catsi563

they had three options in that regard.imho. kill her during the Pein arc with her noble sacrifice being a motivating point for the rookie 9 and naruto in particular. her confession causes Naruto to really search his own feeling son Sakura and reach out to her to let her know how he feels and that while he wants Sasuke back so she can make her own choice hes willing to wait but didnt want her to not know.

this leads into the land of iron arc and the disagreement caused by Sakura attempting to protect him by letting him know she returns his feelings but doing so in an awkward way which hides that she and the rookies decided to take sasuke out and worse she decided to do it by herself. this creates some conflict between them but lets them work it out as they talk afterward and each comes to terms with their rapidly growing affection

the other option is not to kill her because quite frankly she JUST ISNT THAT IMPORTANT her sacrifice just goes  by the way side as it did in the manga and is left behind with no one discussing it again as she slips into the background

of course there is a third option which was never taken which was to use that moment as a matter of personal growth where she acknowledges narutos feelings for Sakura and begins her own journey to let go of him and move on which would have been a fundamental character growth moment

Honestly I think he gave up on Naruto when editorial interference pushed Hinata into prominence and derailed what story he was writing. I think thats where his infamous Hinata Hinata hinata thing came from, not just a jab at her fandom but at the editors and staff who were basically shoving a minor side character down his throat, So he essentally threw his hands in the air and said whatevs and just wrote what ended up being the ending

id like to think its more positive the author at least built to this ending from the start. no sudden twists or swerves. you cant say as a reader that you didnt have at least a basic inkling this was coming.  while theres a surprise or two here and there they arent complete asspulls like Naruto did

Happy NaruSaku day all

There's the NH (as in NejiHina... which was probably the intended ship) doujinshi called Terrace where that happens:

 

 

But naw it was better and more beautiful for Hinata to win while Sakura is alone forever ofc. She did hit Naruto those 3 times.

Terrace yep that the one

Ill requote my thoughts on hinata 

 

 

For me Hinatas character is a simple fix

 

1: give her motivations beyond Naruto and her love for him

 

2: Have her accomplish something beyond just being background or a plot device

 

3: at the end have her let go of naruto and move on from a childish love. have her ackowledge Narutos feelings for Sakura and in the context of her own feelings move forward

 

the first is the biggest as it stands now the character is utterly irrelevant to the story. there isnt a single moment you have her in that she couldnt be replaced by another character to the same or greater emotional effect.  

 

Give her plot points that represent who she is as a character beyond her crush and  that let her stand on her own mertis without naruto

*Lead her clan into the future

*surpass Hanabi as heir and in skill

*find her fathers approval

*Live up to nejis legacy and sacrafice if such occurred

 

these all give her motivation beyond Naruto and let her stand on her own as a character

 

the 2nd is in reference to her many moments basically accounting to nothing. Such as her moment in the Itachi hunt where she sees kabuto had orochimarus DNA in him, this couldve been a big sequence of events where she and naruto spoke to each other and she could confirm her feelins or let Naruto confirm feelings for her OR Sakura either way but instead shes there soley to confirm with her magic eyes that Kabuto is different something any generic Hyuga couldve done with the same ability

 

shes essentially useless in the moment

 

same with her confession or the proud lose speech both pivotal moments of growth for naruto but both inevitable ending in being nothing more then minor footnote moments for her as again she could be replaced with another character to the same or greater emotional effect

 

Lee or Iruka or Sakura couldve delivered the proud loser speech 

 

Sakura or Iruka couldve confessed feelings towards him as love or familial bonds before Pein harmed them to even greater emotional effect at the time

 

make hinatas moments meaningful make them moments of character growth or development by following them up with conversation or a brief moment of introspection'

 

3: As in my head Canon and the Canon of the In your storylines Hinata must let go and move on, theres a dojin of this very subject i cant remember its name though but in the end one panel stood out it was Hinata walking away from naruto and Sakura while her yoingerself runs towards them. this image always stuck with me and i adopted it as the image of my own story 

 

Hinata in the end confessing to naruto but admitting shes lost to Sakura before walking away from her crush on naruto is the pinnacle of growth for her letting go of the obsessive love and growing up. We dont always get our crush in the end we have to be adults and live our lives while hoping the one we love does well and is happy. She does this lets her younger self run off but she moves on

 

Let Hinata grow up let her become a young lady instead of a little girl hiding behing a telephone pole all the time. 

