Tobi (Obito Uchiha)

"The moment people come to know love, they run the risk of carrying hate."

- Madara Uchiha aka Tobi.

Tobi is a powerful ninja shrouded in mysteries, who serves as the primary antagonist of the Naruto franchise. Claimed to be Madara Uchiha who was once the leader of the famed Uchiha clan and the co-founder of Konohagakure, the Hidden Village of the Leaf, but his bellicist views and his hatred of the First Hokage estranged him from his own clan prompting him to desert the village, which he swore to destroy. Tobi resolved to gather the nine Tailed Demons and use their power to cover the entire world with a reality-warping illusion to control it as a God. Despite appearing late in the story, Tobi is the founder and actual leader of Akatsuki and the one responsible for the attack of Kurama the Kyubi and the Massacre of the Uchiha Clan, as well as many horrible events all over the ninja world, which he manipulated from the shadows.

The Sage of the Six Paths
Despite not being part of Madara's actual history, the legend of the Sage of the Six Paths is a major driving force for Madara's actions, as he more or less plans to become his successor and continue his work, albeit following his own disturbed views.

The Sage of the Six Paths was a legendary ermit of unfathomable power who lived millenia before the start of the story, believed by most to be a mere myth.

It was said that the Sage wield the Rinnegan (the most powerful hereditary power in the world, whose only other owner was Nagato) and is famous for creating the Ninja Arts, which he taught to mankind. According to Madara, the Sage of the Six Paths defeated the fearsome Ten Tailed Demon known as the Jubi, which he sealed within himself. Near the end of his life, the Sage feared that the Demon would return, so he divided the Demon's immense chakra (ki) into nine separate parts that would become the Tailed Demons known as the Bijus. He then cast the Demon's body into space where it formed the moon.

Madara's ultimate goal, the "Eye of the Moon Plan" is to gather all the Tailed Demons and to fuse them back together, in order to become the Ten Tailed Demon's new host. By doing so, he would gain access to the moon, where he would be able to use the demon's immense energy to cast an everlasting Tsukuyomi spell on the entire Earth, uniting every mind and gathering all creation under his control to become a God in every sense of the word. He callously claims that trough this he would be able to achieve global peace and utopia, though those whom he tells this only react with a disgusted mistrust.

Early Years
Madara Uchiha was born around a century before the start of the story. In these times, the Ninja World was locked in a permanent state of war and the Ninjas were organized as huge clans of mercenaries, hired by the lords of the warring nations.

The mightiest clans of all were the Uchiha and the Senju of the Forest. They were so powerful that the only force able to resist one was the other, leading each lord to hire one whenever the other was hired against him. (According to Madara, both clans descend from the Sage of the Six Path's two sons. One born with the Sage chakra, who favoured might, the other born with the Sage's strength, who favoured love and was selected as the Sage's successor, much to his brother's ressentment.)

Madara Uchiha numbered among the most talented ninjas of his clan. He and his younger brother Izuna eventualy awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan and with his their newfound powers, they were appointed as the rulers of the Uchiha Clan. To his horror, Madara discovered that using the Mangekyo Sharingan was rendering him gradually blind and that transplanting his brother's Mangekyo Sharigan was the only way to restore his eyesight, and so he did. (Madara alleges that Izuna willingly relinquished his eyes for the sake of their clan, but he is a master of deceit and according to the much more reliable Itachi Uchiha, he took Izuna's eyes by force.)

The Founding of Konohagakure
Now the undisputed leader of his clan, Madara had to supervise every battle between the Uchiha and the Senju, he himself having to fight against the Senjus' leader Harashima more times than he could remember. Over the years, Madara developped a strong respect and a even stronger hatred for Harashima, whom he regarded as his rival. But eighty years before the start of the story, when the Senjus approached the Uchihas and offered durable peace to found Konohagakure, the Hidden Village of the Leaf, Madara reluctantly agreed under his clan's pressure.

So the Hidden Village of the Leaf was created. Following their example, all the ninja clans of each country formed an alliance to create the different Hidden Villages, leading to a stability never seen before. Yet, Madara was bitter and ressentful towards Harashima Senju, who was appointed as the first Hokage (lord of Konoha) instead of him. He still hated the Senjus and was convinced that they would use their position of power to deprive the Uchihas of any authority and keep them under control. However, even his own clan regarded his mistrust as a warmongering paranoia and he lost much of his credit among them. Even when Harashima's brother and successor appointed the Uchihas as the village's secret services and police, Madara regarded it as a facade and a confinment.

Madara's downfall
At some point, Madara deserted the village and began to plot its destruction. Harashima Senju pursued him and the two led their ultimate battle: a fight so tremendous that it dug a huge chasm that would become known as the Valley of the End. Despite controlling the Kyubi (the Nine Tailed Demon Fox) the most powerful of the nine Tailed Demons Madara lost and was grievously wounded, everyone assuming him to be dead. Since then, the people of Konoha erected two immense statues of Harashima Senju and Madara Uchiha in the cliffwall, permanently facing one another at both sides of a waterfall, as a symbol of their neverending rivalry.

However, Madara survived and went into hiding, even managing to steal a sample of Harashima's cells to copy his unique Mokuton ability. Since he was, according to his own words, reduced to a "shadow of his former self" he hatched a plan which would not only allow him to enact his revenge against Konohagakure and the Senju Clan and to become even mightier than he once was, but also to mold the entire world following his twisted ideals.A masked Man named "Tobi" rised to power

Creation of Akatsuki
Tobi claims to be the one who granted Nagato the Rinnegan, with the ultimate intent to claim it for himself. One can guess that he did it because Nagato was a descendant of the Sage of the Six Paths and could awake it. (Contrary to Madara who already wielded an eye power.) After Yahiko, Nagato and Konan finished their ninja training under the tutelage of the legendary master Jiraiya, they formed a team that they called Akatsuki. Once againTobi claims that he was the one who inspired Yahiko to create this group.

After Yahiko's death Tobi approached Nagato, the group's new leader, and manipulated his hatred to gain him to his cause. Tobi remained in the shadows and secretly gave orders to Nagato, who appeared to rule the group while he was in fact its second-in-command. Over the years and under Madara's impulse, Akatsuki became an evil organization gathering renegade ninjas from almost every country, bent on obtaining all nine Tailed Demons at all costs.

After the Third Great Ninja War, the five great ninja countries started a process of disarmament, but without relinquishing the defiance and rivalry which defined their relationships. Tobi made Akatsuki appear as an elite mercenary team much less expensive and more efficient than the ninja villages, using the situation to his advantage and making his organization grow in power and influence.

Puppeter of the Mizukage
At some point in the past,Tobi came to Kirigagure, the Hidden Village of the Mist, and used his Sharingan to control Yagura, the fourth Mizukage and the Jinchuriki (host) of the Three Tailed Demon Turtle, for a yet unknown purpose.Tobi posing as Madara made Yagura's reign nightmarish, instoring the awful custom forcing apprentice ninjas to fight to the death to graduate and causing Kirigakure to be nicknamed the "Village of the Bloody Mist."

The Uchiha Clan Massacre
"(Madara) Back away from the Jinchuriki. Or don't you care if your son dies? (Minato) Hold it! J-Just calm down!

(Madara) You should take your own advice Minato. I am perfectly calm."

- Madara to Minato Namikaze (when holding Naruto hostage)

Tobi planned to unleash the Kyubi on Konoha and waited for its former Jinchuriki Kushina Uzumaki to give birth, so that he could take profit of the weakened seal to release the demon. He made quick work of Kushina's bodyguards and took Naruto (Kushina's newborn son and soon-to-be eponimous primary protagonist) hostage, to distract Minato Namikaze (Naruto's father and Konoha's fabled fourth Hokage) away. Minato eventually gave up his life in order to seal the beast within his own son, hoping that Naruto would one day be able to use the demon's power to defeat Madara.

Konoha wasn't destroyed but Madara's other goal was achieved. Given that the Uchiha Clan wields the power to control the Kyubi, the entire village came to believe that they summoned it and shunned them. Then, the resentful Uchihas staged a coup d'état to take over the village, as Madara expected. They chose Itachi Uchiha, their most talented prodigy, to infiltrate the village's spheres of influence. However, fearing that the coup would escalate into the Fourth Great Ninja War, Itachi chose his country over his family and willingly sacrificed his honour and reputation, accepting orders from the village's elders to slaughter his entire clan.

Itachi eventually realized that Madara Uchiha, (Tobi) was behind the Kyubi's attack. He offered him to participate in the massacre and enact his revenge against his clan, in exchange for a promise that he would do nothing against Konoha. Itachi became Madara's disciple of some sort and awoke his Mangekyo Sharingan. Then, they slaughtered the clan, but Itachi could not bring himself to kill his younger brother Sasuke Uchiha and spared him.

Appearance
Madara Uchiha shares the common physical traits of his clan, namely the dark eyes, raven hair and stern face. Contrary to his heydays, in which he had his hair long and wore a red armour with his signature warfan on his back, he is now usually clad in black garnments with his hair shorter.

He always wears a mask that covers his entire face save from his right eye. He often wears Akatsuki's black coat ornated with red clouds, sometimes as a cloak. In his most recent outfit, he wears a mask that covers his entire head and displays both his Sharingan eye and the Rinnegan eye that he took from Nagato's corpse. He also wears his warfan on his back again. Finally it must be noted that his eyes are always seen with the Sharingan active, save from some flashbacks.

Tobi
Madara Uchiha first appears using the guise of "Tobi" to pass as a rookie Akatsuki member. "Tobi" is seen playful, carefree, happy-go-lucky and even goofy, who always regards things with jokes, approaches people casually, makes fun of his superiors and even sleeps after his missions while his partner is talking to him. Despite this, he was seen lecturing enemies and fighting seriously. Madara uses this persona to interact with people while keeping his true identity a secret.

Real character
"The concept of hope is nothing more than giving up. A word that holds no true meaning."

- Tobi "If you want to control people's heart, you have to control the darkness within them."

- Tobi

Tobi's real personality is much more akin to that of your classical bad guy; he is cynical, cruel, merciless, vindicative, power-hungry, self-righteous and deeply selfish. He has a extremely calm and dead-serious attitude and he likes to dominate the conversations, alternating between courtesy and scorn following his mood. He can sometimes get downright intimidating when he irked enough, demonstrating little patience. Madara dislikes when his subordonates disobey him and never hesitates to kill those whom he deems as traitors. He still has a habit of joking around and disrespecting those around him. He is overwhelmingly arrogant, insulting even the strongest ninja and treating Akatsuki members as mere tools. During his battle with Konan, he looked down on her abilities as a ninja and showed some degree of contempt for her, until she destroyed his right arm and caused considerable injury to his face and eyes. While speaking derogatorily about Nagato, he still recognised his power as the strongest in Akatsuki and for possessing the Rinnegan. There are only a handful of exceptions that he admires, the most prominent being Hashirama Senju, whom he also despised the most. Despite his arrogance, he is not above giving praise to his enemies, like Kakashi for his speed or Minato for being able to wound him. However, he is fast to return to his egotistical persona, as he claimed to Konan that it was he who truly won the battle against Hashirama Senju, by "looking at the future".

