54216 replies to this topic

[soraandven]

enjoy this vid guys 

[BlazingDynamo]

I wonder if Sakura could just talk about the confession again

[TouKen4Life3g]

Sasuke, Orochimaru, Kabuto and Taka.

I mean the cleanup. Like get rid of IT, talk about what to do with Bijuus, Hagoromo's final thoughts, what to do with Sasuke, etc.

[Paul Blowfish]

Man NS is so close to becoming canon man I swear I just want to party as soon as NS becomes canon

 

I feel you. Not literally of course. I feel like it's just SO obvious and I just want to scream at how long it's taking them. 

[BlazingDynamo]

 

I feel you. Not literally of course. I feel like it's just SO obvious and I just want to scream at how long it's taking them. 

I just want to party as soon as it becomes canon

[Uzumaki9000]

I just want to party as soon as it becomes canon

Where can we party? A live stream chat or here? 

[Illnevergiveup3]

Where can we party? A live stream chat or here? 

on the Twin Towers.

[Swagkura]

You guys, they gave PTS Team 7 an ultimate in Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm Revolution! CC2 got their whole dynamic down perfectly

[BlazingDynamo]

on the Twin Towers.

Not funny at all

[AHK]

OMG as I read I imagined you crying and thought "so he was right after all". I love how NH fandom is saying the exact opposite as you, that since he has fallen for Hinata, not everything is going as Kushina said. After a this sentimentalism, I'm hoping for some action and seeing Kushina. 
 
Naruto started to cry when he said not everything is going as his mom said. I wonder... why? 

I honestly didn't think that Minato would leave that quickly, I thought that the IT would be reversed first, then they would say goodbye.

Lol silly NH fans. Even something as obvious as that gets twisted. I don't think well see Kushina though, otherwise there wouldn't be a need for Minato to have said that he'd let her know at the end. I think Naruto started crying just because he had to say goodbye again. The situation kinda drew a parallel to when his parents died at birth, they both snuffed it right after Kushinas speech, and Naruto was nearing the end of his, so he knew what was coming, especially since he was basically responding to her words.

[BlazingDynamo]

This week better go by quick because I wanna see the new chapter now that I seen today's chapter

[questdrivencollie]

Loved that portion of the chapter. Kishi knows how to deliver feels. Even my feels are feeling the feels that I'm feeling.

[Gojira]

Still would have largely preferred Minato Sakura moment. Even if Kishi would have to cover it up by having him talk to the rest of Team 7

 

To Sakura - "Take good care of my son, he needs someone like you to keep him in line"

 

To Kakashi - "Good work on being a jonin and a good team leader"

 

To Sasuke - "Please stop trying to kill my son"

Edited by Pepsi, 04 September 2014 - 09:55 PM.

[soraandven]

here's that famous mecha naruto side mission story sorry that its in english dub but its all i could find just mute it like i did 

[Syn11]

That's what I call weird. New OVA.

[Alessa]

Hi. You have a nice place here. I actually registered to thank Slextrem for her "Build Up" compilation, but this thread has caught my attention.
 
I was actually a bit surprised, because I thought chapter 691 was very NS-oriented, but I can see a lot of doubt here (not sure if trolling).
I have several opinions.
First of all, I think that Naruto still deeply loves Sakura and I see no evidence against it (one of the reasons is in the "spoiler section"). I am convinced that scenes with Hinata were really sweet and great, but posed no "danger" to NS pairing. Just as any other scenes with Hinata that we might encounter in the future, unless there is a clear statement from Naruto's POV for once (like blushing or inner thought). I also think that currently Sakura still loves Sasuke, at least is deeply convinced in her feelings towards him and doesn't regard Naruto as a potential lover. Still she cares for Naruto and loves him as a person a lot. I also think that the current romantic conflict is still a love triangle (Naruto-Sakura-Sasuke), which pretty much is just a line (Naruto -) Sakura -) Sasuke). Hinata, Lee, Karin and any other character are there as a second choice, but don't influence the feelings of the MAIN 3 in any way. It is all pretty much inside Team 7 as it has always been. I do consider NaruHina a possibility, but not as it stands right now, as a result of all the interactions between the two, but as a logical second choice if NaruSaku destroys itself from within. NaruSaku can destroy itself if Sakura chooses Sasuke permanantly or someone dies. I can't imagine other reason for Naruto to give up on the girl. Though I have no idea how Kishimoto plans to reorient Sakura romantically towards Naruto (what would snap her out of her Sasuke fixation).
I do think that Kishimoto has gone too far in developing Sakura's feelings towards Sasuke to the point where it feels like a deadlock. Basically this is manga about achieving your dreams|goals. And it has been stated that Sakura wished to achieve Sasuke's acknowledgment (chapter 3 or smth). Same as Naruto as a main character of a shounen has chosen himself the heroine to pursue from the very start. Thus we have a situation, in which everyone can't have a solid achievment of their goal (the genre doesn't permit not to achieve) unless its a threesome or someone dies, because the goals more or less cancel each other out. Either Sakura gives up on her initial goal or Naruto is the first guy to give up on his heroine. Its not pretty either way and someone is bound to get hurt. We can also see a cliffhanger, of course, and we will never know. 
Why I think its totally normal if Hinata doesn't get Naruto despite her very big and honest love for him?  Because I've studied Japanese literature for a bit. I've always felt that Hinata has aimed towards Naruto's acknowledgment more than his love (more than that - she actually aimed towards her own growth most of all). She never really stated she wants him to love her. I mean, she wishes for that and she definitly wants him to be her family, to be her husband and etc. But in manga of this genre the words mean more than implied desires. What is stated cannot be taken back and has to get some development as a rule of a genre. And she never stated that her goal, which has to be achieved, is to get Naruto's romantic love.

