Things Everyone Ignores About Sasuke And Sakura's Relationship In Naruto
The "Naruto" series remains one of the most beloved, widely popular anime series across the community. Throughout, several characters have shared a romantic relationship, been married and had kids together. One of the most talked about (and controversial) of those pairings, however, is the romantic relationship between two members of Team 7: Sasuke and Sakura.
Sakura Haruno spent a significant portion of "Naruto" infatuated with Sasuke Uchiha — the ever-serious, brooding heir to the clan — who hardly showed any interest in return. By the time "Naruto: Shippuden" concluded, Sasuke did begin taking an interest in Sakura, and the two would eventually marry and have a daughter, Sarada. Although this might be a cause for celebration for every SasuSaku shipper out there, much of the events leading to their ultimate pairing have been far from positive.
From constantly ignoring Sakura's advances towards him when they were kids to almost killing her as an adult, Sasuke hasn't always been the perfect boyfriend. The two do form an unlikely power couple, with Sakura being the stay-at-home mom, and Sasuke returning occasionally to check on his family. Yet, here are the things that people tend to ignore about Sasuke and Sakura's relationship.
Sakura chooses Sasuke over her best friend
As a kid, Sakura Haruno was often bullied and didn't have friends on which to to depend. This changed when she found a best friend in Ino Yamanaka, who took Sakura under her wing, protected her from the bullies, and inspired her to become a stronger person. According to fan wiki Narutopedia, Ino's favorite thing in the world is the flower she gave Sakura as kids, a symbol to solidify their friendship.
But this beautiful friendship ends quickly when the two girls discover that both of them like Sasuke. Sakura becomes a bitter rival of Ino as the two compete for attention from the heir of the Uchiha clan. The friendship between the two girls ends as Sakura insults Ino by calling her "Ino-pig," Ino shooting back with "Forehead Girl." Sakura quickly forgets everything Ino has done to help her in the past and showers all her affection on Sasuke, who hardly notices. Although the two girls rekindle their friendship after the Chunin exams, Sakura's strong infatuation with Sasuke makes her discard her best friend, foreshadowing the obsession she will develop for him as the series progresses.
Sakura goes to great lengths to be with Sasuke
From an early age, Sakura has had a huge crush on Sasuke and done everything to gain his approval, although he only ever called her "annoying" for it. This takes a more serious turn when Sasuke is about to leave the village to train with Orochimaru to become stronger. Sakura begs Sasuke to stay back in the village, and goes on to confess her love for him, and is willing to do everything to make him happy. She then proceeds to say that without him, she will be completely alone, even with friends and family. Sasuke calls her "annoying" once again and leaves the village, after knocking her out.
By the Five Kage Summit arc, Sasuke has already been branded as a terrorist and an international criminal for committing murders and acts of violence. However, Sakura's obsession with him doesn't wane, so she asks him to take her along. Although she is a kind person with a desire to do good, she's willing to let go of her nature if it means she can be a part of Sasuke's life. By this point, she has an unhealthy level of obsession with him, threatening to hurt those around her.
Sakura constantly vies for Sasuke's approval
As a young kunoichi, everything that Sakura does is rooted in being noticed by Sasuke. In their early days of training, Sakura hardly pays any attention, instead preoccupied with trying to gain Sasuke's attention. The only reason she started to work on her abilities was that she wanted to prove to Sasuke that she can be a better kunoichi. Even worse, she only began talking to Naruto so kindly because Sasuke disliked the way she mocked Naruto for being an orphan.
Sakura requests Sasuke if she can train with him before the Chunin exams are about to take place, but he doesn't show her any interest. Moreover, he comments that when it comes to making others be a part of her plans that they're not interested in, she's no better than Naruto. Although this destroys her self-confidence, she's so starved for attention from Sasuke that she agrees with his criticisms rather than standing up for herself.
It's only later, when she can see through genjutsu that Sasuke compliments her, which brings back her confidence. The fact that Sasuke's approval and dismissal can impact Sakura this much shows just how unhealthy their relationship has always been, right from the start.
Sasuke scarcely shows interest in Sakura
From the moment Sakura comes across Sasuke, she develops a crush on him. He, on the other hand, is too engrossed in seeking vengeance on his brother Itachi to pay any attention. The only times that he does speak to her, he calls her "annoying." As the three members of Team 7 grow up, Sakura is forced to take a backseat as she watches Naruto and Sasuke get stronger and better. Although Naruto makes repeated efforts to get to know Sakura better, Sasuke doesn't show any real interest in the kunoichi.