Tobi strongly believes that the history of hatred between the Uchiha and the Senju Clans is part of destiny and cannot be reversed. Not only he was unable to work out his differences with Harashima Senju but he seeks to maintain said hatred at any cost, ensuring that Sasuke Uchiha gets overwhelmed by revenge, ruining any hope of restoring Sasuke's and Naruto's past friendship, and planning to make them fight to the death, as Naruto is related to the Senju Clan. To put it simply, he cannot even consider the mere idea of an armistice between the two factions and since he himself was unable to bury the hatchet, he refuses to see anyone do it. Tobi has shown great ability in manipulating others to do his work for him. Minato believed that he was using Nagato's ideology against him in order to control him. He was able to turn Kisame into one of his most loyal followers under the promise that he would release him from his pain by creating a "world without lies". He similarly befriended Sasuke in order to get him to join Akatsuki by telling him about Itachi's past even though he has an apparent interest in Sasuke and his abilities. He appears to have a somewhat twisted outlook with respect to this, often avoiding responsibility by claiming that people acted voluntarily, though in reality they were coerced or manipulated by him.

Madara was born in a era of permanent war which made him warmongering and vindictive. He absolutely does not believe in ideals like understanding and cooperation, (to the point of paranoia) as evidenced in the early years of Konohagakure. In his self-righteous point of view, he dismisses such ideals as irrelevant and those who defend it as deluded fools. He can be regarded as a personification of all the bad things in the Ninja World: the defiance, the hatred and the thirst for personal gain at the expense of others. These not only serve as his personality traits, but he also spreads them around him to serve his interests. Despite claiming his goal is the only way to enact global peace, it is made clear that what he truly wants is complete control of everything, demonstrating both a control-freak aspect and a messiah complex. Tobi has set his goals in getting Sasuke on his side to serve Akatsuki's goals. As such, he was pleased that when Itachi died, no one would be able to prevent him from telling Sasuke the truth of the Uchiha Clan Massacre. Tobi expressed disappointment when Sasuke failed to retrieve the real Killer B, and was worried that he may not be easy to control. He even threatened to kill Sasuke and his entire team if they ever dare betray him and Akatsuki. However, whenever Sasuke enters deeper into the darkness of revenge, Tobi shows delight, the most prominent being when Sasuke's hatred fully develops Susanoo, and when he sacrificed Karin to pierce Danzō's heart. Despite this, Tobi claims to A and Kabuto Yakushi that he is willing to seemingly hand Sasuke over to them, when the situation is right.

Despite this, Tobi is a highly skilled orator able to gain the trust of many people and to present a friendly facade to those useful for his goals. It must be noted that when he speaks to people (most often his enemies) he retains a bit of the laid back and joking attitude he displayed as silly "Tobi," sitting casually on window frames, feigning vexation and displaying a dry sense of humour. He also displays a real respect for both his enemies, (whose qualities he acknowledges) and his subordonates. (He is seen praising the fallen members of Akatsuki without whom he could not have reached this point of his plans.) Also, he respects his promises, as he never made a direct move against Konohagakure while Itachi Uchiha was alive. (Though he waited for Itachi's death to end his obligations.) Despite his calm demeanour and intelligence, Tobi has shown a habit of taking very risky gambles to advance his plans, such as revealing Itachi's wishes and his own involvement in the Uchiha clan massacre to Sasuke, sending him to fight against the five Kage, involving himself with the equally dangerous Kabuto after Kabuto blackmailed Tobi into having no alternative and even attempting to complete his Eye of the Moon Plan despite not having the full chakra of the Eight-Tails and Nine-Tails.

Tobi seemingly possesses great hatred towards the Senju clan, especially Hashirama Senju, and the Senju-led Konohagakure, though he still admires Hashirama for his power. His reasons for hating them are unknown, but he made this known while he used Madara's name. This hatred led Tobi to a life dedicated to revenge. Tobi believes that all Uchiha are destined to walk the same path of revenge against the Senju and Konohagakure, and that Naruto, who has inherited the Senju's Will of Fire, is fated to battle Sasuke, who has inherited the Uchiha's hatred, even if Tobi himself must force them to do so. Tobi also seems to admire the Sage of the Six Paths, or at least just his power as he has gone to extreme lengths to obtain the Rinnegan, the Ten-Tails, and the powers of the Senju clan producing Izanagi, and has been planning decades in advance to achieve these goals.

Tobi seems to enjoy sitting down and taking his time with things, especially when telling stories, just like he told Itachi's story to Sasuke and his Eye of the Moon Plan to the Kage and the samurai.

Tobi is highly intelligent and scheming, being an expert manipulator and strategist who makes sure that things are always going in the direction he wants to. He acted in several places over the decades to put his plan his motion from behind the scene, so that all the situations he created would converge towards his ultimate goal. He is also skilled in preparing backup plans following the possible outcomes of a battle, and in revising his plans to sack profit of the situation even when his main goal is thwarted. Moreover, he knows how to play with people's affect and emotions to talk them into working for him. Since the start of his battle with Konan, Tobi has become noticeably more aggressive and sadistic. After retrieving the Rinnegan, he went so far as to use Fū as a sacrifice for Summoning: Impure World Reincarnation to reincarnate Torune to test out Kabuto's abilities, as well as threatening to kill Kabuto, should he betray him, despite Kabuto previously being the one with the upper hand through blackmail. Later in his battle with Naruto and Killer B he showed a more remorseful and miserable side of his personality remarking that he is 'no one' and has no desire whatsoever to be anyone, all that matters to him is the domination of a world he believes is "worthless" and full of misery. Tobi has also been shown to be very stubborn to admit error, or failure, reasoning with himself (and his opponents), that the situation has not changed.

