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Fans of the original Naruto series had mixed feelings when the characters were sorted into couples for the future of the franchise. While a lot of popular ships were becoming a reality, some couples didn't make a lot of sense to the fans. One of these couples was Sakura and Sasuke.
Their dynamic throughout most of Naruto's runtime was filled with toxicity and was completely unhealthy. Rock Lee, on the other hand, treated Sakura with the respect and care that Sasuke could never provide. Ironically, Rock Lee still seems to have a crush on Sakura, as seen in Boruto.
Hence, this article discusses the amazing potential Rock Lee and Sakura have as couples.
Naruto: How Rock Lee could've been a better partner for Sakura
Poor Dynamic between Sasuke and Sakura
Sakura was obsessed with Sasuke ever since they were little kids, and the feeling never changed even after 720 episodes worth of drama. Their dynamic is quite complicated as Sakura comes from a happy and ordinary background, but Sasuke's past is infested with the thirst for revenge.
So it's quite natural for them to have different outlooks on life. Sasuke's goal was set in stone right after his entire clan was massacred by his older brother and he had no time for distractions. Sakura could never understand the fact about him while Naruto was there to sympathize with his pain.
Their relationship grew more and more complicated when Sakura decided to kill Sasuke herself. One can try to appreciate and understand the confidence she has in challenging the likes of Sasuke, but realistically, her odds were slim to none.
Upon arriving to "kill" the love of her life, she saw how Sasuke was consumed by evil and how he didn't even hesitate to try and kill her. After being rescued by Naruto, she was still in love with Sasuke, which was extremely unrealistic and toxic.
Rock Lee as Sakura's partner
Rock Lee was a simple and hardworking individual who stopped at nothing to achieve his dreams. He had a huge crush on Sakura ever since they met at the chunin exams. However, Sakura was quite disgusted by his appearance and rejected him soon after. Rock Lee's one-sided love for her remained even after the events of Naruto Shippuden.
Sakura failed to look beneath his quirky personality and appearance. She didn't give him a chance even though he always treated her with respect, unlike Sasuke. Sakura's happiness meant so much to Rock Lee that as soon as he recovered from his injuries from fighting Gaara, he immediately set off to help Naruto in bringing Sasuke back.
Rock Lee was always there to support Sakura and a majority of fans expected them to be a couple. They believe that Masashi Kishimoto, the esteemed mangaka of Naruto, could've depicted significant character development for Sakura if she didn't choose to be with Sasuke in the end. Both of them lacked significant power but didn't "choose" to be weak.
Her growth from a bratty and overconfident girl to a mature and dignified Kunoichi could've been justified if she gave up chasing appearances. Unfortunately, despite the toxic past and dynamic between her and Sasuke, she chose to be with the latter instead of giving Rock Lee a chance.
This also contributes to the millions of fans on social media hating Sakura over her obnoxious choices in life and overconfident attitude. Moreover, fans were also excited to witness the potential the Lee-Haruno child would have in Taijutsu. A character in Boruto with incredible healing powers and unrelenting skills in Taijutsu would surely create a buzz among the fans.
Final Thoughts
Although both of them are inspired by each other's qualities and strengths, nothing more seems to happen between Sakura and Rock Lee. However, the vast majority of Naruto fans have always rooted for Sasuke and Sakura to end up together due to nostalgia and their "classic" vibe.
A lot of emotion comes into play while deciding a partner and Sakura's feelings were difficult to understand for a lot of fans due to her illogical actions. Although Rock Lee has been there for Sakura throughout the series, feelings cannot be judged simply by logic.
