Naruto Anime Analysis

Season 3: Episode 104

Source: Wikipedia
"Run, Idate, Run! Nagi Island Awaits!"

"Aoi taunts Idate and attacks him. Team 7, who are still swimming for the island, are attacked underwater by the Rain Ninja. Using the first step of training for the Rasengan, Naruto creates a huge whirlpool that saves them. They then try to rescue Idate but prove to be no match for Aoi, who poisons them and leaves. Sakura gives them all the medicine Tsunade had given her, and they seek shelter in a cave. Idate explains that he was once a leaf ninja but was tricked by Aoi into betraying the village after failing the Chunin Exam."

Analysis

The scene begins at the seashore, and Jirocho says, "The storm is coming, and there is no sign of Idate." There is a moment of silence, and then he says, "This is bad." Jirocho's instincts prove to be accurate in the sense that the storm symbolizes Idate meeting the enemy, Aoi.

Aoi taunts Idate and attacks him. Creepy music plays in the background to symbolize Aoi's presence. While at sea, Idate lies on the bare ground, and after some time, he meets Aoi. Aoi then states his name, which is done to remind the audience of the enemy's name. Moreover, while Idate and Aoi were conversing with each other, Aoi said that Idate was like him; Aoi never trusted anyone, and he never thought of anyone but himself. Therefore, this shows the characterization of Aoi as being selfish. Furthermore, Aoi mentioned something else about Idate. For instance, he said that Idate abandoned his village and his brother, so Idate and Aoi share some kind of history, which makes the audience more curious to watch the rest of the episode. Something else happens. For instance, Aoi seems to want to kill Idate, in the sense that he throws sharp needles at him. Therefore, there is visual imagery as one can see the blood splatter, and then there is a moment of silence. This helps to bring out the tension in the episode and the threatening atmosphere, as it keeps the audience curious enough to continue watching the episode.

Team 7, who are still swimming for the island, are attacked underwater by the Rain Ninja. Using the first step of training for the Rasengan, Naruto creates a huge whirlpool that saves them. Team 7 swam until they reached dry land as they proceeded to look for Idate. However, the Rain Ninja were underwater, waiting to attack Team 7. So when they took Naruto underwater, this compelled Sasuke and Sakura to follow the Rain Ninja underwater. Afterwards, Team 7 is attacked underwater by the Rain Ninja; hence, there is a lot of action involved. When Naruto was seized by one of the Rain Ninjas, he was able to signal his shadow clones to form a circle to create the Rasengan. While there was the formation of the Rasengan, triumphant music played in the background to signify Naruto's victory. For instance, Naruto created a huge whirlpool that saved Sakura and Sasuke and defeated the Rain Ninja. Moreover, there is one important point to consider. Firstly, the fight underwater is unique in the sense that, from the previous episodes, one has not witnessed a fight between ninjas underwater. Secondly, Naruto proves to be clever and strategic since he uses the Rasengan to form a huge whirlpool. Therefore, Naruto is a strategist, as he proves to be getting stronger each day; hence, he is a dynamic character who continues to grow as a ninja. 

They then try to rescue Idate but prove to be no match for Aoi, who poisons them and leaves. Dramatic music plays in the background when Idate is poisoned by the sharp needles. Aoi continues to taunt Idate, saying that any chance Idate had of winning the race is over. At this moment, it starts raining, which signifies a sombre atmosphere. For instance, as Idate falls unconscious, he starts to see Master Jirocho in his mind. Afterwards, he is apologetic, as he believes he has disappointed Master Jirocho. Therefore, this moment is sad to the extent that it makes the audience feel sorry for Idate. Moreover, while Idate was feeling sorry for himself, Team 7 arrived to rescue Idate. When Team 7 arrived, the music had shifted into a creepy, sombre style. As a result, the fight has begun between Aoi and Team 7 (Naruto and Sasuke). For instance, Aoi launched his attack by using his needles to suppress them so that he could leave Aoi.  As soon as Aoi left the scene, the team realized that Idate's opponent had won the first phase of the race. After hearing this, it compelled Idate to do something to win the race; however, he needs to rest before he can proceed with the match.

