Unfortunately, we've been left with dialogue that's just ambigious enough to leave us waiting until next week for a full resolution. It certainly looks like the S.S. NaruSaku is about to be torpedoed and sunk, but it's not like this would be the first time a scene break at the end of the issue was set up to make things look one way, only to swerve in the opposite direction in the next issue.

Never rule out the possibility that the author is screwing with the shippers as much as possible for their own amusement.

 

Personally, I really, really like this chapter. In a rare moment, Naruto has not gone the idiot route, and instead is calling bullshit. On everything. Which is fucking awesome. That, and in all likelihood we're about to see some epic wake-up call for Sakura. I think I'm not the only one who thinks the deluded bitch needs it. And Killer Bee scene was win.

 

The content of the chapter was well done; the execution, not so much. I thinks it's mainly a lost-in-translation thing, but the talking is just off for such an important string of events. I think the best part is the anbu doll thing, because it wasn't bogged down with overdone, badly written dialogue.

 

Well, if Naruto goes through with this and tells Sakura to stuff it, Sakura'll become the most useless character in canon. Outside the Gaara Retrieval Arc I don't remember her doing anything other than squeal, cry, squeal some more and cry some more...(maybe I'm being harsh, but I just watched a couple of old episodes from the Wave and Chuunin Exam arcs and Sakura's pathetic younger self is fresh in my mind).

 

Which is one of the reasons that I suspect we'll still end up with Naruto and Sakura paired up at the end of it; from a narrative perspective there's no reason for her to have been in the core cast and had so much panel time devoted to her if she's not going to be the main character's love interest. If not for the romantic subplot she'd be at around TenTen's level of importance and character development.

 

She is the main character's love interest, she's just not confessing to Sasuke right now.
She was just confessing to her consolation prize.

 

Bitch is a groupie...

Naruto, you're famous now... and I... I realise that Sasuke's never going to want me so... you wanna go get some ramen??? I love you

 

I laughed...and it's probably true.

Stupid pink haired bitch.

 

Wasn't fame the reason she and the rest of Sasuke's fangirls were interested in him in the first place. So, I guess that makes the statement incredibly true.

 

That and the fact that he's classic fangirl-bait; dark, brooding, mysterious, and with just a hint of tragedy in his past. The fact that Sasuke finds his fangirls annoying as hell was always one his best character traits in my opinion.

 

Assuming Sakura will be Naruto's love interest on the basis of panel time is silly. Sasuke gets as much / more panel time and is an equally likely candidate. Since Naruto has refused her, it's even more likely now that Sasuke will be redeemed and she will devote herself to him.

Of course, I'm erroneously assuming this manga will ever end.

 

Alright - time for n00b dumb question. I'll preface my question by stating that I don't read the manga and I only keep up to date by reading threads like this.

How in the hell can Madara declare a great ninja war? Does he even have an army? From skimming the summaries of the chapters, it seems as if all five major powers are united.

I apologize if this has already been answered or I'm missing a blatant fact, but I try to avoid delving too far into canon as the logic makes my brain hurt.

 

He has seven of the nine bijuu and decades to plan. He may very well have something up his sleeve.

 

Well, it's not just about panel time, it's also about the content of those panels; since the time skip Sakura's been dropping pretty blatant hints in dialgoue and internal monologue that she likes Naruto, and the anime seems to be pushing the pairing even harder considering how many extra Naruto/Sakura shipping fuel scenes have been added into Shippuden. It just seems to me that, from a narrative perspective, there wouldn't have been so much time devoted to building up the pairing if nothing were to come of it.

An ending in the forseeable future does seem likely given the fact that the the last Jinchuriki besides Naruto might well be captured at the end of the Kisame/Killer Bee fight. I've got a feeling that battle will be epic.

 

Yeah, I saw a few of those Naruto/Sakura 'shipping fuel' scenes when I was watching the Jiraiya Pein battle episodes.

In the little thingy they do at the end of an episode they had Naruto and Sakura on a date and Sakura saying 'I hope we can watch the fireworks together like this again next year' + <insert Sakura screaming and bashing Naruto over the head repeatedly>. Its not good news.

 

Vylos wins. New chapter out on onemanga shows Naruto calling her out and turning her away. The cool thing is that Naruto sits there and calmly tells her that he's doing it for his own reasons. No crying, no yelling "dattebayo!", just "you are being a stupid bitch so sit the F*^k down." Finally he grows a set.

Spoiler

Sameheda grows a mouth and is like quagmire ¯\_(0.o)_/¯

 

I hesitate to offer a possible Kishi-idea:

He said during his chat with the Kages that he likes to stock up on good Sharingan eyes. Ignoring the possibilty he's Danzo (which is pretty dead now), he might have gotten the rest of the Uchiha eyes and created an army of Kakashi-lites.

 

Death by pencil was fucking awesome.

I think that Kishimoto just trolled the Sasuke fandom once again.

This is the greatest fight ever. I'm just terrified that Kishimoto will decide that it's too manly to be shown on panel.

 

It is definately a good moment for showing just how much Naruto has grown; for most of the story his brain would have shut down as soon as Sakura started confessing her feelings to him. Instead, he calmly points out the gigantic hole in her claim that there was nothing else going on, and stayed calm and in control while she got more and more pissed off at him.

I'll add my voice to the chorus of praise for the Kisame vs. Killer Bee fight; I said it was going to be epic, and so far it looks like I was right.

Spoiler

Samehada managing to eat the Cloak of the Eight-Tails was a definate "oh shit" moment.

 

Did Kisame really take a line from Remember the Name in that last panel? I know Kishi has some weird interest in rap...

Speaking of which, "Your eyes are pretty?" What. The. Heck. Bee?

Naruto's bullshit detector has come along nicely. Great chapter, I think this may shape up to be the best fight since VotE, which would be all kinds of ironic considering neither Sasuke nor Naruto are in on it.