It is only after the Fourth Shinobi War that Sasuke is overcome with guilt and apologizes to Sakura for all he has done in the past. However, the brief interactions they share aren't sufficient to lead to marriage, and in several ways, their relationship seems rushed. This continues even after their marriage, as Sasuke barely shows any affection towards his wife.
Sakura is oblivious to Sasuke's suffering
There's no denying that Sakura loves Sasuke and has gone to great lengths to prove her devotion. However, despite all her affection, she appears blind to the tragedy that befell the young Uchiha at a tender age. She fails to understand why it's important for him to get stronger (so he can avenge the death of his parents) and gets upset when Sasuke coolly brushes her off.
As children, Sakura is oblivious to the pain she causes Sasuke — whose parents have been murdered — when she mocks Naruto for growing up without parents. In fact, having grown up in a normal family, Sakura doesn't realize the traumatic childhood that Naruto or Sasuke have had to go through, and she expects Sasuke to behave like a normal kid.
Later, she pleads with Sasuke to take her with him and promises to help him achieve his vengeance, despite knowing it's a destructive path that will only lead to his harm and downfall.
Sasuke is an absent father and husband
After getting married to Sakura, Sasuke leaves the village for 12 years to do important missions. He rarely writes home or checks in on his wife and daughter, Sarada. While he might be helping Konoha by doing missions, his family suffers from his absence.
In "Boruto: Naruto Next Generation," Sakura is set to leave with Ino for a vacation, and when she asks Sarada if she wants something, Sarada asks for a dad. Sasuke's absence creates such an impact on little Sarada that she wants another man to become her father. According to Naruto Couples Wiki, on the vacation, Ino asks whether Sasuke still contacts Sakura, and she answers that he doesn't. However, she tries her best to believe in him and wait for his return. Sarada's confusion and failure to understand her parents' relationship pours forth when she demands of Sakura, "Are you really dad's wife?"
Due to his long leaves of absence, Sasuke fails to understand or connect with his daughter, at least in the Family Day arc. Despite trying his best, he frequently embarrasses his daughter, who finally has had enough and storms off, after saying, "You're really annoying today, Dad." His inability to be a proper husband or a father even earns him a scolding from his former squad leader, Kakashi Hatake.
Sakura and Sasuke's relationship is mostly long-distance
The couple is rarely seen together, even though they are married. According to Naruto Couples Wiki, after returning to the village, Sasuke and Sakura get married and stayed in Konoha for a while. When Sasuke is about to leave Konoha to atone for his past sins, Sakura follows him on the journey. She gets pregnant with his child, gives birth to Sarada, and returns to the village to raise her safely.
When Sarada is still a toddler, Sasuke leaves for 12 years for an important mission. In 'Boruto," he meets with Naruto to receive a scroll. When the Seventh Hokage asks why Sasuke won't come to the village, Sasuke asks Naruto to convey to Sakura that he's sorry for everything, before leaving quickly.
As husband and wife, they scarcely spend time together, and even when they were dating, get togethers barely lasted beyond two minutes. Although Sasuke is an important shinobi tasked with protecting the village, the fact that he barely has time to come home or take care of his family doesn't make any sense at all
Sakura has a hard time remembering Sasuke's face
With Sasuke away for several years at a time, Sakura misses her husband's presence and struggles with loneliness. On one occasion, she reveals that she puts up several pictures of Sasuke around the house, but it's not just out of her love for him. She confesses that the reason she has so many pictures is she doesn't want to forget what Sasuke looks like. Given how his physical features were among the key reasons for her initial attraction towards him, it makes their married life much sadder to realize that Sakura is struggling to remember her husband's physical features.
It's not just Sakura who has to maintain Sasuke's photographs, but their daughter Sarada as well. According to Naruto Couples Wiki, Sarada is upset that she doesn't remember much about her father because he left while she was still a toddler. For these reasons, she spends much of her time staring at her family portrait, which features just an individual picture of Sasuke. What's more surprising is that the picture is from his Akatsuki days, as he's seen in his black Akatsuki cloak. The fact that Sarada doesn't have a picture with her father and instead has to stare at photos from his youth paints a very depressing picture for the Uchiha family.
