it occurs. Additionally, although she is in her fifties, she constantly assumes the appearance of a twenty-year-old woman, retaining only her characteristically large breasts. Despite her odd personality Tsunade is a talented ninja; she has superhuman strength that allows her to reduce buildings to rubble and can heal injuries that most others would consider incurable. Her healing abilities are such that she has devised a method of regeneration for herself, making her all but invincible in battle. At the conclusion of Part I, Tsunade takes Sakura Haruno as an apprentice, teaching her how to use both of her trademark abilities. In the Japanese anime, Tsunade's seiyū is Masako Katsuki, and her English voice actor is Debi Mae West
Sand Siblings
Gaara
Gaara (我愛羅) is the youngest of the three siblings. He was created by Kishimoto as a foil to Naruto Uzumaki, with a similar background yet a highly divergent personality. When Gaara was born, his father intended to make him a military weapon for Sunagakure by sealing the One-Tailed Shukaku (一尾の守鶴, Ichibi no Shukaku), a powerful and dangerous tailed beast, inside him. Similar to Naruto, Gaara was tormented by his fellow villagers for being the host of a tailed beast. After one of his few remaining relatives tried to kill him, Gaara developed a sadistic and withdrawn personality, killing others to affirm the value of his existence. His battle with Naruto during the invasion of Konoha changes this mentality; as a result, he becomes more willing to help others as the purpose for his existence, and he succeeds his deceased father as Sunagakure's Kazekage during Part II.Gaara's seiyū in the Japanese anime is Akira Ishida, and his English voice actor is Liam O'Brien
Kankuro
Kankuro (カンクロウ, Kankurō) is the second oldest of the three siblings. For the first half of the series, he is frequently at odds with Gaara, though he tends to hold his tongue for fear of being killed.In Part II, once Gaara begins to reveal his dreams and motivations to Kankuro, Kankuro becomes very protective of Gaara; he lashes out at anyone who speaks poorly of Gaara and when Gaara is kidnapped, he readily risks his life to save him.Kankuro is a talented puppeteer, and has thus far been shown to have three puppets in his arsenal: Karasu (烏, lit. Crow), Kuroari (黒蟻, lit. Black Ant), and Sanshōuo (山椒魚, lit. Salamander). Crow is used for offensive purposes, Black Ant traps opponents in its body to make them easier targets, and Salamander protects Kankuro and his allies from enemy attacks. The puppets are all destroyed by their original creator, Sasori, in Part II, and it has yet to be seen whether Kankuro has repaired them.In the Japanese anime, his seiyū is Yasuyuki Kase, and his English voice actor is Michael Lindsay
Temari
Temari (テマリ) is the oldest of the three siblings. Unlike her more combat-loving brothers, Temari values peace, as she questions Sunagakure's justifications for going to war with Konohagakure.This trait carries over to Part II, in which she begins acting as a liaison between Sunagakure and Konohagakure to help the two villages work together. Like her brothers, Temari does not appear in the series very often, and when she does appear she is commonly in the company of Shikamaru Nara. When they make their Part II debut together, Naruto Uzumaki asks if they are on a date, though both Shikamaru and Temari state that this is not the case. In battle, Temari wields a giant iron fan that can create powerful gusts of wind capable of leveling the surrounding landscape. As she is skilled at deducing an opponent's strategies and weaknesses soon after a battle begins, she typically uses her winds to remove parts of the battlefield that might be advantageous to the enemy.Temari's seiyū in the Japanese anime is Romi Paku, and her English voice actor is Tara Platt
Umino Iruka
Iruka Umino (うみの イルカ, Umino Iruka) is a Konohagakure ninja and instructor at the Ninja Academy, a school for prospective ninja. Masashi Kishimoto's initial design of Iruka featured "evil" eyes and sharper cheekbones, but this was abandoned in favor of a more relaxed appearance.When Iruka was a child, his parents were killed by the nine-tailed demon fox, which was sealed into Naruto Uzumaki. He bears no ill will towards Naruto, instead being one of the few people at the start of the series to recognize Naruto as a person and not just a container for the fox. Naruto thinks of Iruka as a father-figure because of this, and Iruka in turn has great faith in Naruto's potential to be a great ninja.In the Japanese anime, his seiyū is Toshihiko Seki, and his English voice actor is Quinton Flynn.
