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During the Naruto and Naruto Shippuden series, the main story always revolves around both Naruto and Sasuke. The relationship between these two is extremely well-done, and there is a lot to their story.  The most interesting thing about their story is that both characters are extremely similar to each other.

Still, they don’t see eye to eye to everything. It is always interesting to see their differences and how their clashes are not only physical, but they are also fighting to protect how they view things.

The First Clash

Sasuke vs Naruto

Let’s talk about their powers during this fight, and let’s start with Naruto:

  • Jutsus: Naruto at this time didn’t have a lot in his arsenal, so through the fight, we see him use his Rasengan and shadow close Jutsu.
  • Enhanced regeneration, strength, and chakra: While not having full control of the nine tails, he was able to use its chakra to help him in combat.

Sasuke:

  • Jutsus: Sasuke has a lot more jutsus in his arsenal, and he uses a lot of fire-style jutsus during this fight. In this fight, Sasuke also awakens his three tomoe Sharingan, giving him the ability to predict every movement from his opponents, and also has Chidori.
  • Cursed Seal: During this fight, Sasuke has the cursed seal from Orochimaru, which gives him increased strength, and it’s thanks to this that he can keep up with Naruto.

Naruto and Sasuke both grew without a family, and loneliness is something they shared. As a kid, Sasuke aimed to become an insanely strong ninja so that he could avenge his clan and kill his brother. And since losing his family, he shut off from everyone, as he had a fear of being betrayed again.

Naruto acted; differently, he aimed to become Hokage, but as a kid, all he wanted was to be noticed, so he acted out so that people would give him attention. As kids, Naruto and Sasuke already had a bit of a rivalry, as Naruto saw how talented Sasuke was, and wanted to be like him.

While they didn’t exactly like each other, their loneliness is something that made them understand each other. Both of them ended up in the same team, and their rivalry made them get stronger together. Sasuke, however, started seeing team 7 as his family and decided to distance himself once again to focus on his objective.

While taking on all kinds of missions together, Sasuke started to notice how strong Naruto was getting and started resenting him from that. He started wondering how a good for nothing could get so strong while he, a genius, wasn’t as strong.

So in his search for strength, Sasuke decided to abandon his village and went to seek help from a rogue Ninja called Orochimaru, who once gave him a cursed seal mark.

This led the leaf village to send out a rescue team after Sasuke. Naruto was a part of this team. After battling against Orochimaru’s lackeys, Naruto finally caught up to Sasuke. Their first big battle took place in a place called The Valley Of The End.

Naruto begged Sasuke to return to the village, but Sasuke couldn’t be persuaded by words. So there was no other option than to fight. Both of them were still kids during that fight, and while Naruto planned on defeating Sasuke and dragging him back to the village, but that wouldn’t solve anything.

That battle made Naruto realize that he didn’t know how to save Sasuke. During it, Sasuke opened up about a lot of things to Naruto and even ended up admitting that he was his best friend. Naruto thought he understood Sasuke’s loneliness, but Naruto never lost a loved one, unlike him.

He was alone from the beginning, so he didn’t understand loss. While both of them were evenly matched during their battle, Sasuke ended up winning. Naruto was devasted by not being able to save his friend, but that didn’t make him lose any motivation.

He now has a new objective, and he knows that he must learn more about life so that he can save Sasuke. Naruto once said, how can someone who can’t save a friend become the Hokage?

The Second Clash

Sasuke vs Naruto

After a couple of years, both of them learned new things, and here are their strengths at the time.

Naruto

  • Jutsus: At this point, Naruto was already an expert at using sage power, created the wind-style Rasengan, and continues using his good old shadow clones.

Sasuke

  • Jutsus: Sasuke awakened his mangekyou Sharingan, but at this point, he lost his vision. So even though he knew how to use the Susanoo and Amaterasu, he was not able to do so during this fight.

After facing defeat, Naruto went out to train with Jiraiya, as he realized that he had to get much stronger. So after almost three years, Naruto returns to the village, and he is now ready to take on new missions.

