Sasori (サソリ, Sasori) also known as Sasori of the Red Sand (赤砂のサソリ, Akasuna no Sasori) was a member of Akatsuki prior to his death, and was partnered with Deidara, Orochimaru before that. He was the first Akatsuki member to die (at least on-screen) in the series. In the short amount of time that he was shown, Sasori was a relatively popular character. In the first poll he was in (the 6th overall poll) he placed 6th on the list.[1]Sasori (蠍) means "scorpion".
Sasori's complete lack of empathy might have stemmed from his tragic past. When Sasori was around five years old, his parents were killed by Sakumo Hatake,[2] leaving him with no one but his grandmother, Chiyo, to care for him. Chiyo began to teach him the art of making puppets, and Sasori soon proved to be a born natural. He began to make puppets at the age of five, and even made puppets of his parents to get rid of the terrible loneliness he felt.

Sasori, later infamously known as Sasori of the Red Sand, created many ingenious puppets, including the ones now owned by Kankuro. Later, he became missing-nin when he left Sunagakure twenty years before his introduction, but the background to his crimes is unknown but is presumed due to being found experimenting on people in an attempt to create human puppets. Flashbacks seem to indicate that his descent into darkness started when his parents died. As mentioned above, Sasori went so far as to simulate being with them by turning the Sand Village's malfunctioning puppets into puppets of his parents. This effort failed, (the puppets cracked) and he abandoned the puppets,[3] although Chiyo kept them safe and upgraded them so they could be used in battle. Around the time of his defection, Sasori converted himself into a human puppet to maintain his youthful looks and increase his own offensive capabilities.

Sometime after leaving the village, Sasori joined Akatsuki and was eventually paired with Orochimaru.[4] After Orochimaru left Akatsuki, Sasori was teamed up with Deidara, though he always carried a grudge against his former partner. He sent Kabuto Yakushi to spy on Orochimaru, but Orochimaru dispelled Sasori's jutsu and convinced Kabuto to join him. Sasori is also shown having numerous underling and spies in many nations. Such as Yura, Mukade, and Kabuto. At one point, Sasori abducted and killed the Third Kazekage, converting the Kazekage's body into a puppet.[5]
Personality

Sasori is known for his impatience (he notes that he does not wish to wait or keep others waiting),[6] which is quite ironic since he has all the time in the world thanks to his puppet-converted body. He has little empathy for his opponents or regard for human life, and he states that he will not feel anything if Chiyo dies from his poison or using her life energy to heal Sakura, as he claims that his heart has become like his puppet body.

Despite his cruelty, Sasori also has shown to possess a very down-to-Earth outlook on life, rarely growing worked up over obstacles that come his way. Almost never does he show extreme emotion, and even these instances are short-lived.

Sasori and Deidara both portray conflicting views of art, and they frequently argue about their different views.[7] Deidara holds that art is something transient that departs quickly, whereas Sasori believes that fine art is something wonderful that is left long into the future. This reflects their individual natures (Deidara makes clay sculptures that explode; Sasori makes long-lasting puppets out of humans). Deidara outwardly seems to respect Sasori's beliefs, but Sasori doesn't respect Deidara's.

Deidara commented to Kakashi on how much stronger Sasori is compared to himself, however at the time of his death, Sasori had not yet captured his tailed beast. A short dialogue between himself and Deidara suggests that Sasori did not even know what beast he had been assigned to target.[8] After his death, Tobi takes his place, and his ring, in Akatsuki.
Sasori was a master of puppetry. His grandmother, Chiyo, began teaching him such skills at a very early age, and he created many puppets over his lifetime. Prior to his leaving the village, Sasori created the puppets Kankuro uses throughout the series; Karasu, Kuroari, and Sanshuou.[10] His status as a master puppeteer affords him a tremendous advantage against other puppeteer shinobi, especially if the puppets they are using happens to be formerly his own, as seen on his battle against Kankuro. Along with being a master of puppetry, Sasori was also a master of poisons. His poisons took effect instantly, and one such poison could kill the target after three days of suffering. To Sasori, this poison was untreatable. But to his surprise, Sakura Haruno came up with a cure for the poison. Sasori added this poison to virtually every weapon in his arsenal, making each blow potentially lethal for his opponents.

Combined with his extensive knowledge of the human body and chakra, Sasori has also demonstrated highly advanced ability at sealing jutsu as shown from his longtime control over Yura and Kabuto.
Hiruko
Sasori's puppet armor, Hiruko.
Sasori's puppet armor, Hiruko.

