31 replies to this topic

[Jake]

From what I understood, Madara and Obito made some sort of plan before Madara died (see the conversation between Kabuto and Madara). Things have obviously changed (since it wasn't through Nagato that they ended up reviving Madara, but through Edo Tensei - he obviously has different abilities now that he was brought back this way, and Obito has kind of been doing his own thing, especially with the fact that he went ahead and started summoning the Juubi - though an incomplete version.

Given that things have changed since they made their plan, it seems logical that Madara would want to get updated on what the sitation is currently, and accordingly modify whatever plan he and Obito originally had.

Also, Madara told Naruto at the summit before Sakura confessed that he was going to make Naruto fight Sasuke, that they were fated to fight and all that. Thus, if they capture Naruto and extract the nine tails now, there obviously won't be any fight between Naruto and Sasuke - so I imagine that Obito would want the two to fight it out (seemingly to prove the superiority of the Uchiha over the Senju line) before getting what they need from him and killing him.

Though given that he was forced to summon an incomplete Juubi, Obito may not care about that anymore. Hard to say, as it hasn't been mentioned since and there really doesn't seem to be any reason for him to want them to fight at this point except for pride.

Actually I think Obito threw that plan out the window when Naruto left the Island.

Not a big deal, thank you for apologizing.

You're welcome.

That's a good point (the fact that they started summoning Juubi already). So does this mean that Naruto and Bee are no longer targets I wonder?

If Juubi can't be "put back", if the summoning can't be stopped once its started, or if the power of the Juubi cannot be added to once its summoned then there would no need to extract the Hachibi and Kyuubi anymore - unless Madara just wants them separately to use as he was using the other bijuu.

If they're not retreating, then this would have to be the definitive battle with Madara and Obito then - leaving just the fight with Sasuke (and whatever is going to happen to Orochimaru).

There's still quite a few possibilities on the battlefield with Sakura once she shows up if that's the case, mainly because of her similarity to Rim, imo, and the fact that Kishi promised us he would show her being more heroine like (though again, that could have been referring to her figuring out Zetsu's secret, who knows?). So if we're really lucky, we'll get both Sakura having a large part in the actual battle itself, and a Naruto and Sakura moment. maybe not very likely, but I can hope

When Madara arrived on the battlefield he didn't like that Obito had already started without Kurama and Gyuki and if I'm not mistaken he said that he was going to fight them so that he can add them to the Gedo before the Ten-Tails is resurrected.

Yes, this is exactly what I was thinking. I believe at the very most, that Sasuke wouldn't hesitate to hurt Sakura if she got in between Naruto and Sasuke (like she almost did in their first serious battle on the hospital rooftop), but I don't think that he would specifically target her to get to Naruto.

Glad to see that someone agrees with me.

Oh and one last thing and forgive me if I'm being dense but when was it that Madara lied and what was it about?
i think thought its not shown yet madara is surely messing with obito in the flash back you will thank me and youl mean it this time hmmmmm. dont trust you oldman

As of yet there is no proof that he is lying to Obito in the Flashback, he may be manipulative, or not telling the whole truth but he as of yet he hasn't out and out lied.

On a side note: manipulative, not telling the whole truth, Madara should go into politics.

[Deej]

Let's just say what I expected and what is actually happening are two very different things.

[Inferno180]

I was thinking about this so although 2 chapters is no reason to worry I'll speak my mind:

Yes Sakura is the heroine but all main characters (Naruto, Sasuke, and Kakashi too) have been sidelined for short periods of time.

Although we were left with a sour taste in 615 only for this year to start by showing it was just one comforting moment and rather part of the plan for everyone to get nine tails power, this did leave us with speculation, the hand moment was not confirming NaruHina BUT WHAT DID SAKURA REACT TOO?

