#also. sakura and naruto are really good influences on him i think and contribute to him learning quickly

[mokutone]

sorry if this is random but i was just curious about your thoughts on sai? i know you have a lot of thoughts on yamato fhdjdlfn and his and yamato’s relationship always seemed so interesting and really underdeveloped :[ theyre both really similar but yamato was able to get out of ROOT before sai was, and i was just wondering if you had any thoughts on that/him to share. sorry if this is weird or out of the blue djshfkfj love your art!!

that's not weird at all!!! actually the day u sent this question in i had finalized the thumbnails (and started on the pencils!) for a comic wherein Yamato comments on how Sai is handling his transition out of ROOT differently than Yamato himself did! I don't want to lay all my thoughts on that out here, because I think i'm much more clumsy with textposts than with comics, but I appreciate the question and I will share some thoughts!

under a readmore tho bc. this got Long...comics force me to be concise but w/ a keyboard under my hands i just chatter

here's something I've been thinking abt! I think they had fundamentally different experiences in ROOT, and this is reflected in their attitudes towards Danzō, as well as the way they interact with the people outside of ROOT.

Sai seems to have no real loyalty to Danzō. He does what Danzō says because Danzō gives him his orders, when he practices his fake smile in front of Danzō, Danzō immediately tells him to cut that shit out. I don't think there's a lot of love lost there—when team Kakashi catches up to him in orochimaru's hideout, and they kind of confront him, and. also kind of. "give him the option" of abandoning his mission (and ROOT along with it) or. you know. facing shinobi consequences. he doesn't really seem to think much of it? honestly. i imagine he was probably a little more relieved than anything else. Add to that him remembering how he wanted to finish the drawing of his brother—

actually wait hang on thats another point I want to talk about. Sai was pitted against the person he was closest to in order to traumatize him into numbness! wack! I think that's kind of at the root (help.) of why I see him as a fundamentally angrier character than I see Yamato—and why I interpret some of his behavior not just as Not Knowing How People Work (although he does have trouble with this! it's a very different vibe. like. him trying to comfort Naruto and Naruto thinking Sai was coming onto him was an entirely different kind of situation) but as like. intentionally inflammatory sometimes...like. he's insulted the bodies of most of the people around him in one way or another, he knows it pisses them off, he does keep doing it. I think him Causing Problems On Purpose is sometimes just a way for him to try and experience catharsis for a fury he doesn't really know he's repressing. Like. idk. it's one thing to be forced to hurt yourself, that's deeply upsetting, disembodying, traumatizing, but it's another to be forced into a situation where you're to hurt somebody you love (regardless of the outcome) like. idk. its a kind of powerlessness that hits different at least ime, and frustration and resentment are extremely normal reactions to a situation like that. i think. a number of things could be appealing to him abt trying to get others to get angry at him—whether it's Him being the one to Cause another persons anger (which could confer a kind of. feeling of control) or him seeing himself reflected in their anger (like a "boy howdy i recognize this emotion. it's very clear. very understandable") or even seeing how they handle the anger. kishimoto definitely doesn't care nearly as much about Sai's anger. but i found the implication of it compelling as a kid, and I find it more compelling as an adult! anger can be an incredibly healing and protective force sometimes when dealing w/ trauma...and I wish kishimoto knew what he was writing about or that we got to see it explored more!!! ack!

yamato (as kinoe) had a wildly different experience when he was in ROOT.

we know he knew how to fight against sharingan, which. I think implies he was training in combat with Danzō, or that he worked closely with Danzō, or at the very least that Danzō used his sharingan on him. We also saw that (unlike Sai, who was rebuked for even fake-smiling) that Kinoe (at first) was not told to feel nothing, but instead instructed on how to feel by Danzō specifically. Like, mostly telling him to Feel Grateful etc, but I think him being told to experience specific feelings according to what Danzō thought was appropriate would lead to a different relationship with his emotions than Sai, who was told explicitly to repress them all at all times, and to not even attempt to preform them.

He also like. Thought. Highly. of Danzō, not just as a leader but as a person...it's kind of undeniable that Kinoe saw him as right, was willing to brand his own feelings and intuition wrong if it crossed Danzō's, openly sought Danzō's approval, when he fails his mission to secure Kakashi's eye, his reaction is. essentially immediately to return himself to Danzō to face whatever new dehumanization Danzō's got for him— even when Kakashi and Hiruzen drag him out of there he thanks Danzō for everything, and he seems genuine about it, despite. everything. He's more expressive than Sai for sure, He had like. a moment of anger, when he said that he wanted to be Tenzō, and Danzō denied him that basic self identification...but it's quickly squashed. Messy. Messy. I think. I think he has a little more trouble getting in touch w/ his anger than Sai bc of his emotional closeness to Danzō.

i think. because yamato knows that he was something more like Danzō's favorite, and that conveyed a vastly different experience than Sai's, he might feel a little complicated about being like "So...ROOT trauma, huh? Hell of a thing!" but. i also like to think that he's very quietly kind of trying to observe and support in a way which mostly allows Sai to figure himself out—I think when they are older they would probably talk about it more (also because then their tongue-seals will have finally disappeared. Thanks sasuke!), once Sai has close friends in the village and everything

Just a lot of like. "I have friendships down. I have teammates down, easily—but what am I to the old woman I buy my cabbages from. What degree of friendliness do I exhibit to her."

