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Naruto Uzumaki
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|Naruto Uzumaki
Naruto Uzumaki by Masashi Kishimoto
|Manga Chapter 1
Naruto Episode 1
|Junko Takeuchi
Ema Kogure (for Sexy Technique)
|Voice actor(s)
|Maile Flanagan
Stephanie Sheh (for Sexy Technique)
|Part I: 12-13
Part II: 15
|October 10
|Blood Type
|Part I: 147.5 cm
Part II: 166 cm
|40.6 kg
|Current rank
|Current affiliation
|Current team
|Team Yamato (Yamato, Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, Sai)
|Previous team
|Team 7 (Kakashi Hatake, Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno)
Team Shikamaru (Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi, Neji Hyuga, Kiba Inuzuka, Naruto Uzumaki)
|Signature jutsu/Kekkei genkai
Naruto Uzumaki (うずまきナルト, Uzumaki Naruto?) is a fictional character and the main protagonist in the anime and manga series Naruto.
Naruto can mean "maelstrom," and is also the name for a sliced stick of Kamaboko with a pink whirlpool design in the middle that is used as a topping for Ramen (Naruto's favorite food). The Japanese sometimes use "Naruto" as a nickname for the commercial at (@).
The surname "Uzumaki" is a pun on "spiral" (渦巻), while "Uzumaki" refers to a three-dimensional spiral, like a whirlpool or vortex. A more accurate translation for spiral would be "Rasen." The Konoha leaf symbol is drawn with an arrow attached to a spiral, part of the seal on his abdomen is a spiral, the symbol on the back of his jacket and shoulders is a spiral, and one of his attacks is Rasengan, which means "Spiraling Sphere." "Uzumaki" can also mean "whirlpool," in reference to the Naruto whirlpool (鳴門の渦潮), named after the city of Naruto.
October 10, Naruto's birthday, was Health and Sports Day ("Taiiku no hi") 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 in 1999.
Masashi Kishimoto, the creator of the manga series, stated in a recent interview with the U.S. Shonen Jump that his childhood was like that of Naruto's years while he was enrolled in the Academy.
Naruto consistently ranked in the top two (taking first place twice) in the first five official Shonen Jump character popularity polls. However, in the sixth character poll, he ranked fourth.
[edit] Background
Naruto was born on October 10, but not much is known beyond that. His parentage remains a mystery, as do any other family ties he may have had. As a newborn infant, the nine-tailed demon fox, which had attacked the village of Konoha, was sealed within Naruto's body by the Fourth Hokage of Konoha.
Despite the Fourth Hokage's wish that Naruto be seen as a hero who contained the demon, the villagers of Konoha harbored a fierce hatred for the young child, since he bore the spirit of the demon who decimated their once peaceful village. Naruto wasn't even aware of the presence of the demonic entity inside him until he was twelve years old, leaving him confused for most of his childhood about why the villagers of Konoha hated him so much.
Fortunately, Naruto was befriended by his compassionate ninja instructor, a Chunin named Iruka Umino. Though Iruka's own parents perished at the hands of the demon fox, Iruka didn't blame Naruto for their deaths. Instead, Iruka accepted Naruto and empathized with the boy's desire to be accepted, since he too once had the same desire. He may have been the first person to believe in Naruto, and has made a lasting impact on Naruto himself. It is through Iruka's presence as Naruto's only family figure that Naruto learns to overcome his sadness.
[edit] Personality
Before graduating from the Academy, Naruto had a craving for acknowledgment. He would play pranks all around the village in an attempt to be recognized by its inhabitants. This included, but was not limited to, painting graffiti on the monument depicting the first four Hokages, and transforming himself into a naked female version of himself to annoy his instructors. He would also tell everyone who doubted him on a near-constant basis that he would one day become Hokage. As he tells Iruka, he wishes to achieve this rank in order to be recognized by those around him, and to have the responsibility of defending them. Even after graduating, Naruto is still determined to be recognized, and becomes the "Number One Loudest, Unpredictable, Hyperactive Knuckleheaded Ninja" of Konoha, as described by Kakashi Hatake.
Naruto's exuberant personality and fiery desire for self-improvement strongly impacts the lives of those around him. At the beginning of the series, Naruto befriends Konohamaru, the grandson of the Third Hokage, and it is through his brief tutelage that Konohamaru learns that the path to success is through plenty of hard work. Despite his brash, headstrong, and even slightly dumb nature, Naruto is a clever prankster who overcomes his opponents through a combination of willpower, clever diversions, and more-often-than-not dumb luck (though as Kakashi states, luck is very important).
Naruto has a great sense of humor, albeit somewhat perverted in some cases, and usually smiles and laughs all round (though at times, he smiles to hide whatever is bothering him so no one worries about him; those who are closest to him see right through it). Outside his world, he's just an ordinary, loud, hotheaded kid with a fierce will and a knack for getting into trouble.
One of Naruto's hobbies is gardening, even though Naruto was beaten in episode 20 for not knowing the difference between weeds and herbs. He is the one who gives Kakashi Mr. Ukki, the plant seen on Kakashi's windowsill (Kishimoto once described how he had the same plant for a while until he fed it undiluted plant food).
In the Japanese versions, Naruto often ends his sentences with "dattebayo," and as such has a unique style of speech. In Japanese, an ending with no literal meaning can be added to make the tone sound tougher, childish, girlish, or many other changes depending on the many existing endings. "-ttebayo," which is not a well-known ending, has no literal meaning and cannot be translated, but carries the connotations of the speaker being uncultured, brusque, and seeming tougher than they really are.[citation needed] In the English anime and video games, he often says "Believe it!" to fit with the mouth movements of "-ttebayo."
Despite rapidly maturing throughout the series, Naruto retains a knack for childish accessories. For example, his pajamas always include a comical black nightcap with eyes and teeth. Naruto also keeps his money in a chubby, green-frog wallet he affectionately calls Gama-chan.
Naruto is an avid eater with an appetite comparable to that of Choji Akimichi's. His favorite food, ramen, serves as a bond between Naruto and anyone who would treat him to it. In many episodes, he can be seen devouring enormous servings of ramen in a variety of flavors. However, an opportunity to eat any sort of food usually leaves Naruto lying down and exclaiming, "Whew, I ate too much!" with an exaggerated pot belly.
Though Naruto is usually quite dense in most cases (which often results in Sakura or some nearby hitting him), he can actually be quite observant when he wants to be, or the subject tweaks his interest. During their first meeting with Rock Lee, it is Naruto who points out to the rest of Team 7 that Lee's hand wraps hide his battered and bruised knuckles, indicating Lee is the type of person who trains non-stop.
[edit] Naruto and the demon fox
As the host of the demon fox, both Naruto's body and mind (occasionally) are influenced by it. Physically, Naruto has some of the demon fox's characteristics, such as whisker-like marks on his cheeks and larger than normal canines. His eyes are also somewhat slitted like a fox. He also has increased stamina and healing ability, which allows him to recover from major injuries within a day and minor injuries within a few seconds. Mentally, Naruto remains largely unaffected, save for a few animalistic traits that slip through, such as his occasional tendency to leap between trees on all fours. Since the demon fox was sealed inside Naruto at birth, it is unclear just what parts of his personality it has had an effect on; however, it could explain Naruto's devilish side for pulling pranks to gain attention, as well as his stubbornness to never back down from a challenge. These traits become more pronounced as he draws upon the demon fox's chakra.
The kitsune (狐) is a well-known character in Japanese folklore, and the influence behind not only the demon fox 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 Sexy Technique). Also, Kitsune are known to keep their promises, a trait Naruto has; his ninja way is to "never go back on [his] word." It should also be noted that every time Naruto loses control and is overwhelmed by the demon fox's chakra, he seemingly gains another "tail" of chakra. This stems from the belief that the more tails a kitsune has, the more powerful it is, with nine tails usually being the limit.
Naruto's normal chakra level is considered extremely high, partially because of the demon fox. Even without directly drawing upon it, a small amount of the demon fox's chakra is always mixed with his own. His body instinctively rejects the bulk of it due to the damage it would cause. Ebisu implies that Naruto's poor chakra control stems from this, as a portion of his chakra is used to reject the overwhelming fox chakra. According to Kakashi, Naruto's regular chakra level is about double that of Kakashi's own. As such, he is naturally suited to jutsu that use a large amount of chakra, such as his signature jutsu: Shadow Clone Technique. While most ninja are only capable of creating a few clones safely, due to the jutsu's hazard of equally dividing the user's chakra among the clones, Naruto is able to create upwards of two thousand while maintaining a decent supply of chakra in each one.
The demon fox's chakra usually comes to Naruto during life threatening or other stressful situations, given to him by the fox itself to ensure its survival. Naruto eventually learns to contact the fox and demand some of its chakra, which it seems to comply to out of amusement. The reason Naruto is able to access its chakra is because of the unique way in which it was sealed. Though the fox remains trapped within Naruto, its chakra can leak out through the seal and mix with Naruto's. The fox's near-limitless supply of chakra becomes an invaluable weapon for Naruto, often turning the tide of a difficult battle in his favor. The fox chakra increases every aspect of Naruto's physiology, making him a nearly unstoppable force. His speed and strength increase far beyond that of any normal human, and even beyond that of most ninja. It also increases his healing rate, allowing him to regenerate even major wounds in a few seconds. His stamina is also increased beyond its normal level, allowing him to fight without tiring. Finally, if the chakra shield is summoned, it is capable of acting on its own as a separate entity, making it difficult to predict Naruto's movements. Naruto can usually suppress the fox's chakra by himself before his tailed transformations begin surfacing. Beyond that, the fox's chakra seems to increase in intensity with time. Several external methods can be used to suppress it once this occurs, such as Jiraiya's sealing talisman or Yamato's sealing techniques.
This tremendous power is not without its disadvantages, however. When he first accesses it, Naruto is unable to retain control when using the demon fox's chakra, allowing its innate rage and anger to take over his personality. Over time, Naruto gains more control over the demon fox, allowing him to retain his personality while using its chakra. However, his degree of control is determined by the amount of chakra he draws upon and his emotional state. As he becomes more emotional and draws on more of the demon fox's chakra, his own personality is gradually supplanted by the demon fox's.
Naruto's state of mind coincides with his tailed transformation states, which are characterized by a fox-shaped shield of chakra surrounding Naruto. Naruto becomes more powerful with each "tail" the chakra shield grows, but also loses more of himself to the demon fox. This is shown within his mind as the demon fox drawing ever closer to him. At first, some of the demon fox's chakra merely leaks through the bars. The amount of chakra increases as the demon fox grows more dominant. Up to his three-tailed state, he remains in control, though somewhat more feral than normal. He also starts feeling pain from the intense chakra. In his three-tailed state, Naruto has to fight the demon fox for dominance, and the chakra is intense enough to not only cause him pain, but anyone in the vicinity as well. Once he reaches his four-tailed state, the demon fox becomes dominant. In his mind, Naruto slips through the bars and into the demon fox's grasp. In this state, which is the highest state Naruto has reached, Naruto's mind becomes mixed with the demon fox's, causing the regular Naruto to fade out. As Jiraiya describes it, Naruto becomes a miniature version of the demon fox.
The shield created by the demon fox's chakra is perhaps the most versatile defense seen in the series, since it is impervious to almost any attack. The shield can act as a separate entity, which confuses opponents, even those with the Sharingan. The shield can also stretch and skew to many sizes and lengths, allowing Naruto to attack opponents from a distance. Additionally, Naruto can use it to create shock waves to repel opponents. In Naruto's four-tailed state, the chakra shield is intense enough to burn others and act as a potent poison. Naruto also gains the ability to mold the chakra to a much finer degree. In this state, he was able to create a ball of concentrated chakra to fire at an opponent. The chakra ball was powerful enough to break through three Rashomon gates without losing momentum.
