The Naruto franchise has cemented its name in the medium of anime, garnering fans across the globe. The anime’s story stretches far and includes many interesting elements that serve to enhance the viewing experience. As a battle shonen, the series focuses heavily on exciting fights and fascinating abilities, both of which are showcased consistently throughout the series.
One thing needed to facilitate both factors, fights, and abilities, is intelligence, and many characters in Naruto have it in abundance. It entails both the ability to think on their feet in combat as well as strategize efficiently outside of it. Their value as a shinobi is greatly increased by this ability, and in cases where strength is not enough, it serves as proper compensation.
Updated May 30, 2023, by Emedo Destiny: The world of Naruto is a tapestry of captivating characters with diverse personalities, abilities, and of course, intelligence. As the epic tale of ninjas and shinobi progresses, battles are fought not only with brute strength but also with the power of intellect, and some characters stand out for their exceptional intellectual prowess and quick strategic thinking. These brilliant minds not only possess formidable physical skills but also effectively harness their intellect's power to outsmart their opponents and overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Here are the most intelligent characters who have left an indelible mark on the Naruto universe with their sharp minds.
15 Tsunade
Tsunade is well-renowned for her mastery of medical ninjutsu - a testament to her being among one of the greatest healers in the series. Her extensive knowledge of human anatomy, medical ninjutsu, and healing herbs is enough proof of her intelligence as shinobi. Tsunade’s ability to heal injuries, develop innovative healing techniques, and come up with decisions that save lives in critical situations showcase her sharp intellect.
Her political acumen and diplomacy are also a testament to her critical thinking ability. These leadership skills aided her in effectively negotiating alliances to balance the interests of her village with those of surrounding nations.
14 Hiruzen Sarutobi
Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, was well-known as “the god of shinobi” mainly due to his extensive knowledge in various fields of ninjutsu, including forbidden techniques. He was able to impart his knowledge to the Legendary Sannin Tsunade, Jiraiya, and his favorite student Orochimaru, who went on to become a great scientist, albeit one with ulterior motives.
He demonstrated wisdom and discernment concerning the welfare of the village and its inhabitants. His ability to balance the needs of the present with long-term implications showcases his intelligence.
13 Danzo
Danzo, the shadow leader of the Anbu, is a meticulous planner known for his strategic thinking and long-term vision, carefully analyzing situations and coming up with complex plans to achieve his objectives no matter how unethical they might be.
He is also skilled in the art of manipulation and deception. He excels at gathering information, exploiting weaknesses, and manipulating others to serve his interests. His ability to orchestrate elaborate schemes and stay several steps ahead of his opponents demonstrates his power in psychological warfare. For example, his usage of Kotoamatsukami to manipulate the Five Kage and Mifune at the Summit.
12 Neji Hyuga
Neji was a prodigy born into the prestigious Hyuga clan as a member of the branch house, who served the main house. Due to the exceptional use of his byakugan, he possesses exceptional observation skills that allow him to assess his opponent’s strengths, weaknesses, chakra flow, and patterns of behavior. These enable him to accurately predict their next move, quickly analyze a situation and identify potential vulnerabilities and strategies to exploit.
He mastered techniques that were taught to members of the main house by witnessing them. His keen observations allow him to make informed decisions and devise effective countermeasures.
11 Sasuke
Sasuke is the main deuteragonist of Naruto and Naruto’s rival. Being the only surviving member of the Uchiha clan that survived the massacre, he had to make countless life decisions on his own. He is well known for his physical speed, but he also possesses exceptional analytical skills that allow him to assess and analyze situations swiftly with his Sharingan.
Sasuke is a resourceful strategist; he diligently studies and refines his skills, unlocking new ninjutsu and expanding his repertoire, utilizing them strategically and exploiting their full potential in battle.
10 Kakashi Hatake
Kakashi is a well-known shinobi who has taken up many important roles throughout the series. He joined the Anbu and became a Jōnin at a very young age, eventually being appointed as the Sixth Hokage of the Hidden Leaf village. Early on in the anime, however, he was simply known as the leader of team 7 and the Copy Ninja Kakashi.
He is highly skilled in battle and, with his Sharingan, had copied a vast number of techniques and used them to great effect. He is also very cautious and prefers to get a good understanding of his opponents before taking action. Furthermore, he is adept at formulating plans and is capable of factoring in his allies' strengths and weaknesses.
9 Jiraiya
Jiraiya was a legendary ninja who was just as efficient as he was lascivious. He was extremely competent when called into action and had multiple traits that made him worthy of his esteemed status. While younger, he received training from the third Hokage himself and was dubbed one of the three “Legendary Sannin.”
He then went on to train both the fourth and seventh Hokage, showcasing his impressive teaching skill. He developed an information network that ran through all five shinobi countries and, in battle, could formulate helpful theories to give him the upper hand. He was also approached to assume the role of the fifth Hokage, but he rejected the offer as he valued his freedom too much.