Powers and Abilities
A mysterious shinobi, not much is known about Tobi's true overall abilities. Tobi in the past has admitted that he is not as powerful as Madara was before being defeated by Hashirama Senju and was further handicapped by the Nine-Tails' sealing into various jinchūriki, depriving him of a powerful weapon. Though from what has been seen of Tobi, he is a very powerful ninja being able to fight equally against Minato Namikaze and defeat a highly-skilled ninja like Konan one-on-one. Tobi has shown to be an Earth Release user, being able to hide and move underground. A key element in Tobi's fighting style is his constant use of third parties to battle in his stead, as shown in his use of the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox, the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path and his Six Paths of Pain in various battles.

Prior to outing himself as Madara, Tobi's only apparent claim to fame was his speed. He is physically strong enough to stop a slash from Suigetsu's Kubikiribōchō with a single arm without getting hurt[9], hold Konan off the ground with one hand and strangle a Konoha ANBU to death with one hand. Tobi possesses an immense level of endurance and stamina, as he was able to quickly recover after being hit by Minato's Rasengan. His chakra levels are enormous, as it allows him to summon the powerful Demonic Statue of the Outer Path and the Nine-Tails, as well as to allow him to utilise the intangibility portion of his Space-Time Migration, chakra chains, and transform the jinchūriki into their tailed beast states all while maintaining control of his Six Paths of Pain. Tobi has knowledge of fūinjutsu used to create jinchūriki, including when they're most vulnerable and how to extract a tailed beast. He possesses the ability to find others no matter where they are with ease through unknown means.[10] Tobi's damaged arm oozes a white substance, as his hand separates from his body.Added by GothicWarriorThroughout the series, Tobi has lost several limbs.[11] [12] The loss does not seem to cause him any pain however, and a white substance is shown flowing from the wounds along with blood. It was later shown that he is able to recreate his limbs through an unorthodox method.[13] Overall, due to being imbued with the First Hokage's cells, Tobi has managed to extend his life to the point where it is believed by others that he may have become immortal.[14]

Tobi has displayed knowledge and ability in the surgical field. In particular, Tobi was able to remove and preserve Itachi's eyes after his death and later successfully transplant them to Sasuke as well as somehow implanting the Rinnegan into his own left eye after losing his Sharingan.

Space–Time Ninjutsu Edit
Tobi using his Space–Time Ninjutsu.Added by Cerez365Tobi is almost completely impervious to damage. When struck, attacks pass right through him, though he sometimes pretends to be hurt or cry out in pain to toy with his opponents.[15] It was speculated by Kakashi that he uses a space–time ninjutsu to instantly send himself or even parts of his body to different locations or some sort of void and then instantly bring them back. The only time Tobi's solidity can be confirmed is when he interacts with others, leaving him susceptible to counter-attack when he does so. In his battle with Konan it was revealed that he can only make himself continuously intangible for about five minutes.[16] He also seemingly has the ability to make whatever he's touching at the time, intangible as well.[17] Tobi's pocket dimension.Added by VecanoiTobi also shows the ability to travel long distances within relatively short time-spans. While he is usually seen using this ability on himself, avoiding attacks rather than relying on his imperviousness, he can teleport anyone. When he teleports Karin and Sasuke, he sends them to what is a separate dimension. They are forced to stay there until he chooses to release them. The chakra signatures of those that have been teleported completely vanish. His right eye appears to be the basis for this transportation. It was shown that his body is tangible when he absorbs people, making it possible to attack him, as seen when Konan and Torune managed to injure him when he tried to absorb them. Konan also states that he must solidify before he can absorb himself and that it takes longer to absorb himself than it does someone or something else.[18]

Sharingan Edit
Tobi's dōjutsu.Added by ShenLong KazamaTobi seems to be able to keep his Sharingan active at all times with minimal drain on his chakra levels. He has displayed powerful Sharingan genjutsu abilities, being able to completely control the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura,[7] forcing Konan into revealing the whereabouts of the Rinnegan,[19] and trapping both Fū and Torune in a genjutsu for a considerable amount of time.[20]

Possessing both Uchiha and Senju DNA, Tobi is able to use Izanagi: a technique the Uchiha deemed a kinjutsu since the user's Sharingan is stricken with blindness and sealed away forever. Unlike Danzō, Tobi was able to maintain Izanagi during his battle with Konan for ten consecutive minutes at the cost of only one Sharingan due to gaining control of Hashirama's DNA. His usage of the technique led to the sealing of his left eye.[21]

Tobi was able to use his standard Sharingan to fully control Kurama. First, he focuses on Kurama's eyes, causing the Sharingan to appear over them, and then the Sharingan's tomoe disappears as the pupil enlarges.[22] After that, he can then use the Summoning Technique to transport Kurama to anywhere he wants it.[6] However, Minato Namikaze was able to remove his control over Kurama.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-22">[23] Tobi has similarly been shown to control most of the other tailed beasts. However, when doing so, Tobi's Sharingan simply reflects off the beasts' eyes. In addition, when controlling so many at the same time, Tobi does not seem to have complete control over some of the beasts, as the Five-Tails was able to free itself temporarily.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-23">[24]

Tobi has yet to be seen using or activating a Mangekyō Sharingan. He does, however, possesses high knowledge about the Mangekyō Sharingan and its various techniques. His understanding gives him a great advantage against other users, stating Kakashi's Kamui would have had no effect on him and somehow extinguishing Itachi's Amaterasu.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-24">[25] ====Rinnegan Edit==== Tobi implanted Nagato's Rinnegan into his left eye, replacing his Sharingan lost due to the usage of Izanagi.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-25">[26] As wielder of the Rinnegan, Tobi can potentially master all five nature transformations and possibly use all the abilities of the Six Paths of Pain, since they are all Rinnegan abilities. With the Rinnegan implanted, he can also summon the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.

