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#Shikamaru in Every Episode
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Shikamaru Nara in Every Episode: Naruto Shippuden #365 (Part 1) 忍び舞う者たち - Shinobimau Mono-tachi (Those Who Dance in the Shadows)
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nikkolaii · 2 months
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older sibling characters will never not make me feel like im being shot straight through the heart im feeling soo sick in the head on this rewatch like where was i…..itachi has been RIGHT THERE the WHOLE TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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breeofbree · 10 months
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Bed Rest
Shikamaru x f!reader
🔞MINORS DNI 🔞
Warnings: soft core SMUT, swearing, injuries
Summary: a lazy hang out turns to lazy sex (just a quick smut read for on the go. Simple, goofy, with a bit of filler episode humor)
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To say I was beat from the mission was an understatement. Turns out, getting slammed in to the ground by your neck really does a lot of damage. My bed at home beckoned to me, plush, soft comforter and lots of space to stretch compared to the bedroll on my back that’s been used for two weeks. It was a dream to be prescribed three days of bed rest by the doctor. But upon opening the bedroom door, I notice a lazy soul already occupying my sweet bed.
“Move over, I’m tired.” I grunt out, slamming face first in to the long forgotten pillow that rest besides Shikamaru’s head. It was common to find him napping in a random spot when I’d come back from missions, sometimes the floor, or the front porch of my house. But my bed was a new one.
“Great to see you and your smart comments are still alive.” He sighs as I can feel his weight shift closer to me, grunting in pain.
I wince as I turn my neck to focus on his bruised face, “I hear you got a nice beat down yourself, champ.”
“Doctors orders for strict bed rest, a drag I can’t go outside and watch the clouds.” He mumbles out, his eyes fluttering slowly shut. I huff a small laugh out as a pinch of pain runs through my neck,” bed rest doesn’t mean an actual bed. It just means get sleep and not get in any fights, Shikamaru. Now get out of my bed so I can get my ordered bed rest.”
I’m only answered by slow and steady breathing, signaling he was already practically asleep. Leave it to Shikamaru to put his best effort in falling asleep. I can only sigh, gathering a pillow to go crash on my own couch in defeat. A slow hand stops me from brokenly standing up,” bed rest, not couch rest. Just lay down and don’t be awkward, damnit.”
“Awkward? You’re in my bed. You’re the only one making this awkward.” I huff out, slamming the pillow against his head and falling back down beside him. He drapes an arm over my side and grumbles,” stop complaining already, if you didn’t like it you would’ve forced me out the door by now, Y/N.”
His delicately placed hand sends electric pulses through my entire body, a sensation that was almost taboo to feel about a close friend. And the anger of him being right sets in.
“Shut up and put your hand somewhere else then, you’re distracting me.” I try to chastise him, resulting in it moving upwards and cupping my breast,” not what I meant.”
He chuckles slightly, close enough to my ear that it sends a shiver against my spine,” if I really wanted to distract you I would.”
His hand kneads slightly, oddly relieving other pains as the ecstasy of the intimate touch invades my senses.
“S-Shikamaru, what are you doing?” I yelp out as his other hand snakes its way under my body and to my other breast.
“I’m showing you what distracting really is.” He clips out, resting his heated face against my neck and nipping softly at it. My body acts on its own free will, arching my back into his body, and grinding my ass against his pelvis deeply.
“But we’re supposed to-“ I begin, being quickly cut off as his breath ghosts over the spot he just bit,” resting… I know.”
He pulls away, minding the sore spots as I moan in frustration,” and I can’t do that now that you’ve made a move on me.”
“I’m sorry, I’ve crossed a line. I’m too tired to think clearly.” He apologizes, quickly suggesting he went home.
“No! I mean, you just caught me off guard. I didn’t say I didn’t like it.” I admit sheepishly, guiding his hands back to position. It was his turn to sigh, only this time it was relief… maybe even pleasure. His lower body rhythmically rolls into mine, boasting a defined bulge against me that grows harder with every touch. I can hear the soft moan in my ear and I have to bite my lip to stop myself from following suit.
“I’m pretty lame at the moment… I wouldn’t want to disappoint you.” I breathe out, heart quickening with every motion. I suddenly realize it might be beneficial for the both of us as a moan finally escapes my own mouth,“But then again, I wouldn’t mind going slow and enjoying it. I find going slow is quite relaxing and a great way to promote rest.”
“Are you trying to convince yourself, or me, Y/N?” Shikamaru breathes out tiredly as my mind races. I whip around quickly, disregarding any aching pain and settle on top of him with a huff,” fuck it.”
My hands wander across his body, plucking and pulling at the fabric that’s separates us. It felt so wrong, yet so right to know first hand that the man who always complained about women could feel emotions such as intimacy. The friend I always slept or napped with, but never in an intimate way. The static charge of rubbing clothes courses through my finger tips, jolting through my body and down to my core. If I didn’t like him so much… if I didn’t crave or even need him so much, I might just feel guilty. But the feeling of his lips clumsily finding mine between closed eyes and rambunctious limbs fumbling around, felt a little too satisfying. We were both lazy at heart, never in a rush. And it showed as his lips took time against mine. Slowly pulling in my lower lip as his hand finds its way to squeeze against my ass, followed by a light smack. I use his slight distraction to nip at his lip, taking in the faint taste of an after mission cigarette drag. He sharply inhales, finding his bearings in gripping tightly at my hips. Shikamaru’s eyes flutter halfway open, hungrily staring me down as all thoughts escape my head in nervousness,” Y/N, are you okay?”
I shake my head back to reality, looking down at his pants line and back to him,” Y-yeah. Are you… are you okay with this?”
“Yeah.” He huffs a silent laugh as I work at his pants, finally receiving a helping hand as he pulls them below his knees. Shikamaru’s hips jerk as my hand delicately wraps around him, pumping softly and slowly, falling in to a rhythm with his breathing. Shikamaru tilts his head back, moaning slightly with a half cocked smile of bliss, jutting his hips in to each stroke as his face quickly flushes,” just don’t hurt yourself, okay?”
“Don’t worry about me, it’s my neck that bothers me. Not my hand.” I exhale, watching his eyes roll before they meet mine,” if it gets to be too much. Tell me to stop.”
I nod, taking a brief moment to slip off my pants that desperately need a wash after the mission and crawl back on top of him. I find the courage to sink down, the ache between my hips enhancing with each second I take to slide fully on to him. By the time I’m fully settled, it feels like my core is about to burst with ecstasy, until he lifts me slightly by my hips and slams me back down gently. A soft yelp escapes my throat from surprise, quickly hushed by his voice,” does that hurt?”
“No, it- it feels good.” I moan between thrusts, watching as his face contorts from pain to fits of pleasure and ecstasy. My head instinctively moves to fall back, quickly answered with a jolt of pain before Shikamaru goes taut and stops all movement,” Shikamaru, I said I was okay. Keep going… please.”
