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This article covers a fictional organization. For other uses, see Akatsuki.

Akatsuki (暁, meaning "Dawn" or "Daybreak") is a fictional criminal organization in the anime and manga series Naruto. It is first introduced midway into the first arc, and its members gain significance as the main antagonists during the second arc. The organization is composed of some of the most powerful criminals in existence.

Template:Spoiler Despite being composed of only ten (currently nine) members, Akatsuki is arguably the most powerful organization in the Naruto universe. Each member of Akatsuki is an S-class criminal, feared for their tremendous powers and ruthless nature.

The exact criteria for admission into the group are unknown, but extraordinary fighting ability and ruthlessness seem to be prerequisites. Unique traits (genetic or otherwise) also seem to be a common factor among its members. Two of the more prominent members so far, Itachi and Sasori, both undertook some sort of challenging task at the time of their entering the group. Sasori mentions during his fight with Chiyo and Sakura that " hadn't had this much difficulty since joining Akatsuki." Itachi was responsible for murdering his whole clan (save for his little brother, Sasuke) around the time he is believed to have entered, though it cannot be said for certain that the two events were linked.

Akatsuki's motives are still obscure, and one of the more interesting unresolved questions Naruto poses; they show great interest in the powers of the tailed beasts and the leader has obliquely referred to their ultimate goal as "obtaining the demon fox... and everything else." Akatsuki possesses at least five tailed beasts. Of those five, three have been confirmed to be sealed within their statue, those being the one-tailed Shukaku and two other unknown demons. In addition, the two-tailed demon cat and the three-tailed demon have also been captured. The leader has mentioned that the three-tailed demon will be sealed soon. It is unknown what they intend to do with them once they attain all nine.

Organization

Akatsuki doesn't seem to have any strict organization structure, though they do maintain several unique practices among their members. They rarely seem to meet in person, instead communicating through telepathy and astral projection when necessary. When their entire group is introduced at the end of the first part of the series, one member notes that it had been seven years since they had all been together in such a fashion. Their meetings are more frequent in the second part due to their increased activity.

Teams

Akatsuki members usually work in teams of two. Teams are built to complement each other's abilities and talents to create a formidable duo. Each member thus far has shown complete loyalty to the other and to their mysterious leader, and they have excellent working relationships. On a personal level, however, many of the team members exhibit outright animosity towards one another, though they do not let it get in the way of their missions. Akatsuki does not particularly value the lives of its individual members either; a member's death in itself will not bother the other members, but rather the fact that someone was able to kill them.

Due to Orochimaru's defection their numbers are now uneven, so one or more members appear to be working alone. Currently, Zetsu, the leader, and the unnamed member are not known to be on any team.

Tailed beast extraction

Whenever an Akatsuki member captures a host, it is taken to their lair. Once there, the Akatsuki leader summons a giant statue of a humanoid monster. The statue seems to symbolize restriction or sealing. The creature's hands are handcuffed, its eyes are blindfolded, and a bit is in its mouth, which falls out when the Akatsuki members are sealing a tailed beast. On the creature's blindfold are nine closed eyes, each corresponding to one of the nine tailed beasts. After the summoning, the host is placed in front of the statue while each Akatsuki member stands on the finger that corresponds to their specific ring. The members then perform Sealing Technique: Illusionary Dragon Nine Consuming Seals to draw the spirit of the tailed beast into the statue. Once the tailed beast's spirit is sealed, all the eyes open, and the pupil of the eye that corresponds to the tailed beast appears, indicating that it has been successfully sealed. It's unknown if the same process is used on an unsealed tailed beast, or if the statue serves any other purpose than to contain the captured tailed beasts.

All Akatsuki members don't need to be physically present for the statue to activate. Akatsuki members can project an image of themselves to the statue. This technique was shown in the anime once during the cave meeting, where the various members' images can be seen shaking like a hologram.

Rings

Each Akatsuki member wears a single, unique ring, and no two members wear a ring on the same finger. Each member wears their ring on the same finger as the spot they occupy on the giant statue. In total, there are ten rings, but Akatsuki only possesses nine; Orochimaru kept the tenth after he defected from the organization. It still rests on the little finger of his severed left hand from his original body. The rings seem to have some special significance: Tobi believed that he could become a member after finding Sasori's ring, and although Zetsu claims it's not as easy as that, Tobi does indeed become a member. Deidara reinforces the significance of the rings after losing both his arms by expressing more concern for finding the arm with his ring, rather than finding the arm itself. Each ring bears a unique symbol, the first kanji of its name.

