#but she doesn't get scared because the same thing happens with gaara

[jesseevelann]

Headcanon that when a light is shone in Shikamaru's eyes, he stops entirely and just stares like a deer in headlights. Which leads to people finding him in the kitchen getting a midnight snack and getting scared shitless by his stare.

Chouji or Ino will get up to go get some water, using a torch to light the way, and they shine it into the kitchen and Shikamaru just looks at them like this:

[team7-headquarter]

The fact that it is a trope in Naruto that Kakashi saves Sakura before Sasuke can or when Sasuke is in a position to do so himself is so unhinged.

What was Kishimoto trying to do there?

The first time it happens (just outside of Konoha while traveling to the Land of the Waves), Sasuke very clearly thinks Kakashi is showing off. It's one of those funny moments where you can see how both Sasuke and Kakashi like being dramatic.

From that point, the story somehow establishes that it's Kakashi's job to protect Sakura as Sasuke and Naruto fight. At least Sasuke thinks that's the case...

It happens during the fight with Haku. I know that Sakura screams and Sasuke immediately wonders what Kakashi is doing when Sakura is in danger. I don't think he'd wonder the same if it was Naruto out there, since he'd probably criticize Naruto and not Kakashi for Naruto's own safety.

When Kakashi saves Sakura from both the chidori and the rasengan, they don't mention it at all, like it was natural for Kakashi to be there and for him to save / protect Sakura. At the time, Naruto was panicking because he couldn't stop, in the sense that he knew he didn't have the skill to do so, but Sasuke was more shocked that it was Sakura he'd hit. Once Sakura was safe and the thing was over, Sasuke went immediately back to thinking about how he was weak compared to Naruto.

He wasn't worried about Sakura not because he didn't care, but because that moment reassured him about Kakashi being there to protect her.

(It's worth mentioning Sasuke was upset over Naruto being the one who rescued her from Gaara because Sasuke was too used to having the role of second protector of the team, since it signaled he was the second strongest around).

Then, in Shippuden? Sasuke doesn't see Sakura as a real threat. He did mean to kill her during the Land of Iron, but the narrative again placed both Kakashi and Naruto there to protect her life. As soon as Kakashi and Naruto appeared, Sasuke forgot about her.

That encounter was the farthest Team 7 had been from the old days and the roles they had at those moments. Teamwork was absolutely gone.

During the Fourth Shinobi War, things went back a bit to what they were. Sasuke and Naruto tried to protect Sakura by telling her to stand behind or step back, except Sakura refused to be protected. They worked seamlessly for a few minutes, until it all went to hell and Kaguya appeared.

Kakashi spent almost the entire battle protecting Sakura. Understandable, since the first thing she did was run to get impaled like she didn't care at all about her own life. (Kakashi was scared shitless that something would happen to her).

TWO TIMES during the Kaguya fight Sakura was in danger and Naruto pointed out (commanded, really) that Sasuke could help her and Sasuke did move to do so, he did face her to act, before his mind could process what he was doing. In both cases, Kakashi was faster and had her safe and sound before Sasuke could even reconsider.

First in the lava world, where Kakashi had Sakura and Obito already secured, so Sasuke moved to protect Naruto. Second when Obito gave both his eyes to Kakashi and he decided to go all Susanno to pull Sakura out of danger, to Sasuke's surprise.

Time to mention that the narrative of the manga makes explicit the petty rivalry between Kakashi and Sasuke. Sasuke does hate him for having the sharingan, you know, and Kakashi would not stop when recriminating how Sasuke decided to use the things he taught him, like the chidori, to hurt his comrades.

Anyway, Naruto decides to use that moment to tell Sasuke that Kakashi's susanno was cooler and talk about how the Copy Nin was amazing and all of that. If I had to guess, Naruto was more than a bit irritated because Sasuke was rude to Kakashi and Sakura and called them useless. It is a good guess if I'm allowed to say so, since Naruto also made a point of telling Sasuke to thanks Sakura for helping Obito bring him back from another dimension.— After all, Naruto did also complain about Sasuke being the leader, since he thought Sakura and Kakashi were better at making plans.

It kinda reached its limits when Sasuke put her under a genjutsu (of getting hit with a chidori to the chest, of all things) and Kakashi lost his cool. He was so visibly frustrated with Sasuke and the feeling was mutual.

It was call back to sooo many moments between Sakura and Sasuke:

When Sakura cried and calmmed the cursed mark back at the Forest of Death, when Sakura tried to prevent Sasuke from competing with the cursed mark during the Chuning Exams preliminaries and Sasuke told her to shut up, or when she tried to stop him from leaving Konoha to find Orochimaru and Sasuke knocked her out. It was an echo of the way Sasuke did almost hit her with a chidori back when they were kids without meaning to and then years later when he did mean to kill her; it was the memory all the times she worried about him and rushed to put herself in danger for his wellbeing when he didn't want her to.

