But most of these characters who have immortality, waste it just fighting their enemies. I mean, your life is even more precious than before, so why risk it by trying to rule the world? Personally, I’d hide away in a hut on a mountain range and binge everything humanity has to offer. I’ll be the living library of everything. Too bad some of these immortals have less admirable goals… but let’s take a look at some of the more notable immortal anime characters out there.
21. Nana
Anime: Darling In The Franxx Nana is not like those immortals. She’s a true friend to the parasites as their caregiver and mother figure. Nana protects the children, and looks after them with Hachi. She gave them guidance, affection, and comfort, all when the other adults didn’t give them any of that. Even after they grew up, immortals Nana and Hachi continued to look after humanity together. What a great use of an everlasting life.
20. Wen
Anime: Cowboy Bebop As suspicious as he may seem at first, you wouldn’t expect this little boy to be immortal. Wen became stuck in a 12 year old’s body after an astral gate accident. And despite being unkillable without specific conditions, this little immortal still needs an adult wherever he goes. Wen decided to master the harmonica with his newfound elongated life. …Well I guess if you’re forever twelve, you can’t do too much in the Bebop galaxy.
19. Kabane
Anime: Kemono Jihen Yet another child who’s practically immortal enters the battlefield! And decapitation won’t be enough to kill this kid. He actually uses that trick to his advantage in combat. The only known method to stop him, as is the case with many immortals, is to seal him. Tie a bag around his head and he’s done. It’s a good thing he made friends to help him out of those situations.
18. All For One
Anime: My Hero Academia All For One has been alive since the dawn of quirks. That’s over a century ago. So one probably starts to wonder, how did he stay alive for that long? Anime-only watchers: huge manga spoilers ahead! Well, All For One over here has a quirk that allows him to elongate his lifespan. It was provided by Doctor Garaki who shares the same quirk. I’m sure there’s an immortality quirk out there somewhere. Let’s just hope All For One doesn’t find it before he can be defeated once and for all.
17. Sukuna
Anime: Jujutsu Kaisen Okay, I know he died, but if his consciousness still remains then he’s still technically alive. Wouldn’t you be immortal if you uploaded your consciousness onto the internet? Exactly. Sukuna’s spirit—or rather curse— is still alive in his fingers, it’s just in a dormant state. Besides, even if Sukuna’s body isn’t still around, his fingers are indestructible. Although it is a little strange that only his fingers survived… But if anyone eats them (other than Yuuji Itadori), the King of Curses regains his form and will start terrorizing the world once more.
16. Sasori
Anime: Naruto Shippuden Sasori was fixated on immortality. He went as far as transforming his own body into a puppet just to achieve it. However, it was not a complete transition from human to puppet. His heart was still beating. After reincarnating, he complimented Kankuro’s Sasori puppet. It was the version of himself he always wanted. When Sasori was freed from the reincarnation jutsu, Kankuro relieves Sasori and tells him that his puppets were what immortalised him. Also, just putting this out there: Sasori is my favorite Akatsuki member.
15. Vivy
Anime: Vivy: Fluorite Eye’s Song Vivy has got a lot of professions under her belt. Idol, combatist, savior of the world from AI gone rogue—I bet those martial arts will help on her next resume. Diva (her alternate name) is an android built to be an idol, but forced to save mankind from the future onslaught of the AI uprising. She has lived through hundreds of years, and a few different timelines. It seems in the end, our technology will outlast all of us.
14. Beatrice
Anime: Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World Don’t be fooled by her appearance. She may look like she’s 12, but she’s actually more than 400 years old. By that number, it’s clear that she’s not human despite having the appearance of a little girl. And Beatrice is a powerful artificial spirit. She won’t die by any natural means for a long time, even after Subaru dies. Truthfully, I hope no one stays alive after Subaru dies.
13. Orochimaru
Anime: Naruto Of course we can’t forget Orochimaru in this list of immortals. His whole spiel and quest in his extended life is to become immortal so he can learn all kinds of jutsus. Orochimaru doesn’t stay in one form, though. He has to move his soul from one body to another to stay alive. But Orochimaru is a powerful shinobi, so he can defend himself from many threats for a long time. As long as he doesn’t get himself in trouble, he’ll find true immortality eventually.
12. Father
Anime: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood Alchemy is the power of God. But this power used by mortals has its limits; the most famous being the Law of Equivalent Exchange. So, this homunculus sacrificed a whole civilization to achieve immortality for itself and Hohenheim. Apparently, immortality wasn’t enough for Father, so he created a four hundred year old plan to become God. If Father succeeded with his plan, who knows what else he would’ve sacrificed to gain more knowledge and power. Ironically, it was Father’s son Greed that put a stop to his thirst for power. And it was God itself who took Father away to another realm through the Gates of Truth. All that destruction and conceit finally caught up to him. I guess that is a form of Equivalent Exchange as well.
