June’s Blog

Kakashi Hatake (はたけ　カカシ, Hatake Kakashi, alternately spelled 畑 案山子) is a fictional character in the Naruto manga and anime series created by Masashi Kishimoto. Kishimoto originally planned to introduce Kakashi in the manga to the series’ titular character, Naruto Uzumaki, early on, but pushed back this meeting so that Naruto’s teammates could be better developed.

In the story, Kakashi is the leader and teacher of Team 7, consisting of the series’ primary characters, Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, and Naruto Uzumaki. He is initially portrayed as a detached and apathetic figure, but as the series progresses, his loyalty to his friends and students becomes increasingly apparent. Kakashi’s past has been extensively explored in the series, resulting in a gaiden being devoted to his past experiences. Kakashi has appeared in several pieces of Naruto media, including three of the four featured films in the series, all of the original video animations, and several video games.

Numerous anime and manga publications have praised and criticized Kakashi’s character. Although he has been noted to be an echo of similar detached shōnen characters, the duality of Kakashi’s apathetic and serious sides have been praised.^[8][9] Kakashi’s popularity has been noted by reviewers; T.H.E.M. Anime Reviews commented that the series could simply be renamed “Kakashi.” Kakashi has been highly popular with the Naruto reader base, placing high in several popularity polls.^[10]Merchandise based on Kakashi has also been released, including key chains and plush dolls.

Abilities

Kakashi’s Mangekyo Sharingan.

The Sharingan given to him by Obito is a sticking point to Kakashi’s fame in the Naruto world. Granting him the ability to mimic the movements and jutsu of others, the Sharingan gives Kakashi an edge in battle by allowing him to turn his opponent’s abilities against them, leading to his nickname of “Copy Ninja Kakashi” (コピー忍者のカカシ, Kopī Ninja no Kakashi). With his ability to mimic the jutsu of others, Kakashi has added over one thousand different attacks to his repertoire including every type of ninja technique. Because the Sharingan only naturally occurs in those of Uchiha lineage, Kakashi needs to exert much more energy when using his own as well his eye is always active so keeps it covered with his forehead protector. During the gap in time between Part I and II, Kakashi even develops a Mangekyo Sharingan through unknown means. With it he can use a jutsu called Kamui (神威, Kamuiliterally “God’s Authority”) that allows him to send any targeted object to another dimension.Because performing this ability requires extended bed rest afterwards, Kakashi avoids using it unless absolutely necessary.

Kakashi using Lightning Blade.

Although most of Kakashi’s abilities were acquired with his Sharingan, Kakashi has two abilities he developed by himself. Lightning Blade, a collection of lightning chakra in one’s hand, was created by Kakashi in his youth. By rushing at the enemy and thrusting the Lightning Blade into a target, Kakashi can kill most opponents with one strike. Because of the speed at which the technique is performed, regular eyes experience a tunnel-vision effect when using it and leaves the user open to counterattack.After gaining his Sharingan, Kakashi was able to overcome this flaw, and uses its analytical capabilities to better react to enemy movements.His second unique ability is the pack of eight ninja dogs (忍犬, Ninken) he is able to summon to his side. The dogs are capable of talking and have presumably been raised by Kakashi since they were puppies. He primarily uses them for tracking purposes, but he can use them as tools in combat as well should he need to locate or hold an enemy down for a finishing attack.Because of his abilities, Kakashi is noted to be an obvious candidate for the position of Hokage, the protector of Konoha, should the position ever become vacant.