 

long story short theres multiple easy steps to fix Hinatas character that dont involve assassinating others in the process and leave her with viable plot elements and potential for future story elements all while wrapping her story up neatly

Question... if you rewrote Naruto, where would you rewrite it and how would you tie NS into it?

So for me the story would progress much as ir did in the original with very few changes needed

Naruto would evolve more smoothly instead of in leaps like he did  in the series. training with Kakashi and Sakura and Sasuke and eventually Jiraia and occassionaly Iruka who would teach hin the basics. Naruto would also be less dense then a chunk of Dwarf star alloy capable of thinking past a bowl of ramen. Romantically Narutos crush on Sakura would evolve at the bench scene to true love with the POAL being a pivotal moment where he decides to put her happiness first. We would also see more reasons and a deeper connection between him and Sasuke to justify his pushing himself so hard. part of it would be the POAL which drives him and which is a cause of pain for him that he hides with a smile. Finally Naruto would basically flip the sage of 6 paths the bird when it comes to Destiny hed say No to continuing the endless cycle of the brothers and together with Sasuke and Sakura say how theyre going to change the world

Sakura would get a deeper character arc in the first part showing the misunderstanding of the bench scene and showing her more clearly growing closer to Naruto and further from sasuke. her feelings would be mixed until the POAL which is when Sakuras feelings would full force shift to naruto. his return would be an exiting time for her and shed make it clear that she wants to be more to him but be fruistrrated by his denseness which leads to tsundere hijinx

Sakura would also benefit more clearly from delinieating her abilities via Kakashi or Tsunade or Shizune explaining to someone that Sakura is essentially holding back a full half of her true power and potential becaise shes feeding the Byakugo mark. which comes to a head when she finally completes it during the war where she near about kills the juubi on her own with a mountain shattering punch

in the end her feelins would be clearly stated and realized as she stands by Narutos side 

Sasuke would also get a more clear redemption post his fight with Naruto and would end up with karin and Taka joining him on a world tour as a roving band of ninja who help people 

story wise thered be more of team 7 acting as a team and growing as a family to further their bonds. Kakashi training them in more advanced techniques earlier to prepare them for the Chunin exams. Also Show some clearer delinieation between Narutos quick almost unnaturally quick growth and Sasukes sluggish growth that further cements Sasukes rage which is what Orochimaru uses to push him. his feelings of inadequacy which are what drives him further down the path of revenge and rage/ 

*the wave arc would happen much as before with Naruto making ir more clear that while all of team 7 are precious to him it is Sakura who is most precious

*the chunin exams would proceed much the same as well but with Sakura contributing more on a basic skills level though still feeling inadequate herself before stepping up in the fight against the sound 3. 

*invasion arc only real change making ir MORE clear that though hes fighting for everyone SAKURA is who hes fighting for the most

*Tsunade arc no real changes 

*Sasuke retrieval arc more directly showing Sakuras feelings shift to naruto and Sakuras determination more clear in the end

Shippuden

*return arc more fun and flirty banter between naruto and Sakura with Naruto trying not to let himself hope but sakura making much more clear that she wants to be with him 

*Kazekage arc no real changes save maybe peanut gallery commentary from temari or Kankuro about how close NS are getting

*HE bridge arc no real changes save to make Sakura more clearly protective and showing her feelings more clearly for Naruto emphasize that Yamato knows whats going on and that even emotionally distant Sai can see whats going on. Have orochimaru and or Kabuto remark on it and how they might just do something wiith it to really drive Naruto into 4 tailed form

wind training arc more fully detail the training and its difficulties while showing Sakura fully supporting him

*itachi arc again more clearly show that while Hinatas feelings for him are genuine that shes still holding on to a childish crush not the fully realized feelings and its holding her back. have her be useful by revealing MORE then just what she sees in Kabuto, Have both Sakura and Hinata see how far the POAL is driving him to frustration and pain and have it be a point of contention between the two ladies

*Sage training arc have letters from Sakura show up encourageing him and pushing him to train harder

*Pein arc have Sakura destroy a pain body by herself to showcase her growth as well as a summoned monster Naruto big heroic entrance and battle. Hinatas sacrafice and confession hinata barely survives thanks to Sakuras fast thinking.  