Why it doesn't really matter when Hinata says "I want to be with him forever"?
 
Why can the author give her that line and then not give her the actual fulfillment? Because in Japan the concepts of tragic love and separation hold a very different meaning from western ones. In many stories you have a bunch a characters (lovers, comrades or friends) who are (for a complete unknown reason) sent away from each other in the end. It used to shock me every time. It was like the authors deliberately destroyed all that they built, as if they thought "Ok, its almost the end, they are truly together, its time to push them in different directions."  And all these characters parted with sad but genuine smiles on their faces and a promise of eternal love. I studied the issue for a bit and it occured to me that this is just how true love is viewed in Japan. Love is not disturbed by a big distance. It is polished by it! Reciprocity is not the blessing of a true love. It is very often portrayed as an obstacle!! Lovers, who obtained each other only to step away from each other are considered to be making a natural and solid statement of their love!! And it has nothing to do with selflessness of letting the other one go, because the feelings are one-sided. Love, that has reamined unfulfilled (even if mutual), that has remained pure, is a much stronger spiritual connection, that enlightens those, who carry it. It is the same with deep friendship.
These ideas are also vivid in the concept of selfish love, that is very different of what we imagine in Western culture. It is the love, that person shares with himself. He has an object of infatuation, but he doesn't REALLY need that object to respond. This love makes the person stronger, helps him achieve his goals. But it would actually be destroyed by reciprocity. This is not considered self-involvment or illusion in Japan. It is a very beautiful love. Have you seen Millenium Actress?
That's how I view Hinata. I thought so even before her confession, which was written in exactly such manner. She herself admitted how selfish her actions were, how it all was about her own growth. And it seemed totally natural to me that this issue has never led to any developments between her and Naruto, he never adressed her confession again. I mean, it is the style of Kishimoto's writing as well (see below), but it felt like a symbol of Hinata's selfish love. And then fans wonder why Hinata smiles so honestly when Sakura hugs Naruto tightly. I mean, Kishimoto can portary Hinata's love as brightly as possible and still leave her alone with this decision  being not exactly cruel, I could even call it "classic". 
 
Now I also think that today's chapter was about NaruSaku.
 
I think that the similarity between Kushina and Sakura were adressed a lot of times and are hardly disputible. Even if Kushina meant "the girl as great as your mom", not "the same as your mom", it still responds to Naruto's long harbored feelings toward Sakura. I don't see the reason to portray Naruto as the one who doesn't know love all of a sudden at the end of the whole manga. Like this suddenly disillusioned man, who declares his feelings about friendship and loved ones in the most open and strong fashion in front of the whole world, but then dwindles to acknowledge that the girl he once chose was (and is) something big. Have we seen a central character in this manga, who dwindled about the girl he first chose in his life? Some could not get her, but if they decided they loved her, they didn't seek to compromise. 
Naruto stated his love to Sakura many times and it would be strange if he combined those feelings with the idea that she is not good enough. I am quite sure that he thinks that he found one such girl, but she just doesn't belong to him yet. And might never be. Because his love is selfless and he won't push her into something that she herself doesn't feel. But he tries, and we see it CONSTANTLY, he tries to be there by her side and protect her. Which is why, he says "I'm trying my best". Maybe she will love him someday! The translation is pretty biased indeed. We read "find the girl..." and we naturally asume that it is about actually being able to call some girl worth being called "the one". But the context tells me its more about "obtaining the one" than "finding her". Get the girl! 
 
Why do I think Naruto still has feelings for Sakura (and doesn't have for Hinata)? Because of my understanding of Kishimoto's writing style:
 

More

When I started reading Naruto manga 12 years ago, I really hated Sakura character, as she seemed to be unsuited for a main heroine role (shallow, not very cute, bellow average, not skilled, not developed emotionally yet, outward demolishing the main character, etc.). I was also very confused by the ammount of attention and praise the not-main character Sasuke got. I was surprised by the ammount of Naruto's struggles and how unlikely his pairing with his main love-interest seemed. I struggled to find a single "right from the start"-likeable character. What I'm trying to say is that Kishimoto was clearly healthy from the Mary Sue syndrom that great deal of authors face (the inability to include bad traits and weaknesses into primary characters portraits). His main cast started from a point far bellow average shonen heroes and heroines on the scale of inner-shortcomings and flaws. Ironically that kept me interested. It was hard to overome at first, but in hindsight it made characters more alive and the road ahead of them - more significant. The funny thing - the development only seemed long and gradual, but eventually occured to me as built in large "stages", more specifically - in large scenes. That's just a hypothesis. 
 
