Fourth Hokage

The Fourth Hokage (四代目火影, Yondaime Hokage^?), also known as "The Leaf's Yellow Flash" (木ノ葉の黄色い閃光, Konoha no Kīroi Senkō^?), was the brave and immensely powerful ninja responsible for sealing the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox inside Naruto Uzumaki, an action that required him to sacrifice his life. He is said to be the greatest ninja Konoha had ever produced. Though his skills in combat go largely unwitnessed, he was considered dangerous enough that a flee-on-sight order was given in regards to him during the Third Ninja War. Before performing the seal on the demon fox, the Fourth said that he did not want Naruto to be viewed as the container of a monster, but as a hero who saved the village from annihilation. This request, however, was not honored by the villagers, who still held much resentment for the demon fox. Along with two other unknown Genin, he was a student of Jiraiya; he was the sensei of Kakashi Hatake, Obito Uchiha, and Rin.

The Fourth shares many similarities with Naruto, including the same spiky blond hair, blue eyes, same techniques, the same blood type (B), and overall similar personalities as noted by Jiraiya. Itachi Uchiha noted Naruto to be the Fourth's "legacy." Furthermore, when Jiraiya, trying to force Naruto to release his demon fox chakra, pushed Naruto off a cliff in order to put his life in danger, he said "Forgive me, Fourth," after he punched out Naruto before taking him to the cliff. Beyond these, there are several minor comparisons made consistently throughout the series. Any hints to his history or family relations have been carefully avoided, making his past one of the biggest mysteries of the series.

The Fourth created several distinctive techniques, including the Flying Thunder God Technique (飛雷神の術, Hiraishin no Jutsu^?), which essentially allowed him to teleport to any location with the use of a special seal, or "jutsu formula" (術式, jutsu-shiki^?). By attaching the seal to a kunai or an enemy, the Fourth could teleport to the location of the seal unnoticed, allowing him to wipe out nearby opponents almost instantly. He also created the Rasengan, a technique that does not rely on hand seals but instead uses a concentration of spinning chakra in one's palm that causes immense damage to its victim on contact. Later in the series it is revealed that technique is actually incomplete. The Fourth had planned to add his own nature manipulation training to the Rasengan, making it even more powerful, but couldn't manage to prior to his death.