Sarutobi

The Third Hokage (三代目火影, Sandaime Hokage; Literally meaning "Third Fire Shadow"), otherwise known by his old name Sarutobi (猿飛). His name, inspired by Sarutobi Sasuke, means "jumping like a monkey", further supported by his Summoning Technique which summons an ape. His mentor, the Second Hokage, also nicknamed him "Monkey" (サル, Saru). Masashi Kishimoto originally planned for the Third Hokage to be a dog, but eventually dumped the idea for being "too weird".

Many aspects of his character are borrowed from the Chinese literature classic Journey to the West; the monkey he summons bears a very strong resemblance to Sun Wukong, the protagonist of Journey to the West, and Sarutobi's chosen weapon is identical to Monkey's magical staff.

Background

Team Senju

As a child, the Third and his former teammates, Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane, were students of the First Hokage and Second Hokage. Later in his life he became the teacher of Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Tsunade, who would go on to become known as the "Legendary Three Ninja" (伝説の三忍, Densetsu no Sannin). In time he became the father of Asuma Sarutobi and later the grandfather of Konohamaru.

While Orochimaru was his student, the Third came to appreciate Orochimaru's natural talent and often told Jiraiya to be more like him. He also came to recognize an inner malice and a lust for power within Orochimaru, and tried to steer his student away from these personality traits. Later, the Professor competed with Danzo to become Hokage. Then, after taking the position of Hokage and occupying it for many years, the Third started looking for a successor to the title. While he hoped to be able to give the position to Orochimaru, it became apparent that Orochimaru was only interested in the role of Hokage as a way to get power. As such, the Third passed on the role of Hokage to one of Jiraiya's former students, Minato Namikaze.

Soon after, the Fourth Hokage sacrificed his life to seal the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox within Naruto Uzumaki, forcing the Third to reassume the role of Hokage. After reacquiring his title, the Third began investigating a number of disappearances within Konoha. Upon reaching the source of the abductions, he found Orochimaru to be the one responsible. Having used those that he kidnapped as test subjects in his quest to gain immortality, Orochimaru allowed his former master a chance to kill him. Ultimately, the Third was unable to bring himself to harm his favorite student, allowing Orochimaru to escape.

Sarutobi was one of four Hidden Leaf villagers who knew the truth about Uchiha Itachi, a ninja of the same village and later an Akatsuki member, along with his, Sarutobi's, former teammates and Danzo.

[edit] Personality

Due to the long life he has lived, the Third serves as a source of wisdom for much of the series, passing on the things he has learned to the next generation. As Hokage he has also acquired a habit of attempting to end things peacefully, and does what he can to avoid bloodshed amongst his allies and his enemies. At the series' start, the Third is one of the few people who sees Naruto Uzumaki as more than the container of the demon fox, and as such becomes someone that Naruto truly admires.

Despite his standing as Hokage, the Third seems to have had some sense of lecherousness in him as he spends much of his free time talking to young girls. When Jiraiya was still his student, he offered to help Jiraiya test the jutsu that would allow the user to spy on naked women unnoticed. Even Jiraiya, in this instance, noted his sensei's perverted qualities. He also fell victim to Naruto's Sexy Technique on more than one occasion.

[edit] Abilities

The Third was called "The God of all Shinobi" and The Professor (プロフェッサー, Purofessā) due to his vast knowledge of jutsu, purportedly knowing all the jutsu within Konoha. Sarutobi may well be the most Intelligent Shinobi in Ninja History. The first jutsu he is seen using is the Telescope Technique (遠眼鏡の術, Tōmegane no Jutsu), which allows him to observe others through his crystal ball over long distances. With Roof Tile Shuriken (瓦手裏剣, Kawara Shuriken) he can launch nearby tiles at an opponent with varying intensities, and by throwing a single shuriken at an opponent he can replicate it to surround the opponent through Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique (手裏剣影分身の術, Shuriken Kage Bunshin no Jutsu). This shows that Sarutobi is adapted to every battleground in Konoha and is able to use his surroundings to his advantage.

The more battle-oriented jutsu he is seen using primarily consist of elemental attacks, specifically attacks dealing with fire and earth. Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Missile (火遁・火龍炎弾, Katon: Karyū Endan; English TV "Fire Style: Dragon Flame Bomb") allows him to exhale a stream of fire from his mouth. Earth Flow River (土流大河, Doryū Taiga; English TV "Great Mud River") creates a river of mud beneath the opponent to throw them off balance, and he can use the mud with Earth Dragon Bullet (土龍弾, Doryūdan; English TV "Earth Dragon Bomb"), which creates a dragon's head that launches mud balls at an opponent. These projectiles are ignited with Fire Release: Fire Dragon Missile (火遁・火龍弾, Katon: Karyūdan; English TV "Fire Release: Fire Dragon Bomb"). Earth Release: Earth Style Wall (土遁・土流壁, Doton: Doryūheki) allows the Third to spit a stream of mud that solidifies into a protective shield.

