Every warrior has their own reasons for being strong, and Shonen Anime has a diverse cast of heroes with a drive toward strength. Granted, these stories wouldn't be interesting if the characters never grew or if fights never evolved, but these characters have become so obsessed with becoming stronger that it's become a defining trait as well as a common trope in Anime.
Whether for good or bad, or somewhere in between, each of these Anime heroes has their own reasons for their intense training. No matter where they take this drive of theirs, it's interesting to see how the obsession can change everything.
10 Neon Genesis Evangelion: Asuka Trains To Overcome Her Trauma
On the surface, Asuka appears to be brash and hotheaded, but all of that is a coverup for the pain she's feeling. Evangelion reveals Asuka's dark past over time, which shows the audience that all her hasty decisions are her way of avoiding the pain she's really feeling.
Asuka's intense training and great desire for success are how she copes, though it doesn't take away from her impeccable skills as an EVA pilot. Once she learns to properly deal with all her trauma, she becomes a force to be reckoned with.
9 Soul Eater: Maka Is Determined To Overcome Every Challenge, Including Fear Itself
Early on in Soul Eater, Maka isn't the strongest in Shibusen Academy, but she is the smartest with great control of her soul wavelength. As incredible as these strengths are, they only bring her so far on the battlefield, which is why she becomes obsessed with growing stronger.
Maka not only wants to be capable of fighting her enemies, but she's also pushing herself to be strong enough to protect her friends, including her partner Soul. Her tenacity can backfire when she tries to jump ahead on her own, but after learning to balance her skills as a weapon meister and as a fighter, she becomes strong enough to rise to any challenge.
8 My Hero Academia: Katsuki Bakugo's Drive Can Be A Bit Too Explosive At Times
Although every student in My Hero Academia is intent on being the best, there's no one who does it quite like Bakugo. With a powerful and versatile quirk paired with innate talent, it's no surprise that he became obnoxiously cocky. However, seeing how much further he had to go, Bakugo grew more and more, never settling for anything less than victory.
Bakugo's goal is to become the number one hero and with how much he trains, pushing himself as well as others, he might reach his goal — unless his rival Izuku Midoriya has something to say about that.
7 One Punch Man: Genos Aims To Be Stronger For Justice
The teenage cyborg of One Punch Man, Genos, already managed to become a powerful hero, possessing an S-Class rank among the profession, but that's not enough for him. Always looking to be stronger to defeat any enemy of peace, he seeks out Saitama who's heroic battles are unknown to the world.
Genos knows Saitama is a lot stronger than he lets on, which is why he persistently asks Saitama to train him, and the latter can see just how serious the young hero is about being prepared for any battle.
6 Kill La Kill: Satsuki Kiryuin Has Strength In Her Pride And In Her Clothes
Satsuki appears to be an arrogant and oppressive ruler in Kill La Kill, but the audience eventually realizes how deserving she is of that position and all the hard work she's done to attain the power that she has. On her own, Satsuki is very driven to gain as much power as she can to defeat her mother, restore peace to the world, and avenge her younger sister and father.
She makes the power of the Kamui Junketsu her own, but even without that supernatural strength, her skill in swordsmanship is fearsome. Unlike many other characters obsessed with strength, Satsuki has strength in her intelligence, as well as bringing in the right people to support her efforts.
5 Bleach: Ichigo Kurosaki Fights To Protect His Friends
Although he's thrown into crazy, supernatural situations throughout Bleach, Ichigo never complains about how impossible the challenge is. Rather, his drive to protect others is what pushes him to train as much as he can. Sometimes Ichigo pushes himself too much, coming closer to death with each battle, but at the end of the day, becoming stronger is his main focus.
This has much to do with the guilt he's carried since childhood, not being able to protect his mother from a tragic death, and later on realizing that he's partly why she died. Ever since those two life-changing moments, Ichigo can't stand the thought of seeing others hurt or die, especially the people he calls family.
4 Fate Stay Night: Saber Moves Steadfast In Her Quest For The Holy Grail
Although cold and emotionless at times, Fate Stay Night's Saber can be inspirational with how determined she is to reach her goal. Even though she's young, she takes no time in enjoying life, constantly focusing on attaining the strength to defeat her enemies in the quest for the powerful Holy Grail.
Trained since she was only five, Saber – whose actual name is Astoria – was given the goal of restoring peace to the country. When it comes to attaining the Holy Grail she is determined to do whatever it takes to win.
3 Naruto: Naruto Uzumaki Never Stops Fighting To Achieve His Dreams
Throughout Naruto, main protagonist Naruto Uzumaki proves that one can become strong with hard work and determination. While his goals go from egocentric to heroic, he trains harder than anyone else. With every challenge overcome, Naruto is still raring for more and won't stop until all his dreams are achieved.
Even when all hell has broken loose and he's lost more than he's gained, Naruto still continues his journey, working so hard that he either exhausts himself to the point of exhaustion or – in the case when he's much older – makes no time for anything else but the task at hand.
2 Attack On Titan: Eren Yeager Is Hellbent On Turning The Tide In The War Against The Titans
When Wall Maria fell at the hands of the Colossal Titan, thousands of people lost their lives and many were scarred from the horrors that were witnessed – their hopes for a peaceful future dying as well. Eren Yeager is the exception and has used the pain and suffering from his own loss to drive him, obsessing over his goal to kill the Titans to the point that it becomes concerning.
In Attack On Titan, Eren's headstrong in his training, aiming to gain the strength and skills needed to accomplish his goal. Though his passion does stir inspiration among the new recruits, it's also very reckless, but even so, Eren will not stop until he's achieved his life's goal.
1 Demon Slayer: Tanjiro Kamado Balances His Strength With Compassion
Tanjiro is a rare sight among anime fighters since he's not a hothead, nor is he stubborn or cruel. Though he does have moments when his anger shows in Demon Slayer, it only happens when someone has been hurt. His morals are balanced out with his thinking and that's what controls his actions.
As kind as Tanjiro is, he is passionate is about building his skills to attain his goal. Taniro darkens because of the terrors he witnesses, but at the end of the day, his drive leads him to become strong for the good of mankind, with a bit of vengeance on the side.