Sasuke Uchiha (うちは サスケ, Uchiha Sasuke^?) is a fictional character in the Naruto universe created by Masashi Kishimoto and developed into a media franchise, consisting of a series of manga, anime, soundtracks, OVAs, movies, video games, and other collectibles. He was created as a rival and foil to the series' titular character, Naruto Uzumaki, with his design causing difficulties for Kishimoto during drawing the manga scenes, although he has grown to enjoy drawing Sasuke.^[5][6]

In the anime and manga, Sasuke is a member of the Uchiha clan, a highly skilled clan of ninjas allied to the village of Konohagakure. His primary motivation throughout the series is to avenge the destruction of his entire clan by killing his brother, Itachi Uchiha, a task he pursues at all costs. While he was initially cold and singularly driven by his revenge, he becomes more empathetic through his relationships with other characters, notably Naruto Uzumaki, whom he comes to consider as a rival. Sasuke has additionally appeared in two of the featured movies in the series, Naruto the Movie: Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow and Naruto the Movie 2: Legend of the Stone of Gelel, as well as several other media relating to the series, including several video games and OVAs.

Several anime and manga publications have provided acclaim and criticism of Sasuke's character. While many reviewers have noted his cold and detached attitude and abilities, he has been viewed as a stereotypical "rival" in the mold of several similar characters in other shōnen manga.^[7][8] His personality has also been subject to criticism, with many finding it difficult to like or sympathize with Sasuke's character; IGN jokingly labeled Sasuke as an "emo-kid."^[7] Nevertheless, Sasuke has been highly popular with the Naruto reader base, placing high in several popularity polls.^[9][10] Merchandise based on Sasuke has also been released, including action figures and plush dolls.^[11][12]

Creation and conception

When developing the original Naruto manga, Masashi Kishimoto had not initially intended to create Sasuke. After speaking with his editor about the future of the series, he was advised to create a rival character for the series' protagonist, Naruto Uzumaki, resulting in Sasuke's creation.^[5] To learn more about creating an effective rivalry, Kishimoto read a variety of manga to gather ideas on what constituted such a rivalry, and he coalesced these ideal elements into one relationship. Because Sasuke is intended to be Naruto's opposite, Kishimoto is always careful to make sure Sasuke is never too emotional. With Sasuke's character being that of a "cool genius," Kishimoto feels he has created the ideal rivalry.^[13]

Sasuke's design gave Kishimoto a number of problems, making him the most difficult character he had to create. Because he lacked a proper idea of what Sasuke's face should look like, initial drafts of Sasuke appeared too old or mature for a character the same age as Naruto.^[14] Once settling on a proper face, Kishimoto worked on Sasuke's attire. Original designs of Sasuke had a number of necklaces and ties around his arms and legs, a result of Kishimoto's habit of giving characters as much ornamentation as possible. Realizing he could not draw such a complex character on a weekly basis, Kishimoto simplified the design to a basic contrast of Naruto's costume.^[6]

For Kishimoto, Sasuke remains the most difficult character for him to draw. While drawing, errors and mishaps commonly result in Sasuke's youthful appearance being lost, a result of Kishimoto's inexperience in drawing characters mature beyond their years.^[6] Sasuke's hair, originally kept short to save Kishimoto time, has slowly gotten longer as the series has progressed, increasing the amount of time needed to draw Sasuke.^[14] Kishimoto eventually drew a new costume for Sasuke that featured a number of belts strapped around his arms and legs. Due to the time needed to draw a costume of this design, Kishimoto returned Sasuke to his original costume.^[15] Despite the time and energy Kishimoto spends drawing Sasuke, Sasuke has become his favorite character to draw.^[6]

Character outline

Background

Sasuke's childhood, as told over the course of Naruto manga volume twenty-five, was spent living in the shadow of his older brother, Itachi Uchiha, whose natural abilities had made him the pride of the Uchiha clan. As a result, Sasuke's family largely ignored him, forcing Sasuke to constantly try to win their recognition. Sasuke, however, was never able to surpass the milestones set in place by his brother, leaving Itachi to be the only one to appreciate Sasuke's efforts.^[16] It was not until Itachi had a falling out with his family that Sasuke began to receive his family's attention, his father in particular taking a keen interest in Sasuke's training. In tandem with finally being able to enjoy his family's company, Sasuke was encouraged to not follow in Itachi's footsteps.^[17]

Upon returning home from ninja school one day, Sasuke found the street littered with the corpses of the Uchiha clan. After running home to alert his family to the tragedy, Sasuke found Itachi standing over their parents' bodies. Realizing Itachi was responsible for the murders, Sasuke ran for safety, only to be stopped by Itachi's proclamation that he would be spared. Sasuke, having always been trying to surpass Itachi, was as a result the only person who could someday prove a match for him.^[18] Wanting to eventually test his abilities with Sasuke's own, Itachi encouraged Sasuke to get stronger by living a life of hate and anger towards him, with the sole purpose in life being to avenge the clan. Itachi left, and Sasuke was left to consider his words in the absence of family. Longing for the love of his parents that he was now denied, Sasuke agreed to live his life as Itachi had instructed, wanting to kill his brother at all costs.^[19]

Personality

After his assignment to Team 7 at the start of the series, Sasuke displays an immediate confidence in his abilities. He is as such unwilling to work with his teammates, Naruto Uzumaki or Sakura Haruno, believing their skills to pale in comparison to his own and therefore making them useless if he is to ever kill Itachi.^[20] These perceptions are quickly proven wrong, for despite their failings, Sakura is an excellent source of information and competition with Naruto acts as an effective way to get stronger.^[21] While his confidence in himself is ever-present throughout the series, Sasuke slowly begins to rely on those close to him over the course of Part I. This begins to result in his risking his own life to save those of his friends, even though his death would leave him unable to gain vengeance on Itachi.^[22] He becomes complacent with his life in Konohagakure, satisfied with the speed of his growth as a ninja.

Similar to how Itachi used the slaughter of the Uchiha clan to measure his ability, Sasuke uses his battles with the various characters he meets in Part I to gauge his increase in strength. Through his battles with Haku, Rock Lee, and Gaara, Sasuke is able to test his abilities against those of progressively stronger ninja, discover his weakpoints, and carry away something new from the battle. Once Naruto begins to prove his worth, Sasuke starts to yearn for a battle with him as well.^[23] Naruto, however, gains strength at a much more rapid rate than Sasuke, even learning the Rasengan, an attack stronger than Sasuke's Chidori. This, coupled with Sasuke's quick defeat by Itachi during the Return of Itachi arc, leads Sasuke to believe his growth is slowing. In an attempt to reassess his strength, he begins to treat his friends as opponents so as to test his abilities against their own.^[24]

Dissatisfied with his progress in Konoha and believing Orochimaru holds the keys to getting strong enough to kill Itachi, Sasuke defects from Konoha at the end of Part I.^[25] Naruto, the character Sasuke comes to consider his closest friend, tries to stop him, but Sasuke only tries to kill Naruto, believing his friend's death will grant him the strength needed to kill Itachi.^[19] He is ultimately unable to bring himself to kill Naruto, realizing that is what Itachi would want, and instead continues on to Orochimaru.^[26] In the two-and-a-half years he spends with Orochimaru, Sasuke's goal to kill Itachi takes precedence above all else, such that he is willing to give his body to Orochimaru if it means gaining the strength he needs.^[27] Sasuke also comes to abandon his loyalties to others once they are of no further use to him, turning against Orochimaru after reaching the conclusion that he can learn nothing else of value from him.^[28] While he pays no allegiance to his allies, old or new, in Part II, Sasuke cannot bring himself to harm those he has never met before, and makes it a point to prevent their deaths when possible.^[29]

Abilities

Sasuke in cursed seal level two form using the Chidori.

