Obito Uchiha

A hero who fell into darkness to save the world from its pain.

Obito Uchiha (Japanese: うちはオビト, Hepburn: Uchiha Obito), also known by his alias Tobi (トビ), is a fictional character and one of the main antagonists in Masashi Kishimoto's manga (and anime adaptation) Naruto, being the primary instigator at fault for the tragic backstory of series protagonist Naruto Uzumaki, whose personality and motivations are nearly identical to those of Obito's younger self, making them foils. He is first introduced in a "Kakashi Chronicle" side story, as a young ninja who sacrifices himself to save his friends (Kakashi Hatake and Rin Nohara) from a cave-in.

Although he was believed to have died in the 3rd Great Ninja War, Obito is later revealed as a member of the organization known as the Akatsuki, mainly acting behind the scenes for a majority of the group's tenure. He uses the alias of Tobi and later that of his benefactor, Madara Uchiha, and conceals his true identity with masks. Obito seeks to harness the power of the Tailed Beasts in order to cast a genjutsu that will put all of humanity into an idealized dream state forever, having lost faith in the real world following Rin's death.

Quick Facts

Series: Naruto
First: Naruto chapter 239: Chronicle 1: The Mission Begins...!! (2004)
Creator: Masashi Kishimoto
Also known as: Tobi; Madara Uchiha

Lore & Background

Obito first appears in "Kakashi Chronicle", a Naruto side story. A child living through the Third Great Ninja War, Obito (Kakashi's teammate on Team Minato) wanted to become the Hokage of Konohagakure, and had an unrequited love for his teammate Rin. When he and Kakashi rescue the kidnapped Rin during a mission, Obito's right side is crushed by a boulder following a cave-in. Thinking he was going to die, Obito had Rin transplant his left Sharingan into Kakashi to replace Kakashi's lost left eye.

Obito's death has a profound effect on Kakashi; he begins taking on his mannerisms such as showing up late to everything and adopts Obito's philosophy of how those who abandoned their comrades are "worse than scum". Late in Part II of the manga, it is revealed that Obito was saved by an elderly Madara Uchiha and outfitted with prosthetics. He becomes Madara's apprentice, and Madara has Obito witness Rin's death at the hands of a reluctant Kakashi to break his spirit.

Concluding that he can use the power of the Tailed Beasts to destroy the current reality and create a utopia, Obito adopts Madara's name and disguises his voice after the ninja's death; he then arranges similar events for Nagato with Yahiko's death to create the current incarnation of the Akatsuki. While Kushina Uzumaki (then jinchuriki of Kurama, the Nine-Tails Kyuubi), is giving birth to Naruto Uzumaki, Obito mounts an attack on the Leaf Village, Konoha.

He releases the seal over the Kyuubi from Kushina while she is weak during birth, and places the Nine-Tails under his control, releasing it on Konoha to tear the village apart and wreak havoc. During his infiltration, he encounters his former mentor Minato Namikaze (the fourth Hokage) and they fight. Minato defeats Obito, and releases Kurama from Obito's control. Obito then flees, leaving Konoha to deal with the Nine-Tails, resulting in Minato and Kushina's deaths. The character has a behind-the-scenes role in the first half of Part II.

Reader's Guide

Obito Uchiha serves as the primary antagonist for much of the latter half of the series, embodying the destructive potential of grief and the danger of absolute idealism. His right Sharingan casts Kamui, which makes him intangible and lets him teleport over great distances. His defining moments include the cave-in that crushed him, his apprenticeship under Madara Uchiha, and his change of heart during the Fourth Great Ninja War. In his final hours, he sheds the mask of Tobi to aid Naruto Uzumaki and Kakashi Hatake against the resurrected Kaguya Otsutsuki.

Did You Know?

Kishimoto said that by chapter 16 he had conceived a storyline about Obito being an Uchiha and how it would affect Kakashi.
Obito's nickname 'Tobi' comes from him calling the spiral-patterned Zetsu 'Guruguru', an onomatopoeia for turning round and round or going around in circles.
In the English version, Obito is voiced by Michael Yurchak and his younger self is voiced by Vic Mignogna.
In 2023, Obito was ranked as the 11th most popular character in the results of the Naruto Worldwide Character Popularity Vote.