A state that permits users to bypass the traditional limits of their body, Sage Mode is a power made possible by a user absorbing and blending natural energy with their own to create a new form of chakra known as senjutsu chakra. The transformation played a central role in the fight between Naruto Uzumaki and Pain in Part II of Naruto. Since it requires a great deal of time to learn, as well as a strong body capable of adapting to the power ups, high chakra reserves to balance the amount of senjutsu chakra in a user's body, very few have managed to truly master this form.
Those who mastered Sage Mode in Naruto, attained a level of power that far surpassed the majority of the shinobi world, earning them spots among the ranks of the strongest ninja in history. In fact, some of the most feared and renowned shinobi in the series have been Sage Mode users to varying degrees, with some relying on it more than others. The likes of Hashirama Senju, Jiraiya, Kabuto Yakushi, Minato Namikaze, Madara Uchiha, Hagoromo Otsutsuki, and Naruto himself, were all Sage Mode users to some extent. Looking at this glittering list of names speaks volumes of the power boost that Sage Mode can grant, but who among them was able to harness its abilities to the fullest?
What Is Sage Mode?
Learning Sage Mode is made possible by journeying to one of the three Sage Mode Institutions: the toads of Mount Myōboku, the snakes of Ryūchi Cave, or the slugs of Shikkotsu Forest. Each of these regions has their own method of imparting knowledge related to Sage Mode. As per the toads of Mount Myōboku — where Naruto, Jiraiya, and Minato learned Sage Mode — an individual must focus on becoming completely still to become one with nature and balance their physical and spiritual energies with natural energy to create senjutsu chakra.
Too little senjutsu chakra will reduce the effectiveness of any technique whereas gathering too much will see the user manifest toad-like characteristics and eventually be turned into stone forever. A shinobi must have innately high chakra reserves to withstand this transformation. Individuals such as Jiraiya and Orochimaru were unable to master Sage Mode completely due to this very reason, despite being able to gather and mold senjutsu chakra.
In Ryūchi Cave, travelers will be bitten by the White Snake Sage, which injects their bodies with natural energy. Those able to withstand it and survive will gain access to Sage Mode, whereas those who fail will be consumed by the sage. Besides this, the only other means of attaining Sage Mode is through a Sage Transformation made possible by the kekkei genkai of Jugo's clan, who can amass natural energy passively. The downside to this is that it is difficult to control and most who attain Sage Mode like this completely give in to their destructive urges, apart from Kabuto and Mitsuki, who managed to overcome this conundrum.
What Are The Pros And Cons Of Sage Mode?
All forms of Sage Mode grant massive enhancements in speed, strength, stamina, reflexes, durability, and sensory perception. Users of Sage Mode can also amplify their ninjutsu, genjutsu, and taijutsu techniques to beyond superhuman levels. Those who learn senjutsu with the toads can extend the range of their taijutsu by channeling natural energy into it with the aid of Frog Kata. Alternatively, those who attain Sage Mode from Ryūchi Cave can breathe life into inorganic substances with natural energy and take control of them.
Sensory perception is greatly enhanced as Sage Mode users do not need to see attacks to defend against them and can make do purely with their enhanced chakra sensing abilities. This was seen in the case of the newly reborn Madara, who was able to fight without the use of his eyes in the Fourth Shinobi World War after absorbing Hashirama Senju's senjutsu chakra. Users can also overwhelm chakra absorption techniques such as those of the Rinnegan's Preta Path, by infusing senjutsu chakra which can turn their opponents to stone if they are not trained in senjutsu themselves.
The main downside to Sage Mode is that the user must remain perfectly still while gathering senjutsu chakra, and it cannot be maintained for extended periods as the natural energy amassed will eventually run out. This is one of the main issues Naruto faced in his fight against Pain, and he managed to bypass this challenge with shadow clones who gathered natural energy for him, although this limited the number of clones he could create in combat. On the other hand, it is also possible to reduce the amount of time needed to amass sufficient natural energy with practice, reducing it to a few seconds. Finally, jinchuriki who have bonded with their tailed beast can circumvent this by having said beast gather the chakra in their place, as Naruto and Kurama managed to do towards the end of the war.
Who Are The Most Powerful Sage Mode Users?
While Jiraiya was a powerful shinobi in his own right, he could not become a perfect Sage and needed the Sage Art: Amphibian Technique to even enter the imperfect state. Hence, his use of the technique falls below many other characters. Minato was able to enter perfect Sage Mode almost at will, but it did not suit his fighting style which relied on speed. He also admitted that it was not his strong suit, which makes him rank lower, but slightly above Jiraiya. While Madara was formidable, he was not an expert in Sage Mode, and could not defeat Hashirama when the latter used senjutsu, even while the Uchiha had control over Kurama.
Kabuto and Mitsuki are quite powerful in their own right, but they do not even come close to the strength of Madara, Hashirama, Naruto, or Hagoromo. However, Mitsuki might still grow in power over the course of Boruto, so he might just ascend further than his current position under Hashirama. Madara in his Ten Tails jinchuriki form gained some level of access to Six Paths Sage Mode — the divine evolution of this state — placing him higher than Hashirama's Sage Mode.
Despite this, Madara was still not able to defeat Naruto and Sasuke when they also gained Six Paths powers. Given that Naruto Uzumaki and Hagoromo Otsutsuki both have access to Six Paths Sage Mode without the aid of the Ten Tails, it is safe to say that they are the strongest Sage Mode users in Naruto, with Hagoromo having a slight edge over Naruto in this respect.