In the anime, growing up as an orphan that lived on the streets and stole for a living, he was beaten for it. When Orochimaru found him, he told Zaku that he saw potential in him and offered to help him develop it in exchange for his loyalty, which Zaku accepted.[2] Sometime later Zaku was seen singlehandedly fighting and defeating several Takigakure shinobi. From that day forward he refused to give up, even at the cost of his own life, not knowing that Orochimaru only took him in as a disposable pawn, a fact that his teammate started to suspect at the Chunin Exams.