If that's what Kishi meant by midway, I suppose his comment makes a little more sense, but the contradiction still remains in the sense that his justification for putting Naruto with Hinata is equally applicable to a justification that puts Naruto with Sakura. The only difference being that he'd be pitying the main character instead of a side character.
My problem with this theory: Can we call what Hinata felt for Naruto Love? To me, she stalk him. Compare to Sakura or any other kid, she knew he was bullied, that he was in difficulty but just wasn't act to at least give him support or anything in the manga canon. Sakura (12 years) was a jerk to him, granted, but so does any kids because they didn't know about him and their parent told them not to hang around him. Naruto did prank and could have been seen as a bad influence back then, which justify what their parent told them. Hinata was the only character who could have seen and help him however, even if it were not publicly but she didn't, which to me means she somehow selfish in her "love vision" and more cruel in a way more than the other kid, because she had knowledge of how Naruto truly felt. When Sakura got a reality check from Sasuke, once she got the knowledge, she begin to be nicer to Naruto and got closer to him, for real.
Plus Naruto had feeling for Sakura from the start and she begin to develop some for him too. My problem with this whole situation is that they destroy all that just for a recton to make NH canon. You give the motto of never give up to your main character too. You see how far he was going for Sasuke by the end and how he never give up on him. He was like 1 good conversation away to be with Sakura and he just give up on her, because all his love for her wasn't real, but to RIVAL SASUKE. REALLY?? Sasuke, who got attention from Karin, Ino and every girls in the manga. If it was for that, why Naruto only go after Sakura then? Only plausible explanation for that theory to work would be if Sasuke love Sakura, but that clearly wasn't the case so, that point make no sense).
And at last, that panel http://www.mangaread...hapter-450.html
See Hinata, she smile, showing that she can go on living without Naruto if he ended up with Sakura.. After all her years of stalking, she should know Naruto feeling for Sakura and not once did she care. Naruto on the other end always take Sakura's feeling into account (POALF).
I cannot believe that Kishi planned Naruto to be with Hinata and never develop on it at all, if it was plan for so long. Naruto never felt love for Hinata until the movie, so why was is so much plan then?
Edited by archangel, 19 May 2015 - 12:18 AM.