Madara Uchiha was one of the most prominent antagonists in the Naruto universe and the greatest foe of the Allied Shinobi Forces. His hatred for the Senju clan endured over several decades, having never forgotten the atrocities they committed against his people.
RELATED:
While he might seem like an unstoppable villain, Madara has a surprising number of weaknesses that render him more balanced than he's given credit for. By identifying the character's greatest strengths and weaknesses, we can better appreciate his subtle nuances and how he was worthy of being the series' final foe.
10 Strength: Madara's Jutsu Almost Wiped Out The Allied Shinobi Forces
Madara had arguably the most destructive jutsu in the entire series. An excellent example comes shortly after his debut, where he invoked a massive meteor to obliterate the entire Allied Shinobi Forces.
Ultimately, it took the combined strength of two Kage to halt its impact, although doing so significantly drained them. The villain would demonstrate his formidable power again during his battle against the Five Nations' leaders, where he unleashed a small army of Susanoo warriors.
9 Weakness: Madara's Stubbornness Caused Massive Unnecessary Problems
Madara's myopic stubbornness was partially why he was convinced by Zetsu's alteration of the Uchiha tablets. Since he craved a better future for his people — whether they wanted it or not— he was willing to believe anyone who told him something he wanted to hear.
Despite Hashirama's pleas to change his path, Madara arrogantly pressed forward because he was obsessed with delusions of grandeur. As a consequence, he was defeated, disgraced, and forced into exile below the earth's surface for the rest of his life, never to see his clan again.
8 Strength: Madara Is A Versatile And Unpredictable Fighter
In addition to his immense inherent strength, Madara is one of the series' most versatile and adaptable fighters. He mastered the power of the Rinnegan in minutes, stole Hashirama's chakra to use for himself, and even become the Ten-Tails jinchuriki.
The powers he gained only complemented his already impressive arsenal, which includes weapons such as the Susanoo, Fire Style, and meteor invoking jutsu. With so many tools at his disposal, Madara is more than equipped to take potential threats by surprise and overwhelm them before they had a chance to figure out his strategy.
7 Weakness: Madara Is Vulnerable To Taijutsu
After mastering the Ten-Tails, Madara became incredibly resilient to all forms of ninjutsu and genjutsu, with the exception of Sage Mode. However, he was still vulnerable to the physical force of taijutsu, providing a weakness that Might Guy was more than happy to exploit.
RELATED:10 Naruto Characters Who Would Make Great Among Us Imposters
While taijutsu may be the best way to defeat Madara, that doesn't mean he's a poor melee combatant. He obliterated much of the Allied Shinobi Forces' army without casting a single ability in his debut. If Might Guy hadn't activated all eight gates, it's difficult to determine if he could have defeated the villain.
6 Strength: Madara Is Incredibly Durable And Can Even Survive Having Most Of His Head Destroyed
Although Madara's offensive abilities are formidable, his defense is equally terrifying. The Susanoo was able to provide full protection against most attacks, with only characters as powerful as Tsunade capable of shattering its legendary defenses.
Should one miraculously manage to injure Madara, he's also exceptionally skilled at regeneration. He managed to survive being relentlessly bludgeoned by Might Guy at the height of his power, who was strong enough to bend air itself with his kicks.
5 Weakness: Madara Has A Terrible Taste In Allies
Madara's choice of allies is completely abysmal, especially in the Fourth Shinobi War. Obito completely abandoned him after a fight with Kakashi, where his former friend convinced him that the boy he once was lived on through Naruto.
RELATED:
Similarly, Black Zetsu used Madara's trust to get close and plunge a fist through his chest. As formidable as Madara's regeneration might have been, an attack directly through the heart proved to be fatal. In the final moments of his life, Madara realized that he was only a pawn in a larger scheme.
4 Strength: Madara Has Tremendous Willpower And Resolve
As misguided as Madara's goals might have been, few can contend with his resolve to fulfill his dreams. Even after his second crushing defeat by Hashirama, he refused to give up and arranged plans that would extend beyond the grave itself.
After Obito's betrayal, he still held steadfast against several of the strongest Kage who ever lived, as well as the reincarnations of both Indra and Asura. Moreover, he had an extremely plausible chance of defeating them all in a fair fight.
3 Weakness: Madara's Charisma Leaves Much To Be Desired
Despite being the leader of the Uchiha Clan, Madara wasn't particularly charismatic. Once a truce had been signed between his people and the Senju, he failed to persuade them into betraying their new neighbors despite his persistence.
Although Madara managed to manipulate Obito into serving him, his influence was only temporary and would later backfire near the conclusion of the Fourth Shinobi War. If he'd been more charismatic, Madara may have had an easier time contending with the five strongest nations on the planet.
2 Strength: Madara Has A Nearly Limitless Amount Of Stamina
Due to his numerous augmentations and natural talents as a shinobi, Madara has a nearly inexhaustible amount of stamina. He showed no signs of slowing down after decimating an army and quickly recovered from Might Guy's throttling.
Moreover, he took on as many opponents as wished to fight him near the end of the Fourth Shinobi War, including Naruto, Sasuke, and even Hashirama, a man so powerful that he was regarded to be the god of shinobi. As such, the most realistic way to defeat him is by making the battle end as quickly as possible.
1 Weakness: Madara Is Reckless And Overconfident In His Own Strength
Madara's recklessness is perhaps his worst character flaw. He let power go to his head so much that he seldom thought things through. This was most evident in his second violent encounter with Hashirama, where he assumed that Kurama alone would be sufficient to overcome their differential in strength.
His arrogance was so great that he didn't take Might Guy seriously until the taijutsu master had already began pummeling him. If Madara hadn't been so obsessed with his alleged invincibility, he could've avoided multiple disgraces.
NEXT: