thingslurime

[thingslurime]

idk how people can look at sasuke's face in the manga after naruto called him his friend again and not wonder like huh, why is sasuke averting his gaze? why is sasuke asking for a deeper definition of what their friendship means to naruto? why can't he do that while looking him in the eye?

it literally keeps me up at night that sasuke cannot look at naruto directly here and then continues to avert his gaze as naruto, for the first time, explains what his feelings for sasuke mean to him. like i am desperate to know what this looks like to other people who insist there is nothing romantic about this. like wtf, since when is sasuke afraid of anything. why should he be afraid or be unable to look head on at whatever naruto is going to say to him about their relationship.

this is so crazy to me. like he's literally just waiting for naruto to figure it out. why did kishimoto draw sasuke this way. all those '...' bubbles as if he's unimpressed, once again, with naruto's simple label of 'friend'. idk im insane. and then the face sasuke makes when naruto confesses he hurts when sasuke hurts.... that he can't just sit and do nothing with a pain like that. sasuke's tears... like are u kidding. sasuke's in love with naruto, end scene.

[thingslurime]

[thingslurime]

you know Kishimoto didn’t have to make naruto pine and yearn over sasuke while naruto was burying his face in the pillow on the bed… or laying on the floor all forlorn… thinking stuff like ‘sasuke, where are you… do you feel better? worse? what are you thinking?’ like 😳

[thingslurime]

naruto was fully prepared to die in his fight with sasuke, nart thought that if they’d fight they would both die, and then when he wakes up in vote2 again he asks ‘is this heaven?’ like… he was prepared. who cares about the village and infinite tsukuyomi as long as he’s by his uhm… most precious person’s side together in death

[thingslurime]

at the start naruto hides his feelings of wanting to reach out to sasuke under the pretense of rivalry (which we see many times through his behaviour with sasuke, and with others in relation to sasuke in part 1) and sasuke *tried* hiding his feelings for naruto under a front (due to fear of bonds etc) but when push came to shove his body betrayed him (consciously and unconciously). To claim their relationship was retconned at the end is just so bizarre. Even in vote1 we got ‘teasers’ of when they were kids looking at each other, there was always something more to their story connecting them which was built upon while the story progressed until the ultimate reveal in vote2. sns understood each others loneliness from the very start, that’s what drew them in, what they didn’t understand were their actions in response to that loneliness (and towards each other) which they eventually do come to understand at the end. for sasuke, it’s the bonds = weakness (eg vote1: u know the pain of loneliness so that’s what makes u strong / part 2: naruto don’t u know what true strength is) and for naruto it’s coming to understand the loss of those bonds, “there’s no way I could’ve understood sasuke back then” - which he himself admits. anw there’s much more that I could write about this but this is the gist of it essentially so.

[thingslurime]

naruto was ready to fight, he was full of anger for not knowing where Sasuke was and he was hurrying himself to find him, longing saying "wait sasuke, i'm coming for you" while his eyes were red

when he arrived he was ready to fight, being furious, but it only took sasuke to come out of that box backwards for naruto to calm down and become happy to see him

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨♡୧⋆ ˚｡⋆

It's amazing how much sasuke changes naruto's feelings, it's love

[thingslurime]

Despite the official and "canon" ships and the monstruosity of Boruto, but a lot of times and even in real life we see that the "unnoficcial" things are stronger than the canon-officials one. For example in tv shows were cannonly one is married to another, but deep inside they love another person, so what's more important? His "official" marriage? as Robert Baratheon for ex in got, or the men in Brokeback. So, do you consider SNS as canon or at least is canon down the surface? I mean, you just need to scratch the surfe a little bit to see what a really canon couple is, you dont even have to go that deep because everything is there, it's not even the subtext xD taking into account their behaviours in Boruto, in Naruto manga, and also taking into account that a marriage paper certificate or having kids...actually means nothing.

IS SNS CANON?????

Naruto and Sasuke kissed each other. It's canon. This one scene is enough to shot down all those ‘They are Brothers’ theories.

After the kiss, To verify whether he is an Heterosexual, Naruto made a deliberate plan to knock off Sasuke and went on to verify his feelings with a known girl and found that, "I like this girl because she loves the boy in a same way that I love him... And on top of that she likes to kiss him, just like I liked the kiss I gave before...". It's canon.

