Naruto is perhaps one of the most successful anime there is. As the world of Japanese animation is getting bigger and better, every now and then a new anime makes its way to our screens. While the debate for the best anime might be a hot topic of contention among the masses, Naruto can surely be considered a worthy candidate. Not just the show but also individual characters from the show have carved a separate niche out for themselves. And recently, the Naruto fanbase picked their top 10 characters from the show.

We are no strangers to the legacy that Naruto left behind in the world of anime. Despite the fact that the anime came to an end nearly 9 years ago, it is still considered as one of the best there is. While the storyline for the show was incredible, the individual characters’ arcs were no less. We have witnessed how each character from the show has its own separate legacy.

On the occasion of its 20th anniversary, the series announced a poll to determine the top 10 characters from the show. The poll ran a few months from 17th December 2022 to 31st January 2023. The results of the poll surfaced online recently and the hierarchy of popularity might leave you surprised.

10) Hinata Hyuga

Hinata Hyuga landed herself in the 10th position on the list with almost 144,884 votes. Hinata is one of the most prominent characters in the show. She belongs to the Hyuga Clan. Later on in the show, she goes on to confess her love for Naruto. And eventually the duo went on to get married after the war.

9) Madara Uchiha

Following Hinata, we have Madara Uchiha, another incredible character from the show. Undeniably, Madara’s significance to the show is unmatched as he is one of the biggest antagonist from the show. He is the show’s best villain and the fanbase for him is huge. Madara garnered nearly 144, 947 votes during the popularity poll.

8) Sasuke Uchiha

On number 8, we have Sasuke Uchiha. Alongside Naruto Uzumaki and Sakura Haruno, Sasuke is the third member of team 007. He is amongst the most important characters from the show playing a significant part in the storyline as well. Sasuke had a total of 170,665 votes on the poll.

7) Sakumo Hatake

The 7th most popular character on the show according to the poll was Sakumo Hatake. While not much is known about Sakumo, he is still incredibly popular among the Naruto fanbase. He was a brief part of Kakashi’s backstory as a ninja who killed himself on failing to finish a mission. Owing to the character’s mysterious arc, fans have often wanted to know more about him resulting huge polls in the poll. Sakumo garnered 170,940 votes.

6) Naruto Uzumaki

As surprising as it sounds, despite being the lead character of the show, Naruto is not the most popular character. He is a fan favorite character and perhaps one of the greatest protagonist in the anime genre but not the most popular. According to the poll, Naruto is 6th on the popularity list with almost 182,911 votes.

5) Kakashi Hatake

Breaking in to the top 5 most popular characters of Naruto we have Kakashi Hatake. Kakashi is undeniably one of the most prominent characters in the anime. He trained a younger generation of Ninja’s, including Naruto and Sasuke. The famed shinobi surely has a special place in the heart of anime fans with almost 212,403 votes.

4) Shisui Uchiha

On the fourth position we have Shisui Uchiha, Itachi’s best friend. Shisui’s role in the anime is not a very huge one. During a flashback of the show, a major revelation of Shisui’s committing suicide is made. He hands over his remaining Sharingan over to his best friend. As surprising as it sounds, Shisui only serves as a plot twist. Despite his little contribution to the show, he landed himself in the fourth position on the popularity list with 279,062 votes.

3) Sakura

Taking the third place, we have Sakura, another prominent member of Team 7. Every anime fan can attest to the fact that Sakura is probably the most intriguing female character in the show. She enjoys a massive and loyal fan base around the world. Sakura gathered a total of 489,619 votes, which is more than that of Sasuke and Naruto combined.

2) Itachi Uchiha

The runners up on the list of the most popular characters in Naruto is Itachi Uchiha. He is Sasuke’s older brother in the show. However, Itachi as the second most popular character is not a surprise since a huge portion of the anime fanbase love him. His role as an antagonist and a kind person left the fans in awe. Itachi had a total of 505,014 votes.

1) Minato Kamikaze

Number one on the list is none other than Minato Kamikaze. The fourth Hokage of Konohagakure has always been extremely popular among the anime fans. The storyline did not feature much of Minato, and his days as a ninja were in mystery. However, despite that, Minato landed himself the first position winning the poll with a whooping 792,257.

These were the top 10 characters chosen by the fanbase, but what is your pick?

What are your favorite characters from the show? Comment down below.