Among the most famous Sensei characters within the anime community, the name Kakashi Hatake is probably one written in golden letters. For Naruto, he is a friend, a sensei and also the only wall to rely on. But even such an important character was killed by Kishimoto sensei. But does Kakashi die for real?
Apparently, it’s both a yes and a no. During the Konoha invasion of the Akatsuki, Kakashi fought against one of Pain’s paths and died of exhaustion. But that death was not a permanent one, for he was soon revived due to Pain aka Nagato’s sacrifice.
Despite this one case, there are many other life-threatening situations that Kakashi faced. Even after that he survived using his own skills and also while believing in his allies
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Who Killed Kakashi Hatake?
If you are not a hardcore fan of Naruto, you might not remember all the small tidbits. To be honest, you can’t blame yourself since this series has more than seven hundred episodes. So many of you might have forgotten about the sacrifice that Kakashi made since he is not the central character.
If you are feeling confused as to when and how Kakashi dies, then relax. That’s because we will give you a complete recap of the events that made him give up his life.
You all might remember Nagato Uzumaki, the villain who gave up on his twisted goals all because of Naruto exclusive Tank no Jutsu. Yes, the very person who led the evil deeds of Akatsuki under the alias of Pain. Yes, that’s the person who kills Kakashi Hatake!!
To be exact, it was not Nagato himself who killed Kakashi but it was the exhaustion. In order to fulfil Akatsuki’s aim of collecting all the Tailed Beasts, and reviving Ten-Tails, Nagato, aka pain takes it upon himself to capture the Nine-Tails.
To realize his goal, he attacks the Village Hidden in the Leaves. He used the power of the Six Paths Technique obtained due to the Rinnegan. The entirety of Konoha was devastated by the Six Paths of Pain and many were killed.
Among the countless victims, Kakashi was one of the most significant ones. He fought alone against two of the Six Paths, Deva and Asura. The two paths worked together and caused Kakashi’s death.
How Does Kakashi Die?
Kakashi is strong enough to be a threat to the Akatsuki. The proof of this threat is clear when he fights against two of the Six Paths of Pain simultaneously during the Pain’s Attack arc. It just shows that he is a tenacious ninja who has the strength to back up his achievements.
Despite all these strengths, he still dies. Now the question is how does Kakashi die? It has already been cleared that Kakashi died in his fight against Deva and Asura paths but they were not the ones who killed him.
If you rewatch the Kakashi death episode, that is episode number 159 of Naruto Shippuden. The episode is conveniently titled “Pain vs Kakashi.”
The fight starts when Kakashi confronts the Deva path alone. When Kakashi tries to attack Deva, he gets stabbed by the Chakra rod.
But Kakashi easily dodges it and launches at Deva with a powerful Chidori. Seeing the devastating power of Chidori, Deva uses Shinra Tensei aka Repulsive force and throws Kakashi afar.
Realizing the fact that it’s impossible to get close, Kakashi launches a ranged Chidori. Even that attack fails cause it dissipates into the air before hitting Diva. And exactly at that point the other Path, Asura appears behind Kakashi and launches missiles at him.
Seeing Kakashi’s unstable footing, Deva pulls in Kakashi using Bansho Tenin aka Attractive force. But Kakashi manages to hold against it using a chain and a rock to lock himself in place. And that’s when Asura comes in front of Deva and stabs Kakashi with his tail blade.
Pain thought Kakashi was dead when Choza and other ninjas came to assist him. The group fights against the two paths on equal grounds. Near the end of the fight, Kakashi manages to land a Chidori at Deva only to be blocked by the Asura path.
Knowing that Asura will be destroyed, it self-destructs causing a huge explosion. This kills all the ninjas in the area except Kakashi who is stuck in the ground because of the falling debris and is unable to move.
