Naruto Shippuden Episode 356
What They Say:
After being saved by the target he was ordered to kill, Tenzo realizes that the man known as “Kakashi the Friend Killer” is someone who values the lives of his comrades more than anyone. No longer wishing to kill Kakashi, Tenzo abandons the mission and returns to the Leaf Village, fully aware that his actions will stir up Danzo’s anger.
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
While Tenzo went the expected route and did his best to take down Kakashi based on the information Danzo gave him, it went only so far and now has Tenzo in a worse position. With the two of them having such a history after events when they were younger, it’s no surprise that Tenzo would do what he did, especially with the reputation that Kakashi has. Having them in the mist of one of Orochimaru’s secret bases adds to the creepy natureof events since those places have always had a semi-horror feel to them with the dark tunnels, the technology that Orochimaru uses and the general nature of Orochimaru himself and the snake themes that are there.
The two end up in a bit of a rough situation early on here with what does exist in this area and while the action isn’t overly much, it does play into the horror side well and the two have to actually work together a bit, which ends up putting Kakashi in Tenzo’s hands after Tenzo had only a little bit ago tried to kill him. It’s a fairly expected reversal of course and the kind of sequence, such as where they have to escape from the poisonous gas that’s emanating from the snake thing, that helps to build new bonds between the two. This ends up working out in an interesting way as it progresses and the two escape back to the Hidden Leaf, where Kakashi reports it to the Third Hokage since it’s clear that Danzo ordered it. Seeing the way he goes about that and as Tenzo goes back to Danzo to report is a nice bit of parallel material.
That this points a real issue on the table that has to be dealt with, it’s interesting to see how it unfolds since Kakashi ends up going after Danzo for more information and we basically get the two factions within the Hidden Leaf skulking around and going at each other. It’s amusing that Danzo tries to play the whole thing off as a communication issue when confronted by the Third Hokage, who plays it very casually but seriously himself, it works well to show the kind of deep divisions that exist within the village. It plays out well with a kind of expected tenseness, but it also leads us to the expected conclusion since we know that Tenzo will end up with Kakashi and his group, but it’s pretty fun to see how it all comes together and the way that Kakashi kinds of softens a bit here, and that of Tenzo himself at the end of it.
In Summary:
With this segment of the arc finished, we get to have a pretty good story overall that shows how Tenzo and Kakashi ended up being as trusted friends as they are and the struggle it took to get there. It’s certainly not a bad arc for an anime original piece and after spending a good part of a year previously with the whole Naruto on a boat original arc, something like this is just fantastic in comparison. That said, it’s the kind of arc that just goes on a bit too long, though fans are going to be excited since the next piece of it coming up involves Itachi, and that just gets their motors running.
Grade: B-
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
Review Equipment:
Sony KDL70R550A 70″ LED 1080P HDTV, Apple TV via HDMI set to 1080p, Onkyo TX-SR605 Receiver and Panasonic SB-TP20S Multi-Channel Speaker System With 100-Watt Subwoofer.