#kakashi meta

[skykashi]

#kakashi's only bad husband trait is that he wouldn't pay for meals so i hope you're loaded af @naijajanai I hope you don't mind me replying to this in a separate post if you mind please let me know

but I thought a lot about this and I think it deserves it's own post, anyway this is kinda popular fanon that Kakashi is stingy and would never pay for meals that came from this one scene when Kakashi tricked Yamato to pay the bill, but that was only one scene and he only did this in a playful kinda way to prove to Naruto that he can sweet talk anyone not because he actually wanted to have a free meal and at the same time we also have scenes like this of Kakashi buying veggies for Naruto

And that time Naruto wrote a letter to Santa asking for a year supply of ramen so Kakashi filled Naruto's apartment with veggies 😂

THAT amount of veggies can't be cheap. And we also have the fact that he actually buys gifts for Naruto as well

These are all from the manga so they are 100% canon, there's also this scene from the novels and the anime, when Kakashi cooked his own ramen and then paid for it without anyone realizing it, so I don't think Kakashi is stingy, when this fanon is based on only one scene Kakashi did purely for fun while we have a lot more scenes of him not minding at all spending money on Naruto or himself

#kakashi #naruto #hatake kakashi #kakashi hatake #uzumaki naruto #naruto uzumaki #naruto meta #meta: naruto #naruto analysis #kakashi meta #kakashi appreciation

[doeinstinct]

just sitting here thinking about how incredible kakashi was as a leader even though most people seem to think he was like a placeholder hokage until naruto took over

(spoilers for kakashi retsuden incoming)

listen okay he was hokage for at least 12 years and in that time he not only helped konoha to insanely technologically advance, teamed up with sakura to create a children's mental health clinic but also had time and dedication to develop jutsu that can overpower the element they're weak to

based on the novel, we know for certain that he created a fire jutsu that overpowered a ridiculously strong water jutsu and that he developed a way to make an earth wall resistant to lightning by turning the point of contact into crystal (it's also indicated that he's one of the only people with good enough control to do it)

without the sharingan sapping his chakra and training throughout his entire hokage tenure he also had enough power to hold up an earth wall thick enough to stop cannon fire around an entire village for two straight days

and after all that, he brought down a whole hoarde of hired shinobi non-lethally

kakashi never wanted to be hokage, he didn't think he was worthy of that title, but took it on because his comrades needed him to and believed in him

he dedicated himself to the position and made so much positive change for konoha and for the bonds they forged during the fourth war

people who think kakashi was just a nothing hokage warming the seat for naruto completely misunderstand who he is fundamentally as a person and as a shinobi

okay rant over lmao

#can you tell i'm in my feelings about my old lightning man? #kakashi #kakashi hatake #naruto meta #kakashi meta #i will defend this man until i take my last breath #kakashi rant #that will probably become a recurring tag if i don't chill out about him (highly likely)

[blindsighted]

Sakumo disobeyed orders and forfeit his mission in order to save his comrades, but in doing so, he has committed a crime against the village as a whole. His loyalty is called into question. His honor is destroyed. This stigma will carry over to Kakashi, unless he can atone. The only choice is to take his own life, thus proving his loyalty to Konoha and removing the stigma from Kakashi... The only way for Kakashi to survive, is for him to die.

"I'm sorry, pup... I let you down."

#Kakashi meta #sakumo hatake #not me gutted and dying over this #yep #not just depression #but I'm sure he was also hella depressed #it runs in the family

[edai-crplpnk]

I just saw someone say it would have been a fitting narrative for Gai to die during the war and I'm gonna explode.

Gai's narrative is that he built his entire life around the idea that the best thing he can do for the people he loves is to destroy himself until it eventually kills him. And then it doesn't.

Gai and Kakashi surviving the war despite being set on dying there and actively trying to is capital to their narrative and development. They didn't survive because of plot armour or fan service. They are not saved by the narrative. They are doomed by the narrative. They are forced to live when they were explicitly and voluntarily seeking to die. They are forced to consider that they may have something to give to the people they love that is not self-destruction. They are forced to change the vision of themselves and their lives that they've built and fed since they were teens that their value needed to be proven and found in martyrdom, for they could not possibly be more useful by living.

Dying in the war would have been easy. Dying in the war was the goal. dying in the war would have fit the narrative they set for themselves, but their whole story is about how this narrative is forcibly taken away from them. And that's good.

#kakashi hatake #maito gai #might guy #kakagai #naruto #naruto meta

[stardustcoma]

they served cunt💅🏻✨

#naruto shippuden #akatsuki #narutop99 #naruto uzumaki #kakashi hakate #deidara #hidan naruto #sakura haruno #naruto shippuuden #naruto meta

[team7-headquarter]

ABOUT THE POLITICAL IMPLICATIONS OF THE LAND OF THE WAVES ARC, THE ACTIONS OF TEAM 7 AND WHY ITS ONE OF THE BEST ARCS OF THE ENTIRE FRANCHISE:

I'll never shut up about the Land of the Waves arc.

Here are the facts:

A corrupted man —who was believed to be the richest man in the world due his shipping and transportation business— decided he wanted to make his a small land made out of islands, better known as the Land of the Waves.

In Tazuna's words: "Nami No Kuni (the Land of the Waves) isn't a real prosperous land. Even our local lords are poor..."

The name of the corrupted man is Gato. He was affiliated with drug trafficking and contraband, as well as being a criminal who employed gangs and teams of shinobis to help him (through violence) to take over companies and countries alike. That's what he did to the Land of the Waves, taking hold of all the marine transportation and their shipping industry. Since the Land is made of a number of islands, Gato successfully isolated them. He was now the owner of the local economy and had the power to decide how people lived there.

Tazuna is an old man with no money at all who had been tasked to be the architect and overseer of the new bridge. If completed, it would mean that Gato no longer had absolute control over the Land of the Waves. It'd free them all, bring more movement to their economy and stop the crazy violence promoted by Gato's gangs.

To make sure we all understand the severity of the mission and the power of Gato, let's remember that he employed Zabuza Momochi.

Zabuza is one of the Seven Ninja Swordmen of the Hidden Mist. Kirigakure was known for one of the cruelest traditions regarding shinobis: they'd have to fight each other to death and only the survivors would be promoted. Zabuza put an end to it himself, killing an entire year of graduates. He was not even a student yet.

Zabuza also plotted a coup against the Mizukage, but he was betrayed. He became a rogue nin after that, taking money from men like Gato in order to keep living.

That's the first Team 7 mission.

Sakura, Naruto and Sasuke are staked to help Kakashi free a land of a corrupted businessman and in the process have to fight one of the most legendary shinobis they can encounter out there. We're talking about an entire small nation!!! We're talking about the insane irony of Zabuza being a rogue because he fought against the corruption of his own Hidden Village, and he lost and now he has to work for a man doing the same to others.

The first Team 7 lesson was not only to work as one, to value their teammates, but to question the world around them. Kakashi told them to not follow orders blindly and the narrative throws the Team on a mission to test it.