During regular combat, Sasori usually wears his puppets like armor and controls them from the inside, thus eliminating the puppeteer's weakness of being a separate and exposed target.[11] Sasori's favorite puppet to use in this manner is Hiruko (ヒルコ), which he adorned with the regular Akatsuki outfit and wore so often that others came to recognize him only while he was wearing it. Also, when within Hiruko, Sasori has a deeper and more gruff voice. Hiruko has a long mechanical scorpion tail (allusion to his name meaning scorpion), extending from the mouth of what appears to be a mask, on his back, a recent addition to add extra defense to a weak point. The tail works as Hiruko's main offensive weapon, and at first seems to be indestructible, until; it was easily destroyed by the Sandaime Kazakage Puppet's clawed arm. The tail is also used as an extra defense, by spinning it around his body at a rapid speed. The left arm is rigged with a projectile launcher capable of firing shrapnel and needles,[12] and the mouth can be opened to serves as a similar projectile-firing device, capable of firing poisoned needles, but with a more rapid speed.
Puppet Body
Sasori's Puppet Body
Sasori's Puppet Body

Although Sasori is thirty-five years old, he maintains the appearance of a teenage boy. Sasori's unnaturally young appearance is a product of his design. Most of Sasori's body (excluding his heart) is actually a puppet.[13] In place of his stomach is a thick cable coiled around a pole, allowing Sasori to use it as a stinger and retract it as necessary. Attached to his back is a scroll holder, containing four scrolls that seem to serve as "ammunitions", which Sasori uses to store his human puppets, flamethrower and water jet capacities. Sasori also added a pair of poles to the back of his hips, each equipped with five large blades that that can spin like a propeller, and pipes to each of his hands, that can spew out intense fire, like a flamethrower, or powerful water jets. Curiously, when using "himself" Sasori's eyes are always wide open, giving him a somewhat manic look. In contrast, prior to revealing his puppet body, they were always half-closed, making him appear calmer.

Installed in the right part of his chest is a mechanism that can spin numerous chakra strings, allowing Sasori to control, at least, one hundred puppets at once, amongst others used for his Red Secret Technique: Performance of a Hundred Puppets that he claims to have taken down an entire country, and giving him a drastic advantage over all other puppeteers. Sasori's left part of his chest holds the only part of him still human and thus the only, and needed, part of his body capable of controlling chakra, a cylinder-shaped device containing his heart.

Because Sasori's heart was the only living part of himself, his puppet body is virtually indestructible; allowing him to survive the poison mist Kankuro bombarded him with as well as the impact from Sakura's punches. When smashed apart, he can simply draw the pieces back together. Additionally, he can transfer his heart to other puppets in a split second, allowing him to abandon a body should it be damaged beyond repair or otherwise incapacitated. How he transfers his facial features, as depicted in the manga, is not explained; at one point, he transfers to another puppet that somehow has his face.
Human Puppetry

In addition to being a master puppeteer, Sasori's regular puppets are unique in that they are made from the still-living bodies of humans. These human puppets are more versatile than regular puppets, since in addition to having many dangerous devices installed within them (as is common with regular puppets), they are also able to use chakra and perform jutsu. Any jutsu or kekkei genkai abilities possessed by the converted human are also passed on to the puppet. Sasori claims to have a collection of 298 Human Puppets, 103 of which he actually displayed.
Third Kazekage
Sasori's favorite puppet, the Third Kazekage.
Sasori's favorite puppet, the Third Kazekage.

His favorite human puppet is the Third Kazekage, which retained its unique magnetic chakra abilities, and thus can use the fearsome Iron Sand technique. Of course, mixed with Sasori's poison, the Iron Sand was given a more lethal edge. The Iron Sand can also be used to fill up the joints of other puppets, thus immobilizing them.

The Kazekage puppet's right arm holds several poisoned blades, while the left arm can open up to reveal several summoning seals that summon thousands of similar arms. The several arms are capable of pinning down an opponent, and if that fails, they can release several poisonous gas clouds that are instantly fatal if inhaled. The summoned arms can also release kunai attached wires, to drag the opponent into the gas cloud. The arms can also fire several regular kunai. If the extra arms are cut off, a small buzz saw will take their place.