Everyone lovers and haters of the character have been asking this. Now its easy to understand we as fans of Sakura are depressed, we want to see our gal kick ass or get a good role. Kishi said all the characters will have some defining moment. Obivously Sakura as a main character should get one, when this comes up It will. Some have been depressed with Hinata taking the lime light but she only had 615, all she did was test the nine tails power in 616, and in this one she just popped Naruto's arm into place, we are somewhat depressed with that, for anything pairing wise, that makes no difference, she just quickly aided him so he could shoot it off.

What am I expecting when we see Sakura again?

First her current location, she is either in the back healing the fodder Ninja or went to Tsunade but these 2 locations would be a most likely determinant for what she reacted too.

If at the battlefront, Sakura's reaction would most likely be attibuted to Hinata's speech, (plus we would see if naruto gave her and the medical squad chakra for the healing purposes) if this is true, then it may just be the path to NaruSaku (as we would want) it could be Sakura growing mentally again as she always has, but this time it would help bring the speculation of her actually loving naruto to the light (she has hinted time and time again she may love Naruto, even seemed to be jealous of Hinata, if this is it, it would not mean NaruSaku is canon just much bigger presence. Sakura could not help on the battlefront though cause consider this

They are fighting a ten tailed god basically, Sakura is a good fighter but only chakara enhanced strength may not be enough. It would be an unnecessary risk, just as if it was Sakura who ran to help Naruto in the Pain event, but she did not, she was doing as she was told as a medical ninja and because naruto did not want anyone putting themselves in danger, Sakura was helping Naruto by listening to him and staying back, it was a situation only he could handle. This could be an unnecessary risk. I even told this stuff to some Hinata fans and for the ones that were rational, level headed, and nice, they completely argeed, Sakura is not from a clan and intelligence and energy control can only get you so far, I gave this one to Hinata and the rest of the crew only because, Sakura just does not have the skill set for this situation right now, healing is the best thing she could do. The hyuga defenses, Ino-Shika-Cho formation, rest of the ninja with ranged or elemental skills, its all a bigger fighter priority. Remember like any RPG or Shooter, you play or use a medic you always keep them back and behind. Sakura is like the white mage in FF, always stick the white mage in the back to succeed. When the time comes for them to face something more human sized (Obito or Madara) then i would expect Sakura to have a larger role.

The only other possibility for her substance which makes sense would have had being reverse summoned to tsunade to aid the Kage and say farewell to Tsunade. Given the reaction and Tsunade summoning her slug, the reaction could or could not be part of this. This could still happen with the reaction still being towards Hinata's speech. This one can obviously be done without Sakura's help, as Tsunade will heal them all with her slug's help. I only say that this would be a significant event though because it would have the hokage position open for Naruto at the end but most importantly, it would signify Sakura's role and coming of age to succeed Tsunade and resolve in helping Naruto. Sakura would also finally understand the pain of losing a loved one, I would not be surprised if Tsunade viewed Sakura like a daughter just like Jiraya saw Naruto like his own son.

As for a few other theories:

Gone back to the leaf village- god I hope not, Sakura does not have some magical Sasuke GPS, The whole fight is in the Lightning country, this stuff with the fight and Sasuke is happening at the same time miles apart, there is no instant warp tech for Sakura to just suddenly have nor would Sai's bird carry them that quick. Hell there is no reason or logical point for this to happen. No reason for Sakrua to do the whole assassinate Sasuke thing again when he is even stronger and with a full group

In the Kamui dimenson- This one is possible it could be for a sneak attack and some earthquake, I could see sai prepping some big sealing beast for madara and Sakura for a giant earthquake, if this is it, I can see perfect chakra control mixed with 3X super powered attacks, this can really really work if they needed to clobber the ten tails, a direct attack no that would not work, but a suprise would.

Among anything the only answer I know of, we need to wait. I'm actually glad the pairing stuff is down for now but we will see in time. Sakura is alive and well, she will have her time. If Tsunade dies and grants her more power, that would be understandable as to why she was not in this one. Sakura is the heroine, remember hinata for all intents and purposes is done, she had her speech, she cannot have another sudden big moment (no glory hogs allowd) all she can do is leech around the action and she will not be there when team 7 finally comes up again.

