The attack of the Nine-Tailed Fox Demon 16 years ago.
Suspicion fell on them.
That the Uchiha had revolted and sought to take power.
As a result,
the Uchiha was put under the strict surveillance of the Anbu Black Ops,
and they were forced to relocate to the outskirts of the village.
They became totally estranged.
Their distrust bred hatred and eventually,
their suspicions became reality.
The Uchiha clan plotted a coup d'état to take over the village...
The higher-ups in Hidden Leaf Village planted a spy within the Uchiha clan.
That spy was your older brother...
Itachi Uchiha.
From that moment, Itachi's suffering began.
A coup d'état by the Uchiha?
Itachi was...a spy?
Despite being an Uchiha, you were kept in the dark.
Because you were still young.
But it's all true...
Your father, Fugaku, was the mastermind behind the plot.
And your brother, Itachi, was ordered by your father
to spy on the Anbu Black Ops.
Itachi... You also serve as the Uchiha clan's pipeline
to the Village nerve center.
You know that, don't you?
However...it was actually the opposite.
Itachi was working for the village,
feeding them information about the Uchiha.
He was what they call a double agent.
You can't even imagine what a heavy burden that is to bear.
Why?! Why did Itachi betray the Uchiha?
It may be hard for you to understand,
not having witnessed the horrors of war.
The Third Great Ninja War...
When Itachi was merely four years old,
he witnessed the deaths of many people.
He was too young to experience war.
War is hell...
That trauma made Itachi a pacifist who hated war.
He was a man who put the village's safety first,
and who strove to preserve peace.
Instead of being bound by obligation to his clan,
he was a ninja who loved his village.
And the village higher-ups preyed on that trait.
They assigned him to a top-secret mission.
An eye for an eye...
For them to oppose the Uchiha, they would need the Sharingan.
Yes.
The mission was...
The total annihilation of the Uchiha clan.
I can't even begin to imagine what he went through emotionally.
Itachi was forced to make a terrible choice.
The impossible choice of killing one's own brethren.
But a civil war started by the likes of the Uchiha would shake
the very foundations of Hidden Leaf Village and the Land of Fire.
Other nations would waste no time in seizing the opportunity to attack.
It could even trigger a Fourth Great Ninja War...
The Uchiha clan's self-interest would involve innocent people
who had nothing to do with the ninja world.
And countless people would die once again.
If you were Itachi, what would you have done?
So Itachi made up his mind.
He himself would bring the curtain down on his clan.
He did not hate the Uchiha nor did he betray them.
It was inevitable.
The discrimination by the village... and the object of their antagonism...
He shouldered the blame all by himself.
No one can ever question Itachi's decision and the sacrifice he made.
To be truthful, back then, even I anticipated war.
I was bitter towards Senju's Hidden Leaf Village as well as the Uchiha.
But Itachi was even aware of that.
He alone was aware of my existence.
Itachi sought to contact me and made certain conditions.
In exchange for guiding me in my vendetta against the Uchiha,
I was not to lay a hand on the village.
He would help me kill our brethren...
But the Third Hokage tried a different hand.
He tried to approach the Uchiha for a compromise.
But time ran out, and his efforts failed.
Leading to that night.
It was a mission.
To be the sole perpetrator of his clan's slaughter
and become a Rogue Ninja with his reputation in tatters.
All of that was his mission.
And Itachi completely fulfilled his duty...
With one exception...
He could not bring himself... to kill his younger brother.
Truth
After that, Itachi appealed to the Third Hokage
to protect you from Danzo and the higher-ups.
Then he threatened Danzo and left the village.
If he laid a hand on Sasuke,
he would leak every detail about the village to unallied nations.
Above all else, he was concerned about you.
And yet he couldn't tell you the full truth.
He had no choice but to say the things he did.
It's a lie...
This isn't like you, Big Brother... It can't be...
I acted like the older brother you desired...
in order to measure your vessel.
You will become a rival to measure my vessel against...
You have that hidden potential.
You've been jealous of me and resented me.
You've harbored hopes of surpassing me.
That is why I am allowing you to live. For my sake...
My foolish little brother...
If you wish to kill me, resent me, hate me.
And survive...in obscurity.
Run...keep running... and cling to life.
Then one day,
come before me with the same eye that I possess.
By making revenge your goal, he hoped to make you strong.
The Uchiha is a proud clan of the Hidden Leaf.
He wanted you to keep believing that.
He beseeched the Hokage that you never learn the truth.
And from the moment he left the village,
he was resolved to fighting you, and dying.
So that he could instill in you a new power.
That is Itachi's truth.
No, you're lying.
They must be lies.
That's nonsense...
He almost killed me several times!
If Itachi wished it, he would have. Without a doubt.
He even used the Mangekyo Sharingan to try to kill me!
That's why...!
Your battle was part of his plan.
Itachi needed to pressure you in that fight.
The reason for that...
Well, you probably realized it too, haven't you?
Finally, it comes out...
He freed you of the curse mark.
And the death of someone closest to you...
It was a battle to awaken your Mangekyo.
It was a battle that Itachi planned entirely for your sake.
He pretended to be after your eyes until the very end.