Kakashi accepted to continue the mission without telling the Hokage anything. He knew he had the jinchuriki and the last Uchiha with him, that it was a great risk, but he accepted because he wanted to help Tazuna and the Land of the Waves and he knew Tazuna had not enough money to pay for a class B mission. Hell, he was lucky Kakashi got a genin team. One of the best jonins of the Hidden Leaf could give his service under the disguise of a rank C. Kakashi was using a loophole to disobey orders and he complains the whole time in his head because he knows it's gonna be a mess of a mission, but he does it anyway.

Do you want to know why is my favorite arc?

The reality of the Land of the Waves is a perfect scenario to force Team 7 to wake up. Naruto and Sasuke sure know loneliness and misery, but they were also part of a very rich land and a powerful Hidden Village. Sakura didn't go through anything like Sasuke or Naruto, which is worse in the sense that she was more naive than them.

Their world falls apart when they meet Haku and Zabuza, when they realize this is not s fairytale of good heroes and bad villains, but people who had to become violent to survive.

Like Kakashi said, the only reason he and Zabuza are trying to kill each other is because they were paid to do so. Zabuza works for Gato, Kakashi for Konoha, that's it. Kakashi didn't want to kill Haku and Haku didn't want to kill any of them, but the Naruto world is old and messy, the customs and the means to survive are others.

Shinobis are no heroes. They're mercenaries, they act as the military force for the strongest nations. They are tools and weapons. It's not advanced in any sense, so many years after the Warrant Era and the world was just as cruel and wild. People with kekkei genkais were forced to practice that violence to protect themselves, like Haku, Sasuke and Neji. People with bad luck like Naruto and all the jinchurikis were the same. People like Sakura, who loved and cared for those others, devoted their lives to joining the fight, to try and protect the ones dear to them.

That's why the final conversation of Team 7 —the one after the events of the bridge that ended with Zabuza and Haku dead— went the way it did. The members of Team 7 weren't happy with the reality of the shinobi life. Naruto even ended up saying that he would make his own ninja way, basically denying such reality and promising to break the traditional ways that kept all shinobis chained to violence, fated to kill each other.

Just look at it:

Sakura: ... But still... Master Kakashi...

Kakashi: Hmm~~?

Sakura: ... I can't help wondering. Were those two right about what a ninja should be?

Kakashi: A Shinobi shouldn't be concerned with a reason for her own existence... It is important merely that we exist as a tool for our homeland to use in whatever way they need. That's as true for us in Konohagakure as it for any ninja anywhere else.

Naruto: Is that really what becoming a full-fledged ninja's gonna be about? I don't like the sound of it!

Sasuke: Do you really feel that way, master Kakashi?

Kakashi: Well... No. And that's why all we ninja live our lives with that ideal always bubbling beneath the surface of our minds, disturbing us. ... Like it did Zabuza ... And the boy.

Naruto: That's it. I've made up my mind! I am going to create my own nindo— my own ninja path. My own destiny!

This arc plants the seeds of what should be the rest of Naruto and Naruto Shippuden. Team 7 is frustrated and they don't agree with the tradition. None of them, not even Kakashi. Naruto promises to be the change, to make his own destiny.

Sadly, it doesn't happen. The manga changes its tone halfway through. Naruto ends up becoming part of such tradition and he ends up being the fated reincarnation, the chosen one. His destiny is not his exactly and his own ninja path gets lost in the way, replaced by a hollower desire to become Hokage. Naruto doesn't evolve to deeply question the order of his world or his society.

Instead, Sasuke occupies his place and the story turns him into an antagonist (someone who wants the direct opposite of the protagonist, someone who is on the way of the protagonist to reach his goal). The story radicalizes the dream that was so innocently spoken in this chapter. It also ends up chaining Kakashi to the same system, uses him as someone to fill the Hokage role until Naruto is old enough and then gives Naruto the hat, forgetting the themes set on the Land of the Waves arc.

What started as Team 7 fighting corruption and people sick with power while trying to help the victims of the system, understanding that their world is made of greys and not moral absolutes, ends up becoming a kids tale of ninjas = heroes and aliens = villains. All the complexities of politics get softened by Black Zetsu's manipulations and Kaguya's existence.

It wouldn't be a reach to say that the Land of the Waves belongs to a very different type of manga, one that never got its continuation.

#naruto #land of the waves #land of the waves arc #naruto meta #Naruto classic #team 7 #og team 7 #team kakashi #kakashi hatake #naruto uzumaki #sakura haruno #sasuke uchiha #zabuza momochi #haku yuki #naruto gato

[teamsasukes]

people rightly criticize how team 7 reacted to sasuke's pursuit of justice for his clan, but one thing i feel is always overlooked in these discussions is how sakura literally is not granted the option by the narrative to learn about what sasuke has been through — not in the way that naruto, kakashi, or even team taka are. throughout all of part 2, she is operating under the assumption that sasuke killed itachi and then turned on the village for no apparent reason.

in part 1, she offers to help sasuke with his plan to kill itachi and even says she'll come with him so he won't have to handle a clearly dangerous and unstable sannin alone. she tells him she wishes he would be more open with her because she wants to understand what he's going through. (all of this stands in stark contrast to naruto, who says he'll break every bone in sasuke's body to bring him back, or kakashi, who projects his own traumas on to sasuke.) then in part 2, she can't bring herself to hurt him despite ample opportunity and even though (as far as she knows) he's become a violent criminal. throughout the series, she's averse to inflicting harm on others (aside from the punching naruto gag). is it really so unreasonable to imagine that if she knew sasuke was avenging the state-sponsored genocide of his clan, she would respond differently? with more empathy and compassion for his circumstances, and anger of her own towards konoha?

#people never factor this into their sakura discussions and it does upset me #like no offence but no one raised in konoha is going to have a political awakening where they realize how awful the system is #without some major catalyst (ie what happened to sasuke's clan) and she never gains access to that information #it's also been pointed out that her speech to him at tvote2 is really stupid and like. i agree #but if all she knows about the situation is from naruto and kakashi @ sasuke saying he's given into hate or whatever #of course that is going to be her response? like what else would she even say. she doesn't know what's going on LMAO😭 #don't get me wrong i think in canon (pt1-2) their relationship has a whole body of issues but a bunch of them are intrinsically tied to thi #uchiha sasuke #haruno sakura #sasusaku #this is not really a shipping post but that's my tag for their relationship in any form sorryyy #naruto meta

[anishake]

Kakashi being addicted to reading porn makes so much sense for his character.

I'm sure Kishimoto didn't intend anything with it other than making him a 'closeted pervert' but gosh looking from psychological point of view it was a great choice for Kakashi's character. Hear me out - he is a deeply traumatized individual, father died by sui*ide, he watched one friend die before him, while the other literally impaled herself on his hand to commit sui*ide. He grew up lonely, losing most of his closest people along the way. You bet, Kakashi is absolutely averse to intimacy, he is peak avoidant attachment style, like it can't get any worse. So what else is there left to do? He goes and lives the relationships throughout the characters. That's why Kakashi spends so much time reading porn - to have the gratification that otherwise is non-existent in his life. I just love how in-character that one little detail is for Kakashi. Like, yes baby go read your porn, it's the only way for you to feel things because you are too broken for true intimacy but you still crave for it. All hail, the traumatized King Kakashi Hatake, he deserves the best!

