Itachi Uchiha

Sasuke's elder brother, a child prodigy who slaughtered nearly the entire Uchiha clan in a single night and left only his sibling alive. As a member of the criminal organisation Akatsuki he hunts tailed-beast hosts, yet his motives are never what they seem: every cruelty is calculated to protect both his village and the brother he wants to grow strong enough to kill him.

A slender young man with pale skin, long black hair tied low at the back, and a pair of pronounced creases running down either side of his nose that give him a perpetually tired, aged look. His dark eyes shift to the red three-tomoe Sharingan and, at need, to a pinwheel-shaped Mangekyo pattern. He wears the Akatsuki uniform, a black cloak patterned with red clouds and a high collar, over dark clothing, with a scratched Konoha forehead protector marking his defection. A ring is worn on his right hand, and he often keeps the cloak closed and his expression blank.

Eerily calm, soft-spoken, and almost gentle in tone even while committing atrocities, Itachi presents as a man to whom nothing seems worth raising his voice over. He is ruthlessly efficient, avoiding unnecessary fighting and ending confrontations with a single technique whenever possible. Toward his brother he is deliberately cruel, dismissing Sasuke as weak and unworthy of killing, and urging him to cultivate hatred and seek power at any cost. He shows a strange restraint too, refusing to harm bystanders unnecessarily and stopping his partner from excessive violence. Beneath the flat affect there are glimpses of exhaustion and old affection, particularly in memories of poking his little brother's forehead.

Born the elder son of Fugaku Uchiha, head of Konoha's police force, Itachi was a generational prodigy who graduated the Academy far ahead of his year, awakened his Sharingan early, and made chunin while his classmates were still students. Having witnessed the horrors of war young, he grew pacifistic and withdrawn while being groomed as the clan's future leader, and went on to captain an ANBU squad. Then, in a single night, he killed every member of the Uchiha clan, including his parents, leaving only his younger brother Sasuke alive. He told the traumatized child that he had done it to measure the limits of his own capacity, then fled the village as a wanted criminal and was later recruited into the Akatsuki.

1. Uchiha Massacre (flashbacks)

   Seen only in Sasuke's recurring nightmares and recollections, he walks a street of corpses and traps his brother in an endless replay of the killings. He tells Sasuke that he lacks the hatred required to matter, and instructs him to live in shame and cling to life until he is strong enough for revenge.

2. Search for Tsunade

   He returns to Konoha with Kisame Hoshigaki to capture Naruto for the Akatsuki. Confronted by Asuma and Kurenai, he dispatches them almost casually, then overwhelms Kakashi with the Mangekyo Sharingan technique Tsukuyomi, leaving the jonin comatose after what feels to Kakashi like days of torment.

3. Confrontation with Sasuke

   When Sasuke bursts in and attacks with the Chidori, Itachi catches the technique and shatters his brother's arm, then subjects him to Tsukuyomi again to relive the massacre. He mocks Sasuke's insufficient hatred and tells him to seek far greater power before he dares to try again.

4. Escape from Jiraiya

   Cornered by Jiraiya in an inn corridor and swallowed by the Sannin's living-toad prison technique, he escapes by burning through the walls with black flames that cannot be extinguished normally. He withdraws without capturing Naruto, and his lingering presence pushes Sasuke toward abandoning the Leaf for Orochimaru.

Sasuke Uchiha

Younger brother

The only Uchiha he spared, and the person he most deliberately torments. He repeatedly tells Sasuke to hate him and grow stronger, shaping his brother's entire life around a single act of vengeance.

Kisame Hoshigaki

Akatsuki partner

The shark-like swordsman follows his lead without complaint, deferring to him in planning and restraint. Kisame relishes combat where Itachi avoids it, making them an oddly balanced pair on missions.

Kakashi Hatake

Former colleague, enemy

Once fellow ANBU in Konoha, they meet as opponents when Itachi comes for Naruto. Kakashi is the first to recognize the danger of his eyes, and the first to be devastated by them.

Naruto Uzumaki

Target

Itachi hunts him as the vessel of the Nine-Tails, yet treats him with unnerving courtesy rather than malice, observing the boy carefully while Kisame urges a more brutal approach.

• Standing amid the corpses of his clan in Sasuke's memory, sparing only his brother.
• Defeating Kakashi in moments with Tsukuyomi in a Konoha hotel corridor.
• Catching Sasuke's Chidori with one hand and breaking his wrist without changing expression.
• Burning his way out of Jiraiya's toad-stomach trap with inextinguishable black flames.
• Telling Sasuke that his hatred is still far too small to be worth anything.

• He rose to ANBU captain while most of his contemporaries were still genin.
• His signature gesture of affection toward Sasuke is a light poke to the forehead.
• Crows recur throughout his techniques and imagery, a motif tied to the Uchiha.
• He is one of very few characters who defeats Kakashi without sustaining a scratch.
• The true reasons behind his actions are left unexplained within this series.

• Naruto Uzumaki
• Sasuke Uchiha
• Sakura Haruno
• Kakashi Hatake
• Hinata Hyuga
• Shikamaru Nara

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