Even with all of its benefits, Naruto's human body can only handle so much of the demon fox's chakra, as demon chakra is far more intense than human chakra. As he draws upon greater amounts of the demon fox's chakra, his own body is weakened. In his four-tailed state, the demon fox's chakra is so intense that it constantly burns Naruto's skin, causing him to bleed from every pore. This causes his blood to mix with the demon fox's chakra, creating a black (or dark red, considering that such details are lost in black and white drawings) chakra shield. In addition to the constant damage, the demon fox's chakra also constantly regenerates Naruto's damaged tissue. This repeated cycle of damage and repair severely weakens Naruto's cellular structure, shortening his overall lifespan in a manner similar to Tsunade's Creation Rebirth jutsu.
[edit] Part I
- See also: Plot of Naruto
[edit] Graduation
Naruto begins as a loser in the series, having failed to pass the graduation exam at the Ninja Academy two times previous. Each time, it had been based on the Clone Technique, which he could never perform properly. His third try ends up no different, and it seems as if he'll have to go through yet another year at the Academy. However, he gets an unusual break in the form of Mizuki, who tricks Naruto into stealing a forbidden scroll in order to steal it himself without being blamed. To do so, he claims that Naruto will graduate if he simply learns a technique from the scroll. In an ironic twist, the jutsu he learns is the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique, which is an enhanced form of the regular version. After learning the truth about Mizuki and subsequently beating him to a pulp for it, he is allowed to graduate for learning such an advanced clone technique. Naruto also learns about the demon fox from Mizuki, who tells Naruto about it despite the taboo forbidding it.
[edit] Survival Test and Wave Country arcs
Having graduated, Naruto is paired with Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchiha in Team 7. The three do not work well together, and having Kakashi Hatake assigned as their Jonin-sensei doesn't help matters, since he emphasizes teamwork above all else. His first test, which is designed to test their teamwork, goes badly to say the least, since not one of them passes and Naruto is tied to a post for cheating. However, Kakashi gives them another chance, and they pass the test by learning to think as a team.
With Team 7 officially formed, they start going on simple missions. Naruto, wanting to be challenged, inadvertently gets Team 7 assigned an A-rank bodyguard mission for a bridge builder, though it was listed as C-rank due to misinformation on the client's part. In their first battle with two Chunin-level ninja, Naruto freezes out of fear, while Sasuke calmly takes on the enemy. Kakashi intervenes before either is seriously injured, though Naruto is poisoned. Sasuke makes fun of Naruto for his fear, beginning their long-standing rivalry. The rest of the team then have a conversation over what to do about the poison, all the while making Naruto feel like more and more of a burden because he froze. Finally out of frustration Naruto takes action by stabbing a kunai into his wound to bleed out the poison, vowing to protect the bridge-builder and never freeze up again. Kakashi then has to bandage the wound out of fear of Naruto dying of blood loss, but it's seen that the wound already starts to heal.
In a subsequent battle against Zabuza Momochi, a Jonin-level ninja sent by evil businessman Gato to assassinate their client, Naruto freezes up again but upon seeing the bandage on his hand and remembering his vow, gets over his fear and works with Sasuke to free Kakashi from a water prison created by Zabuza. Despite their rivalry, the two make a perfect team and free Kakashi, who subsequently defeats Zabuza. Zabuza is saved from death by Haku, who disguised himself as a hunter-nin and put Zabuza into a death-like coma. He departed with the body under the guise of disposing with it for security reasons.
While they continue protecting the bridge builder, Kakashi teaches Team 7 to walk up trees using chakra. Sakura masters the technique instantly, while Sasuke only gets a short distance and Naruto can't manage to stick to the practice tree. While normally not one to ask for help, Naruto asks Sakura for pointers, and quickly catches up to Sasuke. The two serve as motivation for one another, since neither wants to lose to the other, and they master the technique in a few days. During their training, Naruto stumbles upon Haku, not knowing who he really is, and the two have a short conversation about protecting those precious to them.
This conversation serves as a basis for their eventual battle, during which Sasuke seemingly gives his life to protect Naruto (Haku had in fact done the same thing to Sasuke as he had to Zabuza, but deliberately avoids telling Naruto). Enraged, Naruto subconsciously calls upon the demon fox's chakra and defeats Haku in a blind rage, despite Haku being even stronger than Zabuza. Though it appears as if Naruto will kill Haku, he pulls back when he realizes that Haku is the same person he met in the woods earlier. Haku, having no other purpose in life than to protect Zabuza and fulfill his dreams, asks that Naruto kill him. Naruto is eventually persuaded to do so by the story of Haku's past, but doesn't get the chance. Haku, sensing Zabuza was in danger, instead kills himself by intercepting a fatal attack from Kakashi. Zabuza was initially indifferent to Haku's death, leading to a guilt trip by Naruto. Zabuza actually does care, however, and can't hide that fact after Naruto's speech. When Zabuza's employer betrays him, Zabuza sacrifices his own life to kill him. As a final wish, Zabuza dies next to Haku, hoping to be in death where he wasn't in life.
Profoundly affected by the mission, Naruto vows not to become an emotionless weapon as Zabuza and Haku were (for the most part). At the end of the episode, when Naruto and company leave, the villagers decide to name the bridge "The Great Naruto Bridge," as Naruto changed one character in the arc, Inari, who had lost all hope after his "father" died after Gato had taken control of the Wave Country.
[edit] Chunin Exam and Destruction of Konoha arcs
Fresh from their mission in the Wave Country, Team 7 is admitted into the Chunin Exams. During this time in particular, Naruto makes several friends out of former enemies, and grows much stronger through these battles. He also sees some of the other Genin in a new light.
During the first part of the exam, which is a written exam designed specifically to be too hard for Genin to complete, Naruto is left sweating over the fact that he can't answer any of the questions. He does not realize that the purpose of the exam is to cheat without being caught by the proctors positioned around the room. Hinata Hyuga, who is sitting next to him, offers to let him copy her test. Though not sure at first, he almost takes her up on her offer. However, he hears the tell-tale sound of a moving pencil from one of the proctors, signifying that they see him cheating, and decides it's best not to, since Hinata would get in trouble, too. Hinata is glad that Naruto really does care about her, protecting her from getting into trouble and having to forfeit the Chunin exams. The last question of the test, whose secret answer is merely the willingness to try, is where Naruto's attitude rubs off on the other Genin. Unwilling to give up, he proclaims in front of everyone participating that he won't be scared away, and as such many more decide to do the same than they would have otherwise.
During the second part of the exam, Naruto and Sasuke end up in opposite positions as they had during Team 7's first battle. Sakura and Sasuke, having met Orochimaru after a giant summoned snake ate Naruto, are paralyzed with fear from Orochimaru's great intention to kill. Naruto, who wasn't there to experience it, not only kills the giant snake which had previously detained him, but fights off another one of Orochimaru's summoned snakes by using the demon fox's chakra. In this instance, he retains control. Sakura and Sasuke get their first look at Naruto's demon fox state, though they don't truly understand what it means. After pinning the giant snake, Naruto mocks Sasuke in the same manner as Sasuke had done to him. Orochimaru uses the opportunity to grab Naruto and seal the demon fox's chakra, which remains sealed until after the preliminary parts of the Chunin Exam. Naruto is left unconscious for the remainder of the fight, and Team 7 only survives because Orochimaru never intended to kill them, only wanting to brand Sasuke with the Cursed Seal of Heaven. To complete this part of the exam, Team 7 and Kabuto Yakushi, a fellow Genin, are forced to fight off a group of Rain Genin, one of whom had attacked Sasuke earlier. Despite his own chakra being disrupted from the seal, Naruto defeats the entire team almost single-handedly using his clones, though a small distraction from Kabuto also helped.
Because of Naruto's earlier outburst during the first part of the exam, as well as a particularly skilled group of remaining candidates after that point, 21 people make it to the third part of the exam. This is slightly more than twice the normal amount, so preliminary exams are held to cut the numbers in half with one on one battles. Before the exams begin, Sasuke admits to Naruto that he wants to fight him. Naruto is eventually paired against Kiba Inuzuka. Kiba and virtually everyone else present believe Naruto stands no chance, and Kiba even mocks Naruto's dream of being Hokage. Naruto, however, takes everything Kiba throws at him, despite the clear advantage in Kiba's favor. In the end, Naruto wins through a little dumb luck and a clever use of his shadow clones. Other notable battles include Hinata's battle against Neji. Neji labels Hinata as a failure and a dropout who can't change her fate, enraging Naruto. After her utter defeat at Neji's hands, Naruto tries to attack him, but is stopped by Rock Lee, who insists that a dropout defeating a genius would be sight to see, but should be done in a proper match. On Hinata's spilled blood, Naruto swears to defeat Neji. Sure enough, he gets his chance. Once the preliminaries are over, he is paired against Neji for the first match. The nine remaining candidates are given one month to prepare for the main matches.
Hoping to get a lot of training in during the month-long break, Naruto tries to get Kakashi to help. Kakashi, however, is busy training Sasuke, and leaves Naruto in the care of Ebisu. Ebisu begins training Naruto to walk on water, but the training is cut short with the introduction of Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin, three of the most powerful ninja alive. Ebisu catches Jiraiya peeping on women and tries to stop him. Not happy about the interruption, Jiraiya summons a toad and has it tongue-whip Ebisu into unconsciousness. Minus one teacher, Naruto insists that Jiraiya replace Ebisu. Always the insatiable pervert, it's Naruto's Sexy Technique that convinces him to do so. For the remainder of the month, Jiraiya teaches Naruto to summon toads and use the demon fox chakra, which is essential for the former technique. It is during this time that Naruto first summons Gamabunta, who, after cowing Naruto into submission, agrees to make Naruto his subordinate. The day before the main matches begin, Naruto and Shikamaru inadvertently catch Gaara attempting to kill Rock Lee, whom he had tried to kill during an earlier battle. During their confrontation, Naruto learns that Gaara contains a demon too, and that their pasts are quite similar. Gaara, however, only had one person acknowledge him, and that one person ended up trying to kill him. This drove Gaara insane, and convinced him that the only way to insure his existence was to kill anyone who threatened it. Gaara would have killed both Naruto and Shikamaru then and there, but Might Guy stops him from doing so.
Once the main matches begin, Naruto originally appears outmatched once again against the genius Neji. Despite this, Naruto continually questions Neji's outlook on life, even though every attack he tries is repelled. Neji eventually decides to finish the match by closing off Naruto's chakra points, but Naruto gets up from this attack, too. Impressed, Neji tells Naruto about his painful past and the cursed seal on his forehead. Neji insists that Naruto could never know what it's like to carry a mark that will be with him till death, though this couldn't be further from the truth. Not convinced by Neji's reasoning, Naruto calls upon the Demon fox's chakra and instantly evens the odds. In the end, Naruto defeats Neji, convincing him that fate truly can be changed.
After the attack on Konoha begins, Naruto, Sakura, Shikamaru, and Pakkun are sent to retrieve Sasuke, who is chasing after Gaara. Sasuke had injured Gaara during their battle, so Temari and Kankuro escaped with him so he could recover. During their pursuit, Shikamaru decides to stay behind to deal with a group of Sound-nin tracking them. Though Sakura is unsure if Shikamaru will actually confront them, Naruto has complete faith in him. He notes that Shikamaru is lazy, but when he actually tries to do something will always come through. Upon catching up to Gaara, Naruto is initially unwilling to fight him, since he is aware of just what Gaara is and Sasuke is unable to help. He is convinced to fight after Gaara captures Sakura and pins her with a detached hand of sand, which suffocates her at a slow rate. Since defeating Gaara is the only way to remove it, Naruto gets serious, badly damaging Gaara in order to protect his friends. Even in the face of Gaara's full Shukaku form, he refuses to give up, summoning Gamabunta and destroying the sand creature with the chief toad's help. In the end, Naruto lands the final punch on Gaara, leaving him unable to move. Naruto's not much better off, but crawls his way to Gaara to make sure he's defeated. As he crawls, he admits to Gaara that he knows the same pain of loneliness, but won't let Gaara kill the people who saved him from it. Though Sasuke stops Naruto, he still manages to change Gaara's outlook on life.