The Third Hokage also has a personal summon: the monkey king, Enma. Enma can turn into a diamond-hard staff which can alter its length and width at will. This staff is the Third Hokage's weapon of choice, and he shows great proficiency in wielding it.

The Third Hokage is unarguably one of most powerful Shinobi in Shinobi History. Iruka even stated that the Third Hokage is said to be the most powerful Hokage. The Monkey King Enma commented on his battle with Orochimaru that it was "miserable" compared to the Third's prime even though The Third had clearly been able to withstand Orochimaru, The First and Second Hokage, even to the extent of repelling and withstanding Shodai's Mokuton and Nidaime's Suiton jutsu's and able to blow up both the First and Second's arms and legs respectively. The Third was also elected to be Hokage at a very very young age by the previous still living two Hokage's. This showcases the trust that First and Second had upon the Third Hokage's abilities to protect Konohagakure.

[edit] Part I

[edit] Invasion of Konoha arc

When the invasion of Konoha begins, the Third is forced to do battle with Orochimaru, who infiltrated the village and planned Konoha's destruction just so that he could kill the Third and kidnap Sasuke Uchiha. Soon after the battle begins, Orochimaru resurrects the first two Hokages so that the Third can feel the enjoyment of fighting a former master. In his old age, the Third is unable to be much of a match for the two Hokage, and is further inhibited by his desire to not hurt either. Orochimaru's presence also impedes the Third's fight, as seeing just how monstrous his treasured student has become breaks his heart. Although he uses his summon, Enma, to help him in battle, the Third is unable to make a dent in the two Hokage, as any damage that is done is simply regenerated.

Having no other choice, the Third uses a combination of shadow clones and the Dead Demon Consuming Seal to seal away the souls of his former masters. As he bids a heartfelt goodbye to his teachers, he turns his attention to Orochimaru. Charging at Orochimaru and throwing aside his former pupil's Kusanagi, the Third attempts to seal Orochimaru's soul as well. Sensing what the Third is trying to do, Orochimaru calls his Kusanagi to him, stabbing the Third in the back.

Despite the fatal injury, the Third continues to try to remove Orochimaru's soul, unconcerned with the sword in his back due to death being guaranteed as a result of using the Dead Demon Consuming Seal. After a hour passes, the Third comes to terms with the fact that he is too old and weak to completely remove Orochimaru's soul. Doing what little he can and hoping to rectify his mistake of allowing Orochimaru to escape years earlier, the Third seals Orochimaru's arms to ensure that he will never again be able to use jutsu, a punishment for Orochimaru's obsession with power. As Orochimaru begins to curse his former master for what he has done, the Third bids Orochimaru farewell and hopes that they will meet again. Knowing that the village is saved and seeing Orochimaru as the boy he once was, the Third dies with a smile on his face.

Sarutobi's death

During his battle with Orochimaru, the Third's likeness on the Hokage Monument cracked across the face. While the crack is fairly prominent due to its size, it doesn't always show up in the anime due either to a bad angle or a mistake by the animators. Later filler arcs try to address this discrepancy by filling up the crack, but the filling is revealed to be numerous exploding tags, and as such is removed.

Spoiler Warning Ends: Spoiler details end here.

[edit] Quotes

• "Twelve years ago, a Nine-Tailed Fox suddenly appeared. It's tails lashed out, smashing mountains and sending tidal waves crashing to the shores. The ninja rose up to defend their villages."
• "He's combined Shadow Cloning with his own invention, the Sexy Jutsu. What a foolish ninja technique...and he could probably get me with it, too."
• "When the tree leaves dance, one shall find flames. The fire's shadow will illuminate the village, and once again, tree leaves shall bud anew." (his last words before his death)

[edit] Sources

• 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.

Facts about SarutobiRDF feed

Age	69 (deceased) +
Birthdate	February 8 +
Blood type	A +
Gender	Male +
Height	163.1 cm (1.631 m, 5.351 ft, 64.213 in) +
Weight	50.6 kg (111.554 lb) +

Second Hokage

The Second Hokage (二代目火影, Nidaime Hokage; Literally meaning "Second Fire Shadow") is the younger brother to the First Hokage and Tsunade's great-uncle. As the brother of the First, the Second Hokage was a member of the Senju Clan of the forest. He is also the former teacher and team leader of the disbanded Team Senju. He is greatly known for his abilities with Suiton Ninjutsu being able to use high level water jutsu with no water source nearby.

