Everyone in the world harbors a secret or two, or maybe a dozen. That's human nature, and at its best, art imitates life. Fans are no strangers to heroes who hide their true selves from the world. Clark Kent is the oldest example in the book, but the mold he formed has rarely been broken.

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Living a double life is part of the heroic status quo, and villains are keen on the concept, too. In anime, characters have all kinds of reasons to hide half of who they are.

10 Light Yagami Is Kira, Of Course (Death Note)

Light Yagami smirk From Death Note

Being an honor student isn't easy, and being the son of a famous police officer makes things even harder. Expectations in the Yagami household are certainly high, but for the most part, Light Yagami has proven a studious, bright boy capable of meeting them. Light is the pride and joy of his parents.

Of course, Light is secretly Kira, the mass murderer his own father's task force is doggedly seeking out throughout the course of Death Note. Even as Light smiles and shares meals with his family, even as he sees his father become overwhelmed by the chase, he carries on killing. As alter-egos go, Light's is among the darkest.

9 Lelouch Is Up To Zero Good (Code Geass)

Lelouch Lamperouge (Code Geass)

Code Geass' writing can be clumsy, which means secret identity tropes get their moment in the sun with Lelouch Vi Britannia. By day, Lelouch is a charming but seemingly lazy student at a prestigious boarding school.

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But Lelouch is secretly a fallen prince, the erstwhile son of Charles Vi Britannia, a tyrant of the empire. Beyond that, under the guise of Zero, he's the leader of a ruthless rebel movement seeking to overthrow the world order. Oh, and he's also got a secret power that allows him to control other people. Lelouch is many things, but lazy he is not.

8 The Sohmas Can't Escape The Family Cult (Fruits Basket)

fruits basket main cast in the shrine

Tohru Honda's classmate, Yuki Sohma, is so beloved by his peers that girls in the school have established a fan club around him. Cautious but polite and handsome, Yuki comes from a well-respected family. When his cousin, Kyo, transfers to the school, he's just as popular in his own right: rambunctious and spirited, Kyo makes friends easily.

Of course, fans and Tohru know that normal as the Sohma kids seem by day, their home lives are extremely fraught. Each of them bears a curse that means they transform into zodiac animals. On top of that, their family is helmed by a cruel tyrant, and they've both suffered years of abuse as a result. Truly, one never knows what goes on behind closed doors.

7 Usagi Is The Original Magical Girl Part-Time Hero (Sailor Moon)

usagi crying from sailor moon crystal

One of the eternal facets of magical girl anime is the alter-ego. Being an adolescent girl is extremely hard, and it's tempting to daydream that magical powers might help things along. As Usagi from Sailor Moon proved decades ago, however, being a magical girl isn't easy.

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Usagi as Sailor Moon is very different from Usagi as a student. Initially clumsy and immature, Usagi herself is nonetheless a lovable character. She wants to do what's right, and accusations of being a "silly" or "emotional" girl do nothing to detract from her accomplishments. In a way, Usagi's contrast with her alter-ego has always been a progressive statement: young girls are complex people, and Usagi's flaws are also her strengths.

6 Awkward Student By Day, Powerful Psychic After School (Mob Psycho 100)

Shigeo Kageyama using his powers in Mob Psycho 100.

Shigeo Kageyama's tragedy isn't his lack of power. Inherently one of the strongest, if not the strongest ESPer in existence, it seems there's very little Shigeo, or Mob, can't do when it comes to exorcising spirits or fighting other psychics. Sham artist Reigen immediately sees his potential and hires Mob to work as an exorcist after school.

But that's not the only reason Reigen takes Mob under his wing. Mob is intensely lonely, an awkward, mundane boy at school who wishes he could accomplish things without relying on the unfair advantage of his psychic abilities. He joins the fitness club even though he's terrible at exercise, and a girl dates him because she lost a bet with her awful friends. For all of Mob's powers, by day he feels like a loser, and his journey to self-worth is what the show's really about.

5 Rin Okumura Tries To Keep His Origins A Secret (Blue Exorcist)

Rin Okumura (Blue Exorcist)

If Rin had it his way, he might never have hidden his secret identity at all. But the son of Satan attending a school for exorcists is a touchy issue, and his twin brother, Yukio, is a strict instructor and keeper.

Rin never chose his parentage or expected his demonic abilities to manifest, but it's no wonder he has to keep his true self and his tail hidden when he first enrolls in True Cross Academy. As he builds friendships at school, the secret seems only more precious. Rin knows that if and when he's outed, he may be loathed, and the show addresses this with panache.

4 These Idols Are Dead-Set On Looking Alive (Zombie Land Saga)

Zombie Land Saga Revenge E12 featured

Forming a successful idol group in the modern world is challenging even under the best of circumstances, and the Franchouchou idols don't have those on their side. Each and every member of this Saga-based pop group is a zombie, and each has a tragic or comedic backstory behind her untimely death.

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Naturally, the members of Franchouchou keep their true identities a secret, and can't go outside without their manager plastering makeup over their grisly injuries. It's not easy to keep the cat in the bag, however: the girls are sometimes dismembered on stage, and one member, Sae, likes to gnaw on people.

3 Natsume Has Two Sets Of Very Different Friends (Natsume Yuujinchou)

natsume and friends having a picnic with yokai.

Takashi Natsume has never had life easy. As a boy, he was passed around from relative to relative because people found him creepy. Natsume was born with the ability to see and communicate with yokai, or spirits. In fact, he can't always tell the difference between human beings and otherworldly creatures. As a little boy, he made few friends and feared yokai.

But when he finally moves in with distant relatives, the Fujiwaras, who treat him with the utmost kindness, Natsume begins to forge real relationships. He makes both human and yokai friends, living two existences that sometimes overlap. Over time, Natsume finds his place in both worlds.

2 The Ghouls Run A Perfectly Normal Café (Tokyo Ghoul)

touka tokyo ghoul

Plenty of businesses function as a front for something else: a place where organizations get up to shady dealings after hours. And if you need a front, why not let it be a comforting, delicious one? Welcome to Anteiku, the coffee shop run by ghouls.

Most cast members in Tokyo Ghoul are ghouls, and several of them work at Anteiku. Ghouls can't eat food that isn't human flesh, but they can enjoy a cup of coffee, so they've found the perfect place to pass the time and lie low. After dark, Anteiku offers aid and sanctuary to other ghouls and helps provide corpses for the ghoul community to survive on.

1 Everyone Has An Alter-Ego (Durarara!!)

Durarara!! cast

There isn't a single character in Durarara!! that's not hiding some massive secret. That's saying a lot, as the cast of Durarara!! contains dozens of characters, all based in the offbeat Tokyo neighborhood of Ikebukuro. One character is a headless horsewoman who works as a courier, and another is a schoolboy who clandestinely helms an online gang that has the run of the whole neighborhood. Secretly, his best friend founded a different gang of his own, and their mutual friend is actually possessed by a demonic sword. The list goes on and on, and that's the show's whole charming point: people are more than they seem, and so is Ikebukuro.

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