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Canon: Naruto
Character: Sai
Timeline: Manga Chapter 488/Naruto Shippuden episode 217, Team Kakashi return to Konoha after their encounter with Sasuke in the Land of Iron.
Personality:
When he was first introduced, the most noticeable part of Sai's personality was that he appeared to have none. The result of ROOT training, Sai had forsaken emotions. it is assumed that this type of training made it easier for ROOT members to accomplish many dangerous or unethical missions that the organization took part in.
He is very submissive and loyal to his superiors, in particular Danzou. Although, later on he begins to question things instead of blindly following orders, such as asking what Danzou's intentions towards Naruto are and even defies an order at the request of Kakashi.
Sai has trouble understanding other peoples' bonds. When they first met, he constantly questioned Naruto's feelings for Sasuke, unable to understand why he wishes to save someone who had betrayed their village and tried to kill him. After spending time with Team Kakashi, not only does Sai begin to appreciate the relationships that people form with each other, but he begins to remember his own with Shin, the one person whom he had shared an important bond with.
Wanting to experience and form bonds of his own, when he is not painting Sai is often seen spending his free time reading books in order to help him interact with people better; yet due to his lack of social experience he is unable to tell the difference between what would be considered honest and what is rude. Combined with his apparent lack of comprehension in regards to personal space, Sai often makes people angry without understanding why. On one such time, he had read that giving people nicknames, a name based on a trait or characteristic of the person, could help to improve their friendship. However, after calling Sakura "ugly" and being stopped from calling Chouji "fat ass" he realizes that the process is much harder than it seems.
During this time with Team Kakashi, Sai has begun to develop a genuine, thoughtful personality and at times has exhibited genuine emotions such as happiness, nervousness and even recognized his own anger felt towards Sasuke. He has also begun to understand the relationships of others, telling Sakura that he recognized that Naruto loves her.
Leaving his occupation as a ninja aside, Sai is an artist, claiming to have drawn thousands of pictures. It was through his art that he first bonded with Shin, who encouraged him. Although his lack of emotion rendered him incapable of naming any of his creations, the fact that he continued to draw in his free time could hint that not all of his personality had been eradicated.
Overall, Sai has grown into a loyal person who cares for his team mates, always trying to do the right thing, even if his methods leave something to be desired.
Background:
Orphaned at a young age, Sai was recruited into ROOT, a secretive branch of Konoha's ANBU that follow the orders of Danzou and not the Hokage. Becoming a Chuunin at aged 10, he now possesses an ANBU rank.
When Sai is first introduced, he is shown to have no emotions or personality, due to his ROOT training. He refers to himself as merely a tool for Danzou-sama, he does not exist. He has no identity, even the name "Sai" is nothing but a codename given to him for his mission with Team Kakashi.
It was in Root that he met an older boy named Shin. The two of them became close and Sai looked up to him like an older brother. Unfortunately, unknown to him, this was all a part of ROOT's training. In a final step towards eradicating emotions, they let their members grow up and train together, forming such close bonds that they look upon each other as brothers, only to have them fight each other to the death in a method mirroring the former graduation test of the Hidden Mist village. Sai would have been destined to fight Shin, but before this could happen, his elder brother died from illness. Even though they did not fight, Shin's death still had the same effect on Sai, causing him to suppress any feelings or emotions he still carried.
Sai was assigned to Team Kakashi by Danzou, a replacement for Uchiha Sasuke, he accompanies Naruto, Sakura and Yamato on their mission to capture Sasori's spy. From the beginning he did not get along well with his team mates, insulting both Naruto and Sakura. After insulting Sasuke and calling him a traitor, however, Sakura punches him. Referring to the fake smile she wore before hitting him, Sai states that he did not know it could be used in such a way. Telling his team that "A smile can get you out of a tough situation, even if it is fake", Sai is often seeing wearing one, although it is false.
The meeting of Sasori's spy turned out to be a trap and a fight breaks out between the team and Orochimaru, along with his assistant Kabuto. It is here that it becomes obvious that Sai has some sort of hidden agenda. Following Orochimaru he ignores his teammates, not even stopping to rescue an unconscious Sakura falling from the broken bridge.
Once the fight is over, Sai approached Orochimaru, informing him that he had been sent on behalf of Danzou, who wishes to form an alliance. Soon after, he leaves with Orochimaru and Kabuto, following them to their hideout with his team members in pursuit.
