Sasuke Uchiha

is a main character in the series and anime, Naruto. Although he starts off as one of the protagonists, as the story progresses, he becomes one of the series' most dynamic major antagonists. Sasuke is a missing-nin from Konohagakure, and is an international criminal.

Background
Being the youngest son of Konoha Military Police Force captain and Uchiha clan head Fugaku Uchiha, Sasuke grew up in the shadow of his older brother, Itachi Uchiha. Itachi was an acknowledged prodigy who was viewed by the Uchiha clan as a genius, and whose work would further strengthen the bonds between the village and the clan. Sasuke's father in particular took an active interest in Itachi. Itachi, on the other hand, was rather ambivalent and full of oddly conflicting undercurrents, acknowledging Sasuke by taking interest in his progress as a ninja when even their father did not, but spending little quality time with Sasuke. Even after Sasuke enrolled in the Ninja Academy, he was still unable to escape Itachi's shadow. Despite consistently scoring at the top of every class, Sasuke failed to receive any recognition from his father, who defined Sasuke's success only in terms of his older brother. Itachi acknowledged the rivalry Sasuke felt, telling him, "We are brothers. I am the wall you must climb over, so you and I will continue to exist together."

Itachi's relationship with his father deteriorated further after Itachi was questioned by other members of the Uchiha clan regarding the apparent suicide of his best friend, Shisui. As Itachi's behavior became increasingly bizarre, Sasuke's father began spending more time with Sasuke, and began teaching him the Great Fireball Technique, a common family jutsu seen as a sign of coming of age in the Uchiha clan. After only one week of training, Sasuke (age 7 at the time) performed the jutsu in front of his father, proving himself a genius as well in his own right and finally receiving his father's recognition. Sasuke's father told him that he could now proudly wear the clan's emblem on his back. Forebodingly, Sasuke also received a stern warning not to follow in Itachi's footsteps.

Shortly thereafter, Itachi massacred every member of the Uchiha clan, sparing only Sasuke, saying that he was not even worth killing. In addition, Itachi told him, "You've always wanted to surpass me. That's why I'm going to let you live... if you wish to kill me, then hate me, despise me... and by all means flee, cling to your wretched life." Itachi also revealed to Sasuke where the secret meeting place of the Uchiha was hidden, and suggested that Sasuke go there to learn what the true history and purpose of the Sharingan was. He told him that "To awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan, that he had to kill the person he was closest to", and that "When we battle, we should have the same eyes". Sasuke thought he had fainted after this, but later remembered that he had managed to stand back up, awaken his Sharingan, and pursue Itachi. Upon reaching Itachi, he managed to knock off his forehead protector. Itachi was seen shedding a tear as he was picking up the forehead protector. He then proceeded to incapacitate Sasuke, who awoke in the hospital remembering only that which Itachi wanted him to.

Personality
When he was a child, he used to be a very kind boy, loving towards his parents and brother, and respectful to his clansmen and teachers. He was even very proud to being Itachi's brother and Fugaku's son, famous for being devoted protectors of Konoha, and he always desired to emulate them. After Itachi massacred the clan, Sasuke's ideals and personality changed, becoming cold, lonely, cynical, and devoting his entire life to kill Itachi.

When first introduced to Team Kakashi, Sasuke displayed great indifference to his teammates. Feeling superior to all of them, including his teacher, Sasuke was unwilling to cooperate with Naruto Uzumaki or Sakura Haruno, as he felt they would provide him no aid in killing Itachi. However overtime, as he spent more time with his team, Sasuke began to lose some of his anger, caring more about his team than his revenge. To help push him back into his desire for power Orochimaru branded Sasuke with the Cursed Seal of Heaven during the Chūnin Exams to give him a taste of power. Although Kakashi Hatake sealed the Cursed Seal, Sasuke began to draw more power from it in the hopes of getting stronger.

According to Kakashi, Sasuke has both a superiority and inferiority complex, as he is unwilling to acknowledge when someone is stronger than him, but obsesses when he believes someone is stronger than him. For example, he was complacent with his rivalry with Naruto when he believed he was stronger, but when he noticed Naruto's fast growth, coupled with his defeat of Sunagakure's jinchūriki Gaara where Sasuke was beaten, and his quick defeat by Itachi on his return to Konoha led Sasuke to believe that his progression at Konoha was far too slow, which lead to his defection to Otogakure. Upon defected from the village, Sasuke left with the Sound Four and traveled to the Land of Sound, only to lose the entire Sound Four to the Sasuke Retrieval Team and face Naruto alone at the Valley of the End, where Naruto attempted to save him from his path of revenge. Sasuke in turn planned to kill Naruto, his closest friend, to awaken his Mangekyō Sharingan but upon his victory chose against it, instead vowing to beat Itachi his own way.

In Part II, Sasuke's personality remained largely the same, although his revenge against Itachi took precedence above all else, including his own life. He also claimed to have cut all ties to his life in Konohagakure, believing that they were the cause of his weakness, going as far as attempting to kill Naruto, whom he spared in their previous battle, to prove how detached he was. However when he felt he had grown stronger than Orochimaru, he saw sacrificing his body to someone weaker than him was insulting to the Uchiha, and proceeded to battle and absorb Orochimaru's conciseness when the latter attempted to steal his body. Despite this, Sasuke seemed unwilling to needlessly kill in his quest for revenge, and later when battling Killer Bee and the Eight-Tailed Giant Ox, Sasuke remembered Team Kakashi after witnessing his own team Taka each sacrificing themselves to help him.

After his battle with Itachi, followed by his death and the revelation that Itachi was ordered by the Konoha Elders to kill the Uchiha clan and that Itachi truly loved him, Sasuke vowed to destroy Konoha to the last child for sacrificing Itachi and the Uchiha clan for their own happiness. Although at first still holding onto the notion of friendship and sparing the innocent, as time passes on with this new path of revenge, Sasuke had grown much crueler and more ruthless, killing anyone who stood in his way, sacrificing his own team to accomplish his goals and attempting to kill his former teammates and teacher, experiencing neither shame, guilt, nor remorse for his actions. He had also shown great rage when someone speaks of Itachi in a negative way, crushing Danzō with his Susanoo for speaking ill of his brother. He now even sees killing members of Konoha as a high, and vowing to kill everyone in the village to finally separate any connection of the Uchiha clan from the village and in doing so purify the name. At this stage it is clear that Sasuke has hit rock bottom with his hatred, leading Sakura and Kakashi to lose all hope in him, and even Karin, despite being obsessed with him, has given up being with him. The only person still having some faith in him is Naruto.