Deidara was originally from Iwagakure, although he readily abandoned the village for the opportunity of using his "art" more frequently as his village ridiculed him for it. Deidara became an assassin bomber for hire, not caring who he worked with so long as he could use his artwork. Sometime after Orochimaru left Akatsuki, Deidara was located by Itachi Uchiha, Kisame Hoshigaki, and Sasori, who were under the orders of the leader Pain to recruit him. Deidara refused at first, but was forced to join after being defeated by Itachi's Sharingan. Deidara, having taken a huge blow to his ego, carried a loathing for Itachi and other Uchiha for the rest of his life, though he was intelligent enough to recognize Itachi as a more powerful opponent.
Personality

Quick to anger and annoy, Deidara was very hot-headed. Something of a sadistic arsonist, he was not above relishing a good fight, and he often blew up his opponents in a very brutal fashion. Deidara's most distinctive trait, however, was his love of art. He would respect any form of it, even if it disagreed with his own. Deidara also had a habit of ending his sentences with nasal-like grunt, roughly translated as "yeah" or "hmmm". The latter is used in the VIZ version.

Deidara referred to his explosive ninjutsu as art, believing each bomb he made to be a significant accomplishment. He referred to his style as superflat (referring to certain types of art), and claimed pop (another art style) is dead. One of Deidara's catchphrases, "Art is a bang!" 芸術は爆発だ (Geijutsu wa Bakuhatsu da), was originally coined by famous Japanese abstract artist Tarō Okamoto (several of Deidara's explosives have resembled Okomoto's works too). Deidara was very proud of his art, to the point that he was simply unwilling to accept that anything could defeat it, leading to frequent overconfidence in battle.

Deidara referred to his partner Sasori as Master Sasori (サソリの旦那, Sasori no Danna) out of respect for him as a fellow artist. He also admitted, at least outwardly that Sasori was more powerful than he was. In spite of this, Deidara wasn't above goading his partner, and they frequently squabbled over the nature of true art (Deidara holding that art is transient and departing quickly; Sasori believing fine art is something wonderful that's left long into the future). This reflected their individual natures (Deidara made clay sculptures that explode; Sasori made long-lasting puppets out of humans). Deidara outwardly seemed to respect Sasori's beliefs, but couldn't resist getting a final jab in after Sasori's death.

Deidara's partnership with his second partner Tobi, however, was very different. Tobi apparently held a great respect for Deidara and frequently called him "senpai" (先輩, senior; Viz "partner"). Tobi's carefree and goofy personality did not please Deidara, who believed that all Akatsuki members should be serious and calm. Tobi frequently and unintentionally angered Deidara, which usually resulted in him attacking Tobi in a comedic fashion (e.g., blasting him with his exploding clay or strangling him with his legs). In battle, however, the two quickly set aside their differences and worked well together. Deidara also seemed to have a minor respect for Tobi, as shown when he apologized to his partner in his thoughts before he initiated his Self-Destruction.
In addition to his clay-based abilities, Deidara was very intelligent, often using tricks, misdirection, and calculated gambles to get his explosives in range of an opponent. As a long-range specialist, he was weaker in close combat, but skilled enough to hold off a close combat specialists like Team Guy, handling a kunai in his mouth, and had a variety of techniques in his arsenal to escape close quarters when necessary. Deidara's abilities were well recognized within Akatsuki and the leader, Pain, openly admitted that he was something unique, and that his loss was a major blow to the group.
Exploding Clay
Deidara as he finally escapes Kakashi and Naruto.
Deidara as he finally escapes Kakashi and Naruto.

A fancy and skillful fighter, Deidara possessed special mouths in the palm of each hand to create Exploding Clay, chakra infused clay that detonates with the command Katsu (喝) and a single-hand hand seal. This clay could be molded into a wide variety of shapes and forms, growing to large sizes when infused with chakra (with Deidara performing the necessary hand seals) and could be controlled at will. This allowed him to create living explosives to attack opponents at long range. Deidara could even create clones from the clay, named Suicide Bombing Clones, that could be a deadly surprise for opponents. Deidara's clay creations ranged from microscopic to gigantic in size, allowing him to adapt to any situation. Deidara could also use the clay for other purposes, as he was frequently seen creating birds to be used for transportation. It seemed he also knew standard earth-based jutsu as shown from his Earth Release: Mole Hiding Technique, which he used to avoid damage from one of his mass-scale bombs. However, he could potentially run out of clay if he used too much of it, leaving him vulnerable.
Eye Enhancement

He also wore a scope on his left eye for long-range observation, and he had trained the eye itself to counter genjutsu, allowing him to see through and negate them. This was done in response to Itachi's powerful genjutsu skills, of which he had a considerable loathing and resolved to defeat if he got the chance.