He nods, resuming his motion as I feel the familiar knot in my stomach, unfortunately dulled by the ebbing pain that seemed to rush back in uninvited. My eyes shut tight, spots flickering as my neck hurts and lower body goes numb in pleasure. My moan is choked out by Shikamaru’s own, followed quickly as his pace picks up, using the last of his energy to finish strong and rough.
“Look at me, Y/N.” He hisses out between his clenched jaw, forcing my eyes to obey and lock on to his before they wander once again with the sensation of pure ecstasy. With a guttural moan from Shikamaru, I can feel the hot ropes pulse in to me and his body becomes rigid once again. His head arches back in to the pillow behind him, his moan quickly becoming a whimper, and guilt makes me hope it’s from pleasure and not pain. I can barely manage to flop over beside him and try my best to hide the winces, but fail miserably.
“It was too much for the both of us, wasn’t it?” He sighs, eyes fixated on the ceiling as his hand rubs against his torso. I reach my hand to move his, taking his place to rub at the bruising area softly,” probably. But you always sucked at timing.”
His hand snakes upwards to cup the back of my neck and rub soft circles where it hurt the most, and his eyes slowly meet mine,” such a drag I didn’t do it sooner.”
I find my eyes fluttering closed at the lulling touch against my neck, being pulled slowly to rest my head against his chest and match his steady breathing,” I only let you because it was a pity to see you being the one in pain for once.”
“That’s a lie.” Shikamaru snickers, pinching my ear slightly with his free hand. I giggle back, tilting my head up to sleepily look to him,” and how would you know?”
“Never tell Choji secrets. Especially when you’re both drunk.” He answers, pulling me fully on to him with a grunt. My mind tries to gather any time Choji and I were drunk together, but falls short,” that’s a bluff. I haven’t been drunk with Choji for a long time.”
“Barbecue, sake, and wedding gift planning.” Shikamaru hints.
I then remember the night, sitting down with Choji and venting about not being able to find Hinata and Naruto a gift when my own love life was on the rocks. Sake goes down too sweetly after going through a break up just before a friend gets married. It was several weeks ago now, turning to Choji after Ino and even TenTen had come up short with ideas.
“Why don’t you ask Shikamaru? You two seem to think pretty similarly.” Choji huffs out, ordering the bottle of sake.
“The last thing we need is the two of us working together. It always ends horribly and you know that, Choji.” I cough out after knocking back several cups of the bitter and satisfying beverage.
“It’s because you like him.” Choji smirks, wiggling his eyebrows before ordering another bottle. Two bottles empty and halfway through the third one, I groan as my head slams against the table,” Choji, if I had the capability of liking anyone, why would you assume out of everyone in the leaf, it would be Shikamaru?”
“Because, Shikamaru is the only thing you talk or complain about when you’re drunk, even sober for that matter.” Choji points out, laying down more strips of beef against the barbecue. I bang my head against the table a few more time in frustration,” because that idiot doesn’t leave my head. It’s wrong to think of a friend that way damnit. Especially him.”
The next sentence is the one part I knew Choji took to Shikamaru in confidence,” we’re both too dense to just fuck and get it over with. Besides, sex takes effort and I use enough of that during missions.”
“I feel like I’ve heard that before…” Choji laughs, pulling a strip off the grill and finishing off the plate of beef. Everything afterwards is black as my hand reaches to finish the sake straight from the bottle.
“Oh no, he told you.” I groan, burying my head in guilt and embarrassment. Shikamaru only hugs me with a reassuring laugh,” everything.”
“Just wait until you hear what he told me what you said.” I lie, feeling as his breathing stops,” L-listen, when I told him about that little dream, I figured he wouldn’t say anything!”
“Choji didn’t really tell me anything, but now I’m curious about this dream…” I trail off, eyes becoming heavy as a yawn wracks my body.
“That’s a story for another time, we should get some actual bed rest.” He yawns back.
“If I wasn’t so tired, I’d try to argue with you. You win for now.” I mumble out, quickly letting the claws of sleep sink in to me. Before drifting off, I could feel his lips lazily drift across my forehead. I knew in that moment, I was too comfortable to complain or prod even further. I was content with being finally in his arms and getting some well deserved bed rest.
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justthoughts1310 · 2 months
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ShikaTema is the Best Love Story in All of Naruto.
Okay, so Kishimoto and Ikemoto might do better with Boruto. However, as far as Naruto is concerned, ShikaTema is the best love story hands down. Let me explain.
Naruto x Hinata - Naruto spent 19 years either being oblivious to Hinata's existence or thinking she was weird.
Sasuke x Sakura - This relationship was so abusive that it was borderline criminal. I'm glad it's better now. I like Sarada, but Sasuke did not deserve a wife.
Sai x Ino - This is one of the better love stories. They kind of hit it off from the beginning in a lot of ways. However, aside from the light novel, we don't know much about it.
Asuma x Kurenai - Also, one of the better love stories, but we kind of just saw that they were together one day. Then before we know it, Asuma dies before the birth of his daughter.
Minato x Kushina - Another one of the better love stories. However, we were kind of rushed through the love story, because their entire love story was told in the past for obvious reasons.
Obito x Rin - I guess this is a good love story. I mean it almost ended in the destruction of the ENTIRE world, and Rin was in love with Kakashi the entire time, but what can you do? Did Rin and Obito end up together romantically? I have no idea. In death, Obito reverted back to his 13-14 year old self and spent eternity with 13-14 year old Rin. Yes, that's kind of romantic, but let's be honest, they can only be so romantic before it just becomes creepy and inappropriate (assuming the never age).
Now, the big one: Shikamaru x Temari.
I mean one could argue that this love story began with Temari fought Ten Ten. It was the first time Shikamaru noticed Temari. He took one look at her, and said that she had already beat Ten Ten. Naruto asked Shikamaru how he knew that, and Shikamaru said that he would not tell Naruto if Naruto couldn't figure it out himself.
Shikamaru vs Temari is the first time that Temari noticed Shikamaru, and she was utterly unimpressed with him until the very end of the fight when she realized that she was about 2 seconds for losing if Shikamaru had larger chakra reserves. From that point on, Shikamaru was never far from her mind.
Fast forward, these two lovely characters don't see each other again until Temari has to save Shikamaru from Tayuya. Shikamaru underestimates Temari's abilities, and Temari effortless kills Tayuya with her wind scythe jutsu. After seeing this, Shikamaru compares Temari to his mother.
This is important, because earlier, Shikamaru had asked his father why he married his mother, and Shikamaru's dad was basically like, "A good woman can change you."
