SasuSaku fans sometimes describe the scene when Sasuke tells Sakura that Naruto saved her from Gaara as a moment of Sasuke showing jealousy towards Naruto when he saw Sakura smiling at Naruto's noble, selfless heroism and capability as a warrior.

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Personally, I feel that such an interpretation is too simplistic. Sasuke is not the petty, jealous type. He does feel jealousy sometimes (everyone does, after all), but it's not a recurring or regular character trait of his. There is more going on in this scene than, "Sasuke is jealous of Naruto because Sakura is giving Naruto attention, so that proves that Sasuke loves Sakura because he wants her attention and feels upset when it's directed at another guy".

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Team 7 are a family, so it's not a good idea to segregate their team bonds too strictly from one another when analyzing their relationship dynamics. This rooftop scene is a Team 7 moment representing the dynamics in the team as a group, not just Sasuke and Sakura's relationship. Certainly it had heavy SasuSaku undertones (they compromise two-thirds of the trio, after all), so it heavily involves their relationship, but Naruto is an element of this scene too.

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This scene once again gives a parental vibe to Sasuke and Sakura as they stand together side-by-side, looking a bit like a couple as they observe their other two Team 7 members from a surprisingly far distance. If this was supposed to be a team meeting, Sasuke and Sakura seem more interested in hanging back for a private conversation than in engaging with their teammates.

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This scene isn't so much about "Sasuke is jealous", as it represents Sakura's and Sasuke's perceptions of recent events and how it has impacted the team.

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Let's break down this from Sakura'a angle: Sakura was unconscious for almost the entire Gaara fight. Evidently neither Naruto nor Sasuke have bothered to tell Sakura the details of the fight yet. Interesting, since one would've thought Naruto would leap upon the opportunity to brag about his competent heroism in saving Sakura Haruno from the Sand ninja (this startling omission on Naruto's part plays into Naruto's character trait of bragging about things he's bad at whilst simultaneously downplaying things he's actually good at), yet Naruto hasn't told Sakura about anything that transpired in the fight with Gaara. So Sakura makes the reasonable assumption that it was Sasuke who saved her in the Gaara fight, since Sasuke has always been the one to defend and protect Team 7 in the past. Thus Sakura thanks Sasuke for saving her life. Sasuke corrects her, telling her it was Naruto who saved her life, not him.

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Sakura initially doesn't believe it, assuming Sasuke is merely being overly modest, as Sasuke usually doesn't brag about his abilities or feats. However, Sasuke insists again that Naruto saved her and he describes how bravely Naruto fought. Sakura is surprised to hear of Naruto's driven heroism, and her focus shifts from Sasuke to Naruto. She smiles, pleasantly surprised by Naruto's unexpected bravery and heroism, since it seems unlikely that the normally bumbling, carefree, incompetent-seeming Naruto could have saved her life from such a formidable and powerful foe.

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Sakura isn't any less impressed by Sasuke's abilities or skill. Her admiration for Sasuke's power and talent hasn't wavered or decreased; it's that her affection for Naruto and perception of his strength/skill has increased. Sakura doesn't need Sasuke to be her knight in shining armor anymore. She views Sasuke as a human and a friend now, not as a trophy to be won. Therefore she isn't bothered by the fact that Naruto saved her and not Sasuke; she's actually pleased to learn that Naruto is growing as both a person (due to his selflessness in saving her) and as a warrior (due to him defeating Gaara). Sakura and Naruto's relationship takes a turn for the better as Sakura notes with pleased happiness that Naruto has matured and grown during the chunin exams, just as she herself has.

 

Now let's break down this scene from Sasuke's angle: Sasuke is upset, not because he's a jealous boyfriend who doesn't like his girl admiring another guy. Sakura and Sasuke aren't in that kind of relationship yet, and even if they were, Sasuke's never going to be the jealous boyfriend type. He's the type who respects one's freedom to choose whoever she wishes. No matter his feelings for her, he's not going to force himself on Sakura if she chooses someone else. He wouldn't feel jealous or angry, just sad and regretful and he'd fully respect Sakura's choice if that made her happy.

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What this scene is really touching on is (1) Sasuke's low self-esteem issue and (2) his need to be needed and be useful to someone. This is important, because these are the same issues that Sakura struggles with, and it's precisely because Sasuke and Sakura struggle with these same problems that makes them a good couple; they can understand each other's inner struggles with feeling unworthy and feeling like a burden to those around them.

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We see throughout the series that Sakura feels useless and hates herself when she isn't of use to others. Several times we are shown Sakura's insecurity issues as she visualizes herself as always behind Naruto and Sasuke, watching their backs from behind because she doesn't have much to contribute.

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She criticizes herself for being useless and feels down a lot for not contributing enough.

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She doesn't handle criticism well because she tends to believe it, and criticism destroys her resolve to fight against undeserved attacks on her character. It's why she felt insecure about her forehead being too big. It's why she let Kakashi hold her back from rushing to Rock Lee's side out of concern for her friend in the chunin exams semifinals. It's why she let herself be so easily manipulated by Sai into admitting that she was only a worthless burden to Naruto even though that is false. It's why she continues to downplay her skills and usefulness as a shinobi even though she is a strong shinobi.