Also, for his entire life, despite being popular towards females due to being handsome and cool, Sasuke showed absolutely no interest in any of these women, nor their advances, due to his only desire being for revenge and power. Such girls include Sakura Haruno, Ino Yamanaka, Karin, and even Mei Terumī; the Fifth Mizukage. Even when Sakura's childish crush turned to sincere affection, Sasuke still did not return the feelings, though before he left the village, he gave Sakura a genuine thank-you. He also doesn't hesitate to kill any of these girls as well who are devoted to him: such as stabbing Karin when she was taken hostage and nearly killing Sakura when she hesitated.

Appearance
Sasuke has black hair with a blue tint, which lengthens as the story progresses, and onyx eyes. He has lighter skin than his older brother, Itachi, had. Like many other members of his clan, his hair hangs over both sides of his face to roughly frame his cheeks. A recurring theme in Sasuke’s appearance is that he is considered quite handsome by almost all girls near his age. At the beginning of Part I, Sasuke's clothing consisted of a blue, short-sleeved shirt with a raised collar and the Uchiha crest on the back, and white shorts.

In the last stage of the Chūnin Exams, he wore a black, one-pieced version of this outfit, but eventually went back to his original clothes, due to the creators having a difficult time drawing this version. As the story progressed the Uchiha symbol became smaller and smaller.

Initially, Sasuke wore a short blue-colored headband with the Konoha symbol on the metallic plate. After suffering a second defeat from Itachi, Sasuke stopped wearing for a time. He put it back on during the later half of the battle with Naruto at the Valley of the End, only to let it drop off at the end. After that, Sasuke hasn't wore a headband again.

In Part II, Sasuke has grown noticeably taller (almost at eye height with Itachi) and more muscular. He was first shown wearing a white long-sleeved shirt which was open at the torso, with a smaller version of the Uchiha crest on his collar. He wore black pants with a blue cloth hanging from halfway up his stomach to his knees. He also wore a purple rope around his waist, tied in a bow. After battling Deidara, he switched to a sleeveless dark grey shirt. His arm guards were also removed, and he started wearing bandages on his wrists, under which are seals where he stores shurikens. He also wore a cloak with this.

After he encountered and battled Itachi, he reverted to a grey shirt with a raised collar which was unzipped halfway down his chest, similar to the one he wore at the start of Part II, but with shorter sleeves. He also wears blue wrist warmers. He briefly wore an Akatsuki cloak along with this. Another noticeable trait is that, along with this new outfit, Sasuke began letting his hair hang over his eyes, something that he last did when he was 7.

Abilities
Sasuke is established as a genius, even by the battle-excelling Uchiha clan's standards at the series' start, excelling at all that he does and finding little difficulty in more challenging tasks. Scoring the highest in the performance tests and one of the highest in written tests, he easily graduated at the top of his class in the Academy. His prowess with Uchiha Fire Release and weapon-based techniques surprised Kakashi during their first training session. Madara, Itachi, and Orochimaru have all stated that Sasuke possesses the unique potential to become much stronger than Itachi and the latter even saying that Sasuke is stronger than he was at the same age, when he was training Sasuke in Part II of the story. . Madara has also stated to Zetsu that in time, Sasuke could become more powerful than Nagato.

By Part II, he develops much of his potential and becomes a very powerful ninja, strong enough to fight evenly against and defeat ninja like Orochimaru, Deidara, Itachi and Danzō. Admittedly, in his battle against Orochimaru, Sasuke downplays his victory, and attributes it to Orochimaru's sickly state. . According to Madara, Itachi had already determined the outcome of their fight, and was sick as he was using medicine to prolong his life. After receiving his Mangekyō Sharingan, Sasuke proved capable of holding his own against at least two Kage and their bodyguards, before being weakened to the point of exhaustion due to his battle with the other Kage and their bodyguards.

It can also be assumed that Sasuke has a fairly high amount of chakra, since he was able to summon Manda in a weakened state with Manda being a high level summon. When Sasuke first arrived at the Land of Sound and gave Kabuto a glare that frightened the latter, Orochimaru noted Sasuke's exceptional chakra. The Nine-Tailed Demon Fox notes that Sasuke has the same foul chakra as Madara. Karin has noted that Sasuke's chakra has gotten darker and colder than ever, more so than the corrupting influence of the Cursed Seal of Heaven.

Combat Skills
Although Sasuke has been skilled with taijutsu since the start of the series, his skills improved drastically after his encounter with Rock Lee. Not only did he emulate Lee for moves like his Lion Combo, but, by copying Lee's speed, he was also able to effectively use the Chidori. His fighting style in Part II mainly relies on his speed and the new addition of his chokuto, to which he has demonstrated masterful swordsmanship. During his time with Orochimaru, Sasuke's already impressive speed saw a huge leap, allowing him to move huge distances in the blink of an eye as if to displace himself. He also greatly increased his speed at making hand seals, being able to do many in a blur and launch an enormous amount of weapons just as quickly, as seen during his fight with Itachi. His physical improvements are so great that Sakura even suspected that he had been given drugs to improve his physical capabilities. His increase in skill allowed him to easily defeat, without killing, hundreds of Sound ninja in a single battle without sustaining so much as a scratch to himself.

During fights, he easily observes his opponent and accurately sees through their abilities without losing his calm state, then he correctly chooses the most effective means and ninjutsu to counter them. Also, his resolution enables him to pick strategies in which he requires getting hurt in order to defeat the enemy, thereby showing tremendous endurance and willpower. In the second Shippūden movie, Sasuke demonstrated tremendous knowledge in regards to human physiology, as displayed by his ability to affect a person's chakra network. He was able to attack and block the chakra points, rendering the target unable to mold chakra without serious repercussions. In the Naruto Databook, it was said that Sasuke deduces a jutsu's elemental property from the seals performed by its user, as he shows in his battle against Deidara. He is then able to determine the attack's range from the color of the chakra.

