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RAI
雷
thunder · lightning bolt
✎ Editor's glossthunder — a lightning bolt
Naruto · Jutsu · Kanji file 060
Raiton — Lightning Style 雷遁
Pronounced rai·ton
Raiton — "Lightning Style" — is a curious one, and so is Fūton. The classical five escapes — Katon, Suiton, Mokuton, Kinton, Doton — do not include lightning, nor wind. Yet it does not seem to be the author's coinage either. Digging through the holdings of Japan's National Diet Library, we found the same 1925 manual — Henken Shutsubotsu Jizai: Ninjutsu Kiaijutsu Dokushinjutsu Gokui Hiden — which explains Raiton no Jutsu as a way of hiding one's form by means of lightning. (We have confirmed still earlier books that explain it, too.) In Naruto it is the specialty of Kakashi, Sasuke and the successive Raikage — and Sasuke's Indra's Arrow, loosed in the final battle at the Valley of the End, may well be called the supreme secret of the lightning line.
Rooted in real ninjutsu
Speed
Breaking down the kanji
Here's what each character means — and how to write it. In Japan, following the correct stroke order is considered the key to writing kanji beautifully. Readings, stroke counts and core meanings below come directly from the KANJIDIC2 dictionary database. The red ✎ line is the editor's gloss — the meaning that is actually alive in this name, chosen by our editors from a Japanese kanji dictionary.
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TON
遁
flee · escape · evade
✎ Editor's glossto flee, to slip away — the ton of tonjutsu, the ninja arts of escape
What's next
Which term should we write next?
We write in order of demand. Every name and jutsu in the official databooks is listed in our Master Index — find the one you want, and tell us via the Contact page.
The whole family
Raiton in the official index — all 8 jutsu
Every Raiton technique listed in the official databook index, with exact kanji and romaji. Stroke-order animations and native commentary will come to each of them — the Master Index tracks the promise.
| 雷遁影分身の術 | Raitonkagebunshinnojutsu“Lightning Style: Shadow Clone” |
| 雷遁・感激波 | Raiton Kangekiha |
| 雷遁・偽暗 | Raiton Gian |
| 雷遁・黒斑差 | Raiton Kuropansa |
| 雷遁チャクラモード | Raitonchakuramōdo |
| 雷遁 雷幻雷光柱 | Raiton Raigenraikōchū |
| 雷遁・雷獣追牙 | Raiton Raijūtsuiga |
| 雷遁・四柱しばり | Raiton Shichūshibari |
One more thing — Chidori, Raikiri and Kirin are lightning-nature jutsu as well; they simply carry names of their own, without the Raiton prefix — and their own pages.
0 of 8 covered so far — requests decide the order (→ Contact)
Original artwork — free to save
The kanji, on one sheet
A reference card we drew ourselves — the characters in Japanese brush style.
Quick answers
FAQ
How many strokes is 雷遁?
26 in total: 雷 is 13, 遁 is 13. The animation above draws every stroke in dictionary order.
How do you pronounce Raiton?
Say it rai·ton (雷遁). Japanese has no strong word stress: give each syllable about the same length and weight, and keep the vowels short and clear — a as in “father,” i as in “machine,” u as in “food,” e as in “met,” o as in “go.”
What characters make up Raiton?
Raiton is written 雷遁: 雷 (thunder · lightning); 遁 (flee). Readings and meanings come from the KANJIDIC2 dictionary database.
Can I use the copied kanji anywhere?
Yes — it's standard Unicode text and works on any modern OS. One caution before you print or ink it: make sure the font is a Japanese one. Some fonts render the same characters in Chinese style, and the difference shows.