#i have not & probably will not seek out what the fandom or even manga has already said abt this.

[punkpresentmic]

finally watched the jjk movie.

[fushiglow]

if you don't mind me asking, who are your favorite romantic relationship's couples in books/ manga/ anime/movies/tv series (can be canon or non-canon)? Why you love them? Sorry if you've answered this question before......Thanks....

When I'm hyperfixating on a special interest, I find it really hard to remember anything that previously held my attention lol — so I'm struggling to answer this question, anon! I'm not a huge shipper usually, and I'm incredibly unenthusiastic about ship wars so I generally don't get involved.

That said, there are tons of ships I like in Jujutsu Kaisen. SatoSugu and Megumi are pretty much all I post about on here, but I've gained a few followers recently so it's probably worth saying because I've seen a lot of ship discourse elsewhere in the fandom recently:

If you're reading this and you really hate any of the ships I mention in this post, feel free to unfollow if it's that big a deal to you.

I'm really not interested in arguing about ships — because it just isn't that deep, I have limited free time to give to fandom and I'd rather spend it on things I love — so please don't get into that with me. However, if it's not a big deal to you, great to have you around! ♥

So, Jujutsu Kaisen ships I like below the cut:

Obviously, SatoSugu* has really captured my imagination. I don't think I've ever shipped anything as hard as I ship those two, but I talk about them all the time so I won't go into any more detail.

Other than that, I like GojoHime which I know is blasphemy for a SatoSugu shipper (I'm kidding, there's a bunch of us who ship both) but I don't think one has to preclude the other (after all, Gojo has two hands 👀). I've written two canonverse fics for GojoHime, and I've gently implied a former romantic relationship between SatoSugu in both.

I think lots of people read too deeply into the "she hates him" thing. Is he a bit of a dick to her? Absolutely, but treating Utahime like she's just a victim of the terrible Gojo Satoru takes away from her character — because she gives as good as she gets! I adore the contradiction in how she presents herself as this prim and proper miko, but she's actually a little firecracker who loses her temper easily and throws things at people and drinks heavily. Don't take that away from her, it's what makes her fun!

To me, it's obvious that their dynamic is designed to provide comic relief, but they trust each other when it comes down to it. In fact, I'd argue their bickering is evidence of that — if you're a polite person, you don't bicker with people you're not comfortable with. More than that, I like how Utahime is set up as a bit of a foil to Gojo. It's been said before, but there's a poetry in her technique making the 'strongest' stronger, especially considering that he goes to this character he's historically called weak to ask for help in the biggest fight of his life. Delicious!

Beyond that, I casually enjoy a bunch of other JJK ships. I don't actively seek out or create content for them, but I enjoy some of the art and fic when I come across it. Namely:

SaShiSu, in any configuration. SatoShoko is appealing to me for reasons I touched on in response to a question about Gojo's relationship with Shoko. SuguShoko is hot, simply because I think both characters are hot and they look hot together lol. I can even get behind poly SaShiSu!

OkkoFushi, because of Megumi's ~one line~ about respecting his senpai. It's essentially a crack ship, but I have the silliest little headcanon that Gojo brought Megumi to meet the first years sometime during JJK 0 and Megumi developed his first crush — see this adorable art for reference.

ItaFushi, ItaJun, and YutaMaki because they're all harmless and adorable.

GojoKen, because I love the potential for toxic angst.

KenTen, because "goodbye, old friend" — I'm sorry, what??? 👀

ShokoHime and ChosoYuki because they're all sexy as hell.

NobaMai, because they have sizzling chemistry.

KiraKari and MechaMiwa, because they're both canon as far as I'm concerned.

ShiuToji, because they're "business partners" — sure, guys!!

NanaGo, purely for the cute single dads art.

SukuGo, but only in a non-canon setting. They should have been besties in canon though 😔

Finally, the controversial one. Sukuna can stay the hell away from Megumi in canon (🥲) but I quite like SukuFushi in a specific AU setting — especially if Yuji and Sukuna are brothers in it! I have a soft spot for the Itadori twins, and I'm into the idea of big bully Sukuna meeting his match in his brat of a brother's quiet best friend with the deceptively sharp tongue (and knuckles).

However, I personally find that a lot of people mischaracterise Megumi in his ships and take away the aspects of his character that I really love (come on, he beat people the hell up at school!) so I'm not super into Megumi ships in general, despite the fact that he's my best boy.

As you can see, I'm really not that fussy about ships. In the past, I've definitely read fic featuring a side pairing that I'm not super into, but it won't stop me reading a good fic if there's a pairing I don't like in it. Sometimes, if it's well-written, I might even end up a fan!

Outside of JJK, there really isn't much. I don't follow many other animanga, but I think AkiAngel is a gorgeous ship and EreMika is cute although a bit bland. I think that's it though... Sorry this wasn't really what you asked for, but thank you for the question! ♥

*I just use the popular ship name, but I don't have any strong preferences when it comes to sexual dynamics so the name order isn't important to me — that goes for all the ships I like!

[fan-dweeb]

(large spoiler) Ever think that quirkless Keigo is just gonna keep going with his model career?? Like he's not a pro hero anymore, so he just keeps the modeling gig?? I wanna know your thoughts on this lmao

Hii!! Small disclaimer, I’m actually not caught up with the anime, let alone the manga, at all, so most of what I say is based on snippets I get from fanfics and meta lmao

Hmmm this is really interesting. Short answer: I think with the way that Keigo has finally been set free (symbolically with losing his quirk, and literally from the HPSC (I think)), he’ll probably stop everything else related to Hawk’s job as well.

Slightly longer answer:

From Horikoshi’s perspective, Keigo has already served his original purpose as a character so it wouldn’t really make a difference either way canonically. If he does intend to have those ‘5 years from now’ snapshot, I feel like Keigo will be overseas travelling or something rather than modelling though, if just to be consistent with his theme of being set free. If not as a personal choice, ‘do it for the plot’ lmao. I do mean this quite literally though, because now he’s got so much potential for the ‘self-discovery slice-of-life’.

,,,, but I personally think this is a bit of a cop out choice for Keigo’s future.

I’m not gonna be the analyst who says ‘he never had a chance to make his own choices’ because technically he did. This doesn’t mean he made a good one, but if you step away from popularised fanon, he did agree to going with the HPSC because he wants to be a Hero and not because of his mum. This isn’t so much that I haven’t ‘read between the lines’, but that he never once looked at his mum or made reference to what would happen to his mum if he followed the HPSC. Unless ‘reading between the lines’ include fabricating entire dialogues under an assumption that Hawks was suppressing his memories, I think it’s safer to assume he just couldn’t care less loll. But that’s the thing; his whole life revolved around Heroes, whether as Keigo or as Hawks. Now that it’s been brutally and suddenly ripped out of his hands and NOT in the form of death like he was probably expecting? He has to find something else to do, whether it be modelling or travelling or being a librarian or whatever,,,,, that is, if we make an assumption that he can’t keep being a Hero.

Look, we know he wants to help people. Some might even say he’s kind (that might’ve been drilled out of it by HPSC’s cold blooded training, but hey, maybe it’s just buried really, really deep inside). If we look at this not from a story writing perspective but purely from the character Keigo’s perspective (a bit counter intuitive, I know but bear with me), I honestly think at some point in the far future he might try to pursue a career in Heroism/ the police dpt / the fire dpt (hAH irony)/ some kind of physically-inclined job that traditionally seeks to help people. I think most people tend to stick to things that feel familiar with them even if it’s an unconscious decision.

So how does this link to whether he continues modelling? (because I’ve totally been building up to a point and not just going off on a tangent lmfao)

I think a lot of the fandom sees modelling as Evil, whether this be because of the horror stories of modelling in real life, because of an understanding of mutant quirk discrimination, wing kinks, and thinking Hawks definitely didn’t like being seen in that light, or because of some mixture of other reasons. And I think that’s true in the sense that it probably wasn’t what Keigo had in mind when he first signed up to being a Hero.

With that said, I’ve seen a particularly well written fanfic (I forgot which tbh) where Hawks is explaining the importance of modelling in promoting a sense of safety in civilians, especially for Heroes with anthromorphic quirks, outside of just gaining popularity. Which I think is a really fresh and extremely valid argument. As such, modelling could be a very nice supplement to him regaining popularity or at least, regain familiarity with both the general public but also his roots of inspiring confidence and safety if he decides to pursue any of the jobs I’ve mentioned above.

There is a counter argument, especially for Keigo being a Hero, that the quirkist ideas are so ingrained him (subconsciously or otherwise by the HPSC) that being a Hero again, or just doing any job at all without a quirk probably never crossed his mind. And if he wanted to keep up with helping people, there are a multitude of other jobs he could do. (Which modelling still doesn’t quite fit but ehh maybe as encouragement to/ empowerment of quirkless people?). But, I think this is a rather naive and simplistic analysis of Hawk’s and Keigo’s character of a person too deep into fanon.

If there’s one thing Hawks fans can agree on, please let it be that he’s really freaking complex.

He’s seen the worst and the best of society. He’d just about experienced every facet of society possible as a person in the bnha universe besides being an Average Joe. And now, he’s about to head into the small undiscovered area of quirklessness. (We as readers get a bit of this from Izuku’s POV, but for Keigo this is about as novel as it gets). Speaking as a writer, whether modelling is part of that experience remains entirely on what you want to explore with Keigo as a character.

Lmk what you guys think as well!! (in comments/ tags/ dm/ asks, all are ok :D )

(note: apologies for the barely organised word vomit and non-answer at the end, this was typed impulsively from my phone lmao)

[leportraitducadavre]

What do you think about Rock Lee? I rewatched his fight with Gaara recently and feel very nostalgic. He was my favorite, but I only know realize that probably a lot of it came from this whole sympathy for the underdog. I wonder what you think of his character and how his story went 😊

Hi Anon.

I apologize for how long this took to reply, hopefully, my answer will satisfy you enough to oversee the time it took.

I'll be honest, I'll analyze Lee solely from the first part of the manga because it's when his character is mostly developed (I might add the second part later on, but for now, I'll focus just on the gënin timeline).

In order to organize the reply and my feed, everything will be put under the cut. Apologies for doing it but I don't want to have to deal with another claim on any of my posts.

Once this has been clarified, let's start analyzing Rock Lee

Introduction and First Impression

Lee is introduced in chapter 36 (Sakura's depression) -the beginning of the Chünin Exams. His first "interaction" with Team 7 happens when he stops Sasuke from fighting a proctor, and Sasuke notices that Lee's chakra is weird.

After that, he introduces himself to Sakura and asks her out, getting immediately rejected. By that point, we saw that the main point of the chapter is, like the title says, Sakura's depression, a condition that gets immediately fixed after Sasuke praises her.

From what we can see, Lee knows about Team 7 and each of its members; we aren't told why or how he knows, but we can infer that he looked for information of Kakashi's team when hearing of the prodigious Uchiha, as he mostly focuses on him.

After this moment, Lee seeks a fight against Sasuke likely because both of a sense of jealousy (he got rejected by Sakura not a few pages ago, and Neji was curious about Sasuke's identity); and as a way to prove to himself that he can beat those that are considered prodigies.

The reason why he wanted to fight Sasuke makes little sense, which is why I find it weird that people find Lee's actions as noble (most of it has to do with the fandom's hatred towards Sasuke), sure, they're young and their emotions can get the best of them, but considering his military training, Lee should have known better than to lash out to a boy he just met.

