Jump to content

Close
Photo

So, how did YOU react to the ending?

Same BS Diff rxns

  • Please log in to reply
37 replies to this topic

#1 KClaws_2

KClaws_2

    Chakra Tree Climber

  • Chakra Tree Climber
  • PipPip
  • 264 posts
  • Gender:Male

Posted 03 September 2019 - 09:00 AM

Obviously, Im asking for a bit more than shouting at your keyboard.

When I read the ending, I was going through a rather difficult time in my life. My first career choice didnt pan out the way I hoped, and I was struggling with finding work. Anyway, I typically let the manga go on ahead for periods of time before I return, so I was a little late to the party, if you can call it that. I restarted from 690, I believe, and essentially blazed on through. The further I went in, the more nervous I became. Sakuras shot to the heart triggered that anxiety for me. I got to the final battle, and while it had its positive aspects, I was extremely underwhelmed by the whole thing. 14 years of a promised battle leads to this!? Finally, the last two chapters. 699 not only did Sakura no favors, but I was extremely frustrated how people just forgave Sasuke and had him live in exile, which was what he was doing to begin with. I was nervous that 700 was going to rush through everything to explain the end. But it didnt. It didnt explain ANYTHING. Narutos Hokage, everyone's married with children, and the cycle begins anew.

I was, for lack of a better word, shell shocked. I could not sleep from midnight to noon. I just couldnt help but wonder what signs did I miss? My usual routines came to a screeching halt that day, I didnt even eat until the next evening, and all I was able to do was walk the dogs. I skipped martial arts that day, knowing I was not going to be able to focus.

For a long while after, I frequently explored different corners of the internet, trying to understand what happened (and most everyone with a brain was as confused as I was). I was also heartbroken at the toxic attitude of the NH fans against the NS fans. It was a problem I always knew was there, but the ending emboldened them to actively seek us out and cyber bully us to validate themselves the true fans of Naruto.
I checked out all sorts of conspiracy theories by other fans regularly, whether it was always a part of Kishimotos beliefs or if his editors forced him into doing what he did, if there was any discrepancy between the manga and anime studio about where the story was headed, almost to an unhealthy level I must confess.

After some time, Ive managed to move on from Naruto for the most part. Ive found joy in other things, both in my personal life and in enjoying the works of others. Im now trying to get my own story off the ground, and use the failures of Naruto to learn what NOT to do.

So, what was your reaction to the ending, and how did you cope afterwards?

#2 Phantom_999

Phantom_999

    Heaven and Earth Deity

  • Kyuubi
  • PipPipPipPipPipPip
  • 12,998 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Canada

Posted 03 September 2019 - 09:53 AM

I felt empty inside at first. Then I told my mom that Naruto ended, and then had the urge to get rid of the all of the volumes I bought. THEN that emptiness turned to a quiet rage that I actually  used to my advantage because I actually remember I had a psychology exam as a very last course for college that day. and I actually performed really well getting above 90% lol The next few days after that was just simmering in anger and disappointment and I even wanted to look up a new Shonen jump series to fill the void that that atrocity of an ending left in me, and MAN am I happy I did. I found my new eternal "WSJ loves" My Hero Academia and Black Clover as well three years later :smile: after that I NEVER went back to Naruto again :superior:


Edited by Phantom_999, 17 April 2021 - 11:45 PM.

3fbe3276d61acb2079b56cd2212a341c14963200


#3 NaruSaku fan in Kentucky

NaruSaku fan in Kentucky

    Kyuubi

  • Kyuubi
  • PipPipPipPipPip
  • 4,063 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Interests:Likes Kentucky Basketball, NaruSaku and Godzilla.

    Dislikes Sasuke SasuSaku NaruHina and the Louisville Cardnials.

Posted 03 September 2019 - 04:02 PM

I... Felt.... pissed. That's how I react. I mean the ending came right out of nowhere. I remember waking up very early to read it and never have I been more disappointed in a ending in my entire life. What really pissed me off was Kishi's sexist comments two weeks later when he said if Sakura left Sasuke she would be a terrible woman.

509356167_759751.gif?4


#4 RedFaction

RedFaction

    Legendary Pirate

  • Legendary Ninja
  • PipPipPipPipPip
  • 3,417 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Michigan

Posted 03 September 2019 - 10:43 PM

I'll be honest it hurt a lot. I can still remember the day those final two chapters came out. It was like a nightmare and it felt like a total and complete betrayal by Kishi. His comments immediately after the ending and the years since have only made things worse.


