The Sound Village was founded by Orochimaru near the beginning of the Naruto series. It was an unlikely coalition of vagrants, slaves, and those who were genuinely attracted to the power at the fallen Sannin's disposal. Perhaps most importantly, its denizens were exclusively antagonists to the heroes.
Considering how seldom that its members fought each other, their power scaling may not be as evident as that of the Konoha 11. But it is still possible to rank the different shinobi to some extent.
10 Tayuya's Summonings Are Strong But Have Serious Limitations
Tayuya was a member of the Sound Four and an opponent of Shikamaru. Through blowing into her flute, she was able to summon three towering giants to do her bidding. They possessed enormous physical strength, working together in perfect tandem to bring their enemies to their knees.
However, her jutsu has many unfortunate limitations. She must actively play her flute in order for her minions to obey her, and they have a limited range that one might easily exploit. This provides a number of intelligent ways to overpower her - if one is careful.
9 Kidomaru Balances Versatility With Agility
Kidomaru was a skilled summoner and versatile shinobi. He was able to invoke a massive spider (that could spawn many smaller minions) and shoot from a bow that was much akin to hardened resin.
His natural agility made him a particularly difficult opponent since he could dart between refuges without being visibly winded. However, the ninja is completely incompetent at defending himself in close quarters - a fact that Neji would exploit in order to defeat him before succumbing to his wounds.
8 Dosu's Sound Gauntlets Are Difficult To Avoid, But He Has Low Durability & Speed
Dosu was able to produce a vibration frequency from his gauntlet that assailed the senses of its victim. It was able to curve in an arc, sundering his opponents' earlobes and disorienting them for further attack. Given his jutsu's navigation and intangibility, he was one of the deadliest participants of the Chunin Exam.
In spite of Dosu's natural talents, he is a noticeably sloppy warrior. Not only was Rock Lee able to dominate him at close range, but he also could not survive a single one of Gaara's attacks. His greatest feat of agility was through avoiding Choji's human boulder by casually perambulating around it - a feat that most ninja could achieve with similar ease.
7 Jirobo Has Enormous Raw Strength & Durability
Jirobo wielded the most physical strength out of Orochimaru's henchmen, debatably barring Jugo. Through clasping his hands together, he was able to create an impervious dome that Shikamaru's team struggled to escape from.
Moreover, he is immensely durable, withstanding dozens of attacks from an augmented Choji using only the base state of the Curse Mark. However, his low speed and rudimentary arsenal are both factors that more intelligent foes can exploit against him.
6 Jugo Is A Juggernaut With Few Weaknesses
In his base form, Jugo is meek and docile. However, his augmented state unleashes a brutal creature that survived a direct throttling from the Fourth Raikage (a man whose strength was comparable to Tsunade).
It wasn't his only feat of resilience. During his battle against Konohamaru, he was able to survive having a kunai jammed through his face. Jugo possesses all of Jirobo's brawn, complimenting it with speed and a galling amount of resilience against those who would do him harm.
5 Suigetsu's Unique Physiology Gives Him A Distinct Advantage
Suigetsu is unique among Orochimaru's henchmen for his bodily composition. He is made entirely of water, rendering him resistant to physical attacks and an excellent taijutsu user (on account of his skill with the Executioner's Blade).
In spite of this, it isn't impossible to defeat him. He is still vulnerable to ninjutsu, proven through how warily he navigated Killer Bee's tailed beast bomb during Sasuke's encounter against him. Moreover, he has never demonstrated invulnerability to genjutsu, providing another means by which to defeat the otherwise intangible shinobi.
4 Kimimaro Possessed High Durability & An Amazing Kekkei Genkai
Despite having a limited amount of narrative attention, Kimimaro was able to fight a dizzying number of heroes in a short span of time. Through a Kekkei Genkai that allowed him to produce hardened bones from his body, he thwarted Naruto, Rock Lee, and even Gaara - all while still recovering from a grievous illness.
He was skilled enough to obliterate an army of shadow clones without being even remotely challenged and was the first character of the anime to survive a full-bodied sand coffin. This speaks to his staggering resilience, one that challenges even Jugo's.
3 Orochimaru Has Years Of Experience & Dozens Of Forbidden Jutsu
Orochimaru was the leader of the Sound Village and a former member of the Leaf. He has mastered many forbidden jutsu that render him a treacherous and deadly opponent, including an invocation of the Manda, bodily distension, paralyzing poisons, and his intimate knowledge of the Edo Tensei.
The rogue's combat prowess allowed him to contend with Jiraiya and Tsunade simultaneously even after his arms were destroyed by Hiruzen Sarutobi. Considering that he was nearly able to defeat both of them anyway, this speaks to his astonishing skill as a ninja.
2 Kabuto Mastered Orochimaru's Power & More
Kabuto was one of the masterminds behind the Fourth Shinobi War. Through proximity to and study of his master, he learned the fallen Sannin's techniques and perfected them after his demise by Sasuke Uchiha.
By the time of his reckoning, he mastered the power of the Sound Four, was able to imitate Orochimaru's jutsu, wielded the healing properties of the Uzumaki clan, and even uncovered the secrets of snake sage jutsu (a power much akin to Naruto's own toad sage iteration). The composite of his power made him nearly unstoppable.
1 Sasuke's Battle With Naruto Shook The World To Its Foundations
As a former student of Orochimaru and having fought alongside the Sound Four, Sasuke is arguably the most underappreciated member of the Sound Village, though a member all the same. While he initially struggled to defeat Kabuto alongside Itachi, this was before his massive augmentation by Hagoromo and his acquisition of the rinnegan.
Moreover, after his brother pinpointed Kabuto's weakness, he could imitate him by using the Izanami, achieving a similarly decisive (albeit costly) victory. Between the Susanoo, Amaterasu, and chidori, the avenging Uchiha wields vastly greater destructive and defensive potential than the rest of the Sound Village put together.
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