"Hiei Clone" - Yu Yu Hakusho fans give Naruto fandom a taste of their own medicine by trolling Sasuke

Modified Mar 17, 2024 19:30 GMT

"Hiei Clone" - Yu Yu Hakusho fans give Naruto fandom a taste of their own medicine by trolling Sasuke (Images via Studio Pierrot)

One of the most incessant and historical beefs amongst the innumerous anime fandoms out there stems from the Naruto fandom and the Yu Yu Hakusho fandom. Likewise, veterans of anime forums and social media communities likely know the beef in question, which is the topic of “Hiei clones” and their abundance in shonen following the latter series’ release.

The reason why the Naruto and Yu Yu Hakusho fandoms are always beefing over this topic stems from the fact that Sasuke Uchiha is likely the best known “Hiei clone” amongst anime fans and non-fans. While Hiei is on a similar level, he’s likely not quite as iconic and well known as Sasuke is, especially with respect to those who wouldn’t call themselves anime fans.

Some Naruto fans have even gone as far as to claim that following the release of their series, the concept actually changes from “Hiei clones” to “Sasuke clones” given the latter’s iconicism. Unsurprisingly, the Yu Yu Hakusho fandom doesn’t take these claims lying down, which has been made evident in what’s the latest battle in the seemingly endless fandom war.

Yu Yu Hakusho fans remind Naruto fans that “Sasuke clones” wouldn’t exist without “Hiei clones”

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The reason why the aforementioned war between the Yu Yu Hakusho and Naruto fandoms is so serious to both sides stems from the relative “prestige” that comes with the respective titles each is fighting for. Within the anime and manga communities, influences and inspirations are a hotly debated topic, especially as it relates to older series influencing a newer one.

In other words, each fandom wants to see their respective character get the “respect they deserve” for being influential in birthing a new archetype of character within the medium(s). While this is seemingly futile as what influences and inspires one series likely has its own influences and inspirations which subsequently trickled down, it’s nevertheless a point of contention for some.

Likewise, the Naruto and Yu Yu Hakusho fandoms continue their social media debates on the subject. Ironically, however, Sasuke himself has direct influences from Hiei, which fans can confirm via former series creator Masashi Kishimoto citing latter series creator Yoshihiro Togashi’s work as an influence. While Hiei specifically isn’t cited, the similarities and inspirations are so apparent and obvious that Kishimoto clearly pulled something from him for Sasuke.

While this is common and easily accessible knowledge, many fans likely default to the iconicism Sasuke has as the reason why the term should be “Sasuke clones” rather than “Hiei clones.” However, it’s acceptable to say that there wouldn’t be any “Sasuke clones” without “Hiei clones,” something undermining the former argument as a result.

Fan reaction

Yu Yu Hakusho and Nartuo fans come to the defense of their respective fandoms on X (formerly Twitter) (Images via X users @allofthevibes, @DaRealAdamYM, @ohkanobii, @ethan_tv2)

Unsurprisingly, however, Naruto fans aren’t willing to go gently into that good night when it comes to this age old debate. Many fans have come to defend Sasuke in this latest discussion, claiming that Sasuke stole the spotlight from Hiei and also deserves “respect,” which they insinuate the original poster isn’t giving.

Yu Yu Hakusho fans are also choosing to defend Hiei in a similar fashion, sharing their memories of meeting the character for the first time and how transcendent he was. Others are simply maintaining the stance they know is right, reaffirming that everyone brought up in the original post is not a Sasuke clone, but instead a Hiei clone.