8 Anime Rivalries That Were Really Love Stories

Every great anime hero needs somebody to chase. The best rivalries are about two people who can't become themselves without each other. Not romance, the other kind of love. And we've all had that person. The cousin you raced, the friend on the other team, the one who made you better just by existing.

This is a ranking and it's the third piece in my heroes and villains run. As the best rivals are a little bit of both.

Spoiler warning: Entries for Cowboy Bebop, Berserk, Death Note, and Naruto discuss major plot points.

8. Yusuke Urameshi & Kazuma Kuwabara (Yu Yu Hakusho)

The one who kept losing.

Kuwabara starts as the rival who can't beat Yusuke and he never really does. He just keeps showing up until he's the friend who would walk into any fight for him.

What it was really about: Loyalty beats winning.

7. Spike Spiegel & Vicious (Cowboy Bebop)

The past that won't stay buried.

Spike runs from the Syndicate, but Vicious is the one thing he can't outrun. Their story ends the only way it ever could.

What it was really about: You can't run from who you used to be.

6. Guts & Griffith (Berserk)

The betrayal.

Guts followed Griffith's dream until he wanted one of his own. What happens next turned a rivalry into one of the darkest revenge stories ever drawn. Griffith is on my villains list for a reason.

What it was really about: Wanting someone's respect more than their friendship.

5. Izuku Midoriya & Katsuki Bakugo (My Hero Academia)

Childhood friends. Childhood enemies.

Bakugo grew up telling Deku he would never be a hero. Then Deku got a Quirk and Bakugo had to face the fact that the kid he looked down on was right behind him the whole time. Their growth is the backbone of the series.

What it was really about: Admitting someone was always your equal.

4. Hanamichi Sakuragi & Kaede Rukawa (Slam Dunk)

Hoop rivals.

Sakuragi picks up basketball to impress a girl and Rukawa is already a star. They can't stand each other and they make each other better every single game. The First Slam Dunk put the series in front of a whole new generation too.

What it was really about: Earning a nod from the one person you'd never ask for it.

3. Light Yagami & L (Death Note)

The chess match.

A genius with a killer notebook against a genius detective who sits like a gremlin. Every conversation is a trap. They were sharing snacks while trying to end each other.

What it was really about: The only person who understood you was the one hunting you.

2. Naruto Uzumaki & Sasuke Uchiha (Naruto)

The bond.

Two kids with nobody. One chased friendship and the other chased revenge. Naruto chased Sasuke across the whole series because giving up on him meant giving up on himself. Valley of the End, twice.

What it was really about: Refusing to let your brother go.

1. Goku & Vegeta (Dragon Ball Z)

The standard.

Vegeta showed up as a prince who wanted Goku dead and stayed as the rival who could never quite catch him, until he finally admitted Goku was the best. Decades later they're still training, still arguing and still pushing each other past new limits.

What it was really about: Pride, swallowed. Respect, earned.

Everybody needs a Vegeta

A rival is the person who sees your ceiling and refuses to let you stay under it. That's why these stories stick. Most of us don't have a nemesis, we have a cousin, a teammate or a best friend who kept us honest. Anime just gave them better hair.

So who made you better just by being in the way? Tag them.