Naruto News

Discovering this one shot yesterday left me kind of shocked, or maybe surprised would be a more accurate word. I didn’t believe that it existed; even after hearing about it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86YI11-73T8&list=UUkkcUZJ-vrt3HomsacbTNLg&index=2, not until i actually went and checked it out for myself and even then i didn’t believe it; because there is no way what i was reading could actually be Kishimoto’s work. It is hard to believe. The way i heard it was that this was Kishimoto’s first one shot before Naruto and apparently either Kishimoto himself shelved it in favor of Naruto, according to one source, or, according to a more reliable source, shonen jump wouldn’t accept the manga because it was too bloody and violent;so they sent him back to the drawing board and Naruto came out at the end.

THE PLOT> I really can’t say much about this 51 page plot without ruining it. Just know the story resolves around a young half Sicilian half Japanese man named Mario, a hit man in Italy for the Mafia,Yakuza and any other criminal organization that might call upon him to do its dirty work. And he does it well, with little to no remorse; then one day he is introduced to a new partner with a dark past and that changes everything. I will leave it at that.

MY REVIEW:> I will say this right now, if Mario had been serialized instead of naruto, it would have been a wildly more popular series than naruto. That isn’t the excitement talking over reading the one shot. And i am excited, because this manga shows me a new side of Kishimoto. It gives me hope than even when Naruto ends, Kishimoto won’t necessary just retire and go into seclusion; he could still continue this new work and create a whole new franchise. But seriously, this one shot shocked me, because it was as opposite to Kishimoto as you would expect,not just because it is a seinen, but because of how brutal and bloody it is. Just think about this; Kubo’s first one shot was called zombie powder and it was pretty much in the same vein and genre as bleach, supernatural, with zombies and ghosts and all that. Mario is un Naruto, if that makes sense.

I didn’t know that Kishimoto had this sort of story telling in him; and from what i have heard, this was his plan A, the story that he had been working on for the longest and which he dreamed of doing. So that makes Naruto his plan B and look how great that turned out. Genius. It makes you wonder how good this could be if serialized; and it still can be. Sure it was rejected 15 years ago, but Kishimoto is a superstar now; who is going to tell him he can’t do this story, even if it was rejected before? Chances are once Naruto ends, they will be begging him to write some more, after all he is a cash cow.

But seriously, i am amazed at how good this as, and the ending was nothing like you expected , and the art is superb.. Maybe this is why one piece is good, because when Oda first came to them with the absurd idea of one piece, shonen jump let him run with it, no matter how wild it was.

I recommend this one shot to everyone, both naruto fans and basic manga fans. Trust me, it is worth your five minutes of time.

RATING:> 7/5, BLEW MY EXPECTATIONS OUT OF THE WATER.

So this is more an entire event or group of events than a single moment, so don’t get confused.

Naruto has a way of testing my patience. If you have had any experience with Naruto, then you will know that I am referring to the never ending filler the series resorts to, to keep from catching up with the manga.

It can be excruciating, dealing with an entire season of god awful filler crap, just to get a few episodes of canon a few months at a time. This of course is a curse all long running anime face, but most like one piece manage to handle the long runs much better, without resorting to endless fillers.

Then again I can’t really use one piece as an example. Sure it has nearly a tenth of the filler that Naruto has. And that’s because one piece makes use of stretching mechanisms, where by it will drag out a 5 minute plot into one and a half episodes. Hell, while most Anime cover two to three chapters of there manga at a time, I would be surprised to see one piece covering just one, and with what I have experienced over the year and half that I have watched one piece, it can be as excruciating to watch as Naruto fillers.

But that aside, I have been tempted on many occasions to jump ship, not from Naruto as a whole of course; after all it is my favorite series; but to make the move from anime to manga.

Most times however, Naruto manages to make up for it, i.e, sure we might get several dozen wasteful filler material, but immediately after will come a story that will make the wait for canon material all worth it.

This is what happened with Naruto Shippuden episodes 245-249; we went from the fairly interesting five Kage summit to a season of filler that somehow managed to be worse that the god awful garbage that was aired after the pain invasion arc.

And just when I was at the end of my ropes (I couldn’t even bear to watch more than a few episodes), the announcement came; filler was over and what came after wasn’t merely worth the wait, but it left me so amazed and satisfied that I could have taken any amount of filler after, and I couldn’t have cared.

SO, before I get to explaining the epicness, first I shall explain the plot for anyone that might have no idea about what I am talking about.

THE PLOT:>

Naruto arrives on the moving island, and attempts to talk Killer bee into helping him achieve mastery over the nine tails fox. Once Killer bee finally agrees, Naruto undergoes pre-training training where, before he can master the evil, hate and power of the nine tails, he must first master and defeat the darkness within his own soul.

After overcoming dark Naruto, the pair jinchuriki head to a sacred temple where Naruto uses the key that jiraiya received from the fourth and in turn gave to him to unleash the nine tails fox. According to Killer bee, he must contend with the kyubi and forcibly take its chakra in order to take full and unfettered control over it.

The battle commences the moment the seal falls, with the nine tails nearly destroying Naruto with a tailed beast ball, only for Killer bee to intervene for the first and last time.