[edit] Return of Itachi and Search for Tsunade arcs
After the attack on Konoha, Jiraiya is asked to become the Fifth Hokage by Konoha's elders. He declines the offer, however, and instead decides to locate Tsunade, also one of the Legendary Sannin, and have her become the Fifth. The elders offer to have an ANBU squad accompany him, but he refuses. Aside from the fact that traveling with an ANBU squad would only make Tsunade harder to find, he already has someone he wants to take: Naruto. Itachi Uchiha and Kisame Hoshigaki, two members of Akatsuki, are searching for Naruto, so Jiraiya is taking Naruto to protect him. Naruto initially doesn't want to go, but Jiraiya offers to teach him a powerful technique, which instantly sells Naruto on the idea. Despite Jiraiya taking him along for the trip, Itachi and Kisame do eventually find them. Using a hypnotized woman to draw Jiraiya away, the two attempt to kidnap Naruto. The arrival of Sasuke slows them slightly, though only because Itachi is unwilling to finish Sasuke off. Regardless, the short delay is enough time for Jiraiya to arrive and force the two Akatsuki to retreat.
With the threat from Akatsuki gone, Jiraiya begins teaching Naruto the Spiraling Sphere, an advanced A-rank technique, developed by the Fourth Hokage, that only requires one hand and no hand seals to use; it's chakra manipulation in its purest form. Naruto is mostly left to learn the technique by himself, since he needs to learn the trick to doing it by himself. Jiraiya never tells Naruto this, leaving Naruto disappointed. While they are searching for Tsunade, Tsunade is approached by Orochimaru, who wants her to heal his sealed arms. In exchange, he offers to resurrect her dead brother and lover, and allows her a week to consider the offer. When Jiraiya and Naruto finally find Tsunade, Naruto can't believe that she's going to be the Fifth Hokage. Her disrespectful remarks to both the position and the recently deceased Third don't help matters, and he challenges her to a fight. Against one of the Sannin, Naruto has no chance, and Tsunade holds him off with a single finger. Though he has yet to perfect it, he attempts to use the Spiraling Sphere on her. She dodges this, too, and then berates Jiraiya for teaching Naruto a technique he can't possibly master. Naruto insists that he can, and bets that he can learn it in three days. Naruto's personality reminds Tsunade of her deceased loved ones, so she takes the bet, giving Naruto a week. If Naruto wins, she'll accept that he can become Hokage, and give him her incredibly valuable necklace that originally belonged to the First Hokage. Her two deceased loved ones had also owned it for a time, and died soon after receiving it.
By week's end, Naruto still hasn't mastered the technique, but notes that he has an alternate means of completing it should it be necessary. Their bet is interrupted by the arrival of Orochimaru and Kabuto, whom Tsunade betrays. Naruto is initially left out of the fight, but comes to Tsunade's aid after Kabuto tries to kill her. It is during their fight that Naruto finally completes the Spiraling Sphere, using a shadow clone to do what he could not do by himself. Kabuto is severely injured by the technique, but injures Naruto just as badly. Naruto is saved by Tsunade, who gets over her hemophobia, or fear of blood, in order to save him. He regains consciousness just long enough to proclaim he won their bet. In turn, she gives him her necklace and accepts that he will become Hokage someday.
[edit] Sasuke Retrieval arc
In the anime, a short filler arc involving a mission to the Tea Country precedes this arc. This filler arc does little except reinforce Sasuke's point of view in the next arc. After returning with Tsunade and having Sasuke healed, Naruto recognizes Sakura's feelings for Sasuke. Though still jealous, he is mature enough not to get in the way. Meanwhile, Sasuke broods over the substantial progress Naruto has made in comparison to his own. Feeling inferior, Sasuke challenges Naruto to a fight. The two go to the roof of the hospital, where each voices their opinion of their rivalry, with Naruto insisting they're equals while Sasuke thinks otherwise. Their battle is short, ending with each trying to use their most powerful attack on the other. Kakashi steps in to prevent them from injuring Sakura, who attempts to intervene. Kakashi deflects their attacks into adjacent water towers. At first, it appears as if Sasuke did more damage, because Naruto's tower only had a small hole in the front while Sasuke's was greatly damaged. Later it is revealed Naruto's attack also blew a large hole out the back of the tower, demonstrating that Naruto's strength is greatly superior. Though Kakashi tries to convince Sasuke to give up his quest for revenge, his defeat at the hands of the Sound Four leads him to defect to Orochimaru.
Naruto's friends hold off the Sound Four so Naruto can reach Sasuke. Once he does, the two have a much more serious battle, during which they each bring out their respective "gifts," those being Naruto's demon fox chakra and Sasuke's cursed seal. During the battle, Sasuke claims that he doesn't need any friends, as that does nothing to make him more powerful, since killing Itachi is his only goal. 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. This drives Naruto to draw upon the demon fox's chakra to such a degree that he nearly overcomes Sasuke's fully awakened Sharingan. As such, Sasuke finally acknowledges Naruto as an equal. In the end, the two use their most powerful attacks against each other once more, only this time enhancing the attacks with their respective gifts. They do not go through with their attacks, however. Naruto purposefully misses, instead scratching Sasuke's headband, and Sasuke doesn't kill Naruto because he doesn't want to become like Itachi (though this mentality seemingly changes in Part II as he now has no reservations about killing Naruto).
With Sasuke's successful defection, Naruto's main goal is to bring Sasuke back before Orochimaru can take him as his new host. Jiraiya, recognizing Naruto's determination, remembers his own attempt to stop Orochimaru from defecting. Though he clearly believes Naruto's goal to be foolish, he takes Naruto with him for a two-and-a-half year period of training. There is a three-month break before this happens, which was covered by series of filler arcs in the anime. Like the Tea Country arc, these provide very little plot and character development. There are a few exceptions (i.e, Hinata, Anko), but none involve Naruto's character directly.
[edit] Part II
- See also: Plot of Naruto: Shippūden
[edit] New personality
In Naruto: Hurricane Chronicles, after a two-and-a-half year time skip, Naruto shows physical growth, sports a new outfit, and appears to not only have increased in strength, speed, and techniques, but intelligence as well, Kakashi even said that Naruto has become more cunning. However, Naruto is still a Genin, since he hasn't had a chance to take the Chunin Exams again. According to Tsunade, Naruto is also slowly adopting some of Jiraiya's perverted traits. During his apprenticeship under Jiraiya, Naruto was able to read the latest of the "Icha Icha" series written by Jiraiya, although when he presents a copy to Kakashi, he says he thought it was boring.
It seems Naruto's feelings for Sakura have matured. He does not seem to have a child-like crush anymore. They have a very easy time communicating with each other, despite the nearly three-year separation. They are capable of having a casual conversation together, and they seem to like spending time together. Naruto is now noticeably taller than Sakura and some of his other friends. (In Part I, he is made fun of for being shorter than her.)
It was when Team 7 was on the way to Sunagakure that Naruto finally reveals to Sakura and Temari that the demon fox was sealed inside him. Sakura sympathizes with him, as does Temari, who is very grateful to Naruto for the change in her little brother, Gaara. With this revelation, Sakura begins to understand why the village hated him and why he was so alone growing up. It is also shown that Sasuke's defection still affects Naruto and Sakura, and when the whole of Team 7 (minus Kakashi) finally meets after two and a half years, Sasuke greets them, as he did when they became a team, with cold indifference, and says he doesn't care if he becomes Orochimaru's vessel as long as Itachi will die. He even attempts to kill Sakura and Naruto. Later, after Sasuke leaves with Orochimaru and Kabuto, Naruto and Sakura are clearly upset that he is no longer the Sasuke they knew.
After his 'reunion' with Sasuke, and the realization that after all his special training he is no closer to saving Sasuke, Naruto sinks into a deep depression. His outlook is changed, however, when Kakashi tells him that he will train Naruto to create a unique jutsu that could possibly give him the strength to finally meet Sasuke on an even level. Finally receiving the one-on-one training with Kakashi that he has always desired, and with his last encounter with Sasuke driving him, Naruto becomes more serious and focused than he's ever been. During his training, Kakashi remarks that he believes Naruto will surpass the Fourth Hokage and later, even sees a vision of the Fourth Hokage around Naruto. Also, after Naruto shows off the results of his special training Kakashi admits to himself that Naruto has surpassed him.
[edit] New abilities
Naruto has displayed a few new abilities since the start of Hurricane Chronicles. His ability to release the demon fox's chakra, and the subsequent lack of control of it as a result, has increased dramatically. Naruto can now use the two or three tail states with ease, although it is a dangerous and harmful technique to use. Sometime during his training with Jiraiya, Naruto transformed into a four-tailed form of the demon fox, although this is extremely dangerous since he starts losing control at this state. Orochimaru states that this form is powerful enough to actually kill him. Jiraiya mentions that the seal holding the demon fox is becoming weaker, accounting for the ease with which its chakra escapes.
Naruto has greatly improved his ninjutsu and taijutsu post-timeskip; he has also become a much better tactician, creating a few shadow clones for specific purposes rather than creating several dozen shadow clones and hoping for the best. He managed to catch Kakashi by surprise during his second test, and even used Kakashi's obsession to the Icha Icha novels to his advantage. Naruto is also starting to wield and become more skilled with weapons other than regular kunai or shurikens, as seen in the Rescue Gaara arc. Like Tenten, he now carries a scroll to summon various weapons from. Naruto has also developed a more powerful version of the Spiraling Sphere, titled the Great Ball Spiraling Sphere. Naruto uses both his and his clone's hand to control it due its unstable nature and immense power.
After Team 7's failed attempt to rescue Sasuke, Kakashi teaches Naruto to manipulate elemental chakra. Naruto's elemental chakra type is revealed to be wind, which is well suited to combat. The elemental training is a prerequisite to creating his own unique jutsu. This jutsu is revealed to be a combination of his elemental chakra and the Spiraling Sphere, which the Fourth Hokage had created expressly for that purpose. He, however, could not manage to combine the two before his death. Kakashi, having learned from the Fourth, could not manage it, either. While such a feat normally takes years to complete, Naruto is able to learn hundreds of times faster through the use of his shadow clones. Since the clones are linked to each other and Naruto, allowing them to share their experiences with the others once they are dispersed (similar to distributed computing). After much training and a few shortcuts inspired by Kakashi, Naruto creates the Wind Release: Spiraling Sphere, a much more powerful version of the original. The jutsu is capable of producing a massive crater beneath Naruto. Despite the great power of the technique, Yamato confirms that it is still only about halfway finished. Even only half-finished, Naruto's control over the technique is finely-tuned, allowing him to manipulate the wind chakra into various shapes, such as a shuriken. The technique is so powerful, however, that it breaks Naruto's arm in several places. Sakura warns him that he should only use the jutsu as a last resort.
Sasuke Uchiha
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
|Sasuke Uchiha
Sasuke Uchiha by Masashi Kishimoto
|Manga Chapter 3
Naruto Episode 1
|Noriaki Sugiyama
|Voice actor(s)
|Yuri Lowenthal
|12-13 in Part I
15 in Part II
|July 23
|Blood Type
|Part I: 153.2 cm
|43.5 kg
|Known relatives
|Fugaku Uchiha (father, deceased)
Mikoto Uchiha (mother, deceased)
Itachi Uchiha (brother)
|Current rank
|Current affiliation
|Previous affiliation
|Previous team
|Team 7 (Kakashi Hatake, Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno)
|Signature jutsu/Kekkei genkai
Sasuke Uchiha (うちはサスケ, Uchiha Sasuke?) is a fictional character in the anime and manga series Naruto.
