Top 10 Jujutsu Kaisen Villains Better Than Naruto’s Akatsuki

Certain aspects of reality in the Naruto saga are created by its own syndicate of malevolence known as the Akatsuki. For a long time, this nefarious organization has set a standard for what it takes to be a villain in shonen anime. Times change, however, and even the anime villain groups as strong as the Akatsuki have to change along with them.

One such group has entered the fight for the title of the ultimate shonen anime villain with the arrival of Jujutsu Kaisen. In a showdown between curse users and rogue ninja, it’s hard to say who would come out on top. After all, the Akatsuki have the perfect death-dealing cocktail of troubled backstories, twisted philosophical goals, and transgressions that come with being the driving antagonistic thread that so many of the coolest Naruto villains take part in throughout the series.

More than matching the Akatsuki’s villainous effort, Jujutsu Kaisen has entered the shonen world with numerous evil factions of its own, not to mention an extensive list of curses and an even longer list of mass casualty events. The hardcore antagonistic factions in Jujutsu Kaisen do what some prominent Akatsuki members, or rather their prominent body parts, feel a little too defeated to do.

10

Haruta Shigemo Would Outfox the Fox

Studio Pierrot and MAPPA

• The Akatsuki match of choice: Zetsu
• The wickedness shade in focus: Opportunistic scavenging

In a showdown between Haruta’s textbook case of sadism and Zetsu’s masterclass in manipulation, Haruta would be quick to secure a win. The only barrier would be the much-expected scenario in which the underhanded nature of the two compels them to wait each other out all the way to perishing at the hands of someone deadlier.

As many fans would admit, a great deal of the confusing story behind Black and White Zetsu in the Naruto saga never gets resolved in a fulfilling way. Zetsu’s shockingly smooth takedown of Madara, a well-established villain whose deadliness has been surging with an overflow of power, robbed viewers of the cathartic ending they hoped for. With that said, Zetsu’s underrated malevolence proves expansive enough to not just clown the Akatsuki but also shatter the entire powerscaling of the Naruto universe.

Haruta, in all his childish cruelty, stays consistent with his menacing ways throughout the Jujutsu Kaisen series. After all, his role seems to be that of a diabolical catalyst for the plot leading up to the epic high-stakes fight between Sukuna and Mahoraga. Though Haruta’s wits may place him close to the smartest villains in shonen anime, he is no match for definitive villains like Sukuna. Both these supporting villains are notorious for preying on those who have already been made vulnerable in some way. Zetsu’s mind-bending metamorphosis aside, Haruta excels at being an authentic savvy scavenger through and through, until his own nature plays a mean joke on him.

9

Naoya Zenin Would Make Hidan Wish for His Forest Retirement

Studio Pierrot and MAPPA

• The Akatsuki match of choice: Hidan
• The wickedness shade in focus: Posthumous malevolence

With their personalities transgressing way past the usefulness of ego-checking and sitting worlds apart from the backstories of sympathetic anime villains, Hidan and Naoya are on the same wavelength of malevolence. They radiate enough malice to echo beyond their deaths, and that’s where Naoya would beat Hidan hands down.

The Naruto saga introduces Hidan as a bloodthirsty maniac with a sharp three-bladed scythe and a sharp tongue to match, honed by his insatiable religious fanaticism. Just as Hidan is bound to turn every killing into a dramatic act of worshiping Jashin, so is his major flaw certain to show throughout the series. As a one-hit wonder for plot obstacles, Hidan’s character is plagued by stagnation.

In stark contrast, through the lens of narrative roles that can put one next to the most irredeemable villains in anime, Naoya’s nuanced function as a systemic villain seems to triumph in spades. Hailing from a major power clan and evolving into a genius at wielding the rare Projection Sorcery ability, Naoya reflects the vile nature of jujutsu society, where control over the intricacies of deploying cursed energy stays usurped by a select few. As he spends his life evolving his abuse of anyone he deems weak, Naoya’s contempt ends up transcending death itself, as his cursed essence lives on as a Vengeful Cursed Spirit.

Out of all the Akatsuki members, the evil zealot that Hidan stagnates as would still fit right in with Jujutsu Kaisen villains. When it comes to Naoya, though, the consistently evolving malevolence of this JJK villain and the power of the Vengeful Cursed Spirit that he is reborn as are good enough reasons for Hidan to stay buried in that deer-guarded gruesome pit of his.