It's starting to sink in, I see...
You are lying.
The one who made the Nine-Tails attack the village was you, Madara!
Itachi said so.
Sixteen years ago,
Madara instigated the Nine-Tails' attack on Hidden Leaf Village.
But that too was foiled by the Fourth Hokage.
In short...
Madara is a bitter, defeated loser...
He is not worthy of becoming the best among the Uchiha.
I am the one...
who shall surpass Madara and become the ultimate ninja!
You framed the Uchiha!
And you teamed up with Itachi to toy with the clan!
Itachi was lying when he told you that.
Itachi feared that you would somehow learn the truth.
He wanted to make absolutely certain there was no chance of that.
He lied to make sure you would not trust me...
Not only that, he implanted Amaterasu in your eyes.
As if I'd believe you!
He... Itachi was evil!
He's a criminal who killed his clan and joined Akatsuki!
Itachi took sole responsibility for an unspeakable crime
and left the village.
Then he found a way to join Akatsuki and watched over
an organization that was dangerous to the village from the inside.
He was always thinking about Hidden Leaf Village.
And he thought of you...
When the Third Hokage, who had promised to protect you, died...
Itachi made an appearance in Hidden Leaf Village.
It was to tell Danzo and the other superiors that "I am alive."
You were foremost in his thoughts--
Stop! Lies! They're all lies...
You're still alive, aren't you?
In order to survive, we cling to all we know and understand.
And we label it reality.
But knowledge and understanding are ambiguous.
That reality could be an illusion.
All humans live with the wrong assumptions.
Isn't that another way of looking at it?
That Sharingan... How much can you actually see?
My eye is not like it was in the past!
My Sharingan can see through genjutsu!
Humph... You still speak with such confidence.
But for now, I'll take your word for it.
Your eyes did not perceive a single thing about Itachi.
You were not able to see through the illusion Itachi created at all.
Itachi killed his friends, his superiors...
He killed his lover, his father and his mother.
But he could not kill...his little brother.
He cried tears of blood and
killed every shred of feeling he had inside him,
then he killed his brethren for the sake of his village.
But he just couldn't kill you.
Do you understand what that means?
To him, your life... was more precious than the village.
Until the moment of his death...
No, even in death, it was all for you.
To pass on a new power...
By making you defeat him, he had avenged the Uchiha clan.
In order to raise and make you the hero of Hidden Leaf Village.
His body was ravaged by illness and he knew he was near death.
Even if he had to rely on drugs to prolong his life...
For the sake of his beloved little brother...
He had to fight you... and die in your presence.
For the peace of Hidden Leaf Village, and most of all, for Sasuke Uchiha.
He wanted to die as a criminal and a traitor.
He accepted disgrace in the place of honor,
and hate in the place of love.
And despite that, Itachi died with a smile on his face.
He entrusted the Uchiha name to you, his younger brother,
deceiving you to the very end.
I'm home.
Welcome home, Big Brother!
Play with me, Big Brother!
Huh? What'll we play?!
Sasuke!
Your brother has Academy homework to do.
You can play after he's done.
Huh?
That's okay. I can do my homework later.
It's easy anyway.
Goodness...
Where could Big Brother be hiding?
Found you, Big Brother.
You're pretty sharp, Sasuke.
However...too bad.
Ah! No fair!
Say, Father...
Hmm?
Brother and I were playing hide-and-seek today,
but Big Brother used Clone Jutsu to run away.
That's not fair, is it?
Hmm... You're able to do the Clone Jutsu already?
Big Brother, teach me the Clone Jutsu too, after dinner!
Homework!
Sorry, Sasuke. Let's do it some other time.
Sasuke. It's time to go.
You said that you would teach me a new shuriken jutsu.
I have an important mission tomorrow that I must prepare for.
You're a liar...
Sorry, Sasuke. Maybe some other time.
Big Brother, watch this!
Hey! Don't be reckless...
Big Brother...
Will you train with me again?
Yeah...
But I'm assigned to missions and starting tomorrow,
you will be attending the Ninja Academy.
We won't have much time to spend together.
That's okay.
As long as you can stay with me once in a while.
But, we only have each other as siblings.
Even if it's only as an obstacle for you to overcome.
Big Brother...
Can you help me with shuriken training today?
I'm busy. You should ask Father to teach you.
But you're better than Father when it comes to shuriken jutsu.
Even a kid like me can see that.
Oww.
Sorry, Sasuke... Some other time.
Even if it's only as an obstacle for you to overcome...
I'm always going to be there for you.
Even if you do hate me...
That's what big brothers are for.
Sorry, Sasuke...
This is it.
We are no longer "Hebi."
From this day on, our team will be "Taka."
Taka has only one goal.
We...
will destroy the Hidden Leaf.
The light hurts my eyes...
Noon already?
Damn it, bastard! Screw you, man!
Training from the morning, stomach so starving,
Rap-loving weirdo, that's what I am.
Lunch menu Suikiyaki for sure, yeah...
Humph, looks like that's him.
Next time on Naruto Shippuden: "Battle of Unraikyo"
Eight-Tails, I'm here to capture you.
Tune in again!