It’s been a little over 26 years since Kishimoto Masashi’s Naruto manga debuted its first chapter in Weekly Shōnen Jump. Three years later, the anime began in 2002. Alongside One Piece and Bleach, it earned its place among the Shōnen Big Three. I didn’t start reading the manga until 2005, two years VIZ Media began translating it into English. It took me years to fully catch up with Naruto, but I’m glad it did. Naruto drew me back into anime and manga in a major way in 2016, and a huge part of that was due to Jiraiya.
Naruto fans either love or hate Jiraiya. There is rarely an in-between. He is a world-renowned lecher and peeping tom, focusing on one thing: catching a scandalous sneak peek at the ladies. The fact that Kishimoto sensei even has Naruto calling Jiraiya out for being a “pervy sage” (エロ仙人– erro-sennin in Japanese) says volumes. But there is far more to Jiraiya than his perverse proclivities, and I will die on this hill defending him from anyone who says otherwise!
There Is No Excuse for Jiraiya’s Behavior, I Agree
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Now, before anyone goes getting all bent out of shape, I don’t applaud Jiraiya for being a lech. There are several times in both manga and anime that I want to punch him in the face for acting like a dog in need of neutering. As the story progresses, and we learn more about him, it does get easier to see beyond the veil of perversion that sticks to him like a bad smell. He even has some unforgettable moments of redemption before all is said and done.
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One of Jiraiya’s greatest faults is his unabashed claims to deviant fame. Under the guise of research for his novel, Makeout Tactics, he peeps and spies on unassuming women in bathhouses and onsen. We learn soon enough that Makeout Tactics is an adult romance, or rather a book for men about how to pick up women.
Considering the number of times he gets slapped, punched, screamed at and probably kicked in the jewels, it’s safe to say men probably shouldn’t follow Jiraiya’s advice. That being said, there’s no denying that despite his lecherous behavior, he is something of a ladies’ man. When he takes Naruto on to train him while they look for Tsunade, one of the first places they land together is a festival. Jiraiya’s number one priority quicly becomes looking for saki and women. Because he’s spending Naruto’s hard-earned cash, the ladies like him just fine.
Maybe Jiraiya Was Born That Way?
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Maybe they like him because he’s famous and worldly, too. Maybe they just don’t know him well enough to see he’s trouble. Chances are, he’s a great conversationalist because of all the places he’s been and things he’s seen. Whatever the reason, he doesn’t have much trouble picking up women, even if he is a perv.
The real question that pops us is why is he like that? The truth: he’s a trope. Ero-oyaji in Japanese basically translates as “Erotic Father,” or, what we know in English to be a dirty old man. It is an unacceptable and misongynistic trope that has been slowly phasing itself out of modern manga and anime.
The sad fact is that most of the anime today’s adults grew up watching had a character just like Jiraiya. In some cases, that character may have been even worse. Sailor Moon‘s Grandpa Hino, Master Roshi from Dragon Ball, Inuyasha‘s Miroku and Ranma 1/2’s Happousai are just a few off the top of my head, but the actual list is much longer.
Does it make it okay that Jiraiya is just a trope? Of course not. Being able to overlook the trope, however, and see the man beneath it is what makes him one of my favorite characters.
Jiraiya Dedicates Himself to the Amigakure Orphans’ Survival
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During a flashback sequence in the Pain arc, the three Legendary Sannin make their exit from the Second Shinobi World War. Jiraiya, Tsunade and Orochirmaru happen upon a trio of orphans from the Hidden Rain Village. Ever the practical one, Orochimaru thinks they should put them out of their misery. But Jiraiya believes they deserve a chance at life. They’re too young to survive for long on their own. He takes them under his wing and begins teaching them to defend and protect themselves.
For a time, Jiraiya believes Nagato is student of prophecy the Great Toad Sage of Mount Myōboku spoke of. The prophecied student would either save or destroy the world. With that in mind, he decides to teach them ninjutsu, which inevitably becomes his own downfall decades later when he encounters Pain. Fortunately, he never gives up on trying to find the student who might save the world. In training Naruto and Nagato both, he fulfills both aspects of the prophecy, no matter which way it turns out in the end.
