Akatsuki

is a criminal organization of S-Class missing-nins and is the most wanted group in all of shinobi world. Their main goal is to collect all of the tailed beasts for their plan of world domination. As such, Akatsuki, despite initially having a minor role during Part I, have become the primary antagonists in Part II.

Akatsuki at any given time is composed of no more than ten primary members, all of whom were S-Class criminals of their own respective villages. Members always work in teams of two with the exception of Zetsu, who functions as the organization's spy, and make use of their unique skills to the team's advantage. Team members must function very well or at least to accomplish their task even though they have a mutual problems with each other. The organization is rarely fully assembled, as seen in the end of Part I, when one member said it was the first time in seven years when they were all together.

Akatsuki is widespread, spanning several countries with agents in various places. When one team finds a tailed beast and has to begin the job of sealing the beast, they have hidden hideouts with many traps ready, to begin the sealing with the organization's leader's astral projection for a three-day long jutsu.

Main Goal
Although some members joined Akatsuki to further their own goals, all are united in Akatsuki's ultimate goal of gaining world domination. Their leader has mentioned a three-step process to work their way towards this goal. First, they plan to obtain a large amount of money to support their organization. Second, they plan to set up a mercenary group loyal only to Akatsuki. To build their reputation, they plan to accept any mission below the usual cost and operate off of the excess funds earned in the first part of their plan. Because there haven't been any wars in some time, the established shinobi villages couldn't afford to charge such low prices, leading the smaller countries to hire Akatsuki over the more expensive shinobi villages. By using the tailed beasts, Akatsuki would start wars and then immediately quell them, solidifying their reputation and convincing every country to depend on them, thus cornering the market in shinobi labor. Without any business, the other shinobi villages would collapse due to the lack of funds. Finally, after Akatsuki is the only major force of shinobi in existence, they can easily conquer the other countries. Members do not automatically learn of the plan upon joining; Hidan didn't find out about it until he had been a member for quite some time.

The tailed beasts, nine gigantic demons of immense power, are the main focus of much of Akatsuki's efforts and screen time within the series. Each member is assigned to capture one of the nine beasts alive or, in most cases, the person that beast has been sealed into. Akatsuki has sealed seven of the nine beasts before the start of the Fourth Great Shinobi World War.

Madara's Goal
Since the early years of Konoha, Madara has shown great interest in destroying it for the betrayal of his own Uchiha clan and the defeat by Hashirama Senju. He has also stated that he wants people to acknowledge the Uchiha clan and plans to use Sasuke to do so. Another one of Madara's goals is to become "complete" by collecting the tailed beasts. All of this seem to be part of his. His plan is to gather all of the tailed beasts so he can fuse them and bring forth the Ten-Tailed Beast and become his Jinchūriki, then cast an Infinite Tsukuyomi from the moon to control the world. Currently the body of the Ten-Tailed Beast is sealed in the moon due to Sage of the Six Paths using Chibaku Tensei.

Pain's Goal
Pain later goes into further detail on the tailed beasts' role in his plans. The beasts would be used to create a deadly Kinjutsu technique that could wipe out one of the five great nations in an instant, so if countries go to war and do not have ninja villages to fight for them, they would turn to Akatsuki and their "weapons." Whichever side makes Pain use the technique first would wipe out the opposing country, which would scare them into never using their weapon again, and scare the other countries to never start a war or they would be wiped out too. Through the mutual fear, war would cease to exist and the world would know peace, until the people forget that fear and use the weapon again. Thus the cycle would repeat, creating small periods of peace in an endless chain of hatred.

Apparently, Pain and Konan were the only Akatsuki members aware of this.

