The Akatsuki were the primary villains for most of the Naruto series. The organization was mainly composed of S-ranked rogue ninja who could take on a Kage or Jinchuriki. Despite the fact that several members had their own agendas, the Akatsuki did almost everything right, and the ninja world permanently changed because of their actions. That said, the Akatsuki still made a few terrible decisions that ultimately hurt the organization.
Several of the Akatsuki’s worst decisions were tactical errors that extended their plan’s timeframe unnecessarily. Some of the organization’s worst decisions involved specific members. In one case, the Akatsuki could have avoided losing an important member in a pointless battle, while in another case, they decided not to rescue a member despite having the resources to do so.
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Orochimaru was already part of the Akatsuki when Itachi joined the organization. He had no interest in the Akatsuki’s ultimate goal. Instead, he joined the group to use their resources and intel to further his research. Orochimaru was originally partnered with Sasori of the Red Sand, but asked to temporarily team up with Itachi after his partner Juzo was killed. In reality, Orochimaru saw this as an opportunity to steal Itachi’s body and Sharingan.
Itachi and Orochimaru were both strong enough to become Hokage, but Itachi easily defeated him with genjutsu, and severed his left hand in the process. Orochimaru immediately defected from the Akatsuki, and Sasori vowed to kill him personally. For some reason, Nagato agreed to this. The Akatsuki should have hunted Orochimaru down with their full force as soon as he defected. Orochimaru knew their plans, hideouts, and abilities, making him too dangerous to leave alive. There was no reason to leave it up to Sasori either, considering Zetsu and Obito could have found him much faster. They were not even actively capturing the Tailed Beasts yet, so finding and killing Orochimaru should have been the organization’s top priority.
5
Deidara Should Have Been Ordered Not To Attack Sasuke
The only reason Deidara agreed to join the Akatsuki is that Itachi embarrassingly defeated him. From that moment on, Deidara made it very clear that he despised Itachi and the Uchiha Clan’s Sharingan, He literally created a jutsu specifically to counter the Sharingan’s visual prowess so he could kill Itachi in the future. When news broke that Sasuke “killed” Orochimaru, Deidara decided to target Itachi’s little brother to prove himself since Orochimaru was supposed to be his target.
Deidara was one of the Hidden Stone Village’s strongest ninjas, but he was unable to kill Sasuke, and died in the attempt. The Akatsuki’s leadership never ordered Deidara to avoid Sasuke, which they should have since he basically alluded to it during a meeting. The organization was in the final phase of its Jinchuriki plan and could not afford to lose any more members because they were already shorthanded by Kakuzu and Hidan’s simultaneous defeats. Ordering Deidara to stand down would have been the wisest tactical move because risking the life of another member over a silly vendetta at that stage made little sense.
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4
The Akatsuki Should Have Never Sent Sasuke To Capture Killer B
Following Konan’s defection and the deaths of Itachi and Nagato, the Akastuki was down to just three members. Obito took control of the organization and teamed up with Sasuke and his group to bolster the Akatsuki’s numbers. Sasuke only agreed to join so he could use their power to destroy the Leaf Village. Sasuke was tasked with capturing Killer B and the Eight-Tails, which ultimately ended in failure because B swapped places with a tentacle at the end of the battle.
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Granted, Obito wanted to see how strong Sasuke’s Mangekyo Sharingan was, but sending him after Killer B, one of the most powerful Jinchuriki, was the wrong move. Sasuke had never fought a perfect Jinchuriki, and he had never used his Mangekyo in battle before. The only reason he survived the encounter is that Karin and Jugo healed him. If Kisame and Obito had gone after Killer B instead, they would have captured him easily. Kisame could have drained B’s chakra while Obito captured him with Kamui. Zetsu could have found B if he searched the Land of Lightning, and Obito could have used his Sharingan to interrogate Cloud ninjas to pinpoint B’s location just like Sasuke did.
3
The Akatsuki Should Have Captured More Than One Tailed Beast At A Time
According to Nagato, the Akatsuki’s goal was to capture the Tailed Beasts and use them as weapons of mass destruction to force the ninja world into a lasting peace. They captured one Tailed Beast at a time because they did not want to attract attention from the Five Great Ninja Villages. This was smart, but the villages learned of their motives anyway. It was also claimed that the Tailed Beasts needed to be sealed inside the Gedo Statue one at a time in a specific sequence. This was quashed during the Fourth Great Ninja War when Madara sealed them one after another in quick succession.
Only a few Naruto Characters were strong enough to beat a Tailed Beast, and several of them were part of the Akatsuki. The organization had the strength to capture at least four or five Tailed Beasts at once, which would have sped up their plan considerably. They could have completed the most difficult part of their plan within a few weeks. Nagato could have personally kept the Jinchuriki restrained with his black rods. Capturing multiple Tailed Beasts would have significantly weakened some of the Great Nations to the point they would have hired the Akatsuki to eliminate the remaining Jinchuriki anyway.
2
The Akatsuki’s Surviving Members Decided To Not Rescue Hidan
As a devout follower of Jashin, Hidan only cared about spreading death and destruction, but he was also one of the Akatsuki’s most effective members. A small number of Naruto characters obtained immortality, and Hidan became immortal after successfully completing some Jashin experiments. This immortality, combined with his Voodoo doll curse, allowed him to take down a Jinchuriki and high-value targets for the Akatsuki.
Hidan’s body was blown apart by Shikamaru in the Nara Clan’s Forest, and he was subsequently buried alive. For some reason, instead of looking for Hidan in his last known location, the remaining Akatsuki decided to just leave him there even though he was still alive. Zetsu or Obito could have retrieved his remains, and Nagato could have used the Naraka Path to fully repair Hidan’s body. Hidan would have been very useful during Pain’s assault on the Leaf Village, and if he were partnered with Kisame during the Five Kage Summit Arc, Killer B would have been captured.
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1
The Akatsuki Decided To Not Capture Naruto When He Was A Child
The Akatsuki decided to save Naruto for last because the Nine-Tails possessed too much power to be sealed earlier. In theory, this made sense, but tactically, the Akatsuki should have captured Naruto shortly after the Chunin Exams. At that time, Naruto had not learned how to properly use the Nine-Tails’ chakra, which means he was significantly weaker. It looked like Itachi and Kisame were going to capture Naruto when they first met, but given the fact Itachi was still on the Leaf Village’s side, nothing would have likely happened.
One of Naruto‘s best showdowns occurred at Final Valley between Naruto and Sasuke right before the timeskip. It ended in Naruto’s defeat, and he was left on the valley floor alone before Kakashi arrived. Zetsu witnessed their battle and could have captured the unconscious Naruto then and there, but for some reason, he did not, even though it was in the Akatsuki’s best interests.
Naruto
- Release Date
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October 2, 2002
- Network
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Adult Swim