Sasuke is able to easily grasp most ninja-related abilities. Throughout the series he displays great proficiency with the Uchiha clan's signature fire and weapon-based techniques, surprising his teacher, Kakashi Hatake, during their first training session.^[30] Of the abilities gained through his Uchiha lineage, Sasuke most commonly uses the Sharingan, a unique eye inheritance that grants him a variety of advantages in battle. For the duration of Part I, Sasuke's Sharingan continues to develop, granting him new abilities in the process, such as the ability to pick up and react to fast-moving opponents.^[31] Once fully manifesting itself at the end of Part I, Sasuke is even able to use his Sharingan to predict the movements of others, allowing him to dodge an attack before it is made.^[32] In Part II, Sasuke starts to use his Sharingan to cast genjutsu, illusionary techniques with which he can manipulate and confuse others.^[33] During his later battle with Itachi, Sasuke receives his brother's Mangekyo Sharingan and all of its abilities to help him in his future battles.

Like the Sharingan, Orochimaru's influence is a recurring element of Sasuke's abilities. During their first encounter during the Chunin Exam arc, Sasuke is branded with a cursed seal, which grants him a brief surge in strength and speed when active. Though he is left exhausted after its usage, Sasuke's various uses of the seal cause him to crave more of its power.^[34] As such, Sasuke forces his seal to a second level, drastically changing his appearance when active and giving him a boost in chakra.^[35] Once he begins training under Orochimaru, Sasuke learns to summon snakes, which he can call upon in battle to help attack or defend.^[36] Orochimaru also uses their time together to enhance Sasuke's physical abilities, such that neither Naruto nor Sakura are a match for him during their first re-encounter in Part II.^[37] After absorbing Orochimaru into his body, Sasuke gains access to his unique abilities, such as healing from injuries in short periods of time.^[38] During his battle with Itachi, Orochimaru and the cursed seal are removed from Sasuke's body to free him from Orochimaru's control.

Prior to Sasuke's defection, Kakashi Hatake teaches him how to use the Chidori in an attempt to steer him away from Orochimaru.^[24] The Chidori, a collection of lightning-based chakra in the user's hand, serves as a rapid thrusting attack that severely damages any target. While Sasuke is able to put the Chidori to great use during Part I, his usage of the attack is somewhat limited in Part II. Instead, Sasuke employs variants of the technique, using the fundamentals behind the Chidori to create a number of new abilities. Sasuke's first display of such an ability involves emitting electricity from his body as a shield and then sending it along the blade of his chokutō to increase its cutting potential.^[39] He later proves able to mold electricity into more solid forms such as throwing needles,^[40] and even harnesses natural lightning to create a devastating and unavoidable attack called Kirin (麒麟, Kirin^?). Because of the amount of energy required to create the Chidori, Sasuke can only use it twice per day under his own power for the duration of Part I.^[41] In Part II, a limit on his number of uses for the Chidori or its variants has yet to be seen.

Plot overview

For the first half of Part I, Sasuke accompanies Team 7 in its various endeavors and training sessions. After his encounter with Orochimaru during the Chunin Exams, who begins to manipulate Sasuke into his custody, Sasuke starts to act independently of Naruto and Sakura, pursuing his own opponents and being the only one to train with Kakashi.^[42] After Itachi's brief return to Konoha and his simultaneous defeat by him, Sasuke becomes dissatisfied with what he has learned whilst a member of Team 7.^[24] Believing Orochimaru will be able to give him the strength needed to kill Itachi, Sasuke goes to him, severing his ties with Konoha in the process.^[25] Naruto follows him in an effort to stop him, and the two ultimately do battle. Though he tries to kill Naruto, Sasuke ultimately cannot bring himself to do so, and instead continues on to Orochimaru's hideout, ready to gain strength at any cost.^[26]

After two-and-a-half years Sasuke, satisfied that he has learned all he can from his new master, turns against a weakened Orochimaru before the latter can steal his body.^[28] Though Orochimaru attempts to force a body switch, Sasuke is able to reverse the process, absorbing Orochimaru and allowing him to put his plans of finding Itachi into motion.^[43] Sasuke forms Snake, a team of individuals assembled to aid him in finding Itachi. Once they are able to track Itachi down, Sasuke leaves his team behind and goes to kill his brother.^[44] When Itachi dies after a prolonged battle, Sasuke is collected by the second conspirator of the Uchiha massacre, Madara Uchiha. Madara tells Sasuke of Itachi's reasons for killing the Uchiha and how, having always loved his little brother, Itachi allowed himself to be killed by Sasuke. With his hate for Itachi proven to be an illusion, Sasuke is forced to cope with the fact that Itachi was a good person.

Appearances in other media

Sasuke (right) in Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 2

Sasuke has made several appearances outside of the Naruto anime and manga. He appears in all three of the original video animations produced for the series, helping Naruto and Konohamaru to find a four leaf clover in the first original video animation,^[45] joining his team in escorting a ninja named Shibuki to his village and helping him fight the missing-nin that stole the village's "Hero's Water" in the second original video animation,^[46] and participating in a tournament in the third original video animation.^[47] Sasuke also makes an appearance in the first two Naruto featured films, although he is only briefly present in a memory segment in the second.^[48] He is also set to be featured in the second Naruto: Shippūden movie that is slated for release in summer of 2008.^[49]

Sasuke is a common playable character in Naruto video games, including the Clash of Ninja series and the Ultimate Ninja series.^[50][51][52] In some games, it is possible to unlock and play as a version of him with the cursed seal active. Due to his lack of appearances in early Naruto Shippūden chapters and episodes, he has not appeared in any games based on Naruto Shippūden until Naruto Shippūden: Gekitou Ninja Taisen EX 2,^[53] and his second appearance was in Naruto Shippūden: Narutimate Accel 2.^[54]

Reception

In every official Shonen Jump popularity poll of the series, Sasuke has ranked within the top five characters. Though Sasuke's rank initially alternated between the third and fourth spot, he ranked first in the most recent polls as the most popular character in of the series.^[9][10] There has not been another official Shonen Jump popularity poll for the series as of 2006. In an interview, Yuri Lowenthal, who does the voice acting for Sasuke in the English dub, states that he is honored to be playing that role due to the large retinue of voice actors auditioning for the role, and also noted the stress associated with his job due to fans being highly critical of any deviation or mistake made while dubbing.^[55] Several pieces of merchandise have been released in Sasuke's likeness, including plush of his Part I and Part II appearance,^[11][56] key chains,^[57][58] and numerous figurines.^[59][12]

