If you're one of the people who grew up watching Naruto - from its classic phase to the Shippuden phase - you've probably wondered which character was more powerful: the Uzumaki or the Uchiha. They've both been through a lot over the course of the series and it's obvious that they've had an advantage over each other in various arcs, but can you answer that question? Who is stronger, Naruto or Sasuke?
Here we're going to analyze the abilities of each one, according to each phase of the characters. But not only that, we'll also bring you Masashi Kishimoto's (Naruto's author) answer to the question! Nothing better than having the official answer to clarify things, right? So, shall we find out who the most powerful ninja is?
Comparing the characters in Classic Naruto
When the classic Naruto series begins, the difference in abilities between him and Sasuke, the only surviving Uchiha from the massacre, becomes obvious. Sasuke showed skills such as Ninjutsu, Taijutsu and Genjutsu, being very good at all these shinobi techniques and considered one of the best in his class. Naruto, on the other hand, could barely do a Shadow Clone jutsu (but we see that this changed in the very first episode).
When we arrived at the Chunin Exam Arc, Sasuke ended up losing in a quick confrontation against Rock Lee, but that was soon left behind in the plot. He was still far above Naruto. The training he had with Kakashi Hatake (his sensei) helped him a lot to maintain his high level, exploiting more of his Sharingan and, of course, learning the famous move called Chidori.
But Naruto was beginning to understand a little more about his abilities too, especially the Summoning Jutsu, which he had learned from Jiraiya during his training period. However, that wasn't enough, as Naruto still hadn't learned how to master the Rasengan and, at this stage, Sasuke was still surpassing him.
And in the final battle of Naruto Classic, Naruto and Sasuke faced off in the Valley of the End. Sasuke with the Mark of the Curse - left by Orochimaru - and Naruto with the Kurama Chakra coating him. Sasuke's mark merged with his chakra and this made him even stronger, plus we saw the Chidori and Rasengan being thrown at each other!
At the end of that fight we saw that the two attacks practically canceled each other out, but Naruto lost consciousness while Sasuke was on his feet and ready to leave Konoha. But is that enough to define who is stronger, Naruto or Sasuke? Now let's look at the Shippuden phase...
Comparing the characters in Naruto Shippuden
When Naruto returns with the Shippuden phase, all his characters have aged a few years and, of course, have trained exhaustively during this period of time. Sasuke was training with Orochimaru, one of the Legendary Sannins, which gave him an absurd increase in power for his age. The fact that Sasuke also had Karin, a character who healed those who bit her, was also a great advantage for him.
Naruto, for his part, also spent this time training with Jiraiya and evolved all his skills. He is now faster than the Raikage and has completely mastered the use of the Rasengan. But this first confrontation between them in Naruto Shippuden showed that the Uzumaki had finally reached the Uchiha's level.
Now, when Naruto unlocks the Kurama Chakra, he becomes one of the strongest characters in Naruto! Even against Sasuke's Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan, Naruto surpasses him. When the final fight between the two begins, Naruto is holding back so as not to take his friend's life. Meanwhile, Sasuke was using everything he had to kill Naruto. So we already have an idea of who is stronger, Naruto or Sasuke.
Even holding back, Naruto gave Sasuke a tough fight that almost cost him his life, completely depleting both of their chakra and forcing them to fight in a hand-to-hand battle that almost never ended. Bearing in mind that Sasuke struggled even with Naruto holding back, if the blond were to use his full power, he would certainly be far above the Uchiha.
Who is stronger, Naruto or Sasuke?
Himself Masashi Kishimoto has already answered the question of who is stronger, Naruto or Sasuke. His answer was given in the official Naruto databook, where Kishimoto states: "Even with only one arm, Sasuke can still keep up with Naruto in battle". Indicating that the Uchiha can still keep up with Naruto, even at a physical disadvantage.
This could indicate that for Kishimoto, Sasuke in his current form in Boruto is stronger than Naruto. However, it's worth remembering that during an interview, the mangaka revealed that he never made Naruto fight using 100% of his power, because Naruto isn't a character who was created to fight until he killed his opponents.
This leads us to the conclusion that the Uchiha may seem stronger than the Uzumaki, but if Naruto ever wants to use all his strength against an opponent, not even Sasuke could beat him!
Did you like our article? Don't forget to leave your opinion on who is stronger, Naruto or Sasuke, in the comments! And to find out more about the otaku universe, also check out our list of the 11 Strongest Anime Characters, Ranked!
