Naruto

For instance, Itachi did an absolutely horrible thing on the surface by slaughtering his entire clan, and going on to mentally and physically torment his younger brother. However, everyone acknowledges the reasons behind Itachi’s actions, they understand the difficult situation he was placed in and they know he had the best intentions, so they still love him regardless of the horrible deeds he committed; They know he’s not a bad person. Some may say it’s different because Itachi was told to do that, but the principle is the same - They were both placed in difficult situations by others, they were emotioally influenced (by Sai and Danzo) and acted according to what they thought was best. Furthermore, Itachi was only ordered to carry out the massacre; All of Sasuke’s subsequent physical and mental torture was done of his own accord, and wasn’t necessary.

Sakura’s growth from a girl who is “more interested in love than ninjutsu”, to one of the world’s most renowned Kunoichi, was quite remarkable.

The catalyst for this growth, as was the case for a lot of her development, were Sasuke’s words. They were harsh, but necessary, as it made her realise that she was becoming a hindrance to her team:

Those words would resonate in her mind until the Forest of Death, where she was stuck between a rock and a hard place:

And once she had finally reached her breaking point, and could no longer tolerate being the one to always get in the way, she decided to let go of her naive desire to look more appealing for Sasuke, and cut her hair. This symbolized the start of her blossoming into something special:

At this point, even though she knew she probably couldn’t defeat the enemies before her, she was at least going to go down fighting to protect those dear to her; She had finally found her resolve as a kunoichi.

And she even opted to sacrifice her body by purposely getting hit by shurikens and kunais instead of substituting, in order to land a surprise attack on her opponent, demonstrating her physical toughness as well:

The idea was reckless, but effective, and it paid huge dividends:

Now although she was eventually subdued, as she had expected, she could at least pride herself with the fact that she had fought her hardest to protect her friends instead of doing nothing. This was a huge turning point for her.

Later on during Sasuke’s confrontation with Gaara, Sakura once again illustrated how much she had grown as a person. In contrast to what had transpired in the Forest of Death where she had been absolutely petrified in fear of Orochimaru, when she saw Gaara heading to kill Sasuke, she put her life on the line to protect him, with no ounce of hesitation whatsoever:

I can only imagine what was going through Sakura’s head when she saw Gaara flying towards Sasuke, with the intent to kill:

So she got in the way, and was literally staring death in the face, but she didn’t move an inch. Not because she was afraid, but because her love for Sasuke was that powerful. It wasn’t a crush anymore, it was love, born from the desire to ease his internal suffering which at that point, only she was aware of.

After Naruto had come back unsuccessful in retrieving Sasuke, Sakura decided that simply putting her body/life on the line to protect her comrades was no longer enough; she needed the ability to actively fight and do things on her own terms, so that she could sufficiently aid Naruto in saving their friend: 

Thus, she turned to Tsunade in order to train and cultivate her skills:

Therefore, much like Naruto with Jiraiya and Sasuke with Orochimaru, Sakura set herself on the path of becoming part of the next generation of Sannin:

Tsunade taught Sakura the fundamentals of extremely precise chakra control, and as Kakashi and Naruto learned, that training wasn’t for the sole purpose of teaching Sakura medical ninjustu:

Sakura had gained the extreme levels of chakra control necessary to amplify her strength to monstrous levels:  

And Kakashi immediately saw that Sakura was a star in the making; to have come such a long way in a relatively short amount of time, he knew that at this rate, she’d probably surpass Tsunade some day.

