Naruto Uzumaki has defeated many villains on his path to becoming a Hokage in both the original series and Shippuden. However, rarely has he taken a life. No matter the stature of the enemy or evil designs, mangaka Masashi Kishimoto either made Uzumaki show them mercy or made others do the dirty work.
Shōnen Jump mangas incorporate blood and gore in hero fights. In the most recent times, they have also shifted focus to extreme scenes of death. Denji from Chainsaw Man butchers Devils, Yuji Itadori from Jujutsu Kaisen puts an end to the misery of mutated humans, and Tanjiro Kamado from Demon Slayer strikes for the kill.
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Naruto is a Shōnen that operates on the themes of friendship and kindness despite certain characters being killed off relentlessly. Interestingly, Uzumaki has been responsible for multiple ‘fatal strikes’ but they have been shadowed or covered by other characters.
Naruto Uzumaki’s Official Kill Count Has Only One Character
Naruto is portrayed as the epitome of mercy. Since the manga caters to younger audiences, in spite of death and extreme ninja stuff, the main character must be an idealist who never intentionally kills anyone, having openly claimed to not be like the heartless shinobis Haku and Zabuza.
That was the case when Uzumaki fought Sand Village Jonin named Yura. Believed to be a trusted member of the Kakezage council, Yura turned out to be a sleeper agent for Sasori when the latter activated a technique to reawaken the memories of the Akatsuki spy. Pain used him as a vessel for his Shapeshifting Technique, transforming him into Itachi Uchiha, and later pitted him against Naruto, Kakashi, Chiyo, and Sakura.
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Under the impression that he was fighting Itachi, Naruto gave everything to one Giant Rasengan and dealt a fatal blow to Yura. His corpse was later devoured by Zetsu. Even though the scene showed that Uzumaki could lose his ideals in certain situations, there have also been questions on whether the hero was fighting a person ‘who was already dead.’
Given that Pain used the Shapeshifting Technique on the Sand Village jonin, it might have taken Yura’s life or he might have died during the battle when the original chakra from Itachi ran out. Naruto’s Rasengan only broke the illusion. Unfortunately, the manga never elaborated on Yura’s death and it is the only kill that is associated with the Shonen protagonist.
Other characters that were supposedly ‘critically injured’ by Naruto Uzumaki
Yura isn’t the only Akatsuki member who is supposed to have died at the hands of Naruto. During the Akatsuki Suppression Arc (Episode 72-88), Kakuzu locked horns with Team 10 following which Naruto came to the scenes. He used Rasenshuriken with shadow clones to outmatch the thread-binding techniques of Kakuzu and landed a Wind Release: Rasenshuriken on his back.
The Akatsuki lay sprawled on the ground and could’ve died by the Rasenshuriken itself if not for Kakashi dealing the finishing blow with a Lightning Cutter. This wasn’t the only time Uzumaki walked away with a blameless heart. A similar case was seen with Raiga Kurosuki – the jonin from the Hidden Mist Village.
In an ensuing battle with Uzumaki, Raiga was knocked off a cliff by a Rasengan. He realized that he was about to die due to the fall but committed suicide mid-air by summoning bolts of lightning to strike him down. Shadowing the fact that Naruto would’ve been responsible for his death were the words “Ranmaru, you’re free now”, giving the villain a heartwrenching farewell.
Source: Screen Rant