8

Jogo Would Save Deidara the Trouble

Studio Pierrot and MAPPA

• The Akatsuki match of choice: Deidara
• The wickedness shade in focus: Exploding finesse

Besides their shared role of a laughingstock in their respective shonen anime series on Netflix, Deidara and Jogo have quite a few things in common, namely the knack for making their villainous nature manifest itself with a distinct blast. Handling explosive things, however, calls for a steadier emotional nature, which is where Jogo would certainly make Deidara bite the volcanic dust.

In the beginning of Naruto Shippuden, Deidara seems to be gaining momentum while climbing the ladder of malice, as he manages to beat Gaara, the Fifth Kazekage, with sheer tactical prowess. Regrettably for Deidara, though, that momentum never stands a chance, as his imploding ego makes him fixate on the excellence of none other than Deidara’s intricate clay fireworks and overlook anything else. Failing to contain his own explosive persona, Deidara brings about one of the most comedic villain deaths in the series: majoring in the minors of his art only to mutilate himself with zero effect on his intended target.

Conversely, Jogo’s essence of a walking volcano, with the ability to evoke targeted volcanic events and meteors, doesn’t stop him from playing it cool. Though he ultimately wants to see a world where Cursed Spirits have made humans irrelevant, Jogo doesn’t let the erupting passion for his vision blind him as far as strategy is concerned. The exception would be Jogo’s choice of opponents to battle with, as Jogo is renowned for his hilariously hopeless picks of the worst adversaries to fight, like Gojo and Sukuna. All in all, Jogo has abilities that Deidara wouldn’t match even if he ever got his ego under control, namely Domain Expansion.

7

Uraume Would Turn Konan Into a Frozen Meat Delicacy

Studio Pierrot and MAPPA

• The Akatsuki match of choice: Konan
• The wickedness shade in focus: Right-hand ruthlessness

When a villain has no regard for their own life, they leave no doubt about exactly how much concern they would have for anyone else’s, especially when their reason for existence is their fierce devotion to their master. In the case of Uraume and Konan, what feeds their own malice is their absolute loyalty to the twisted notions of their god-like masters, and it takes a terrifying form, given their vicious environmental manipulation powers.

Despite her cold exterior and her rank as the second-in-command among the Akatsuki, Konan’s nature isn’t inherently evil. As a war orphan herself, she sides with Yahiko’s dream for peace around the world and vows to protect Nagato as the acting leader of this vision. Unlike some other Akatsuki members, Konan isn’t hell-bent on harming people for the fun of it. Her regard for human lives hinges on Nagato’s distorted vision for reaching peace in the Shinobi World.

In turn, Uraume is no angel by any stretch of the imagination, and their darkness is anchored in a blend of reverence and fear that one would only find in a fanatical worship of a deity. With their heart of ice devoted to serving Sukuna’s darkest cravings, Uraume has no qualms about killing en masse and unapologetically does so to the bitter end. Freezing anything and everything that stands in their master’s way, Uraume’s Ice Formation is the embodiment of a nuclear winter.

It would be a delight to see Konan face off against Uraume and watch the clash of their elemental construct generation powers. Konan’s Dance of the Shikigami battling Uraume’s Ice Formation may well turn into one elemental war of attrition. Still and all, in the realm of villains, being bad only takes one so far, and there can always be someone worse. In this case, it’s the stone-cold right-hand malevolence of Uraume.

6

Dagon Would Drown Kisame in Deep Sea Horrors

Studio Pierrot and MAPPA

• The Akatsuki match of choice: Kisame
• The wickedness shade in focus: Jaws

Kisame’s disillusionment with the world, profound disgust with deception, and unyielding longing for a life of honor make him a fan favorite among all the Akatsuki members in the Naruto universe. Compared with his rogue ninja comrades, Kisame also has one of the most impressive character deaths in the Naruto saga, deploying his own power against himself to avoid betraying anyone. A jaded ninja with his chakra-absorbing Shark Skin Sword of the Mist, however, is no match for a monster who commands the very ocean itself.

As a Disaster Curse, the Cthulhu-like Dagon embraces the duality of the sea in a way that’s just not good news for anyone who has to fight him. Getting caught in the chaotic currents of Dagon’s elemental nature means becoming the buffet for his insatiable army of flesh-devouring fish monsters whose every bite arrives with bullseye precision. That’s exactly what awaits Kisame in the scenario of his confrontation with Dagon in the realm of villains whose powers are bound to the dark wonders that live beneath the bliss of ocean tides.

