So now that I had let it sink in and read it several times, I want to give a real review.
The chapter was indeed amazing, especially for us. This doesn't make NaruSaku canon, but it indeed just ruins the other pairings and makes them hard to see them as anything more than wishful thinking by fans. Kishi is really driving the point home with it. That being said, I don't see how NH or SS can even make up ground now and might as well officially call them dead. There is no way to make those two couples real without just asspulling them into reality. Especially for SS which not even the Tsukuyomi can fix it.
I do have to comment on a few things though:
"Sakura is seen being afraid of Sasuke and almost like she is saying "Don't hit me""
Truth be told I don't see this at all. Instead I just see a girl who once again is disappointed by the fact that Sasuke again proves he doesn't really care about Team 7. All he cares about is himself and Naruto. (Maybe Team Not 7 as well, but whatever.) He hates his old life and wants to get rid of it and he has proven these feelings three times now in this war. I don't know why people keep keep ignoring these moments, but they are there. Sakura, however, is not some abused girl flinching like Tina Turner and Ike. It is her just feeling disappointment. Almost the exact same face she had when Sasuke tried to stab her through with his sword and not cared about her at all.
Yeah, I want Sakura to knock Sasuke out, but in truth even if she wanted to, she wouldn't. Regardless of what Sasuke is, they need him and I think both kakashi and Sakura know this. It's not that they wouldn't argue with him, but rather it is not the right time for it. They got bigger issues going on. I am hoping though when the war is truly over and there is nothing else to fight, then maybe Sasuke will be dealt with.
Naruto did stand up for Kakashi and Sakura, but I see people see as more of a comedic than an actual standing up. Well, we can chalk this one up to Naruto's nature as a character. He is always hyperactive and expressive of his emotions. Doesn't mean his emotions aren't powerful. In fact, I could say that when he isn't that expressive or when he really is with a calm demeanor, it means he is heavy with burden or he is really pissed off to the point that you know you really messed up. Some people are like that. They can get angry and expressive, but when they get quiet and controlled, you know you really messed up. Does this diminish the reaction and Naruto sticking up for Sakura and Kakashi. No, it's just that Sasuke has done worse. Comparing to say when Sasuke tried to kill Sakura, he wasn't being that expressive at all. He in fact has this really pissed off face like "Oh no you didn't."
Take that as you will.
I would love to see Sakura stand up for herself against Sasuke, but I think both us and the characters know that it is just not the right time for it. Them fighting amongst themselves would only make the situation worse, not better. So for now they keep it to themselves. Sasuke will get his back pay when the Naruto vs Sasuke fight rolls around. I can see it then.
People say that Kishimoto is bad at writing romance. I question that though because I don't know if it is bad writing or just bad timing. The scenes themselves are not that bad, but I feel these should have been happening long ago, not now. I can also say that just because Kishi is bad at writing romance, doesn't mean NS won't become canon. It just has a few rough edges to get through that Kishi it trying to iron out and it feels like he is trying to make up for lost time and lost opportunities. If that is the case and not just him really believing this is how it should be. I am not bothered by it in reality. I won't say it is not frustrating, but at the same time that is just my inner biased pairing fan's view. My plain fan view's see this as more of a "Now that Sasuke is "back" it is time to answer some questions."
It's not the best, but not the worst either. *Insert Twilight joke.* Actually, SS might be the only relationship that isn't better than Twilight.
To be honest, I like the way this is playing out. In some ways, it feels bad, but this is actually good. We need the views that differ from Naruto's because we need that reality check. It kind of makes Naruto look a little narrow-minded on the surface, but in retrospect it's probably for our own benefit and not for the characters themselves. We need it to be shown that Sasuke is up to no good and this is the proof. It's a way to justify the Naruto vs Sasuke fight later on and no doubt things will get worse. Sasuke is a seflish jackass, but I like that. For once, it gives Sasuke meaning for once instead of just being an undefinable blank slate. We see him as his person now and not just what we have to "interpret."
