Itachi Uchiha

**Itachi Uchiha** (うちはイタチ, *Uchiha Itachi*) was a prodigy of Konohagakure's Uchiha clan and also served as an AnbuCaptain. He later became an international criminal after murdering his entire clan, sparing only his younger brother, Sasuke. He afterwards joined the international criminal organisation known as Akatsuki, whose activity brought him into frequent conflict with Konoha and its ninja — including Sasuke — who sought to avenge their clan. Following his death, Itachi's motives were revealed to be more complicated than they seemed and that his actions were only ever in the interest of his brother and village, remaining a loyal shinobi of Konohagakure to the very end.

## Personality

From a young age, Itachi was quiet and insightful, showing noticeable maturity for his age and knowledge on how to deal with every situation. At the same time, Itachi was still fairly naïve as a child in many real-world scenarios and as such was willing to learn from his peers on how to differentiate situations.[31] He lived at a distance, observing individuals and ideas without getting directly involved so that he could fully understand them.[32] Although this approach prevented him from becoming close with many people, it enabled him to think and act without prejudice or preconceptions, instead evaluating things strictly on their own merits. In the anime, Itachi unintentionally gained many friends and admirers for his genuine concern for others despite his passive nature.[9] He would think about shinobi and origins of the village and its future.[11] For this reason, he never became arrogant about his own abilities or accomplishments; to which, most views or statements he made were usually well-based, seeing the situation for what it was. From this he had no self-righteous loyalty to his clan that was so common among the Uchiha; though he loved his family and wanted the best for them, he knew there were more important things than the Uchiha's personal aspirations. Itachi's dream was to become Hokage, though he kept it hidden from others. [8] Itachi was also one of the few villagers of Konoha to hold no grudge against Naruto Uzumaki, believing Naruto to be the greatest victim of the Nine-Tails attack and showed him kindness whenever they met by chance.[33]

Despite being a pacifist by nature, Itachi felt his own needs were secondary to the greater good's and to that end he became a shinobi. He trained tirelessly to improve himself as quickly as he could and subjected himself to all of the shinobi life's inconveniences without complaint for the simple motivation of being useful to others. His commitment borderlined recklessness, due to training privately using extremely deadly methods such as dodging a barrage of kunai in the anime. Being so accomplished as a ninja enabled Itachi to approach problems less violently than others would, satisfying his peace-loving nature. These two extremes of his personality came into conflict as events moved toward the Uchiha Clan Downfall; he did not want to harm his family and sought a peaceful resolution, but knew that the path with the least bloodshed would be the clan's extermination. When the Uchiha Clan refused to deter from their plans, Itachi was pushed over the edge and his normally polite attitude to his clansmen became more violent, criticising them openly and lashing out at them for the choices that sealed their fates and his own. Despite his natural pacifism and kindness, Itachi was possessed of a wrathful and merciless side when those he loved were hurt or threatened. In revenge for Yashiro Uchiha's cowardly manipulations of his father from the shadows and helping to provoke war against Konohagakure while keeping free of responsibility himself, Itachi used his Tsukuyomi to force him to experience days of torture in an instant after making him realise how weak he was in comparison to Itachi himself. Itachi would later use Amaterasu to execute the helpless Root member Sugaru in revenge for Sugaru poisoning Shisui.[33]