"I think...whatever you're comfortable with is fine. I know neither of us had particularly normal upbringings, but you don't have to execute every interaction perfectly for people to care about and respect you."

anyway god this is so long and soooo based in my own personal HCs. I hope there was something in here that was interesting to you!

[skylar-lei1634]

Ranting About Boruto And Naruto...

Alot of Naruto fans, especially the older ones who remember watching this anime on TV, are not too happy about Boruto existing. And this isn't even about the character but as the story as a whole. I was one of those fans even before I finished the Naruto manga (anime is still unfinished). Even hearing the name was a strange concept and it didn't help that the name Boruto almost sounds like Naruto!

But Boruto as a character just pissed me off. Everything I heard about him irritated me to the highest level. A genius boy, living in a loving home, in a peaceful village and yet he was unsatisfied? He was so confident about him being the best and never having to truly train but yet thought that his father was useless? He does know that his father stopped the war almost single handedly right?

It got to the point whenever I talked about Naruto and someone brought up Boruto I kinda glossed over it and usually ended the conversation with a "I don't like overconfident op character straight out of the gate".

I couldn't understand why there was another series. How could you continue with this when Naruto himself achieved everything he wanted. How do you make a more sympathetic character than Naruto who was abused physically and mentally by everyone around him and this kid still had the balls to be overconfident while knowing that his dream was practically unachievable because everything was against him? HOW DO YOU TOP THAT?!

Byyyyyyy... making that kid be compared to his father over and over until he hates his father while loving him and looking up to him. It was to gain profits. Anything with the name Naruto usually will sell no problem so why should this be different.

I can say that I saw Boruto as a continuation of Naruto. And this, is the wrong mindset to have when getting into Boruto: Naruto Next Generation.

My gateway anime was Yu-Gi-Oh! I adored the plot and story line along with the interesting characters and their contributions to said story. And, when I heard about another series after the one i finished watching, I went into GX with the wrong mind set.

I saw GX as a continuing story from the YGO! World instead of it's own narrative. I watched it purely to see how Yugi was fairing. Was he devastated by Atem's absence and how was his friends now? Not for the story it was giving me. When I realized that it wasn't Yugi's story but someone else's I refused to continue watching.

Fast forward a few months I finally got into a different mindset. I saw GX as a stand alone tale from its predecessor about a boy named Jaden and his way and life through the antagonists around him. Watching the story without wanting to see Yugi's influence on this story, honestly made me kinda hate the first season since that was were most of the hints about the DM series showed up in.

Now GX is one of my favorite series through about the whole YGO! World. Closely followed by Arc-V.

Boruto is the GX of Naruto. It's a separate story about a boy who has to make his own name and leave his own mark in a world that his father before him made, which is kinda hard to do when the pressure of being the kid of the strongest ninja in the world is kinda weighing him down.

Most fans compare the two characters as if they are one persona. But here's the thing. Boruto and Naruto have their own stories.

Naruto grew up in hate. He, himself, hated. He grew up with different experiences and emotions than that of Boruto. He had no friends. Came home to an empty house. Didn't understand the idea of love. Family and friends were an unknown concept. Romantic love was an entire different ball of wax that he couldn't differentiate between since he'd never been shown it before. He played pranks to gain attention from anyone. He didn't want to be shouldered to the back of the herd. He may have had people he pulled pranks with but it more partners in crime. He didn't know where he came from. Why people hated him. Why he was alone.

His story was about becoming someone. He craves being noticed so he made his goal to be hokage. His story was about showing all those that scuffed at his dream that will power and precerverence was enough to achieve it. Hell he's still genin as the Hokage.

Narutos story was easy to understand. He was the underdog of society. Not even his own teammates wanted him or even believed in his dream. He wanted to be the best of the best and did so by ...bullshitting his way through because 9-Tails and prophecies. But basically at the end of Naruto he had everything. Found the love of his life, has two great kids (while possibly having a crisis because he doesn't see himself as a good father (which does not really help with boruto and his thing)), became hokage, essentially achieved god status, made his mom and dad proud, and took down 3 bad guys that tried to destroy the world with the help on his best friend.

Boruto... Boruto's tale is actually just as easy to understand and empathize as Naruto's.

