Naruto Shippuden concluded with Naruto Uzumaki marrying Hinata. It was the perfect way to end one of the greatest anime ever. Hinata always loved Naruto, but the orange-clad ninja only thought of her as a friend. His prime focus was on Sakura Haruna. Afterward, it shifted to bringing Sasuke Uchiha back to the Hidden Leaf.
But during The Last: Naruto the movie, the Hero of Leaf finally confessed his love to the Hyuga princess. While the majority of the fandom believed that Sakura would be his partner, Masashi Kishimoto changed their destiny because of Hinata’s selfless devotion to the Seventh Hokage.
Masashi Kishimoto Changed Naruto‘s Pairing
Initially, the fans thought Naruto would end up with Sakura. They matched the typical anime couples where the boy was in love, but the girl always used to belittle him. Fortunately, there was a third who always had his back from the shadows. Few fans saw Hinata as the perfect partner for Naruto. With time, those few fans became the majority after watching how much she loved the protagonist.
[Translation] Full Kishimoto Interview from The Last (Black Booklet)
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It was one of the reasons why he changed Naruto’s partner. When asked about why he decided for Hinata and Naruto to be together, he said,
Hinata exactly watched Naruto, as he was persisting onwards from the beginning, the whole time, Hinata was always the only child who was supporting and cheering for him. Although Naruto was unsuccessful and sometimes things went badly for him, he was persisting and trying his best.
Kishimoto added,
Hinata understood and that it was cool that Naruto was determined to never give up. However, Sakura also noticed and recognized that about Naruto along the way. Of course, as Hinata was watching him since the beginning, I thought that I would feel sorry for Hinata for not being rewarded (/Kishi would feel sorry for her if he had not rewarded her for doing so) (laughs).
Hinata watched him sitting alone and felt sorry for him. She was there when he was practicing in the jungle. When Naruto was hurt after fighting Kiba, she gave him a balm for his bruises. Her ultimate sacrifice came when she was ready to give up her life to protect his love during the Pain assault. Masashi Kishimoto chose the perfect woman with whom Naruto Uzumaki could spend the rest of his life.
Sakura Was Always A Good Friend To Naruto
Sakura Haruno was one of the members of Team Kakashi. She grew up to be the strongest kunoichi of her generation. But, the fans have often called her trash for her behavior towards the protagonist. She was projected to be immature and in love with Sasuke. When the latter left the village, she requested Naruto to bring him back.
When they became teenagers, Sakura understood how ruthless Sasuke was to his team members. Since then, she has always been a great friend, helped him in need, and even proposed to him so that Naruto would not search for Sasuke anymore. She did it because she knew he was hurting, too. Sakura always thought him of as a friend.
It was Naruto who expected a bit more. Sakura was a bit harsh, but she was always there for him. She was the one who asked Naruto what his feelings towards Hinata were. She was the one who helped Naruto to understand Hinata’s feelings and ask her out. Masashi Kishimoto knew who to pair up with whom. Even the fans appreciated it when they saw them in Boruto: Naruto Next Generations.
Naruto can be streamed on Crunchyroll, and the manga is available on Viz Media.