Cursed Seal
An important aspect of Sasuke's growth as a shinobi in Part I was his acquisition of the Cursed Seal of Heaven. Orochimaru, recognizing his potential, bestowed the seal on him as a gift in order to grant him greater strength, and to entice him to seek Orochimaru for further power. Initially, Sasuke suppressed the seal on Kakashi's advice, but, later on, his frustration with his inadequate strength forced him to rely upon its power in battles. When activated, the Cursed Seal granted him enhanced speed, strength, durability and chakra. However, it corrupted both his body and his mind, giving him a darker personality and making him vulnerable to Orochimaru's influence.

After defecting from Konoha, with the help of the Sound Four, Sasuke advanced his Cursed Seal to Level Two, allowing it to cover his entire body. This granted him power comparable to One-Tailed Naruto. The second level of the Cursed Seal turned Sasuke's skin dark grey, lengthened his hair without losing its style, and blue venom lipstick seemed to appear on his lips, also gave him hand-shaped wings on his back that gave him the ability to glide and momentarily hover. In this form, not only were his physical attributes increased, but his techniques were also enhanced by the Cursed Seal's dark chakra. However, this form corroded his body at a much faster rate, so he couldn't use it for prolonged periods. In Part II, Sasuke gained complete control and mastery over the Cursed Seal, and could even access its power without fully activating it. He also greatly extended the time he could stay in the Cursed Seal Level Two form. Since Itachi sealed Orochimaru, the Cursed Seal was removed from him.

Summoning Technique
Orochimaru gave Sasuke the contract to use the Summoning Technique for snakes such as Manda. Sasuke can also use Snake Authority Spell to summon snakes from his hands to attack or bind opponents. After absorbing Orochimaru, Sasuke gained access to Orochimaru's regenerative powers that allowed him to heal at a much faster rate than usual. He was also able to summon snakes from any part of his body, and could use Orochimaru's Oral Rebirth Technique to shed his skin, thus repairing any damage to his body. After Itachi sealed Orochimaru away, his Cursed Seal was removed, and it is implied he also lost these additional powers.

Sasuke has not used any snake techniques since that battle with Itachi, even against Killer Bee, raising doubts as to whether he even had the snake contract (a fact that was never confirmed in the manga). It should be noted that the tattoo on his left arm, which he used for summoning snakes vanished after the fight with Itachi, implying that he lost this ability with Orochimaru's removal. It is then likely that all his snake techniques were a result of absorbing Orochimaru. To symbolize his ascension from snakes (i.e. Orochimaru's power) he changed his team's name from Hebi (snake) to Taka (hawk). During his fight with Danzō it is revealed that his animal-oriented techniques have also changed to a hawk as shown from his summoning contract with hawks that he can use to fly around on. It is unknown when he made a contract with them.

Elemental Techniques
Proving himself a true genius ninja and member of the Uchiha, Sasuke has repeatedly shown great proficiency in fire-based jutsu. By the age of 7, he had already mastered his clan's rite of passage jutsu, the Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique. Even Kakashi was amazed at such a feat as, according to him, Genin usually require much more experience and developed chakra to perform elemental techniques. Hoping to encourage Sasuke not to use the Cursed Seal, Kakashi taught him how to use the Chidori, made more effective when combined with his Sharingan. With this combination, Sasuke can punch through the strongest obstacles with relative ease, as well as severely damaging any opponent. In Part I, Sasuke was limited to using the attack only twice a day, with a third usage after the initial activation of his Cursed Seal.

Over the timeskip, Sasuke put a great deal of development into the Chidori's ability to manipulate lightning-based chakra. When first seen in Part II, he was able to use Chidori Current to emit electricity from all over his body as a shield that stuns those it comes into contact with. He can also channel the Chidori through his new katana through "Chakra Flow", giving the blade extreme cutting power and allowing it to numb anyone it cuts. He can also concentrate it into more solid forms like senbon and a sword, allowing him to make more precise attacks.

Sasuke's most powerful original technique is Kirin, a lightning technique that uses actual lightning as opposed to chakra. If there are no thunder clouds available, Sasuke can use a powerful fire release technique to create thunder clouds. Sasuke then takes control of the lightning, shapes it into a kirin, and then brings the lightning down on his target. The technique is so powerful that it has the ability to destroy an area of a fairly large radius.

After adjusting to his new Mangekyō Sharingan powers, Sasuke has developed an advanced Fire Release known as the Blaze Release; an element that draws its power from Amaterasu. Aside from unleashing a wave of unquenchable black flames that incinerates everything that reflects in his eyesight, Sasuke can control the movement of the flames into surrounding him and creating spikes to protect himself. He can also throw bolts of the black flames at a specific target, as he did against Gaara.

Sharingan
As a member of the Uchiha clan, Sasuke possesses the Sharingan, the clan's Kekkei Genkai. It first developed during Itachi's departure from Konoha after the Uchiha Clan Massacre, but Sasuke would later forget he had activated the Sharingan due to the him being traumatized by the incident. He was able to reactivate it for the first time during the battle with Haku on the Great Naruto Bridge, and it eventually reached completion during his battle with Naruto at the end of Part I. It should be noted that when Sasuke reactivated his Sharingan for the first time, his left eye only had one tomoe, while his right eye had two. Sasuke was able to put the Sharingan to good use in Part I after his brief encounter with Rock Lee. Although their fight was ended soon after its start, and Sasuke was unable to see much of Lee's arsenal, what he was able to copy with his Sharingan was utilized for the duration of the Chūnin Exams.

While his ability with the Sharingan was fairly ordinary during Part I, Sasuke is able to develop a number of more novel uses for it in Part II. During his encounter with Naruto, Sasuke was able to use his Sharingan to enter Naruto's subconscious, where he proceeded to suppress the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox residing within Naruto. In this instance, the demon compared Sasuke's eyes and chakra to that of Madara, which it claimed was even more sinister than its own. His Sharingan genjutsu abilities have also increased over the timeskip, allowing him to easily hypnotize opponents (to the point of affecting someone without emotions like Sai) and to control a summoned creature as mighty as Manda. When Orochimaru later tried to take over his body, Sasuke was able to use his Sharingan to fight the process and turn it against Orochimaru. His skill with the Sharingan has grown to the point where he could overcome the Mangekyō Sharingan genjutsu, Tsukuyomi.

Mangekyō Sharingan
Sasuke awakened his Mangekyō Sharingan after the death of his older brother, Itachi. Sasuke's Mangekyō takes the appearance of a six-sided star resembling the Rutherford model of the atom. Unlike other Sharingan, which have a black design and red background, Sasuke's Mangekyō is the first one that is shown to have a red design and a black background.

The first ability Sasuke has displayed using the Mangekyō is genjutsu presumed to be Tsukuyomi, as it broke the victim's will and induced paralysis. Danzō recently denounced Sasuke's skill with genjutsu, reiterating Itachi's ability to alter a victim's impression of space and time while under his Tsukuyomi. The second ability, was Amaterasu, which Itachi implanted within his eyes before his death. When Sasuke first used it unintentionally against Madara, his eyes assumed the appearance of Itachi's Mangekyō Sharingan. When he later used it on his own, they took the form of his own Mangekyō Sharingan. Various characters have implied that his skill with Amaterasu surpasses Itachi's, as he is able to control the flames with his right eye, although both can extinguish them. He suffers from the same drawbacks from using it as Itachi did, as his eye is strained to the point of bleeding, as well as his eyesight gradually began to deteriorate.

Sasuke has also displayed the ability to use Susanoo, which he can use in the same manner as his Cursed Seal, manifesting single parts at a time. Sasuke initially uses incomplete versions of Susanoo due to various reasons. During his fight with Danzō, he uses a more complete version, and demonstrates it's ability to use different weapons. Later on, during his fight with Kakashi, he perfected his Susanoo into an armored form similar to Itachi's. The last ability Sasuke demonstrated with his Mangekyō Sharingan was a jutsu that manipulates the black flames of Amaterasu known as Blaze Release.

Unlike Itachi, Sasuke's Amaterasu (ninjutsu) comes from his left eye, and his genjutsu comes from his right eye, along with his ability to manipulate and extinguish the black flames. As with Itachi, Sasuke's Mangekyō Sharingan damages his eyesight every time he uses it, and causes him pain and extreme fatigue. While resting after his fight with Killer Bee, Sasuke found that his vision was slightly blurred, which shows that he is gradually going blind. After Sasuke's fight with Danzō, Madara said that wouldn't be able to bluff much longer as his eyes are gradually losing it's sight, and during his battle with Kakashi, he unleashed Susanoo's completed form, which, in seconds later, causes his vision to almost fade. Sasuke refused Itachi's eyes stating that his vision and Itachi's vision are completely different. However, after his conversation with Naruto, Sasuke has finally requested Madara to transplant Itachi's eyes to him, so he could destroy Naruto at full power.

Part I
Upon the formation of Team 7, Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke were forced to mingle. Sasuke tried to avoid both of them, but he kept getting drawn into Sakura's romantic advances and Naruto's attempts at a competition. Accordingly, Kakashi gave them a bell test, the three of them being tasked with taking the two bells he kept on his person. Sasuke tried to take a bell by himself, ignoring Sakura and Naruto, and had more success than either. He was still unsuccessful, however, and was forced to regroup with his team. Together, they realized that the true goal of the test was to learn to place teamwork above the single-handed completion of the mission, and, in doing so, were allowed to pass.

Land of Waves arc
Sasuke's first major mission was escorting the bridge builder, Tazuna, to his home in the poverty-stricken Land of Waves. Soon after setting out, Sasuke showed exceptional skill when attacked by the Demon Brothers, even taunting Naruto for being shocked and useless during this encounter. When they later had a tree-climbing exercise to improve chakra control, he managed to stay ahead of Naruto for a good length of time, but, as Naruto began to catch up, they started to push each other's limits. His skills improved, Sasuke was almost able to compete with Haku, who was extremely dangerous because of his extreme speed and dexterity. It was during this battle that Sasuke reawakened the legacy of his clan, the Sharingan, and even selflessly put himself in the way of Haku's attack on Naruto to protect him. Although he claimed his body had moved on its own, his actions showed that he was willing to put himself in mortal danger for Naruto's sake. Although it appeared that Sasuke had died in the process, it was later revealed that he was merely put in a temporary death state.

Chūnin Exam arc
Before the Chūnin Exams started, Sasuke fought Rock Lee, who easily overcame the power of his Sharingan through an amazing display of speed and taijutsu prowess; for if the user can't physically keep up with the target then the Sharingan is useless. However, before the finishing blow could be given, Might Guy interrupted the match and punished his beloved student for using a forbidden jutsu in a normal fight. In the first part of the exam, Sasuke realized that, to succeed in the written test, it is required to cheat without getting caught, as the written exam tests a ninja's information-gathering ability. Sasuke was shown using the Sharingan to copy the movement of a student in front of him, effectively copying the answers.

In the second test of the Chūnin Exam in the Forest of Death, Sasuke was attacked by Orochimaru. Recognizing that they were no match for Orochimaru, Sasuke tried to surrender. However, Naruto stopped him, attacking Orochimaru regardless of the clear difference in strength, and taunting Sasuke just as he had earlier taunted Naruto. This spurred Sasuke into action, giving him the resolve to defeat Orochimaru. Impressed, Orochimaru put his cursed seal on Sasuke's neck during the battle as a reward, causing Sasuke so much pain that he fell unconscious. As the seal attuned to his body, he had nightmares, and, when he woke up, was immersed in its power. He immediately saved Sakura from the attacking Sound Genin, effortlessly defeating them and going so far as to break Zaku's arms. Recognizing that the Cursed Seal had apparently corrupted him, Sakura hugged him and pleaded for him to stop. He relented, and the seal receded. Sasuke was surprised by his own sudden burst of strength.

In Part II, Sasuke is revealed to have saved Karin from a bear during the second phase, but he left her alone since he didn't need her scroll.

Sasuke's match up in the preliminaries was against Yoroi Akadō. Before the fight started, Kakashi warned Sasuke that, if his Cursed Seal got out of control, which would happen if he used any chakra, he would need to be removed from the competition. The match started with Yoroi absorbing what little chakra Sasuke had left through his hands, and with Sasuke being in constant pain from his Cursed Seal. Having only one option, and remembering his previous encounter with Rock Lee, Sasuke used the Lion Combo. Yoroi was knocked out, and Sasuke advanced to the next round.

Following his win, Kakashi took Sasuke away to seal the Cursed Seal, but made it a point to tell him that the seal would only remain active as long as Sasuke wanted it to. Not convinced that his words would deter Sasuke from seeing the Cursed Seal, and Orochimaru, as a source of power, Kakashi used the month leading up to the final rounds to teach him the Chidori. At the same time, knowing Sasuke would be facing Gaara, he helped Sasuke to emulate some of Lee's speed. After showing up late for his match with Gaara, Sasuke demonstrated the fruits of his training, even managing to break through Gaara's defenses and injure him. Before the match could finish, however, it was interrupted by the start of Orochimaru's attack on Konoha.

Invasion of Konoha arc
With the start of the invasion, Gaara fled the village with his siblings, and Sasuke was sent after them by Genma. Sasuke chased them and, after short battles with Kankurō and Temari, Sasuke caught up with and fought Gaara. Sasuke used Chidori, once again managing to wound Gaara, who by now had started to transform into his Shukaku state. The form, however, allowed Gaara to quickly recuperate from the attack, putting Sasuke on the defensive since he no longer had the chakra reserves to use Chidori again. With Gaara's resolve to kill him growing increasingly stronger, Sasuke had no choice but to tap into the Cursed Seal in order to use another Chidori. However, this had no effect against Gaara, and Sasuke was left exhausted. Unable to move, Sasuke was saved by the prompt arrival of Sakura and Naruto. Sasuke watched Naruto's fight with Gaara unfold, becoming jealous of Naruto once he claimed victory.

Return of Itachi arc
After the failed invasion, Sasuke went to see Kakashi. When he arrived at Kakashi's house, he found Kakashi in a coma. Although nobody in the room was willing to tell him what had happened, Aoba Yamashiro soon arrived and let slip that Itachi had returned to the village in search of Naruto. Determined to find Itachi and to save Naruto (by order of priority), Sasuke tracked his teammate down and found that Itachi was already there. Despite his best efforts, including the use of Chidori, none of his attacks were able to hit Itachi. Itachi tormented Sasuke physically and mentally, belittling him for still being too weak, eventually leaving Sasuke with a broken wrist and mind. Sasuke then fell into the same coma-like state as Kakashi, and it was not until Tsunade returned to Konoha that he recovered.

Land of Tea arc
In the anime, after Sasuke's recovery from Itachi's Tsukuyomi, Team 7 was assigned a mission in the Land of Tea without Kakashi. During the mission, they encountered Idate Morino, the client they must protect during his race in the Land of Tea. Near the end of the race, they also encountered Aoi Rokushō, who attacked them. Sasuke's Chidori was ineffective with Aoi's lightning sword; though it made a crack. When seeing Naruto use the Rasengan, not only was it the first time he saw it, but the Rasengan proved strong enough to destroy Aoi's sword and defeat him. At the end, Idate won the race and Team 7 left the Land of Tea, Sasuke resulting back in the hospital for his injuries during the fight with Aoi. Unlike other filler arcs, this arc actually affected the story, as it gave more reason for Sasuke to be irritated that Naruto was becoming stronger. Aoi's words about Sasuke being the weakest member of the Uchiha clan also acted as a catalyst to Sasuke's desire for power.

Sasuke Retrieval arc
Angry that Itachi was still so much stronger than he was, and envious of the fact that Naruto had gotten stronger in such a short period of time, Sasuke challenged Naruto to a fight. Although they were stopped by Kakashi, their brief exchange was enough to show Sasuke that Naruto's Rasengan was more damaging than his Chidori. Kakashi lectured him about using Chidori on his own friends, but, before this could fully sink in, Sasuke was confronted by Orochimaru's Sound Four, each of whom had their own Cursed Seal. Amazed by their abilities, which they claimed to have received from Orochimaru, Sasuke was left with their offer of escorting him to Orochimaru so that he could get stronger.

To gain the power he so desperately wanted, Sasuke decided to take Orochimaru up on his offer, turning his back on Konoha in the process. As he snuck out of the village, Sakura found him, and soon understood the magnitude of what he was about to do. Desperate not to lose Sasuke, Sakura did anything and everything she could think of, confessing her love for him and even offering to help exact revenge on Itachi. Sasuke's cryptic last words before swiftly knocking her out and departing were, "Sakura... thank you." Sasuke left with the Sound Four, who soon afterwards advanced his Cursed Seal to its second level, a process that left him unconscious for most of their battle with the Sasuke Retrieval Team.

Soon after Sasuke woke up, he was found by Naruto. Sasuke was glad to see Naruto; after slaughtering the Uchiha clan, Itachi had told Sasuke that he would only be able to match him in battle after he had obtained the Mangekyō Sharingan, which could only be attained by killing one's best friend, which was now Naruto for Sasuke. Naruto refused to accept that Sasuke would do this or his other reasons for pursuing Orochimaru, choosing instead to drag Sasuke back to the village by force if he had to. They subsequently engaged in battle, with Sasuke initially having the upper hand thanks to his Cursed Seal and Sharingan. When he managed to pierce Naruto's right shoulder with his Chidori, however, the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox's chakra kicked in to protect Naruto, giving him a massive power increase.

With the Nine-Tails' chakra now active, Naruto easily tossed Sasuke about in an attempt to knock some sense into him. Sasuke merely retorted that Naruto could never understand what it was like to lose family members, as he had never had them to begin with. Naruto reasoned that Sasuke was like a brother to him, therefore he would not let him destroy that bond. Sasuke's Sharingan evolved to its final level at that point, tipping the battle in Sasuke's favor because he was able to predict Naruto's movements. The Nine-Tails' chakra once again came to Naruto's rescue, enveloping him in a fox-shaped shield of chakra and boosting his power once more.

With the Nine-Tails' chakra shield, Naruto was again more than Sasuke could handle, even with his Cursed Seal active. To counter Naruto's power, Sasuke activated the second stage of his Cursed Seal, becoming a demonic figure with a pair of huge, hand-like wings sprouting from his back. Naruto attacked with his signature Rasengan (enhanced by the Nine-Tails' chakra) and Sasuke attacked with his Chidori (also enhanced by his current state). Upon impact, a massive dome of black energy formed around them. Sasuke punched Naruto in the chest at the last second (instead of impaling him with what was left of his Chidori) and knocked him out, while Naruto opted to scratch Sasuke's forehead protector, something Sasuke had said he wouldn't be able to do at the start of the fight.

After the energy dome dissipated, Sasuke was shown to be the victor, now standing over an unconscious Naruto. He considered killing Naruto, but realized that doing so would be exactly what Itachi wanted him to do. Leaving behind his scratched forehead protector, which had fallen off after Naruto's last attack, Sasuke made his way to Orochimaru. While doing so, Sasuke resolved to surpass Itachi in his own way, instead of relying on the same skill Itachi used.

Sasuke and Sai arc
Sasuke debuted in Part II during a meeting with his replacement in Team 7, Sai. Sasuke wasn't interested in the slightest, and was more interested in Orochimaru's presence. When Sai stated that he might be able to get along better with Sasuke than he did with Naruto, Sasuke froze him with a stare, catching Sai in a genjutsu exuding a large amount of killing intent. Sai was amazed that even an emotionless person such as himself was affected by Sasuke's gaze, showing the power of his Sharingan. When Sai commented on how Naruto and Sakura had been searching for him, Sasuke once again regarded him with indifference.

Later, when Sai entered his room while he was resting, he told Sasuke that he wanted to repair his and Naruto's bond together. Sasuke then blew up the room, angered that he had been woken up to hear about bonds, his action drawing Naruto and Sakura to their location. Despite this being the first time in three years that they had seen each other, Sasuke expressed his usual indifference towards his former team. Uninterested in going home with them, Sasuke engaged them in battle, showing off his increase in speed and improved abilities.

They were little match for him, causing Naruto to begin struggling with the Nine-Tails' chakra. Sasuke used his Sharingan to enter Naruto's mind to meet the Nine-Tails itself, finally discovering the source of Naruto's strength, and managing to suppress its influence. Before releasing Naruto, the Nine-Tails warned Sasuke to not kill Naruto, or he would live to regret it forever. Back outside, Sasuke decided to finish off his former teammates, only to be stopped by Orochimaru. Listening to Orochimaru's plan to use them to thin Akatsuki's numbers, he left with Orochimaru and Kabuto.

Hunt for Itachi arc
Orochimaru tested Sasuke's abilities by having him battle hundreds of Sound ninja, a task he completed without taking a scratch and without killing any of them. About the latter, Sasuke remarked that the only person he wanted to kill was Itachi. Soon afterwards he attacked Orochimaru, deciding that there was nothing else that he could learn and that Orochimaru was unworthy of having his body or the Sharingan. Although Sasuke appeared victorious after a brief scuffle, Orochimaru was able to initiate the body-stealing jutsu. Sasuke, however, was able to reverse the process, absorbing Orochimaru into his body.

With Orochimaru gone, Sasuke went ahead to recruit Orochimaru's former test subjects to form a team to help him find and kill Itachi. He recruited Suigetsu Hōzuki, Karin, and Jūgo and dubbed his new team Hebi. Almost after forming Hebi, Sasuke had his team split up and learn Itachi's whereabouts. While searching, Sasuke was found by Deidara and Tobi. Using his Sharingan, Sasuke managed to counter most of Deidara's attacks, driving him insane with his pre-existing hatred for the Sharingan, which to him could not see his art. As a last ditch effort, Deidara used C0 to blow Sasuke and himself up. Sasuke however summoned Manda to shield himself from the explosion, at the cost of the great serpents life. After recovering from his wounds, Sasuke and Hebi continued onto one of Akatsuki's lairs where Sasuke finds a crow clone of Itachi which tells him they will have their final at the Abandoned Uchiha Stronghold, leaving the rest of Hebi behind with Kisame.

Once inside, Itachi told Sasuke the history of their clan, of Madara Uchiha and the powers of the Mangekyō Sharingan. Once he finished, the brothers fought first in a battle of genjutsu, and in the end, Sasuke emerged victorious after successfully repelling the effects of Tsukuyomi. The two then switched to a battle of ninjutsu. During the battle, Itachi ignited the area in Amaterasu flames and almost burned Sasuke. Sasuke however managed to survive by using one of Orochimaru's techniques and surprised Itachi with his gigantic lighting jutsu Kirin. Itachi survived only by his use of the third and final Mangekyō technique, Susanoo.

Having used his last chakra on Kirin, Sasuke was at Itachi's mercy, but Orochimaru violently reappeared through one of his snake summons in a final attempted to take Sasuke's body for his own. Itachi however had Susanoo seal him in a permanent genjutsu and despite being weakened continued towards Sasuke. Cornered, Itachi aiming for Sasuke's eyes, but instead poked Sasuke in the forehead and fell to the floor dead. Sasuke passed out from exhaustion moments later.

Sasuke wakes up in a cave in the care of Tobi, who was in reality Madara Uchiha. Madara tried to befriend Sasuke by removing his mask and revealing his Sharingan, something that caused Itachi's Mangekyō Sharingan to form in Sasuke's left eye and made him use Amaterasu on Madara, who quickly retreated into the darkness of the cave. After stopping the black flames, Madara then appeared again with his mask and began to muse about how Itachi never ceased to amaze him. As Sasuke asked what he was talking about, Madara revealed that Itachi had most likely set it up so that the sight of his Sharingan would trigger the Amaterasu he had sealed within Sasuke. As Sasuke complained that he was making no sense, Madara revealed that it had been to protect him, and, when Sasuke still didn't believe him, Madara said how it must all sound crazy, but assured him that he was telling the truth, and introduced himself as the man who had helped Itachi to slaughter the entire Uchiha clan.

Madara revealed to Sasuke the "truth" of Itachi, that he killed his clan by orders from Konoha, how he joined Akatsuki to make sure the elders didn't forget him, and how in the end his only goal was to keep his village, and his brother safe. And that everything he had done was to make sure Sasuke grew strong. Remembering his childhood of how Itachi really was a kind, good brother, Sasuke developed his own Mangekyō Sharingan. He renamed Hebi to Taka and vowed he would destroy Konoha after crying over the memories of his beloved older brother.

Hunt for the Eight-Tails arc
Before Hebi, now renamed Taka, could attack Konoha, Madara convinced them to start working with Akatsuki. He sent them to the Land of Thunder to capture the Eight-Tailed Giant Ox, where they found its host, Killer Bee. The capture attempt got off to a bad start, as Killer Bee easily defeated both Suigetsu and Jūgo, and wounded Sasuke by impaling him in the chest with multiple swords. Sasuke was rescued and healed by Karin, and the team decided to all attack at once. While they had more success, Killer Bee released a great deal of the Eight-Tails' chakra and created a chakra cloak. When Sasuke failed a genjutsu on Killer Bee (who easily shook the attack off), the latter retaliated with great force, using the Eight-Tails' power to blow Sasuke's neck and chest apart. While Sasuke was down, Killer Bee fully transformed into the beast sealed within him, leaving Taka outclassed. Suigetsu then sacrificed himself to give Jūgo time to heal Sasuke by fusing some of his own flesh with Sasuke's. Fearing the deaths of his teammates, Sasuke unleashed his new Mangekyō Sharingan and Amaterasu to capture Killer Bee. Sai would later state that due to this incident, Sasuke would never be accepted again as a citizen of Konoha.

Sasuke delivered Killer Bee to Madara (although this was later discovered to be a fake) before regrouping with Taka. While resting, they dealt with J|a Kumo ninja who had been following them. However, when Sasuke tipped over a glass of water, he learned that his eyesight was already starting to deteriorate. He opted to keep this revelation from the team.

Five Kage Summit arc
Once Taka recovered from their fight with Killer Bee, they headed for Konoha, but are intercepted by Madara. He informed Taka about the destruction of Konoha and their failure in capturing the Eight-Tails. He also told them about Danzō Shimura becoming Hokage and the Kage Summit. Taka was led to the Land of Iron, where the summit was held, by Zetsu's white half.

Taka managed to infiltrate the summit without being detected, but their cover was blown by Zetsu, on Madara's orders. Forced out of hiding, Sasuke engaged the samurai guards and slaughtered them despite his strict no-kill policy, revealing how deep he has fallen into darkness. The Fourth Raikage, still under the impression that Sasuke has killed his younger brother Killer Bee, confronted Taka together with his escorts. The ensuing fight was interrupted by the Fifth Kazekage and his escorts, but not before the Raikage had lost an arm and Sasuke was near exhaustion. After seeing how dark Sasuke had become, the Kazekage continued the fight, but Sasuke used his Susanoo to create a distraction and escaped with Karin, leaving Suigetsu and Jūgo to their own devices.

Karin guided Sasuke to the room where the summit was held, but before he can engage Danzō, Sasuke was confronted by Mifune. In the meanwhile, Danzō managed to escape, but the Fifth Mizukage prevented Sasuke from pursuing. Sasuke was near fainting, but was reinvigorated by Zetsu's Spore Technique. He escaped from the Mizukage, only to be confronted by the Third Tsuchikage. He was just barely saved by Madara, who pulled him and Karin into his Sharingan, where Karin nursed Sasuke back to health.

Madara drew Sasuke out again in front of Danzō. Sasuke, overtaken by his lust for revenge, advances Susanoo to a form able to fire arrows. Danzō, using Izanagi, avoids fatal injury and goads Sasuke about Itachi all the while. Each determined to kill the other, they clash again, Danzō relying on Izanagi to save him. Sasuke, however, had used a genjutsu to only create the illusion that Izanagi was still active, allowing him to mortally wound Danzō. Danzō takes Karin hostage in an attempt to buy time, but Sasuke has no hesitations in fatally wounding Karin in order to finish off Danzō.

With his revenge against Danzō fulfilled, Sasuke declared his plans to go to Konoha. However, Madara pointed out that Sasuke was exhausted and near blindness. He also told Sasuke to finish Karin off, before leaving himself. As Sasuke was about to kill Karin, Sakura suddenly appeared and interrupted him. She told him that she wished to follow him, even if it means abandoning and even destroying Konoha. Sasuke was skeptical and told Sakura to kill Karin to prove she was sincere. However, as Sakura hesitated, Sasuke prepared to kill her, only to be stopped by Kakashi. Sasuke laughs at their continued attempts to convince him to return to Konoha and engages Kakashi, planning to kill him. His eyesight quickly begins to deteriorate, and Sakura uses the opportunity to try and strike him down.

Sakura cannot bring herself to kill Sasuke. Though near-blind, Sasuke senses her and tries to attack, but she is saved by Naruto. Naruto sympathizes with Sasuke's motives, to which Sasuke cynically counters with his pleasure of revenge. When Naruto restrains Kakashi to keep him from killing Sasuke, Sasuke uses this opportunity to try once more to kill Kakashi with Chidori, but Naruto counters with Rasengan. As the two collide, he tells Naruto that his only options are to kill him or die. Naruto rejects both, stating he has a third option. As their clash sends the two flying back, the white half of Zetsu appears to cushion Sasuke's fall. Madara then appears and prepares to take Sasuke away, but he tells him to wait so he can hear what Naruto has to say, which is that if they fight again, they will both die together. Sasuke then gets angry and demands Naruto to answer why he cares about him so much, to which Naruto replies he is doing it because he is his friend, leaving Sasuke shocked. Despite this unperceived event, Sasuke firmly states he refuses to go back on the path he walks. So, before leaving away with Madara, Sasuke says that they must have a talk. In their hideout, Sasuke asks Madara for Itachi's eyes, as his vision is almost faded and he wants to destroy Naruto with his full power.

Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow
Sasuke joined his fellow members of Team 7 on a mission to protect the actress, Yukie Fujikaze, as she travelled to the Land of Snow. Throughout the movie, Sasuke encountered the Yukigakure-nin Fubuki Kakuyoku, and defeated her with the Lion Combo. Sasuke used Chidori to damage Dotō Kazahana's armor, which led to him being knocked out. He was seen looking out at the newly created Land of the Spring, with Sakura holding his head, in the ending credits. In a post-credits scene, he was the one who got Koyuki Kazahana's autograph for Naruto.

Legend of the Stone of Gelel
Sasuke made a very short appearance in this movie: while Naruto was unconscious, he had a dream of him and Sasuke walking towards each other. However, they passed by each other without a word; with this, Naruto woke up into the battle. The point of the dream, however, emphasized Naruto's regret over losing Sasuke, and strengthened his resolve not to lose any more friends.

Shippūden the Movie 2: Bonds
Sasuke was summoned by Orochimaru, and was told by him about the recent Sky Ninjas' attack on Konoha, to which Sasuke made clear that he didn't care. Orochimaru then gave him an assignment, telling him to go retrieve a scroll from a man named Shinno. Near the end of the movie, he made his appearance just as Naruto was about to finish off Shinno, stopping Naruto and cutting off Shinno's flow of chakra by hitting his chakra points with Chidori senbon, something only the Byakugan can usually see. He and Naruto quickly chased after a fleeing Shinno, only to find themselves in a deep chamber with a strange large cocoon that seemed to absorb any chakra in the area. It was revealed to be a seed of the Zero-Tailed Masked Leech that Shinno had planted. The cocoon then attacked Sasuke and Naruto, and was able to restrain them until they both released their chakra from the Cursed Seal and the Nine-Tails respectively.

