jkjk I do have my top 3! They are…
3. Naruto finally understanding Sasuke’s feelings in Shippūden. It shows that Naruto finally truly knows who Sasuke is, rather than chasing an image he’d made up in his head. I need say no more: just look at the manga caps below.
(mangacaps credit: @everysasu-narupanel)
2. VotE1 (Valley of the End, Fight 1) - beautiful, symbolic, and overall a fantastic fight. The way Sasuke and Naruto were compared with their past selves, showing development and growth on both sides, was fantastic. It gave so much insight into their competitive relationship! Also, “You were the first bond I ever had.” *sobs heavily*
(mangacaps credit: @everysasu-narupanel)
Plus, the last scene where Sasuke leans over Naruto’s unconscious body, dripping wet, before leaving! Hnnnh!
(image credit: u/conaionaru on fanpop) (couldn’t find the mangacap o o f)
And finally, the biggest, greatest, best SasuNaru moment of all…
1. Sasuke sacrificing himself for Naruto vs. Haku!
That’s right! This is my top favorite SasuNaru moment, in 700 chapters of manga and 400+ episodes of anime. And it is the numero uno moment because it is probably the beginning of the most beautiful bond in all anime/manga ever.
Sasuke did not need to take all those needles for Naruto. Naruto’s death would change nothing for Sasuke, whereas he himself had a goal that he was hell-bent on achieving. Why throw it all away for someone he (presumably) hated, thought of as an annoyance and a hindrance, and was generally unpleasant to?
IMO even then, somewhere deep inside, Sasuke knew his love for Naruto. He knew that Naruto mattered to him differently than anyone else, even Itachi. Sasuke moved on instinct, remember, as he later says, “I don’t know why… my body moved of its own accord…” He wasn’t doing it consciously - if he’d had a choice, his mind would’ve allowed Naruto to die. But his heart wouldn’t let him. His heart guided him to protect the one whom he felt kinship with, a person whom he admired without realising it, whom he would later come to love.
Naruto, too, went completely batshit after Sasuke “died”. He awakened his inner demon because Sasuke was gone. Because his closest bond, the person he related most to, his friend and rival and love, was dead and gone… that’s what triggered Naruto to go berserk.
Not Hinata, not Sakura. No, it was Sasuke. And for Sasuke, it was Naruto. That’s how it’s always been and that’s how it always will be.
And that, my friends, is why this is my top SasuNaru moment. Because it is beautiful, it is powerful, it is moving, and it shows that a person’s bonds can overcome even the heart clouded by hatred and pain.
(mangacaps credit: @everysasu-narupanel)
tysm for the ask! i had tons of fun answering it and reliving the emotions *sniffle*