Aside from a broken finger, Shikamaru visits the hospital to see how his severely injured friends are doing. Temari scolds him for being too emotional, because it seems as though Shikamaru is about to give up.
Shikamaru's like, "I don't need all this smoke." He gets up to leave, and his father is basically like, "You coward, are you going to let this woman talk to you crazy and all your comrades die in the future."
Shikamaru starts crying and this is the first time we see Temari show genuine concern and empathy for Shikamaru.
The next episode, I believe, Shikamaru is the one to see Temari and her brothers off from the Leaf Village as they head back to the sand.
Now, I'm going to fast forward to Shippuden. Yes, there's a filler arc in which Shikamaru saves Temari from another wind user. Upon returning to the Leaf, I believe Temari helps Shikamaru in the ninja academy with the students, and Shikamaru sees off the Sand Sibling again. You get the point.
Moving onto Shippuden, the first time we see Shikamaru in the village, we see him with Temari. Naruto keenly asks if the two of them are dating. Both Shikamaru and Temari think the assertion is hilarious, but it's actually pretty accurate.
Why, because without going through an entire play by play of every time Shikamaru and Temari were together in Shippuden, I will say this. If there's a Naruto episode with Temari in it, there's about an 80-90% that Shikamaru will be in that episode too, and that he will interact with Temari in some way.
For example, the war arc episode in which Konohamaru challenged Temari to a fight. Shikamaru did not need to be in that episode. Yet, Moegi and Udon went and found Shikamaru, so that Shikamaru could break up the fight. That was when Shikamaru said how scary Temari actually was.
There's even a shot little bonus video in which Shikamaru said, "What if it was Shikamaru Shippuden instead of Naruto Shippuden?" The an opening screen appears on the screen, and there's a silhouette of Shikamaru and Temari on the opening screen.
Temari is a long distance combat specialist. I feel that Shikamaru is mid-distance at best, but yet, both of them were in the same exact campaign during the war, and where was Temari? She was standing right next to Shikamaru.
When Shikamaru got caught up in the infinite genjustu, he dreamt of Temari by his side as they mutually agreed that marriage sucks.
My point is, as I skip a ton of points, Kishimoto had built up a relationship between these two characters for nearly 20 years. Mind you, that these characters DO NOT live in the same village. Temari has very little screen time. She has so little screen time, that she has a new outfit dang near every other time that we see her. However, the majority of the screen time she does have is with Shikamaru. The relationship between these two was set long before the light novels from Shikamaru were even considered.
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superliminalwriting · 14 days
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Naruto Men Smash Or Pass
Naruto Uzumaki: Pass
Just not interested like that. I don’t know.
Sasuke Uchiha: Pass
I go back and forth between saying adult Sasuke is fine as hell to saying I hate Sasuke so I’ll go ahead and pass bc I’m fed up.
Sai: Smash
YALL SEEN WHEN HE HELD KABUTO DOWN???? I STARTED BARKING. HOWLING EVEN.
Shikamaru Nara: Smash
Do I need to explain? CMON.
Choji Akimichi: Smash.
I love him. I want him to know that. He’d be so sweet too. I’m jealous of Karui (and him tbh, she’s so cool and prettyyy)
Kiba Inuzuka: Smash
You are LYING if you say you don’t want him. He’s so fine.
Shino Aburame: DOUBLE SMASH
First of all, he’s canonically PACKING. Second of all, he deserves better. Third of all, he’s fine as hell. And lastly, he’s literally the love of my life. I just know he’d treat me well.
Neji Hyuga: Smash.
SMASH SMASH SMASH SMASH. Sexy man. And he deserves better.
Rock Lee: SMASH.
I just know he got that motion in the ocean yall. CMON. And he’s so sweet. He’d treat his partner like they’re royalty! Cmonnnn
Kakashi Hatake: Smash.
We can recreate those books. That’s all I’m saying on this.
Might Gai: Pass
First pass in a while. Not interested. I don’t like guys like him. Plus, idk if I’m being crazy but he literally uses Lee and Kakashi says that he does Kakashi’s Novel. And honestly, making Lee commit a CRIME for you is crazy. But is that filler? Not count? Idk. Either way, he’s still a pass.
Yamato: Pass
Not interested. Weird face tbh. He’s cool tho.
Itachi Uchiha: SMASH
DO I NEED TO EXPLAIN MYSELF???
Obito Uchiha: pass.
Maybe I’m unreasonable but I can’t stand him. Bro misinterpreted and started a war???? And he’s the cause of like all my confusion for like almost all 500 episodes of Shippuden. Bad taste in my mouth.
Orochimaru: SMASH.
I told yall I don’t smash the bad ones, for the most part, but… yall. Boruto Orochimaru can GET it. I want them to step on me ngl.
Kabuto: PASS. In fact? I’m stabbing him.
HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE THIS MAN WITH EVERY FIBER OF MY BEING. most hated anime men of all time for me are this guy and Shaiapouf from hxh.
Suigetsu: SMASH.
Don’t lie to yourselves, at LEAST once you’ve thought about how hot he is.
Not a man but honorable mention:
Karin Uzumaki: SMASHHHHH
Sasuke never deserved her. Sasuke deserves nobody tbh. I hate him, did I mention that?
Anyways back to the men:
Gaara: SMASH
I don’t need to explain myself
Kankuro: SMASH SMASH SMASHHH..HMM…SMASH
I’m obsessed with this man. Tho Shino has been the one on my mind recently.
This is it for now. I’m tired. I saw somebody do this, so I thought I’d put up my opinions bc… 😈
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dark-elf-writes · 10 months
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Naruto sees dead people au
As Naruto gets older and more interested in romance suddenly the “Days of Our (After)lives” episodes are flipped and all the ghosts will not shut up about who they think Naruto should be with just:
“If you date the Uchiha I will make it my life’s mission to make every bowl of ramen you eat cold for the rest of their life.”
“You just don’t like Sasuke because he’s an Uchiha”
“No I don’t like him because he treats you like shit”
“…”
“Just like an Uchiha would.”
“Thought so”
Shikamaru and Lee are the favorites. Gaara would be if he didn’t live in sand. A good quarter of them want Naru to get with Kiba to see the chaos they would cause.
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okamirayne · 10 days
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Rayne, last episode was awesome!! Just here to remind you that your work is loved by everyone! Shipps in fandom tend to have a person, yk, that internet usser that opens people's eyes and teaches them about a rarepair like its a master class. For me, you are that person. 💗💗 You've done a lot for the shikaneji community, I don't know a single person that ships them and doesn't know about you! You kinda inspired me to learn english years ago because I'd just straight up translate everything with the google translator extension 😂 It's been years since then, and now I read the btb series comfortably in its native language. And there's where I have to ask you something: To celebrate the new HHU's chapter, I'm rereading the whole BtB series. I'm currently in Requiem, but something it's been in my head making noise enough for me to come here and ask you! In Break to Breath, chapter 28, I think they're in Hanegakure and the boys did what hot traumatized boys do... However they're woken up next morning and it is said that Sikamaru tied up his hair with Neji's tie, what Neji did with his hair wasn't mentioned so I always thought that they used each other's ties from then on... Until the very end. Because during the war, Neji isn't using a hairtie, maybe he didn't want to lose it and he save it along Shikamaru's note.
