Naruto's SADDEST Backstories RANKED and EXPLAINED!

my mans has coverd so much naruto he is now forced to start ranking trauma lmao

kakashi lost his father, his friend, killed his team mate, lost his sensei, his subordinate killed his clan, and his student turned evil. He still stayed loyal to the leaf. He really was the obiwan kenobi of naruto

Forget Power Scaling. Embrace Trauma Scaling

We did it boys. We powerscaled trauma

I think Kushina deserves a spot here too: her village destroyed, her parents killed, bullied all her youth, forced to become a jinchuuriki that will cause her more troubles… she knows Minato will die too and her son would grow as an orphan and a jinchuuriki

Karin should've at least gotten an honorable mention because of the horrific shit her & her mother went through before meeting Orochimaru.

i wanted karin on this list man, that lady didn't really witness like death at a young stage, but she was forcefully bitten by shinobi countless times without her consent or approval, and like although it was never directly mentioned, bite marks can be seen on Karin’s inner-thigh and breasts, indicating that she had to strip naked for shinobi to bite her, and that too in her private areas, so its kinda almost implied that there could be sexual assault/child abuse at a young age, which i think is pretty traumatising and sad. she lost her mom to the same thing too, pretty tragic

Ranking and explaining the best outfits would be a banger

Karin needed to be on this list! She lost her mom because her charka got sucked out of her. Was forced to do the same thing with SA occurring. Then got “saved” by orchimaru basically being manipulated by him to do his bidding. Then the one person who saves her Sasuke pretty much can’t stand her and also uses her to fit her needs. Also the way she acts towards him very flirty and obsessive is also common for victims of SA. Lastly she had to help Sakura the wife of the man she loved give birth to their child and basically give up on the one person who saved her so he could be happy. It would have been better had she at least ended up with some romantic partner at the end and maybe had a family of her own but nope. But yeah while she isn’t my favorite character I believe her backstory and current story is very sad and one of the saddest ones in Naruto.

Jiraya's life was terrible, he never got the girl of his dreams, he never achieved most of the things he wanted, was ridiculed because he was never as good as his teammates and traveled the world drowning his sadness and sorrows with liquor and women. He watched his students die and suffer from atrocities caused by war and atrocities caused by the perception or the concept of the "ninja way", got murdered by his student and was robbed from witnessing Naruto become a Hokage, who was literally his only family and companion. What I loved about Jiraya is that he never stopped smiling and he never stopped showing compassion to those who're less fortunate than him, even though he's not the strongest but Jiraya is the most goated character. He was joyful in spirit and him and Naruto were truly blessed.

I feel like Sai should've been an honorabke mention here. He was forced into a life of killing from an extremely young age. He was forced to kill his first ever real friend, and then ditched practically all his emotions which he had to learn about through team 7. Sure his life becomes substantially hetter, but his backstory is pretty brutal.

villains: exist naruto: "you're literally me fr fr"

I feel like Madara should have gotten an honorable mention here. Dude grew up what may be the most terrible and cruel era of history when 6 years old childrens were sent to war. He lost like 4 siblings and vowed to protect Izuna who in the end still got killed. His entire clan turned against him when all he wanted was to protect them ( decades later, the future Madara predicted came to pass ). The guy dedicated his whole life to create a world a peace for everyone so suffering would just cease to exist... And he finally realized it, turns out he didn't save humanity but doomed it to became a space alien's army of zombie.

