From iconic fights and friendships to heartbreaking moments and shocking revelations, Naruto has impacted readers and viewers through its storytelling and developments. Be it heroes turning into anti-heroes or villains turning into anti-villains, the anime managed to succeed in its attempt to tug at viewer’s heartstrings.
Originally written by Masashi Kishimoto, the anime made its on-screen debut in 2002 and has managed to be relevant even after 22 years. Furthermore, the series witnessed the rise and fall of several characters.
However, there have been instances of well-written characters that truly deserve their due recognition especially due to their character arcs. Such is the case with Gaara, a character, whose character arc and development are well-written.
Gaara as the self-loving shinobi in Naruto
Gaara translates to “self-loving demon,” and while there’s an interesting backstory to the origin of this character’s name, he initially lived up to the name. Moreover, his self-reliance and independence had a lot to do with his childhood trauma and the wounds inflicted on him by the ones close to him.
Besides, his apathy coupled with bloodlust was evident in his battle against Rock Lee in the Chunin exams.
I am a relic they want to get rid of, so why do I exist and live? In order to exist, you need a purpose. To exist for no reason is the same as being dead… Then I came to the conclusion that I would love only myself and fight for only myself. If all other people exist to magnify that love, then there is no more a splendid universe than this one… My existence will not vanish.
Although he harbored apathy towards fellow ninjas, his hatred and disregard stemmed from his own experience of being alienated and ostracized as a one-tailed jinchuriki, along with the betrayal carried out by his father and uncle.
This hate impacted him so much that he harbored it towards others, which is quite ironic since the kanji on his forehead translates to love. Furthermore, his actions were the consequence of being demonized and feared by his village. This, however, changed as the series progressed.
Gaara’s resolve and development in Naruto
Gaara’s growth as a character is triggered by the protagonist, who acts as a catalyst for change and development for most shinobis throughout the series. Be it Pain, Neji, or Obito, the talk-no-jutsu was crucial in impacting these characters and provoking a sense of self-worth and justice within them.
However, Gaara’s sense of righteousness is evident in the Shippuden series when he displays his wit along with oratorical skills. This was evident especially, during the Five Kage summit when he called out the third Tsuchikage on his selfishness, as this Reddit user pointed out.
Comment
byu/JudaiDarkness from discussion
inNaruto
Although Gaara was originally established as a diabolical character, he made his resolve and determination clear when he protected his village during the Fourth Shinobi World War.
According to Jin No Sho, Masashi Kishimoto initially developed Gaara as a foil to the protagonist. In addition to that, he was also inspired by Hollywood movies while designing his character during the initial stages.
From being a hated child to garnering affection from his village, he eventually got acknowledged as a Kage. All in all, Gaara’s development and character arc deserve due recognition and he is indeed a benchmark in Shonen anime.
Naruto is available for streaming on Crunchyroll