He created his own Six Paths of Pain, made from the reincarnated jinchūriki, with them having both the Sharingan and the Rinnegan as he does by implanting them with chakra rods like Nagato. By combining the Demonic Statue with the Outer Path ability, Tobi can create chains which he can use to suppress the tailed beasts power and they are very difficult to remove. Tobi is able to use the chains to drag the beasts under his control into his own body or reseal them instantly inside the Statue.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-26">[27]

Equipment Edit
Tobi using chains in his battle with Minato.Added by Aditya akzTobi has been shown with a diverse range of weapons over the years. During the Fourth Shinobi World War he began carrying a war fan that Madara Uchiha was famous for during his life, though he has yet to be seen using it. During his fight with Minato, he used a long chain attached to braces on his wrist, which together resembled shackles. He used this in conjunction with his ability to become intangible, firstly allowing the adversary to harmlessly pass through his body, before solidifying once again as they emerged from the other side, only to restrain them in the trailing chain.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-27">[28] Just before the Uchiha clan massacre, when meeting with Itachi, Tobi was seen carrying a sword on his waist. <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-28">[29]

The mask which he wears during the Fourth Shinobi World War has also been noted to be very durable, as Naruto headbutted him while in his Nine-Tails Chakra Mode without even scratching it.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-29">[30] Tobi states the reason for this is due to the mask being composed of materials that are "suited for war".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-30">[31]

Intelligence Edit
As the leader and mastermind of the Akatsuki, Tobi is a master strategist and tactician. He is an observant and sharp thinker, capable of reading through several forms of deception. Even when on rare occasions where Tobi is caught off-guard he is capable of creating counter-strategies while maintaining a calm and composed demeanour. He has shown the ability to create complex, long-term plans centred around his goal of the Eye of the Moon Plan. He is also shown to be a flexible tactician, using alternate means to attain a goal when the original plan failed. During the Fourth Shinobi World War Tobi was confident in his original strategy (which did not include Kabuto's contribution) of fighting the Allied Shinobi Forces by making use of the unique abilities of his White Zetsu Army.

He is also shown as a master manipulator. For years he was able to command the Akatsuki from the shadows and later assume the false persona of a goofy and apparently harmless man in order to better observe his enemies. He is able to convince characters into working for him in direct or indirect ways such as Kisame, Nagato and Sasuke. Likewise, he was able to manipulate the entire ninja world into a war due to their fear of Madara's power.

Due to his advanced age Tobi possess an immense and close knowledge of the workings of the ninja world which allows him to almost immediately identify most forms of ninjutsu and counter them if necessary, as well as assess an opponent's strength's (Kakashi for his speed, Shikamaru for his intelligence, etc). He also has great knowledge of the history and abilities of several historical ninja such as Madara Uchiha, Hashirama Senju, and the Sage of the Six Paths. Madara Uchiha was born with an exceptional level of power, even to his clan's high standards. He is stated to have been one of the most powerful ninjas in history, only rivaled by the first and fourth Hokages. He may have lost an immense deal of his power after his defeat at the Valley of the End, but he retains his abilities and special techniques, which still make him a very dangerous opponent.

Madara is an exceptionally skilled warrior who displays very high physical strength and immense proficiency with weapons, especially with swords, scythes and his signature warfan. Furthermore, he fights in a very tactical way, using careful baits to catch his foes offguard. Even in his diminished state he remains skilled enough to hold his own against powerful ninjas on skills and tactics alone. As a Uchiha, he has a natural affinity with the Fire-based techniques and the anime also depicts him using Earth-based techniques, which he uses to disappear underground and pop up from different points at a very fast rate to deal with numerous opponents, though he very seldom uses element-based attacks.

Sharingan
Like every Uchiha, Madara's primary weapon is his hereditary eye power, the Sharingan. (Litteraly the Eye of the Copy Wheel.) This power grants the Uchihas several abilities:


 * To physically see the flow of chakra and thus being able to distinguish and analyse the techniques used by an opponent, or to detect traps and hypnosis.


 * To read through movements and to be able to predict their outcome, which is not only useful to anticipate attacks but to mimick said movements. (Though some movements are too fast or unpredictable to be avoided, even when seen in advance.)


 * To copy almost any technique (save from special powers) used by the opponent and enable its wielder to use it almost as perfectly as said opponent. (Though the wielder cannot copy his/her opponent degree of training and mastery.)


 * To generate higly advanced illusions on any sense, forcing the opponent to see, percieve or even act as the wielder wants them to.

Mangekyo Sharingan
Should a Sharingan user murder the most important person to him or her, he/she would awake the most powerful state of the eye power, the Mangekyo Sharingan. (Kaleidoscope of hypnosis.) This not only vastly increases the regular powers of the Sharingan but grants access to three purely fearsome spells: The immense power granted by the Mangekyo Sharingan comes at a heavy price, as its gradually deteriorates its wielder's eyesight. If an eye wielding a Sharingan were to come blind it would lose its power forever. Yet, Madara Uchiha transplanted his brother's eyes on him, fusing their Mangekyo Sharingan into the "Eternal" Mangekyo Sharingan, enabling him to use its powers without limit and danger, likely to a far greater extent.
 * Tsukuyomi: Named after the Shinto God of the Moon, this spell enables its wielder to trap people into an extremely realistic illusion which alters the victims' perception of time and space, and whose effects are felt by the victims as if they happened for real. To its most advanced point, it can cast its victims into an alternate reality like nightmare of which they cannot break free and which plunges them into a coma.
 * Amaterasu: Named after the Shinto Goddess of the Sun, this devastating spell generates a black fire that can consume anything and is never extinguished until its target is reduced to ashes. With the proper training, its wielder can manipulate the black fire and shape it at will.
 * Susanoo: Named after the Shinto God of Storms, this is the most powerful and the hardest to master of he three spells. It generates a gigantic, three-armed warrior entirely made of chakra around the wielder, which serves as an "ultimate" armour able to withstand (and sometimes to reflect back) attacks, and wields multiple weapons, sometime able to seal forever anyone it strikes into a dimensional void.