Sasuke's given name comes from the legendary ninja Sarutobi Sasuke. His surname, Uchiha, is another way of pronouncing "uchiwa", or a paper fan, which is actually the Uchiha clan symbol. In ancient Japan, uchiwa were used in court ceremonies to denote nobility, as souvenirs, and to protect soldiers from arrows. More importantly, such fans can be used to fan flames, making the flame hotter — referring to the fact that the Uchiha is a clan of fire-jutsu users.
In Shonen Jump's June 2006 edition, Masashi Kishimoto (in Kakashi's voice) remarks that while Sasuke is a genius, he is a little dull to teach because he learns everything easily compared to the less predictable Naruto.
In Shonen Jump's character popularity polls, Sasuke usually ranked the 3rd or 4th spot for the majority of the series. More recently, however, he has been ranked at 1st.
A Genin-rank ninja, Sasuke is the natural genius offspring of the once powerful Uchiha clan. One of the more outstanding clans in Konohagakure, the Uchiha clan was known for its kekkei genkai, the Sharingan, as well as their use of fire element jutsu after their country's namesake. Like most of the Uchiha clan members, Sasuke's chakra has an affinity for fire based jutsu. The clan also formed much of Konohagakure's village police force. Sasuke is one of two known remaining survivors.
Early childhood
The second son of a Konoha police captain, Sasuke grew up in the shadow of his older brother, Itachi. Itachi was an acknowledged prodigy who graduated at the top of his Academy class at age 7, mastered the Sharingan by age 8, became a Chunin at age 10, and an ANBU squad leader at the age of 13. The Uchiha clan took great pride and interest in Itachi and viewed him as a genius whose work would further strengthen the bonds between the village and the clan. In particular, Sasuke's father took an active interest in Itachi. Itachi, on the other hand, was rather ambivalent and full of oddly conflicting undercurrents, acknowledging Sasuke by taking interest in his progress as a ninja when even their father did not, but spending little quality time with Sasuke. Even after Sasuke enrolled in the Ninja Academy, he still was unable to escape Itachi's shadow. Despite consistently scoring at the head of every class, Sasuke failed to receive any recognition from his father, who defined Sasuke's success only in terms of his older brother. Itachi acknowledged the rivalry Sasuke felt, telling him, "We are unique siblings. I am the barrier you must overcome, so you and I will continue to exist together."
Itachi's relationship with his father deteriorated further when Itachi was questioned by other members of the Uchiha clan regarding the death and suicide note of his best friend, Shisui. As Itachi's behavior became increasingly bizarre, Sasuke's father, on a whim and partly due to Itachi's growing distance, decided to spend time with Sasuke. He taught him the Great Fireball Technique, a common family jutsu. Sasuke (age 7 at the time) eventually succeeded in performing the jutsu in front of his father after only one week of training, surprising him. At that moment, Sasuke finally received his father's recognition; the Uchiha clan considered the ability to perform fire jutsu as proof that one had become an adult. Sasuke's father told him that he could now proudly wear the clan's emblem on his back. More forebodingly, Sasuke also received a stern warning not to follow in Itachi's footsteps.
Shortly thereafter, Itachi massacred every member of the Uchiha clan, sparing only Sasuke. Itachi said that Sasuke was not even worth killing. In addition, Itachi told him "You've always wanted to surpass me. That's why I'm going to let you live." Itachi also revealed to Sasuke where the secret meeting place of the Uchiha was hidden and suggested that Sasuke go there to learn what the true history and purpose of the Sharingan is.
Sasuke collapsed, and awakened in the Konoha hospital to overhear villagers gossiping about the destruction of his clan. He escaped the hospital and wandered the village, remembering happy times with his murdered family and finally collapsing into tears as he reached the spot where his parents were killed. He then traveled to the Nakano shrine and found the secret of the Sharingan that Itachi promised him. Whatever he read there only seemed to harden his heart, and from that point forward, Sasuke's life was dedicated to vengeance against his brother.
Part I
Team 7
Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke are forced to cooperate against their will when they become the members of the newly founded Team 7 of academy graduates. Naruto initially has a one-sided rivalry with Sasuke, because Naruto spent his whole life shunned, scorned, and desperately seeking to attain the very same recognition and popularity Sasuke has been getting; this is only made worse by the fact that Naruto has a crush on Sakura who, in turn, is head over heels for Sasuke. Sasuke initially looks upon Naruto and his admirer, Sakura, with an equal smug distaste, viewing them as annoyances that 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 Hatake, the team's sensei notes and berates him for. However, Naruto and Sasuke's 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 of Naruto, Sasuke sees Naruto as constantly gaining ground each moment, which results in a state where they push and motivate each other to improve. Similarly, Sasuke's relationship with Sakura slowly changes for the better as a friend and teammate, while she slowly comes to understand the troubled person behind the "popular, brooding, pretty boy" image she initially crushed on.
Sasuke makes a point out of taunting Naruto on occasion, goading and egging him on with his air of superiority. He also continually disappoints Sakura by repeatedly informing her that he is not interested in going out with her. However, a bond between the three 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.
Land of Waves
Sasuke's first major mission was escorting the bridge builder, Tazuna, to his home in the poverty-stricken Wave Country. Sasuke showed exceptional skill when attacked by two missing-nin, The Demon Brothers, from the Hidden Mist village. Later on in the same mission, during the tree climbing exercise to improve chakra control, he managed to stay ahead of Naruto for a good length of time. He also stood toe to toe for a while with Haku, an exceptionally dangerous ninja with extreme speed and dexterity. It was during this battle that Sasuke awakened the legacy of his clan, the Sharingan, and in which he first demonstrated a willingness to put others before himself, selflessly putting himself in the way of Haku's attack on Naruto in a move that would have resulted in his death if Haku had meant to kill him rather than induce a temporary death-state. Although he claimed his body moved on its own, his actions show that, even at that early stage, he was willing to put himself in mortal danger for Naruto's sake. Naruto and Sasuke didn't know why though; they both hated each other but they were considering the other one a friend even though they didn't admit it.
Chunin Exam
Before the exams even started, Sasuke fought Rock Lee, who easily defeated him through the weakness of the Sharingan: if the user can't keep up with the target then the Sharingan is useless. However, before the finishing blow could be given, Might Guy, Lee's sensei, ends the match.
In the first part of the exam, Sasuke realizes that to succeed in the written test, it is required to cheat without getting caught, as the written exam tests a ninja's information gathering ability. Sasuke is shown using the Sharingan to copy the movement of a student in front of him, effectively copying the answers.
In the second test of the Chunin Exam, the Forest of Death, Sasuke battles a Rain ninja and manages to keep him from getting the scroll, which was the objective of the exam. Sasuke also battles a Grass ninja, who is actually Orochimaru in disguise. During the Forest of Death, Sasuke's bond with Naruto seems to strengthen and Sasuke realizes that Naruto is catching up to him, when Naruto stops Orochimaru's summonings from harming Sasuke. At this point, Naruto uses the exact phrase that Sasuke used to taunt him earlier, asking: "Hey, are you hurt, scaredy-cat?". This was a pivotal moment in their bond, as Sasuke realizes that he is in the position Naruto was in when they were attacked by the Mist ninja during the Land of Waves arc, a position where he feels inferior and powerless.
Naruto's positive influence on Sasuke does not please Orochimaru, who is interested in Sasuke as his next potential body, thanks to the Sharingan's technique copying ability, which would help greatly in Orochimaru's ambition to master all jutsu in the world. Orochimaru decides that it is imperative to somehow counter Naruto's positive influence on Sasuke and "dye him to his own color". To advance this cause he puts his cursed seal on Sasuke's neck during their fight in the Forest of Death. As Sasuke lies unconscious, he is haunted with hallucinations of his parents dying and Orochimaru blaming him and his weakness for their death, exploiting his trauma to subvert the bond he has with his comrades with promises of power.
Sasuke turns out to be strong enough to survive the one in ten chance of withstanding the seal and regains consciousness. Sasuke wakes up in a psychologically twisted state, colored by the seal in a sinister black flame-pattern and influenced by Orochimaru's suggestion, but this is still far from enough to destroy his bond with his teammates – the first thing he sees is a very wounded Sakura, and he consequently almost kills the Sound ninja who injured her. At the last minute, he is stopped by Sakura who hugs him and pleads for him to stop, who knows that the maniacally grinning Sasuke she sees before her "couldn't possibly be the Sasuke [she] know[s]."
Sasuke's match up in the preliminaries is against a member of Kabuto's team, Yoroi Akado. Before the fight starts, Kakashi warns Sasuke that if his curse mark gets out of control, he'll have to intervene and stop the match to control the mark, which bars Sasuke from using his Sharingan or any jutsu at all aside from taijutsu. The match starts with Yoroi stealing what little chakra Sasuke has left through his hands. The match seems hopeless for Sasuke, until he hears Naruto's nagging. Next to him is Rock Lee, which makes Sasuke get an idea. He creates a new move based on one of Lee's that he copied during their battle, the Lion Combo. Yoroi is knocked out, and Sasuke advances to the next round. After the fight, Kakashi takes him to seal the curse mark.
During the main matches, Sasuke is matched up against Gaara. Sasuke arrives late (because of some last-minute training by Kakashi), but his time is extended because most of the spectators had come just to see it. Sasuke demonstrates that his speed has vastly increased, to the point where he almost moves as fast as Lee. Kakashi actually had Sasuke imagine Lee's movements so he could mimic them. Sasuke also unveils his One Thousand Birds, which Kakashi taught him, to injure Gaara. Before the match could finish, it is interrupted by the start of Orochimaru's attack.
Destruction of Konoha
Sasuke chases after Gaara to resume their match. After some minor fights with Kankuro and Temari, Sasuke fights Gaara, who begins to transform into his Shukaku state. Already having have used chakra earlier, Sasuke is overpowered and defeated after he attempts to use his cursed seal to surpass the daily limit of two uses on his One Thousand Birds technique. Naruto and Sakura arrive just in time to save his life. Sasuke watches as Naruto defeats Gaara where he could not, growing jealous of Naruto's increasing power. Sakura, who had been unconscious for most of the fight, thanked Sasuke for saving her; Sasuke regretfully admitted that Naruto was the one who saved her, increasing his newly-formed jealousy.
Defection from Konoha
Sasuke's willpower is surprisingly strong enough to hold back the cursed seal, and after Kakashi performs his Evil Sealing Method technique on him, the cursed seal enters a dormant state that remains as long as the Evil Sealing Method is fueled by Sasuke's will. However, a series of events unfolds that changes Sasuke's outlook on life, causing a regression back into his former absolute fixation on revenge. With Sasuke already pressured by a growing jealousy over witnessing Naruto's leaps of improvement – culminating when Naruto defeated Gaara and saving Sakura, which Sasuke failed to do even when using the cursed seal – Itachi visits Konoha in search of Naruto and the demon fox, and upon challenging him, Sasuke is subjected to the Mangekyo Sharingan for the second time by Itachi, and the beating he receives drives him over the edge, returning him to his original goal: gaining enough power to kill his brother.
When Naruto returns from his search for Tsunade, Sasuke immediately challenges him to a fight, enraged that Itachi was more interested in Naruto's power than he was in Sasuke's. The two go to the roof of the hospital, where Sasuke reiterates that he is the superior of the two. Naruto retorts that he never considered himself to be inferior to Sasuke, and that their headbands indicated they were equals, but Sasuke refuses to wear his. With that, Sasuke and Naruto spar with such intensity that Kakashi has to stop them from using One Thousand Birds and Spiraling Sphere on each other. Kakashi deflects their attacks into adjacent water towers, and Sasuke momentarily revels in the sight of his tower being more damaged, taking this as proof his One Thousand Birds was stronger than Naruto's Spiraling Sphere. However, upon closer inspection, Sasuke is shocked to find that the back of Naruto's tower had completely been blown out by the power of the Spiraling Sphere.
