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Okay, I'm coming out... but you know what happens if I get angry...!
You wouldn't like me when I'm angry.
Well! Sorry this didn't come out sooner - I was pretty preoccupied all weekend. This review, incidentally, marks ONE full year of GK comments here at MH! Hoorah!
Seems like only yesterday I first visualized "Iruka-sensei" on the cover of Chapter 300 as being somebody who could appreciate shiny, red apples! These days, we've more exciting things happening and the upcoming year seems like it'll be a lot of fun. Might finally bring a close to one of the longest-running subplots in the series, too... but I wouldn't hold my breath on that one!
Thanks to Kylara as always for getting the RAW to us hungry fans, and the trio of HisshouBuraiKen, aine, and itsumobasho for their quick translations, and Cez for his MQ Edited Manga that I'll be using for this review.
Also, Shannaro - that's right, Shannaro, they're back on the scene - for all the memorable HQ scans they've done for us over the last three years. Especially RawS - one of their hardest working cleaners who has recently just decided to call it quits, so this seems like an appropriate time to thank him for all the cleans he's done on Naruto. So hey, be sure to give them a round of applause sometimes for the hard work they've done for us.
As a sidenote, if you guys don't mind waiting until Mondays or Tuesdays for my reviews, I'll probably be able to keep my full reviews going. I'll try at any rate.
Here we go. As always, feel free to make your own comments!
* * * Gold Knight's Ten Comments on Naruto Chapter 352: The Purpose! * * *
What I wouldn't give for some tasty McDonalds...!
What I wouldn't give for some tasty McDonalds...!
Cover Comments. Here we get our first real view at Juugo in one of his more coherent moments. In some ways I feel as though Kishimoto made him look TOO clean and likable for an "imprisoned monster." I know the polished look was probably intended to make him more sympathetic, but I can think of several ways where his face could be modified in order to inspire hope even less. I mean, he's supposed to be a depressive sort of guy, isn't he? But here he seems like he does have a little hope. Well, maybe that was the idea.
You can tell there's quite a bit of wisdom in Juugo's eyes, and lazy intelligence as well - as though as he's seen it all. Or he thinks he has, at any rate. Perhaps meeting Team 7 as well as spending time with Sasuke and battling the Akatsuki will change his mind on that.
I believe Juugo is destined to have a tragic ending in the series, but we'll see.
Easier said than done...
1. Take It or Leave It...! Suigetsu wasn't kidding when he said that Juugo would be a danger to them even when he was simply walking with them. They won't be able to let their guard down at all times, even when they're sleeping - that's certainly going to make night watches interesting! I wonder if Sasuke intends to hypnotize Juugo to sleep just to ensure he won't try to attack anybody then.
Sasuke made the only offer he could to Juugo that would have worked here. Juugo obviously came to Orochimaru out of desperation, hoping that there would be some chance that he would be able to rid himself of his little curse and still have a life. I think he DOES want to live. To completely abandon all hope is to be already dead, after all.
So giving Juugo a choice between being buried alive under rubble, when the prison crumbled, or joining his team where Sasuke could keep an eye on him at all times and stave off the "beast" inside him... smart.
The only thing left was HOW to convince Juugo that Sasuke was capable of such a feat on a constant basis. As if last chapter's little snaky demonstration wasn't sufficient enough.
Where's my guardian, for cryin' out loud!?
2. A Monster to Stop a Monster...! Nothing really much to say here, I think, except the obvious. That is, to everybody who remembers Kimimaro's techniques back when he fought against Rock Lee in Part One.
(And if you forgot, might I suggest re-reading Naruto Volume 24?
) Ok, alright, I have to admit, even with Juugo being able to metamorph his CS2 skin into slashing weapons, Kimimaro's skeletal manipulating abilities did seem like they would have been enough to at least freeze Juugo in place at least until his rage died away. Especially when Kimimaro wasn't ill, and also considering that his bones weren't as fragile as most people's. So I can see Kimimaro winning all their battles, and there goes my theory of Juugo having at least challenged him in some way.
Sidenote: You know, I didn't expect to ever hear Kimimaro's name again in the series. Zabuza even less! And in six chapters, we get to hear them both along with new characters who remember them. Makes one want to re-read the series all over again...!
I'm enjoying how Kishimoto's finding ways to somehow revisit even the characters who've died in his series so far.
What a guy.
3. Loyal Lab Rats...! Geez, if anybody had any more doubt that Kimimaro used to be Orochimaru's most loyal flunky before he died, it was just quenched right here!
What I really want to know, though, is the credibility of this line in Hisshoumaru's translation.
"Kimimaro was the only subject in the whole organization whom I could work on without fear of resistance or violence.
Seemed to be an admission here that Karin did indeed do a lot of unwanted "Weapon X-like" research. Either way, there's no way she could have known all this without having done something herself.
(If you don't know "Weapon X" means, you probably don't read the X-Men - it's the Canadian facility that gave Wolverine his adamantium blades. And put him through all kinds of pain doing it.)
I gotta wonder if Karin sleeps soundly at night, because all this has got to be a big burden on a little girl's conscience. Especially if Kimimaro had been the only one to NOT resist. And if she didn't have any problems experimenting on people without their permission, then she's probably one sick puppy, ya know? Watch out for that.
If only he knew...
4. Sasuke = Kimimaro? You know what, I wonder what Kimimaro would think if he saw Sasuke now. If Kimimaro HAD been reincarnated as Sasuke, he certainly didn't pass on his fealty to him.
Probably wouldn't say that Sasuke's existence was HIS own rebirth if he had known, and he definitely wouldn't have bothered to get out of his sick bed to try to bring back the Uchiha avenger.
