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Madara Uchiha stands as one of Naruto’s strongest shinobi and perhaps the franchise’s most iconic antagonist, his might and commanding presence cementing his legend. Madara co-founded the Hidden Leaf Village together with Hashirama Senju, his childhood friend and rival; the two were united by a shared dream of ushering in an era of lasting peace.
Eventually, tensions between Madara and Hashirama escalated into an epic showdown, in which the First Hokage defeated and seemingly killed the all-powerful Uchiha. In reality, Madara had used Izanagi to survive, vanishing into the shadows to orchestrate and advance his “Eye of the Moon” plan. After manipulating Obito Uchiha to join his cause, Madara reached the limits of his natural lifespan and died.
During the Fourth Ninja War, Kabuto Yakushi resurrected Madara, who then forced Obito to fully revive him not as an undead zombie but as a living human so that he could harness the power of the Ten Tails within himself. Before being swept away by Kaguya Otsutsuki’s shocking reveal, Madara dominated the battlefield, even casting the Infinite Tsukuyomi. Yet, he never revealed the true abilities of his Mangekyo Sharingan, leaving them an enigma that continues to captivate and frustrate fans to this day.
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The signature jutsu of Madara’s original Mangekyo Sharingan is one of the greatest mysteries in Naruto
The Mangekyo Sharingan, an eye that commands fear
As the legendary leader and ultimate symbol of the Uchiha, Madara embodied the pride of his clan of inborn Sharingan wielders, so it’s only natural that the untold secret of his Mangekyo Sharingan remains a tantalizing mystery to Naruto fans, leaving them yearning for answers.
The Sharingan is the innate ability of the Uchiha clan, allowing clansmen—as well as anyone who came into possession of this special eye—to see chakra, foresee the enemy’s movements, perform powerful genjutsu upon making eye contact with an opponent, and copy other shinobi’s techniques, memorizing and recreating them with incredible accuracy.
When a Sharingan user experiences a particularly profound emotional trauma, they awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan. This advanced, superior form of the Sharingan amplifies the eye’s standard abilities while also bestowing the user with some powerful, brand-new techniques that vary between each user.
Those who have awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan in both eyes can also conjure Susanoo, a gigantic chakra avatar that fights on the wielder’s behalf. Repeated usage of the Mangekyo Sharingan can strain the eye until it becomes blind, though the blindness can be negated by transplanting another pair of eyes from a close relative, thus unlocking the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, whose light never fades.
Out of all the different Mangekyo Sharingan techniques, it’s safe to say that the best and most effective one is Kamui, a formidable space-time jutsu. This eye power is so boundless that Naruto author Masashi Kishimoto made sure to keep it split between different users, Kakashi Hatake and Obito Uchiha.
Upon obtaining both eyes, Kakashi used their exceptional powers to face Kaguya Otsutsuki, the final and strongest antagonist in the series, successfully fending her off and directly leading to her defeat. While Madara’s Mangekyo Sharingan may not have been as outstanding as Kamui, it’s only natural that fans at least want to know what it consisted of, especially considering Madara’s status as the legendary leader of the Uchiha clan.
The mightiest Uchiha’s enigmatic eye power
Unlike other masterful Mangekyo Sharingan users like Kakashi, Obito, Sasuke, Itachi, and Shisui, Madara has never been seen using a specific Mangekyo Sharingan ability unique to him. Granted, the fact that he awakened and mastered this eye power is undeniable. He could activate Susanoo to summon a towering chakra warrior to fight on his behalf, attacking and defending with superb, almost unparalleled force.
He was also able to use the Sharingan to control the Nine-Tails and perform other amazing feats, such as discerning clones from the originals. He even evolved his Susanoo into Perfect Susanoo, a colossal chakra humanoid capable of destroying mountains with ease. This awe-inspiring power was among the assets allowing Madara to be the only one who could, at least to a certain extent, compete with Hashirama Senju during Konoha’s early days.
Upon transplanting the eyes of his beloved brother Izuna, Madara gained the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, eliminating the risk of blindness from overuse of his visual powers. Unaware that Black Zetsu had altered the Uchiha Stone Tablet to trick him into unwittingly working to foster Kaguya’s revival, Madara then began pursuing his “Eye of the Moon” plan.