Of course, characters developed fast and in more or less traditional way. Sakura was the only slow one, I'd say (though she had a longer way to go). I still felt Kishimoto's writing was somewhat rigid. And funnily I still feel this way 12 years since. Kishimoto is an author who seems to be bad (maybe intentionally + genre influenced) at gradually resolving problems. He seems to be "the man of the scene", meaning that he always shined and evolved his story best in big interactions, big moments. I'm not saying that he doesn't do well with little hints, which we all enjoy (like subtle glances and smiles), I say that Kishimoto doesn't feel very responsible for them. It always seemed to me that he preferred to drag the story infinitely with little interactions and moments, that could all be interpreted in different ways, while generally not giving a big meaning to them in the end, not respecting them in the big picture. On the other hand there are two types of BIG SCENES - a) the end-oriented BIG SCENES, which are the ones that build the spine of the story (Team 7, Naruto's dream, etc) AND b) secondary character's BIG SCENES (like Naruto's promise to change Hinata's clan or Shikamaru's teacher death. The main resolutions and changes always occured at the end-oriented BIG SCENES (like Sasuke leaving Konoha moments), when a lot of evolution was brought together for a ton of characters, often strangely undermining the previous development or not taking it in account. That is why a lot of topics in the little scenes and character's BIG SCENES (like Naruto's promise to Hinata or her confession) are never re-visited - they were just scenes that felt important at the moment, but didn't really influence the story. Majorly there are not many "plot-scenes", if you think about it, that actually shaped the story we have now. I partially blame this tendency for the rigidness of main topics we face. Like Sakura's and even Ino's feelings to Sasuke are amazingly dragged out beyond nature's laws. Or the whole parent-themed or rivalry-themed parts. They all essentially need a SCENE, that is both HUGE and presicely aimed at this exact topic. Only then we can actually count that the progress we see matters and isn't there just for momentary purposes. While the SCENE never happened, the general direction is very rigid and all the little hints are usually either the author draggin the same line or us overinterpreting the situation. 
 
Once again, my thought is that all those little interactions are usually either reminders of what kind of position this or that character has OR just hold insignificant momentary purposes. Just like pretty much all the scenes between Naruto and Sakura after the timeskip were a solid reminder that they are growing to understand and care for each other a lot (smth that manifested as an end-oriented BIG SCENE of Naruto returning to Konoha without Sasuke). "Growing" is a process, but in Kishimoto's writing style its a rigid fact, that was put in the story after timeskip and is just revisited so that we don't forget about it and so that it feels natural. It remains rigid until the SCENE that will change it vividly. That's why all arguments that Naruto seemed to lose interest in Sakura along the way or that his recent Hinata scenes have changed his perspective of Sakura seem so wrong to me. Naruto's feelings towards Sakura will remain intact until we actually see a huge SCENE that will be precisely focused at him giving up on her - from the point where he still loves her ----) then something happens -----) it is changed. Because Kishimoto never lets anything important develop behind the scenes or as a consequence of minor interactions with other characters (like his interaction with Hinata does nothing to his relationship with Sakura and his feelings towards her unless it is directly adressed). Even more Kishimoto never lets anything develop from the lack of certain scenes (like if we don't have much "I love Sakura" scenes it doesn't mean Naruto's love is losing its flame just because there was no scene where that love was adressed as diminishing). I could even call his writing style " too much end-oriented" and "scene-dependent". Of course, this difference comes a lot from this being a shonen manga, not a novel, but the idea reamains whether we talk about the genre or about personal style.
 
Thus I myself feel solid that Naruto still has very strong feelings for Sakura as the change has never been adressed. No, Hinata's scenes are great in their own way, but not influential. Naruto doesn't have growing feelings towards her, because the start of those feelings wasn't adressed in a seperate scene. In Kishimoto's writing style if the scene doesn't exist, the subject doesn't either or is too week to be considered a threat. This is not a novel. Naruto has acknowledged Hinata's determination and existence after Chounin exam - for all I know, that's it, from Naruto's perspective we are just revisiting the topic. It just seems romantic development, because we get everything from Hinata's POV. Just analyzing Kishimoto's writing style I say, that Naruto loves and will love Sakura until we get the scene, where something openly changes them and we are notified. NaruHina can very well happen in the end, but right now it is not happening, it is just stated as a second option. All eyes towards an old Team 7 triangle.
Actually, the continuity of the story (how it all comes to be connected) in Naruto is very shallow as it is almost solely based on the idea that "history is developed in cycles". The future is pretty much destined to reference and repeat some point or a prototype in the past (the Senin trio and all those clan battles and even "Naruto's" personality repeating itself through generations). I'm not saying this is bad or that the concept is not beautiful, or that Kishimoto doesn't use it well. Actually Naruto is deemed to be both the one who will repeat the cycle and who will change it, which is the whole point of him being the main character of a manga. I am just trying to say that this inevitably leads to some interactions and scenes being less significant than the others. That's why I think that the reference point to Kushina and Tsunade|Jiraya tragic pairing holds much more significance than all other "out of the blue" types of interactions like all kinds of Hinata tomance. Repeat and yet change for the better - we've been aiming at this all along. 
 
The same way it has always been difficult for me to expect that Sakura would change her feeling towards Naruto in some subtle interactions and minor scenes. I've never expected her to give up on Sasuke along the way. Even the scene, where Sasuke tried to kill her was not big enough, because it was not aimed at the change in sakura's feelings and was mostly designed as an obvious preparation for smth we have probably yet to see  - Sasuke vs Naruto showdown (movie or manga). In a way that whole sequence (with Sakura's confession and next) was about reinstating the issue of a complex love triange. I am saying that we can't be surprised that the whole pairing topic (who will Naruto end with?) is so dragged out and inconsistent. It just falls in the general writing style that seems to rarely lose this idea of the BIG ENDING, that can only come in a form of adressing the main topics, one of which is the initial love triangle, the second - rivalry, the third - friendship. Sakura's feelings won't change before the final showdown (she still loves Sauke be it in a mature or realistic or delusional and shaky way).

 
In my humble opinion.

Edited by Alessa, 04 September 2014 - 10:16 PM.

[Alessa]

Why the heck is my editing not visible? I put bold font in some places.