Nagato (長門) or more commonly known as Pain (ペイン) is the recognized leader of the Akatsuki and Amegakure, and is a major antagonist in the series. Referred to as "Leader" by all Akatsuki members except for Konan, who refers to him by his name, he directs the actions of the others and maintains authority over them although he takes orders from Tobi,[1] who is actually Madara Uchiha, the benefactor of Akatsuki. In addition to acting as Akatsuki's leader, Pain was the leader of the winning faction in the Land of Rain's latest civil war. [2]
The original body of Pain is a man named Nagato, who, like Konan and Yahiko were orphans from Amegakure, forcing them to fend for themselves.[3] The three eventually encountered the Sannin, who at first were less than willing to help them. Orochimaru even suggested to kill them as they were orphans of war and as such would only live their lives full of misery. Jiraiya, however, decided he would care for the three and took them in. One night at dinner, Nagato cried because eating together reminded him of his family, and later that night he ran away with Yahiko.
Nagato as a child.
Nagato as a child.

The two were attacked by a Rock chunin, who injured Yahiko. Seeing this, Nagato activated his Rinnegan, and killed the ninja, a feat that is normally impossible for someone who has never trained as a ninja or never had any military or martial arts training. Jiraiya decided then and there he would train them in Ninjutsu.[4] Nagato was very emotional about killing the shinobi, and asked Jiraiya for help so he can protect Konan and Yahiko, where Jiraiya said he must grow up. After three years, Jiraiya felt they were strong enough to fend for themselves and told the three he would see them again when they grow into adults. Jiraiya believed Nagato to have died with the others under unexplained circumstances,[5] but has told Konan that whenever their names were mentioned outside their village, it was always about someone being killed when they opposed them.

Pain has since led one side of the Amegakure civil-war and took over the village, he has become a greatly respected leader in that village. The members of Pain's faction wear their Amegakure forehead protectors with a scratch through it the way the full members of Akatsuki do,[6] despite the fact that none of them are rogue ninja any more, as the scratch symbolizes, because they won the civil war.
Personality

Nagato was a sensitive but kind boy, prone to crying, and was traumatized by the idea he had killed another man, even to save his friend Yahiko. Scared and unsure of his place in the world, he desired to help those he cared about, but never knew how. Nonetheless, he became a talented and gifted student, mastering every technique Jiraiya taught him.

As Pain, his personality is very different having become a calm, serious, aloof, and detached man. Apparently believing his childhood trauma had enlightened him to the true meaning of pain and suffering, he now considers himself a deity and evolved beyond a mere human. He now seeks to show the world the meaning of suffering by using an ultimate weapon to deter future wars by means similar to "mutually assured destruction". He shows no moral qualms about his actions. He is willing to kill his own teacher in cold blood and brutally execute all of Hanzō's friends and family to ensure the Amegakure's compliance to his takeover. He even goes so far as to proclaim himself a "god of peace" come to guide the world to maturity through pain. He also feels that no one can understand peace unless they understand "true" pain, something his childhood friend Yahiko believed.

He also seems to dislike Akatsuki members insulting each other, as seen when he reprimands Kisame for calling Hidan and Kakuzu as the "Zombie Brothers."

Nonetheless, he can be quite respectful, particularly to the fallen. Given Akatsuki members' frequent bickering, he often restrains them and encourages better relations between the other members, even suggesting they mourn Deidara after his passing. After his battle with Jiraiya, he holds a moment of silence for his former teacher out of respect for his power.

Pain is also very respectful and kind to his childhood friend, Konan, who has been declared his "angel". He was shown protecting her without request or hesitation from Jiraiya before his battle with his former teacher. Apparently, she is the only member of the Akatsuki that addresses him by his name, Nagato, and only Madara and herself refer to him as Pain. Their friendship may have a romantic background, but there still isn't any incontrovertible proof as of it.
As the leader of Akatsuki and one of the two sides of the Amegakure Civil War, Pain is an extraordinarily powerful ninja that can easily be considered Kage-level, his partner Konan has stated that he has never lost a single fight.[13] He was able to single-handedly defeat and overthrow the former Amegakure leader, Hanzō, and made short work of Jiraiya after unveiling all six of his bodies (though Pain admitted that killing Jiraiya would have been very unlikely had Jiraiya known prior knowledge of his six separate bodies).The black body piercings on each of his bodies is how he controls each body. This is supported by the Preta Path when it removes the body piercings from the dead Animal Path.

Pain has been seen using many highly advanced techniques like the Shapeshifting Technique, which allows him to clone Akatsuki members using human sacrifices that they control and can use to engage enemies in place of themselves.[14] The clones formed are perfect copies of the original, possessing any unique genetic traits or weapons they may possess. The clone's abilities are proportionate to the amount of chakra given to the clone.

