Sasuke is one of the strongest ninjas in Naruto, but that hasn’t stopped him from making any number of really bad decisions over the course of his life. So many of the issues he ends up with are due to his own mistakes, and for the most part, he’s been unable to admit to himself when he’s done something wrong.
Most of the time, everything would have been better for him if he had listened to his friends or mentor and hadn’t gotten into his own head about his feelings about his brother and about being as strong as he can be. There are so many instances when he himself has made his situation worse.
10 Not Being Around For Sarada
Sakura and Sasuke do get together, though it takes quite a long time over the course of the series. When viewers catch up with them in Boruto, they have a daughter named Sarada, who hasn’t seen her father since she was a small child. He hasn’t seen her in so long that when she runs away in order to meet him, he nearly kills her, thinking she’s an enemy. For a man who laments the loss of his family, he’s very bad at being a dad.
9 Deciding To Kill Orochimaru
Despite the fact that Orochimaru is the reason Sasuke is as powerful as he is, Sasuke eventually decides he’s learned enough from him and that he’s going to kill him for being too similar to Itachi in his quest for power. Unfortunately for Sasuke, he doesn’t realize that the fluids from Orochimaru’s body are toxic, and they leave him paralyzed. His recklessness and arrogance, which is usually the part of his personality that gets him in trouble, almost allows Orochimaru to take over his body.
8 Trying To Kill Naruto
This doesn’t need a ton of explanation, given that Sasuke essentially tries to kill the person he’s closest to in his life. They both even acknowledge during the fight that they think of each other as brothers.
But beyond the damage he’s doing to his relationship with his best friend, Sasuke also tries very sincerely to kill Naruto, which only means that the Nine-Tailed Fox emerges to aid Naruto in the fight. Sasuke very nearly gets himself killed by trying to kill his closest friend.
7 Challenging Naruto To The Hospital Rooftop Fight
This is one of those moments in the series that clearly shows the direction Sasuke’s life is taking. He resents Naruto for being the target of Itachi and the Akatsuki, since it means Itachi doesn’t think he’s strong enough to warrant attention. To prove he’s as strong as Naruto, he challenges him to a fight and seems almost intent on killing him by using the Chidori. All he proves is that he’s not a great friend and that Naruto’s Rasengan far outranks Sasuke’s Chidori, proving Naruto’s strength more than Sasuke’s.
6 Using The Chidori Three Times Against Gaara
The Chidori is Kakashi’s most powerful jutsu, and he teaches it to Sasuke prior to the Chunin Exams, and he is quick to warn him that he shouldn’t use it more than once in a battle, since this will completely deplete his chakra. Sasuke immediately ignores this advice and uses it three times while fighting against Gaara, which would likely have killed a weaker ninja. In Sasuke’s case, his arrogance leaves him paralyzed, and he has to be rescued by Sakura and Naruto.
5 Saving Naruto’s Life When Fighting Haku
While stepping in front of Naruto to block Haku’s attack is one of the few things on this list that Sasuke does for a good reason, it also isn’t the smartest thing he’s ever done. He very nearly dies in the process. As he lays in Naruto’s arms, talking about how his body just moved on its own to rescue him, he seems to also acknowledge that maybe his vengeance isn’t a good enough reason to be alive. But despite this revelation, nothing actually changes after he wakes up.
4 Underestimating Deidara & Almost Getting Killed In The Process
Part of Sasuke’s character from the very beginning is his arrogance and confidence in his own abilities. While he is definitely a talented ninja, he often underestimates his opponents, which means that he ends up in more danger than he probably needs to be. For example, he tries to use his genjutsu on Deidara, thinking he has the fight in the bag. But unfortunately for him, Deidara has trained himself to not fall victim to genjutsu, leaving Sasuke unprepared for his counterattack.
3 Fighting Itachi To His Death
Sasuke has set out in his life with one goal: to kill his older brother Itachi, who is responsible for the deaths of his entire clan. And when he finally does face off with Itachi in battle, he does succeed in killing him, only to immediately find out that he didn’t know the whole story about the death of the Uchiha clan.
Sasuke spends his life fueled by vengeance, only to find out that the man he wants to kill did everything in order to protect Sasuke himself.
2 Leaving Konoha With The Sound Four
Sasuke feels like he can’t get as strong as he needs to be in order to defeat Itachi while remaining in Konoha, where he’s held down by his relationships with his friends. He accepts an invitation from Orochimaru to go train with him, and he is accompanied there by the Sound Four. This changes the entire course of Sasuke’s life and cuts off his friendships with the people closest to him. It also makes him more susceptible to dangerous situations, particularly the curse mark which can shorten his life.
1 Attacking Itachi Before He’s Ready
Sasuke finds out, despite everyone’s best efforts to keep him from knowing, that Itachi has returned to Konoha. But to his surprise, he hasn’t come looking for Sasuke; he is instead after Naruto. This information is too much for Sasuke to deal with, and he sets off to find Naruto and face off with Itachi, determined to show him how much stronger he is. Of course, Itachi far outclasses him (creating the Sasuke choke meme in the process), and Sasuke falls victim to his genjutsu, which lands him in the hospital for the third time in recent history.