You’ve seen the fan art. It’s everywhere. A cold-eyed Naruto Uzumaki, whiskers darkened, wearing that iconic high-collared black cloak adorned with embroidered red clouds. Sometimes he has a slashed forehead protector; other times, he’s rocking a Rinnegan he definitely shouldn't have. This concept, often dubbed Naruto of the Akatsuki, has become a permanent fixture of the anime community, despite the fact that it never actually happened in Masashi Kishimoto’s original manga. It's weird, right? We spent fifteen years watching a kid yell about becoming Hokage, yet a massive chunk of the fandom is obsessed with the idea of him joining the very terrorists who wanted to rip the Nine-Tails out of his gut.
Why?
Because the line between "Hero of the Leaf" and "World’s Greatest Threat" was always paper-thin. Naruto was an orphan. He was hated. He was a weapon of mass destruction in the body of a boy who just wanted some ramen and a high five. The "Naruto of the Akatsuki" trope isn't just edgy fan fiction; it's a reflection of the darkness baked into the series' foundation.
The Breaking Point: How Naruto Could Have Joined
The Akatsuki didn't just recruit based on power; they recruited based on pain and desertion. Almost every member, from Itachi Uchiha to Kisame Hoshigaki, turned their back on a system they felt had betrayed them. If you look at the early chapters of Naruto, specifically the Zabuza arc, the groundwork for a villain turn is already there. Naruto sees how shinobi are used as tools. He sees Haku die for a man who claims not to care about him.
Imagine a timeline where Iruka Umiya isn't there in the first episode. If Mizuki had successfully manipulated Naruto into stealing the Forbidden Scroll and then killed Iruka, the village wouldn't be a home anymore. It would be a cage. In this scenario, the Akatsuki—specifically someone like Itachi or Obito—wouldn't need to kidnap Naruto. They could simply offer him "purpose."
It’s a terrifying thought.
The Akatsuki’s goal was peace through pain. Naruto’s goal was peace through understanding. If you twist his optimism just a few degrees, you get a zealot. You get a version of Naruto who decides that if the world won't stop fighting, he'll force them to stop. This is essentially the philosophy of Pain (Nagato), and honestly, the two characters are two sides of the same coin. They both studied under Jiraiya. They both wanted to end the cycle of hatred. One chose diplomacy; the other chose Shinra Tensei.
Why This Specific AU Exploded on Social Media
Algorithms love a good "dark" redesign. If you browse TikTok or Pinterest today, you'll find thousands of edits featuring Naruto of the Akatsuki. It taps into the "Dark Naruto" trope that the series actually teased during the Waterfall of Truth arc. In that moment, Naruto had to confront his own hatred—the part of him that resented the villagers for how they treated him as a child.
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Fan creators took that one scene and ran a marathon with it.
They don't just change his clothes. They change his kit. In most versions of this alternate reality, Naruto doesn't use the friendly, orange-hued Kurama Chakra Mode. He uses the bubbling, corrosive red chakra of the early seasons. It’s more visceral. More dangerous. People love the aesthetic of the Akatsuki because it represents the peak of Naruto character design. The rings, the nail polish, the hats—it’s high-fashion villainy. Putting the series protagonist in that outfit is the ultimate visual subversion.
The Logic Problem: Would He Actually Fit?
Let’s get technical for a second. If Naruto of the Akatsuki were a real thing, the power scaling of the show would have broken instantly. The Akatsuki’s entire mission was the "Eye of the Moon" plan—capturing all Tailed Beasts to summon the Gedo Mazo.
If Naruto joins, they already have the Nine-Tails.
The story would end in about twelve episodes. Naruto and Sasuke (assuming Sasuke still goes to Orochimaru or joins the Akatsuki too) would essentially be an unstoppable duo. But there’s a nuance here that fans often overlook. The Akatsuki members generally hated each other. Kakuzu would try to sell Naruto’s head for a bounty. Deidara would find Naruto’s "art" (Shadow Clones) annoying. Hidan would try to sacrifice him to Jashin.
The "Naruto of the Akatsuki" we see in fan content is usually a leader figure, someone who takes over the organization. This stems from the idea that Naruto’s charisma is his greatest power. If he went evil, he wouldn't just be a foot soldier. He would be the kingpin. He’d probably convince Konan that his way is better than Nagato’s.
Examining the Real Source Materials
It is worth noting that we did get a glimpse of a "bad" Naruto in the movie Road to Ninja. Menma Uzumaki is essentially the closest thing to an official Naruto of the Akatsuki. He has black hair, wears a mask, and commands the Nine-Tailed Black Lion.
