Sorry it took me so long to get to this one! Work has been quite busy.
I can definitely feel how the flashbacks at this stage would be frustrating. However, given the repeated theme where "when two ninja of the highest rank cross fists, they can read each others' hearts", I think what we're seeing might not be reminders for the audience of what came before, or even an inappropriate fixation on the past; but rather, I think we're seeing representations of the emotions that Naruto and Sasuke are feeling and sharing with each other. The way they always noticed each other, even before joining Team 7 together, and saw reflections of their own painful experiences in the other's life. They way they'd both lost their families, whether the one Sasuke was raised with or the one Naruto found. I feel like we must be seeing a visual representation of the history of shared experience or mirrored experience resonating between them, which leads to Sasuke's line at the end that Naruto doesn't need to scream his feelings out loud: they both know how the other feels.
Of course, this doesn't work in the real world, where words are incredibly important. That's simply a dynamic (and convenient) storytelling technique for a combat-centric manga. But I don't think we can discount the content of the exchange they're having as nothing but a flashback.
I do actually disagree that the story will end in weddings. The romantic plots, if Kishimoto-sensei means to resolve any pairings as "canon" at all, don't feel important enough to merit that kind of central feature. With only a few chapters remaining, I expect we'll get a conclusion to this fight, and a little time to address "Where will we go from here?" after releasing everyone from the Tree's pods, and perhaps a short epilogue set years in the future. But more likely than any big, featured romantic ending, I still think Kishimoto-sensei will include one last "joke kiss" between Naruto and Sasuke. He's brought it up too many times at this point not to put a final one in to end the story.
To me, I guess it doesn't bother me that there will be a lot of background character threads, such as Karin's, that aren't fully resolved. It's lifelike, in a way. It also leaves the door open for a manga sequel series, which I imagine the publishing company would like.
But most of all, I hope that the fight between Naruto and Sasuke means something different from Naruto needing to defeat Sasuke. Given the way Sai's picture book ended, which I think represents a sort of microcosm for the series, there's a chance that this battle will end with both of them stopping to cooperate instead of one beating the other completely. Because, as you say, the point is that they can become friends. Also, however, one of the defining moments of their friendship was when Sasuke declared that Naruto was "one of the people he wanted to fight". The element of challenge, where they can both push each other to their limits, is something they value in each other. That being as it is, I can't see them coming to this conclusion without an all-out battle. It's a common shounen trope, but it also echoes something I see in the martial arts in real life.
Concerning the flashbacks I mostly felt frustrated because there's almost nothing new, and this feels like cheating. Also, there's moments I miss (maybe we will get them in the next chapter): Sasuke sharing his food with Naruto, Sasuke saving Naruto during their fight against Haku. The other problem is the one subieko talks about: there's not much ordinary shared activity between the two of them, like hanging out or going to the cinema. A moment of eye contact at the lake is not much - most of all if nothing follows. It's like when you fall in love - sometimes you first look, and then, after a while, you find the courage to talk to each other and then more may happen. But if you are very shy, then one exchange of looks may be everything you get: you look at the person you fancy, you believe that this one exchange of looks and maybe even of smiles means that you are destined for each other, and then you wonder why it did not mean the same for the other person. So maybe feeling that the other one mirrored their fate was more or less some kind of fantasy, or maybe they both were some kind of canvas for projection for each other, dreaming that the other one was a bit like themselves and at the same time the opposite.
Now I am torn between you and subieko's position. Both of them make sense. Maybe the real problem is that neither of them, Naruto as little as Sasuke, formed a relationship that simply because it was real was able to outshine the relationship with the lost friend.
Of course the romantic plots were far less important than the friendship between Sasuke and Naruto, but I think they will get some conclusion (not necessarily a wedding), just because Hinata and Sakura deserve a happy ending too, and also because Kishimoto will want to make clear that the boys are not gay. This will be even more important if we get a mock kiss.
I just hope that they will both stop fighting without Naruto defeating Sasuke. That was the normal pattern in Naruto's fights: Naruto defeats his opponent, and then the opponent realizes that Naruto is the one who will bring the light and make everyone see their true self. (Now that I try to summarize it this sounds as ridiculous as it is.) I hope that the fight between Naruto and Sasuke will take a different turn, maybe just because my impression is that just the contrary, people don't remember but forget who they are when they meet Naruto. Most importantly they forget their own personal story of sorrow and injustice, because all this will become unimportant when Naruto brings the light.