*aftermath Naruto and Hinata talk and while Hinata admits shes losing to Sakura says she wont give up yet and wants naruto to be happy

*land of iron Sakura confesses in full but Naruto doesnt believe her as he senses shes holding something back which is the decision of the rookies to kill Sasuke. this leads to a brief rift between them. As Sakura makes her feelings far more direct and clear and chastises him for daring to belittle her feelings as if she were some fickle autumn wind
as they talk at the end Naruto accepts her feelings but wants her to have the chance to confront Sasuke first before they can move on they hug and have a quiet moment together

Kurama training arc Naruto again receives encouragement from Sakura in the form of a letter/ Naruto more direct with his mother about why he loves Sakura even though he doesnt feel he has a chance Kushina pushes him to fight for his heart and not give up so easilly Naruto has a moment with BOTH parents as the respective chakras are sealed within him and as long as the seals are intact he can talk to those echoes of them anytime

*War arc the war happens much as before with only changes being that Madara is the final bad guy and his defeat at the hands of naruto sakura and Sasuke ends the war with Obitos redemption and reconciliation with kakashi/ 

*ending Naruto and co mourn the dead Sasuke leaves withTaka and with him and Karin showing signs of growing trust and affection. Sasuke also clears the air wiith Sakura wishing her well, acknowledging her strength and at least partialy thanking her for her feelings. He asks her to take care of Naruto as the dummy will need her the most, 

Naruto and Sakura sit at the BENCH and the bench scene is resolved as they talk with their feelings resulting in a full on confession and kiss 

as they walk away Hinata finally acknowledges defeat bitterly before a passing leave and a bird reminds her of Neji and she steels herself walking away in a scene where he childish self runs off after naruto but her adult self goes to her father to demand to be trained as the heir to the clan making Hiashi Super daddy proud

tsunade continues as Hokage though she says she wont be one long as shes getting too old for this crap

prologue 

Naruto is Hokage and married to Sakura with Hanami and Shinachiku as kids

Shina is the familes shining star and the village heart throb 

Sakura is head medic and a legend in her own right

Sasuke is a wandering hero of the people with Taka ever faithful at his side. Sarada is their daughter and a childhood friend of Shina and hanas with a crush on Shina

the others have all grown in their own ways

as part of the aftermath we see black zetsu having finally gained enough chakra from the war to awaken Kaguya who becomes the BBEG in the Last Movie 

I can't believe I'm about to ask this but how would you fix Hinata's character?

For me Hinatas character is a simple fix

1: give her motivations beyond Naruto and her love for him

2: Have her accomplish something beyond just being background or a plot device

3: at the end have her let go of naruto and move on from a childish love. have her ackowledge Narutos feelings for Sakura and in the context of her own feelings move forward

the first is the biggest as it stands now the character is utterly irrelevant to the story. there isnt a single moment you have her in that she couldnt be replaced by another character to the same or greater emotional effect.  

Give her plot points that represent who she is as a character beyond her crush and  that let her stand on her own mertis without naruto

*Lead her clan into the future

*surpass Hanabi as heir and in skill

*find her fathers approval

*Live up to nejis legacy and sacrafice if such occurred

these all give her motivation beyond Naruto and let her stand on her own as a character

the 2nd is in reference to her many moments basically accounting to nothing. Such as her moment in the Itachi hunt where she sees kabuto had orochimarus DNA in him, this couldve been a big sequence of events where she and naruto spoke to each other and she could confirm her feelins or let Naruto confirm feelings for her OR Sakura either way but instead shes there soley to confirm with her magic eyes that Kabuto is different something any generic Hyuga couldve done with the same ability

shes essentially useless in the moment

same with her confession or the proud lose speech both pivotal moments of growth for naruto but both inevitable ending in being nothing more then minor footnote moments for her as again she could be replaced with another character to the same or greater emotional effect