"I want to test the effectiveness of my techniques against the last surviving member of your legendary clan" (x)

The phrase is followed by Lee winking at Sakura, so his reasons to fight Sasuke go beyond testing his techniques. Lee, according to this interaction, knew about Sasuke's identity all along and investigated him in order to gain more information when challenging him.

Another thing we learn from his fight with Sasuke: Lee is willing to break the rules of his master and use a dangerous technique against someone younger than him and with whom he had never interacted previously if it means winning.

In addition to Lee explaining why Sasuke can't keep up with him despite having the Sharingan (x), we have the panels above: Why is Lee being so adamantly cruel to Sasuke? And no, I'm not talking about his words, he's explaining his technique -I'm talking about the move he is about to perform against him -someone who it has been proven already can't keep up with him. Lee is projecting all the frustration and hatred he has for Neji onto Sasuke, who shares the same "prodigy" status as his teammate.

[And sure, the reader doesn't know about Neji and Lee's dynamic yet -we are presented with that conflict at the end of the exams, yet the observation stands, I'm only providing the information in order to understand why Lee was so adamantly out of line].

He not only is being unfair but also abusive -had Gai not intervened, he would have injured Sasuke for no real reason other than because he wanted to prove a point to himself.

Like I said before: Sasuke couldn't keep up with Lee's speed, it had been proven that Lee was to win the fight even without using the technique he was about to try. His rival was pretty much defeated, yet Lee continued to elevate the level of difficulty of his attacks to make further and further damage:

1) Sasuke is trembling. Wouldn't that be enough reason to stop?

2) The victory had already been established previously to Lee's performing his ultimate technique. In addition, as I established before, because of its level of damage the move is strictly forbidden, however, Lee tries to use it regardless.

It's true that later on, he tells Sasuke "I was blowing smoke before" regarding the use of the Forbidden Technique. But since Gai interrupted Lee and punished him, it's not that far-fetched to think he isn't telling him the truth as of now. He even thought about it before starting the fight, so he was willing to use the "move" (we learn It was the Lotus technique a few chapters later) but was prevented from doing so.

Chunin Exams and his willingness to sacrifice himself in lieu of others

We see him again during the second stage of the exams jumping through tree branches and training (trying to catch leaves before they touch the ground to see if Sakura would love him), and after that, in Chapter 51 -when he saves Sakura from an attack from Dosu.

There, we learn that he's good enough to notice Dosu's pattern and fighting style (also being able to know when a genjutsu is in place), we also get to know how he got to learn the technique only he was able to study: according to Gai's words, neither Neji nor Tenten were able to master The Lotus (meaning, Gai seemed to have tried to teach it to all of them, only succeding with Lee).

The Lotus Technique consists of:

One use of the technique brings Lee to the brink of exhaustion, as we see here; Dosu hasn't been defeated despite his best efforts because Kazu used his sound techniques to soften the earth. Lee's speed, while inhumane, can't keep up with sound's speed. Kishimoto is quite great when writing fights, isn't he?

Lee is actually and quite literally in love with Sakura, as Tenten states, had Lee been alone when fighting the Oto-nin, he would have won. He's willing to sacrifice his life in order to save her from the Sound-nin, as she literally means "the world" to him.

The impression of Lee's sacrifice (and Naruto and Sasuke's, who are still unconscious at this point) is so significant for Sakura that she considers all of them her "teachers", and people whom she will and needs to protect. Lee's significance in Sakura's development has increased (and will continue to do so).

Later on, during the preliminaries for the Third Stage of the Chünin Exams, Sasuke shows that he was able to memorize Lee's fighting technique due to his Sharingan and also master his moves -despite not being able to keep up with him only three days prior.

In that sense, Sasuke thinks that he was able to live thanks to Lee and his moves. We are also able to see Lee's appreciation of the matter, and his new perception of Sasuke -it seems that his hostility towards the younger boy has dissipated.

When Tenten gets beaten and tossed aside by Temari, Lee jumps in order to both catch his teammate (showing the bond he shares with her) and to kick Temari for insulting her. It's something I introduced before when he fought Sasuke, but Lee is particularly emotionally driven -he's constantly reacting and giving in to his impulses. It's not until Gai tells him to stop that he does. Furthermore, Gaara calls Temari and says, "how long do you intend to trifle with that homely little prince charming?" and the way Lee looks is absolutely enraged, even if he can't retaliate physically.

Gai

Gai's character is so central to Lee that I've decided to make a separate sub-title solely for him.

1) Lee can't use Ninjutsu or Genjutsu. I know that we as fans know this already, but it doesn't hurt to have it written, since is the core of Lee's character. Furthermore, as Gai points out, Lee wasn't able to do anything; he literally had no ability or talent whatsoever -not even at Taijutsu, which Gai taught him.

2) While it's commendable of Gai to teach Lee and put him on harsh training to allow him to grow in a specific field -we're introduced from the get-go that Gai's methods are questionable. He's pushing Lee to an extreme training and, as we saw during his fight with Sasuke and the time he defended Sakura, Lee often refers (or apologizes) to Gai's figure; meaning, everything he does is to make his sensei proud.

3) In addition to the previous point, he taught Lee The Lotus move (which is a technique that opens the First Inner Gate, Kaimon, or Gate of Opening), a dangerous power that, as he explains, strains the body to such extent that it leaves Lee defenseless against another attack should he fail -as it happens with Gaara.

To counteract that problem, Gai taught him to open more than one Gate (remember, every single one is a forbidden technique) to his student (at this point in time, Lee can open five out of eight Inner Gates), Lee's achievement is so incredible, that even Kakashi calls him a genius.

[The explanation of the different Inner Gates inside the body. The Reverse Lotus (the second technique Lee uses, after not being able to defeat Gaara with the Forward Lotus, which opens the first gate), opens two more gates: Kyumon, which boosts his strength, and Seimon (Gate of Life).]

As we know, Lee loses his fight against Gaara because while his attacks proved to be effective against his ultimate defense, Gaara still possessed the Gourd -which he turned to sand to protect himself.

Lee's use of the Lotus technique, in addition to Gaara's attack (Sabakukyu), put such a toll on his body that he ended up "destroyed" enough to be told that he'll never become a full shinobi.

This is a direct consequence of Gai's teachings that never gets truly explored, as his actions are immediately dropped after Lee recovers.

4) I've mentioned before that Gai's character has such importance on Lee's development that he takes immeasurable risks in order to make him proud (being willing to sacrifice his body and keep fighting), but I haven't explained why:

Gai, unlike any other character before, is the first person who trusts Lee's capacity, who thinks (and tells him) about how great/strong he can become, and that he's a genius in his own way. Without Gai's encouragement (and specific training that I've already talked about) he would have never achieved the title of "Taijutsu specialist" that Gai gives him and everyone else acknowledges.

Regarding Gai's perception of Lee, besides the great lengths he went to ensure Lee's success, we also need to point out that Gai is the only reason why Gaara wasn't able to kill Lee. He was the only one who jumped in to protect him (which is the main reason why Gaara wants to kill him after, as he witnessed an act of love that he can't comprehend). The proctor Hayate, meanwhile, did nothing, as well as the rest of the jönins that jumped before to protect Hinata from Neji. In addition, Gai calls him (and only him), his "lovable, precious protégé!" (x) Furthermore, it's directly stated by Lee himself how important Gai's presence is to him (x, x), Gai not only gave him support, but he also gave him a goal to rely on (have a rival and work hard).

"If, by a one in a trillion chance, it ends in failure... I'll die with you!"

Source

Neji

Besides Gai, speaking of Lee without speaking of Neji is also another disservice to his character, since the entire reason why Lee pushes himself to train harder is that he wants to beat Neji.

Sure, the relevance of Neji isn't really as strong as Gai's, but that doesn't mean his presence isn't important when it comes to Lee's development.

We get to see how Lee recognizes Neji's strength, how he craves some sort of recognition from him (although that objective isn't as strong as Naruto's desire for Sasuke to acknowledge him), and how he puts him as a milestone to surpass and, as consequence, reach his goal.

We are even told that Lee's commitment to learning how to open the Inner Gates was a consequence of his desire to win a match against Neji.

Lee's Perseverance

I already introduced this notion, since the whole point of Gai's character is to introduce the idea of "hard work" surpassing natural geniuses, and we find this idea again on CH 93 where Sakura and Ino find him training outside the hospital after his defeat at the hands of Gaara.

He's so driven by his goal, that he overexerts himself and ends up fainting.

Once Tsunade returns to the village, she tells Lee that he won't be able to return to his Shinobi duties, as the operation she needs to perform in order to fix his spine has a 50% success rate, which incredibly depresses him to the point where his ninja way (hard work), isn't enough to take him off of that state.

It's incredibly sad because Lee's entire dogma has been shattered and he has, again, no control over his body or destiny; as everything relies upon Tsunade. For that reason, he seeks Gai's advice, who finally tells him to get the surgery despite the possible consequences, as losing his dream will hurt far more than dying. Furthermore, Gai promises he'll die alongside Lee should the operation fail, as his ninja way was to make him a "Splendid ninja" (x).

The great lengths Lee's willing to go to (not without the support of a very questionable mentor) in order to achieve his dream, putting in line his own life is very telling of the system's (and those that live by such system) priorities, as it teaches young children that their bodies and life alike are expendable and a sacrifice to be made in order to climb within the military ranks and become "useful" to the village.

[Lee's quality of life has been extremely lowered in lieu of his wounds, that's true, however, those wounds exist because he pushed himself too hard in order to please his commander; someone hypocritical enough to question Kakashi's decision to enroll his team in the Chünin Exams as he deemed them too young and inexperienced to participate, yet saw no issue in teaching forbidden and dangerous techniques to his own student.]

Lee's fight with Kimimaro brings, to me, nothing entirely new about his character other than introducing us to his poor tolerance of alcohol. We get to see how Tsunade succeeded with the surgery and how Lee, despite having spent months depressed and having just been saved by Tsunade's skills (without whom he would've lost his entire shinobi career), is able to "forgive" Gaara, as he's a powerful ally.

[hell-of-peccability]

pulling aus out of my ass #1:

> kuni(kida/haru) !!

okay. so. hear me out.

them. as the same person. for an au.

(for clarity's sake, I'm referring to all of the Saiki family by their first names. if you arent aware of them; Kusuo = Saiki K , Kusuke = Saiki's Brother , Kuniharu = Saiki's dad , Kurumi = Saiki's mom. I had to look up his parents names for this so I don't blame anyone.)

MY REASONING:

almost the same haircut??? definitely the same bangs. kunikida's hair would probably poof out the way kuniharu's does if he snipped off the rattail.

people's hair typically gets darker as they age (blond to brown)

people's facial structure typically rounds out a bit as they age as well

both wear rather similar glasses -- kunikida switching up his pair at some point would logically make sense.

kunikida to kuniharu. even if kunikida's first name is doppo, if this was some sort of "lets change my identity to blend in with normal society" he may keep "kuni" as a tribute to kunikida. (especially since 'kunikida' is the penname part of what the actual author went by, among other pennames)

it would make (some) sense for kusuo's dad to have some form of ability, as would result in his psychic-ness.

taste in women;

kurumi definitely looks similar to sasaki (which can be interpreted as probably kunikida's ideal woman), kuni(kida/haru) would probably find kurumi attractive, "Kurumi is a kind and gentle mother [...] She is also very trusting of and never doubts other people. However, when driven pushed her limits, Kurumi becomes scary and hunts down anyone who threaten her family. She loves her family a great deal." (saiki k wiki) this description of someone WOULD probably be close to his ideal, as kurumi is pretty much the ideal mom in herself. I believe she's close enough to where kunikida (if he's actually into women & not secretly gay) would settle for, if not seek her out.

