#with balls big enough to actually pose a threat to Israhell. so that's at least. one good thing they've done

[bright-hope-spot-19]

All right, so to make things clear: this is a rewrite of an old post I'd written as a reblog to show a side of Kankuro's character not many people take into account: and that's how he's not flawless despite the development he saw between og Naruto and Shippuden. I just had to delete that reblog once I found out the op who'd made the main post is an Israel defender. It almost made me throw up, realizing I had unknowingly reblogged smth from a genocide apologist. So, I decided to delete my reblog and write it as an individual post instead.

This is another one of Kankuro's traits that I adore because it just helps show how human he is. Now, a very important detail to keep in mind when writing a character and giving that character development is to not get rid of their flaws. Especially if said flaws form an intrinsic part of the characters' personality, and they just wouldn't feel the same without these flaws. It's hard to strike a balance in a character that has seen development, changed for the better, and learned from their mistakes, but at the same time, they're not flawless. As humans, we're not flawless and will never be. We're emotional, we make rash decisions, and when under stress, it's easy to choose with your heart, not your head. Kankuro embraces that relatable human experience perfectly.

Did Kankuro see development? Definitely, yes. He did develop and change between how he was in the chunin exams and the way he is in Shippuden. Is he flawless? Very big, fat NO. Despite having become a more mature and responsible person who's changed to the point of being Gaara's n.1 supporter and his second most important bond after Naruto, Kankuro is still Kankuro. As we know him, he is reckless, rash, cocky, and overconfident. He jumps into a fight, not taking the possible consequences into account, but when push comes to shove and he is defeated, he still manages to obtain a vital, useful clue for their mission. As we can see, he still has his personality traits that characterize him. He's just learned to adapt and make a small victory out of that loss. And we know it is intentional for Kankuro to be flawed and human because after he'd been defeated and brought back and Chiyo and her brother Ebizo were also called in to heal Kankuro. Ebizo calls out Kankuro for his mistake. So, his flaws are acknowledged. He doesn't just get away with it. He's made responsible for them, despite being in a life or death situation. Kankuro is constantly being called out for his mistakes, actually. Something that I don't think happens with any other character to that extent.

When in his introduction, he got into a fight with the Leaf kids? Got called out by both Sasuke throwing a rock at him and telling him to get lost, as well as Gaara literally showing up and threatening to kill him. When in the pre-lims, he tries establishing a connection with Naruto? Nart tells him to his face that he doesn't like him. When he shows too much eagerness and excitement to fight his opponent in the pre-lims? Gaara also has a scene calling him pathetic. In the Gaara rescue arc, he's schooled twice, once by Sasori and another by Ebizo, as mentioned above, before getting a little respite with Kakashi's praise of his quick-thinking skills. Yeah, Kankuro will attack recklessly and accidentally end up falling into a ditch, but he'll also be the first to come up with a safe and sound plan to come out of that ditch stronger than before. That's a sign of a well-written character. That's why I believe he's better written than both his sibs. Because I dare anyone to mention a single instance since Gaara's 'redemption' where he's shown making mistakes and learning from them. There simply isn't. Same with Temari. Whereas Kanks cruelty is presented as a flaw, her cruelty is presented as a virtue that makes her a #badass girlboss. Her anime scene fighting with Konohamaru proves that. When Kank was the one bullying this kid, despite being introduced as a legit villain and antagonistic character (what do villains do, I wonder? Geez, take a fucking guess). And being a kid himself, it's presented as bad. When Temari is the one who also fights this same child almost killing him, she's cool, and Konohamaru is the one scolded. Even if at that point, Temari was one of the 'good guys', and she was like 18-19 threatening to kill a 12 year old. Long live feminism guys! She almost killed a young teen cause he taunted her, she's so cool! The same applies to the war arc. After Temari gets separated from Gaara and she finds herself in a little group with Shika and Gaara's two insufferable fangirls (Matsuri and whatever her friends' name is). She legit spends most of her screentime shouting at these two young, inexperienced teens cause she doesn't know what else to do.

Compare that to Kankuro:

Yeah, guys. Sorry to say this, but only one of them is well-written, and it's not the girl. The difference between them is that while Kankuro's flaws are pointed out to him and he's challenged to change and overcome them without truly losing the essence of his character. Temari's flaws are merely presented as traits that make her 'quirky' and 'not like the other girls'.' And as a result, she's not challenged to change them or learn nothing from her mistakes cause the story simply refuses to acknowledge them. So, endgame Temari is exactly the same as the Temari from the chunin exam. She's just kinda softer now, cause she has a bf? But that won't erase her fierceness! She can still punch and slap Shikamaru no problem! Feminism is still alive, guys! Gaara's character is just as atrocious as he becomes just as flawless and emotionless, to the point an old man can insult him to his face (Oonoki), and he needs his brother to react for him. They're bad because they don't make mistakes, so they can't improve, cause they have nothing to learn. That's boring. Gaara and Temari are a 12 year olds' idea of what a good character is. In reality? Both shallow and boring. Kanks is the only halfway decent one, and keep in mind, when compared to higher writing standards, Kank isn't that good either. Only when compared to the standards of side characters in Naruto, he's not only one of the best but highly outshines both his sibs in terms of writing. Feel free to crucify me, but that's the truth, lmao.

From now on, I'll be more careful and check every blog I intend to reblog from to make sure they don't support genocide. I don't want to end up accidentally reblogging stuff from a criminal ever again. Always remember: from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.