I agree with you on the bold part completely. And the sage mode thing wasn't a Hax: HE WORKED FOR IT AND EARNED IT! HE GAINED IT THROUGH DETERMINATION AND WORK INSTEAD OF A PAR OF GAY RED EYES OR A BITE MARK ON THE NECK!
Sage mode was just another well-done example of how hard Naruto works twords his goal. In fact, despite all of his powers and natural abilities, there are three things that gives Naruto my respect and makes him a truely powerful Ninja.
A.) Talking no Jutsu (People call it that so I thought I'd be a smartellic and do the same, lol). He has a way to use words to make a point in a way that no other person can. He brought the brainwashed, mindless drone known as Sai to light. He led Nagato, a shinobi truely lost in darkness, and showed him his error in view to the point where he sacrificed his live to resurrect the village. He even convinced the extreemly rash and hardheaded Raikage to let him pass--something that even his own vilagepeople could beleive. And you know what? Every time that happened no one else was in anny way surprised.
B.) Determination. Just like Rock Lee (who is my favorite character), everyone shunned him, repelled him, mocked him, and told him he'd ammount to nothing. After four years, he's gained everyones trust, love, compassion, attention, as well as surpassing his teachers (Kakashi, Jyraia, and Iruka) and almost all of his classmates that discraced him as a child.
C.) Stamina. And I don't just mean chakra. He learned an S ranked jutsu, a jutsu that the Thunder god and Legendary Toad Sage struggled to do, and completed it in under fourteen days. Even Sasuke himself was jelous (even though he was power hungry). Go back and count the number of times he fell over and hurt himself, yet he still went at it. A lesser man (or chick) his age (or older) would have fallen.
Sasuke? He's just powerhungry. Power and hate are the only things he cared about and Madara used this to turn him into a brainwashed mindless drone. Nagato was just lost because of darkness and past tragety. Sasuke practically walked into it. At leas Nagato found his way back out just before death. Saske? He's completely lost. Me favoring Naruto over Sasuke isn't just because of powers and abilities, its their charicatures. Sasuke is a punk while Naruto is a selfless and determined Shinobi.