Sasuke & Sakura: An Analysis

I started writing this book as merely another Quora post, but Sasuke and Sakura have many moments throughout the series, so once this project reached around 80 pages of text (and went on to grow much longer), I realized it would be too much for a single Quora answer. Nonetheless, I wanted to share my thoughts in a detailed analysis of Sasuke and Sakura's relationship without being forced to cut out a lot of observations and opinions, so I decided to publish this as a book on 抖阴社区 instead, and this book became the first installation in what inspired me to analyze Sasuke's other relationships as well. 

Though this opinion is generally unpopular, I personally like SasuSaku's relationship a lot and I feel their relationship is widely misunderstood due to its cryptic, subtle, symbolic, and indirect nature. To be honest, many SasuSaku scenes are confusing or puzzling at first. Several of their moments (such as the hospital hug after Sasuke wakes up from his coma) I remembered recognizing as significant when I first watched it, yet I couldn't quite pinpoint or understand what the meaning or importance of the scene was. I knew the story was telling me something significant about the dynamic between Sasuke and Sakura but wasn't aware of what the significance of moments such as that were. Only after several years of reading various analyses on Sasuke and Sakura's relationship and analyzing things myself did the meaning of certain scenes like that become clear to me.

I began to realize that with an attentive, dialed-in, analytical observation of the series, Sasuke and Sakura actually have several moments of substantial build-up to their relationship throughout the series. SasuSaku is a subtle, indirect, and soft romance. Part of the reason SasuSaku is so widely misunderstood is that you really have to know what to look for; a cursory overview or a single watch of the series isn't going to cut it for understanding the pairing. It requires a deep understanding of both Sasuke's and Sakura's individual characters and how they relate to the people around them, and then another deep understanding of their moments together. Kishimoto is sparse with his SasuSaku scenes, but the scenes that he uses cover a lot of mileage and say a lot. But you'll miss it all if you aren't paying close attention.

I will say that while I love Sasuke and Sakura's relationship, it's not a ship for everyone and I completely respect if people don't find the pairing to their tastes. I don't think Sasuke and Sakura's relationship is forced, just outside of the realm of what is "typical" in a couple. That's all part of what gives SasuSaku its flavor and makes it an intriguing and interesting ship. SasuSaku relies on a lot on inference and implication rather than always directly showing the build-up of the dynamic. For me personally, I like how when it comes to SasuSaku, a lot is left up to the imagination about certain aspects of their relationship. It stokes the imagination, like a puzzle you must solve. It adds mystery, intrigue, and drama to the ship and gives you something to chew over. But for some fans, relying on inference might be very irritating and too vague or too indirect. A lot of people tend to prefer direct storytelling instead of writing things in by implication, and that's fine, just a matter of personal preference. And I won't say that at times the writing wasn't without its flaws (because I have a whole section dedicated to that) or that it couldn't have been written better at points, because I do think there are some things that couldn't have been written better or more smoothly. But overall, I do like the pairing, and I enjoy the build-up of their relationship over the series. 

For this book, I wanted to explain and analyze Sasuke and Sakura's relationship and dispel the common misconceptions of SasuSaku, of which there are many. My hope is that this book will help people better understand Sasuke's character, Sakura's character, and the relationship between Sasuke and Sakura. I don't care if people love or hate Sasuke's character, Sakura's character, or SasuSaku, but I dislike people spreading lies about them. I want people to know SasuSaku, Sasuke Uchiha, and Sakura Haruno as they are, and hate them or love them for who they are, not for the false, overly simplistic image too many fans have of them. My hope for this book is that whether you passionately love or hate this relationship, after reading this you will come to understand the couple's relationship a bit better. Or at the very least, perhaps hear a new perspective on Sasuke and Sakura's relationship that you haven't heard before. 

-Indra Nakari