His most important technique, in regards to Akatsuki operations, is the Illusionary Dragon Nine Consuming Seals. With the other members of Akatsuki, this technique begins a three day trial to forcibly extract the Tailed Beast from its host and forces it into a giant statue. There seems to be an order on which Tailed Beast they can seal at once as they are unable to seal the Nine-Tailed Fox without sealing the other beasts as it would destroy the statue, possibly freeing all the captured beasts. Pain's most powerful technique seen so far is the Chibaku Tensei It summons a black ball similar to a black hole, which attracts all forms of mass to it, this was used against Naruto when he was in the 6th tail form of the nine tails. However, an attack that he most often uses is the Shinra Tensei a technique which manipulates gravity at the users will. His mastery of this technique is so great, that it allowed him to devastate half of Konohagakure with just a single repulsion wave. However, it must also be noted that this massive repulsion wave causes a significant drain of Pain's chakra. To sustain this technique, his 5 bodies had to first give up all of their chakra, coupled with some of Nagato's own life force.
Pain's Rinnegan Eyes
Pain's Rinnegan Eyes
Rinnegan

Pain's incredible power stems mainly from his Kekkei Genkai, the Rinnegan. This form of Dojutsu is regarded as a god of creation when the world was racked with chaos and as a weapon of destruction which could return everything to nothing. This was originally possessed by the Sage of the Six Paths, the world's first ninja and the founder of modern Ninjutsu. The Rinnegan's abilities are largely unknown, but it does allow the user to use all types of elemental chakra and it has been speculated that Pain can use any jutsu in the world, including secret techniques like the Yamanaka clan jutsu. It also enhances his vision of chakra in a similar manner to the Hyuga clan's Byakugan and Uchiha Clan's Sharingan, allowing him to see the chakra of barrier techniques around Konoha and the chakra gathered at the feet of Tsunade.
Six Paths of Pain
The Six Paths of Pain.
The Six Paths of Pain.

The most prominent fact about Pain is that he uses six individual bodies all acting together with one mind and will. He calls this the Six Paths of Pain, (ペイン六道, Pein Rikudō) based after the 6 Budhist Paths of Reincarnation. Each path named after the six paths of reincarnation, Deva, Preta, Animal, Human, Naraka, and Asura. Pain is not complete without six bodies in total, so he keeps other bodies stored in a sealed room within a strange machine, in case any of the bodies are killed. The only common feature shared by these bodies is their bright orange hair and Rinnegan eyes. Each also has a vast number of body and facial piercings of various shapes, sizes, and patterns. Each individual body has also shown able to easily defeat multiple ninjas with ease, such as "Copy Ninja" Kakashi Hatake who was a highly skilled ninja of Konoha, as Deva Path demonstrated. Each also has been seen to possess incredible speed and strength. It is unknown what would happen to Pain if all the bodies were to be killed. Pain's real body, that of Nagato, is kept in a machine that moves with six relatively small mechanical legs, and has large chakra spikes on its back to transmit the signals. Nagato's body appears highly emaciated, suggesting that Pain typically does not use it.

Each one of Pain's bodies have a single special ability and defined purpose (although that doesn't seem to hold true for his Deva Path body), and he coordinates his multiple selves together via their eyes. Each body can see and sense everything that the other bodies can, giving him six fields of view, allowing him to co-ordinate offense and defense with incredible speed and precision as if he was a single entity. They also all carry strange black spear-like weapons that can disrupt a target's chakra on contact. Most disturbing, the bodies can recover from even fatal injuries, courtesy of the Naraka path.

During battle, Jiraiya realizes that all the bodies are in fact those of other shinobi that he encountered on his travels, however, Jiraiya could not figure out how they ended up as part of Pain. The code he sent to Konoha stated "The real one isn't with them", meaning the real Pain isn't among the six bodies. Pain refers to his bodies as Paths, although he has six selves he appears to prefer using his Deva Path to give orders and co-ordinate his actions.

Thanks to Jiraiya's dying message and successfully capturing one of Pain's bodies, along with probing the mind of a Rain ninja, Konoha was able to discover a startling truth about Pain's ability to be six different people at once. As it has been discovered that at least one of Pain's bodies was once dead, and all of the piercings on each body are "chakra-receivers" it has been deduced that the Six Paths of Pain are merely corpses that have become reanimated puppets that are being controlled in a manner similar to the Yamanaka clan's mind-tampering jutsu and if so, then the true Pain is somewhere relatively close to them. It has also been revealed that in order to operate the paths over long distances Nagato must be in the highest place in the immediate area. Pain's real body Nagato is shown attached to some sort of machine that allows him to transmit his chakra to the Six Paths of Pain. The machine seems to have six legs and possibly can move around.
Deva Path
Pain's first body
Pain's first body

The Deva Path (天道, Tendō), Pain's first observed body, is the body of Yahiko, and possesses medium length spiky hair, six piercings and a metal bar through each ear, three studs through the side of his upper nose and one spike stud on each end of his bottom lip. Three piercings under each other in each wrist, at least one on his upper wrist and some just under his neck. He also wears a beaded necklace.