 


#5 Nate River

Nate River

    Heaven and Earth Deity

  • Kage
  • 5,982 posts
  • Gender:Male

Posted 03 September 2019 - 11:55 PM

Disappointment?

I honestly dont remember any specifics and Im too lazy too search posts that old. Im sure I trashed the chapter, but by that point that was dependable as a sun rise.

I do recall that by that point my unhappiness with the overall plot and characterization that I didnt care all that much about the pairing, at least not to the degree that it would have much earlier in the series. I also recall that my opinion was that the ending would still have sucked even if it ended NS. Nothing Kishimoto did could save it from all the other problems.

Naruto still would have said Obito is a cool guy, Kabuto and Orochimaru would still have escape meaningful punishment despite their enormous crimes, Kaguya would still have been an empty shell, and Sasuke getting off scott free was a certanty. NS would not have saved it from any of that. There was no way Sasuke wasnt going to skate given Narutos development and goals. He never would have accepted a jailed Sasuke as returning to the village. Bringing back meant being a member in good standing as well. Unless Boruto was going to be about what comes next (for ninja and Sasuke etc.), then that was a guarantee.

I thought the fight was the only good thing in that it was short and too the point. The metaphysical aspect mattered more than the physical and drawing it out would not have helped it. Unfortunately, the metaphysical aspect was awful. Naruto never had to deal with the most problematic part of his ideals (unlike the 3rd who payed dearly for his soft heart) and Sasuke never developed a coherent ones. Worse yet, what he did develop was not something anyone would sympathize with or support. Rooting for Sasuke at that junction would be like rooting for Stalin.

Now, I was a little surprised that Naruto and Kakashi through the weight of their position and status and position to push for his freedom and that the series appeared to treat this as a positive. He got special treatment because he was Sasuke and that was a positive? Well, I guess it shouldnt be surprised. Karin sought Sasuke out and accept his apology for trying to murder her. I mean its not as bad as the series glossing of Obitos horrific acts, but it was pretty painful. Part 2 is filled with that kinda of kitten, so I think I expected to be disappointed. Nevertheless, my lack interest in the pairing at that point made it a kind of meh. Just another scoop of trash on an ending already full of it. With or without NS, Id have hate the ending. What disappointments me the most is that it wasted a great world and interesting characters.

As for the fandom....was I disappointed. No, I expected it. We have to ban a bunch of accounts created just to rub it and I remember the wall of Anal Devastation. I think I might have been mildly disappointed I didnt make it. But we had plenty of users who openly said that if NS became canon theyd run over to NF and do what they tried to do us.

I was surprised in another way. I never thought hed render an entire characters personal journey moot the way he did with Sakura. 693 reseting her 500 chapters and returning her to 181 counterpart....was not what I thought would happen even if we got SS, but if that was the way she was gonna be written, then they can have their pairing. No thanks.

#6 Moon_Girl

Moon_Girl

    Academy Teacher

  • Academy Teacher
  • PipPipPip
  • 683 posts
  • Gender:Female
  • Interests:OTPs:
    NaruSaku - Naruto x Sakura (Naruto Series)
    Het Chrobin - Chrom x Robin♀ (Fire Emblem Awakening)
    Clerith - Cloud x Aerith (Final Fantasy VII Series)
    Demelith - Demetri x Byleth♀ (Fire Emblem Three Houses/Hopes)
    Phantom/Erik x Christine (Phantom of the Opera)
    Jintan x Menma (AnoHana)
    ZeLink - Link x Zelda (Legend of Zelda Series)

Posted 04 September 2019 - 12:41 AM

I cried.

The Last was being teased before the manga ended and I remember they threw out a horrible red herring to us. During one of the trailers, idr who but someone said, "Sakura has become very beautiful. Surely Naruto..."
That was really horrible of them to do that. Of course they don't care. They're no better than the NH and Hinatards who live to just be nasty people to ship otherwise.
There was apparently a lot of rumors going around that pushed for NaruSaku. It didn't help when the truth came out.