This twisted scheme to break the circle of hatred by ensnaring everyone in an artificial reality was Madara’s solution to achieve the lasting peace he and Hashirama had envisioned since childhood. Following the battle with Hashirama at the Valley of the End, Madara infused himself with the First Hokage’s DNA, gaining the power of the latter’s signature Wood Release.
With Madara and Hashirama being, respectively, the reincarnations of Indra and Asura, this event also caused Madara’s Sharingan to evolve into the Rinnegan. Decades later, during the Fourth Ninja War, Kabuto Yakushi used the Impure World Reincarnation to resurrect Madara as an undead.
Madara unleashed chaos on the battlefield, easily annihilating the Five Kage in a 1v5 confrontation before forcing Obito to fully revive him so that he could become the jinchuriki of the Ten Tails. In this form, Madara reclaimed both of his Rinnegan eyes and even awakened a Rinne Sharingan on his forehead, which he used to cast the Infinite Tsukuyomi and enslave the entire Naruto world.
Yet, despite Madara’s central role, his Mangekyo Sharingan abilities were never unveiled, neither in flashbacks exploring his past nor during his overwhelming power displays in the war. This fueled fan speculation, with some arguing that Madara’s Mangekyo Sharingan jutsu was Limbo, the technique that enabled Madara to project invisible copies of himself, the doppelgangers serving as both an undetectable shield and an imperceptible, stealth attack force.
Yet, this theory is likely flawed, as Madara only showcased Limbo after reclaiming his Rinnegan. In fact, Limbo was specifically stated to be a Rinnegan-related jutsu. An alternative speculation suggested that the mysterious unknown jutsu was Tengai Shinsei, the fearsome technique that Madara used to pull enormous meteorites from the heavens, directing them to crash down on the target to obliterate it.
No official Naruto source has ever confirmed or denied this assumption, leaving it purely speculative. Admittedly, this move seems different from typical Mangekyo Sharingan techniques, bearing a closer resemblance to Rinnegan powers. Granted, with Madara’s legendary status, nothing can be said for certain.
The time-manipulating ability is non canon
While there’s no actual information—or even a clue—on the subject in the Naruto manga, anime, or databooks, it’s interesting that a scene of the OVA featured in the video game Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Generations showed Madara using his Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan to perform a time-manipulating jutsu during his showdown with Hashirama.
This animation depicted Madara’s eye rotating on itself as the surrounding scene spun backward, rewinding and undoing the immediately preceding events. This led many fans to speculate that Madara’s right Sharingan eye could record and store a certain event, while the left eye would rewind time, allowing him to alter the outcome to his advantage.
In fiction, time-manipulating powers are a hallmark of iconic antagonists—think some of the mightiest Stands in Hirohiko Araki’s JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure—so such an ability would be a great fit for the signature jutsu of Madara’s Mangekyo Sharingan. It would also explain Madara’s survival in countless life-or-death clashes against Hashirama during the Warring States Era.
The ability to briefly rewind time would have been invaluable for Madara, allowing him to rewrite unfavorable outcomes to escape death. Frequent use of his hypothetical jutsu could, likewise, explain why Madara’s Mangekyo Sharingan went blind, forcing him to rely on Izuna’s eyes as a replacement.
However, as part of a videogame, this OVA and the concepts within it are not meant to be considered as canon, especially as the OVA depicted the battle between Hashirama and Madara well before its official portrayal in the Naruto manga and anime.
Video game content is not part of Naruto’s official canon, even when Masashi Kishimoto contributed, such as with the development of Mecha Naruto or his sketches of what Shisui Uchiha and Itachi Uchiha’s hypothetical Perfect Susanoo would look like if they ever achieved it.
The only exceptions to this are the designs of Shisui’s normal Susanoo and the outfits of Kakuzu and other Akatsuki members before they joined the organization. The fact that Madara possessed a similar jutsu and yet never used it in the actual series makes very little sense, especially as the power to reverse time would have been perfect to thwart Black Zetsu’s betrayal.
So, the signature abilities of Madara’s Mangekyo Sharingan remain shrouded in mystery, a paradox given the former’s status as the quintessential Uchiha in the series. Perhaps, as the first known owner of the Mangekyo after Indra, Madara may not have possessed a specific, distinct jutsu, instead inheriting an immense chakra boost. Still, considering the vast array of unique techniques in Naruto, the absence of focus on Madara’s original eye powers feels like a missed opportunity.
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