Masashi Kishimoto’s magnum opus Naruto has had many negative characters that have been hated for their characteristic behavior or development in the series. However, the only character that was hated despite being on the good side was Sakura Haruno, the third member of team 7 from Konoha.
When Naruto was at its height, fans were developing affection towards almost every character from the series, except for Sakura. Her character development was never appreciated by the fans because her actions in the series were quite wrong according to many Naruto fans. Despite being trained by one of the legendary Sannin, she still wasn’t good enough to reach the level of Naruto and Sasuke.
However, according to an interview with Naruto director Hayato Date and producer Hounokidani, if Kishimoto’s original idea had been accepted, Sakura would have left Konoha along with Sasuke, which would have done a huge favor for Naruto fans as she would have not had much screen presence. This would have made the Naruto series a better watch than it already was.
Hayato Date And Hounokidani Revealed Masashi Kishimoto’s Original Plan
In an interview with Anime Recorder, Naruto director Hayato Date and producer Hounokidani talked about how there were many things that were different in the first draft of the anime series. They revealed that Masashi Kishimoto had different plans with different characters, especially with Sasuke and Sakura.
Director Date stated:
“It was said that Sasuke has left the village and that he hasn’t thought about whether Sakura will be with him yet. From Sensei’s [Kishimoto] point of view, I believe the beginning and end of the story were already decided, and he filled in the details in between. Still, it’s impressive how he depicted such an epic sibling rivalry in that grand historical drama.”
According to Date, Kishimoto already had planned the introduction and the conclusion of the series, he just had to connect them properly, because of which he had to make a lot of changes like Sasuke ultimately leaving Sakura in Konoha.
Naruto Fan’s Hate Towards Sakura
Many fans believe that Kishimoto’s initial decision to let Sakura go with Sasuke would have been much better. It would have done a huge favor on the series as Sakura wouldn’t have been present in Naruto from that point. This reflects the hate Naruto fans have developed for the character.
When she was teamed up with Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha, it was natural to think that she would be as popular as her partners. As opposed to this, fans grow to despise the character right away. Sakura’s tendency to be cruel to Naruto was one of the first things that made fans loathe the character.
Fans’ perception of Sakura’s lackluster contribution to the show may be the main grievance they have with her. As a member of team 7, fans anticipated her to make a noteworthy contribution to the series, even though none anticipated her to be as strong as Naruto or Sasuke. And because she failed to meet the expectations of her supporters, she was labeled as “useless”.
You can watch Naruto on Hulu.
