The Akatsuki from Naruto and Naruto: Shippuden is one of the most iconic groups in anime history. Donning their intimidating dark robes with red clouds, the host of S-class criminals were some of the strongest shinobi in the franchise, ranging from genjutsu genius Itachi Uchiha to puppet master Sasori.
The organization was the central antagonist for Naruto Shippuden (but was also ever present in Naruto) as they traveled around the ninja world finding and extracting Tailed Beasts from their hosts in a bid to take over the world. But, the Akatsuki’s mission wasn’t always fueled by global domination. In fact, the organization was founded on principles of peace and unity.
The Akatsuki’s original dream was to bring about peace during the Third Great Shinobi War
The Akatsuki was formed during the Third Great Shinobi War in Amegakure, or Hidden Rain Village, by the overzealous Yahiko and his friends, the stoic and loyal Konan and the Rinnegan user Nagato. After witnessing the awful realities of war, they pledged to bring peace to Amegakure, an area that was often a battleground for the five shinobi countries due to its positioning. But, the three shinobi hoped to live their vision through pacificist measures.
The Akatsuki’s inception came after Yahiko, Konan and Nagato were trained by legendary Konohagakure (Hidden Leaf Village) Sannin Jiraiya. Jiraiya instilled in them values that helped guide the trio toward their world peace venture. However, a masked figure who introduced himself as Madara Uchiha — and was later revealed as Obito Uchiha who was carrying out Madara’s will — influenced the creation of Akatsuki as well.
Yahiko was the Akatsuki’s first leader and was murdered in an ambush staged by Hanzo of the Salamander
The group formed with Obito watching in the background. Akatsuki started with the three young shinobi and grew one by one as other Ame ninjas joined once learning of the organization’s goal to bring peace to their war-torn home. With his charisma and ambition, Yahiko led the group through trials and tribulations; however, he viewed Nagato as the organization’s eventual leader because of his visual prowess.
The first iteration of Akatsuki was ended by Amegakure leader Hanzo of the Salamander. Feeling threatened by the Akatsuki’s momentum in his village, and the possibility of an uprising, Hanzo staged an ambush that led to the death of Yahiko — as well as the group’s peace-seeking conviction. Using Yahiko’s body as a vessel with the power of his Rinnegan, Nagato posed as Pain and became the group’s leader. After Yahiko’s death, Obito came out of the shadows as well, steering Nagato toward world conquest and away from global solidarity.