Frustrated by Naruto's increasing power, Sasuke is lectured by Kakashi, who tells Sasuke that his comrades are the most important thing about being a Konoha ninja, and that One Thousand Birds should never be used on a fellow team member. Sasuke seems slightly receptive of Kakashi's message, but he has no time to contemplate any of it. As soon as Kakashi leaves, Orochimaru's Sound Four attack. Sasuke tries his best, but his every attempt is rendered useless. Sakon proceeds to goad Sasuke by telling him that if the Sound Four can beat him so easily, he has no chance of ever exacting revenge on Itachi. The Sound Four then extend an invitation to Sasuke: Follow them to the village of Sound and align himself with Orochimaru, who in turn will grant him the power he so desperately wants.
For this cause, Sasuke decides to take Orochimaru up on his offer, advancing his Cursed Seal into Stage Two instead of attempting to contain it, and turning his back on Konoha in the process. As he sneaks out of the village, Sakura finds him, and soon understands the magnitude of what he is about to do. Desperate not to lose Sasuke, Sakura does anything and everything she can think of, confessing her love for him and even offering to join his twisted journey so they at least can be together. Sasuke's cryptic last words before swiftly knocking her out and departing are "Sakura... Thank you".
A genin team consisting of Naruto, Kiba Inuzuka, Neji Hyuga and Choji Akimichi and led by Chunin Shikamaru Nara is sent to retrieve Sasuke, but encounters opposition from Orochimaru's Sound Four, who, by activating their cursed seals, can overpower Jonin-level ninjas. Naruto manages to reach Sasuke with tremendous aid from his teammates, several of whom are critically wounded. It is 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 Mangekyo Sharingan - which can only be attained by killing one's best friend, which is now Naruto for Sasuke.
Naruto refuses to accept Sasuke's decision and decides to drag Sasuke back to the village by force if he has to. They therefore engage in battle, with Sasuke initially having the upperhand thanks to his cursed seal and Sharingan. When he manages to pierce Naruto's right shoulder with his One Thousand Birds jutsu, however, the demon fox's chakra kicks in to protect Naruto, giving him a massive power increase.
With his fox chakra now active, Naruto easily tosses Sasuke about in an attempt to knock some sense into him. Sasuke merely retorts that Naruto could never understand what it's like to lose family members, as he never had them to begin with. Naruto reasons that Sasuke is like a brother to him, therefore he will not let him destroy that bond. Accepting Naruto's strength, Sasuke puts on his headband to indicate this point and his Sharingan fully develops, forming three tomoe in each eye. He still scoffs at the idea that Naruto would even be able to scratch his forehead. The battle from this point onward tips towards Sasuke's favor, with Naruto barely managing to keep up. Though Naruto lands a couple hits, he is injured once again by a piledriver from a high cliff by Sasuke. Like with his previous injury, the fox's chakra once again comes to his rescue, enveloping him in a fox-shaped shield of chakra and boosting his power once more.
With the fox chakra shield, Naruto is again more than Sasuke can handle, even with his cursed seal active. During the fight, Sasuke realizes that his brother must have been more interested in Naruto because of the strange power he has, though the source of that power still escapes him. To counter Naruto's power, Sasuke activates the second stage of his cursed seal, becoming a demonic figure with a pair of huge, hand-like wings sprouting from his back. The two are now even and in fairly bad shape (their respective states, though powerful, are also detrimental), so they finish their battle with a final display of power. Naruto attacks with his signature Spiraling Sphere (enhanced by his fox chakra) and Sasuke attacks with his One Thousand Birds (also enhanced by his current state). Upon impact, a massive dome of black energy forms around them. While both are quite capable of delivering a finishing blow, neither does. Instead, Sasuke merely punches Naruto in the chest while Naruto scratches Sasuke's headband.
After the energy dome dissipates, Sasuke is seen to be the victor, now standing over an unconscious Naruto. He considers killing Naruto, but realizes that doing so would be exactly what Itachi wants him to do. Leaving behind his headband, which fell off from Naruto's last attack, Sasuke makes his way to Orochimaru. While doing so, Sasuke resolves to surpass Itachi in his own way, instead of relying on the same skill Itachi uses.
Filler saga
Naruto the Movie
Sasuke played a small role in the first movie. Sasuke was the one who had the tickets to a Princess Fuu'un movie and encountered Fubuki through out the movie and defeated her with the Lion Combo. Sasuke used One Thousand Birds to damage Doto's armor, which led to him getting knocked out. He was seen looking out at the newly created Spring country with Sakura holding him and presented Naruto the autograph that he got him from Fuu'un in the ending credits.
Filler episodes
Sasuke is briefly seen in episode 170 of the anime with Orochimaru. He shows off his Sharingan on one of Orochimaru's acquaintances and says to Orochimaru that it is unnecessary to refer to him as Itachi Uchiha's little brother. He also later appears in episode 202 as a "special guest" and he was seen wearing a bluish-gray robe, but his bottom wear was unseen.
Part II
New personality
For the most part, Sasuke has stayed true to his original personality. When first meeting Sai, he did not care the slightest and was interested more in Orochimaru's presence. When Sai states that he might be able to get along better with Sasuke than he did with Naruto, Sasuke freezes him with a stare, catching Sai in a genjutsu exuding a large amount of killing intent. Sai is amazed that even an emotionless person such as himself was affected by Sasuke's gaze, showing the power of his Sharingan. When Sai comments on how Naruto and Sakura have been searching for him, Sasuke once again regards him with indifference.
It would appear that during his time with Orochimaru, he has come to the conclusion that if he ever wishes to stand a chance against Itachi, he needs to push away all of his past bonds with his friends and make revenge a priority, above even his own life. Because of this, he shows that he no longer cares about Konoha or anyone from the village. In spite of this, he chides Naruto about risking the lives of an entire squad to save one man, and comments that it could damage his chances of becoming Hokage. He also states that, unlike their last encounter at the waterfall, he has no more reservations about killing Naruto, and attempts to do so. He's also aware of the fact he is intended to be the container for Orochimaru's soul, showing that he doesn't care what happens to himself as long as it results in Itachi's death.
Unlike Kabuto or any of Orochimaru's subordinates, who address Orochimaru as "Orochimaru-sama" (which shows that they highly respect him), Sasuke simply refers to him as Orochimaru. Sasuke also never called Kakashi "Kakashi-sensei" (teacher) like the others did, something the Japanese would consider as very insulting or rude. Despite his association with the Sound Village, Sasuke does not wear a Sound headband, unlike most other subordinates of Orochimaru. He still wears the fan symbol of the Uchiha clan on his back, albeit much smaller and higher up by his shirt collar.
New abilities
Sasuke's fighting skills have improved greatly over the timeskip, which is exemplified by his new jutsu, One Thousand Birds Current. One Thousand Birds Current allows Sasuke to project electricity from his entire body for both defensive and offensive purposes. Sasuke now wields a Kusanagi sword like Orochimaru's, though his doesn't seem to carry the special abilities that Orochimaru's does. His version is also depicted as katana-like, whereas Orochimaru's looks more like a Chinese Jian. Sasuke uses the One Thousand Birds Current in conjunction with his sword to increase its cutting power, as well as to paralyze his opponents when he strikes them. In chapter 343 he is seen using lightning natured chakra manipulation, in the form of a katana in his left hand which he is able to extend at will. He has also become much more skilled with his Sharingan, to the point where he can perform genjutsu through simple eye contact. When Sasuke looks down to see Naruto crawling over to him in a sub-demon fox state, Sasuke is able to get into Naruto's mind and make contact with the demon fox, much to the surprise of Naruto and the fox. Unexpectedly, the demon fox itself knew about the Uchiha clan. The demon fox mentions a Madara Uchiha, saying that Sasuke's eyes and chakra are even more sinister than its own. Furthermore, it appears that Sasuke can suppress the demon fox's chakra. The demon fox warns Sasuke not to kill Naruto, as he would regret it.
Just before his departure, Sasuke attempts to use another jutsu to end the battle, only to be stopped by Orochimaru. Orochimaru says that leaving them alive would help Sasuke against his brother because they are also opposing Akatsuki.
Current arc
Sasuke appears with Orochimaru after having defeated a large number of ninja. Orochimaru scolds Sasuke for not killing a single one of them, to which Sasuke replies that the only person he feels like killing is Itachi. Orochimaru also observes that Sasuke wasn't damaged once during the fight, and that Sasuke's abilities far surpass his own when he was Sasuke's age. Later, as Orochimaru lies sick in bed, Sasuke attacks him with a blade made of lightning chakra, saying that he has nothing more to learn from Orochimaru. After activating his Sharingan and cursed seal, Sasuke decides that he feels like killing Orochimaru as well. Having expected Sasuke to turn on him, Orochimaru reveals his true form in preparations of taking Sasuke's body now. To compensate for Orochimaru's newfound abilities, Sasuke advances to level 2 of his cursed seal, and prepares to do battle with Orochimaru.
Sakura Haruno (Naruto)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
|Sakura Haruno
Sakura Haruno by Masashi Kishimoto
|Manga Chapter 3
Naruto Episode 1
|Chie Nakamura
|Voice actor(s)
|Kate Higgins
|12-13 in Part I
15 in Part II
|March 28
|Blood Type
|Part I: 150.1 cm
Part II: 165 cm
|35.9 kg
|Current rank
|Chunin (Medic-nin)
|Current affiliation
|Current team
|Team Yamato (Yamato, Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, Sai)
|Previous team
|Team 7 (Kakashi Hatake, Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno)
|Signature jutsu/Kekkei genkai
Sakura Haruno (春野サクラ, Haruno Sakura?) is a fictional character in the anime and manga series Naruto.
The name "Haruno" means "spring field" and "Sakura" means "cherry blossom", which is cherished in Japan due to its beauty and almost tragically short life span (sakura blossoms have historically been associated with samurai).
In the June 2006 issue of the American version of Shonen Jump, Masashi Kishimoto (in the voice of Kakashi) stated that Sakura would make the best ninja instructor, because "she has flaws in her personality, like stalking Sasuke, but Sakura is the closest to being normal."
In Shonen Jump's character popularity polls, Sakura is frequently in the Top 10, making the Top 5 once.
[edit] Background
At the beginning of the series, Sakura is a Genin-level student of Kakashi Hatake and teammate of Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha. Initially, Sakura's stamina and overall talent were quite below average, having had only used a few skills over the course of the series, the most advanced of which is dispelling genjutsu. Sakura's main strengths are her intelligence and her great chakra control. She was able to climb trees using her chakra on her first try while it took several days of constant training for Naruto and even Sasuke to manage it.
Inside Sakura resides the "Inner Sakura", which seems to be much more ill-tempered than Naruto's demon fox. Inner Sakura seems to represent an assertive part of her personality and mostly serves as comic relief. Sakura's typical gentle responses are juxtaposed with the Inner Sakura's constant "Shannaro" (しゃーんなろー). The phrase has no literal meaning, but is usually translated as "Hell yeah", "Hell no", or "Damn it", depending on the situation (in the English anime, it's translated as an angry and forceful "Cha!"). Inner Sakura is often attributed to being Sakura's defining ability, aside from her chakra control, much like Sasuke's Sharingan or Naruto's demon fox. Inner Sakura actually exists as a separate spirit within Sakura, which came in handy during her battle with her rival, Ino Yamanaka. When Ino hit Sakura with her Mind Body Switch Technique, she only suppressed the regular Sakura. As such, Inner Sakura, after a little prodding by Naruto, was able to emerge and force Ino to leave. After this point, Inner Sakura only appears once in episode 197 of the anime, when Sakura fails to notice that a smoke bomb was set off the night before, and once in chapter 250 of the manga, when Naruto tries to refuse a mission assigned by Tsunade. Sakura, however, does occasionally exhibit traits that would have originally have been confined to Inner Sakura, though they are rarely seen (they become more frequent after the timeskip, a sign that Sakura is becoming more comfortable with herself and is showing her true nature more often).