#naruto #naruto Shippuden #kakashi #kakashi hatake #hatake kakashi #kakasaku #character analysis #meta

[ficklecat]

Hatake Clan Lore

I cannot for the life of me remember if I ever posted my Hatake lore head canon but it's been bouncing around in my brain so fuck it here we go -

WARNING: long post ahead, all of this is head canon and none of it is based on anything other than conjecture and ✨vibes✨

also not that I anticipate this but people get touchy about this stuff so - if you disagree with me so strongly that you feel the need to yell at me about it, please save your energy; I literally cannot express to you how disinterested I am in engaging with that kind of thing it's just anime you'll be ok pookie

Clan History

Before the First Shinobi War, the Hatake clan was a largely pacifist group unaffiliated with nation or creed. They started out as nomadic but eventually settled into farming & hunter/gatherer communities across the Land of Fire. Though they had no kekkei genkai develop, they did have some persistent clan traits that were easy to spot. Particularly, ancestral traits of early people would remain dominant through generations instead of recessing, such as sensitivity to smells and seasons, characteristics like coarser hair, sharper teeth, longer nails or limbs, and instincts that aligned with the native fauna. This allowed them to live in harsher conditions than the newly settling villages and clans, gave them the ability to self-sustain and develop natural affinity for the wilds of the elements, and eventually, aided in the use and presentation of various chakra natures in some of their clan members.

The Hatakes were small in number and fiercely independent of other clans and families, despite being extremely tight-knit in their own communities; they were not necessarily unwelcoming, rather, they lived very differently from the newly forming clan powers, and were not interested in the quarrels of man. However, due to their reluctance to ally and the growing strains between larger war clans and families, they didn't stand much of a chance when major conflicts began to arise.

When the first war finally began, the already sparse farming and hunting communities of the Hatake clan became widely dispersed as lands were torn up in battle or claimed by other families; they were displaced or absorbed into warring clans over time - some Hatake had already been taken in by the Senju, while some sought refuge with the Uchiha, only to face each other on the battlefield and recognize their clan members in the heat of battle - the wild hair, the piercing eyes, the way they would fight with teeth and claw and kunai over complex justu or weaponry.

By the time the first war ended, there were very few Hatake left to remain in tact as a clan. Many had died in battle, some had renounced their clan to assimilate into the powerful Senju or Uchiha, and the scarce few that remained had to make a choice - let their clan die out with them, or integrate into another.

Thus began the efforts of the Hatake to affiliate with the growing Inuzuka clan - an ally of the Senju but still independent of them, this clan had roots in the Land of Fire's villages already, and their affinity for canines and comparable clan traits and practices made for an easier approach than some of the more "domesticated" families. Even still, the reluctance of the Hatake to fully submit to the 'new world' and lose their precious way of life was enough to keep them at arm's length from the Inuzuka, their need for freedom clashing with the Inuzuka's desire to serve the new developing nations and hidden villages. As such, the remaining Hatake began to dwindle into disappearance, until there were only a handful left.

Kakashi's Family

This bit is also fully personal head canon and an idea I'd always wanted to turn into fic but could never get right; works better as a hc anyway -

By the time Sakumo and his partner, Hoeru Inuzuka, had Kakashi, the Hatake clan was gone, either fully absorbed into the Inuzuka by way of marriage or willing induction, or killed in action during the Second Shinobi War. Sakumo, along with Sakumo's elderly uncle, Kama Hatake, remained alive around the time of Kakashi's birth. Kama had sustained significant injuries during his service in the war, and had been in decline ever since, unable to recover. He never married and had no surviving family apart from Sakumo, but was extremely close to his nephew and Hoeru, particularly during her pregnancy. Hoeru herself was a fierce matriarchal member of the Inuzuka, but had deep respect for Kama and the Hatake clan's heritage - after all, despite their small size and initial reluctance to integrate, the Hatake had become a major part of the Inuzuka clan over generations, and had helped their clan to grow into a foothold in the Hidden Leaf Village.

Kama himself did his best to impart the importance of keeping their clan's memory alive in Sakumo - he would share stories and techniques passed down from his own uncles and parents, grandparents, elder clan members who had long since passed. He shared the importance of their preserved weaponry like the tanto or the kunai - highly usable, compact, and versatile for farming and hunting as well as in battle. When Hoeru was pregnant, she and Kama would spend a lot of time together, in the garden or inside reading when Kama's health began to worsen. Hoeru insisted he promise to live at least long enough to see the birth of their child, and Kama made good on this promise.

He died three days after Kakashi was born, and in his honor and out of a deep love for Sakumo, Hoeru made the choice to allow her son to keep his Hatake clan name. She and Sakumo planned to teach him the important history of their clan, and how both the Hatake and the Inuzuka had come together to help keep their wild spirit alive.

Unfortunately, Hoeru's death when Kakashi was still an infant left Sakumo heartbroken and hopeless. With his dear uncle and the love of his life both gone, being the last remaining member of his clan aside from his son brought him immense and crushing grief alongside his already significant battle with depression. Still, as the years went on, Sakumo did his best to teach his boy about their clan, and about the importance of belonging while keeping the memory of precious people alive. But the excommunication following that one fateful mission brought the final blow to his despair - and with everyone turning his back on him, with no clan, no lover, and no family, he lost the battle to his grief, leaving the only remaining Hatake clan member to be his son, Kakashi Hatake.

#WOOF this was WAY longer than I thought it would be oopsie daisy #anyway this is my unnecessarily intricate Hatake head canon lore #hope you enjoyed it #yes I am insane #Hatake clan #inuzuka clan #hatake clan lore #naruto headcanons #naruto meta #kakashi hatake #sakumo hatake

[notsorryiml8]

From my friend, she finished Naruto and is reading the books and starting Boruto and who adores Kakashi:

“It makes sense that Konoha developed and all that after the war. They have cell phones, MacBooks, video games, trains, burgers, nightclubs/bars, nightlife, big city stuff. I’m like wait that sounds familiar and it dawned on me. What’d y’all expect? You done gave a 30 (okay 31-32) year old bored young single guy the keys to the city?! Konoha became one big bachelor pad.”

And I said she’s not wrong 😂

#naruto meta analysis #kakashi hatake #naruto

[itischeese]

yeah, your body moving automatically to save someone is good and all, but have you considered the inherent love required to see what’s about to happen, to know what will happen to you if you save them, and to do it anyway, because even though it might kill you, they’ll survive, and in the end that matters far more, because they’re worth it, in the end?

Yes, this post is about Kakaobi.

