Itachi vs. Madara: Who Would Win in a Fight & Why?

The Uchiha Clan is very specific in the world of Masahi Kishimoto’s Naruto. It was massacred by its own kin and left only with a few surviving members. Itachi Uchiha massacred his own clan, sparing only his younger brother, Sasuke. And while Itachi is going to be the focus of this article, we will not compare him to Sasuke but rather to another very powerful member of his clan, the legendary shinobi Madara Uchiha. If you want to find out who wins in this match-up between Madara and Itachi, keep reading!

Madara Uchiha is definitely the strongest known member of the Uchiha Clan and would be able to defeat Itachi. Sure, Itachi was exceptionally talented and powerful, but he never really got the chance to surpass Madara. On the other hand, Madara remains one of the most powerful characters in the whole series, which we definitely had to consider here.

Now that you have the short version of the answer, the rest of the article will be divided into three sections, with the first two introducing the characters, their powers, and their abilities. In the end, we will give our final verdict and explain why Madara would ultimately be able to defeat Itachi in a direct fight.

Chakra and physical prowess

Itachi Uchiha demonstrated extraordinary qualities from a young age, such as his intellect and exceptional talent for all ninja disciplines. He managed to graduate from the ninja academy at the young age of 7, become a Chūnin at age 10, and be an ANBU squad captain at age 13. The teachers also admired him, who ensured that his progress needed no help. It’s hard to name all of his accomplishments, but that can’t be said to measure Itachi’s true ability.

His true potential could only be understood by those who approached his level. In the few battles he was seen participating in, he proved to be an incredibly strong ninja, defeating many powerful shinobi with great ease. Despite his modesty regarding his abilities, his Akatsuki teammate Kisame Hoshigaki and Orochimaru recognized that Itachi was much stronger than them. Even Obito said that Itachi never ceased to amaze him, even when he was dead.

Madara was born with an extremely powerful Chakra, even by Uchiha Clan standards. This is because he was one of Indra’s Transmigrants, inheriting the powerful Chakra from him. His reserves were so vast that he could fight nonstop for a full twenty-four hours; even in his old age, after awakening the Rinnegan, he had enough Chakra to summon Gedo Mazo from the Moon after breaking the seal that contained it. His superior chakra control enabled him to perform complicated and chakra-intensive jutsu with a single hand seal and absorb and quickly adapt to senjutsu.

It is difficult to compare Uchiha Clan members when they are this powerful, but we still think that Madara’s Chakra tops all the other members of his clan, which is why he wins this point.

Points: Itachi 0, Madara 1

Ninjutsu

Like all Uchiha clan members, Madara possesses a Katon nature chakra. He now has mastery over all elemental chakra natures thanks to the Rinnegan. Madara’s Katon techniques have incredible range and power; Itachi’s supreme fireballs had medium range and respectable power, but Madara’s are on another level entirely. They are stronger than Sasuke’s.

As a result, it took the combined efforts of the entire Fourth Division to counter his Katon techniques with Suiton techniques. He also had some of Hashirama’s power implanted in him, allowing him to use the Mokuton techniques. The power of his Mokuton is incredible. With it he has created gigantic roots with lotus flowers at the end, whose scent is deadly to breathe: “the forest of flowering trees.” With this technique alone, he has an advantage over the five Kage combined.

He can also create a Mokuton clone, which he claims is ideal because, thanks to his Sharingan, he is undetectable except by himself. Madara can summon twenty-five clones of himself and transform them into humanoid-looking Susan. A Susanô can easily compete with and even outperform five Kage. He can summon the wood dragon, which can be the size of a Biju, and wind them up to cancel their chakra. Mokuton bending abilities are comparable to Hashirama’s.

Itachi was a great connoisseur of all the techniques of the Uchiha Clan, especially the capabilities of the Sharingan. He could use high-level ninjutsu, such as the Great Clone Blast. Crows were a common motif both in his ninjutsu and genjutsu techniques. For example, he could create a clone that split into large numbers of crows, which would then assault the opponent with various shurikens.

Also, he could summon ravens to use as a distraction. Itachi was also a common user of the Shadow Clone Jutsu and the Crow Clone Jutsu. During his battle with Sasuke, when they were continuously performing a shuriken attack, Itachi created a shadow clone and attacked his brother with it. As an experienced member of the Uchiha Clan, Itachi was a great user of the Fire Release.

He knew jutsu like the flames of the phoenix or the great ball of fire, a jutsu characteristic of his clan. He was also shown to be a user of the Water Release, whereby he could use jutsu such as the Water Dragon Missile jutsu without needing to be near pre-existing water. As a fully trained ANBU from Konoha, Itachi was also proficient in Kenjutsu, mainly demonstrated in his battle with Kabuto Yakushi after reincarnation. Itachi also had great skill with Fūinjutsu, as seen when he performed the Transcription Seal: Amaterasu on Sasuke just moments before his death.

As it was said in the text, despite all of Itachi’s versatility, Madara clearly surpasses him in this category as his techniques are simply more powerful than Itachi’s.

Points: Itachi 0, Madara 2

Dōjutsu

As Itachi was born into the Uchiha Clan, he developed his clan’s Kekkei Genkai, the Sharingan. However, unlike the other members, Itachi was able to awaken him at the young age of 8, being considered one of the most skilled of his clan. Like all carriers of this Dojutsu, Itachi could use its capabilities, but to a high degree, being able to attack three Sharingan-carrying ninjas in a second.

This shinobi was mainly characterized by having the ability to study his opponent’s movements from a long distance and respond quickly, almost always using genjutsu. Like all Sharingan wielders, he could induce his enemies with mere eye contact. Furthermore, he had trained his eyes so much that he could have the Sharingan activated for a long time with minimal chakra drain.

Madara Uchiha expertly masters his Sharingan, pushing it to incredible heights. He first awoke there during a fight between his family and Hashirama Senju’s. He can use genjutsu ten times stronger than Itachi’s and stop an enemy in his tracks (as seen in chapter 561). He masters all of the abilities and skills that the Sharingan provides to its user on a level far beyond that of Itachi or even Sasuke.

Madara developed his Sharingan to a high level while still a child, allowing him to lead the Uchiha clan alongside his younger brother. His new eyes were so powerful that he was able to fight numerous duels against Hashirama Senju, cementing his legend. Madara, like all Kaleidoscope users, has mastered the Susanoo. His Susanô is extremely powerful; he possesses a massive sword of incredible strength, which he used to defeat numerous shinobi.

Shortly before his death, he pushed his Sharingan to its limit by implanting cells from the First Hokage into his body, resulting in the “Rinnegan,” the ultimate evolution of the Sharingan. From then on, he has the six Rikudô powers, his techniques, and all the skills and advantages associated with the Rinnegan, which are on a completely different level than Nagato’s.

And while Madara would probably be able to surpass Itachi even in this category, we decided to split the points to acknowledge his amazing talents and feats in the series but with a disclaimer that it would probably not be enough.

Points: Itachi 1, Madara 3

Itachi Uchiha vs. Madara Uchiha: Who would win?

Well, the points give an obvious advantage to Madara Uchiha here, and we can only agree that Madara is the stronger clan member. He is a legendary character whose powers are almost incomparable to any present characters, and that is why Madara is held in such high regard. Sure, Itachi was a talented shinobi, but he never got the opportunity to reach Madara’s level, which is why we’re certain that the latter would win in this duel. Still, Itachi would definitely put up a fight, which would be a truly epic clash between the two.