Times Gaara Saved The Day In Naruto (2024)

Gaara is a former Jinchuriki who went on to become the Fifth Kazekage of the Hidden Sand Village, making him one of the strongest ninja in the Naruto franchise. Although Gaara started off as a villain who enjoyed killing, Naruto ultimately opened his heart to friendship and compassion. Gaara has one of the franchise's best redemption arcs, and he performed several heroic acts over the course of the story.

Most of Gaara's heroic acts involve him saving someone from certain death, and he usually risked his own life to do so. Not all heroic acts revolve around battle though. Gaara's words helped to unite ninja who were once mortal enemies, and he saved a young boy's life with a hug.

10 Gaara Protected Civilians During Momoshiki's Chunin Exam Attack

The Last Time Gaara Was In The Leaf Village For The Chunin Exams, He Planned To Destroy It

Gaara and the other Kage observed the final round of Chunin Exams which were taking place in the Hidden Leaf Village, but the event was cut short when Momoshiki and Kinshiki attacked. They wanted to capture Naruto so they could take Kurama's chakra, and they had no regard for the innocent civilians in the arena.

Momoshiki unleashed a powerful attack that caused large portions of the arena to collapse, and Gaara used his sand to block the debris, saving the civilians in his area and giving them time to escape. This small yet important act of heroism shows how much Gaara values human life. The last time Gaara visited the Leaf Village for the Chunin Exams, he intended to destroy it using Shukaku as part of the Konoha Crush plan. It is fitting that, decades later, he returned to the same place as a hero.

9 Gaara Risked His Life To Rescue Matsuri And Save Naruto From Hoki

A Filler Battle That Helped Prove Gaara Changed For The Better

Matsuri is technically one of Naruto's filler characters, but she played an important role in Gaara's development before he was named Kazekage. When Gaara first met her, she was a student at the Sand Village's ninja academy, and she chose Gaara to be her instructor. He teaches her that weapons can be used to protect comrades, and they become close friends as a result.

When Matsuri is kidnapped by a group of ninja from Takumi Village, Gaara sets out to rescue her, even though it was a trap designed to steal his Tailed Beast's chakra. Gaara was severely injured while fighting Hoki, but he was able to rescue Matsuri. He also used his sand to save Naruto from one of Hoki's lethal attacks. Gaara could have allowed himself to be consumed by Shukaku's power, but he suppressed the Tailed Beast so he could save his comrades with his own power.

8 Gaara Saved Shinki From Himself And Adopted Him

He Offered Shinki The Life Gaara's Own Father Never Could

Gaara did not have a good relationship with his father, the Fourth Kazekage. He was the one who made Gaara a Jinchuriki, and he stopped all of Gaara's rampages. When it became clear that Gaara could not control Shukaku, his father attempted to kill him. Gaara was also led to believe that everyone, including those he loved, hated him. He went through a lot of pain because of his father, but Gaara was able to forgive him.

Shiki is a Sand Village prodigy who can use Iron Sand, but more importantly, he is Gaara's adopted son. Shinki was an orphan who could not control his powers, and Gaara approached him. Instead of hurting the boy, Gaara hugged him and offered to help him. Shinki was a danger to himself and others, and Gaara saved him with understanding and compassion, which is something he never received as a child.

7 Gaara Helped To Save Naruto's Life During The Fourth Great Ninja War

Without Gaara's Help, The Entire Ninja World Would Have Been Destroyed

A Jinchuriki is supposed to die if their Tailed Beast is extracted, but Naruto survived because of Gaara and Sakura. Kurama was extracted from Naruto by Madara Uchiha during the final stages of the Fourth Great Ninja War. Using her medical expertise, Sakura kept Naruto's heart beating until Kurama's other half could be sealed back inside him. Gaara used his sand to carry Sakura and Naruto safely over the battlefield while she kept him alive. He also wrapped his sand around Sakura to keep her from falling.

The speed of Gaara's sand made all the difference because they got Naruto to Minato and the other Kurama in time to save him. Naruto risked his life to bring Gaara back after Shukaku had been extracted from his body, so this heroic gesture allowed Gaara to repay him. If Gaara had not done this, Naruto would have likely died, and the Ninja World would have been destroyed.

6 Gaara Brought The Allied Shinobi Forces Together With His Speech

His Words Saved The Alliance Before It Could Crumble

The Allied Shinobi forces were composed of ninja from the Five Great Shinobi Nations and the Samurai of the Land of Iron. The Leaf, Sand, Stone, Mist, and Cloud Villages had been enemies for decades, and they inflicted a lot of pain on each other during that time. When the coalition assembled, fights broke out because ninja from each village could not let go of their pain and hatred.

Gaara separated the ninja with his sand and rallied the entire alliance with a heartfelt speech. He told them all that Naruto cried for him even though they were enemies because they experienced the same pain, and that he wanted to protect Naruto with all his heart. He also made the ninja realize that they had all experienced pain at the hands of the Akatsuki, which meant that they should all be able to understand each other. If Gaara had not done this, the Allied Shinobi Forces would have not been able to work together.