I cried and then I immediately, that same night, threw all my Naruto merch into a box, threw it into my car and sold it at a local store that took used media. Used that money to buy something I liked. Even though it wasn't much. I remember my parents witnessing me throwing my stuff into the box and going; "Oh...she's mad." Mad didn't even cover it.
But I felt...empty. In shock. In disbelief. I stopped by a grocery store and I remember just staring up at the sky for a while. Wondering why. This place was much busier around then. But that ending picked people off one by one. 
The manga ending had me completely defeated. There were members hopeful that the manga ending was just a part of the ultimate tsukiyomi or whatever. They had hope that 'The Last' was actually going to be NaruSaku. 
But I didn't believe it at all. And I was right. I hate to say I was right.
There were a ton of trolls that came here just to harass us. It was really dumb.

It's been years and I'm still not over it. I still get sad, I still get enraged and I still get disappointed. 
Kishimoto's interviews since then have been inconsistent and contradict each other and past interviews. He's a liar trying to do damage control. Until he fesses up and/or corrects his wrongs, I won't support him in anything anymore ever again. 

No one read the manga wrong. It was going to be NaruSaku. But Studio Pierrot bought the ending. They loved their personality-less, weak, spineless, Naruto obsessed, big chested 'princess' so much that they destroyed an entire series and lost about 80% of their fandom over it. And I don't think they even feel shameful. 
Once in a while, I'll just vent about it on a tumblr blog I have and reblog other people's frustrations.

Yeah, it's been years. But I spent about 10+ years on this series. You can only imagine how many years of anger, rage and disappointment people like me have. I won't get those 10+ years back, Kishimoto. I invested a lot of time and energy into the series. Not for this. Not for the worst ending I've ever witnessed.

And honestly? Because of this ending, I lost all faith I had in the anime industry. I refuse to watch or read an ongoing series. The only exception is a manga I've been following as much as I did Naruto.
But I have no faith that they'll give us a good story and/or ending. I have no faith they'll stick with their foreshadowing. I have no faith they won't destroy everything over a "moeblob". And I now despise the moeblobs. I despise the "girl with a crush and has nothing else to offer". There are a lot of those. And they're popular much to my dismay. 
I have no faith that the industry won't control their b*ners over their favorite crappy waifu. 

But I can see bias much more clearly now. The industry is full of it. And it's disgusting.


NaruSaku will always be better than crack and fan fiction
 

#7 Derock

Derock

    H&E Interpol Agent

  • Kage
  • 8,866 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:From Brick City to Lone Star, USA
  • Interests:Video games (fighting), NaruSaku, Naruto, Sonic, Street Fighter, DOA, Darkstalkers, Tekken, computers, MHA

Posted 04 September 2019 - 12:52 AM

Many was here when it happened. I announced my "retirement" as soon as 699 and 700 was released. Horrible indeed.


latest?cb=20140126021943

What's Happening with the Naruto series as of now!


#8 Namaenash

Namaenash

    Chuunin

  • Chuunin
  • PipPipPip
  • 560 posts
  • Gender:Female

Posted 04 September 2019 - 12:11 PM

I was very upset and I thought I've spent 15 years following Naruto manga for nothing. I got all the volumes up to vol. 63. A lot of merchandise, figures, memorabilia. I'd like to think I've spent a good $2-3k over the last 15 years (if not more).

It wasn't pleasant at all. So, I decided to throw everything away. Not even going to give it to someone. It went to garbage collector.

After that, I was so mad that I decided to write my first (and last) fanfiction https://m.fanfiction...1/The-Endurance

I'm honored that the fanfic won the price in this forum (thanks folks!).

Thereafter, I stopped watching anime or buying manga (we do have local store that sells original Japanese manga here).

No anime or manga that I'm following since December 2014. Life goes on with my family :) I introduced my kids to the remaining series that I have left in my bookshelf: FMA, Slam Dunk, GTO and Dragon Ball.

Occasionally I checked the sales performance of Naruto series and how it fares against itself before the ending, as well as other series. I'm pleased to know that all my predictions are proven right.

Nothing, on financial front shows any improvement for Naruto since its ending. All has been in decline.

Pareto principle: roughly 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. Today, the sales is about 10%-15% of what it used to be. NS, has always been that significant few, that finances 80%-85% of this series all along. You take out NS, you loose 80%-85% of revenue.

http://namaenasuyou.tumblr.com/     ||     https://www.fanfiction.net/u/6308104/

 

"I'm sorry I didn't believe. But I'd given up believing in so much, until I met you. From the first day I saw you, you were everything I ever wanted to believe in. You can do this, Diana. I know you can...But I have to go."

