In all of Balamb Garden, there are only two gunblade specialists; Squall Leonhart and Seifer Almasy. Unsurprisingly, they are rivals and have been since they were very young. Both of them lived at the same orphanage as children, where Seifer constantly teased and provoked the other children there. He always needed to be the center of attention but when Squall ignored him, as he usually did, it would end in a fight. Even when they were both sent to live and start school at Balamb Garden, they remained rivals.

Squall is a guy who follows orders, and keeps his smart remarks to himself. He's very quiet & introverted, and commonly seen as uncaring. Seifer on the other hand is a trouble maker. He doesn't take orders well, and is quite loud. Arrogant, and self-centered, he takes pleasure in making fun of the people around him. The only real thing that these two have in common is their ability with a gunblade.. and the fact that each of them regards the other as his "ultimate rival".

Just because they are rivals, however, does not mean that they hate each other. There is nowhere in the game where it even hints that they dislike each other so greatly. In fact, there is a point in the game where everyone thinks that Seifer is dead and Squall even goes so far as to say (in his head) that he "liked the guy". Sometimes they have casual conversations. Once Seifer has gone and become Edea's lapdog, Squall makes the remark, "You're losing it, Seifer." That doesn't sound like something you'd say to someone you hate, someone you dislike maybe, or somebody who annoys you, but not somebody who you hate.

I do not believe that their rivalry is a bad thing either. As a matter of fact, I'd say that it is a rather good thing because it helps them improve. It pushes them to their limit, and causes them to train harder so that they can both reach their full potential. Seifer's constant teasing helps Squall's patience level aswell, and Squall's skill with a gunblade makes Seifer want to do better, to be the best. Instead of "swearing their undying hatred for each other" they should be thanking each other, for with out the other one, neither of them would be the people who they turn out to be.

• Random Fact #1: Before Squall met Rinoa, she dated Seifer, although he never stated that he loved her, or that he had any lingering feelings for her.

• Random Fact #2: In the opening movie of the game, Seifer gives Squall the scar on his face and Squall retaliates, giving Seifer a scar to match.

• Random Fact #3: Both of them seem to enjoy teasing Zell.

• Random Fact #4: They both end up becoming a sorceress's knight at some point in the game. Squall becomes Rinoa's, and Seifer becomes Edea's.

• Random Fact #5: Neither of them seems to like Quistis very much.