#like I fully believe this is what Obito did when he saved Kakashi from the boulder. #sure it was a split second decision but it was one Obito /made/ #and one he would repeat over and over #even knowing where that decision took them #because Kakashi /matters/ #and because he swore to protect his teammates #to protect /Kakashi/ #and maybe Obito didn't know he loved Kakashi at the time but he knew that Kakashi was one of his two most precious people #and that Obito would do /anything it took/ to protect him #Good lord this is what I get for writing kakaobi fanfic all day as a coping mechanism #they're soulmates your honor #kakaobi meta #kakaobi #obkk #kkob #obito uchiha #obikaka #obito x kakashi #kakashi x obito #kakashi hatake #hatake kakashi #uchiha obito #I am aware this applies to far more ships than just kakaobi #you could make a VERY secure argument for sasunaru #but I am in kakaobi hell so a kakaobi post it is #naruto #nurt

[skykashi]

I need to share with you guys this brilliant part from a fic I'm reading, remember how Kakashi was one of the very few adults who were never affected by Sexy Jutsu?? Well, check this explanation from the fic

That makes so much sense isn't it 🤯 Icha Icha made him immune to Sexy Jutsu, lol Anyway, if anyone is interested in reading this fic, it's You Quiet My Demons by tabjoy13 an ongoing Kakamei fic Which I highly recommend if you want to read a romantic Kakashi fic, it's really good and both Kakashi and Mei are so in character, I'm enjoying it so much so far.

#kakashi #naruto #hatake kakashi #kakashi hatake #kakashi fanfiction #kakamei #mei terumi #terumi mei #mizukage #icha icha #kakashi meta #meta: naruto #naruto meta #naruto analysis #harem no jutsu

[godtierwallflower]

Gai, Asuma, and Kurenai all petitioned for Kakashi to be removed from ANBU and hoped Kakashi could find a way to live that he enjoys, instead of trying to rush into an early death and being so overly focused on being a perfect shinobi that lives fast dies young.

And years later, it feels Kakashi himself is repaying the favor.

Mirai is noted to be overly serious and hard on herself, rushing into situations that are practically certain death for her, because she wants to badly to be that same ideal of a perfect shinobi. 

And after the war, Gai, who’s sort off thrown off by living past the 8th gate, is also in a hurry to prove himself, even if it means rushing into a situation that would kill him.

And Kakashi does everything in his power to teach them that it’s okay to relax and find small pleasures and be human and emotional and even a little soft. Just like Gai, Kurenai, and Asuma helped paved the way for Kakashi to eventually accept that, himself.

#Naruto #kakagai #Kakashi Hatake #Kakashi #Maito Gai #Might Guy #Mirai Sarutobi #Asuma Sarutobi #Kurenai Yuhi #Konoha Shinden #mine #meta

[jaguarys]

It continues to kill me every day to think about the character that Rin could've been. She had so much to her. In being the normal one. In being the caring one. In being a Jinchūriki. In sacrificing herself. It should have been about her, and yet in the end she's just Obito's incel-y revenge manic pixie dream girl (extra trauma edition)

#it's so. ugh. the way her narrative is wrapped around obito instead of being about *her* yaknow? #women in naruto continue to Deserve Better Writing #also the record i don't dislike obito but i greatly dislike his writing #personal #naruto #naruto shippuden #rin nohara #obito uchiha #uchiha obito #nohara rin #team minato #kakashi hatake #hatake kakashi #naruto shippudden #naruto meta #fandom: naruto #type: meta

[aribluart]

When I was a kid, my favorite characters in Naruto were Gaara, Sasori, and Naruto. Now, after having read, finally, all the manga at 28, that drastically changed. Now, without a doubt, my favorite characters are Obito and Kakashi, and the main reason is: they are human. I'm not saying that the other characters of the story are not human, but they all have that indistinguishable "fantasy" layers on them. But Obito and Kakashi? Their story, their motives, their emotions, their responses at the events of the main story, are so intrinsically human. Probably what I'm writing make no sense, but Ill' try my best to explain, even if I have difficulty to write this in english. This is my opinion, and naturally everyone has their take based on their own culture and their life. When I say they are " intrinsically human", I mean that if someone else was in their place, they would have made their same choices and actions. Because, their response to a destabilizing and traumatic events (the third ninja war as child soldiers, Kannabi bridge, Rin's decision, and so on) it's different, but also understandable. Who could have act differently? No one can say with confidence and no hesitation how they would act in certain situations. I'm no therapist, but people have different reactions to traumatic events. We are not the same. So, seeing how Obito and Kakashi had so conflicting reactions to the sames events, conflicting with their own childhood self even though you could see even then there was something, something that you could see and say "yes, this is only the tip of the iceberg," because we are not the same as our child selves, but our child selves had something that made who we are today, and the "we" of today have something that it's a reminder of our child selves. I, have so much more to add, but don't have the words in english to say it. I don't even know if what I wrote make any sense, it was something that I wanted to say because this two make me cry, and I hardly cry for fiction. But this two made my cry like I haven't cried for years, just because their story is so viscerally human and close to what I feel in general, that I don't even know anymore.

#naruto #obito uchiha #kakashi hatake #obikaka #obkk #kakaobi #kkob #aribluart's meta

[leportraitducadavre]

Sharingan no Kakashi

Volumes Covered: 1-27 (first part)

Hatake Kakashi, the copycat ninja, has been a fan favorite amongst readers of the Naruto Manga since the very beginning. For as long as I have been on Tumblr, his image has been plastered everywhere to the point where his design is known even outside the manga’s universe: many people who are not usual consumers have seen at least one panel/screenshot/fanart of him.

When I first read the manga, I too became really invested in his story (he was the mysterious, possibly good-looking kind of character that as a teenager was appealing to me) but as years passed (more so now that I’m currently re-reading the manga), that appreciation shattered, or rather, dwelled.

This is not to say I hate him, nor that I’m encouraging enthusiastic readers of the manga to dislike him, my particular mention of this relies on the need to give those that choose to read this post a warning, for I will be analyzing particular aspects of his character that can (and should) be considered negative and/or controversial. 

Now, I’m not going to perform a detailed list of everything his character does during the first part of the manga because not only would it be excruciatingly long (and I don’t see the point in doing so for it beats the purpose of this meta), but also, because not everything about him is to be noted. In that sense, I chose some topics that interested me the most and that I consider important (if not central) to his characterization.

Long post:

Types of relationships

How does Kakashi Hatake interact with those around him? What kind of relationships does he prefer or does he have and how does the social aspect of shinobi’s culture shape the bonds he manages to create?

Mentor-student / commander-soldiers

During the first interaction of Team 7 (meaning, the one they have on the rooftop, not the one where Naruto pranks him) Kakashi asks the newly formed group to share personal information outside the data he already was given about them, however, when is his turn to share, his responses are extremely vague and general (here), preventing the team under his command to have any sort of knowledge about him outside of his military role. Furthermore, the way he decides to reply (that is the wording of his answer to, let’s remember, his own question), is not only empty of any meaning but also seems to be on the verge of mockery. Considering the way he acts and how other sensei ask the same thing (we can see that during Guy’s flashback), we can infer that the question wasn’t of his choosing, and he’s most likely following a script. 