It's never explicitly stated that they got their hairties back, so my favorite headcanon (having people creating headcanons over your fanfic? ur the GOAT) about BtB has allways been that Shikamaru didn't give Neji his hair tie back, and viceversa.
Like when you have a partner in real life and, well, you cannot make a public statement about being together o maybe you cannot see them everyday, so (if you have long hair) you give them your hair tie for them to use in their wrist or properly in their head.
To summarize, what are your thoughts on this? 👀
It's been a while since I last reread the series, so I don't remember this fact being brought up again, at least it wasn't ever mentioned again in Btb nor OtC. Hair ties are mentioned again, but not this. So I live in delulu and imagine them playing with the hairties when they feel lonely/sad. However if it indeed was, then I'm blind and I'm reallyyyy sorry you had to read this 😭
Again, I sincerely love you and the works put online, they're masterpieces and, knowing about the author's block you suffered these years, I hope you're not pressuring yourself on writing! I think we will always wait for you, wheter its BtB universe or your original works 💗
English it's not my first language so I'm sorry if you encouter trouble reading this! xoxo
Sweet Anon 💗💗
Please forgive me if I struggle to find the right words - always a challenge when I am hit so hard by the mega-feels that I'm reduced to a puddle of pure emotion...
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There is so much I am thankful for in your beautiful message. The reassurance and kindness of welcoming me back onto the writing stage after such a crippling absence. The sweetness of your incredibly high praise and regard for my work, and the intense combination of humbleness and amazement, learning that you came into the BtB story via Google Translator and took a chance on a fic not in your native language. THANK YOU, for giving my mad story that opportunity, time, investment, and love. I am so touched that the fic gave you traction regarding learning English and that you can enjoy the fic in his native language. Thank you for crossing that language barrier to read my work...again, I'll never not be humbled by that...💗
Thank You for Every Single Word of Kindness and for the monumental love and support your message has contained. I'm so, so touched and so very thankful 💜❤️‍🩹🙏🏼
To celebrate the new HHU's chapter, I'm rereading the whole BtB series.
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Aww! I sincerely hope you enjoy the ride once again, sweetie. 🙏🏼
Regarding your question about the hair ties!
[...]...and it is said that Sikamaru tied up his hair with Neji's tie, what Neji did with his hair wasn't mentioned so I always thought that they used each other's ties from then on... Until the very end. Because during the war, Neji isn't using a hairtie, maybe he didn't want to lose it and he save it along Shikamaru's note. [..] It's never explicitly stated that they got their hairties back, so my favorite headcanon (having people creating headcanons over your fanfic? ur the GOAT) about BtB has allways been that Shikamaru didn't give Neji his hair tie back, and viceversa.
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Oh I do love where your headcanon has gone.
To summarize, what are your thoughts on this?
I can confidently say, it's a yes. Insofar as Neji allowing Shikamaru to keep his tie when Shikamaru's goes pinging off into the bowels of whatever place they're ravaging each other in...although, I won't lie and say there aren't a few instances where one or the other fight over the last hair tie...
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Of course, said fight for the almighty hair tie is always instigated by Shikamaru absolutely refusing to be caught with his hair down, whereas Neji doesn't particularly care, unless he needs it tied back for practical reasons, in which case...may the best genius win. Good luck. 😂
So I live in delulu and imagine them playing with the hairties when they feel lonely/sad. However if it indeed was, then I'm blind and I'm reallyyyy sorry you had to read this 😭
OMG don't apologise! I loved reading this 💗. I'm so happy your mind plays in the BtB madness and again, there's truth to the hair tie sharing (Neji doing the sharing lol and Shikamaru the stealing)
Again, I sincerely love you and the works put online, they're masterpieces and, knowing about the author's block you suffered these years, I hope you're not pressuring yourself on writing! I think we will always wait for you, wheter its BtB universe or your original works 💗
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I love and appreciate you in return, dear Anon. BtB would not have happened - would not STILL be happening, if not for the kindness of readers reaching out to share their thoughts, feelings, feedback etc. on the work. You make it possible for me to do it. And for all the words I could ever hope to possess, none of them will ever adequately describe or encompass the enormity of the gratitude, joy, healing, and love I feel hearing from you. 🥰
I honest to gods have no words when it comes to my Original Works and your interest in them...I am just an utterly melted heart, spilling all over the floor of emotion at this point....and I thank you for that beautiful mess and the peace, joy, inspiration, motivation, and reassurance it grants me...bless you, sweetheart. 🫶🏼
Thank you also for your compassion towards my burnout and for the reminder to not pressure myself. Coming with so much sincere love and support, it soothes that awful workaholic and over-thinking streak that has my brain on non-stop and constant insomniac spin. The simultaneous stillness and sky-high floaty feeling I get from your message is a beautiful little cocktail that chills me the hell out when I need it most...and I needed it today, whilst eyeing Chapter 9. 😉😅
English it's not my first language so I'm sorry if you encouter trouble reading this! xoxo
Holy heck, are you kidding me? *bows down in respect* If I tried to write in another language, I would butcher it so hard there'd be no recovering at all. You are fluent, my lovely - coherent and awesome. The only trouble I encountered reading your message was trying to keep my heart from detonating in my chest from the overload of feelings. 💜💜 I thank you for that. It beats the hella insane nerves that eat at me as I return to writing. There's so much heart and healing to be found in this message that I'm sincerely at a loss now....thank you, so, so much.
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Huge, HUGE love coming at you from all sides, sweetheart. 🥰
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woman-child91 · 2 years
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i too am a Shikanaru fan and am watching Naruto for the first time i basicly know most of all the spoils because i had a lot of questions and needed answers when i was watching the og series im on shippuden now and i've just gotten to meet sai but thats not why im here im here because Naruto likes boys in a filler ep he said "ITS A DATE" to a boy and i recorded it because im insane also i will not explain
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I love ShikaNaru. It’s probably amongst my Top 5 Naruto ships. Yup. Naruto definitely likes boys.
Oh! By the way, I advise you to stop watching Naruto Shippuden once you get to the episodes where Kakashi and Jiraiya are shown as little kids. I think it’s called Jiraiya & Kakashi.
Because, anything after that sucks. They make ALL the characters OOC and ugly as hell! They also take away all of Naruto’s cuteness both, in looks and personality.
