Why was Naruto obsessed with Sasuke during Shippuden

One of the most important themes in the iconic Naruto series is friendship. In fact, this is a theme that is commonly seen across numerous shōnen anime and manga series. It is an element that plays a huge role in the overall storyline and plot as well, which is why characters in most shōnen series express a strong feeling of concern for their closest friends.

Sasuke Uchiha was one of Naruto’s closest friends and he certainly played a significant role in the protagonist’s growth, both as a character and a shinobi. Sasuke has been an important character in the series even in terms of the overall plot as well.

However, when Sasuke left the village, the protagonist was borderline obsessed with bringing him back. Let’s take a look at why this was the case.

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Why is Naruto obsessed with Sasuke in the series

Ever since Sasuke decided to leave the village in search of power, fans started to notice that the protagonist developed an obsession with Sasuke and wanted to bring him back to Konohagakure at any cost. Sasuke had left the village to seek revenge on his brother, who had killed the entire Uchiha clan when Sasuke was a child, including their own parents.

Sasuke wanted to kill Itachi who was far stronger at that time, which is why Sasuke decided to go to Orochimaru who had promised him power. Naruto was obviously not okay with this since he didn’t want his best friend to go down a path filled with violence and vengeance. The protagonist had experienced loneliness before when he was a child, since he was a Jinchūriki and the villagers always kept away from him during his childhood. It was due to this loneliness that he truly cherished his friends’ company and wasn’t okay with the things that Sasuke was doing.

There are two ways to look at this situation since some of the fans believe that Naruto was obsessed, while others believe that he just cared a lot for his friend and didn’t want him to go down a path riddled with violence and regret. In both these cases, there is one thing that is common and that is the protagonist’s feelings towards Sasuke.

Ever since their days at the Academy together, the two characters have gone through a lot and even saved each other from life-threatening situations on numerous occasions. Sasuke hated Naruto during the earlier parts of the series, but he risked his own life to save the protagonist when they were pitted against Haku. Due to the hardships they faced together, this makes it only natural for them to develop a strong bond. It was this strong deep relationship that made Naruto very concerned about Sasuke and willing to go to great lengths to bring him back to Konohagakure.