Edited by Alessa, 04 September 2014 - 10:17 PM.

[elmas]

Why the heck is my editing not visible? I put bold font in some places.

Your avatar,it's Nami, right?

[Change]

Hi. You have a nice place here. I actually registered to thank Slextrem for her "Build Up" compilation, but this thread has caught my attention.
 
I was actually a bit surprised, because I thought chapter 691 was very NS-oriented, but I can see a lot of doubt here (not sure if trolling).
I have several opinions.
First of all, I think that Naruto still deeply loves Sakura and I see no evidence against it (one of the reasons is in the "spoiler section"). I am convinced that scenes with Hinata were really sweet and great, but posed no "danger" to NS pairing. Just as any other scenes with Hinata that we might encounter in the future, unless there is a clear statement from Naruto's POV for once (like blushing or inner thought). I also think that currently Sakura still loves Sasuke, at least is deeply convinced in her feelings towards him and doesn't regard Naruto as a potential lover. Still she cares for Naruto and loves him as a person a lot. I also think that the current romantic conflict is still a love triangle (Naruto-Sakura-Sasuke), which pretty much is just a line (Naruto -) Sakura -) Sasuke). Hinata, Lee, Karin and any other character are there as a second choice, but don't influence the feelings of the MAIN 3 in any way. It is all pretty much inside Team 7 as it has always been. I do consider NaruHina a possibility, but not as it stands right now, as a result of all the interactions between the two, but as a logical second choice if NaruSaku destroys itself from within. NaruSaku can destroy itself if Sakura chooses Sasuke permanantly or someone dies. I can't imagine other reason for Naruto to give up on the girl. Though I have no idea how Kishimoto plans to reorient Sakura romantically towards Naruto (what would snap her out of her Sasuke fixation).
I do think that Kishimoto has gone too far in developing Sakura's feelings towards Sasuke to the point where it feels like a deadlock. Basically this is manga about achieving your dreams|goals. And it has been stated that Sakura wished to achieve Sasuke's acknowledgment (chapter 3 or smth). Same as Naruto as a main character of a shounen has chosen himself the heroine to pursue from the very start. Thus we have a situation, in which everyone can't have a solid achievment of their goal (the genre doesn't permit not to achieve) unless its a threesome or someone dies, because the goals more or less cancel each other out. Either Sakura gives up on her initial goal or Naruto is the first guy to give up on his heroine. Its not pretty either way and someone is bound to get hurt. We can also see a cliffhanger, of course, and we will never know. 
Why I think its totally normal if Hinata doesn't get Naruto despite her very big and honest love for him?  Because I've studied Japanese literature for a bit. I've always felt that Hinata has aimed towards Naruto's acknowledgment more than his love (more than that - she actually aimed towards her own growth most of all). She never really stated she wants him to love her. I mean, she wishes for that and she definitly wants him to be her family, to be her husband and etc. But in manga of this genre the words mean more than implied desires. What is stated cannot be taken back and has to get some development as a rule of a genre. And she never stated that her goal, which has to be achieved, is to get Naruto's romantic love.

Why it doesn't really matter when Hinata says "I want to be with him forever"?
 
Why can the author give her that line and then not give her the actual fulfillment? Because in Japan the concepts of tragic love and separation hold a very different meaning from western ones. In many stories you have a bunch a characters (lovers, comrades or friends) who are (for a complete unknown reason) sent away from each other in the end. It used to shock me every time. It was like the authors deliberately destroyed all that they built, as if they thought "Ok, its almost the end, they are truly together, its time to push them in different directions."  And all these characters parted with sad but genuine smiles on their faces and a promise of eternal love. I studied the issue for a bit and it occured to me that this is just how true love is viewed in Japan. Love is not disturbed by a big distance. It is polished by it! Reciprocity is not the blessing of a true love. It is very often portrayed as an obstacle!! Lovers, who obtained each other only to step away from each other are considered to be making a natural and solid statement of their love!! And it has nothing to do with selflessness of letting the other one go, because the feelings are one-sided. Love, that has reamined unfulfilled (even if mutual), that has remained pure, is a much stronger spiritual connection, that enlightens those, who carry it. It is the same with deep friendship.
These ideas are also vivid in the concept of selfish love, that is very different of what we imagine in Western culture. It is the love, that person shares with himself. He has an object of infatuation, but he doesn't REALLY need that object to respond. This love makes the person stronger, helps him achieve his goals. But it would actually be destroyed by reciprocity. This is not considered self-involvment or illusion in Japan. It is a very beautiful love. Have you seen Millenium Actress?
That's how I view Hinata. I thought so even before her confession, which was written in exactly such manner. She herself admitted how selfish her actions were, how it all was about her own growth. And it seemed totally natural to me that this issue has never led to any developments between her and Naruto, he never adressed her confession again. I mean, it is the style of Kishimoto's writing as well (see below), but it felt like a symbol of Hinata's selfish love. And then fans wonder why Hinata smiles so honestly when Sakura hugs Naruto tightly. I mean, Kishimoto can portary Hinata's love as brightly as possible and still leave her alone with this decision  being not exactly cruel, I could even call it "classic". 
 
Now I also think that today's chapter was about NaruSaku.
 