I can say that theres one person in our lives that we get compared to. Hell for some there's more than 3. It could be a friend. A family member or even a co worker. And it sucks. Like fuck is it emotionally draining and psychologically breaking never hearing your name but as someones achievement.

"Naruto's son", "Son of Naruto's", "Hokage's offspring". God would that get annoying really fast.

Boruto's coming of age story is embracing that he is his father's son but also has his own title. That he's Boruto Uzumaki and his father's achievements are not his own.

Boruto reacts like all kids do when not being noticed as their own person (you guys forget that he is 12). But all his pranks aren't to get anyone's attention. It's to gain Naruto's attention. When he tries to cheat in the choujin exams he did it so that his dad could finally see him. He wanted to be known as his own person.

I don't want to say that he wanted to be seen as an adult because he still does want to be treated as a child and be doted upon. But being raised to hear all the stories that Naruto did, Boruto wants to make his own just as his father. Naruto has does some insane things at Boruto's age so Boruto wanting to do the same is not that hard to realize.

Honestly its refreshing to see the main character try not to be the best but just wants to float through life. It's like Borutos story is saying that you can be you and you don't have to become part of the crowd.

And I like Boruto and the hidden different themes that it brings while twisting around on past ones that haven't been exploring yet in the Naruto universe.

I don't see Boruto, Sarada, and Mitsuki as a twisted former Team 7 but as their own team that steps out in it's own shoes. Boruto isn't Naruto just like Mitsuki isn't Sasuke and Sarada isn't Sakura. Sarada's an actual character relative to the plot!

And the biggest difference in Boruto and Naruto is Naruto himself.

In Naruto, Naruto seems like the goofy dumbass kid in the back of the class that gets called out on for causing mischief. He's the kid that stares at the notes on the overhead and looks down at his own and wonders how the fuck does his notes have information on history when he's in Physics. He's the kid that doesn't know jack shit about the subject at hand but somehow passes all his classes just enough to make it to the next level. He's the one that's doesn't get dates no matter how hard he tries but has mountains of chocolate on Valentine's Day from multiple people he's help in passing. He's dumb as a brick but is some how on the top 10 list of hawtest guys in school, just barely winning against kakashi and sasuke.

Naruto in Boruto is entirely different. He's the goddamn soccer mom, bringing all the snacks and embarrassing his son as he screams from the stands with his daughter on his shoulders as she does the same and his wife tries to calm down both of them. He's the wise teacher in your school that says all the right life lessons at the right time and genuinely cares about each and every student. He's the friend you call last during an emergency, when no one else answers, and shows up with chocolate and warm hugs. He legit has a fucking sword go right through him, scaring the shit out of Sarada, and just pulls it out without flinching and laughs as it heals instantly when he sees Sarada almost hyperventilate.

So I like Boruto the anime and the character. Boruto himself has come along way from the first episode. And I really was invested in this character in the beginning.

Yeah I did loath him. Most of the time I had to walk away when he talked about his dad or told him off. Though I did route for him and agreed with a few of his shit.

Like Naruto not showing up for any of his kids birthday? Bad parenting. But I do get where Naruto was coming from.

I got Boruto (even if I didn't want to). He was more than a genius asshole. He loves his mother and his sister. He fights for his friends without hesitation. He faces the mantle his dad has and is ready to throw down at anyone who thinks he's anything less than he actually is. He's beyond ready to do some good and really wants to help, even if it's his father (especially if it's his father).

I legit laughed when he turned to Sarada and said her father was awesome. It was a nice callback to when Sarada said the same to him about his father and Boruto just called her crazy. Boruto was beyond endearing when he interacted with Sasuke (when his idol kicks his ass and tells him he's weak will forever be my favorite thing ever).

Yes Boruto is fast to judge other people's feelings about him. But that actually says more about how he views the people's thoughts about him. He sees himself as ...pointless. He's shackled by the mindset of having a parent that's a war hero. That every achievement and/or goal he puts his mind to is futile against the numerous badges Naruto has under his belt.

And I'm beyond hoping that this kid does some wicked shit that scares his father.

The pacing in Boruto is actually slightly better. Like instead of entire 5 arcs about a war. This series kinda shows you the bad guy and then just goes until a new one shows up. Though many others do like having a set bad guy from the beginning and the fact that Boruto has now killed two of the three bad guys introduced in the beginning 66 episodes through...is slightly bad. But at the same time Naruto didn't have a set bad guy in the first one so hey.

And this series has a long way to go. As of today it has 102 episodes. And I'm going to be reading the manga soon too.

All in all, Boruto doesn't really deserve all the hate that this series gets (I haven't even touched on my favorite characters).

I didn't like Hinata, still don't, but I adore their children. I still ship Naruto and Sasuke, Sakura and Ino, Naruto and Sakura, and Sai with Sakura/Naruro but I enjoy the interaction between the parents and their children. Its endearing.