Itachi's Goal
After the Uchiha Massacre and leaving Konoha, Itachi, instead of using the tailed beasts for his own self-interest, continued to protect the village by joining Akatsuki and keeping an eye on them, especially Sasuke, from the outside. During his time in the group, Itachi would delay his own attempts to capture the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox, indirectly leaked information about the organization to Konoha, and attempted to kill Madara through Sasuke. Before his death, Itachi gave Naruto some of his "power," telling him to continue protecting Konoha and Sasuke, should the event occur that Sasuke would plan for their village's destruction. The "power" that Itachi gave to Naruto remains unknown.

Wardrobe
Akatsuki members have a similar way of dress, which could give them away if a village is alerted of their presence. Members wear long, dark cloaks with red clouds, a red interior, and a chin-high collar (although at one point, Madara wears one with a hood and no sleeves). All members wear nail polish of varying colors on their finger and toenails, and may wear a conical straw hat with small spike-like balls hanging down to cover their faces. The hats may be used to move around in the general population unnoticed, or for when the weather requires one. Some members tend to wear their village headband with a scar through the middle to show their defection. However, other members cease wearing them for several reasons. Everyone also wears a ring with a kanji on different fingers depending on who the member is.

Akatsuki Rings and Ring Positions
What seems to be most important, however, are their rings. In total, there are ten rings given to each of the ten main members of Akatsuki. The rings apparently signify one's membership and ring position, since when Orochimaru defected, he took his ring with him and as such wasn't replaced. The ring's exact purpose have not been revealed.

The various rings are:
 * Right thumb: ; worn by Pain,
 * Right index finger: ; worn by Deidara.
 * Right middle finger: ; worn by Konan.
 * Right ring finger: ; worn by Itachi Uchiha.
 * Right little finger: ; worn by Zetsu.
 * Left little finger: ; worn by Orochimaru.
 * Left ring finger: ; worn by Kisame Hoshigaki.
 * Left middle finger: ; worn by Kakuzu.
 * Left index finger: ; worn by Hidan.
 * Left thumb: ; worn by Sasori and later by Tobi.

Eight of the ten kanji of the rings are taken from a kuji-in (Nine Syllable Seals): a collection of nine hand postures used in meditation. These kuji-in have found their way into ninja folklore as a kind of magic spells. Pain's "rei" and Zetsu's "gai" are not from this kuji-in. However, the only unused kuji-in kanji,, bears a strong resemblance to Zetsu's "gai," suggesting an error. It would be a consistent error, however, since the "gai" kanji has been used in every instance the ring's kanji has been shown, both in the manga and the data books.

In Part II, Taka aligns themselves with Akatsuki. They wear Akatsuki cloaks, but they seem to have hoods instead of high collars. None of them wear headbands, nail polishes, nor the rings, which signify them being unofficial members. Their inter-group relationship is also fragile, as Sasuke claimed that he is only using Akatsuki, and once severed connections with them when they thought Killer Bee was captured. In turn, Madara threatens to kill them for any attempts of betrayal.

Members
Akatsuki members are S-Class criminals, therefore becoming missing-nin, who have fled from their village of origin for various reasons. It should be noted however that Pain and Konan are not missing-nin as they run their own village that is recognized by the shinobi world. It was also mentioned that Kakuzu had a bad habit of violently killing his partners in the past, though none have been shown before Hidan. Currently, Madara Uchiha and Zetsu are the only two remaining members.

List of Members

 * Deidara (Deceased; Not replaced)
 * Hidan (Presumed Deceased; Not replaced)
 * Kisame Hoshigaki (Deceased; Not replaced)
 * Kakuzu (Deceased; Not replaced)
 * Konan (Defected; Not replaced)
 * Orochimaru (Defected; Presumed Deceased; Not replaced)
 * Pain (Akatsuki public leader ; Deceased; Not replaced)
 * Sasori (Deceased; Replaced by Tobi)
 * Madara Uchiha, aka Tobi (Akatsuki Founder)
 * Itachi Uchiha (Deceased; Not replaced)
 * Zetsu

Associates

 * Amegakure (Village run by Pain, association ended following Pain's death and Konan's defection)
 * Kabuto Yakushi (Sasori's underling, defected to Orochimaru)
 * Yura (Sasori's underling, deceased)
 * Mukade (Sasori's underling, deceased)
 * Genji (Kakuzu's banker, status unknown)
 * Zangei (Bounty collector, captured)
 * Taka (Affiliated group)

Teams
Akatsuki teams are put together in teams of two to exploit combined strengths for the organization's goals to be met.

