still want tsuna to take out mandara- b/c he's such a talkative prick.
and Itachi to work out this sh*t with sasuke so they do something constructive instead of giving reasons for kabuto to make pop'corn and watch the show.
lol this!
Unfortunately, Tsunade laying out the rules of medic nins just sounded like excuses for Sakura's future fights to me. Not anything worthwhile for Tsunade's character development. She was a shinobi before she was a medic, as was Sakura. No one in the audience was claiming foul on her fighting despite being a medic. It's kind of a non-issue.
Most importantly, reciting these rules didn't add anything or up the stakes of the fight in any way. It only expanded Tsunade's dialogue and covered Sakura's current and future activities. So the message I'm taking away from this is 'This is why Sakura isn't/won't be on the battlefield."
(This reminds me of a few chapters ago when Sasuke was laying out the terms of his attack. 'I'll kill Naruto first, then go after Konoha.' It's disappointing. Makes things a lot more predictable and formulaic.)
Anyway, all that being said, I expect Tsunade to hold on for a few more chapters.... But yeah, I think then she will probably die. I mean, her dead lover is already talking about her death. So the audience is meant to be aware that these are the stakes. I can't imagine it being so heavily foreshadowed for it not to happen. Which is unfortunate. Because I like Tsunade a lot.
I'm kind of wondering if it will wrap up this year? Things are moving quickly along. This looks like Tsunade's last battle, Itachi's is on tap, Sasuke is waiting in the wings.... It's all going very fast and straight. No more real plot twists, just battle after battle. I think the only unknown left is Tobi's identity and if Orochimaru can make an appearance. But everything else seems to be on the table. (I guess the spectre of removing the kyuubi is still out there....) Anyone else thinking along these lines?
edit: @ donjoseph, good thoughts about Naruto's maturity and Tsunade's comments. Maybe she won't die and we are being made to think she will? If so, good on Kishimoto for screwing with us. I'm sincerely hoping for some curve balls in the storyline. And that would be a good one.
Your post reminded me of something I'd thought about Naruto lately: A while back, the chapters devolved into several characters, most noteably Itachi, telling Naruto to rely on others. That's the mark of a good Hokage. ... Where was all that going? Naruto's still is not relying on anyone. He's swooping in and saving them. But that's not teamwork. Another reason I think the Hokage thing will wait for a while.
Edited by tricksie, 07 March 2012 - 04:37 PM.