About

Yamato was selected from the Anbu to serve as a substitute for Kakashi, who was unable to participate in missions due to exhaustion. The Fifth Hokage, Tsunade, describes him as "the finest Anbu operative since the Third's reign." His real name is unknown; his code name during Kakashi's time in the Anbu was Tenzo. In the Kakashi Gaiden: Anbu Chapter, it is revealed he was once a member of Root, where he was called Kinoe by Danzo Shimura before taking the name Tenzo. Currently, he goes by the name "Yamato," assigned to him by Tsunade. He addresses Kakashi as "Senpai" and holds him in high regard, though their methods of training subordinates differ slightly; compared to the compassionate Kakashi, Yamato is more of a rationalist. While he generally maintains a gentle atmosphere, as an Anbu, he is skilled at ruling through fear and occasionally makes terrifying faces. Because of this, even Naruto—who usually treats others with frankness, calling even the Hokage "Gramps" or "Granny"—addresses Yamato as "Captain." That said, he is incredibly weak against Kakashi and is often manipulated by his smooth talking into doing inconvenient favors (such as helping subordinates with training or being tricked into paying for ramen). He is the sole survivor of Orochimaru's experiments, having been implanted with the DNA of the First Hokage, Hashirama, who was said to be able to control Tailed Beasts. Because of this, he is one of the few Jonin in the Hidden Leaf Village to possess a Kekkei Genkai, specifically the Wood Style ninjutsu unique to him. His use of Wood Style is versatile in both offense and defense, allowing him to build houses for camping or create clones. Furthermore, because he can use special sealing techniques for Jinchuriki that require the power of Wood Style, he was integrated into Team Kakashi to serve as a suppressor in case Kurama inside Naruto goes on a rampage.