5 Gaara Went To Another Dimension To Rescue Naruto From Momoshiki

He Risked His Life Against A God-Level Enemy To Save His Friend And The World

Naruto protected the Leaf Village by allowing Momoshiki and Kinshiki to capture him. They brought Naruto to another dimension and bound him to a tree in order to extract Kurama from his body. Fortunately, Sasuke opened a portal to that dimension with his Rinnegan, and led a rescue mission to retrieve Naruto. Gaara and the other Kage agreed to help rescue Naruto and stop the Otsutsuki from destroying the world.

Gaara and the other Kage overwhelmed Momoshiki, but things changed when he consumed his partner. The Kage tried to stop the empowered Momoshiki, but they were taken out systematically. Even Gaara's sand was not strong enough to restrain him. Gaara risked his life to save his friend from a god-level threat even though he knew he would likely not survive. This act displayed true friendship and heroism on Gaara's part.

4 Gaara Attempted To Protect The Fourth Division From Madara's Meteor Attack

He Tried To Save Thousands Of Lives With Ōnoki's Help

The Allied Shinobi Forces were stunned when the real Madara appeared on the battlefield as an Edo Tensei summoning. He charged into the Fourth Division and defeated dozens of ninja effortlessly. As the battle raged on, Madara was forced to use his Rinnegan to absorb Naruto's Rasenshuriken. He then used the Rinnegan to pull a meteor down from space.

The massive space rock had the power to wipe out the entire Fourth Division, and Gaara attempted to stop its descent with a massive amount of sand. Fortunately, Gaara had help from Ōnoki, the Stone Village's Third Tsuchikage, who lightened the meteor with his jutsu. Success was not guaranteed, yet they risked their lives in the hope of saving others. Thousands of ninja were killed because Madara called down a second meteor, but Gaara and Ōnoki were selfless nonetheless.

3 Gaara Saved The Fourth Raikage From Sasuke's Amaterasu

The Cloud Village Would Have Likely Lost Their Leader Is Gaara Had Not Intervened

Sasuke attacked the Five Kage Summit to kill Danzo, but he ended up fighting the Fourth Raikage first. The Raikage believed Sasuke captured his younger adopted brother for the Akatsuki, so he attempted to kill the young Uchiha. Lightning Release Chakra Mode gave the Raikage a slight edge in the fight because it allowed him to break through the ribs of Sasuke's Susanoo.

The Raikage wanted to kill Sasuke so badly that he willingly threw his body into Sasuke's Susanoo even when its was coated with the black flames of Amaterasu. Fortunately, Gaara saved the Raikage from the flames with his sand. If he had not done this, the Raikage would have either died or been forced to retire, and Sasuke would have probably died as well. Gaara then attempted to persuade Sasuke to turn away from the darkness, but he failed.

2 Gaara Saved Rock Lee From Kimimaro

Weeks Earlier Gaara Attempted To Kill Lee Twice Because He Was A Bloodthirsty Villain

Gaara and his siblings assisted the Sasuke Retrieval Team as a sign of good faith, and Gaara saved Rock Lee from Kimimaro. He may have been deathly sick, but Kimimaro was still a fearsome fighter. He mastered Orochimaru's Curse Mark and his clan's Shikotsumyaku kekkei genkai. Gaara continued to protect Lee during the fight, and then escorted him back to the Leaf Village.

A few weeks earlier, Gaara and Lee fought in the Chunin Exams, and Gaara tried to kill him after he had already won the match. He then tried to kill Lee in his hospital bed. At that time, Gaara was a bloodthirsty monster. Fortunately, Naruto changed his outlook on life. Saving Lee was a heroic moment, but more importantly, it was a major step forward for Gaara's development and redemption.

1 Gaara Sacrificed Himself To Protect The Sand Village From Deidara's Bomb

In The Past, He Would Not Have Cared If Anything Happened To The Villagers

Gaara hated the Sand Village and all of its citizens for a long time because they ostracized him and treated him like a monster. Thanks to Naruto, Gaara decided to embrace his village and fellow citizens instead. He became the village's Fifth Kazekage during the timeskip, and he took his job very seriously. He personally fought Deidara of the Akatsuki in the sky above the Sand Village in order to minimize damage

Deidara produced a special clay explosive and dropped it on the Sand Village, and Gaara blocked the explosion by producing a massive sand shield over the entire village. This left Gaara open to Deidara's smaller explosives, and he was subsequently defeated. Before losing consciousness, Gaara moved the sand shield away from the village because it would have crushed everything.

Naruto

Naruto Uzumaki, a mischievous adolescent ninja, struggles as he searches for recognition and dreams of becoming the Hokage, the village's leader and strongest ninja.

Created by

Masashi Kishimoto

First Film

Naruto the Movie: Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow

Latest Film

Boruto: Naruto the Movie

First TV Show

Naruto

Latest TV Show

Boruto

First Episode Air Date

September 21, 1999

Cast

Junko Takeuchi , Maile Flanagan , Noriaki Sugiyama , Yuri Lowenthal , Chie Nakamura , Kazuhiko Inoue , Dave Wittenberg

Spin-offs

Boruto

TV Show(s)

Naruto , Naruto: Shippuden

Video Game(s)

Naruto Ninja Council 3 , Naruto: Rise Of A Ninja , Naruto: Path Of The Ninja , Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm , Naruto x Boruto: Ninja Voltage , Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Impact

Manga Release Date

August 6, 2003

Manga Volumes

72

Genre

Shonen , Anime , Manga , Action-Adventure