"What? What are you saying?"

"It's okay, this is what I came here to do. I can save today, but you... you can save the world."


#9 RulesofNature

RulesofNature

    Chakra Water Walker

  • Chakra Water Walker
  • PipPip
  • 447 posts

Posted 04 September 2019 - 10:21 PM

I was in college at the time. I had been with the series since I first encountered it's early chapters in Shonen Jump, but it wasn't a favorite. Only reasons why I dove into it was a) my library in high school had the first dozen or so volumes, and b) I had just changed schools and my new weeb friend really liked it. So, it wasn't a real obsession of mine. Not like Detective Conan was during that time.

 

I had gotten disillusioned with Conan because after 600 chapters there was no end in sight. But when I caught up with Naruto, it was around... I wanna say Jiraiya's death. Blue Bird was the anime opening around that time, and though I didn't watch the show I liked the opening. Yeah, a little research confirms this was around when I caught up.

 

Everything was building up to the final battle soon approaching. Konoha was under attack, Sasuke had beaten Itachi, Hinata made her confession, everything was in motion. Then things stopped. The series stalled for time, trying to make it into this big war and introduce new characters for the anime to make filler episodes to flesh out. I stopped caring, but I continued on through stupid writing decision after stupid writing decision. It went downhill and looking back now I can't believe that was just past the halfway point of the story.

 

By the time it ended, I was just happy it was over. It was done and I walked away. But then I heard about what The Last did, and how Naruto became a bad father. Curious, I looked into these while thinking the series over in my head. The more I did the latter, the more I realized just how awful it had become during those final years.


iSP2FNe.png

Just making your day a little brighter.


#10 Bryon_Konoha_Ninja

Bryon_Konoha_Ninja

    Magnificient Bastard (aka Cliffhanger Bastard!)

  • Kyuubi
  • PipPipPipPipPipPip
  • 5,913 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Eugene, OR, USA

Posted 04 September 2019 - 10:32 PM

All I felt was a lot of confusion, frustration, and hurt. Like I'd just been stabbed in the back. My friend Kurt likes to tease me of how I won't let it go, but he doesn't get how invested I became into the story, and how I felt betrayed. He isn't the type to care about pairing, and just sometimes thinks it was because of NaruHina that I was pissed, but it was more than that. It was feeling like the story had become hypocritical, and THAT was what pissed me off.



#11 tricksie

tricksie

    Legendary Ninja

  • ANBU
  • 3,655 posts
  • Gender:Female

Posted 05 September 2019 - 03:51 AM

I'll be honest it hurt a lot. I can still remember the day those final two chapters came out. It was like a nightmare and it felt like a total and complete betrayal by Kishi. His comments immediately after the ending and the years since have only made things worse.

Same. I wish I could say I saw it coming, but I didn't. Not really. That's not saying I thought there was tremendous evidence pointing to a NS ending (uh, except that Naruto says to his dead dad that sakura's his gf, and the dad approves). More I thought that there was no way Kishimoto would throw away the core of his story for a hasty, nonsensical ending. I never thought that he would ruin Naruto's character as much as he did. And Sakura's end was even worse.

 

It hit me when I saw the panel with Sasuke and Sakura. I just though it was...gross. That's when I knew that Naruto had gone into the worst timeline. Up until that point, I thought Kishi was stringing us along but had a master plan in the end. How wrong I was. Now looking back at some of the most cringe-worthy points — Obito and Naruto's 'cool guy' statements; Neji dying for NH; Hinata and her 'look into his eyes' garbage; Kakashi becoming Kage and them letting Sasuke get off easy — I was wrong for thinking those awful moments would all make sense in the end. I think now that Kishi just wanted to end it as quickly as possible. And yes, everything Kishi has said since the end has only made it worse.

 

But it really really sucked to see Sakura still pining for Sasuke. That was the 'true end' for me. Such a disappointment, even moreso than Naruto/Hinata pairing. Cause at least NH was a healthy pairing — SS is not. 

