Throughout the world history of Naruto, there have been many dangerous and villainous shinobi, hell-bent on changing the world their own way.
One of the main themes of the Naruto story is the concept of the Cycle of Hatred – the constant cycle of war, death, and negative emotion that has existed since the dawn of time.
Many of these villains have their part to play in this, but perhaps none more notably than the legendary Hanzo of the Salamander.
We see Hanzo of the Salamander first in the back story of the legendary leader of the Akatsuki Pain (or Nagato). Hanzo is a villain whose battle prowess pushed the abilities of both the Legendary Sanin as well as Nagato to their absolute limits.
Hanzo is certainly a powerful shinobi, but with so little screen time it can be difficult to work out just how strong he really is. If you find yourself curious about the powers and abilities of this legendary ninja – you’ve come to the right place!
We’ve compiled a guide that will help you to understand the power level of Hanzo of the Salamander – we’ll be taking a look at his abilities, traits, and intelligence within a battle. We’ll also compare him to some other ninja to see where he ranks in the grand scheme of the Naruto Universe!
Before we take a look at his abilities, let’s understand a little of his history. Hanzo, or as he was much better known ‘Hanzo of the Salamander,’ was once the leader of the Village Hidden in the Rain – one of the more mysterious villages within Naruto.
Hanzo was a key player in the Second Shinobi World War, where he comes across the 3 Legendary Sannin and engages them in battle. This was one of the most formative battles for the trio, and Hanzo even gave them their name of the ‘Sannin.’
Later, Hanzo was also involved heavily in the Third Shinobi World War. Here we see him battling Nagato, Konan, and Yahiko.
It is here we see him most heavily impact the storyline because he kills Yahiko. This is one of the key moments in the creation of Pain – the alter-ego of Nagato – who went slightly insane after the death of his childhood friend.
Because of the eventual devastation that Pain would cause on the world, we can safely say that Hanzo was very influential in changing the course of history. With this in mind – just how powerful of a ninja was he? Let’s take a look at all of his abilities.
Abilities
Let’s first consider Hanzo in the most basic of terms, by looking at his prowess with the three fundamental disciplines of a shinobi.
Genjutsu
Genjutsu is the art of illusions and so far as we can tell, Hanzo shows no real aptitude for it. Ninja of his level are usually able to detect and dispel Genjutsu – this is a vital skill – so we can assume Hanzo at least had some skills in this area.
As well as this, we can assume that he probably had skill in basic Genjutsu – at least to a Genin or Chunin level. However we only get to see Hanzo in combat with skilled ninja, and there would be no point in him using such basic Genjutsu against them.
Taijutsu
It’s clear that Hanzo had some real skills in Taijutsu – the art of hand-to-hand combat. Hanzo wielded a unique weapon known as the kusarigama – which is a scythe-like weapon. This weapon became a staple for him, and he was able to fight in close quarters with it without much struggle.
It’s worth noting that the kusarigama was coated in poison – another staple of Hanzo’s arsenal – which made fighting him hand to hand even more damage.
It’s also worth noting that Hanzo had great prowess with the Body Flicker Technique – this is a way that ninjas are able to move extremely fast, almost to the point where they are teleporting. This means that Hanzo had great speed within a battle, making him difficult to pin down.
Ninjutsu
It’s hard to decide whether Hanzo is more skilled in Taijutsu or Ninjutsu. Hanzo was a documented specialist in Ninjutsu, having abilities with both seals and summoning.
We see him merging explosive tags (a classic ninja tool) with his affinity for fire-based Jutsu to create immense explosions. This shows his prowess in Ninjutsu, as well as his creativity within the battle.
Specific Abilities
Now that we’ve gone through the basics, let’s take a look at some of Hanzo’s more specialized powers. As a legendary ninja, he has a few things that are totally unique to him, which caused his name to gain popularity and fear over the years.
Summoning Technique
Hanzo has one of the most unique examples of summoning, able to call forth a gigantic Salamander. This is one of the main reasons for his name ‘Hanzo of the Salamander.’
The Salamander he is able to summon is called Ibuse – a gigantic creature that Hanzo is able to ride on top of.