Despite the traumas he endured from killing his own family, Itachi did not blame those among Konoha's leadership who gave him the mission; though he did not trust Danzō on a personal level, he knew Danzō only had the village's best interests at heart. But Itachi – partly out of the necessity of his assignment to join Akatsuki – was greatly changed after the massacre, rarely if ever showing emotion. He became more prone to displays of force and permitted certain violent habits of his partner, Kisame, under the pretence that it furthered Akatsuki's goals.[34] Itachi could not and would not fully shake his pacifistic ways, and would run from confrontation or rein in Kisame if the likelihood of collateral damage became too high for themselves or others. While Kisame would sometimes protest, he considered Itachi a good friend and would listen to his instructions. Itachi also had a decent partnership with his previous partner Jūzō, showing respect to him and after his death, placing the remains of Kubikiribōchō in Jūzō's hand.
Konoha's peace and protection was always forefront in Itachi's mind,[35] but it was his dedication to his brother, Sasuke, that took priority in every situation. From the time of Sasuke's infancy, Itachi tasked himself with looking after him. In the anime, Itachi even correctly guessed Sasuke's gender before his younger brother's birth.[7] They'd spend whole days together in the woods around Konoha having adventures and accomplishing self-appointed missions. When Itachi became an accomplished ninja and took much of their father's attention, Itachi would make special time to fill their father's shoes for Sasuke's benefit, at times even refusing his father's wishes in order to make Sasuke happy. In turn Sasuke wished to be just like his older brother and would often ask Itachi to train him in the ninja arts. Itachi would almost never do so, poking his forehead and promising to train him some other time. Unfortunately, none of these promises were ever kept.[36]It was Sasuke's safety that ultimately convinced Itachi to go through with killing the rest of the Uchiha, believing his own damnation was worth it if it ensured Sasuke's survival. Even though he did it for Sasuke, Itachi wanted to be punished for his crimes and selected Sasuke as the one to take vengeance against him. To push Sasuke in this direction, Itachi withheld the true reason for his actions and instead took on the persona of a man who had no love for his younger brother. Per the persona, Itachi cared about Sasuke only because of the eyes that he could take to gain Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan. His actions in Akatsuki were meant to reinforce this persona, and whenever he met Sasuke over the years he would taunt his weakness and encourage him to get strong enough to kill him. His plan was that, once he had been killed, Sasuke would be hailed as a hero. Itachi never wanted Sasuke to learn the truth surrounding the Uchiha's massacre, and if he did he hoped the memory of a hateful older brother would cause him to not believe it. Itachi’s constant pursuit of peace, coupled with the paramount secrecy of his missions and his capacity to care about those around him, lead Itachi to take on every burden himself, believing he needed no help from comrades.[37]

After he died and was reincarnated, Itachi discovers that his plans largely failed; Sasuke is not a hero, he did find out the truth about what Itachi did, and now he aims to destroy Konoha. He then begins to see the flaw in his original plans: he had been trying to manipulate Sasuke rather than be honest with him and trust in his own strength.[38] Acknowledging the mistakes, Itachi is free to be himself instead of the persona he fabricated, being openly kind to others and displaying a dry sense of humour even in stressful situations.[39] He puts his trust in Naruto Uzumaki to stop Sasuke from proceeding further down the path of darkness, and after Naruto proclaims that he will stop the war himself, warns Naruto against forgetting the value of his friends, reminding him how those he loved helped him come so far. Itachi later even shows empathy to his enemy Kabuto Yakushi, likening Kabuto's arrogance and belief in nothing being beyond him to Itachi's own living self, telling him that such a path can only lead to failure, at the same time seeing finally acknowledging his true self for who he is and forgiving himself for his mistakes. Itachi further displays a reflective side, refusing Sasuke's claims that he was perfect and telling him that perfection can never be obtained by one individual. He is also finally open and honest with Sasuke during their final meeting, admitting what he did and even sharing information Sasuke did not already know. He apologises to Sasuke for failing in his responsibilities as an older brother, wondering if being up front with Sasuke from the beginning might have allowed them to avoid the Uchiha's destruction. In their final moments together, Itachi tells Sasuke he does not need forgiveness and that he will always love him no matter what.[40]

## Appearance

Itachi had onyx eyes under which were long, pronounced tear-troughs. He had jet-black hair that was pulled back in a low ponytail and his face was framed with centre-parted bangs that extended to his chin; the ponytail and bangs grew longer over the years. His overall appearance is very similar to Sasuke's.[41][42]Even more, like his brother, he was considered very handsome as many girls became infatuated with him.[9] When he lived in Konoha, his casual clothes consisted of a black shirt with the Uchiha clan symbol on the back, bandages around his ankles, and black sandals. He wore tan pants with a weapons pouch strapped to his back. When on duty, he would wear the standard Anbu uniform complete with arm guards, a flak jacket, and a porcelain mask which was fashioned to resemble a weasel with a red, triangular marking on top.[43]

As a member of Akatsuki, he wore the standard Akatsuki cloak and a slashed Konoha forehead protector to symbolise his broken ties with the village. The cloak's high collar would obscure his ponytail. He would sometimes unbutton his cloak to mid-chest and rest his left arm there, rather than in the sleeve. Under his cloak he wore clothes similar to the rest of Akatsuki: mesh armour with navy accents under an identical T-shirt with a simple white belt around the waist and dark blue pants. On his right ring finger was his Akatsuki ring, which was red and bore the kanji for "vermilion" (朱, *shu*). He wore purple nail polish on his fingers and toes and a necklace that had three silver rings with red gems inside them.

