| “ | The truth is.. I've always known in my heart, there was nothing I could have done for you. But I love you..!! No matter what's happened, I still care for you more than I can bear.. If I could had taken all your pain... onto myself to comfort you, I would have.. and here we are again, and still all I can do is sit here and cry. ...I'm so pathetic..! But...Sasuke! If I still have a place in your heart, no matter how small it may be.. then please.. I'm begging you, don't slip away any further..! If we just stayed together.. forever.. then I'm sure.. some day.. things would go back to how they used to be.. | „ |
| ~ Sakura reconfessing her love for Sasuke |
| “ | Cha! | „ |
| ~ Sakura's catchphrase |
Sakura Uchiha (née Haruno) is the tritagonist of the manga/anime series Naruto and a supporting character in its sequel series Boruto. She is a jōnin-level kunoichi of Konohagakure's Uchiha Clan and among the best medical-ninja in the world.
She was a member of Team 7, alongside Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha, as well as the student of the Fifth Hokage Tsunade. She later becomes Sasuke's wife and the mother of Sarada Uchiha.
She is voiced by Chie Nakamura in the Japanese version of the anime, and by Kate Higgins in the English version, the latter of whom also voiced C.C., and both of whom also currently voice Wave the Swallow. In the Korean version, she is voiced by Yeo Min-jeong, who also voiced Gaeun Lee from The Haunted House series.
Personality[]
As a little girl, Sakura was insecure and highly self-conscious about her large forehead, covering it with her bangs. It was not until she met Ino, who defended her from bullies and became her friend, that she became more self-confident. However, while Sakura was noted for being an honor student for her scholastic intelligence in the Academy, she became narcissistic as she was more interested in her appearance and Sasuke as opposed to practicing her ninja skills. Because of this, she found Naruto Uzumaki's advances and attempts to gain her attention irksome, calling him childish and foolish, citing his lack of a family as being a reason he was such an annoyance to everyone in the village.
Sasuke pointed out that this was because Sakura never experienced loss in her life and thus couldn't understand himself or Naruto, prompting her to look at things from Naruto's perspective in an effort to understand her teammates. Over time, Sakura became more mature as she developed a mutual friendship with her teammates. As her core, Sakura is compassionate, determined and courageous, willing to sacrifice herself and combat those she knows to be superior to her to defend her team. She has shown that despite being overcritical, overbearing, hot-tempered and blunt at times, especially with Naruto, she can be supportive of her friends. By Part II, Sakura displayed that she doesn't back down from a fight, noting that she inherited her master's contempt for losing. Sakura can also be reckless, due to her desire to catch up in strength with Naruto and Sasuke, her over protectiveness of them, and her need to prove her worthiness as a ninja, which often leads her to impulsively attack her opponents and get rescued by her comrades.
After Sasuke left the village, she becomes determined to bring him back, but eventually comes to accept that Naruto is the only one who can do anything about Sasuke and decides to put her faith in both of them after seeing Naruto's resolve to bring Sasuke back no matter what. During the Fourth Shinobi World War, when Sasuke returned to fight alongside the Allied Shinobi Forces, Sakura, although happy he was back, was confused about his motives for assisting the Allies. This was confirmed with his intention to start a revolution through destruction and rebirth. Sakura tried to get Sasuke to return home, proclaiming her love for him once more, only to be silenced with genjutsu by Sasuke.
Ultimately, after Naruto and Sasuke's final clash, the latter, having been redeemed, apologized to Sakura for all he had put her through. Despite her slight hesitation, she tearfully forgave him. After a couple of years, Sakura convinced Sasuke to let her accompany him on his traveling, during which they got married, she quickly became pregnant with his child, and she gave birth to their daughter, Sarada. While Sasuke spends several years away on a top-secret mission, Sakura remained supportive of his duties and is content with her marriage and family.
After becoming a mother, Sakura is shown to be very loving and caring to her daughter, Sarada; this is seen when Sarada had no problem telling her mother about her feelings about Boruto and her father. That doesn't mean she doesn't get angry at her daughter, as when Sarada questioned the validity of her marriage, Sakura responded by smashing the ground. Seeing her daughter was acting out of sadness rather than anger, Sakura apologized and reassured Sarada that her father would be home soon. Sakura is very protective of her family, as she became enraged when Shin attempted to kill her husband and daughter.
