What Motivated Madara Tobi To Start The War?

Watching the reveal in 'Naruto Shippuden' gave me that weird chill where the story suddenly snaps into place — and Tobi's choice to hide as 'Madara' is one of those clever narrative moves that works on multiple levels. On the surface, posing as Madara Uchiha was pure strategy: Madara was a legendary name that opened doors, crushed doubts, and scared enemies into obedience. If you want to run a shadow war and recruit people like Nagato, Obito needed a myth, not just a wounded kid from the battlefield. Hiding behind Madara's reputation let him control the Akatsuki, manipulate world leaders, and avoid being personally targeted or pitied by Kakashi and others who might have stopped him. Underneath that, it's deeply personal. Obito had been shattered by Rin's death and by the manipulation of Black Zetsu and, eventually, the older Madara. Taking Madara's identity was a kind of rebirth — a way to bury his guilt and become an idea: uncompromising, godlike, and terrifying. Keeping his face unknown also let him oscillate between playful Tobi and ruthless 'Madara' without anyone connecting the pieces, which made his eventual unmasking all the more powerful. For me, that blend of tactical smarts and tragic psychology is what makes the reveal stick.

Man, the Rinnegan stuff in 'Naruto' always gets my brain buzzing. Here's how I think about it: Madara didn't just wake up one day with a cosmic eyeball — he engineered the conditions for it. After losing to Hashirama, he secretly took some of Hashirama's DNA (those Senju cells) and grafted them into himself so his Uchiha chakra could mix with Senju life-force. That combination is the core recipe. He didn't immediately pop the Rinnegan though — the manga makes it clear he only awakened it much later, when he was old and close to death. The stress and the life-change apparently helped trigger the evolution of his Sharingan into the Rinnegan. After that, he took both Rinnegan and transplanted them into a kid from the Uzumaki clan, Nagato, because the Uzumaki have the stamina and life-force to handle such powerful eyes. Years down the line, when Nagato died, Obito (the guy going by Tobi/Madara) took Nagato's Rinnegan for himself. He kept one and later handed the other back to Madara when he was brought into play in the war. So the chain is: Madara awakened them, sent them to Nagato, and Obito later retrieved them and used them — which is why Obito could act so godlike until Madara was fully back in the story. It’s one of those grim, clever long-con moves I still admire every time I rewatch 'Naruto'.

I've watched the reveal play out a few times and it still gives me chills. At first 'Tobi' acts like the goofy, masked goofball who doesn't take anything seriously, but that was all a performance. He later starts calling himself Madara and throws everyone off — the voice, the swagger, the sheer audacity — but the truth is harsher: the masked Madara is actually Obito Uchiha pretending to be the legendary Madara. He takes on Madara's name to wield fear and authority, to put the Moon's Eye Plan into motion with the weight of a myth behind him. If you rewatch the big reveals in 'Naruto Shippuden', you can see the layers: flashbacks to Obito's past with Kakashi, the crushed body, the rescued-but-broken morale, and the way he clings to Madara's ideology. It's a complicated masquerade — Obito adopts Madara's identity while being manipulated by Madara's plans, and later the real Madara does show up. So for most of the war arc, when people call him Madara, they're really facing Obito in Madara's mask. I still get a knot in my stomach thinking about that rooftop scene; it's heartbreak dressed up as world-ending choices.

When I think about the whole Madara/Tobi mess in 'Naruto', the clearest thing to me is that the man who called himself Madara but was actually Tobi (Obito) leans on Kamui as his signature, most-used technique. Kamui is basically his bread-and-butter: short-range intangibility to phase through attacks, and the long-range version to send targets into another dimension. I loved how often he used it defensively—phasing to avoid big hits—then flipping it offensively by sucking people or objects away. Watching him slip through Naruto’s Rasengans or avoid Susanoo strikes felt like watching a master trickster dance on battlefield physics. By contrast, the real Madara uses Susanoo, Wood Release, Rinnegan shenanigans and even Limbo when things get extra-dramatic. So if you mean the Obito-as-Madara persona, Kamui is what he uses most, and it’s honestly one of the coolest space-time jutsu moments in 'Naruto'. I still get chills seeing the teleport-to-dimension trick in action.

