huh, did Kishi spoiler his own manga? I seem to recall an interview from a month or so ago when he revealed that he was looking forward to writing more on Sasuke's story after this arc. If, as Sasuke says, "it ends now" doesn't that mean Sasuke beats Itachi?
Is Tobi intentionally slowing down Naruto and the crew to prevent them finding Sasuke (like Kisame is doing to Team Hebi)? Which would of course imply that Tobi knows all about the Itachi & Sasuke duel and doesn't want it interrupted...