The Morality of Kisame Hoshigaki: A Naruto Essay

Link to the original YouTube video here.

Kisame Hoshigaki.

Okay, you know him, you love him.

He’s a mad lad.

A testament to this is the fact that he once thought about cutting off Naruto’s legs just so he could bring him back to the Akatsuki headquarters.

The Doctor Drakken equivalent of the Naruto series has a lot going on in terms of personality.

Wait, did I just say Doctor Drakken? Okay, what the hell? I’ve watched too much Kim Possible anyways. You should watch it too.

In this post, I’ll try to sound smarter than everyone else watching this by giving you a philosophical treatise on Kisame Hoshigaki as a character. So let’s begin.

Oh God, I still haven’t started. So let’s dissect the man, shall we?

The monster of the Hidden Mist, Kisame Hoshigaki, is famous for many things.

To some, he’s a cold and ruthless killer who has had his fair share of powerful fights in the Naruto verse. To others, he’s the chillest guy in the Akatsuki, you know, if you don’t mind Tobi. Oh God, I hate that two-faced runt Tobi.

But above all else, he’s a character with layers in his personality. You know, like ogres.

There are multiple dimensions to his character arc, showing off his past and how his experiences within it have shaped the way he views the world. There is anger, confusion, acceptance, and self-redemption for Kisame.

He’s kind of cool, if you ask me.

The layers that Kisame has make him interesting on his own. Moreover, his relationships with other characters, most notably Itachi Uchiha, make the viewing experience of Naruto even better.

Kisame enjoys fighting the good fight. In Naruto Part 1, he fought Asuma Sarutobi and enjoyed that fight from the get-go. In that same arc, he fought Might Guy, which was cut short by Itachi. In both instances, Kisame was ready for a full-blown confrontation. He later fought Jiraiya just because he was getting in the way of him capturing Naruto during the Kazekage rescue arc. His clone took on Might Guy and lost.

Later on, he voiced regret that it was a clone and that if he had been there himself, he might have taken Might Guy down. Now, considering what Guy became at the end of the series, we all know how much of a chance Kisame would have had against him. In pursuit of Roshi, the Jinchuriki of Son Goku, aka the Four Tails, Kisame Hoshigaki went at it alone.

He eventually succeeded, but it showcased his hunger for a fight. After Itachi’s death, he fought Raikage and Killer Bee in a two-on-one battle, a warrior through and through.

Forged in the battlefield, Kisame died fighting against the Konoha Shinobi at Turtle Island.

This is the point where Kisame gains a whole new dimension to his character and personality. One of the best things I like about Kisame is the way he died and the aftermath of his actions. While he was an antagonist who showed the allied Shinobi powers plan to the Akatsuki members, he did die a noble death following his Nindo.

His loyalty to his organization is an important part of this analysis. Kisame, for all his faults, was always loyal to the mission first and foremost. If he were a one-dimensional character, the hunger for just fighting the good fight would have made him a very base and barbaric character.

While he does show highlights of this during his appearances, Kisame wasn’t as base of a character as one might think. Kisame was a shinobi who took his duties seriously. It had been like this since the very beginning when he was part of the Mist Shinobi.

He was sent on a mission to guard the intelligence division of Kirigakure by his superior, Fuguki Tsukizan. When confronted with the threat of the Konoha Shinobi, Kisame chose to kill his comrades to ensure that no information ever got leaked. What happened afterward with Fuguki and Kisame?

Fuguki’s death resulted in Kisame joining the Akatsuki.

This is where I tie in this part of the analysis with the previous one. Even as a criminal, Kisame was a loyal shinobi. It was at the core of his existence. In all the fights he fought for the Akatsuki, he never compromised the mission. His fights during the Naruto pursuit arc were a means to an end.

The Nine-Tailed Fox. He was so dedicated to his nindo that he even once considered cutting off Naruto’s legs to prevent him from walking. As discussed in the introduction, cornered from all sides, Kisame chose to kill himself. Rather than be captured by the enemy, he used his own jutsu to imprison himself and let his sharks devour him. This was such an unexpected move that his captors, the Konoha Shinobi, were surprised at how dedicated Kisame was to his ninja ways. Now, you might be hearing me say the words “dedicated to his ninja ways” rather than the organization he was a part of.

You see, there’s a reason why I say that. And it all goes back to the time Kisame confronted Fuguki. Fuguki was a scum who sold Kirigakure’s secrets to other villages while also ordering Kisame to protect the intel at all costs.

When Kisame finally confronted him, he killed him. What happened next was an existential crisis.

If you can’t trust those with authority, can you really trust anyone other than yourself?

It was a human moment from Kisame, which showcased just how broken he was with that reveal. After that murder, Kisame went on with the philosophy that life was generally meaningless. There is no one you can trust other than yourself. To that end, Kisame went on with his life, following orders, becoming Obito’s pawn in the Eye of the Moon plan, and carrying out whatever orders were given to him.