Soon Naruto is going all out in an attempt to over come the kyubi’s over whelming power, with kunais, speed, strength, clones and rasengans all proving futile. Naruto eventually enters sage mode and takes the battle to the next level, though barely making much head way.

The one time he finally manages to force some kyubi chakra into his body, it overwhelms him; even though he defeated dark Naruto, he still has doubts and some darkness that makes it impossible for him to overcome the hate of the kyubi.

As the power overwhelms him, the kyubi nearly takes him out, but just then it’s movements are sealed as a red haired woman who turns out to be Kushina Uzumaki, Naruto’s mom, makes an appearance.

She tells him the story of his past, of the Uzumaki clan with their unique and powerful sealing jutsus and the land of the whirlpools, of their links to Konoha that thickened when the first hokage, Hashirama married Mito uzumaki, with whose help and teachings he was able to master and seal the tailed beasts; of the tragedy that befell the Uzumaki clan during the shinobi, how Kushina was brought to Konoha to become the second Jinchuriki of the nine tails after Mito and the hardships she suffered as a foreigner and Jinchurinki before meeting a Minato who saved her, literally and figuratively.

The tale brings Naruto the courage to over come his hate and defeat the Kyubi in an awe inspiring attack. Naruto takes the chakra and manifests his nine tails mode.

With that task done, Kushina fills Naruto in on the events that happened the day he was born, or how Madara attacked the sealed site of birth, kidnapped Kushina and extracted the nine tails before launching it into Konoha to execute that legendary attack, the battle between Minato and Madara and ensuing consequences.

This group of episodes ends with Naruto now wiser of who and what he is, his destined birth, the hopes that his parents held for him and the resolve he forms to bring peace.

THE EPICNESS:>

I know that these were specifically five individual episodes, but as far as I am concerned, what I watched was a five part movie, because that is how I felt after watching all five episodes in one go, one after another.It was literally like nothing I had ever seen in naruto.

So first I will start off with the less important but none the less amazing factors that make these episodes so epic;

1. Animation: When I say that these episodes felt like one long movie, I am not exaggerating; that is literally how awesome this animation was. Words like brilliant, breath taking and pulchritudinous ( I learnt that word just for this description) don’t even begin to describe the kind of animation that was unleashed by Studio Periot in these five episodes. It was almost like they were using this chance to show off just what they could do if they ever took the gloves off, and I must say that I was impressed. These weren’t merely special animation and graphics that were saved for that one group of special naruto episodes, as is done with nearly every anime out there, where for one time or even twice, usually a first or last episodes (guilty crown’s opening episode was beautifully animated, even though the anime sucked), they will go the extra mile to animate a special story; in these five episodes Studio Periot was literally using movie level animation, as in if you were to look at some of the very best anime movies you have seen, Naruto’s graphics in these episodes, especially 248-249 would be right up with them, as good as or even better.

In fact I have seen movies that aren’t even animated half as good as this. Epic wise, I am thinking of that scene with the fourth and Kushina at the tip of a tree after he had saved her, the way every detail, from Minato’s jacket to her hair was beautifully animated; then there was that awesome tail beast ball at the start of the fight, the way it exploded forward while everything surrounding it was disintegrated; and of course Naruto’s kyubi mode took the cake. I have seen so many shows botch the whole 2D and CGI fusion, with the CGI elements usually looking so out of place. But that first look of the Naruto Kyubi mode, the golden flaming form, was simply…breath taking.

Most anime movies I have watched don’t get this kind of budget.

As far as ratings go, I would give the animation in these episodes an 8/5, and yes, that is beyond the scale. Someone said that if they took out all the filler in Naruto and kept this level of graphics, the Big three might shrink down by two, at least anime wise.

2. Art--- You would think that good animation would automatically mean good art. But that is not true. I have seen anime with acceptable animation, but with lousy art. I am thinking of the Jojo’s bizarre adventure series I saw last year. While the animation was fine, the characters were drawn in such a silly way. Thankfully these episodes avoided that pitfall because again, every thing was done perfectly. And not just the kyubi mode; in this case I am drawn immediately to the nine tails.

The scene, the story of what happened 16 years ago when the nine tails attacked has been such an iconic scene in Naruto and even with all the stories told by characters of what happened that night, fans have always wondered what happened and what it felt like.

We see that in these episodes, and personally I was afraid that they would mess things up, that after seeing so much of kyubi related flash backs and hearing what happened, there would be nothing new to see and all we would get would be some large red monster attacking in the background while they focused in on the events surrounding madara and the fourth.

This scene was more interesting than I anticipated. Firstly we got to see so many of our beloved characters at a much younger time in their lives and it was more nostalgic than informative. We got to see gai and kakashi being themselves. The long dead third hokage and his short yet awesome battle against the kyubi, then itachi and sasuke.

But the highlight of this event was the rather unique way in which they chose to display the attack, like the pages of a story book being opened; it made the entire scene all the more scary as it showed the kyubi as less of a magical creature and more of a monster. it just worked for me perfectly and it kept things new.

