Naruto Characters: Full List, Team 7 & Akatsuki Guide

Few anime have a roster as sprawling — or as beloved — as Naruto, where a class of academy dropouts, rival clans, rogue mercenaries and cloaked criminals all orbit one orange-clad ninja with a monster sealed inside him. This guide covers every character who matters in the Naruto saga: who they are, when they show up, and how each one bends the story around loyalty, revenge and the stubborn refusal to give up.

All main characters at a glance

Character	Role	First appears	One-line description
Naruto Uzumaki	Protagonist	Episode 1	Shunned orphan and jinchuriki chasing the dream of becoming Hokage.
Sasuke Uchiha	Deuteragonist / rival	Episode 1	Gifted last-of-his-clan avenger and Naruto's mirror image.
Sakura Haruno	Main (Team 7)	Episode 1	The team's medic, who trains her way from bystander to powerhouse.
Kakashi Hatake	Team 7 leader / mentor	Episode 3	Masked "Copy Ninja" who forges three genin into a real team.
Itachi Uchiha	Antagonist (Akatsuki)	"Search for Tsunade" arc	Sasuke's brother and the mystery at the heart of the Uchiha tragedy.
Gaara	Rival → ally	Chunin Exams arc	Sand-wielding jinchuriki who grows from feared killer to protector.
Jiraiya	Mentor (Sannin)	Chunin Exams arc	Toad-summoning sage and Naruto's most important teacher.
Orochimaru	Antagonist (Sannin)	Chunin Exams arc	Snake-obsessed genius hunting forbidden jutsu and immortality.
Tsunade Senju	Fifth Hokage (Sannin)	"Search for Tsunade" arc	Peerless medical ninja who reluctantly leads the village.
Pain	Antagonist (Akatsuki leader)	Naruto Shippuden	Rinnegan-wielding figurehead who preaches peace through pain.
Rock Lee	Supporting (Team Guy)	Chunin Exams arc	Taijutsu underdog who can't use ninjutsu and wins on pure effort.
Neji Hyuuga	Supporting (Team Guy)	Chunin Exams arc	Byakugan prodigy who believes fate is fixed — until Naruto proves otherwise.
Might Guy	Supporting (jonin sensei)	Chunin Exams arc	Green-suited taijutsu master and Kakashi's eternal rival.
Hinata Hyuuga	Supporting (Team 8)	Chunin Exams arc	Shy Hyuuga heir who finds courage through her admiration for Naruto.
Shikamaru Nara	Supporting (Team 10)	Chunin Exams arc	Lazy shadow-controlling genius and the cast's sharpest strategist.
Temari	Supporting (Sand kunoichi)	Chunin Exams arc	Eldest Sand sibling who fights with a devastating war fan.
Zabuza Momochi	Arc antagonist	Land of Waves arc	Rogue "Demon of the Hidden Mist" and Team 7's first real threat.
Deidara	Antagonist (Akatsuki)	Naruto Shippuden	Explosive-clay artist who treats every battle as a fleeting masterpiece.

Naruto Uzumaki — the loudmouth who never gives up

Naruto Uzumaki is the heart of the series: a hyperactive orphan shunned by his village because the Nine-Tails fox is sealed inside him. He hides deep loneliness behind pranks and a booming vow to become Hokage — the village's leader — so that everyone will finally acknowledge him. His trademark is refusing to quit on friends, on fights, and on people the world has written off, and that stubborn optimism slowly turns enemies into allies. Watching him grow from class clown to genuine hero is the spine the whole story hangs on.

Sasuke Uchiha — the avenger

Sasuke Uchiha is Naruto's rival, teammate and mirror image: a brooding prodigy from the near-extinct Uchiha clan, consumed by the need to avenge his family. Cool, gifted and popular where Naruto is loud and dismissed, he carries the series' darkest questions about revenge and how far a person will go for power. His bond with Team 7 is constantly at war with the pull of his past, and the choice he makes about that pull becomes the emotional engine of the later story.

Sakura Haruno — the medic who found her own strength

Sakura Haruno starts as the book-smart third of Team 7, more focused on Sasuke than on ninjutsu. What makes her arc satisfying is that she refuses to stay a bystander: she trains under a legendary healer, develops monstrous chakra-enhanced strength and precise medical jutsu, and becomes the person who keeps her teammates alive. She's the grounded, human viewpoint in a cast full of prodigies and monsters.

Kakashi Hatake — the Copy Ninja

Kakashi Hatake is Team 7's mask-wearing sensei, famous for reading a book mid-battle and for the Sharingan eye that lets him copy a thousand techniques. Behind the lazy charm is one of the village's most respected shinobi, shaped by a tragic past that taught him to value teammates over rules. He's the mentor who forces Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura to become a real team, and his own history quietly echoes the mistakes he's trying to keep them from repeating.

Itachi Uchiha — the brother behind the mystery

Itachi Uchiha is Sasuke's older brother and, on the surface, the reason for Sasuke's revenge — a genius who joined the criminal organization Akatsuki after a night that shattered the Uchiha clan. He fights with terrifying genjutsu and the Sharingan, and every appearance drips with menace and hidden intent. The truth behind what he did is one of the saga's most talked-about reveals, which is exactly why he became a fan favorite. For most of this series, though, he's the calm, unreadable shadow hanging over Sasuke's story.

Gaara — from weapon to protector

Gaara debuts as one of anime's most chilling villains: a red-haired Sand shinobi who kills without flinching, carrying his own tailed beast and controlling sand as both weapon and shield. He's Naruto's dark reflection — another jinchuriki raised in isolation — but where Naruto found friends, Gaara found only fear. Their clash and its aftermath deliver one of the series' clearest statements about loneliness, and his turn from monster to devoted defender of his village is among the best redemption arcs in the cast.