11. Ryuk
Anime: Death Note Have you ever wondered why someone died spontaneously? That was most likely the work of a shinigami. Death gods like Ryuk can’t die unless it’s under certain conditions. Like they can get lazy and forget to write down human’s names to extend their own life. Or they can kill a human that was supposed to kill another human, thus saving their life. But if you don’t get too involved with humans (unlike Rem), Shinigami won’t die. Funny enough, Ryuk has given the Death Note to humans on two different occasions. Yet, staying true as a Shinigami, he doesn’t let the humans get to him. Maybe one day…
10. Muzan Kibutsuji
Anime: Demon Slayer If you’ve only watched the anime then fair warning here, because there are manga spoilers ahead! Muzan is the first and strongest demon to exist. All those who drink his blood are granted immortality and power unimaginable. However, Muzan himself is liable to only one weakness: The Sun. Nichirin blades won’t kill him, even if they’re imbued with the power of the sun. Over the course of a millennium, Muzan has accumulated a vast amount of knowledge, strength, and ability to reign over Japan. He worked so hard just to be able to live in the sun… Not a bad way to spend your time.
9. Hidan
Anime: Naruto Shippuden Hidan is a unique character that was never seen before in Naruto. His immortality gifted from the evil god Jashin fashioned him to be a challenging opponent for Shikamaru and Asuma. Whether you slash him, stab him, or dismember him, Hidan won’t die. Even after Shikamaru threw Asuma’s lighter into Hidan’s pit, he still didn’t die. It was revealed his cause of death was from lack of nutrition. So I guess that thirst for blood Jashin gave him didn’t fill his appetite.
8. Izanami
Anime: Noragami In Noragami, there are a handful of ways for a god to die. For example, if a shinki commits sins, an infection will erode the god that owns them – and eventually kill the god. A widely known way for a god to die is for them to be forgotten, something Yato desperately wishes to avoid. However, in Izanami’s case, she cannot die. She’s the ruler of the underworld who bears no shinki. So as long as the continuous cycle of life and death exists, Izanami will forever remain immortal.
7. Zombieman
Anime: One Punch Man Personally, I think Zombieman has the coolest name out of all the heroes. It’s simple, and it tells you what his power is too: He’s undead, which means he won’t die if he’s killed. Say you put a hole at the back of his skull. He can regenerate that and kill whoever made that whole in the blink of an eye. And just like a zombie, he won’t become tired. He was famous for fighting a monster for 140 hours straight. Zombieman can do anything a zombie can do. Don’t worry though, he won’t eat your brain. At least I don’t think he won’t…
6. Jibril
Anime: No Game No Life Jibril is part of a near invincible race called The Flugel. They’re winged beings closely resembling angels. But in reality, they’re weapons of mass destruction. On top of their cataclysmic power, the Flugel race are immortal too. Which means they’re immune to ailments, they’re invulnerable to all attacks, and they never age. Seriously, whose idea was it to make such an overpowered race?
5. Kars
Anime: Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Battle Tendency Let’s be honest: Kars was a powerful villain. He just could not be killed. Neither hamon, nor sunlight, would work on this vampire. And he’s older than 100,000 years – yet technically still alive. Joseph had to eject him into space where his body remained frozen and his mind stopped thinking, effectively dying. But should he ever defrost and return to Earth, who knows what might happen.
4. Van Hohenheim
Anime: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood Like Father, Hohenheim became immortal in FMA. At the same time, the homunculus and Hohenheim used hundreds of thousands of lives to prolong their life. Hohenheim took part unknowingly, and used the life given to him to correct what The Dwarf in the Flask had done. And he individually talked to each of the souls to calm them down so his mind could be at peace. When he found love, it was his quest to find a way to die with his family so he could never watch them grow old and wither before him. Although his wife passed before him, he was at peace when the philosopher’s stone reached its limit. He couldn’t die old with the rest of his family, but he did stop Father, and he did manage to die. So two out of three ain’t so bad.
3. Ban
Anime: Seven Deadly Sins I’ll never forget the way Ban gained his immortality. Surrounded by flames and dying from a fatal wound, Elaine drank the water from the Fountain of Youth and kissed Ban and all of his wounds healed. The Fountain of Youth granted Ban immortality, immunity to all poisons, and agelessness. His blood even has regenerative properties that can heal one’s wounds quickly. It was also used to help grow the Fairy King’s Forest – and Ban even escaped out from prison just to water it. He actually voluntarily let himself be captured because he wanted to feel pain. Immortality can grant eternal life, but it also can give you everlasting boredom.
2. Manji
Anime: Blade of the Immortal Immortality is not a gift, it’s a curse. After living for longer than you should have you eventually start to yearn for death. And Manji is on a quest to die. He needs to kill 1,000 evil men to correct his sin of killing 100 innocents. The worms that grant him immortality will continue to fester inside him for all of eternity until he completes his mission. Yeah, Blade of the Immortal is hardcore…
1. Fushi
Anime: To Your Eternity This entire anime exists to give growth to Fushi as a character. His immortality is only an instrument to provide that growth. Throughout his existence he forges relationships with people, which is evidently solidified when he gains the ability to morph into their form once they die. That sounds pretty morbid writing it out… Nonetheless, Fushi learns what it means to be human as he meets new characters with different dreams and backstories. They all teach Fushi new things, and in return, Fushi helps them prolong their death as much as possible. This anime is bittersweet, exciting, and solemn. To Your Eternity explores the human condition and what it means to be immortal. A must-watch if you’re into that concept.
