I'm writing a series of one-shots about Kurama (Kyuubi) and Naruto. There's nothing smutty about them: they're just friendship fics, set in the canonverse. Basically, it's a series of conversations between Naruto and Kurama. I try to keep Naruto and Kurama in character throughout.
Fanfiction.Net link: Kurama by nettieneko
I'm going to write another when the manga progresses a bit further. Naruto and Kurama need some solid conservation material! I'll have to wait a few more weeks for more manga chapters to come out before I can write another.
Now that I've plugged my fanfics, I guess I should summarise my thoughts and feelings about the manga. A lot has changed over the years: the characters have grown up and so have I.
I'm still a SasuNaru fan! Naruto and Sasuke will always be my favourite characters. They're the most developed characters in the manga and they share a very unusual ... connection. It's not something that can be easily put into words and that's what makes it so special and unique. There's nothing else like it in any fiction I've enjoyed.
As for het shipping... Well, my enthusiasm for it is as flat as ever. Kishi just doesn't write and develop his female characters well enough for my tastes. I guess the main thing that's changed is that I no longer support NaruSaku. To hell with that shit, seriously!
Naruto should marry someone who loves him and puts him first in her heart. Naruto deserves nothing less than full, unwavering, lifetime commitment. That's what Naruto would give his wife, after all.
I think Hinata and Sakura are there to show the effects of Naruto and Sasuke's individual paths. Hinata, who loves Naruto, has grown stronger emotionally and mentally. Sakura, who loves Sasuke, is mentally and emotionally weak.
Hinata's love for Naruto has given her strength. Sakura's love for Sasuke drains her of strength and makes her suffer. There's a difference between a glass of milk every day and a glass of poison.
This is just another example of how most female characters in this story are nothing more than 'love interests'. Kishi's bad at writing female characters but he's even worse at writing romance. Thankfully, he did a good job on the Minato/Kushina relationship, but only because he didn't go into much detail.
Meanwhile, Kishi's bromance relationships seem to go too deep for most heterosexual male Naruto fans to really understand. When Naruto told Sasuke that they will both die when they fight each other it was meant to signify Naruto's acknowledgement of Sasuke's strength. They are equals and one cannot best the other! Just like at the Valley of the End, Sasuke rejected this idea and refused to accept that Naruto was his equal. Many Naruto fans don't seem to understand this and ignore this pivotal conversation as if it's simply another of Kishi's homoerotic wet dreams.
I explore Naruto's connection to Sasuke in Kurama, so check it out! ...Sorry... Couldn't resist another plug there!
This is just another example of how most female characters in this story are nothing more than 'love interests'. Kishi's bad at writing female characters but he's even worse at writing romance. Thankfully, he did a good job on the Minato/Kushina relationship, but only because he didn't go into much detail.
Meanwhile, Kishi's bromance relationships seem to go too deep for most heterosexual male Naruto fans to really understand. When Naruto told Sasuke that they will both die when they fight each other it was meant to signify Naruto's acknowledgement of Sasuke's strength. They are equals and one cannot best the other! Just like at the Valley of the End, Sasuke rejected this idea and refused to accept that Naruto was his equal. Many Naruto fans don't seem to understand this and ignore this pivotal conversation as if it's simply another of Kishi's homoerotic wet dreams.
I explore Naruto's connection to Sasuke in Kurama, so check it out! ...Sorry... Couldn't resist another plug there!
Naruto, meanwhile, is growing up and becoming Hokage material. He's so awesome and I'm so proud of him. *tears up* He's come such a long way! Seeing him save Kakashi and Gai was so cool. And seeing Kakashi and Gai save Naruto from Tobi was also cool. I've been loving every minute of these chapters.
In fact, the whole war has been totally awesome ever since Naruto and Killer Bee (LOVE that guy, by the way) entered the battle. Naruto and Killer Bee are totally the best team ever. Non-stop pwnage.
I went back and read the first few manga chapters then skipped forward to the present and the amount of character development Naruto has been given is astounding. He was this naughty little brat who wanted attention and now he's Konoha's hero - a good, strong man. *tears up again*
Sasuke is continuing his steady descent into villainy and Naruto seems to be the last thing connecting him to reality. I say that because he's keeping to his earlier promise to kill Naruto before the rest of Konoha. Love may not be in the air but he still feels some kind of connection to Naruto and he's determined to symbolically sever that link before he pursues his revenge against Konoha. Sasuke wants to prove to himself that he's capable of cutting the strongest tie to his old life.
Sasuke sees his friendships in Konoha as nothing more than a part of the web of lies that kept him blinded to the truth. He was a pawn of the system that had his family quietly slaughtered. He needs to end it all and destroy those who, wittingly or not, deceived him.
I've always found it difficult to get into Sasuke's shoes and sympathise with him. His 'issues' are too huge for me to comprehend. I think the tragedy of the Uchiha massacre and the revelation of the lies he'd been fed about it were enough to damage Sasuke's trust in people forever. At this point, he's living by his own rules and even his sense of morality is fading (as evidenced by his betrayal of Karin and his attempted murder of Sakura).
The last thing connecting him to morality is Naruto. Sasuke knows that if he kills Naruto, he kills the last shred of morality in his heart. He would be vengeance incarnate. And that's what Sasuke wants more than anything.
As for the 'Tobi is Obito' revelation... Honestly, I'm in two minds about it. I'm a bit sad that Kishi has made even good and loyal Uchiha Obito into a villain. No Uchiha is spared the taint of villainy! On the other hand, it'll be very interesting to see how Kakashi reacts to this revelation. Obito had such an impact on his life. He was the one who Kakashi respected the most, the one whose grave he visited every morning. This 'reunion' is gonna be angsty.
Sasuke sees his friendships in Konoha as nothing more than a part of the web of lies that kept him blinded to the truth. He was a pawn of the system that had his family quietly slaughtered. He needs to end it all and destroy those who, wittingly or not, deceived him.
I've always found it difficult to get into Sasuke's shoes and sympathise with him. His 'issues' are too huge for me to comprehend. I think the tragedy of the Uchiha massacre and the revelation of the lies he'd been fed about it were enough to damage Sasuke's trust in people forever. At this point, he's living by his own rules and even his sense of morality is fading (as evidenced by his betrayal of Karin and his attempted murder of Sakura).
The last thing connecting him to morality is Naruto. Sasuke knows that if he kills Naruto, he kills the last shred of morality in his heart. He would be vengeance incarnate. And that's what Sasuke wants more than anything.
As for the 'Tobi is Obito' revelation... Honestly, I'm in two minds about it. I'm a bit sad that Kishi has made even good and loyal Uchiha Obito into a villain. No Uchiha is spared the taint of villainy! On the other hand, it'll be very interesting to see how Kakashi reacts to this revelation. Obito had such an impact on his life. He was the one who Kakashi respected the most, the one whose grave he visited every morning. This 'reunion' is gonna be angsty.
Anyway, I suck at predictions. That's pretty obvious just from skimming over some of my old posts here on this blog. Everyone else in the fandom seems to suck at predictions too, so I'm not too bothered about it. Kishi likes to make his story unpredictable: there are almost always twists or unexpected interventions.
If I had to make a prediction, I'd say Tobi/Obito will give a lengthy explanation to Kakashi. Rin's death will probably be mentioned and maybe explained. Tobi/Obito will probably then use his Uchiha Art of Run in response to either a renewed attack by Naruto or the arrival of the Alliance ninja army.
EDIT: I've updated the Fanfiction Recommendations List. I got rid of 10 old fanfics and replaced them with 10 new fanfics. My tastes have changed over the years. The list is much improved, in my opinion.