Back when I first dove into 'Naruto', the Tobi/Madara reveal felt like one of those jaw-drop moments that makes you binge multiple episodes. The short version is: the masked guy who first calls himself Tobi is actually Obito Uchiha, a former comrade of Kakashi who was thought dead. He survived a crushing injury, was found and mentored by the real Madara Uchiha, and later adopted Madara's identity as a cover to run the Akatsuki and push the Eye of the Moon Plan. If you want the meat: Obito starts off as this goofy, masked member of the Akatsuki using a silly persona. Later he drops the act and claims to be Madara to intimidate others and to give his plan historical weight. He has Mangekyō powers—most notably Kamui, which lets him phase and teleport parts of himself or others—and eventually becomes the Ten-Tails' jinchūriki. Then the real Madara gets resurrected, so the war ends up with both the imposter (Obito) and the actual legendary Uchiha playing huge roles. For me, the tragedy—Obito's guilt over Rin, his manipulation by Madara, and his late redemption—keeps the whole arc emotionally heavy and satisfying.

I still get chills when that gravelly, commanding voice shows up on screen during the big Madara scenes. In the English dub of 'Naruto Shippuden', Madara Uchiha is voiced by Neil Kaplan. He gives Madara that booming, theatrical villain energy that fits the character’s grand ambitions and battlefield monologues. If you're tracking who’s who: the whole Tobi/Obito thing can be confusing because the masked "Tobi" persona initially acts silly and uses a different tone. In the English dub the masked Tobi’s voice was handled separately from Madara’s — that’s why when the reveal happens the voice and delivery shift dramatically. I always recommend checking the credits for the episode or the cast list on official streaming sites if you want the precise episode-by-episode breakdown. For a fan rewatch, listen for Kaplan’s signature cadence whenever Madara takes center stage — it’s a highlight every time I revisit those battles.

Man, the variety of stuff featuring Madara and Tobi is wild — you can fill a whole shelf if you let yourself. If you like figures, there are everything-from-prize Banpresto pieces up to detailed PVC statues: Banpresto and Megahouse often release mid-priced Madara and Tobi figures, while lines like S.H.Figuarts and Figuarts ZERO give you more articulation or sculpt detail. For the cute side, chibi-style items (Nendoroid-like figures and smaller desk statues) show up in limited runs, and Funko Pop! also made stylized Madara and masked-Tobi Pops that are great for casual display. Beyond figures, you’ll find acrylic stands, enamel pins, keychains/rubber straps, gashapon (capsule) figures, posters and wall scrolls, phone straps, and plushies — everything from tiny blind-box charms to large dakimakura (body pillows). Tobi’s spiral mask is iconic, so there are tons of mask replicas, cosplay cloaks, and even resin display masks for shelves. Trading cards also feature them in the various 'Naruto' card games, and collectible card sleeves and playmats with Madara/Tobi art are common at game shops. If you like big-ticket centrepieces, look for high-end polystone statues from boutique studios and licensed premium releases that capture Susanoo, Rinnegan, or Ten-Tails forms. For hunting: check AmiAmi, HobbyLink Japan, Mandarake, eBay, and specialist stores — and watch out for bootlegs (compare box art, stickers, and seller reputation). Happy hunting; I’ve picked up a masked-Tobi charm that always gets compliments when friends spot it on my bag.

Every few months I dive back into the final arcs of 'Naruto' and wonder the same thing — could the story have ended with Madara or Tobi in a different role? Officially, the manga and the core 'Naruto Shippuden' anime don't offer a different canonical ending where Madara/Tobi get an alternate fate; the original ending follows Obito's reveal and the sequence that leads to Madara's revival, Ten-Tails madness, and then Kaguya. That final flow is pretty locked in as the official narrative. That said, if you count non-canon material, there are plenty of alternate takes. Video games in the 'Ultimate Ninja Storm' line and others create 'what-if' battles and cutscenes where events diverge from the manga — Madara or Tobi can appear in roles and outcomes that never happened in canon. Fans have also written countless retellings and doujinshi that reimagine who survived or who pulled the strings, and those are a treasure trove if you like twisty alternate endings. I still enjoy stumbling on a clever fan rewrite where Madara actually succeeds — it scratches the same itch as rewinding a TV series and editing the final reel.