To give some context to this introduction, Kakashi up to this point has performed the same questions for at least a few years to different groups of Gënin which failed to pass his test (we don’t know exactly how many, only that he’s being failing teams for years) - so it’s not weird for him to lack any sort of interest in this team since it might be no different from the ones he already failed. 

In addition, during this exchange, there are two dynamics that he introduces: 

1. The dynamic between a leader and subordinates (in the general aspect). As a commander, Kakashi is not required to share personal information with his underlings, they -however- are bound to share/do whatever he asks of them due to his superior position in the chain of power. 

2. The (non-existent, yet highlighted by this particular absence) relationship between teacher and students. Kakashi seems to start their link by severing it from the very beginning: he distances himself from the team, choosing to favor the dynamic leader-subordinate over the mentor-student (this will be cemented during CH 35, where he calls them “soldiers under his command”, and reiterated on CH 43 -where he refers to them as “subordinates”). Iruka becomes, by juxtaposition, one of the only real “teachers” inside the narutoverse.

The type of relationship we see between Kakashi and Team 7 (particularly Naruto and Sakura) seems to be replicated by every other Konoha team we are introduced to, except for some dynamics that can be put, in some way, inside the latter category: Kakashi/Sasuke (this dynamic in particular is presented in quite a toxic manner, I’ll expand on this later on), Asuma/Shikamaru, Gai/Lee and (to a lesser extent, since Team 8 was never focused on), Kurenai/Hinata.

About Kakashi and Sasuke’s dynamic (the one I mentioned could be more or less put inside the mentor/student category, although that specific label isn’t as strong as I might have implied), the headcanons about their relationship overtook many aspects of their canon interactions. 

It’s true that Kakashi favored Sasuke and it’s true that one of the canon reasons for him to do so was that they shared the same chakra nature (lightning), so Kakashi was more able to help Sasuke to develop some techniques. However, there’s a fandom misconception that Kakashi was planning and/or actually helping Sasuke with his Sharingan -but that’s simply not true. At no point in their training are we shown how Kakashi tries to help Sasuke once he “awakes” (rather, gets conscious access over) his doujutsu, furthermore, I don’t see an actual reason for him to do so:

First, Sasuke probably knows a lot about the Sharingan (he grew up in a clan where many members possessed it; canonically, his father and brother were users. We don’t have confirmation about Mikoto, but because of how the Sharingan might be inherited she might possess at least the genes). They had conversations about the Sharingan and Mangekyo (x, x), and Sasuke saw it while being used multiple times in its basic form (x) and even in its Mangekyou form (x), meaning, theoretically, Sasuke was more prepared and educated than Kakashi, even with no experience. Second, the Sharingan is quite literally Sasuke's nature; I don’t think he needed much help (if any at all) on how to use it. 

Beyond their chakra nature training, there’s not much Kakashi does or even proposes to do. Additionally, for Kakashi, training Sasuke also meant to do the least amount of effort while also implicated to gain the most prestige: Naruto was unstable -the Seal of Minato was tampered with by Orochimaru during the chünin exams which made him fail on basic skills (even those he had already mastered); Sakura didn’t reach the final stage -and for some reason, that meant no training for her, as if she didn’t need it the most*, while Sasuke was already internationally famous for being the last Uchiha: he was the main “spectacle” during the Final Stage. 

*[Sakura’s need to be trained after her tie with Ino is to be discussed in a deeper manner. The chünin exams are not real exams but displays of the military forces of each village, hence why Sakura wasn’t trained after her failure and why the focus was on both Sasuke and Naruto. The third stage of the exam is a spectacle for other Kages and Daimyos to see, hence why she -almost literally, mattered not].

To add to this discussion about Sasuke and Kakashi’s relationship, it’s important for me to touch -at least briefly (for going in-depth with this will extend this post to an unmanageable degree), Kakashi’s projection of himself onto his student. Let’s look at their similarities first in order to dispute them after:

a- They are both geniuses, which puts them in the “highest” position inside their respective teams: This particular aspect of them, in addition to receiving the constant praises of their peers during such formative moments of their life, made them particularly arrogant (this doesn't diminish the training Sasuke subjected himself to as to reach such level of skill, here).

Yet, while Kakashi refused to cooperate with his own team (Minato’s) and relied upon his newly achieved rank (Jönin) in order to tell them what to do (x, x, x) Sasuke creates a bond with his teammates to the point where Naruto -who, by all means, would refuse to obey Sasuke during their first interactions, often follows his lead or trusts his judgment. In this specific aspect: Sasuke constructed a bond with his team, while Kakashi didn’t.

[Their context while growing up is vastly different: Kakashi had to deal with something Sasuke didn’t: the dishonor that suicide brings particularly in Japanese society, x (and vice-versa, as Sasuke witnessed his brother murdering his entire family), however, both of them shared the pressure of knowing that they were the only ones capable of "bringing their families’ honor back", so it isn't weird for them to act in such manner.]

b- They share similar personalities: This is, of course, partially a consequence of the prior point (you’ll notice that Neji, also a genius, comes off as arrogant -yet I will not focus on this aspect particularly), but the main reason for this similarity is that traumatic experiences shaped their personalities and the way they approach other people. 

They both are rather passive-aggressive to others (now that I think about it, Neji is also like that -and a traumatic experience was indeed the reason behind such a mindset), yet Sasuke modifies his behavior the more time he spends with his teammates (he cheers up Sakura when she’s depressed, acknowledges Naruto’s strength during the chünin exams and saves their lives multiple times even when doing so puts his own life in danger and thus, jeopardizes his ultimate goal: kill Itachi). 

Kakashi, for his part, was far crueler and linear with his teammates during his youth (and I’m specifically making a comparison between kid Kakashi and kid Sasuke for that’s the parallelism Kakashi draws -which is the basis he uses to judge Sasuke’s actions later on), his response to the trauma of finding his father’s dead body was to live for and live by the rules established for Konoha’s militia to follow -to the point where emotions were aspects of himself or his teammates that he refused to acknowledge; in the same manner, he prioritized the mission’s success over his team’s safety (unlike Sakumo). Later on, with both Rin and Obito’s deaths, Kakashi modified parts of his personality in order to model himself after Obito (not the real Obito but the perception he got of specific parts he chose -or thought worthy of mimicking -more of this will be discussed in the Nationalistic Mindset part of this post). 

c- They both possess guilt complexes from which derived a strong feeling of inadequacy: This particular aspect is intrinsical, I believe, to Kakashi’s approach to Obito’s dogma (I won’t be expanding much for this is tackled, again, on the Nationalistic Mindset title). And again, both of them share a similar complex, yet their reason to have them is completely different (yes, they both might have survivor’s guilt, but it’s not the one I will speak of): Kakashi’s remorse lies in the fact that he wasn’t able to protect his teammates (once he formed a bond with them), he failed Obito -who died to save him despite Kakashi’s earlier attitude (I’m not diminishing Kakashi’s life, I’m pointing out Kakashi’s possible perspective about Obito’s death), and later on he failed him again when Rin died (he also failed Rin herself for not be able to prevent her kidnap). The manga doesn’t show us much of Kakashi’s trauma, but it’s somewhat safe to assume that he models his personality after “Obito” in response to this guilt, making himself someone “worthy” of both their teammates' sacrifices: he vows not to fail at protecting his teammates again, (“I will never let my comrades die”, here) for that’s what Obito taught him (here).