Lee or Iruka or Sakura couldve delivered the proud loser speech 

Sakura or Iruka couldve confessed feelings towards him as love or familial bonds before Pein harmed them to even greater emotional effect at the time

make hinatas moments meaningful make them moments of character growth or development by following them up with conversation or a brief moment of introspection'

3: As in my head Canon and the Canon of the In your storylines Hinata must let go and move on, theres a dojin of this very subject i cant remember its name though but in the end one panel stood out it was Hinata walking away from naruto and Sakura while her yoingerself runs towards them. this image always stuck with me and i adopted it as the image of my own story 

Hinata in the end confessing to naruto but admitting shes lost to Sakura before walking away from her crush on naruto is the pinnacle of growth for her letting go of the obsessive love and growing up. We dont always get our crush in the end we have to be adults and live our lives while hoping the one we love does well and is happy. She does this lets her younger self run off but she moves on

Let Hinata grow up let her become a young lady instead of a little girl hiding behing a telephone pole all the time. 

long story short theres multiple easy steps to fix Hinatas character that dont involve assassinating others in the process and leave her with viable plot elements and potential for future story elements all while wrapping her story up neatly

theyre so desperate for the same reason. the pairing was forced has no development and thus no defense so they have to scramble for anything they can but invariably end up with well its canon so NYAA!

I should actually clarify one thing in my own head canon, I did have something special about Sakura

that being that she did what her master and Orochimaru failed to do, namely she mastered immortality. 

Sakuras mastery of the byakugo seal means that she would be functionally immortal, unkillable barring a massive disintegration style attack but other wise ageless unless she wants to be and physically always in her prime as long as she has even a shred of chakra

The ability to master what 2 of the three sannin failed to do sets her up as one of the greatest shinobi of all time

So theres a trend i see in Fan fiction and in topics i see in general where the authors try to shine Sakura up a bit. they throw her blood line traits or make the haruno clan into something special like the uzumaki clan or so on and so forth.

while any author can do so of course artistic license and the like. I think when they do this they do Sakura a great disservice because they miss  one very critical point

She doesnt even have to lose any feeling for Sasuke she just has to do what the character was shown doing throughout the series. Grow up. everyone has crushes but eventually we put those feelings in proper perspective and we grown up and move on. 

Sakura through the story was shown to be doing that growing up and moving on but the ending Axed that by cutting her off at the knees and assassinating  her character and reverting it back to 12yold Sakura

The worst thing is even if you acknowledge past the actual 2-3 moments for Hinata. none of them matter to the manga in even the slighest way and EVERY one of them you could replace her with another character to the same or better emotional effect 

the proud loser speech, replace with Lee, Iruka, Sakura 

Neji v Hinata replace with Neji v Lee 

Love confession and Sacrafice replace with Sakura or Iruka

Ill stand by you - Prertenders

Never Alone - Jim Brickman and Lady Antebellum

Promise of a lifetime - Kutlass NaruSaku Anthem there

Angel of Mine - Monica

Beautiful in my eyes - Joshua Kadison

1000 years Christine Perry

Angel - Shaggy

Crazy for this girl - Evan and Jarod

Shes so high -  Tal bachman

There youll be - Faith hill

Beautiful as you - Jim Brickman and boyz to men

Ill be - Ed Sheeran

Love never fails - Jim Brickman

Just the girl - Click 5

One true friend - Bette midler

just to see you smile - Tim Mcgraw

Ill be waiting Lenny kravitz

You are the love of my life - Roberta Flack and Donny hathaway

rushed perhaps but i still think he had them in mind for other characters kids. Sarada is just way too Karin and Sasuke, and Boruto has multiple Sakura and Naruto elements.

Nah im pretty well convinced he had them in mind as next gen progeny of NS and SK

Boruto was the next Naruto set to inherit Kurama when he was ready the marks would have come then

Sarada for me was Sasuke and Karins Kid and shared some fo their abilities karins uzumaki blood which would lead to better control of her Sharingan but more so I think she was meant to idolize Sakura hence some of Sakuras outfit choices which leads to her becoming the powerhouse she would become.