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He's cool. He's also terrifying.
Menma showed us that a Naruto without his moral compass is a literal nightmare. He destroyed Konoha with a single "Great Ring Ringing" (the dark version of a Rasenshuriken). This movie fueled the fire for the fan community. It proved that Kishimoto and the studio knew exactly how much the fans wanted to see a version of Naruto who didn't play by the rules.
The Psychological Appeal of the Fallen Hero
There is a psychological reason we gravitate toward these "what if" scenarios. We love seeing characters we know and trust deal with the temptation of power. We see it with Anakin Skywalker. We see it with "Evil Superman" in Injustice.
With Naruto, it feels more personal.
Most of us grew up with him. We saw him struggle. When someone creates a story about Naruto of the Akatsuki, they are exploring the "what if" of their own lives—what if I didn't choose the high road? What if I let my anger win? It’s a cathartic experience to see a character finally snap after years of being the "good guy."
What Most People Get Wrong About This Theory
A common mistake in these fan theories is making Naruto just a "quiet, edgy guy." That’s not Naruto. Even if he were a villain, he’d likely be a loud, boisterous, and terrifyingly charismatic leader. He wouldn't be Itachi. He’d be more like a dark version of a cult leader, using his "Talk no Jutsu" to convince people that the world is broken and only he can fix it.
The Akatsuki weren't just about being "evil." They were about a specific vision for the world. A Naruto who joins them would have to buy into that vision. He wouldn't just be a mercenary; he’d be a revolutionary.
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Actionable Takeaways for Fans of the Concept
If you’re looking to dive deeper into this specific corner of the fandom, or if you’re a creator looking to make your own Naruto of the Akatsuki content, here is how to keep it grounded in the series' reality:
- Focus on the "Why": Don't just give him the cloak because it looks cool. Establish a specific trauma. Did the village fail to protect someone he loved? Did the weight of being a Jinchuriki finally crush his spirit?
- Keep the Shadow Clones: A villain who can create a thousand versions of himself is a tactical nightmare. Imagine an Akatsuki raid where an entire army shows up, and they're all the same person.
- Explore the Rinnegan Connection: Since Naruto is an Uzumaki and a descendant of Asura, he has a much higher compatibility with the Rinnegan than almost anyone else. A Naruto with Nagato's eyes is a plausible, albeit terrifying, power-up.
- Check out "Road to Ninja": If you haven't watched it, do it. It’s the closest you’ll get to seeing this concept animated with a high budget.
- Look for "Dojutsu" Fanfics: Some of the most well-written versions of this story involve Naruto manifesting a unique eye technique or a "Corrupted" Sage Mode.
The Naruto of the Akatsuki trend isn't going anywhere. As long as there are fans who remember the pain of the boy in the swing, there will be stories about the man who decided to burn the swing down. It’s a testament to the depth of Kishimoto’s world-building that we are still, decades later, imagining new ways for his characters to fall from grace.
To really understand the impact, you have to look at the parallels between Naruto and the series' actual villains. Madara, Obito, and Sasuke all believed they were doing the right thing. In their eyes, they were the heroes of their own stories. A Naruto wearing the red clouds wouldn't see himself as a traitor. He would see himself as the only person brave enough to do what was necessary. That is what makes the concept truly haunting. It’s not that he changed; it’s that his desire to save the world became so distorted that he ended up destroying it instead.
If you’re analyzing the series for a video essay or a writing project, look at the "Cycle of Hatred" chapters. Pay close attention to the dialogue between Naruto and Nagato in the rubble of the Leaf Village. That conversation is the closest the series ever came to Naruto of the Akatsuki becoming a reality. Naruto almost gave in. He almost killed Nagato out of pure revenge. Had he done so, he would have stepped onto the path that leads straight to the Akatsuki's doorstep.
The brilliance of the character is that he didn't. But the fascination of the fandom is that we can't stop wondering what would have happened if he had.
The most effective way to engage with this trope today is to look for the "Menma" archetypes in modern shonen. You see echoes of this "Fallen Protagonist" energy in series like Jujutsu Kaisen or Attack on Titan. It’s a blueprint for the modern anti-hero, and Naruto Uzumaki—even in a hypothetical black cloak—remains the gold standard for that exploration. Whether he’s wearing a Hokage hat or a rogue headband, the core of the character remains: a boy who refused to be ignored by the world, no matter what it cost him.