They erase all of his bonds with the other boys except for Sasuke, Gaara and Shikamaru. But, still it isn’t worth watching. I actually watched ALL of Boruto and I hate the show so much!
It’s so, so, so bad! It actually made me hate my straight OTP and my favorite female character. And speaking of Sai?
He’s probably one of the gayest (not gay as in lame. But, as in gay gay.) characters in the anime. He falls for Naruto HARD! And I do mean hard.
That’s why I hate Naruto Gaiden and Boruto so much. They actually make every boy "straight" and specially Sai. They practically erase his entire memories of Naruto and just replace them with fake ones of Ino.
Naruto is the one who converted Sai. Yet, Sai keeps on saying it was Ino. He didn’t even like her. Near the very end of the series. They’re all put to sleep during a war and they’re dreaming about their deepest inner desires.
Sai dreams of being best friends with Naruto and everyone complimenting him on his smile. Naruto even hugs him and tells him that his smile is so cool and that he’s his best friend. Sai is really ecstatic about this and hugs Naruto back as he laughs from happiness.
Umm… after seeing this episode their ship was practically canon. But, everything after Jiraiya’s and Kakashi’s episode just sucks. I think it’s because, Kishimoto didn’t write it himself. Nope. He actually stopped writing after Sasuke’s and Naruto’s last fight.
I’d also advise you to just stop watching after Naruto Shippuden — Road To Ninja Movie. Unless you’re a NaruHina fan. I used to be one but, Boruto made me hate it and Hinata. Because, they make Hinata completely OOC. She acts more like Sakura now. But, much worse.
She actually threatens and scares poor Naruto whenever he’s home. It’s no wonder he’s almost never home and always working in his Hokage office.
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sneezemonster15 · 1 year
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Hey, I hope you're well :)
You know how one of the most famous jokes people make about naruto is " power of friendship" right? Like how naruto gets strong cuz of his friends and stuff like that. Did the anime add the power of friendship in? Like in the first arc its naruto bonding with sasuke in the land of waves and then them getting crazy over each other, then in the forest of death it's naruto encouraging sasuke to get strong and sasuke spotting naruto imposters, then in after coming back from orochimaru's lair naruto learns a new power to catch up to sasuke, in the pains arc he learns a sage mode to avenge Jiriya, and then after that it's back to sasuke. Like to me, the arc either had to do with sasuke or something else, not really the other teams ( aparts from shikamaru and the others avenging asumas death), you only get snippets of naruto interacting with the other teams. His motivation for getting strong had nothing to do w the other teams right? To me he didn't interact with the other teams much. I could of missed something out tho... so yea, did the anime add it in? Bty I've only read the manga so I'm wondering if it was changed in the anime.
Hey. Yes, I am well. :)
It's true that anime did push the friendship element featuring Naruto in fillers. There is an episode or two where eight year old Naruto, Shikamaru, Chouji, Sakura feature and it portrays that Naruto was always friends with these characters when in canon, all of these characters were categorically shown to resent, hate, or simply be dismissive of Naruto. There's also a couple of filler episodes that feature a character called Sora, where Naruto is shown to commingle with other Konoha characters such as Kiba and Shikamaru, which pushes the idea of power of friendship. There are other episodes as well where Naruto is shown to join other teams such as Gai's team or team eight on some mission or the other.
In canon, he mostly is a part of his own team, and other times, other members join him up for certain missions such as Sasuke retrieval arc or when they are fighting the Akatsuki members Hidan and Kakuzu, where Naruto is shown to value friends other than Sasuke but well, the whole point of the arc was to bring Sasuke back. Even when he fights Hidan and Kakuzu, he insists on going it alone.
Naruto mostly learns from anti hero archetype characters such as Haku, Zabuza, Neji, Gaara, Obito, Nagato and Sasuke, of course. But his relationship with Sasuke is different, much more intense and complex. His quest starts to become the hero, the hokage, the strongest ninja ever, but when he loses Sasuke at the end of part one, it becomes about Sasuke and how to get strong enough to bring him back, and becoming hokage takes a backseat. This is especially highlighted in the kage arc. He defies every single person that he respects, approves or is friends with, whether it be Shikamaru, Kakashi, Gaara, Sakura, for Sasuke.
You aren't wrong. In canon, this element of friendship focuses on his friendship with Sasuke. We only get snippets of his interaction with other teams and the most meaningful interaction that he has among those is with Shikamaru, as he is the one who consoles Naruto after Jiraiya's death. His interaction with Kiba is limited to casual insults, with Hinata it's mostly to encourage her, his interaction or lack of it with Shino is basically a canon joke, he has a meaningful interaction with Neji in the first part but it is almost entirely missing in Shippuden until war arc where he dies, his interaction with other members such as Ino, Chouji, Lee, Tenten is very limited. At best, it's casual and fleeting. In war arc, we see these characters go the extra mile for Naruto, but really, it's a war where everyone's life is hanging in a balance and Naruto is obviously their only hope. Of course, there's no malice in it. But Naruto sees it as friendship, something he always wished for, to be accepted. He has been accepted and approved by others in Pein arc and from there onwards, his magnanimity and selflessness makes him push himself further and further for the sake of the shinobi world and while everyone is fighting to the same ends, supporting him, he sees it as a team effort. But really, it was mostly him. And then Sasuke. Those two are the main act.
Fillers aren't to be taken seriously. They are written by different authors, a lot of whom don't really get the point of the manga or a character. I mean, don't you think it defeats the entire purpose and motivation of Naruto's character to be shown as being so hobnobby and friendly with all these other characters when the whole point of his struggle and tragic backstory was that he was the kyuubi vessel, always ostracized, resented and abhorred by everyone, which in turn informed his driving factor to become hokage, something which will make him finally be accepted?
So yeah. Most fillers defy canon and are basically shit. Naruto's greatest motivation in part one, to start with was to become Sasuke's equal so as to be able to be friends with him, to become as strong or more than Sasuke, which would then lead to him becoming hokage one day. And in part two, the hokage dream is there in conjunction with bringing Sasuke back, but obviously, if Sasuke isn't in his world, absolutely nothing matters. Not being hokage, not being the fated hero, not being the stopper of the cycle of revenge, nothing. That boy is crazy about Sasuke and absolutely nothing trumps that. No matter who tries to make him do it.
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siliyis · 2 years
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I don't miss the Naruto fandom, I really don't.
I was watching a video, minding my own business and I came across an art about Naruto characters if they were pirates in One Piece. It was literally a bunch of character designs from Naruto, Shikamaru, Neji, etc. I was enjoying it, thought they all looked cool. It was all fun and games until I read the comments. I can only show 10 ss.
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How can I avoid breathing the same air as this fandom? I want to blacklist everything related to Naruto because I don't want to come across of them even accidentally. As a Sakura fan, it's just too toxic to be around y'all.
