As Naruto's ongoing legacy series Boruto continues to release new chapters and reintroduce old faces, fans can't help but revisit the prequels' characters. Both Naruto and Naruto: Shippūden included many eccentric side characters from the Hidden Leaf and adversarial villages.
Unfortunately, not all side characters were as interesting, well crafted, or cool as others. For example, the Konoha 11's Tenten and Kiba Inuzuka were never allowed to prove their full capabilities. Others, such as Danzō Shimura or Orochimaru, committed crimes so heinous that fans rejected them. From evildoers to weaklings, some side characters were considered the worst in the franchise.
10 Tenten Never Got A Chance
It's not Tenten's fault she failed to make an impact as a character. She got little screen time, and all the fights she participated in fell flat. Her mastery over weaponry, ability to summon any item, and proficiency in sealing jutsu were impressive and respectable. However, the show didn't give her a chance to display those skills.
Tenten didn't do anything wrong, but she was the weakest side character of the Konoha 11. Her character arc felt like it had no direction or destination, unlike most others in the Konoha 11.
9 Kiba Inuzuka Was Loud And Obnoxious
Kiba Inuzuka was one of the other Konoha 11 kids who never seemed to do much. When he went on missions, he constantly needed help or saving. On top of that, he was overly confident and incredibly loud. He dreamed of being the Hokage, but he never displayed any skills worthy of the rank. Thus, one of Kiba Inuzuka's biggest weaknesses was his misplaced ambition.
While Kiba still had fans, he was not well written, and he talked down to others like Naruto despite being one of the weakest links. He was among the worst side characters for his obnoxiousness and lack of narrative direction.
8 Karin Was Too Obsessed With Sasuke
Like Sakura Haruno, Karin was obsessed with Sasuke Uchiha. Sakura's reliance on Sasuke killed her popularity; the same happened with Karin. Fans hated Karin even more because she threw a wrench in the SasuSaku ship. Furthermore, she flung herself at Sasuke, making viewers uncomfortable.
A Karin fact fans might not know is that Sasuke saved her during the Chunin Exams, which sparked her infatuation. However, this felt incredibly retconned. Karin's desperation to make Sasuke like her and relentless pursuit of unrequited love made her one of the most frustrating characters in the series. Unfortunately, she didn't have the buffer of being a main character like Sakura did.
7 Ebisu Was A Bit Of A Creep
Ebisu was a pervert and arrogant. Like many Hidden Leaf villagers, he looked down on Naruto Uzumaki. His primary function was as a comic relief character, but he made a joke of the Jonin rank. Plus, many of those jokes relied on sexual innuendo, which felt inappropriate. Most of these moments of forced humor failed to land.
Fans were upset when Kakashi assigned Ebisu to train Naruto. The Jonin was superfluous, and the show would've benefited from sending Naruto straight to Jiraiya for tutelage. He was such a poorly executed side character that his presence was detrimental to the anime.
6 Hiruzen Sarutobi Caused A Lot Of Political Issues
As the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi made a lot of mistakes. While his actions paved the way for the entirety of Naruto's plot, fans can't help but think he was directly responsible for much of the Hidden Leaf's corruption.
Overlooking the Uchiha clan's mistreatment, refusing to stop Orochimaru when he had the chance, allowing Danzō Shimura's crimes, and neglecting the village's orphans were among the worst things Hiruzen did as Hokage. He was one of the worst side characters because he was well-respected despite his constant failures, which seemed unrealistic.
5 Tobirama Senju Set The Uchiha Clan Up For Failure
Tobirama Senju competed for the worst Hokage with Hiruzen. While Hiruzen allowed the Uchiha clan's mistreatment, Tobirama planted the seeds for that hatred. As a member of the Senju clan, who stood as rivals to the Uchiha, Tobirama never accepted Madara or his family.
The Second Hokage's attitude toward the Uchiha led to Danzō's crimes, the Uchiha massacre, the misuse of the Edo Tensei, and Madara's twisted plot. As a side character, he was poorly written and did a lot of damage despite having little screen time.
4 Orochimaru Conducted Human Experiments
While Orochimaru was a well-written character, he was a creep and eugenicist. His crimes were so evil that he landed on the worst characters list.
Not only was Orochimaru frustratingly difficult to defeat or capture, but he also committed unforgivable acts like experimenting on young kids, making imprisoned kids fight to the death, and taking over other people's bodies to maintain his youth. Orochimaru and Danzō were the evilest characters, and they worked together for a time. His relentless and disturbing pursuit of innocent children made him one of the worst side characters.
3 Kabuto Yakushi Was Worse Than Orochimaru
Kabuto Yakushi was Orochimaru's right-hand man, and by the end of the series, he outpaced his mentor as one of the evilest characters. His active participation in Orochimaru's schemes, genetic experimentation, and triple-agent act solidified him as one of the worst people in Naruto.
Kabuto surpassed Orochimaru by perfecting the Edo Tensei and becoming more powerful overall. Yet, his motivations didn't make as much sense as Orochimaru's. He worked with Obito and Madara to cause a war, switching sides frequently, but his unclear and unbelievable ambitions made him an ineffective side character.
2 Kaguya Otsutsuki Was A Cop-Out Villain
Kaguya Otsutsuki was one of the most hated additions to Naruto: Shippūden. The series built up Madara and Obito to be the ultimate foes, but when Kaguya appeared, fans felt it was a cop out.
She and the Otsutsuki seemed to come out of nowhere. If the show committed to her as its main villain from the beginning, there are many ways Kaguya could've impacted Naruto more. Unfortunately, her appearance's randomness made her one of the worst side characters, and fans still cringe when remembering her introduction.
1 Danzo Shimura Was The Most Hated Character
The most universally hated character in Naruto: Shippūden was Danzō Shimura. Danzo's worst crimes included creating an underground organization of brainwashed children (Root), helping Orochimaru with his human experiments, and pulling the strings in the Uchiha Clan Massacre.
Danzō used the Uchiha to steal the Sharingan and implant them all over his body. He planned to use this power to overthrow the Hokage and take over the Hidden Leaf. Danzō Shimura's sick crimes and lack of fans' support made him the worst side character in the show.