During Sasuke's absence, Sakura adopted Itachi's habit of poking Sarada in the forehead like Itachi always did with Sasuke. Sakura also has deep pride for her daughter and didn't hesitate to loudly cheer for Sarada from the audience during the Chunin Exams, even though she embarrassed Sarada. She also demonstrates loyalty to Sasuke, which is seen when she pretended to be a helpless hostage to trick Shin into revealing information about his plans on Sasuke's behalf. However, Sakura retains some of her childish antics, such as expecting to receive a kiss from Sasuke but was left disappointed when he comically declined her.
Naruto and Sakura remain as close friends for the rest of their lives and develop a bond that mirrors that of a brother and sister. Sakura went as far as to encourage Hinata to knit a scarf for Naruto as a way to confess her love to him and offered Naruto advice on his feelings for Hinata. Sakura is close to Naruto and Hinata's children, Boruto and Himawari, as both refer to her as "Aunt Sakura".
Appearance[]
Sakura has bright pink hair, green eyes, and fair skin. Sakura was often bullied due to her rather large forehead hence her nickname of "Billboard Brow" so she covered them with bangs. Later, she wore a red ribbon Ino gifted her and, after hearing that Sasuke Uchiha liked girls with long her, she kept her hair hip length. Sakura also wears a white circle or Haruno crest on her back.
She was noted to be "cute" and beautiful by Ino Yamanaka, Rock Lee, Konohamaru Sarutobi, Gigi, Ganno and the rest of the prisoners, and also Inari.
In Part I, Sakura wore a red qipao dress with white circular designs, with or without sleeves, with a zipper, tight dark green shorts, and a forehead protector which she used to accentuate her face. Her Konoha headband and nails were green to match her eyes and blue shinobi sandals. In Part II, she wore a red top with a pink/grey skirt, shorts and black gloves. She also changed her sandals for high boot ones; and she also wore pink elbow and knee protectors. In the Fourth Shinobi World War, Sakura wore the standard flak jacket paired with blue overalls and her red headband; she also tied her hair in a ponytail while she was working.
Two years after the war, Sakura styled her hair to the right showing her Strength of a Hundred seal. Her outfit consisted of a sleeveless red qipao tied with a dark grey obi and black shorts with pink elbow and knee protectors. As adult, Sakura wears a sleeveless red qipao that shows her navel with white pants, high heels and bracelets in the anime, while she wears a red top and white pants in Naruto Gaiden and Sasuke Retsuden. After marriage, she now carries the Uchiha clan crest on her back.
Abilities[]
Sakura scored perfect marks on all her exams, and she was considered to have great knowledge and outstanding chakra control by Iruka Umino. At the beginning, Sakura didn't like taijutsu and she used to depend on her teammates on many occasions. To change herself, she asked the Fifth Hokage and Sannin to train her to become a kunoichi able to aid and save her friends. After the time-skip, she became a chūnin and she was noted by several people that she would eventually surpass Tsunade. After releasing the Strength of a Hundred seal, she finally caught up to Naruto and Sasuke. Two years later, she was the only kunoichi of her class to be promoted to jōnin and she was strong enough to defeat a pseudo-jinchūriki by herself. As adult, Boruto considered her to be a perfect replacement for Hokage; and became Konoha's Chief Medic.
Chakra Control[]
Sakura was always praised for her chakra control, noted to be the best of her class as genin. She could increase her speed and perform ninjutsu without wasting energy. As stated by Kakashi Hatake, Sakura has a natural talent for genjutsu and she's considered a genjutsu-type, able to identify it, release it and also release others from them thanks to her great chakra control. As adult, Sakura grew to be resistant to genjutsu.
This mastery in chakra control allowed her to amplify her attacks by concentrating her chakra in one spot of the body, usually the limbs, and releasing it all at once. This is known as "superhuman strength". With this power, Sakura could damage Kaguya Ōtsutsuki's face and break one of her horns. She can also build her entire body with chakra as a shield to repel attacks or concetrate it in her hands to grab ninjutsu. Her great strength was noted to be superior to Tsunade's by Hashirama Senju.