The various rings are:

• 零 - れい, Rei - zero/nothing/overflow: worn by the Akatsuki leader.
• 青龍 - せいりゅう, Seiryū - Green/blue Dragon - God of East and Spring: worn by Deidara.
• 白虎 - びゃっこ, Byakko - White Tiger - God of West and Autumn: worn by the unnamed member.
• 朱雀 - すざく, Suzaku - Hōō (literally "Red Sparrow") - God of South and Summer: worn by Itachi.
• 玄武 - げんぶ, Genbu - Tortoise (literally "Mysterious Warrior") - God of North and Winter: worn by Zetsu. Zetsu's ring actually has the kanji 亥 (Kai, boar) instead of 玄 (Gen, mysteriousness). The two kanji are somewhat similar in appearance though, which suggests an error by either the artist or the reader/translator.
• 空陳 - くうちん, Kūchin - The Void: formerly worn by Orochimaru and still in his possession.
• 南斗 - なんじゅ, Nanju - Southern Star: worn by Kisame.
• 北斗 - ほくと, Hokuto - Northern Star: worn by Kakuzu.
• 三台 - さんたい, Santai - The Three Levels: worn by Hidan.
• 玉女 - ぎょくにょ, Gyokunyo - The Virgin: currently worn by Tobi, formerly worn by Sasori.

Clothing and appearance

Akatsuki members dress in similar clothing: a long, dark cloak bearing red clouds and a red interior with a chin-high collar. All members also wear purple nail polish on their fingernails (see ring image above). Large conical straw hats with small spike-like bells hanging from them also seem to be part of their outfit, but they seem to discard them after being discovered. This seems to be an optional piece of the Akatsuki outfit, likely to further disguise their identities.

Forehead protectors

The members of Akatsuki continue to wear forehead protectors from their former home villages, but scratch a line across the symbol of their village. This is done to indicate that their ties to the village have been severed and they no longer give any allegiance to their former homes. Currently, the Akatsuki leader, Tobi, and the one unnamed Akatsuki member have not been shown wearing forehead protectors, so it is unknown where they are originally from. Additionally, Hidan's forehead protector, while clearly visible, features a symbol not corresponding with any known village so his place of origin is a mystery as well.

Members

Akatsuki originally had ten members, but following the defection of Orochimaru they are currently at nine. Only one member, Sasori, has died, and Tobi, a former subordinate of the group, quickly assumed his position. Orochimaru, however, has yet to be replaced, despite his departure several years before the initial introduction of the group; this is likely because Orochimaru took his supposedly irreplaceable Akatsuki ring with him when he left.

Though all of the members have been shown, two have yet to be named. The first has had some dialogue and been attributed to being the leader, while the identity of the other remains a complete mystery. In the anime, only Kisame and Itachi have been named, though Zetsu made an appearance at the end of the battle between Naruto and Sasuke.

Yondaime(fourth hokage)

• Age: ?
• Status: Active
• Eye color: ?
• Hair color: Ginger (brownish orange)
• Height: ?
• Weight: ?
• Birthday: ?
• Blood type: ?
• Ring: 零 (Rei, zero/nothing/overflow)
• Ring position: Right thumb
• Partner: None or not yet introduced
• First cameo: Chapter 238; Episode 135
• First appearance: Chapter 327
• Defining characteristics: Piercings on each side of his nose near the bridge
• Seiyu: ?
• Voice actor: ?

Not much is known about this person except that he acts like the leader of Akatsuki; he is the only one to have given orders to other members and none have ever challenged or opposed him. He is also the one to initiate and supervise the jutsu that forcibly brings a tailed beast out of its host. He can also clone his subordinates using human sacrifices, allowing them to engage the enemy without risking themselves. When it becomes necessary to gather his subordinates, he can communicate with them over long distances through some form of telepathy.

While the leader has remained mostly anonymous, a glimpse of his lower face shows what appears to be either tattoos or piercings on either side of his nose. He also seems to have a goatee, though his Akatsuki clothing obscures most of it. He is seen sitting on an odd statue with many tubes winding through it, commenting that Hidan and Kakuzu are always causing trouble. The statue is located in a city much more modern than is common for the series.

Deidara

• Age: ?
• Status: Active
• Eye color: Cyan
• Hair color: Blond
• Height: ?
• Weight: ?
• Birthday: ?
• Blood type: ?
• Ring: 青 (Sei, blue/green)
• Ring position: Right index finger
• Partner: Tobi, formerly Sasori
• First cameo: Chapter 238; Episode 135
• First appearance: Chapter 247
• Defining characteristics: Specialist in clay based jutsu, clay manipulation, mouths in palms of hands, scope in left eye socket
• Seiyu: ?
• Voice actor: ?