The art work here I would rate a perfect 5/5

And now for the more important aspects that made these moments so epic:

1. The action---AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH, that was what my brain was doing the whole time I was watching the events of these episodes. The battles in these episodes were, and I will use a phrase that I vehemently dislike, off the chain. I was blown away several times over. First we had the battle with the nine tails and it was every bit the beast we expected it to be. Even with its chakra gone, it was more than ready and capable of annihilating Naruto. Once the battle was done, even if Naruto had triumphed, there was no doubt in anyone’s mind that he hadn’t beaten the fox. But his efforts were truly a sight to behold, especially the way he finished things; with a tonne of clones each armed with a giant rasengan that, from the fox’s point of view below, looked like they were tiny blue moons descending upon it.

This was the naruto we had been waiting to see every since the series began, a competent Naruto, loud mouthed but with the power to back it up. I would really like to see an all out battle between these two, one in which only one walks away from, because that would make it all the more serious.

But of course it was the fourth that stole the show, the way he saved baby Naruto from the explosion, his short but unbelievable fight against the kyubi and of course the final show down with Madara. This fight was short, yet it was also the best fight in the entire Naruto series by far. We had heard of the great shinobi Minato, but now, with these episodes, we go to see it, the truth of his legend and why he might be the greatest shinobi to ever live, besides Hashirama at least.

Even the combined actions of Konoha to take the fox down were an impressive sight to watch.

I would rate the action in these episodes with a 10/5, again, breaking the scale.

Now while it was the individual and combined efforts of all these factors that made these five episodes so epic, one stood out among them all,

4. The story---Let me just say this, it might be misconstrued that I think these episodes are the best ever in Naruto. That would be a wrong assumption; I think these episodes are some of the best I have ever seen in all of anime, and I am speaking both as a Naruto fan, as well as a regular viewer of anime.

And most of that is as a result of the story told in these episodes, which was both beautiful and heart wrenching. First we got a glimpse into Naruto’s world. We and he realized that he hadn’t always been alone, that there had been others out there, numbering in the thousands, with his blood, his heritage, and his name; basically his own people; and this knowledge came with the fact that they were gone, all of them and that, besides Nagato, he would never meet another Uzumaki.

I liked how the knowledge gave Naruto a sense of belonging, and I actually hope to one day see another uzumaki. The Uzumaki clan has such a nice ring to it.

The bigger revelation was Naruto’s mother. It was hilarious that the first time he saw her, he accused her of being the nine tails in disguise, allowing Kushina to show that brush side of her that Naruto is so well known for. It was a touching scene, as I don’t think he had ever given her much thought; it was always about his father, the legendary fourth hokage, that he idolized so much. Neither us the fans nor Uzumaki ever really gave much thought to Naruto’s parents in the first part of the series, and even when it came to light, Kushina didn’t really receive much attention.

It was a really touching moment, that instance when he realized who she was. It was touching later on when he knew she had to go on now that she had fulfilled her mission; poor Naruto, after only having met her.

Minato is the coolest character in Naruto, but it as a surprise to see that Kushina was every bit as prominent and interesting to watch as he was, with the tortures she faced as a child from a foreign land and the fact that she had a monster inside of her. Personally was impressed and tickled by the very distinct way she dealt with those that bullied her, in contrast to how her son Naruto dealt with the same thing.

With Naruto, it was all about playing pranks, being funny and taking the insults with a stride. Kushina didn’t give a crap, she would beat the hell out of anyone that would dare try to look down upon and bully her.I was especially tickled by the scene in the forest where Kushina wallops an irritating classmate, he ran’s off and calls his bigger genin of a brother and she beats the hell out of him as well.

I laughed at that for ages. But it was also touching to watch that scene with Minato, when she confronted him about how he had always coldly looked down at her, choosing to ignore her every time she looked at him for help during the moments that her classmates would bully her, and he replied that the reason he never made a move to help her was because he knew she was strong and that she didn’t need his help…Minato oozing coolness here.

The story is tragic of course. Minato has to sacrifice his wife to save Naruto. And then after he saves the village, he and Kushina make the ultimate sacrifice to save naruto when the kyubi makes a go for him.

It was truly heartening to watch how far these two great shinobi went to protect their son, and it would be an odd fan that didn’t hate madara/tobi in that instance for what he had done to what was a truly great shinobi family.

Outstanding moments: That scene when Kushina tells Minato that she was pregnant was hilarious (MInato: I am going to be a dad. Kushina: I am going to be a mom, don’t you know, MInato: I am going to be a dad. Kushina: I am going to be a mom, don’t you know…)

-That moment when the kyubi impales both Kushina and Minato, those last words they gave to Naruto before they both finally died…difficult to watch up to this day. From what I have read, Kishimoto chose to write this flash back because he had just become a father and he felt it necessary to tell this story about Naruto’s origins.

I wondered where Jiraiya was and why he made no attempt to help during this crisis. Then I remembered that during his own flash back, he was off writing his novel while all this happened. But how about Orochimaru and Tsunade?

I rate this story with a 15/5, again beyond anything I could have hoped for. This was an origin story to end all origin stories; it was quintessential Naruto.

If you are a naruto fan and haven’t watched these episodes, you need to do so. If you are a Naruto fan that gave up on the anime, you need to watch these episodes. If you are not a Naruto fan, watch these episodes a simply great anime.

If you read the manga, you might wonder why you should bother since you read the story. I have heard from Naruto manga fans that watched these episodes and said that the animated version took the event to a whole new level that the manga didn’t reach. SO, don’t worry about being bored just because you read it, watch these episodes.

