Thoughts On Shipping Ami with Hazou: An Update
I'm not so sure that I ship Ami with Hazou, anymore. Up until EJ's Polycule chapter, I was pretty on board with the Ami/Hazou hypetrain, even if I still enjoyed the varying tones and potential narrative changes that the other ships possessed. But that specific chapter swayed me, through its wonderful interaction between Ino and Hazou. So I had a new favorite romance subplot to root for, even if still I enjoyed the idle idea of an Ami/Hazou romance, in theory. But with Velorien's most recent chapter, I'm beginning to think that Ami (as a character) is firmly in the "friendzone" for my interpretation of Hazou's character. Namely, I don't that the specific pressures and expectations inherent within romance is what Ami needs for her growth as a character.
Let's review what we know of Ami. We know that for a long time, Ami was little more than the pawn of the Mori clan elders. Then something horrible happened. Keiko was there to help Ami in some unknown capacity, but it was still traumatic enough to cause Ami to value her freedom and autonomy above all else –even her mysterious Ultimate Goal. Ami became one of the youngest Jonin in recorded history, but she'd still throw away all of her life's work if it meant that she could retain her autonomy.
We also know that Ami trained under Mari-as-the-Heartbreaker, with all that it entails; teachers and mentors often pass along far more than just their skills to their students. So Ami learned social manipulation from Mari when she was in her element and at her most effective, without the constraints of morality. Ami is also habitually mercenary in her social interactions, trading favors and viewing "friendship" as nothing more than a useful little social construct that provides her a greater degree of influence over/utility from those individuals who are "Ami's Friends."
Furthermore, we also know that Ami has very little experience with family. Whatever trauma that she went through (along with the cold behavior from her parents, the manipulative Mori clan elders, and the distrust directed at her from the wider Mist as a whole) soured Ami on the entire concept of "family." While Ami might readily assert that Keiko is the only one she considers "worthy" of being considered a "true" family member, we also have to remember that Ami hasn't really had very much interaction with Keiko. In Mist, Ami had to keep her distance from Keiko to prevent Mist's political entities from using Keiko as a tool against Ami –entities who are more similar to Hiashi Hyuuga than many of us would like to believe, who would've likely discarded Keiko once her usefulness was gone. So Ami, to be blunt, was able to love Keiko "on easy mode," as it were; Ami was able to love Keiko from a safe distance –without all the messy emotional vulnerability, stupid fights, and pointless arguments that families normally go through without that convenient distance.
Because of all this, Ami has never really had to participate in family before, even with Keiko. And now that Hazou is becoming increasingly involved in her personal life, Ami is realizing that she's out of her comfort zone, out of her area of expertise. Ami was expecting Keiko to get involved with a "nice boyfriend" that she, Ami, would then "break and reshape into a worthy husband." But Hazou-as-a-character isn't Keiko's boyfriend, he's her brother. And Hazou's not some average person that needs to be "broken and reshaped" into someone worthy of Keiko's love –familial or otherwise. No, Hazou's someone perceptive enough to see through even Ami's deceptions, given enough time. Hazou's the rare type of someone who's broad-minded enough that he also sees the fundamental flaws of the world while also being driven/optimistic enough to also work towards fixing those flaws. Hazou's intelligent enough to understand Ami's perspective, but still humble enough to set his pride and bias aside to work towards the "greater good" –even if it means that his "enemies" are uplifted, too.
For all of Hazou's character flaws –tunnel vision, overprotectiveness, impatience, etc –Keiko still considers Hazou to be family. Despite all that they've been through, and despite all of their mutual mistakes, their familial bond has endured, growing stronger for all the struggles they share. So that sibling relationship isn't likely to fade with time, or wear thin from a thousand slights –perceived and real alike –the way that many other social bonds might. So Ami is stuck with Hazou, since Ami is unwilling to sever her ties with Keiko.
Thus Ami, perhaps for the first time since her initial trauma, is truly vulnerable. She's tied to someone whom she can't break –because he's tied to someone that she simply cannot afford to lose. Ami's now tied to someone who, given enough time, sees through the pageantry and facades that Ami uses to protect herself. And Ami is deeply, deeply unsettled by it. She's tried to force Hazou's genuine friendship away, framing their interactions as just another "political transaction." But she's never actually called in those "favors" because Ami has never truly seen their interactions in that way. It was a self-imposed doublethink that she knew was a lie, even as she upheld it, because to drop it was to admit weakness –to drop it was to admit vulnerability.
Ami was prepared for Keiko getting a boyfriend, and maybe even a husband, but never a brother. And Hazou is perceptive enough to become Ami's equal –Ami's family –in truth. That scares Ami on a deeply fundamental level. And that terror, that sheer level of complete vulnerability, is not conducive towards a healthy romance. The power imbalance in such a relationship would be horrific. So I propose that we should have Hazou (eventually) become Ami's brother, rather than her romantic partner.
TL;DR: Right now, Ami needs a brother, not a partner.