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Some people have been saying that Sakura's powers are not impressive and that Kishi is terrible at making her be as strong as Naruto and Sasuke. Okay, well to be frank, Naruto and Sasuke cheat with their powers. Even more so with Sasuke. Let's really put this into perspective: Sakura has never been a jinchuurki, she doesn't come from a special clan, she started with nothing, and she had to train the hardest out of anyone.
Would you say that Rock Lee sucks because he can't compete with Sasuke? No, because Rock Lee's case is about overcoming those struggles. He has so much handicap while everyone else got free boosts simply because they were born into a clan.
Sakura trained hard for her powers and I love her for it. It makes her real and it makes Rock Lee real. People are so willing to easily criticize her, yet want to play off that the fact that she is probably the third most powerful from her class. Again, and I know I am beating a dead horse, but why is Hinata getting a free pass again? I really am tired of the whole "because she is a side-character" arguement people propose because I could apply the reverse to Naruto and Sasuke: "They have to gain free stuff because they are the main characters." Yet, people still find BS with them. So I find BS with why everyone else can't be like Sakura and keep up or at least be at that steady pace. Not even Gaara is that powerful and he is a Kage.
I am a man who believes that if you have to apply logic to one character, you have to apply to them all. Sure, not everyone can be as powerful as Naruto and Sasuke, but when the other characters don't even appear they have gotten stronger, then something is wrong. This is especially true when Hinata looks weaker than she was in part 1. She could almost match toe to toe with Neji, but now she can't even take a few Zetsu clones without being beaten.
It's also kind of hard for Sakura to keep up especially when you keep moving the finish line and yet she is still in the race despite it. It really is shameful how much people criticize her for it and really I want to facepalm every time. They can't see a character trying so hard with effort, instead they just see a character who can't keep up. Well, then I will start heavily criticizing Hinata for this now. Everytime someone criticizes Sakura, I will poke at Hinata or any other character and express my disappointment that no other character is as powerful as Naruto and Sasuke right now.
"Why not? Every character should be important." Sounds stupid to you? Think I am being impractical and not understanding the situation? Yeah, that feeling is the same feeling I get every time people bash Sakura with terrible reasons.
It's ironic, the dream-jutsu was meant to correct losses or wrongs that were horribly tragic, eg. Obito's loss of Rin. But the dreams of the rookies are fairly attainable in real life. Only Gaara and Tsunade's dreams are impossible. So it seems to be the Rookies either don't get it, and/or haven't suffered enough heart-breaking loss to really deserve an altered reality to fix their lives.
And it undermines the work of this ultimate genjutsu. I wish the dreams weren't so light-hearted, but that they were instead dreams that really made their lives perfect. Like Gaara and Tsunade's, where the reader really feels the weight of what's being offered. The return of those who have been killed — Asuma, Neji, Kakashi's dad, Sai's brother, Shikamaru and Ino's parents, etc. Giving the readers a moment where you feel like wow, they're lives really are better. It would sharpen Naruto's hero's journey, by pulling the readers even more over to him when he convinced the genjutsu'd masses and the readers that his way really was better. *sigh* Just a thought.
I actually like that aspect of the dreams of the K11 and I thought you guys hated the idea that all characters have this tragic past. XD
The bolded part is really I think the intention because some of these characters don't really know what it's like to be standing at the edge. So of course their views are going to be shallow. Also, keep in mind these guys are still kids and kids always have selfish, shallow dreams...especially teenagers. It makes them more relatable. I think it really shows the different spectrum of these characters
and defines them even more. Hinata's, Ino's, and a few others are selfish, but they never really been expressed to desire anything else really. Compared to Gaara and others who just wanted a different life all together.
They are getting exactly what they wanted and that is perfect to them. Even if Ino's is all the boys fighting over her, that is her perfect world. Sometimes people find perfection in flaws and that's the world they want.
Take example my own dreams. My perfect world is not in never facing difficulties, but overcoming them. Having the powers and abilities to gain what I want most. It would be boring to just gain everything that easy and some people like that challenge. That is perfection to them.
I don't think it undermines the genjutsu so much as it undermines the character. It's like someone wishing for a sandwhich from a Genie. All the power in the universe and they ask for a sandwhich...which is even more funny when you realize that that's all they wanted.
Edited by James S Cassidy, 29 May 2014 - 02:24 PM.
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