Deidara (デイダラ) is a missing-nin from Iwagakure and the partner of Tobi. Deidara was originally teamed with Sasori, whom Deidara referred to as Master Sasori (サソリの旦那, Sasori no Danna). This is probably because Deidara had a lot of respect for his fellow artist. He also admits that Sasori was a lot stronger. Despite that, Deidara still argued with Sasori about what art is and directly disobeyed his command in spite of a threat to be killed. Deidara held that art is transient, departing quickly. Sasori believed that good art is immortal, lasting a long time. This reflects their individual natures (Deidara makes clay sculptures that explode, Sasori makes long-lasting puppets out of humans). Deidara outwardly seems to respect Sasori's beliefs, but couldn't resist getting a final jab in after Sasori's death: "Like anything that is left for the future as a thing of eternal beauty... He got killed straight off!".

A fancy and skillful fighter, Deidara uses special mouths in the palm of each hand to manipulate clay into many shapes, often making animals from it. He commonly creates a flight-capable clay bird as a mode of transportation. In addition to making animals from the clay, he can make the clay explode on command. He often molds the clay into smaller animals to make sneak attacks on unsuspecting opponents. He also has a scope in his left eye for long-range observation.

Deidara's first appearance is during his mission to kidnap Gaara from Sunagakure. Deidara initially seems to be no match for Gaara's powerful sand attacks. His forearm is even torn off by Gaara's Desert Coffin. The loss of his arm actually turns out to be part of his strategy. By threatening to destroy Sunagakure with a massive clay bomb, Gaara, distracted by his desire to save the village, doesn't notice the exploding clay that Deidara had snuck into Gaara's sand through his mangled arm. Gaara is knocked unconscious by the subsequent explosion. Deidara remarked after winning that it was typical of a Kage to save his village over his own life. Deidara later faces off against Naruto Uzumaki and Kakashi Hatake. Deidara loses his right arm to Kakashi's Mangekyo Sharingan, which Kakashi unveils for the battle. When Team Guy arrives to assist, Deidara attempts a last ditch attack on his opponents by having one of his clay clones swallow as much clay as possible, turning it into a massive bomb. Kakashi teleported the clone away from the scene while the real Deidara escaped. Deidara later returned to locate his right arm (specifically the ring on it), only to find Zetsu and Tobi next to it. Both expressed surprise that Deidara managed to survive when Sasori had not.

Deidara has his arms reattached sometime after this point, and now has Tobi as his new partner. Deidara gets impatient with Tobi fairly easily since Tobi rarely pays attention to what he is saying. Tobi also tends to take credit for their work, despite whatever Deidara did. After they capture the three tails, Deidara lectures Tobi about being too overconfident. He becomes greatly annoyed when he discovers that Tobi has fallen asleep and proceeds to "wake him" by blasting Tobi with his exploding clay.

Due to the Japanese language's sparse use of third person pronouns, translators have to use their own ideas of Deidara's gender to make sentences flow smoothly. This has caused a lot of confusion, since both "he" and "she" are used to refer to Deidara. However, Deidara speaks of himself using male pronouns and has been given a very deep, male voice in the anime.

Deidara has become the most popular member of Akatsuki among fans in Japan. In the most recent character popularity poll, Deidara ranked in third place, even higher than Naruto Uzumaki.

Hidan

• Age: ?
• Status: Active
• Eye color: Violet
• Hair color: Silver
• Height: ?
• Weight: ?
• Birthday: ?
• Blood Type: ?
• Ring: 三 (San, three)
• Ring position: Left index finger
• Partner: Kakuzu
• First cameo: Chapter 238; Episode 135
• First appearance: Chapter 312
• Defining characteristics: Wields a three-bladed scythe, unkillable, can perform a ritual which gives him a Grim Reaper-like appearance
• Seiyu: ?
• Voice actor: ?

Hidan (飛段) is a missing-nin from an unknown village and the partner of Kakuzu, despite their obvious dislike of one another. One of the main reasons for Kakuzu's dislike of Hidan is that Kakuzu finds that Hidan's battle style, rituals, and speeches take far too long. The first kanji in Hidan's name (飛) stands for hisha, the rook in shogi.