Several publications for manga, anime, video games, and other related media have provided praise and criticism on Sasuke's character. IGN characterized Sasuke as "the resident emo-kid" due to his cold and serious personality, and found it difficult to have a degree of empathy for his character.^[7] GameSpot extolled Sasuke's abilities as "badass," although echoing IGN's comments concerning his personality.^[60] T.H.E.M. Anime Reviews noted that Sasuke fell into the stereotypical "rival" mold of several other shōnen manga, and found him, along with several of the other characters, to not be likable.^[8] Due to the high amount of anticipation from fans concerning Sasuke's animated appearance in Part II, the production staff for Naruto: Shippūden included Sasuke in a sneak-peek of a later episode featuring him before the opening of the first episode of Naruto: Shippūden; his character does not appear for more than fifty chapters after the start of Part II in the manga.^[61] As of March 2008 an official Japanese website about Sasuke has appeared. The website contains a large number of merchandising such as iPods and bicycles with drawings of the character.^[62]

See also

• List of Naruto characters
• List of Naruto manga volumes
• List of Naruto episodes

References

Sasuke Uchiha (うちは サスケ, Uchiha Sasuke^?) is a fictional character in the Naruto universe created by Masashi Kishimoto and developed into a media franchise, consisting of a series of manga, anime, soundtracks, OVAs, movies, video games, and other collectibles. He was created as a rival and foil to the series' titular character, Naruto Uzumaki, with his design causing difficulties for Kishimoto during drawing the manga scenes, although he has grown to enjoy drawing Sasuke.^[5][6]

In the anime and manga, Sasuke is a member of the Uchiha clan, a highly skilled clan of ninjas allied to the village of Konohagakure. His primary motivation throughout the series is to avenge the destruction of his entire clan by killing his brother, Itachi Uchiha, a task he pursues at all costs. While he was initially cold and singularly driven by his revenge, he becomes more empathetic through his relationships with other characters, notably Naruto Uzumaki, whom he comes to consider as a rival. Sasuke has additionally appeared in two of the featured movies in the series, Naruto the Movie: Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow and Naruto the Movie 2: Legend of the Stone of Gelel, as well as several other media relating to the series, including several video games and OVAs.

Several anime and manga publications have provided acclaim and criticism of Sasuke's character. While many reviewers have noted his cold and detached attitude and abilities, he has been viewed as a stereotypical "rival" in the mold of several similar characters in other shōnen manga.^[7][8] His personality has also been subject to criticism, with many finding it difficult to like or sympathize with Sasuke's character; IGN jokingly labeled Sasuke as an "emo-kid."^[7] Nevertheless, Sasuke has been highly popular with the Naruto reader base, placing high in several popularity polls.^[9][10] Merchandise based on Sasuke has also been released, including action figures and plush dolls.^[11][12]

Creation and conception

When developing the original Naruto manga, Masashi Kishimoto had not initially intended to create Sasuke. After speaking with his editor about the future of the series, he was advised to create a rival character for the series' protagonist, Naruto Uzumaki, resulting in Sasuke's creation.^[5] To learn more about creating an effective rivalry, Kishimoto read a variety of manga to gather ideas on what constituted such a rivalry, and he coalesced these ideal elements into one relationship. Because Sasuke is intended to be Naruto's opposite, Kishimoto is always careful to make sure Sasuke is never too emotional. With Sasuke's character being that of a "cool genius," Kishimoto feels he has created the ideal rivalry.^[13]

Sasuke's design gave Kishimoto a number of problems, making him the most difficult character he had to create. Because he lacked a proper idea of what Sasuke's face should look like, initial drafts of Sasuke appeared too old or mature for a character the same age as Naruto.^[14] Once settling on a proper face, Kishimoto worked on Sasuke's attire. Original designs of Sasuke had a number of necklaces and ties around his arms and legs, a result of Kishimoto's habit of giving characters as much ornamentation as possible. Realizing he could not draw such a complex character on a weekly basis, Kishimoto simplified the design to a basic contrast of Naruto's costume.^[6]

For Kishimoto, Sasuke remains the most difficult character for him to draw. While drawing, errors and mishaps commonly result in Sasuke's youthful appearance being lost, a result of Kishimoto's inexperience in drawing characters mature beyond their years.^[6] Sasuke's hair, originally kept short to save Kishimoto time, has slowly gotten longer as the series has progressed, increasing the amount of time needed to draw Sasuke.^[14] Kishimoto eventually drew a new costume for Sasuke that featured a number of belts strapped around his arms and legs. Due to the time needed to draw a costume of this design, Kishimoto returned Sasuke to his original costume.^[15] Despite the time and energy Kishimoto spends drawing Sasuke, Sasuke has become his favorite character to draw.^[6]

Character outline

Background

Sasuke's childhood, as told over the course of Naruto manga volume twenty-five, was spent living in the shadow of his older brother, Itachi Uchiha, whose natural abilities had made him the pride of the Uchiha clan. As a result, Sasuke's family largely ignored him, forcing Sasuke to constantly try to win their recognition. Sasuke, however, was never able to surpass the milestones set in place by his brother, leaving Itachi to be the only one to appreciate Sasuke's efforts.^[16] It was not until Itachi had a falling out with his family that Sasuke began to receive his family's attention, his father in particular taking a keen interest in Sasuke's training. In tandem with finally being able to enjoy his family's company, Sasuke was encouraged to not follow in Itachi's footsteps.^[17]

Upon returning home from ninja school one day, Sasuke found the street littered with the corpses of the Uchiha clan. After running home to alert his family to the tragedy, Sasuke found Itachi standing over their parents' bodies. Realizing Itachi was responsible for the murders, Sasuke ran for safety, only to be stopped by Itachi's proclamation that he would be spared. Sasuke, having always been trying to surpass Itachi, was as a result the only person who could someday prove a match for him.^[18] Wanting to eventually test his abilities with Sasuke's own, Itachi encouraged Sasuke to get stronger by living a life of hate and anger towards him, with the sole purpose in life being to avenge the clan. Itachi left, and Sasuke was left to consider his words in the absence of family. Longing for the love of his parents that he was now denied, Sasuke agreed to live his life as Itachi had instructed, wanting to kill his brother at all costs.^[19]

Personality

After his assignment to Team 7 at the start of the series, Sasuke displays an immediate confidence in his abilities. He is as such unwilling to work with his teammates, Naruto Uzumaki or Sakura Haruno, believing their skills to pale in comparison to his own and therefore making them useless if he is to ever kill Itachi.^[20] These perceptions are quickly proven wrong, for despite their failings, Sakura is an excellent source of information and competition with Naruto acts as an effective way to get stronger.^[21] While his confidence in himself is ever-present throughout the series, Sasuke slowly begins to rely on those close to him over the course of Part I. This begins to result in his risking his own life to save those of his friends, even though his death would leave him unable to gain vengeance on Itachi.^[22] He becomes complacent with his life in Konohagakure, satisfied with the speed of his growth as a ninja.

