Every Akatsuki Fight in Naruto, Ranked

When it comes to groups and teams in Naruto, the Akatsuki are among the most iconic ones. Not just because of power, each individual from the antagonistic group carries a deep narrative and story, which makes them much more narratively important, contributing to some of the most important fights in the series.

Without much more chit-chat, let’s get right down to business. Here are all the Akatsuki fights in the Naruto anime series, ranked by the iconic, powerful, and narrative impact they had on the story. It is also worth noting that we’ve included Sasuke and Team Taka, as they were a part of the Akatsuki, although briefly.

TITLE	Naruto	Naruto: Shippuden
CREATOR	Masashi Kishimoto	Masashi Kishimoto
RELEASE DATE	October 3, 2002	February 15, 2007
IMDb RATING (As of April 22, 2026)	8.4/10	8.7/10
WHERE TO WATCH	Crunchyroll	Crunchyroll

12 Itachi & Kisame vs Kakashi, Asuma, and Kurenai

This was basically the introduction of the Akatsuki into the narrative. With Itachi and Kisame coming to the Hidden Leaf Village and being confronted by Asuma Sarutobi, Kurenai Yuhi, and Kakashi Hatake, Kishimoto sets the tone for how big a threat the Akatsuki are in the story. Why was this fight so significant?

Before this fight, villains felt beatable, and the Hidden Leaf Shinobi always gave the impression of being superior to many other characters. However, this changed the power gap drastically and, most importantly, showcased two vital narrative-changing points: Itachi’s immense power and Kakashi’s limitations.

11 Deidara vs Gaara

It was one of the earliest battles in the Naruto: Shippuden series, when Deidara invaded the Hidden Sand Village to extract the One-Tailed Beast from Gaara. The only reason it ranks so low on this list is that the battle was more of a tactical advantage taken by Deidara than a full one-on-one confrontation.

While Gaara initially overwhelmed the battle, instead of attacking the Jinchuriki directly, Deidara dropped a massive bomb on the Sand Village. Gaara was forced to use his sand to protect the village, leaving himself defenseless. Deidara took the opportunity and extracted Shukaku, leaving Gaara to die, and was later revived by Chiyo.

10 Team Taka vs Killer Bee

This is the time when Sasuke joined the Akatsuki along with his new team, Team Taka – Jugo, Karin, and Suigetsu. Tasked with capturing the Eight-Tails, Team Taka invaded the Hidden Cloud Village and confronted the Jinchuriki, Killer Bee. Despite the numbers advantage, Bee had the upper hand.

Ultimately, while Taka assumed they captured Bee in the end, thanks to Sasuke’s Amaterasu, it was actually a tentacle-substitution Bee used to escape the village. This battle works as the best example to show how outclassed Team Taka was at that time.

9 Kisame Hoshigaki vs Might Guy

This was one of the most intriguing battles in the Naruto: Shippuden series, taking place when Kisame (hiding within Samehada) was detected by Naruto while he was training to control the Nine-Tails Chakra. As Guy arrived at the location, he immediately confronted Kisame.

While Kisame had the upper hand for most of the fight, he was at a massive disadvantage to begin with. The Akatsuki member highly relies on draining the opponent’s Chakra with Samehada, and that’s where he failed against Guy, a Shinobi who relies on Taijutsu and raw strength to attack. After opening the 7th Gate, Guy comes out the victor of the battle.

8 Konan vs Obito Uchiha (Tobi)

Very rarely did we see any fights among the Akatsuki, and once Konan learned the truth, she confronted Obito Uchiha (Tobi) in a decisive battle to protect Nagato. Konan did a lot of prep work in the fight and attacked Obito with 600 million paper bombs. However, the latter used the forbidden technique, Izanagi, and came out with only minor damage.

Obito then placed Konan under his Genjutsu to learn Nagato’s location, and killed her later. This was one of the most significant powerscaling fights in the Akatsuki – Obito is considered the strongest Akatsuki member, and his victory against Konan showed the massive power gap.

7 Naruto Uzumaki vs Kakuzu

One of the most controversial fights in the series, Naruto vs Kakuzu, was also one of the peak episodes. This was the first time we all saw Naruto’s brand new Rasenshuriken in action. While Kakuzu and Hidan were overwhelming Team 10, Naruto swooped in and saved the day.

The reason we call this controversial is that Kakuzu, the oldest member of the Akatsuki, has fought Hashirama Senju himself and lived to tell the tale. A Shinobi of that caliber is almost instantly defeated with a move that Naruto barely mastered – to some extent, it screams like a plot hole left by Kishimoto.

6 Sakura Haruno & Granny Chio vs Sasori

Sakura & Chiyo vs Sasori is one of the more strategic battles in this list. Sasori was an overwhelming foe of the Akatsuki who constantly attacked with his army of puppets and his poisonous attacks. Chiyo controlled Sakura with Chakra threads to outmaneuver Sasori’s attacks, while Sakura developed an antidote for the poison.

