It's an interesting difference between regular Naruto and AU Naruto. No, I don't want Naruto to be more like his AU self, and neither do most people. But it's still interesting to see a Naruto who is 'evil'. Sure, we saw Dark Naruto in the manga, but that was just Naruto's inner negative thoughts. It's wasn't completely opposite of him. It was how he 'truly' felt, but he's worked through those feelings. Dark Naruto in the manga WAS Naruto, or at least a small part of his mind.
Menma is more than just Dark Naruto from the manga. He really is opposite of the Naruto we know and love. He is not only negative feelings, he's that Naruto that took those negative feelings and let them decide his path. -prevalently, I was under the impression he is only bad due to Kyuubi and Tobi, but I guess I'll have to wait to see the move* He's supposed to be different, even his Kyuubi is different.
That said, I consider them 2 completely different characters. I wouldn't want the actual Naruto to be like him. But Menma -just Menma- is still pretty cool to me.
Exactly. Menma is Naruto possessed by Tobi. It's not truly AU Naruto. It's not even the inner Dark Naruto from the manga. Menma is a whole new version of his character, hence the new name. No one else gets a new name in AU land, only Naruto. I think we're supposed to see him as an entirely separate character from manga/canon Naruto.
That said, it is pretty cool to have new versions of Naruto at this late stage in the story. Menma is way better than some kind of Dark Naruto. It's easy to envision the kind of havoc a possessed Naruto would wreak on the world. And Menma is that vehicle.
btw, I'm sticking with Menma's eyes being a dark blue in the fanfic (thanks for the good thoughts on that, everyone). Sometimes blackish in the shadows. And not sharingan red until he gets really angry.



















