Much of the Naruto franchise focuses on its titular ninja and his adventures in becoming the hokage of his village. Throughout the story, he faces many villains in his efforts to maintain peace, with Naruto always practicing his skills and honing his craft to get even closer to achieving his dreams.
Naruto's inspiring story has made the series one of the best shōnen anime of all time, but Naruto also has other amazing characters with equally compelling backstories motivating them besides its main heroes. Kakashi has one of the most emotional and tragic backstories in the entire Naruto franchise, and the terrible grief he faced in his past led him to become the wise character fans came to know and love during Naruto's adventures.
Who is Kakashi in Naruto?
Kakashi Hatake is one of the greatest and most accomplished shinobi in the Naruto franchise, renowned as 'Kakashi of the Sharingan' and the 'Copy Ninja'. He is considered a prodigy among the other ninjas of his generation, and during Naruto and Shippuden, he is regularly looked up to and sought out for his leadership skills.
During the events of Naruto, Kakashi led Team 7 ninjas Sakura, Sasuke and Naruto and, later in the series he became Konoha's Sixth Hokage after the Fourth Shinobi World War. Kakashi is given plenty of chances to showcase his impressive ninja talents throughout the series, but it's his tragic backstory that truly makes him who he is, with his past constantly influencing his character as the story goes on.
Kakashi's Talents and Tragedies Emerged Early in Life
As a master of many different ninjutsu techniques from an early age, Kakashi is renowned as one of the strongest characters in all of Naruto, but he also faced terrible tragedies in his youth. His mother died while he was still very young, leaving Kakashi to be raised by his father, Sakumo, another famed shinobi in Konoha. After Kakashi's father went on a mission that saw him choosing to save his teammates rather than obeying the rules, he was ostracized from the village and committed suicide from the shame he endured.
The death of Kakashi's father had a huge impact on the young ninja, making him determined to never be in the same situation that his father faced. This is one of the reasons why Kakashi is so level-headed throughout Naruto and why he always believes that following the rules is of the utmost importance. The loss of his father also explains Kakashi's aversion to taking on responsibility; his father failing his mission had terrible consequences for the Land of Fire that extended beyond his own personal disgrace.
Kakashi's Pain Propelled Him at the Academy
Even after enduring the loss of both of his parents, Kakashi went on to study at Konoha's Ninja Academy, wearing his signature mask and training hard. He went on to prove himself to be one of the best of his generation, with the terrible pain and loss he endured by the age of five forcing him to focus on his studies.
Thanks to his remarkable abilities, Kakashi was able to graduate from the Academy in a single year at just age 5, while also being at the top of his class. As a genin, he and his classmates Rin Nohara and Obito teamed up, but Kakashi often showed a desire to follow the rules rather than bond with his fellow ninjas on Team Minato -- lead by Naruto's father. He often kept to himself, not opening up or making any lasting friendships, even with those who he spent the most time with.
By the age of six, Kakashi competed in the Chunin Exams with his team, defeating Might Guy and earning himself the rank of Middle Ninja. With his amazing talents, Kakashi's future looked bright, but more loss and despair unfortunately awaited him.
Kakashi Lost His Friend in the Third Shinobi World War
During the Third Great Shinobi World War, Kakashi and his team were sent into battle, with Kakashi being only twelve years old at the time. Obito and Kakashi had a confrontation during the war that saw Obito telling Kakashi that his father had actually been a hero, and he was right to not abandon his teammates. After this, the two quickly bonded during a mission, and Kakashi found himself finally opening up.
Unfortunately, tragedy struck soon after, with Kakashi nearly dying if not for Obito pushing him out of the way of falling boulders. Because of his heroic act, Obito himself became trapped, sustaining serious injuries and dying shortly after giving Kakashi his Sharingan. Kakashi returned from the war brokenhearted, mourning his friend and wallowing in grief for a third time.
His Team's Sacrifices Broke Kakashi Even Further
After suffering the loss of both his parents and one of his few friends, Kakashi unfortunately had to face even more tragedy in the time to come. Following the war, Kakashi, Minato and Rin returned to mourn the loss of Obito, but shortly after, Rin was kidnapped, and Kakashi set out to rescue her.
After saving Rin, she revealed to him that her kidnapper had sealed the Three-Tails inside her body, planning for it to be unleashed upon Konoha. She begged him to kill her, and he refused, saying that he promised Obito to protect her as he lay dying. Later, while Kakashi was trying to keep Rin safe from further attacks, she jumped in front of his Lightning Cutter attack, sacrificing herself to keep Konoha safe in one of the saddest deaths in the Naruto franchise.
This traumatized Kakashi even further, leading him to join the Anbu Black Ops, a team of covert ninja assassins. During this time, Minato became the new Hokage and tried to help Kakashi with little success. During the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox's Attack, Minato sacrificed himself to save the village, leaving Kakashi the sole remaining survivor from Team Minato and taking away any motivation the poor ninja prodigy had left to live.
Kakashi Found Renewed Motivation in Naruto
By the time Naruto Uzumaki's story began, Kakashi had already suffered a lifetime's worth of pain, and it was no surprise that he appeared cold and distant to Naruto and his friends. It was hard for Kakashi to truly open up to anyone; his past had shown him from a very young age that anyone he got close to would die, and so it was easier for the skilled ninja to just remain on his own to avoid further heartache.
When Kakashi came across Naruto's main trio and was assigned to lead them, it took him a considerable amount of time to warm up to them, but he was always there for Naruto when the young ninja needed him, happy to watch over the son of his former team leader. The relationship between Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura eventually warmed Kakashi's heart, and Kakashi's time spent as their leader gave him a renewed sense of motivation in both his life and his ninja duties.
Kakashi's Suffering Led Him to a Happy Ending
Kakashi's time as the leader of Team 7 also presented the prodigious ninja with its own unique challenges, especially Sasuke going rogue. Throughout the course of Naruto and Shippuden, Kakashi constantly faces struggles like this, but he is always well-equipped to handle them, and this is one of the very few benefits of the pain he endured so early in his life.
When Shippuden came to a close, Kakashi was finally able to have a well-deserved happy ending. His Team 7 was re-united at the end of the series, and he was able to serve his village at its Sixth Hokage, retiring happily and allowing a new generation of ninjas to take his place.
Kakashi's tragic backstory truly defined his character throughout the entire series, but the pain he endured motivated him to become a better ninja, a better friend, and also a better team leader and Hokage for his village. Though his life was filled with terrible losses in his youth, he grew up to become one of the world's most respected ninjas, and thanks to Naruto and his friends, Kakashi was able to let down his walls and come out from his terribly dark depression rather than let it define the rest of his life.
