Even if the power scaling in the Naruto eventually left the Six Paths of Pain behind, this villain remains one of the most formidable and iconic antagonists in the entire anime. Madara Uchiha and Kaguya Otsutsuki may be stronger, but Pain is iconic and beloved, and his many powers and abilities still stand out today. In the canon story, fans saw Pain defeat Jiraiya and even briefly capture Naruto Uzumaki himself, only to eventually lose to Naruto's "talk jutsu."
The next question is: who else could have Pain defeated in the story of Naruto? Some matchups don't look so good, with Sasuke Uchiha reaching near-divine powers by the end of Naruto Shippuden, and endgame Kakashi Hatake could have defeated Pain as well. But there are other powerhouse shinobi who would definitely lose to the Six Paths of Pain, even if they would make Pain fight hard for those victories.
7 Tsunade Could Not Avenge Jiraiya When Fighting Pain
No Sannin Stands a Chance Against the Six Paths of Pain
Jiraiya made a valiant effort to defeat the Six Paths of Pain in the latter's home turf in the Hidden Rain Village. Jiraiya mustered all of his chakra, his best jutsu, and the aid of the toads Fukasaku and Shima while using Sage Mode. In the end, it wasn't enough, with Jiraiya defeating one of the Pains but succumbing to the rest. Tsunade was heartbroken to hear the news, but she was in no position to avenge her former teammate.
Tsunade boasts vast power as a fellow member of the Sannin and the Fifth Hokage, but it won't earn her victory when fighting Pain. She did face Pain in the actual story of Naruto Shippuden, but if it weren't for Naruto's timely arrival, the Hidden Leaf Village would have lost another Hokage. Tsunade, while formidable with her melee power, medical jutsu, and Katsuyu's strength, cannot deal with every Path of Pain at once. Her self-healing would be pushed to the limit and beyond trying to keep up with all of Pain's techniques.
6 Orochimaru Can't Defeat Pain, Even With His Varied Jutsu
Pain's Arsenal of Jutsu is Even Deeper Than Orochimaru's
Based on apparent power levels and Jiraiya's loss to Pain early in the Pain Arc, none of the Sannin can overcome the Six Paths of Pain in a showdown. Orochimaru does stand a better chance than his allies, however, given how his overall strategy isn't too different than Pain's own. Orochimaru may lack the Rinnegan, but he has gathered many different jutsu types as part of his scientific experiments. He can also revive the dead with Edo Tensei, such as deceased Hokage, making him loosely similar to the Six Paths.
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With such power, Orochimaru is a proper challenge for the Six Paths of Pain in battle, but in the end, he would still lose. Even with his Hokage minions and his ability to escape harm by shedding his skin, Orochimaru has no answer for Pain's trickiest abilities. The Preta Path's ability to absorb all chakra is a hard counter to Orochimaru's heavy reliance on jutsu, and not even the giant snake Manda can deal with Pain's offensive Asura and Deva Paths.
5 Gaara's Sand Dominated the Chunin Exam But Won't Overcome Pain
Gaara Needs Far More Than Sandy Attacks to Break Through Pain's Techniques
Some particular Kage could survive or even win a fight with Pain, such as adult Naruto Uzumaki, Minato Namikaze, and Kakashi Hatake. Other Kage can last a while against Pain but stand little chance of actually winning, with Gaara being one of them. It's true this jinchuriki has come a long way since his villainous days in the Chunin Exam Arc, but he still lacks what it takes to demolish Pain for good.
Gaara's sand-based jutsu is stronger than ever even without the one-tailed beast aiding him, and those sandy barriers would be handy against the likes of Pain's Asura Path. The problem is that Pain's other Paths have more unique abilities that sand cannot handle, such as the Human Path's ability to extract the intel in someone's head and kill them in the process. There are precious few ways in Naruto's combat system to escape that fate, and Gaara wouldn't be able to fight off all six Pains at once to physically escape that horrifying attack.
Find all 10 pairs
Find all 10 pairs
4 Hiruzen Sarutobi Can Give Pain a Good Fight, But Won't Win
The Professor of Jutsu Would Learn a Lesson in Pain
Among all Kage, the Third Hokage is the strongest who could not defeat the Six Paths of Pain. His predecessor Hashirama Senju would handily take down Pain, and Minato's extreme speed and genius intellect could also score him victory against pain, but Hiruzen Sarutobi is out of luck. He may be the "professor of jutsu" as an experienced shinobi who wields a wide variety of techniques, but it takes more than quantity to defeat Pain with jutsu.
