I’m no animation guru, having started on them only like less than 2 years ago. Therefore, my recommendations tend to be pretty recent releases.

I still remember the first animation I watched was Naruto. The storyline was great. There are two main characters, Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke. Naruto is kind of like an outcast because he’s considered a jinx by the village he lives in. The story goes that a terrible beast (called Kyuubi, which is a 9 tailed fox) attacked the village and the leader of the Konoha village (a highly skilled ninja called the Hokage) gave his life to stop the beast. The Kyuubi wasn’t killed though. It was sealed away inside Naruto’s body. He was a baby at that time.

The villagers therefore had a negative impression of Naruto and associated him with the Kyuubi. Therefore, Naturo is constantly fighting to get recognition and acceptance by the villagers. Therefore, he joined the Ninja training academy and aspired to become a future Hokage, thinking that it will bring him the recognition he has always been looking for.

Sasuke on the other hand is from the famous Uchiha clan in the village. The Uchiha clan is a clan of one of the most skillful ninja in the Konoha village, and they are held in high regard. Unfortunately for Sasuke, his elder brother Itachi massacred the entire Uchiha clan, leaving only Sasuke. Sasuke joined the Ninja academy to train for revenge against his elder brother.

Everywhere Sasuke goes, because of his background, he’s quite well-regarded. This is in stark contrast to Naruto. And, the two dudes ended up being together in a team. Sasuke initially looked at Naruto with disdain, while Naruto is constantly tries to gain recognition from Sasuke that he’s not worthless. There’s a third person in the team, Haruno Sakura, who Naruto likes but unfortunately, she likes Sasuke instead.

So, the team went through various trials under the leadership of a top ninja, Hatake Kakashi. The friendship blossomed between the three of them. Unfortunately, a big bad guy called Orochimaru decides to wreck havoc on the Konoha village. Orochimaru took fancy to Uchiha Sasuke’s unique ability called the Sharingan. It is a special ability that only those of the Uchiha bloodline has. After wrecking Konoha, Orochimaru left and Sasuke decides to leave Konoha to join Orochimaru because of the promise of power by Orochimaru, which will enable Sasuke to take revenge on his elder brother.

So, the story continues about how Naruto tries to rescue his friend Sasuke, who has fallen into the darkness in his pursuit of revenge. Naruto met many obstacles but relentlessly pursued for the sake of friendship. It’s this friendship theme that I found so appealing in this animation. If you are the kind of person who is willing to go to great lengths for your friends, it’s an animation that you should watch.