WATCH THESE EPISODES….

So I first came across this argument on some forum last year, and dismissed it as nothing more than an interesting but otherwise unimportant consideration.

Recently, I was re-watching an old Naruto episode, and at the point when sasuke and Naruto first meet after two years (Sasuke has his blade against Naruto’s neck), I suddenly realized what it was that had happened nearly three years ago at the water fall. suddenly this question seemed infused with greater pith than I had originally assigned to it.

So I recently decided to give this topic some serious consideration, and this is what I came up with. As far as Naruto part 1 goes, this was the pinnacle of the Naruto story; for so long we had watched and cheered on as Naruto Uzumaki had overcome great challenges to stand side by side with greater shinobi his age like Neji and rock lee. And even when we saw Naruto emerge victorious against the likes of Gaara and Kabuto, we all recognized them for what they were, interim victories. None of them really mattered, not really, not when compared against Naruto’s true desire, SASUKE.

It didn’t matter how many Gaaras and Zabuzas Naruto would tear his way through to the top; it wouldn’t even matter If he went up against the likes of Orochimaru and Itachi; all we wanted to see as Naruto crazy fans was Sasuke acknowledge Naruto as a worthy colleague (that is a lie, we or at least I wanted to see Sasuke get his ass kicked by Naruto).

SO when it finally arrived at Episode 134, it was the realization of a dream, the battle between Sasuke and Naruto that we had all been waiting for since Episode 1. We watched it with bated breath, with no idea of who would emerge victorious, and after an awesome double episode that showcased Naruto doing everything we had wanted and hoped to see him do-show Sasuke his true power- the victor was decided.

Sasuke had triumphed, and for all those hoping to see a return to the happier days of team 7, we began down a path to a new age of Naruto, one with less comedy and laughter, and more drama, sadness, and clearly moppy Naruto Uzumaki.

So I m going to approach this idea with an open mind, never mind by bias towards Naruto as a character. This was a big moment, the action was awesome, the scenes were intense and the fight was everything we had ever hoped for, for 12 year old shinobi at least.

But why ascribe more importance to it than that; this is a franchise that has spanned more than 400 episodes and chapters, with a myriad of interesting characters, story lines and more than enough plots to keep us all interested for a couple of more years to come.

Since then we have seen more action, more drama, more awe striking battles in shipudden than the entirety of Naruto part one. Heck even the stakes have risen to a whole new level. We have god like shinobi fighting on a whole new scale for targets and prizes greater than the future of an angry and confused 12 year old. SO basically there is no doubt that the world of Naruto was created by a variety of characters and events, all of which had helped build a small facet of the whole.

One single event, especially involving 12 year olds, cannot truly affect the future of the entire series of Naruto. So in asking this question I thought that some misguided individuals where imputing more importance to one incident than could be acceptable.

After all, Naruto is a machine consisting of several very important parts of which Naruto and Sasuke are a part. This is what I thought the first time I came across this topic, and why I couldn’t think about it seriously.

Then I realized something that the creator of this topic had mostly likely determined in creating this topic. This is Naruto and Sasuke we are talking about, and as far as the Naruto series is concerned, that fact changes everything.

Are Naruto and Sasuke the most important characters in the series? When you subtract orochimaru’s obsessive interest in Sasuke, and Naruto’s possession of the nine tails fox, then the answer in NO. That’s what makes Naruto so great; you could spend entire episodes/chapters without laying an eye on these two characters and Naruto would be awesome.

What Naruto and Sasuke are, is the core of the series. If you are not following, then that will sound contradictory, so I will explain it like this. Naruto and Sasuke are the rudders of the ship that is Naruto, their fates, actions and reactions to the events of the Naruto world have an adverse affect on the future of events. Basically their actions always determine he direction that the story will take at any one given point in time. That would make them the nucleus of the Naruto machine. They are that important even without being the most important.

And as such that one battle at the water fall wasn’t merely an important event, it was a turning point for the entire series, one of two or three. When this battle began, the entire series literally stood at a cross road; which ever way the battle went, it would determine not only which direction the series would go, but also how Kishimoto would write things from then on.

So yes, this is truly an important topic worth considering at great lengths.

In tackling the consequences of a different result to this battle, I find myself narrowing it down to three major categories; how it could have affected Naruto, how it could have affected Sasuke, and how different the entire Shinobi world as a whole would have been as a result of Naruto defeating Sasuke.

Now if you have truly been watching Naruto from day one, then this isn’t really a question for you. You will already know that if Naruto had beaten Sasuke, Sasuke would have returned to konoha. If you really know your Naruto, then this seems like a fact to you, and I will agree.

And it would be at this moment that I would dive into what changes I think would have occurred after. And I will get to it. But before that, I believe it is important to ask ourselves WHY? Sure, as Naruto fans we all know that Sasuke losing to Naruto=Sasuke heading back to Konoha. For some of you, that isn’t even a question.

But we really need to ask why? If Sasuke lost to Naruto, why would it lead him to returning to Konoha? That is what I will first try to answer.

First, when we consider Sasuke’s defeat,we can consider only two primary out comes.The first is that Naruto beats Sasuke and he forces him back home. We know this because NAruto said he would defeat Sasuke and break his arms and legs if he had to and drag him back.So SAsuke ends up in Konoha.