THE BLATANT PROBLEM:

Aside from, yk, this not being the same fandom, the biggest issue comes with Saiki Kuniharu's personality.

"Kuniharu is unreliable, reckless and slovenly, often begging with disgusting teary faces towards his son. He is a doormat who is always nice and respectful to people no matter how rude or scornful they are to him, such as his boss, who orders him to lick his shoes, and his father-in-law, who harbors a strong hatred towards him. On occasion, he can be self-serving." (saiki k wiki)

I think the best reason that can be given here, is it's dazai's fault. Dazai manages to successfully drive kunikida so insane that he flees not only the agency, but yokohama, going to hidari wakibara to escape.

Kuniharu could be Kunikida after his ideals are (mostly) shattered, and his personality snaps. He suddenly conforms to authority, loses his schedule, begs in the same way dazai always harassed him with, either as a mask to hide under, or because he was driven to become that.

or, in other words, Kunikida lost his shit (*cough* possibly due to the current & former manga arcs *cough*) and ran off to start a new life, without his notebook, his schedule, and the ideals he lived his life by.

OTHER AU DETAILS:

If Kunikida's ability relies on his notebook, it would be pretty easy for him to shove that thing in a drawer and pretend to be normal. Maybe it so far as kuni's mind was wiped, which would account for Kusuo never reading that in his mind. It's just gone.

Kusuo wouldn't necessarily be aware of ability users if they weren't in his mind-reading vicinity, as he doesn't seek out psychics but he is aware of what they are when he gets close to them. He may not be aware of Yokohama due to this. (if any of this is wrong, shut up.)

Kusuke (given his mega high iq) is probably known by some of the BSD cast (for instance, Ranpo or Dazai) and dislikes them for being like his shitty brother.

Kuni HAS to have at least once accidentally used his powers and thought Kusuo was fucking with him. Or better yet, has had that happen enough to where he's afraid of writing because Kusuo will fuck with him. Maybe he even makes Kusuo write things for him whilst eying him suspiciously. Kusuo has likely chalked all of those thoughts up to Kuni being an idiot, and hasn't thought any more of it.

TLDR:

kunikida is kuniharu because this is MY corner of the internet and I SAID SO.

fuck you im claiming this is my new au that i cradle close to my heart. we are ignoring all the basic reasons why this is impossible kunikida just shrunk to 5'9", and changed his birthday and blood type to spite YOU.

i,,,, may need to write something off this.

[uraharashouten]

Urahara Kisuke's bankai has a 'range'

...but what does that really mean?

"Kannonbiraki Benihime Aratame's power... is to restructure anything she touches."

This claim that Urahara Kisuke asserts to Askin Nakk le Vaar in Bleach chapter 666 sounds ridiculously OP, doesn't it? Where's the catch? Ah yes, it has a 'range.' I, and fandom in general, have speculated just what that limit is. We see Askin get caught in it, and his arm flayed open—only to repair itself instantly when he jumps back. So it seems that you can't get too close. We also see Kisuke's wounds reopening as Benihime collapses, so there has been much speculation (including on my part) that perhaps Benihime's restructuring expires when bankai does... the wiki seems to think so.

Well, I am here today to unveil a new (and probably controversial) opinion: That "range" has nothing to do with distance or time—it's a metaphysical one, and it hinges on the subordination of willpower.

Before I go on, I'd like to stress how fundamentally important the concept of willpower is to Bleach. This has been explored with great thought and detail by better than me, so I'll gesture to this post and this one. We saw the Hōgyoku merge with Aizen, who had a strong enough will (and hubris) to stand atop the heavens, only to see it abandon him when he began to subordinate his own will to the "will of the Hōgyoku." We know from No Breathes From Hell that with a strong enough willpower, as measured in reii, one will quite literally leave a lasting impression in the very fabric of the universe.

So: how does this apply to Kannonbiraki Benihime Aratame?

Let's take that second point first. We never, in any subsequent official material, hear about Kisuke's blindness, or even his scars. We never get any mention of how his eyes "died" again once his bankai expired and had to be restored. When we encounter him again in CFYOW, there is nary a mention about any of that. So... it seems unlikely that Cinderella's curfew applies to Benihime's restructuring.

So if there's not a duration limit to the range, what about proximity?

In a shounen manga where shinigami can't wait to shinigamisplain their bankai in great detail to their foe before using it... Urahara Kisuke breaks the pattern by playing coy. Well, of course he does; he's Kisuke, so we chuckle and think "How in character!"

But could it also be that his bankai is less effective once an opponent knows about it?

Well, of course it is. Once Askin's aware of the 'range,' he seeks to avoid it. But in the exchange that follows... see how close they are?

Kisuke's right hand is fending off Askin's while his left's being restructured. So unless we want to imagine the 'range' of proximity is tightly hugging Kisuke's body, or that he's passing on a lot of tactical opportunity here, we have to consider that perhaps proximity isn't the necessary factor.

In any case, we know the the 'range' doesn't hug Kisuke's body.

He did say "anything it touches." And we saw Kisuke laying the groundwork for that in chapter 606.

Even sealed, Benihime has still 'touched' this terrain.

But neither do we see Kisuke or Benihime physically touch Askin's left arm before he invokes bankai. (If we see that in the anime I will throw my laptop across the room and stand corrected. But it'll also be a way simpler explanation.)

In any case, he's certainly a dangerous man to touch carelessly...

Which may be why Askin's predictions turn out wrong:

Now that's a familiar-sounding overconfidence. And when we get overconfident, we can become careless.

After that initial open-arm surgery, Benihime never rearranges anything of Askin's, does she? Perhaps because he's now on guard. He's focused on keeping himself together.

And now, we circle back around to the importance of will. Here's my assertion:

Benihime can't restructure reishi that's held together by a stronger resistant willpower.

Corollary 1: if you don't want to be rearranged by Benihime, you must either concentrate on choosing not to be, or establish a pattern strong enough that it survives your loss of consciousness, or even your death. Corollary 2: If you do want the effects of Benihime's restructuring to continue, then by all means subordinate your will to it. Especially if you're Kisuke and want to keep your new eyes. grumbles about retconning all my eye headcanons

Consider that Kisuke did nothing to rearrange the body chemistry of Yoruichi and Yuushirou as they lay unconscious nearby, suffering in Askin's Gift Bereich. I've wondered about that—but as great nobles, they have some of the highest reii of any shinigami. It's safe to say their patterns are indelible. I think that for Benihime to restructure them, they'd have to subordinate their wills, and for that, they'd have to be conscious.

What about the Gift Bereich? How is it that Benihime could make a path in, but not a path out? What's the difference?

The difference is that Askin's will established a structure that wouldn't permit creation of an exit.... even if he died. That's supremacy of willpower.

Askin's right. Why is Kisuke even asking something like this? It's almost like he's discerning just how iron-clad is Askin's intent.

Is there any support for this I can glean from Kisuke's history? Glad you asked.

We know that Kisuke has said his bankai isn't suitable for training. If it's best used on restructuring himself, that stands to reason. But we also can take something from his training of Ichigo.

"I press you a little and you fall apart!"

Advice, it has been said, is a form of nostalgia. If this is Kisuke's lesson, we can suppose it's what he learned... in his own training with Benihime. The need for resolve, for willpower, to keep from literally falling apart—could it be that's how he won his own bankai battle?

[astrxlfinale]

Knowing a partner well can potentially make writing together a lot easier.

Repost it up. No reblogging.

--------

NAME: Jace

PRONOUNS : He/Him

PREFERENCE OF COMMUNICATION : Tbh DMs and Discord are the best way to go. If I'm ever calling you up in 4k, we've probably know each other for a hella long while at this point in this hobby. lol

NAME OF MUSE(s) : Caelus (Honkai Star Rail)

BEST EXPERIENCE : In particular it was a RP in my manga days of RP with my Oga Tatsumi muse. Me and a bunch of Nintendo related muses (After playing the hilarious spectacle of Shut up and Jam Gaiden, proceeded to do a shounen-esque RP of basketball that went into comical perfection. Rosalina Nintendo did indeed nuke everyone at the end with her Cosmic, universal shattering dunk.

It was GLORIOUS.

RP PET PEEVES / DEALBREAKERS :

:| So uh, there may be a bit to this.

Trauma/Stress Dumping: The #1 that will have me done at the drop of a hat. Since I even began rp'ing it's always been this thing, people seeking other folks/people who offer up solid chill times to just go and vent the entire world and then some onto them. Mind you a lot of these interactions being with strangers likely known for a week at most.

This literally has no changed a lick since middle school. Unless I've known you for a considerable amount of time, this is the easiest way to proceed breaking all contact with me.

Not to have this confused with venting on your own blog/space. I accept and always respect that boundary. Just do not use talking as an opportunity to lean into such subject matter. It's one of the central reasons I'm really careful in joining group chats to begin with. There is a difference in telling me that a day was rough/bullshit, AND letting me know of particular territory to be watchful for in discussion, then just using me as an outlet. Especially in what I take for a hobby.

Socializing =/= Writing time: While I enjoy the social aspect of RP in it's nature. I never want to be in a position where the hangout time I spend with you creates the curve of interaction. That easily exhausts me and takes the fun from things once I'm clued in. Honestly speaking, someone could never talk to me outside sparse words, and we just run around with our muses writing up all sorts of scenarios and it'd work perfectly. This is what I use the website for!

Plotting does not fall under this umbrella. If people need an angle to make their magic work, I'm all for cooperating with you, this again just leans into xyz activities outside the hobby. Stretching yourself too thin in this regard can genuinely screw people over in other long time hang outs too, I've learned that the hard way.

Reference of Son/Daughter talk in mention to the muse in question: While I've first seen it on this website, in the same vein it's made me incredibly goddamn tired as it reels directly into the conversation involving the infantalization of muses. This likely strikes the highs for me into terms of 'Fandom Curses' alongside 'One character quality defines the whole character in question.'. Let's not even get started into fandom habits shaping the perception of a character OUTSIDE of canon content. Having muses that had to deal with the primary talk point here, I've just said to hell with giving many things or people a chance.

It just comes off as a really weird practice to me. It leans off heavily into the realm of character disrespect on top of that, as these idealized fandom notions. (For Example: Kingdom Heart's Aqua being relegated to 'Momqua'.) It gets too 'family' oriented in a sense where these accomplished characters can't really explore the depth of both their struggles, triumphs and lows. So if you seen me avoid that like the plague, that's exactly why.

'Comfort Character' Projection: It aligns a smidgen with the above. But no, have no expectation that I'll ever be a source to live out these particulars with you if I happen to play that very muse. I've again not hesitated to cut off connections at all when people attempt to wire these expectations onto me. My iteration of the muse is exactly what you signed up for by following me, respect that, just as I respect your boundaries.

MUSE PREFERENCES: If we're talking about the TYPE of muse I enjoy? Delinquent muses take the penultimate crown. I love those rowdy but firm hearted types.

