Some anime characters have such a dominating presence, their aura fills the room before they even say a word. The term 'aura' has become a popular meme in the past few years for a good reason. It's a perfect word to describe moments when someone's existence transcends normal understanding. Characters with aura have insane levels of charisma, never even needing to speak and still being completely understood by those around them.

Characters with aura aren't always the main characters in their series. Sometimes, they can't be. They're too mysterious for a series to center on, and that's what makes them so great. Aura is something hard to define, and that's the point. It's an ethereal, unreal feeling that can't always be seen, but it can always be felt.

12 Shadow

The Eminence in Shadow

Shadow radiates aura. As the titular Eminence in Shadow, Shadow dominates his world almost inadvertently. As the star of one of the best isekai series around, Shadow came to his new world with a ton of power. Not only is he the strongest character in The Eminence in Shadow, but he has an unspeakable energy that surrounds him, forcing his enemies to fear him and his allies to revere him as a God.

Shadow's Aura can be felt throughout the series. When he's Cid, he's a normal teenager attending classes and staying out of trouble. As Shadow, however, he's orchestrating the most important events in the world by simply existing.

11 Madara Uchiha

Naruto: Shippuden

Madara Uchiha is one of the strongest anime villains of all time. If it wasn't for Kaguya Otsutsuki popping up at the last second, the Uchiha would have gone on to dominate the world and destroy Naruto and Sasuke's hopes. Out of all the characters in Naruto, none have the same ominous presence as Madara.

One of the greatest moments in the entire franchise happens right after Madara is revived through the Reanimation Jutsu. The Allied Shinobi Forces have all gathered to oppose him, and even an entire army has nothing on Madara. He flies through their forces carelessly, sweeping his enemies away without any effort. He's so powerful, anybody who knows about him knew to back away, feeling his absurd aura before the fight even began.

10 Frieren

Frieren: Beyond Journey's End

Frieren: Beyond Journey's End is one of the greatest anime series of all time. It's so good that it quickly became the top anime of all time on one of the most popular sites to rank anime, MyAnimeList.com. Frieren is amazing for a ton of different reasons, but one of the biggest has to be Frieren herself. She's so effortlessly cool, nobody can take their eyes off of her even when she isn't doing anything.

Frieren is so cool that even her clone was cooler than most characters in anime. Even with the clone's arms blown off, Frieren's copy didn't flinch, staring Fern down and almost killing her before the original Frieren came in to save the day.

9 Tengen Uzui

Demon Slayer

There are a lot of characters with insane aura in Demon Slayer. Gyomei, the Stone Hashira, Rengoku, the fallen Flame Hashira, and even Tanjiro have an absurd presence whenever they appear. Out of all the most powerful characters in Demon Slayer, none have an aura like Tengen Uzui. The former Sound Hashira, Uzui has more charisma in a single bone of his body than most other characters in the series put together.

Uzui's most inspiring moment came in the Entertainment District Arc when he and Tanjiro were taking on Gyutaro, one of the Twelve Kizuki. It looked like Gyutaro had defeated the Sound Hashira, only for Uzui to pop up with a smile on his face and a sword to Gyutaro's face. His unflinching charm gives him an unbeatable aura, giving him the ability to finally take down the Upper Moon.

8 Jotaro Kujo

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure

Out of all the amazing characters throughout JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, none have the aura of Jotaro Kujo. The star of Stardust Crusaders and a main character in a few other entries, Jotaro is one of the coolest characters in anime. Jotaro isn't one to show his emotions often. Even though he's about as stoic as it gets, the characters around Jotaro treat him with a reverence only few receive in anime.

Nobody around Jotaro knows what he's about to do. It's a true trait of a character with insane aura, and Jotaro's aura can best be seen in his amazing fight with Dio at the end of Stardust Crusaders. In what became an incredibly popular meme, Dio asks Jotaro if he's going to simply walk up to the Vampire. Jotaro responds that, of course he is. How else could he punch Dio in the face?

7 Yami Sukehiro

Black Clover

Yami Sukehiro from Black Clover doesn't know the meaning of the word quit. Even with his back against the wall, Yami couldn't care less. He's one of the strongest Magic Knight Captains in Black Clover, not just because of his amazing Magic Type, but because he has an unshakable mentality.

Even when his Black Bulls think that they've lost, Yami's sheer presence is enough for them to hope yet again. Yami has shown up at the last second to save his squad on more than one occasion. Even Yami's enemies can tell that Yami is in a different league when he appears, and that's a perfect indicator of how amazing Yami's aura truly is.

6 All Might

My Hero Academia

All Might's aura is unheard of. Even in a world with tons of great heroes to look up to, nobody gets the same reaction as All Might when he steps onto the scene. There are a ton of different moments in My Hero Academia where All Might's aura precedes him. Civilians and heroes alike will think that all is lost, and All Might changes their entire perspective the second he comes to fight.

All For One thought he had All Might exactly where he wanted him. In their fight in Kamino, All For One thought he was going to finally defeat his rival once and for all. All Might then used the strongest attack in the series, the United States of Smash, and showed everyone why he was the Number One Hero for so long.

5 Orsted

Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation

Rudeus has always been one of the strongest characters in Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation. When he was reincarnated into his new world, he was already one of the strongest characters around. He didn't need to train much, and with even a little training, his skills skyrocketed. He walked around the world with an understandable level of confidence, but that all changed when he met the Dragon God, Orsted.

Orsted's aura is so sickeningly brutal, neither Eris nor Rujierd could even look at him. When Rudeus didn't show the same fear, Orsted executed him brutally. Rudeus used magic that would have decimated any other opponent, but it didn't even leave a dent in the Dragon God. Orsted's aura is so horrifying that it even left Rudy with PTSD after their exchange.

4 Meruem

Hunter x Hunter

Meruem is one of the coldest villains in anime. He's also one of Hunter x Hunter, a series filled with insanely strong characters. Meruem is the King of the Chimera Ants and walks around with the regality that would suit a true king.

One of the best moments of true aura in all anime happens towards the end of the Chimera Ant Arc in Hunter x Hunter. Zeno Zoldyck and Chairman Netero arrive at Meruem's compound to take out the Ant. While they are also two of the strongest characters in the series, Meruem couldn't care less, walking right between them without a care in the world.

3 Frieza

Dragon Ball

Dragon Ball is a series defined by its villains as much as its heroes, and out of all the villains, none are better than Lord Frieza. He's the best villain in Dragon Ball for several good reasons, one being his monstrous aura. Before Frieza ever even came on-screen, almost every character knew who he was and what he was about.

Frieza is a menace to his allies and enemies alike. As soon as he was finally on-screen, everyone who hadn't met him before knew exactly why he was feared. He slaughtered numerous characters without a thought in the world, showcasing his brutality on a galactic level.