Naruto's Rivalry concept is not to beat Sasuke and surpass him to flaunt his powers. It's mainly to show that he is an Equal to him and save Sasuke from any Danger. It's canon.

Sasuke wanted to walk next to Naruto because he was crushing about Naruto's bravery by stucking a Kunai in his hands. It's canon.

Sasuke said to Sakura and Kakashi that he was going for a walk but in reality he went to train along with Naruto. Sasuke lied. It's canon.

Instead of asking tips from a person who succeeded in the task, Sasuke was asking tips from a Dunce like Naruto. Sasuke is trying to initiate conversation without being obvious. But it was obvious. It's canon.

Sasuke, despite having a lifetime ambition of getting revenge for his Clan, shrugged it aside as if it was nothing and gave his life for Naruto. When asked about the reason, He simply said, "My Body moved on it's own". Indication of cluelessness. It's canon.

While dying, instead of thinking about his happy times he had with his family or Team 7.... He was only thinking about Naruto and his stupid actions like falling from the Tree. All for a boy with whom he never had any proper conversation (Including the Accidental Kiss). It's canon.

Despite being mistreated by the Villagers for all those years, Naruto’s emotions got enraged enough to extract Kyuubi Chakra for the first time on seeing Sasuke’s dead body. A boy he 'supposed' hated the most. It’s canon.

Naruto, a person who makes friends with everyone so easily, was being catty with Sasuke after he gave up his life for him. Shouldn't he be grateful for him???. Instead both were behaving weird by not making eye contact. It's canon.

Naruto, with his persistent Hard Work, impressed Sasuke with his skills. And finally got the Acknowledgement he always wanted. This is one of the happiest moment for Naruto. It's canon.

When Sakura was pinned up by Gaara sand, Naruto attempted save her. He tried to summon Gamabunta Frog by using Kyuubi Chakra but failed. He could produce only 4 Kage Bunshins. But when Sasuke simply said, "I'll act as a decoy even if it means death.... YOU ARE CAPABLE OF SAVING SAKURA.. SAVE HER AND RUN AWAY AS FAR AS YOU CAN.. And I don't want to watch my precious comrades die"... Naruto could produce 1000 Kage Bunshins and could summon Gamabunta without any issues. A Girl in danger couldn't evoke anything from Naruto but Sasuke's words could. It's canon.

On hearing that Itachi came to the Village and was looking for Naruto, The very first concern that crossed Sasuke's mind was to not let Naruto die. It's canon.

Naruto was trembling on the sight of Itachi's Aura.... But when he saw Itachi was beating Sasuke left and right, Naruto could no longer afford to tremble and was pulling out Kyuubi's Chakra which impressed Itachi. It's canon.

After bringing Tsunade to cure Sasuke, Naruto felt something unexplainable on seeing a girl hugging him. He just left that place with an awkward smile. It's canon.

Naruto, a boy who faced worst things in his life, was weeping rivers when he realized that Sasuke was really trying to kill him. It’s canon.

Naruto almost lost in his thoughts when Sasuke was trying to kill him. And his thoughts were all about how he always wanted to be friends with Sasuke but couldn’t because he was a loser and hence he decided to become an equal with Sasuke and become a ‘True Friend’. To be honest, he always admired him. It’s canon.

When Sasuke asked why he was going so far as to stop him.... Naruto revealed that he liked Sasuke back when he was just 8 on the day when Sasuke threw him a simple smile. A fact which Sasuke also acknowledges because he also liked the fact that he was noticed by Naruto. It’s canon.

Conveniently, Rain interrupted Sasuke from completing, “Naruto.... I....” It’s canon.

Sasuke despite saying he wanted to kill Naruto, he pulled his punch when he got the chance to ram his Chidori into Naruto’s chest.... Stared at Naruto for quite a good amount of time with a painful face.... A Visual symbolism very similar to Mary Jane kissing Peter Parker in Spider Man movie which Kishimoto liked a lot. It’s canon.

Naruto wanting to remain as a fool if that means saving Sasuke. It’s canon.