Apparently, Madara is no longer able to use his Mangekyo Sharingan since his defeat at the Valley of the End. Or at least no longer able to use it as much as he wants, though this is not very clear.

Izanagi
The most powerful spell available to a wielder of the Sharingan, which is said to mimick the Sage of the Six Paths' ability to warp reality and creation and can only be used coupled with Harashima Senju's power over trees. Named after the Shinto God who fathered the three previous deities, Izanagi enables its wielder to temporary turn into an illusion to avoid attacks or to alter the reality of the surroundings. The full extent of this spell is not known but its lenght of action is very short and the eye which casts it turns permanently blind.

Space-Distortion Techniques
Madara's signature powers are his abilities to become intangible at will and to bend space to a yet unknown extent. He can make a part of his body or his entire body intangible and void, so that any attack would phase through him like a ghost, enabling him to rematerialise and counterattack right after. (It has been revealed that he cannot remain intangible more than five minutes.) This technique renders him nearly impossible to strike and allows him to easily hold his own even against opponents who surpass his current level of power.

Madara is also able to teleport at will and to vacuum things and people into an alternate dimensional plane in which he can enter as well. He most likely enters said dimension whenever he disappears and exits it into another place when he teleports himself. Madara can only vacuum something/someone at very close range and he cannot do it when he is intangible. He has proven able to vacuum attacks to some extent, which he does when he cannot phase through. Moreover, he is able to track people down and to know their locations.

Madara seems to need his mask to use his dimensional power, as everything that enters or exits the alternate dimension (and Madara himself when he teleports) seem vacuumed into, or expelled out of, the hole in the mask that reveals his right eye.

Stolen Powers (the "Six Paths")
Madara Uchiha's goal to gather what he calls the "Six Paths" (all the abilities derivated from the Sage of the Six Paths' powers) led him to steal powers from other mighty ninjas. He claims that the Sharingan is one of these "Paths" and he got his hands on two others:
 * Mokuton: Harashima Senju's unique ability to grow and control trees and wood at will. Madara claims that he managed to control the full extent of this power but he never displayed it. However he proves this point with his great mastery of the Izanagi spell. Apparently the way he uses this power makes him immortal.
 * Rinnegan: The first and most powerful eye power, once used by the Sage of the Six Paths and later by Nagato. Madara replaced his left eye, rendered useless by the use of Izanagi, by Nagato's Rinnegan. It grants Madara all of Nagato's powers and even enable him to create his own "Six Paths of Pain".
 * The Demonic Statue of the Outer Path: Though he already had a limited control over the Statue, thanks to Nagato's Rinnegan he now masters it fully and can summonit at will. In addition to the immense strength and the soul-devouring, dragon-like spirits it already displayed, the Statue has recently proven able to unleash devastating shockwaves of energy and multiple giant energy bolts that rain down on its targets, making it an unfathomably dangerous weapon of mass destruction.

Cryptical Mentions
Madara Uchiha doesn't appear in the first part of the series, in which Orochimaru serves as the primary antagonist and Akatsuki is only an upcomming threat, but he is crypticaly mentioned several times. Firstly in Sasuke's flashbacks about the Uchiha Clan Massacre. (When Itachi tells Sasuke about the Mangekyo Sharingan, he says that should Sasuke awake it there would be three to share this "blessing," mentioning a yet unknown wielder.) Later, when Sasuke defects from Konoha, he and his former best friend Naruto Uzumaki do battle at the Valley of the End, near the two giant statues that are revealed to represent the founders of Konoha. If the yet unnamed First Hokage can be recognised, nothing is told about the second. The conflict between Sasuke and Naruto is said to mirror that of the founders.

In the second part of the story, when Sasuke and Naruto meet again, Sasuke manages to "see" the Kyubi sealed inside Naruto and the Kyubi states that Sasuke reminds him of Madara Uchiha. In the meantime, after Sasori is killed, a character named Tobi is appointed in Akatsuki to replace him in the organization.

As "Tobi"
"Tobi" is first introduced as a subordinate of Zetsu, who enters Akatsuki as a replacement and gets partnered with Deidara. He acts goofy and never serious, often getting on Deidara's nerves and getting hit in retaliation by an exploding attack. The two are seen capturing the Three Tailed Demon Turtle and later, "Tobi" assists Deidara during his fight with Sasuke. Later, Nagato's Deva Path announces to Akatsuki that Tobi died when Deidara blew himself up but in fact Tobi is in the same room as the Deva Path and Konan, and he orders them to capture Naruto and the Kyubi.

Tobi is then revealed to be none other than Madara Uchiha, the real leader of Akatsuki. He passed as an underling to make himself known by the regular members and to keep close to Nagato, while secretly ruling the organization from behind the scenes.

Truth revealed
"The Uchiha Clan is a clan destined for revenge."

- Madara Uchiha

Madara is later seen sitting on the statue representing him at the Valley of the End, reflecting on the current situation. At the same time, Jiraiya begins to suspect that Madara is behind the attack of the Kyubi.

Later on, when Itachi and Sasuke Uchiha are about to fight to the death, Itachi reveals Madara's backstory and his role in the Uchiha Massacre. Meanwhile, Madara intercepts Naruto's squad, who is looking for either Sasuke or Itachi, to prevent them from interrupting the battle. He plays as "Tobi" once again and toys with them, phasing through all their attacks and escaping every attempt to capture him.