I think that the similarity between Kushina and Sakura were adressed a lot of times and are hardly disputible. Even if Kushina meant "the girl as great as your mom", not "the same as your mom", it still responds to Naruto's long harbored feelings toward Sakura. I don't see the reason to portray Naruto as the one who doesn't know love all of a sudden at the end of the whole manga. Like this suddenly disillusioned man, who declares his feelings about friendship and loved ones in the most open and strong fashion in front of the whole world, but then dwindles to acknowledge that the girl he once chose was (and is) something big. Have we seen a central character in this manga, who dwindled about the girl he first chose in his life? Some could not get her, but if they decided they loved her, they didn't seek to compromise. 
Naruto stated his love to Sakura many times and it would be strange if he combined those feelings with the idea that she is not good enough. I am quite sure that he thinks that he found one such girl, but she just doesn't belong to him yet. And might never be. Because his love is selfless and he won't push her into something that she herself doesn't feel. But he tries, and we see it CONSTANTLY, he tries to be there by her side and protect her. Which is why, he says "I'm trying my best". Maybe she will love him someday! The translation is pretty biased indeed. We read "find the girl..." and we naturally asume that it is about actually being able to call some girl worth being called "the one". But the context tells me its more about "obtaining the one" than "finding her". Get the girl! 
 
Why do I think Naruto still has feelings for Sakura (and doesn't have for Hinata)? Because of my understanding of Kishimoto's writing style:
 

More

When I started reading Naruto manga 12 years ago, I really hated Sakura character, as she seemed to be unsuited for a main heroine role (shallow, not very cute, bellow average, not skilled, not developed emotionally yet, outward demolishing the main character, etc.). I was also very confused by the ammount of attention and praise the not-main character Sasuke got. I was surprised by the ammount of Naruto's struggles and how unlikely his pairing with his main love-interest seemed. I struggled to find a single "right from the start"-likeable character. What I'm trying to say is that Kishimoto was clearly healthy from the Mary Sue syndrom that great deal of authors face (the inability to include bad traits and weaknesses into primary characters portraits). His main cast started from a point far bellow average shonen heroes and heroines on the scale of inner-shortcomings and flaws. Ironically that kept me interested. It was hard to overome at first, but in hindsight it made characters more alive and the road ahead of them - more significant. The funny thing - the development only seemed long and gradual, but eventually occured to me as built in large "stages", more specifically - in large scenes. That's just a hypothesis. 
 
Of course, characters developed fast and in more or less traditional way. Sakura was the only slow one, I'd say (though she had a longer way to go). I still felt Kishimoto's writing was somewhat rigid. And funnily I still feel this way 12 years since. Kishimoto is an author who seems to be bad (maybe intentionally + genre influenced) at gradually resolving problems. He seems to be "the man of the scene", meaning that he always shined and evolved his story best in big interactions, big moments. I'm not saying that he doesn't do well with little hints, which we all enjoy (like subtle glances and smiles), I say that Kishimoto doesn't feel very responsible for them. It always seemed to me that he preferred to drag the story infinitely with little interactions and moments, that could all be interpreted in different ways, while generally not giving a big meaning to them in the end, not respecting them in the big picture. On the other hand there are two types of BIG SCENES - a) the end-oriented BIG SCENES, which are the ones that build the spine of the story (Team 7, Naruto's dream, etc) AND b) secondary character's BIG SCENES (like Naruto's promise to change Hinata's clan or Shikamaru's teacher death. The main resolutions and changes always occured at the end-oriented BIG SCENES (like Sasuke leaving Konoha moments), when a lot of evolution was brought together for a ton of characters, often strangely undermining the previous development or not taking it in account. That is why a lot of topics in the little scenes and character's BIG SCENES (like Naruto's promise to Hinata or her confession) are never re-visited - they were just scenes that felt important at the moment, but didn't really influence the story. Majorly there are not many "plot-scenes", if you think about it, that actually shaped the story we have now. I partially blame this tendency for the rigidness of main topics we face. Like Sakura's and even Ino's feelings to Sasuke are amazingly dragged out beyond nature's laws. Or the whole parent-themed or rivalry-themed parts. They all essentially need a SCENE, that is both HUGE and presicely aimed at this exact topic. Only then we can actually count that the progress we see matters and isn't there just for momentary purposes. While the SCENE never happened, the general direction is very rigid and all the little hints are usually either the author draggin the same line or us overinterpreting the situation. 
 
Once again, my thought is that all those little interactions are usually either reminders of what kind of position this or that character has OR just hold insignificant momentary purposes. Just like pretty much all the scenes between Naruto and Sakura after the timeskip were a solid reminder that they are growing to understand and care for each other a lot (smth that manifested as an end-oriented BIG SCENE of Naruto returning to Konoha without Sasuke). "Growing" is a process, but in Kishimoto's writing style its a rigid fact, that was put in the story after timeskip and is just revisited so that we don't forget about it and so that it feels natural. It remains rigid until the SCENE that will change it vividly. That's why all arguments that Naruto seemed to lose interest in Sakura along the way or that his recent Hinata scenes have changed his perspective of Sakura seem so wrong to me. Naruto's feelings towards Sakura will remain intact until we actually see a huge SCENE that will be precisely focused at him giving up on her - from the point where he still loves her ----) then something happens -----) it is changed. Because Kishimoto never lets anything important develop behind the scenes or as a consequence of minor interactions with other characters (like his interaction with Hinata does nothing to his relationship with Sakura and his feelings towards her unless it is directly adressed). Even more Kishimoto never lets anything develop from the lack of certain scenes (like if we don't have much "I love Sakura" scenes it doesn't mean Naruto's love is losing its flame just because there was no scene where that love was adressed as diminishing). I could even call his writing style " too much end-oriented" and "scene-dependent". Of course, this difference comes a lot from this being a shonen manga, not a novel, but the idea reamains whether we talk about the genre or about personal style.
 
