18 Times Naruto Proved He Was Stronger Than Sasuke (2024)

Naruto Uzumaki is one of the strongest known characters in the Naruto series, along with Sasuke Uchiha. From a very young age, Naruto and Sasuke have competed against each other and when they were placed in the same ninja team, this competition grew into an even bigger rivalry.

Over the years, the two have rivaled each other and even fought against the other on several occasions. Having always been close in strength, the two have often topped one another and there have been many times when Naruto Uzumaki pulled ahead of Sasuke.

Updated on May 31, 2024, by Rei Penber: Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha are two of the fiercest ninjas in the Naruto series. They are also fierce rivals, and fans have seen them erupt into battles against each other on many occasions throughout the run of Naruto. Of course, Naruto and Sasuke have always been neck and neck. However, there have been instances in the story where Sasuke has held the advantage over Naruto, and similarly, instances where Naruto has held the advantage over him. The latter is a situation that is often overlooked by the fans, however, it is certainly prevalent throughout the series. While this list already goes over many instances where Naruto showcased his superiority, there are others that deserve a mention as well. With that, this list has now been updated.

23 In The Forest Of Death

Naruto Fought While Sasuke Froze

In the Forest of Death, Naruto and Sasuke reached a new level of strength. Especially when Orochimaru struck, Sasuke was frozen in fear, while Naruto Uzumaki jumped into battle and fought against the giant snake that attacked them. Naruto was, of course, knocked out of commission, however, Sasuke could do nothing but quiver in fear.

Credit to Sasuke, he was able to fight back against Orochimaru moments later with his Sharingan. However, had Naruto unleashed the power of the Nine-Tails that he did against Haku, he would have been head and shoulders above Sasuke. At this point in the story, Naruto had a higher peak than Sasuke, and that just goes to show that he was superior to him.

22 When Naruto Learned The Shadow Clone Technique

Naruto was deemed to be a failure in his Academy days. Sasuke was far stronger than him at this point in time, however, when Naruto learned the Multi-shadow Clone Technique, it was quite clear to see that Sasuke did not have it in him to match Naruto in combat. While Sasuke certainly had more grace and skill when it comes to ninja techniques, in terms of brute strength and overall power, Naruto was superior.

He could produce thousands upon thousands of clones at the time while Sasuke could not even tap into the power of the Sharingan. What's more, Naruto had quite a lot of chakra inside him so he could continuously keep fighting while Sasuke did not have enough to keep up with him. If, by any miracle, Sasuke managed to weaken Naruto a bit, his Nine Tails Chakra would start showing up and this would then make the battle even harder for his enemy. At this point, Naruto was certainly stronger. A competition between these two would have been interesting but Naruto would certainly have emerged on top.

21 When He Attacked And Tied Up Sasuke

While Naruto and Sasuke have had many great fights, they had one small scuffle where Naruto assaulted Sasuke and tied him up, and then proceeded to use a transformation jutsu to take his form and talk to Sakura. In this Naruto vs Sasuke fight, Naruto showed that he was smarter and stronger than Sasuke. The latter got completely outclassed by him and, not just defeated, but also tied up. While this isn't a significant battle, it still goes to show that Naruto had enough in him to plan this out and execute it to perfection. Undoubtedly, this goes to show that Naruto was, at the time, stronger than Sasuke.

20 Naruto Vs. Haku

The Land of Waves arc saw Naruto and Sasuke take on Haku all alone and as expected, the two were severely outclassed by him.

When Sasuke lost to Haku by using his body to shield Naruto, Naruto tapped into the power of the Nine-Tails and absolutely overpowered the shinobi. At that particular time, Naruto was far stronger than Sasuke and could even give Haku a run for his money.

19 Naruto Vs. Gaara

The Chunin Exams arc of Naruto saw several powerful ninjas assemble in Konohagakure, and Gaara was easily the strongest of the lot. As expected, Sasuke had his eyes on him and the two fought during the Chunin Exams.

While Sasuke did extremely well against Gaara, he wasn't able to defeat him. In the end, it was none other than Naruto who, using his clever strategies and the Nine-Tails chakra, was able to take on Gaara and defeat him in an all-out battle.