Naruto couldn’t able to find any difference in Sakura’s womanly appearance but could admire Sasuke’s cooler appearance when he was compared with Sai. It’s canon.

Naruto was Okay with Kakashi being replaced by Yamato. But not Sasuke being replaced by Sai. Instead he became hostile, which is very uncharacteristic of Naruto. It’s canon.

Sasuke said ‘I remember someone (Naruto) like that’.... But the moment Sai said ‘I will replace Naruto and get along with you better than Naruto’.... Sasuke put Sai in a Genjutsu. It’s canon.

Sasuke hugged Naruto in a femme-fatale way by wearing open chested costume while asking Karin not to come closer. It’s canon.

Sasuke threw a genuine smile on seeing ‘The Great Naruto Bridge’. It’s canon.

Naruto was brainrotting about Sasuke but when Sakura appeared in front of him, he lied about making a plan to date Sakura. It’s canon.

Naruto wished for Sasuke under the Shooting Star by keeping his hands in his heart. It’s canon.

When Naruto got the chance to finally be alone with Sakura who was caring about Naruto’s health.... Instead of making a romantic move of confessing his ‘supposed’ feelings.... He started to talk about getting closer to Sasuke. It’s canon.

Naruto was happy about the fact that His Wind element was compatible with Sasuke’s Fire Element. Because it would make Sasuke stronger. It’s canon.

Naruto was pining about Sasuke in his Bedroom for an entire night without sleeping. It’s canon.

Sasuke asked about Naruto’s whereabouts to Obito in a subtle way. It’s canon.

Naruto erupted 6 tails after experiencing Jiraiya’s death, his village being reduced to dirt, Kakashi’s death and Hinata’s suicide. But just the mention of Sasuke’s name from Orochimaru’s mouth evoked 4 tails from Naruto. It’s canon.

Naruto became a Hero of Konoha. But got beaten to death by Karui and took all the brunt of her hatred that she had on Sasuke. It’s canon.

Naruto despite breaking the chain of Hatred by forgiving Nagato who killed Jiraiya and Kakashi.... But went on to hint Raikage that there will be war if he kills Sasuke. It’s canon. Hatred what???

Naruto didn’t mind losing his dignity by begging in front of Raikage to pardon Sasuke. It’s canon.

Naruto got into hyperventilation mode on hearing Sasuke was going to be killed very soon. While clearly ignoring Sakura’s life in possible Danger as she was planning to kill Sasuke. It’s canon.

Naruto always knew that Sakura loved Sasuke from the day Team 7 was formed. He confessed that the promise he made to her about saving Sasuke was never for her but for himself... It’s canon. 

Naruto ignored Hinata’s confession even though he remembered that incident. He also rejected Sakura’s confession by saying “Stop lying to yourself��� just like he was lying to himself that he hated Sasuke, just like he was lying to himself that he thought of Sasuke as his brother, just like he was lying to himself that he thought of dating Sakura even though he knew she loves Sasuke from Chapter 3 onwards, just like he was lying to himself that he was saving Sasuke for that promise he made with Sakura.... And later, he went on to confess Sasuke as to how he felt about him all along.... It’s canon.

Naruto declared that he will die along with Sasuke. It’s canon.

Naruto literally said he can’t become an Hokage unless he can’t save Sasuke. It’s canon.

Naruto wanted to control Kyuubi Chakra in order to save Sasuke. It’s canon.

Kushina thought Sasuke was a girl on the first glance. And after realizing he was a boy he wanted him to get along with her unborn son, Naruto. It’s canon.

Before her death, Kushina asked Naruto to find someone like her. Sasuke shares lot of similarities with Kushina while Hinata kind of people was what Kushina specifically asked Naruto to avoid. It’s canon.

Sasuke was left in Naruto’s hands by Itachi and he believed that Naruto was the one who could change him. It’s canon.

Sasuke was worrying about Naruto after feeling his chakra from some miles away even though he already planned to kill him. It’s canon.

Minato literally brought Sasuke as a Gift for Naruto. It’s canon.

Sasuke on realizing that the entire shinobi army was going to be destroyed by the Tailed Beast Bombs, immediately created a plan to save Naruto while ignoring Kakashi and Sakura. Sakura who???. All the while, he wanted to kill Naruto personally. It’s canon.

