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One of the most important events inNarutois the Uchiha Incident, which almost wiped out the entire clan — only Sasuke survived the massacre. Since almost all the Uchihas are dead when the story begins, there are still many questions about this clan.
We learned a lot about the Uchiha clan inNarutoandBoruto, but there are many characters introduced in the story that could be the focus of spin-offs. One of them is Fugaku Uchiha, a powerful shinobi who has awakened the Sharingan and may be more important than he seems.
Who Was Fugaku Uchiha in Naruto?
Fugaku Uchiha wasthe leader of the Uchiha clanand the head of the Konoha Military Police Force before the Uchiha Incident perpetrated by Itachi Uchiha. He was alsothe father of both Itachi and Sasuke.
Since it is not entirely clear how the Uchiha clan was organized, we don’t know if he was part of the main family (if there was a main family at all), but there is a strong possibility that he was — however, since Sasuke was the only surviving member of the clan, it’s irrelevant at this point whether he was part of the main branch or not.
I will say one thing… From now on, walk your own path, not in the footsteps of your brother.
— Fugaku to Sasuke
What we do know from the story is that the leadership of the clan seems to be chosen by strength. Fugaku was a highly respected shinobi who participated in the Third Shinobi War, and he was the leader of the clan before the massacre — or at least he was influential enough to be considered a leader of some sort.
What Happened to Him in the Story?
When the war ended,Itachi was already born, and Fugaku took him to the battlefield to show him the life of a shinobi — in the anime, he awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan during the war. After realizing the potential of his eldest son, he began to train Itachi, and was impressed by his potential.
However, after the Nine Tails Fox Incident, the leaders of Konoha started to suspect that the Uchiha could be behind the attack, controlling Nine Tails with the Sharingan — for this reason, the clan was placed under close surveillance.Fugaku was not pleased, and he was the leader of a coup plotto overthrow the leader of Konoha.
Itachi, who disagreed with the coup, began to give information about the plan to Konoha authorities, but the Uchiha clan soon became suspicious of him and assigned Shisui Uchiha to keep an eye on him. However, Shisui also disagreed with the coup, but he was attacked by Danzo Shimura, who hated the Uchiha and didn’t want a peaceful solution. Danzo stole Shisui’s right eye, and Shisui was afraid that he would also later steal his remaining eye, so he gave it to Itachi before taking his own life — Shisui hadawakened the Mangekyo Sharingan.
Unfortunately, the Uchiha clan suspected Itachi of murdering Shisui when they found his body, but Fugaku defended his son’s innocence. However, things had turned so bad that Itachi no longer believed that a peaceful solution could ever be achieved. Danzo managed to convince him that either the Uchiha would stage a coup, which would later lead to the total extermination of the clan, or Itachi could kill them before the coup and at least save Sasuke’s life. So, Itachi chose to kill the entire clan, including his own father, leaving only Sasuke alive. This wasthe tragic end of Fugaku Uchiha.
He Was Known As “Wicked Eye Fugaku”
Most of what we know about Fugaku was revealed in the novelItachi Shinden: Book of Bright Light. The story reveals that during the Third Shinobi War,he was known as “Wicked Eye Fugaku”. While it is not entirely clear why he was called like that, many fans believe that it was becausehe had awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan— and frankly, that makes the most sense, but it is only canon in the anime (where he kept it a secret from most people).
While only the anime has confirmed it, it seems to be implied that he had the Mangekyo Sharingan in the manga as well, since he had some knowledge of it, and he even told Sasuke a few things about it.
Fugaku’s Abilities Were Amazing
Fugaku isdescribed as a genius, and he was a strong shinobi feared by most of his enemies, and he was even considered worthy of becoming Hokage— which makes many people wonder why he didn’t stop Itachi. In the novel, he actually simply chose not to fight, but it’s clear that he would have won.
Itachi, promise me that you will take care of Sasuke.
— Fugaku to Itachi
He could perform the Great Fireball Jutsu to a massive size, and he also mastered the Shadow Clone Jutsu. It is said that his Mangekyo Sharingan was actually able to control the Nine Tails, even though he wasn’t actually behind the attack.
He was also very good at genjutsu. In fact, one of his eyes had the ability to “predict the future” — not in the way that Koji does inBoruto, but he was able to show Itachi what would happen if he controlled the Nine Tails. Many fans also believe that he could manipulate the five senses of the target with his Mangekyo Sharingan, and he could have the Susanoo.
Perhaps his abilities don’t seem so impressive when we consider what came later — especially when we see anoverpowered Sarada Uchiha creating black holes. Still, more stories that focuson the Uchiha clan before the massacre and give more information about this character would definitely bea great addition to theNarutouniverse.
NarutoandBorutoareavailable to stream on Crunchyroll.
Naruto
A popular shonen anime based on Masashi Kishimoto’s manga, Naruto follows its eponymous shinobi’s journey as he goes from his town’s outsider to its hero.