Once alone in the hideout, it is here that we learn of Sai's true intentions- joining team Kakashi and even the alliance with Orochimaru had been covers for his true mission, the assassination of Uchiha Sasuke. Before he is able to do anything he is captured by Team Kakashi, revealing to them only that he had been sent to join forces with Orochimaru on behalf of Danzou.
Confirming that Sasuke was present in the hideout, Sai once again asks Naruto why he still cared for Sasuke. The subject had been brought up several times on their travel, Sai did not understand why they would still consider someone who had hurt them and betrayed their village, a friend.
Naruto answered him, saying that he used to hate Sasuke, but he was someone who he was finally able to form a bond with. This leaves Sai unable to answer, a look of genuine surprise on his face. Before the conversation can continue, Kabuto appears and frees Sai of his restraints, yet in a surprising move, Sai turns on him, expressing his wish to stay with Naruto in order to learn more about bonds, in particular their one with Sasuke.
The team split up and Sai searches for Sasuke with Naruto. After they talk, Sai tells him that he reminds me of his brother, Shin, and he pulls out his most prized possession- a picture book- and is able to complete the final picture. Intended as a gift for Shin, Sai found himself unable to complete it following his brother's death but his time with Naruto had begun to stir emotions within him, for the first time we see a genuine smile on Sai's face.
The group soon encounters Sasuke and when asked about his secret mission, Sai tells his team that he no longer wishes to follow orders and kill Sasuke, instead wanting to protect and learn from Naruto's bond with Sasuke. A fight occurs but Sasuke defeats them, leaving with Orochimaru soon after.
Upon their return to Konoha, Sai asks Danzou if he can remain on Team Kakashi a little longer. His request accepted, Sai continues to work with the team, trying his best to befriend them and their classmates as they continue completing missions together, including the defeat of two Akatsuki members, Hidan and Kakuzu, as well as the failed attempt at locating and capturing Uchiha Itachi.
Aside from being present in the Hokage's office when news is given of Jiraiya's death, Sai is not seen again until Pein's invasion of Konoha. Instead of being in the village, Sai is with Anko and Yamato in an unknown location, tracking Kabuto.
After Pein is defeated, Danzou is named as the next Hokage and commands Sai to keep an eye on Naruto and to report to him. Soon after he is confronted by Naruto and Sakura, who ask him to give them information on Danzou. They get angry when he refuses, but Sai calmly informs them that he cannot, showing them a cursed seal placed on his tongue. Explaining that ROOT has taken on many questionable missions in the interests of protecting Konoha, he goes on to say that all members have a similar seal. If he were to give out information on ROOT of Danzou himself, the cursed mark would render him paralyzed and unable to speak.
His teammates then inform him that Danzou had ordered for Sasuke to be killed. Sai is surprised since Danzou did not mention this in their meeting. Before they can continue the conversation, they are confronted by two Ninja from the Hidden Cloud village, requesting information on Sasuke, who was apparently now a member of Akatsuki. Asking Sai and Sakura to leave, Naruto volunteers to tell them what they wish to know, but once he realizes that he cannot betray Sasuke to them, he offers to let them beat him up. Sai secretly watches from behind a tree, stepping in once the violence becomes too much.
Taking the injured Naruto to Kakashi and Yamato, the two of them decide to take Naruto to the Land of Iron to meet with the Raikage. Kakashi assumes that Danzou must have ordered Sai to report Naruto's actions to him and asks him to defy those orders by not mentioning that Naruto was leaving the village, to which Sai complies.
Once they have left, Sai speaks with Sakura. He tells her that Naruto let himself get beaten up for Sasuke's sake, and that he did not wish to worry her. It is here that for the first time Sai displays some true emotions, raising his voice to tell her that even he can see that Naruto is in love with her. He explains that he does not know what promise Naruto had made to her in the past, but comparing it to the cursed mark placed on him he tells her that she and Sasuke are both causes of Naruto's pain.
Determined to speak with Naruto, Sakura leaves for the Land of Iron along with Sai and two other Konoha ninjas, Kiba and Lee. However, upon meeting with Naruto, Sakura's discussion with him does not go as planned and she walks away, commanding her group to follow as she calls out to Naruto to say they are returning home. Sai, however, leaves an Ink Clone behind in order to tell Naruto, Kakashi and Yamato the truth. He tells them of the discussion that took place between their classmates back in Konoha, all of them coming to an agreement that Sasuke must be dealt with as a criminal and that Konoha will kill him. He also tells them that Sakura's speech was a lie; neither is she returning home but instead, seeking out Sasuke in order to try and kill him herself. The Ink Clone leads Kakashi to Sakura's location but it is dispersed before they arrive, due to Sakura using a smoke bomb to knock out her team, including Sai's original body.
