10 Best Sibling Rivalries In Anime, Ranked | Screen Rant
Siblings are the undisputed champions of pushing all each other's buttons. Whether the clash is about vengeance, power, or just which one of them Mom and Dad loved more, fights between family are the fiercest and most emotionally charged of any story.
The world of anime is home to countless family feuds involving conflicts between brothers and sisters. Sometimes their bad blood ends in tragedy, sometimes in reconciliation, and some even manage both at once like Trigun's Vash and Knives. Yet no matter how they end, these sibling rivalries all share one thing in common: they dominate the narrative and serve as the chief impetus for their respective climaxes.
Adopted and trained by the same martial arts master, Kenshiro and Raoh both desire to be the strongest wielders of Hokuto Shinken. When Kenshiro is chosen as successor to the style, Raoh murders their father and leaves to terrorize the wastelands, while Kenshiro uses his power to protect others.
Their repeated clashes culminate in Raoh kidnapping Kenshiro's lover Yuria and faking her murder to provoke Kenshiro into an all-out final battle. Ultimately, Raoh concedes defeat to his little brother and allows himself to die. Proving that he bears Raoh no ill will, Kenshiro goes on to train Raoh's son.
Generations in the past, All For One began his reign of terror by stealing others' quirks to grow stronger, amassing a following of other villains. Yoichi, despite being physically much weaker, remained determined to put a stop to his older brother's plans to dominate hero society.
The entire overarching conflict of the story stems from the dueling ideologies of these brothers. Yoichi's sense of justice and his quirk, one of the most powerful quirks in My Hero Academia, are passed down to protagonist Izuku Midoriya, and All For One grooms his own successor Tomura Shigaraki to stamp out Yoichi's heroic ideals once and for all.
Nobody is quite sure what Johan is: a failed experiment, a cult leader, or even the devil himself. But whether by nature or nurture, Johan Liebert is the ultimate anime villain who is both intimidating and disarmingly enigmatic. The only person he is genuinely attached to is his twin Nina, believing that they are two halves of one being.
Unfortunately, he shows his affection by murdering their foster families, manipulating her into shooting him, and stalking her after she's grown up and repressed her memories of him. Unlike the protagonist Tenma, who won't take a life even to stop Johan, once she gains her memories back Nina resolves to kill her evil twin to finally break free of him.
When Hyakkimaru was born, his father Daigo made a deal with demons, sacrificing his body parts for power. Daigo left his mutilated firstborn to die and sired a second son, Tahomaru, to raise as his heir. However, Hyakkimaru survived, growing up to return home and reclaim his lost body at any cost.
Initially, Tahomaru is horrified by their father's actions and sympathizes with the furious Hyakkimaru. But when it's revealed that Hyakkimaru's sacrifice is tied to their land's prosperity, and it will fall to ruin if he is healed, Tahomaru rejects him as a brother and vows to stop him for the sake of his people. The brothers become bitter enemies as they fight for what is most important to them.
When the family business is murder for hire, dysfunction just comes with the territory. Killua, the black sheep of the Zoldyck family, doesn't get along with any of his brothers. But it's the eldest sibling Illumi that gives him the most grief. Their parents want Killua to lead the family one day, and as a dutiful son, Illumi makes it his mission to sabotage all of Killua's efforts to break free of them instead.
He shatters Killua's confidence at every turn, implants mind-controlling needles in his brain, and attempts to murder his newfound friends to isolate him. With the manga currently on hiatus, only time will tell if their story ends with Killua finally defeating his brother.
These two were at each other's throats from minute one, before even discovering that they were long-lost sisters. Ryuko and Satsuki are polar opposites: the former brash and rebellious, the latter cold and authoritarian. Every time they fight, it's fast, fierce, and a whole lot of fun to watch.
Satsuki seeks to overthrow her mother Ragyo in revenge for the baby sister she believes Ragyo killed. But when it's revealed that Ryuko is that same sister, and their mother is responsible for their father's death as well, the reunited siblings join forces to defeat her. They end the show finally becoming close as family.
Inheritance disputes are messy enough among humans; a clash between youkai brings it to a whole new level. Inuyasha inherits Tessaiga, their father's most powerful weapon, infuriating Sesshoumaru, who believes he is entitled to it due to his purer blood and greater strength.
Sesshoumaru's disdain for his half-brother's human heritage and his attempts to steal Tessaiga drive much of their conflict. As the show goes on, Sesshoumaru is confronted with his own weakness and learns compassion for others, Inuyasha included. He comes full circle from resenting his brother to protecting him, such as saving him from his rampaging demon half in one of the most heroic acts performed by an Inuyasha villain and accepting him as Tessaiga's rightful wielder.
In hindsight, naming a child Knives is just asking for trouble. Vash and Knives are twin Plants, immortal beings with superhuman abilities. While Vash is sweet, pacifistic, and befriends humans readily, Knives is cruel, arrogant, and wants to eradicate all humans.
Neither is eager to kill the other, but their struggle over the fate of humanity is vicious and bloody. Knives, in particular, relishes making Vash suffer for not siding with him. In both versions of Trigun, their final battle is the climax of the story. The manga has the brothers making peace before Knives' death, but the anime leaves Knives defeated but alive, and the pair's fate uncertain.
Jonathan lives a charmed life until Dio Brando is adopted into his family, at which point it begins a permanent nosedive. Dio abuses his new brother relentlessly and eventually attempts to murder their father to steal the Joestar fortune. When Jonathan exposes his crimes, Dio chooses a unique method of escaping justice: he becomes a vampire, vowing not only revenge on Jonathan but world domination as well.
Jonathan struggles for the rest of his short life to kill Dio, and finally dies trying: on his honeymoon, no less! While Jonathan dies letting go of his hatred and forgiving Dio, Dio's grudge against his adoptive brother extends to the entire Joestar bloodline and goes on to span hundreds of years and five generations. Few sibling squabbles can claim that kind of longevity, and their rivalry is a big reason not to skip part one of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure.
Naruto boasts so many warring clans of ninja that there is no shortage of sibling rivalries to choose from. This is the one that twists and turns throughout the entire show, transforming characters radically and taking the plot in shocking directions.
Sasuke spends the majority of the series deeply hating Itachi, who massacred their clan when he was a child. He sacrifices friendships, home, and his own body to gain enough power to kill his much stronger older brother. When he finally does, he discovers that Itachi didn't actually commit the crime out of selfish impulse but on the secret orders of the Leaf Village elders, which he disobeyed in leaving Sasuke alive. Sasuke's goal is completely reversed, and he now seeks to destroy the Leaf Village to avenge his brother. However, he is convinced otherwise in the final arcs, and his story ends with his decision to follow in Itachi's footsteps and protect the Leaf Village.