Background

The Second Hokage is the brother of the First Hokage Hashirama Senju, and part of the Senju Clan. 80 years prior to the current era, the world was in a time of war and the ninja clans were nothing more than assassins for hire for the various feudal lords. Because of his brother, the Senju Clan was constantly being hired for wars and in turn the enemy would then hire the Uchiha Clan. However the Senju would soon found it meaningless to continue fighting and offered the Uchiha Clan a truce, something Madara Uchiha was not very happy about, but did agree.

Eventually, the allied Senju Clan and Uchiha Clan would make a pact with the feudal lord of the Land of Fire and the Second Hokage would together with his brother and Madara Uchiha foster the village Konohagakure, and helped create the "one village per country" rule that would eventually end most of the wars between the feudal lords but their armies were still maintained in case of the four out of the five great shinobi countries had the biggest armies were still maintained by the countries at current level after the first ninja war. However there were still internal struggles and after the fight between Madara and Hashirama, the villagers soon began suspecting the Uchiha Clan of treason and plotting against the village, but Hashirama taking the Uchiha Clan's word, chose to do nothing, something unknown to his brother, who was not very fond of his choice and the Second suspected treason.

During this time would the Second Hokage also train a three person team of his own, called Team Senju consisting of Sarutobi, the future Third Hokage, and Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane, the two future elder advisers of the village.

However the war still waged on, and unsure of the title of Hokage, would Hashirama appoint his brother as the Second Hokage (Nidaime Hokage) and later the Second would also appoint his student, Sarutobi to be the Third Hokage (Sandaime Hokage).

After becoming the Hokage, the Second would give the Uchiha Clan a special position as a sign of trust. He gave them the leadership of the Konoha Military Police, however this was just a cover up, and its true purpose was just to distance the Uchiha from the government of the village, and place the clan under a tight surveillance, with the ANBU and Root.

Like his brother, the Second would eventually too die in the wars, and pass on the title of Hokage to his student Sarutobi.

[edit] Abilities

He was hailed for being the greatest master of water jutsu, being able to create water from nothing, allowing him to use any Suiton jutsu without requiring a source. However it could be speculated that he is just gathering the water vapor in the air to gather large amounts of water, for his all powerful jutsu.

For his Water Release: Water Dragon Blast Technique that usually requires the largest amount of Hand Seals ever seen in the Naruto Universe, 44 Hand Seals in total, he is only seen using two Hand Seals to activate and use it, a testament to skill.

Also, during his fight against Sarutobi, in the anime only, he displays great abilities in manipulating water, such as using it for projectiles, or tentacles to drag the opponent down in the water.

[edit] Part I

[edit] Destruction of Konoha arc

He is later revived from the dead by Orochimaru using Impure World Resurrection to fight the Third Hokage during the Destruction of Konoha arc. His soul is eventually sealed into the stomach of the Death God, along with his brother and Orochimaru's arms.

[edit] Anime Filer Arcs

During the anime's Tea Country filler arc, it was revealed that the Second possessed a valuable retractable energy sword called Sword of the Thunder God Despite its appearance as an arc of lightning, the blade can be cracked and broken like a regular sword, as shown at the end of the arc.

[edit] Quotes

• Its been a long time Saru (Literally meaning "Monkey")

Facts about Second HokageRDF feed

Age	"(deceased)" is not a number.
Birthdate	June 5th +
Blood type	AB +
Gender	Male +
Height	184.5 cm (1.845 m, 6.053 ft, 72.638 in) +
Species	Human +
Weight	80.5 kg (177.472 lb) +

Hashirama Senju

Hashirama Senju (千手柱間 Senju Hashirama), the First Hokage (火影初代, Shodai Hokage; Literally meaning "First or Founding Fire Shadow"), was the founder of Konoha, the older brother of the Second, and the grandfather of Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage of Konoha, and Nawaki.

Background

Hashirama Senju's statue at the Valley of the End

Hashirama was originally the leader of the Senju Clan of the Forest. At some point in his life he fought Kakuzu but the nature of this fight is unknown at this point. During the first wars he and the Senju Clan constantly fought the Uchiha Clan and he himself Madara Uchiha personally, even to the point that when someone hired the Senju Clan, the opposing part would hire the Uchiha Clan, and vice-versa. He and his clan offered a truce with the Uchiha Clan and allied with Madara Uchiha, and the two of them, with their clans, founded Konohagakure.

Later on, Madara left the village because during the times of peace, he was called a monster by his clan, saying that he took his brother's eyes for his own selfish desires, when they were given to him freely in order to protect the clan. This conflict resulted in the battle with, and defeat of, Madara Uchiha and the nine-tailed fox at the Valley of the End.

To commemorate the battle, two statues, of Madara and Hashirama, were carved into the earth around the waterfall. It is for this reason that Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha's fight at that location was noted to be ironic.

At some point he would gain control of several Tailed Beasts, that he would later spread out between the nations, as the peace talks were happening, and in order to equalize the powers between the nations.