The second option is that after losing, Sasuke and Naruto have a long talk and he accepts to return to Konoha. Now that might sound redundant to you,either way he gets to konoha.That’s the same option. NO.

Even if Naruto forced Sasuke back to Konoha, he could just as easily heal up,regain his strength and escape again; better yet Orochimaru himself attacks Konoha and takes Sasuke and either way we get to the same result as current Naruto.

For this scenario, Sasuke was beaten and accepted to return to Konoha.So why would he?

We know two things about Sasuke’s decision to leave Konoha. The first was Naruto. We could say that sasuke was jealous of Naruto. He was Konoha’s avenger, sworn to take the life of his brother for the massacre of his clan. Then he joins team 7 with loser naruto, and then sits back and watches as, before his very eyes, Naruto transforms from helpless child to brave shinobi. He is watching Naruto not only grow but surpass him.

I believe this felt like a threat to his revenge. He was the genius, the sharingan wielder. He was the one searching for a way to defeat the super shinobi Itachi. Not only was he nowhere nearly as strong as itachi, but he stood a chance of losing to the loser Naruto.

Basically Naruto’s growth was like a stamp on his own weakness. Besides the whole bond thing, if he couldn’t beat/kill someone like Naruto, then he wasn’t the avenger that could wield the power to defeat itachi. SO Naruto’s strength vindicated his own weakness. It highlighted it.

So he had to defeat Naruto to prove his own worthiness and maybe even defend his mission, proving to himself that it was still alive and that he still had the opportunity to gain the strength to beat Itachi. Chances are that didn’t make sense, but I am having a hard time expressing that part of Sasuke.

Anyway, secondly was Sasuke’s true reason for leaving. Sasuke was weak. He needed power immediately. He had spent 12 years training in Konoh’a shinobi system and when he fought Itachi, he wasn’t even the ant worthy of his brother’s foot. And even worse, he couldn’t even beat Naruto on the roof top.

So we know that he basically determined that his was a life meant to be lead outside the formal system of ninja. Basically he had tried the normal shinobi thing and that path had failed him. So he turned to a darker path, one that promised true power, true power that as far as he was concerned was devoid in the formal shinobi system. Along this new path he saw it, the image of his dream come closer, enough so that he could grasp it.

This is what Naruto would have probably wanted to convey to Sasuke, that their was another way to achieve his goal rather than the dark path he was about to take. Sasuke wasn’t convinced and probably even saw Naruto as a representation of the very path that he had discarded. He would have seen beating Naruto as vindicating his belief, that in the formal shinobi system was weakness, and no true power.

Chances are in some corner of his mind, Sasuke hoped that Naruto would emerge victorious, that with his own way of the ninja, he would overcome not only Sasuke’s superior skills but the power of the curse mark. And with that victory, Sasuke would have something concrete to believe in as far as following the pure path to power, in the fact that Naruto, a loser, transformed his very existence to achieve skills and power that could beat even his heritage, the sharingan.

These two facts would have swayed Sasuke. In beating him, Naruto would have crushed Sasuke’s treasured and infuriating ego. His own image of his self worth would have crashed down to earth. I also believe his restlessness would have settled, and Sasuke would have taken a long hard look at his ambitions and considered the possibility of a life of revenge that wouldn’t consume him so completely that he would take the first hand offering him support. This would occur after he accepted Naruto’s power and ability as a competent shinobi. This in turn would allow him to consider the possibility of acquiring great power along side Naruto and his philosophies.

Chances are that might not have made sense. I had the idea clearly formed in my head, but putting it into words in a cogent, cohesive manner is proving difficult, so take what you can out of it. Let’s move on to the next point, the consequences to the Naruto world.

I came up with this topic weeks ago, but I am only getting to writing about it now. Why? I am lazy. The first time I considered writing about this topic, it was several dozen pages long in my head. That would take forever to write, and I am one writer that doesn’t like writing anything over a period of several hours or days. I am referring to the whole writing, take a break then write again regime. If I musty write something, I will down and get it done in one sitting, even if it takes several hours; this applies to blogs, chapters or scenes.

So what’s my point? While I was working out how to summarize this (this was for the reader’s benefit by the way, as I have recently discovered that most internet users fall on the lazy side, and can’t stand reading extremely long blogs) I had quite a lot of time to consider the ramifications of Naruto beating Sasuke. I came up with quite a long list spanning the entirety of the Naruto world. But because I don’t want this blog to ran into several pages, I have decided to break it down into three specific areas; I will let you readers fill the rest of the blanks in. That way I save mine and your time.

SO, the first part shouldn’t me the most important, but to a lot of Naruto fans it is. So I will settle this quickly. I believe that this scenario would have settled the whole Naruhina, Narusakura issue. If Naruto is barely competing when sasuke is playing the evil megalomaniac hell bent on Konoha’s down fall, chances are he would be decimated with Sasuke right there, in sakura’s face, day in and day out, fighting along side Naruto to save Konoha.

Chances are, by the time Shippuden rolls through, we would have Tsunade making wedding preparations, while Jiraiya fits Naruto and Hinata for their respective companion roles. In some ways in would suck, in other ways it wouldn’t. Then again that might not even happen, depending on how events play out. Hinata confessed to Naruto during the pain arc.