Woken up after Team Seven's encounter with Sasuke, Sai confirms that the seal is gone from his tongue, proof that Danzou was dead. Once they return to the village they are approached by a group of ROOT members. Confirming Danzou's death, Sai suggests that they talk to Kakashi, the assumed new Hokage, about the future of ROOT.
This is the canon point I will be taking Sai from.
Abilities/Additional Notes:
Sai has been shown to be proficient in combat. He was easily able to block the attacks of both Naruto and Sasuke, who even commented on him blocking his attacking the correct way. He manages to subdue Kabuto quickly as well as capture Captain Yamato during their training session. He is also capable of using the Body Flicker Technique.
Although he has not been shown using it in battle, since Sai carries a tanto with his ROOT uniform it is assumed that he is skilled in using it also.
Ink Techniques
The majority of Sai’s ninja abilities come from his ink techniques, known as “Super Beast Imitation Drawing”. Infusing chakra with ink and drawing images on to scrolls, with a quick hand seal he is able to bring them to life. This has a range of different uses; giant or lion-like creatures for attack which become life-sized once animated, birds for transport, snakes to bind people and mice to search an area.
They can also be used for communication- upon writing words on a scroll; Sai can change them into a small animal, usually a bird, which then transports itself to the recipient’s location. In more recent chapters, he was shown drawing exploding tags on birds, which were then used to bombard an enemy.
As well as all of these, the technique can also be used to create inanimate objects- Sai is once shown creating an umbrella to shield him from the rain.
It was noted by Kakashi that Sai also had training in sealing techniques, something that was seen in the manga recently. Drawing a tiger on a large scroll, upon animation it was shown to grab one of the Mist Swordsmen, dragging them back into the scroll and thus sealing them within the painting.
Sai is a highly capable ninja, who Danzou considered to be the strongest member of his generation.
Character: Sai
Timeline: Manga Chapter 488/Naruto Shippuden episode 217, Team Kakashi return to Konoha after their encounter with Sasuke in the Land of Iron.
Personality:
When he was first introduced, the most noticeable part of Sai's personality was that he appeared to have none. The result of ROOT training, Sai had forsaken emotions. it is assumed that this type of training made it easier for ROOT members to accomplish many dangerous or unethical missions that the organization took part in.
He is very submissive and loyal to his superiors, in particular Danzou. Although, later on he begins to question things instead of blindly following orders, such as asking what Danzou's intentions towards Naruto are and even defies an order at the request of Kakashi.
Sai has trouble understanding other peoples' bonds. When they first met, he constantly questioned Naruto's feelings for Sasuke, unable to understand why he wishes to save someone who had betrayed their village and tried to kill him. After spending time with Team Kakashi, not only does Sai begin to appreciate the relationships that people form with each other, but he begins to remember his own with Shin, the one person whom he had shared an important bond with.
Wanting to experience and form bonds of his own, when he is not painting Sai is often seen spending his free time reading books in order to help him interact with people better; yet due to his lack of social experience he is unable to tell the difference between what would be considered honest and what is rude. Combined with his apparent lack of comprehension in regards to personal space, Sai often makes people angry without understanding why. On one such time, he had read that giving people nicknames, a name based on a trait or characteristic of the person, could help to improve their friendship. However, after calling Sakura "ugly" and being stopped from calling Chouji "fat ass" he realizes that the process is much harder than it seems.
During this time with Team Kakashi, Sai has begun to develop a genuine, thoughtful personality and at times has exhibited genuine emotions such as happiness, nervousness and even recognized his own anger felt towards Sasuke. He has also begun to understand the relationships of others, telling Sakura that he recognized that Naruto loves her.
Leaving his occupation as a ninja aside, Sai is an artist, claiming to have drawn thousands of pictures. It was through his art that he first bonded with Shin, who encouraged him. Although his lack of emotion rendered him incapable of naming any of his creations, the fact that he continued to draw in his free time could hint that not all of his personality had been eradicated.
