Itachi vs. Sasuke: Who Would Win and 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. The two of them had a very specific relationship and in this article, we are going to explore it by telling you whether Itachi or Sasuke would win in a direct clash between these brothers.
Today, Sasuke would definitely defeat Itachi easily. Earlier on, Itachi was exceptionally strong and Sasuke couldn’t really stand a chance in a direct fight against him. But, as Sasuke’s powers evolved, he became one of the most powerful characters in the franchise and would now easily defeat his older brother.
Speaking of Itachi vs Sasuke, there’s still a lot to be said. Throughout the rest of this article, we will look at their powers and abilities in more detail and see how the fight between Itachi and Sasuke would play out. Â
Itachi Uchiha and His Powers
Itachi Uchiha is a renegade ninja considered a prodigy and the bearer of numerous outstanding qualities. He is originally from Konoha, from which he defected, and a member of the Uchiha Clan, which was exterminated by him. He is Sasuke’s older brother.
Shinobi Skills
Itachi could boast excellent physical and martial arts skills as well as in the use of ninja weapons: several times he proves to be able to form seals for techniques with impressive speed, so much so that not even Kakashi with his Sharingan can follow their movements.
One of his biggest flaws is his low level of chakra reserves, which actually decreases his durability and leaves him open after prolong fighting. Actually, Itachi’s chakra reserves are far below average, which was a serious problem for him.
Eye Techniques
One of his main strengths is the Sharingan especially when it comes to creating illusions, which, except for Shisui Uchiha, were of a much higher level than those of any other member of the clan.
Thanks to the Hypnotic Sharingan he was able to use three powerful techniques:
- with the left eye the Tsukuyomi, a technique that takes the victim into an illusory world where Itachi can control space and time at will and that directly affects the nervous system;
- with the right eye the Amaterasu, a black fire that burns continuously until the target is canceled capable of consuming anything;
- by concentrating the chakra in both eyes the Susanoo, which evokes a creature similar to a knight-demon that envelops his body and attacks using the Totsuka Sword, which transports the victim to another dimension where an eternal illusion reigns, and defends with the Yata Mirror, capable of blocking any attack.
Susanoo and Other Techniques
Still using the Susanoo, Itachi demonstrates that he knows how to use a powerful long-range technique called Yasaka’s Magatama.
On the occasion of the clash with Kabuto Itachi uses Izanami, a forbidden technique of the Uchiha clan through which, at the cost of one’s own eye, one can imprison the opponent in an illusory loop that ends only when he understands his mistakes; he also proved to be able to seal his own techniques or those of others in other subjects.
In fact, he implanted the Amaterasu in Sasuke’s left eye, programming it in such a way as to react to the sight of Tobi’s Sharingan, while in the crow he gave to Naruto he had transplanted the Sharingan of Shusui containing the Kotoamatsukami technique.
However, due to the prolonged use of the hypnotic Sharingan (which greatly damaged his eyesight, leading him to almost complete blindness) and the mysterious terminal illness he had been suffering from for some time, Itachi did not have large reserves of chakra, although this did not reduce his danger in battle.
Intelligence
Itachi is certainly one of the strongest ninja in the manga: his intelligence, his experience and his great skills make him an extremely difficult ninja to deal with; thanks to his extraordinary strategic and observation skills he is able to guess in advance and with precision the choices of the opponent and to react accordingly.
Sasuke Uchiha and His Powers
Sasuke Uchiha is a shinobi that belongs to the Uchiha clan, a notorious ninja family, and one of the most powerful, allied with Konohagakure. He is one of the main characters in the Naruto franchise created by Masashi Kishimoto.
Shinobi Skills
He demonstrates great skill in martial arts, so much so that Kakashi has to use both hands during the bell test. He is endowed with superhuman speed, incredible reflexes, and extraordinary endurance, so much so that he can successfully sustain long battles against very powerful opponents.
He also boasts an exceptional ability in the use of any ninja weapon such as the kunai, the shuriken (which he uses in a masterly way even when tied together by the ninja thread), and his sword Kusanagi.
Thanks to training with Orochimaru Sasuke obtains immunity to poisons and learns all the techniques of the latter related to the use of snakes, but following the clash with Itachi he loses them, and in fact, his Recall Technique passes from these to hawks.
Eye Techniques
He also possesses a remarkable ability in the use of illusory arts, although not at the level of his brother: with the basic Sharingan he manages to save himself from Itachi’s Bloody Moon and was able to dialogue with the Fox in Naruto’s mind and subject to his want the king of snakes Manda.
With the Hypnotic Sharingan, he was able to immobilize Killer Bee, some samurai, and Shi, as well as create an illusion similar to his brother’s Bloody Moon, with which he distracted Danzo. After obtaining the Rinnegan, Sasuke’s ability to use the Illusory Arts increases to the point of subduing all nine hunks with a single glance.
Chakra Control
Like all Uchiha, he has a natural predisposition for the Fire-type chakra, learning the supreme Fireball technique at just seven years old, and later also learns how to use the Lightning-type chakra, learning from Kakashi the Thousand Hawks and creating numerous variants.
Itachi vs Sasuke: Who Would Win?
And now for the most important and interesting section of our article – the analysis. Here, we are going to use what we have found out about these two characters and analyze how all these facts would (or would not) help them in a fight against each other. Let us continue.
Itachi Uchiha is without a doubt a powerful shinobi, but people tend to overestimate his powers and abilities. Due to his achievements, fans usually think that Itachi is one of the most powerful characters in the franchise, but his skills are severely limited in many ways.
He was stronger than Sasuke when they were little and at that period of time, he was truly one of the most powerful Naruto characters. But, as Sasuke grew, his powers grew with him, while Itachi’s remained the same. Itachi had reached his peak, while Sasuke became more and more powerful.
In the end, we can only deduce that Sasuke became more powerful than Itachi, and that he would defeat him easily. That is clear from the previous sections and there shouldn’t really be any doubt about this clash. Sasuke is the more powerful Uchiha of the two brothers.