It is unlikely that she would have had the opportunity to save Naruto with Sasuke around. But even better than the thought of Sasuke’s involvement in the pain arc is the rather awesome image of sakura and Sasuke versus Sasori. Now that would have been a ramble.

Anyway, when you consider parallel scenarios like this, the first thing to jump to mind are the strengths. How strong would the protagonists be after a hectic two year time skip?

I have heard the argument that Naruto would be an ordinary shinobi, going on to replace iruka sensei as some instructor in the academy. The idea here is that Naruto only got stronger because he had to save Sasuke from himself. And that without that motivation, Naruto would be no more than a dog in Sasuke’s shadow. Now what do I say to that?

WRONG. WRONG. WRONG. I envision the very opposite. Think of it this way. Naruto went off for two years to train with jaraiya. And what were the results of that training? He could make a bigger rasengan. He could make an even bigger rasengan. He could make a rasengan with two clones…really what the hell did Naruto learn from Jiraiya? I know you know that the answer is ABSOLUTELY NOTHING?

Before Naruto left with jiraiya, he could rely on the nine tails cloak to help him in battle. What happened after? He was suddenly so bad at controlling the power of the nine tails that he was growing freakin tails. So for all intention and purpose, jiraiya had little to no effect on Naruto’s development.

Some are going to make the Sage mode claim, that with the power Naruto gained much later in Shippuden, he was much better equipped to handle Sasuke. But that doesn’t even begin to make sense. Sasuke had nothing to do with sage mode at all. That was all about Jiraiya. In fact I wager that the pain arc was the very first time in the entire Naruto history that Naruto Uzumaki wasn’t thinking about Sasuke.

Naruto took a page out of Sasuke’s play book. He acquired sage mode for one reason only, and that was revenge. He wanted to kill pain. Chances are if jiraiya had lived a full life or had died after Naruto mastered kyubi mode, he wouldn’t have taught Naruto sage mode. If I am not mistaken jiraiya never made any attempts to teach his student, Minato sage mode, so, yeah, that makes my point.

As for Kyubi mode, the nine tails has been a part of Naruto since he was born. He would have had to deal with it eventually.

Fact is, Naruto began to get stronger when Sasuke came onto team 7. We all watched them during the zabuza arc, training side by side, aiding (unknowingly) each other to achieve greater skills.

With Sasuke around, I see Naruto becoming a shinobi like we have never seen before. Chances are, if Jiraiya did indeed die, he would have mastered sage mode, most likely over a period of several months (pain wouldn’t be invading for a while). Chances are, with Sasuke’s help, he would have truly mastered it, and I don’t ,mean that thing he does with the clones. I can imagine him learning it and taking it to a whole new level, probably even inventing a whole other mode for himself.

The kyubi mode would have come around even earlier, but most likely after Sasuke’s mangyeko developed. I envisage him helping Naruto calm the fox down every time it breaks loose, only for Naruto to have him release control so that he can try again. Basically he would be a much more effective yamato, and chances are the eventual kyubi mode would be something far different than it is now, due to a different training regiment than the one killer bee used.

Better yet though, I can see Naruto mastering actual justus, and by that I mean Naruto actually weaving hand signs to execute whatever wind justus he had mastered. Right now Naruto doesn’t seem to know any hand signs other than summoning.

This would most likely be due to Sasuke’s advice, who would push him to diversify beyond rasengan. Suddenly I am seeing Sasuke teaching Naruto Genjutsu, the basic kind of course. But that would be rather cool, especially since Naruto has massive chakra reserves, which means if he can’t do complex, he can go big, like he does with his clones.

This would be a Naruto that struts around in his long red cloak with his pal Sasuke, strolling into battle fields and sending the enemy running and screaming. Sasuke would make Naruto a better ninja

Sasuke would have a similar improvement, but unlike Naruto who I see simply being a better version of what he is right now, Sasuke’s abilities would be completely different. I am reminiscing of the old Naruto where kakashi warned Sasuke that if he gave into the curse seal and orochimaru, he wouldn’t grow and that Naruto would surpass him. I believe that that has come to pass, though not directly.

I like to call Sasuke the hand out shinobi. It doesn’t mean he didn’t have to do some work for it, or that it doesn’t take skill to use, but it kind of feels like every major skill and jutsu Sasuke has was handed down to him.

This Sasuke would eventually master amaterasu and the rest, but I believe it would be long after he had mastered a whole load of other even more amazing jutsus. And we all know that what we love about Naruto is seeing him train and taking something created by someone else and making it better in some unique way. It would be interesting watching Sasuke master amaterasu, and mangyeko with kakashi and Naruto’s help. Who knows what would result, maybe a chidori created with two clones.

The results would be what we all love about naruto, and that is unpredictable. I envisage Sasuke actually fighting and working to create his own skills. Chances are he would discover a second element and develop his own techniques. or he would take his lightning element and develop a technique stronger than chidori.

I can’t even imagine how he would go about mastering mangyeko, but it would be a ride I would be willing to go along. Chances are after Naruto Masters sage mode, he would assist Sasuke in mastering his own snake sage mode.

And after he sees Naruto achieve kyubi mode, he would strive to achieve an equally great power. Seriously this would be an awesome show. Kishimoto would break the long shonen anime motif. Rather than give us a time skip, we would have two years of action packed adventure, free of akatsuki and tailed beasts.