As for one final answer the whole Obito/Rin parallel for Naruto/Sakura and the possibility Sakura could die, it remains possible but I don't see it (or want it) to happen, Naruto is about breaking cycles and it would have no purpose for Naruto to lose Sakura and Sasuke, only for the series to end with him fulfilling the promise but Sakura is dead, that makes no sense. Jiraiya failed to save orochimaru, Kakashi failed his team, Obito lost Rin and went coocoo. So why would Naruto? We don't need the same recycled material, the point of it now is to resolve those. I can see Sakura highly hurt but surviving, that I can.

For anything I'm betting she is on the battlefield healing, we just need to wait and see. If next week is Sasuke and the reveal of the one who knows all, we may get a brief switchback and see where sakura is, just like this chapter in the middle of a fight, jumped to sasuke. Could happen again, Sakura is around and Kishi did not forget her, her time will come. I just hope when the moment comes and the reaction is brought to light, I just hope it makes Sakura do her best ever. Let the other characters have their time, then lets see Sakura's resolve and remember she is part of team 7, always was and always will be, she is part of the conflict and bound in the promise with Naruto, they have a promise to each other to save Sasuke and although she most likely will not be in the final fight against Sasuke, she will be there to see the outcome and support Naruto as she promised him.

[Canadian_DJ]

I am not worried about Sakura not being in the manga in 8 months. If you think about it, none of the konoha 11 have been in the manga for 8 months and I already gave a theory on why this doesn't bother me. I'll post it here in case people want to read it.

Yamato even longer than that.

This:

Theory --Click here to view--

I thought of a crazy conspiracy theory if anyone would like to listen and to use the same logic on why I think Sasuke is a terrible villain. You can read I think it was in the 600 - 603 chapter threads.

Anyway, in a nutshell the reason why I feel Sasuke is a bad villain: He is driven by the plot. This is some what Kishi's fault in that he kind of gotten carried away with his plot of Obito and Madara. Because of this, and because the final battle of the manga has to be between Sasuke and Naruto, Sasuke is stuck doing these side adventures until there is time for Naruto to fight him. Right now, Naruto is fighting in a war. Sasuke could easily go and destroy the Konoha village right now while all the soldiers are at war. He could even cause a bigger ruckus by doing this by waiting til Naruto and the rest get back and see this destruction. Sort of like what Nagato did. (Which is why it made this battle epic. What happens when the hero is just a few seconds too late.) Why doesn't he do this? Cause Kishimoto is stalling for a good moment. Too many other plot elements are getting in the way at the moment. See he has Sasuke "looking" for answers he doesn't really need or other villains have done more on less.

Now before we apply this logic to NaruSaku let's look at facts first:

-Naruto and Sakura both love each other. We can argue Sakura's feelings, but come on. Too much development to deny it. We say this to the NaruHina fans all the time. How can we say she doesn't love Naruto especially after proclaiming she is going to be with him no matter what?

-Naruto has shown no interest in Hinata. Not to bash her, but Kishimoto has made no attempt to make Naruto love Hinata. If this were really true, if he loved her, Naruto would be as conflicted as Sakura is right now. He isn't. He knows he loves Sakura.

*Same with Sakura and Sasuke. Why isn't she with him now if she has this undying love for him that people claim? Because she really doesn't. She is opening her eyes to the truth that what she thought was nothing more than an illusion created by her supposed "wants." Then we got Sasuke trying to kill Sakura twice. Plus with Sakura the one having the conflict, it allows to free up Naruto's story for more important topics like moral standing. You know how frustrating it would be is Kishi made both Sakura AND Naruto with love-conflictions? Usually this is reserved for manga based solely around harems to which Naruto is not that kind of manga.

