How many hearts does Kakuzu have?

Five: his original heart (Earth Release), plus four stolen hearts housed in four masks sewn into his back (Fire, Lightning, Wind, Water Release). He dies only when all five are destroyed.

It was Kakashi Hatake, with his Raikiri, by destroying his last heart. Naruto had previously destroyed the Fire Release and Wind Release masks and paralyzed the last heart, but Kakuzu briefly survives it — so it is not Naruto who finishes him off.

What is Kakuzu's signature technique?

The Jiongu, “Earth Grudge Fear” in English: black threads run through his body, letting him reassemble his limbs, regenerate and tear out someone else's heart.

Did Kakuzu fight the First Hokage?

Yes: as a young man, he was sent by Takigakure to assassinate Hashirama Senju. The mission failed, but he survived it — a feat that partly explains his reputation and his very great age.

Why does he team up with Hidan?

Because Kakuzu used to kill his previous partners. Since Hidan is also all but immortal, Kakuzu could not get rid of him: he was the ideal partner, hence their nickname of “zombie duo”.

Kakuzu : le trésorier aux cinq cœurs de l'Akatsuki

Kakuzu: The Akatsuki's Treasurer With Five Hearts

July 10, 2026

1192 words | Reading time: 6 min

CharacterAkatsukiKakuzu

Five hearts, five chakra natures, and more than ninety years on the clock. An S-rank rogue ninja from Takigakure, Kakuzu owes his near-immortality to the Jiongu, the black threads that make his body modular and let him steal the hearts of his victims. This profile details his elemental masks, his role as treasurer and bounty hunter, his clash with Hashirama, the zombie duo he formed with Hidan, and his end at the hands of Kakashi.

Greedy, all but immortal, and more than ninety years old: Kakuzu is the treasurer of the Akatsuki, a man who collects hearts the way others collect money. Here is his profile.

The Rogue Ninja of Takigakure
The Jiongu and the Five Hearts
Treasurer and Bounty Hunter
The Zombie Duo With Hidan
Death at Kakashi's Hands
Summary Table
FAQ

The Rogue Ninja of Takigakure

Kakuzu is a rogue ninja from Takigakure, the Hidden Waterfall Village. Extremely old — more than ninety years — he was sent in his youth to assassinate Hashirama Senju, the First Hokage. The mission failed, but he survived it: it is that feat that fueled his legend. Punished and imprisoned on his return, and resentful, he ended up turning against his own village, killing its elders and stealing a kinjutsu as he fled.

Close-up of a man whose face is entirely covered by a dark mask and a light hood; only his green eyes, ringed with red, are visible, beneath a ninja headband whose symbol is crossed out by a slash. — The slashed headband is the mark of the rogue ninja: Kakuzu has broken with Takigakure.

The Jiongu and the Five Hearts

That stolen jutsu is the Jiongu (“Earth Grudge Fear”): black threads run through his entire body, letting him detach and reassemble his limbs, regenerate and, above all, tear out someone else's heart to make it his own. Kakuzu thus has five hearts, which gives him a conditional immortality: he dies only once all five are destroyed. Each heart gives him access to one elemental nature, so that he masters all five. Note that he carries four masks on his back (Fire, Lightning, Wind and Water Release); the fifth heart, the Earth Release one, is his original heart, in his chest.

A man with long black hair, his chest and face covered in stitches, smiles as he holds up a bloody heart with dark threads hanging from it. — That is what the Jiongu is for first and foremost: tearing out an opponent's heart to add it to his own.

Treasurer and Bounty Hunter

Obsessed with money, Kakuzu manages the finances of the Akatsuki and works as a bounty hunter, tearing out the hearts of his most powerful targets. Quick to anger, he killed several of his former partners during fits of rage, taking their hearts in the process.

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A masked man in a dark coat counts a stack of bills held in both hands, in a dimly lit wooden room. — The bounty money passes through his hands: he is the one who keeps the Akatsuki's books.

The Zombie Duo With Hidan

Kakuzu was eventually paired with Hidan — a partner he could not kill, since he too is all but immortal. Their pairing, nicknamed the “zombie duo”, takes on Team 10 from Konoha: it is Hidan (and not Kakuzu) who deals the fatal blow to Asuma Sarutobi, setting off a mission of revenge.

In a forest, two Akatsuki members in black coats with red clouds face each other: one, his face masked, raises a fist toward the other, whose gray hair is slicked back and who holds a red three-bladed scythe attached to a cable. — Kakuzu and Hidan spend their time clashing verbally, without either one being able to truly get rid of the other.

Death at Kakashi's Hands

In the final battle, Kakashi and Team 10 gradually destroy several of his hearts. Naruto arrives having only just mastered his Rasenshuriken and destroys the Fire Release and Wind Release masks, while paralyzing the last heart. Contrary to a widespread belief, it is not Naruto who finishes him off: Kakuzu briefly survives, reduced to his final heart (Lightning Release), before Kakashi destroys it with his Raikiri.

A ninja with spiky light-colored hair drives his arm, charged with blue electricity, into the chest of a man in a black coat with red clouds; arcs of lightning burst out in every direction above rocky ground. — It is Kakashi's Raikiri that destroys the last heart, and not Naruto's attack.

Summary Table

Aspect	Details
Origin	Takigakure (Hidden Waterfall Village), S-rank rogue ninja, more than 90 years old
Technique	Jiongu (“Earth Grudge Fear”): black threads, modular body, heart stealing
Hearts & masks	5 hearts (Fire, Wind, Lightning, Water Release + original Earth Release); 4 masks on his back + the Earth Release heart in his chest
Role	Treasurer of the Akatsuki, bounty hunter; Hidan's partner (“zombie duo”)
Death	Naruto destroys the Fire Release and Wind Release masks; Kakashi finishes him with the Raikiri (last heart)

FAQ

How many hearts does Kakuzu have?
Five: his original heart (Earth Release), plus four stolen hearts housed in four masks sewn into his back (Fire, Lightning, Wind, Water Release). He dies only when all five are destroyed.
Who killed Kakuzu?
It was Kakashi Hatake, with his Raikiri, by destroying his last heart. Naruto had previously destroyed the Fire Release and Wind Release masks and paralyzed the last heart, but Kakuzu briefly survives it — so it is not Naruto who finishes him off.
What is Kakuzu's signature technique?
The Jiongu, “Earth Grudge Fear” in English: black threads run through his body, letting him reassemble his limbs, regenerate and tear out someone else's heart.
Did Kakuzu fight the First Hokage?
Yes: as a young man, he was sent by Takigakure to assassinate Hashirama Senju. The mission failed, but he survived it — a feat that partly explains his reputation and his very great age.
Why does he team up with Hidan?
Because Kakuzu used to kill his previous partners. Since Hidan is also all but immortal, Kakuzu could not get rid of him: he was the ideal partner, hence their nickname of “zombie duo”.