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Anyway, we see here that Sasuke has this same problem Sakura does: he feels pathetic and useless and hates himself when he isn't of use to others; he feels like a waste of space that no one needs or wants.

The way the two process their emotions is different, but the underlying core problems remain, and it's one major connecting point that the couple has with each other. They both understand their inner struggle because it's something they both struggle with.

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To jump ahead on the timeline to another scene: Sasuke remembers this moment when he is hospitalized after Itachi's attack. That memory, paired with Itachi telling Sasuke that he "doesn't interest him at the moment", triggers Sasuke to snap at Naruto and challenge Naruto to a fight. This moment is not simply a matter of Sasuke being jealous, it's a matter of Sasuke feeling threatened by the possibility that he is unneeded and therefore expendable and unnecessary to Team 7 (his survivor's guilt and low self-esteem issues kicking in, both at once).

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Around this time of the story we see how heavily survivor's guilt is influencing Sasuke's mindset. He feels guilty that he was too weak and pathetic to save his clan and blames himself for allowing his clan to die (before the memory of the SasuSaku rooftop conversation, there is an anime scene with Sasuke sitting alone while his mental projection of his younger self accuses him of being the reason why his clan is dead).

 

Now that Sasuke has come to care about Naruto and Sakura, he is realizing that he doesn't have the strength or skill to protect them, and so he feels useless and pathetic. If Naruto has surpassed Sasuke in skill as a ninja, then Sasuke is not needed anymore. Sasuke justifies his existence solely by its use to others. If Team 7 doesn't need him, then he doesn't have a purpose. He is expendable, unnecessary, extraneous, and useless to those around him. Sasuke is unable to grapple with his pathetic uselessness, so he returns to something that makes him not useless, something that gives his life purpose and a justification for his allowance to exist in the world: revenge.

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Between Naruto being strong enough to save Sakura (when Sasuke wasn't) and between Itachi only being interested in Naruto (and not at all interested in Sasuke), Sasuke suffers a crippling blow to his self-confidence that leads to his choice to dessert. Sasuke had lost all faith in his ability as a shinobi and in his capacity to protect others. From Sasuke's perspective, Naruto has become the stronger, so why not leave the protection of Team 7 to the mischievous Uzumaki, since it appears that Naruto is better at the role of protector than Sasuke is anyway? Piled on top of this is Itachi's sudden inexplicable interest in Naruto is another stinging and crushing blow. Despite all their history together, Itachi couldn't even be bothered to take an interest in Sasuke, showing interest in another shinobi (Naruto) instead, presumably one that must be much stronger than he. Naruto is stronger; Sakura knows it, Itachi knows it, and after "losing" in the duel on the hospital rooftop, Sasuke must admit it too.

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Heartbreakingly, this leads Sasuke to some dark conclusions: Sakura has a new protector in Naruto and can admire and rely on him now (more so than she can rely on Sasuke, apparently, considering his failure to defeat Gaara). Itachi has more entertaining engagements to deal with than the weak Sasuke (despite Itachi originally having expressed interest in battling Sasuke, it appears Itachi has grown bored with him now because he no longer views Sasuke as a challenge). In short, Sasuke has been replaced by Naruto and is no longer necessary to anyone.

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Sasuke's unhappy recollection of his memories of Sakura and Itachi leads us to this revelation: his insecurity is tied tightly to all three of his closest relationships. Naruto is Sasuke's best friend, but Sasuke is dealing with the revelation that his best friend has become his replacement in his relationships with both Sakura and Itachi, the other people Sasuke is/was closest too. This becomes the basis for Sasuke lashing out (he especially takes his frustration with himself out on Naruto) and deserting the village with the hope that he will become stronger and better, and at least regain Itachi's attention. It means abandoning Team 7, but he already believed that Team 7 is better off without him since Sasuke is evidently too weak to protect them anyway, so what use is he to Sakura and Naruto if he can't even keep them safe?

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That's the level of insecurity that this rooftop scene is showing: it's not petty boyfriend jealousy of Sakura smiling at Naruto instead of him. It's a whole complex psychological response that led to his desertion. While you could label it as jealousy since Sasuke indeed settled on using Naruto as a measuring stick in terms of power and found himself lacking and was clearly upset at Naruto getting so strong so quickly while it felt like he himself was increasingly rendered helpless or defeated in battle, it is perhaps better stated as Sasuke's fear of being replaced and of having no purpose.

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Even so, this is still a nice moment of Sasuke and Sakura being honest and open with each other, as they are apparently the first (and perhaps only) members of Team 7 to discuss their experience in Orochimaru's invasion. Once again, I love the genuine and open nature of the dialogue between these two. And Sasuke's response to Sakura's pride in Naruto's ability as a warrior is no small detail either. Her influence played a big role into feeding his insecurities and her opinion of Naruto was important to Sasuke; it's plainly written in his expression.

