TheNarutoseries is notorious for its overpowered abilities and unrivaled techniques, though only a few come close to the unparalleled nature ofItachi’s Mangekyo Sharingan. While abilities such as Tsukuyomi and Susanoo defined Itachi’s all-powerful Mangekyo, its true offensive power actually lies in the ethereal blade known as the Sword of Totsuka.
Inspireddirectly from Japanese mythology, the Sword of Totsuka is a blade that possesses inexplicable power, capable of decimating anything it pierces through. The blade also doubles as a genjutsu of sorts, sealing the victim’s consciousness in a different plane of existence. Despite its clearly unrivaled strength, the Sword of Totsuka is one of Itachi’s most underrated abilities, largely due to its minimal screen time in the show.
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What Is the Sword of Totsuka?
The Sword of Totsuka is arguably one ofItachi’s strongest offensive techniques, and only a few can rival its strength in battle. The Totsuka Blade is an enchanted weapon capable of piercing through all animate and inanimate objects. However, this sword is unlike any other, possessing power comparable to a god’s. Instead of possessing a material form, the Totsuka Blade rests inside a gourd in an almost liquid-like state. It can materialize instantly on the will of the caster, turning into a solid blade like any other, albeit with an ethereal touch.
Being an unstoppable sword isn’t the only feat of the Totsuka Blade as this enhanced sword can also seal away its target. Those unfortunate enough to be slashed by the blade have their soul trapped in an entirely different plane for all eternity. Known as the ‘World of Drunken Dreams,’ this realm places the targetin an eternal genjutsu, leaving them trapped forever in a dream-like state. The blade also goes hand-in-hand with the Yata Mirror, an ethereal shield known to deflect any sort of attack. According to Zetsu, the Totsuka Blade and Yata Mirror are the secret to Itachi’s invincibility.
Since the Totsuka Blade is wielded by Itachi’s Susanoo, many assume that this weapon is one ofhis unique Mangekyo abilities. While it’s true that Itachi can only utilize the blade through his Mangekyo’s Susanoo, the Sword of Totsuka itself is not directly linked to the Sharingan. This was confirmed after Zetsu stated that Orochimaru had searched for the Totsuka Blade his entire life, only for his search to be in vain.
Usage of the Sword of Totsuka
The Sword of Totsuka is one of Itachi’s lesser-known abilities, and this can be attributed to its minimal usage in the series. Despite Itachi being an overarching antagonist since part 1 ofNaruto, the Sword of Totsuka was revealed for the very first time in his fight against Sasuke. However, Itachi only usedthe blade to slay Orochimaruand remove the curse mark from Sasuke’s body.
The sword’s prowess becomes quite evident just from one single instance of usage. Despite transforming into the Eight-Headed Serpent form,Orochimaru stood no chanceagainst the Totsuka Blade. With just one slash, Itachi was able to decapitate all eight heads and seal him away for all eternity in his gourd. Itachi was able to disperse the curse mark on Sasuke’s body with the blade, since the mark was still attached to Orochimaru’s physical body.
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Another instance of the Totsuka Blade can be witnessed after Itachi was reanimated in the Fourth Great Ninja War. After Itachi freed himself from Kabuto’s Reanimation Jutsu, he utilized the Sword of Totsuka to free Nagato’s soul from Kabuto’s command, thereby sealing him in the Totsuka Blade’s gourd. However, he was later freed from the gourd after the Reanimation Jutsu was undone, since Itachi and his Totsuka Blade no longer existed in the impure world.
Mythology Behind the Sword of Totsuka
Similar to many other abilities of the Mangekyo, the Sword of Totsuka has been inspired directly fromJapanese mythology and the Shinto religion. The Totsuka Blade is based on the Totsuka no Tsurugi, the sword used by Izanagi to slay his own newborn, Kagu-tsuchi. The child’s birth burned Izanami and killed her, and the grieving husband slashed his own child. Izanagi brutally cut Kagu-tsuchi’s body into eight pieces, which later turned into volcanoes. The blood of the slain newborn gave birth to eight new Shinto deities.
The Totsuka Blade also takes its name from the sword wielded by the Shinto god Susanoo, who slayed the eight-headed serpent Yamata no Orochi with this very blade. The events that take place in Naruto seem to be directly inspired by this folktale as Itachi used the very same blade to slay Orochimaru in his eight-headed snake form.The Technique Orochimaru utilizedto transform himself is known as Yamato no Jutsu in Japanese, which is directly influenced by the demon Yamata no Orochi.