Overall, Sai has grown into a loyal person who cares for his team mates, always trying to do the right thing, even if his methods leave something to be desired.
Background:
Orphaned at a young age, Sai was recruited into ROOT, a secretive branch of Konoha's ANBU that follow the orders of Danzou and not the Hokage. Becoming a Chuunin at aged 10, he now possesses an ANBU rank.
When Sai is first introduced, he is shown to have no emotions or personality, due to his ROOT training. He refers to himself as merely a tool for Danzou-sama, he does not exist. He has no identity, even the name "Sai" is nothing but a codename given to him for his mission with Team Kakashi.
It was in Root that he met an older boy named Shin. The two of them became close and Sai looked up to him like an older brother. Unfortunately, unknown to him, this was all a part of ROOT's training. In a final step towards eradicating emotions, they let their members grow up and train together, forming such close bonds that they look upon each other as brothers, only to have them fight each other to the death in a method mirroring the former graduation test of the Hidden Mist village. Sai would have been destined to fight Shin, but before this could happen, his elder brother died from illness. Even though they did not fight, Shin's death still had the same effect on Sai, causing him to suppress any feelings or emotions he still carried.
Sai was assigned to Team Kakashi by Danzou, a replacement for Uchiha Sasuke, he accompanies Naruto, Sakura and Yamato on their mission to capture Sasori's spy. From the beginning he did not get along well with his team mates, insulting both Naruto and Sakura. After insulting Sasuke and calling him a traitor, however, Sakura punches him. Referring to the fake smile she wore before hitting him, Sai states that he did not know it could be used in such a way. Telling his team that "A smile can get you out of a tough situation, even if it is fake", Sai is often seeing wearing one, although it is false.
The meeting of Sasori's spy turned out to be a trap and a fight breaks out between the team and Orochimaru, along with his assistant Kabuto. It is here that it becomes obvious that Sai has some sort of hidden agenda. Following Orochimaru he ignores his teammates, not even stopping to rescue an unconscious Sakura falling from the broken bridge.
Once the fight is over, Sai approached Orochimaru, informing him that he had been sent on behalf of Danzou, who wishes to form an alliance. Soon after, he leaves with Orochimaru and Kabuto, following them to their hideout with his team members in pursuit.
Once alone in the hideout, it is here that we learn of Sai's true intentions- joining team Kakashi and even the alliance with Orochimaru had been covers for his true mission, the assassination of Uchiha Sasuke. Before he is able to do anything he is captured by Team Kakashi, revealing to them only that he had been sent to join forces with Orochimaru on behalf of Danzou.
Confirming that Sasuke was present in the hideout, Sai once again asks Naruto why he still cared for Sasuke. The subject had been brought up several times on their travel, Sai did not understand why they would still consider someone who had hurt them and betrayed their village, a friend.
Naruto answered him, saying that he used to hate Sasuke, but he was someone who he was finally able to form a bond with. This leaves Sai unable to answer, a look of genuine surprise on his face. Before the conversation can continue, Kabuto appears and frees Sai of his restraints, yet in a surprising move, Sai turns on him, expressing his wish to stay with Naruto in order to learn more about bonds, in particular their one with Sasuke.
The team split up and Sai searches for Sasuke with Naruto. After they talk, Sai tells him that he reminds me of his brother, Shin, and he pulls out his most prized possession- a picture book- and is able to complete the final picture. Intended as a gift for Shin, Sai found himself unable to complete it following his brother's death but his time with Naruto had begun to stir emotions within him, for the first time we see a genuine smile on Sai's face.
The group soon encounters Sasuke and when asked about his secret mission, Sai tells his team that he no longer wishes to follow orders and kill Sasuke, instead wanting to protect and learn from Naruto's bond with Sasuke. A fight occurs but Sasuke defeats them, leaving with Orochimaru soon after.
Upon their return to Konoha, Sai asks Danzou if he can remain on Team Kakashi a little longer. His request accepted, Sai continues to work with the team, trying his best to befriend them and their classmates as they continue completing missions together, including the defeat of two Akatsuki members, Hidan and Kakuzu, as well as the failed attempt at locating and capturing Uchiha Itachi.
Aside from being present in the Hokage's office when news is given of Jiraiya's death, Sai is not seen again until Pein's invasion of Konoha. Instead of being in the village, Sai is with Anko and Yamato in an unknown location, tracking Kabuto.