Sakura isn't flat but even if she was... what kind of comments are these?? Wtf y'all smoking? Do you treat women with small chest like this? Or is it because she a "fictional" character? There is no fandom I wish to avoid more than the Naruto fandom. I stopped watching Sakura related videos because antis be there too.
I understand people can dislike characters. I get it. I wouldn't mind if people hated spent a whole month hating on something they don't like. However, the anime ended 6 years ago... move on from your hate please. I doubt Sakura shows up in Boruto more than 3 minute every 20+ episodes. I doubt most even watch Boruto.
Almost all of the other fandoms critics and people who hate certain characters have the courtesy to NOT invade every space as it's for FANS and not haters. Other fandoms keep their dislike on their page, forum, or in a discussion. Somehow, the Naruto fandom made this disgusting behaviour socially accepted in every video and space meant for admirers. Fxxk this fandom.
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justmyownreality · 11 months
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Rukia time~
🧑🤗🤞
Hehehehe you have no idea how happy I am to talk OC things with you again. 💕
🧑 Talk about your OC's name. Does it have a special meaning or reason behind it?
Personally - I was like 10, watched a few episodes of Bleach but was mainly into Naruto and my parents were going through a divorce so thus Rukia Hatake was born 😂
Story wise - Rumi and Kakashi were trying out baby names with their names since they were silly teenagers who were not prepared for a child at all. Ruka was the last name that Rumi told her brother Asuma so during Rumi’s death / Rukia’s birth, Asuma mistakenly said the name Rukia which sounded perfect to the three of them. And means light? Among other things I can’t remember and I’m typing on my phone. 😂
🤗 Who are the people your OC considers their closest confidants? Do those people feel the same way?
Oh girl has quite a few. Goes without saying that depending on the AU - her partner becomes one of them whether that’s Shino, Suigetsu, or Naruto. It definitely takes time with each partner for Rukia to feel truly able to go to them with anything. With Shino, she worries about letting him down / him not getting it. With Suigetsu, well they hated each other and then had a very rocky middle of their relationship but now are thick as thieves. And then Nart, he’s so bright and warm that she worries about him also not getting it or understanding why she does the things she does, but they break through that :)
In every universe Shikamaru is her best friend through and through so he’s pretty much always at the top and likewise she is his. Then followed by Sakura, and Konohamaru.
AND OF COUSE in the OC Multiverses her Leaf bestie / doctor that reminds her jealousy is not something that can be treated at the hospital - Nezumi and the OC duo that started me down the OC rabbit hole in the first place- Aki Kamiya 😂. And of course @therantingfangirl’s Kurono and @mortyvongola2-0’s Masa who have probably seen all sides of Rukia at this point through many different universes and they always end up friends 💕.
🤞 What is your OC's greatest dream or desire?
Her greatest dream / desire is really just peace. Her entire life she’s lived in fear over losing the people she loved and often had a front row seat to it. Nearly everything she has ever done has been done to achieve the idea of peace somewhere down the line. She’s never been one to aim to be Hokage (despite it being in her bloodline) or to be the strongest, etc. she just wants peace, true peace and equity among everyone though she does know that’s a dream that won’t happen unless they work towards it.
OC Asks
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Shikamaru Nara in Every Episode: Naruto Shippuden #365 (Part 2) 忍び舞う者たち - Shinobimau Mono-tachi (Those Who Dance in the Shadows)
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super-kame-love · 30 days
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In the next episode of "Uta in Love," she comes away from her visit with the Sarutobi family drawing the conclusion that she must impress Mirai to win her heart, just as Mirai had captured hers with her prowess as a kunoichi. Thus, Uta sets out to challenge Mirai to a match every chance she gets whenever Aina brings her along on visits to Konoha.
This turns into what can only be described as harassment. Never mind that Mirai easily subdues her in every confrontation with her training. Each defeat only seems to spur on Uta that much more. She cannot stand to lose. Yet being bested by Mirai makes her that much more obsessed with the latter. It's a deeply unsettling feeling. And it makes her increasingly agitated.
Though she probably should have in hindsight, Mirai doesn't get the adults involved. She has always been one to prefer handling things on her own, and she doesn't deem the matter one worth bothering them with. In her eyes, Uta is just a confused kid looking for attention in the form of a friendly rivalry--one that, for whatever reason, she seeks exclusively with Mirai. Plus, there's a part of her that kind of enjoys their sparring, despite her annoyance with its frequency and timing. Uta may not be able to beat her in combat, but she's no slouch, either.
She fails to realize how serious Uta's marriage proposal had been. It isn't until Mirai talks to Kakashi and Might Guy, whose own bond began as a rivalry that continues to this day, that she starts to get nervous about accidentally leading on Uta.
One day, the tension combusts. Uta happens to catch Mirai and Shikadai training together and sees how close they are. Mistaking their boisterous interaction for flirting--it's the part where Mirai locks the boy's head to give him a noogie that does it--Uta bursts into a jealous rage.
As soon as Mirai is out of sight, Uta lunges at poor Shikadai with intent to kill. At first, he's able to fend her off, as expected for the son of Shikamaru and Temari Nara. Until she plays dirty by fighting against the Shadow Paralysis jutsu enough to fire a loogie into his eye. The instant Shikadai gets overwhelmed with disgust and loses concentration, Uta pounds on him using some of the wrestling moves Bee and Ay taught her.
Luckily, reinforcements arrive in the form of Shikadai's teammates, Inojin and ChouChou. It takes a group effort, but by the time Mirai notices the commotion and hurries back, ChouChou's got a shrieking Uta gripped in her enlarged fist. No matter how hard Uta bites her finger, which prompts ChouChou to seize her in both hands.
Mirai's first instinct is to run to Shikadai to check his injuries. Then cast a genjutsu over Uta to keep her in place before ordering Inojin to take Shikadai back to the house. Uta can only scream and snarl and writhe, the flames of jealousy lit anew. She can't tell her side of the story even if she wanted to.
"What's wrong with your cousin, ChouChou? Why would she go after Shikadai like that?"
"Beats me! She's always been kinda messed up, but...aw c'mon, what's the matter, Uta?"
A pointless question, at which Uta shrieks some more.
It happens that the mothers of Ino-Shika-Chou are at the house, and they hurry outside to investigate. The only reason Temari doesn't destroy Uta is because her son's condition takes priority. Karui, who knows the girl best of the trio as her "aunt", takes the lead instead. She lets Uta scream her lungs out for several moments more--much to the others' consternation--before folding her arms and asking, "Are you done? Mirai, can you make it so Uta can move her arms but not her legs? Girl needs her hands to talk."
"Yes, ma'am."