In her training, Tsunade taught her how to complete the Strength of a Hundred seal, a special technique that stores chakra and takes three years to complete. In the anime, Tsunade forbids Sakura from using ninjutsu while she was completing her seal, but she was able to creacte two different pools to allow her to fight, heal and complete the Strength of a Hundred. When she releases the seal, the chakra accumulated inside surrounds her body and increases her ninjutsu, taijutsu and speed, performing ever greater techniques. She can also transfer the chakra in the seal to others to pump their jutsu. Two years after the war, Sakura's chakra reserves were so vast that she could restore Naruto's chakra in three days.
Her unique control allowed her to create her own sensory technique, an area scanning via her own chakra that can map buildings, objects, traps and hidden rooms by contact.
Ninjutsu[]
By the Fourth Shinobi World War, Sakura possessed Earth, Water, Yin and Yang Release. She later became proficient in Fire Release too. After releasing the Strength of a Hundred seal, Sakura could use summoning techniques to invoke Katsuyu and heal, sense and speak remotely with several people at the same time. As adult, Sakura could perform sealing techniques by adding a cherry blossom mark on their body and releasing chakra threads at her discretion to trap her enemies. She can also use a unique sensory technique to map entire structures, traps, threats and hidden rooms.
Medical Ninjutsu[]
Sakura was able to learn beyond difficult medical ninjutsu techniques thanks to her intelligence and chakra control, something Tsunade deemed as something very rare. This mastery allows her to heal the most fatal of injuries and also heal herself in the middle of battle and stop the bleeding with poisoned weapons inside her.
Her knowledge applies to other fields too. Sakura is an expert in herbs and plants, making antidotes for unknown toxins that the best medical ninja of other villages is unable to do. She uses her chakra scalpels to make incisions and treat organs with her bare hands by performing CPR directly on the heart; or use Water Release to aid herself when extracting poison. She's can also concoct powerful drugs to paralyze her enemies or induce sleep. Later on, Sakura became immune to most toxins. Moreover, Sakura is proficient in autopsies and genetics. In the anime, she could perform the Healing Resuscitation Regeneration Technique by herself, a high difficulty jutsu to revive patients and used by two or more people; and she also created her own version of the Military Rations Pills.
With the help of her seal, Sakura can heal and regenerate any part of her body without using medical ninjutsu or stopping the battle. It is stated that the seal can regrow organs and limbs, and it allowed Sakura to fight Kido Tsumiki after being impaled in the stomach with a tail and also survive Madara's Truth Seeker.
As adult, Sakura created her own technique, the Healing Power Alteration Technique and she was also noted to be the best medical ninja of Konoha, and possibly, the world. Her skills in medical ninjutsu promoted her to Head of the Medical Department, Director and teacher of medical ninjutsu. She also opened several mental health clinics for children in the Five Great Shinobi Nations.
Taijutsu[]
Another one of Tsunade's teachings was the ability to improve her taijutsu, which Sakura didn't enjoy when she was in the Academy. Her hand-to-hand skills are specialized in charging towards the enemy. With her superhuman strength, Sakura can break the earth, shatter rocks and demolish huge walls. As adult, Sakura can create shock waves to destroy things instead of touching them. She is also noted to have great evasions skills, something she had to learn as a medical ninja with Tsunade to avoid dying in battle and agility to climb pillars and throw them at enemies. By adulthood, Sakura was able to go toe to toe against Shin Uchiha and his several Mangekyō Sharingan.
Relationships[]
Sasuke Uchiha[]
Sakura's relationship with Sasuke plays a critical role in the series and is, by far, the most significant relationship in her life. Sakura has had a crush on Sasuke since she first saw him during their days in the Academy when they were children, rooted from his good looks and his calm, collected attitude. Despite knowing he was popular among all the girls at the Academy, including her best friend Ino, Sakura vowed to win him over and grew her hair long after hearing a rumor that Sasuke liked girls with long hair rather than girls with short hair. After being placed on the same team, Sakura was overjoyed and spent more time trying to win his affection rather than focusing on her ninja training. However, Sasuke had a low opinion about her due to her immaturity and inconsideration for others, especially for Naruto.
