One Underrated Naruto Character Deserved So Much More

There are a lot of underrated characters in Naruto that deserved a bit more of the spotlight and further development from their creator, Masashi Kishimoto. But while looking over the long list of names, one stands out among the rest — one character I have loathed for over 20 years and, I must admit, deserved more than what she got — Sakura Haruno.

I would never say Sakura is the most deserving of the bunch. There are a few characters such as Yamato, Sai, Shino, and even Tenten who all deserve more attention. But Sakura stands out because of just how much I, like many others, truly dislike her as a character. This led me to wonder why, exactly, she is one of the most divisive characters in the series, so I dug deep into the world of Naruto and found that Sakura actually had the potential to be an amazing character.

Sakura’s Reputation & Why We Hate Her

Sakura Haruno was first introduced in Naruto in episode 1 of the anime and chapter 3 of the manga. From day one she was labeled as the annoying Sasuke fangirl and a bit of a bully towards Naruto. She came off as shallow, with her only redeeming quality (if you can call it that) being her intelligence. Once she became part of Team 7, her role quickly morphed into that of a spectator for Naruto and Sasuke’s greatness. She was quickly deemed “useless” by the fans, and she has never been able to shake the title.

Time and again, Sakura would receive a moment of redemption, proof that she was developing as a character, only to take two steps back, never really becoming more than an occasional plot device. Eventually, she allegedly became one of the most skilled medical ninjas but rarely did much more than simple healing during a fight. She was incredibly intelligent, but her knowledge was never utilized. She had tremendous strength but never won a solo fight in the entire series.

Ultimately, the reason so many people hate Sakura is because Masashi Kishimoto can not write female characters at all. This one fact is Sakura’s ultimate downfall and the sole reason she has become one of the most divisive characters in the series. If Sakura had been written as a true counterpart and equal to Sasuke and Naruto (like she should have been), she would have made for an astounding character.

But Sakura isn’t the only victim of Kishimoto’s inabilities. Kurenai, one of Konoha’s best genjutsu specialists, was quickly written off as the pregnant lover of Asuma. Hinata became the love interest who watched Naruto from afar, getting tossed around for the plot. Ino was just Sakura’s rival for Sasuke’s attention until he left. And poor Tenten was reduced to a placeholder because there needed to be a female team member for Neji and Lee.

Unlike other female characters in the series, Sakura was more present and had more chances to fail, giving fans more ammunition to hate her. In more fights than not, Sakura was knocked out or immobilized in some capacity, almost as if Kishimoto needed to get her out of the way so that other characters, like Naruto and Sasuke, could take the spotlight.

Sakura’s Accomplishments & What We Could Have Had

When it comes to Sakura’s accomplishments, there aren’t that many to list. After her fight in the second portion of the Chunin Exams, Sakura didn’t do much until after the series’ time skip. It was during the Kazekage Rescue Mission arc that Sakura, with the help of Chiyo, took on the Akatsuki member Sasori. While she was unable to defeat him by herself, she managed to gain recognition from Sasori because of her ability to quickly create an antidote for the poison he created to coat his puppets. This fight highlighted Sakura’s strength, her intelligence, and her abilities as a medical ninja. She had potential, and the start of Naruto‘s post-time skip story seems to showcase it.

But all that potential disappears until the Fourth Shinobi World War at the end of the series. Here Sakura had multiple moments where her potential as a character comes through. Sakura was able to relay to the Allies HQ how Zetsu clones were able to disguise themselves as others and that he had Wood Release capabilities, making it easier for the forces to eliminate them. She was even able to keep hundreds of people alive by Summoning Katsuyu and using the same technique Tsunade used during Pain’s attack on Konoha. Sakura’s best moment was when she cut open Naruto’s chest and manually pumped his heart with her hand to keep him alive after Kurama was extracted from him.

These moments are glimpses of what fans could have had for the entire series. The first half of Naruto stressed the theme of natural talent and familial prestige versus the underdog and hard work. Sakura could have been one of the greatest examples of this theme. She was a hard-working individual who came from a civilian family and worked her way up to being one of the best medical ninjas in the world, keeping up with the rest of her peers who all came from specific elite shinobi clans.

A great example of who Sakura could have been is Ken Usato from The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic. Usato is a normal high school nobody who becomes a combat medical specialist through hard work. Many times it is often he who saves the day through his intelligence and healing abilities in combination with his strength. He is the perfect example of how a combat healer can be a great protagonist. But Sakura never got that same chance to shine because of Kishimoto’s writing limitations.

Sakura’s character is frustrating and her squandered potential is tragic. As a kid growing up with Naruto, I, like most of the fanbase, have always hated Sakura. As an adult, I’m saddened by the loss of what Sakura could have been. I still believe that, overall, Sakura was canonically useless. She truly didn’t do much. But I will agree with Sakura fans that she could have had some of the best character growth in the series if she had been given the chance.

Naruto and Naruto Shippuden can both be streamed on Crunchyroll.