Hidan is apparently immortal, having been fatally wounded a number of times. He even survived decapitation at the hands of Asuma Sarutobi, still able to speak despite the injury. Despite being unkillable, he still comments that his injuries hurt. Despite being able to survive decapitation, he still needs to be connected to his body to control it. Kakuzu uses his ability to control the threads in his arms to put Hidan back together in such circumstances. While Hidan can heal from such injuries, it apparently takes time, as Kakuzu warns him that his head could fall off again if he's not careful. Hidan himself has indicated a desire to die, yet can't. Every time he has faced opponents, he has openly stated that he hopes they are strong enough to kill him. Hidan's immortality is the main reason for his partnership with Kakuzu. As Kakuzu explains it, his rage tends to get the better of him on occasion and he kills anyone nearby, so Hidan is the one partner that he can't possibly get rid of.

Hidan belongs to the Jashin ("Evil God" or "Evil Heart") religion, which commends slaughter. Anything less than total destruction is considered a sin. Because of this, having to capture the two-tailed demon cat alive was not something he was happy about, especially after the battle began. Overtly religious, almost to a fault, Hidan refused to fight the demon cat's host without praying beforehand. As a part of his religion, Hidan owns a charm with an upside down triangle inscribed inside a circle that he carries on the chain of beads; the same symbol is used on the seal in his battle ritual. Before a battle, Hidan prays to his chain of prayer beads, wishing for nothing less than a kill.

Hidan is the self-proclaimed slowest-attacking member of Akatsuki. He commonly wields a three-bladed scythe that he uses as a throwing weapon while controlling it with a rope wrapped around his wrist. Despite his claim, he can wield his scythe fast enough to strike at even experienced Jonin with a high chance of success. The purpose for the three blades on the scythe are not to give more attack power, but rather to increase his chances of drawing blood. In a serious battle, Hidan draws a triangle inscribed in a circle. After drawing and consuming some blood from his opponent, he stands in the circle and undergoes a transformation. Most of his skin turns black, with white lines appearing in roughly the same locations as his bones. Combined with his scythe, this transformation gives him the appearance of a Grim Reaper. Once the ritual is complete, Hidan and his opponent are linked; any damage inflicted on him is also inflicted on his opponent, as if he were a living voodoo doll. During the ritual, Hidan swaps his scythe in favor of a pike, which he uses to inflict more precise injuries. Though the injuries are painful for him as well, he appears to be masochistic and enjoys the pain. He enjoys toying with his opponents by inflicting painful yet non-lethal injuries. Inevitably, Hidan will kill his opponent by driving the pike through his chest, instantly killing all but the strongest adversary. In doing so, his transformation is reversed. The technique's weakness is that it only works when Hidan is inside the seal; if he leaves the seal, the link is broken. After battles, should he have time, Hidan performs a thirty-minute ritual involving the seal, which is essentially a drawn-out version of his battle ritual.

Itachi Uchiha

• Age: 18 in Part I, 20 in Part II
• Status: Active
• Eye color: Black, Red with Sharingan
• Hair color: Black
• Height: 175.2 cm
• Weight: 57.1 kg
• Birthday: June 9
• Blood type: AB
• Ring: 朱 (Shu, scarlet/bloody)
• Ring position: Right ring finger
• Partner: Kisame Hoshigaki
• First cameo: Chapter 49; Episode 29
• First appearance: Chapter 139; Episode 80
• Defining characteristics: Mastery of the Sharingan and Mangekyo Sharingan, extremely skilled with genjutsu
• Seiyu: Hideo Ishikawa
• Voice actor: Skip Stellrecht (Episodes 29-30)

Itachi Uchiha (うちはイタチ, Uchiha Itachi) is an S-class criminal and a Konohagakure missing-nin noted even within the Bingo Book (a list of powerful ninja who have been marked for assassination). He is currently partnered with Kisame to capture Naruto. The name "Itachi" means "weasel". In Japanese mythology, weasels are an ill omen, signifying bad luck and death.

Itachi graduated at the top of his Academy class at age 7, had mastered the Sharingan by age 8, became a Chunin at 10 and was previously an ANBU squad leader at the age of 13. He was, until recently, the only known living person who possessed the Mangekyo Sharingan. Itachi has told Sasuke that if Sasuke were to obtain the Mangekyo Sharingan, the people able to use it will total three.

He left Konoha about five years prior to the setting of Naruto, after slaying his whole clan with the exception of Sasuke Uchiha, his little brother. At 11, even Orochimaru feared him. Orochimaru had planned to use Itachi as his next host, but Itachi had become too powerful for even Orochimaru to handle, which is why he turned his attention to Sasuke.

