You know, one respect I have for Naruto is the lack of sexualization of female characters. (In the manga. The anime is slightly worse.)
Sure, there are definitely some. The Sexy Jutsu, for one. But otherwise, nobody oversexualizes the women.
Despite the fans ragging on Sakura’s body type, the manga never mentions her being flat chested. Characters mention her being beautiful, but they don’t talk about her body. Naruto might have a crush on her but unlike to many manga characters, he never objectifies her. Nor do Sasuke or Lee or any others.
Hinata’ bust size is also a subject of fascination for fans, but other than the Road to Naruto manga short, her breasts are never mentioned in the manga. They never “pop” out of her clothing or touch into something while everyone gawks and she blushes– which SO MANY MANGAS DO. She has a large bust, but nobody tries to capitalize on it.
The most sexually sculpted woman is Tsunade, and even the mentions of her breasts are limited. I think Kabuto mentions it (and not sexually, he talks about how it’s hard to get his jutsu through the fat on her chest or something clinical like that) and Jiraiya mentions it a couple times (he CAN be objectifying, but he’s one of the very few).
So, while there is some commentary on breasts and some sexualization of characters, it’s minimal which is so refreshing for a manga. The girls all have different body types, usually realistic proportions… and none of them are made to feel more or less adequate because of it.
That is one thing, I think, that Naruto really did right.