Similar to how Itachi used the slaughter of the Uchiha clan to measure his ability, Sasuke uses his battles with the various characters he meets in Part I to gauge his increase in strength. Through his battles with Haku, Rock Lee, and Gaara, Sasuke is able to test his abilities against those of progressively stronger ninja, discover his weakpoints, and carry away something new from the battle. Once Naruto begins to prove his worth, Sasuke starts to yearn for a battle with him as well.^[23] Naruto, however, gains strength at a much more rapid rate than Sasuke, even learning the Rasengan, an attack stronger than Sasuke's Chidori. This, coupled with Sasuke's quick defeat by Itachi during the Return of Itachi arc, leads Sasuke to believe his growth is slowing. In an attempt to reassess his strength, he begins to treat his friends as opponents so as to test his abilities against their own.^[24]

Dissatisfied with his progress in Konoha and believing Orochimaru holds the keys to getting strong enough to kill Itachi, Sasuke defects from Konoha at the end of Part I.^[25] Naruto, the character Sasuke comes to consider his closest friend, tries to stop him, but Sasuke only tries to kill Naruto, believing his friend's death will grant him the strength needed to kill Itachi.^[19] He is ultimately unable to bring himself to kill Naruto, realizing that is what Itachi would want, and instead continues on to Orochimaru.^[26] In the two-and-a-half years he spends with Orochimaru, Sasuke's goal to kill Itachi takes precedence above all else, such that he is willing to give his body to Orochimaru if it means gaining the strength he needs.^[27] Sasuke also comes to abandon his loyalties to others once they are of no further use to him, turning against Orochimaru after reaching the conclusion that he can learn nothing else of value from him.^[28] While he pays no allegiance to his allies, old or new, in Part II, Sasuke cannot bring himself to harm those he has never met before, and makes it a point to prevent their deaths when possible.^[29]

Abilities

Sasuke in cursed seal level two form using the Chidori.

Sasuke is able to easily grasp most ninja-related abilities. Throughout the series he displays great proficiency with the Uchiha clan's signature fire and weapon-based techniques, surprising his teacher, Kakashi Hatake, during their first training session.^[30] Of the abilities gained through his Uchiha lineage, Sasuke most commonly uses the Sharingan, a unique eye inheritance that grants him a variety of advantages in battle. For the duration of Part I, Sasuke's Sharingan continues to develop, granting him new abilities in the process, such as the ability to pick up and react to fast-moving opponents.^[31] Once fully manifesting itself at the end of Part I, Sasuke is even able to use his Sharingan to predict the movements of others, allowing him to dodge an attack before it is made.^[32] In Part II, Sasuke starts to use his Sharingan to cast genjutsu, illusionary techniques with which he can manipulate and confuse others.^[33] During his later battle with Itachi, Sasuke receives his brother's Mangekyo Sharingan and all of its abilities to help him in his future battles.

Like the Sharingan, Orochimaru's influence is a recurring element of Sasuke's abilities. During their first encounter during the Chunin Exam arc, Sasuke is branded with a cursed seal, which grants him a brief surge in strength and speed when active. Though he is left exhausted after its usage, Sasuke's various uses of the seal cause him to crave more of its power.^[34] As such, Sasuke forces his seal to a second level, drastically changing his appearance when active and giving him a boost in chakra.^[35] Once he begins training under Orochimaru, Sasuke learns to summon snakes, which he can call upon in battle to help attack or defend.^[36] Orochimaru also uses their time together to enhance Sasuke's physical abilities, such that neither Naruto nor Sakura are a match for him during their first re-encounter in Part II.^[37] After absorbing Orochimaru into his body, Sasuke gains access to his unique abilities, such as healing from injuries in short periods of time.^[38] During his battle with Itachi, Orochimaru and the cursed seal are removed from Sasuke's body to free him from Orochimaru's control.

Prior to Sasuke's defection, Kakashi Hatake teaches him how to use the Chidori in an attempt to steer him away from Orochimaru.^[24] The Chidori, a collection of lightning-based chakra in the user's hand, serves as a rapid thrusting attack that severely damages any target. While Sasuke is able to put the Chidori to great use during Part I, his usage of the attack is somewhat limited in Part II. Instead, Sasuke employs variants of the technique, using the fundamentals behind the Chidori to create a number of new abilities. Sasuke's first display of such an ability involves emitting electricity from his body as a shield and then sending it along the blade of his chokutō to increase its cutting potential.^[39] He later proves able to mold electricity into more solid forms such as throwing needles,^[40] and even harnesses natural lightning to create a devastating and unavoidable attack called Kirin (麒麟, Kirin^?). Because of the amount of energy required to create the Chidori, Sasuke can only use it twice per day under his own power for the duration of Part I.^[41] In Part II, a limit on his number of uses for the Chidori or its variants has yet to be seen.

Plot overview

For the first half of Part I, Sasuke accompanies Team 7 in its various endeavors and training sessions. After his encounter with Orochimaru during the Chunin Exams, who begins to manipulate Sasuke into his custody, Sasuke starts to act independently of Naruto and Sakura, pursuing his own opponents and being the only one to train with Kakashi.^[42] After Itachi's brief return to Konoha and his simultaneous defeat by him, Sasuke becomes dissatisfied with what he has learned whilst a member of Team 7.^[24] Believing Orochimaru will be able to give him the strength needed to kill Itachi, Sasuke goes to him, severing his ties with Konoha in the process.^[25] Naruto follows him in an effort to stop him, and the two ultimately do battle. Though he tries to kill Naruto, Sasuke ultimately cannot bring himself to do so, and instead continues on to Orochimaru's hideout, ready to gain strength at any cost.^[26]

After two-and-a-half years Sasuke, satisfied that he has learned all he can from his new master, turns against a weakened Orochimaru before the latter can steal his body.^[28] Though Orochimaru attempts to force a body switch, Sasuke is able to reverse the process, absorbing Orochimaru and allowing him to put his plans of finding Itachi into motion.^[43] Sasuke forms Snake, a team of individuals assembled to aid him in finding Itachi. Once they are able to track Itachi down, Sasuke leaves his team behind and goes to kill his brother.^[44] When Itachi dies after a prolonged battle, Sasuke is collected by the second conspirator of the Uchiha massacre, Madara Uchiha. Madara tells Sasuke of Itachi's reasons for killing the Uchiha and how, having always loved his little brother, Itachi allowed himself to be killed by Sasuke. With his hate for Itachi proven to be an illusion, Sasuke is forced to cope with the fact that Itachi was a good person.

Appearances in other media

Sasuke (right) in Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 2

Sasuke has made several appearances outside of the Naruto anime and manga. He appears in all three of the original video animations produced for the series, helping Naruto and Konohamaru to find a four leaf clover in the first original video animation,^[45] joining his team in escorting a ninja named Shibuki to his village and helping him fight the missing-nin that stole the village's "Hero's Water" in the second original video animation,^[46] and participating in a tournament in the third original video animation.^[47] Sasuke also makes an appearance in the first two Naruto featured films, although he is only briefly present in a memory segment in the second.^[48] He is also set to be featured in the second Naruto: Shippūden movie that is slated for release in summer of 2008.^[49]

Sasuke is a common playable character in Naruto video games, including the Clash of Ninja series and the Ultimate Ninja series.^[50][51][52] In some games, it is possible to unlock and play as a version of him with the cursed seal active. Due to his lack of appearances in early Naruto Shippūden chapters and episodes, he has not appeared in any games based on Naruto Shippūden until Naruto Shippūden: Gekitou Ninja Taisen EX 2,^[53] and his second appearance was in Naruto Shippūden: Narutimate Accel 2.^[54]