Sakura gives them all the medicine Tsunade had given her, and they seek shelter in a cave. Idate explains that he was once a leaf ninja but was tricked by Aoi into betraying the village after failing the Chunin Exam. Tsunade proves to be a reliable Hokage for the Hidden Leaf Village in the sense that she gives Sakura the medicine. Tsunade knew that there would be challenges that Team 7 would face. Therefore, she has good leadership skills since medicine has served its purpose of healing everyone who was wounded or poisoned.

There is an important aspect to consider about this episode. Idate has a flashback about his brother, Ibiki Morino. In the flashback, Idate got the Genin headband, and he said he wanted to become like his brother. However, Ibiki Morino said something interesting. He said, "Listen, Idate, there is something more important to a ninja than power or even success." He went on to say, "Your ignorant boasting shows me that you haven't learned what it is yet." Idate then wakes up. At that moment, Ibiki's words have a hidden meaning behind them, but what is the meaning? This makes the audience wonder, and this is likely to be revealed in the next episode; hence, it serves as a foreshadowing of what will happen later in the plot.

Idate has explained why he left the Hidden Leaf Village. Idate had a flashback where, during his time in the Hidden Leaf Village, he failed the Chunin exams. The flashback also revealed more about Aoi, who was Idate's sensei at the time. As the flashback proceeds, Aoi convinces Idate that he could be genin if he took the scroll of sealing and the legendary blade of the thunder spirit used by the second Hokage himself. From my point of view, these objects were valuable because they were crucial for battles or wars. Therefore, stealing these weapons is a criminal offence in Hidden Leaf Village. In other words, if any ninja stole them, he or she would be considered a rogue ninja. Moreover, Aoi had already made his decision to become Jonin in the Hidden Rain Village. Idate, on the other hand, didn't want to go with Aoi, hence why he left Hidden Leaf Village, and along the way, he met Jirocho. This flashback gave us more clarity about Aoi and Idate. Aoi is manipulative and selfish in the sense that he tricked Idate into betraying the village. Furthermore, Idate was the victim; hence, the audience feels sympathetic towards Idate, who became a rogue ninja because of Aoi.

There is a similarity between Naruto and Idate. Just like Idate, who feels worthless and a failure, Naruto also felt the same way before. Naruto said, "He is like me, the way I was before." Naruto is referring to a certain flashback from Season 1: Episode 1. In that flashback, Mizuki said that Naruto would never be accepted in the Hidden Leaf Village because he had the demon fox inside of him. Naruto felt like a failure; however, when Mizuki tried to kill him, Iruka saved him. Just like Iruka, who had faith in him that he would succeed, Idate has Jirocho, who also has faith in him to succeed, which in this case is winning the race. Idate feels worthless because he believes he has failed his master, Jirocho. 

Naruto plays an important part in the episode as he encourages Idate to never give up on the race. First, Naruto said, "You still have someone that believes in you." Second, he said, "One person is enough. That's all anyone needs. Don't even think of quitting. Who said this race was over? You have no way of knowing how things are going to work out." Last, he said, "Jirocho is counting on you; pull yourself together." The last statement is true because Jirocho believes that Idate will win the race because he trusts him. Therefore, thanks to Naruto's words, Idate finds the courage to not give up on the race. The episode ends with Naruto carrying Idate on his back to win the race. Naruto is shown to be a round character who seems like a real person in the sense that he gives words of encouragement to Idate since he knows how it feels to be a failure. 

The episode has proved to be inspiring in the end because Naruto has acted as an important character in the episode. His words of encouragement towards Idate can also be applied to everyone's lives. The lesson from this episode is that one should never give up on achieving their goals. Moreover, the next episode is going to be epic because Idate will do whatever it takes to win the race.