Sasuke gave a three layered protection to save Naruto and his reflex to protect Naruto was much faster than Minato, Naruto’s father and Tobirama.... Both are the fastest shinobis in that Battlefield. It’s canon.

Naruto displayed his feelings about Sasuke to the entire Battlefield and was wondering that “I should have reached Sasuke out on that day”. It's canon. Hinata who???

Sasuke just left Kakashi and Sakura to die in the Lava pit but went on to save Naruto. Even agreed that he saved them during Mugen Tsukuyomi because they were just happened to be next to Naruto. It’s canon.

Sasuke literally called Sakura and Kakashi as useless. But answered Naruto’s question without any mockery. It’s canon

Naruto who speaks endless speech about the importance of Comradeship and Bonds never got angry when Sasuke left them to die in Lava Pit. Instead he was making a callback to that time Sasuke’s body moved on it’s own. It’s canon.

Naruto outright said that Sasuke was not his Brother. It’s canon.

Sasuke said the only living tie was Naruto after Itachi’s death and that he needs to kill him to be alone. It’s canon. 

Sasuke asked, ‘What does Friend means to you?’. It’s canon.

Naruto said, ‘I don’t know why I feel immense pain whenever you are suffering’. It’s canon.

Sasuke literally said that Just by observing Naruto gave the feel of his Family. And that he felt Happiness but also he was distracting him. (Dude, How could someone distract you and make you weak when you were just seeing him??). And this explains why he went so far as to give up his life in the Land of the Waves Arc because he always liked Naruto’s presence. It’s canon.

Sasuke literally said that Naruto came closer to his heart. And he was going to place Naruto as his family and try to feel his pain, hopes and dreams. And also he acknowledged that Naruto saved him. It’s canon. 

Many years later.... We find that Naruto was desperately ignoring his family by choosing to spend his time to count some stupid Head bands. He sleeps separately. He ignores his Son. He ignores his daughter’s birthday. But wanting to go on that long mission with Sasuke. Thought about Sasuke while receiving Hinata’s bento filled with her purest form of love. Thought about Iruka and Sasuke as his bonds made without having any blood connection. Hinata who??? It’s canon.

On the other hand, Sasuke abandoned his Family for 12 years, couldn’t recognize his own daughter’s face and was about to stab her, annoyed on seeing Sakura after many years, refusing to kiss Sakura, made a disgusting face while having a Family Dinner, didn’t keep any memento to remember his family but kept that Headband which Naruto gave to him years ago. And also he don’t mind spending time with his ‘Friend’s Son’. It’s canon.

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I might have missed many things but it doesn’t matter because it’s good to be overwhelmed by so many things rather than desperately looking for empty scraps to justify my reasoning to support SNS. 

In a media, where Marriage means an implication of 2 people living ‘Happily Ever After’ and in a culture where a Man or Woman’s life always revolves around the ‘Traditional Family’ under the name of Marriage where Parents’ ultimate job is to care and provide for their Kids in whatever way they can.... The Author literally spat on everything by refusing to give them that ‘Happily Ever After’ and went on to ascertain the Fact that Naruto and Sasuke don’t care about their kids but he made sure to show us that Naruto cares about a random kid named ‘Kawaki’ who looks like Sasuke and..... Sasuke cares about someone else’s kid named ‘Boruto’ who looks like Naruto. 

What more do we require??? Anything more than this would be like a last straw... Like Say if Kishimoto comes out and say “Naruto and Sasuke were Lovers”.... And I’ll be like, “So??? Is there anything new we don’t know already???”

So, Yes... Like every other SNS shippers I felt angry about the Ending... Not because they didn’t become Canon but because they took a route which betrayed everything that they built up till Chapter 699.... 

But nobody can still disregard SNS as Fanon or Crack Ship or Non-Existent ship or Red Herring Ship. (*** It’s the only ship that’s Filled with Only Canon elements not some fucking delusional headcanons***) 

Narratively, Kishi created Haku & Zabuza, Obito and Kakashi, Jiraiya and Orochimaru, Hashirama and Madara to parallel Naruto and Sasuke as to how N and S are similar and yet different from everyone else. If this is just Friendship or Brotherhood, what is the need to create these many parallels???

