The tragic tale of two best friends who are ripped apart by fate and differing worldviews can be found across anime. This broken bond is often solidified by a sudden betrayal in which the hero is left emotionally wounded. In the end, the two usually face off in a battle to confront the betrayal head-on.
While some betrayals are for the best, with one hero pretending to be the bad guy to indirectly help the protagonists achieve their goals, many of them end up as tense rivalries filled with resentment and tragedy.
10 Naruto's Heart Was Broken When Sasuke Left The Village
Sasuke Uchiha did not start as Naruto Uzumaki's friend. They hated each other for the longest time. However, they slowly formed an unbreakable bond by working together on missions and trusting each other with their lives. When Sasuke left the village, he thought he could sever that bond, but he could not.
Naruto and Sakura never gave up on Sasuke. They chased him down all the way to Orochimaru's hideout, and even when Sasuke tried to kill them both, they still hoped he would one day return home to them.
9 Boruto Never Gave Up On Mitsuki When He Left
Even when Mitsuki attacked Boruto, who had followed him to the Hidden Stone Village outskirts, Boruto did not give up on his best friend. Mitsuki had left the village, a crime that often got one killed, but Boruto pursued him in earnest.
Mitsuki betrayed both the Hidden Leaf Village and his best friends, Boruto Uzumaki and Sarada Uchiha, because he needed to figure out what the meaning of "will" was. It was not out of anything particularly malicious. He was an artificial being and needed to know more. Still, it was an act of betrayal against Boruto, even if the village forgave him.
8 Griffith Felt Betrayed By Guts' Departure In Berserk
Guts unknowingly betrayed his closest friend and battle partner, Griffith, when he left Griffith alone. In his pain over the perceived betrayal, Griffith committed a crime against the crown and was thrown into prison where he was tortured beyond recognition. However, Griffith still blamed Guts for everything.
Guts' departure took away Griffith's ability to reach his goals, as he had come to rely on Guts for a lot. Even though it wasn't Guts' intention to betray his friend, Griffith felt deeply hurt, and it led to a lot of grief later on.
7 Guts Was Then Betrayed By Griffith In Berserk
Griffith committed one of the ultimate acts of betrayal when he sacrificed his comrades and became the Godhand, Femto. From there, he only committed more acts of horror, including an unspeakable crime against Casca, Guts' love interest.
Griffith felt so betrayed by Guts, who was only trying to live his life, that he destroyed both Guts and Casca's lives, just as he felt they had destroyed his. This was because Griffith had a fundamental inability to recognize his misdoings that led to his fate.
6 Lelouch Was Betrayed By His Childhood Friend, Suzaku, In Code Geass
Suzaku Kururugi and Lelouch vi Brittannia knew each other as children and became close friends. However, in their later years, they become bitter rivals pitted on opposite sides of a faction war. It began with Suzaku betraying Lelouch.
After that moment, they fought on many occasions. Eventually, they saw eye to eye and worked together. Though the two always had love and respect between them, they were pulled apart by fate and the rulers. The series even pits them together symbolically through the references to the Knights of the Round Table, Gawain and Lancelot.
5 In A Silent Voice, Shoya Was Thrown Under The Bus By His Friends
When Shoya was caught bullying Shouko over her disability, his friends, who had not only joined in on the bullying but also encouraged his bad behavior, threw him under the bus to save themselves. From then on, Shoya had trouble trusting anyone, and when he met Shouko later in life, he decided to make amends.
Some of his old "friends" also came back into the picture, retraumatizing both Shouko and Shoya. Eventually, they were all forced to face their misdeeds and come to terms with what they had done.
4 Akira Realized Ryo Was Pulling The Strings In Devilman Crybaby
Ryo Asuke and Akira Fudo were best friends and opposites. They were the stereotypical childhood best friends who later grew apart due to betrayal. However, it turned out that Ryo was actually Satan who had taken a human form.
Akira later found out the truth about Ryo, and he discovered just how much Ryo knew and was behind Akira's newfound powers. This led to a final confrontation between the two, with Ryo in his Satan form and Akira as the Devilman. Akira died, and Satan was finally left to realize the consequences.
3 Longshot And Smellerbee Were Manipulated & Lied To By Jet In Avatar: The Last Airbender
Jet manipulated the Freedom Fighters into destroying a village that would have been full of innocents if Sokka hadn't stepped in. When he realized the error of his ways, he decided to turn a new leaf and go to Ba Sing Se. Longshot and Smellerbee came with him, hoping he had finally changed. However, they were caught off guard when Jet became obsessed with Zuko.
Eventually, they had to confront Jet under Lake Laogai, where he had been brainwashed following his arrest. Jet redeemed himself, but it did not change the fact that he lied to and manipulated his friends on multiple occasions.
2 Speedwagon And The Joestars Were Betrayed By Straizo In JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Battle Tendency
Straizo helped the Joestar family and Speedwagon defeat DIO the first time, and he lost his companion, Dire, along the way. He still seemed to be their ally when Speedwagon took him to the archaeological dig where they discovered the Pillar Men. Upon finding a stone maks, Straizo turned on Speedwagon.
Joseph Joestar and the nearly dead Speedwagon were left to fight off Straizo and figure out the mystery behind the Pillar Men, though Joseph had to do most of the work as a healthy Ripple user.
1 Varrick Was Betrayed By Zhu Li Who Joined Kuvira In The Legend Of Korra
Zhu Li was often mistreated by Varrick, the eccentric rich man. He made her carry heavy objects, rub his feet, and do other strange tasks. Because of that, it shouldn't have been as surprising as it was when she joined the enemy, Kuvira.
The biggest shock was that, despite Varrick's many demands, she seemed genuinely loyal to him, and she did not necessarily seem like the biggest supporter of Kuvira's ideology. However, Varrick did take her for granted. When it was all revealed that Zhu Li was gathering information, things made more sense.