Upon learning about Sasuke's victory, Madara dismisses the Konoha ninjas in a condescending way, while acting as his true self and displaying his Sharingan. He then takes Sasuke with him and treats his wounds. When Sasuke awaits, Madara greets him, introduces himself and takes off his mask, only to be engulfed in Amaterasu black fire. Indeed, Itachi implanted a trap into Sasuke's eyes before dying, hoping to save his brother from Madara's influence, but Madara manages to survive.

Madara then manages to gain Sasuke's trust by telling him everything about Itachi's motives. He first tells him about the founding of Konohagakure, before revealing the coup d'état plotted by the Uchiha Clan and Itachi's decision to slaughter his kin for the sake of peace. While Madara tells the truth about Konoha and Itachi, he subtly presents it from his point of view, depicting the Senjus as untrustworthy and abusive and denying any involvement in the Kyubi's attack. Following this, Sasuke swears revenge against Konoha, blaming the village for enjoying a peace built on the Uchihas' and his brother's sufferings.

From then on, Madara has Sasuke trapped in his snare and although the latter denies it, claiming that he is using Akatsuki, Madara uses him as a pawn and gradually turns him into a hateful and merciless criminal. At first, Sasuke claims that he only wants to kill the village's elders, the direct responsibles of Itachi's misery, but he later states his intention to kill every inhabitant of his former hometown. Madara is very likely responsible for this drastic change in Sasuke's personality and although he states that this is only the result of the hatred that runs in the clan's destiny, he openly admits that Sasuke became what he is now under his tutelage.

Madara then makes a pact with Sasuke and his comrades, offering to lend them Tailed Demons for their upcoming battle against Konoha if they capture Killer Bee, the Jinchuriki of the Eight Tailed Demon Ox for him. Sasuke's team seemingly succeeds and brings Killer Bee to Madara, but the one they captured is later revealed to be a mere clone created from one of the demon's tentacles. Thus, Madara intercepts Sasuke's team on their way to Konohagakure, revealing that Nagato has already obliterated the village and that Danzo Shimura, one of Konoha's elders who has just been appointed Hokage, is heading to the Land of Iron for a summit of the five Kage. (The lords of the five most powerful ninja villages.)

The Five Kage Summit
Upon Madara's orders, Zetsu guides Sasuke's team to the place where the five Kage are gathering. Sasuke initially plans to wait for the end of the summit to confront and kill Danzo, but Zetsu sneaks into the gathering and reveals Sasuke's presence, prompting the Kages and their powerful bodyguards to attack him. Sasuke fights against the Kages using his Mangekyo Sharingan but they prove far too strong for him alone and Madara enters the fray, absorbing Sasuke away into his alternate dimension.

Madara wanted to measure how powerful Sasuke has become under his "tutelage." He even pondered whether Sasuke would be able to weaken the five Kage, enabling him to hold them hostages, but admits this was too big a task. He then demands the Kage to hand him Killer Bee and Naruto, the last two remaining Jinchurikis, threatening to use the Tailed Demons he already owns against them if they don't comply.Upon their refusal, Madara declares the Fourth Great Ninja War between Akatsuki and the five great ninja countries. (Plus the samurais of the Land of Iron.) The Kage assume that Madara cannot use the Tailed Demons so easily, and that he uses this threat to make them involve the Jinchurikis in the upcoming war as major military assets, and easy targets for him to capture.

Madara later stages a battle to the death between Sasuke and Danzo, which Sasuke wins while further falling into Madara's corruption. As Sasuke, who has gone nearly blind due to his reckless overuse of the Mangekyo Sharingan, is confronted by his former master Kakashi Hatake and his former comrades Naruto and Sakura Haruno whom he plans to kill, Madara reappears to take him away stating that he stands no chance against them in his weakened state. Madara takes Sasuke back to his lair and transplants Itachi's eyes on him to grant him the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan.

Madara then goes to the Land of the Rain to confront Konan, who has defected from Akatsuki following Nagato's death, planning to get his hands on Nagato's Rinnegan. He makes the mistake of underestimating his former subordinate, who uses her knowledge of his powers to drive him into a corner, trapping him in a chasm of exploding papers from which he cannot normally escape. Madara is forced to sacrifice his left eye to cast Izanagi and barely survives. He then forces Konan to reveal the location of Nagato's vault before seemingly killing her, and transplants a Rinnegan in his left eyesocket.

The Fourth Great Ninja War
Preparing for the war against the coalition of the five great nations, Madara (who has adopted a new outfit) strikes an uneasy alliance with Kabuto Yakushi, Orochimaru's successor, despite not trusting him. (As he clearly understands that Kabuto is following his own agenda.) Madara reveals that he has created a hundred-thousand clones of Zetsu which he plans to use as his military forces, to which Kabuto adds many immensely powerful ninjas that he resurrected.

Some time later, he recieves a report from Kisame Hoshigaki, who faked his own death against Killer Bee following his order to infiltrate the giant Turtle-Island in which Naruto and Killer Bee have been located, and was deafeated in battle. Using these informations Madara plans to invade the Turtle-Island personally but Kabuto offers to go instead. Fortunately, the Tsuchikage (the lord of the Hidden Village of the Rocks) who went to protect the two Jinchurikis forces Kabuto to retreat, but the villain manages to abduct Yamato, one of Naruto's bodyguards who masters the Mokuton ability, whom Madara uses to increase the power of his Zetsu army. Madara later pries informations on Kabuto about the forbidden resurrection spell that he used.

Akatsuki's forces are currently battling the Ninja Coalition, who manage to seal away many of the resurrected ninjas. When Naruto realizes that there is a war outside, he breaks away with Killer Bee and Zetsu informs Madara of their move. Madara then takes part in the war and summons the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path to deal with the coalition's armies, while he steals a magical gourd in which two undead ninjas wielding the chakra of the Demon Fox have been sealed.