The reason Itachi killed everyone in his clan except for Sasuke remains unclear. When questioned by Sasuke, he replied, "To test my 'utsuwa'." In Japanese, 'utsuwa' (器) can mean "vessel," or "container," but it can also mean "ability," or "tool." In context, Itachi was more than likely referring to his own power, but this cannot be said for certain. Itachi also briefly makes reference to some ultimate purpose behind the Uchiha clan, but what this is has yet to be revealed.

Itachi, especially after slaying his entire clan, appears aloof and nearly emotionless. While Sasuke's flashbacks reveal a somewhat more loving and personable brother, Itachi later implies that this too was all just an act: playing the part of the older brother all to test Sasuke's potential. Despite being the murderer of his entire clan, as well as his closest friend, Itachi does not appear to kill simply for the sake of it, but instead seems to use just enough force to achieve his goals. When Asuma Sarutobi and Kurenai Yuhi stood between him and the way to his goal (Naruto Uzumaki), he did not kill Kurenai when given the chance. Likewise, he could have easily killed Kakashi and Sasuke, but instead chose to torture them with his Mangekyo Sharingan so that they would witness his power. As it stands, the only way for one to avoid the Mangekyo Sharingan is to avoid eye contact, and focus on the feet or body, as mentioned by both Guy and Kakashi. However, even this is not a certain method of evading his techniques, as he can activate a powerful genjutsu merely by pointing at an opponent.

Kakuzu

• Age: ?
• Status: Active
• Eye color: White iris, Black sclera
• Hair color: Unknown, wears a garment over his head.
• Height: ?
• Weight: ?
• Birthday: ?
• Blood Type: ?
• Ring: 北 (Hoku, north)
• Ring position: Left middle finger
• Partner: Hidan
• First cameo: Chapter 238; Episode 135
• First appearance: Chapter 312
• Defining characteristics: High physical strength, easy to anger with tendency to kill anyone in sight, obsessed with money, arms held in place by threads which Kakuzu can control
• Seiyu: ?
• Voice actor: ?

Kakuzu (角都) is a missing-nin from Takigakure and Hidan's partner. The first kanji in Kakuzu's name, 角, stands for kakugyō, a bishop in shogi.

Kakuzu is an incredibly greedy individual, only doing what is necessary to earn money. He even refers to himself as the Treasurer of Akatsuki. Given his friendly relationship with a bounty officer, it would seem he collects bounties rather frequently to earn cash, likely doing so during his missions. He does not like Hidan's religion at all, believing the rituals associated with it to be a useless waste of time. The possibility of earning money from the religion is the only reason he deals with it. Kakuzu is also easy to anger, usually killing anyone in sight when enraged. Hidan is the perfect partner for Kakuzu because of his apparent inability to die; he is essentially the only partner Kakuzu can't kill in his fits of rage.

Kakuzu has some unusual modifications to his arms. Aside from the two circular tattoos on his right forearm, his arms appear to have been severed near his elbows. They are held in place by large black threads. The threads not only hold his arms in place, but appear to be weaved into his body, which allows Kakuzu to control them at will. By undoing the threads in his arms, Kakuzu can fire his arms like projectiles, retaining control over them the entire time. Due to the unusual nature of this technique, it's unclear if this is a natural ability or something accomplished through surgical modification. Aside from being used to hold his limbs in place, Kakuzu can use his threads to put Hidan back together should Hidan end up losing any limbs. In addition to his detachable limbs, Kakuzu has an unusual amount of physical strength, the use of which is somehow associated with a change in his skin color.

Kisame Hoshigaki

• Age: 29 in Part I, 31 in Part II
• Status: Active
• Eye color: White
• Hair color: Indigo
• Height: 195 cm
• Weight: 83.1 kg
• Birthday: March 18
• Blood type: AB
• Ring: 南 (Nan, south)
• Ring position: Left ring finger
• Partner: Itachi Uchiha
• First cameo: Episode 80
• First appearance: Chapter 139; Episode 81
• Defining characteristics: Shark-like appearance, expert in water-based jutsu, large chakra supply, high physical strength and speed, Samehada (sentient, chakra-absorbing sword)
• Seiyu: Tomoyuki Dan
• Voice actor: ?

