Fugaku Uchiha

was a jōnin-level shinobi of Konohagakure and leader of the Uchiha clan and the Konoha Military Police Force.

Background
With the Nine-Tails' attack on Konoha, the village accused the Uchiha clan of orchestrating the attack (during the attack, Itachi noted that Fugaku and his wife were noticeably absent before the beast struck — what they were doing is currently unknown). This belief caused a rift between the village and the Uchiha clan. Fugaku, out of spite, conspired a coup d'etat that would allow the Uchiha clan to take control of the village. Eventually, Fugaku placed Itachi as a spy in the ANBU to pass information back to the clan. However, Itachi secretly betrayed the Uchiha and took the role of a double agent, leaking information right back to the village.

As Itachi was the eldest of his sons and hence the successor of the clan, Fugaku focused most of his attention on him, even defending Itachi when he was suspected of killing Shisui Uchiha. However, the two had a falling out when Itachi lost hope in the clan and Fugaku shifted his attention to Sasuke, even teaching him how to use the Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique, and was impressed at how Sasuke was able to master the technique after just one week. Sasuke was finally able to enjoy his father's company, but Fugaku advised him not to follow in Itachi's footsteps. During the Uchiha clan massacre when Itachi confronted his parents, Fugaku and Mikoto told Itachi that they were still proud of him and to promise to take care of Sasuke before they let Itachi kill them. Fugaku was later found laying dead on top of his wife's corpse.

Personality
As leader of the Uchiha, Fugaku was focused on the clan's interest and welfare. His son, Sasuke, saw him as a stern and uncaring man (though his wife revealed he cared deeply for his youngest child) while he was seen as a father figure to the rest of the clan. As Itachi was his successor as head of the clan, Fugaku spent much of his time focusing on the development of his eldest and little time with his youngest. Sasuke trained constantly in order to get his father's attention and approval. Near the end of his life, Fugaku had switched his attention to Sasuke, having lost hope in the wayward Itachi. He was only impressed by great feats and rarely praised anyone, having high expectations. Fugaku was very serious, hardly smiling most of the time. He also had a short temper, easily getting angry at Itachi for trying to deny an important mission in exchange for attending Sasuke's Academy initiation, and for refusing to attend an important clan meeting.

Despite his outward attitude of desiring to strengthen the bonds between the Uchiha clan and Konohagakure, Fugaku was in truth resentful of how the village had shunned the clan for years, particularly after the Nine-Tails' Attack on Konoha. His spite had taken as far as to plan a coup d'etat, which would lead to a potential Fourth Shinobi World War, and he was apparently unwilling to negotiate with Konoha's elders, forcing the Uchiha's assassination.

While outwardly Fugaku seemed strict and neglectful towards his eldest and youngest sons respectively, coupled with his devotion and focus of his clan's supremacy and welfare leading him to seem hateful and non-negotiable (which led Sasuke to see him as stern and uncaring), he was still a very caring individual to his sons (as his wife correctly stated to Sasuke) as he told Itachi despite the fact he took Konoha's side over the Uchiha's, he was still proud of him and asked Itachi to protect Sasuke before letting Itachi kill him and Mikoto.

Appearance
Fugaku had short, dark brown hair that reached to his shoulders and onyx-coloured eyes, with visible creases below them made more pronounced whenever he adopted a stern look (both of which Itachi inherited from him). He wore a simple kimono with grey pants which had the clan's symbol on the back when not on duty. While on duty, he wore the standard flak jacket, along with a black shirt with the Konoha Military Police Force symbol on the shoulders, shin-guards and a black, open-front apron with white diamonds on the bottom.

Abilities
As the leader of the Uchiha clan, it is likely that he was well-versed in all the clan's techniques. He taught Sasuke the clan's signature technique, the Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique, demonstrating great mastery of the technique. He also wielded the Sharingan, similar to most members in his clan. Also, being the leader of the Konoha Military Police Force, it can be said that he was very intelligent and a formidable opponent in battle. He also had some knowledge about the Mangekyō Sharingan, after telling Sasuke that it needs a great sacrifice to awaken.

Trivia

 * Fugaku is an alias for Mount Fuji.
 * In the character introduction of Volume 25, he is credited as "Sasuke's Father" rather than "Fugaku Uchiha".

Quotes

 * (To Itachi) "That's my boy. You've got this far in just half a year since you've become a chūnin."
 * (To Sasuke) "I will say one thing… From now on walk your own path not in the footsteps of your brother."
 * (To Itachi) "The way we think is different, but I'm still proud of you… You truly are a gentle child."
 * (To Itachi about Sasuke) "Itachi, promise me that you will take care of Sasuke."