Thank you LemonSage.
And I apologize. Im just trying to understand the boarders of your logic. Like where selfishness is good and where selfishness is bad. Its odd to me because, for example, people/loved ones/shinobi Minato and Gaara would sacrifice for their selfish reasons, is somehow different than the strangers Narutos willing to sacrifice for his selfish reason. To me the end results are the same no matter the ideals behind them. Sacrfice is still sacrifice. But to you, it seems who benefits from the sacrifice and therefore is in the right lies in.... slavery? Naruto is a slave to the decisions made for him about his life, by those before him just like every single member of his Family, which then makes his selfishness okay... is that correct?
I really want to understand your side when I read your fic, so im just going to assume certain things, like, the ONLY promise that matters to Naruto is those to his lovers/family and ignore his initial goal that started all of this. Was Naruto lying when he said he wanted to unite the villages? Or did he just KINDA mean it? If i can assume Narutos lovers happiness matters more than his goal, than can i also assume his goal doesnt matter as much to the women who started and continue this journey because of it? It seems like the goal will now be optional. Does Naruto still feel like Gaara is family or has he been demoted to casual friend? For now ill assume Narutos lovers requests matter first, than anything Gaara might ask. If any of Narutos Suna lovers asked Naruto to help some random family in Sunagekura, can I assume the regular strangers will matter to him then?
I will also assume that Naruto CAN be considered a tool for his lovers happiness, because THEIR happiness is HIS happiness, correct? And that none of his lovers think the happiness of innocent strangers matter as much as theirs. Does this make Tsunade unhappy because shes a tool of the village? Or Yuugao or Komachi, basically anyone that serve the people are actually unhappy because they are apart of a shinobi system that sees a lot of loved ones die to protect weak citizens?
But Naruto himself will still stay in Konoha as a tool to be used for the collectives purposes? Does being a member of Konoha's society and it's military force NOT allow him to defect just like Yugito? Couldn't you just write that... if thats what your Naruto wants... to be free? To not be a hero? Not be a tool? Doesnt the rules and impositions placed upon him by society mean that hes just as miserable as Yugito?
I'll also try to assume money should NOT go to those who do a trade as a passion. How they will afford things and feed themselves is beyond me but as you say, its its own reward. For instance, its not Kiyomis passion to run a shipping company so its fine that she makes a lot of money, but Konan's Akatsuki IS her passion so she'll be doing it for free.
I agree with you about Ay. Hes a bad egg, that one. Its unfortunate for the Family that he is still the Raikage which means they still have to play ball with him. If he was a little more like Danzo than they could trap him and exppse it but unfortunately hes just a prick. Im not justifying the decisions he makes but wjat can they do to change him? Is that even an option?
You are the writer right? You control the story, yes? You CAN make Fuuka or Mito or Kushina care about their lost Clan if you want. But if you think our Uzumaki wouldnt actually care and you yourself may not be interested in it, than that is fine. I just thought family meant more than those in front of you.
As you can see, i may not get it. Anyway, thank again for the response. Please keep writing. Because i do enjoy more than less. Thanks.
--Abby.
Author's response
Naruto hasn’t sacrificed anyone though, and that is where you seem to be running into issues. Yes, he isn’t willing to allow his lovers to suffer to insure some strangers’ happiness, but that isn’t the same as allowing those masses to suffer to insure those of his lovers. Naruto had a plan when it came to extracting Yugito, and if it failed, he would have faced the consequences of it failing. Such as turning himself over to Kumo. Would that still stop a war? Maybe or maybe not, but using the wellbeing of strangers to justify Yugito needing to remain in Kumo is not something Naruto could have done if he is going to claim to value his lovers.
Their goal is important, but at the same time using it as justifying making them suffer is not acceptable either. As I stated before, Naruto started the goal but he didn’t really realize what it would entail. He also didn’t realize how important those women would become. However, that doesn’t mean he recruited them as soldiers and thus can spend their livers frivolously. It is still the driving force, but again it doesn’t justify him sacrificing them or their happiness to achieve it.
If that is how you want to view it then be my guess. Yet, to me a defining something as a tool is often the view point of the people doing the using. To me, your collective views Naruto as a tool because it was fine for him to be turned into a weapon for their sake. His father also turned him into one because Konoha couldn’t be without its weapon. Naruto doesn’t see his lovers as tools and I don’t imagine they do him. He sees them as partners in the endeavor and partners deserve to be rewarded equally when it comes time to collect the reward for one’s actions. If the end goal is a peaceful world, then Naruto is seeking one where not just he benefits, but his partners as well. As to the masses, well if they aren’t an active part of the attaining the goal why do they deserve to benefit as much as those that did. Shouldn’t the end result be good enough, why do Naruto’s partners not suffering to make what they achieve any less rewarding for those that simply sat on their asses.
The problem I have with Minato actions, which Gaara would emulate is, do we consider sacrificing children to be a good thing or bad thing normally. Well if it normally is bad, it doesn’t suddenly become acceptable because the stakes are different. If Minato wants to sacrifice himself, then he bloody well can do so. It stops being acceptable when he decides his wife and son should be used up as well. Yet, the Collective didn’t seem to broken up about a child being turned into a weapon for their sake. Weren’t they fine with Naruto suffering for them? Was it really too much to ask that Minato find a better way to prevent a child from suffering? Is it really out of the realm of believability for Naruto to want to make Yugito’s situation better and not let the concerns of people he didn’t pledge himself to sway his decision?
Ultimately, to me it seems selfishness as defined by you is an action that a person takes which can expressly be considered to society’s benefit. But, did society care in the slightest about Naruto’s situation. No, because he was sacrificed for its benefit. Naruto would have been willing to pay the consequences for his choice if it failed to mitigate a war. He was willing to do that because he cared for Yugito, and he didn’t want to cause needless suffering. But, he couldn’t let the fear of that potential outcome stop him.
I wouldn’t say my Naruto is miserable in the slightest, because although society doesn’t care for him. He has surrounded himself with people that do, and ultimately isn’t that what motivates most people to want to make the world a better place. Not to please strangers, but those closest to you. To me, happiness is ignoring what norms society would force on you, to do what you feel is right for you. You don’t want to get married and pop out kids. Then don’t. However, isn’t that what society would demand of you in order to perpetuate it. Naruto’s goal is to make the world a better place sure, but what good is achieving it if he loses his reason for doing so along the way.