Tobi


 * Name: Tobi
 * Membership status: Active
 * Ring: 玉 ("jewel", "ball"; also the king in shogi)
 * Ring position: Left thumb
 * Partner: Deidara
 * First appearance: Chapter 280
 * Defining characteristics: Orange mask with single eye-hole covered in a swirl pattern concentrated towards the right eye, Sharingan

Tobi, formerly Zetsu's subordinate, became a full Akatsuki member after Sasori's death. He now wears the same ring as Sasori, having recovered it after Sasori's death, and took his place as Deidara's partner. After Deidara's death, Tobi is revealed to be the one giving Pein orders, therefore making him the true leader of Akatsuki, and he refers to himself as Uchiha Madara.

Personality
Tobi has a very formal and correct manner of speech. While his physical appearance remains a mystery, Zetsu has implied that he is relatively young when one side of him referred to Tobi as a "good boy." He respects Deidara, referring to him as Deidara-senpai. Tobi's personality is rather odd in comparison with other Akatsuki members; while most of the members are dedicated and serious, Tobi is more carefree and goofy. His personality does not please Deidara, who believes that all Akatsuki members should be serious and calm. Tobi unintentionally irritates Deidara frequently, which usually results in Deidara attacking Tobi in a comedic fashion. Kisame, on the other hand, somewhat appreciates Tobi's ability to brighten up a gloomy organization such as theirs. Tobi's personality and speech are completely different when speaking as Madara, however, as he speaks much less formally and is more serious and arrogant.

Unlike the majority of ninja thus far, Tobi has not been shown wearing a visible forehead protector; however, his Uchiha name would suggest that his home village is Konoha. He wears an odd mask that covers his entire face save for his right eye, which like other Uchiha has the Sharingan. Furthermore, Tobi has several bolts or pins present on the arms of his uniform, now obscured by his Akatsuki cloak.

Abilities
Tobi's area of expertise remains unclear, as he has never been shown fighting or utilizing jutsu. He and Deidara are able to defeat the Three Tails, but Tobi is never shown doing anything but running from it. After the battle, which goes largely unwitnessed, Tobi claims to have knocked it out with a single attack. Deidara disagrees with the assessment, claiming that it was his "artistic contribution" (exploding clay) that allowed them to win. During his fight with Sasuke, Tobi shows the ability to recover from what are presumably debilitating or fatal blows. After being slashed across the midsection by Sasuke's sword, Tobi collapses, only to stand up again a few seconds later and complain about the speed of the attack. He is also able to escape the final explosion created by Deidara.

Part In Story
Tobi first appears with Zetsu to retrieve the rings of Deidara and Sasori after their defeats. After finding Sasori's ring, Tobi asks Zetsu if he could join, who claims it isn't as easy as that. After Deidara was revealed alive, Deidara was quickly annoyed by Tobi, and choked him with his feet. Tobi later appears with Deidara and defeats Three Tails. During the battle, Tobi is seen doing nothing but running, and claims to have been the one to defeat Three Tails, though Deidara disagrees. When Deidara battles Sasuke Uchiha, Tobi followers Deidara's orders and runs away when Deidara begins to explode himself. Pein then tells the other Akatsuki members Tobi died in the explosion, while secretly Tobi, revealing himself as the mastermind of Akatsuki, orders Pein to capture Naruto Uzumaki

Trivia
Some fans hypothesized that he could be Obito, because he only has one known, working eye and is like Naruto. And the spelling Obito is similar to Tobi, creating the fan reference of ObiTobi. Also, the eye that Tobi uses (his right eye) is the opposite of the eye that was inserted to replace Kakashi's destroyed left eye in the manga-exclusive Kakashi Gaiden. It is later learned that Tobi is Madara Uchiha, the very one who the Nine-Tailed Fox referred to when meeting Sasuke for the first time.