So Uta stands frozen in place with everyone but Mirai glaring at her. Mirai just looks disappointed. That hits her the worst. She doesn't necessarily feel bad for attacking Shikadai at the moment. It's that look on Mirai's face that breaks her. She's in love and jealous and angry and confused and creeping toward the conclusion that Mirai will never like her because she's too broken to be liked, especially in the way she wants Mirai to like her.
She starts to cry.
Karui is...not quite as sympathetic as she could be. "Uh-uh. You don't get to cry after what you just did. Now why'd you do it? What'd you go wailin' on Shikadai for?"
When she can catch a brief moment of lucidity, Uta signs between sobs: He's stealing her from me. I have to kill him.
"Stealing? Her? Who're you talkin' about?"
Uta points to Mirai with a trembling, throbbing finger. Mirai turns pale at the implication.
"Whaaaaat!? Y-you think me and Shikadai--oh, gross! Where'd you get the idea that we--he's a little brother to me!"
ChouChou shakes her head. "Aw, man! Ya mean you just tried to kill my friend over nothing? I coulda told you they weren't an item!"
Humiliation. Before the information fully sinks in, Uta's already returned to snarling through her tears.
Ino, shaking her own head in disbelief, goes to call Aina.
Could everyone have handled this better? Maybe. But based on what they know about Uta, it was either keep her restrained or release her and have her go right back on her warpath. She's been known to chase people with intent to harm, even after they retreat.
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kankuroplease · 6 months
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do you have any ships for chouji that you like? my poor boy is so underrated i feel like nobody ships him </3 i like choukaru and chouhina personally
I really like ChoKarui as it’s the gorgeous girl who clearly saw how great he was in a short amount of time and Choji not needing Shikamaru or Ino to make a connection.
“They didn’t even show it” they didn’t show a large chunk of the character’s romances and fandom is doing the serious foot work with every ship they want to so leave it be, y’know.
Choji falls into my protect them bin, so shipping is hard because I’m always wondering how this person would treat him (i saw a burrito episode that had me about to get Karui too lmao) ? But ships I think would allow him to get all the love and security he deserves, even if they aren’t high on my shipping; ChoHina, ChoIno, ShikaCho, InoShikaCho (which would be better than either or), ChoGaa, ChoSaku, and I think we’ve ran out of sweeties 💀🤣
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mothervvoid · 8 months
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kinda massively cheating here, but for the character ask game, would you spill your thoughts on Inoichi, Asuma, and/or the not-yet-invented characters of Obimama/Obipapa? I'm feeling interested in a lot of fictional parental units in this chilis tonight
character ask game
oh god oh fuck mable what have you done--
also this is SO LONG so i am going to put it under a read more:
one aspect about them i love
Inoichi - Now this might just be my POV here, but Inoichi is super goofy at times and others he's SUPER serious. I love it. When he's with the Analysis Team right before Pain's attack, he's a no-nonsense leader. When he's interacting with Ino off work he is her silly, well-meaning dad. We love a man who can do both!
Asuma - Just how well he gets along with Ino-Shika-Cho. Like they have their moments, especially when Kishi (and Studio Perriot) wants to play up the comedy, and ESPECIALLY in the early anime, but he meshes very well with Team 10 and they mesh very well with him. He's like their older brother, or an uncle they know really well.
Obiparents - The thing about Obiparents is that they just straight up don't have characters--they're the archetypal dead parents, a picture on Obito's corkboard full of all of the people that he loves and nothing more. However, they gave us Obito, and for that I am forever in their debt.
one aspect i wish more people understood about them
I don't actually have anything for this for Asuma or Inoichi--I just can't think of anything, though I haven't really read any meta on Asuma or Inoichi so I'm not really sure how the people feel about them and if I disagree with any common fandom opinions on them.
Obiparents - Because they're the stock dead parents they don't ever really get to parent their son or have any kind of meaningful character on-screen. It is their absence that is felt more than anything.
one (or more) headcanon(s) i have about this character
Inoichi - He's a single dad. We never see his wife in the manga (i think she's there in filler but i still hc he's a single dad). He just gives off those vibes. He's the only person whose ever home in most of the scenes we see with Ino in her house (or he's just not there at all and she's all alone). Single dad Inoichi ftw.
Asuma - Had he lived, Asuma would have been the kind of dad who lets his daughter put make up on him and do his hair. You walk into Mirai's room and Asuma is sitting their on the floor with her with uneven pigtails in his hair and very badly done eyeshadow. He takes her to the movies and they both wear princess dresses. She paints his nails. He is having the best time of his life.
Obiparents - Obimama is the goofy one out of the two of them, she's where Obito gets it from. Obipapa isn't super serious but he's definitely not as goofy as Obimama.
one character i love seeing them interact with
Inoichi - I unironically love seeing him interact with Ino, even if it's sparse. He's so bad at relating to her it's kind of funny. Like there's a scene in a filler episode where he asks her if she's "finally chosen between Shikamaru and Choji" and she gets so mad at him for it. Peak teenage girl behavior, and he's soooo bad at understanding it. Like yes he is Inoichi of the Leaf, famed 1/3 of Ino-Shika-Cho but he is also Ino's lame ass dad.
And like it's very obvious he loves her very much because his final words to her (and his final words EVER) are of how proud he is of her and the person she's become. Like he is her silly dad but he loves her very much and so I treasure every interaction between them that we get.
Asuma - Shikamaru. There's a scene of them laying on the grass together having a conversation and they look so comfortable with each other. Like if they looked a little more alike you could believe that was Shikamaru's uncle or even older brother.
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Gee Shikamaru, how come Kishimoto let you have THREE father figures?? - Naruto probably.
Asuma just really seems to GET Shikamaru and that seeps into every single interaction they have. Asuma knows how to get him to do things even when he doesn't want to, Asuma knows how to talk to him, Asuma knows how to work with him. Their interactions are always top tier to me.
Obiparents - If they were alive I would have loved to see interactions between them and Obito, and Rin and even Kakashi. Could you imagine?? Obito inviting Rin over after school only for her to drag Kakashi along and Obito is fuming and his parents think it's hilarious and adorable.
one character i wish they would interact with/interact with more
Inoichi - I wish we saw Inoichi interact with Shikamaru and Choji. Choza has a couple interactions with Shikamaru that leads us to believe that the older generation of Ino-Shika-Cho interact fairly regularly with the younger members (altho it might just be Choza's chill vibes). Choza's wife also seems familiar with Shikamaru considering she runs up to him crying in episode 82 of Shippuden while trying to comfort HIM. I can't remember if Shikaku has had similar interactions w the rest of younger Ino-Shika-Cho so if anyone knows please let me know. I crave Ino-Shika-Cho crumbs.
