Board Thread:Naruto Discussions/@comment-38071683-20191222083305/@comment-37982756-20191223021736

Nothing would change in the story even if he did return to the village after killing Itachi. He was still dangerously unstable emotionally and would be just as easy to manipulate for Tobi. He would awaken the Mangekyo and go on a rampage trying to butcher the elders. More members of the Konoha 11 would probably die trying to stop him. Jiraiya would still die and Pain's assault on the village would still happen. Sasuke returning back to the village at this point wouldn't really change the plot.