Itachi Uchiha is one of the most influential characters in the Naruto series. Introduced by Sasuke Uchiha as a major villain who annihilated an entire clan within one night, Itachi was someone seen as one of the strongest people in the entire story. With the incredible power of the Sharingan, few could hold a candle up to him. Itachi officially made his first appearance after the death of the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and immediately gave the fans a glimpse of his tremendous strength.
Not only was he strong enough to incapacitate Kakashi Hatake, an accomplished ninja in his own right, for weeks, but even the likes of Orochimaru admitted inferiority to him which, at the time, was quite surprising. It was quite clear to see that Itachi was one of the very strongest characters in the entire series, and even among all the other Uchiha of the Naruto world, he stood out as someone quite special.
What Made Itachi Special
Itachi Uchiha was born with the talent of the Uchiha and even among all the members of his clan, he was especially skilled. Having mastered some of the most difficult jutsu as a child, Itachi's potential was painted to be limitless. His brilliance shone even before he awakened his Mangekyo Sharingan. In fact, it is believed that by the age of 7, Itachi had the wisdom of a Kage already. This made him incredibly intelligent and his decision-making, along with the ability to analyze various situations while being calm, made him quite a unique shinobi.
While that alone is quite impressive in itself, Itachi's strength went beyond just that. Shisui Uchiha's death triggered the power of the Mangekyo Sharingan in his eyes, making him one of the very few characters to ever wield this legendary eye. It is safe to say that Itachi's Mangekyo Sharingan was special and gave him access to some of the most overpowered jutsu. Using his left eye, Itachi could use the Amaterasu – inextinguishable black flames that burn until the target is reduced to ash, and with his right eye, he could cast a powerful genjutsu called Tsukuyomi. While all genjutsu are dangerous if used properly, Tsukuyomi was doubly special.
Using this jutsu, Itachi could trap someone in a whole new illusionary world where he had complete control over both space and time, meaning he could manipulate almost anything in the world. One second from the real world could easily be converted to a lifetime in the world of Tsukuyomi and that is what made this genjutsu terrifying. In fact, it remains to be the only regular genjutsu that can kill someone. In Itachi Shinden, Itachi Uchiha cast Tsukuyomi on Izumi, and she was able to live her entire life with Itachi in the illusion where she died of old age. This effect carried on to the real world as well and Izumi ended up dying due to Tsukuyomi in a mere second of real-time.
Kishimoto made sure that Itachi was seen as someone special and he did an incredible job in establishing that in the story. When Itachi Uchiha awakened his Susano'o, he was seen wielding legendary weapons of the Totsuka Blade and the Yata Mirror. The former allowed Itachi to seal anyone he pierced in a world of genjutsu forever, while the latter gave him the ability to deflect any and all attacks thrown towards him, regardless of whether they were physical or spiritual in nature. According to Zetsu, these weapons, when combined with his Susano'o, made Itachi invincible.
Itachi Compared To Other Uchiha
There is no denying that Itachi Uchiha ranks among the very strongest Uchiha clan members. Even when Itachi fought Sasuke, he did so while being almost blind, which just goes to show that his skills as a fighter were far beyond what people could comprehend. When Itachi Uchiha was reanimated by Kabuto Yakushi, he was called the most special pawn, even including Madara Uchiha. However, Itachi being strong certainly doesn't mean other characters in the series can't be stronger. While it is true that Itachi ranks among the elites of the Uchiha clan, he certainly isn't the strongest. There are Uchiha who have far surpassed the level of power that he possessed.
Obito Uchiha had access to an incredibly powerful jutsu, called the Kamui, which made him almost unbeatable, but he then he also went on to attain the Rinnegan, and ultimately, during the Fourth Great Ninja War, he became the Jinchuriki of the Ten-Tails. Itachi, while strong, would've been no match for Obito in his Ten-Tails state. The legend of the Uchiha clan, Madara, is another Uchiha deemed to be far stronger than Itachi. Madara lived during the Warring States Era and his powers were honed to match Hashirama Senju in battle. By gaining the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan, he had access to the Perfect Body Susano'o, something that dwarfed Itachi's Susano'o. If that wasn't enough, Madara also awakened the Rinnegan and gained enough power to take on the entire Shinobi Alliance by himself. He attained godly powers by becoming the Jinchuriki of the Ten-Tails after Obito.
Itachi's younger brother, Sasuke Uchiha, also went on to surpass him, and he did so by receiving the Six Paths powers from Hagoromo Otsutsuki. By gaining a Rinnegan in his left eye, Sasuke could use powerful jutsu and match the likes of Madara Uchiha and Kaguya Otsutsuki in combat. Undoubtedly, Itachi is quite a powerful character who ranks among the very strongest of all time, but the idea of him being the strongest Uchiha is nothing more than a misconception. That doesn't take anything away from the genius of his character, however. In his own way, Itachi is more special than any other Uchiha in the series and despite not being hailed as a hero, he's a shinobi who truly helped shape the ninja world and make it as it is today.