Thus I myself feel solid that Naruto still has very strong feelings for Sakura as the change has never been adressed. No, Hinata's scenes are great in their own way, but not influential. Naruto doesn't have growing feelings towards her, because the start of those feelings wasn't adressed in a seperate scene. In Kishimoto's writing style if the scene doesn't exist, the subject doesn't either or is too week to be considered a threat. This is not a novel. Naruto has acknowledged Hinata's determination and existence after Chounin exam - for all I know, that's it, from Naruto's perspective we are just revisiting the topic. It just seems romantic development, because we get everything from Hinata's POV. Just analyzing Kishimoto's writing style I say, that Naruto loves and will love Sakura until we get the scene, where something openly changes them and we are notified. NaruHina can very well happen in the end, but right now it is not happening, it is just stated as a second option. All eyes towards an old Team 7 triangle.
Actually, the continuity of the story (how it all comes to be connected) in Naruto is very shallow as it is almost solely based on the idea that "history is developed in cycles". The future is pretty much destined to reference and repeat some point or a prototype in the past (the Senin trio and all those clan battles and even "Naruto's" personality repeating itself through generations). I'm not saying this is bad or that the concept is not beautiful, or that Kishimoto doesn't use it well. Actually Naruto is deemed to be both the one who will repeat the cycle and who will change it, which is the whole point of him being the main character of a manga. I am just trying to say that this inevitably leads to some interactions and scenes being less significant than the others. That's why I think that the reference point to Kushina and Tsunade|Jiraya tragic pairing holds much more significance than all other "out of the blue" types of interactions like all kinds of Hinata tomance. Repeat and yet change for the better - we've been aiming at this all along. 
 
The same way it has always been difficult for me to expect that Sakura would change her feeling towards Naruto in some subtle interactions and minor scenes. I've never expected her to give up on Sasuke along the way. Even the scene, where Sasuke tried to kill her was not big enough, because it was not aimed at the change in sakura's feelings and was mostly designed as an obvious preparation for smth we have probably yet to see  - Sasuke vs Naruto showdown (movie or manga). In a way that whole sequence (with Sakura's confession and next) was about reinstating the issue of a complex love triange. I am saying that we can't be surprised that the whole pairing topic (who will Naruto end with?) is so dragged out and inconsistent. It just falls in the general writing style that seems to rarely lose this idea of the BIG ENDING, that can only come in a form of adressing the main topics, one of which is the initial love triangle, the second - rivalry, the third - friendship. Sakura's feelings won't change before the final showdown (she still loves Sauke be it in a mature or realistic or delusional and shaky way).

 
In my humble opinion.

I only read a few sentences of what that(I'll read it later ), now about today's chapter.

There's always people freaking out 

Some are just trolling

Most would probably agree with you

[questdrivencollie]

Hi. You have a nice place here. I actually registered to thank Slextrem for her "Build Up" compilation, but this thread has caught my attention.
 
I was actually a bit surprised, because I thought chapter 691 was very NS-oriented, but I can see a lot of doubt here (not sure if trolling).
I have several opinions.
First of all, I think that Naruto still deeply loves Sakura and I see no evidence against it (one of the reasons is in the "spoiler section"). I am convinced that scenes with Hinata were really sweet and great, but posed no "danger" to NS pairing. Just as any other scenes with Hinata that we might encounter in the future, unless there is a clear statement from Naruto's POV for once (like blushing or inner thought). I also think that currently Sakura still loves Sasuke, at least is deeply convinced in her feelings towards him and doesn't regard Naruto as a potential lover. Still she cares for Naruto and loves him as a person a lot. I also think that the current romantic conflict is still a love triangle (Naruto-Sakura-Sasuke), which pretty much is just a line (Naruto -) Sakura -) Sasuke). Hinata, Lee, Karin and any other character are there as a second choice, but don't influence the feelings of the MAIN 3 in any way. It is all pretty much inside Team 7 as it has always been. I do consider NaruHina a possibility, but not as it stands right now, as a result of all the interactions between the two, but as a logical second choice if NaruSaku destroys itself from within. NaruSaku can destroy itself if Sakura chooses Sasuke permanantly or someone dies. I can't imagine other reason for Naruto to give up on the girl. Though I have no idea how Kishimoto plans to reorient Sakura romantically towards Naruto (what would snap her out of her Sasuke fixation).
I do think that Kishimoto has gone too far in developing Sakura's feelings towards Sasuke to the point where it feels like a deadlock. Basically this is manga about achieving your dreams|goals. And it has been stated that Sakura wished to achieve Sasuke's acknowledgment (chapter 3 or smth). Same as Naruto as a main character of a shounen has chosen himself the heroine to pursue from the very start. Thus we have a situation, in which everyone can't have a solid achievment of their goal (the genre doesn't permit not to achieve) unless its a threesome or someone dies, because the goals more or less cancel each other out. Either Sakura gives up on her initial goal or Naruto is the first guy to give up on his heroine. Its not pretty either way and someone is bound to get hurt. We can also see a cliffhanger, of course, and we will never know. Why I think its totally normal if Hinata doesn't get Naruto despite her very big and honest love for him?  Because I've studied Japanese literature for a bit. I've always felt that Hinata has aimed towards Naruto's acknowledgment more than his love (more than that - she actually aimed towards her own growth most of all). She never really stated she wants him to love her. I mean, she wishes for that and she definitly wants him to be her family, to be her husband and etc. But in manga of this genre the words mean more than implied desires. What is stated cannot be taken back and has to get some development as a rule of a genre. And she never stated that her goal, which has to be achieved, is to get Naruto's romantic love.Why it doesn't really matter when Hinata says "I want to be with him forever"?
 