But okay, let's think in terms of strength. HAS Sasuke grown as powerful as Kimimaro prior to the latter's illness? I can't see it, because Sasuke doesn't possess the same physical abilities as Kimimaro, but Kishimoto is likely to prove otherwise. Guess we'll find out through Juugo's eyes soon enough.
You weren't expecting me to say hello, now, were you?
Sidenote: I liked the nicely done sequential telling here - the closing of one door and the opening of another. You can almost feel that Juugo was pinning all his hopes on Sasuke now.
I wonder if Kimimaro HAD been the last one that Juugo saw before Sasuke came along. If so, that's a pretty long time. But nah, probably just done for the drama.
And by killing Itachi, I mean slowly and painfully, so that he begs for.. er... sorry.
5. Purpose...! I hadn't expected Sasuke to be so straight-forward with his teammates about what he was trying to accomplish, but I suppose he had no reason to really hide it.
Also, I had thought that Sasuke would have traveled around and trying to grow stronger, but he seems confident that he can take on Itachi already now, too.
It's rather interesting that this whole time that we've been following Sasuke, he's never mentioned Itachi until now. When he finally did here, you somehow got the feeling that this is going to be the arc we've all been waiting for.
Naughty girl!
6. Omg, RAPE...! Man, the thoughts that went through my head here when Suigetsu suggested a mysterious "something" that Karin did to Sasuke in the past!
I'm going by what Hisshou said in the Discussion thread regarding the possibly ambiguous line.
What do I think? Since Suigetsu taunted Karin about it, and she got so upset about it, I'm betting it was something that Sasuke wouldn't have liked. Could she have somehow condemned his blood? Or altered his genetic structure so that the Sharingan might not have so much an effect on her?
Guess we'll just have to wait and see. I'm sort of surprised that Sasuke, being right there and presumably having heard what Suigetsu had said, didn't just demand the answers right then...
He's all wet...!
7. Water Boy! If somebody I knew had a face that would explode into liquid if I slapped it, I'd probably do it all the time, too!
Well, we finally got confirmation of Suigetsu's ability to be able to turn into liquid. Reminds me a bit of the T-1000 from Terminator 2: Judgment Day, except Suigetsu's not made of liquid metal, just liquid, and he's definitely not a robot masquerading as a human.
In battle, Suigetsu's not going to be able to move as liquid without losing his clothes and sword though, which will probably limit his movements, but how exactly can you hurt him?
Sai is probably the only one that would give him pause, as I'm sure Suigetsu won't like being mixed with ink or other foreign liquid substances. Electricity is another possibility, and even heat, since we don't know yet if Suigetsu would enjoy his body being boiled by, say, the sheer intensity of the Rasengan hitting him.
I can't help but think that Suigetsu is somehow related to the Mizukage now, though, because his water elemental powers are something you'd think would be held in high esteem in the Water Country.
You know just how much I love 'em sharp, bright stuff.
8. The Resurrection of Chō...! Don't know who Chō is? He was a 'sword collector' in the pages of Rurouni Kenshin, which is a great manga - read it sometimes!
Anyway, while the idea isn't that original, and may even be "lame" as Karin put it, but it seems as though we might find out more about the Kisame and Mist Swordsmen than we all thought we would, so I like that aspect of Suigetsu's mission here. Though it almost seems too convenient...! But well, I guess that's why Sasuke chose him in the first place.
I like that we did find out why Suigetsu intended to be with Sasuke for the duration of their search for Itachi - it makes a lot more sense, and I suppose this also means that Sasuke won't have to worry about Suigetsu wandering off on his own now.
Question is, does Suigetsu want more than just Kisame's sword? Does he intend to create his own Seven, or is he going to use all these swords for himself? I'm starting to wonder if Suigetsu can create more than two "Hulkized" arms out of his "water body" to wield all these swords! But anyway...!
You mean besides the fact he nearly made you wet your shorts last chapter?
9. Sasuke's Strength...! This is starting to sound a bit Dragonballz-ish.
I mean, what does it matter if Sasuke is strong to Juugo - besides, of course, having somebody that can keep his "evil alter ego" under control? I would have expected that Juugo would hope that Sasuke would help him with a cure for his ailment.
Suigetsu's motivation did make sense to me, but Juugo's somewhat disappointed me. He didn't even ask Sasuke to help him as compensation for his coming along!
It's open season on Itachi!
10. The Mission...! Alright, so maybe Naruto might have known Sasuke better than I thought after all. Immediately after learning that Sasuke wouldn't be coming back, he knew what he was doing.
What else but hunting down the nemesis of his life, that little weasel, Uchiha Itachi?
I have to admit this all surprised me that they would immediately all orient on Itachi now, but maybe it's just as well. I'd like to see Kishimoto finally do something with this subplot that's been around since nearly the very beginning of the series. I mean, I don't want to see Sasuke stuck with this goal the ENTIRE series. It's getting somewhat old.
RATING: 4 of 5 - You might be surprised at the rating here. Okay, so the idea of a mission FINALLY dealing with Itachi himself gave me a slight buzz at the end of the chapter, but otherwise, this chapter didn't really make me go "WOW" or anything like that. You'll notice I couldn't really come up with a lot to say for this one. I think I need either a little bit of action, or some more entertaining or dramatic dialogue, or a few answers that make sense to make me be able to think of any chapter as "perfect." Though I'll admit, Karin's bitch-slap was fun, but that was just because of Suigetsu's reaction to it. We still don't really know THAT much about either Karin or Juugo yet.
PREDICTIONS: We're probably going back to Naruto and company again and seeing whether Tsunade will really allow them to hunt down Itachi or not. Seems to me like they would need some sort of special preparation. Well, one thing's for sure, if they DO try to find Itachi, Kakashi's going to have to come along this time around. I hope.
Yes, we used to be cute. Deal with it...!
Comment! ^^
