Was Itachi's story in Naruto really retconned? Explored

Fans of the Naruto series have always expressed a mixed reaction when it comes to acknowledging Itachi Uchiha's character in the series. While some fans love his character and narrative in the series, others focus more on the negative aspects, such as the Uchiha Clan massacre.

Recently, many fans have also been seen labeling Itachi's character as a retcon, particularly by using facts that are absurdly wrong or lack canonical support. Just because fans cannot comprehend a good character doing something bad or drastically negative does not make them a retcon.

Disclaimer: This article reflects the author's opinions and contains potential spoilers from the Naruto anime and manga series.

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Itachi doesn't deserve this much hate from Naruto fans

Naruto fans have been calling out Itachi's character for being a retcon. However, that isn't completely true as fans have based their claims on several imaginary scenarios that have no canon mentions or relevance, such as Itachi made Sasuke watch the Uchiha Clan massacre half a billion times, which traumatized him.

To understand Itachi's character truly, viewers have to take a deeper dive into the narratives he was intertwined with, especially regarding the so-called controversial Uchiha Clan massacre. At that time, the Uchiha Clan was secretly planning to overthrow the Konoha leadership due to their growing resentment and marginalization.

This is the very reason Itachi and Sasuke's father, Fugaku Uchiha, asked Itachi to play the role of a spy on Konoha and relay information to the clan so that the attack could be planned. On the other hand, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, had gained knowledge about the coup and consulted with Itachi. Itachi was left with two choices: acting on loyalty to the village or love for his clan.

Itachi and Kisame as seen in the anime (Image via Studio Pierrot)

With a manipulative push from Danzo, Itachi massacred the Uchiha Clan to prevent any attack and avoid a civil war among the villagers. After making the difficult choice, Itachi was declared rogue and banished from the very village he was protecting.

However, he still didn't hold any resentment towards the village, as seen through various instances during his time in the Akatsuki and interactions with Kisame. There were times Itachi could have sought out revenge and taken out Konoha with his strength and powers. He could have even killed Naruto at several points, ending the village's most powerful defense.

There were many instances shown in both the manga and anime where Itachi withdrew from taking drastic steps and going through with narrative-impacting destruction. Just because Itachi belonged to one of the "good guys" who performed something drastic and antagonistic doesn't make him a retcon. It is a simple matter of misguided media illiteracy for the fans who claim as such.

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Final thoughts

Liran🦋

@Liran_03

Itachi uchiha his back story is one of the most heartbraking ones having to kill his own clan and leave his birth village all for the hidden leaf and his younger brother, itachi was a caring brother all he wanted was for sasuke to be safe he is truly a hero of the leaf

Itachi Uchiha is one of the best-written characters from the Naruto animanga universe by Masashi Kishimoto, and those who have thoroughly read and watched the series will perhaps agree with the statement. Despite the claims by some fans and others who only relate Itachi to genocide, he is one of the most pivotal and important characters for the series.

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