Why can the author give her that line and then not give her the actual fulfillment? Because in Japan the concepts of tragic love and separation hold a very different meaning from western ones. In many stories you have a bunch a characters (lovers, comrades or friends) who are (for a complete unknown reason) sent away from each other in the end. It used to shock me every time. It was like the authors deliberately destroyed all that they built, as if they thought "Ok, its almost the end, they are truly together, its time to push them in different directions."  And all these characters parted with sad but genuine smiles on their faces and a promise of eternal love. I studied the issue for a bit and it occured to me that this is just how true love is viewed in Japan. Love is not disturbed by a big distance. It is polished by it! Reciprocity is not the blessing of a true love. It is very often portrayed as an obstacle!! Lovers, who obtained each other only to step away from each other are considered to be making a natural and solid statement of their love!! And it has nothing to do with selflessness of letting the other one go, because the feelings are one-sided. Love, that has reamined unfulfilled (even if mutual), that has remained pure, is a much stronger spiritual connection, that enlightens those, who carry it. It is the same with deep friendship.
These ideas are also vivid in the concept of selfish love, that is very different of what we imagine in Western culture. It is the love, that person shares with himself. He has an object of infatuation, but he doesn't REALLY need that object to respond. This love makes the person stronger, helps him achieve his goals. But it would actually be destroyed by reciprocity. This is not considered self-involvment or illusion in Japan. It is a very beautiful love. Have you seen Millenium Actress?
That's how I view Hinata. I thought so even before her confession, which was written in exactly such manner. She herself admitted how selfish her actions were, how it all was about her own growth. And it seemed totally natural to me that this issue has never led to any developments between her and Naruto, he never adressed her confession again. I mean, it is the style of Kishimoto's writing as well (see below), but it felt like a symbol of Hinata's selfish love. And then fans wonder why Hinata smiles so honestly when Sakura hugs Naruto tightly. I mean, Kishimoto can portary Hinata's love as brightly as possible and still leave her alone with this decision  being not exactly cruel, I could even call it "classic". 
 
Now I also think that today's chapter was about NaruSaku.
 
I think that the similarity between Kushina and Sakura were adressed a lot of times and are hardly disputible. Even if Kushina meant "the girl as great as your mom", not "the same as your mom", it still responds to Naruto's long harbored feelings toward Sakura. I don't see the reason to portray Naruto as the one who doesn't know love all of a sudden at the end of the whole manga. Like this suddenly disillusioned man, who declares his feelings about friendship and loved ones in the most open and strong fashion in front of the whole world, but then dwindles to acknowledge that the girl he once chose was (and is) something big. Have we seen a central character in this manga, who dwindled about the girl he first chose in his life? Some could not get her, but if they decided they loved her, they didn't seek to compromise. 
Naruto stated his love to Sakura many times and it would be strange if he combined those feelings with the idea that she is not good enough. I am quite sure that he thinks that he found one such girl, but she just doesn't belong to him yet. And might never be. Because his love is selfless and he won't push her into something that she herself doesn't feel. But he tries, and we see it CONSTANTLY, he tries to be there by her side and protect her. Which is why, he says "I'm trying my best". Maybe she will love him someday! The translation is pretty biased indeed. We read "find the girl..." and we naturally asume that it is about actually being able to call some girl worth being called "the one". But the context tells me its more about "obtaining the one" than "finding her". Get the girl! 
 Why do I think Naruto still has feelings for Sakura (and doesn't have for Hinata)? Because of my understanding of Kishimoto's writing style:
 

More

When I started reading Naruto manga 12 years ago, I really hated Sakura character, as she seemed to be unsuited for a main heroine role (shallow, not very cute, bellow average, not skilled, not developed emotionally yet, outward demolishing the main character, etc.). I was also very confused by the ammount of attention and praise the not-main character Sasuke got. I was surprised by the ammount of Naruto's struggles and how unlikely his pairing with his main love-interest seemed. I struggled to find a single "right from the start"-likeable character. What I'm trying to say is that Kishimoto was clearly healthy from the Mary Sue syndrom that great deal of authors face (the inability to include bad traits and weaknesses into primary characters portraits). His main cast started from a point far bellow average shonen heroes and heroines on the scale of inner-shortcomings and flaws. Ironically that kept me interested. It was hard to overome at first, but in hindsight it made characters more alive and the road ahead of them - more significant. The funny thing - the development only seemed long and gradual, but eventually occured to me as built in large "stages", more specifically - in large scenes. That's just a hypothesis. 
 