Seriously, there are so many possibilities to this scenario. Chances are Jiraiya wouldn’t die the way he did. Why? Because Sasuke would probably sneak off to face the big bad threatening his friend. And Naruto would follow him to the land of the rain, leading to us to a Sasuke, Naruto pain showdown (and Konan, of course).

If Jiriaiya must die, then maybe they would miss him on his way to Konoha, and while Pain faced off against Jiraiya in the land of fire, Sasuke and Naruto would collide with (dramatic drums) Itachi, the brother that Naruto had helped Sasuke search for all these two years.

And what ever outcome that battle would have, would to lead to a whole host of other challenges. If it doesn’t make sense how Jiraiya would die in Konoha, with all that back up. Well, a lot of things could happen. He could arrive to aid Sasuke and Naruto against Itachi, and accidentally falls to Amaterasu.

Or better yet, Orochimaru could still be around in this scenario. That would be orochimaru (if he chose to capitalize of pain’s attack to make his move) vs pain vs Jiraiya.

Pain could even be secondary to the entire plot. BY the time Naruto and Sasuke return, orochimaru might have killed Jiraiya, re-aiming Naruto’s wrath while Sasuke took on pain with Hinata and sakura as backup.

There are simply so many possibilities that, like I said, it would take too long to write them all down, or even expand on the ones above (if you notice, I am being rather brief).

Tobi and madara would have to concoct a whole new plan to achieve dominion. Chances are that once Danzo became hokage, Naruto and Sasuke, after painstaking resistance and suffering under a couple of weeks of his rule, would leave Konoha, unable to operate under the leadership of such a maniac. They would then choose the lives of…I don’t know if the term ronin ninja exists but you get my drift.

I can imagine the duo taking steps to cripple Orochimaru’s work, and during one raid, ran into karin, suigetsu and that other guy. After Naruto makes short work of them, they lay down their weapons after which Sasuke takes pity on them, and like jiraiya choosing to shelter the three orphans, the dynamic duo decide to accept the trio under their protection.

Along the way, someone makes a suggestions and the group TAKA is born, though with the naruto in the group a better name might make the cut (like the sharingan foxex or something). Following the leading of Yahiko and pain’s akatsuki, they set out as shinobi mercenaries, gathering the down trodden to build a powerful group, led by the flaming flash (with regards to kyubi mode) and the…I can’t find a good title for Sasuke.

How this group would fit into the war is a mystery. Maybe they would aim for tobi and madara while the alliance takes on the zetsus. But chances are they will have to save the world whilst fighting of the raikage and the entire allaince, since Ai would have deemed them a terrorist group or something.

Every time I consider this ‘what if’ notion, I can’t help but think of how awesome it would be. But really, who wouldn’t want to see Naruto and Sasuke on the battle field together, taking on the akatsuki as a whole or something equally grand.

Of course Naruto would have to get over the sakura thing, and sasuke would have to do something as close to forgiving Danzo as he could possibly get. Then again it would be fun to see naruto acceding to Sasuke using taka to take down danzo but trying to keep him under control.

WHO knows? Those two words are what makes anime so great. The possibilities created by anyone show are so expansive that it can make you tremble in excitement just imagining it.

Now I told you a small portion of what I think would happen (and it is already taking forever to finish this topic, so I will wrap this damn post up) I would be intrigued to find out what you think would change as a result of naruto beating sasuke.

Because the only thing that can beat this scenario is one where the fourth never died.

Seriously, tell me what you think, I am curious to see what I haven’t thought of.

Well as my first post on AnimeVice i think i might as well put up a couple of our eps at the same time before i start posting here regularly

So with that welcome to Damn Right Everything Anime and Manga Podcast which is hosted on the cool movie review site SPILL.com

I promise i will make this post look more elegant in future but for now let me just get these pods to ya the old fashioned way...lazily

Dreamcast Ep 04 - NARUTO SPECIAL

Dreamcast Ep 05 - BLEACH SPECIAL

Dreamcast Ep 06 - Roriconfan

Dreamcast Ep 07 - ONE PIECE SPECIAL

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THANKS FOR TUNING IN!!!!!!!

Hello everyone and welcome to the special Rock Lee report. Since I can't comment on the Rock Lee Discussion thread, it looks I have to do some reports to remind the community about the hilarious misadventures of Rock Lee and His Ninja Pals. After episode 9, I had to copy down Crunchyroll Synopsis. I fell behind in the wiki work.

Ep. 9: Hinata is Neji's Cousin / Hinata's Weak Point is Naruto

It's all about Hinata

Neji takes on a serious role in this story where he trains Hinata to be the best and eliminate others who dare harm his cousin. In the second story, Rock Lee becomes the love guru for Hinata and helps her win Naruto's heart by following four principles. Will Hinata be able overcome her bashfulness with Naruto around?

Highlights: It has some serious moments in Neji's flashbacks, and Hinata finally appear. Neji seems to have some kind of sisterly complex with Hinata, and Hinata faints whenever she sees Naruto.

Ep. 10: Teamwork Symbolizes Youth / The Culprit is Among Us!

Jet Lee!