-Development Development Development. Any main coupling in any manga or story has to have development. You don't just make an unrequited love automatically become a couple at the drop of a hat. We have had tons of NarutoxSakura moments. Not just romantic ones, but natural moments from just talking to helping each other out and even having happy time together with some funny results. Any moments like these with Naruto and Hinata? No. They barely talk to each other. Sakura and Sasuke? Maybe in Part 1, but it wasn't happy good moments and then Sasuke left and they haven't had a "moment" until several hundred chapters later.


I know what you're saying, "James; you sexy handsome magnificent b*stard you, if these are true then why hasn't NaruSaku became canon yet and the confession was seen as a travesty?" Simple, my fellow chums. It is the same reason why Sasuke hasn't attacked Konoha yet, it is all about timing. Good timing is everything. It also makes one hell of a story. If Naruto and Sakura got together right at the confession, then the war would have caused some major problems for both Naruto and Sakura and for the plot. Isn't it convenient that Sakura is still "looking for answers" even though there is enough evidence to show Sakura that Sasuke is just not a good man? Hell, I have seen successful couples become canon off of lesser reasons.

If NaruSaku became canon in the beginning, then it is boring or it would spell bad news for the couple by the end. Would you rather have it happen upfront and then have bad stuff happen along the way OR would you rather have a long development with twist and turns to show off the real characters and they end up happily ever after in the end?

It's also the reason why some superheroes don't get into relationships until so far into the comic. As soon as that element is added, the game changes. This is why some comics rebooted the franchise or retconed some stories where the relationship didn't happen or restarted with memory loss. The best part is not the happy ending, the best parts are the stuff leading up to it.

It's all about the happy ending. The hero saves the day, gets the girl, becomes the hero of the people and lives happily ever after. That's why NaruSaku hasn't happened yet and why it won't happen until the end. It's not that Sakura is having second thoughts or that Naruto thinks she is a liar. He is just putting it all off until the final shebang.

"Life is a journey, not a destination"
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

With that being said, I can safely say that being gone doesn't change anything really. I am not even expecting a NaruSaku moment simply because Kishi is still going to side-step it for the perfect timing. I do expect Sakura to show some growth on a personal level though. The main focus right now is on Obito and his development. When we get back to the real fight, then maybe Sakura will show up. Then we will cut to Sasuke who will take up the rest of the year to explain what he is doing and 2013 is the final year for Naruto with the ending being in that year. That's how I foresee it




I find this interesting, but want to put up a rebuttal in saying that Sasuke is perfectly capable of doing such things and has even used this stuff before.

Remember how he used Karin? When Danzou took her hostage, this didn't even phase Sasuke and he had no problem using her to get what he wanted. So while he does have pride, this might be the reason why he plays dirty. He is also perfectly okay with stabbing people in the back when he needs to. As prideful as he is, what would be the bigger threat to his ego? Using cheap methods or losing to Naruto who he saw as an inferior fool?

Naruto is prepared to go all out, but Sasuke still thinks he is the superior being. For this reason, I believe he would use those tactics if desperate.

This TEN fold!!! Once again another amazing post by james!

[Mistraal]

I want her to get a power up (asspull) and kick some ass.

[Phantom_999]

Same.

[Sakamaki Izayoi]

she already come back lol

[Atheck]

she already come back lol

If it's of any consolation she did give her trademark saying in a badass sort of way whilst expressing concern for Naruto. That's better than nothing at least.

[merryGOflava]

what I'm expecting? ...her to heal people...give naruto her support.

what I want? her to kick someone's butt!! get a major power up!! slugs, axe, tsunade's forehead thingy I DON'T CARE!! give her anything!!!

[Gravenimage]

I'm only expecting she will heal Naruto when he gets wear down from passing too much of Kurama's chakra. She will stay by her side and support him a power up is the last thing Kishi would consider.

[merryGOflava]

it's so sad that we can't expect much from kishi...regarding sakura T^T.......se has so much potential.

[soraandven]

you shouldnt give up on her just yet just wait she will get a shining moment