All the While Main Pairings were horribly written (intentionally) but side pairings like ShikaTema, MinaKushi looks much more cuter and profound in it’s own way.

While we have all these canon incidents which had some clear romantic undertones in a refined manner, What do those ‘supposed’ canon pairings have??? Just the dicks of those boys which was used to spew out some babies and after that those boys went on to ignore everything but they still find comfort in each other’s presence. In Short, NH/SS shippers simply put their value in those character’s reproductive part alone. That’s their ultimate form of love.

If that’s the kind of thing they want under the label of ‘Canon’, Welll..... LET THEM HAVE IT and I don’t mind staying unofficial. AT ALL. And In fact, It’s the only functional ship in Narutoverse with Love and Understanding under the label of ‘Unofficial’ and I think it’s perfectly ALRIGHT. 

[thingslurime]

God….

Hmm I wonder why this needs to be underlined all the time. What could possibly be the reason to bring up how odd and bizarre Naruto’s behavior is… we just don’t know.

[thingslurime]

I think that there are two big differences between Naruto and other shonen mangas that make the "shonen is inherently homoerotic therefore Kishimoto didn’t intend for gay romantic writing" argument lose weight.

There is rivalry in shonen but is not the plot in itself the way it is in Naruto.

Shonen MCs generally have a rival but the goal/plot/story of the MC isn't centered in the rivalry and in both characters making ammends or getting to understand each other the way it is in Naruto. Naruto's plot is basically Naruto getting to understand his feelings for Sasuke and reaching Sasuke's heart, if you're asked about Naruto's stories you know you're gonna say it's about a ninja guy chasing his ninja teammate to save him. Kishimoto said it himself, if there's no Sasuke there's no story. Now, think about Bleach, One Piece, HXH, My hero academia and others and their plot does not go down that route...

2. The romantic tropes are still reserved for the main character and a female character. In shonen, even if the female characters are not well developed, the author still makes sure that the traditional romantic tropes happen between the MC and a girl, for example, in Bleach Ichigo has an arc dedicated to his rivalry with Ishida, another man, but the romantic moments throughout the manga still happen between him and Orihime or him and Rukia, both girls.

In Naruto, Kishimoto uses all the romantic tropes he likes for Naruto and Sasuke, every single one of them; going berserk when the one you love gets hurt; longing stares under the rain; accidental kisses; if I see you hurt I hurt; we're sun & moon, yin & yang, heaven & earth; our parents wished for us to be close before they died; we don't need words to know what the other one is thinking; you're my weakness/the one that makes me soft; we're each other's one and only and so on (Kishimoto is insane). Other shonen writers would've and have used these tropes in their shonen works but most of the time between a girl and a boy, Kishimoto did it for two boys.

I think what happens here is that some people are unable to recognize romantic tropes to begin with. Like, if you're a het!shipper who likes to ship a girl and a boy just because they breathed next to each other or a fujoshi that also likes to ship two boys just because of the same reason, you might have a harder time identifying when the writers are actually writing romance and when they're not because you will always be distracted looking for crumbs.

Overall, I think it is a reductive, lazy and even dishonest argument to pretend that most shonen if not all shonen has the same homoerotic writing Naruto has and that the majority of shonen writers dedicate as much time and effort to the development of such intimate bond between their main characters and their rivals the way Kishimoto did. I know they don't and I know that you know they don't.

[thingslurime]

like, the most compelling ships for me always stem out of one thing: the characters have a profound, ongoing effect on each other’s senses of selves. when they are apart, the characters’ actions are still affected by each other. the way they approach the world changes because of the other. 

which is this deeply Austenian view of ideal romantic relationships as mechanisms by which we come to know ourselves better and become better versions of ourselves. good romance, for me, is always tied in with a sense of self-actualization, and the way in which a beloved partner allows a person to know themselves better.

[thingslurime]

What do you like about sasunaru

Sasunaru is imbued with so many romantic tropes that listing them all would be a daunting task.

For me, however, their dynamic embodies an archaic, almost timeless kind of romance—one defined by a love that transcends their individual goals and duties, and forlorn longing.