Reception

In every official Shonen Jump popularity poll of the series, Sasuke has ranked within the top five characters. Though Sasuke's rank initially alternated between the third and fourth spot, he ranked first in the most recent polls as the most popular character in of the series.^[9][10] There has not been another official Shonen Jump popularity poll for the series as of 2006. In an interview, Yuri Lowenthal, who does the voice acting for Sasuke in the English dub, states that he is honored to be playing that role due to the large retinue of voice actors auditioning for the role, and also noted the stress associated with his job due to fans being highly critical of any deviation or mistake made while dubbing.^[55] Several pieces of merchandise have been released in Sasuke's likeness, including plush of his Part I and Part II appearance,^[11][56] key chains,^[57][58] and numerous figurines.^[59][12]

Several publications for manga, anime, video games, and other related media have provided praise and criticism on Sasuke's character. IGN characterized Sasuke as "the resident emo-kid" due to his cold and serious personality, and found it difficult to have a degree of empathy for his character.^[7] GameSpot extolled Sasuke's abilities as "badass," although echoing IGN's comments concerning his personality.^[60] T.H.E.M. Anime Reviews noted that Sasuke fell into the stereotypical "rival" mold of several other shōnen manga, and found him, along with several of the other characters, to not be likable.^[8] Due to the high amount of anticipation from fans concerning Sasuke's animated appearance in Part II, the production staff for Naruto: Shippūden included Sasuke in a sneak-peek of a later episode featuring him before the opening of the first episode of Naruto: Shippūden; his character does not appear for more than fifty chapters after the start of Part II in the manga.^[61] As of March 2008 an official Japanese website about Sasuke has appeared. The website contains a large number of merchandising such as iPods and bicycles with drawings of the character.^[62]

See also

• List of Naruto characters
• List of Naruto manga volumes
• List of Naruto episodes

References

História de rock lee Aviso: Este artigo ou seção contém revelações sobre o enredo (spoilers). Seu sonho é provar que, mesmo não podendo usar técnicas de Genjutsu ou Ninjutsu, ele pode ser um excelente ninja, através do trabalho duro. Sendo assim, seu treinamento é baseado em técnicas de Taijutsu (combate corpo-a-corpo), sendo capaz de usar Jutsus avançados nessa área, como a Lótus primária (Omote Renge) e a Lótus Reversa (Ura Renge), e sendo capaz também de abrir cinco (dos oito) portões de chakra. Quando jovem, Rock Lee ficou sabendo que nunca ia poder usar jutsus. Por isso, ele decidiu se focar apenas no taijutsu (combate corpo-a-corpo).Desde então seu sonho foi provar para todos que ele poderia ser um ninja forte,mesmo sem usar Genjutsus ou Ninjutsus,apenas usando Taijutsu.Ele foi o primeiro ninja a passar com apenas taijutsu. Para sua sorte caiu no time de Maito Gai, conhecido como um dos maiores ninjas no taijutsu. Para seu azar caiu no time do gênio Hyuuga Neji. Logo no primeiro dia ele conheceu a rivalidade de Maito Gai e Hatake Kakashi. Conheceu um dos princípios básicos do treinamento de Gai: "se você quer algo, diga que se não conseguir vai fazer algo absurdamente impossível, como dar 500 voltas no vilarejo plantando bananeira. Desse jeito você se vê obrigado a ganhar, e se não ganhar você fará um treinamento para ganhar na próxima vez". É desse jeito que ele (Gai) diz ter superado seu eterno rival, Kakashi. Lee acha um rival no seu mesmo time, Hyuga Neji. O taijutsu,Jyuuken Ryuu, usado por Neji, é considerado o melhor taijutsu de Konoha. Com o Hakkeshou Kaiten Lee, nem ao menos, consegue chegar perto dele. Por isso, Lee decide que vai derrotar Neji e provar para ele que um fracassado, com trabalho duro, pode vencer um gênio. Tanto trabalho duro o deixou forte, ágil, conseguindo a proeza de abrir cinco portões de chakra. Participou do Chuunin Shiken, com o objetivo de mostrar que é forte. Desafiou Uchiha Sasuke para uma batalha, para testá-lo, porém, Uzumaki Naruto entrou no caminho e foi facilmente derrotado. Sasuke, quando estava prestes a ser derrotado, foi salvo por Maito Gai, que parou Lee. Na segunda fase do torneio, passou sem problemas. Nas eliminatórias da terceira, enfrentou Sabaku no Gaara. De início perdeu, mas Gai liberou que Lee tirasse os pesos da perna, ganhando mais agilidade. Usou dois kinjutsus, mas isso não foi suficiente. Rock Lee abriu cinco dos oito portões de chakra e começou a pauliar Gaara, mas seu corpo não aguentou, e Gaara, muito nervoso, destruiu a perna e o braço de Lee. Hospitalizado, recebeu a notícia de que nunca mais poderia ser ninja. Gai prometeu que deixaria de ser ninja se Lee também deixasse. Se espantou com o crescimento de Uzumaki Naruto. A nova Hokage, Tsunade, chegou ao vilarejo de Konoha. Ela disse que Lee tinha esperanças, se fizesse uma cirurgia complicada e arriscada. Maito Gai disse que se a operação fosse um fracasso, ele iria morrer junto com Lee. A cirurgia foi um sucesso, Lee ficou muito feliz e decidiu ficar cada vez mais forte. Quando ainda nem estava recuperado da cirurgia, ficou sabendo que Uchiha Sasuke estava fugindo do vilarejo, para ir atrás do Orochimaru. Uzumaki Naruto, Hyuuga Neji, Inuzuka Kiba, Akimichi Chouji e Nara Shikamaru partiram. Rock Lee decidiu ajudá-los, e partiu. Encontrou Naruto lutando contra Kaguya Kimimaro. Disse para Naruto ir atrás de Sasuke, que Kimimaro era dele. A luta entre os dois estava difícil, já que a Kekkei Genkai de Kimimaro era poderosa. Rock Lee acabou ingerindo saquê, por engano, e conseguiu dificultar as coisas para Kimimaro. Quando voltou ao normal, iria perder, se Gaara não tivesse chego, e impedido o ataque. Gaara lutou contra Kimimaro. Numa última investida, Kimimaro tentou matar os dois, mas uma doença misteriosa o abateu, e ele morreu. Rock Lee treinou, e virou chuunin. Recebeu uma missão, junto com Maito Gai, Hyuuga Neji e Ten Ten de ir até Suna salvar Gaara das mãos da Akatsuki. Eles iriam ajudar o time Kakashi. No meio do caminho encontraram Hoshigaki Kisame que queria uma revanche contra Maito Gai. Rock lee tentou lutar contra ele,mas ele,Neji e Tenten foram presos por prisões de água. Maito Gai venceu Hoshigaki Kisame,mas descobriram que aquele não era o verdadeiro. Chegaram no lugar, e se separaram para quebrar o selo que protegia o lugar. Rock Lee lutou contra uma cópia sua, uma proteção do selo. Quando venceu, seguiu atrás de Hatake Kakashi e Uzumaki Naruto, cercando um clone de Deidara, que sem escolha se explodiu. Junto com seus companheiros voltou para casa. Aviso: Terminam aqui as revelações sobre o enredo (spoilers). [editar] Força do melhor do taijutso Rock Lee tem uma deficiência natural, que o deixa em séria desvantagem: não consegue usar ninjutsus nem genjutsus. São técnicas básicas para qualquer ninja, mas Rock Lee não conseguia fazer, logo seu sonho foi ser um ninja apenas com taijutsu, combate corpo a corpo. Treinou com Maito Gai seu corpo, aprendendo o estilo Gouken Ryuu. Querendo ser mais forte do que todos, treinou pesadamente. Com treinamentos absurdos (10000 abdominais, por exemplo), conseguiu ficar forte; seguindo à risca os ensinamentos de seu sensei, aprendeu a lutar de verdade. Assim, aprendeu inúmeros golpes, como Konoha Dai Senpuu, Konoha Reppuu, Konoha Senpuu e Konoha Shoufuu. Para treinar sua força, coloca nas suas pernas pesos (Que chegam a explodir o chão quando largados), e mesmo com eles Rock Lee ainda é forte. Ao retirá-los, com a promessa de proteger algo importante, sua velocidade aumenta absurdamente. Caso seja necessários, pode usar Omote Renge, um kinjutsu, que consiste em abrir os Portões de Chakra do corpo, quebrando o limite da dor, aumentando a sua força. Se isso não for suficiente, existe o Ura Renge, que consiste em abrir pelo menos três dos oito Portões de Chakra. Os dois ataques machucam seriamente o usuários, e só podem ser usados em casos extremos. Rock Lee, ainda, é um usuário natural do Suiken Ryuu: ao beber qualquer coisa com álcool, fica bêbado, valente, corajoso, gozador, com movimentos imprevisíveis e fortes.É incrivelmente forte e rápido, tanto que no teste chuunin(na luta contra Gaara) seus movimentos não eram nem vistos. É conhecido como o gênio do trabalho duro,ele também teve uma batalha muito longa com sazune(um ninja d"água),ele se lembrou de Hoshigaki Kisame e fez tudo possível para detelo, e dessa forma o venceu.

