Tsukuyomi

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Itachi's Tsukuyomi

File:Sasuke's Tsukuyomi.jpg

Sasuke's Tsukuyomi

• Name: Tsukuyomi (月読, literally meaning: Moon Reader)
• Type: Kekkei genkai, No rank, Supplementary, Short range (0-5m)
• User: Itachi Uchiha, Sasuke Uchiha
• Debut (Anime): Naruto Episode 82
• Debut (Manga): Chapter 142

Named after the Shinto Moon god, Tsukuyomi is one of the most powerful genjutsu in existence. It is unique to the Uchiha clan and only those with the Mangekyo Sharingan can perform it. It is said to represent the "Spiritual World and Darkness" (精神界と闇, Seishinkai to Yami), the antipode to Amaterasu, a ninjutsu of similar power and fellow Mangekyō Sharingan dōjutsu, said to represent the "Material World and Light" (物質界と光, Busshitsukai to Hikari).

Tsukuyomi requires eye contact to be performed. When executed, the jutsu traps the target in an illusionary world that is completely controlled by the user. While it only takes a few seconds to complete in the real world, the user can make it seem as if days have passed for the target. Depending on the user's whim, they can either torture their target for days on end, or make them relive a traumatic event over and over. When the jutsu ends the resultant psychological trauma will render the target unable to fight for a while, and possibly suffer a complete mental breakdown. An example of this is Kakashi Hatake, who had to be hospitalized for quite some time after Itachi performed the Tsukuyomi on him.

A common feature of illusions created by Tsukuyomi is a red moon that casts a red light throughout the illusion, giving the background a blood-red appearance while the figures within the illusion are in a grayscale, inverted color. This feature is not present when Itachi uses Tsukuyomi against Sasuke Uchiha in Part II.

Such a powerful technique is not without its disadvantages, however. Due to the complexity of the illusion and the quickness with which it is executed, an enormous amount of chakra is necessary to perform it. Though Kakashi says that Tsukuyomi cannot be escaped, Sasuke has been able to break out of Tsukuyomi by using his own Sharingan.

Although Sasuke has not been seen using any genjutsu specifically labeled as Tsukuyomi, his usage of both Amaterasu and Susanoo suggests that he is able to.

Influence

Pulling from the ancient Japanese myth of Amaterasu, Tsukuyomi, and Susanoo, where when Izanagi washed his face after escaping the underworld his right eye became Tsukuyomi, the Moon god.