For Sasuke, his ethos can be summarised in the Buddhist saying: "Desire is the root of suffering, yet the heart clings to it without reason."

He is drawn to Naruto, yet he perceives this connection as a weakness, a distraction that undermines his ambitions. Sasuke has repeatedly attempted to sever this bond, in pursuit of his goals. Yet, despite his efforts, he finds himself unable to fully extinguish this connection. In his own words, his one and only connection.

Similarly, for Naruto, the recognition and approval of the village hold little meaning if he cannot save Sasuke. His heart remains restless, his purpose unfulfilled and his longing reaches a fever-pitch.

It's a love that defies reason, duty, and even self-interest, binding two people together in ways that neither can fully escape or rationalize.

[thingslurime]

a preference of mine in ships is when two characters don’t voice their feelings aloud for each other at first but u can just tell they hunger for each other in some way and they’re trying to fight it / for some reason go against it. many such cases

i see ss / nh make arguements like ‘for there to be romance one party must make it explicit’ or whatever iteration or word salad pretzel they deluded themselves into believing

meanwhile it’s obvious they can’t analyse past grade 2 lit cuz they they take everything at face value and don’t even bother reading the underneath (and in narusasu’s case it’s not even that underneath it’s right there. sprinkled with homophobia also but) cycling back to my first point

from the beginning we see naruto and sasuke’s core values and how they they challenge and meet each other every step of the way

and it’s just so satisfying and complicated and real it gets to me. the anger the hurt the angst the longing and yearning and pining the insanity the love. the hunger that won’t be satisfied

how one just fundamentally changes the other against so many factors and how they learn from each other and well this post says it better but

698 chapters of it. to the ‘I just hurt’ like yeah my man yeah

the hunger of it all

[thingslurime]

Let’s make something clear. Naruto and Sasuke aren’t gay because “their relationship has more depth than the het couples” I mean literally Shikamaru and Choji’s friendship has more depth than SS/NH/SI and I don’t think they’re gay. It doesn’t take much to have more depth than “n-naruto-kun x1000” and “you’re such an annoyance” and “women want you don’t tell them they’re ugly”. Naruto and Sasuke are gay because their relationship is romantic.

Most of the time the male friendships in shonen are given more relevance and depth than the het romances (I say most of the time, not always) but I don’t think it automatically makes them gay. But because a lot of people online watch stuff with a need to ship things, they will of course attach themselves to the relationships that appeal to them more, whether romantic or not. If your ideal ship is one where the couple are partners and good friends as well, it’s not surprising some male friendship appeals to you more than the het ship where the guy doesn’t give the girl much of his day.

But Naruto and Sasuke aren’t just equals, partners and friends. Their relationship is also full of romance.

[thingslurime]

sns bring out this playful/competitive/teasing nature in each other that no one else can from the very start of the story, they tease/bicker with each other during the war arc, sasuke and naruto laugh in the middle of the battlefield after creating/combining jutsu with each other for the first time that is difficult even for a seasoned duo to accomplish, naruto’s also like ‘hey sasuke pls let me try out this cool new jutsu I practiced more than the rasengan. it’s a bunch of naked men.’ and sasuke is just like… 'okay I’ll just get my eye ready’, they entertain each other’s ideas and they entertain each other period. and it’s fun to see

[thingslurime]

I’m just. like. the way sns are written… they fit together, like their personalities are just so that everything between them is almost like a challenge, a ‘get better than me’, a 'do better than me’, 'bibiri-kun, usuratonkachi’, I wish I could be more coherent about what I mean but like. everything is a challenge to do better and be better. but above the teasing and 'rivalry’ and pushing each other to greater and greater heights (yes callback to low climbing tree scene) they also have fun together, they’re entertained by the other. they can handle the worst aspects of their personalities and give back as good as they get. but then there’s also an inherent acceptance of the other, without performing from everyone, sasuke saw naruto as a young kid doing anything to make bonds with others, things that other people found annoying, and sasuke was like 'oh I’m relieved’, and naruto looks at sasuke, and sees sasuke, not an uchiha, not a prize, but as his own person, his most precious person who accepted him more than anyone else, so of course he’d do anything for sasuke. uhm. the love between them is so… ugh.