chuunin_archive | Character Analysis: Uchiha Itachi (Reply)

*wave* Hello, I’ve been ~~threatened~~ …persuaded into posting something here by

sunsitenthai after she wrote her amazing Sasuke essay. And by ‘something’ I mean lots of rambling and analysis concerning Itachi, because he’s always been horrendously portrayed in fandom. So, without further ado, let’s talk about the Uchiha prodigy.

Warning: I haven’t dedicated a lot of analysis to the events post-time skip yet. I don’t think it matters with my main point though. I don’t really talk about Akatsuki either. Also, I quote and paraphrase from the scanlations, which are the source of my analysis.

First off, what motivates Itachi? He says it himself: capacity. He seems obsessed with his own potential, to see how far he can go, where is his limit and can he surpass it? It’s not surprising that he focuses on this. Itachi was a genius among geniuses. He was complimented for his talent, so of course he would want to know exactly where he stood. He was surrounded by people who admired him, had expectations for him, and were even a little fearful. He acknowledges what it means to be strong, how those who are powerful become ‘isolated and arrogant’ (interesting that he says this to Sasuke, who tries to be exactly like that.)

He is not a very open, friendly person by nature, but the way his peers viewed him only contributed to his introversion. Resentment develops both ways. Notice how quick others are to harshly accuse him, the ‘admired’ star of the clan. He says to them, “It is not wise to judge others by your preconceptions and their appearances.” This is in response to the death of Shisui, but it also implies that they are wrong in judging Itachi, as well. Not that they are wrong in accusing him of the murder, but that everyone is wrong to measure him by their standards. He pretty much tells them that he is more capable than what they believe, and his aggressions say that he can and will take action.

So why the murder of his clan? Resentment is not enough, especially not for someone as purposeful as Itachi. He had his reasons, which to him, were perfectly logical.

1. To measure his potential. The Uchiha clan is strong, certainly worthy opponents.
2. They were in his way. Because of the expectations and rules of his family, he was unable to realize his full potential. They made the fuss about it in the first place.
3. To open a way for Sasuke, though it’s just a possibility, it’s something that interests Itachi.

Not to say that the blame is entirely the clan’s. Itachi made a choice, after all. A choice that was, to him, a reasonable conclusion. According to social norms, this is crazy. Someone who kills their family for a cold-blooded reason like potential isn’t sane. But Itachi is a genius. A prodigy. The rules of society are not the same to people on his level (or perhaps there is no level and he’s just insane. But we’re not arguing what madness is here.)

So we have Itachi’s reason, his motivation, and a basic idea of his goal. Now let’s talk about Itachi and Sasuke.

Itachi is not motivated solely by his brother, that much is certain and also a huge misconception. Sasuke is obsessed with his sibling, but the reverse is not true of Itachi. If Sasuke fails, it would be a deep disappointment, but it would hardly remove Itachi’s reason for living. It is not the reason he does what he does.

The fact remains that he did let his younger brother live. He told him to live hating him, to thrive on that hatred and seek revenge – only then would Itachi acknowledge him. With the clan gone, Sasuke also has the potential to become greater than before. The prodigy is not one to let things go to waste, he’s careful like that, and he’s smart. Sasuke was scared, all alone, and utterly, a blank slate. His death would be pointless, but what about his life? Sasuke would hate him for what he did; hate his only family as terribly as Itachi had hated. He saw a possibility of himself in his brother, and then a curiosity. Could his weak little brother amount to anything, if driven by the same hatred Itachi had felt? If Sasuke was someday a worthy adversary, that would be excellent. It was twisted, genius, and worthy. So he let his brother go, to carry that grudge, to someday seek his own capacity.

But not until Sasuke was strong enough. Itachi’s disappointment was clear when he encountered his sibling later. “Why are you so weak?” How could he be like this if he hated him as much as he claimed? “Still not enough hatred.” So he needed to break him again. “I have absolutely no interest in you right now.” The truth, and a taunt. Hurt him so he would remember the depths of his hatred.

It is possible Itachi does want Sasuke to kill him. Possible, but not very. If that does end up being the case, as I’m sure Itachi has acknowledged, then it would simply mean Sasuke’s potential was greater, that he was right to spare him. Itachi wins no matter what happens.

Backtracking to their past… Itachi contradicts what he says to Sasuke when they are alone, and what he does to others. Is his kindness to his brother false, or did he struggle with some sort of inner debate over his chosen course of action? Well, it’s obvious how a possible debate ended (proof that love can’t ‘save’ Itachi. More on that later.) Sasuke did love him though, perhaps it was blind adoration, but it was also without reservation. He put Itachi on a pedestal and saw only the good. He didn’t have the ugly, suspicious mind of an adult, and perhaps that innocence and sincerity had enough of an affect on Itachi to allow him to treat Sasuke gently…for a while. It was inevitable that Sasuke would have to be disillusioned, and Itachi was becoming more and more focused on his objective, pushing all other things out.

Now that’s I’ve laid down the basis of the Itachi and Sasuke relationship… Hey, let’s talk about sex.

…

I’m sorry, Itachi is not a particularly sexual being. There’s absolutely no evidence that might indicate that he’s at all interested in raping anybody, and the notion doesn’t work with his character and objective. Itachi is cold. Even Sasuke is warmer and more passionate in comparison, but Itachi is totally unflappable. Quite frankly, he doesn’t seem like the type that would be much fun ~~(or good, for that matter—wait, he is a genius, I take that back)~~ in bed to begin with. Anyway, sex is not something he wants unless it’s necessary. Above all else, raping Sasuke (or Naruto, or Sakura, or anybody) will not help him reach his goal. Contrary to popular belief, Itachi is not sadistic. He does not revel in the deaths of his family, he’s not affected when he inflicts injuries on others. He takes necessary actions and dislikes expending more effort than is required (example: he says to Kisame, “But don’t do too much. Your work can be too excessive.”)

Raping Sasuke would not break him. Simply put, Sasuke is now no stranger to Itachi hurting him. What Itachi would want is to get past the defenses, truly hurt him the way he did when he killed his own clan, and the key is trust. The reason Sasuke was so traumatized was because of the betrayal. That is why Itachi uses his Tsukiyomi to make Sasuke relive the death of his parents, because that one event was the key that fed his hatred. Unless Itachi can win back his brother’s trust to break again, bodily harm would prove ineffective. He wouldn’t bother with that.

Now, less about sex and more about love.

Usually, Itachi falling in love is assumed to be equivalent to him being redeemed. Except to him, there’s nothing he needs to repent for. For him to truly realize and feel that his actions are wrong, he would have to abandon his pursuit of potential. Dewy-eyed girls with kind, gentle hearts aren’t going to be enough to convince him.

Is it possible for him to fall in love, in some manner that’s unique to him (it would have to be, since normal conceptions of love don’t apply)? Well…yes, supposedly. It would not change him though. The biggest problem is that it would not contribute to his ambition. Itachi is the one and only person who can realize his own capacity. A love interest is essentially worthless to him, and he wouldn’t waste anything on the frivolities of romance. He’s too dispassionate for torrid affairs, as well.

…To be honest, I haven’t been very interested in fandom recently, so I don’t know what other misconceptions are running rampant. It’s mostly the rape and love that I remember being prominent. I’m not even sure I want to know what else is happening to Itachi in fandom. Um, and that's about it, at the moment. I have a real honest-to-god essay that's much more detailed and concise than this, but's it's incomplete. So feel free to debate whatever I've said here, or bring up new points!