“Sasuke Retsuden” Manga Issue 6 – Part 2 – Review

Sasuke Retsuden manga issue 6 part 2 gave fans the highly-anticipated lake scene between Sasuke and Sakura and also set the stage for the finale.

I didn’t realize this earlier, but one of the reasons that the previous chapter was shorter than the ones before was because chapter 6 had been divided into 2 parts. The current installment, which was Sasuke Retsuden issue 6 part 2, was even shorter, but it still gave me what I wanted when it came to seeing the lake scene from the novel being adapted into a manga format.

The latest chapter, set at night, opened with Sasuke telling Sakura that they should head to the lake he learned about in the previous issue. And while I knew that this was going to be a romance-heavy issue, I wasn’t expecting the creative team to deliver on the romance so early. Frankly, there was no reason for Sakura to trip after landing on the ground from a very high jump. She didn’t trip once afterward while the two jumped over rocks and then the tall wall surrounding the Tatar Observatory.

But hey! How else would we have seen a scene where Sasuke was compelled to hold onto his blushing wife, right?

As I said, romance!

The beauty of the secluded lake during the full moon prompted Sasuke to ask Sakura a question he had been thinking about for a while. He finally asked if she would like to have an actual wedding ring to wear instead of the chakra-made ring he gave her earlier. My heart! I remember smiling when I read that particular scene in the novel, and I think mangaka Shingo Kimura depicted it well in manga form.

While Sakura would have liked an actual wedding ring, she also knew that it wouldn’t be ideal for someone like her. I appreciated how Sasuke understood what Sakura meant without having her explain her thoughts to him. Due to being the head medic in Konoha and basically raising Salad on her own, all of the tasks Sakura performed took a toll on her hands. She cooked. She cleaned. And she made sure people didn’t die under her watch. Wearing a wedding ring 24/7 wasn’t possible for her. And besides, Sakura didn’t really need a wedding ring as a symbol of Sasuke’s love. They both knew where they stood in each other’s lives.

Even though Sasuke wasn’t concerned about someone else swooping in to take his place in Sakura and Salad’s lives while he’s away on dangerous missions, having Sasuke share some of his concerns related to his marriage and fatherhood did a lot to make develop his character. While Sasuke’s not the best at sharing his emotions, he’s human after all. And not always being present to see Salad grow up and support Sakura in raising their daughter did get to him.

But alas, that’s what he signed up for when he decided to become a powerful ninja. Sasuke had to leave the village for long periods to ensure no outside threat could harm Konoha. Sakura and Salad understood that. It was tough for them to see Sasuke go off on his missions alone, but he was doing it to protect everyone.

Also, I don’t know if I remember this correctly, but I think that during the lake scene, the novel had Sakura try and comfort Sasuke a bit by mentioning that they would have plenty of time to spend together once they were older and had retired from their ninja duties.

While we didn’t get that particular scene in the manga, we did have Sasuke and Sakura talk a bit about growing old. Sasuke was surprised when Sakura mentioned she noticed the wrinkles on his handsome face. And Sasuke said that Sakura’s supposed to grow older, too. But as far as he could tell, she hadn’t changed a bit.

Now, I don’t know if Sakura didn’t look old to Sasuke because of her genetics or because she will always look young to her husband because he’s so in love with her. I just hope it’s not because Sakura took a page from her teacher Tsunade’s book and decided to use a Transformation Jutsu to keep herself looking young. Whether it’s because she’s insecure about growing older or she doesn’t want to change how she looks for Sasuke’s sake, I really don’t want Sakura to feel bad about accepting her age. Having women be concerned about something as natural as wrinkles and other signs of aging is a trope I’m tired of seeing in media.

Anyway, coming back to the current mission, it was Sakura who snapped Sasuke out of his emotional state. She knew him inside and out. So, he didn’t have anything to worry about. Also, they were running out of time to find a cure for Naruto’s illness. Sakura’s determined to save Naruto. No wonder she was the one who walked right into the beam of light (that seemed to reach the sky) coming out of the lake without hesitation to grab the sealed container containing the Ultra Particles.

But then again, due to the beam of light possibly being made of chakra, Sakura being the one to grab the container could have also been due to her Perfect Chakra control protecting her from said beam of light. She could have also acted in such a manner because she’s the one who released the seal in the first place to reveal the beam of light. Whatever the reason might be, I think it could have been explained better. 

Sasuke’s began to connect the dots about what Zanzul’s been up to after Sakura told Sasuke that the picture of the lizard on a rock depicted on the playing card was actually an image of a dinosaur and a meteor. We got a huge reveal that yes, there were indeed fossils present in the chicken coop Sasuke uncovered. And that yes, Zanzul had indeed used the Edo Tensei Jutsu to resurrect dinosaurs. The final moment of an explosion occurring at the Tatar Observatory and a bunch of pterodactyls taking to the sky really helped set the stage for the upcoming action-filled finale. I want to see Sakura punch some dinos!

I’m looking forward to having Sasuke and Sakura learn more about how Zanzul got his hands on the Edo Tensei Jutsu and how it might be connected to what Kakashi’s going through during the events of Kakashi Retsuden. Even if we don’t get a lot of information from the manga, I have hope the current Sasuke Retsuden anime adaptation, which is also adapting parts of Kakashi Retsuden, will come through.

What did you think of Sasuke Retsuden issue 6 Part 2? Did you enjoy the lake scene as much as I did?

Let us know.

Author: Farid-ul-Haq

Farid has a Double Masters in Psychology and Biotechnology as well as an M.Phil in Molecular Genetics. He is the author of numerous books including Missing in Somerville, and The Game Master of Somerville. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime/manga, video games, and movies.

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