Board Thread:Naruto Discussions/@comment-25100062-20140718213149/@comment-28861328-20140723185429

Mrlmm0605 wrote: Sasuke's personal fanbase has nothing to do with the argument at hand. Like him or not, he's a nut. But, in a series where the straight-man, usually Itachi for most of the fandom, is a mass murderer, can we really expect much else?

Difference is motive. There is no doubt that killing is part of a shinobi's job. What Itachi did, though, clearly burdened him and he felt intense grief for the loss of his clansmen and his parents. Its just that he weighed the importance of the village as a whole and his little brother over the murderous revolution the Uchiha were plotting. He ended up saving more lives than he ended by stopping the Uchiha before they could revolt.

Sasuke, on the other hand, is just out for revenge. He is full of hatred and malice. He feels neither remorse nor grief for the people he has killed or intends to kill and, for much of the time, he blatantly ignored Itachi's wishes that he protect the village, in order to go on his own, self-centered murderous rampage.

So yes, Itachi is our straight-man. He's a shinobi in both name and in actions, carrying out his job, however immoral and painful, while retaining his humanity.