List of Teams
An unruly yet arguably the most effective team; A team that seemed unstoppable when together, something that Shikamaru commented on for the need to separate the duo. Pain decided to put these two together because of their unique abilities. Hidan could not be killed as a result of becoming the successful "Jashin experiment," even by decapitation, and Kakuzu could easily go into a rage and kill anyone around him, including his partner. Therefore, Kakuzu could go berserk and not worry about Hidan's well-being. They refer to themselves as the, because of their own methods of avoiding death. Kisame jokingly referred to them as the.
 * Kakuzu & Hidan
 * Senior: Kakuzu
 * Target(s): Two-Tailed Monster Cat (Sealed), Nine-Tailed Demon Fox (Failed)

They have shown the most hostility towards each other due to a conflict of interest; Kakuzu saw the rituals and beliefs of Hidan's religion to be a waste of time, while Hidan saw Kakuzu's willingness to do blasphemous things and his greediness to be unbearable, not to mention that Kakuzu's job as a bounty hunter usually got on Hidan's nerves. As a result of their sideline in collecting bounties and conducting rituals, this team was usually late in the line of work.

A team that functioned very well with each other, as evidenced by Konan's loyalty towards Pain. Acting as the leader of Akatsuki, Pain directed the rest of the organization to their respective goals; his most direct interaction with the other members was using the Illusionary Dragon Nine Consuming Seals. In addition, Pain was the leader of Amegakure, and used the village as a type of headquarter for Akatsuki, while Konan served as the village's second-in-command.
 * Pain & Konan
 * Senior: Pain
 * Target(s): Nine-Tailed Demon Fox (Failed)

Sasori claimed that he and Orochimaru worked well together during their partnership. However, when Orochimaru defected from Akatsuki after his failed attempt to steal Itachi's body, Sasori developed a grudge against his former partner.
 * Orochimaru & Sasori

Formed by the two artists of Akatsuki, Sasori and Deidara worked well for the most part but had conflicting ideas on art. Sasori believed all art was to be kept permanent, such as his puppets, while Deidara thought art was to be instantaneous, then gone forever, such as his Exploding Clay. Ironically though, Sasori was impatient and liked to finish things quickly while Deidara liked to take his time. Sasori also had a network of spies that he manipulated (in the form of mind control) to aid Akatsuki in their affairs. Deidara was formerly a terrorist bomber for hire who was later recruited by Itachi.
 * Sasori & Deidara
 * Senior: Sasori
 * Target(s): One-Tailed Shukaku (Deidara, Sealed), Nine-Tailed Demon Fox (Failed)

Formed after Sasori's death, Tobi was introduced as his easily found replacement. Despite Tobi's eagerness to please his "senpai," his childish attitude was seen as an annoyance to Deidara's expectations of the organization. Despite the eminent irritation, the two worked well together, as evidenced by Tobi planting Deidara's explosive clays underground during Deidara's last stand against Sasuke. Deidara also tries to protect Tobi although the latter usually annoys him with his playful personality.
 * Deidara & Tobi
 * Senior: Deidara
 * Target(s): Three-Tailed Giant Turtle (Tobi, Sealed)