Sarutobi Konohamaru
Konohamaru Sarutobi (猿飛 木ノ葉丸, Sarutobi Konohamaru), named after Konohagakure, is the grandson of the Third Hokage. He strives to replace his grandfather as Hokage so the villagers of Konohagakure will recognize him by name, not as the Hokage's grandson. He looks to Naruto Uzumaki as a mentor in this quest, emulating his work ethic, determination, and signature jutsu such as the Rasengan and a variety of perverted techniques. Konohamaru insists, however, that he will only become Hokage after Naruto has been Hokage first. Konohamaru's design caused great difficulties for Masashi Kishimoto; he intended for Konohamaru to look like a "punk" smaller than Naruto, yet all of his attempts resulted in a mere recreation of Naruto. He eventually gave Konohamaru small, angry-looking eyes, and was instantly happy with the design.He is voiced in the Japanese anime by Ikue Ōtani, and by Akiko Koike as a stand-in.Colleen O'Shaughnessey is his English voice actor
Jiraiya
Jiraiya (自来也) is a Konohagakure ninja and one of Naruto's teachers. Kishimoto has commented that out of all the master-pupil relationships he has created in the Naruto series, the bond between Naruto and Jiraiya is his favorite, noting that it makes drawing them "worthwhile". As a child, Jiraiya was under the tutelage of the Third Hokage, along with his teammates, Tsunade and Orochimaru.Jiraiya is known throughout the Naruto world as the "Toad Sage" (蝦蟇仙人, Gama Sennin) due to his toad-related jutsu. Although still affiliated with Konohagakure, he spends much of his time traveling. Jiraiya's personality is openly lecherous, and he proudly describes himself as a "super pervert", authoring a series of best-selling adult romance novels.During Part I, he takes Naruto as his student, and returns him to Konohagakure in Part II as he begins to keep tabs on the movements of the criminal organization Akatsuki.In the Japanese anime, Jiraiya is voiced by Hōchū Ōtsuka, and his English voice actor is David Lodge
Sai
Sai (サイ) is introduced during Part II of the series as Sasuke Uchiha's replacement in Team 7.Having been a member of The Foundation since he was a child, Sai has been trained to not possess or desire any type of emotion or camaraderie. After spending time with Naruto Uzumaki, however, he begins to crave bonds with other people, which has since become his primary role in the series.Sai's attempts to form bonds involve giving pet names to others; however, he often says what he actually thinks of a person, resulting with him choosing names such as "fatso" and "ugly". He eventually learns from his mistakes and attempts the opposite approach, for instance, calling Ino Yamanaka "gorgeous".When not making an attempt to bond with others, Sai spends his time painting and drawing, and has produced thousands of works. His artistic talents extend to his choice of attacks in battles: he can infuse chakra with his inking brush to make his drawings come to life.Sai's seiyū is Satoshi Hino in the Naruto: Shippūden anime, and his English voice actor is Benjamin Diskin
Yamato
Yamato (ヤマト?) is introduced during Part II of the series as a temporary replacement for Kakashi Hatake as the leader of Team 7.After Kakashi's return, he stays on the team in an additional leadership position. Though "Yamato" is a codename assigned to him for the purposes of joining Team 7, he prefers it over his real name, Tenzo (テンゾウ, Tenzō).Unlike Kakashi, who places his teammates before the mission, Yamato will leave them behind if they become a hindrance, citing that as ninja they should be able to look after themselves.During his infancy, Yamato was abducted by Orochimaru and experimented upon in an attempt to replicate the First Hokage's unique abilities. Orochimaru was forced to flee Konohagakure before he could complete his testing, and thus never knew that Yamato had successfully obtained the First's Mokuton techniques. When using Mokuton techniques, Yamato can form anything out of wood at will. It also allows him to suppress a tailed beast's influence over its host. This is the primary reason he is assigned to Team 7, as he can stop Naruto Uzumaki if the nine-tailed demon fox within him gets out of control. In the Naruto: Shippūden anime, Yamato's seiyū is Rikiya Koyama, and in the English version he is voiced by Troy Baker.
Orochimaru
Orochimaru (大蛇丸) is one of the primary antagonists of the Naruto series. To emphasize his role as a villain, Kishimoto worked towards making him appear "pasty and sickly" as part of his theme of distinguishing villains from the protagonists.In the series, Orochimaru is a former ninja of Konohagakure and a student of the Third Hokage. During his time in the village, he distinguished himself as one of the village's most powerful ninja along with his teammates, Jiraiya and Tsunade.His desire to obtain immortality led him to conduct experiments on other Konohagakure ninja, and he eventually fled the village and joined the criminal organization Akatsuki. After attacking fellow Akatsuki member Itachi Uchiha, who defeats him, he leaves Akatsuki and establishes his own ninja village, Otogakure, in the hopes of destroying his former home.His immortality technique involves transferring his consciousness between different host bodies, and his desire for a new host, particularly Sasuke Uchiha, is one of his driving motivations throughout the series.Because of his different host bodies and the disguises he assumes, a panoply of voice actors are utilized for Orochimaru; his most common seiyū in the Japanese anime is Kujira, and the corresponding English voice actor is Steven Jay Blum
Akatsuki
Akatsuki (暁, lit. "Dawn" or "Daybreak") is an organization of criminal ninja that serves as the series' primary antagonists. Akatsuki's goal (as defined by its leader, Pain) is world domination, which they plan to accomplish by capturing the tailed beasts.The members of Akatsuki are ninja who have abandoned their villages, and are considered by their former homes to be S-class criminals, the most powerful and wanted ninja in the Naruto universe. At any given time, Akatsuki is composed of ten members, who operate in two-man teams. They share similar clothing, most notably a long, dark cloak bearing red clouds and a chin-high collar. Aside from an attempt by two Akatsuki members, Itachi Uchiha and Kisame Hoshigaki, to capture the nine-tailed demon fox within Naruto Uzumaki, Akatsuki is not prominently featured in Part I.In Part II, they take a more active role, capturing Gaara and extracting the one-tailed beast, Shukaku, from his body, as well as working towards capturing the remaining tailed beasts