18 When He Learned The Rasengan

The Rasengan was taught to Naruto by Jiraiya, his mentor. At the same time, Sasuke learned to use the Chidori from Kakashi.

While both jutsu are powerful in their own right, when the two clashed on the rooftop, it was Naruto whose jutsu appeared to have done more damage. In fact, this frustrated Sasuke quite a bit and forced him to seek even greater power later on in the story.

17 When He Went Berserk

The Nine-Tails within Naruto Uzumaki wasn't always his friend. Whenever Naruto relied on its power, he was hurt considerably, or he hurt those around him. In some instances, the Tailed Beast succeeded in taking over his body and harming all those around him.

At the same time, however, it also granted Naruto tremendous power. When Naruto unlocked four tails for the first time, he was much stronger than Orochimaru and would've even given Sasuke a run for his money. In fact, even if Sasuke managed to push him into a corner, Naruto could still increase the number of tails and get even stronger. Without a doubt, when he lost control, Naruto was stronger than Sasuke initially in the story.

16 Naruto Vs. Pain

To protect Konohagakure and avenge Jiraiya, Naruto learned the usage of Sage Mode under f*ckasaku of Mount Myoboku. After quite a lot of harsh training, Naruto was able to master Sage Mode. Soon after, he clashed against Pain in Konohagakure and managed to defeat him.

At this point in time, Naruto was much stronger than Sasuke who, although had the Mangekyo Sharingan, had no idea about how to use its true powers. Sasuke simply lacked the chakra and strength to take him down.

15 Naruto Vs. Reanimated Kage

The Fourth Great Ninja War saw Naruto take the stage when the war had already begun but once he did, he made his presence known. Using his shadow clones, Naruto spread to every corner of the battlefield and fought the reanimated Kage.

He took down the Third Raikage and even defeated Mu, the Second Tsuchikage. Furthermore, he also stopped Madara's assault on the Shinobi Alliance with Wood Release and saved everyone. At this point, Sasuke's Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan wasn't ready and he was much weaker.

14 Naruto Fought Longer In The War

Naruto's contribution in the Fourth Great Ninja War was immense as he helped out across the battlefield to stop the Akatsuki from killing people. While Sasuke also joined the war, he did so quite late and was thus fresh.

Naruto, on the other hand, was fighting for days and had expended quite a lot more energy than Sasuke did. Despite everything, he was able to be equal to Sasuke and even get the better of him on occasions.

13 When Naruto Fought Obito

Naruto Uzumaki clashed against Obito during the 4th Great Ninja War. When Obito became the 10 Tails Jinchuriki, both Naruto and Sasuke combined their forces to fight against him. However, Naruto held a significant edge over Sasuke during this time. This was down to the fact that Naruto could utilize Senjutsu Chakra in order to hurt Obito.

Sasuke did not have access to this energy and had to, thus, rely on the Cursed Mark powers that Jugo supplied to him. Whereas Naruto was completely self-sufficient, Sasuke had to rely on someone else to be able to match the power of his rival. This is another indication of the fact that Naruto had already pulled ahead of Sasuke at that point in time.

Not only did Naruto fight against the Akatsuki and the reanimated Kage in the Fourth Great Ninja War but he also boosted the other shinobi.

Using Kurama's power, Naruto was able to share great amounts of chakra with people and make them stronger. This drained him quite a bit, however, he still put up a display just as good as Sasuke, which just goes to show that he was stronger than Sasuke.

11 When He Combined Kurama Chakra Mode And Sage Mode

Kurama Chakra Mode was one of Naruto's greatest powers in the story that he received in the Fourth Great Ninja War after befriending Kurama. Immediately after doing so, he gained enough power to overwhelm five Tailed Beasts at once, which is something Sasuke would surely have struggled with.

If that's not enough, Naruto also got even stronger by combining the power of Sage Mode with his Kurama Chakra Mode. Sasuke, on the other hand, didn't have any Senjutsu boost and had to rely on Jugo's Cursed Seal powers instead. Evidently, Naruto was stronger than Sasuke at this point in the story as well.