A team that functioned very well together and was highly effective. The two completed almost every assignment Pain gave them with little trouble with the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox being the only known exception. With Itachi working as a double agent, however, Itachi failed this mission purposely. Unlike most Akatsuki teams, Itachi and Kisame got along pretty well; Kisame did as Itachi had asked him unquestioningly and they would often converse casually when not in combat.
 * Itachi Uchiha & Kisame Hoshigaki
 * Senior: Itachi
 * Target(s): Nine-Tailed Demon Fox (Itachi, Failed), Four-Tailed Monkey (Kisame, Sealed), Eight-Tailed Giant Ox (Kisame, Failed)

Not technically a team, but Zetsu has two personalities, effectively making it a team of two. Since each side has a level of individuality, they frequently argue with each other over which battles to watch, among other things. The two sides can also split apart, letting each personality to act individually.
 * Zetsu
 * Function: Spy

When Akatsuki's ranks are thinned to five members, Madara enlists the aid of Taka, who shares the desire for the destruction of Konoha. To complete their goals, Madara has ordered Taka to hunt down the Eight-Tailed Giant Ox while Akatsuki (particularly Pain) hunts for the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox. Technically, the members of Taka are not full members of Akatsuki, as they do not possess the rings worn by each of the full members. However, they have been wearing Akatsuki cloaks, signifying their affiliation with the organization.
 * Taka
 * Senior: Sasuke Uchiha
 * Members: Suigetsu Hōzuki, Karin, Jūgo
 * Target(s): Eight-Tailed Giant Ox (Failed)

Past Affiliations
Each member of Akatsuki is known to be (or have been) affiliated with another group.
 * Madara: Defected from Konohagakure following the election of Hashirama Senju as First Hokage. Created Akatsuki in order to reunite the nine tailed beasts.
 * Pain: Amegakure as village leader. Co-created Akatsuki to bring peace.
 * Konan: Amegakure as Pain's second in command. Joined for "love."
 * Itachi: Defected from Konohagakure after the Uchiha Clan Massacre. Joined due to "ideology."
 * Kisame: Defected from Kirigakure and the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. Joined out of "spite."
 * Kakuzu: Defected from Takigakure. Joined in a desire for "resources."
 * Hidan: Defected from Yugakure. Joined due to "religion."
 * Sasori: Defected from Sunagakure.
 * Deidara: Defected from Iwagakure. Joined on a "whim."
 * Orochimaru: Defected from Konohagakure. Joined and defected from Akatsuki after attempting to steal Itachi's body.

Creation and Conception
In the Naruto Hiden: Sha no Sho Character Official Data Book, Masashi Kishimoto stated that he had originally planned on making Akatsuki a group of monsters with almost no human characteristics. He also states that Akatsuki teams get two single rooms to sleep in.

Trivia

 * Itachi and Kisame are the first two members of Akatsuki that have been introduced in the series, unless Orochimaru, a former member, counts.
 * With the exception of Hidan and the other 6 Pains, all members of Akatsuki who have died have either lost or removed their Akatsuki uniforms before dying.
 * Hidan and Kakuzu were the only Akatsuki two-man team to have both members eliminated simultaneously.
 * Konan and Orochimaru are the only members of Akatsuki to have defected, and Konan is the only one still alive of the two.
 * In the manga, they seal the Three-Tailed Giant Turtle just before the Two-Tailed Monster Cat, while in the anime, due to the more detailed capture of the Three-Tails, they seal it just before the Four-Tailed Monkey.
 * Kumogakure is the only one of the five great nations that doesn't have any missing ninja in Akatsuki.
 * Konohagakure has the most missing-nins that are or were affiliated with the Akatsuki: Orochimaru, Kabuto, Itachi Uchiha, Madara Uchiha and Sasuke Uchiha.
 * The three remaining Uchiha after the Uchiha Clan Massacre eventually joined the Akatsuki: Itachi, Madara and Sasuke Uchiha.
 * According to the Raikage, Akatsuki was rumored to originated from Kirigakure, where founder Madara Uchiha was once Mizukage.
 * Despite suggesting to kill him when he first met him, Nagato allowed Orochimaru to join Akatsuki.