 

Another interesting facet of this scene is how Kishimoto symbolically used this memory to connect Sasuke and Sakura. In the manga version, they are shown both mulling over the same memory, a symbolic way of referring to Kishimoto's thesis that Sasuke and Sakura's feelings are connected to each other. The memory connects them as they are both thinking of their recent interaction with each other (thus thinking of each other even when apart). The manga version sets a nice symbolic atmosphere: Sakura rests in the quiet comforts of home, serene and thoughtful.

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Meanwhile, Sasuke trains hard on the destroyed training grounds, alone in the wilderness and far from the comforts of home (home symbolically representing family), attempting to surmount and overcome his perceived weaknesses and pathetic-ness as a shinobi alone, while in a tumultuous state of mind.

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In addition to these scenes, SasuSaku fans make erroneous claims that Sasuke was jealous of Sakura's interaction with other guys such as Lee, Idate, Obito, and Kakashi. These claims are not true and actually end up weakening Sasuke and Sakura's romance by making it look worse, not better.

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We already know Sasuke cares about Sakura because of all the scenes Kishimoto used to show that Sasuke treasures his "precious comrades". Sasuke behaving like the petty jealous type would be undignified and superficial. Jealously can be romantic (such as Sasuke's justified jealously in Sasuke Retsuden when he disliked other men attempting to flirt with or harass his wife), but at this stage in Sasuke's life when he and Sakura aren't yet in a committed relationship, jealousy is selfish and wrong more than anything; there would be nothing cute or romantic about it.

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Furthermore, claiming Sasuke was jealous of Lee, Idate, Obito, and Kakashi makes Sasuke look immature and insecure in his relationship with Sakura, which actually weakens the relationship. In reality, what Sasuke felt around Sakura's attention to those other guys wasn't jealousy.

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With Lee, Sasuke was startled and shocked by Lee's abrupt profession of love. He wasn't exactly pleased by Lee's profession of love because Sasuke doesn't like random guys that neither he nor Sakura knows hitting on her purely because of her physical attraction, but he didn't feel threatened by Lee. He was stunned and startled by this unexpected development, not jealous.

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Pretty much the same deal with Idate. Sasuke wasn't fazed or bothered Idate's flirting at all. Sasuke wasn't appreciative of Idate messing with his team, but that's not because Sasuke is jealous. It's because he doesn't like cheap flirts (it's been pretty well established by this point that Sasuke doesn't like flirting). Mostly Sasuke just did what he usually does with cheap flirts: ignored them. This time the flirting was Sakura's problem, not his, so he just checked out and let Sakura handle it however she wanted. The only thing that bothered Sasuke was Idate harassing his team for essentially no reason and Idate's speed was so quick that Sasuke was unnerved by the fact that he didn't even sense it when Idate left unnoticed. Sasuke didn't appreciate the random guy hitting on his female teammate, but fans who think Sasuke was feeling threatened by Idate's advances are misinterpreting the scene just to pull out the false "Sasuke's jealous" narrative.

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The notion that Sasuke was jealous of guys like Obito and Kakashi is particularly absurd and laughably ridiculous. Kakashi and Obito were significantly older than Sakura, so do fans really think Sasuke believes Sakura has a thing for them just because she is rendering them medical aid and comradely support (which as a medical ninja, is literally job and what any ninja would be doing)? Sasuke is aware of Sakura, not jealous. He is attentive and attuned to Sakura, because Sasuke is naturally observant and perceptive and he always pays close attention to details and things occurring around him - nothing romantic about that. His glances towards Obito and Kakashi with Sakura were merely him paying attention to the action going on around him as well as assessing Obito's (and probably Kakashi's) current state, nothing more.

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It would honestly be pathetic and ridiculous if Sasuke were jealous of Obito especially, considering that Obito was a former criminal, he was dying, and none of Sakura's reactions or interactions with Obito had any romantic connotations whatsoever. Plus with the war going on, it would be completely out of character for Sasuke to be obsessing over who Sakura is interacting with when the world is about to end. Sasuke had a far more realistic and practical grasp on reality than that.

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So the claims that Sasuke was "jealous" in these scenes aren't true.

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There's nothing romantic about Sasuke being jealous anyway, despite SasuSaku fans who appear to believe otherwise. Acting petty and overprotective because other guys speak to Sakura would be a negative aspect of SasuSaku, and luckily it's an aspect of Sasuke and Sakura's relationship that doesn't exist. Sasuke respects Sakura's freedom to choose who she wishes and he doesn't mind her speaking to other guys (it would be an oppressive relationship if he did) and he's especially not threatened by moments that don't even have any romantic connotations on Sakura's part whatsoever; it would be very silly if he was.

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Sasuke likewise wasn't jealous of Naruto leaning on Sakura either - he just snippily commenting that Naruto was dragging the team down.

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One time Sasuke did perhaps seem irritated by another guy's interference was with Sasuke and Kakashi. But even that had no romantic undertones; it was an instance of Sasuke feeling annoyed that Kakashi had stolen his moment of glory in battle, as well as perhaps the opportunity to better his skills that came with hands-on experience.​

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