Yu Yu Hakusho was a stunning achievement by the then-amateur mangaka Yoshihiro Togashi, quickly becoming one of the most popular series of the ’90s. Driven by its success, Togashi went on to create another magnificent work — Hunter x Hunter.
Yu Yu Hakusho has many strong characters, including humans, demons, spirit guides, and even Gods of Death. Their power levels fluctuate throughout the series, some increasing by incomprehensible amounts but others remaining at the same tier.
Updated on June 15, 2023, by Ajay Aravind: Given the sheer number of people/demons in the narrative, not to mention that the final Three Kings Arc included the Makai Tournament, several overwhelming characters can be considered the most powerful entities in Yu Yu Hakusho. However, it is important to note that raw strength is not the only factor being considered; successful battles require planning, strategy, inventiveness, and much more.
15 Kazuma Kuwabara
Kuwabara might have been depicted as cowardly at the beginning of Yu Yu Hakusho, where he plays a juvenile delinquent. However, he evolves rapidly over the course of the first couple of arcs, soon becoming a force to be reckoned with in his own right.
In addition to the innumerable versions of Kuwabara’s Spirit Sword, the ultimate form of his weapon is capable of hacking through the literal curtain that separates individual dimensions. He doesn’t take part in the Demon World Tournament, though, but that’s because he plans to complete his scholastic endeavors instead.
14 Elder Toguro
While there are a number of antagonists in Yu Yu Hakusho, there is only one character in the series who is driven by pure evil: the Elder Toguro brother. His main ability is shapeshifting; he can stretch out or tauten any part of his body with absolute control over viscoelasticity.
Elder Toguro can even convert any part of his anatomy into a melee weapon or, in drastic cases, turn into a liquid-gel form in order to escape. As a result of his anatomical flexibility and flawless healing factor, this villain is essentially immortal. Unfortunately for Elder Toguro, he now gets to spend eternity in agony, trapped in the embrace of the Sinning Tree.
13 Younger Toguro
Toguro is built up to be this terrifying monster, and he certainly does have the flair for it, as seen during the Dark Tournament Saga. He crushes Yusuke until the former is forced to go beyond his limits in order to destroy him. Toguro perishes with a smile on his face and eventually, accepts the worst afterlife punishment imaginable.
Koenma reveals, much to everyone’s astonishment, that Toguro had never been anything more than a mediocre B-Class demon. That said, it doesn’t change the impact he had on Yusuke and Team Urameshi.
12 Kokou
Kokou happens to be one of Raizen’s original pals, appearing after her old friend dies of hunger. She effortlessly vanquishes the low-level (relative to the Human World) opponents in the first few rounds of the Makai Tournament and is given the honor of standing alongside Yomi himself in terms of youki, by the latter’s own admission.
Interestingly, after Yusuke wears Yomi down during their manga battle, it is Kokou who defeats the Makai King — and not Enki, as shown in the anime. Unfortunately, Kokou’s full strength is never showcased in either the anime or the manga.
11 Kurama
Aside from his genius-level intellect, Kurama is best known for his manipulation of plants. For instance, his favorite Rose Whip technique has gotten him out of some rather sticky situations. However, in the form of Yoko, he obtains access to A-Class demon energy, allowing him to create some rather macabre botanical products.
One of them is the Ojigi, a plant that captures enemies and squeezes them to death if they move even an inch. Another one is the Death Tree, which consumes any living organism that is unfortunate enough to venture into its nightmarish AOE.
10 Kujo
Kujo is another old buddy of Raizen’s. Along with this sister, Natsume, he is considered to be among the most fearsome combatants the Demon World has ever produced.
Kujo’s overwhelming powers are on display when he takes on Touya after the latter’s rapid power-up under Genkai. Kujo successfully counters his adversary’s unique techniques, albeit with some minor difficulty. Kujo’s greatest claim to fame is taking down one of his own friends, Kokou.
9 Hiei
Every anime team needs a quiet grouch, a role played by Hiei in Yu Yu Hakusho. While his fights on Earth were an incredible sight to behold, he comes into his own only during the Three Kings Saga. Here, he displays full control of the dangerous technique known as the Dragon of the Darkness Flame, almost defeating Mukuro — a stunning achievement, given her status in the Demon Realm.