Sakura's favorite foods are syrup-coated anko dumplings and umeboshi (pickled ume fruits); her least favorite food is anything really spicy. Her hobbies are quizzes and memorizing things and her favorite phrase is "courage" (勇気, Yūki?), although it was once "a lifetime full of love" (一線愛の人生よ!, Issen ai no jinsei yo!?). The latter was also featured in the ending song of episode 170 as a painting on her bedroom wall. She is also shown to be afraid of frogs.
[edit] Part I
[edit] Early childhood
In her early school years, Sakura was timid and was occasionally made fun of and bullied because of her large forehead, until Ino Yamanaka approached and befriended her, giving her a ribbon and telling her not to hide behind her bangs. Sakura looked up to Ino for her looks and ability, but while she appreciated Ino's friendship, she couldn't ignore the feelings of inferiority Ino induced in her. At one point, during a flower arrangement lesson, Sakura wonders whether Ino was like a fully bloomed flower, and if so, then what was she? Ino cheered her up, telling her that even a bud eventually becomes a flower, and there's no point to a flower unless it blooms. Their friendship continued until it became clear that both of them were infatuated with Sasuke Uchiha; 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. Their friendship slowly deteriorated into a spiteful rivalry; by the start of the series, there is no indication that they were once best friends.
In a sharp contrast to most other characters, Sakura lacks any childhood tragedy and, initially, defining themes (Masashi Kishimoto said that he made her initially unlikable by design). When she, Naruto, and Sasuke are assigned to form Team 7, she is fixated with Sasuke and cannot stand Naruto - hardly knowing either of them. Shortly after their team's formation, she tells Sasuke that she believes the reason that Naruto behaves mischievously is because he doesn't have any parents to control him, and that she's jealous because her parents are always trying to tell her what to do. Though Naruto isn't there to be outraged by this, Sasuke knows from personal experience that parental chastisement is nothing compared to the loneliness of an orphan, and harshly berates her frivolous attitude. This is the first hint that Sakura isn't as shallow as she's been presented, and she concludes that Sasuke was probably right and she should treat Naruto better (though even this may be partly due to her infatuation - Kakashi later notes that she always agrees with Sasuke without question).
[edit] Survival Test arc
Though her initial infatuation with Sasuke still overshadows her interactions with both him and Naruto at that stage, Sakura's understanding and respect for both her teammates grow again during the Survival Test. Kakashi, the sensei of the newly-formed Team 7, administers a test designed to split the team apart – only the genin who capture one of the bells hanging from his belt will pass, but there are only two bells and three genin. As Kakashi expects, the "team" splits; he easily counters their individual attempts at seizing the bells, then admonishes Sakura for ignoring Naruto in favor of Sasuke even though Sasuke had declared both his teammates to be nothing more than an obstacle. Kakashi allows Sakura and Sasuke to eat lunch in anticipation of their next attempt – but not Naruto, who had earlier tried to eat the team's box lunches. Though warned that feeding Naruto means failure, she follows Sasuke in doing so. Pleased, Kakashi passes the team, saying that while those who disobey the rules are garbage, those who abandon their teammates are even lower.
[edit] Wave Country arc
Later, when the team is sent on a dangerous mission in the Land of Waves, Sakura is first confronted with the meaning of being a kunoichi as she witnesses what appears to be Sasuke's death. She recites Shinobi Rule #25 (to not show emotion under any circumstance) as she violates it, bursting into tears on Sasuke's chest. Her tears become joyous as Sasuke awakens from what was only a death-trance.
[edit] Chunin Exam arc
The first stage of the Chunin exam is a written test, designed specifically to be too difficult for Genin to complete, forcing them to cheat. However, Sakura is able to complete the exam by herself, a testimony to her intelligence. At the end of this exam, the teams are presented with the mysterious "tenth question" and given a choice of whether to take it or not. The examiner tells them that not taking it fails your whole team immediately, but failing to answer correctly prevents you from becoming a Chunin forever. Sakura, knowing that Naruto couldn't have answered questions of this difficulty correctly, starts to raise her own hand to quit, forfeiting her own chance at becoming a Chunin this year so that Naruto would at least have the chance to take the exam again. She is stopped, however, when Naruto raises his own hand. Shortly after, he slams it down on his desk declaring that he won't back down or quit, which turns out to be the correct answer.
The second stage is set in the Forest of Death. Soon after Team 7 enters the forest, Naruto and Sasuke are rendered unconscious as a result of their fights with Orochimaru. When a group of Sound Genin choose this moment to attack the group, Sakura realizes that she will have to protect her friends if they are to live and pass the exam. As Kin Tsuchi grabs her long hair and immobilizes her, she comments on how Sakura's hair was glossier than her own, saying Sakura spent more time on her looks than on her training. (Sakura had grown her hair long because of a rumor that Sasuke liked girls with long hair.) At this point, she begins to think about how she always scorned Naruto, believing herself to be above him, even though she could only watch from the sidelines while he fought to protect her. She realizes that she was the weakest member of Team 7, and, deciding to change herself and fight for her friends, cuts off her hair with a kunai, freeing herself from Kin's grasp. (This is a twist on a common Japanese fiction image, where a character--often a woman--cuts her hair short simply as a symbol of discarding her previous life.) After getting away from Kin, she delays Zaku Abumi's attack on Sasuke by tricking him with a series of replacement jutsus, slamming her kunai into his arm and biting him. Even as Zaku punches her repeatedly in the head, Sakura refuses to let go. This display spurs Ino and her team into coming to Sakura's aid, allowing the latter to rest.
Although Team 10 contributes heavily to the fight with the Sound Genin, it is Sasuke, who finally awakes engulfed by Orochimaru's cursed seal, that defeats them. He inquires about who is responsible for Sakura's wounds and, upon learning that it is Zaku, Sasuke proceeds to savagely brutalize him, making several scathing and ominous comments about Zaku's arms before finally wrenching them out of their sockets. However, before he can continue, Sakura, knowing that the Sasuke she knew would never go on a pointless killing spree, catches him in a hug from behind, begging him to stop and causing the cursed seal's influence to recede. After Team 7 recovers, they go on to pass the second stage.
In the preliminaries of the third exam, Sakura is matched against Ino. During their fight, Sakura notices that Ino is holding back, and insults Ino to fluster her to the point where Ino cuts her own hair (not wanting to be outdone by Sakura's newfound determination). This turns out to nearly be Sakura's undoing, as Ino is then able to turn her hair into living ropes with her chakra, and hold Sakura in place. When Ino manages to hit Sakura with her Mind Body Switch Technique, Naruto cheers Sakura on. While this just seems to annoy Ino, it also helps Inner Sakura break free, allowing her to force Ino out of her mind. In the end, however, the fight between Sakura and Ino ends with both girls knocking each other out at the same time, causing both of them to lose.
In the actual third exam, Sakura exhibits feelings of both amazement and slight jealousy when Naruto wins his match against Neji, promising that she would do her best to become a strong shinobi from then on out. She was also one of the few Genin able to repel Kabuto Yakushi's sleep-causing genjutsu, and also managed to show extreme bravery when she came between Gaara's attack in his Shukaku form to protect Sasuke.
[edit] Sasuke Retrieval arc
Eventually, Sasuke decides to abandon Konoha so that Orochimaru can give him the power he desires. As he leaves the village, Sakura finds him, and soon understands the magnitude of what he is about to do. Crying and desperate not to lose Sasuke, Sakura does anything she can think of, confessing her love for him, offering to help him with his revenge, and even offering to join his twisted journey so they can at least be together. Sasuke's cryptic last words before swiftly knocking her out and departing are "Sakura... Thank you." The databook elaborates on this a bit, saying "Sasuke is unable to answer her feelings. At the end, he leaves her with only a word of gratitude rather than words of parting."
The next day, before Naruto leaves to bring Sasuke back, Sakura appears and begs Naruto to bring back Sasuke, stating that only Naruto is able to do it. Naruto, looking at the crying Sakura, promises her that he will bring Sasuke back, making it his promise to her for a lifetime. Sakura seems to finally understand how Naruto feels for her, and she realizes that he is not what she originally thought he was.
When Naruto comes back from the retrieval mission, he can only tell Sakura that he's sorry for failing. He tells Sakura that he'll definitely keep his promise, because he said it was a lifelong promise. Sakura, seeing his determination, replies, giving him a strong smile, "Next time, we'll do it together!" Later on, she asks Tsunade to make her her apprentice. Tsunade, recognizing her determination, agrees to Sakura's request.
[edit] Anime filler arcs
The anime filler shows some of her progress from Tsunade's training before the timeskip. She gets noticeably stronger and exhibits amazing progress in her healing abilities as well.
[edit] Konoha 11 arc
During the Konoha 11 arc, Shikamaru has Sakura examine the body of Gennou. With the help of Ino and Hinata, she learns that it is actually the body of a random civilian. After Gennou is discovered and it appears as if he succeeded in destroying the Hokage mountain, Sakura declares that it is all an illusion and dispels it. After Gennou summons his giant bird, she throws a large boulder at it, but misses, allowing Naruto to hit the bird with his Spiraling Sphere.
[edit] Shiitenshounin arc
In the Shiitenshounin arc, Sakura serves as a medic. At the end of the arc, Ino asks to train with Sakura to be a medical ninja. To her dismay, Sakura immediately proclaims that Ino will be her junior during the course of the training.
[edit] Movies
[edit] Naruto the Movie
Sakura played a small role in the 1st movie. She encountered Mizore throughout the movie and defeated him with Sakura Blizzard Technique. She looked out at the newly born Spring Country with a greatly injured Sasuke.
[edit] Naruto the Movie 2
Sakura played a major role in the second movie. During a final battle with Haido's wolf-like henchman, Sakura killed her using metal pillars to reflect her ear-splitting howl and caused the pillars to collapse in on her.
[edit] Naruto the Movie 3
Sakura is assigned to protect the prince of the Land of the Moon during his world trip, along with Naruto and Rock Lee. Sakura has a new outfit in the movie, which is like her old one, only two piece. In this movie, Sakura is seen with her newly acquired strength from the tutelage of Tsunade. When fighting a blonde-haired assailant, Sakura destroys a wall with a single punch.
[edit] Part II
[edit] New personality
After the timeskip, Sakura's personality has taken on a much more mature and even tone. Like most people when they come of age, she seems to be much more comfortable in her own skin than when she was younger, frequently displaying the more ferocious aspects of her personality formerly personified in the Inner Sakura segments, instead of just responding within her timid restraint. Jiraiya comments that she is becoming another Tsunade upon first seeing her.
When reunited with Naruto, she asks him if she looks more like a woman in a flirtatious way. Clueless, Naruto remarks that she looks no different, annoying her. On two separate occasions, Sakura beats up Sai over the issue, once for calling her "Hag", and a second time when Sai complimented Ino by calling her "beautiful" (Sakura had expected Sai to insult Ino).
Sakura's first impression of the new Naruto was that of a more mature person; she was sorely disappointed to discover he was still somewhat lacking in that department. Despite this, she does see that he has mostly changed for the better, and they are very close. They are able to work together much better than before, passing their second bell test due to their excellent, if somewhat unorthodox, teamwork. She still insults him, but in a much more playful manner than before. When Naruto defines one of their outings as a date, Sakura, still furious over the maturity letdown, replies "Fine. As long as you're paying." She is more concerned for his well-being, especially since he's a target of Akatsuki and under constant danger of death. She has cried for him on several occasions, especially upon learning that if the demon fox is extracted by Akatsuki, Naruto will die. Yamato tries to give a clear description of these feelings at one point while Naruto is unconscious, but Naruto wakes up and interrupts him before he can say anything significant.