I wouldn't have even watched this series if I wasn't so invested in Himawari. I love my sunrise child.

[kuriquinn]

The Last to Know [3 /5]

Blanket Fic Disclaimer

Beta Reader: None right now. Check back later.

Warning: Some language

AN: Not sure how I feel about this one. It’s my first bit of writing since taking a break, so maybe I’m just holding it to a higher stander? Anyhow, I will eventually go through it again later. I just thought I should post something for my birthday, and this was the closest thing to do.

First Chapter

Sakura is shaking after she leaves the Hokage’s office, both with anger and a little fear.

She’s nervous about her outburst, keeps running over the entire thing in her head. She has never lost control like that, not really, even when Kakashi was her instructor and did things she was critical of. Even with Naruto, they’ve had arguments, but she’s never…

She has never attacked her teacher before. And she’s never lost her temper to the point of vulgarity before.

Did I go too far? Sakura wonders, rubbing her upper arms self-consciously. Or not far enough?

Sakura has always been guided by her heart and what feels right to her; it’s only in recent years, being so close to Lady Tsunade and the running of the village that she’s had to think more with her head.

And I never was really good at that anyhow, she thinks glumly. Images come back to her of a bridge and a knife, hateful scarlet eyes and a woman with glasses bleeding out in front of her. Every time she has tried to make a decision where her head and her heart disagreed, no good has come of it.

Right now, her heart insists she did right, but her brain keeps running over all of the logical arguments against her actions. She hasn’t felt so conflicted since the war, and it’s dizzying. She needs to take a step back from it somehow, to release the growing painful pressure inside her before bursts.

Her first instinct is to go to Ino, but she knows she can’t. As yet, this is all still utterly secret; she can’t reveal anything about Itachi to Ino. She could, however, mention being kept in the dark by her other teammates. 

Except...

Except her best friend is at home with Sai right now, enjoying newly married life. Though he is also one of Sakura’s closest friends, she doesn’t want to overshadow his newfound happiness with her black mood. Especially considering his own past, he deserves as much uncomplicated joy as life has to offer him.

Sakura’s mother would be her next choice, but the thing is, Mebuki Haruno has a blind spot when it comes to Kakashi and Naruto. Considering Kakashi is the Hokage and Naruto the hero that saved them all, she’s taken on a tendency to agree with them about everything. And she knows Sakura well enough to infer that Sasuke is somehow involved...

Mebuki has never been overly fond of Sasuke after he defected from Konoha, to put things mildly.

She’d say they were right to keep it from me, Sakura thinks, clenching her fist. She can’t blame her mother, not really; a parent’s duty is to protect their child. Mebuki’s feelings on the matter would be totally justified simply because she has never been on the frontlines or fought beside Sakura. Intellectually, her parents know what Sakura is capable of, but they have never seen it first hand. And they weren’t there to see the obstacles she’s overcome to achieve the power she has now.

Not in the way Naruto and Kakashi are. Those are the people who should know better, and yet…

Lady Tsunade would set them straight, Sakura thinks angrily. She would know…

A horrible thought occurs to her.

Did Lady Tsunade know?

She’s the Fifth Hokage, and she’s a Senju. It would make sense for her to know about what happened. And what Tsunade knows, Shizune usually knows as well, at least in Sakura’s experience. If they were both privy to the information, is there any chance they might not have told Sakura?

Lady Tsunade has always shared Sakura’s mother’s opinions about Sasuke Uchiha, and she can be just as overprotective.

No. No, they would have told me, Sakura insists to herself. Based on what Sasuke said, only a handful of people ever knew the truth. Only Lord Third and Danzō Shimura and Obito Uchiha. The latter was the reason Naruto found out, along with Kakashi and Yamato. They were on the way to the Kage meeting when Obito, still masquerading as Tobi, let them in on the secret. Sakura remembers all too well that during that time, Lady Tsunade was out of commission.

Besides, she never got along with the Elders or Danzō. She’s the last person they would have told about this, even before the attack on Konoha. If she didn’t think to look into the matter, she wouldn’t know, Sakura reasons. So Shizune wouldn’t know either.

Unless, at the end of the war, there was some sort of meeting to agree on keeping Itachi’s deeds and Konoha’s involvement in the massacre from public knowledge.

In that case there’s a very small chance…

That pained feeling in her chest and throat is back, like a knife. Sakura tries hard not to feel the mounting sense of betrayal, but it’s hard. She wishes more than anything she could go to her mentor right now and ask her about it. But Tsunade is out of the village on one of her gambling binges, and Shizune spending a few days at Konoha’s orphanage trying to make sure all the inhabitants are up-to-date on their vaccines and physicals (and because she still doesn’t trust Kabuto, probably to keep an eye on him).

Both are too far away to ask.

