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There are other anime characters, who are handled in such a way by the writers that they fall short of their goals. At times, this can be infuriating especially considering that these characters were arguably more talented than the main characters themselves.

7 Itachi Uchiha (Naruto)

Labeled a prodigy from the very beginning, it didn’t take long for Itachi Uchiha to become one of the biggest names in the Hidden Leaf. Itachi trained rigorously and aced all the exams. He joined the ANBU at a very young age, and all these accomplishments showed that he was going in the right direction.

However, it didn’t take long for the series creator, Masashi Kishimoto to weaken Itachi. It was revealed that Itachi was suffering from a mysterious illness, which hindered his growth. Itachi could not go all out in a fight as his illness would kill him. If he hadn’t become sick, Itachi would undoubtedly become the strongest character in the series.

6 Gohan (Dragon Ball)

Gohan is the son of Goku. When Gohan was still young, many fans believed that he had enough potential to surpass his father. Gohan reached his peak during the Cell Saga, where he fought against Cell.

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After defeating Cell, Gohan was arguably the strongest character on Earth. One would think that Gohan would train even more to increase the gap between him and others, but the young Saiyan was satisfied with his power level. So, he didn’t train and allowed his potential to go to waste.

5 Gon (Hunter x Hunter)

Gon is a very popular anime character, who hails from Hunter x Hunter. From a young age, Gon showed that he was different from the other kids. He was always looking forward to his next adventure on the island, and when he was finally mentally ready, Gon set out to participate in the Hunter Exams.

In the exams, Gon was a standout performer and every participant was in awe of his performance. Gon trained under multiple people and got stronger over time and everyone acknowledged that he was very talented. During the Chimera Ant arc, Gon managed to get the better of Neferpitou, but the young Hunter ended up losing his ability to use Nen. If things do not change, Gon might never be able to realize his full potential.

4 Nel (Bleach)

Nel is a popular side character in Bleach. She was introduced in the Hueco Mundo arc, and it did not take long for her to make a name for herself. She is a member of the Arrancar race, and over the years, she gained a great deal of fighting experience.

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The fans were extremely impressed by Nel in the Hueco Mundo arc, and they were expecting her to be more involved in the series. However, Kubo had other plans for Nel, and eventually, she fizzled out, and it was mainly due to the huge number of characters.

3 Iwabee (Boruto)

Iwabee is an anime-only character from Boruto: Naruto Next Generations. When he made his first appearance in the series, Iwabee made an instant impact. As the fans found out more and more about his abilities, he seemed like one of the strongest members of the new generation.

He aced all the physical exams in the Academy, and his only weakness was that he couldn’t pass the written exams. Ever since the anime started adopting material from the manga, Iwabeen has barely made an appearance in the series, which has been detrimental to his development.

2 Portgas D. Ace (One Piece)

Portgas D. Ace is the elder brother of Luffy. Shortly after he left Foosha Village, Ace started to make a name for himself. During his journey, Ace found the Mera Mera no Mi, which granted him the power to control and create fire. With such a powerful ability, it seemed that Ace had a big future ahead of him.

He was taken in by Whitebeard, who named him the Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates. Ace was eventually killed during the Summit War, which brought a screeching halt to his journey. He was the son of Gol D. Roger, and he sailed under Whitebeard’s name, so there was clearly a lot of expectation from him. But during the Marineford arc, it became clear that Ace was nowhere near those two men.

1 Jotaro Kujo (JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure)

Jotaro Kujo is the main character of Stardust Crusaders, and he is one of the few characters who reappear in other parts. At the very beginning of Part 3, Jotaro’s Stand was revealed and after just a few fights it became clear that it was extremely strong.

During his fight against DIO, Jotaro awakened the ability to stop time, which allowed him to beat his family’s nemesis. Sadly, after beating DIO, Jotaro did not train a lot, which arguably made him weaker. Furthermore, if he had gotten his hands on the Stand Arrow and used it to stab himself then it is very likely that he could have become the strongest character in the series.

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