Mitsashi Tenten é ninja do time de Maito Gai junto com Rock Lee e Hyuuga Neji. É calma, inteligente, companheira e atenciosa. É muito amiga de Rock Lee, mas vive brigando com ele por causa de seu treinamento, forçado. Seu maior sonho é ser uma ninja tão forte quanto a lendária Tsunade, sua inspiração.

Participou do Chuunin Shiken, mas não conseguiu passar da eliminatória da terceira fase, perdendo da Temari sem machucá-la. Treinou bastante, até virar uma ninja poderosa e também ajudou Neji com seu treinamento para as finais do Chuunin Shiken. Em torno de seu treinamento, foi recebendo varias missões.

Dois anos depois, seu time foi chamado para ajudar o time Kakashi na missão de resgate do Kazekage Gaara das mãos da Akatsuki. Encontraram Hoshigaki Kisame no caminho, mas ele foi derrotado por Maito Gai, que descobriu que era apenas um falso Kisame. Ao chegarem no esconderijo, seu time se separou, para quebrar a barreira da entrada secreta da akatsuki. Ao desativar uma das cinco partes do selo protetor, uma cópia sua foi criada. Lutou contra ela, a vencendo com dificuldade. Depois, ajudou a encurralar Deidara, que fugia de Uzumaki Naruto e Hatake Kakashi.

Aviso: Terminam aqui as revelações sobre o enredo (spoilers).

 Força

É habilidosa em atirar coisas, conseguindo acertar 100 Kunais em 100 alvos. Por causa dessa mira, sua técnica de luta se concentra basicamente em atirar armas, se especializando em pergaminhos que invoquem armas, atiradas nos inimigos. Saem foices, kunais, shurikens, agulhas. Outra arma que ela costuma usar (especialmente nos jogos da série) é um Bo que se desconecta em um Sansetsukon. Mais tarde ela aprende a jogar bombas nos inimigos,tornando-se uma chuunin forte.

É filha do Quarto Kazekage, irmã de Gaara, o jinchuuriki do Ichibi, e de Kankurou. É decidida, com uma personalidade forte. Não gosta de ser menosprezada por ser mulher. Tem ataques fortes com seu leque, usando jutsus de vento. Tem medo de seu irmão mais novo, Gaara, já que ele é desequilibrado por causa de seu bijuu, matando muitos à sua volta, e ela teme que ele a mate.

Temari recebeu a missão, junto com seus irmãos, de destruir Konoha. O plano era utilizar a habilidade do Shukaku, dentro de Gaara, na terceira fase do Chuunin Shiken. Os três passaram facilmente para a última fase, principalmente Temari, que venceu Ten Ten sem receber nenhum machucado. Na terceira fase, Temari encontrou Nara Shikamaru. Pensou que fosse ganhar dele facilmente, mas Shikamaru usou sua estratégia de modo exemplar, prendendo Temari no seu Kage Mane no Jutsu, porém o chakra dele acabou, e ele desistiu da luta, dizendo que não tinha como ele vencer. Na luta de Gaara, ele usou o Shukaku antes da hora, e teve que recuar, escoltado por Temari e Kankurou. Uchiha Sasuke os perseguiu. Kankurou ficou para trás, mas Sasuke rapidamente seguiu Temari. Gaara acordou e lutou contra Sasuke, liberando a sua forma quase perfeita. Temari se escondeu, e observou Uzumaki Naruto chegar e lutar contra Gaara na forma perfeita, assustada. Viu espantada Gaara perder, e rapidamente o pegou, fugindo com ele. Observou que essa luta mudou a opinião de Gaara, vendo que ele se importa com as pessoas.

Recebeu uma missão com seus irmãos de ajudar no resgate de Uchiha Sasuke. Ajudou Nara Shikamaru a derrotar Tayuya, com apenas um golpe. Ficou amiga de Shikamaru depois desse incidente.

Gaara virou um Kazekage, e Temari, com Kankurou, jurou proteger os ideias do novo líder de seu vilarejo. Virou examinadora do Chuunin Shiken, passando informações de Suna para Konoha, e vice versa. Um dia, sentiu algo, e voltou para seu vilarejo. Encontrou Hatake Kakashi, Haruno Sakura e Uzumaki Naruto no caminho. Fica sabendo por eles que Gaara foi sequestrado pela Akatsuki, e os leva até seu vilarejo. Quer ajudar o time de Kakashi a resgatar seu irmão, mas uma das conselheiras de Suna, Chiyo, diz que ela vai, que Temari não é necessária. Assim que seu irmão, Kankurou, se recuperou da luta contra um dos sequestradores de Gaara, Sasori, Temari partiu com ele e mais alguns ninjas atrás do Kazekage. Encontrou Chiyo morrendo e Gaara acordando, são e salvo. Voltou para casa feliz, com seus irmãos.