Sakura treats Naruto horribly because of her feelings for Sasuke
From the start of "Naruto," the eponymous yellow-haired protagonist was interested in Sakura, going out of his way to protect her from danger and doing his best to help her in the missions. Sakura, however, treats Naruto horribly, constantly hitting and insulting the kid. All her actions were because of her feelings for Sasuke, but she has committed two particularly disgraceful acts when it comes to ill-treating Naruto.
In "Naruto," Sakura earns the ire of fans when she dismisses Naruto in front of Sasuke for growing up without parents. She mocks Naruto for being an orphan in front of Sasuke (also an orphan) by saying, "He doesn't have a normal childhood ... he doesn't have parents." This irritates Sasuke because he's able to empathize with Naruto's loneliness, and quite rightly admonishes Sakura for being "annoying."
Later, in "Naruto: Shippuden," Sasuke had gone rogue and was to be terminated because he was a lost cause to Konoha. However, the nine-tail jinchuriki was determined to save his friend, which is why in episode 206: "Sakura's Feelings," the kunoichi "confesses" her feelings for Naruto so that he doesn't go to look for his friend. Even Naruto sees through Sakura's disingenuous attempt at manipulating him, another moment that shows how poorly Sakura treated him, all because of her feelings towards Sasuke.
Sasuke and Sakura's relationship lacks romance
For the greater part of "Naruto" and "Naruto: Shippuden," Sasuke had never shown any romantic indication towards Sakura. The two do get married and have a daughter, but it seems the Uchiha-Haruno couple isn't big on romance. Although Sasuke pokes his wife on the forehead — an act that signifies immense affection for the Uchihas — they seldom display their affection in any other way.
Although this may be acceptable on Sasuke's part given his serious personality, the fact that Sakura doesn't make any effort to display her emotions almost pushes their relationship to more of a platonic level. In contrast, Naruto and Hinata have shared plenty of affectionate moments, with enough character development between the two to establish their love for each other, while Sakura and Sasuke have always appeared distant, limiting their affections to awkward side hugs.
It seems that the Uchiha couple needs to begin expressing their feelings more openly.
Sakura is a better parent than Sasuke
While Sakura retires from her life as a kunoichi to be a stay-at-home mom and take care of the house and Sarada, her husband leaves for 12 years at a stretch to do important missions for the village. Although Sasuke is protective of his daughter and talks Naruto out of promoting Sarada to a Chunin because she isn't ready yet, he doesn't recognize her when he sees her after 12 years.
The couple should have exchanged photos between each other and Sasuke should have asked for pictures of Sarada so that he could watch his little girl grow up. Sakura tries her best to connect with her daughter and tells her as much as possible about the past of Sarada's father without getting into the tragic and horrifying details. Sasuke, however, doesn't talk about his past at all.
As a mother, Sakura imbibes valuable lessons to her daughter. When Team 7 of the new generation has to undergo medical training, it's revealed that Sarada wasn't the perfect candidate there, despite having a father like Sasuke. Sakura teaches her daughter that it's okay to not be perfect and encourages her to be better. Although Sasuke tries to keep her out of harm, Sakura is a better friend to her daughter than Sasuke can ever be.
Sakura loves Sasuke even though he tried killing her
Even if Sakura had overlooked all the times Sasuke dismissed her or ignored her, she should have known that Sasuke was too far gone when he actually tried to kill her. After avenging the fall of the Uchiha clan by finishing off Danzo, Sasuke prepares to kill Karin with a Chidori when he's interrupted by Sakura. She lies that she has defected from Konoha and plans on joining her. Skeptical, Sasuke asks her to prove it by killing Karin, but Karin warns Sakura that Sasuke is about to attack her from behind.
Sasuke would have put a Chidori through Sakura's heart had Kakashi not blocked the attack at the last moment. Unable to believe that the kid he trained was about to murder his teammate in cold blood, the former Team 7 leader exclaims, "He really meant to kill her ... How you've fallen, Sasuke!" Kakashi berates Sasuke and tries to discourage him from his path of vengeance but he laughs at his former sensei's face.
The fact that Sasuke would have killed her had it not been for Kakashi doesn't make Sakura reconsider her choices and she still chooses to love him despite all his faults. After the Fourth Ninja War is over, Sasuke says he's sorry and she quickly forgives all his crimes with a "You'd better damn well be ... Shannaroo ... you jerk."