Sasuke’s guilt also has to do with his own incapacities, yet his main issue is that he wasn’t able to do anything against his family’s murderer (he arrived at the compound after they were killed), and it’s this specific event that germinated and blossomed into Sasuke’s core objective: Avenge and restore his clan [honour]. He could do nothing then, but he will do so one day. None of his family members “sacrificed” themselves for him to live (Itachi might have killed them to “save” Sasuke, but they would have been murdered regardless; sacrifice implies that those who perished took a conscious decision to die in another person’s place), so their background is nothing but different. 

In addition, these specific events (including Sasuke’s incapacity to fight against Gaara during the invasion or against Itachi in Shibuya), shattered both their conception as geniuses (which, in lieu of the arrogance they constructed around it, makes the fall from grace much more difficult to bear), which pushes them to extreme changes: Sasuke, to flee Konoha in order to polish his abilities and achieve his goal; Kakashi, to make his life a memoir of “Obito’s dogma.”

Personal bonds

The types of relationships Kakashi values are first shown in CH 8 when we are introduced to the Memorial Stone. He refers to those who are carved in such space as his “best friends”, a statement that is (at least) questionable once we learn Kakashi’s background and how his relationship with Obito and Rin actually was prior to their death. The only possible explanation about why they are his best friends is that he developed a deep connection with them after their death (in lieu of their sacrifices and the feeling of guilt such occurrences brought upon him), it’s possible (headcanon alert!) that he also twisted specific memories of them in order to elevate them and -later on, force himself to become someone “worthy” of their sacrifices, as he did modify the original quote from Obito.

In that sense, Kakashi’s relationship with Guy (at least during their first interactions) is particularly blown out of proportion, out of the three jönin-sensei, Guy is the only one who stands alongside Iruka (hence, against Kakashi, Asuma, and Kurenai) and asks them -but mostly Kakashi, to reconsider their decision to register their rookie teams in the exam. Kakashi replies by laughing at him, justifying his choice by stating that “what they lack in experience they make up in surprises” (I guess “surprises” encompasses the fact that one of them heals almost instantly thanks to Kurama and the other one already has the Sharingan, which replies absolutely nothing to the actual matter at hand), and finally proclaiming that team seven will make Guy’s team “eat dust”. 

After that, their next interaction is during the preliminary rounds, where Kakashi ignores Guy yet when Lee is fighting Gaara, Kakashi claims to be (literally) disappointed in him for teaching his student a forbidden technique, even if later on tries to cheer him up when Lee loses. And yes, the interactions are hilarious, yet the relationship is carried solely by Guy’s character for Kakashi is particularly closed on his one-sided relationship with his deceased team. That’s my point.

Emotional Manipulation

I have established before Hiruzen’s approach to the Will of Fire (exploiting people’s bonds and emotions in order to tie them to Konoha rather than a person/clan; basically constructing Konoha as a symbol that encompasses those who are dear to the shinobi, creating a nationalistic mindset where family=village. x), now, how does that dogma interact with Kakashi, influencing his actions and interactions with other people -particularly (but not limited to) Sasuke?

Kakashi has linked Sasuke’s capacities to the Uchiha Clan’s value since the bell test (CH 7), and repeated the behavior more cruelly in CH 18, and again in CH 27 (albeit this time positively, in the face of an enemy). The technique he uses to “push Sasuke forward” (in the sense of giving him motivation, since Sasuke’s bond with his family is intrinsic to him) can be (should be) considered emotionally manipulative. Should Sasuke fail or perform at a lower level than expected, it means the Uchiha Clan’s honor downfall.

Furthermore, Sasuke is not the “finest hope” of the clan, as he called him, he is the only hope since the only other member of the clan is Itachi, who massacred them, and Kakashi is aware of such circumstances. It’s different in Naruto’s case (Kakashi also displays emotional manipulation towards him) because he’s not linking a traumatic experience to his value -furthermore, he’s not linking the honor of an entire (deceased/killed) clan to his value, which is what he’s doing to Sasuke. The caption on Sasuke’s panel is “stab”, the words of Kakashi were purposefully chosen in order to downgrade Sasuke’s ego (I’m not denying he still uses them to “motivate” Sasuke -I’m questioning his methods). If we also take into account that Sasuke, at this point, has seen Kakashi’s Sharingan (and believed him to be part of the Uchiha clan) it gives his input more weight since Sasuke’s doubt about whether or not his teacher is related to the clan hasn’t been addressed yet (Sasuke didn’t ask nor does he know where Kakashi got the eye, and since he doesn’t know doujutsu can be transplanted yet, he assumes he might be a distant relative). 

In this sense, is to be added that, one, Jönin-sensei vow upon their clan’s honor that their students are ready for the Chünin Exams (CH 35), and two, Hiruzen, in CH 65, states that shinobi defend not only the balance between nations -but also, the honor of their village. It’s no surprise then that Kakashi is so insistent on tying the Uchiha’s honor to Sasuke’s name (Naruto is an orphan to whom a “generic” last name was given -even if it’s his mother’s, he represents no clan nor has any knowledge about his family, Sakura’s family name isn’t renowned nor important enough for him to even care).

However, and despite the fact that Kakashi’s abasement of Sasuke is harsher than the one he performs on Naruto, it doesn’t imply that such degradation doesn’t exist: Back in CH 10, after Team 7 is attacked (and for the first time for the three gënin, might I add), Kakashi says to him, “it never occurred to me that you would freeze up,” meaning, he elevates him first (implying that he did consider him capable enough to respond to an attack of such caliber), only to dismantle him from the previous conception he -apparently, possessed. His words leave such an impression that Naruto cuts himself with his own kunai: from a narrative perspective is a powerful moment -but hadn’t been for Kurama, Kakashi would have had an injured student (he even mentions he could bleed to death), so why apply such psychological pressure to a gënin that has already a lot of emotional stress from the earlier attack? From a teacher’s point of view, it doesn’t make sense, however, it does make sense from a commander’s point of view, something Kakashi has actually had experience on (Team 7 is literally the very first team he passed), so his methods of “teaching” are yet to be polished. 

[Jönin-sensei is a title where jönins (soldiers) are told to pass on their experiences/techniques to future members of Konoha’s militia, without being given pedagogical education to interact better with their students. Being a teacher (that is, a person actually capable of educating, with everything that it entails), it’s not important -being a good soldier is. This is incredibly highlighted during this interaction back in Chapter 3, where Kakashi calls this pedagogical situation a “mission”].

