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wnarya — Footprints
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Published: 2013-04-27 12:16:04 +0000 UTC; Views: 2931; Favourites: 126; Downloads: 35
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Askjdhskjdhsakl finally finished this /dies
Sorry for the lack of updates! Work has been super tiring, and I'm still lost in this transition from being a (relatively carefree) student to suddenly working and having a boss and clocking in hours. It's like two totally different worlds XD
Anyway, another one of these comic-like-strip thingies! Here I tried to portray what I think we want for Sasuke at the end of the series - for him to live. This piece started out as just a painting of the last panel but for some odd reason I started drawing the rest of the strip too OTL.
Hope you enjoyed this, and please stay with me for future artworks :3
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Uchiha Sasuke © Kishimoto Masashi
Pencils, PS CS3
Textures by `cloaks and me!
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Comments: 44
I've been hoping for another work of yours in the fashion of Day of Ashes. Two. , which is one of your most powerful pieces in my opinion. And now you put this up and it clearly makes me want to write down paragraphs of comments, so let's get this started! e.deviantart.net/emoticons/b/b… " width="15" height="15" alt="
What I see here is like a picture-poetry story on Sasuke, which leads us through the course of his emotional development up until the most recent chapters, starting with the revelations about Itachi's true motives. Or at least I suppose so, since his face in the first panel looks similar to his expression in that scene where he is standing on that cliff, facing the sea, crying over his brother. Also the text, which says "All the steps you have taken since then (...)" makes me think so.
In the next panel he is seen embracing his brother, which seems to me like something that actually takes place inside his imagination, like a wish for something that he would have been glad to do, had he only known. In those first two panels you really captured the agony that hit Sasuke after Tobi's revelations, using the black background and keeping the sketches black and white. How can anyone not understand that he fell even deeper into the darkness back then?
The color changes from black to blue and then a bursting red. This adds pace and tension as I scroll down along your work, and I felt immediately reminded of Sharingan eyes flashing from black to red in emotional turmoil. Together with the words "This whole journey of yours has been an expression of love" it goes well with what Tobirama revealed about the Uchiha and the Sharingan's connection to strong feelings of love and hatred.
Scrolling down further, the colors get softer and brighter, and there are detail shots of what appears to be the present Sasuke before we reach the last panel, which shows Sasuke in front of the sky with the sun breaking through the clouds and white birds flying towards the sun (white doves as a symbol for making peace with yourself and the outer world?).
I think it's clear to everyone who has followed Sasuke's story that this piece depicts the path he has been following since Itachi's death - from the pits of darkness slowly back towards the light. The poetic words you used are underlining this purpose nicely, making this misunderstood character more easily accessible.
"This love,
and all the footprints
you have left along the way
may by the end of the line
lead you to welcome
the brightest of light
to live,
and live they never had the chance to"
Worded in the second person as if someone (someone who cares about Sasuke, it seems) spoke to Sasuke, they suggest the new direction he seems to turn to. Being completely taken in by Itachi's suffering and his own grief first, being freed from any expectations and conditions of love by Itachi himself later on, he has begun to ask questions and finally understand a lot about his clan and the village. Things he formerly couldn't see. But every step he has taken so far until arriving where he is now was necessary in that whole development, which is basically summarized in your title. We still have to see where he will go now and we can't be sure. The sky is still clouded and Sasuke has still not entirely turned towards the sun, but maybe this grief will turn into something like a determination "to live the life they (his fellow clansmen?) never had the chance to".
Phew, I will now stop babbling about the deep content and talk about the technical aspects of your work. You really succeeded in building up a tension arc by smart paneling, by choosing colors from dark black and blues over red to rose, yellow, light blue and white. You have a talent for telling stories and building up tension within a very limited space, which is also apparent in Day of Ashes. Two. . The little abstract devices you add - like the white horizontal lines in the upper part, the bubbles, the scribbly lines on the red part, the flying petals - add a lot of aesthetic and help the viewer to connect the panels to a coherent whole.
Sasuke's anatomy is drawn well, for some reason I particularly like how you did the arms, technically and content-wise. His body language is expressing a certain amount of insecurity and openness. The clothes are well done, and the way you used all kinds of colors to shade a white garment and the clouds in the last panel looks realistic and impressive.
I usually try to criticize more in a critique, but the only thing that struck me as something that could be improved is the panel where we see the lower parts of his legs. They don't look that much like walking legs and feet, but rather a little stiff. Every other detail that might be a little off is outshone by the great overall impression this piece provides me with.
Great, unique work! Please keep going! e.deviantart.net/emoticons/s/s… " width="15" height="15" alt="
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Fifi!
First of all, thank you so, very, very much for the comment. This comment must be one of the best I have ever received! I'll try to reply to your comment as best as I can, so let's get started!
Yes, this story starts from when Sasuke first discovered the truth about Itachi 
Ah, yes! The sharingan, which is a manifestation of the intense emotions of love was partly what I wanted to portray there! Also, I also wanted to portray a red, beating heart, full of pure, strong, undiluted love; made of blood, veins and flesh; the core of a human - and that it is this core, that Sasuke has been moving on all this time.
I'm super relieved that the poem was understood XD The first half poem of this artwork (until "this whole journey of yours has been an expression of love") was relatively easy to write and draw, but the 2nd half part was hard - in both writing the poem and depicting it in images. I wanted to show fluidity and continuity - to show that this journey of Sasuke heading into the light was a 'process' and that all the stuff he has done before contributes to his final destination.
