The role of a mentor is extremely important and cannot be overlooked. A character who has a good mentor is more likely to realize their full potential. Good mentors teach their pupils every basic skill that they need to face the world. The students who pay attention to their mentors end up becoming great individuals, but they don't necessarily surpass them in terms of strength.
Despite having great tutors, these students fail to become stronger, which shows that it is not an easy task. However, there have been a few cases where the students end up surpassing their teachers.
8 Naruto Uzumaki (Naruto)
Naruto Uzumaki is the main protagonist of the Naruto series. As a kid, Naruto didn't seem to have a lot of potential. Everyone believed that Naruto lacked talent as he couldn't even use basic ninjutsu techniques, but with time, he became stronger.
Naruto was trained by several people, which included the likes of Jiraiya, and Kakashi, who were both famous ninjas. By the end of the series, Naruto had managed to surpass all the ninjas in the world, including his teachers.
7 Gon (Hunter x Hunter)
Gon, the main protagonist of Hunter x Hunter, is one of the most iconic shonen characters. From an early age, Gon showed promise, and when he participated in the Hunter Exams, it became obvious that he would accomplish great things. Gon's skills impressed both his friends and his enemies.
Gon was trained by Wing and Biscuit, and by the end of the Chimera Ant arc, he had surpassed both of them. At his full power, Gon managed to take down Neferpitou, who was one of the three Royal Guards.
6 Joseph Joestar (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure)
Joseph Joestar was mentored by Lisa Lisa and her underlings in Battle Tendency. Joseph went to train under her in order to become powerful enough to take down the Pillar Men. Lisa Lisa improved Joseph's Hamon greatly, which was the main reason behind his victories against the Pillar-Men.
Joseph's control over Hamon continued to increase, and in Stardust Crusaders, he was able to combine his Hamon with his Stand to increase the power of his attacks.
5 All Might (My Hero Academia)
When he was still young, All Might needed a lot of training to become better. The responsibility to make All Might better fell on the shoulders of Gran Torino, and suffice to say, the latter did a splendid job of turning him into the number 1 hero.
Eventually, All Might became the strongest character, who had no equal. He was so powerful that villains would rather run away than face him in a fight. While Gran Torino is not a bad fighter by any means, he could not compare to All Might in his prime.
4 Edward Elric (Fullmetal Alchemist)
Edward Elric is the elder brother of Alphonso Elric. After the two brothers lost their mother, they tried to bring her back via alchemy, but it massively backfired. Edward ended up losing his arm and leg, while Alphonse lost his entire body.
At one point, the two brothers decided to go and train under Izumi Curtis, who was an extremely talented alchemist. She took both of them under her wing and trained them in alchemy and martial arts. Edward's natural talent enabled him to become of the best alchemists in the world.
3 Gohan (Dragon Ball Z)
Gohan is the son of Goku, who is one of the most powerful anime characters. As Goku's son, Gohan is blessed with a lot of potential, which many believe is greater than his father.
Due to Goku's absence, Piccolo took on the responsibility of training Gohan. The Namekian was an ever-present figure in Gohan's life, and he taught him martial arts and other life lessons. With proper training, it didn't take long for Gohan to surpass his mentor.
2 Monkey D. Luffy (One Piece)
Monkey D. Luffy is one of the most popular anime characters in the entire world. He is the main character of Eiichiro Oda's epic shonen series One Piece. At a young age, Luffy set out to achieve his goal of becoming the Pirate King, but the journey to becoming the most infamous pirate in the world was never going to be easy.
Luffy started to look for a crew, and they managed to pick up a lot of victories before being humbled by Admiral Kizaru at Sabaody Archipelago. Luffy suffered a huge setback at Marineford, so he knew that he had to get stronger. Luffy was taken in by Silvers Rayleigh, who trained him rigorously. Recently, Luffy managed to take down Kaido, who was considered the "Strongest Creature In The World." Needless to say, with this achievement, Luffy officially surpassed Rayleigh.
1 Boruto Uzumaki (Boruto: Naruto Next Generations)
Boruto is the son of Naruto Uzumaki and Hinata Hyuuga. Unlike his father, Boruto is blessed with an extraordinary amount of talent. He is nothing short of a prodigy, and it is plausible to assume that by the end of the series, he will be unbeatable.
Boruto has been taught by different people, and they have helped him to get stronger. Konohamaru is Boruto's team leader, and he taught him how to use the Rasengan. It didn't take long for the student to supersede the master. Before Momoshiki's invasion, Sasuke took Boruto as his pupil, and since then, Boruto has gained Karma, which gives him the strength of an Otsutsuki.