Unlike the other bodies, this body seems to have access to multiple forms of ninjutsu, demonstrated from all the defenses put up to stop intruders from interfering with the sealing of a demon. It also seems to have retained Yahiko's affinity for water-chakra though this could come from the Rinnegan shown from its ability to summon and control rain, and can conjure and stop it at will, even maintain it for long periods of time.[15] This is apparently tied into his mood. In addition he can detect the movements and chakra levels of people traveling within the rain, making it difficult to infiltrate Amegakure by stealth.

It is later revealed that his primary combat abilities are "Shinra Tensei" and "Bansho Ten'in". These abilities allow him to repel or attract objects and ninjutsu, respectively. However, he cannot preform it in rapid succession, leaving him vulnerable for a short period of time after its use. This period of time between usages may vary from five seconds to several minutes, depending upon the force of the repulsion or attraction.[16] [17] [18]

This body is apparently Nagato's preferred form for interacting with others since he has participated in all sealing rituals and has been seen in several flashbacks by Amegakure members. Pain readily sacrifice his Asura Path to protect this body. This may or may not be a consequence of Nagato and Yahiko's former friendship and emotional attachment to this body, which is a possibility, since Pain is capable of recreating Paths with spare corpses (as seen in case of the Animal Path). This could also simply be because this body is his most powerful form than his other bodies and therefore is the most important in battle.

Jutsu

* Divine Force
o Banshō Ten'in
o Chibaku Tensei
o Shinra Tensei
* Chakra Disruption Blades
* Fierce Raining at Will
* Five Seals Barrier
* Illusionary Dragon Nine Consuming Seals
* Magic Lantern Body Technique
* Mirrored Sudden Attacker
* Shapeshifting Technique
* Water Release: Violent Water Wave

Preta Path

Incapacitated
Pain's third body
Pain's third body

The Preta Path (餓鬼道, Gakidō) is the body of a fat, bulky man with six spike stud piercings covering his entire bottom lip, two studs vertical on the front of his nose, two spike studs one on each cheek, a metal bar going through each ear, and a stud on his shoulder one on each side close to his neck. Originally this body was from Kusagakure.

This body's ability "Energy Absorption" is primarily defensive, since he is capable of absorbing any Ninjutsu related technique, such as Jiraiya's Super Great Ball Rasengan and Hermit's Art: Goemon, nullifying them and sucking them into his torso. This technique can also take the form of a large bubble around his body, allowing to absorb attacks from any direction. In addition to its defensive properties, this body's ability has also shown offensive capabilities, sucking all the chakra out of any target unfortunate enough to be grabbed by him. However, this body seems to be weak against physical attacks, as one punch to the face (albeit imbued with natural energy) is enough to kill it. The force from the punch most likely snapped the body's neck.

Jutsu

* Energy Absorption
o Chakra Absorption Technique
o Blocking Technique Absorption Seal

Human Path

Incapacitated
Pain's fourth body
Pain's fourth body

The Human Path (人間道, Ningendō) is the body of a tall slender man with very long loose hair, a diagonal bar though his nose, two studs vertically on each cheek, two studs horizontal from each other on his upper chin, and a stud on his shoulders near his neck. This body was originally from Takigakure.

While in the process of saving the Animal Path, this body's abilities are largely obscure since Jiraiya damaged this Path's eyes early on in his battle but it showed immense physical prowess, being able to block Hermit Mode Jiraiya's punch and not even flinch (at all circumstances, an impressive feat). More recently however he has shown the ability "Mind Tampering", allowing him to affect minds similar to the Yamanaka clan by touching another being's head in order to extract information. He's capable of reading the person's mind in seconds and without need of additional equipment. The Human Path then proceeded to rip out the ninja's consciousness, most likely killing the victim. The Human Path was incapacitated when most of it's body was disintegrated by Naruto's Wind Release: Rasenshuriken

Jutsu

* Mental Manipulation
o Mind Reading
o Soul Removal

Asura Path

Incapacitated
Pain's fifth body
Pain's fifth body

The Asura Path (修羅道, Shuradō) is the body of a tall bald man with a very unusual body shape, possessing a very thick neck, a big square shaped jaw, with a large ring piercing vertically on his nose, six spike studs all around his head, three studs on the top and bottom of each of his arms, an enormous spike stud on his chin and two vertical spikes on each upper cheek. This body's face is strangely set in a permanent smile.