However the war still waged on, and thinking about the future of Konoha, he and his younger brother, the future Second Hokage, trained the young Sarutobi, the future Third Hokage. However, long after founding Konoha, Hashirama died in battle, leaving behind his younger brother who inherited the Hashirama's title and thus became the Second Hokage.

[edit] Personality

He saw the people of Konoha as a part of his own family, and his legacy takes a firm root in the village. He was greatly respected by all and even Madara Uchiha had respect for his strength. Hashirama appears as a kind and caring person, with a calm demeanour.

[edit] Abilities

Hashirama Senju was famous for his Mokuton (木遁, Wood Release) jutsu, an ability to mix earth and water manipulated chakra to create the new element: wood. By converting chakra into life force, he was able to create actual trees. He also had the ability to control the tailed beasts bending them to his own will, by suppressing their chakra and Madara also mentions that at one time he had several tailed beast under his control. It would seems the ability to control the beasts is also greatly amplified by his necklace. His abilities in combat were so great he was known as the man on top of the ninja world.

[edit] Part I

[edit] Konoha Invasion Arc

He and his brother are revived from the dead by Orochimaru using Impure World Resurrection to fight the Third Hokage during the invasion of Konoha arc. During this time he demonstrates his great Wood Release abilities and the same shows great Taijutsu skills. His soul is eventually sealed into the stomach of the Death God by the Third Hokage, along with his brother and Orochimaru's arms.

[edit] Part II

[edit] Yamato

It is revealed that Orochimaru had implanted Hashirama's DNA into sixty test subjects in an attempt to gain access to his Mokuton techniques and ability to control tailed beasts, producing Tenzou (later given the code name Yamato). However, he lost track of the test subjects and didn't realize that one had survived.

[edit] Trivia

• The Necklace worn by Tsunade and later won by Naruto originally belonged to Hashirama.
• "Senju" (千手) means "A Thousand Hands", making a metaphoric association with trees and his ability Mokuton.

[edit] Quotes

• "Being Hokage means believing in your people just as much...as they believe in you."
• "Whenever you live, there's always war."

Facts about Hashirama SenjuRDF feed

Age	"Unknown (deceased)" is not a number.
Gender	Male +
Height	185.1 cm (1.851 m, 6.073 ft, 72.874 in) +
Weight	74 kg (163.142 lb) +

Minato Namikaze

Minato Namikaze (波風 ミナト, Namikaze Minato), also known as Konoha's Yellow Flash, was the Fourth Hokage, and the father of Naruto Uzumaki.

Biography

[edit] Early life

According to those who knew him, Minato was a very talented ninja-having graduated from the Academy at the age of ten. He came under the tutelage of Jiraiya, and under his guidance, learned to develop his skills. Impressed with Minato's determination to succeed, Jiraiya took it upon himself to teach the latter the Toad Summoning Technique, which Minato quickly mastered. His skills would further grow with the development of his own jutsu, the Rasengan and Flying Thunder God Technique.

Minato Namikaze with Rin, Obito Uchiha, and Kakashi Hatake

After attaining the rank of Jonin, Minato was given direction of his own team, which consisted of Kakashi Hatake, Rin and Obito Uchiha. Along with Kakashi, Minato's reputation greatly increased during the Third Great Ninja War, where his skills earned him the moniker of Konoha's Yellow Flash. As a gift for Kakashi's advancement to Jonin, Minato gave him a unique kunai marked with one of the Flying Thunder God transportation markers. Shortly afterwards, he informed the team of their mission: destroy a bridge that aided the enemy Rock ninja force. For the mission, Kakashi took Minato's place as commander of the team while he went to a different battlefield, where he was able to defeat a large number of Iwa ninja singlehandedly. His team, however, was unable to complete their mission, as differences between Obito and Kakashi lead the team to be caught in a trap. Obito, however, was unable to survive the mission, instead helping Kakashi save Rin by giving Kakashi his Sharingan eye before being completely crushed by rocks. When Rin used Kakashi's kunai, Minato arrived and easily defeated the Iwagakure ninja. Unfortunately, by the time he arrived Obito was already dead, though he managed to save Kakashi and Rin. They would later go on to fulfill their mission and help repel the invasion.