After he called her annoying for criticizing Naruto for being an orphan, Sakura decided Sasuke was right and she made attempts to be nicer to Naruto. During their time as Team 7, Sakura continued trying to impress Sasuke and blush at anything he said or did that she found attractive of him. However, her infatuations began to change when she believed Sasuke had been killed by Haku and cried over his body before reacting with relief that he was okay. As she started to realize that Sasuke was actually a person with imperfections and was suffering physically and mentally from his past and desire for revenge, Sakura became very caring and worried for his well-being, and made it a priority to help him as much as possible. This allowed Sakura's feelings for Sasuke to grow stronger and she genuinely fell in love with him, to the point where she is able to know his true self; she instantly knew he wasn't himself as he was under the Cursed Seal of Heaven and convinced him to stop his rampage on the ninjas who hurt her earlier by hugging Sasuke and pleading for him to stop. It seemed that Sasuke started to develop romantic feelings for Sakura as well as he noticed how much she really cared about him and he was willing to risk his life to protect her because he didn't want to lose someone dear to him again, and even exhibited jealousy when Sakura learned Naruto saved her from Gaara.
Ultimately, thinking his bonds with his friends made him weak, Sasuke decided to sever those bonds and defect from Konoha and Sakura, who had suspected this, met with him at the village's gate and they talked about their times together. When Sasuke refused to change his mind, Sakura broke down and confessed that she loved him and wanted to join him if she could make him happy. Although touched, Sasuke feigned indifference, called her annoying, and knocked her out to keep her from alerting the village but not before thanking her for everything. Over the next three years, Sakura trained with Tsunade to grow strong enough to where she can help Naruto find Sasuke. When they reunited, Sakura was shocked when Sasuke denounced any connection to her and was willing to attack him to bring him back to Konoha. Sakura still held deep care for Sasuke to where she didn't tolerate anyone bad-mouthing him. However, as Sasuke became a dangerous international criminal, Sakura became distraught when her comrades concluded that killing Sasuke was the only way to prevent him from starting a war among the nations. Sakura attempted to deal with Sasuke on her own but realized not only was she outmatched by him, but she couldn't bring herself to do it, which almost caused Sasuke to kill her twice and this left Sakura visibly shaken in horror. With Naruto's resolve to save Sasuke no matter what, Sakura decided to put all of her faith in Sasuke and Naruto of fulfilling her dream of seeing Team 7 together again. As the war was announced, Sakura was uneasy that she and her comrades would likely be fighting against Sasuke and she also rejected a fellow comrade's love confession because she was in love with someone else, who was revealed to be Sasuke. She was shocked that Sasuke was offering to help the Allied Forces in the war and, when Sai asks about Sakura's feelings about Sasuke's arrival, she smiled and said that she was happy that he was back and that she trusted him. Sai noticed that her words were sincere, but her smile was fake. This was confirmed when Sasuke announced his intent to start a revolution through destruction and rebirth. Sakura tried once more for Sasuke to return home by telling him she loved him, but Sasuke knocked her out with genjutsu and said he found no reason for them to love each other. Kakashi counters that Sakura wasn't trying to win his love and she was suffering from loving him. Afterwards, a redeemed and guilt-ridden Sasuke apologized to Sakura for everything he put her through, to which Sakura reacted with hesitation but tearfully accepted. Sasuke had finally realized that he had fallen in love with her. Before leaving for his journey of redemption, Sakura and Sasuke spent some time together and began a relationship. Sakura asked to accompany him on his journey but he declined and promised he would return to her. A couple of years later, Sakura did join him on his traveling, during which they got married and she quickly became pregnant with his child, and gave birth to their first and only daughter, Sarada. Despite Sasuke being away from his family for years, his and Sakura's marriage turned out to be a good one. Sakura remained truly in love with Sasuke for the rest of her life and she is very supportive of his ninja duties.