Under normal circumstances, this would be the point where Sakura goes to talk to Naruto or Kakashi, but considering they’re both contributing factors in why she’s feeling like this, it’s not an option.

As for Sasuke…

No.

She can’t bring this up to him, not after he entrusted her with such a horrible truth. Her feelings of being kept in the dark cannot compare to what he endured, and bringing this situation up to him now feels disrespectful. As if her pain over being left out once more could ever mean anything in the face of what he lost? She’s not so arrogant as to think she matters that much in the big scheme of things.

This shouldn’t be hitting me so hard, she chides herself. After all, it is in the past, and isn’t this time of recovery all about forgiving the sins of the past and working toward a better future? She should just shrug this off as a fait accompli and move on.

But the treacherous little voice in her head keeps whispering to her.

What if they keep doing it?

In the face of that, she can’t help the overwhelming hurt. It’s as if something is broken inside her, but nothing as simple as a bodily wound that she can mend.

She usually burns that feeling off with physical activity, and she desperately wants to go out and destroy a training field or two—to feel the earth shatter and break beneath her, and watch solid rock become dust between her fingers. But that would attract attention and people wondering and she just needs…she needs to do something.

To remind herself that she isn’t useless.

That she isn’t twelve years old and  cowering while Sasuke throws his body in front of her because she is too weak and useless and inferior to defend herself. Or with snot and tears running down her face while Kakashi naively promises her that everything will be alright and Naruto vows to bring Sasuke back to them. 

I am not that girl anymore, she growls to herself.

In that moment, she decides where she needs to be right now, and makes a determined beeline for the hospital. Upon arriving at her place of work, she takes a breath and, as always, lets the outside world slip away at the door. She strides into her office, where her intern Ando glances up in surprise, and before he can ask why she’s back so soon, she interrupts him.

“What’s the next operation scheduled?”

“Uh…Isamu is doing a double foot transplant in fifteen minute—”

“I’m scrubbing in on that,” she tells him. “He can have the next one.”

“But—”

She strides out before he can complete his protest, heading for an operating room.

Sakura very rarely wields her influence to jump the queue on cases, but she needs to stay busy, and she thinks that today of all days she deserves to use her advantage a bit.

Over the course of several hours, she schedules procedure after procedure, taking the lead on the most complex and challenging cases—the ones that require her constant presence and attention. In the midst of her work, she is able to forget the uncertainty and hurt and the memory of the useless child she was. Here, she is once again head medical ninja of Konoha, a hero of the Fourth Shinobi War and a legendary Sannin in her own right. She battles with death every day and, more often than not, wins. People here look up to her, defer to her knowledge and listen to her recommendations.

Naruto, of course, finds her soon enough, being as meddling as ever. While Sakura walks across the courtyard to consult on a possible case of Chakra Virus, he appears in front of her, determined and repentant.

“Sakura, I’m sorry, I swear, we didn’t—”

“I’m working, Naruto,” she tells him flatly and keeps walking. “Please leave.”

“But you need to listen—!”

“I need you to respect my wishes,” she replies. “Since it’s clear you don’t respect anything else.”

“That’s total bullshit and you know it!” Naruto yells, frustration and worry in his voice. For once, though, her immediate reaction isn’t to try to calm him. “Just because of this one thing—”

Sakura turns around then, her hand snapping out and grabbing Naruto by the collar of his jacket.

“This is my place of work,” she hisses at him, a flare of anger bleeding through the carefully constructed façade of business she’s lost herself in for a few hours. “I am saving lives right now, and I don’t have time for your interruptions while people could be dying. Now leave on your own, or I will break every one of your bones so thoroughly that even with your healing abilities, you’ll still be stuck on bed-rest for a month.”

She experiences a minor spark of gratification at the way Naruto goes pale beneath his whiskers and vanishes in an instant, but it doesn’t make her feel any better. Like his apologies, his misery feels hollow to her and does nothing to satisfy the hurt.

When she returns to her wing of the hospital, she gives Ando and all the other staff warnings that she is not to be disturbed by friends or family while she works. It’s not the first time she’s ordered this, so they don’t argue. She has a trusted support network among her colleagues, all of whom know better than to question her at this point. Those that do and still attempt to speak to her are run off with a single forbidding look.

While cleaning up after a successful limb-reattachment, a new intern that she doesn’t know very well approaches her.

“Sakura-sensei, the Hokage requires your presence,” she tells her shyly.

Sakura says nothing and reaches for the nearest chart and begins to glance over the particulars for her next case.

“Should I tell him you’re on your way?”

“No.”

“Oh…um…so you’ll be a little late?”

“No.”

“Oh.” She pauses. “What...what should I tell him?”

“Nothing.”

The girl isn’t quite sure what to say about that, but Sakura glances up and says, “That will be all, Wakana. You have rounds.”

