Masashi Kishimoto's Naruto began airing in 2002, ongoing all the way until 2017 with the conclusion of Naruto Shippuden. Over these fifteen years, many questions are answered regarding the motives or true identities of certain characters, like learning about Naruto's parents and Itachi's true intentions. Characters also grow and acquire new, powerful abilities that are often only unlocked after sacrificing something or making a painful choice.
While Naruto was still airing, though, fans came up with their own theories as to where characters originated from and what their intentions were. Some of the best Naruto fan theories speculate upon the origins of Clans like the Uchiha and Hyuga, while others predict how certain arcs might end if someone else won or things played out differently.
10 Naruto Ends With Madara's Infinite Tsukuyomi
Naruto's ending gives fans the payoffs they waited fifteen years to receive, such as Naruto becoming Hokage and Sasuke's redemption. It's typical of long-running shonen series like this to reward the fans who grew up rooting for their characters, but one fan theory suggests that everything from the moment Madara activates the Infinite Tsukuyomi is just a dream.
Naruto never overcomes Madara's genjutsu, and all the events afterward are just his wishes for reality. Sasuke's forgiven for all his atrocities, Sakura fulfills her lifelong dream of marrying him, and Naruto not only essentially achieves world peace as Hokage but also starts a family with Hinata.
9 The Ichiraku Ramen Owner's Secret Identity
Many ridiculous fan theories emerged over Naruto's run, gaining popularity solely for how nonsensical they were. One popular, unfounded Naruto theory revolved around the secret identity of Ichiraku Ramen's owner, who fans claimed to truly be Tobi, the leader of the Akatsuki.
There isn't much basis for this theory, but many found it fun to think of the completely normal-seeming ramen shop owner as an overpowered villain. It's in a similar vein to Pokemon Mystery Dungeon's Kecleon without the evil twist, as he's an unassuming shopkeeper who becomes overpowered and will near-instantly kill the player if stolen from.
8 Itachi Posing As Kakashi
The source of Kakashi's Sharingan became a hot point of debate in Naruto's early days. Only Uchiha were supposed to have them, but Kakashi reveals a Sharingan of his own during the Zabuza arc, causing both his allies and the viewers to question its source.
One fan theory suggests that Kakashi is actually Itachi, posing as a jonin and Team Seven's leader to keep an eye on his younger brother, Sasuke. The poster said early flashbacks of Itachi using his Sharingan typically only showed one eye and combined with no one knowing yet how Kakashi acquired his, led them to believe this theory.
7 Naruto Was Never Taught How To Read
Many fans are unsatisfied with Naruto's overall growth during his three-year training period with Jiraiya, at least in comparison to some of his peers. One fan theory suggests that this is partially because Jiraiya spends a large chunk of Naruto's training time instead of ensuring his reading comprehension is up to par.
The basis for this theory revolves around Naruto being left on his own as a child, and not taking his studies seriously. He's still considered a genin when his peers are chunin, jonin, or even Kage level, and while Naruto can get by as an everyday ninja without honing his literacy, the same can't be said of a Hokage.
6 Single-Use Clothing Sasuke
Unlike many Naruto theories that are thought up by numerous fans, the ridiculous-sounding Single-Use Clothing Sasuke theory comes from Tumblr user lafortis. This theory suggests that the Uchiha clan was wiped out by Itachi before Sasuke was taught how to do domestic chores, leaving him alone in a giant complex meant to house many people.
These houses are all filled with similar clothing, so instead of learning to wash his clothes, Sasuke instead wears each identical outfit a single time before throwing it away somewhere on the grounds. This post also includes a companion theory suggesting that Naruto only owns one outfit and hand-washes it every night.
5 The Hyuga Clan Originates From The Moon
One fan theory suggests that when Hamura takes his Clan to the moon to guard over Kaguya, instead of there still being descendants on Earth that become Hyuga, the Clan fully originates from the moon. They provide a lot of evidence to back this up, including the Hyuga's limited usage of ninjutsu being attributed to the short amount of time they've spent on Earth.
When one Naruto flashback delves into the founding of Konoha, the Hyuga clan isn't mentioned, leading theorists to believe the Clan was established elsewhere and came to Konoha later on. They even theorize that the jutsu created to control the branch family was made during a civil war on the moon between the main and branch clans.
4 Itachi Places Sasuke Under Genjutsu During Their Last Fight
Similar to the theory that Naruto's happy ending is actually a fantasy within Madara's Infinite Tsukuyomi, some fans believe that Itachi places Sasuke under genjutsu during their final fight. This is one explanation as to why Sasuke's forgiven so easily after everything he's done, making up with Naruto while starting a family with Sakura.
Sasuke being in some sort of illusion where everything goes positively for him is reinforced by certain events in Boruto. These include Sakura continuing to praise and stay devoted to Sasuke despite his absence as a father, and Boruto seeing Sasuke as a cool, wise mentor figure as the Shadow Hokage.
3 Speculation Behind The Kaguya Twist
One of the most universally agreed-upon Naruto opinions is that Kaguya's introduction feels rushed and unneeded, killing the suspense that better and more fleshed-out villains had. One popular fan theory suggests that Kaguya was only added to Naruto because Kishimoto didn't have any organic way to get rid of Madara.
Madara is a fan-favorite Naruto villain because he's built up properly, and feels like a powerful force to be reckoned with for the heroes. The issue is that Madara became overwhelmingly powerful, to the point where another even more unbelievable character had to be added to deal with him.
2 Naruto Would Acquire The Rinnegan
Although it's never fully explained, one popular fan theory revolves around Naruto acquiring the Rinnegan either before or during his final fight with Sasuke. Some believe Naruto would take the Rinnegan from him, while others believe Naruto could have awakened it through some alternative method due to being a reincarnation of Asura.
While there are obvious holes in this theory, it'd be an interesting way for Naruto and Sasuke to fight on an even playing field without the use of the Nine-Tailed Fox's chakra. The version where Naruto takes the Rinnegan from Sasuke after beating him for good would appease fans who aren't satisfied with Sasuke getting a redemption arc.
1 The Sharingan Is Actually A Demonic Power
Before everything was known about dojutsu and how it works, theories about their true nature popped up, including one surrounding the origins of the Sharingan. Instead of being a typical bloodline ability, some fans believed the Sharingan was actually a power given to the Uchiha by demonic spirits, acting as their mortal servants.
Compared to other genetic abilities, the price Uchiha pay to unlock the full potential of their powers is grim and steep. Some believe these are actually sacrifices to the demons that provide the Uchiha with their powers, which explains why many of them require sacrificing other peoples' body parts or even lives.