PLOTS OR MEMES : Throw both at me. Now days I've gotten particularly more experienced into the plotting department. In the same vein I can't have it entirely streamlined either. I gotta let the muses breathe their breaths and exercise their own voice and actions.

That said? Memes are eternal, just throw those in anyday of the week, even if they're in the old logs of my blog. I never mind that. Just the prompts and scenarios alone can spark forth some vivid ideas/adventures that do lead into plotting. So hell, both sides win.

LONG OR SHORT REPLIES : Either is good. Though, a forewarning that I CAN wind up getting wordy. This never has to be matched as I'm just a sucker for details.

BEST TIME TO WRITE : For me, it's normally times outside the midday. It's usually when I'm available, as you'd come to see me around mornings or nights. (Also it's the best focus time.)

I say normally however, there's also plenty of times I'd just be hanging around on/off periodically.

ARE YOU LIKE YOUR MUSE(S) : Outside of some brazen qualities. Not really no!

Tagged by: Not a soul! Yoinked it up myself.

Tagging: If you feel like lettin' the world know, then by all means!

[muninnhuginn]

For the character ask meme, Anya from spy x family? :0

hi! thanks for the ask ^^. weirdly, I think anya's probably the spy x family main I've thought about the least? there's plenty to her so idk why I've not thought through her entire deal more, maybe just because the child experimentation angle will be grim and we're lacking so many pieces of her backstory rn. but even with that, there's plenty there. so anyway, good choice is what I'm saying. this gives me an excuse to not get distracted by loid and yo--

anyway anyway, answers below cut because this got long:

My first impression

This is gonna sound bad considering I only got into the series when the anime started coming out which is fairly recent all considered, but I genuinely don't remember? I'd probably seen memes involving her before I actually started the anime or manga, but for the life of me, I couldn't remember what they involved.

My impression now

She's young and that colours pretty much all of her actions. But it also means she has a huge capacity for growth and allows her to create that change in others too (the obvious one being Loid but you see it with others too). And Spy x Family may be a slow-burn but we're starting to get some of that pay off in terms of character development.

Hmm, what else, I guess she's pretty determined. Thinking of that post about how "Anya would be unstoppable if not for the small fact that she's five". So yeah, her logic is questionable at times (most of the time) and she's got abandonment issues and she's hindered by her age. But she's found a family now and it's clear she wants to keep them and wants them to keep her too.

Favorite thing about that character

I think the aspects that cause Anya the most trouble are those which she hasn't shared with anyone. Her powers, her background in general, her age. They're all tied together and her fear of abandonment (likely exacerbated by her foster families) prevents her from seeking help when they cause her issues. Loid knows pieces, but he's missing some really key bits of information and he has no idea. So it's neat that this character who arguably holds the most knowledge about other people's secrets cannot share her own.

Least favorite thing

I really don't like to think about some of the stuff that if you follow logic Anya must have been exposed to through her powers. There's some aspect of her not being able to comprehend all thoughts, but I imagine there's a lot that gets through which is just, quite frankly horrific.

There's that scene fairly early on where Loid and Anya come across a rally and there's some pretty yikes stuff being thought by those attending. In that scene, the focus is more on how crowds tend to overwhelm her given her powers, but between that and whatever's going on with Melinda, well, it's pretty clear she can and will hear things that would be uncomfortable for *anyone* to hear, never mind someone not even six years old.

Favorite line/scene

Maybe Ania mini-chapter. What does it all mean?

Favorite interaction that character has with another

Loid-Anya cruise subplot. She's not lost the abandonment issues, but she sure has Loid wrapped around her finger and takes full advantage of it. She's just trying to help Yor, but she's making Loid completely suffer for it and it is hilarious.

A character that I wish that character would interact with more

Handler. They've had a couple of interactions in canon and Anya reminds her of her own daughter which is already such a dynamic to start with. Anya seems to like Handler too. It's a mutually healing relationship, but also funny to consider them both driving Loid up the wall with stress.

Another character from another fandom that reminds me of that character

Maybe Steven Universe? Something about kids with atypical family setups who are too young to be involved in this stuff getting involved regardless and setting themselves up for trauma down the line. Wanting to save the world, but not yet understanding what that entails. Their powers being tied to something beyond their control; something that will absolutely come back to bite them.

In terms of personality though? I'm kind of blanking.

A song that reminds of that character

(Might have to follow it through to Youtube to get the subtitles to work)

This is one of those where it's more the vibes than the exact story, but I think the whole 'family to family until you find a home' and 'seems cheery but actually quite sad' and some of the stuff around 'helping' all fit in a way.

An unpopular opinion about that character/A headcanon about that character

(Merged this with 'headcanon' because I realised my read of the situation here could fit that and I blanked on *actual* headcanons but they'd probably mostly revolve around sensory overload from her powers so)

Not sure how unpopular this opinion actually is, because I don't tend to lurk in those places, but I genuinely don't think Anya at this stage is "into" Damian in any way. And though I doubt it'll pan out that way, I would very much prefer if she stays uninterested in him in that way? I do think it'd be neat to explore the fallout when Damian realises she was trying to befriend him for his connections given that's already been brought up as something that'd upset him. But I'd rather their dynamic lead to genuine friendship rather than romance. For now, Damian's crush and Anya's awkward overtures as she tries to progress the mission do entertain me, as do the small moments where they interact genuinely. But I just find the idea of a crush when they're that young actually working out to be... well, pretty unbelievable?

Favourite picture

Ahh don't make me pick. She has too many good faces I'm not sure how I could narrow it down. I'll just go for.... her "heh" face, but genuinely way too much choice. (Also, there are some more serious options like when she realises Loid's reason for coming to rescue her in ep/ch1 or her reaction about the whole "Ania" spelling. But again, can't pick)

[thrudgelmir2333]

Response to a Reddit Post: Is the fanfiction portion of the fandom dying?

I'm currently working on a series of Tumblr posts about my characters, starting with my main, but I realised I had more work on my hands than I thought, so I kind of put that project on pause.

In the meantime, in the interest of keeping my Tumblr account active, I've decided to start sharing some Reddit responses I make to certain topics, since many times they tend to be as big as blog posts in their own right. I'm not gonna go back and repost here everything I've ever written on Reddit, I'm just gonna repost stuff I do from now on cause it's a shame to let all that typing go to waste.

Starting with my response to this Reddit Post:

https://www.reddit.com/r/SaintSeiya/comments/13dbofy/is_the_fanfiction_portion_of_the_fandom_dying/ ------------------------------ I can't speak for other fanfiction sites, since I've only as of last Summer been posting outside FF.net, but I would say that while the fanfiction portion of the fandom is not dying, it is definitely going through a bit of a drought. There's just not much to write about right now.

I think that in order to have the kind of thriving fanfiction you're probably picturing with this question, you need a number of things:

-Creative Appeal: the premise (in this case Saint Seiya) needs to be experiencing a surge of widespread media fascination. This doesn't mean commercial success, it means people need to see something in the premise that stimulates their creative interest and that they can easily get other people to care about their writing of it by just appealing to the common interest in the premise;

-Demographic Appeal: fanfiction writing is something that, unfortunately, is still very demographically driven, being considered a hobby of teenagers, minorities and adult women for the most part (in other words, people whose viewpoint is usually absent or misrepresented in mainstream media, encouraging them to seek alternative or amateur storytelling).

-Sexual Emotion Appeal: Fanfiction is also a space for experimental and restricted forms of writing to bloom. People get attached to a property or franchise, notice that it has romantic tension that goes unfulfilled, and write about it to make it happen;

-Experimental Storytelling Appeal: A franchise good for fanfiction writing is one that makes itself open to different types of storytelling. The MCU is great for this because it has made clear to its fans that it has no qualms in mixing Hulk stories with Dr. Strange, time travel and parallel universes.

So in a lot of ways you could say fanfiction-fertile environments are environments with a lot of 'untapped potential', at least from the perspective of the fans.

When you look at the landscape of Saint Seiya, you'll see the last big surge of fanfiction was in the late 2000s and early 2010s, when Lost Canvas was coming out. Whether you like Lost Canvas or not, it is undeniably an ideal manga to spur fanfic sentiment in Saint Seiya, with its cast of well-drawn characters, heavy enphasis on the emotional aspect of the fighting (rather than action) and even its (spoiler alert) reveal at the end that the whole story is largely a timeline construct by the character Mephistopheles Youma, indicating that this universe is open to things like alternate timelines and viewpoints.

This fertility is further enphasized by the fact that a lot of the LC Gold Saints are... kind of selfish assholes. Many of them pop up late in the story when they could have been helping from the beginning, many of them seem to have people in their lives they value more than their duty and many act outright more interested in the battling in and of itself rather than the grander purpose of the Holy War. Sasha is almost a circunstancial element in their lives and that's kind of what makes them more human and liable to have stories written about them.

But classic Saint Seiya is a rather straightforward story, especially after Sanctuary. The characters' drives are very strongly centered around the main conflict and they very rarely allow themselves self-interested moments. We are so starved of characterisation on the Gold Saints that to this day people still ship Mu and Aldebaran together because they had ONE conversation early in Sanctuary Arc about what they thought of Pope Arles.

This all ironically in SPITE of ND, which has a rather colorful bunch of Gold Saints and even time travel, because the very rigidness of the SS format and Kurumada's slow storytelling pace are discouraging any sense that there are real character consequences for what happens each chapter. I mean, how many people have absorbed into themselves that Shiryu is now more or less officially rid of his Shoryuha's heart weakness after his most recent power up in ND?

The big exception is Shun; Shun has a lot of fanfiction written about him, or written with him, or written about characters interested in him (like Ikki or the Specters). You would think that, in the typical fanfiction manner, it's because of his mixed gender role in the series, but I would disagree, because another big fanfic appeal in SS is Hyoga, of all people.

I think Shun and Hyoga appeal to fanfiction writing because of all the characters, these two seem to act like they have a wisdom separate of the main conflict going on in the story. Shun is always the one reminding everyone else that they shouldn't be violent just because they're fighting a war, and Hyoga is always the one talking about having loved ones beyond the Bronze Saints (namely his teachers and his mother) as a consistent part of his characterisation (and not a pretend motivation like Seiya with Seika). Shun is also the one among the Bronzes to have been made a vessel of an enemy God, Hades of all people, which contributes to the sense he has somewhere to go to other than being another Power Ranger in Seiya's team.

There is a direct relationship between characters with selfish dimensions to them and fans wanting to write fanfiction about them.

So if we have Lost Canvas, Shun and Hyoga, why the drought?

As we move further in time away from stories like Lost Canvas, naturally it's relevance diminishes. New generations of Saint Seiya fans are not going to know who the hell Kardia is and they won't care. Instead, they have stories like Omega (which was experimental with Saint Seiya, if anything) and Saintia Sho (an all female story).

While Saintia Sho is great, the problem, fanfiction-wise, is that Chimaki is very upfront about her characters' interests. There's no need for Sho fanfiction of her pairing up with Kyoko because Chimaki does it herself in her own manga, so if you're interested in Sho, you almost could say you are too satisfied. It's potential is already tapped. Sho kind of destroys its own fanfiction potential by embracing its sexual tension. We've basically stopped short of having Shoko and Kyoko kiss in the series.

And Saint Seiya fans are not gonna write Omega stories because it tried to appeal to its most anti-fanfic demographic, male shounen fans, who made it into a hate-meme. So it's a mute point.