His ability is based on "Body Alterations", allowing him to modify himself with artificial mechanical body parts. Under his cloak the body is revealed to have completely robotic inner workings and a completely inhuman appearance, possessing six arms, three faces each with a different emotion: happy, neutral, and angry (thus resembling the mythical Asura from Buddhist mythology) and a folded serrated blade-like tail. He can fire one of his left forearms off as a long range projectile, pull out one of his right arms to reveal a cluster of segmented cluster missiles, quickly propel itself forward with a burst of chakra from its boots, protract multiple blades and a drill from one of his arms, open up the crown of his head to release a titanic shockwave, and wrapped around his waist is a long and flexible saw-like blade that can be used to slice a target. All of these abilities befit the "warring demon" name that the Asura path holds, while giving it a considerably higher degree of versatility than the other Paths have.

The Asura Path was destroyed incapacitated twice, first due to the injuries it sustained fighting Kakashi, Choji, and Choza, and after being rebuilt by the Naraka Path it was destroyed again buy Naruto almost moments after his return.

Jutsu

* Body Alterations
o Three Faces
o Six Arms
o Enhanced Strength
o Flaming Arrow of Amazing Ability
o Flaming Arrow Missiles
o Laser Explosion
o Chakra Propulsion Boots
o Hidden Drill Hands
o Saw-Blade Sash

Naraka Path

Incapacitated
Pain's sixth body
Pain's sixth body

The Naraka Path (地獄道, Jigokudō) is the body of a very tall stocky muscular man with a spiky mop of hair (similar in style to Kisame Hoshigaki), with triple bar ear piercings, a stud on his upper nose, a stud on his shoulders near his neck, and a row of studs diagonally down each cheek.

This body's ability (referred to as the "King of Hell") seem to be a spiritual entity similar to the Death God, although he is physically strong enough to hold a fully grown man in each hand off the ground with no apparent effort. The entity takes the form of a giant demonic head, which protrudes from the ground close too him while shrouded in black flames.[19] When he asks a question, and after an answer is given, the giant's mouth opens, releasing tendril like arms that force a stream of energy (possibly the person's life force or soul) from the victim. If the person was telling a lie or refused to answer the question, their life force is completely removed and eaten, and they are seemingly killed. If they were telling the truth, they remain alive, though left extremely exhausted. Outsiders are unable to see the demon[20], although Naruto in Sage mode apparently can.

Another of this body's powers, most likely its main purpose, is to resurrect or "heal" other Paths. By summoning the King of Hell, Pain engulfs the body he wants to heal in it and the body comes out completely repaired. This is possibly done by "transferring" the life energy that he's collected from victims into his deceased bodies, allowing them to become functional again (similar to the technique Chiyo used on Gaara).

Both times that Pain's bodies were shown in a combat formation, the Naraka Path has taken the rear with the others protecting him (even behind the Deva Path while its power was still recharging), implying that, like the Deva Path, this body is one of Pain's most important bodies. This could be due to three possible factors. First, the ability to heal and repair any other body almost instantly would make this one of Pain's most important and vital assets in a battle. Second, like with the Deva Path's Shinra Tensei, the King of Hell might need time to recharge after repairing one of Pain's bodies. Third, compared to the other five Paths this body has not shown much combat ability, given that Konohamaru managed to avoid its attacks and strike it with a Rasengan. However, this is uncertain, as he had earlier beaten at least three chunin and Ebisu, a Jonin, using only hand-to-hand combat.

Jutsu

* King of Hell

Animal Path

Replacement - Incapacitated
Pain's seventh body
Pain's seventh body

The Animal Path (畜生道, Chikushōdō), Pain's newest body is the replacement of the body lost in the fight against Jiraiya. This body has a very young appearance and, unlike all the other bodies, was originally female, with its hair tied together in a sort of onion like bun at the top of the head and spikes of hair protruding out of it. It has one stud above the nose, studs on either side of the neck, a row of studs vertically down each cheek, a stud below each stud on the neck and two studs on each forearm. When Inoichi is searching through the mind of a man from Amegakure he saw that a man and his friend brought this body, dead and without its piercings, to the tower where Pain resides.

This body can be seen as a replacement for Pain's second body, as both bodies were used primarily for "Multiple Summonings". It is seen calling forth a giant centipede, the multi headed splitting abilitied giant dog, a rhino, a bull and the other Pains. This Animal Path was incapacitated after being hit in the chest with Naruto's Rasenrengan, presumably destroying it's internal organs by the force of the jutsu.