The 'they' in the last line is the Uchiha clan
Thank you so much for the kind words in the last few paragraphs! One of the main problems I had with this artwork was to make it flow - the usage of colour, the abstract devices, was all used to create flow and to make the message clearer. And I love painting skies - can never get tired of it! But I think you know that by now XD
Afufufu - I agree that the legs do look rather stiff too, now that I look back at it. It's hard to put movement in legs, but I'll try to improve on that in the future artworks!
<3
A very big thank you again for the genorous comment, and for expressing what you think of this artwork. Yours was beautifully written and eloquently stated, I cannot express my gratitude enough. To think that my artworks would get such an amazing comment, you do not know how your comment totally made my day.
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OH...MY...GOSH...
THE FEELS!!! Beautifully worded! Wonderful art! Great concept!
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Hehe thank you!!
It was really tough working on this piece, I'm so glad you like it and understood what I was trying to portray here
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that was really beautiful! And the art was fantastic!
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Sorry for the late reply otl T_T
Thank you so much for the comment asheiya <33333
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Haha that's totally fine
and no problem C:
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Beautiful pictures, beautiful words. It's perfect.
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Thank you so much for the kind words!
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Holy crap... that's so awesome! Dude, I wanna cry out of happiness
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Thank youuuuuuu 
I'm very glad that the tears of suffering that I shed while creating this piece made you cry tears of happiness /shot
XD
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It's like in that Critique, Where the poetry comes from a third person point of view, I read all the lines in Naruto's voice because it seems like something he would say to Sasuke making it just a bit deeper in the whole. Great work. love it
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Thank you! Glad you love it <3
To be honest I never thought of having any character from the Naruto-verse saying this poetry to Sasuke (I guess I wanted it to be as objective as possible from the relationships in Sasuke's life), but each to their own! Some might even read it in Itachi's voice XD
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Awww, thank you! Glad you liked it well enough to be moved by it
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Such a strikingly beautiful and emotional way to show Sasuke's journey. I love that the words are being spoken to Sasuke. It makes it feel like he's been understood - all of his emotions and actions have been understood by someone who cares about him, and that makes it feel like he's not alone.
I love the use of color... how it starts out in the darkness of black and white... the pain of the truth after Itachi's death... and his tears lead to just a little bit of color for the brothers' embrace with Sasuke's anger and Itachi's sorrow so evident. Then the red is so striking with "This whole journey of yours has been an expression of love" - I see the sharingan, and Tobirama's reveal about the depth of Uchiha love. And then the brighter, softer colors lead us to the present, and the beautiful panel of Sasuke. So hopeful looking with the sun breaking through the clouds, and the doves - no doubt a symbol of coming to peace with himself. And although the sun is still at his back, the final words give us the most hope of all. "And live the life they never had a chance to" If Sasuke can make some peace in his heart, and with the world, and if he can allow himself to live, then all of the pain he has suffered can be turned into a desire to live that life that his family, and his clan never had the chance to. And really, what better kind of ending can we hope for him?
gah, hope I didn't babble too much, but this is so expressive, and so beautifully drawn. It's an emotional journey from darkness to light right along with Sasuke, and your drawings make us not only see it, but feel it right along with him.
Beautiful, beautiful... thank you so much for sharing this! 
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Zhusannaaaaaaa I love love love your thoughts on this piece, thank you so much for sharing them with me! If dA had a like button or any of the sort I would like your comment a hundred times over XD
Uhhhhhh I love how you described Sasuke as being spoken to!! I admit I never really thought about it that way while painting this though XD But you are right - I feel it is important for someone to understand Sasuke, and I'm glad that there are quite a few in the Naruto-verse that understands him now
I aimed for the panel "This whole journey of yours has been an expression of love" to be a major turning (yet connecting) point of this piece - 'love' is the connection between all that Sasuke has done before, and it is what will lead him to in the end. Like Tobirama said, the Uchiha treasures love more than anything else, and this manifests as the sharingan. The red on the panel signifies the sharingan and a heart - a human heart full and bursting of love, on the surface it might manifest differently, but on the inside it is just a mash of pure, pure emotions (and thus the next panel "This love" with a pinkish colour scheme).
It's ok to babble I just wanna argh LET ME HUG YOU FOR BEING SO GLORIOUS. I don't think this is a good enough reply that is up to par with your comment, but thank you SO MUCH
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Thank you!
I'm glad you like the poem! It took me days to find the right words to express what I wanted to XD
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This is beautiful. And the coloring and the sky in the last image is just perfect! ;_;
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Thank youuuuuuuu :3 I love painting skies <3
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O_O WOW
This is wonderful ok
I'll write a critique later, but just saying!
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FIFI I READ THE CRITIQUE *______*
Will respond properly to your critique once I digest it fully. It was so wonderfully written, I feel I have to give an equally eloquent and sophisticated reply to it.
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I don't have words for this ... It's very deep x3
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AND then sasuke became Hokage...
but jokes aside...thats really deep!
hopefully sasuke doesnt loose his way...it might have been much more different than narutos but if he hadnt done what he did he would never have gotten all the strength ..and experience of life he needed to find himself and his way of ninja.
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True true - you explained it better. It is all the stuff (bad and good) that Sasuke has done so far that will lead him to his final destination. All he has done is not in vain.
Thank you for the comment :3
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