R.I.P Sakura?

[cynchick]

Nothing like a healthy dose of character assassination to brighten my day.

The NaruSaku? Saw it coming, resigned myself to it, don't really care, it's 92827374 times better than a SasuSaku outcome. I'll still write my fics and draw my arts and ship my ships. That's what fandom is all about. But to completely alter a character's personality in such a regressive, damaging way that continuing to write her as a strong, independent, mature and thoughtful person has instantly become OOC....

Can she be any more of a pretentious, superficial bitch? 

Probably not.

It's like a NaruSaku badfic come true. If I were a NaruSaku shipper I'd be furious that it went down this way.

First of all, I have a feeling she's lying. Based on the flashbacks of "just let me do all the talking" and the very uncomfortable expressions on everyone's faces. Which is seriously fucked up, to play with her best friend's heart like that to manipulate him, even if she thinks it's for his own good.

If she's not lying, it's still fucked up because (aside from the extremely bad timing) it's the most selfish and shallow confession I've ever heard. "You're a hero and everyone admires you now" is NOT a reason to suddenly love someone. "Sasuke is a jerk who left me but you're still here" is ALSO NOT a reason to love someone. That's called settling, Sakura, and it's what desperate girls who have no respect for themselves do. "I don't care about Sasuke anymore so you can stop trying to save him" ...Because Naruto totally doesn't have his own reasons for doing it. It's clearly only ever been about her. "I just said I love you why aren't you jumping for joy?" ...Seriously? Since when did Sakura become a complete narcissist?

Sakura's respectability skyrocketed at the beginning of pt 2 and made most of us who hated her, love her. But that respectability has been slowly beaten into the ground ever since, and now the poor old horse is finally dead.

I just don't know anymore. I'm gonna keep reading to the end because I've invested too much time and energy into this series to not see it through. I guess I will just pretend it never happened, as far as fandom is concerned. I think a lot of people feel the same right about now.

Comments

[saturdaymorning.livejournal.com]

I sort of look at it like this.

I see that she's been told that the only reason Naruto is still looking is because she asked him to.
http://www.onemanga.com/Naruto/458/16/


http://www.onemanga.com/Naruto/459/14/

[saturdaymorning.livejournal.com]

Crap, sorry, it posted by accident.

Okay, so I was saying, After what Sai says, Sakura basically feels it's all her fault that Naruto is killing himself to go and find Sasuke for her. He loves her, but he's still willing to go and get the man she loves for her. Sai was pretty clear that Naruto feels anger when he thinks of Sasuke, but he'll go to the ends of the earth to retrieve him because she asked him to.

I think that she doesn't mean her confession, but is totally willing to follow through on it with Naruto if he accepts her. I think she's decided she's going to shoulder the responsibility of her actions, and stop Naruto in any way she can. Granted, her wording is a little stupid (Kishi) and it does sound like she's saying "every thinks you're great so I'll like you now" but I think it's meant to be like that for 1) so that Naruto will feel he met his ultimate life goal of being recognized and 2) so that he can see through her obvious transparent half-heartedness.

I don't hate her for it. I imagine that it's hard for her to give up as well to save Naruto over the man she loves and has been waiting for for years, but she'll do it. I think it makes her strong in will - just maybe goes against her intelligence.

I think Kishi is bad at romance, like some others said. And I also think that he's never made Sakura into a decent character - that's been left to fandom to do, I suppose.

Don't get me wrong, I adore her, but I can't count how many times she's been knocked out, cried or had to have help to do anything. Kishi gave her so much potential, but only talked about how good she was. I would have loved it if he showed it more.

[cynchick.livejournal.com]

Like I said in another response, I think our hopes for Sakura are often derailed in canon because she is written by a sexist man, who is additionally from a culture that is very uncomfortable with intimacy and romantic interaction. He totally fails at this sort of thing.

And yeah, I really do think she's faking it to save Naruto from pain of 1) fighting Sasuke again, and 2) being rejected. She feels terrible for her oversight of his feelings, and is trying to make up for it in the worst way possible. I think its an insult to her intelligence and the sense of self-worth she's worked so hard to acheive.

[saturdaymorning.livejournal.com]

True that. I wish there was a little shoujo in it.

I was thinking about Sakura recently and I do feel he's neglected to expand her character. Every once in a while, he'll throw in a panel of someone saying she's good, or her doing something like bringing the fish back to life, but he's never used her properly in any situation aside from the akatsuki fight.

She's just crying all the time now. ;_;

[inniyah.livejournal.com]

I agree with all you said :D Sakura is trying to make him free. I think it was (if we read the flashbacks pannels, with Sakura saying that only thing she wants in this life is Sasuke), is one of the most unselfish things she has done. She is puting Naruto and the village first (Maybe, in the way that Naruto, she feels, was puting her and Sasuke first).

... except on the shoujo part... I would like Jossei to be added, because shoujo is sometimes as sexist as shounen.... (And, by shoujo stantdars, This would be "Parfait Tic", but with ninjas, the girl who has to decide between the brooding, cool, intelligent guy or the sunny, silly one... and she would be more stupid).

I remember my brother once read a shoujo I was reading and went all "But, do you understand that there are not guys that act like this?, This is offensive to me".