The state of her feelings for Sasuke are still unclear and conflicting, though she still seems to care for him as at least a friend, as she hits Sai when he insults Sasuke. Even with those feelings, during their first encounter after the timeskip, Sakura looks at Sasuke with hostility and tries to attack him. Needless to say, for both herself and Naruto, Sasuke is still a very touchy subject, and both have a moment of comically-exaggerated gloominess when Kakashi mentions him during the second bell test. However, over the past two and a half years, Sakura has become more confident and less self-conscious around him; she is even willing to attack him to protect her friends and bring him home. In a later chapter, she sheds a tear over a picture of the former Team 7.
[edit] New abilities
After two and a half years of intense training under Tsunade, Sakura has become an excellent combat Medic-nin, and her abilities as a ninja have improved substantially in the form of medical jutsu and the use of chakra to create immense physical strength, also due to Tsunade's tutelage. An example of her enhanced strength after the timeskip is seen when she slams her fist into the ground to force Kakashi, who had hidden underground, to reveal himself during the bell test; her superhuman strength easily splits the ground apart. Naruto and Kakashi, both shocked by the display, commented on her technique in reaction to this, calling it her "insane strength". Another useful skill Sakura picked up from Tsunade's teachings is the ability to decipher the pattern of attacks from an enemy. Tsunade stated that this skill was especially important for Medic-nins to know as they generally possess less stamina and combat ability on the battlefield.
The reason why Tsunade and Sakura possess such remarkable physical strength is due to their unrivaled chakra control; their strength comes from the precise build-up and release of chakra, which requires almost inhuman timing and precision. If Sakura's chakra control was not top notch, Tsunade would have never been able to teach her the technique, let alone medical jutsu. Over time, both Tsunade and Sakura seem to instinctively use this jutsu (storing up chakra and releasing it), without actually having to concentrate. Sakura is amongst the most efficient chakra users in the entire series, potentially surpassing even her own master, considering she was able to learn such high level medical abilities in such a short amount of time. Also, Sakura's medical skills have been said to exceed those of many medical ninja of higher rank, and she is probably on par with, or even surpasses, Tsunade's and Kabuto's skill when they were her age. Both Kakashi and Chiyo have praised Sakura for having the potential to surpass Tsunade.
[edit] Rescue Gaara arc
Sakura played an instrumental role in the opening chapters of the Rescue Gaara arc, creating an antidote for Sasori's poison and curing Kankuro. She also assists Chiyo in defeating Sasori in combat, gaining information about Orochimaru in the process. Chiyo uses chakra strings to control Sakura like a puppet so that she could help Sakura dodge Sasori's attacks. With her vigorous strength, Sakura easily demolishes the puppet Sasori is hiding in with one hit. Sakura also seems to have a determination that was previously not present when she was younger: she keeps herself going even when she gets stabbed in the stomach with Sasori's poisoned katana to help protect Chiyo. She is now motivated by an intense desire to be of use to her village and friends, help Naruto rescue Sasuke, and prevent Naruto from becoming a victim of Akatsuki after seeing what happened to Gaara.
[edit] Team 10 arc
Sakura remains a member of Team 7 (now composed of Yamato, Naruto, Sai, and herself), and has acted as a liaison between Team 7 and her mentor, Tsunade, reporting on Naruto's progress in mastering his new jutsu. Most recently, Team 7 arrived to assist in a running battle against two members of Akatsuki. Sakura, along with Sai, was sent to assist Shikamaru in the battle against Hidan, only to find that Shikamaru had already defeated him. Recently she has mostly healed Naruto's arm from the damage his jutsu caused him. When she and her team were eating ramen, she attempted to feed Naruto when Sai beat her to it.
Kakashi Hatake
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
|Kakashi Hatake
Kakashi Hatake by Masashi Kishimoto
|Manga Chapter 3
Naruto Episode 3
|Kazuhiko Inoue
|Voice actor(s)
|Dave Wittenberg
|26-27 in Part I
29 in Part II
|September 15
|Blood Type
|181 cm
|67.5 kg
|Known relatives
|Sakumo Hatake (father, deceased)
|Current rank
|Current affiliation
|Current team
|Team 10 (Kakashi Hatake, Shikamaru Nara, Ino Yamanaka, Choji Akimichi)
|Previous team
|Team Fourth (Fourth Hokage, Kakashi Hatake, Obito Uchiha, Rin)
ANBU (Kakashi Hatake, Yamato, other ANBU)
Team 7 (Kakashi Hatake, Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno)
|Signature jutsu/Kekkei genkai
Kakashi Hatake (はたけカカシ, Hatake Kakashi?) is a fictional character in the anime and manga series Naruto. Though his name is written in the manga using kana, Japanese syllabic scripts that carry no particular meaning, the family name "Hatake" can be written in kanji (Chinese characters) as 畑 (はたけ, hatake), which means 'field' or 'farmland'. The name "Kakashi" can be written in kanji as 案山子 (かかし, kakashi), which means 'scarecrow'. Oddly enough, Naruto uses a scarecrow look-alike of Kakashi to practice on the day before Team 7's first test. Also, when Sakura spies on Kakashi so he would take off his mask, he replaces himself with a scarecrow to get rid of her. Kakashi is a popular character, consistently ranking in the Top 5 in Shonen Jump magazine's official polls. He has taken 1st place in these polls twice.
[edit] Background
Kakashi is a Konoha Jonin and the current leader of Team 7, which originally consisted of Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha, and Sakura Haruno. He is known as Copy Ninja Kakashi (コピー忍者のカカシ, Kopī Ninja no Kakashi?) or Sharingan Kakashi (写輪眼のカカシ, Sharingan no Kakashi?), referring to the Sharingan in his left eye and his use of it in battle, which has allowed him to copy more than one thousand jutsu. Kakashi's Sharingan eye is not his own; it originally belonged to his former teammate and friend, Obito Uchiha.
Though he reportedly has many hobbies, the one pastime seen most in the series is his reading of "Icha Icha Paradise" (イチャイチャパラダイス, Icha Icha Paradaisu?, literally "Make out Paradise"), an adult and probably pornographic novel authored by Jiraiya that is a runaway bestseller in the Naruto world. Kakashi most prominently reads it while training and speaking with Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura, and later in the series can be seen reading the second volume, "Icha Icha Violence" (イチャイチャバイオレンス, Icha Icha Baiorensu?, literally Make Out Violence").
Kakashi has an ongoing, albeit slightly one-sided, rivalry with Might Guy; Guy constantly proclaims that Kakashi is his rival and challenges him on occasion, but Kakashi simply acts indifferent to the matter, annoying Guy to no end. Kakashi's current record stands at 49 wins and 50 losses, though the contests that make up this figure are so varied that it is not much of an achievement on Guy's part. Nevertheless, Guy is proud of his record. The contests have included 100-meter dashes, sumo-wrestling, ramen-eating contests, and even Rock, Paper, Scissors. Guy serves as a perfect antithesis for Kakashi in personality, appearance, and technique. Unlike Kakashi, Guy had to work hard to achieve success as a ninja and mainly uses taijutsu. Kakashi, on the other hand, uses mainly ninjutsu and other techniques he copies with his Sharingan.
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, and he's confirmed that everyone he loves is already dead. He is immediately recognizable as the son of (or mistaken for) the "White Fang of Konoha" (木ノ葉の白い牙, Konoha no Shiroi Kiba?), Sakumo Hatake. Though his face has never been seen, episode 101, which is devoted to Team Kakashi trying to remove their sensei's mask, implies that he is in fact quite handsome.
According to official handbook his favorite foods are broiled saury with salt and miso soup with eggplant; his least, Tempura. His favorite word is "Teamwork." His hobby is reading "Icha Icha Paradise."
[edit] History
- See also: Kakashi Gaiden
Like his father, whose skills have been compared to that of the Legendary Sannin, Kakashi is considered a genius shinobi, graduating from the Ninja Academy at age 5 and achieving the rank of Chunin at 6. A few years after these accomplishments, Kakashi's father was disgraced by the village for abandoning a mission in favor of saving his comrades, which cost the Land of Fire dearly. Because of the shame he felt, Sakumo committed suicide, leaving Kakashi to bear witness to the event. After his father's suicide, Kakashi began to adhere strictly to the rules of the shinobi – in particular the rule dictating that the success of the mission must come before the well being of one's teammates, causing him to become arrogant, humorless, and by-the-book.
At the age of 13, Kakashi achieved Jonin status. As a reward for his accomplishment, he was assigned to lead his team on a sabotage mission to blow up a bridge in order to prevent Iwagakure forces from entering the Land of Grass, where the enemy could easily mount an attack on Konoha. Shortly after the mission started, Kakashi's team encountered an enemy shinobi and his clones. Kakashi saw this as a good time to test his newly-developed jutsu One Thousand Birds, but could not find the real enemy amongst the clones. After Kakashi's shoulder was slashed by the shinobi in the confusion, the Fourth Hokage had to rescue Kakashi. The Fourth Hokage sternly told Kakashi never to use the jutsu again due to it being so fast that the user couldn't see and prepare for the enemy's counter. Later on, after the Fourth Hokage had left the team to go to the front lines, Kakashi's teammate Rin was captured by enemy shinobi. Obito wanted to save her, but Kakashi said they had to focus on the mission, opting not to make the same mistake his father had. Though Kakashi believed that they had to complete their objective, Obito eventually convinced him that his father had done the right thing, causing Kakashi to join in on the rescue effort.
During their attempt to save Rin, Kakashi lost his left eye as a result of an enemy ninja's attack. To protect Kakashi, Obito awakened his Sharingan, and killed Kakashi's assailant. Soon after saving Rin, Obito again saved Kakashi, pushing him out of the way of another enemy's rock-dislodging attack, but was crushed in the process. As he lay dying, Obito had Rin (a medical ninja) implant his Sharingan eye in Kakashi's damaged eye socket as a gift, thus creating Copy Ninja Kakashi. As his first act, Kakashi avenged Obito by killing the enemy ninja with One Thousand Birds, now perfected with the addition of Obito's Sharingan.
Obito's death profoundly changed Kakashi, and Kakashi adopts many of Obito's traits. One such trait is Obito's concept of teamwork, which is most clearly seen in the way Kakashi tests newly-graduated students hoping to become a squad under him. He uses the bell test to test his students, which requires the three students to get the two bells he keeps on his person. Only those who get a bell get to pass, which would be difficult even with teamwork, as at least one ninja would fail regardless. However, the rule is only a ruse; the point of the test is to foster teamwork and teach the students that some rules need to be broken on occasion. Team 7 is the only team to have realized this and passed the test. Kakashi also inherits Obito's chronic tardiness, due primarily to losing track of time during his frequent visits to Konoha's memorial site, which he visits for Obito's sake.
[edit] Ability
As stated by Sakura, Kakashi is the highest-ranking technique specialist in Konoha, and said to be the strongest Jonin in the village by the manga databooks. He tends to focus mainly on ninjutsu though, using his Sharingan to copy the techniques of others and then turn them on their source. However, he is skilled in all three forms of jutsu, having shown his abilities with genjutsu in the bell test with Team 7. Though having shown very little prowess in taijutsu, Naruto commented that Kakashi was more skilled than Rock Lee, who himself is extremely good at it. Kakashi's chakra seems to have a natural affinity to lightning, as shown numerous times throughout the series. Kakashi even openly states so while training Naruto.