And then came her unlocking of the Byakugou Seal; the moment when her true potential had finally been awakened, and the chakra that she had been amassing for all that time was at last ready to be put to use. This time however, she wouldn’t just be healing from the sidelines, she’d be on the front lines, standing side by side and on equal terms with her team mates: 

And she subsequently demonstrated to the entire allied shinobi forces what she was truly capable of, and every one of them were left in shock and awe (apart from Sasuke of course): 

Her display of strength was so impressive that even Hashirama Senju, who was touted as “The God of Shinobi”, acknowledged her abilities as possibly greater than Tsunade’s:

Shortly afterwards, the next generation of Sannin were truly born, as Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura recreated the “Three-Way Deadlock” summoning, with Sasuke’s Aoda and Naruto’s Gamakichi replacing Manda and Gamabunta respectively. Katsuyu needed no replacement:

They each subsequently demonstrated their prowess with their summonings, showing that it wasn’t just a case of simply being capable of summoning them; they all knew how to proficiently use them as well:

And Sakura wasn’t about to fall behind; she knew the task at hand and set about doing it with great efficiency:

It’s such a shame that a large portion of the fandom to this day, still fail to realise what Shizune was talking about here: Sakura’s growth, both emotionally and physically, was there for all to see. She is indeed a “helluva girl” :P

And several years in the future, even during times of peace, she most certainly hadn’t lost her senses for combat, as Shin found out the hard way that there were severe consequences for laying hands on her husband and daughter: 

And Sasuke, even though he hid it most of the time, had always seen her potential. He had probably remembered Sakura’s words when they were reunited on the battlefield during the war:

And at this point, he couldn’t have agreed more. No one believes in Sakura more than Sasuke:

And with good reason; Thanks in large part to his words, she had developed from a girl who cowered and cried in the face of adversity:

To a world renowned Kunoichi who doesn’t take shit from anyone:

For the same reason that Naruto still considered him his best friend despite Sasuke trying to kill him too and treating him far worse overall.

For the same reason that Hiruzen was unable to finish Orochimaru off despite catching him red handed during his experiments.

For the same reason that Nagato eventually came around and restored the lives he had taken at the cost of his own, despite him literally crushing Konoha under his wake.

For the same reason that Gaara was able to become the Kazekage despite being previously feared as a killing machine in his own village.

For the same reason that Neji was able to make up with Hinata despite his attempt on her life during the Chuunin exams.

For the same reason that Naruto was able to call Obito a “cool” guy despite Obito being the cause of his parents’ death and by far the most shit in the series.

For the same reason that Kabuto was able to become the head of the Konoha orphanage despite his role during the 4th Shinobi war.

Probably because he feels he needed to apologise to her the most.

After being saved from his hatred, he was able to see things clearly, and he realised the magnitude of the consequences of his behaviour and actions. He realised that this clarity, this freedom, this weight lifted from his heart; that was all Sakura was trying to do for him. He realised that this was all she wanted to give him from the very beginning, a life free from his hatred.

He didn’t believe it was a viable option for him, so he cast her and everyone else he cared about aside, all for the sake of following the path he thought was the only one he could follow. But he was proven wrong, and he was sorry that he had hurt her due to his blindness, because at the time, he wasn’t privy to what she was trying to achieve by getting in his way. Now that he knows that all she wanted was his freedom and happiness, he apologised for constantly casting her efforts aside.

He was now able to see that in this scene:

The happiness and freedom that Sasuke now felt was all she was trying to do for him; she was interfering in order to ensure his well being and attain this clarity for him. Therefore, he was sorry for being so harsh when the situation didn’t warrant it.

He now realised how blinded by hate he had been during this scene:

When all Sakura was trying to do was to nurse him back to health. He was regretful for casting her affections aside because he now knows what she was trying to achieve, and she didn’t deserve that kind of a reaction from him.

He now realised that this situation:

Had stemmed due to Sasuke spiraling deeper and deeper into the Uchiha curse of hatred, and she didn’t want him to spiral any further, before he completely lost himself. He now knew how blinded he was at the time, and how much pain it caused Sakura; to see him so lost.