Jiraiya — the Toad Sage and mentor

Jiraiya is one of the Legendary Sannin, a wandering, wisecracking master who writes racy novels and summons giant toads. He becomes Naruto's most important teacher and the closest thing the boy has to a father figure. Beneath the goofball act is a powerful, quietly tragic hero who has spent his life chasing peace, and his lessons ripple through everything Naruto later becomes.

Orochimaru — the snake who chased immortality

Orochimaru is the Sannin who went wrong: a brilliant, serpentine scientist obsessed with forbidden jutsu and living forever, even if it means hopping between bodies. He's the mastermind villain of the early series, orchestrating attacks on the village and marking Sasuke as a target for his power. Slippery, patient and genuinely unsettling, he's the character who makes the shinobi world feel truly dangerous.

Tsunade Senju — the legendary healer

Tsunade Senju is the third Sannin: a granddaughter of the village's founder, a peerless medical ninja, and a compulsive gambler haunted by loss. Reluctant to return to duty, she's eventually persuaded to become the Fifth Hokage, leading the village through some of its hardest days. Her super-strength and healing techniques redefine what a medical ninja can do, and she anchors the older generation alongside Jiraiya and Orochimaru.

Pain — the face of the Akatsuki

Pain is the pierced, orange-haired figurehead of the Akatsuki, wielder of the legendary Rinnegan and a god complex to match. He preaches a bleak philosophy — that true peace can only be born from shared suffering — which sets him on a collision course with Naruto's belief in never giving up on people. Emerging as the great threat of the saga's second half, he raises the stakes from village politics to the fate of the entire ninja world.

Rock Lee and Might Guy — the power of hard work

Rock Lee is the series' beating underdog heart: a ninja who can't use ninjutsu or genjutsu at all and instead masters taijutsu — pure hand-to-hand combat — through insane training. His mentor, Might Guy, is his mirror in a green jumpsuit, a jonin who preaches "the power of youth" and shares Lee's refusal to accept limits. Together they prove you don't need a bloodline gift to matter, and Guy's long-running rivalry with Kakashi pays off in a big way later.

Neji and Hinata Hyuuga — two sides of the Byakugan

Neji Hyuuga and Hinata Hyuuga are cousins of the Hyuuga clan, both wielding the Byakugan — eyes that see nearly everything and, paired with the Gentle Fist style, let them strike an opponent's chakra points. Neji begins as a bitter genius convinced destiny is fixed, until Naruto challenges everything he believes about fate. Hinata is his opposite: shy and gentle, quietly inspired by Naruto to find her own courage. The clan's rigid hierarchy makes them one of the cast's most poignant pairings.

Shikamaru Nara — the lazy genius

Shikamaru Nara would rather nap and watch clouds than fight, but he's arguably the smartest ninja his age — capable of planning ten moves ahead and controlling shadows to trap opponents. His arc is about responsibility: a brilliant slacker slowly accepting that people depend on him. He's the strategist the series leans on whenever brute force isn't enough.

Zabuza Momochi — the Demon of the Hidden Mist

Zabuza Momochi is the first serious villain Team 7 faces: a rogue assassin and master of silent killing who fights with a massive sword from within a wall of mist. He looks like a pure monster, but his arc reveals the loyalty and tenderness underneath, setting the emotional template — enemies with real hearts — that the whole series follows. Few single-arc antagonists are remembered this fondly.

Temari and Deidara — the wider world of ninja

Temari is the eldest of the Sand siblings, a sharp, confident kunoichi who wields a giant war fan to whip up devastating wind, and who evolves from intimidating rival into a valued ally and bridge between villages. Deidara, by contrast, is an Akatsuki member and self-styled artist who molds explosive clay with mouths on his hands, treating every battle as a fleeting masterpiece. Cocky and chaotic, he adds a jolt of personality to the villain roster once the saga expands beyond the Leaf Village.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is the main character of Naruto?

The main character is Naruto Uzumaki, a young ninja shunned by his village for the Nine-Tails fox sealed inside him, who dreams of becoming Hokage. The core story follows his squad, Team 7 — Naruto, Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno — under their teacher Kakashi Hatake.

Who is the strongest character in Naruto?

It's hotly debated and keeps shifting as the saga escalates. Within the original series, the Legendary Sannin — Orochimaru, Jiraiya and Tsunade — and Akatsuki geniuses like Itachi Uchiha sit at the top tier, while Pain and later foes push the ceiling even higher in the sequel.

How many main characters does Naruto have?

The true core is small — Team 7's four members (Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura and Kakashi). Around them sits a large ensemble of rivals, mentors and villains, from Gaara and the Legendary Sannin to the Akatsuki, so most fans count a dozen or more characters as "main."

Who are the members of Team 7?

Team 7 is Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno, led by their jonin instructor Kakashi Hatake. Their shifting bond — friendship, rivalry and loss — is the emotional core the entire series is built around.

Who is the villain in Naruto?

The original series has several. Zabuza Momochi opens as a rogue assassin, Orochimaru grows into the mastermind threatening the village, and the Akatsuki — including Itachi Uchiha and, later, Pain and Deidara — loom as the larger threat across the saga.

Is Naruto the same as Naruto Shippuden?

They're two halves of one story. The first Naruto anime (220 episodes) covers the cast as young genin; Naruto Shippuden continues after a time-skip with the same characters grown up, which is where Akatsuki members like Pain and Deidara take center stage.