We all know that Jiraiya dies by Pain’s hand in one of the most heartwrenching deaths in anime. But he doesn’t die without giving Naruto the tools he needs to defeat his fellow student.
Jiraiya’s Choice to Stay Behind May Have Cost Him Tsunade’s Heart
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During this time, it’s easy to assume he needs space from Tsunade. She would reunite with her lover, Dan Katō, upon returning to the Hidden Leaf Village. Jiraiya had no way of knowing about Dan’s death. Had he returned to the village with her, things may have turned out differently for them in the long run.
Jiraiya fell in love with Tsunade when they were young, and he carried a torch for her until his dying breath. The fact that he doesn’t run back to Tsunade the moment he learns about Dan’s death does say something about his character.
For one thing, Jiraiya likely didn’t want to just fill the void Dan left behind. He wanted Tsunade’s heart. He wanted her to love him. Chances are, she was too broken to open herself up again. Instead, she turns to gambling, earning herself the nickname “The Legendary Loser” far and wide.
Naruto Filler Episodes Gave Jiraiya More Heart
One of the most touching displays of his love for Tsunade is in Naruto Shippuden anime filler episode 235, “The Kunoichi of Nadeshiko Village.” When Naruto finds himself forced into a fight for his hand in marriage, he learns that Jiraiya once faced the same fate. It isn’t until the end of the episode that we learn Jiraiya stopped the fight. He couldn’t marry the leader of Nadeshiko village because of his one-sided love for Tsunade.
When asked why he doesn’t pursue her, he explains that she’s seen too much hardship. Closing herself off, he decides to fill her life with happiness, expecting nothing from her in return. During their final farewell in Shippuden, Tsunade is conflicted in her feelings. You can almost hear her wondering what might have been. Jiraiya, knowing he isn’t coming back from this last excursion, even teases her to bet on him dying because she always loses.
Jiraiya Never Gave Up On Trying to Save Orochimaru
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One of Jiraiya’s greatest regrets was Orocohimaru. Both of them part of Sarutobi sensei’s Team 7, alongside Tsunade, he always considered Orochimaru to be his friend. Even after Orochimaru turns down the dark path in search of eternal life that sees him fleeing Konohagakure, Jiraiya follows him in hopes that he can bring him back to reason. When his efforts fail, he still trails his old friend, keeping an eye on him and looking for ways to appeal to him.
Unfortunately, Orochimaru was a lost cause. Attacking the Hidden Leaf during the Chunin exams during the Konoha Crush arc, Orochimaru went toe-to-toe with their old master. The only way to stop him in the end was for Hiruzen Sarutobi to sacrifice himself with the Reaper Death Seal. Because Jiraiya wasn’t there during the attack, he held himself responsible for the Third Hokage’s death. He believes he fails his sensei and the village, and he carries that regret to the grave. Along with his unrequited love for Tsunade. I’m not crying. You’re crying.
Kishimoto Sensei Did Right by Jiraiya In the End
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Even though Kishimoto sensei openly states elsewhere that Sasuke Uchiha is his favorite Naruto character, he does have a particular fondness for the bond between Jiraiya and Naruto. And it shows. Jiraiya may have been a pervert and a lecher in the beginning, and we can certainly believe he dies as one, too. As we get to know him, however, it’s clear there is so much more to him than unconscionable raunchy behavior.
The fact that Jiraiya’s death scars Naruto emotionally is a testament to how close the pair grew in their travels together. Some say Jiraiya didn’t teach Naruto anything another shinobi could’ve taught him, but I disagree. In a long line of Hidden Leaf ninjas who fails Naruto, Jiraiya steps up in a way no one else bothers to do. Sure, he could have come around sooner than he did to help in the caring of his favorite student’s son. Much like other great wanderers, it’s clear he arrives precisely when he means to. And I will stand on this hill crying out that Jiraiya made Naruto the man he is today until the day I die.