5

Choso Would Kill Them All for the Family

Studio Pierrot and MAPPA

• The Akatsuki match of choice: Sasori
• The wickedness shade in focus: Toxic fluid manipulation

With their malice rooted in their tragic backstories, Choso and Sasori are both textbook examples of sympathetic villains in anime. This isn’t the only similarity, however, that makes them form another villainous bridge between the worlds of Naruto and Jujutsu Kaisen. Both happen to be experts at weaponizing toxic fluids.

Sasori’s unprocessed grief has driven him to become the self-styled gruesome commander of an army of puppets that Sasori has personally crafted from the corpses of ninja handpicked for specific uses. This is not to mention that Sasori has turned himself into a puppet too, showing his biggest flaw of never overcoming the grief of being an orphaned child. What makes him particularly deadly, though, is his signature toxin, a purple substance that stuns the target with just one scratch and ensures a slow death over a few days.

In turn, Choso is a rare hybrid of a human body and sorcerer blood, carrying his fair share of cursed energy in the Jujutsu Kaisen power system. With his blood’s inherent hostility toward humans and his body’s capacity to replenish the blood supply from his abundant pool of cursed energy, Choso is a walking biowarfare machine. Unlike Sasori, Choso is a grounded villain who is driven first by his misguided vendetta against Yuji and then by his quest for redemption on a one-track-minded mission to protect his rediscovered half-brother against Sukuna.

Choso’s inner compass revolves around something more than covering up for hollowness inside, and his toxic blood causes instant damage and comes with infinite resupply. Sasori’s lifetime of escapism, limited puppets, and delayed-action poison, on the other hand, seem inferior. In a hypothetical encounter between these two villainous characters, Choso’s conviction and rare unique ability would likely overpower Sasori.

4

Toji Fushiguro Would Teach Kakuzu What Actual Stealth Is

Studio Pierrot and MAPPA

• The Akatsuki match of choice: Kakuzu
• The wickedness shade in focus: Death-dealing mercenary mastery

As the Akatsuki’s sellsword, Kakuzu finds meaning wherever his greed takes him, and his pragmatism is the main reason why he kills. This mercenary way of life makes him a decent villainous parallel to Toji Fushiguro. That’s where their similarity ends, though, as Toji isn’t interested in hoarding more money: he seeks to purchase more deadliness with his sheer mastery.

What drives Toji is his revenge against everything that reminds him of the hurt he has endured from his family. His deep-seated contempt for magical powers doesn’t diminish Toji’s game-changing influence on the Jujutsu Kaisen timeline with his mastery alone. After all, he has managed to defeat sorcerers as strong as Satoru Gojo and Suguru Geto without any sorcery gimmicks.

If we were to picture a showdown between the two, we wouldn’t have to picture it for long. Toji would humble Kakuzu’s entire combat arsenal as methodically as one would deal with a few cockroaches on their way. Even though Kakuzu boasts multiple lives and shields himself with elemental masks, Toji’s non-existent energy signature coupled with his superior stealth skills makes him a wildly elusive threat for Kakuzu to even grasp. Moreover, Toji’s Inverted Spear of Heaven would likely negate Kakuzu’s magical trickery to begin with.

3

Suguru Geto Would Still Give Itachi Uchiha an Epic Fight

Studio Pierrot and MAPPA

• The Akatsuki match of choice: Itachi Uchiha
• The wickedness shade in focus: Descending angels

Starting with the noblest of intentions, neither Geto nor Itachi could picture themselves on the long path toward the club of the most savage villains in anime. The parallels between their rapid dives into malevolence qualify them for a hypothetical clash between their otherwise completely dissimilar combat systems.

On the one hand, Itachi’s arsenal boasts immensely powerful ways to drive the point home and establish the superiority of the Akatsuki. Under certain circumstances, Itachi’s Susanoo titan and Yata Mirror would technically negate much of Geto’s cursed spirit army, while Amaterasu or even Izanami could be the end of it for Geto upon delivery. The caveat, however, is that Itachi’s severe condition constrains his capacity to wield these powers.