Jutsu

* Summoning Technique (Multiple)
o Giant Drill-Beaked Bird
o Giant Multi-Headed Dog
o Giant Panda
o Giant Ram (incapacitated)
o Giant Rhino (incapacitated)
o Giant Crustacean (Deceased)
o Giant Centipede (Deceased)
o Giant Snake-Tailed Chameleon (Deceased)
o The Other Pain Bodies

Summoning abilities

* Violent Bubble Wave (Crustacean Summon)
* Amplification Summoning Technique (Dog Summon)
* Panda Iron Wall (Panda Summon)
* Chameleon Camouflage (Chameleon Summon)

Animal Path (Former)

Deceased - Replaced
Pain's second body
Pain's second body

Pain's second body, distinguished by a long ponytail and a large bridge piercing through his upper nose and attaching on each cheek, one on his upper nose, and six rimming around the bottom of his face. After being killed and examined, this body was shown to have multiple piercings on his chest as well. The appearance of this body, when first seen, was compared to that of fellow Akatsuki member Deidara. Prior to Jiraiya's encounter with Pain, one of his subordinates noted that some believe Pain to have been from the Fūma clan. This is because this body was originally a man from the Fūma clan, recognized by Jiraiya as a man who had ambushed him, ending up scarred across the forehead in the process.

This body is a powerful summoner, capable of conjuring a massive variety of different animal summons for various different purposes, and most significantly the other bodies of Pain. Each animal summon also shares his Rinnegan eyes and various piercings suggesting that they too are under his control.

The former Animal Path was instrumental to Konoha's study of Pain and her discovery of Nagato working behind the scenes. Pain appears to have abandoned it as not only did he replace it with the female Animal Path, he had the Preta Path use it as a shield against Kiba and Tsume

Jutsu

* Summoning Technique (Multiple)
o Giant Drill-Beaked Bird
o Giant Multi-Headed Dog
o Giant Panda
o Giant Ram (incapacitated)
o Giant Rhino (incapacitated)
o Giant Crustacean (Deceased)
o Giant Centipede (Deceased)
o Giant Snake-Tailed Chameleon (Deceased)
o The Other Pain Bodies

Summoning abilities

* Violent Bubble Wave (Crustacean Summon)
* Amplification Summoning Technique (Dog Summon)
* Panda Iron Wall (Panda Summon)
* Chameleon Camouflage (Chameleon Summon)

When still loyal to Takigakure, Kakuzu took on a mission to assassinate the First Hokage. This mission, however, ended in failure before the might of the First Hokage's Mokuton jutsu. Despite the insurmountable danger faced in the mission, what awaited his return to his village was the stigma and harsh punishment associated with failure of his objective. In response to this treatment, a wrong levied against a shinobi who had put life and limb on the line for his village, Kakuzu came to hold a violent hatred to his village as he escaped from imprisonment. In his flight from the village, Kakuzu killed the village elders, took their hearts, and fled with knowledge of the village's most prized forbidden techniques. Eventually he joined Akatsuki and was given a number of partners, most of whom he killed. Pain states that his reason for joining Akatsuki is "Resources".
[edit] Personality

Kakuzu was a greedy, miserly individual, arranging goals in terms of the highest profit he could gain from them, and was often unwilling to involve himself in something unless there are something to gain. He even remarked that money is the only dependable thing in the world. Due to this end, he referred to himself as the "Treasurer of Akatsuki". Given his friendly relationship with Genji, his bounty officer, it would seem he collected bounties rather frequently to earn cash, and did so (or at least tried) during his missions on several occasions. The frequent side tasks and devotion to money were both major points of contention between Hidan and Kakuzu. He also seemed to respect an opponent who thinks, as shown with his reaction to Kakashi's counters to Kakuzu's masks and Shikamaru's quick analysis of Hidan's curse, and even mentioning Shikamaru would have been a good bounty in the future.

Out of all the Akatsuki members, Hidan and Kakuzu displayed the most animosity towards each other, since neither of them were very fond of the each other's interests. The two often traded barbs with one another, Kakuzu's usually having better timing than Hidan's. Hidan has shown great annoyance with Kakuzu's greed and occasional habit of doing or saying blasphemous things, such as attacking a temple and killing the head monk for the bounty on the monk's head. Kakuzu, in turn, disliked Hidan's religion, believing the rituals associated with it to be a waste of time. Kakuzu was also rather impatient with Hidan's drawn-out speeches and battle style.

The only reason that Kakuzu put up with Hidan was because he can't get rid of him. Due to his violent temper, Kakuzu often killed anyone c