In Shippuden, Naruto learns a lot about life, as he now learns what it feels like to lose people who he considered family. And that person was his master, Jiraiya, who was a father figure to Naruto. His death changed him and made him more mature, as he learned that death is a part of the ninja world.

And this was something that helped Naruto understand how Sasuke felt, as he now knows what it feels like to lose a loved one. Naruto grew a lot in Shippuden, he finally got the chance to meet his parents, and he began to understand what love feels like.

And while he grew up and matured, Sasuke was on a journey that led him to darkness. He was blinded by hate and revenge, and he found no peace after finally being able to kill his brother, Itachi. Sasuke was manipulated and started losing himself more and more.

Naruto and Sasuke clashed once again after Sasuke killed Danzo, and while Naruto had the upper hand, he was way more grown-up in this battle. He already understood Sasuke, and he knows why Sasuke is on that path, but he still refuses to give up on him because he is his friend after all.

This was a short fight, as Sasuke was weakened after his fight with Danzo and lost his sight, and Naruto ended up being poisoned. However, this wasn’t their last fight.

The Final Clash

Sasuke vs Naruto

In this fight, both of them were at the peak of their strength, which is what their abilities were at the time.

Naruto

Naruto now had finally learned how to use the nine tails chakra, which gave him an amazing boost in chakra, strength, speed, and regeneration. He also received power from the Sage of Six Paths, which gave him the ability to heal others and a truth-seeking orb that he can manipulate and use to attack or defend.

He also has a bit of chakra from every tailed beast, giving him even more power. He can use sage energy while also using the nine tails chakra. He still uses the same jutsus as always, shadow clone, and every type of Rasengan.

Sasuke

Sasuke now has the eternal mangekyou Sharingan and the Rinne Sharingan that he was able to attain when given power from the Sage of Six Paths. So he can now absorb chakra and jutsus and control the gravitational pull, allowing him to push or pull things and people.

He captured and infused every tailed beast into his perfect Susanoo, making him extremely powerful. He uses all types of fire-style jutsus and his Chidori.

During the 5th great ninja war, both Naruto and Sasuke went through more experiences that shaped them. Naruto learned how to control the nine tails chakra and hugely impacted the war. And during that, he ended up meeting with Itachi, who was reanimated by Kabuto.

This meeting was extremely important, as Itachi told Naruto to never try to resolve everything alone. He should never forget his friends. Later on, Sasuke also ended up crossing paths with Itachi. After both of them worked together to stop Kabuto, they were finally able to talk.

Itachi shows Sasuke what happened the day he massacred the Uchiha clan. In his last moments, instead of asking Sasuke to return to Konoha, he simply tells him that he will always love him, no matter what. Sasuke is lost after that, as he discovers that he has chased after a lie his whole life.

However, he ends up deciding to protect the village that his brother gave his life for and ends up joining Naruto and everyone else on the battlefield. After all those years, they are finally back together and fighting side by side.

However, after ending the war, Sasuke finally reveals his true intentions and says he plans to kill the leader of every nation and start a revolution. Naruto disagrees with him and won’t let him do that, so once again, they are going to fight, and they head for the same place where they first battled, The Valley Of The End.

However, in this fight, everything is different. It is a battle of ideology, as Sasuke is ready to forget his past and take care of everything by himself. At the same time, Naruto knows that the past is what made him who he is today and that you can’t do anything alone.

This battle is emotional, as it is the culmination of the whole anime. Both of them are evenly matched once again, but there was no winner or loser this time. After having a last classic clash of a Rasengan and Chidori, both of them find themselves on the ground and missing their dominant arm.

And while unconscious, Sasuke can see Naruto’s memories, and he sees everything that he went through and how much he suffered. One of the memories he ends up seeing is Naruto’s talk with Itachi.

Sasuke is devastated as he finally begins to see he was mistaken. He was always alone, and he thought nobody cared for him. Still, he realizes that Naruto never once saw him as an enemy, but always as a friend. Both of them finally wake up, and they talk because they are unable to fight.