On the other hand, the ranks of Geto’s cursed spirit army not only number well over 6,000 fighters but are also backed by their commander’s strategic and tactical prowess. This means that Geto would be inclined to leverage Itachi’s two major weaknesses: the need to maintain an uninterrupted focus to tap into his most impactful powers and the limited capacity to sustain the deployment of those powers.

As a result, Geto wouldn’t find it hard to opt out of a fair fight with Itachi and overwhelm his hypothetical adversary from the Naruto universe by other means. The overall descent of Suguru Geto’s character transformation arc into monstrosity only adds to this equation. Unlike Itachi, he doesn’t give empathy any second chances, and on the villain’s path, a lack of empathy brings more power.

2

Kenjaku Would Dissect Obito’s Mind

Studio Pierrot and MAPPA

• The Akatsuki match of choice: Obito Uchiha (Tobi)
• The wickedness shade in focus: Morbid fascination

When a tragic escapist looking to transform the Shinobi World meets a mad scientist playing the fabrics of jujutsu society like a fiddle, only one of the two villains is surviving that fight. In a clash between these masterminds, the morbid vision for the future that each of them finds fascinating would survive only through the heat of one delightful high-stakes battle.

From his macabre habit of body hopping to his grotesque artistic expression in the form of Death Paintings, Kenjaku has done it all for the sake of his ultimate vision where humanity becomes one with cursed energy. Naturally, an architectural fanatic of that caliber has a gruesome set of powers to entertain himself with on his way to the deranged dream. His variant of the Domain Expansion ability in Jujutsu Kaisen may well be the most horrifying, and his stolen Idle Transfiguration ability gives him infinite fuel for his unhinged experiments.

What Obito Uchiha brings to this fight scenario is his complete elemental mastery through his Ten-Tails Jinchuriki transformation. He is also armed with his capacity to leverage space and time with the help of his Kamui ability and the perception of reality in the opponent’s mind via his Izanagi technique. Sadly for Obito, though, despite their god-tier essence, his abilities not only get restrained by their time limits but also hinge on Obito’s deep unprocessed trauma. This is something that Kenjaku’s manipulative genius would be quick to target.

With Kenjaku’s aptitude for annihilating minds and exploiting the mechanics of the abilities of other characters, the arsenal of this Jujutsu Kaisen villain would gain a terrifying edge in his showdown with Obito. This is not to mention that Kenjaku has enjoyed doing that for over 1,000 years.

1

Ryomen Sukuna Would Extend the Meaning of Pain

Studio Pierrot and MAPPA

• The Akatsuki match of choice: Nagato (Pain)
• The wickedness shade in focus: Boss villain savagery

One might argue that Pain is the strongest Akatsuki member only when it comes to the organization’s game of public appearances. Little does Pain know that villains like Sukuna couldn’t care less for public relations in the universe of Jujutsu Kaisen.

Interestingly, the top showdown on our list would be the swiftest. During their brief hypothetical walk through the Shinobi World, Sukuna’s deadliest innate techniques seem to be tailor-made for teaching the Akatsuki a lesson in humility. Sukuna’s culinary masterclass in human savagery, brought about by his Dismantle, Cleave, and World-Cutting Slash techniques, would render Pain’s Deva and Preta Paths useless due to Sukuna’s speed and the World-Cutting Slash mechanics. More so, Sukuna’s Domain Expansion variant, Malevolent Shrine, would obliterate all Six Paths of Pain at the drop of a ninja headband.

With Sukuna there is neither room for moral debates nor a tragic foundation for why he does what he does. The King of Curses spits in the face of mercy, laughs at the suffering of humans, and asserts his will because he simply can. With enough power to dismantle not just Nagato but his entire organization, Sukuna takes the essence of a shonen anime villain to the next level of savagery, where the Akatsuki are just another meal.

Release Date

October 3, 2020

Network

TBS, MBS, CBC, Tulip Television, BSN, tys, NBC, HBC, RKK, i-Television, SBS, IBC, BSS, MRO, OBS, TUF, RSK, TUY, tbc, RKB, SBC, KUTV, RBC, UTY, RCC, MRT, atv, MBC

Directors

Ryohei Takeshita, Masataka Akai, Chie Nishizawa, Daisuke Tsukushi, Tomomi Kamiya, Kakushi Ifuku, Ken Takahashi

Writers

Hiroshi Seko

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  Yuichi Nakamura

  Satoru Gojo