Kisame Hoshigaki (干柿鬼鮫, Hoshigaki Kisame) is paired with Itachi Uchiha as part of the Akatsuki team assigned to capture Naruto Uzumaki. Their first attempt was shortly after the attack on Konoha by Orochimaru, but Jiraiya thwarted them. Itachi later explained that it wasn't the proper time to kidnap Naruto yet, and that Naruto could be captured at any time given his skill level. Kisame is quite shark-like in appearance, complete with blue skin and sharp teeth. This is very fitting, as his name Kisame (鬼鮫) means "Demon Shark". Despite his rather brutish appearance, Kisame speaks in a calm and polite manner compared to most of the other members of Akatsuki, and gets along well with his partner.

Kisame comes from Kirigakure. He is known as the Mysterious Person (Monster) of the Hidden Mist (霧隠れの怪人, Kirigakure no Kaijin). He is also one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist (霧の忍刀七人衆, Kiri no Shinobigatana Shichinin Shū), seven powerful ninja who utilize large and unique swords. Zabuza Momochi and Raiga Kurosuki were also members.

Kisame's main weapon is named Samehada (鮫肌, "Shark skin"), which is a sword of comparable size to Zabuza Momochi's zanbatō. Unlike a regular sword, however, Samehada is covered in scales that shave instead of cut, much like a shark's skin (hence the name). Additionally, it has the ability to absorb any chakra around it, allowing Kisame to literally cut through his enemy's chakra. The amount that it can absorb is unclear. Finally, Samehada is a sentient weapon, and only allows Kisame to wield it. When Might Guy attempted to hold Samehada and use it against Kisame, it responded with a flurry of spikes from its hilt and found its way back to Kisame.

The amount of chakra Kisame possesses is apparently considered very large, even by Akatsuki's standards. Their leader commented on his amount of chakra; a Kisame body-double at 30% power, made with the leader's Shapeshifting Technique, had as much chakra as Naruto Uzumaki possessed while drawing on Demon fox's chakra when he fought Neji during the Chunin exams, an observation made by Neji Hyuga when he observed Kisame's body-double with his Byakugan.

Kisame has displayed astonishing speed comparable to that of Might Guy, and incredible physical strength topped only by the chakra-augmented strength of Tsunade. Like everyone seen from Kirigakure, Kisame uses water-based jutsu in combination with his powerful physical attacks. He has also demonstrated that he does not need a water source nearby to perform water jutsu, an ability otherwise only demonstrated by the Second Hokage when Orochimaru resurrected him.

Tobi

• Age: ?
• Status: Active
• Eye color: ?
• Hair color: Black
• Height: ?
• Weight: ?
• Birthday: ?
• Blood type: ?
• Ring: 玉 (Gyoku, jewel/ball/jade)
• Ring position: Left thumb
• Partner: Deidara
• First cameo: None
• First appearance: Chapter 280
• Defining characteristics: Orange mask with single eye-hole covered in a swirl pattern
• Seiyu: ?
• Voice actor: ?

Tobi (トビ), formerly Zetsu's subordinate, became a full Akatsuki member after Sasori's demise. He now wears the same ring as Sasori, having recovered it after Sasori's death, and took his place as Deidara's partner. The two have recently defeated the three-tailed beast, which Tobi claims to have knocked out with a single attack. Deidara disagrees with the assessment, claiming that it was his clay that allowed them to win. Unlike the majority of ninja thus far, Tobi has not been shown wearing a visible forehead protector, so his place of origin is unknown. His area of expertise also remains unclear, as he has never been shown fighting.

Tobi has a very formal and correct manner of speech. While his physical appearance remains a mystery, Zetsu has implied that he is relatively young when one side of him referred to Tobi as a "good boy". He respects Deidara, referring to him as Deidara-senpai. Tobi seems to have an odd personality in comparison with other Akatsuki members. While most of the members are serious, if not somewhat argumentative when alone, Tobi is more carefree and goofy, much like Naruto. Though he respects Deidara, he also seems to easily annoy Deidara, which usually results in Deidara attacking his teammate in a comedic fashion.

Unnamed member

• Age: ?
• Status: Active
• Eye color: ?
• Hair color: Blue
• Height: ?
• Weight: ?
• Birthday: ?
• Blood type: ?
• Ring: 白 (Haku, white)
• Ring position: Right middle finger
• Partner: None or not yet introduced
• First cameo: Chapter 238, Episode 135
• First appearance: None
• Defining characteristics: ?
• Seiyu: ?
• Voice actor: ?

This member's hair has some sort of accessory in it, but beyond that this member remains a mystery.

