Kakashi Hatake
The eponymous character of the first series is Naruto Uzumaki, an energetic ninja who wishes to become Hokage, the leader of Konohagakure and holds a monster called the Nine Tails in his body. During the early part of the series, Naruto is assigned to Team 7, in which he meets his rival Sasuke Uchiha, a taciturn and highly skilled "genius" of the Uchiha clan; Sakura Haruno, who is infatuated with Sasuke and has Naruto's attention and Kakashi Hatake, the quiet and mysterious leader of the team. Over the course of the series, seeking out Sasuke when he ran away from the village, Naruto interacts with and befriends several fellow ninja in Konohagakure and other villages. He also encounters the series' antagonists, including Orochimaru, a former ninja of Konohagakure scheming to destroy his former home, as well as the elite ninja of the criminal organization Akatsuki who seek out jinchuriki like Gaara for the tailed beasts.