This leaves Dark Wing (which is basically a Isekai fanfiction of its own right) and Episode G.

Episode G just sucks for inspiring fanfiction. It's ugly, it has bad photography, it has the emotional tension of a teenage graffiti on the principal's hall and it has pretty dull Holy Wars that exist pretty much as excuses to draw Gold Saints looking mean and shooting shiny beams at weirdos in black armor. I challenge anyone to think of an interesting fanfiction to write about it. You can't. And no one has. In my 13 years of following the fanfic communities, of all the SS spin offs, Episode G has barely, if ever, had stories written about it by fans, much less popular ones. The closest to it has been Jenny DeVic's More than Gold and even she expressed disappointed on Episode G's handling of the Evil Pope Aiolos plot.

This not to mention that the people who DO like Episode G for its stories are the type that will more likely express it by going on Versus Forums and argue with strangers about math, rather than talk about why it's characters resonate with them. Which is rather revealing, if you ask me.

As for Dark Wing, I don't think there's anything particularly wrong with it, but in general people don't like writing fanfiction about other people's fanfiction. I also think the fandom's understanding of that manga is the least developed and the story is kind of flying under everyone's radars, so people feel both a lack of supply and demand for stories set in it.

So there's really not a whole lot of reason to get into SS fanfic writing as of 2023 because, well, frankly, it's not that easy as just opening up Microsoft Word or Google Docs and type about how pretty your favorite Silver Saint looks. You need a story to tell, and reactions to look forward to, so unless conditions for high interaction between writers and readers are met, it's not gonna be worth it.

As for classic Saint Seiya, most fanfictions, especially the ones that keep going, have either been SS rewrites or attempts to continue unto the Heaven Arc. This reflects the main demographic of fans feeling unsatisfied with Saint Seiya, in other words its "untapped potential". Rather than being character oriented, the fanfic appeal seems to be plot oriented.

Which is just fucking sad cause no one wants to read someone other than Kurumada finish HIS story. :| Especially when he's still alive and trying to do it.

So are there fewer fanfictions? Well, to reiterate, yes and no. If you pull up official numbers, it's probably the same as always, like people are saying here.

There IS, however, definitely less gems and definitely less interest from the fans in reading them, which creates a feedback loop that makes the landscape feel abandoned or biased against. The only thing that can really fix this is either a change in attitude about what we should expect of amateur fan writing OR another Lost Canvas type manga. And this is both Saint Seiya's responsibility and our own.

[ciaossu-imagines]

I’m so happy to write for the GetBackers. While I’ve never finished the manga, for obvious reasons, I love the anime and some of these boys are my favourite boys of all time! I hope anyone familiar with the fandom will enjoy these headcanons for Shido, based off this prompt here!

2-4 songs that are probably on their iPod?

Shido doesn’t actually own an iPod or any music device. He’s not really that into most music, with most of what he likes being what Madoka plays. And he doesn’t need an iPod to listen to that, since she plays for him often, because she knows he enjoys listening to her as much as she loves playing for him.

The one place they sometimes end up falling asleep, where they’re not supposed to?

I think Shido sleeps easiest outside, even when he does shack up with Madoka, and he has a bad habit of falling asleep on the lawn or especially of falling asleep up in a tree.

The game they’d destroy everyone else at?

Don’t bother trying to play hide and seek with Shido because there is no way, like zero percent chance, that you will win. He’s beyond amazing at that games to the point where he would often get accused of cheating. And maybe he does cheat, just a little, by talking to the animals around but he’s just using all the skills at his disposal.

The emoticon they’d use most often?

Shido doesn’t really get texting and he’s very, very bad at it. He won’t understand emoticon’s unless they’re super obvious…he’ll know the smiley face does mean that you’re happy or smiling but some of the other ones will read like ancient hieroglyphs to him.

What they act like when they haven’t had enough sleep?

Shido gets really cranky when he doesn’t get enough sleep. He’ll be irritable, snappish, and will just want to be left alone and to have peace and quiet. As much as he loves Madoka, he’ll even want space from her at these times.

Their preferred hot beverage on really cold nights, or mornings, or whenever?

Shido likes coffee in the mornings but tea at night. He’s a really big fan of peppermint tea in particular, just plain, before bed.

How they like to comfort/care for themselves when they’re in a slump?

He gets away from everything, seeking out the most secluded spots he can get, preferably in nature. When he’s feeling down or bothered in the least, he needs to reconnect with nature, surround himself with his friends in the animal kingdom, and just get away from people and noise so that he can get his head back in order.

What they wanted to be when they grew up?

Shido never dreamed about what he wanted to be when he grew up. Honestly, he didn’t, and still doesn’t, believe that he’ll live into old age. He focuses on the present, on the current moment, and lives as in the moment as he can instead of wondering about the future.

Their favourite kind of weather?

Shido prefers clear, bright days. While he’s not a fan of the sweltering summer, he also really hates the cold, so fall or spring days where the sky is blue and birdsong is all around…those are his ideal days.

Thoughts on their singing voice (decent? terrible? soprano? alto?)

I honestly strongly headcanon that Shido isn’t a bad singer. He has an ear for music and just naturally understands pitch and tempo. Living with Madoka allows him to even better hone that ability. I think, more or less, that he just doesn’t sing often and that, when he does, his voice always sounds like it’s been out of use for a long time, with a bit of gravel and hesitancy to it.

How/what they like to draw or doodle?

He doesn’t draw or doodle often but is artistically gifted, at least when it comes to drawing animals. Anything else he’s rubbish at. But animals…they look almost realistic if he takes his time and isn’t just rushing out a hurried drawing.

[thequietmanno1]

TheLreads, Vigilantes ch 88, Replies Part 2

1) “Yeah Rappa, we have to preserve the time-space continuum, Knuckles needs to lose a few braincells, and some of restraint, if we want to prevent this timeline from collapsing into a paradox.”- Losing his Quirk helped, but Ironically, I think this chapter implies that Rappa’s talk with him here was motivating Knuckles even during his depressed slump, getting him to go out and seek out a fight to find something worthwhile to do with his time, rather than in actual hopes of finding a lead on the Villain factory.

2) “Don’t worry Rappa, there’s plenty of stupid in his future, rest assured.

It all condensed into a guy-shaped idiot who succeeded him.

Heard he was calling himself O'Clock 2 or some shit like that “- Hey now, let’s not be too rash here. Koichi picked up plenty of dumb habits of his own from Knuckles’ tutelage. 

3) “Knuckles please you weren’t made to play the straightman

but by god am I enjoying seeing you and Rappa bouncing from each other, I wanted a whole series of this “-  In another timeline, perhaps. Maybe if Knuckles’ Quirk hadn’t been stolen, he could have had a hero agency of his own with rappa and Miruko underneath him, complimenting their rash fighting skills with his brains and innate desire for dumb violence.

4) “I can’t lie I am absolutely loving seeing more of rappa and the more I think back, the more I can actually see his personality on the way Knuckles behaved

Hell, even the fucking grin that knuckles always had when he started to have fun was probably Rappa’s influence.”-  Rappa’s even doing Knuckle’s signature little clenched fist pose here, showing the influence he had on him. It could be said that Knuckles is intentionally basing his street janitor role on Rappa now that Knuckles has nothing else left for him but dumb mindless fighting

5) “YEAH QUICK REMINDER THAT MIRKO IS CURRENTLY A STUDENT

A STUDENT OF A HERO COURSE

AND SHE’S HERE ON A ILLEGAL FIGHTING RING, WHICH APPARENTLY ISN’T HER FIRST RODEO

HOW DID SHE NEVER GOT CAUGHT IS BEYOND ME, IT’S NOT LIKE SHE DOESN’T HAVE A RATHER NOTICEABLE QUIRK”- The perks of having showmanship and a good PR team, neither of which were available for Gentle back before he met La Brava.

6) “…

Yeah, you lost me there Mirko

Are you supposed to be a luchador or…?”- Based on a famous recurring one that shows up in various forms across numerous anime/manga, yeah.

7) “WAIT WHAT THE FUCK

WAS THAT

SHE ALREADY GOT CAUGHT

SHE GOT CAUGHT BY THE POLICE AND SHE STILL IS STUDYING TO BE A HERO?

SHE DID ALL THAT AND SHE STILL GOT TO BE A PRO HERO???

HUHHH????? “- She even kicked Ryu’s ass, which is Ironic, as from the sounds of it, she was basically doing the same thing as World Tour in street fighter 6, running around and finding masters to fight against.

8) “am i having a fucking stroke here

SHE EVEN GOT EXPELLED FROM A HERO COURSE”- Middle school actually. She’s presumably on her first hero Course, and is likely the ace of her school, so even if this incident reached their ears, the prestige of having such a future top-class hero graduating from them might have made them reconsider punishing her, given her obvious potential.

9) “Knowing her, she probably meant everyone there at the same time, she can handle you losers without much trouble”-  Miruko’s here for blood, and she’s not picky who from.

10) “Yeah see what I meant?

Also I want to see that rulebook, because I doubt that there’s something written there against it. The show must go on, and is there a better show than the absolute massacre that mirko wants to unleash?”- The rulebook is incredibly thick, but filled with blank pages. Whenever somebody asks to see it, they get hit over the head with it instead.

11) “OH MY GOD I CAN’T BELIEVE ONE OF THE MEMBERS OF THE HORNY BRIGADE GOT A CAMEO ON THE MANGA, Y'ALL REALLY ARE EVERYWHERE”- I mean, Miruko does have enough animal traits to appeal to the furry fandom…

12) “but the scene of Rappa annoying Knuckles and Mirko being scolded by the fighters were both gold, and tipped the balance into the positive end. Damn you Furuhashi, now I need to say this was a great chapter just because of how good those scenes were”- Tons of AU material to be found from this arc, I believe. The adventures of the O’Clock agency would have been amazing to see, had they actually occurred

@thelreads

[chalabrun]

Hashirama’s political marriage to Mito was to strengthen Leaf as a new military village. I get it that the serious lovers of hashisaku pairing, who’re under the impression that this could actually work (’cause Sakura was robbed in Canon; she’s always duking robbed!), aren’t all that bright, but Hashirama tossing aside the wife he took in for political reasons for Sakura ... is one of the most idiotic things I’ve ever heard. What would Sakura offer to him compared to Mito? Nothing. And Tobirama? He was probably ... gay or completely asexual. Why would Sakura interest him? She’s completely ordinary, and she possesses no talent to invent nor any natural ability for him to study. She isn’t even remotely prodigious to even mildly interest him.

So, let me get this straight... You see fit to pick a fight with the shipper of a harmless rarepair, why, again? A ship that barely makes a blip on the Founders' side of the fandom's radar, just to bandwagon the same shit Sakura-anti's have been peddling for years? Aside from the fact that your argument is the most tired bullshit in existence, I'm going to state it over in case it's not getting through your thick skull:

The ship on places like tumblr or twitter are tagged. On Ao3, it's tagged. Instead of bitching and moaning about a ship you could easily avoid, you could block the tags and move on. It's not fucking rocket science. If you go out of your way to seek it, that's a you-issue, not that of us shippers.