This brings up another important aspect of Kisame Hoshigaki as a character. Even though throughout the series he was a murderer and someone who was immoral from the outset, the guilt of killing his own comrades never left. And that was the thing that drove him to become a nihilist who sees no intrinsic value in life and considers himself worthless. Just a pawn created to follow orders. But even though he considered himself a worthless pawn and moved on with life as such, Kisame has his moment of redemption when he is on the brink of death. Obviously, I cannot go any further in this essay without mentioning the relationship between Kisame and Itachi Uchiha.

There is a certain camaraderie in the way both characters interact with each other. In the entire Akatsuki, there hasn’t been a duo who has gotten along so well with one another. Right from the beginning, it was clear that they respected each other’s mentality and fighting style. Kisame was willing to admit that Itachi was stronger than him but wasn’t angry about it, and they worked well together in battle. Kisame showed concern for Itachi more than once, telling him not to overuse his Sharingan and to get out of the rain so he wouldn’t catch a cold. Kisame’s motives, I don’t think, were dark or power-hungry.

It was primarily because of his ninja training. Growing up in Kirigakure, still known as the Bloody Mist, he was pretty much taught that nothing matters apart from winning a fight. He became a criminal. Not necessarily because he wanted to do bad things, but because by that point, he couldn’t really tell what was bad anymore. I think Itachi saw how desensitized he had become to the constant violence. During that first meeting, Itachi says Kisame got lost in the mist.

So it’s clear he understands how Kisame could have ended up there. Kisame’s life had made him feel inhuman. Hence the reason he talked about sharks so much. Okay, I’m just joking. When they first met, Kisame, in Itachi’s words, talked a lot. The moment he arrived at the pier where Itachi was, he started talking about Itachi’s former life, how it matched his own, and also gave an extensive monologue about sharks.

It went something like this:

“And you are Itachi Uchiha, formerly of the Hidden Leaf. I’ve heard rumors that you slaughtered all of your Uchiha clansmen.”

He then replied, “I think we’re alike, you and I. That’s the reason I wanted to be teamed up with you in the Akatsuki. It’s really indescribable, isn’t it? Killing your comrades is quite the sensation. Would you say so, Itachi?” Then he began his shark monologue:

“Most sharks are ovoviviparous, which means that the eggs hatch inside the female body before the young are born. However, with some kinds of sharks, the number of eggs that hatch will differ from the number of young that will emerge from the mother’s belly. Do you know why that is? Because of cannibalism. Right from the moment they hatch, they start eating each other inside their mother’s uterus. The fratricidal warfare begins as soon as they’re born. To each shark, all the others are just food to be eaten. Starting today, you are an Akatsuki member and my companion, so be wary of me.”

After a few back-and-forths, Itachi finally responds: “No one who dares to raise their hands against a comrade ever dies a decent death. Remember that.” To which Kisame replies, “Well, that means our fates are sealed. Seems like you and I are depraved and worthless.” After all his appearances in the series, this is the point where we learn about the depth of Kisame as a character: depraved and worthless from the outset. That is what Kisame thinks of himself. What Itachi replied to that is even more interesting and shows just how much of an impact he had on Kisame’s life: “No matter who you are, you do not truly know what kind of man you become until you’ve reached the very end. One realizes one’s true nature at the moment of death. Don’t you think that’s what death is all about?”

I personally feel that this quote alone made Kisame respect Itachi and follow his orders. Before the fated battle against Sasuke, Itachi decided to part ways with the Akatsuki to fight him, essentially going to his death. Kisame knew what he was trying to do, since in the end, it was a suicidal fight. Kisame tried to stop the man and even fought him, eventually agreeing to Itachi’s decision. When they part ways, Kisame stops the fight, knowing Itachi wants to fight Sasuke properly, and then says it’s sad to say goodbye after all they’ve been through. Itachi’s influence on Kisame made him a character with depth.

On the brink of death, he remembered Itachi’s words.

“Itachi, did you find it at the moment of your death? Did you discover the kind of person you truly were?

Well, Itachi, it seems that in the end, I was not a worthless human being after all.” This is Kisame’s redemption. He’s not worthless in the end; he was a shinobi with purpose. Even though that purpose was antagonistic and for the benefit of the Akatsuki from whom he took orders, he still played a part. He did exist, and his actions had an influence.

I would really suggest you watch the entire scene in episode 251 of the Naruto Shippuden anime. It’s a scene that gives me chills regardless of how many times I watch it. Kisame was indeed a product of his time and location. I’m not denying that his actions throughout the series were wrong; they were horrific. But there’s always redemption. Even though he was a minor antagonist in the entire Naruto verse, Kisame Hoshigaki is indeed an interesting case study. I hope I made sense in analyzing Kisame’s character instead of making the entire essay a hodgepodge.

Thank you for reading.