With so many powerful offensive jutsu in the world of Naruto, it’s crucial that there also be jutsu strong enough to defend against them. With that in mind, we’ll be looking at the best defensive jutsu in Naruto.
Some of these attacks allow the user to create nearly impenetrable shields or armor – Gaara’s sand armor is a strong example of that sort of defense. Others are a little more unorthodox – the Mangekyo technique Kamui lets Obito Uchiha warp himself, weapons, and opponents into another dimension, which often helps him avoid physical attacks.
All of these techniques are great at keeping their users safe from harm, but not all of them are created equal.
9. Izanagi
When a Sharingan user activates Izanagi, they gain temporary control over reality. This can be used for a variety of purposes, but for now we’ll focus on defense. If a user is attacked, they can eliminate the reality in which they were hurt or lost their lives. It can even be programmed to do so in advance – that’s how Madara programmed himself to come back to life after he was laid to rest.
Though powerful, the technique has a serious drawback: in exchange for using Izanagi, users will become blind in the eye that they used to activate it.
8. Preta Path
The Rinnegan has a wide range of impressive abilities. One of them is the Preta Path, one of the Six Paths. The Preta Path absorbs chakra and chakra-based techniques from a target. It accomplishes this by encasing the opponent in a barrier. Pain uses this technique on Killer B, negating Killer B’s attacks.
7. Wood Release
Wood Release is a rare kekkai genkai that is best-known for being Hashirama’s signature technique. Due to human experimentation, Yamato can use it to – and so can Moegi, for some reason. Anyway, while the technique has a wide range of applications, some are defensive. One example is Wood Release: Hōbi Technique, which creates a giant domelike shield with a dragon face that’s strong enough to withstand a Tailed Beast. There’s also the Wood Release: World of Trees Wall, which causes a massive wall of interlocking trees to grow from the ground and act as a shield. No matter what specific form it takes, the wood created by this technique is nearly impenetrable.
6. Flying Thunder God Technique
The Flying Thunder God Technique is Minato Namikaze’s signature move. While it isn’t a defensive technique in the traditional sense, it can be easily used for such purposes. By marking a location with a special seal, Minato can instantly teleport to that location whenever he wants. If he needs to protect himself from an oncoming attack, he can easily travel to a previously marked location, preventing the enemy from successfully landing a hit.
5. Gaara’s Sand Shield & Armor
Gaara is able to protect himself with a shield made out of sand, as well as a sand-based armor that sticks closely to his body. The sand shield activates automatically, protecting him whenever he’s in danger whether he notices the oncoming attack or not. Only exceptionally fast attacks can penetrate it, like Sasuke’s Chidori did during the Chuunin Exams. Because it functions independently of him, it doesn’t drain his chakra – but it can also cause serious damage to other people without him wanting it to. Over time, he does learn to control it more effectively – for example, he learns to use Magnet Release to mix it with metallic particles that strengthen it. Because it’s infused with his mother’s feelings, her will is occasionally able to change its shape.
He also has Sand Armor, which takes a ton of chakra to maintain and is used consciously. Using the two in conjunction provides a strong enough defense that it’s worthwhile.
4. Shinra Tensei
Shinra Tensei is another one of Pain’s Six Paths abilities – in this case, it’s part of the Deva Path. It can only be used by someone who can manipulate all five nature transformations. By creating an extraordinary force, it can repel anything that comes near the user. This can be used to deflect attacks, as well as to get rid of attacks that have already landed, such as the eternally burning flame of Ameterasu. It can also be used destructively – this is the move that Pain used to reduce Konoha to rubble.
3. Kamui
Obito’s mangekyo sharingan technique, Kamui, lets him transfer objects into another dimension. This includes other people’s weapons, other people, and himself. So, he can either use it to warp himself away from danger, or warp opponents away from him.
One drawback to this technique is that Obito can’t use it to its full potential – because he only has one Mangekyo, he can only use its short range version, while Kakashi can use its long range version. Kamui is best used with two Mangekyo, because that doubles its speed and efficacy, and lets the user manifest Susano-o and Kamui Shuriken.
2. Susano-o
Susano-o is an ability that only people with two Mangekyo Sharingan can pull off. The user creates a human-like avatar made of chakra, which surrounds their body and protects it from harm. Depending on who its level of development, it can look like a skeleton or a complete human – and it’s a different color depending on the user. The defense isn’t perfect – while the user is shielded from physical attacks, genjutsu and other similar abilities can still penetrate. It can also cause extreme pain and exhaustion, because the user is expending so much chakra to maintain it. That said, its capabilities are far more than just defensive – Susano-o can also fight on its users behalf.
1. Yata Mirror
The Yata Mirror is an ethereal shield attached to Itachi’s Susano-o. Infused with every form of nature release, it can negate any attack that’s thrown its way by transforming into various enegetic forms. Susano-o is already a nearly impenetrable defense, but with the Yata Mirror added on, there’s pretty much no hope of making a dent in it.