Oh, my, my, my. I liked this chapter so much better than last week's. Enough to actually share my thoughts on it this time around.
Alright, so first off: the first page? The text really backs up what Kabuto said last week about surpassing Orochimaru and searching for the Ryuchidou himself. It made me realize not only why he kept so close to Orochimaru, actually going with him, but also that the entire time he had his own plans — he was a villain lurking in the shadows, even though Kishi always had him right in front of our faces as just the villain's sidekick. I like what the mangaka did there. And I also found myself liking, as a fighter, Kabuto. Not as a person or creepy snake weirdo. But that jutsu was a smart thing to have in his arsenal, considering it could mess with his opponents but not him. Kudos.
I think my favorite character in this chapter — as if he isn't a part of my top three, anyway — is Itachi. My heart really just swelled from the moment he opened his eye, seeing that Kabuto was going for his little brother. I really feel like that's when Itachi's serious protective instincts kicked in. Normally, it wouldn't be very big, but I think it is very significant in that instance. With Kabuto's jutsu in effect — with that insufferable noise and horrible lack of concentration — I think it really showed quite a bit more about Itachi's character. We all know, at this point, that he loves Sasuke to death. With that jutsu in effect, he pushed himself forward, making himself conjure up enough concentration to focus in on his Susanoo, maintain it to use its fist to protect Sasuke. It was a big brother move and I, as a fan of the bond between Sasuke and Itachi, loved it.
Seeing new flashbacks and having a constant transition between them and the present was also nice to see in this chapter. I'm glad Kishi showed us a bit of Sasuke and Itachi's past together that we've never seen before, with them acting as brothers. I've always liked to think about those seven to eight years they spent together: when Itachi first met Sasuke, them as really smaller kids, and then a bit older. It's just something I, as a fan, have always liked to ponder.
The one thing I wonder about when it comes to the small mission flashback Kishi showed us is just how old Sasuke is there. I understand it was just a pig, obviously, but with the way Kishi drew him he doesn't look to me like he could possibly be under eight years old, even though he'd have to have been. I dunno. Just found it odd.
Anyway, I really found myself liking the concept of switching back and forth between the past and present to show the similarity and relation between the two scenes. The point back then was to take down/capture the pig, Inoshishi, without killing it because of whatever the sake of the mission was. Now, the objective is to take down Kabuto, capture him, but not take his life for the sake of getting him to effectively end the Edo Tensei.
*I really liked the last couple of panels on page ten — Kishi showing us Sasuke with his bow and arrow way back then and then the present day Sasuke, using his Susanoo equiped with its own bow and arrow. It leaves me feeling very nostalgic to know that Sasuke is, in a sense, standing in the very same position in this situation that he did roughly eight or so years prior to this fight. And then we have the same thing with Itachi — once having thrown kunai rigged with explosives at Inoshishi and now using his Susanoo to use its own projectiles to try and hit Kabuto.
I'll be honest, just as a side note, that page thirteen scared me for, like, two literal seconds. And then I remembered it was Uchiha Itachi who was stabbed. "Oh, he's fine, Jordan." I thought to myself right after.
Favorite part of the entire chapter: last page, final panel. There's so much I can say about both Itachi and Sasuke. First off: Sasuke. I understand what he wants intially — to finish with Kabuto and finally talk with his brother. And yet, the last panel of Chapter 580 almost comes to suggest that he is, subconsiously, changing without realizing himself. He says that dealing with the snake — Kabuto, who I refuse to acknowledge as a dragon just yet — is the most important priority for the time being. Yes, one could easily say he says this because he wants to talk with Itachi. Another could also say that, coupled with that, he is, without really realizing it, helping out the goodside in unison with willingly helping his older brother, Itachi. It just makes me happy to know that he's slowly changing — even if the transition comes to a sudden halt later on. And I'm trying to decide whether or not Itachi notices, too.
His smile on the last panel. It leaves me absolutely mixed, but to put it simply: I think he's definitely happy to be with his little brother, fighting alongside him for once, and I also think it makes him happy, assuming he's noticed, that Sasuke isn't bad right now in the slightest. He might, if you stretch your imagination, also be a tiny bit happy that Sasuke said "deal with" rather than "kill" or anything. Before Sasuke was very hasty with wanting to get at Kabuto; now he seems to have calmed down a bit, omit when he got hasty again just after Kabuto called Itachi a liar and yadda yadda. I like Itachi's face. How often do we see him smile?
Overall, I really just loved this chapter and I, obviously, rambled about it. Sorry. I don't have any real quotes that I seriously loved this week, though, so at least those won't be in the post. I just feel like this is a chapter based mainly on bonds. Those happen to be my favorite.
*random thought: I totally know it would be out of character, but when I first read this chapter this morning, groggy and half asleep, I thought that Sasuke had reached for Itachi's hand in a little brother sort of way in the last panel. Then I looked again. "Oh, nevermind... Good, Sasuke! No time to hold hands!" Meh.
I think my one complaint right now is just that this chapter didn't really contribute to moving the plot along. It was another of those chill, progression within the character development field chapters. Not that I typically mind; just expected something to happen.
My rating for Naruto Chapter 580: 5/5.
~just remembered Sasuke'll briefly be in the new episode tomorrow~
I'm thinking Kishi is going to be switching to another fight next week. I hope so~ Naruto!
