In both Shippuden and the original series, Naruto’s title character only kills one person directly, while defeating numerous villains. Naruto’s violence and abundance of blood, gore, and impalement are not surprising.
Thankfully, Naruto himself subscribes to a much kinder worldview that allows villains to change their ways. Nevertheless, Naruto did ultimately kill someone while pursuing Hokage.
The protagonists of Shōnen Jump are rarely shown as killers; instead, they frequently take the initiative or show pity to their adversaries, upholding the magazine’s ideals of cooperation and friendliness.
When villains in Shonen manga and anime do die, the protagonist is not held directly accountable for the death; instead, the plot usually works around the problem.
After the battle with Pain, in which the vivacious young lead ninja alters the villain’s perspective and forces Pain to give his life in order to bring back all of his former victims, Naruto accomplishes just that.
Even Kaguya Otsutsuki, Naruto’s last antagonist, was securely imprisoned rather than completely annihilated. This reaction to significant dangers is what makes Naruto’s lone confirmed kill so unexpected.
Naruto Only Killed One Person, Yura, a Sand Ninja
Yura, a Sand Village jonin, is the only person Naruto Uzumaki has killed in his story, despite fighting countless adversaries. At first, Yura was seen as a reliable member of the Kazekage’s council.
It was eventually discovered, nevertheless, that he was a covert operative working for the Akatsuki. When Sasori and Deidara arrived, his memory was revived. Pain turns Yura into an Itachi clone once his spying is over.
Naruto, Kakashi, Sakura, and Chiyo battle Yura under the guise of Sasuke’s brother before Naruto uses his Giant Rasengan technique to kill her. Later, viewers witness Yura’s body, proving his demise.
Even if Naruto thought he was fighting Itachi, it’s strange that the would-be Hokage kills Yura but larger, more heinous villains escape with their lives intact in a show that purposefully avoids portraying Naruto as a murderer.
Since the fight takes place at the very beginning of Naruto Shippuden, it’s possible that the Akatsuki puppet was deemed an insignificant enough figure for Naruto to destroy him without his morality being called into question, or that the death was intended to emphasize Naruto’s greater maturity following the time leap.
Naruto Has Killed More Anime Characters Than Yura
Even though Yura is the sole canon kill that Naruto has accomplished, exploring the world of filler creates some new opportunities. For instance, Naruto’s signature jutsu Rasengan sent Raiga, a Hidden Mist ninja, flying off a cliff.
Raiga actually killed himself while falling, most likely knowing that the fall would kill him anyhow, hence Naruto might not be solely to blame for Raiga’s passing. In addition, Naruto contributed to Urashiki Otsutsuki’s downfall.
In a Boruto filler storyline, this villain attacks Naruto’s younger self by traveling back in time. Naruto, Sasuke, Boruto, and Jiraiya worked together to eliminate Urashiki, hence in this non-canon adventure, Naruto shares responsibility for the character’s fate.
Naruto Defeated Many Villains But Rarely Delivered Final Blow
Yura’s death is an exception to the unspoken shonen rule that protagonists shouldn’t be murderers, ignoring the murders that Naruto inflicted in filler content. This has led to some conjecture that Naruto’s large Rasengan just disrupted the change and left a corpse behind, and that Pain’s Shapeshifting jutsu had already taken Yura’s life.
The title character would be able to uphold his moral superiority by avoiding the ultimate blow if Yura were murdered by Pain instead of Naruto, even if nothing in the canon indicates this is the case. However, Yura is the only character in the canonical Naruto canon to have had Naruto personally deliver her death.
Are you curious about the intricate details of Naruto’s personality and the effects of his one kill? Explore more in-depth studies and delve further into the fascinating world of Naruto on our website. Come explore the complex nature of well-known anime characters and their stories with us on our website Crossover99!