But this type of approach isn’t reserved solely for those under his command, showing that Kakashi either is not using it consciously as a tool -but rather is the way he was approached and, therefore, believes to be the usual way to speak to others; or that he’s constantly on “shinobi mode”, meaning, he uses every tool at his disposal (always, ever) to achieve the result he considers is the best (I, personally, believe this option to be the most truthful to his character, for he performs emotionally charged speeches to his own peers). 

An example of the point previously made: During CH 22 [Wave Arc] Inari and Naruto get into a fight, Inari screams at Naruto and the main character responds by calling him a crybaby. After the confrontation, Kakashi finds the little boy, and we have an interesting interaction where Kakashi talks to him and (without Naruto’s permission) tells him part of Naruto’s background for no real reason but to appeal to the emotions of Inari and build a case for his student (which isn’t strictly necessary, the kid doesn't have to like Naruto and -likewise-, Naruto doesn’t have to like Inari for the mission to be successful). 

What we see is what follows: Kakashi applauds Naruto’s way of handling trauma (he doesn’t cry rather, he hides his feelings) and, by juxtaposition, he brings back Naruto’s claim about Inari (him being a cry-baby) in order to criticize the young boy. Inari -who is a kid younger than Naruto-, is a coward and uses his pain to justify that supposed cowardice, Naruto doesn’t, which makes him better and should be reason enough for Inari to one, get along with him; and two make him a role-model.

Now, Inari is a civilian who lives in a civilian village and his experiences have nothing to do with those of a shinobi. Kaiza (Inari’s father) was publicly killed because he tried to defend his hometown, but he lacked the tools a shinobi possesses. Naruto grew up in a hidden village and the shinobi��s approach to death is completely different from what a civilian kid might be taught or experience. Naruto doesn’t have to know this, so his hostile reactions towards Inari are understandable from a character’s point of view, but Kakashi's reaction isn’t. People can argue that Kakashi, like Naruto, was taught and lives solely under the cultural aspects of his village, which is the reason why he brings Inari’s experience to his own sphere of understanding, yet while we can see that as his reasoning, it doesn’t mean we should condone it, as he has more experience outside his cultural bubble.

His words are successful, as we see here and here. Inari internalized both Naruto's and Kakashi’s speeches and instead of running to escape and reach safety, he decides to help his captive mother (who has been taken hostage by Gato’s men). Let’s add some more context: a young, untrained boy is forced through emotional manipulation (and here I will spare Naruto due to his lack of experience, but not Kakashi, who might understand things through the veil of his own culture while lacking the knowledge of civilian rules -yet he is aware of civilians incapacities during armed conflicts and still “pushed” Inari to take action against Gato’s thugs by glorifying Naruto’s behaviors) to “stop” being a coward (meaning: to confront trauma in a particular manner: the shinobi way, that has no claim in civilian society); and his life had to be literally saved by a ninja as a consequence. Furthermore, his cowardliness wasn’t an issue he was already struggling with before the shinobi arrived to the island, it was an uncertainty introduced by the group (brought in by Naruto -who knew no better- and cemented by Kakashi). 

It’s when Sasuke “dies” and Sakura recites one of the shinobi rules, that we learn that Kakashi and Naruto were judging Inari’s “cowardliness” through the perspective and internalization of the same rule Sakura is now reciting. Inari, as a civilian, can't be judged by those premises. 

I have pointed this out in some other posts but there’s no harm to reiterate: the pass from childhood to adulthood -unlike in the civilian society that follows different rules, is marked by the bestowal of the headband. That is, adulthood has little to do with age and more to do with rank. With that mentality, Naruto and Kakashi’s behavior towards Inari is slightly more understandable since, to them, his age is not an excuse to behave like a “child” (furthermore, Kakashi took the Chünin Exams when he was six, meaning he was considered an adult since that age). Yet, again, where Kakashi fails is in understanding that Inari is not governed by the same principles that he is. 

Nationalistic mindset

How do the Will of Fire and Obito’s apparent dogma interact? Did Kakashi’s character really have the possibility of seeing Konoha as an oppressive state that considered him nothing but a mere tool? Did he have the “potential” to rebel?

Back in Wave Arc, among many things, there’s an interaction between Tazuna and Kakashi, where Kakashi mentions that a previous Hokage (we aren’t told who) taught his people to “fight for what is right”, selling the idea to the civilian in front of him that his hidden village (specifically) is the “good” side against the “evil” side (Zabuza, Gato -even other hidden villages). However, this particular speech of Kakashi, which he gives solely to Tazuna and not to his subordinates (who, by Tazuna’s standards are children), clashes with the prior idea that “missions’ feuds are high and we do what we are paid to do” (assassinations or babysitting). Meaning: there’s a narrative to be told to civilians to shape their view of shinobi (particularly Konoha’s), and the actual reality that only Team 7 (as ninjas), gets to see. 

In addition, during Kakashi’s second fight against Zabuza (CH 30), Kakashi states that Konoha (therefore, he), knows about the swordsman’s attempt to coup and kill the current Mizukage -alongside his wish to raise funds to attempt another coup after his failure. We learned previously thanks to Haku’s background that there’s a bloodline cleansing currently happening in Mist; a genocide on such a large scale can’t be kept secret that long -furthermore, there’s no indication that the murders are happening quietly either since those who possessed Kekkei Genkai were pushed to hide their bloodline; and if Konoha knows about Zabuza and his attempt to take over the government, then they surely know about the reasons behind it. 

What I mean by this is what follows: Kakashi and Konoha claim that they fight for “the right thing” to those civilians they encounter, but do nothing -neither military nor diplomatically, to stop those massacres from occurring (nor do they take a stance against them either, as it reduces Mist numbers and weakens their military power). They’re still pretty much in touch with the Mizukage that carried out/ordered such killings, for his government was the one that told Konoha about Zabuza’s attempted coup when declaring him rogue. 

Kakashi downgrading Zabuza for working for Gato is, in a way, absolutely comical because not only is he working for an authoritarian regime, but he also downgrades someone who (even as despicable as he might be) is actually trying to do something against those who wronged him. Kakashi (under Konoha’s mindset), can’t differentiate between a person’s ambitions and their ideals, they might seem equal on the surface, but they are intrinsically different: One goes after an individualistic goal, and the other one is founded on the possibility of a communal achievement. To Zabuza, another individual raised under shinobi culture, killing innocent civilians to gain funds in order to bring down his oppressive government is a plausible course of action (we can make a value judgment on this, but this does not dispute the idea of Zabuza taking actual actions in order to overthrow the oppressive government in his village).

As said before, Kakashi doesn’t seem able to differentiate between personal ambitions and ideals, therefore, he will never be able to take a stand against Konoha. Hence, the belief/headcanon where Kakashi rebels against Konoha or has the “potential” to do so should Kishimoto “allow him to” is contradicted by Kakashi himself, to the point where he defends Konoha even when it’s not being questioned (building it in a positive light).