[edit] Fourth Hokage

In the months to come, Minato was chosen by the Third Hokage to lead as the Fourth Hokage (Yondaime Hokage). His first choice, Orochimaru, became power crazed and abandoned the village, though the Third thought Minato to be a fine replacement. His devotion to the village and his love for his friends inspired all those around him, and as such, Minato Namikaze became well-liked by the villagers. During his time and relationship with Kushina Uzumaki, Jiraiya showed Minato one of his developing books, which features a fictional character named Naruto. Minato appreciated the name and he would name his unborn son after the fictional character. Jiraiya, however, did not think the name was worthwhile. Kushina approved of the name, so Jiraiya had not much of a choice when both of them had approved. However, just moments after Naruto's birth, the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox attacked Konoha. Minato rushed to the village, where he and Gamabunta faced off against the Tailed beast. Near the end of the battle, Minato made the ultimate sacrifice; using the Dead Demon Consuming Seal, he sealed the demon fox into his newborn son, in exchange for his own life. His dying wish was that Naruto be viewed as a hero, and not as the container of the demon fox, a request not honored by most of the villagers. The only few people who did honor the request was the Third Hokage, and some other ninja of the village but not most of the villagers.

[edit] Succession

Since the Fourth Hokage never had a chance to pick his successor, Sarutobi resumed his role as Hokage. Soon after the sealing of the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox, the Third Hokage made a decree that Naruto's being a demon container should never be mentioned. This was done in the hope that if the children of Naruto's age grew up not knowing his true nature, they would not hold him in contempt like their parents did. Nevertheless they still shunned him because of their parents' attitude towards him. Because of this, Naruto was isolated and became mischievous.

[edit] Legacy

When sealing the demon fox, Minato divided the demon fox's chakra in two halves as he sealed it into Naruto. He sealed the Yin chakra with the Dead Demon Consuming Seal making it inaccessible to Naruto, while using the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style and the Four Symbols Seal on the Yang chakra to give Naruto access to it. This way, Naruto could call upon the demon fox's chakra without being completely controlled by it, though the Four-Tailed Transformation seems to negate this effect. Jiraiya states Minato wanted Naruto to have the Seal Key that matched Naruto's Trigram Seal to help complete a yet to be identified technique.

[edit] Personality

Jiraiya and Tsunade point out that, while Naruto physically bears great resemblance to the Fourth, his personality and style of ninjutsu are almost identical to his mother. This and an earlier statement from Jiraiya on the mission to retrieve Tsunade imply that Naruto and Minato had somewhat different personalities.

This is later supported in the Kakashi Gaiden arc where Minato behaved in a calm but cheerful manner, while dispatching sage-like advice and sound military sense when necessary. When faced with an enemy, he could kill in cold blood, and seemed well aware of the terror his reputation inspired in his foes. He appeared to be respectful of those around him, as he was reproachful of freely speaking of others' pasts, not at all concerned about putting his faith in Jiraiya in regards to his son's upbringing, and was said to have been a very nice person.

Jiraiya has said that the Fourth was not the type to do something without reason. All in all, Minato was known for determination and drive which he passed on to his son.

Jiraiya noted that, although he was quite a genius, the Fourth's greatest aspect was his desire to succeed, largely attributing his success to hard work.

[edit] Abilities

The Fourth created several distinctive techniques, including the Flying Thunder God Technique, which essentially allowed him to teleport to any location with the use of a special seal. He also created the Rasengan, a technique that does not rely on hand seals, but instead uses a concentration of spinning chakra in the palm that causes immense damage to its target on contact. Later in the series it is revealed that this signature technique is actually incomplete. Minato had planned to add his own nature manipulation training to the Rasengan, making it even more powerful, but couldn't manage to combine the two prior to his premature death. Minato's possibly last technique was the Dead Demon Consuming Seal, which was used to seal the demon fox into Naruto, at the cost of his own life.

It is unknown exactly how strong the Fourth was in combat. He was undoubtedly extremely powerful, as enemy nations considered fighting him certain death for the ninja sent against him, leading to a flee-on-sight order. Once, during the Third Great Ninja War, he was able to defeat 50 enemies just by directing his kunais with the special seals on them. It seems to be that he kept teleporting around the terrain because, he was able to defeat them all shortly and without a scratch. It is possible that like his master before him that Minato learned Sage Arts from Ma and Pa, though there is no actual evidence of this. His son Naruto is also currently learning these arts.

[edit] Past Speculation

Before it was revealed, many fans speculated that the Fourth was Naruto's father, mostly because of their nearly identical physique and looks. The two characters also have the same blood type and technique styles. Throughout the course of the series, characters who knew the Fourth Hokage had also given references to the Fourth when talking about Naruto. One might also add that Minato had access to a child, Naruto. It is unlikely, based on his personality and the reverence others have for him, that he simply grabbed a random child, and made them a container for the Nine-Tailed Fox. He would only use his own son, rather than someone else's child, or a stray orphan. However, until it was strongly hinted at in Chapter 367, and revealed in Chapter 382, information about Naruto's family relations had been carefully avoided.

Before Pein was revealed, some speculated that Minato was the leader of the Akatsuki, considering they both have nearly identical hairstyles and the leader's apparent knowledge of the leaf shinobi and their beliefs, his knowledge of this is due to being a student of Jiraiya.