Secondly, why is it the Founders' fandom only gets possessive of Hashirama when shipping him with Sakura is involved? From what I've seen, you all are happy to shit on Hashi's character for miles around, belittling him as a dumb idiot who can't function without his brother as if he wasn't the most powerful shinobi in the fucking series, who was a charismatic military leader capable of bringing even his clan's sworn and ancient enemies under the fold to unite in a revolutionary village that was his idea in the first place? But no, unless it's convenient, he's either dumb as a rock or people hamfist one-dimensional yandere tropes to make his brother or Madara look like poor little meow-meows.

And don't even get me started on how ya'll treat Hashimito, let alone Mito. 'Political marriage', where? Show me irrevocable proof that Hashimito was only a political marriage, that Hashirama didn't grow to love and cherish his wife with time. I mean, fuck's sake, this pairing was the blueprint for ships like Dantsu, Minakushi, and Naruhina, but instead your reductive take was that it was just for political gain? Or how she's the awful, bad lady who gets in the way of pairings like Hashimada (even if smart people polyship them, but I guess I'm not one of them, according to you).

Again with the headcanons. Show me complete and utter proof that a manga with heteronormative endgame ships that Tobirama was gay or asexual. (And don't bring SNS into the mix when Kishi literally based them off his relationship with his twin brother, you naughty incest shippers! /s)

Oh, but the horror of shipping him with Sakura! In a horrible, terrible ship that barely has 50 fics to its name! Won't someone think of the poor Hashimada shippers who have almost ~2k fics on Ao3? Or Tobimada that blitzes well past it when Tobisaku has barely 120? Goodness gracious, someone save them!

I mean, who can ever think of shipping the poor Senju bros with a woman who didn't even exist in their era, who is usually transplanted via Genswap or time travel AU's? In fanworks that absolutely affect canon! Wow, she's such a threat! I mean, gosh, she's just soooo useless with how she became the strongest kunoichi in the Leaf, the greatest med-nin in the world after her master's retirement, who was so gosh-darn useless as the heroine! I mean, it's not like she could mesh well with Hashirama who's stated to have healing abilities greater than Tsunade! Oh, they'd never get along. And I bet she'd never get her foot through the door with Tobirama, especially since Sakura's expertise with biomedical sciences would grate so much against his own expertise in similar fields! And the fact that they share similar values just wouldn't do! Y'know, since their shared morals and desire to protect humanity and the village just wouldn't work! Awful, just awful.

Also... why on earth do you assume Tobirama would want to boink a test subject? I don't know about you, but that sounds awfully belittling despite how high of an esteem you hold for you him, supposedly. So what if she isn't test subject-worthy? I don't know about you, but I sure as hell wouldn't want to fuck someone I'm about to cut into, but that's just me. (And for the love of gods, don't bring Tobimada into this. Saying that every Tobimada shipper sees this as the sole reason they ship it is, again, pretty damn insulting to them lmao--)

Besides that, Sakura has invented jutsu before, my dear, pea-brained friend. She created Cherry Blossom Impact, drastically expanded on chakra-enhanced strength in the novels, devised the Delicate Illness Extraction Technique, a chakra radar, among others. But, again, if you dilute your reasons for shipping a pairing based on how much jutsu they've invented, who's being shallow here, exactly? The way I see it, Tobirama would want to be with someone intelligent who is strong enough to protect the village and who shares similar values as him. Why would he care about arbitrary things like how much he could experiment on? He's not Dr. Frankenfurter, please.

And even if people ship them because they self-insert in Sakura and want to ship her because she's the heroine and some rando, Founder or otherwise, is hot, who cares? This is fucking fandom. Shipping isn't activism or a career, and sure as hell doesn't add anything to canon except enjoyment in the fanbase. It's 2022 and it's too late in Naruto's existence to care about intellectual quandaries surrounding shipping, of all things. If you do, then good lord--see a therapist. Get a different hobby outside of fandom, it sounds like you need it.

But, thanks for being an amusing waste of time. I'll be sure to reflect on this when I continue writing my Foundersaku stories, buh-bye!

[likeabxrdinflight]

I feel like I talk about Anzu a lot, and part of that is because my girl gets no respect and I'm still salty, 20 years later, about how the old yugioh fandom treated her character. But some of the criticisms lobbied at her are valid- not because she's a bad character, but because it is true that she doesn't get a whole lot to do, especially after the first manga arc/season 0, and she doesn't have the strongest character arc. She's often relegated to the background in a cheerleader role at best, a damsel at worst.

But that is more a flaw of the writing than the character herself. And it doesn't mean she doesn't have any character arc. She very much does- it's mostly absent in the dub admittedly, but in the Japanese it's much more apparent, and it's actually one of the heavier character arcs in the entire show:

People think Anzu's arc is about the love triangle between her and the two Yugis- it's not. Anzu's arc is actually about accepting death while cherishing the time we have with the people we love. Think about it.

Who is the first of the main characters to realize that the "the other Yugi" is a whole separate person? Anzu. Who is the first to start wondering if he's really supposed to be in the Puzzle at all? Anzu. Who is with Atem when he learns who he really is, and about his destiny? Anzu. Who is the first to realize that Atem will one day have "a place to return to"? Anzu. Who is the one constantly reflecting on this reality for the duration of the battle city arc? Anzu.

But who is the first one to encourage Atem to seek out his lost memories anyway, even if it means he has to leave them? Anzu.

And it's hard for her. Anzu probably struggles the most with the reality of Atem leaving, even more so at times than Yugi himself- and Yugi does struggle with it. But Yugi seems to accept this fate once he learns about it. Anzu continues to grapple with this reality throughout the rest of the show, right up until the end where she struggles to even let Atem walk through the door to the afterlife.

She's the character who thinks about this the most, who contemplates Atem's death more than any of the other characters. She's the one asking the questions, wondering why it has to be this way, how is it fair, why doesn't she get more time with him, why doesn't he get more time with them? From battle city on, Anzu has this constant cloud of sadness hanging over her, this knowledge only she seems to really be aware of- the others (aside from Yugi) seem not to consider it at all until the Ceremonial Duel. And she is the constant reminder to the audience that hey, this is going to happen- someday, Atem is going to leave us too.

She does come to something of a conclusion here- she decides to cherish what time she does have, to honor and respect Atem's identity and choices. At the very end, she finds herself rooting for Yugi, decides to burn every memory of Atem in her mind, and though she has a moment of fighting it, she ultimately lets him go.

No it's not the most fleshed-out character arc in the world. But it is one of the most mature, and much of it went over my head as a kid. But as an adult watching this, someone who's now lost all but one of her grandparents, who nearly lost same-aged friends to covid, whose parents and relatives are getting older, who has older friends that aren't as young as they used to be? It's probably the one that hits the hardest for me now. I don't know how much time I have left with the people I love either. But like Anzu, I'll cherish that remaining time too.

[demonslayedher]

How you doing Buri Senpai !!

Personal question…. How do you manage to get out of your art/writing block/ burnout ? You are an incredible artist and writer and i wish to be like you someday❤️

(///￣ ￣///) Thank you, Anon. Like most other people who do any sort of creative work, I am constantly seeking validation. I don’t think that ever goes away. That is why I’ll give you the truth, I get a lot of happy chemicals from making KnY fanwork, at the expense of any other creative work I could be doing.

There’s lots and lots of discussion out there on what leads to creative burnout and how perfectionism kills success by preventing someone from even starting a project, and anyone who has ever worked hard on something only to feel it met with a disappointing response can tell you about the heartbreak of feeling like none of your efforts are worth anything. It’s very easy to say “write for you, draw what you want, fandom should be fun” but we all know that sometimes it’s not. That’s the best advice I think is out there, though, so I’m just going to expand a bit.

…I tried, but my answers all kept getting rambly. ლ(¯ロ¯"ლ)

The truth is that KnY is escapism for me and that is why I create so much of it!! For as long as I’m busy with this, and getting dopamine from making fanwork, my projects I’m willing to tell people about in real life are going to continue to get ignored! O ho ho! I fear failure!! I know they won’t be perfect and that is why I do not wish to create them in the first place! I do not wish to be judged as imperfect!!! Ohhh, ho ho ho ho! O-o-o-o-hhhhhh ho ho ho ho!

Ah. But that’s probably a big reason why I create so much KnY content: the stakes are lower than other things I might wish to accomplish. Since I don’t have any high expectations of my art anymore I can allow myself to relax with it and accept its wonkiness as part of it, if anything, that’s in the spirit of the original manga, right? Also, I’m practiced enough with my drawing that even though I don’t know proper drawing technique, I can intuitively go about bringing a lot of things from my head to paper, so that makes it something I do to relax.

While I have given myself permission to be lazy with art for the sake of enjoying it, I do still harbor the same childhood dream of getting published, even though my understanding of that now comes with vague knowledge of all the burn-outable activities that come with (self-promotion, blaaaaargh, please just let me live under a rock). Sometimes, when I realize just how high my KnY-related word count is, I get aggravated with myself for not having poured that power into my own original projects. But failure would feel so much higher with those, so I stick to what I know I can accomplish, as I lo-o-o-ve the feeling of accomplishing things.

But…

Well…

One of the best times I got that feeling was was when I sat down and actually wrote a few manga short stories, beginning to end, with no idea what I was doing. All it really took was a kick in the pants from someone holding me accountable. I had 55 books printed to basically give away to people. I had them all stacked up when they arrived and was stunned at how slim the spines were. All those hours, poured into that small a result, something that could be consumed and forgotten so easily?

But then again, I had something. Something complete, so that if the topic of OCs ever came up, I hand something to hand to someone, to say, “this.”

It was sometime after that when I crushed my first NaNoWriMo attempt by a long-shot (50,000 words? Pfffhaahahaha, when I’m prepared and have my schedule cleared for it, that’s nothing!), and even though that first novel objectively was terrible, it broke me in and made me realize that I could do it. I’ve written three more full drafts of other stories since then, though I was so frustrated with the overhaul second draft of one of them that I quit on it and then, uh, started watching KnY. Teh heh…

But I guess that really is the drive. To have something I can give to someone to say, “This. I have put my thoughts and feelings to form. It’s a form I can share now.” Sure, it’s really nice to imagine having a fandom following or striking it big with a hit or something, but it would never be enough validation, and that sounds like a sure way to get burnt out.

So even in fandom, even when I get other ideas of what might be fun (or just popular?) blog content, at some level I just want to say “I got this idea, I gave it form, please appreciate it.” And, as is the key to most forms of happiness, I’m really, really grateful for the people who bother to read my wordy work, who leave their thoughts, and who take my ideas and run with them and make new ideas from them. My fandom content isn’t made specifically for my own pleasure, I really, really do get joy out of other people finding joy in it, and satisfaction in knowing I put it into a form that can be enjoyed instead of just having it in my own head. It's like my relaxed attitude toward my drawing, though. In order to keep my fandom fun, I keep my expectations in check so that I can still relax and have fun with it. I don't get involved with things that require effort I don't feel like putting in, I don't hold myself responsible for giving anyone else fandom validation either, it's not a give and take economy of praise. When I want to praise you I will dump it on you and you will know it's from the heart. Keeping things relaxed requires boundaries and embracing one's own laziness, so that you can focus on what you really care about.

But the not-as-fun projects that come with high stakes, the ones that keep calling me… they’re out there, and I need to polish my rough areas to answer the call, someday.

I just fear what becoming my best self will entail.

[leportraitducadavre]

You probably already answered something like this, but what do you about the Naruto and Sasuke ship? You think it doesn't work, or Naruto isn't actually a good fit for Sasuke? I love a lot of the analysis and the way you write, so I'm curious.