She barely registers the intern’s puzzled expression as she heads off to her next appointment.

For another seventy-two hours straight Sakura pushes herself from one procedure to another, elbows deep in blood and viscera one moment, or painstaking research and experiments in the skills lab. She survives on caffeine and soldier pills, focussed on the problems she can solve. She doesn’t have to think about her injured heart while healing a broken pelvis.

Of course, she knows she can’t go on like this.

Eventually she starts to feel the exhaustion of using so much brain power and chakra without a respite. Even though she has a large reserve and could conceivably go on for days, it’s irresponsible to do so outside of a combat situation. Besides, being at work is no longer distracting her the way it should. Her thoughts and worries are beginning to bleed back through, and she knows she’ll have to face them sooner or later. Kakashi will only accept her ignoring his summons so many times, and Naruto won’t be deterred by her threat much longer.

Truthfully speaking, she’s surprised she hasn’t seen him at all since their encounter days ago. She suspects Kakashi might be keeping him from bothering her, because he at least understands the need for space.

Ando eventually makes the vague, round-about suggestion that she head home to sleep and relax—he curbs his usual bluntness by not telling her she smells, though she suspects she really should shower soon—and Sakura finds herself giving in.

She’s too tired to argue, apparently.

As she leaves the hospital, she pauses, dim and sluggish and too tired to think too much. It’s why she’s pretty sure that she’s dreaming when she notices a familiar figure waiting across the street.

Sasuke leans against the building opposite the hospital, a living shadow in an otherwise bright and cheerful street. And she instantly knows he’s waiting for her, even though he has never done so before.

It should bother her that he’s watching her, looking as unruffled and untouchable as always. And she’s probably got circles under her eyes, and the remnants of makeup caked on in places or and she doesn’t remember if she brushed her hair or teeth this morning. But somehow, it doesn’t really matter to her right now, the way it once would have.

And it’s still the most natural thing in the world for her to change her course and head toward him. His presence doesn’t erase her exhaustion or her inner turmoil, but it does cause a fluttering sensation or anticipation in her stomach.

After stewing in her self-constructed isolation for a few days, she’ll take it.

つづく

As always, reviews and constructive criticism are much appreciated! Also, if you are in a supportive mood , you can find my tip jar here.

クリ

Next Chapter

[radicallledward]

Is Sakura a good kunoichi?

People just can’t seem to form a balanced opinion on Sakura. Why does a character have to be either queen or shit? Whats with this “white or black” mentality? Here is my take on her as a ninja. 

NOTE: in my opinion a good kunoichi is: skills + professional attitude + mental strength. 

PART 1: 

In Part 1 Sakura was a mediocre kunoichi. She was supposed to be intelligent and was praised for her knowledge in-story, but Kishimoto rarely let that “knowledge” become useful to the plot. Sakura was also incredibly ignorant about the ways of the ninja world, and Sasuke outshined her in evaluating the situation and making predictions. She didn’t contribute anything to the fight for the bells, and even when Kakashi tied Naruto up it was Sasuke who made the right move with offering Naruto food (to ensure the team has chances to win in the next round). In the Forest of Death she almost opened the scroll which would have led to an immediate defeat of her team. Sakura’s rude inconsiderate comments didn’t help, just as her fixation on love that she pursued even during missions. It all made her look dense and immature. Overall the author failed to write her as The Intelligent One of the crew, even though he supposedly intended for her to be just that, since he denied her any physical strength and praised her mental abilities.

Which brings us to the next problem - lack of skill. It was stated that Sakura has a great chakra control, but Kishimoto never really let her show it in battle. She stood on the sidelines when boys fought or was a damsel in distress. She was mostly used as a low-skill support unit. When she fought, she made good use of standard ninja arsenal, but it was never enough to make her look competent around other ninjas her age who went waaay beyond it. Both in Part 1 and in Part 2 Kishimoto didn’t let Sakura resolve a situation without anyone’s help. Her nice fight in the Forest of Death had Lee come to her rescue and Sasuke finish the fight. She didn’t participate in the fight against Zabuza. Her battle against Ino was the least skillful out of all the jounin fights. While Naruto and Sasuke were troubling and even defeating godlike opponents of both their age and above, she couldn’t even handle a mediocre girl like her. She was the only one in the team who wasn’t promoted to the next stage of exam. When Naruto and Sasuke collided on the roof, she tried to jump in between them in tears - no plan other than let emotions resolve everything. Kishi didn’t allow her to join the team who went after Sasuke when he left. 

Overall Kishimoto did a huge disservice to her character in Part 1. He didn’t make an effort to support ANY of her implied strong suits while he freely used her as a damsel and emotional donor. He made Sasuke - an actual good ninja - denounce her abilities in a profound manner several times. She was less capable than an “underdog” of the story - Naruto. She was “all bark and no bite”. Kishi didn’t give her any special ability, but also denied her ambition and will to improve initially (Look at Lee who was even more handicapped originally). At one point she decided to become strong, but there is nothing more damaging to a character than resolution that isn’t followed up on. Kishi didn’t give her any power ups in Part 1, so those resolutions sounded like a huge lie on her part. There was a reason why Hinata who was barely shown looked much stronger, more unique, skillful and promising than this shallow bitchy teen.

Part 2:

In Part 2 Sakura became a great kunoichi. Kishimoto finally decided to deliver on his promises, but unfortunately he remained a bad writer.

Sakura finally proved that she can follow up on her “resolve” - she promised to become stronger during the timeskip and she did. She got her own “special abilities” - super-strength and healing. It immediately made her essential in several ways. Her self-praise and praise other people gave her finally lost the stench of being bullshit. More than that - she actually showed her intelligence in a big way. Her operation on Kankuro and making an antidote were pure professionalism. So was her operation to keep Naruto alive when Kyubi was extracted. She was shown as Tsunade’s (hokage’s) assistant. She acted as the leader at least in these cases: when Pain attacked the village, when she assisted Shizune in field clinic and when she joined shinobi on the final battlefield. It is hard to criticize her attitude and choices on missions with Chio and then Sai, she became emotional sometimes, but she never looked “lost” like in Part 1 and was always proactive, she showed mental strength.

Unfortunately Kishimoto once again didn’t let her go too far. Sakura became a great kunoichi, but Kishi didn’t write her well enough for the fandom to see it clearly. He didn’t let Sakura have consistent fights against strong opponents. He even toned down her accomplishments in battle with Sasori by making Chio control her with strings - however awesome and selfless Sakura was, it was impossible to judge that victory as her alone. Also he continued to use her as a plot device not caring about her image: he got her into trouble consistently for another character’s benefit. 

Another unfortunate thing - despite pushing Sakura in that direction at the expense of everything else, Kishimoto was incapable of writing healing in an impactful way. Only two aforementioned scenes with Kankuro and Naruto looked impressive. However great Sakura’s contributions as a medic, they just didn’t feel like it. Sakura became a master of poisons and other concoctions, but Kishi used it like twice. He couldn’t write an interesting healer, but since Sakura was one, he didn’t feel like developing her battle abilities, so she punched and punched and....yeah, it got old three chapters into Part 2. It looked even worse when her teammates blew up godlike enemies with evolved various techniques. 

Another failure: Part 2 and Team 7 drama was about Sasuke, but Kishimoto made Sakura completely irrelevant to both Sasuke and his journey. She never managed to make an impact on Sasuke, her voice never reached him, he didn’t care about her opinion or feelings, etc. It is important because Sasuke responded to strength and yet he ignored her completely - that made Sakura look weak and useless again. When she decided to kill Sasuke, I thought she is about to make a mistake and at the same time I wanted her to do SOMETHING, please, just something different from crying about him and making empty resolutions. Even a bad, but strong gesture showcasing her abilities and mental strength would be able to bring her into the story of Sasuke. But nah, she did nothing, Sasuke barely noticed her, she was saved twice in two chapters and even admitted she has no place in his story. (This was the only cool shot, but the action itself was impulsive:)

The rule is: once Sakura is about to fly, Kishi cuts her wings. In her culmination moment when Team 7 reunited she blew hundreds of enemies with another godforsaken punch (thanks, Kishi) just to TURN HER BACK ON THE ENEMY like a stupid rookie and get into trouble again (why, Kishi, why). Once he showed up, Sasuke didn’t hold back on commenting how useless Sakura is and that once again crushed Sakura’s worth in reader’s eyes. And even though her bringing Sasuke back from other dimension and punching the goddess were hugely important, Kishi once again failed to make it look impactful or on par with her teammates. He also made Obito help her. Well, after that we got the blow to her image: before the biggest fight in the manga Kishi solidified Sakura’s weakness by making her confess to Sasuke pathetically, showcasing her lack of understanding and influence. She never got to stand up in front of him as an equal, powerless from start to finish. Too bad, because it could have been a great showcase of her grown mental strength, distinguishing her from her 12 year old self.

Overall Sakura’s professional growth in Part 2 completely erased problems she had in Part 1 (only mental strength remained a problem in some cases). People who continued to call her weak and useless hated her by inertia, basically they still blamed her for horrific Part 1 performance and refused to move on. Or maybe they payed attention to how useless she was in contributing to the main drama of the story - “getting Sasuke back”. Many were still fixated on Hinata, who in reality suffered the reverse development: in terms of depth and mental strength Hinata mostly devolved in Part 2. Her suicidal attempt with Pain was the epitome of amateurism and lack of responsibility.

Part 3. After-credits.

Well, after 699 Sakura apparently abandoned her duties and ambitions as a kunoichi when she was around 20 years old. They say there is some data hidden in some novels that Sakura made a clinic or smth, but judging from 700 and Gaiden she is a full-time housewife, or at least Kishi didn’t bother to portray her in any other way. Whenever we see her in peaceful times, she is doing chores in an apron, even though it isn’t strange for a strong woman to be a great mother AND a working medic. (Tsunade managed to rule, heal and teach at the same time after all.) Well, ambitions do not define a good kunoichi, right? This does:

Here Sakura is showcasing complete lack of 1.self-control, 2.mental strength. Apparently, as Shizune says, fainting is a common thing for her. You’d think a grown up woman would show even more self-control than her teen self, but nah. We also see her in action a bit.

Unfortunately abilities she shows in Gaiden are even less impressive and significant than the ones she has shown when she was 16. She throws one successful punch with an element of surprise and gets kidnapped. When she tries to battle in the enemy’s lair, she doesn’t succeed, we see little of it, but she gets injured and saved without making any progress. 

Just like that it seems that Sakura either stagnated or -most likely- degraded as a kunoichi. Unlike inability to write her properly, this is a full decision on Kishimoto’s part. Sakura’s shinobi past is far behind her now. Well, IMO the way Sakura abandoned her ambitions that were established in the story, the way they lasted only until she got married, throw a shade on her as a true warrior. But it also doesn’t deny that in her teen years she was indeed a good skillful kunoichi. 

Queen? Not so much. 

[jeageristsasuke]

Thoughts on Boruto ep 1

So, even though I hate contributing to this crime against Naruto, I decided to watch Boruto and find out if maiming Naruto the way they did was "worth it" in any twisted way. Here's what I think about it... ▶The opening scene with Kawaki was pretty epic. I was actually reminded of Naruto's previous glory. The character design was really interesting as well. I liked how boruto looks like a mix of Naruto, Sasuke and Kakashi and the special pattern on their hands betrays some kind of connection between them and leaves a lot to be expected. We know that Naruto is probably under some kind of Jutsu that renders him incapable of helping (no I don't think he is dead. Killing would be a stupid move, considering the hatred they will face from the fandom) still we don't know anything about Sasuke...and all the other shinobi because all we get to see is Konoha destroyed and empty of anyone but those two. All in all, the scene leaves the viewer with millions of questions, thus a pretty strategically correct first scene. ▶The general plot with the bullies and the trains were pretty good, I guess. For children who haven't yet started the Academy they caused a fine mess. This dark aura hovering over Denki was also pretty interesting. When I saw it, and how Boruto was influenced by it and "awakened" this weird eye power, showing these two are connected somehow, I was shocked thinking that Denki might be the infamous Kawaki in the end, and if that's true, then it would be a decent plot twist. ▶Boruto's relationships with everyone, apart from his father, were beautiful. How Shikadai seems to have already started watching over him, just like Shikamaru with Naruto, and yet how they do crazy things together, I found it pretty funny. It seems their bond is going to be deep. I loved Boruto's Interactions with his sister and with Konohamaru. His bond with Denki appears to be the most mysterious one at this point and it feels like it's going to be strong, whatever path it takes. Sarada's appearance in the end and their interactions screams Naruto and Sasuke (even though Sarada's personallity is closer to Sakura's, which is to be expected since she has yet to meet her father and she is growing up without him) Boruto has the Naruto vibe around him, and it naturally draws people close to him. He also has the younger Naruto's Extra™ tendencies, which is funny and nostalgic no doubt. So in general the overall opinion is unexpectedly positive. Until I think of the Naruto characters. ▶Needless to say, I screamed when Naruto appeared on the screen. I didn't know I had missed my boy so much... And I got what I knew. I didn't like seeing Naruto unhappy. But at least it's the truth. I know he is an udult with the most difficult and significant role, but does this justify the change of his entire character? I don't know guys, but I just can't see "Naruto" anymore. All I see is a mere shadow of his former self, trapped by responsibilities and routine. As if he has given up on himself, just like sp gave up on him and it kills me. ▶Hinata is the usual housewife fangirl. It is sad that so many filler episodes about her didn't contribute at all to making her character anything but "the girl who loved Naruto". And as a wife, she still is nothing more than that. She looks like a walk-on to fill in the gaps and struggle to save this "perfect family". ▶Shikamaru seems ok. Has his hands full of Naruto but he looks content with his own life at the very least. I'm glad for him. To sum up, Boruto has great potential. If it is regarded as a totally different project to Naruto and the previous characters can be ignored, then one can enjoy the show. To those, like me, for whom it is practically impossible not to think of the original Naruto characters, I believe it's going to be hard watching them like...this. But anyways, Boruto might be worth it. And no matter what, it's still new Naruto content. So I guess... Enjoy the ride.