Read or Die: Book Reviews by Emily

Text

“Naruto” #51 by Masashi Kishimoto

(Grade 7 and up) Sasuke and Danzo are finally face to face, and at long last, each has the chance to meet their greatest foe in battle. For Sasuke, fighting Danzo is a chance to avenge his lost clan and to try and understand why his older brother Itachi was ordered to mercilessly slaughter his family. For Danzo, fighting Sasuke is a necessary step in keeping the kinds of secrets that the Foundation guards so carefully, not just for himself, but to protect the village he’s spent his life trying to serve. Who will be the victor? And now that Naruto knows that his own comrades have been ordered to execute Sasuke, will he have the strength to challenge his former friend himself, or will Sakura have to take matters into her own hands?

The fight that’s at the center of this volume was something I’d been waiting to see for a while. SPOILER ALERT! After all the build up, it kind of seemed like Danzo went down pretty easily, but Sasuke did have help from Madara and Karin, so since the fight was basically a three on one match, maybe I shouldn’t have been suprised. Still, it was a satisfying encounter; though I can’t say that I really like Danzo or Sasuke at this point, Kishimoto-sensei does a great job of making their motivations for acting the way they do understandable even when they aren’t admirable.

I can see why Sasuke’s fighting the way he is, even though doing so isn’t going to ever bring back what he’s lost, and at times, it seems like lust for revenge is the only emotion Sasuke has left; in a way though, Sasuke is the best kind of villain, in that he’s the right combination of vengeful, angry, unbalanced, isolated, charming, sad, and somehow sympathetic (in spite of his murderous ways). In the next volume, we’re going to see both Kakashi and Naruto engage him, so I’m looking forward to that. Also, is Kakashi really going to become the next Hokage? I can’t wait to find out. (4 out of 5 stars)