Orochimaru

Orochimaru is a former student of the Third Hokage. Orochimaru and his former teammates, Jiraiya and Tsunade, are known as the "Legendary Three Ninja" or simply the "Sannin".

His parents died when he was young, leaving him to fend for himself for much of his life. While under the Third's tutelage, the Third recognized Orochimaru's natural talent, often telling Jiraiya to be more like Orochimaru. The Third was aware of a malice and a lust for power within Orochimaru, but chose to pretend not to notice for he hoped he could quell this part of Orochimaru's personality.

As the years went by Orochimaru formed a friendship with Jiraiya, and all the while his desire for power grew. One day while visiting his paren't grave he found the shedded skin of a white snake. As the Third Hokage explained, this was a sign of luck, as Orochimaru's parents had probably passed on peacefully into a new life.

After leaving Konoha, Orochimaru joined Akatsuki, where he was teamed with Sasori. While what he did while a member of the organization is unknown, it is known that he tried to take control of Itachi Uchiha's body so as to gain the Sharingan.

Being one of the Legendary Three Ninjas as well as a former member of Akatsuki, Orochimaru is a very talented ninja. Since his leaving Konoha he has performed many modifications to his body, resulting in his natural form being that of a giant white snake composed of many smaller snakes. This form has the advantages of allowing him to stretch any part of his body to great lengths, regenerate any wound inflicted upon him, and otherwise use the snakes that he is composed of for attack.