Masashi Kishimoto created compelling villains like Pain and Itachi Uchiha, giving them complex motivations and impactful stories. Pain challenged everything Naruto Uzumaki believed, and Itachi Uchiha’s tragic past was so well-developed that Shippuden ultimately portrayed him as a hero rather than a villain.
The villains in Naruto were effective because the creator, Kishimoto, developed them as complex characters rather than simple roadblocks. However, other villains who had just as much, or even more, promise didn’t quite reach their potential. As Naruto: Shippuden progressed, the increasing power levels of characters made earlier villains seem less important. Kishimoto also acknowledged that he had trouble writing some characters, especially women, which resulted in incomplete storylines and underdeveloped arcs.
Sasori Showed the Threat of the Akatsuki Only To Become Their First Casualty
Sasori of the Red Sand, from Naruto: Shippuden, perfectly embodied the hidden danger of the Akatsuki’s less-known members. He wasn’t just powerful; his incredible patience and skill in crafting puppets made him a truly formidable opponent. He turned the Third Kazekage, Sunagakure’s most powerful leader, into a puppet, preserving his unique magnetic abilities and signature iron sand techniques. In a disturbing display of dedication, Sasori even transformed himself into a puppet, leaving only a small part of his body alive.
Kishimoto quickly defeated the character Sasori by having him killed in his first significant battle against Sakura Haruno and Lady Chiyo. Sasori intentionally allowed Chiyo to deliver the final blow, choosing death rather than surrender. This decision could have been much more powerful, but it happened too soon, ultimately depriving Naruto: Shippuden of a truly formidable villain who had years of fighting experience.
Sasori hadn’t faced powerful opponents like Kakashi or Might Guy, meaning he hadn’t been truly tested against ninja skilled in traditional combat or hand-to-hand fighting. This quick defeat wasn’t unusual for the Shippuden series, which often introduced interesting villains but didn’t fully develop their stories. Had Sasori won against Sakura and Chiyo, it would have significantly altered the plot, potentially removing Gaara from the story and changing the series’ overall direction.
Hidan Introduced Naruto’s Darkest Lore Only For the Anime to Forget About It
Hidan, with his devotion to the god Jashin, brought the idea of religion into the world of Naruto. He belonged to a cult promising genuine immortality – something incredibly rare in a series where even death wasn’t permanent for many. His unwavering faith in this dark religion meant even losing his head couldn’t stop him.
In a particularly heartbreaking scene from Naruto: Shippuden, Hidan defeated and killed Asuma Sarutobi using his unique Curse Technique: Death Controlling Possessed Blood. This demonstrated how easily Hidan’s ritualistic fighting style could overcome even a highly skilled jonin like Asuma. Although Hidan was a memorable character with interesting abilities, his backstory and motivations remained largely unexplored, leaving fans wanting more.
The story never revealed where Hidan came from, and the creator, Kishimoto, never confirmed if the god Hidan worshipped was actually part of the world of Naruto. After Shikamaru Nara buried him, Hidan’s story ended without any further details about his abilities or beliefs, making him the only member of the Akatsuki in Naruto: Shippuden whose powers were never fully explained.
Konan Outperformed Every Akatsuki Member Yet Was Sidelined Entirely
Konan’s powerful technique involved deploying an incredible 600 billion explosive tags against Obito Uchiha. The resulting ten-minute barrage of explosions was so intense that Obito had to use Izanagi, a powerful visual jutsu, and sacrifice a Sharingan just to stay alive. Throughout Naruto: Shippuden, no other Akatsuki member even came as close to defeating him. Konan received the same rigorous training from Jiraiya as Nagato and Yahiko, and even co-founded the original Akatsuki organization in Amegakure, giving her a level of political influence few others possessed.
Even with her important role, Kishimoto consistently portrayed Konan as secondary to Nagato throughout Naruto: Shippuden, diminishing her from a key Akatsuki founder to a quiet follower who rarely took initiative. She wasn’t given a chance to truly shine in a battle during Pain’s attack on Konoha, despite being involved, and was quickly killed by Obito after deciding to leave the Akatsuki.
Honestly, it still bothers me that Kabuto didn’t bring Konan back during the Fourth Great Ninja War! It felt like a huge missed opportunity. We got to see lesser Akatsuki members like Kakuzu and Deidara get more screen time, but not her? Kishimoto himself said he struggled with writing female characters, and I think that really shows with how Konan was treated. It’s just frustrating, because she was the only woman in Akatsuki, and she almost took down Pain all by herself! To sideline her like that felt like such a waste of a powerful and unique character.