And he now realised that despite the events in the Land of Iron, Sakura at this point, was still just trying to secure a better future for him. She was still just trying to give him the freedom that he now felt, but because he was so blinded at the time, he again cast her efforts aside, because he thought it was impossible:

But he was proven wrong. He was very regretful, not just because of the international crimes that he committed, but also because of his ignorance caused by his hatred. He was briefly able to appreciate Sakura’s efforts in 181 after her initial confession, because that’s just the positive effect she often had on Sasuke, causing him to briefly show his true nature. However, years of training with Orochimaru, and focusing on nothing but revenge rebuilt that wall around his heart. He knew that wall was there, but did nothing to stop its construction.

Now he knew how detrimental that was, and how much of a favour Naruto and Sakura did for him.

Sasuke now acknowledged the things mentioned above, and rather than give Sakura an extensive and convoluted list, he opted to just apologise for “everything up till now”:

They may have been on opposite sides of a war for a while, but Sasuke wasn’t just apologising for things that had transpired after the war began. He was apologising for not allowing himself the opportunity to live the life which even he felt he belonged to at one point. Because he was now able to see the fruits of Sakura and Naruto’s efforts: A smiling Team 7:

Sasuke’s freedom was what Sakura wanted for him, and he apologised for having always brushed aside her efforts.

However, Sasuke has actually apologised to someone else. He apologised to Kakashi for his international crimes, but there was quite a sharp contrast between this apology and the one he gave to Sakura:

Here’s a little bit of much needed information because I am so tired of hearing this “Sakura emotionally abused/manipulated Sasuke” drivel - Words or actions can only ever be considered emotional or psychological manipulation when they are said or done through deceptive and underhanded tactics, with the primary intention of seizing power, control, benefits and/or privileges in order to advance their own agenda at the victim’s expense. Sakura’s words and actions were always intended to benefit Sasuke; They were said and done to ensure his future happiness. They were never intended to further Sakura’s own agenda at Sasuke’s expense. Therefore, there was never any emotional or psychological manipulation. This fandom just loves to loosely throw around terms like “abuse”, “emotional manipulation” and “fangirl”, and the majority of the time they’re being horribly misused, so they seriously just need to stop.

It’s funny how they say all those things, and yet by their own flawed definition, Naruto had an even bigger example of trying to “emotionally manipulate” Sasuke over here, by mentioning how much their peers had suffered in order to bring him back to the village:

Yet, they conveniently let this slide, and predictably depict Sakura as the she-devil herself.

When you see people claiming that Sakura asking Sasuke to not slip further into darkness for his own benefit, is a form of manipulation or abuse, that’s when you know this fandom likes to reach. It had been constantly reiterated at regular intervals throughout the manga that Sasuke’s path would have only led him to more misery. So I guess Sakura was emotionally manipulating/abusing Sasuke here when she said to him that revenge wasn’t going to bring him any happiness?

Or maybe in this instance, she was emotionally manipulating/abusing Sasuke by telling him that she would have gone to any lengths to remedy his pain?

Wrong. What they’re doing is severely misusing the the term. I’ll repeat. In order for it to be considered emotional manipulation, Sakura’s words and actions would have needed to be:

Deceptive and underhanded - They weren’t, because everything she told Sasuke was the absolute truth, everything.

Said and done the primary intention of seizing power, control, benefits and/or privileges in order to advance her own agenda - They weren’t, because Sakura wanted Sasuke to refrain from going down that dark path for his own benefit and his own happiness. Exactly what power or control would she be gaining over having Sasuke stay in the village? Her agenda was saving Sasuke from the darkness; it’s not like she was trying to “manipulate” him into giving up his nefariously criminal ambitions just so that she’d gain something in return, No. He would instead be regaining his future.

Said and done at Sasuke’s expense - They weren’t, because as it’s made perfectly clear in the manga, what she wanted was a future where he and Team 7 were smiling again:

A future where Sasuke was happy, because that’s all she wanted for him:

They think Sakura was being manipulative because of it, and claim that she was arrogant for thinking that Naruto was doing what she was doing solely for her sake. Yet, what they conveniently choose to forget is the fact that the only reason Sakura thought so in the first place was because of what Sai told her. In light of this, the fact that anti extremists constantly spout how Sakura did the “guilt tripping” in the series becomes even stupider than it already was. If anyone guilt tripped anyone in the series, it was Sai towards Sakura here.

