Board Thread:Theories and Speculation/@comment-31477926-20170702121758/@comment-734582-20170817160850

Mcpowa wrote: Minato > itachi

hahaha Minato was dead when Zetsu said that.

Ninja Of War wrote: ^I doubt that, but doesn't matter now. Databook stats suggests Itachi and Jiraiya were comparable. According to Nagato he could've been defeated by Jiraiya. They were close enough that Zetsu's statement can be considered to be correct.

Still, Itachi refused to use his sword and shield until he absolutely had no other choice, suggesting that there were massive or serious drawbacks that he chose to avoid, even with a considerable risk for defeat.