When Sasuke left to fight Naruto, Kakashi was the one who stayed with her. When Sasuke left on his journey for atonement, Kakashi was there to tell him to behave, but also he was there next to the girl he had been protecting for years now. I don't know what all of that was supposed to mean...

I guess that Sakura played a part in Sasuke and Naruto's rivalry as much as she played a part in Kakashi and Sasuke's animosity.

[uzuma-take]

This probably won't get many views here or Twitter, but I'm genuinely thinking of writing my own version of Naruto.?? The relationships won't change. So Hintata will still get together with Naruto .

I have ideas based on interviews with kishimoto. Like Team Gai and Team Kurenai being sand Ninja (yes, that means the Hyuga , Inuzuka, and Aburame clan won't be leaf ninja) . Had the idead since I read Gai in particular wasn't originally planned to be a leaf ninja. That he and Lee where made on the fly for the exams.

One thing to mention is that all teams have four students. This is to include the filler students like Sora , Yakumo, and Yagura (yes, gai had a student named Yagura)

Team Gaara also has new people from the chunin filler being Shira , Sen, and Yami.

But what happened to Kankuro and Termari? Well, dear reader, that will come in due time..

Here's the major changes I have in my head so far, starting with Team 7.

Naruto

He's still an orphane born of the 4th homage minato. He's maybe a year older than Sakura and sasuke . Due to flunking the graduate exams . He was adopted by the third Hokage. In this version He's younger and much more naive than the original. (More on hiruzen later)

Sakura

She was a girl who witnessed her parents constantly fight . They both struck at each over multiple times, and eventually, she was but in foster care. Not really being taught violence wasn't the way she'd often lash out at people, including her teachers. When being put into team 7, she was scared of kakashi after some of the stories she'd read about him. She actually sometimes tries to hit Sasuke , Naruto and Sai

Sasuke

He's still the same, only real difference being that he looks more like Fugaku . He's still broady and crabby even more so with Sai.

Sai

Joined Team 7 much earlier on and is one of the reasons Sasuke left the village. Being a spy for Danzo, he worked with orochimaru closely and slowly wormed his way into Sasukes mind convincing him to accept the sound fours offer.

Kakashi

Born of a Samurai clan, that later fled to the leaf and a Inuzuka / Hyuga (haven't decided) mother from the sand . He's much the same man from the series except he's got a secret pacht with the sand due to his mum being from there.

Team Asuma

Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji are pretty much the same. I really don't see any change Nessasary .

Asuma

The brother of the third hokage it inst until after the sand attacks the leaf he fall head over hills with kurenai yuhi of the sand . At first, he has no idea she's a sand Ninja. When he initially finds out her secret he's of course, horrified . Kurenai was from the village that tried to destroy his home and ultimately took his brother from him. During the time skip they do make up and eventually start dating in secret..

Sora

Same as filler exept hes the new five tails after it recarnated, he just joins the team early on . He's constantly worried because he doesn't fit in with Ino-Shika-Cho formation. Asuma tries to help him .

Team Kurenai

This is where the divations really begin .. as Said before Major clans now live in the sand village. Hyuga , inuzuka, and Aburame. Inspired by two things . The concept of gaara owing a dog and the interview stating Gai was from another village.

Hinata .

Apart from location a lot hasn't changed. She first met Naruto in the Exams and really liked his energy and will never give in. The thing that made her mind up was the fight with Neji. The Cousin she was going to be forced to Marry eventually. Naruto does the same shouting. But this time, her motivation is based on 'why does this stranger I've maybe met one or twice cheer me on?' She actually goes on the journey with Jiriya, Naruto , Sorra, Neji, and Gaara. (Three jinjurki and three people to sort out if anything goes wrong)

Kiba

He has a strong rivalry with his Twin Gaara and says he's going to beat him at being kazakage. Gaara doesn't really care but later on indulges him and challenges him to see who gets stronger during the time skip.

Shino

Same as canon just more dessert like bugs

Yakumo

Uses paintings much like Sai, but instead of physical . They trap people in genjutsu, which are much like in her filler episodes.

Team Gai

It's pretty much the same, except Lee now has two brothers. Yagura and Shira . Both whom he likes to to one up. Gai was 16 when he had a one night stand, resulting in Lee and his brothers. He never really knew their mum. He's regretted ever since. He has a major Crush on a certain Spikey haired leaf shinobi. Whose to say that man doesn't share the same feelings .

Team Gaara

The filler characters are the same

Baki is the sensei.

Gaara is the twin of Kiba, and he's pretty much the same as canon . The biggest difference is his dog. Don't hurt, or else shukaku will come out. After the Konoha Crush, he softens quite a bit and looks very different from how Naruto met him.

Temari and Kankuro are Sand Anbu like shinobi that are the older siblings of Kiba and Gaara. They resent Hana at first for caring about their brother, whose only seen as a weapon. It's not until rasa dues do the realise that Gaara, if taught correctly, can harness his powers, so they set up a meeting with the leaf village . As long as Gaara is safe and cared for, then could he train under Jyriya. Tsunde reluctantly agrees... that's all I have so far...

part 2