Naruto Uzumaki[]
Sakura's relationship with Naruto is a second significant bond she shares in the series. Having known each other since childhood due to being classmates at the Academy, Sakura had a low opinion of Naruto and thought of him as annoying due to his tendency to pull off pranks. While she knew that Naruto had a crush on her, she was unaware for a long time that Naruto was actually deeply in love with her and that Naruto was holding back his feelings due to her feelings for Sasuke, whom he felt needed Sakura the most. When they are were assigned to Team 7, Sakura was disappointed while Naruto was delighted, and she went as far as to criticize Naruto for his actions by blaming him having no parents. This angered Sasuke, who was also an orphan, and his criticism of her caused her to realize how much she hurt Naruto's feelings and decided to make attempts to be nicer to him. During their time as Team 7, while Sakura was still annoyed with Naruto and vented her anger at him for his immature actions, her attempts to befriend Naruto turned out to be sincere, to the point where she felt sorry for him when he was struggling in the first test of the Chunin Exams and was willing to forfeit to help him, but Naruto vowed to never give up, which inspired her to give her best in her fight against Ino. Sakura also came to support Naruto's dream of becoming Hokage despite her earlier claims it was a stupid dream for someone as childish as him. Naruto is very considerate and protective of Sakura, and he often risks his life to save her from danger, which she is very grateful for, and she often tries to find ways to repay him for everything he does for her. By the time Sasuke defects, Sakura had come to view Naruto as a dear friend and a brother-figure. In her despair of being unable to stop Sasuke, she went to Naruto and pleaded with him to bring Sasuke back because he was the one person who could do such a task. Despite his own feelings for her, Naruto made a "promise of a lifetime" to Sakura that he would bring Sasuke back no matter what. When he ultimately fails but still vowed to keep his promise, this inspired Sakura to become Tsunade's apprentice so she can get strong enough to help Naruto find Sasuke. After three years of separation, Sakura was amazed of how mature and grown-up Naruto looked but was still annoyed with his perverted and idiotic actions. Some people suspected that Sakura was a little attracted to Naruto after this, but she continued treating him as a best friend. After learning he is the Nine Tails jinchuriki and is targeted by the Akatsuki, Sakura realized the validity of the hardships Naruto went through as a child and she became protective of him, and willing to do anything to help him as much as possible. When Sai told her how much Naruto loved her, she was left in shock which then turned into despair as she came to believe the promise Naruto made to her was making him suffer. She tried freeing him from this promise by telling him that she loved him, but Naruto didn't believe her because he knew how much she loved Sasuke. It was later revealed that Sakura indeed lied because she was planning to kill Sasuke without getting Naruto involved. Thankfully, Naruto was able to save Sakura from being killed by Sasuke and his vow to save Sasuke at all costs gave Sakura some hope in having Team 7 together again. Overtime, Sakura came to believe that Naruto would in fact become Hokage and was willing to do anything to help him achieve his dream. Once Sasuke reciprocated her feelings and Naruto was developing feelings for Hinata, Sakura offered him advice on love and how to confess to Hinata. As the years passed, Sakura and Naruto remained close friends.
Kakashi Hatake[]
Kakashi is Sakura's teacher from Team 7. Being the only girl on the team, Kakashi seemingly had a soft spot for Sakura due to him unwilling to let her directly confront Haku and Zabuza, and he was always near her during combats. Kakashi tried to reassure Sakura that Naruto and Sasuke would make up when Sasuke forced Naruto into a battle, but when Sasuke defected and Sakura was left in despair, Kakashi blamed himself for being an ineffective teacher. He also condemned himself for "lying" to Sakura when he knew the possibility of Sasuke betraying them was high. Kakashi considers Sakura to be a very simple girl who can easily be understood, such as when he immediately knew that she was lying when she told Naruto she loved him. Initially, Kakashi was unwilling to kill Sasuke but after saving Sakura from being killed, Kakashi was enraged and told Sakura he would deal with Sasuke so that Sakura wouldn't have to take on such a heavy burden. Kakashi has a high opinion of Sakura due to her powerful strength and intelligence, but he is still protective of her, even going as far as to criticize Sasuke for ignoring the pain he was putting Sakura through.
Ino Yamanaka[]
Ino is Sakura's former best friend, although they reconcile after the Chunin Exams. They first met when they were children; Sakura was bullied for her large forehead and Ino became her first friend after teaching her how to show more of her cute features. They were best friends for a while until Sakura announced to their friends that she had a crush on Sasuke and was surprised when she learned Ino also liked Sasuke. Because of this, both girls ended their friendship so they can compete for his affection. Although avoiding each other sometimes, they were matched against each other in the Chunin Exams, which they used as a way to see not only who was the strongest but who deserved Sasuke more. At the end, the match ends with both knocking the other out and the two reconcile but still intended to fight each other for Sasuke. While still being rivals in some sorts, they became friends again and were often helping each other in combat and on personal matters, often related to Sasuke's troubles. As adults, after Sakura marries Sasuke and Ino marries Sai, the two are more friendly with each other and considered best friends again.