Together, Naruto defeated the cocoon with the Tornado Rasengan, while Sasuke used his Flapping Chidori. Amaru released Hinata Hyūga and the rest of the villagers who had been taken prisoner as Sasuke and Naruto exited the building. Hinata and the villagers all boarded a flying lifeboat which they found outside the temple. Amaru scrambled to reach a launching lever away from the boat, but Naruto appeared again and ordered Amaru to get in the boat, assuring her that he would take care of the launch. She refused, but Sasuke appeared behind her and threw her in by force. As the lifeboat left, a tentacle appeared and tried to stop the boat leaving, but Sasuke cut it away. Naruto then forced Sasuke off the flying fortress onto the ship with a Rasengan, leaving him alone to destroy the flying ruins. Sasuke entered the second level of his Cursed Seal, flying off the ship and returning to Orochimaru. He gave him the scroll Orochimaru had asked for before resuming his lightning training. He then remembered that Naruto had said, as he blew Sasuke onto the lifeboat, that he would bring him back one day.

Creation and Conception
When developing the original Naruto manga, Masashi Kishimoto had not initially intended to create Sasuke. After speaking with his editor about the future of the series, he was advised to create a rival character for the series' protagonist, Naruto Uzumaki, which resulted in Sasuke's creation. To learn more about creating an effective rivalry, Kishimoto read a variety of manga to gather ideas on what constituted such a rivalry, and he coalesced these ideal elements into one relationship. Because Sasuke is intended to be Naruto's opposite, Kishimoto is always careful to make sure Sasuke is never too emotional. With Sasuke's character being that of a "cool genius", Kishimoto feels he has created the ideal rivalry.

Sasuke's design gave Kishimoto a number of problems, making him the most difficult character he has had to create. Because he lacked a proper idea of what Sasuke's face should look like, initial drafts of Sasuke appeared too old or mature for a character the same age as Naruto. Once settling on a proper face, Kishimoto began to work on Sasuke's attire. Original designs of Sasuke had a number of necklaces and ties around his arms and legs, a result of Kishimoto's habit of giving characters as much ornamentation as possible. Realizing he could not draw such a complex character on a weekly basis, Kishimoto simplified the design to a basic contrast of Naruto's costume.

For Kishimoto, Sasuke remains the most difficult character for him to draw. While drawing, errors and mishaps commonly result in Sasuke's youthful appearance being lost, a result of Kishimoto's inexperience in drawing characters mature beyond their years. Sasuke's hair, originally kept short to save Kishimoto time, has slowly gotten longer as the series has progressed, resulting in the amount of time needed to draw Sasuke increasing as well. Sasuke received a new costume during the final portion of the Chūnin Exam arc, which featured a number of belts strapped around his arms and legs. Due to the time needed to draw a costume of this design, Kishimoto returned Sasuke to his original costume in the following arc. Despite the time and energy Kishimoto spends drawing Sasuke, Sasuke has become his favorite character to draw.

Trivia

 * Sasuke's given name comes from the legendary ninja Sarutobi Sasuke. Sasuke's surname, "Uchiha", is another way of pronouncing, which is actually the Uchiha clan symbol. Uchiwa can be used to fan flames, making the flame hotter — referring to the fact that the Uchiha is a clan of fire jutsu users.
 * Unlike most characters in Naruto, Sasuke doesn't address anyone with honorifics at the end of their names (except to his parents, clan members, and Itachi when he was a child), like "Kakashi-sensei" or "Orochimaru-sama", something the Japanese would consider very insulting or rude.
 * In the June 2006 edition of Shonen Jump, Kakashi remarked that, while Sasuke is a genius, he is dull to teach because he learns everything easily, compared to the less predictable Naruto.
 * Although Sasuke's first appearance is generally thought to be chapter 3, he can actually be seen sitting behind Naruto in chapter 1, page 14.
 * In the Naruto character popularity polls, Sasuke was placed in 3rd in the first, 4th in the second and third, and 3rd in the fourth. He finished 1st in the two most recent popularity polls, and in the third databook, which added results from the previous six polls, has Sasuke as the third most popular character overall with 33,632 votes.
 * Sasuke's Mangekyō Sharingan is the only one that doesn't have three points. It consists of three overlapping ellipses, giving it six points. It is also the only Sharingan to have inverse colors; while most are red with black designs, Sasuke's seems to be black with red designs.
 * Sasuke is ambidextrous: he has used the Chidori with his left hand, and used his sword and written things with his right hand.
 * Each time Sasuke remembered his teammates from Team Kakashi, instead of giving him some sort of renewed hope, it has lead him further into darkness.
 * According to the third Naruto databook:
 * Sasuke's hobbies are training and taking walks.
 * Sasuke wishes to fight against the upper ninjas of Konoha (originally, he wanted to fight Itachi).
 * Sasuke's favorite foods are omusubi with okaka and tomatoes, while his least favorites are nattō and anything sweet.
 * Sasuke has completed 16 official missions in total: 7 D-rank, 1 C-rank, 2 B-rank, 6 A-rank, 0 S-rank.
 * Sasuke's favorite word is.

Quotes

 * (To Team 7) "My name is Sasuke Uchiha. I hate a lot of things, and I don't particularly like anything. What I have is not a dream, because I will make it a reality. I'm going to restore my clan, and kill a certain someone."
 * (To Naruto) "Just shut up for once! What the hell do you know about it?! It's not like you ever had a family in the first place! You were on your own right from the beginning, what makes you think you know anything about it?! Huh?! I'm suffering now because I had those ties, how on earth could you possibly understand, what it feels like to lose all that?!"
 * (To Naruto) "I spared your life on a whim, nothing more. But this time, my whim is telling me, to finish what I started."
 * (To Madara) "If you think I'm just a foolish kid ruled by his emotions, that's fine. Following Itachi's path would be childish, the whispering of fools who don't know hatred. If anyone else tries to ridicule the way I live, I'll slaughter everyone they ever cared about. And then maybe they'll understand what it's like to taste...a little of my hatred."
 * (To Gaara) "I have long since closed my eyes... My only goal is in the darkness."
 * (To Naruto) "Naruto... it's too late, nothing you can say will change me! I'm going to kill you and every last person in your beloved village! It's time to make your choice! Kill me and become a hero, or die at my hand and become another one of my victims!"