The heroes of the Naruto universe have saved their villages (and in some instances, the entire shinobi world) on dozens of occasions. Their gallant clashes against the series' most villainous rogues serve as the highlights of the anime series, with many battles remaining memorable for years to come.
However, for every intrepid future-Hokage capable of saving the Allied Shinobi Forces from certain doom, there are also ninja who struggle to pull their own weight. As much as they strive to save their comrades and preserve their home, they have lost more battles than they've won.
10 Kiba Has Not Won A Single Victory By Himself
Kiba's most memorable fights are against Naruto and the Sakon/Ukon brothers in the original series. As adamantly as he tried, the hound ninja failed to defeat either opponent and only survived the latter encounter due to Kankuro's assistance.
Though he would prove a reasonably useful ally in the Fourth Shinobi War when destroying much of the Gedo Statue's created armies, he has never defeated a named opponent by himself. Consequently, his odds of fulfilling his ambition to become the next Hokage are bleak at best.
9 Shikamaru Forfeited His Match Against Temari & Was Almost Murdered By The Sound Four
Shikamaru has many battles under his belt to evince his skills as a shinobi, though his career isn't as illustrious as his new station as the Seventh's advisor might seem. He forfeited his match against Temari (thereby losing) and would have been killed by Tayuya if the Sand kunoichi did not intervene.
Additionally, he failed to save Asuma from the Akatsuki, proving that his inability extended into Shippuden. Shikamaru's only notable victory is against Hidan, luring him to a paper bomb trap and avenging his fallen sensei.
8 Kurenai Was Beaten At Her Own Game By Itachi
When Itachi and Kisame infiltrated the Leaf village, its Jonin were at the frontlines to stop them. Kurenai was Konoha's foremost expert on genjutsu and attempted to cast it on the Uchiha invader. However, her plan was foolhardy and bore disastrous results.
Itachi inverted her genjutsu, turning it against Kurenai and binding her into the bough of a tree. The kunoichi would retire shortly after on account of her pregnancy, denying her a chance to redeem herself in the eyes of her comrades.
7 Rock Lee Suffered Three Consecutive Defeats After A Single Shallow Victory
Though Rock Lee was introduced as a formidable taijutsu master, he seldom had any meaningful victories. The fledgling ninja may have defeated Sasuke and Naruto upon his introduction, but he was in turn humiliated by Dosu, Gaara, and Kimimaro — the next three opponents he faced.
Lee performed admirably against the latter but would have been skewered by his bone Kekkei Genkai if Gaara did not intervene. Even after Gaara harnessed the full power of his Tailed Beast, Kimimaro was only narrowly defeated. If the Green Beast had continued to fight Kimimaro alone, he would have inevitably died.
6 Hayate Gekko Was Cut Down In His Prime By Baki
Hayate Gekko overheard the conspiracy between the Sound and Sand villages to destroy the Leaf and attempted to report his findings to his superiors. Unfortunately, he was soon caught by Baki, resulting in a brief fight with the Sand ninja emerging victorious.
Though he was reanimated through the power of the Edo Tensei, Gekko would lose the first battle he fought in his unliving state and was promptly sealed. As menacing as his dizzying speed might seem, the proctor's failures only emphasized his absence of skill.
5 Tenten Was Broken By Temari
Tenten was notorious for her lack of battles fought, having only faced Temari in the Chunin Exams and the Gold/Silver brothers in the Fourth Shinobi War. The former resulted in a quick defeat, and the latter would've produced a similar result if not for the numerous allies that the weapon master had to assist her.
Her fight with Temari was so lopsided that she wasn't even able to land a single scratch on the kunoichi regardless of the arsenal she directed at her. It illustrated the terrifying potential of the Sand ninja's wind fan as well as the caliber of its attacks.
4 Iruka Is Far Less Powerful Than Standard Combat Shinobi
Iruka taught genin for a living and was the unlikely friend to Naruto Uzumaki. He saved the youth from being skewered by a ninja tool, even at the cost of his own health and safety.
Naruto fought on his mentor's behalf, using his newly mastered shadow clone jutsu to overwhelm the villain stalking him. Considering that Naruto accomplished as a child what his sensei could not as an adult (and because this was Iruka's only meaningful battle), Iruka's capacity to be a hero is contestable.
3 Onoki Lost Against Madara & Failed To Capture Deidara Or Kabuto
Despite being the Tsuchikage of the Stone village, much of Onoki's presence in the story is summarized with failure. He was unable to kill Sasuke during the battle at the Five Kage summit, neglected to capture Deidara or Kabuto during their attack on Naruto's location, and lost alongside the other world leaders when Madara was resurrected.
This was in spite of the fact that he wielded the particle style, a beam that could move as fast as light and obliterate anything caught in its path.
2 Anko Failed To Bring Down Orochimaru & Was Captured By Kabuto
Anko was a student of Orochimaru who mastered many of his snake-based jutsu. Despite this, her career outside of proctoring the Chunin Exam is defined by failure. She was powerless to detain her former sensei and was useless in the Fourth Shinobi War, spending its entirety as an unconscious hostage who Kabuto rambled to.
Considering the successes of Sasuke, Kimimaro, and many others, Anko is the least powerful of Orochimaru's students, as illustrated through what little she has to show for her tenure as a kunoichi.
1 Hinata Was Humiliated By Neji & Pain
Hinata was an ardent admirer of Naruto who aspired to share his qualities of perseverance and strength. Despite how she aggressively seeks to follow the example he set, her most important matches culminated with failure.
She failed to bring down Neji during the Chunin Exams and could only contend with Pain briefly during his attack on the Leaf before being overwhelmed and struck down. Fortunately, she nonetheless bought Naruto enough time to free himself, continuing the fight and saving all of Konoha through his heroism. Hinata's sacrifice would be the official beginning of their nascent romance.
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