Tsunade[]
Tsunade is Sakura's superior and teacher. Both are similar in personalities in regard to their short tempers and tendency to be blunt and criticize others. Tsunade cares a lot for Sakura, after the girl came to her on her own accord to ask Tsunade to take her as a student, which Tsunade agreed because she knew Sakura was determined to help Naruto find Sasuke at all costs. Sakura holds deep respect for Tsunade for being the Fifth Hokage but, like so many others, she is afraid of Tsunade's temper and often warns others to be careful how they speak to her. During the war, as Sakura proved herself as a worthy successor of Tsunade's, it was believed that Sakura would surpass her teacher.
Sarada Uchiha[]
Sarada is Sakura's daughter with Sasuke. Sakura loves her daughter dearly and she sees a lot of Sasuke in Sarada. After Sasuke left home for his mission, Sakura raised their daughter on her own and the two have a close relationship. Sarada had no problem telling her mother her feelings about boys and particularly about Boruto. However, as Sarada got older and began questioning her parents' marriage due to Sasuke being away for so many years, Sakura reacted angrily but then she apologized for yelling at her. Over the years, as Sarada asked questions about her father, Sakura always told her that Sasuke was on an important mission, and he would come home once it was over. While she was speaking the truth, Sakura didn't explain what kind of mission Sasuke was on because of an agreement she made with Sasuke to keep it a secret out of concern any knowledge of it spreading and bringing threats that would endanger her and Sarada. As Sarada thought Sasuke didn't care about them, Sakura was always quick to insist that Sasuke loved them both and he was protecting them. Although annoyed with Sarada running away to find the answers to her questions, Sakura didn't blame her because she felt she and Sasuke should have explained the situation to Sarada earlier. When Sarada believed Sakura was not her real mother, she was enraged but after calming down, she realized she still loved her mother. Sakura later admits she was told of Sarada's doubts and confirms Sarada is her biological daughter, also expressing relief that Sarada is alright and joy when Sasuke tells Sarada that she is the proof of his love for Sakura. After this, Sakura and Sarada's relationship improves significantly, and Sarada finds it amusing to tease her mother by telling her how happy she gets when Sasuke comes home. Sakura also has deep pride for her daughter, but her ways of expressing her pride for Sarada often embarrasses her daughter.
Trivia[]
- Sakura was born on March 28, making her older than both Sasuke and Naruto, who were born in July and October respectively.
- Understandably why she never says it, Sakura's hobby is following and watching Sasuke and her dream is to marry him. Despite years of him rejecting her feelings because of his obsession with revenge, Sakura achieves her dream of winning Sasuke's love and marrying him.
- Sakura started having feelings for Sasuke even before they entered in the Academy and her innocent crush on him turned into an obsessive infatuation after learning he was popular among the girls. However, her infatuation for him eventually turned into genuine and true love.
- During the war, Sakura's medical ninjutsu is noted to almost be as great as Tsunade's, and after the war ended, she was deemed "the most powerful medical ninja" in not only Konoha but in the world. This development also made Sakura the strongest kunoichi of her generation.
- Sakura's view on Naruto in Part II is shown to have improved a lot compared with her view on him at the beginning of the series, as a consequence of her own character development in Part I which helped her to become a more sympathetic character. She becomes impressed by the change in his appearance and personality, she has great concern for his well-being and, along with the rest of the village, she starts to admire and recognize him as a hero instead of the annoying troublemaker he was in the beginning. This results in the development of a very close and sibling-like bond between them, with Sakura and Naruto supporting each other as they try to rescue Sasuke throughout the rest of the series.
External Links[]
- Sakura Haruno on the Naruto Wiki
- Sakura Haruno on the Boruto Wiki
- Sakura Haruno on the VS Battles Wiki
- Sakura Haruno on the Inconsistently Admirable Wiki
- Sakura Haruno on the Shonen Heroes Wiki
- Sakura Haruno on the Shojo Heroes Wiki
