He sacrificed his father, his mother, and even his entire clan. But he never lost himself. Itachi Uchiha is the man who sacrificed his own path in life. To save his brother. A false dilemma is a type of informal fallacy in which something is falsely claimed to be an either or situation. When in fact there is at least one additional option. Itachi Uchiha was born in the Hidden Leaf to Fugaku and Mikoto Uchiha. Itachi while young was always intellectually more advanced than the other kids in his class. His feats as a shinobi are unmatched. At age 7 Itachi graduated from the academy at the top of his class in a single year. At age 10 Itachi completed the Chunin exams by himself. Simply put Itachi would go on to be one of the strongest Uchiha in history. With immense genjutsu ability but what set him apart was his mind. He was a genius. But what I would like to focus on is what exactly makes Itachi's sacrifice so heartbreaking. And I would like to focus on the events leading to the clan massacre and the false dilemma presented to Itachi. The Uchiha clan was growing tired of the mistreatment from the Leaf Village. The Uchiha clan continued to get disrespected. Being left off missions such as the Ninetail Fox attack on the Leaf. The Leaf did not include the Uchiha because they believed that the Uchiha would have controlled the Ninetail Fox to use it in their favor like Madara did. Essentially the Leaf feared the power of the Uchiha clan and so they segregated them. Assigning them to Kanoha's police force where their abilities could be watched and monitored. In their anger they began to plan a coup d'état with Itachi's father as its leader. Itachi at age 11 entered the Anbu and Fugaku asked Itachi to be a spy for the Uchiha clan. Itachi though as the intellectual that he was knew that a coup would only escalate the problem eventually becoming another Shinobi war. But his father still tried to instruct the young Uchiha with a compelling argument. That this rebellion would be void of bloodshed and that intrigued the young Uchiha. But nonetheless with no one to trust but his best friend Itachi instead would report to the Hokage council. Which included Donzo Shamor ahead of the Anbu to inform them about the Uchiha clan. Shisui's initial plan was to use his koto amatsukami, his mangekiyo sharengan genjutsu to force negotiation. But Donzo stole his eye before he could. Shisui then drowned himself leaving Itachi with his other eye and the burden of the clan. Now at this time in Itachi's story he is now 13 years old. Again let me reiterate the fact that Itachi Uchiha was 13 years of age. Yes he was a genius and incredibly cunning and intelligent. But at 13 and alone having a clear mind and weighing all options and repercussions is a very difficult task. Intelligence is not likened to experience or to maturity. Itachi had lost his best friend and had no one to confide into. His family wouldn't dare go against the clan and he had no notable relations outside the Uchiha to help him rationalize. And to top it off Donzo sealed Itachi's fate by providing him with a false dilemma. And Donzo pressured him with the one person he knew Itachi would sacrifice the world for. Sasuke. Donzo isolated and manipulated Itachi not only mentally but emotionally. He presented the black or white ultimatum. It was the village or the clan. It was either he sided with the Uchiha and have Sasuke die or he executes his own clan. Every single member except for Sasuke. A decision that was easy for Itachi's withering mind to make. For anyone to make especially considering the circumstances. Essentially it was Sasuke's fate that he thought he was deciding. And so Itachi executed the plan slaughtering each and every member of the Uchiha clan. Even his parents. Only leaving Sasuke. And Itachi tried to plan out Sasuke's life for him. Itachi planned to create a false image of himself. So that Sasuke would hate his big brother. He later joined the Akatsuki to keep an eye on anyone who could threaten his brother. And the village. And he would instruct the third Hokage to protect Sasuke. Itachi planned that he would encounter Sasuke time and time again. To try and make his younger brother hate him to the point of even killing him. So that one he gets stronger. And so that he could be hailed as the hero of the Uchiha clan. After killing Itachi, Sasuke would later learn the truth about his brother. Itachi is a unique character in the Naruto universe. And a well-written one of that. One that I would not consider overwhelmingly good and honorable. But I wouldn't also consider him a bad person. To me his decision stands morally gray. And that his decision was mostly made due to circumstance. But I do believe that Itachi himself as a person initially was pure of heart. And that heart was tainted by his situation. Could he have rationalized the situation better? Probably. Itachi saved his brother but he did disregard the other harmless individuals of the clan. The children, the non-shinobi, every single person got killed. I believe Itachi could have found another way. But at the end of the day, it happened and he made his choice. Itachi was 13, ostracized by his clan and he did not have his best friend or anyone else by his side. He was alone and pressured with a false dilemma. Itachi decided to act with his heart. His heart that lies solely within the person that he loved the most. Sasuke.


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