This thread isn't based on anything seen in the new Anime, it just happened to bring this difference to my attention.
I don't believe there was ever a good distinction between them, So i'm gonna discuss how I THINK that relationship works
The Anbu Black ops:
The anbu black ops are the shinobi who wear grey ninja vests, bare tattoo's on their shoulders, and wear porcelain animal masks. They are an official shinobi rank. Above even the jounin, the anbu are elite shinobi that work directly under the hokage. Although ALL ninja's do covert operations, the anbu do very particular tasks. They are the true "ninja's" in naruto. They handle assassinations, intel recovery, and handle all issues in or out of the village that take top priority. These operations are usually off the books, and are secret even among other ninja's in the village. The masks they wear are so that enemy ninja's can't tell the identity. It is my understanding that their identities can be known within the village because they are seen wearing their uniforms while in the village without masks.
The Root:
The root is a completely different sect. They look slightly different in appearance and have darker uniforms. The biggest things that make them different is that they don't answer to the hokage. they operate directly underneath the head of the root who was formerly Danzo. They are special in that they aren't just randomly selected to be in root, they are there from the time they are children. This is so that they can be robbed of all emotion and feeling. Although root is recognized by the village, their actions are even more secretive than the regular anbu. They go about missions that not even the hokage may approve of. They have an task that involves killing the other candidates (much like the blood mist village's genin selection process). Unlike regular anbu, they don't have a real name, and are instead given
Here's something that confuses me. Both the root and the anbu (Despite being the top of the villages ninja), are all essentially fodder. By fodder, I mean they're completely anonymous. They don't stand out. I know they're strong, but in the current manga, anyone who isn't a main character is essentially fodder. That being said, there is a SPECIFIC group of the ANBU that doesn't look like fodder to me. These are the hokage's private guard anbu. they are the anbu black ops who wear white cloaks. These ninja have high level sealing jutsu among other techniques.
Anyway, these were just some differences i thought i should point out.
i do have some questions though: Is yamato in root? I know he appears in root in the fillers, but I'm not sure if he's in anbu or root. i've seen pictures of him wearing the traditional anbu uniform (not root) and i think he has the anbu tatoo. He also has his emotions, and was put in charge of squad seven by the hokage. He doesn't appear to have any alliance with danzo. However, yamato is his code name. Which is suspcious.
Tell me what you thought about the root vs anbu, and do you think Yamato is/was in root?
I don't believe there was ever a good distinction between them, So i'm gonna discuss how I THINK that relationship works
The Anbu Black ops:
The anbu black ops are the shinobi who wear grey ninja vests, bare tattoo's on their shoulders, and wear porcelain animal masks. They are an official shinobi rank. Above even the jounin, the anbu are elite shinobi that work directly under the hokage. Although ALL ninja's do covert operations, the anbu do very particular tasks. They are the true "ninja's" in naruto. They handle assassinations, intel recovery, and handle all issues in or out of the village that take top priority. These operations are usually off the books, and are secret even among other ninja's in the village. The masks they wear are so that enemy ninja's can't tell the identity. It is my understanding that their identities can be known within the village because they are seen wearing their uniforms while in the village without masks.
The Root:
The root is a completely different sect. They look slightly different in appearance and have darker uniforms. The biggest things that make them different is that they don't answer to the hokage. they operate directly underneath the head of the root who was formerly Danzo. They are special in that they aren't just randomly selected to be in root, they are there from the time they are children. This is so that they can be robbed of all emotion and feeling. Although root is recognized by the village, their actions are even more secretive than the regular anbu. They go about missions that not even the hokage may approve of. They have an task that involves killing the other candidates (much like the blood mist village's genin selection process). Unlike regular anbu, they don't have a real name, and are instead given
Here's something that confuses me. Both the root and the anbu (Despite being the top of the villages ninja), are all essentially fodder. By fodder, I mean they're completely anonymous. They don't stand out. I know they're strong, but in the current manga, anyone who isn't a main character is essentially fodder. That being said, there is a SPECIFIC group of the ANBU that doesn't look like fodder to me. These are the hokage's private guard anbu. they are the anbu black ops who wear white cloaks. These ninja have high level sealing jutsu among other techniques.
Anyway, these were just some differences i thought i should point out.
i do have some questions though: Is yamato in root? I know he appears in root in the fillers, but I'm not sure if he's in anbu or root. i've seen pictures of him wearing the traditional anbu uniform (not root) and i think he has the anbu tatoo. He also has his emotions, and was put in charge of squad seven by the hokage. He doesn't appear to have any alliance with danzo. However, yamato is his code name. Which is suspcious.
Tell me what you thought about the root vs anbu, and do you think Yamato is/was in root?