Orochimaru Terrorized Part 1 Before Kishimoto Stripped Away His Relevance
Orochimaru attacked the Hidden Leaf Village, resulting in the death of the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and he marked Sasuke Uchiha with a cursed seal, which began the mission to bring Sasuke back. He was the main force behind the conflict in the first part of the series. Orochimaru’s expertise in dangerous and forbidden techniques – like modifying bodies and controlling reanimated corpses – made him a consistently dangerous and ever-changing villain throughout the entire Naruto story.
Hiruzen Sarutobi defeated Orochimaru, severing his arms and leaving him significantly weakened for most of the Shippuden series until Sasuke absorbed him, effectively eliminating him as a major threat early on. Surprisingly, when Orochimaru was brought back to life, he changed his ways and began assisting Sasuke, even reviving the past Hokages.
Even with the explanation, the sudden lack of drive was disappointing. In Boruto, Orochimaru mostly just continues his research and doesn’t really do much, changing him from a truly frightening enemy in Naruto into someone who just stands on the sidelines.
Black Zetsu Reduced Naruto’s Shadow Villain Into a Hollow Plot Device
After years of complex villains, rich backstory, and character-focused storytelling in Naruto, the story faltered when it was revealed that Black Zetsu was secretly responsible for all the major conflicts. He’d manipulated events for centuries, including influencing the Uchiha clan and corrupting Indra, all to bring back Kaguya Otsutsuki. This meant that Madara Uchiha’s goals, Obito Uchiha’s fall to darkness, and everything the Akatsuki did were all just part of Black Zetsu’s long-term plan, without anyone realizing it.
I remember being really disappointed when Kishimoto revealed Black Zetsu’s purpose in the final chapters of Naruto. It felt like there wasn’t any room to actually explore the twist and make it feel earned. All of Madara’s planning throughout Shippuden – everything that drove the story forward – just kind of fell apart. Black Zetsu himself was a letdown, too. He didn’t have any fighting skills, a personal motivation, or even much personality – he was just completely loyal to Kaguya. It felt like a shortcut, trading villains acting on their own choices for a pre-planned alien conspiracy. And the worst part was that it retroactively made the motivations of so many other Naruto villains feel meaningless, as if they were just pawns in someone else’s game.
Madara Uchiha’s 15 Years of Buildup Ended With a Backstab Instead of a Battle
Throughout the entire Naruto series, Kishimoto carefully built up Madara Uchiha as the ultimate enemy, hinting at his power through statues and a long-running mystery surrounding his identity, even inspiring fear in the powerful Kurama. When Madara finally appeared, he effortlessly defeated an entire division of the Allied Shinobi Forces using only hand-to-hand combat and fire-based techniques, delivering what many fans consider the most impressive battle performance in Naruto: Shippuden.
Madara absorbed the Ten-Tails, cast the Infinite Tsukuyomi, and became incredibly powerful, dwarfing most other villains in Naruto. In a 2023 global popularity poll for the series, he received 144,947 votes and ranked ninth, demonstrating fans’ strong interest in seeing a fitting conclusion to his story.
Ultimately, Black Zetsu betrayed Madara Uchiha right when he was at his strongest, preventing Naruto and Sasuke from defeating him in a fair fight. This move by the author, Kishimoto, meant fans didn’t get the epic showdown with Madara Uchiha that the story had been building towards for years.
Madara’s death ultimately just set the stage for Kaguya’s return, which felt like a waste of a villain who had been built up for over 15 years. The author swapped a well-developed antagonist for a character with little backstory, and this remains one of the most criticized choices in the entire Naruto series.
Kaguya Otsutsuki Turned Naruto’s Strongest Villain Into a Forgettable Finale
Kaguya Otsutsuki was incredibly powerful, with abilities like the Rinne Sharingan and control over dimensions, far exceeding even Madara Uchiha and all the Tailed Beasts. However, she lacked a developed personality, rarely spoke meaningfully, and seemed driven only by the desire to regain chakra. The author, Kishimoto, didn’t build her up much beforehand – she was only briefly mentioned once, in chapter 646, before becoming the series’ final villain.
During the final battle against Team 7, Kaguya relied on Black Zetsu to do her talking and planning, making her the only major villain in Naruto unable to lead her own climactic fight. Her appearance shifted the ending of Shippuden to a series of battles across different dimensions, moving away from the clever, strategic ninja fights fans enjoyed.
Kaguya was originally presented as the source of all chakra, having eaten the fruit of the God Tree long before the events of Naruto. However, she didn’t feel as important as that origin story suggested. Many fans and critics agree that Kaguya Otsutsuki ultimately harmed the ending of Naruto, taking away from the conclusion the author had been developing for almost twenty years.
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2026-03-13 05:13