Sasuke finally acknowledges Naruto, and in a heartwarming moment, says that he lost. So after everything, Naruto was finally able to get his friend back.

Sasuke and Naruto

 

Naruto and Sasuke’s story is beautiful. As a long-time fan of the anime, I felt extremely attached to both characters. It was always heartbreaking to see both of them fighting, but you can easily understand both sides. Naruto chose to surround himself with people who loved him and found strength in that.

While Sasuke thought that those bonds would make him weaker, he chose to distance himself and tried to solve everything alone. Many fans resent Sasuke for everything he did and argue that he was stupid. And they’re not wrong.

He was stupid; after all, he was just a kid. He was alone and had to deal with the fact that he lost his whole clan by himself. However, I think he had an amazing redemption arc, and it was way more interesting to see him fail and make wrong decisions than to have him all of a sudden have a change of heart.

Naruto and Sasuke are a side of the same coin. Even Naruto admits that he could be in Sasuke’s place if things went differently. Both of them are extremely similar to each other, and it is really interesting to see just how different they view things.

When they fought, it was never without meaning, it wasn’t only for the sake of it, but both of them fought to defend what they thought was right. So for me, that was what made the clash between those two so interesting.

Resolution

Sasuke vs Naruto

In the end, both of them finally understood each other. Sasuke finds out that the life of a shinobi is one filled with losses, and being able to push forward is what makes them ninjas. So instead of always fighting against each other, they decided to fight together.

Instead of inflicting pain on each other, they know they share their pain. In the end, their clash was never about seeing who was the strongest or even who was right or wrong. Not once did Naruto think Sasuke was wrong; he only disagreed with him.

As Naruto said, the fight wasn’t about winning or losing. It was about punching a sulking friend so that he could snap out of it. So not even once did Naruto see Sasuke as an enemy; he only wanted to bring back his friend. In the end, Naruto and Sasuke finally became friends again.

They now will work together in building a better world, one where people won’t have to go through what they did. Naruto is my favorite anime of all time, as I grew up along with the characters. So if you’re into anime and never watched Naruto, then what are you waiting for? Go watch it!

Frequently Asked Questions

Question: Who is stronger, Naruto or Sasuke?

Answer: Except for their final battle, Naruto has always been stronger than Sasuke. The first time they fought, Naruto lost because he knew that beating Sasuke right there wouldn’t save him.
Later on, when they fought under the bridge, Naruto also had the upper hand, but since Obito was there, they didn’t get a chance to properly fight. Only in their final battle were Sasuke and Naruto on equal grounds. But as of now, if they were to fight again, Naruto would win.

Question: Was Naruto Serious in Their Last Fight?

Answer: Yes, Naruto had to use every ounce of his power to be able to keep up with Sasuke because if he let down his guard for a second, Sasuke would kill him.
Both of them were equal in their last fight, so it was a constant struggle to see who would come out as the winner. But since they were both equally powerful, the battle ended up being a draw, with both of them losing their dominant arm.

Question: Will They Ever Have Their Friendly Match?

Answer: I, for one, would love to see them fight again, but as friends this time, but sadly, I don’t think that’s going to happen. It would be amazing to see they fight now that they’re both adults and probably have even more experience in fighting.

Question: Are Sasuke and Naruto the strongest characters?

Answer: If we’re only talking about the Naruto anime, then yes, both of them are on a completely different power level than anybody else.
Sasuke has both an eternal mangekyou Sharingan, and the Rinne Sharingan. Naruto not only has Kurama inside of him but also a bit of every other tailed beast’s chakra. He can also use the sage mode.

If you’re interested in only watching their fights, don’t worry, you can watch the whole series on Crunchyroll, and here are the episodes when they fight.

  • Naruto – The Valley of The End Fight – Episode 128 – 135 or chapter 232 in the manga.
  • Naruto Shippuden – Bridge Battle – Episode 215 or chapter 485 in the manga.
  • Naruto Shippuden- The Final Battle – Episode 476 – 478 or chapter 694 in the manga.