Hi there! Thank you for your words.

I did write something about them here, so you might want to look into that, I don't focus much on the SNS dynamic inside the manga and I might do that at some point (there's a lot of ground to cover) as the relevant points repeat themselves quite constantly throughout their interactions.

You need to take into account how Naruto interacts with the notion of "prodigy" in order to understand his approach towards Sasuke and how his acknowledgment became of utmost importance to him, as such is the basis of their relationship:

Regarding Naruto’s characterization, antagonizing the "prodigy" notion is incredibly important to him, not because he (truly) denies the strength of those who are given the title, but because their existence denies him of the acknowledgment he seeks, as all his accomplishments are "overshadowed" by Neji and Sasuke's sole presence. Therefore being recognized (positively so) by their ninja skills (as such is the political and cultural importance of such aspects inside the Shinobi system) is, to him, the most important category when pointing out a person’s value.  To Naruto (and a big portion of the fandom) Neji is not considered a failure (unlike himself, Hinata, or Lee) therefore he somehow has an easier life despite being, in every other manner, oppressed by his family. This is a mindset Konoha in itself teaches to its citizens as this dogma’s value rests on the fact that it guarantees the success and preservation of the status quo established. Therefore, for Will of Fire supporters,  Sasuke couldn’t be discriminated against because he was praised for his techniques/was popular, Neji might be a slave but he’s incredibly valuable to Konoha due to his strength, so there is some sort of “retribution”. 

(Source)

Naruto is contemplating Sasuke abandoning him and Team 7, which is the primary fuel in this quest and the reason behind his pain, he mentions the team that Shikamaru gathered (per Tsunade’s orders) to bring him back as these are individuals that put their life on the line to “rescue” Sasuke, yet Sasuke cares not. Naruto’s words are not a coincidence, he never states that the people searching for him are Sasuke’s friends (they aren’t, they never interacted in any significant way), the only thing they have in common is their village of origin and loyalty. For Naruto, that’s enough for a bond, for Sasuke it isn’t. I do believe that this specific claim: “You think I’m just gonna let you go?!” which is the culmination of Naruto’s speech about how Orochimaru will grant him power in exchange for his life (x) is understandable as Naruto is both hurt by Sasuke abandoning them and scared for his friend’s life (Sasuke is even leaving despite being aware that he’ll be likely killed, which is quite worse as not only Naruto feels pain as a result of his only friend escaping, but also him leaving to certain death). Naruto’s primary knowledge about Sasuke’s goal (killing Itachi) is that he’s willing to die for it (x) that, in regards to Naruto’s own goal, it’s unfathomable –as death is not one of the lengths Naruto is prepared for in order to get the acknowledgment he seeks. Furthermore, Sasuke’s death will automatically jeopardize his own objective, as Sasuke’s recognition is the one Naruto craves the most (here and here Naruto remembers Sasuke denying Naruto the equal status he wants, and Sasuke once again refuses: “who cares what you want?”).  “You were my Idol, and so… hearing that… I was never happier, with those words, for the first time… you acknowledged I was good.” (x) Can’t make it clearer here Sasuke’s relevance on Naruto’s life and the importance of him staying, of him acknowledging Naruto.

[sanjiafsincedayone]

Why SaNa over other ships?

Now, this is not to hate on other ships or downplay them, because what shipping really comes down to is often simply preference. What characters or dynamics you enjoy and what reasons you might have for liking different things. 

No, this is simply my own reasons for why I like SaNa and also why I think they could make sense and thirdly why it’s possible Oda could be setting it up to actually happen in canon. It’s all just my views and I apologize if I forget a moment or add something that is more head canon, but again, this is my reasons and they will always be partially biased. (And there are too many to remember them all properly, so if you want to add feel welcome to do so.)

I think Sanji and Nami is a lovely ship even based just on fan content and the community. But we also get some great moments in the manga, and I personally think there is potential for Oda to make an actual romance work between them.

1. Why I like Sanji and Nami

I personally fell in love with Sanji before I even started to watch or read One Piece, simply based on his voice actor (Hiroaki Hirata), his design and his fighting style. So obviously I already have a bias towards Sanji (SanjiAFsincedayone having a bias towards Sanji? Who knew?). I didn’t ship Sanji with Nami from the start and even now I am a multi shipper who enjoys fan content with Sanji as a main part of several pairs, most prominently ZoSan.

So, when did I fall for SaNa then? Well, I have talked about it in various posts before which you can find in my Masterpost - SanjiAFsincedayone, but for me shipping Sanji and Nami more seriously didn’t start until Thriller Bark. 

Sanji took a knife in the back for her as she is dressed in a wedding dress, even this one scene is enough to explain why someone might like to ship them together.

I for sure saw many SaNa moments before that, and felt Nami seemed special to Sanji, but I didn’t think it would have a big chance of happening and I preferred other ships above it when consuming fan material. Again, shipping is after all mostly fantasy and wanting more of something in a romantic/sexual way. Thriller Bark was when Sanji and Nami’s interactions caught my attention properly and I started to look a bit closer and actually note the way Oda wrote them and their moments. Going back after and rereading I think there is a lot of interesting things even before that. But the wedding theme and bridal carry and how Oda showed them in Thriller Bark was just too on the nose to ignore.

What got me into shipping Sanji with Nami were mainly three things. 

1. Their dynamics getting more interesting over time and Sanji and Nami being two of the most well written and interesting characters in One Piece. 2. Sanji consistently seeming to have a preference for Nami in combination with my belief that he is after true love and isn’t just a pervert forever doomed to be alone. 3.  The manga showing the potential of it actually happening and them finally catching my attention in Thriller Bark. Basically there are moments to follow and look at in the actual story as well, which in turn also leads to more fan content and material for shippers.

So point 1 and 2 really is mostly about my preference and how much I enjoy watching them together and how well I imagine they would fit together. I think their personalities and desires overlap well with them being able to understand and compromise for each other while aslo being on a similar level of intelligence and communication. They also have their kindness and empathy as a highlighted shared theme for their characters.

Them talking about the Children in Punk Hazard or Sanji helping Nami turn in the argument between both Luffy and Vivi and Luffy and Usopp are some examples. Or Nami letting Sanji smoke in her body because she knows how hard it is for him. Small gestures like this show both understanding and a willingness to compromise.

I think they are fun and have a relationship that right now might need working on, but it’s clear how much they care for each other and how they actually appriciate each other a lot.

Simply put I think they are interesting together and I think they could work as a romantic couple in the future, where their dreams and family oriented views migh allign. Again, from how I view them as characters and interpret their wants and possible futures I think Sanji and Nami is a good match. They can have a restaurant either traveling the world or docked close to both Cocoyashi and Zeff, Nami can tend to her mikans together with Sanji and they can manage a restaurant for a living. I also think they are the most parental members in the crew and has shown some possible signs of wanting to settle down with families. This would also work well as a final contrast to their less than happy childhoods (You might also want to check out my post (Part 3) Sanji x Nami hints - Thematic parallels).

There is a lot of potential in their dynamics and how different they seem while they also seem willing to adapt and try to understand each other that make them interesting as characters of romantic plots. At the same time they have enough in common to relate to each other and work well together. Again, as a fictional ship within the fandom there is a lot of great artists, writers etc. that truly explore them and make Sanji and Nami a great and fun ship with an active fandom to engage with.

Of course there are more shallow reasons like them matching in age and being good-looking but really I could ship Sanji with almost any woman if it was only about the looks. I mean, Purin is basically made to be a perfect match for Sanji, but I personally find his dynamic with Nami much more interesting and his dedication to Nami is of course unpraralleled thanks to the time Oda has spent on them over many years.

I love Sanji and Nami as individual characters and with the amount of moments between them there is also a lot to explore and enjoy in the manga. It makes them interesting in a third aspect for me, which is of course analysis and the potential of them actually ending up together and looking closer at the way Oda writes them from a story perspective. For me what we have gotten from Oda in terms of Sanji x Nami moments is very interesting and I see potential there even though it would need more development to truly work for the current story.

But, again shipping doesn’t have to mean anything for the actual story... There are crack ships or slash ships that surely will never happen but that could still be great and fun to explore for the fans. Honestly, everyone is free to ship whatever they want. We all have different taste after all.

So, what about the manga then? 

2. Why do I think they could make sense as a romantic couple even in canon?

First, my own view is that Sanji is someone who seeks true love, and as briefly shown with both Violet and Purin it seems like he would take an actual relationship seriously if given the chance. I also think it would make him happy and thus as Oda might want to create happy resolutions for the strawhats I think Sanji ending up with someone has quite a big chance of happening. This is combination with his preference for Nami and in turn Nami truly caring for him (though not yet in a romantic way) is something that makes me think it could happen. Other ships have potential too depending on how Oda decides to develop them, but considering how he keeps adding moments for SaNa in the way he does as of now I still think SaNa is the most likely ship for Sanji.

As I mentioned earlier I also think Nami has shown some possible inclinations for wanting a family (or at least being a great mother if we look at her with children in many arc, not the least Punk Hazard) and maybe even getting married eventually. 

If she ends up with someone we will need to see a more obvious attraction and want for romance from her no matter what ship we might consider. She has at this point not shown a lot, but I do think the thematic parallels she shares with Sanji in combination with how their moments are written has the potential to grow into something more. 

As a romantic pair I think Sanji and Nami would be happy, he would adore her and take care of her and both of them would probably find that ideal. In fact it’s already a big part of their dynamics and seem to make them both happy. They also seem to try to understand and show interest in knowing each other as seen with several scenes and general attention towards each other’s backstories. They also challange each other in different ways and we have seen them compromise a few times. I think compared to many other relationship in the manga Oda has shown more personal moments between them. So a romantic additional aspect is not too far off. Not that Oda would make it happen now, but that he would lay down the groundwork for it to work by the end of the series.

In short I think they would make each other happy, but also challange and grow thanks to the other. I think their dreams of traveling the world with Nami drawing her map and Sanji cooking on all the seas and finding All Blue and then settiling down together close to both their “homes” in East Blue with a restaurant and family seems to fit them both. It wouldn’t always be easy, but I think they would actually enjoy their dynamics with Nami bossing Sanji around most of the time.

Now this all sounds nice and all, but it’s of course just my imagination based on biased interpretations of the manga. So where do I get it from?

3. The way SaNa is portrayed by Oda

Now this is really the biggest point... Because again, I can ship whatever characters I want and it is just for fun. It doesn’t have to happen for me to enjoy it or I wouldn’t ship Sanji with Zoro. But with Sanji and Nami there are legit reasons in addition to my preference that makes me think it could happen in the manga.

It might take years to actually go through it all in order with my additional interpretations, but I will try to go through the basics themes and moments that to me could indicate SaNa over any other Sanji or Namji ship.

I think the obvious thing to talk about first is simply how Sanji definitely has a romantic (and sexual) interest in Nami. No matter what other character you might see with either of them, this has been shown consistantly over the whole manga. You may argue that Sanji might be interested in others equally, and though I wouldn’t agree it’s a fair point. However from a story perspective it would still need to be resolved. It’s highly unlikely for Nami to end up with anyone unless Sanji ends up with someone else and gets a happy ending too.

As for Sanji’s interest in Nami I personally think Oda has paid a lot of attention to it in a way that makes it the most likely ship for Sanji. He might yet add moments between other ships and develop them (most notably San/Pu of course), but in my opinion the way Oda has added Nami in other potential romantic moments with Sanji it seems Nami is above every other woman so far.