After being reincarnated by Kabuto with the Impure World Reincarnation technique, he was seen wearing a maroon long sleeved cloak like the other reincarnated ninjas and retains his dark blue pants and black open-toed sandals. His skin becomes pale white with linings on his face, his hair became dark grey and has soulless onyx eyes minus the irides.

## Abilities

Even within the Uchiha clan, Itachi was a ninja of prodigious talent, consistently showing prowess well-beyond his years and rising rapidly through the ninja ranks. He was highly proficient in all three main ninja skill sets and gained praise from allies and foes alike; Orochimaru, one of the Sannin, openly admitted Itachi was stronger than he was.[44] Obito claimed that despite being crippled by illness, Itachi was fully capable of killing Sasuke during their battle if he wanted to.[45] A pacifist at heart, Itachi did not actually like fighting and would avoid it when he could. When he couldn't, he would end the fight as quickly as possible, all the while holding himself back. Even when restrained in this way, a team of jōnin were still pushed to their limits against Itachi.[18]

### Chakra and Physical Prowess

As an Uchiha, while Itachi's chakra was naturally strong, his actual reserves were below average, made worse by his terminal illness. This prevented him from participating in prolonged battles and limited his use of Mangekyō Sharingan techniques to three times a day before he needed significant rest, at which point even his Sharingan deactivated. Itachi had very refined chakra control, however, which compensated for this. He was even able to perform his techniques with one-handed seals.[46]

Although not his preferred method of combat, Itachi was very skilled with taijutsu – enough to easily defeat three members of the Konoha Military Police Force at the age of thirteen.[47] He had impressive speed and reflexes, particularly with his hand movements. This extended to both throwing weapons and hand seals, making it appear as if he could perform his techniques without seals; even skilled Sharingan users had difficulty keeping track of him.[48][49] His speed allowed him to attack first in a battle, then immediately move to the location his opponent retreated to before they even realised he was gone, giving them no chance to initiate a counter-attack.[50] Itachi also had notable physical strength. He was able to block an attack from a Samehada-wielding Kisame with nothing but a kunai.[51]

### Ninjutsu

Itachi could summon crows, which he would typically call forth in flocks to swarm opponents and distract them. He even integrated crows into clones of himself that would draw opponents' attacks. He was likewise able to create shadow clones and from which could lure in opponents before exploding. Itachi was also well-versed in fūinjutsu, particularly those that would activate in the presence of a specific person's Sharingan.[52][53] From his time in Anbu, Itachi became proficient in stealth, infiltration, and assassination.[5]

#### Bukijutsu

As a fully-trained Konoha Anbu, Itachi was skilled with a sword, which was his primary weapon during the Uchiha Clan Downfall. Like many Uchiha, he specialised and was advanced in shurikenjutsu. Even as a child, Itachi could perfectly hit an intricate set of eight targets, one of which was hidden in a blind spot, by accurately deflecting his projectile off another one to redirect both projectiles' path in mid-air.[54] His throwing speed was unprecedented, enough to keep up with and therefore negate the advantages of the Summoning: Lightning Flash Blade Creation.[55] He was equally comfortable with kunai, able to use them to spar with opponents wielding swords. In the anime, he learned advanced sleight-of-hand from Shisui to give his opponents even less time to react.[9]

#### Nature Transformation

Itachi's nature transformations included Fire, Water, Wind, Yin, and Yang Release.[4] As an Uchiha, he had a natural affinity for Fire Release, mastering the clan's Great Fireball Technique at a very young age. He would often coat shuriken with fire to increase their offensive capacities.[56] With Water Release, Itachi could perform the advanced Water Dragon Bullet Technique without an external water source,[57] as well as shape existing water into tendrils to strike his opponents from behind.[58]

