Naruto does not solely consist of the struggles of the Shinobi livelihood and Naruto’s grand adventures. It also features some deep bonds of friendship between characters. While Sasuke and Naruto’s bond might be the first one to strike you, there are plenty of other underrated friendships that are enough to make fans go “awww”.

These underrated friendships can be found not only in heroic characters but also in villainous organizations. Some friendships even ascend the species gap.

Neji Hyuga and Rock Lee

Neji and Rock Lee both belong to Team Guy. Throughout their training, Guy encouraged Lee and Neji to be rivals, and they practiced their taijutsu against each other. Despite Neji winning constantly, he slowly grew fond of Lee. He even decided to skip a year before participating in the Chunin Exams since Lee was not fully ready to compete yet.

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While the philosophy of the duo put them at odds with each other, they learned to see the world from the other’s perspective. Both are protective of each other. After Neji dies, Lee is the one openly sobbing and holding his rival and friend’s body.

Nagato and Konan

Konan found Nagato starving on the street with his dog and offered him bread and a place to rest. They survived by being together and stealing food from others. Along with Yahiko, they spent many years going through several adventures.

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After the death of Yahiko, Konan and Nagato’s personalities changed and relied on each other. They even lead a revolt against Hanzo’s forced. Konan was so faithful to Nagato that she was even willing to kill her former mentor for him. Both of them held each other with respect and high regard.

Deidara and Tobi

Tobi got partnered with Deidara in the Akatsuki after the latter’s previous partner was killed. While in the villainous organization, Deidara became Tobi’s mentor. The two can be seen involved in petty banter and playful fights from time to time in Naruto. Deidara cared for the safety of Tobi and told him to stay back during his fight with Sasuke to prevent Tobi from getting injured.

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Tobi also seemed to enjoy being around Deidara and often joked around while calling Deidara senpai. When Deidara had to explode himself while trying to kill Sasuke, he apologized to Tobi since he would inevitably be caught in the attack.

Shikamaru and Ino

Shikamaru and Ino have a purely platonic friendship between them but regard each other as friends and teammates. The two share strong bonds as teammates and rely on each other for missions. Shikamaru has also protected Ino on multiple occasions.

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Both characters complement each other in jutsu and can read the other’s mind. Ino also motivates Shikamaru, while the latter has a good grasp of her character.

Kiba Inuzuka and Akamaru

Akamaru is the best friend of Kiba and a member of Team Kurenai in Naruto. Akamaru was trusted to Kiba by his mother, and although the puppy urinated on Kiba’s face on their first meeting, the two went on to forge an unbreakable bond.

Akamaru is extremely devoted to Kiba and they spend their time running through trees chasing one another. When Kiba is hurt in battle, Akamaru rushes to his side. Akamaru even tried to pull Kiba away from Tamaki as he did not want Kiba to part from his training in favor of romance (indeed, a true friend).

The Naruto manga is available to read on Viz Media, and the anime is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.
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