[edit] Trivia

• According to Jiraiya, the Fourth is one of the most skilled Leaf shinobi ever to live. So much so, a flee-on-sight order was given to enemy shinobi during the Third Secret Ninja War.
• Minato's relationship with Kushina appears to have been secretive because there are very few people in the village who have confessed knowing of it; only the ones closest to the Hokage seem to be fully aware that Naruto is their son.
• During the battle between the Third Hokage and Orochimaru, coffins containing the animated corpses of the First Hokage and Second Hokage were called up by Orochimaru to battle the Third. A third coffin also emerged, but was blocked by the Third Hokage before it could fully rise. Presumably, this coffin would have contained the Fourth Hokage, since (in the anime) the symbol "four" is seen on it. In the manga, the coffin disappears before it's shown.
• Out of all of the Hokages, Minato was the youngest, as well as the second youngest to be invested as Hokage; the first was Sarutobi
• Minato's full name means "wind and waves" or "discord" (Namikaze) and "harbor" (Minato).
• He was the only Hokage not to live in the Hokage mansion during his tenure; most likely because he didn't have time to move in.
• He appears in all the Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Games as a jutsu of Naruto's called "Mysterious Aid arrives" and is a playable character in Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 3 and Naruto Shippuuden Accel's 1-2
• Minato appears in the fourth installment of the Naruto OVA called:"Konoha annual sports festival!" where he is seen walking down a hallway as Naruto is rushing by to use the bathroom.
• Most people speculate that Minato can be seen (blacked out) in the background of the Naruto Shippuden season 3 intro standing behind Naruto and Sora
• Minato apparently didn't like smiling for pictures, this is odd given that in flashbacks he is shown to smile a lot.

Facts about Minato NamikazeRDF feed

Age	warning.png"(Deceased)" is not a number.
Birthdate	January 25 +
Blood type	B +
Gender	Male +
Height	179.2 cm (1.792 m, 5.879 ft, 70.551 in) +
Weight	66.1 kg (145.726 lb) +

Tsunade

Tsunade (綱手) is a supporting character in the anime and manga series Naruto.

The names of Tsunade, Jiraiya and Orochimaru come from Jiraiya Goketsu Monogatari (自来也豪傑物語, "The Tale of the Gallant Jiraiya"). The Tsunade in this story excelled in snail magic and was married to Jiraiya. The name "Tsunade" (綱手) means "mooring rope".

Background

The First Meeting of Team Sarutobi

Tsunade is a former student of the Third Hokage. Tsunade and her former teammates, Jiraiya and Orochimaru, are known as the "Legendary Three Ninja" (伝説の三忍, Densetsu no Sannin) or simply the "Sannin". The word "Hime" (姫, Princess) is often attached to Tsunade's name because she is the granddaughter of the First Hokage and the grandniece of the Second Hokage. Tsunade is well known for her extremely large breasts (106 centimeters as stated by Jiraiya), despite the fact that Jiraiya referred to her as "flat-chested Tsunade" during their childhood.

One of Tsunade's noteworthy possessions was an amulet that belonged to her grandfather, which is said to be valuable enough to "buy three gold mines and the mountains on top of them" as stated by Jiraiya. On her brother, Nawaki's, twelfth birthday, Tsunade gave the amulet to him in the hopes that it would help him achieve his dream of becoming Hokage. The next day, Nawaki died as one of the many casualties of the war going on at the time, and the amulet was returned to Tsunade's possession. Sometime afterwards, Tsunade fell in love with a man named Dan, who also wanted to become Hokage. As a sign of her affection and in the hopes that it would help him achieve his goal, Tsunade gave him the amulet as well. Dan too would go on to die a bloody death during the course of the war, once again returning the amulet to her possession.

With the deaths of the two she loved the most, Tsunade came to lose faith in the title of Hokage, believing that only fools would want such a position. With these changes of ideals, Tsunade left Konoha with Dan's niece, Shizune, taking the latter in as her apprentice.

[edit] Creation and conception

Tsunade's name is taken from the character of the same name from Jiraiya Goketsu Monogatari (自来也豪傑物語, "The Tale of the Gallant Jiraiya"). The Tsunade in that story excelled in slug magic and was married to Jiraiya. The name "Tsunade" (綱手) means "mooring rope."

[edit] Personality

The deaths of Dan and Nawaki greatly changed Tsunade; Dan's death and her failed attempt to save him gave her a fear of blood, causing her to freeze up when ever seeing it. The amulet's repeated returns to her also led her and many others to believe that it was cursed, and whoever Tsunade might give it to would die soon after.