Of course, characters developed fast and in more or less traditional way. Sakura was the only slow one, I'd say (though she had a longer way to go). I still felt Kishimoto's writing was somewhat rigid. And funnily I still feel this way 12 years since. Kishimoto is an author who seems to be bad (maybe intentionally + genre influenced) at gradually resolving problems. He seems to be "the man of the scene", meaning that he always shined and evolved his story best in big interactions, big moments. I'm not saying that he doesn't do well with little hints, which we all enjoy (like subtle glances and smiles), I say that Kishimoto doesn't feel very responsible for them. It always seemed to me that he preferred to drag the story infinitely with little interactions and moments, that could all be interpreted in different ways, while generally not giving a big meaning to them in the end, not respecting them in the big picture. On the other hand there are two types of BIG SCENES - a) the end-oriented BIG SCENES, which are the ones that build the spine of the story (Team 7, Naruto's dream, etc) AND b) secondary character's BIG SCENES (like Naruto's promise to change Hinata's clan or Shikamaru's teacher death. The main resolutions and changes always occured at the end-oriented BIG SCENES (like Sasuke leaving Konoha moments), when a lot of evolution was brought together for a ton of characters, often strangely undermining the previous development or not taking it in account. That is why a lot of topics in the little scenes and character's BIG SCENES (like Naruto's promise to Hinata or her confession) are never re-visited - they were just scenes that felt important at the moment, but didn't really influence the story. Majorly there are not many "plot-scenes", if you think about it, that actually shaped the story we have now. I partially blame this tendency for the rigidness of main topics we face. Like Sakura's and even Ino's feelings to Sasuke are amazingly dragged out beyond nature's laws. Or the whole parent-themed or rivalry-themed parts. They all essentially need a SCENE, that is both HUGE and presicely aimed at this exact topic. Only then we can actually count that the progress we see matters and isn't there just for momentary purposes. While the SCENE never happened, the general direction is very rigid and all the little hints are usually either the author draggin the same line or us overinterpreting the situation. 
 
Once again, my thought is that all those little interactions are usually either reminders of what kind of position this or that character has OR just hold insignificant momentary purposes. Just like pretty much all the scenes between Naruto and Sakura after the timeskip were a solid reminder that they are growing to understand and care for each other a lot (smth that manifested as an end-oriented BIG SCENE of Naruto returning to Konoha without Sasuke). "Growing" is a process, but in Kishimoto's writing style its a rigid fact, that was put in the story after timeskip and is just revisited so that we don't forget about it and so that it feels natural. It remains rigid until the SCENE that will change it vividly. That's why all arguments that Naruto seemed to lose interest in Sakura along the way or that his recent Hinata scenes have changed his perspective of Sakura seem so wrong to me. Naruto's feelings towards Sakura will remain intact until we actually see a huge SCENE that will be precisely focused at him giving up on her - from the point where he still loves her ----) then something happens -----) it is changed. Because Kishimoto never lets anything important develop behind the scenes or as a consequence of minor interactions with other characters (like his interaction with Hinata does nothing to his relationship with Sakura and his feelings towards her unless it is directly adressed). Even more Kishimoto never lets anything develop from the lack of certain scenes (like if we don't have much "I love Sakura" scenes it doesn't mean Naruto's love is losing its flame just because there was no scene where that love was adressed as diminishing). I could even call his writing style " too much end-oriented" and "scene-dependent". Of course, this difference comes a lot from this being a shonen manga, not a novel, but the idea reamains whether we talk about the genre or about personal style.
 
Thus I myself feel solid that Naruto still has very strong feelings for Sakura as the change has never been adressed. No, Hinata's scenes are great in their own way, but not influential. Naruto doesn't have growing feelings towards her, because the start of those feelings wasn't adressed in a seperate scene. In Kishimoto's writing style if the scene doesn't exist, the subject doesn't either or is too week to be considered a threat. This is not a novel. Naruto has acknowledged Hinata's determination and existence after Chounin exam - for all I know, that's it, from Naruto's perspective we are just revisiting the topic. It just seems romantic development, because we get everything from Hinata's POV. Just analyzing Kishimoto's writing style I say, that Naruto loves and will love Sakura until we get the scene, where something openly changes them and we are notified. NaruHina can very well happen in the end, but right now it is not happening, it is just stated as a second option. All eyes towards an old Team 7 triangle.
Actually, the continuity of the story (how it all comes to be connected) in Naruto is very shallow as it is almost solely based on the idea that "history is developed in cycles". The future is pretty much destined to reference and repeat some point or a prototype in the past (the Senin trio and all those clan battles and even "Naruto's" personality repeating itself through generations). I'm not saying this is bad or that the concept is not beautiful, or that Kishimoto doesn't use it well. Actually Naruto is deemed to be both the one who will repeat the cycle and who will change it, which is the whole point of him being the main character of a manga. I am just trying to say that this inevitably leads to some interactions and scenes being less significant than the others. That's why I think that the reference point to Kushina and Tsunade|Jiraya tragic pairing holds much more significance than all other "out of the blue" types of interactions like all kinds of Hinata tomance. Repeat and yet change for the better - we've been aiming at this all along. 
 
The same way it has always been difficult for me to expect that Sakura would change her feeling towards Naruto in some subtle interactions and minor scenes. I've never expected her to give up on Sasuke along the way. Even the scene, where Sasuke tried to kill her was not big enough, because it was not aimed at the change in sakura's feelings and was mostly designed as an obvious preparation for smth we have probably yet to see  - Sasuke vs Naruto showdown (movie or manga). In a way that whole sequence (with Sakura's confession and next) was about reinstating the issue of a complex love triange. I am saying that we can't be surprised that the whole pairing topic (who will Naruto end with?) is so dragged out and inconsistent. It just falls in the general writing style that seems to rarely lose this idea of the BIG ENDING, that can only come in a form of adressing the main topics, one of which is the initial love triangle, the second - rivalry, the third - friendship. Sakura's feelings won't change before the final showdown (she still loves Sauke be it in a mature or realistic or delusional and shaky way).

 
In my humble opinion.

 
Quite a post. Welcome to the forum!
 

Why the heck is my editing not visible? I put bold font in some places.

There's a thread on how spoiler tags work if you haven't seen it already. Though to me it looks like you did it correctly, so IDK.