Thanks to the Preta Path's ability to absorb chakra at will, Hiruzen's many jutsu will fall flat and fail to actually harm any of the six Pains on the battlefield. That factor alone may decide this match, with Hiruzen having too few backup options to keep himself in the fight. His physical power is impressive and was even more so in the past, but that's not going to overcome the likes of the Deva and Asura Paths when those Paths work together.
3 Danzo Shimura's Izanagi May Buy Him Time, But He Still Can't Prevail
Pain's Dojutsu Surpasses Any Stolen Sharingan on Danzo's Arm
Danzo Shimura once commanded Root and came close to becoming the official Sixth Hokage, with both positions speaking volumes about his vast power and influence in the Hidden Leaf Village. He even had the necessary techniques to fight against Sasuke Uchiha and come close to victory, but in the end, Danzo was unprepared for Sasuke's genjutsu ploy. As for fighting the Six Paths of Pain, Danzo could last a while fighting such a foe, but his time is limited.
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Danzo's main advantage is also his biggest secret, with his right arm bearing a number of stolen Sharingan eyes that use the incredible Izanagi technique. That allows Danzo to blur the line between dreams and reality, and he can even escape fatal attacks that way. No doubt Pain would be intrigued and impressed, but it's still not enough. The Izanagi will eventually run out of uses when battling Pain, and in all that time, Danzo can't find a way to defeat the Six Paths with his own offensive jutsu or weapons.
2 Kisame Hoshigaki Relies Too Much on Offensive Jutsu to Defeat Pain
Not Even Kisame's Extreme Durability Will Prevent His Defeat
Kisame Hoshigaki definitely falls on the brutish side of the spectrum of force vs trickery in the Naruto world. For the most part, this combat system rewards tricks and creativity with jutsu, but true powerhouses like Kisame can usually get away with favoring sheer might. Kisame is the one the world calls a tail-less biju, with him having chakra comparable to the likes of Naruto, Gaara, and Killer B. That's truly impressive, and it allows Kisame to fuel huge water-based jutsu or physically clobber almost anyone.
All this brute strength will mean little if Kisame were to fight the Six Paths of Pain to the finish. To start with, the Preta Path's chakra absorption will negate even the strongest water-release techniques Kisame can bring to bear, and the Almighty Push will make sure Kisame's melee attacks won't hit home. When Pain begins his own offensive, Kisame will have no proper defense against the Human Path's mental attack, rendering Kisame's vast power and regenerative abilities moot. It's true Kisame can also negate chakra by eating it with Samehada, but that's still not enough to win this fight.
1 Itachi Uchiha's Tricks Are Formidable, But Pain Can Handle It
Pain Also Boasts Superior Staying Power Compared to Itachi
Itachi Uchiha is the most formidable and talented ninja in Naruto who cannot guarantee a win against the Six Paths of Pain in a formal battle to the finish. Someone as smart and crafty as Itachi might take down one or two of the Pain bodies with ambushes, but Itachi lacks the stamina to take down all six bodies. Itachi is the type to win a fight quickly or not at all, aiming to overwhelm his foes with his Mangekyo Sharingan's abilities before retreating as his limited stamina wears out.
Itachi's brother Sasuke eventually became powerful enough to eclipse Pain in terms of combat abilities, and Sasuke has more endurance, too. That leaves Itachi as a trickster who can neutralize most "normal" shinobi with Tsukuyomi or Amaterasu, but Pain is built differently. Pain's Preta Path can negate any jutsu Itachi musters in such a matchup, and like most of Pain's victims, Itachi has too few ways to escape the wrath of the Human Path.
Naruto
Display card tags widget Display card community and brand rating widget Display card main info widget- Release Date
- 2002 - 2007-00-00
- Showrunner
- Masashi Kishimoto
Cast
-
Junko Takeuchi -
Noriaki Sugiyama
WHERE TO WATCH
- Creator
- Masashi Kishimoto
- MyAnimeList Score
- 8