 

As for other anime/manga/stories since then, I am more prepared for things to go wrong, like for it to be ended quickly or to be written to satisfy a fandom. I was so surprised that Naruto could be ruined that now I'm more 'meh' about it. When Voltron blew itself up in the last season, and I was like whatever. Go Naruto yourself. :dry:  

 

edit: One last thing - rereading everyone's posts I realized I haven't watched or read Naruto since it ended. And for a little while I thought I wouldn't be able to write on my fics again. But the NS fandom has remained remarkably strong. And I'm still writing. When I started reading the Naruto series I was a young mom. Now, when I share my fics with my fam, I never once tell them to read the manga or watch the show. It will only disappoint them in the end!  :lol:



#12 Bryon_Konoha_Ninja

Bryon_Konoha_Ninja

    Magnificient Bastard (aka Cliffhanger Bastard!)

  • Kyuubi
  • PipPipPipPipPipPip
  • 5,913 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Eugene, OR, USA

Posted 05 September 2019 - 06:03 PM

Same. I wish I could say I saw it coming, but I didn't. Not really. That's not saying I thought there was tremendous evidence pointing to a NS ending (uh, except that Naruto says to his dead dad that sakura's his gf, and the dad approves). More I thought that there was no way Kishimoto would throw away the core of his story for a hasty, nonsensical ending. I never thought that he would ruin Naruto's character as much as he did. And Sakura's end was even worse.

 

It hit me when I saw the panel with Sasuke and Sakura. I just though it was...gross. That's when I knew that Naruto had gone into the worst timeline. Up until that point, I thought Kishi was stringing us along but had a master plan in the end. How wrong I was. Now looking back at some of the most cringe-worthy points — Obito and Naruto's 'cool guy' statements; Neji dying for NH; Hinata and her 'look into his eyes' garbage; Kakashi becoming Kage and them letting Sasuke get off easy — I was wrong for thinking those awful moments would all make sense in the end. I think now that Kishi just wanted to end it as quickly as possible. And yes, everything Kishi has said since the end has only made it worse.

 

But it really really sucked to see Sakura still pining for Sasuke. That was the 'true end' for me. Such a disappointment, even moreso than Naruto/Hinata pairing. Cause at least NH was a healthy pairing — SS is not. 

 

As for other anime/manga/stories since then, I am more prepared for things to go wrong, like for it to be ended quickly or to be written to satisfy a fandom. I was so surprised that Naruto could be ruined that now I'm more 'meh' about it. When Voltron blew itself up in the last season, and I was like whatever. Go Naruto yourself. :dry:  

 

edit: One last thing - rereading everyone's posts I realized I haven't watched or read Naruto since it ended. And for a little while I thought I wouldn't be able to write on my fics again. But the NS fandom has remained remarkably strong. And I'm still writing. When I started reading the Naruto series I was a young mom. Now, when I share my fics with my fam, I never once tell them to read the manga or watch the show. It will only disappoint them in the end!  :lol:

 

Trust me, I've seen some series I like or wanna give a try just blow up on me too, Trixie, like with the aforementioned Voltron: Legendary Defender. And I grew up on the original Voltron when it was just a dub of the anime GoLion! Hell, the fastest for me was The Legend of Korra. After Book 1, I was like "That's it, I'm done!"

And while NH can be healthy, the way it is in "canon" sure doesn't feel that way with how Naruto and Hinata seem to only be together because of their kids, and not becuase Naruto loves her, given how he was "forced" to do it in THe Last. I also admit, I am not reading or watching Naruto much, since if I do, I do it to get ideas where not to screw the pooch for my own story!



#13 HalfDemonInuyasha

HalfDemonInuyasha

    Mercenary

  • Jounin
  • PipPipPipPip
  • 1,598 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Albany, NY

Posted 05 September 2019 - 06:50 PM

Confusion, then disappointment that such a complete 180 was taken. Didn't turn into anger until Kishi's subsequent interviews that literally blamed the (NS) fans for "not reading it correctly" and daring to call what was 99% of the story a "red herring", then changing his story virtually every interview afterwards until he finally, whether he knew it or not, admitted how toxic things were with admitting that he "felt sorry for Hinatatas" and calling SS a "drug addiction" and such. All of it just poisoned the entirety of the journey for me.

I can't see Naruto except as a selfish, whiny brat whose traits got passed down and worse with his spawn.

I can't see him as an "underdog" at the start anymore.

I can't see him as an empathetic individual, but just another cog in the system who THINKS he has free will and THINKS he can read others, but is actually just stupid.