• ==Especulação== Shikamaru sempre se refere à Temari como "problemática", e ela o chama de "preguiçoso", o que dá a entender que eles tenham um certo tipo de intimidade, desde a luta contra Tayuya. Na fase adulta os dois ficam muitos próximos, porque Temari é examinadora do Exame Chuunnin juntamente com o Nara, o que faz Uzumaki Naruto especular que eles sejam namorados, mas talvez eles realmente tenham alguma relação amorosa, já que eles sempre estão juntos e são muitos íntimos. *-*

É filha do Quarto Kazekage, irmã de Gaara, o jinchuuriki do Ichibi, e de Kankurou. É decidida, com uma personalidade forte. Não gosta de ser menosprezada por ser mulher. Tem ataques fortes com seu leque, usando jutsus de vento. Tem medo de seu irmão mais novo, Gaara, já que ele é desequilibrado por causa de seu bijuu, matando muitos à sua volta, e ela teme que ele a mate.

Temari recebeu a missão, junto com seus irmãos, de destruir Konoha. O plano era utilizar a habilidade do Shukaku, dentro de Gaara, na terceira fase do Chuunin Shiken. Os três passaram facilmente para a última fase, principalmente Temari, que venceu Ten Ten sem receber nenhum machucado. Na terceira fase, Temari encontrou Nara Shikamaru. Pensou que fosse ganhar dele facilmente, mas Shikamaru usou sua estratégia de modo exemplar, prendendo Temari no seu Kage Mane no Jutsu, porém o chakra dele acabou, e ele desistiu da luta, dizendo que não tinha como ele vencer. Na luta de Gaara, ele usou o Shukaku antes da hora, e teve que recuar, escoltado por Temari e Kankurou. Uchiha Sasuke os perseguiu. Kankurou ficou para trás, mas Sasuke rapidamente seguiu Temari. Gaara acordou e lutou contra Sasuke, liberando a sua forma quase perfeita. Temari se escondeu, e observou Uzumaki Naruto chegar e lutar contra Gaara na forma perfeita, assustada. Viu espantada Gaara perder, e rapidamente o pegou, fugindo com ele. Observou que essa luta mudou a opinião de Gaara, vendo que ele se importa com as pessoas.

Recebeu uma missão com seus irmãos de ajudar no resgate de Uchiha Sasuke. Ajudou Nara Shikamaru a derrotar Tayuya, com apenas um golpe. Ficou amiga de Shikamaru depois desse incidente.

Gaara virou um Kazekage, e Temari, com Kankurou, jurou proteger os ideias do novo líder de seu vilarejo. Virou examinadora do Chuunin Shiken, passando informações de Suna para Konoha, e vice versa. Um dia, sentiu algo, e voltou para seu vilarejo. Encontrou Hatake Kakashi, Haruno Sakura e Uzumaki Naruto no caminho. Fica sabendo por eles que Gaara foi sequestrado pela Akatsuki, e os leva até seu vilarejo. Quer ajudar o time de Kakashi a resgatar seu irmão, mas uma das conselheiras de Suna, Chiyo, diz que ela vai, que Temari não é necessária. Assim que seu irmão, Kankurou, se recuperou da luta contra um dos sequestradores de Gaara, Sasori, Temari partiu com ele e mais alguns ninjas atrás do Kazekage. Encontrou Chiyo morrendo e Gaara acordando, são e salvo. Voltou para casa feliz, com seus irmãos.

• ==Especulação== Shikamaru sempre se refere à Temari como "problemática", e ela o chama de "preguiçoso", o que dá a entender que eles tenham um certo tipo de intimidade, desde a luta contra Tayuya. Na fase adulta os dois ficam muitos próximos, porque Temari é examinadora do Exame Chuunnin juntamente com o Nara, o que faz Uzumaki Naruto especular que eles sejam namorados, mas talvez eles realmente tenham alguma relação amorosa, já que eles sempre estão juntos e são muitos íntimos. *-*

De volta para Konoha, Sakura conheceu o membro que iria substituir Sasuke: Sai. Seu jeito a deixa nervosa, ainda mais o jeito que ele fala de Sasuke. Eles chegam na ponte e encontram o espião que Sasori havia posto no Orochimaru, Yakushi Kabuto. Quando ele fala de Sasuke, Naruto libera o poder da Kyuubi, que nocauteia Sakura com seu chakra. Sakura acorda e vê o poder destrutivo de Naruto lutando contra Orochimaru. Tenta pará-lo, mas é nocauteada de novo. Kabuto a cura, já que se eles sobreviverem a chance de derrubar um membro da Akatsuki é maior. Yamato usa um jutsu especial que sela a Kyuubi. Sakura pede que ele ensine esse jutsu, já que ela sempre faz a parte pequena, mas Yamato diz que o importante é fazer. Ele explica que esse jutsu só acontece porque ele tem células do Shodaime Hokage. O Shodaime Hokage tinha o poder de controlar o poder dos Bijuus, e exatamente por isso ele virou Hokage. O colar que Naruto tinha, que ele ganhou da Tsunade, reagia com o chakra do Shodaime Hokage, acalmando a Kyuubi.

Ela fica sabendo da boca de Yamato a traição de Sai, e pergunta se Danzou não pode estar envolvido. Yamato teoriza que Danzou pode querer se aliar com Orochimaru para destruir Konoha. Quando Naruto pergunta o que aconteceu, ela não fala da Kyuubi. Quando iam sair, Naruto cai. Yamato manda ele voltar, mas Naruto diz que está bem. Sakura diz que Kakashi nunca faria isso, mas Yamato retruca que ele não é o Kakashi. Essa oportunidade é única e não vai desperdiçá-la. Sakura concorda com ele. Seguindo em frente, Sakura sente a dor do machucado da Kyuubi e pede para parar. Ela mente para Naruto dizendo que Orochimaru fez isso. Yamato chama Naruto para treinar, mas Sakura os interrompe, querendo mostrar algo no livro de desenhos do Sai. Ela se espanta com os desenhos que mostram dois garotos: um de cabelos negros e outro de brancos. Ela conclui que um é Sai, o outro o irmão dele. Ela vê o possível passado de Sai, matando ninja e copiando tudo dele. Mais visões do álbum ficam para depois, já que o Moku Bunshin de Yamato chega no esconderijo de Orochimaru. Em frente ao esconderijo, Yamato dá para Naruto e Sakura uma cápsula. Ela envia a localização dela, respondendo somente ao chakra de Yamato. Sakura está confiante de que vai levar Sasuke de volta.

Eles entram no esconderijo e encontram Sai. Sai diz que sua missão falhou, e conta que a missão dele envolve a destruição de Konoha. Sai é preso, mas Kabuto aparece e o liberta. Kabuto só não esperava ser preso com a ajuda de Sai, que diz fazer isso pela ligação de Naruto e Sasuke, que lembra a que tinha ele e seu irmão. Kabuto diz que Sasuke está no final do esconderijo. Yamato e Sakura vão por um caminho e Sai e Naruto por outro. Yamato sente o chakra de Naruto reagindo ao seu objeto. Sakura e Yamato encontra Naruto lutando contra Orochimaru, que diz que irá deixá-los vivos se ao menos eles conseguirem derrubar mais um Akatsuki, e foge.