After Pein is defeated, Danzou is named as the next Hokage and commands Sai to keep an eye on Naruto and to report to him. Soon after he is confronted by Naruto and Sakura, who ask him to give them information on Danzou. They get angry when he refuses, but Sai calmly informs them that he cannot, showing them a cursed seal placed on his tongue. Explaining that ROOT has taken on many questionable missions in the interests of protecting Konoha, he goes on to say that all members have a similar seal. If he were to give out information on ROOT of Danzou himself, the cursed mark would render him paralyzed and unable to speak.
His teammates then inform him that Danzou had ordered for Sasuke to be killed. Sai is surprised since Danzou did not mention this in their meeting. Before they can continue the conversation, they are confronted by two Ninja from the Hidden Cloud village, requesting information on Sasuke, who was apparently now a member of Akatsuki. Asking Sai and Sakura to leave, Naruto volunteers to tell them what they wish to know, but once he realizes that he cannot betray Sasuke to them, he offers to let them beat him up. Sai secretly watches from behind a tree, stepping in once the violence becomes too much.
Taking the injured Naruto to Kakashi and Yamato, the two of them decide to take Naruto to the Land of Iron to meet with the Raikage. Kakashi assumes that Danzou must have ordered Sai to report Naruto's actions to him and asks him to defy those orders by not mentioning that Naruto was leaving the village, to which Sai complies.
Once they have left, Sai speaks with Sakura. He tells her that Naruto let himself get beaten up for Sasuke's sake, and that he did not wish to worry her. It is here that for the first time Sai displays some true emotions, raising his voice to tell her that even he can see that Naruto is in love with her. He explains that he does not know what promise Naruto had made to her in the past, but comparing it to the cursed mark placed on him he tells her that she and Sasuke are both causes of Naruto's pain.
Determined to speak with Naruto, Sakura leaves for the Land of Iron along with Sai and two other Konoha ninjas, Kiba and Lee. However, upon meeting with Naruto, Sakura's discussion with him does not go as planned and she walks away, commanding her group to follow as she calls out to Naruto to say they are returning home. Sai, however, leaves an Ink Clone behind in order to tell Naruto, Kakashi and Yamato the truth. He tells them of the discussion that took place between their classmates back in Konoha, all of them coming to an agreement that Sasuke must be dealt with as a criminal and that Konoha will kill him. He also tells them that Sakura's speech was a lie; neither is she returning home but instead, seeking out Sasuke in order to try and kill him herself. The Ink Clone leads Kakashi to Sakura's location but it is dispersed before they arrive, due to Sakura using a smoke bomb to knock out her team, including Sai's original body.
Woken up after Team Seven's encounter with Sasuke, Sai confirms that the seal is gone from his tongue, proof that Danzou was dead. Once they return to the village they are approached by a group of ROOT members. Confirming Danzou's death, Sai suggests that they talk to Kakashi, the assumed new Hokage, about the future of ROOT.
This is the canon point I will be taking Sai from.
Abilities/Additional Notes:
Sai has been shown to be proficient in combat. He was easily able to block the attacks of both Naruto and Sasuke, who even commented on him blocking his attacking the correct way. He manages to subdue Kabuto quickly as well as capture Captain Yamato during their training session. He is also capable of using the Body Flicker Technique.
Although he has not been shown using it in battle, since Sai carries a tanto with his ROOT uniform it is assumed that he is skilled in using it also.
Ink Techniques
The majority of Sai’s ninja abilities come from his ink techniques, known as “Super Beast Imitation Drawing”. Infusing chakra with ink and drawing images on to scrolls, with a quick hand seal he is able to bring them to life. This has a range of different uses; giant or lion-like creatures for attack which become life-sized once animated, birds for transport, snakes to bind people and mice to search an area.
They can also be used for communication- upon writing words on a scroll; Sai can change them into a small animal, usually a bird, which then transports itself to the recipient’s location. In more recent chapters, he was shown drawing exploding tags on birds, which were then used to bombard an enemy.
As well as all of these, the technique can also be used to create inanimate objects- Sai is once shown creating an umbrella to shield him from the rain.
It was noted by Kakashi that Sai also had training in sealing techniques, something that was seen in the manga recently. Drawing a tiger on a large scroll, upon animation it was shown to grab one of the Mist Swordsmen, dragging them back into the scroll and thus sealing them within the painting.
Sai is a highly capable ninja, who Danzou considered to be the strongest member of his generation.