Here’s the full scope of the situation:

During their trip to the Land of Iron, Sai had witnessed Naruto’s willingness to get severely beaten on Sasuke’s behalf, and he connected it to the promise that Naruto had told him he had made to her. He then informed Sakura of Naruto’s feelings for her:

Sakura would then recall Naruto’s words of empathy to her, and began to realise just how much Naruto had pushed himself and put himself in harm’s way, and due to Sai’s words, she thought this was all for the sake of fulfilling his promise to her.

This realisation would leave Sakura in tears, for how much (she thought) she had unknowingly caused Naruto to suffer:

However, Sai would push further. He continued to emphasise just how seriously Naruto took the Promise of a Lifetime, and he would go so far as to describe it as a curse that had been placed on him, and state that although Sasuke does indeed cause Naruto pain:

She caused caused him just as much pain because of the promise between the two of them. Sai’s words cut Sakura very deep here:

And this was what caused Sakura to think that Naruto’s promise to her was his main incentive for pushing himself as hard as he did. But many extremists don’t get that; they pin it on Sakura’s apparent arrogance and manipulative tendencies.

Therefore, it has to be said that Sai went overboard in his assertions. The promise between the two of them was not Naruto’s sole incentive for pushing himself to that extent for Sasuke’s sake (as Naruto would make clear later), and to think so is rather demeaning to Naruto and Sasuke’s bond. This is a large reason why people hate on Sakura because of this scene; they think she’s giving herself too much importance, yet they never acknowledge the fact that it was Sai who made her think so in the first place.

It was therefore Sai’s failure to completely understand the situation that led to him giving Sakura a little bit of a false impression here, because she felt that Naruto was only pushing himself so hard for her sake and his promise to her. This may ultimately have led to Sakura’s fake confession:

After hearing her words, Naruto was initially stunned, but he very quickly adjusted and looked at her rather incredulously; he wasn’t having any of it:

He quickly remembered several instances in which Sakura had demonstrated just how deep her love for Sasuke was, and absolutely refused to believe that she’d be able to discard them at a moment’s notice:

Sakura then tried to justify her apparent change of heart by claiming that “They say a woman’s heart is as interchangeable as the Autumn sky”, but Naruto knew Sakura better than that; he knew that when it came to Sasuke, Sakura was anything but fickle. Thus, he essentially told her to stop lying to herself:

Sakura then explained how concerned she was for Naruto’s well being, because she knew that chasing after Sasuke always resulted in Naruto putting himself in harm’s way:

So she sought to free him from his promise to her, in order to ensure his safety and well being:

That’s all Sakura wished to accomplish by lying to him here.

However, Naruto would clarify to her that the Promise of a Lifetime didn’t have anything to do with how far he was willing to go in order save his dear friend:

He was doing this because he wanted to:

This is why I feel like by this point, Naruto was already deep in the process of moving on from Sakura. He was taken aback by her sudden confession for all of one second, and quickly realised that something wasn’t right, and during the whole ordeal, he gave absolutely no indication that he still harboured feelings for her at all. Previously, he would have at least displayed some form of sad smile or expression when revealing how much Sakura still loved Sasuke. Now, he didn’t do any of that, and was instead actually angry that Sakura was lying to herself about her feelings.

I feel that if at this point, Naruto’s feelings for her were anywhere near as strong as they once were, he would have given at least some indication of it, but this wasn’t seen in the slightest. I therefore think that by this point, he had already been unknowingly moving on. He’d retain some of his crush habits (such as the girlfriend comment during the war), but nothing serious.

However, as a final and very important point, it must be stressed that despite Sai’s words that Naruto was doing it all for her, deep down Sakura knew that wasn’t the case, because it was revealed that she had already anticipated Naruto’s reaction to her plea to get him to stop chasing after Sasuke: