Romance is a common element in the world of anime, even in shonen and seinen series. The shojo genre has some of anime's best romance stories, but ultimately, loving couples can be found all over the place. Some of them fell in love at first sight, but other couples started off on the wrong foot or worse.
In fact, some anime couples got off to a downright terrible start, and the two eventual lovers simply couldn't stand each other at first. At the time, they never could have imagined themselves becoming a real couple, but against all odds, they did it. Sometimes, love hurts, but a happily-ever-after is surely right around the corner.
10 Inuyasha & Kagome Were Always At Odds Early On (InuYasha)
InuYasha is a time-based isekai fantasy series, and Kagome, an ordinary adolescent, found herself in feudal Japan, a place of monsters and magic. She soon met Inuyasha, a half-demon who was still mourning his previous lover, the priestess Kikyo. They didn't get along at first.
Inuyasha initially saw Kagome as a poor substitute for Kikyo, while Kagome couldn't stand Inuyasha's blunt, tactless ways. Over time, they began to appreciate one another, and by the end of the series, they were inseparable.
9 Ranma Saotome & Akane Tendo Butted Heads Often (Ranma 1/2)
The old-school anime Ranma 1/2, by the same creator as InuYasha, also stars a main romance that got off to a lousy start. Ranma Saotome is a cocky and obnoxious martial artist with zero social skills, and his fiancee, Akane Tendo, has a rather short fuse.
At first, Ranma and Akane squabbled nonstop, and they cried out "I hate you!" and the like quite often. By the series' end, though, they had very real feelings for each other, though these feelings were mostly implied.
8 Guts & Casca Didn't Often See Eye To Eye (Berserk)
Guts the mercenary caught the eye of Griffith, who saw him as a true rival and friend and thus favored him greatly. Casca, a female knight and a longtime ally of Griffith's, was intensely jealous of Griffith's attention to Guts.
Thus, while Guts and Casca can fight together in battle, they butted heads constantly off the battlefield, and Casca thought Guts was reckless and foolish while Guts saw Casca as a nosy pest. Those feelings certainly changed after a point, though. Now, Guts will do anything for Casca's sake.
7 Raku Ichijo & Chitoge Kirisaki Were Really At Each Other's Throats (Nisekoi)
Nisekoi is a fairly conventional but exciting high school anime series, and the two main characters, Raku Ichijo and Chitoge Kirisaki, don't exactly hit it off at first. In fact, they only met because their respective crime families arranged for them to be together.
Raku found Chitoge unladylike and brutish, and Chitoge was frustrated with Raku's insensitive ways. At first, they only pretended to be boyfriend and girlfriend for the sake of appearances, but that "false love" soon became something much more.
6 Ryuji Takasu & Taiga Aisaka Didn't Get Along Well At First (Toradora!)
The dynamic between Ryuji Takasu and Taiga Aisaka is remarkably similar to that of Raku and Chitoge. Ryuji has an unearned reputation for being intimidating, while Taiga really is tough and scary when she is angry. She's known as the "palm-top tiger."
Despite the odds, and the fact that they didn't think much of each other, these two amorous high schoolers eventually realized that they loved not the other's friends, but simply each other. It took them time to get to that point, though, and a little heartache too.
5 Hanako Koyanagi & Taro Kabakura Clashed In High School & Even The Workplace (Wotakoi: Love Is Hard For Otaku)
When they first met in high school, Hanako Koyanagi and Taro Kabakura were both volleyball players, but they couldn't agree on whose team should borrow the court or when. This, combined with their fierce tempers, put them at odds at first. Even now, they antagonize each other nonstop.
But there's more to it. Taro and Hanako honestly like each other as friends, and now a workplace romance is blossoming between them. This is a parallel to Hirotaka's and Narumi's own burgeoning relationship.
4 Ken Kaneki & Touka Kirishima Made Poor First Impressions (Tokyo Ghoul)
When the high school student Ken Kaneki became a half-ghoul, he was desperate to understand his new nature and find help. Touka Kirishima, a lifelong ghoul, didn't like him at first, since he was indecisive and naive about the world of ghouls. He seemed hopeless.
Ken didn't exactly hate Touka, but he was afraid of her, and he found little reason to like her at first. Over time, the two of them came to an understanding, and Touka ended up playing an important role in the Ken rescue mission later on.
3 Avatar Korra & Mako Clashed Often (The Legend Of Korra)
This relationship didn't last, and ultimately, Korra's paramour was Asami Sato, not Mako the Firebender. Still, this was Korra's first serious relationship, and it started badly. Korra didn't like how aloof and stern Mako was, and Mako thought that Korra was intrusive and brash.
They made for uneasy teammates at first, and their mutual resentment boiled over until they finally made peace. As of Book Two: Spirits, they were boyfriend and girlfriend, until the relationship was ended. They managed to be friends after that.
2 Azami Nakamura & Mana Nakiri Tried To One-Up The Other (Food Wars!)
This particular relationship definitely started off on the wrong foot, and each party is to blame. A young Azami was convinced that he was the best thing to ever happen to the culinary world, but then he met Mana Nakiri, the scion of the elite Nakiri family. They were immediately at odds.
Azami was determined to knock this princess down a peg or two, and Mana wanted to put Azami in his place. They kept feuding in the kitchen, but eventually, they found love, and had a daughter together, Erina Nakiri. They became estranged after that but made their peace years later.
1 Yu Ishigami & Miko Iino Are Becoming A Couple Despite Their Differences (Kaguya-Sama: Love Is War)
This particular side romance is still developing in the manga's later chapters, but all signs point toward an awkward but ultimately successful romance in the works. Right now, it's easy to ship Miko Iino with Yu Ishigami, and the Kaguya-Sama: Love is War manga is set to make it official.
Miko doesn't like Yu at first, since he's lazy and would keep breaking school rules with his handheld gaming device. Meanwhile, Yu can't stand Miko's strict disciplinarian ways and often takes it personally. This is a rough start, but love is sure to find a way, and their progress is promising.
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