Yamato e Sakura ficam emocionados ao ver que Sai aparenta ter mudado, mas mudam de idéia ao ver um outro livro: um de assassinatos. Mostra todos os ninjas que Sai foi encarregado de matar, e entre eles está a foto de Uchiha Sasuke. Quando encontram Sai, Sakura tenta saber o que ele quer, quando olha para cima e vê Sasuke. Naruto chega logo depois e se espanta com a aparição dele. Sakura fica olhando Sasuke desprezar a amizade deles, dizendo que dessa vez, ele mata Naruto, tirando a sua espada da bainha. Sasuke se prepara para matá-los, mas Orochimaru o impede, e eles fogem. Sakura diz que eles precisam ficar mais fortes, se querem salvar o Sasuke.

De volta para Konoha, Tsunade sabe de toda a situação, e diz que Sasuke pode estar muito forte, treinando kinjutsus, usando drogas (por causa do conhecimento de Kabuto). Sakura e Naruto decidem ir conversar com Kakashi, e Sai que vai a convite de Sakura. Kakashi diz que eles precisam ficar fortes, caso queiram salvar Sasuke. Ele propõe um treinamento a Naruto, que podera ficar mais forte do que o Kakashi, mas o time Asuma chega, e Kakashi pede para adiar a conversa

Salvando Gaara

Eles foram mandados para Suna para resgatar Gaara. La, eles descobrem que Kankurou foi envenenado e que estava a beira da morte. Para impedir tal fato, Sakura extraiu o veneno do corpo de Kankurou, e guardou alguns frascos de antidoto com si. Em seguida, se encontram com Chiyo, e Sakura descobre que Naruto é um jinchuuriki da Kyuubi. Eles chegam no esconderijo da Akatsuki. Ela e Chiyo lutaram contra Sasori, neto de Chiyo. Usando o antídoto que havia feito para salvar Kankurou, Sakura se protegeu do veneno de Sasori. Com um trabalho em equipe e as técnicas de manipulação de marionetes de Chiyo elas venceram Sasori. Sakura quase morreu, devido Sasori ter lhe cravado uma katana em seu corpo, mas Chiyo a salvou com um kinjutsu extramente poderoso, e a mesma matou Sasori com as duas marionetes, os pais de Sasori. Antes de morrer Sasori disse para Sakura que, orochimaru tinha marcado um encontro com ele na ponte do Céu e da Terra, na vila da Grama, ao meio dia na outra semana.

Hyuuga Neji é um dos poucos ninjas não boiolas de Naruto, porém possuí um ego do tamanho da lista de pedofilias do Orochimaru(pelo fato de ser o único literalmente macho), vindo da Bunke(familía secundaria do clan Hyuuga), e guarda um ódio mortal da Souke(Familía Primaria). Vários psicólogos afirmam que Neji tem um grande trasnstorno psicológico desde que o pai de Hinata colocou nele um selo amaldiçoado dos Hyuuga e ainda por cima usou o selo contra seu pai só para intimidá-lo. Nem os animes, nem os mangás, nem o SBT mostram isso, mas Neji levou um fora muito cabuloso da Hinata e descontou tudo isso na luta contra ela, ele ficou mais puto quando decobriu que Hinata queria mesmo era dar para o Uzumaki Naruto.

Naruto: "Ele é metido... Muito... Bem metido..., datte bayo!"
Sakura: "Ele me acha irritante!"(Chora)
Sai: "Será que o pinto dele é pequeno que nem o do Naruto?"
Kakashi: "Ele me lembra um pouco de mim mesmo..." (E continua a ler o seu livrinho.)
Kurenai: "Quem é esse."
Kiba: "Otário!"
Akamaru: "Au! Au! Arf!" (Bota a língua para fora.)
Shino: "Bzzzzzzzzz..."
Hinata: "Ele... E o Naruto... Chuif...!"
Asuma: "Tô pegando..."
Shikamaru: "Hmph... Problemático..."
Chouji: "Não é de comer."
Ino: "Ele é demais!!!"
Maito Gai: (Faz a pose de Nice Guy)
Rock Lee: Idem ao mestre
Neji: "Perdedor!"
Ten Ten: "Não é aquele menino carrancudo, que deixou o Naruto perdidamente apaixonado, tem uns olhos vermelhos, e agora sofre uma tentativa de coito por dia por parte do Orochimaru? Não, não conheço não..."
Gaara: "Grrr! Ainda mato ele!"
Kankuro: "Tectectectectectectectec..." (Cansa de brincar de boneca e vai para o mundo encantado de XICO E XITA)
Temari: "Se ele não fosse emo eu dava pra ele. Mas shiu, não contem isso para o Shikamaru! ^_^"
Jiraya: "DAILEON!!!"
Tsunade: "Tá no caminho certo. É só não pegar as manias do Kakashi que ele vira um garotão de verdade."
Orochimaru: "PORQUE EU NÃO CONSIGO COMER OS UCHIHAS!? EU QUERO! EU QUERO!!!"
Kabuto: "Bandido! Roubou o meu homem... OROCHIMARU, GATÃO, VOLTE PARA MIM!"
Deidara: "Seu merdinha! Como ousa derrotar minha arte!? O quê? Do que eu tô falando? A única coisa que ele não derrotou foi a minha super mega ultra hiper beleza! Un..." (E depois balança seus longos e sedosos cabelos.)
Itachi: "Não tem jeito... Toda família tem uma ovelha emo."
Sasuke: "Cala sua boca Itachi foi eu que te matei seu cúzão."
As marcas no pescoço

Depois do treinamento de Orochimaru, Sasuke reencontra seus parceiros de hentai e vai logo ao assunto.Muita gente acha que aquilo são simples símbolos que dão poderes para o Sasuke, mas isso deixa o sasuke mais fodão.

Aquilo são marcas do CHUPÃO dado pelo Orochimaru, aconteceu assim:

Em uma luta violenta (uma das poucas que vale a pena ver) de Orochumaru contra Sasuke (a palavra violenta nessa luta está ligada à palavra violeta):

Orochimaru: "Vem aqui, você é muito lindo para não querer ninguém..."
Sasuke: "Não, eu não gosto nem de mulher, não vou gostar logo do priminho do Michael Jackson..."
Orochimaru: "Experimenta, vai, não vai doer nada!!!"
Sasuke: "Não sei... Você não prefere pegar o Naruto?"
Orochimaru: "Prefiro você, meu emozinho."
Sasuke: "Não quero, vou continuar lutando, eu não quero. NÃO QUERO!
Continuaram lutando em silêncio

Orochimaru: "TÔ QUASE!"
Sasuke: "Argh!!! Não!
Orochimaru: "SIM!"
Orochimaro não consegue DE FATO, mas dá o tal do chupão no pescoço.
Sakura: Filho da puta o que voce fez?
Orochimaru eu dei um Presentinho beijinho de despedida
Sakura:ah nao, mais um. so eu nao cato o sasuke
Orochimaru: "Venha comigo... Largue esse Naruto! Ele tem pinto pequeno! Venha comigo...Vem que eu te dou meu pirulito... Só depois de comer todo o pepino!"
Sasuke: "Não! Ainda não! Mas um dia eu irei mais só para treinar..."
Os dois se afastam uns dos outros

Orochimaru: "É, um dia estarei dentro de você!!!"

Sasuke e a lepra que ele contraiu de Orochimaru.Foi assim que Sasuke adquire suas marcas, e toda vez que ele lembra do momento do chupão ele fica excitado e com raiva por não estar perto do senhor cheio de cobras, o Orochimaru.