Deva then completes his monologue and fires a needle at Kakashi to finish him off. But Kakashi was not dead yet. That’s because when Choji appears at the scene, Deva was gone and Kakashi asks Choji to inform Lady Tsunade about Pain’s abilities to give the other ninjas an upper hand.
But at that moment, the devastated Asura path reappears and launches a missile at Choji to finish him off. At that moment Kakashi uses Kamui to suck in the Missile and it was the moment when he dies.
So, if you want to know the exact “when does Kakashi die” moment then it was when he used his Kamui to save Choji. That’s because Kakashi at that point lost all his chakra and was exhausted. This caused his death.
Did Kakashi Really Die?!?
If you watched the remaining episodes of Naruto Shippuden and even Boruto, then you would know that Kakashi is not actually dead.
Now in Naruto, the act of death doesn’t mean all is done, but one can be reanimated. But Kakashi was not reanimated but is still alive and kicking.
So how does Kakashi come back to life? Well, the reason is simple. Not just Kakashi but all who were killed due to the Pain invasion were revived thanks to Naruto and Nagato.
When Kakashi died because of chakra overuse, his soul was stuck in limbo. From the perspective of Naruto’s storytelling, this limbo is equivalent to death in real life.
There he finds his dad, Sakumo Hatake. The father and son exchange the stories of their life. Kakashi claims to be proud of his Father when their meeting is cut short.
That’s because the revival of the entirety of Konoha was taking place. After Naruto returned to Konoha and defeated the six paths of pain, he confronts Nagato.
He embraces Nagato’s pain but rejects his ideology. This causes Nagato’s will to be shaken and he realizes the mistakes on his path.
Realizing he can’t undo everything he did but still help the people of the Village Hidden in the Leaves, he sacrifices himself.
He hands over his dream of world peace to Naruto and uses the last Jutsu of his life. He uses every bit of chakra he had and revived all those who were killed by him during the Pain invasion.
Since Kakashi was also one of the victims, he is revived and causes surprise to many. The short limbo helped Kakashi express his pride for his father and in turn, further strengthened his resolve.
Frequently Asked Questions About Kakashi’s Death
Was Kakashi killed or did he sacrifice himself?
If one looks at the end of the fight, Deva threw a nail at Kakashi that should have killed him. But Kakashi survived using Kamui at that point.
Instead, he died when he used Kamui to save Choji from Asura’s missile. Thus, it is safe to say that Kakashi sacrificed himself.
Is Kakashi dead in Boruto?
After being revived by Nagato, Kakashi never died. Even after he lost his Sharingan, he was not weak. This is why he was able to hold his own and is still alive even in Boruto.
Seeing the storyline that Boruto has adopted, it is safe to say the end of the copy ninja is still far.
Was Kakashi the only one who was revived by Nagato?
Kakashi was not the only one who died during the Pain invasion. Many other ninjas died including Choza. All of them were revived when Nagato used the Revival Jutsu at the cost of his life.
What Jutsu was the copy Ninja Kakashi killed by?
Funnily enough, Kakashi was not killed by the Jutsu of his enemy but because of one of his own. He used Kamui to save Choji from the missile and that’s what killed him.
Kakashi gathered up the last of his chakra to use this ocular Jutsu and sacrificed himself. So the Jutsu that killed him was none other than his own Kamui.
Is Naruto responsible for Kakashi’s revival?
Yes, Naruto is the reason why Kakashi is still alive and breathing. He was the one who convinced Nagato of the faults of his path. This realization made Nagato sacrifice his own life for the sake of Kakashi and other Leaf Ninjas’ revival.
Conclusion
Within the story of both Naruto and Naruto Shippuden, the value and importance of Kakashi are boundless. But the way Kishimoto Sensei wrote the plot, many are confused about whether does Kakashi die or not.
He might have sacrificed himself but he is yet to be killed. However, the possibility of Kakashi’s death is pretty slim. That’s because even after getting old and losing his Sharingan, Kakashi is one of the strongest Ninjas in both Naruto and Boruto combined.
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