[cynchick.livejournal.com]

I think her character has been neglected except in passing mention because its a shounen series, for boys, written by a very big boy, from a culture that centers around boys where females only matter in their relation to the boys. Sometimes I wonder if her character development was only so we would like her more and agree with Naruto's (the Hero) choice of Eventual Trophy Girl for Saving the World. Its the same with Hinata, or Ino, or even Temari. We see nothing of them except for how they relate to the men around them.

[saturdaymorning.livejournal.com]

Oh! I just read the chapter and I have to revise my comments. I was just going by the spoilers. :P

I think it was all right. I think she was fairly convincing and doing her best to sound convincing. Naruto saw through it of course. Something else must have happened at the village before she left when the whole group were talking.

But...

Is it me or did Kakashi look jealous when he's thinking "Sakura.... You...." lol. I totally see that.

[cynchick.livejournal.com]

Well, she's choosing this moment to put on the act because the village (and other rookie 9) have decided Sasuke can fuck off, and they plan to kill him when they see him. To spare Naruto from having to deal with this, she's trying to get him to back off for her sake.

I would be happier if she honestly loved him, because what she's doing is so awful not just for her, but for Naruto who sees what she's doing (though he doesn't know why) and probably feels like shit right about now. If I learned someone I loved for years (who happens to be my best friend) only wanted to be with me out of pity...yeah I would be pretty devastated and angry.

Lol, if only that were true. I could be totally crazy here, but he did check out her ass that one time.... XD

[saturdaymorning.livejournal.com]

Omg, did I miss Kakashi checking Sakura's ass? Some little bell is ringing but I don't recall if I saw that.

Well, she's choosing this moment to put on the act because the village (and other rookie 9) have decided Sasuke can fuck off, and they plan to kill him when they see him.

The way you phrased this made me inexplicably excited. I don't know why the idea of the rookie 9 being pissed and deciding to kill him turns my crank but yeah! I would pay to see that.

[cynchick.livejournal.com]

Haha, I don't think it was in the manga, but there was a part in the anime during the rescue Gaara arc where they're running through the trees. Sakura pops a soldier pill and Kakashi remarks that eating to many of them will make her fat. She tells him to shut it and moves ahead of him. Then, if you look closely, as she passes him his eyes fall down to the level of her ass. Temari is running nearby and sees this, and says to Kakashi "that's sexual harassment you know..." I don't think she was talking about the fat comment. XD

I would like them to go after him too. Somebody needs to, at least.

[saturdaymorning.livejournal.com]

oh man. I don't watch the anime. I'm so very sorry I missed that.

I guess I'm still a kakasaku girl at heart.

[cynchick.livejournal.com]

Of course! They're still the best pairing when all is said and done. :3

I'm really excited to start my epic KakaSaku this winter. I have so many great little tidbits planned already.

[saturdaymorning.livejournal.com]

Oh, I forgot you were doing that. How is your itasaku coming along? Did you finish that one?

[cynchick.livejournal.com]

I have 2 chapters left to write and its done. Didn't you once say you were reading it?

[saturdaymorning.livejournal.com]

I said I was going to. I'm afraid I dropped off the fandom cliff. I haven't read any fanfics in...geez, probably half a year - a year. I feel really guilty.

I remember you going over the title and wanting to read it. In fact, I'm sure I read the first chapter. How many chapters did it end up being?

[cynchick.livejournal.com]

It will end at 15 chapters. I haven't read much fanfic in a while either. I barely have time to write my own.

[saturdaymorning.livejournal.com]

I'll never say never because I really wanted to read that one. I do love Itachi (although i'm having a little hot thing for Gaara for the last few chapters which is unusual for me) and lately I've been getting the itch to get more involved again. I doubt I'd write because, well, I sort of retired and don't want to look silly for changing my mind. lol.

I might just swing over there and read a few chapters. You might suck me back in. :)

I really miss it.

[cynchick.livejournal.com]

Lol, I have a thing for Gaara again too after the recent chapters. Actually a friend requested a fic exchange of GaaSaku and Im going to do a little oneshot or short ficlet.

I hope you do come back to fandom, even if you don't write. But hey, if Jay-Z and Brett Favre can do it over and over again, why cant you? XD And I'd love to hear what you thought of Vespertine if you do decide to read it. :)

[eldrfire.livejournal.com]

Ahhh ha ha ha ha, oh man, I had always thought the sexual harassment comment was about the fat comment-- I had never noticed his wandering eyes! Bwah ha ha!

[saturdaymorning.livejournal.com]

What episode is that?!?

[eldrfire.livejournal.com]

Ah gosh, I don't know which episode it was, but it was an early shippuuden. I would guess in the shippuuden 7-11 range.

[cynchick.livejournal.com]

Ah, I'm in the middle of moving so I don't have my discs here and I don't remember. I second Eldr- definitely within the first 10 of Shipuuden.

[strange_quark]

Is it me or did Kakashi look jealous when he's thinking "Sakura.... You...." lol. I totally see that.

lmao I totally saw that too. It's definitely just my shipping goggles but I'm glad I'm not the only one XD

[saturdaymorning.livejournal.com]

Ah, I think our shipping goggles are permanently attached now. Crazy glued.

[strange_quark]

I think it goes to show that KakaSaku will always and forever be my OTP, that I'm seeing it in a big scene for another pair that I ship.