10 When He Unlocked Kurama's Full Power

Naruto Gained Incredible Tailed Beast Powers

Naruto Uzumaki progressed greatly in the Fourth Great Ninja War. However, there were many power-ups that he received, with each of them putting him on an entirely new level. While Naruto was already superior to Sasuke by the time he gained control over the nine tails chakra, he hit an entirely new level when he unlocked Kurama's full power.

When he did this, he was strong enough to fight against multiple Tailed Beasts at once, and even overpower Obito Uchiha in combat, and that was truly special.

9 When He Fought Back Against Kaguya

Naruto Performed Better Against Kaguya Than Sasuke

While both Naruto and Sasuke did well against Kaguya, Naruto fought her for longer, and he was also able to push her back, thanks to his usage of Boil Release in the midst of combat. Naruto was momentarily able to match her, and this was spectacular, especially on the back of all the fighting that he had already done.

At this point in the story, Naruto was surely on a level above Sasuke, and it was quite clear for everyone to see.

8 When He Held Back Against Sasuke

Naruto Didn't Go All Out Against Sasuke

During the fight between Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha, these two were neck and neck, however, one was actively trying to kill the other, while the other was trying his best to beat his friend and bring him back to his senses. Of course, Sasuke was going all out, but the same could not be said for Naruto Uzumaki. In many instances throughout the battle, Naruto said that he did not want to kill Sasuke, and that his intention was not to fight against him as he currently was.

This was a clear indication of the fact that Naruto could have exerted more power in battle, and potentially even finished him off quicker than usual. However, he was certainly not going all out right from the beginning. This is further amplified by the fact that Sasuke had a lot of help in battle.

7 When Sasuke Almost Died Vs Momoshiki

Sasuke Was Saved By Naruto Vs Momoshiki

Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki fought against Momoshiki in the Boruto series. They both did incredibly well, however, only one came close to death in the midst of battle and that was Sasuke. Momoshiki was able to use Lava Release to injure Sasuke greatly. Thankfully for him, Naruto Uzumaki saved him, and his healing chakra restored his damaged body parts as well as healed him.

Once again, Sasuke was playing a secondary role here, and Naruto was leading from the front. This is a clear indication of the fact that Naruto was, once again, stronger than Sasuke at this point in time, despite having half of his chakra drained from his body by Momoshiki. That is not to say that the difference between these two was massive. However, Naruto's showing was definitely better in the battle, which implies that he was superior to Sasuke, at least in this particular instance.

6 When He Received Hashirama's Prosthetic Arm

Naruto ended the Fourth Great Ninja War being much stronger than Sasuke as not only did Sasuke lose the power of the Tailed Beasts but Naruto also received the other half of Kurama, giving him even more strength and chakra.

What's more, Naruto also ended up receiving a prosthetic arm made of Hashirama's cells which naturally helped his chakra levels even further. Sasuke, on the other hand, chose to not take the prosthetic arm because he considered giving his arm up as atonement for his crimes against the village.

5 Naruto Vs.Sasuke With Half His Power

Naruto vs. Sasuke happened at the Valley of the End for the last time towards the end of the Naruto series.

While Sasuke had the power of the Rinnegan, along with nine Tailed Beasts that he had captured, Naruto had just half of Kurama within him. Despite that, he was able to keep up with Sasuke and even defeat him eventually, as evident from when Sasuke admitted to having lost to him in the end.

4 During The Last: Naruto The Movie

During the time of The Last: Naruto the Movie, Naruto Uzumaki was certainly stronger than Sasuke. These two had fought shortly before, towards the end of the Fourth Great Ninja War. After the war, Naruto received the second half of Kurama and this took his powers to an entirely different level.

Even without relying on his Six Paths Sage Mode, Naruto was able to defeat Toneri, which goes to show that he was strong enough to fight Otsutsuki-level threats without even tapping into his full power. He was even able to tank an attack that sliced the entire moon in half and not just counter it but also power through it and defeat his enemy. The same cannot be said for Sasuke at that time.