Zetsu

• Age: ?
• Status: Active
• Eye color: Yellow
• Hair color: Green
• Height: ?
• Weight: ?
• Birthday: ?
• Blood type: ?
• Ring: 亥 (Kai, boar)
• Ring position: Right little finger
• Partner: None or not yet introduced
• First cameo: None
• First appearance: Chapter 234; Episode 134
• Defining characteristics: Venus-flytrap like extensions around body, dual personality, skin color split into white and black halves, cannibal
• Seiyu: ?
• Voice actor: ?

Zetsu (ゼツ) is a mysterious missing-nin from Kusagakure. Not much is known about him, other than his allegiance to Akatsuki and his function as a spy. His head appears to be enveloped in a large venus flytrap. The right side of his face and body is black in color while his left side is white in color. He has pupil-less eyes similar in appearance to those of a Byakugan user and superior vision. He also has the ability to merge with the ground, trees, and other plants, allowing him to travel long distances fairly quickly. Akatsuki members have so far generally seemed to report to Zetsu as if he was a superior, though perhaps only because he is often acting directly on the instructions of the leader.

He seems to have a split personality, as the white half of his face speaks only in Katakana (which could indicate a robotic voice) while the black side uses Kanji and Kana. The two halves also seem to converse with each other, and occasionally differ in opinion, such as whether to allow Tobi to fill Sasori's place in Akatsuki.

The Leader often sends out Zetsu as a scout or courier. In addition to his role as a spy, Zetsu appears to function as Akatsuki's hunter-nin. He was sent to dispose of the corpses of those used for the leader's Shapeshifting Technique, as well as recover the rings of Sasori and Deidara. He performs the former function by devouring the corpses, which fits with his "venus flytrap" theme. His only known subordinate was Tobi, who later took Sasori's position in Akatsuki after Sasori's death.

Zetsu's first appearance was after the fight between Naruto and Sasuke at the end of the first arc, which he observed in secret. He was also responsible for warning Akatsuki of the positions of the approaching Team Kakashi and Team Guy during their extraction of Gaara's tailed beast.

The leader dispatched Zetsu to recover Sasori and Deidara's Akatsuki rings since they were both expected to be killed. This highlights some significance in the rings, since Tobi takes Sasori's ring and asks Zetsu if he can join Akatsuki in Sasori's place. The human-sounding half of Zetsu scoffs at the idea, but the robotic half seems intrigued. Given that Tobi is now a member, it would seem the latter half won out.

Former members

Orochimaru

• Status: Defected
• Ring: 空 (Kū, sky)
• Ring position: Left little finger
• Partner: Formerly Sasori

Orochimaru was formerly a member of Akatsuki, where he worked as Sasori's partner. The circumstances behind his eventual defection from Akatsuki remain unclear. Orochimaru implies that he had planned to use Itachi as his next host, but notes Itachi had become too powerful for even him to handle, thus why he turned his attention to Sasuke. Why Itachi's superiority alone would necessitate his defection is unclear. Upon leaving, he kept his Akatsuki ring, which is currently still on the severed hand of his original body. The apparent special nature of his ring, his knowledge of their plans, and bad blood have led to him being the target of a number of Akatsuki plots, one of which involved a member of his retinue being a (eventually double) sleeper agent. Orochimaru intends to eliminate Akatsuki, as well; however, he is currently content to let Konoha deal with the threat Akatsuki poses. This is in the hope that they kill some of the remaining members for him.

Whatever their remaining connections are, Orochimaru and Akatsuki also seem to be working off similar timetables, as the three years it takes Orochimaru to prepare to take over Sasuke's body seem to coincide with Akatsuki's plans for capturing more tailed beasts.

Sasori

• Status: Deceased
• Ring: 玉 (Gyoku, jewel/ball/jade)
• Ring position: Left thumb
• Partner: Formerly Deidara, Orochimaru before that

Sasori was Deidara's first introduced partner in Akatsuki. A powerful ninja puppeteer, he was a missing-nin from Sunagakure. In the Rescue Gaara arc of the manga, he assisted Deidara in his mission to capture Gaara from Sunagakure. While there, he fought against Kankuro, nearly killing him and easily destroying Kankuro's puppets in the process. After Gaara was delivered to the Akatsuki lair, he acted as a rear-guard for the rest of Akatsuki, fighting Sakura and his grandmother Chiyo. This battle turned out to be his last, as he was eliminated by two puppets he designed himself that Chiyo possessed, "Mother" and "Father" (his actual mother and father converted into puppets).

