Kita ze Inbou! - キタぜ陰謀!

[ Episode 43: Sakura's Tears ]

Hmm. I didn’t really feel any stretching or stalling this week like usual. I guess there was some but I just didn’t pick up any of it for some reason. Anyway, as for the episode itself, I felt that Sakura’s feelings were conveyed nicely. ‘Sakura’s Tears’ is an appropriate title not just because she cried but also because she realized that Naruto pushed himself beyond human limits just so that he can keep his promise to her. If she didn’t know how much he cared for her back when he first came back injured from trying to save Sasuke I’m more than sure the message came across quite clear in this episode.

Still though, she acted rather rashly trying to get close to Naruto while he was still in mini-Kyuubi form. That’s just a no-no right there since he doesn’t discern between allies and enemies. Thankfully she wasn’t injured too badly when he struck her down and her was healed by Kabuto. It was rather surprising when I first saw that scene in the manga but of course he didn’t do it for free but in exchange for them hopefully taking down more Akatsuki in the future. Lazy bastard.

The end of the episode was done very nicely too. Though really, who would just stand there and get stabbed with a dagger? Come on now not even Sai is that daft, right?

Another week, and another drawn out episode of Naruto Shippuuden. Boy, when I watched this episode I always thought how the last 4 episodes could have been condensed to just two, but I digress. The episode had a few points for it; For one, Kabuto cured Sakura, not because he feels bad about what Kyuubi Naruto did to her, but because by knowing that they defeated Sasori beforehand, they can defeat more Akatsuki members.

Two, we finally know what Sai’s ulterior motive is, be an envoy for Danzou and convey a message to Orochimaru. Orochimaru, the lovable guy he is, shows Sai how much he really cares and surprised Sai, which is, as a matter of fact, the first time Sai ever showed emotion in Shippuuden.

Other than that, it was another flashback-fest, mainly of Naruto’s promise for Sakura to save Sasuke. I haven’t had many good things to say about Shippuuden, but now that the emphasis is moving away from Naruto and onto Sai, I believe the series might be able to regain some of my attention, not to mention the anticipated encounter between Naruto and Sasuke. It was a decent episode, but forgettable.

6/10