"That's rough, buddy." - Zuko

You know? I'm not a fan of Itachi, but whatever, let him shine. However, I was expecting to see Karin in this list. I would've placed Karin at the forefront, or even swapped her with Konan (though I love Konan, we're discussing the worst backstories). Karin's backstory is incredibly tragic because she and her mother were never treated as humans; they were seen merely as tools. From a young age, Karin was exploited for her unique healing abilities, forced to endure unimaginable conditions to heal others. This exploitation involved severe physical and emotional abuse, highlighting the violation of her dignity and humanity. Moreover, Karin was kept barely alive, living in a state of constant torment and pain, which is a form of continuous torture. In the end, not even her mother could resist that much pain. When Orochimaru appeared to rescue her, it was not out of compassion but for his own sinister purposes. He subjected her to the same kind of abuse, using her as a test subject in his cruel experiments. The misery she must have felt during these times is beyond comprehension, as she was reduced to nothing more than a pawn in his quest for power. Moreover, even though she accepted Orochimaru's offer, for years, Karin remained trapped in this nightmarish existence, a tool for Orochimaru's experiments, used and discarded whenever he saw fit. He literally promised her:"If you come with me I promise that nobody will touch you again". Then she is shown once again bitten ALL over her body. Her life took a further tragic turn with the arrival of Sasuke. And this just breaks my heart. Sasuke's involvement marked the worst part of her story. Despite his often cold and abusive behavior, Karin falls for him and is pretty much undoubtedly that she developes later on something like Stockholm syndrome towards him, forming a psychological attachment to her abuser. This attachment was a coping mechanism, a tragic response to her prolonged suffering and lack of autonomy. Karin's psychological manipulation and emotional trauma were profound, and she never received any closure for that matter. Which of you ask me... that's worse than in other cases. Her sense of self-worth was so eroded that she continued to serve others without question. To add insult to injury, in Boruto she still works for Orochimaru, she never get over her Sasuke crush, she doesn't get married or falls in love again and she was later made to assist Sakura in giving birth to Sarada. This task, which she was depicted as being fine to perform, underscores how deeply ingrained her sense of servitude had become. Despite all her suffering, she was still expected to put others' needs before her own, highlighting the ongoing tragedy of her existence. Karin's story is a profound example of prolonged abuse and the complex dynamics of trauma and survival. Her life is a testament to the resilience of the human spirit, but also a stark reminder of the deep scars left by continuous exploitation and abuse. Throughout her journey, Karin never received the recognition or care she deserved, inste continually us he was discarded by In the end, Karin's story is not just about her suffering but also about the strength she demonstrated in surviving such a harsh life. Her ability to endure and continue helping others, despite the relentless hardships, speaks volumes about her character.

Flashback no Jutsu and Talk no Jutsu are the Strongest Jutsus in all of Naruto

Kimimaro should've definitely been on the list. Born into an insane blood thirsty clan (Kaguya clan), be caged by them like an animal, forced by them to kill blood mist ninja and ultimately being forced to watch his clan be exterminated. Now left all alone and with no one to turn to, is found by Orochimaru of all people. Orochimaru then indoctrinates him for years into becoming his new vessel. All he cared for now was to become Orochimaru's new host body and he doesn't even achieve that because he becomes terminally ill. His last moments were spent fighting in order to further Orochimaru's goals. He had no one who truly loved him and all he knew was violence and death.

Imagine someone asking Kakashi, "Without that Sharingan, what are you?" Kakashi: The Son of the White Fang.

Reminder to the rage commenters: this is a ranking of the saddest backstories, not the backstories that end up having the greatest impact on the story of the franchise.

I feel like a lot was left on the table when speaking on Sasukes situation in Konaha. "Nothing really happened to Sasuke until killing Itachi, he had a solid support system" I'd imagine if Sasuke ACTUALLY had a solid support system we wouldnt have gotten the route we did. Theres the objectification and pressure of being "The last Uchiha" that I'd imagine would make someone feel less of a person, more of this "rare item", and this constant weight and pressure of having to deliver results. This happens during the chunin exams and shown in flashbacks from Narutos and Sasuke pre-genin sparring session, that a lot of the village saw him more as "The last Uchiha child" and less of "Sasuke". Naruto (as dumb as it may be) had minimal expectations put on him, so anything above failure was a "miricle". He garnered help, sympathy, support. I BELIEVE, if Sasuke were to have failed, he wouldve been seen more as "defective goods" and a let down. And lets be honest here, the "support" he got from his friends was less of a solution and/or speaking to his situation. and more of (subjective sure) toxic positivity in the sense of "Hey, but you have friends! Right?" No talking about how the entire village segregated your clan, how that clan got massacred, how your now an orphan, how knowing your brother who you loved and you THOUGH loved you, did that, and how that effects you and your trust issues. God knows how Sasuke wouldve turned out if he had an Iruka. 😩