After seeing Shikamaru and Chouji in action, Lee attempts to strengthen his friendship with Neji and perfect their own combo moves. The Leaf ninja are scheduled to take an IQ test, but on the way to the exam, Lee's team discovers Guy-sensei collapsed on the ground! They'll have to push their brains to the limit to solve this mystery.

By Crunchyroll

Highlights: The cool thing about this episode is that how they compared Shikamaru and Choji's childhood bond to Rock Lee and Neji's rivalry in a test of teamwork. Shikamaru is such a smart ass in this episode.

Ep. 11: A Field Trip to the Old Capital! / Girls' Rooms and Candy Boxes

Let go guys! To the Girls' room!

Lee and Naruto are both vying to be on Sakura's team for a research trip to the old capitol city. But when they're stuck with Neji instead, they settle for tailing her. Evening falls and Lee wants to slip away from the senseis to go hang out with the girls. He sends Konohamaru in to do some recon, While the young ninja is caught, he manages to leave behind a single scrap of paper.

By Crunchyroll

Highlights: Besides the awesome school version of Rock Lee's show, Rock Lee and his gang are facing against Kakashi and Might Guy in order to get in with the ladies. I like how the Might Guy and Kakashi got them in the end.

Ep. 12: The No-Ninjutsu Lifestyle! / I Want to Share an Umbrella with Sakura

Rock Lee and His Pals

Fed up with their pupils using their ninja skills for the simplest of tasks, Guy and Kakashi set out to teach them some appreciation. Lee is training in the train without an umbrella, when he sees Sakura getting soaked as well. Naruto appears with an umbrella to save the day, and a jealous Lee has to choose between training and love.

By Crunchyroll

Highlights: Despite that we don't get a reason why Rock Lee is infatuated with Sakura, it's nice to see Kakashi getting in the comedic business while Rock Lee's pals cheer up poor Rock Lee.

Ep. 13: Student vs. Master! Rock Lee vs. Might Guy! / I will Surpass Guy Sensei!

Rock Lee vs Guy Sensei

The ninjas of the Hidden Leaf are being tested on their combat skills, and Team Guy must win a match against their sensei in order to pass. Neji and Tenten succeed using their special moves, but how will Lee stand up to Guy-sensei's Morning Peacock.

By Crunchyroll

Highlights: The zany relationship between Might Guy and Rock Lee is tested when Might Guy finds Naruto surpassing Kakashi. This episode was great and the humor is bit bizarre as hell.

Ep. 14: I'll Restore the Reputation of Ninjas! / Death!

Rasen-Fart!

Fewer children in the Hidden Leaf Village are choosing to become ninjas. Lee goes to talk to Guy-sensei about the issue, only to overhear his idol say "Ninjutsu is the most important part of being a ninja! On his way to visit a hospitalized Guy-sensei, Lee hears Tsunade say he "doesn't have much time left." Can Lee whip up a curry dish that's spicy enough to save his teacher's life?

By Crunchyroll

Highlights: Naruto and Shikamaru do a good job in wowing the kids; Rock Lee tries using flatulence to wow the children which is nasty but works. There is a big curry demand. For Naruto, it's ramen; for Rock Lee, it's curry. There are some anime references that are unknown for some folks like me.

Feel free to share your favorite Rock Lee moments or bad ones here or in the discussion thread. Though, I hope we can do it in the discussion thread since Tom Pinchuk and I are behind in Rock Lee.

This Week's Ongoing Anime and Manga Coverage

• Fairy Tail Ep. 143 by Taka
• La Storia Arcana Famiglia Ep. 6 by Taka
• Campione Ep. 6 by Taka
• Sket Dance Ep. 70 by Taka
• Quick Picks with Bigheart711 and Taka
• Humanity Has Declined Ep. 5-6 by BigHeart711

Fun Blogs

• Tsundere Mash-Up: Asuka vs Lum
• Tsundere Mash-Up: Haruna vs Astarotte
• Summer 2012 Experience - I talk about the anime and manga recommendations that the folks at AV had me try out.

Last Week's Ongoing Anime and Manga Coverage

• Campione! Ep. 5 by Taka
• Sket Dance Ep. 69
• Fairy Tail Ep. 142 by Taka
• La Storia della Arcana Famiglia Ep. 5 by Taka
• Quick Picks with BigHeart711 and Taka
• Italian Anime Spotlight: Campione!

Other Anime Discussion Threads

• Tari Tari
• Sword Art Online
• Binbogami ga!
• Hagure Yusha no Estetica
• NARUTO Spin-Off: Rock Lee & His Ninja Pals
• Natsuyuki Rendezvous
• Kokoro Connect
• So, I can't Play H!
• Toonami's Deadman Wonderland

Takashichea

I've been reading some manga for a few years and so far there have been a few I like but are over. I like: Bleach, Naruto, One Piece, Hellsing, InuYasha, Rurouni Kenshin, Death Note, Dragonball (Z), Rave or Rave Master, whatever its called, Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle, & Full Metal Alchemist. All are some interesting series to read. Some of these are ending, some are over and some are still ongoing so I was wondering if they're other good series out there to read.

I was curious about: Fairy Tail, Berserk, Trigun, Shaman King and Ultimo? They sound good but are they worth reading? If anyone can put there opinions down I would appreciate it.