Furthermore, there’s an interaction that pretty much confirms this: Here and here. Kakashi admits that the belief system under which a shinobi’s life is valued “bubbles beneath the surface of his mind, disturbing him” (he also uses the plural, referring to the ninjas -as a kind, which means that from his perspective everyone feels uncomfortable with that mindset, and yet, no one seems to question it, for those who questioned are then labeled as missing-nin). Even if Naruto later on promises that he will create his own “Nindo” (and by context, that destiny is presented as opposed to the “I’m a tool” mentality previously discussed) and Kakashi smiles, there’s no actual denial of his current belief system. 

Kakashi was intended to be the representation of a nationalistic/pro-shinobi system mindset, as he follows the narrative’s stance (which, in turn, follows Naruto’s). Even after everything Kakashi said to Zabuza in order to degrade him (like, for instance, questioning his standards for affiliating with Gato and staging a coup), the moment Zabuza says “I won’t kill Tazuna because I won’t get paid, so let’s not fight”, Kakashi immediately agrees. His problem with Zabuza isn’t that his mindset is different per se, but that is opposed -at that moment- to Kakashi’s and his mission, once Zabuza is not at the other end of their fight, everything is forgotten/forgiven (he simply doesn’t care anymore).

Later on, because of this nationalistic ideology, Kakashi is willing to sacrifice his students’ well-being: Again, the Chünin Exams (analysis I made here), are nothing but staged wars in order to display each village’s military forces to draw the attention of potential customers; therefore, even tho Kakashi knows about Sasuke’s condition (Orochimaru giving him the Cursed Mark) - he stands against Anko when she asks the Hokage to pull Sasuke out of the exam. Even though he later on warns the child the fact that he allows such a dangerous situation to occur while putting the whole weight of the issue on Sasuke’s shoulders, is rather telling of his priorities.

Kakashi’s phrase (well, it isn’t Kakashi’s phrase but actually his interpretation of Obito’s) “I will never let my comrades die” (x) is solely true until Konoha’s wellbeing (in any sort of way, including prestigiously) is on the line. Dying is the only thing Kakashi protects them from, physical or psychological damage isn’t included.

The idea of him respecting and following Obito's true dogma is an absolute contradiction because Obito’s core ideology and Konoha’s are intrinsically contradictory, they can’t coexist and still be truthful to their basis. To Kakashi, Konoha is the symbol of peace -of his comrades, so the physical existence of an individual isn’t as important as the symbol’s survival, therefore, sacrificing his soldiers’ wellbeing to give the village more leverage during the chünin exams isn’t a problem -unlike them dying at the hands of Zabuza, which would mean Konoha failed on the mission and lost three gënin in the process.

And here I'll add this: Obito's actual phrase was "Sure, in a ninja’s world, those who violate the rules and fail to follow orders …. are lower than garbage. However….Those who do not care for and support their fellows…are even lower than that! If I’m scum…the rules are no good to me! And if breaking them makes me the wrong kind of shinobi…then I’ll crush all the so-called shinobi!!" here. In lesser terms, Obito's dogma is this one: If a system (shinobi's/Konoha's) prioritizes political/warfare success over the lives of those fighting for it, I will not be a part of such a system - furthermore, I'll rise against it. 

My claim of Obito joining Madara in his quest as something always existing at his core sustains mostly in this. Rin is a catalyst, for I'll admit, he didn't turn completely against it until her death when the system personally affected him and those he cared for (can he be blamed when he was taught to be loyal to it? It isn’t weird for him not to see such flaws until they impact him specifically, we can’t fault him for something so humane), yet his beliefs are right there and have always been there. 

The very important, very much intrinsic difference between Obito and Kakashi's approaches is that Kakashi (and later on, Naruto) puts the weight of his comrades' well-being upon his shoulders and his shoulders alone (his trauma with Obito's death, who sacrificed to save him, and Rin's who was "killed'' by his hand, are probably the main reason for Kakashi's specific approach to his former classmate's dogma), while Obito disputes the very basis of the issue. Obito isn’t blaming Kakashi per se but the rules that Kakashi, as a commander, chooses to follow indisputably (x, x). Obito will gain no awards or recognition for saving Rin while compromising the mission, on the contrary, he'll gain the same punishment Sakumo did: ostracization, now not only from the Uchiha but also from the general population. 

And here's the thing: at that moment, his respect for Konoha is so little that he doesn't care - going against the rules is going against Konoha, fine "I'm scum, I'll crush the so-called shinobi!!". Here Kakashi "fails" (yet it's to be mentioned he's a child soldier in distress and in the middle of a battlefield) to externalize the critique and place it upon the rules (hence, the system) where it belongs, rather, he internalizes it and blames himself, believing that he's responsible for everything since he was "too uptight" to bend (x and x).

Obito and Kakashi’s opposition comes from the answers to these questions: "What are they fighting for?" and "Why are they fighting for it?" (the what's and why's in narrative and character-construction by Dushman-e-jaan). The first answer might be similar as they both might answer, "Konoha", particularly at that point in time; it's the why, which drives the what, that's different. For Kakashi, as established prior (although, during his childhood, that might have been the answer as that's what he was told to do and what he was taught to want, rather than a personal conviction), Konoha in and of itself is what matters, the place, the land, the symbol of peace; while Obito's core belief would push him to say "Rin", as in, an individual; hence, “the people”. Then why would he choose to sacrifice Rin (the people) in exchange for the survival of a place created to ensure their well-being? In his eyes, it makes no sense (and yes, later on, he “betrays” his own core beliefs as he carries out the UCM for a "greater good", yet he does that because he considers the real world to be hell, so he cares not for it -x,x-, as the only world that matters it’s the I.T one). 

Obito was written by Kishimoto to be Naruto’s “dark” parallel, as he was a morally good child (wanted to become Hokage to stop the war, helped ladies on the street, even sought his master advice and changed his stance on Kakashi after Minato’s speech) that the environment transformed onto one of its darkest consequences (and well prior to Madara’s intervention as he claimed he would crush the “so called shinobi” shall he need to). Meanwhile, Kakashi reflects the pro-shinobi stance as he never even begun to question it when a child (the same could be said for Neji, who showed revulsion to his personal situation, and was definitely closer than Kakashi to rebel, yet he never questioned the status quo in itself).

It’s difficult to give closure to a post this charged and long (as of now, it’s fourteen pages), so I’ll finish up with this: Whether you agree or not with this post, try not to just blatantly insult me (if you end up doing it, oh well). I genuinely don’t care if you find my analysis revolting, and it’s just as easy as ignoring my blog altogether or creating your own post with your own takes and reading of the manga; I have no problem discussing these topics, but if your entire argument relies on your personal headcanons and you provide not a single panel of evidence I’m ignoring you, so don’t bother.

Here it is, spent months on this post (it depended on my re-reading of the manga, which is why it took this long), so I hope you guys enjoyed it and I want to personally thank those who read all of this, I genuinely appreciate it.

Cheers.

#naruto #naruto meta #kakashi #kakashi hatake #anti kakashi #anti kakashi hatake #anti shinobi system #anti konoha #obito #obito uchiha #sasuke uchiha #sasuke #naruto uzumaki #uzumaki naruto #uchiha sasuke #sakura #sakura haruno #haruno sakura #team 7 #team minato #rin nohara #team gai #long post