8 Kabuto Yakushi
Kabuto is an individual who worked as Orochimaru’s lackey for an extended period of time. He constantly suffered from an identity crisis but eventually discovered who he was always meant to be. His specializations in information gathering and medicine were fostered by his time as a spy and in an orphanage, respectively, acquiring both talents from a relatively young age.
He was incredibly skilled in medical ninjutsu and had extensive knowledge of the human body. He performed the Impure World Reincarnation jutsu better than anyone who had come before him and even mastered sage mode, something Orochimaru could not achieve due to his different bodies. He was a significant player in the Fourth Shinobi World War and a very powerful antagonist.
7 Orochimaru
Orochimaru is one of the series’ most memorable antagonists and the second of the three “Legendary Sannin” on this list. He was considered a genius from a very young age and, despite his sadistic nature, gained a unique type of respect from those around him. He was eventually forced to flee the Hidden Leaf after his illegal exploits were discovered and spent much of his time after that planning to destroy the village.
His main aim was to uncover all the secrets of the world. After realizing he would likely not have time to achieve such a feat, he began pursuing immortality and did so with relative success. He is skilled at manipulating others and is aware of how to capitalize on their desires. Lastly, through his multiple experiments, he became able to implant and transfer jutsu and kekkai genkai between individuals.
6 Minato Namikaze
Minato was the Hidden Leaf village’s fourth Hokage and the father to the titular protagonist Naruto Uzumaki. He protected the village from the Nine-Tailed Fox’s attack and remained a respected figure for years after his death. Right from his early life, he showed a lot of promise and was believed by Jiraiya to be the child of prophecy.
In battle, he was renowned as Konoha’s Yellow Flash, a title that instilled fear into his enemies. He was highly perceptive in battle and rarely ever took action without proper reason. Despite being mentored by Jiraiya, he came up with the Rasengan and imparted that knowledge to his teacher. His teaching skills were further showcased in his mentorship of Kakashi, Rin, and Obito, all of whom learned a lot under his tutelage.
5 Uchiha Madara
Madara is one of the strongest characters overall in the series as well as one of the founders of the Hidden Leaf village. He was originally friends with the first Hokage Hashirama Senju, but after a difference in opinions on how to keep the peace with other nations, war once again broke out between their respective clans.
Though Madara was occasionally bested by Hashirama in combat, he was an adept planner capable of incorporating multiple factors into his schemes. He used this skill to ensure his revival after his initial death and manipulated the necessary individuals in order to do so. Due to a considerable amount of time spent in battle, Madara grew to be an extremely clever combatant who could employ multiple strategies and adapt quickly to different opponents.
4 Tobirama Senju
Tobirama is the brother of Hashirama and the second Hokage of the Hidden Leaf village. Unlike his brother, he was much more of a realist and tried his best to keep his ideals grounded in reality. He valued the Hidden Leaf greatly and wished for unity between all villagers despite their differing backgrounds.
He was highly innovative and responsible for the development of different institutions within the village. For example, he established the Anbu, the Ninja Academy, the Ninja Ranks, and many others. He also developed powerful forbidden jutsu like the Shadow Clone jutsu, Impure World Reincarnation, and the Flying Thunder God.
3 Shikaku Nara
Hailing from a clan renowned for their shadow manipulation techniques, Shikaku Nara was a skilled strategist of incredible value to the Hidden Leaf. He held the rank of Jōnin Commander, one of the highest-ranking shinobi in the village, and played an important part in the Fourth Shinobi world war.
He acted as the Chief Strategist of the Allied Shinobi forces, and his tactical prowess shone greatly. He could make effective use of information and put together solid plans in a short period of time. He was acknowledged by multiple strong individuals as a shrewd tactician and was even deemed to be a problem by Madara Uchiha himself.
2 Itachi Uchiha
Itachi is the older brother of Sasuke Uchiha, as well as one of the strongest shinobi in the series. At a young age, he awakened his Sharingan and was also considered a prodigy by many of his clanmates. He belonged to two extremely powerful groups, Anbu and the Akatsuki, but it was eventually revealed that he had the best interests of the Hidden Leaf in mind despite being involved with the latter.
He was cautious enough to hide his true allegiances from the other members of the Akatsuki and also adept at planning. He was noted to have the second-highest score in the history of the Chūnin Exams, and he became an Anbu captain while he was still 12 years old. His main attribute was his composure in battle, which helped him make the best decisions and get the better of formidable opponents.
1 Shikamaru Nara
In contrast to his lazy and laid-back disposition, Shikamaru is a character of incredible intellect. He is the son of Shikaku and, after his father's demise, was considered the smartest man in the Hidden Leaf. When in his thinking mode, he assumes a peculiar posture, after which he is able to come up with astoundingly effective strategies.
He was believed to have an IQ over 200 by his teacher, Asuma, and could defeat opponents significantly stronger than he was, provided there was even the slightest chance of victory. He is highly observant and is so intelligent that he is capable of staying ten steps ahead of an average opponent. Furthermore, he was one of the first of his classmates to become a Chūnin, later on becoming a Jōnin in a short period of time.