Ibuse has abilities in poison – being able to breathe a deadly gas whenever he chooses. The poison paralyzes anyone unfortunate to breathe it in, meaning that Hanzo could then do as he pleased.
Ibuse also has impressive mobility, being able to move fast as well as being able to tunnel beneath the earth.
Body Modification – Poison Sac
This is one of the most unique aspects of Hanzo. As a younger ninja, he implanted a poisonous venom sack within his body.
This venom sack comes from a black salamander – another reason why he is named as he is. It was placed in his abdomen, and it caused great damage to his body – making him toxic.
This toxicity means that his breath alone can kill other ninjas, causing him to wear a mask to make sure that he doesn’t harm others unless he wants to. Without an antidote, the poison can be extremely dangerous; causing both paralysis and death.
Intelligence In Battle
Hanzo is shown to be a crafty veteran within a battle, often making lighting-fast decisions and adjustments that cause him to win the upper hand. It’s also worth noting that Hanzo is a shinobi who likes to think ahead – we can see this with his use of poison to be a determining factor in any battle that he takes part in.
Without antidote or prior knowledge, many shinobi will likely not have the resources to defeat his unique abilities in battle.
How Does Hanzo Look Compared To Other Ninja?
Now that we’ve taken a look at all of his unique abilities, we can start to consider how strong Hanzo of the Salamander really is. Just how well does he stack up against other shinobi in the Naruto Universe?
Let’s first take a look at the battles he did actually fight, starting with his clash against the 3 Legendary Sannin. Hanzo was able to go toe-to-toe with Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Tsunade at the same time – this is one of the biggest indications of his power level.
The Sannin are legendary Ninja who is extremely influential in the world of Naruto – with Orochimaru becoming an Akatsuki member and Tsunade becoming Hokage of the Hidden Leaf Village.
The battle between them shows ups that Hanzo exists within the upper rankings on Ninja within Naruto. That said – how does he compare to some of the most overpowered ninjas in the world?
Firstly we need to consider how Hanzo meets his end. After murdering Yahiko, he forced Nagato to go insane and defeat him. It wasn’t difficult for Nagato in the end, which shows the difference in power between Hanzo, and a ninja who has a very powerful ability such as the Rinnegan.
I think we can safely agree that Hanzo doesn’t stack up against the most powerful ninja in the world. If Nagato was able to defeat him, then it’s easy to imagine how he’d do against Sasuke, Naruto, Madara, Obito, and some of the other more overpowered shinobi that exist.
Hanzo’s strength mostly comes as a result of his unique Jutsu, and the element of surprise. Verses ninja with inherent gifts such as the Rinnegan or Sharingan, he might have a lot more difficult of a time getting his poison to work on them.
Final Thoughts
Overall, we would probably have to rank Hanzo below the most powerful in the Naruto Universe – but that’s not to say he’s a weak character. In his prime, Hanzo was certainly in the upper rankings – somewhere around the ability of a Kage in his abilities.
Because of his extreme body modifications, as well as his skill in poisoning, he would likely be a difficult battle for any ninja who comes across him.
However, in some ways, Hanzo is a one-trick ninja. Once the difficulty of his poison is overcome, it is very feasible that he doesn’t have much else left to defend himself with. Hanzo is a very powerful ninja, but not quite up to the level of Naruto, Sasuke, and others.
We hope that this article has helped you understand the power level of Hanzo of the Salamander, as well as where he ranks within the wider story of Naruto and Naruto: Shippuden.
We personally think Hanzo is an awesome character who is somewhat overrated – a character who changed the course of history forever!
Frequently Asked Questions
What Is A Summoning Technique?
A summoning Technique is a specialized use of Ninjutsu that we sometimes see in Naruto. It is the ability to summon great mythical creatures from various places in the world that can help their ninja in battle. Some of the most common summonses we see are frogs, eagles, snakes, and monkeys.
The ability to summon relies on a contract that the ninja must sign with their animal – causing a bond between the two. We see Hanzo summoning a Salamander, which is the only time we see it in the series.
So far as we can tell, Hanzo is the only ninja in the Naruto Universe who has a contract with a Salamander.