I can't see him as someone who wants to protect "everyone", but only Sasuke.

I can't see him as a "proud failure" or a hard worker because he just has so much handed to him and turns out to have been predestined as the most "special" person of all.

I can't see him as the "greatest Hokage" because he does nothing noteworthy as Hokage.

And so on and so forth.


Everything just crumbled into nothingness. And that's as a general fan without even considering pairings. After The Last and the Boruto movie, I quit caring since it's obvious that nothing will be fixed until Naruto's popularity dies off, it gets sold off to another company or something, and that company remakes it from the ground up and actually has it progress and end properly, completely differently than what we got (at the most, I'd say that all of part two needs to be redone). Otherwise, the poison will still be there and even getting a NS ending in general won't mitigate it
 


2e5.gif


#14 Nostradamus

Nostradamus

    Heaven and Earth Deity

  • Kyuubi
  • PipPipPipPipPipPip
  • 6,026 posts
  • Gender:Not Telling

Posted 05 September 2019 - 08:24 PM

Well I've said this before, but I'll say it again. For an entire week I've felt weird, strange. Something that I never felt before, but I didn't knew what it was. I didn't knew back then, but over time I realized what it was. It was depression.

I actually fell into depression because of how it ended. Not because of a pairing, because that's something I could've gotten by pretty quickly.

I mean sure the pairing I liked didn't happen, it's not a big deal. But that's not really what made me feel the way I did.

It was everything else that drove me into depression. And I don't need to list them all, do I? You know everything that went on.

However I'm going to mention the one that got to me the most. Naruto giving up and just being the opposite of everything he stood for.

 

That broke me because when I started to follow Naruto, I was going to through some rough times in my life and seeing this character going on and on with his nindo of never giving up and always staying true to himself, really helped me. Yeah, yeah, yeah it's a fictional story and it was cheesy, don't care about that. What mattered is that even though it was fiction, it helped.

And that hurt more than anything. It's like meeting your hero and discovering what a horrible human being they are.

 

A little advice for those who still believe that all of this was there from the beginning and we just didn't see it or chose not to see it. No. Just No.

Don't go down that path because nothing that happened in the end was foreshadowed at all. There were no signs. Nothing.

It just happened. Why? I've mentioned this before and I stand by it, they (people above Kishi) believed going this route will gain them more money. Did the way they did it made any sense? No.

But these types of decisions are often done by people who have no clue what they are even in charge of. These types of people work with charts and graphs that show them most of the time possibilities of what will happen, not what's going to happen. Predictions.


                         CZSn9hA.jpg
 
Which I've told you - time and time again - is dangerous! There will never be consensus, son, among those you have helped to ascend. They will all differ in their views of what it means to be free. The peace you so desperately seek does not exist.
 
These men are united now by a common cause. But when this battle is finished they will fall to fighting amongst themselves about how best to ensure control. In time it will lead to war. You will see.


#15 ProperNoun123

ProperNoun123

    Fresh Meat

  • Fresh Meat
  • 2 posts
  • Gender:Male

Posted 05 September 2019 - 09:34 PM

Ooooo, can I join in? I haven't posted anything but an intro on this account a looong time ago, but I used to lurk this place a bunch back in the day. Besides, reading you guys' posts makes me feel like I wanna get something off my chest.

 

I started reading the Manga on NarutoMangaReturns (an old MSN group that would post translated chapters on Fridays) back in 2005 when I was twelve. They got shut down, so I migrated to OneManga which posted their translated chapters on Thursdays. They got shut down too, so I went over to Mangastream which posted their chapters on Wednesdays. I finished reading it on Mangapanda. It was 2014 then, and the digits in my age had switched places.

 

I used to be insane about reading the latest English-Translated chapter as soon as it came out. I'd daydream about it at school, count down the hours and periods on whichever weekday when the chapters would post. I'd go to sleep that same night wondering what would happen next chapter, and in the future after that. Break weeks would fill me with dread, and chapters arriving a day late would cause a sleepless night from waiting.

 

And right alongside my love of Naruto was my love of Narusaku. I don't quite remember when it started, but I remember getting into Youtube Comment arguments about it in 2006 Pairing AMVs. 90% of the Internet used IE6 for their browser at the time, so there were no red squiggly lines underneath misspelled words for people typing angry stuff in the comment boxes, and all of us looked like illiterate morons shouting at each other. Good times.