### Genjutsu

Consistent with his pacifist nature, Itachi specialised in genjutsu typically performed with his Sharingan. His illusions often involved crows and could be initiated after only the briefest moment of eye contact. They were so seamless that even targets that knew to expect genjutsu might not immediately realise that they'd fallen prey to him. If opponents tried to avoid eye contact in fear of his Sharingan, Itachi could instead cast genjutsu by merely pointing at them. Itachi could also use genjutsu to share information or psychologically disable opponents, allowing him to end fights before they even began. Against other genjutsu users, he could turn their genjutsu against them.[59] Ao noted that Itachi was the only person who could use his genjutsu to control other individuals outside the range of even the Sensor Division.[60]

### Dōjutsu

#### Sharingan

Itachi awakened and mastered the Sharingan by the age of eight,[61]demonstrating skill and power superior to most members of his clan.[62] In the anime, his prowess and exploits with it earned him great fame as "**Itachi of the Sharingan**" (写輪眼のイタチ, *Sharingan no Itachi*).[5] He keeps his Sharingan active near-constantly with minimal drain on his chakra levels. The Sharingan allows Itachi to see the flow of chakra, predict movements, as well as facilitate his use of genjutsu. Also, with the Sharingan he could perform Izanami, a counterpart to the more dangerous Izanagi.[63]

#### Mangekyō Sharingan

Itachi awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan after the suicide of Shisui Uchiha. Its design was three spiralling curves around the pupil. With his left eye, he could use Tsukuyomi, a genjutsu that trapped opponents' minds in an illusory world, altering their perception of time to make seconds of torture seem like days.[64]With his right eye he could use Amaterasu, igniting whatever he looked at with black flames that would burn anything, including fire itself. He had the ability to extinguish Amaterasu, but never displayed the sort of shape transformation that Sasuke later would.

Having awakened the Mangekyō in both his eyes, Itachi could also use Susanoo. With its simplest manifestations, he could produce extra arms or bones to improve his options in a fight. When used in full, Itachi was surrounded by a spectral warrior that would protect him from all damage, even jutsu as powerful as Kirin.[65] In addition to the chakra swords and Yasaka Magatama common to all Susanoo, Itachi's Susanoo wielded the Sword of Totsuka – an ethereal sword with the ability to seal any person it pierced into its gourd—hilt – and the Yata Mirror – a shield that was said to reflect any attack by changing its chakra nature to counterbalance an attack. The simultaneous use of both weapons made Itachi's Susanoo essentially invincible.[66]

Using any of these techniques required vast amounts of chakra to perform. If he used these techniques too often in a short span of time, Itachi would become so fatigued that he would deactivate his Sharingan altogether. Every time he used his Mangekyō Sharingan his eyesight deteriorated, a process that would progressively worsen on each occasion. Early uses of the Mangekyō would only cause his eyes to bleed, but by the end of his life he reached the point where he was nearly blind, most things looking to him like mere blurs.[67]He does not suffer these shortcomings after his reincarnation and can use all his Mangekyō techniques without problems.

### Intelligence

Itachi was a highly intelligent individual, having the second highest scores in the history of the Academy behind Minato Namikaze.[8] He was solemn and observant; he thought very quickly and remained calm in a fight, enabling him to respond with maximum efficiency and with the smallest likelihood of misjudging circumstances. If an opponent exceeded his expectations or posed a legitimate challenge to him or his allies, Itachi would freely admit it.[68] Even at a young age, his studies of history gave him remarkable foresight and a cost-benefit understanding on par with the Hokage;[11] he took several precautions for Sasuke and against Tobi that he planned would activate after his death. Even Tobi admitted if he didn't keep some secrets from Itachi, he might have been killed by Itachi's trap.[69]

## TMNT X Pokemon

Itachi is one of the villains you will encounter throughout the game. But he soon became an ally of the Turtles to defeat Shredder and the Foot.

