Gods among mortals.
In shonen battle manga power is everything. A character's strength determines his or her role in the story, the level of popularity within the fanbase. The protagonist usually starts out weak and grows to be strong. It is his or her main desire, the main driving force. And above all, there are those who represent the unachievable. The characters are so powerful they can cut ships in half and change the flow of time. These guys are a big problem for their enemies. And sometimes even for authors. Here are the top 5 of them from modern anime and manga.
Spoilers ahead!
5. Makima (Chainsaw Man)
This girl is a control devil that can manipulate and command anyone, who thinks that he or she is lower than her. A pretty neat ability if you want to change the world and make it perfect. Makima can also use the powers of those she controls and make them take any damage she receives. In order for the main character to beat her, the author had to come up with an insane ability for him to create his double. But even that wasn’t enough. The poor guy had to cut her in pieces and then eat her.
4. Madara Uchiha (Naruto)
A seasoned ninja with inherited abilities of sharingan, plus an immortal body thanks to Edo Tensei? This man rocked the world of Naruto when he first appeared on the battlefield of the Fourth Great Ninja War. The clip of him beating hundreds of guys solo is one of the most popular videos fans rewatch over and over again. He’s the only villain in this title who actually beats our heroes and at some point even kills them. He then becomes a literal god and threatens to change the whole world. Poor Kishimoto had to write a stronger villain into the story to get rid of him. Sadly a less interesting one.
3. Kaidou (One Piece)
This man is a war criminal, a terrifying tyrant and an alcoholic. He can also turn into a dragon and burn whole villages to the ground. He bears the title of «The Strongest» and at one point he beats Luffy in his strongest form. Oda himself said that Kaidou is so powerful that this time the Straw Hats will need something more than just a strong punch to beat him. So Luffy dies, becomes a god and is still only on par with this beast of a man. When he still tries to hit Kaidou, the dragon man decides to take his punch. In the end it works, but only because Kaidou himself wants it to. As he falls down, Oda carefully prepares a bed of melting magma for him. Just to make sure that Kaidou never wakes up and throws the story out of balance again.
2. Satoru Gojo (Jujutsu Kaisen)
Time for a change. This character is actually a good guy. Being a member of one of the most powerful families in the series, Gojo inherits the ability to basically manipulate space and erase things from existence. He is so strong that the whole world of sorcerers decides to rely on him as a means of balance and safety. Poor villains have no chance against him as he rips off their limbs and crushes their bodies with cursed energy. Gege had to invent a special cube to seal away Gojo from the story, so that other characters actually had something difficult to do. With recent developments in the manga it became clear how unbelievable his defeat is to fans, as they suspect that the author actually forgot to draw a chapter or two.
1.Yhwach (Bleach)
How can you compete with a man who can change the future the way he desires? It’s like Kubo was on a roll at some point and actually overshot with this villain. Every action the good guys can do is seen by Yhwach, is controlled and changed by him. When Ichigo gets his true Bankai and tries to use it against the guy, what does he do? He just crushes it with one hand, taking away not only the protagonist’s main weapon, but also readers’ chance to get any narrative payoff. In the end, Kubo had to give the heroes a magical arrow that was magically unperceived by Yhwach. A neat tool that sadly came out of nowhere. And only using it the characters managed to beat him. When Yhwach dies, he promises Ichigo to come back, definitely giving him nightmares.