8 Years On, Naruto’s Most Baffling Hokage Death Still Defies Explanation

Look, Naruto is a juggernaut. It owns a whole era of anime and manga. But even with a series that iconic, some choices still do not sit right with fans, even eight years later. Case in point: the way Masashi Kishimoto handles the death of the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju.

The version the story gives us

Deaths in Naruto aren’t throwaway beats; they usually plug directly into the bigger narrative. That’s why Tobirama’s exit stings. On paper, he’s one of the strongest shinobi the series ever put on a battlefield. In the First Great Ninja War, he’s killed by the infamous brothers Kinkaku and Ginkaku, plus 18 other elite ninjas fighting alongside them. So, yes, twenty versus one. That’s a brutal mismatch... but this is Tobirama we’re talking about.

This is a guy feared for his ninjutsu and taijutsu, a technical mastermind who literally invented techniques that changed the entire ninja world. Given all that, the way he goes out feels oddly quick and under-explained for such a pivotal character. No sugarcoating it: for an event this important, Kishimoto doesn’t give it the weight it deserves.

Why that death doesn’t add up

Tobirama’s reputation in-universe is massive. He’s the Second Hokage, the brother of the First, and routinely framed as one of the strongest shinobi to ever do it, second only to Hashirama. And he’s not just strong; he’s a builder. He created signature and forbidden techniques that become the backbone of the series’ power system. Among the jutsu credited to him:

• Edo Tensei (Reanimation Jutsu) - A forbidden technique that brings the dead back to fight under the user’s control.
• Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God / Flying Raijin) - Space-time ninjutsu for instantaneous movement; the cornerstone of terrifying speed plays.
• Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Clone Jutsu) - Solid clones that massively expand a shinobi’s options mid-fight.
• Mugon (Bringer of Darkness) - A genjutsu that plunges opponents into total darkness, basically blinding them.
• Gojo Kibaku Fuda (Paper Bombs) - Tags that chain together for huge explosive power when linked.

Stack all that with his raw physical ability and speed, and you’ve got a walking problem set for any enemy squad. He’s also sharp as a knife. He reads people and systems terrifyingly well — the show frames him as someone who saw future dangers coming and moved pieces accordingly. That included steering the Uchiha into an isolated role, a tactical choice that’s still debated by fans because of everything it sets in motion. However you feel about the politics of that, it proves he wasn’t just a bruiser; he was a strategist.

So what happened out there?

The short version is: a 20-strong elite unit takes him down in wartime. That’s not impossible, but the story breezes past a moment that should have been a thunderclap. With Tobirama’s resume — as a fighter, an innovator, and a tactician — his death deserved a deeper look than the quick handoff we got. It reads like an event that needed more time on the page and more context on the battlefield.

Where I land (and where you might)

A better exploration of Tobirama’s last stand could have cleared up a lot of the confusion. As it stands, it feels like the series did him dirty. If you’re going to write one of the most influential ninjas in history off the board, show the math.

Do you think a more detailed version of that fight would fix the logic gap, or was this always going to feel off given how powerful Tobirama is built up to be? Tell me where you land.

FYI: Naruto and Naruto: Shippuden are streaming on Crunchyroll, Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video.