## Trivia

* The name "Itachi" means "weasel" (鼬), while his family name "Uchiha" is another way of pronouncing "uchiwa" (団扇, *paper fan*), which is actually the Uchiha clan's symbol. Uchiwa can be used to fan flames, making the flame hotter — referring to the fact that the Uchiha is a clan of Fire Release users.
* Itachi consistently ranks highly in the *Shōnen Jump* popularity polls for the series, his highest to-date position being fifth most popular character.
* Itachi and Kisame made a brief cameo appearance in the *Hidden Leaf Village Grand Sports Festival!*, where they were standing in line to use the bathroom, along with many other random characters.
* Itachi's nickname "**…of the Sharingan**" (写輪眼の…, *Sharingan no…*) is also held by Kakashi Hatake and Sasuke Uchiha.
* Studio Pierrot's Settei sheets of Itachi show that he was 130 cm as a genin, 148 cm when he joined the Anbu and 170 cm around the time of the Uchiha Clan Downfall.
* Itachi noted that his specialties in ninja skills are genjutsu, Fire Release, and shurikenjutsu.[5]
* According to the databook(s):
	+ Itachi's hobby was visiting traditional Japanese cafés.
	+ Itachi wished to fight Sasuke.
	+ Itachi's favourite foods were cabbage and onigiri with seaweed in it, while his least favourite was steak. Itachi was also very fond of sweets, dango being his favourite.
	+ Itachi had completed 340 official missions in total: 53 D-rank, 152 C-rank, 134 B-rank, 0 A-rank and 1 S-rank.
	+ Itachi's favourite word was "peace" (平和, *heiwa*).
* Itachi had always poked his younger brother, Sasuke Uchiha, in the forehead when they were younger, saying *"Forgive me Sasuke… Again, next time"* (「許せサスケ…また今度だ」, *"Yuruse Sasuke… Mata kondo da"*). This is referred to very poignantly with Itachi's last words, as he pokes his brother's forehead again and says, *"Forgive me Sasuke… …It ends with this"* (「許せサスケ……これで最後だ」, *"Yuruse Sasuke… …Kore de saigo da"*)
* Itachi is tied with Jiraiya for having the highest stat total in the databooks.

## Quotes

* (To an infant Sasuke) "*Don't cry, Sasuke. Your big brother is here to protect you, no matter what happens.*"[74]
* (To Yashiro, Tekka, and Inabi) "*You hold onto the organisation and your clan name. These things limit us and limit our capacities… These things deserve to be shunned. It is foolish to fear what we've yet to see and know!*"[75]
* (To Sasuke) "*There is no value in killing the likes of you… My foolish brother… If you want to kill me… curse me! Hate me! And live a long and unsightly life… Run away… run away… and cling to your pitiful life. And then some day, when you have the same eyes as I do, come before me.*" (「貴様など…殺す価値も無い。…愚かなる弟よ……。このオレを殺したくば、恨め!憎め!そして みにくく生きのびるがいい………。…逃げて逃げて…生にしがみつくがいい。そして何時か、俺と同じ目を持って、俺の前に来い!”」, *"Kisama nado… Korosu kachi mo nai. …Orokanaru otōto yo…… Kono ore o koroshitakuba, urame! Nikume! Soshite, minikuku ikinobiru ga ii……… …Nigete nigete… Sei ni shigamitsuku ga ii. Soshite itsuka, Ore to onaji me wo motte… Ore no mae ni koi!"*)[76]
* (To Sasuke) *"...People live their lives bound by what they accept as correct and true… that is how they define reality. But what does it mean to be correct or true? Merely vague concepts… their reality may all be an illusion."*[77]
* (To Kisame) *"Those who kill their own comrades are sure to die a terrible death."*[78]
* (To Kisame) *"We don't know what kind of people we truly are until the moment before our deaths. As death comes to embrace you, you will realise what you are. That's what death is, don't you think?"*[79]
* (To Naruto) *"However strong you become, never seek to bear everything alone. If you do, failure is certain."*
* (To Naruto) "*You don't become the Hokage to be acknowledged by everyone. The one who is acknowledged by everyone becomes the Hokage."*
* (About Konoha) "*The village does have its dark side and its inconsistencies, but I'm still Konoha's Itachi Uchiha.*"[35]
* (Last words to Sasuke after reincarnation) "*If I had been open with you from the start… and looked you straight in the eyes and told you the truth, then I wouldn't have had to stand before you, from above, as a failure, telling you all of this. So this time, I want to impart this truth to you… You don't even have to forgive me. And no matter what you do from here on out, know this… I will love you always.*"[80]