By the end of the battle, Sasori summoned 100 puppets against Chiyo’s 10 puppets, but through overwhelming strength and strategic thinking, Sakura and Chiyo won. This was one of the most emotionally driven Akatsuki fights, shedding light on the deeper issues instigating the group’s formation.

5 Sasuke Uchiha vs Deidara

In pursuit of the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Deidara and Tobi came across Sasuke and jumped into a confrontation. While Tobi mainly watched from the sidelines, a massive back-and-forth battle broke out between Sasuke and Deidara. Sasuke identified that his lightning-infused sword and Chidori could neutralize Deidara’s explosive clay and took advantage of that.

He even went as far as to exploit Deidara’s hate for Itachi and the Sharingan to trap him in a Genjutsu. Ultimately, Deidara detonated himself as a human bomb, and Sasuke shielded himself by summoning Manda. This was a narratively important battle, as it not only explored the backstories of Deidara and his innate ninjutsu technique but also showed the exponential growth of Sasuke from Orochimaru’s experiments with the Cursed Mark.

4 Shikamaru Nara vs Hidan

The Shikamaru vs Hidan was one of the most strategic battles in the Akatsuki category, turning into a literal psychological warfare. Because of Hidan’s immortality – thanks to the Jashin Ritual – he was an unbeatable enemy, but there isn’t anything that can’t be figured out in Shikamaru’s dictionary.

As the battle went on, Shikamaru kept testing theories and experimenting with fighting techniques to narrow down a win possibility, which ultimately handed him the win against the Akatsuki member. The battle was a bliss to watch, teeming with undertones of emotions, intelligence, and intensity.

3 Sasuke Uchiha vs Itachi Uchiha

When it comes to the Akatsuki fights, only a few are as emotionally driven as the fight between the Uchiha brothers – Sasuke and Itachi Uchiha. Fighting Itachi and seeking revenge was basically the entire driving force behind Sasuke’s narrative for a better part of the entire series, and when the fight happens, it leaves us with an emotional toll.

From a narrative standpoint, this was one of the most important revenge arcs in Sasuke’s character growth, as this unlocks the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan for him in the future. Furthermore, we also see a dramatic change in the deuteragonist’s character – priorities changed after the resolution.

2 Jiraiya vs Pain (Nagato)

When we say Sasuke vs Itachi was emotional, Jiraiya vs Pain was the emotional breaking point of the entire series. Despite Jiraiya‘s attempts to come through to Pain, who was once his pupil, the latter was stricken with hate and anger, leading to the ultimate death of his former master.

The reason the death hits so hard is mainly because of the exploration of Jiraiya’s character before the altercation. Jiraiya volunteered to walk into his death and sacrificed himself – a man of absolute goodness and the father figure Naruto got in a while. Not only did his death mean a great deal for the Akatsuki, but it also triggered Naruto to hit back even stronger.

1 Naruto Uzumaki vs Pain (Nagato)

This is as epic as an Akatsuki fight can get in the Naruto-verse. With Pin turning his attention to the Hidden Leaf Village and causing mass destruction, Naruto arrives from Mt. Myoboku with his Sage Mode unlocked. Not only did he fight toe-to-toe with the Six Paths of Pain, but he also established how much he has grown in power and stature as the main protagonist.

Furthermore, we also witnessed one of the darkest Tailed-Beast transformations in the Pain Assault Arc, as Naruto witnessed Hinata’s determination to stand in the way of Pain and him. While the actual battle concluded rather anticlimactically with his “talk no Jutsu” win against Nagato, it is undeniable that the entire segment was one of the peak battles before the Fourth Shinobi World War Arc kicked in.

RANKING	FIGHT	OUTCOME
12	Itachi & Kisame vs Kakashi, Asuma, and Kurenai	A decisive victory for the Aktasuki, who fled as Might Guy arrived.
11	Deidara vs Gaara	Deidara steals the One-Tails, and Gaara dies; later revived by Chiyo.
10	Team Taka vs Killer Bee	Bee trick Team Taka and escape the village.
9	Kisame Hoshigaki vs Might Guy	Might Guy defeats Kisame.
8	Konan vs Obito Uchiha (Tobi)	Obito defeats Konan and learns Nagato’s location.
7	Naruto Uzumaki vs Kakuzu	Naruto defeats Kakuzu.
6	Sakura Haruno & Granny Chio vs Sasori	Sakura and Chiyo defeat Sasori; Granny Chiyo sacrifices herself to revive Gaara.
5	Sasuke Uchiha vs Deidara	Sasuke wins against Deidara, who detonates himself.
4	Shikamaru Nara vs Hidan	Shikamaru wins against Hidan.
3	Sasuke Uchiha vs Itachi Uchiha	Sasuke wins, and Itachi gives him closure.
2	Jiraiya vs Pain (Nagato)	Jiraiya’s sacrifice and death.
1	Naruto Uzumaki vs Pain (Nagato)	Naruto defeats Pain and reasons with Nagato.

What are your thoughts on our list of the best Akatsuki fights in the anime and manga series? Let us know your opinions in the comments below.

Every Episode of the Naruto and Naruto: Shippuden anime series is available to watch on Crunchyroll and Hulu.