I can definitely feel how the flashbacks at this stage would be frustrating. However, given the repeated theme where "when two ninja of the highest rank cross fists, they can read each others' hearts", I think what we're seeing might not be reminders for the audience of what came before, or even an inappropriate fixation on the past; but rather, I think we're seeing representations of the emotions that Naruto and Sasuke are feeling and sharing with each other. The way they always noticed each other, even before joining Team 7 together, and saw reflections of their own painful experiences in the other's life. They way they'd both lost their families, whether the one Sasuke was raised with or the one Naruto found. I feel like we must be seeing a visual representation of the history of shared experience or mirrored experience resonating between them, which leads to Sasuke's line at the end that Naruto doesn't need to scream his feelings out loud: they both know how the other feels.
Of course, this doesn't work in the real world, where words are incredibly important. That's simply a dynamic (and convenient) storytelling technique for a combat-centric manga. But I don't think we can discount the content of the exchange they're having as nothing but a flashback.
I do actually disagree that the story will end in weddings. The romantic plots, if Kishimoto-sensei means to resolve any pairings as "canon" at all, don't feel important enough to merit that kind of central feature. With only a few chapters remaining, I expect we'll get a conclusion to this fight, and a little time to address "Where will we go from here?" after releasing everyone from the Tree's pods, and perhaps a short epilogue set years in the future. But more likely than any big, featured romantic ending, I still think Kishimoto-sensei will include one last "joke kiss" between Naruto and Sasuke. He's brought it up too many times at this point not to put a final one in to end the story.
To me, I guess it doesn't bother me that there will be a lot of background character threads, such as Karin's, that aren't fully resolved. It's lifelike, in a way. It also leaves the door open for a manga sequel series, which I imagine the publishing company would like.
But most of all, I hope that the fight between Naruto and Sasuke means something different from Naruto needing to defeat Sasuke. Given the way Sai's picture book ended, which I think represents a sort of microcosm for the series, there's a chance that this battle will end with both of them stopping to cooperate instead of one beating the other completely. Because, as you say, the point is that they can become friends. Also, however, one of the defining moments of their friendship was when Sasuke declared that Naruto was "one of the people he wanted to fight". The element of challenge, where they can both push each other to their limits, is something they value in each other. That being as it is, I can't see them coming to this conclusion without an all-out battle. It's a common shounen trope, but it also echoes something I see in the martial arts in real life.
Thank you as always for a wonderful review!
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Concerning the flashbacks I mostly felt frustrated because there's almost nothing new, and this feels like cheating. Also, there's moments I miss (maybe we will get them in the next chapter): Sasuke sharing his food with Naruto, Sasuke saving Naruto during their fight against Haku. The other problem is the one subieko talks about: there's not much ordinary shared activity between the two of them, like hanging out or going to the cinema. A moment of eye contact at the lake is not much - most of all if nothing follows. It's like when you fall in love - sometimes you first look, and then, after a while, you find the courage to talk to each other and then more may happen. But if you are very shy, then one exchange of looks may be everything you get: you look at the person you fancy, you believe that this one exchange of looks and maybe even of smiles means that you are destined for each other, and then you wonder why it did not mean the same for the other person. So maybe feeling that the other one mirrored their fate was more or less some kind of fantasy, or maybe they both were some kind of canvas for projection for each other, dreaming that the other one was a bit like themselves and at the same time the opposite.
Now I am torn between you and subieko's position. Both of them make sense. Maybe the real problem is that neither of them, Naruto as little as Sasuke, formed a relationship that simply because it was real was able to outshine the relationship with the lost friend.
Of course the romantic plots were far less important than the friendship between Sasuke and Naruto, but I think they will get some conclusion (not necessarily a wedding), just because Hinata and Sakura deserve a happy ending too, and also because Kishimoto will want to make clear that the boys are not gay. This will be even more important if we get a mock kiss.
I just hope that they will both stop fighting without Naruto defeating Sasuke. That was the normal pattern in Naruto's fights: Naruto defeats his opponent, and then the opponent realizes that Naruto is the one who will bring the light and make everyone see their true self. (Now that I try to summarize it this sounds as ridiculous as it is.) I hope that the fight between Naruto and Sasuke will take a different turn, maybe just because my impression is that just the contrary, people don't remember but forget who they are when they meet Naruto. Most importantly they forget their own personal story of sorrow and injustice, because all this will become unimportant when Naruto brings the light.
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