Most importantly I think we have seen: 

Sanji leave Violet who actually seemed to show interest in him to run off to save Nami (and the crew, but the point is that Oda chose to highlight and add this moment with focus on Nami to begin with).

Sanji being more focused on Nami even when Vivi and Robin has been on the ship or at the same place. Oda definitely puts Sanji with Nami above other women at least in amount of moments and involvment.

Sanji being very concerned with Nami in front of Purin and being shown happy with her (the bridal carry for example) and saying he loves her right in front of Purin.

Sanji having stronger reactions to Nami than other women. This could just be my way of seeing it, but I do think we have seen the strongest reactions from Sanji when it comes to Nami. Not the least with turning into a literal devil when he heard she was kidnapped by Absalom. For example compare Sanji rushing after Nami in both Skypiea and Thriller Bark even to him going after Robin. Or his reaction to Nami getting sick in Drum. We simply have a lot of strong reactions from Sanji towards Nami in different ways and more importantly Oda seeming to add focus on them. 

We also have him reacting to things like “women’s tears” or calls but only indicating Nami might be calling him personally. For example Sanji hearing Tashigi cry or saying he trusts Violet or Robin even though they are lying but for Nami adding things like “I think I heard Nami call out for me” or moments like “I leave my Nami to you”. Basically the way Oda writes it there often seems to be added a more personal stake in Sanji’s reactions and moments with Nami compared to with other women.

So from Sanji’s point of view, and the way Oda has written them so far, I think he puts Nami above every other woman. But more importantly, Oda shows us moments between them that he doesn’t add for other ships as consistantly or in romantic looking ways. Keep in mind that both Nami and Sanji are main characters, but they are not Luffy. Oda choosing to not use Luffy (who will obviously have strong moments with all of his nakama, like how he had his own time with Sanji both in Baratie and WCI) for some of these moments but rather insert Sanji or Nami instead for each other’s stories makes it more relevant. Because it’s not an obvious choice in the same way. It’s a choice based on their characters and dynamics within the world, not because of their roles as main hero or heroine. Here are some examples.

1. Their first meeting. Sanji is for the first time seen in love cook mode and he basically seem ready to leave everything behind for Nami. Right away his reaction to Nami is stronger than what we have seen from him and it seems to hold true even with time.

2. SaNa having interest and plot relevance to each other’s back stories. Sanji getting involved with hearing Nami’s back story and saving his sister.  Also, calling her “sister” which indicates a platonic familiarity where he puts Nami above Nojiko romantically (yes, despite flirting some with her). Nami in turn also getting involved and showing interest in Sanji’s backstory, pushing to go with Luffy to save Sanji and being the one to remind us of Sanji’s past and character traits.

3. Sanji getting personally tantalized by using Nami. This has happened several times, the first with Kuroobi in Arlong Park, but also with Mr. 2 in Alabasta, Absalom in Thriller Bark and then in Fishman Island (Zou too, but that wasn’t just Nami) and on Zou. You can check my post (thought not updated fully) Sanji and Nami – Fights and danger for a more detailed view. (Even in movies like Strong World Sanji has a direct talk with Shiki about Nami and it seems most people are aware of Sanji being extra sensitive to Nami.)

4. Sanji asking Nami if she is jealous or if she loves him, indicating again that he is interested to know is she is interested in him. Once even responding “I love you too”. In general Nami responding in these situations in a more “positive way” or Oda showing Sanji interpreting her actions as more romantic. For example the “proposal” or the hug in WCI.

5. Romantic looking moments or themes. Now this is of couse not something that has been done mutually between them and thus aren’t actually romantic scenes. But the tropes and common use for many of the things that Oda has chosen to use for Sanji and Nami are romantic in nature. Of course the two forced marriages are the strongest examples with them rescuing each other from getting married to someone else. But we also have the switch body trope, the slap and of course smaller gestures like the bridal carries or the way Oda drew the hug between them in WCI. I am not saying that SaNa is the only ship with romantic looking moments, because San/Pu And San/Violet obviously has some as well. However, considering the amount SaNa moments and the fact that he has left Violet and Purin in particular for Nami seems to make the SaNa moments trump any other ship. At least for me personally SaNa as it is now and as Oda has portrayed it in comparison to other Sanji ships gets in the way of Sanji ending up with someone else unless Oda starts to make some changes.

I want to make some emphasis on how Nami and Sanji seem to get some “bigger” moments between them in almost every arc. Again, compare this to Sanji with other women, or even Nami with other crew members.

Baratie - Their first meeting and Sanji’s reaction to Nami and interest gets focus. Arlong Park - Sanji shows interest in Nami’s past and Kuroobi mocks Sanji by specfically mentioning Nami. ( Loguetown Arc, Reverse Mountain Arc, Whiskey Peak Arc and Little Garden mostly have small moments, like Sanji asking if Nami is jealous or Sanji giving Nami his jacket.) Drum Island - Nami is sick and we see Sanji worry and care for her and in the end even sacrificing himself for her. Nami worries about him too. Alabasta - Sanji fighting Mr. 2 looking like Nami and lots of small moments like Sanji asking Nami if she loves him.

Jaya - Nami showing interest in Sanji’s back story. Small things like Nami hiding for the bugs behind Sanji or Sanji. Skypiea - Sanji being hell-bent of saving Nami and making the others look for her. Then him saving Nami and Usopp from Enel and Nami being worried in return. (Both times Sanji gets hit by Enel Nami is there and worries.) Then a lot of small moments like him giving her a flower and Nami pulling Sanji’s ear for flirting with Conis. Long Ring Long Land - Nami encourage Sanji be the ball and win, but mostly small moments like Sanji getting annoyed with Aokiji for flirting with Nami or him sitting next to her and trying to kiss her. Water 7 - Sanji leaving his love letter to Nami and Nami being worried for (and impressed with) Sanji. Enies Lobby - Sanji losing against a woman, Nami being understanding and then stepping in to basically revenge him. Also Sanji hearing it as Nami loving him and then him showing up to save Nami and Usopp from Jyabura.

Post-Enies Lobby - Not much, but Sanji stepping in to make Nami and Zoro stop fighting and make Nami understand Zoro’s pov. Thriller Bark - Sanji just being extremely focused on Nami and worried about her throughout the whole arc. Also him getting specifically selected by Luffy to save Nami. Of course the wedding theme with the bridal carry and Sanji’s reaction to Nami. Also Sanji’s Zombie protecting Nami (and later kicking Robin) and his “obsession with Nami” being mentioned. Sabaody Archipelago - Another smaller arc, but we do get Nami worried about Sanji possibly drowning. And smaller moments like Sanji being angry for Nami being put in danger by the Fishman Riders or him telling Franky to take care of Nami as he runs to protect Zoro. When they return we of course also get the nosebleeds, and Sanji daydreaming about Nami’s development.

Fishman Island - Sanji’s reaction to Jinbei and Arlong. Also the fishmen pointing out that Nami might be their weakness due to Sanji’s “over reaction“ to her falling. Punk Hazard - The body swtich, Sanji’s body saving Nami and Sanji being careful with not hurting her etc. Also them working together to save the children, Sanji listening to Nami’s request and saying he loves her more because of her kindness. Also small things like Sanji giving his jacket to Nami again. Dressrosa - Sanji leaving Violet behind to save Nami, insisting that he should be the one to save her and then him getting attacked by Doflamingo and Nami getting worried and not wanting to leave him. Sanji basically tries to sacrifice himself for Nami for the 4th time (Drum, Skypiea x2, also maybe in Thriller Bark). Zou - We get a lot of focus on Nami and Sanji together, and then of course when Sanji is gone Nami is the driving force for his plot. Once again Nami is also used to taunt Sanji (inside Capone). Then Nami is both the one to mention Sanji being from North Blue and to listen to Pekom’s talk about his family. Not to mention her insisting on going with Luffy to WCI and having a fight with Zoro as she defends Sanji. Whole Cake Island - The way she pushes for them to find Sanji, her hapiness when they find him and her hurt and the slap. We even get something like Nami being tantalized with Sanji by both Purin and Brulee. The only strawhat besides Luffy who gets a personal story thread with Sanji and a personal resolution for their conflict is Nami. The tension seems personal and combined with Sanji having another love interest but choosing Nami above her it does seem like Nami is the more natural choice both for Sanji and for Oda. 

There is also a distinct increase in romantic-looking moments between them, with them touching more than ever before.

Wano - Even after WCI it doesn’t seem like Oda is stopping the SaNa moments. Sanji manages to save and carry Nami three times in the beginning of Wano. On top of that we have the bath scene and of course a lot of small moments and mentions between them like Sanji asking Usopp to take care of “My Nami-san” or Sanji jumping in abobe Nami to save her from arrows. 

How many times have we had Sanji be the one to go after Nami or save her? By his own choice, by being the one present or even by Luffy asking Sanji to go. Oda puts Sanji next to Nami a lot, and I think it’s possible he might be doing it for a reason.

Who knows what we might get, but the fact that we have as much as we do really seems to show Oda having a preference to put them together in various ways.

The point is they have a lot of time and moments dedicated to them from Oda despite them both being secondary characters. At this point it’s possible Sanji is the person Nami has moments with the most in the story besides Luffy (and perhaps Usopp) as they often end up together. Of course this is including them thinking about and talking about each other as well, and not just direct interacting. For example counting the body switch and Nami being worried and focused on Sanji while on Zou. Oda doesn’t have to, but he has chosen to write it like this. On top of that he adds romantic interest from Sanji and romantic looking moments between them.

I could go on, and there are plenty of moments and examples to find between Nami and Sanji that are interesting to look a bit deeper at. You can check out my Masterpost - SanjiAFsincedayone for some of them. But as it is now here are the main points for why I think SaNa at least has a bigger chance to happen than other ships with the two of them as it is now.

One-sided attraction and romantic interest from Sanji’s side that needs to be resolved in one way or another.

Nami seems special to Sanji. Even small things like only using -san for her and -chan for others is a detail that makes her stand out to him.

Great involvement in each other’s stories. Oda likes adding Sanji and Nami in moments together both for interaction and explenation about each other. For example Sanji is also often used to save Nami.

Interactions of understanding and changing dynamics between the two, like them compromising for each other or wanting to know about the other’s past. Matching personalities and a possible future.

Romantic themes and moments, mainly the weddings, but also the amount of times Sanji has saved Nami and things like the hug being drawn in a very romantic looking way with Nami being more focused on.

Tension and urgency. This is basically Sanji and Nami having a lot of focus on each other in dire situations and Oda showing it with specific mentions.

So, to summarize, I like Sanji and Nami both as indvidual characters and together. I enjoy them as a ship and to explore their dynamics in a romantic way no matter what they might end up as in the story. Anyone should be able to respect that people have different preferences. Additionally I think and speculate that they would work well and could happen in the manga as well. This is obviously a biased interpretation and opinion. 

I might be wrong, but you should be able to respect that too as we have yet to get anything objectivly confirming any ship. We don’t know if any ship with end up canon at all. Maybe Sanji and Nami will remain a ship that never becomes canon, but even so they are a ship that is definitely worth enjoying.

I hope you found this post interesting and can enjoy your own ship and fandom while also seeing that it’s ok for others to like something different than you. Thanks for reading.