 

But, the years go on. I remember my first dip in interest took place around the time Sasuke was forming Taka and we got a bunch of Sasuke-centric chapters. I'd read the chapter and then retreat into Naruto/Sakura on FFnet, wondering about when they'd get back to the characters I liked. My interest shot back up like crazy during the Pain Arc. And then, a long, linear slope down for the years after that.

 

It started with not being antsy about release day for the latest chapter. Then I stopped speculating about what would happen next. And at some point, I would just start forgetting to read the week's chapter entirely, and every few months I would catch up by spending a minute or two per chapter skimming and clicking through the pages. 

 

I didn't have too much interest left at all when it came time for the ending. I was a little angry I guess, but moreso at what Kishi did to the characters than the pairings. I probably would've been far more pissed if Narusaku did happen, and Naruto treated a canon Shinachiku the same way he treated Boruto in 700. And I knew as soon as I heard about The Last and Boruto that I would never watch/read either of them. The canon Naruto series, as far as I saw it, was truly and completely over when the original manga ended.

 

And I suppose I felt sad. But moreso for the other NS shippers and all the amazing fanfic writers who had poured their love and attention into the many stories I had read over the years. I had mentally checked out from canon Naruto, but that didn't mean there weren't plenty of people out there who were touched by the series like I was and had to deal with the emotional fallout from Kishi's bad writing decisions.

 

But through all of this, I never stopped having daydreams about Naruto. All the way through the slow death the manga died, and even today. They're not as frequent as they were when I was younger and more energetic, but every now and again I still wonder. About what it would've been like if the manga took a different direction, about whether it'd be cooler to go with Headcanon A or Headcanon B in my imagination. I used to write a bunch of bad Narusaku fanfiction and read stuff from people who were a lot better than me. I still write NS stuff, but I keep my stories in my head, not in a word processor and not on fanfiction sites. It's a lot of effort to actually flesh out a story and make it enjoyable for other people to read, and a bit harder for me to find the time to do as an adult than it was as a middle-schooler. But stories for me are always ultimately about what the writer wants, not the reader, and if an idea is enjoyable enough for me imagine and idly think about in my free time, then it's enough for me. Canon Naruto is pretty irrelevant as far that's concerned, so I don't really hold any animosity about the Ending today.

 

I still love the Naruto series, in a way. I still love Narusaku, and it's still my OTP to this day. It'll probably always be my favorite pairing, seeing as how I'm much more of a prick these days and not quite as amenable to shipping as I was when I was twelve, when that fun yellow-and-pink combo wormed its way into my heart. That's really where Naruto, and NS, lives for me now. I suppose I'm being positive--or I'm being immature and I'm still in denial five years later. I don't think I'll ever really forget Naruto and how my own personal interpretation of it shaped me as a human being regardless.

 

Guess that's a bit more about Narusaku than the Naruto Ending and how I felt about it in 2014 specifically--and it probably feels weird to read because none of you know who I am and I'm just some guy who showed up to post some blocks of text--but screw it, I wrote it and now I'm posting it  :P.



#16 Shizuku

Shizuku

    Rookie

  • Rookie
  • Pip
  • 86 posts
  • Gender:Female
  • Location:Chile

Posted 08 September 2019 - 01:21 AM

I remember I cried.

Then I tried to take a nap because I wasn't feeling so good. I couldn't sleep, not even in the night.
For years I couldn't watch naruto related stuff because I was angry. Angry at kishimoto's horrible way of writing female characters and because of that poor ending of a series that I fell in love when I was 11 and was pretty much a big part of my childhood and teenhood.
But at some point I started watching old naruto moments, not about ships or anything related, but about when the show was good (like when naruto meets kushina for the first time).
I guess at some point I started to heal the wounds of the horrible ending?
But anyways, I wanted to write this here because this ship gave me a lot of joy when I was a kid, and it was really really fun. I remember spending A LOT of time making narusaku AMVs or things like that. And even if the ending is horrible, I'll still remember the good things about naruto, not just the show related stuff, but because of naruto I've made really good friends.

#17 Dalton.T.R

Dalton.T.R

    Jounin

  • Jounin
  • PipPipPipPip
  • 1,727 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:I'm right behind you.