Even though Mukuro manages to rip the fiery dragon in half, her metaphorical shackles are broken in the process. Finally free, she rejects her title as a King and leaves. Hiei remains behind in the Makai, hoping to improve the realm’s relationship with the Human World.
8 Saizou
Saizou bears a striking resemblance to Menthuthuyoupi from Hunter x Hunter, but he is vastly more powerful than King Meruem’s Royal Guard. While his battles are not shown at all, the fact that he is the sole victor from Block A means that he’s superior to Tetsuzan, Shu, Souketsu, Engetsu, Oboro, and other similar S-Class demons.
This suggests that Saizou is one of a kind, indeed. As it turns out, the final match of the Demon World Tournament takes place between Saizou and Enki, which the former loses.
7 Enki
Enki is a jovial red-hued demon friend of Raizen’s and one of the most powerful demons in existence. His spirit pressure is so great that when he releases it to honor Raizen, the resulting spectacle of red light can be seen from hundreds of miles away.
In fact, even Yomi mentions that Enki’s overall power is arguably similar to his own, although Enki nonchalantly confesses that he has not fought in a very long time. Nevertheless, after defeating Yomi in the fifth round of the Makai tournament, Enki is later crowned the sole King of Demon World, holding the position for the next three years.
6 Yomi
Yomi was originally a minion of Yoko from thousands of years ago until an accident left him blind and helpless. Since then, he has honed his powers to the extent of becoming one of the Three Kings, a potential rival to Raizen himself.
Yomi’s most impressive technique is the Demon Absorption Wall, which shields him from literally every kind of attack as long as they are composed of demon energy. However, his weakness is exposed when Yusuke manages to break through by using his spirit blasts. Given his Upper S-Class level, though, Yomi can produce violently explosive bursts of energy while fighting.
5 Mukuro
Mukuro is one of the most dangerous characters in the series, mainly because her strength correlates with her temperament. Having been violently abused by her “adoptive” dad, she still suffers from her childhood trauma. As such, her anger lets her generate ridiculous amounts of spirit pressure.
In addition to intimidating S-Class demons with her mere presence, she also employs techniques like dimension-cutting and telepathy — dodging or parrying either is next to impossible. Despite defeating Hiei, she reveals that she only used about 50% of her strength during their battle.
4 Genkai
While Genkai is technically weaker than several other strong Yu Yu Hakusho characters, the sheer elegance of her techniques has been proven to win unwinnable battles. For instance, she fights Shishiwakamaru after she has transferred most of her energy reserves to Yusuke but still manages to wrest control of the match by using her Spirit Reflection Blast.
This ability is used to extract the spirit energy from Genkai’s opponent and reflect it back toward them while she maintains a perfect equilibrium between the two energies. According to Genkai, her Spirit Wave technique also has enough power to level entire mountain ranges.
3 Shinobu Sensui
Shinobu Sensui, Yusuke’s predecessor, obtains a variety of energy that could outmatch even the strongest of demons, known as the fabled Sacred Energy. With this ability, he withstands the full force of Hiei’s Dragon by covering himself with Sacred Energy. This simply allows him to float through the air inside the Dragon’s mouth, completely unharmed.
Most importantly, Sensui is more than capable of fending off Yusuke in his reincarnated Mazoku form, which is already at an S-Class level. In fact, it can be argued that Sensui would have won the fight if Raizen hadn’t decided to seize control of Yusuke’s body.
2 Raizen
The only reason that Raizen is considered to be weaker than Yusuke’s final form is that he’s introduced to viewers on his deathbed. That said, it has been revealed that a young Raizen set off tremors whenever he raised his power levels.
Nevertheless, Raizen still remains the most powerful of the Three Kings, able to decimate Sensui and his Sacred Energy as if the latter were a rag doll being flung around. Unlike most other characters, Raizen can fly, as shown when he drags Yusuke across half a continent while in a rage.
1 Yusuke Urameshi
Shonen law demands that the strongest character be the young male protagonist, and so it is with Yu Yu Hakusho. Yusuke Urameshi starts off as a rebellious teenager, but he obtains limitless levels of power after going through innumerable fights throughout the four arcs.
Although Yusuke’s preferred technique is his Spirit Gun, he can eventually fire off blasts from the Super Demon Gun, an ability he obtained from his ancestor, Raizen. Yusuke loses the battle to Yomi during the Makai tournament, but the latter is weakened so much that he loses the next round to Enki without putting up much of a fight.