Kakashi has his own personal pack of Ninken ("ninja dogs"), which he calls into battle with the Summoning Technique. The dogs were apparently trained by Kakashi, and the smallest one, Pakkun, can even speak. He uses these dogs for tracking purposes, but they can also be used for attack, as seen during his battle with Zabuza Momochi, in which he uses Summoning: Earth Release: Tracking Fang Technique to hold Zabuza still by having the dogs follow Zabuza through the ground by tracking the scent of Kakashi's blood on his sword.
Though Kakashi has copied the majority of his jutsu, his most powerful jutsu is his one and only creation: the One Thousand Birds, a ball of lightning-based chakra held in the hand that can kill in a single hit. Kakashi's current version is known as Lightning Blade, because he is said to have cut through a lightning bolt with it. This version is also more powerful and requires better chakra control, making the two separate, yet still similar, techniques. While the jutsu normally has the downside of leaving the user open to a counter-attack, Kakashi's Sharingan eye allows him to bypass that weakness.
Kakashi's Sharingan eye gives him a significant advantage in battle, as he can copy enemy techniques and use them as his own, as well as track and predict his opponent's movement almost flawlessly. In addition, he can even copy a jutsu that an opponent hasn't used through the Sharingan's hypnotic and suggestive abilities. However, because it is a transplanted eye, his Sharingan eye is always active. While this would not be a problem for an Uchiha, his non-Uchiha blood causes it to use much more chakra than it should. Because of this, he covers it with his forehead protector and only utilizes it in the most dangerous battles. Kakashi's use of the Sharingan is almost as good as that of Itachi Uchiha, though the aforementioned handicaps brought about by the nature of his eye make him weaker in comparison.
In Part II, Kakashi has developed his own variant of the Mangekyo Sharingan, which acts differently than Itachi's. With it, he can manipulate space-time, even to a focus, and utilize it to conduct long range attacks. In its premiere, he managed to sever Deidara's right arm. Later on, when Deidara's clone attempted to blow himself and everyone around him up, he used the Mangekyo Sharingan to send the clone to another dimension. The Mangekyo Sharingan tires Kakashi considerably, and after using it three times he was hospitalized for weeks.
[edit] Part I
[edit] Team 7
The initial results of the Survival Training Exam for Team 7 were unpromising. Sakura's tunnel vision focus on Sasuke, Naruto's impulsive insistence on being a one man show and Sasuke's arrogant superiority complex and loner attitude resulted in a huge lack of teamwork, which led them to fail the Survival Training Exam. During lunchtime, Naruto was not to be given any food from either Sasuke or Sakura since he tried to eat it by himself during the test. But by breaking that rule, they were the first to pass the test, since the true purpose was to test their teamwork and commitment to each other; not to follow rules that would jeopardize the lives of their comrades.
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 Land of Waves against Zabuza Momochi and his student, Haku.
Kakashi's controversial decision to permit Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura to take the Chunin 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 even himself 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 Kiba Inuzuka, 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!" Naturally, Kakashi was amused.
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 Chunin exam until Sasuke's defection to Orochimaru, Kakashi takes an active role in training Sasuke, teaching him One Thousand Birds 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 name is engraved in the memorial stone. Sasuke's Sharingan ability and natural talent, combined by a need for supervision due to the cursed seal and Orochimaru, lead Kakashi to train Sasuke for the third portion of the Chunin 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 Itachi Uchiha, 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 One Thousand Birds 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. This may be the first time that being late has severely cost him, though it is worth noting that Kakashi was away on a mission when Sasuke left and immediately pursued Naruto and Sasuke when he heard from Tsunade that Sasuke had left.
With Kakashi being 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, Team 7 was defunct during the timeskip.
[edit] Filler arcs
Curiously, Kakashi had very few appearances in the filler arcs compared to his role in the main series. He first appeared briefly in the Mizuki Strikes Back arc, summoning Pakkun to aid Iruka Umino in locating the escaped criminals. He also briefly appeared at the beginning of the one-episode-long comedy arc, Green Beasts, where he notified Tsunade of the Guy and Rock Lee impostors. Later, Kakashi came to the aid of Naruto, Neji and Tenten in the latter half of the Land of Birds arc, defeating two of the main Watari Ninja. He also appeared briefly in the Shiitenshounin arc, summoning his pack of nin-dogs to search Takumi Village after hearing rumors about an ultimate weapon being developed there. Because Konoha is shorthanded, most of Kakashi's time is dedicated to S-rank missions.
[edit] Naruto the Movie
Kakashi played a small role in the 1st movie. He freed the Princess Fuun movie's staff from being tied up by Sakura and Sasuke due to them thought to be guilty of hunting Fuun. The three Snow Ninja and Doto appear to know Kakashi from a time before the movie takes place. Kakashi encountered Nadare throughout the movie and defeated him using a variant of the Front Lotus. It also states in the movie that Kakashi was the one who saved Fuun when she was a child during his time as an ANBU member.
[edit] Part II
After two and a half years, Naruto and Jiraiya return to the village earlier than expected because of the eagerness of Akatsuki to capture Naruto for the nine-tailed demon fox sealed within him. Kakashi forms a team with Naruto and Sakura again. However, the relationship between the three is no longer teacher 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. This time, however, the purpose is to actually retrieve the bells, since there's no longer an uneven number. The exercise reveals that Naruto and Sakura's skills and abilities had improved over the years, though he is still able to keep the bells from them. 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. During the test, Naruto tried to spoil the ending of the latest volume, "Icha Icha Tactics" (イチャイチャタクティクス, Icha Icha Takutikusu?, literally "Make out Tactics"), which Naruto gave to Kakashi. Kakashi is forced to both cover his ears and close his eyes, since he could read their lip movements with his Sharingan.
[edit] Rescue Gaara Arc
Upon hearing that Gaara has been kidnapped by Akatsuki, the team of Naruto, Sakura and Kakashi are sent to the village of the Sand for assistance. When they arrive, Chiyo attacks Kakashi, believing him to be the White Fang of Konoha, who was apparently involved in her son's death. She soon realizes her mistake and laughs it off as senility. After Sakura heals Kankuro from his poisoning at the hands of Sasori, Chiyo joins the three Leaf Ninjas in tracking down Gaara. However, they are confronted by Itachi Uchiha, who is defeated by Naruto and Kakashi. However, it turns out that this manifestation of Itachi was nothing more than a body substitution jutsu.
Finally arriving at the place where Gaara is being held (and meeting Team Guy there also), they break into the cave to find Deidara and Sasori standing over Gaara's limp body. Deidara creates a clay bird, and leaves with Gaara's body, while Kakashi and Naruto chase, leaving Chiyo and Sakura to deal with Sasori. Whilst chasing Deidara, Kakashi activates his new Mangekyo Sharingan and uses it to tear off Deidara's remaining arm. Naruto advances to finish him off, but when Naruto realizes his Spiraling Sphere hits nothing more than a Deidara clone, he starts to lose his composure and grow chakra tails. Kakashi then uses a seal that Jiraiya gave him to quickly return Naruto to normal, thus stopping Naruto's transformation at only two tails.
As Deidara tries one last attack with his explosive clay, Kakashi once again uses his Mangekyo Sharingan to send the clay explosion to another dimension. Kakashi then collapses from exhaustion from overusing his Sharingan. The effects on his body are so severe that, in a rather hilarious moment, Kakashi has to be carried back to Konoha on Might Guy's back. Kakashi is unable to accompany Naruto and Sakura on their next mission, and Yamato temporarily replaces him as the leader of Team 7.
[edit] Team 10 arc
After Team 7 returns from a failed attempt to bring Sasuke back to Konoha, a healthy Kakashi begins to teach Naruto how to make his own jutsu so that he can compete with Sasuke more easily. Because creating new jutsu usually takes years, time that Naruto doesn't have the patience or convenience for, Kakashi utilizes a unique training method: having Naruto train with shadow clones. Because the experiences of shadow clones are transferred to the original person once they have dispersed, by having shadow clones train along side oneself, training can be accomplished exponentially faster than usual. Because Naruto has chakra reserves several times larger than any other ninja, he can create shadow clones in the thousands, meaning he can finish the training that would normally take years in a matter of days.
To create the new jutsu, Naruto must first be able to master the manipulation of his elemental chakra, something that Kakashi is able to think up exercises for. Once Naruto does so, Kakashi reveals that nature manipulation must be used in combination with form manipulation if it is to be truly powerful. With that, Kakashi reveals that he can use the Spiraling Sphere as a result of the Fourth Hokage's teachings and that the Spiraling Sphere is the culmination of form manipulation. Naruto, already knowing the Spiraling Sphere, believes that this means that he will be able to make a new jutsu in no time. Kakashi, however, is quick to correct him, pointing out that neither he nor the Fourth Hokage were able to mix their natures with the Spiraling Sphere, thus indicating the difficulty of it. Despite this, Kakashi says that he truly believes Naruto can merge nature manipulation with the Spiraling Sphere, thereby succeeding where he and the Fourth Hokage failed, motivating Naruto and issuing in the time of Naruto's training by himself.
Naruto's training does not progress well, with Naruto often becoming angry and causing the demon fox's chakra to leak out in excess. When Naruto explains that mixing nature and form together is like looking right and left at the same time, Kakashi jokingly makes a shadow clone to look left for him while he looks right. This inspires Naruto, much to Kakashi's surprise. As Naruto begins to implement the concept of using shadow clones to mix nature and form, news of Asuma Sarutobi's death at the hands of two members of Akatsuki reaches them. Wanting to help Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi, and Ino Yamanaka in avenging Asuma, Kakashi leaves the job of overseeing Naruto to Yamato so that he can act as Team 10's leader.
Once Team 10 finds the Akatsuki members Hidan and Kakuzu, Shikamaru distracts and traps the two with his shadow. Kakuzu is quickly able to escape from Shikamaru, giving Kakashi a perfect chance to use his Lightning Blade to punch a hole through Kakuzu's heart. Thinking Kakuzu is out of commission, Kakashi readies another Lightning Blade to use on Hidan, though is kicked aside by Kakuzu before he can injure the latter. Because Kakuzu has four extra hearts, he is allowed to take a number of otherwise fatal blows and still live. With this stunning revelation, Kakashi is immediately forced on the defensive, having to contend with Hidan and Kakuzu's combined attacks, and he narrowly escapes Kakuzu's elemental attack (losing his flak jacket in the process). Kakuzu attempts to use a powerful blast of lighting to kill Shikamaru and Choji - though by creating a Lightning Blade with each of his hands, Kakashi is able to nullify the attack, causing him to reach what was once his limit of using the Lightning Blade only four times a day.
Once again, Kakuzu and Hidan's combined efforts continue to keep Team 10 at bay. Realizing that the two Akatsuki must be separated, Shikamaru volunteers to draw Hidan away so that the others can fight Kakuzu without any interference. After Shikamaru traps Hidan with his shadow again, the two run off, leaving Kakashi, Choji, and Ino to fight Kakuzu by themselves. Kakuzu begins combining his elemental attacks, thus increasing their potency, and Kakashi barely counters it with a water barrier jutsu. Eventually, Kakuzu manages to pierce Kakashi with his arm tendrils and pin him to the ground, with the intention of taking his heart. Just as Kakuzu attempts to finish off Kakashi and the others, Naruto, Yamato, Sakura, and new team member Sai arrive to nullify Kakuzu's attack, and the four join the fight against Kakuzu. With their arrival, Kakashi summons Pakkun so that Sai and Sakura can provide backup for Shikamaru. Additionally, when Naruto uses his Wind Release: Spiraling Shuriken on Kakuzu, Kakashi infuses his hand with lightning chakra to free him from the bind of Kakuzu's threads. When Naruto's attack finally hits Kakuzu, Kakashi's Sharingan is unable to keep up with the number of times it hits its target. With Kakuzu unable to move from Naruto's jutsu, Kakashi comments that Naruto's abilities have surpassed his own and then tells Kakuzu that it is natural for the next generation to surpass the older generation before killing him.