Posted 08 September 2019 - 05:55 AM

I never even read the last two chapters, actually. I just saw what everyone he was posting at the time, so I didn't really need to. I don't remember how I actually reacted. I think life was throwing everything it could at me at the time with college, work, starting a new book and so on. I remember I was a little down, but I didn't have the time to really let it get to me.

 

I'll be honest. The series went down hill in so fast and in so many directions I kind of lost interest. I remember people were saying Naruto was supposed to end after the Pain fight, which made sense, but then the story just kept going on and on and on and on until I finally just lost interest. When the series started drawing closer to its end is when I started paying a little closer attention, but I'd be lying if I said I thought something wasn't right. I never dreamed it would end the way it did, but  had a gut feeling telling me things were going to be bad.



#18 Bryon_Konoha_Ninja

Bryon_Konoha_Ninja

    Magnificient Bastard (aka Cliffhanger Bastard!)

  • Kyuubi
  • PipPipPipPipPipPip
  • 5,913 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Eugene, OR, USA

Posted 09 September 2019 - 04:46 AM

I never even read the last two chapters, actually. I just saw what everyone he was posting at the time, so I didn't really need to. I don't remember how I actually reacted. I think life was throwing everything it could at me at the time with college, work, starting a new book and so on. I remember I was a little down, but I didn't have the time to really let it get to me.

 

I'll be honest. The series went down hill in so fast and in so many directions I kind of lost interest. I remember people were saying Naruto was supposed to end after the Pain fight, which made sense, but then the story just kept going on and on and on and on until I finally just lost interest. When the series started drawing closer to its end is when I started paying a little closer attention, but I'd be lying if I said I thought something wasn't right. I never dreamed it would end the way it did, but  had a gut feeling telling me things were going to be bad.

 

I know what you mean. Things really fell apart when the series went past the Pain stuff. I did feel some stuff before then was bad, but not so bad it didn't hinder the story.



#19 Kadmos1

Kadmos1

    Fresh Meat

  • Fresh Meat
  • 8 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Glendale, AZ
  • Interests:aminoapps.com/c/naruto/page/blog/how-madara-got-his-rinnegan
    animebase.me/threads/how-did-tobi-give-nagato-rinnegan.216363
    animebase.me/threads/was-nagato-getting-madaras-eyes-ever-explained.675406
    blogspot.com/2014/04/examining-naruto-chapter-674-is-madara.html
    crunchyroll.com/forumtopic-781194
    mangahelpers.com/forum/threads/rinnegan-discussion-thread.65504/page-7
    nairaland.com/522373/naruto-information/415
    narutoforums.org/threads/huge-retcon-here-or-at-least-cought-obito-lying.856224
    narutoforums.org/threads/is-senju-uchiha-rinnegan-is-still-credible.960598
    randomc.net/2010/09/26/naruto-511-symbolic-in-more-ways-than-one
    reddit.com/r/Naruto/comments/2fmrza
    reddit.com/r/Naruto/comments/4di3ua
    reddit.com/r/Naruto/comments/6cise1
    reddit.com/r/Naruto/comments/azmy4e

Posted 27 September 2019 - 05:13 AM

My most severe reaction to it: NH and SS being canon is the main reason my Narutard self largely died out! I am hoping to finish up the Eng. dub by the end of the year and I do watch Boruto mainly to support the industry but also out of spite!



#20 MangaReader

MangaReader

    I'm the Greatest Ever!!

  • Legendary Ninja
  • PipPipPipPipPip
  • 3,416 posts
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Mitten Michigan
  • Interests:Drawing
    Animating
    Watching TV

Posted 27 September 2019 - 03:57 PM

Holy F*** it's been so long, do you people even remember me? If you don't, I hardly blame you. But my word its great to finally be back... all this time feeling like I'd be alone with this struggle.

 

Anyway, how did I react? I honestly think I just went empty... the utmost garbage part about the ending was finding it out through Naruto the Last image spoilers before the actual final two chapters dropped. I just remember the community kinda panicking hoping it was all fake or something else entirely, but I believe it was just our own inability to admit Kishimoto hacked himself out of writing his manga the true way he wanted to end it, all because a sequel was needed apparently. 


sad_naruto_sig_by_mangafreak17-d81c8fy.p

Even if I'm not the one to make you happy

 





1 user(s) are reading this topic

0 members, 1 guests, 0 anonymous users