The shinobi villages were established when Hashirama Senju, the leader of the Senju clan, joined forces with Madara Uchiha, the leader of the Uchiha clan. Together, the two fulfilled their dream of creating the first shinobi village inNarutoand named it Konohagakure.
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Being the very first village, many powerful clans wanted to become a part of it, which is why most strong shinobi belong to Konohagakure. However, other countries quickly copied their model, and thus the shinobi village system was born. In the coming years, these villages birthed some incredibly powerful shinobi as well.
Updated June 23, 2025, by Rei Penber:Since the majority of the Naruto series is focused on Konohagakure, the ninjas from the rest of the villages often go unnoticed. In fact, some of the most overpowered ninjas have been birthed by shinobi villages other than Konohagakure. With characters strong enough to take on Tailed Beasts and Kage in battle, there is no shortage of incredible ninjas from other villages. Together, they arethe best non-Konoha ninjas in Naruto.
14Sasori
Sasori was one of the most skilled fighters inNaruto. Born in Sunagakure, Sasori was exceptionally skilled in the art of puppeteering. In the Third Great Ninja War, he painted his puppets with the blood of his enemies and this earned him the title of “Sasori of the Red Sand.”
After leaving the village,Sasori joined the Akatsuki, where he was recognized as one of the strongest characters in the group. He even managed to kill the Third Kazekage with ease and his power was enough to take down an entire nation alone.
13Yagura
The Fourth Mizukage of Kirigakure, Yagura was an exceptionally powerful character, known to be a perfect Jinchuriki, just like Naruto Uzumaki and Killer Bee. With the power of Isobu at his side, he was extremely skilled in combat, as seen when he killed Juzo Biwa, an S Ranked criminal, and even incapacitated Itachi Uchiha for a while.
Yagura’s strength was immense and it was great enough to take on multiple powerful shinobi at once, which just goes to show that he was truly a match for some ofKonoha’s ninjas.
12Kakuzu
Hailing from Takigakure, Kakuzu was an exceptionally skilled ninja who is often underrated. With five hearts in his body and the Forbidden Jutsu called Earth Grudge Fear, Kakuzu could only be matched by a select few ninjas in theNarutoseries.
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At some point in his life, Kakuzu managed to fight Hashirama Senju and lived to tell the tale. Furthermore, he completely overpowered Kakashi Hatake when the two fought and could easily have killed him. Kakuzu’s power and versatility were incredible and he’s certainly one of the strongest ninjas to have ever lived.
11Kisame Hoshigaki
Kisame belonged to Kirigakure and was quite a skilled fighter. After leaving his village, he ended up joining the Akatsuki where he teamed up with Itachi Uchiha. With Samehada at his side, Kisame was extremely powerful in combat.
What’s more, Kisame even had the power to fight a Tailed Beast and his massive chakra reserves earned him the title of “The Tail-less Tailed Beast.” Kisame was a master of Water Release ninjutsu and could take on some of the strongest ninjas such as Roshi, and even Might Guy in combat. Without a doubt, he’s one ofthe strongest non-Konoha ninjas.
10Gaara
The Fifth Kazekage of Sunagakure, Gaara is easily the strongest of all the Kage that Sunagakure has had. He became a Kage during the timeskip inNarutoand has since then kept growing in terms of power. Gaara has the power to manipulate sand at will and his intelligence in battle is praiseworthy indeed.
By the time of the Fourth Great Ninja War, Gaara had strengthened to a point where he could take on several reincarnated Kage in battle.He also fought Madara Uchihain battle and, when he came back to life, fought him impressively.
9Third Raikage
The Third Raikage is certainly one of the most powerful ninjas to ever live and a ninja who many believe to be the strongest Kage in Kumogakure’s history. He was a powerful user of nintaijutsu and could use the Lightning Release Chakra Mode as well.
In the Third Great Ninja War, he fought 10,000 shinobi at once before finally dying. In his entire life, he only ever received one injury, which he inflicted on himself.
8Fourth Raikage
The son of the Third Raikage, Ay managed to surpass him in almost every aspect of battle. In his fight against Sasuke Uchiha, he could very well have killed the Uchiha. During the Fourth Great Ninja War, he fought Madara Uchiha and fared well against him, although he couldn’t defeat him.
Ay was also the fastest shinobi alive until Naruto Uzumaki surpassed him during the Fourth Great Ninja War. Just like his father, he was a master of nintaijutsu and could use the Lightning Release Chakra Mode as well, making him extremely impressive.
7Onoki
Iwagakure’s Third Tsuchikage, Onoki was quite a skilled shinobi back in the day, and even during his old age, he proved to be quite a fighter during the Fourth Great Ninja War. Onoki was a master of the Kekkei Tota Dust Release, with which he could dismantle anything at a molecular level.
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In the fight against Madara Uchiha, he was pinpointed as the main problem due to his incredible experience in battle and his wisdom. At his strongest, he used Dust Release towipe out several Susano’oat once. His wisdom, combined with his incredible ability, makes him too powerful.
6Gengetsu Hozuki
Gengetsu Hozuki was Kirigakure’s Second Mizukage and quite easily one of their strongest to date. He was known to be a master of Genjutsu and during the Fourth Great Ninja War, he caused all sorts of problems for the Allied Shinobi Forces.
Gengetsu was also a master of Water Release and could easily kill almost anyone with its usage. He died fighting Mu in a battle to the death, however, he also managed to kill him all the same. Gengetsu was essentially an equal of Mu.
5Mu
The Second Tsuchikage of Iwagakure, Mu is known to be the strongest shinobi to ever come from the village. Just like Onoki, Mu was a master of the Kekkei Tota Dust Release. In fact, he was the shinobi who taught Onoki how to use this power. On top of that, Mu was also a user of all five nature transformations, making him one of the few people to be able to achieve this feat.
What’s more, Mu could also split himself into two to avoid dangerous blows, essentially giving him a second life. His biggest ability was being able to erase his chakra entirely and camouflage himself with Water Release. Not even the most skilled sensor-type ninjas could detect him. This earned him the title of “Null Man.”