Sasori possessed double agents for Akatsuki in at least two other organizations. He had planted Yura as a spy in the Sunagakure council and placed a mind-control jutsu on Kabuto Yakushi from Orochimaru's retinue, though this was later reversed. At the time of his death, Sasori had not yet captured his demon, and may have not yet known which one he was assigned to. Tobi assumed his position in Akatsuki after his death.

Former agents

Kabuto Yakushi

• Status: Defected

Kabuto Yakushi was a former spy for Sasori, forced into the position through a form of mind control. Kabuto was used by Sasori to infiltrate Orochimaru's group, but Orochimaru removed the mind control on Kabuto shortly after he joined. Kabuto then betrayed Sasori and Akatsuki in favor of Orochimaru.

Yura

• Age: ?
• Status: Deceased
• Height: ?
• Weight: ?
• Birthday: ?
• Blood type: ?
• Rank: Jonin
• Registration #: ?
• Debut: Chapter 247

Yura (由良, Yūra), whose name means "beginning" in Japanese, served as a trusted member of the Kazekage advisory council of Sunagakure for four years. In reality, he was a sleeper agent for Akatsuki and a subordinate of Sasori. He was used in the Akatsuki leader's Shapeshifting Technique, which made him take on the shape of Itachi Uchiha and allowed Itachi to take control of his body. Naruto's Great Ball Spiraling Sphere killed him while in this form.

References

• First Official Data Book (秘伝・臨の書キャラクターオフィシャルデータBOOK, Hiden: Rin no Sho Character Official Data Book)
• Second Official Data Book (秘伝・闘の書キャラクターオフィシャルデータBOOK, Hiden: Tō no Sho Character Official Data Book)
• Jump's 2nd Great Hero Book's Mini Data Book (秘伝・翔の書オフィシャルキャラクターデータBOOK mini, Hiden: Shō no Sho Official Character Data Book mini)
• Naruto anime and manga Guidebook (秘伝・翔の書オフィシャルキャラクターデータBOOK mini, Hiden: Shō no Sho Official Character Data Book mini)
• Taken directly from the Naruto manga chapters and anime episodes.

1. Naruto chapter 238, pages 18-19; anime episode 135
2. Hiden: Tō no Sho Character Official Data Book pages 180-181
3. Naruto chapter 327, page 17
4. ^ Hiden: Tō no Sho Character Official Data Book, page 37
5. Naruto chapter 257, page 4
6. Naruto chapter 259, pages 6-7
7. ^ Hiden: Tō no Sho Character Official Data Book, page 150
8. Naruto chapter 258, page 2
9. Naruto chapter 257, page 17
10. Naruto chapter 256, page 2
11. Naruto chapter 256, page 3

v t e Naruto by Masashi Kishimoto
Media	Manga Volumes Part I Part II, volumes 28–48 Part II, volumes 49–72 Naruto: The Seventh Hokage and the Scarlet Spring Boruto chapters Anime Naruto episodes Season 1 2 3 4 5 Naruto: Shippuden episodes Season 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Rock Lee & His Ninja Pals episodes Boruto: Naruto Next Generations episodes List 1 2 3 4 5 6 Films Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow Legend of the Stone of Gelel Guardians of the Crescent Moon Kingdom Naruto Shippuden the Movie Bonds The Will of Fire The Lost Tower Blood Prison Road to Ninja The Last Boruto Video games Clash of Ninja series I Ninja Council series 2 The New Era Ultimate Ninja series Heroes Heroes 2: The Phantom Fortress Storm 1 Storm 2 Storm Generations Storm 3 Storm Revolution Storm 4 Uzumaki Chronicles series Rise of a Ninja The Broken Bond Related Jump Super Stars Jump Ultimate Stars Battle Stadium D.O.N J-Stars Victory VS Jump Force Songs "Baton Road" "Blood Circulator" "Closer" "Dareka ga" "Diver" (Kana-Boon) "Diver" (Nico Touches the Walls) "Give Lee Give Lee Rock Lee" "Go" "If" "Re:member" "Sign" "Silhouette" "Shukuen" "Sore dewa, Mata Ashita"
Characters	Naruto Uzumaki Sasuke Uchiha Sakura Haruno Kakashi Hatake Gaara Rock Lee Shikamaru Nara Hinata Hyuga Orochimaru Jiraiya Itachi Uchiha Obito Uchiha Nagato Madara Uchiha Boruto Uzumaki Sarada Uchiha Mitsuki Momoshiki Otsutsuki Kawaki
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