Asuma - I wish we had seen more interactions between Asuma and his dad, Hiruzen. We're told that there's bad blood between the two of them but we're never really shown WHY exactly the two of them had a falling out. I know they disagreed on some things and I might just not be remembering things but we don't really see many if ANY disagreements between Asuma and his father. And Hiruzen isn't just his father--he's his Hokage! There's so much potential there for some interesting conversations/scenes and we just don't get any.
Obiparents - (if they were alive) I wish we could have seen some interactions between them and Obito. Like maybe if they were alive when he was super, SUPER young we could have seen them interacting with him and how they treated him when he was a baby/toddler. Was he a wanted child? Was he born out of obligation? These are questions we never have answered because they're dead before the story even begins.
one (or more) headcanon(s) i have that involve them and one other character
Inoichi - I think Inoichi and Minato knew each other! Inoichi was the head of the Analysis Team in the Intelligence Division, I think there's a good chance he reported directly to Minato when he was Hokage.
Asuma - Since Asuma said that the Sarutobi serve as sensei to each new generation of Ino-Shika-Cho since Konoha was founded I like to think he was probably introduced to them when they were really young. He was probably sporadically in-and-out of their childhoods, like some cool older brother figure who takes them out to lunch to restaurants wayyy too nice for kids their age but he doesn't care, it just so happens that Yakinku Q became their favorite place to go so that's where he took them post mission.
Obiparents - Considering Obito is considered a bit of an outcast I think his parents were as well. Obiparents, for some reason or another, were not liked by Fugaku's parents (ie the clan head) and thus that extended to Fugaku as well. When Fugaku inherited the clan he didn't like Obiparents for one reason or another and thus that extended to not liking their son. Vicious cycle!
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fa1rytunes · 9 months
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I’ve been rewatching Naruto with my fiancé and there are so many things that jump to me that I never noticed & so many criticisms I have with the storytelling I would have never had when I was 10-15 years old.
First and foremost, there are clearly two different animation teams at work, and it’s particularly striking in Shippuuden.
The main/“beta team” has thicker lines, more shading, duller colours. They work on pretty much all filler episodes (the bulk of which I’ve skipped) as well as non-battle or secondary battle episodes that have less importance on the overall plot. Their animations can be a bit janky and it shows that this team is there to save time. Side-characters are often not well-drawn or very static, time-saving techniques are used to avoid animating/detailing certain parts, and use of flashbacks to drag on is ubiquitous. Character poses are often stiff or the perspective is a bit off, they try as much as possible to draw “easy” angles.
The senior/“alpha team” uses thinner lines, more vivid colours, less shading/more flats. They make all of the climax episodes in main story arcs. They have a much better sense of pacing, meaningful shots, and don’t shy away from using complex/difficult to animate angles like beta team does. They are used for most of the heavy action sequences in meaningful fights (e.g. the climax episode of the Naruto x Pain battle where Hinata tries to protect Naruto; Minato’s intervention to reseal Kyuubi during Naruto’s fight against Pain; Danzo and Sasuke’s fight; the last flashback episode from Naruto’s parents’ death). Their animation of combat is much more fluid, they don’t strictly respect anatomy and try to give a “feel” of the movement rather than produce it as such, which is the mark of an animator at the top of their craft. You can see them animate the Shikamaru grief episode after Asuma’s death as well as Naruto’s grief episode after Jiraiya’s, so their work is not just limited to action-heavy arcs, they also work on very important emotional episodes for the story progression. One thing of note is, during Sasuke and Itachi’s fight and after that (mostly every time Itachi’s sacrifice is referenced), there are numerous flashback sequences to the time leading up to Itachi’s slaughter of the Uchiha, and you can see that some of the scenes have been redrawn by team alpha (one specific clue is that some shots show light in Itachi’s eyes whereas the alpha team went with flat black for both Itachi and Sasuke’s eyes).
You know when alpha team is involved, this is likely a major/important episode. Likely, this team of animators is senior/more experienced, as their quality is visibly better, so they only focused their effort on the most important episodes while the beta team rushed to deliver the rest of the episodes on much tighter schedules.
Secondly, I have a lot of criticism about specific story arcs where I feel like the writing could have been much more compelling.
First, there is the common criticism that after Pain’s arc, Naruto’s answer to everything is the “talk no jutsu”, where simply talking to an enemy who is blinded by thoughts of revenge will make them abandon it and surrender (one particularly glaring example is the conclusion of the filler arc just before Naruto arrives at the island where he learns to control Kyuubi with Killer B’s help). It feels like things become way too easy for Naruto and he doesn’t do the kind of deep emotional work that would explain his “growth”. Learning about Nagato’s story and changing his direction to take on his burden as well as Jiraiya is one thing, learning how to do it concretely is another. Consequently, things start to feel a bit too easy for Naruto after that.
Namely, the whole “waterfall of truth” arc is solved way too quickly for my taste. Naruto quickly understand that he must not “fight” with the darkness within him, but his solution is to explain said darkness that it has propelled him forward, and thus it is no longer needed. This feels like an easy solution when Naruto has shown many times that he does have some resentment towards Konoha’s villagers for treating him like shit, and resentment towards his parents for making him a Jinchuuriki. He only stops feeling this resentment towards his parents when Kushina tells him it was a necessary sacrifice and that it was their only solution to save the village and reseal Kyuubi. However, his resentment towards the villagers is never truly resolved. Yes, it has propelled him forward, but Naruto does not understand why said resentment was a thing. His arc with the waterfall of truth did not involve understanding other people’s pain, understanding his own, accepting it, and then living beyond it. It was basically just hand-waved away for plot convenience. He does not even understand what Kyuubi is (as in, an incarnation of all the hatred and suffering in the world) beyond the fact that it is a mass of pure hatred.
Then, right after the waterfall of truth, there is the whole episode where Naruto goes into the secret room of the temple with Killer B and Yamato to “conquer” Kyuubi’s chakra, where he gains his evolved Jinchuuriki form. While it is understandable that Kushina’s help was invaluable in helping Naruto in his fight, it also does not do much of a service to Naruto’s characterization, as it does not show Naruto’s unwavering will finding a way to dominate over Kyuubi’s, and we know there’s no way Naruto would have won without Kushina’s help. Furthermore, I didn’t like that this arc relied on a pure battle (although inner) between Naruto and Kyuubi. It would have felt more compelling to me if this arc had relied on Naruto gaining a deeper understanding of hatred, where it comes from, why it is inevitable, how evil happens, and through this gained an emotional mastery over Kyuubi, and not just an inner battle. In particular, it is very much emphasized that hatred = desire for revenge, and this feels like a huge oversimplification of how hatred works. A deeper reflection on it would have also added weight/flexibility to the “talk no jutsu” idea which surfaces later on.
Anyway those are some random musings, and it’s where I’m at right now, right after Naruto/Killer B/Aoba/Yamato/Guy/other guy fail to capture Kisame because he commits seppuku. I may have more thoughts when I reach the end.
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