Later that night, it is revealed that the clash between his army and the Ninja Coalition was only the first step of Madara's strategy. Indeed, the remaining Zetsu clones use the chakra they absorbed from their opponents to transform into perfect doubles of them, going undetected and decimating the remaning forces of the coalition from the inside, starting with the medical ninjas. Moreover, knowing from Kisame's report that Naruto gained the ability to sense evil intent, the only thing that can unmask a transformed Zetsu clone, he counts on this to bring him out of hiding. Even worse, he used Nagato's powers to reactivate the dreaded Six Paths of Pain, using the reanimate corpses of six former jinchurikis. By doing so, he not only takes six undeads from Kabuto's control but he gains six indestructible puppets who combine their Path's respective Rinnegan power to the Sharingan, and perhaps the power they got from their Tailed Demons.

The recent appearance of Madara Uchiha among the undead ninjas has raised questions about the villain's real identity. He has been called "the fake Madara" yet he shares too many similarities with the real one to be merely an impostor. The real Madara states that he established the "Eye of the Moon" plan, implying that whom everyone thought was Madara can be a successor of some sort. Now the leader of Akatsuki and the remaining Jinchurikis are about to battle.

On his way However Tobi/Madara is suddenly headbutted by Uzumaki Naruto.

Recovering from the attack, Tobi notes his disappointment that Naruto couldn't even scratch his mask, before observing the brief skirmish between the jinchūriki. When Naruto then remarks on his changed mask, which reveals a Rinnegan like those of Nagato and the other Madara, Tobi informs him that this mask was simply more suitable for war. Initially cursing Kabuto under his breath, while recollecting the time Madara was first reincarnated, he then began to laugh and calmly stated that his name was now irrelevant. Identifying himself as a "nobody", who cared only for the completion of the Eye of the Moon Plan, Tobi notes that as jinchūriki they should understand the misery of this world. After Naruto vows to remove his mask, he asserts that he'd have to work for it. The reincarnated jinchūriki then undergo partial transformations into their respective tailed beasts, as Tobi declares that he would capture both Gyūki and Kurama to "obtain" the Eye of the Moon. Watching the ensuing conflict, Tobi ultimately relocates to the tree tops, when Killer B assumes his full Eight-Tails form. Tobi emerges from underground and orders the jinchūriki to attack.Seeking refuge underground to evade the subsequent devastation, Tobi emerges just before B can successfully seal the reincarnated jinchūriki and orders them to attack, after they adopt their Version 2-like forms. As the chaos unfolds, Tobi uses the opportunity to approach a restrained Naruto, where he remarks that superior numbers had triumphed. However, just as Tobi's hand makes contact with Naruto, seemingly ensuring his victory, he is attacked by Might Guy and Kakashi Hatake. Forced to become intangible, Tobi declares that "two small fry" would make no difference, after discerning that the pair had used Naruto as bait and waited for him to materialise. When the Five-Tails then tries to attack Tobi, he restrains the beast and reverts it back to Han's Version 2 form, as he slips from the Eight-Tails' grasp. Later praising Kakashi for discerning that the difficulty in controlling the tailed beasts resulted in the jinchūriki being unable to use the powers of the Six Paths, Tobi decides to become serious, forcefully transforming both Rōshi and Utakata into their respective tailed beasts. Tobi summons the Demonic Statue.Declaring his capture of the Nine-Tails when Naruto is swallowed by Son Gokū, Tobi manifests a chain around the beast's neck, intent on dragging the both of them inside of him. To his surprise however, multiple Naruto are suddenly expelled from the beast's mouth, causing him to retort that the latter didn't know when to give up. Tobi then curses when Naruto discovers the chakra receiver embedded in the beast, even with Son attacking him, but is confident that it wouldn't be so easy due to chains binding anything that touched the receiver. Despite this, Naruto removes the chakra receiver, prompting Tobi to immediately summon the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path and reseal Son within it. Noting the futility in stopping just one beast, he declares that he would now display to them all of his "precious pieces", before ordering the remaining jinchūriki to transform into their respective tailed beasts. The battle between Naruto and Tobi.Annoyed when all five of the beasts' attacks are easily deflected by Naruto, Tobi commands them to attack directly but as the battle turns in the opposition's favour, he concludes that it no longer matters if Naruto were to die and so, orders his tailed beasts to combine their power into a single devastating Tailed Beast Ball. Despite this attack being diverted and the remaining tailed beasts freed from his control, Tobi remarks that the situation hadn't changed, given that Naruto couldn't maintain his new form any longer and the tailed beasts' chakra had already been resealed. Tobi is then left confused when Naruto refutes this, as he claims to have learned several difficult names that Tobi was seemingly unaware of. Reaching for his gunbai, drops of water trickle down Tobi's arm, which he initially believes to be sweat. However, dismissing it as just rain, Tobi is still unable to comprehend a strange feeling surrounding Naruto, despite thinking of him as nothing but a mere amusement used to stimulate Sasuke. Deeming this to be unimportant, Tobi declared that all past and future existences would soon become irrelevant. Later as the incapacitated jinchūriki's bodies begin deconstructing with the release of Impure World Reincarnation Tobi watches this in shock. Realising that Kabuto had failed, Tobi cursed him before Naruto addressed him once again telling him that his opponents were in front of him.After a combined assault managed to topple the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, Tobi was goaded to remove his mask by Naruto to prove that he was not tired from battle. Summoning the Benihisago and Kohaku no Jōhei in response, the statue then devoured both as Tobi admitted that he now had no other choice. Declaring that he would have rather revived "it" in a perfect form, but that it would still maintain its power, Tobi states that the promised time had arrived as the statue began to roar with opened eyes.