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Explore 7 tragic anime friendships that ended in heartbreak due to betrayal, ideological clashes, and ambition; leaving a lasting impact.
Anime has always excelled at developing a dynamic between characters that deeply engrosses fans. Watching characters bond over their various trials and tribulations can tug at the heartstrings of any viewer. However, these relationships sometimes take a turn for the worse.
On the other hand, several stories go for a much more realistic depiction, where two friends end up becoming enemies for a variety of reasons that can range from betrayals to misunderstandings. It is always a bold choice to break up fan-favorite pairings and often creates ripple among the fans.
Here are 7 anime friendships that ended in devastating ways, proving even the strongest of bonds can falter.
7 Anime Friendships That Ended in Tragedy
7) Eren, Armin, and Mikasa – Attack on Titan
Eren’s friendship with Armin and Mikasa is the cornerstone of Attack on Titan and has a strong impact on the storyline throughout the series. In a world plagued by giant monsters known as Titans, the trio have no one but each other to trust and make it through their dire situation.
Soon after Eren was discovered to be a Titan and discriminated against, Mikasa and Armin were the only people who actively supported him. Unfortunately, Eren’s desire for a free world where those same friends could live in peace caused him to take drastic actions.
Through his extreme choice of activating the Rumbling and killing a majority of the population, he hurt his friends badly. Even when they met demanding an explanation, Eren was cold to them and severely beat Armin down. Due to their ideological clashes, Armin and Mikasa end up working with the rest of the characters to stop Eren’s mass murder. In the end, Mikasa – who was blindly following Eren till that point, killed her best friend.
6) Aizawa, Present Mic, and Kurogiri – My Hero Academia
Aizawa and Present Mic’s friendship with Kurogiri is one of the most emotional sub-stories in My Hero Academia. This tragic anime friendship hurt even more because their former friend, Oboro Shirakumo, was turned into Kurogiri without any will of his own.
The trio had been dreaming of becoming Pro Heroes since their time as students at U.A. Oboro was an empathetic and energetic individual who took care of all those around him. During a mission gone wrong, Oboro met his demise. At this point, All For One had recovered his body and turned him into a Nomu with the name, Kurogiri.
When Kurogiri was captured by the Pro Heroes, he had a touching reunion with Aizawa and Present Mic, where the latter tried to help him regain his memories. Although he appeared to make progress, Kurogiri remained programmed to assist Tomura Shigaraki in all instances. Dedicated to his mission, he died in the final war while attempting to save Tomura due to Bakugo’s intervention. This left his former friends to mourn his life and the person that he could no longer be.
5) Lelouch and Suzaku – Code Geass
Lelouch and Suzaku’s complex friendship tore apart the entire fandom. They had been friends ever since a very young age, and Suzaku shared a close relationship with Lelouch’s sister, Nunnally. However, although their views on independence against the Britannian Empire were the same, their approaches were drastically different. This caused them to split up.
Dawning the persona of Zero, Lelouch wished to destroy his enemies using his Geass. Suzaku, on the other hand, wanted to work from within the system to implement change. Even though he was framed and nearly lost his life, Suzaku never lost sight of his ideals.
Suzaku also viewed Lelouch as a terrorist and kept trying to get in his way. This caused the two of them a lot of tragedy and the loss of their loved ones. Eventually, they came to an understanding that Suzaku would kill Lelouch after the latter had made himself a public enemy. The tensions between their ideologies resulted in a series of betrayals and heartbreaks, and it concluded with one killing the other while bearing the brunt of guilt.
4) Gojo and Geto – Jujutsu Kaisen
Gojo and Geto are one of the biggest friendship-turned-betrayals in the current age of anime, and for good reason. While the duo had gotten up to a ton of mischief as Jujutsu Sorcerers, Geto eventually ended up being disillusioned with humanity.
He wished to make Curses the superior species and even turned to killing for this. As a man who would never senselessly kill the innocent, Gojo inevitably had to face his best friend in Jujutsu Kaisen 0. Being the strongest Sorcerer in the series, there were no surprises on who won their battle.
However, Gojo still treasured Geto a lot and considered him his closest friend. This was why Kenjaku took over Geto’s body to surprise Gojo in Shibuya. This reminds us of how the difference in values between characters can cause heartbreaking separation, where one is even pushed to harm the other.
3) Kakashi and Obito – Naruto
One of the central moments of the Fourth Great Ninja War Arc in Naruto: Shippuden was the decisive battle between Kakashi and Obito. This was because of the years of history between the two.
Having been trained as ninjas together, Obito had always considered Kakashi a friend and rival. Despite Kakashi never acknowledging Obito, he also felt a bond with the hard-working boy. Regrettably, Obito lost his life in a mission and Kakashi blamed himself for failing to protect him.
The biggest twist in Naruto, however, was Obito being alive and joining Madara to act on the Infinite Tsukuyomi plan. Trying to get his friend back, Kakashi desperately fought and restrained him. This did work to an extent since Obito regretted his actions and gave his life up to protect Naruto against Kaguya. Thus came a heartwrenching end to the friendship, leaving behind a lonely Kakashi.
2) Ryo and Akira – Devilman Crybaby
Devilman Crybaby is based on the iconic Devilman manga and tells a tale of love, betrayal, and heartbreak. This mainly surrounds its two protagonists, Ryo and Akira, working together to protect society. Akira had gained the powers of a devil and was working with Ryo in the background to track any dangerous individuals in the world.
In a twist, Ryo had been revealed to be Satan all along, and he was the one gathering demons to fight god. However, Ryo loved Akira in his own, twisted way, but the revelation of his identity did not sit well with Akira. This leads to an explosive battle where Akira ends up dying, and Ryo is left behind to confront the enormity of his actions.
This tragedy shows the effects of secrecy, selfishness, and manipulation. Even for a celestial being, betraying his closest friend for the sake of his goal left behind a void in his heart.
1) Guts and Griffith – Berserk
If you ask anime and manga fans about the most enraging betrayal in a friendship, there is a good chance they’d reply with Griffith’s betrayal of Guts. Both of them were mercenaries and possessed intense and charismatic personalities. The bond they shared was really deep, and coming from a brutal past, Guts believed he had finally found love and friendship.
Unfortunately, for the sake of attaining higher power, Griffith called down Hell through the Eclipse. To become a member of the God Hand, he sacrificed everything he held dear including the sanity of Guts’ lover, Casca. While Guts was able to escape this nightmare, he was given a brand that would make demons constantly attack him.
By scarring Guts physically and mentally for becoming a being akin to God, many fans consider Griffith to be the most evil character in history. The two had shared a sweet friendship and camaraderie at one point, but this was broken up due to ambition and greed.
Conclusion
To conclude, the 7 anime friendships above showcase the most tragic endings to beloved bonds. What once began as an innocent friendship can often end terribly due to betrayal, unchecked ambition, differing ideologies, and a wide variety of other reasons. By highlighting the fragile and devastating nature of connections in the world of anime, these stories leave lasting emotional impacts on fans.
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