Tsunade is also a compulsive gambler who has the unfortunate disadvantage of having terrible luck. As a result, she has been elevated to a comical status as "The Legendary Sucker" (伝説のカモ, Densetsu no Kamo) for the gross profits others have made off her misfortune and gambling addiction. In the rare instances that Tsunade hits a winning streak, she believes it to be a bad omen, and bad things do tend to happen to her afterwards. The symbol on the back of her coat, 賭 (kake), means "gamble," or "wager," as gambling is one of her favorite pastimes.

Tsunade typically projects a tough demeanor, even when facing great personal difficulty, and rarely compliments or praises people. She readily criticizes others for their faults, such as Naruto for his immaturity or Jiraiya for his perversion (though her habits are rarely any better). On occasion, though, Tsunade often shows sympathy for others, consoling Shikamaru that while he failed his mission to return Sasuke to Konoha, all of his teammates survived.

Tsunade has a pet pig Tonton, that is usually kept in the care of Shizune and though she doesn't speak human language she seems to understand everything and react quite actively.

[edit] Part I

[edit] Search for Tsunade arc

After his failed invasion of Konoha, Orochimaru seeks out Tsunade. Upon finding her, he asks her for a favor, though before he can specify what this favor is she declines, having already noticed his wounded arms. Trying again, Orochimaru asks her to heal his arms, explaining that the injury is a result of his carelessness when killing the Third Hokage. Shocked by this revelation, Tsunade prepares to kill Orochimaru, though he once again intervenes by offering to resurrect her dead loved ones: Dan and Nawaki. Interested in this offer, Tsunade considers it, and is left a week to decide.

Soon afterwards, Tsunade is approached by Jiraiya and Naruto Uzumaki who want her to become the next Hokage. After turning down the offer and ridiculing it, Naruto challenges Tsunade to a fight, enraged that someone could disrespect the title of Hokage due to his undying desire to become Hokage himself. Tsunade accepts and easily wins, though not before witnessing Naruto's attempt at using the Rasengan. Intrigued, Tsunade makes a bet with Naruto to master the jutsu in a week, and if he wins he will get the First Hokage's amulet. Naruto accepts, and resumes his training. As the week progresses, Tsunade keeps a careful eye on Naruto's progress and all the while contemplates Orochimaru's offer. When the week is up and Naruto appears to have failed in mastering the jutsu, Tsunade goes to meet Orochimaru, though not before drugging Jiraiya to make sure he doesn't interfere.

Upon meeting with Orochimaru, Tsunade asks that he not destroy Konoha when his arms are healed. Orochimaru complies, and Tsunade prepares to heal him, though is interrupted by Orochimaru's assistant, Kabuto Yakushi. Kabuto, being a medical ninja himself, was able to notice the killing intent of Tsunade's healing jutsu and as such knew that she really intended to kill Orochimaru. Her motives known, Tsunade reveals that she knew Orochimaru lied when saying he'd leave Konoha alone, and that she couldn't bring herself to allow it due to Nawaki and Dan having loved Konoha until the end of their days. While she had tried to forget this fact over the years, Naruto's determination and desire to be Hokage reminded her of their dreams, and she has decided to do whatever is necessary to protect those dreams.

With that, Tsunade attacks Orochimaru, though Kabuto fights her in his place. As the two trade blows, Kabuto begins to realize that he is outmatched and decided to use her fear of blood to his advantage by slitting his wrists and thus making her immovable. As Kabuto begins to beat on Tsunade, Shizune and Naruto come to her rescue. While both are easily defeated, Naruto is able to overcome his injuries and continue to protect Tsunade. Although Tsunade tells him to run, Naruto refuses, and manages to hit Kabuto with a perfected Rasengan in his effort to protect her, defeating Kabuto. As Naruto collapses and is left near-death due to Kabuto's last attack, Tsunade rushes to his aid and attempts to heal him, not willing to allow him to die. Her efforts are successful, and Naruto claims the amulet he has now won before losing consciousness. Putting the amulet around his neck, Tsunade asks once more for its wearer to become Hokage.

Orochimaru, worrying about what kind of threat Naruto may become when he gets older, tries to kill him, though Tsunade blocks that attack as a human shield. Orochimaru inquires as to why she is protecting Naruto, to which she replies that Naruto will someday be Hokage and that she will not allow him to die before that happens. With that, Tsunade accepts the title of Fifth Hokage (五代目火影, Godaime Hokage) that she had been offered and overcomes her fear of blood, her first action being to attack Orochimaru. Joining forces with the still drugged Jiraiya, the two attack Orochimaru, with Tsunade eventually being the one to deal the finishing blow. Defeated, Orochimaru escapes, vowing to destroy Konoha once he's healed himself. Once Naruto recovers, the group returns to Konoha, Tsunade ready to take the role Dan and Nawaki so dearly desired, and secretly believing that Naruto will someday become a great Hokage.

