Brothers: Distance Among the Uchiha

Emerging from the flames untouched, Naruto strikes Sasuke square in the face, only for his rival to shrug off blow after blow. Blood spills from Sasuke's cheek, yet he stays composed, mocking Naruto by noting he has not even activated his Sharingan. Enraged, Naruto lunges again, but his attack is turned aside and he is hurled from the top of the statue. Both tumble down, and Sasuke pins Naruto to the ground with a merciless beating, leaving him where he lies and flinging the pouch of ninja tools beside him.

The fight gives way to Sasuke's recollections of why power has come to consume him. Growing up, he lived beneath the weight of his brother's reputation. Hailed as the clan's prodigy, Itachi absorbed all of their father's regard, and Sasuke spent his childhood straining for the same recognition with little to show for it.

Itachi, aware of how hard his brother worked, tried to steer some of their father's attention toward Sasuke, but the effort rarely landed. Over time, suspicion spread through the Uchiha clan that Itachi was a killer, and Itachi began openly turning on and disrespecting his own kin.

Part of the Sasuke Recovery Mission arc, this installment adapts chapters 220 through 222 of the manga. Its flashbacks lay early groundwork for the brothers' history that the series later expands, framing Sasuke's obsession as rooted in a fractured family.