[edit] Sasuke Retrieval arc

Soon after arriving in Konoha, Tsunade heals the wounds of Rock Lee, Kakashi Hatake, and Sasuke Uchiha. Once healed, Sasuke defects from the village so that he can go to Orochimaru, and Tsunade is forced to send out a group of Genin to stop him. She also uses Konoha's reacquired alliance with Sunagakure to call in a favor for reinforcements, hoping to give the retrieval team some backup. Despite her efforts, the group ultimately fails, and Tsunade helps in healing their fatal injuries, bringing them back to full health. In the aftermath of Sasuke's betrayal, Sakura Haruno asks to become Tsunade's apprentice, which Tsunade gladly accepts.

[edit] Anime filler Arcs

Tsunade appears in numerous filler arcs, though she typically does nothing more than sending others out on missions, occasionally trying new ways of deciding who will go on a specific mission. Her goal during the filler arcs is to keep Naruto busy until Jiraiya comes back to prevent him from going after Sasuke himself. In one filler arc, she summons Katsuyu to deal with some impersonators of Rock Lee and Might Guy who have entered the village.

[edit] Part II

After Naruto's return to Konoha after the timeskip, the village's elders question Tsunade's decision to allow Naruto to go out on missions when Akatsuki seeks to capture him. As such, the elders force Tsunade to allow one of Danzo's, a fierce opponent of the Third Hokage, men to be teamed with Naruto. Not trusting Danzo, Tsunade assigns Yamato to lead Naruto and keep an eye on Danzo's addition to the team.

Later, when two Akatsuki members enter the Land of Fire; namely Hidan and Kakuzu, Tsunade mobilizes the Niju Shotai to look for and, if possible, capture the Akatsuki duo. While capture never comes to be possible, the Akatsuki members are both defeated. Tsunade later performs an autopsy on Kakuzu, and finds Naruto's newest jutsu, Wind Release: Rasenshuriken to be too dangerous for use based on the damage done to Kakuzu's body and Naruto's arm. She explains that the attack had struck at a cellular level, causing extensive damage to the both of them, and regretfully tells Kakashi and Yamato not to allow Naruto to use the jutsu again, lest his access to chakra be destroyed.

[edit] Hunt for Uchiha Arc

When Jiraiya decides to do battle with the enigmatic Pein, Tsunade bets that Jiraiya will die, but says this jokingly, due to her horrible luck in betting. Unfortunately, Jiraiya dies, possibly making this one of the few bets Tsunade ever won. Before his death Jiraiya sent a toad to Tsunade with a code which would reveal Pein's true identity. When Pa returned to Konoha with the results of the battle, he told her of Jiraiya's death. With both Jiraiya and Orochimaru dead, she is the sole surviving Sannin. After telling Naruto about Jiraiya's death Naruto quickly blames Tsunade for his death then storms off afterward. Tsunade is then shown telling Shikamaru to have Jiraiya's message decoded and is subsequently seen crying by herself, knowing she lost a precious friend.

[edit] Abilities

Even though she is in her fifties, Tsunade's Transformation Technique makes it appear as if she were still twenty (which Naruto calls "living a lie"). Tsunade's transformation is somewhat different from a normal transformation as it seems to be permanent, not getting dispelled when she is slashed or injured, and she apparently does not need to exert any effort to stay transformed, albeit it seems to disappear a little when her chakra runs low, as seen when she and Jiraiya were fighting Orochimaru.

Tsunade's trademark ability is her inhuman strength, which is derived from her excellent chakra control. By storing chakra and releasing it at the point of contact, she can enhance her strength to the point where she can break through boulders with her bare hands. She is also an extremely talented Medical-nin, and can heal wounds that most others would consider impossible. She went as far as to use the Shadow Seal: Release (蔭封印・解, Infūin: Kai) to store her chakra in her forehead to Creation Rebirth ((創造再生, Sōzō Saisei), a technique that releases the chakra to rapidly regenerate the cells in her body to heal any wound. It gives her a "immortality" in battle that even Orochimaru envied. However, because of the rapid cell regeneration, the technique shortens her life similar to the Four-Tailed transformation, however more controlled. Because of the risk associated with the technique, Tsunade has made the choice to only use Creation Rebirth in extremely desperate situations.

Additionally, Tsunade can summon Katsuyu, a giant slug that is intelligent and very loyal to her. Katsuyu is able to perform a number of jutsu for which Tsunade does not seem to have her own equivalent, such as spitting acid and spliting into smaller slugs, making her useful for accomplishing tasks Tsunade cannot.

[edit] Sources

• 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.

Facts about TsunadeRDF feed

Age	51 * Part II: 53 +
Birthdate	August 2 +
Blood type	B +
Gender	Female +
Height	162.4 cm (1.624 m, 5.328 ft, 63.937 in) +
Weight	48.9 kg (107.806 lb) +