By: Chibibuni
Perhaps Setsuna/Sailor Pluto's deepest relationship is with Chibi-Usa. These two characters share a special bond with each other that can never be broken.
First of all, Chibi-Usa's friendship with Puu is different from her relationships with the other senshi. For instance, with Usagi, at times it's more of a sister friendship due to the fac that Usagi is not "the same person" as Neo Queen Serenity; thus, she can't see her as her mother. However, Mamoru treats her with the same love and concern as King Endymion, she can see him as her father. (Also, she falls "in love" with him the same way most little girls do when they're about her age. They believe that their fathers are perfect and "fall in love" with them). Also, her relationship with Hotaru is more of someone who is the same age and can experience the same emotions and interests of a young girl. Although Hotaru and Chibi-Usa can be considered best friends, her relationship with Puu is much more special.
Setsuna's relationships, for the most part, are seen with the senshi as very friendly. She serves her Queen and King with such love and loyalty that she would do anything to protect them. As for her other relationships, such as that with Michiru and Haruka, although not as close to the two, she is still considered a friend to them.
After looking at Chibi-Usa and Setsuna's relationships with others, we can see the closeness and the bond the two share a little more closely.
First of all, the two share something in common. Solitude. When we first meet Pluto (Volume 5, Act 18, we find out that she is the Guardian of the Gates of Time. Therefore, she leads a lonely life with hardly any human interaction. The only visits she receives are from the Queen, King, and Chibi-Usa. Although Chibi-Usa does have a family and lots of interaction with others, she is still alienated from others outside of the Crystal Palace, due to the fact that none of the children believe that she is the real daughter of Neo-Queen Serenity and King Endymion and rightful heir to the throne. She is mocked and outcasted from the other children. Besides her family and the senshi, she has no real friends of her own. What brings Pluto and Chibi-Usa together is a common link of loneliness.
Another way to look into their relationship is through their first encounter. (please see Volume 6, Act 20 for the entire scene). Small Lady runs to the forbidden part of the palace after being severly mistreated by the other kids. There, she is able to open the door at the end of the hall to reveal Sailor Pluto. Sailor Pluto cheers Chibi-Usa up almost instantaneously. Sailor Pluto was the first one, besides the King and Queen, to acknowledge that Chibi-Usa does look like the Queen and will grow up to be a beautiful lady. Because of Pluto's remark, Chibi-Usa is delighted to finally find someone that actually believes her. She feels that Sailor Pluto is her only friend. In fact, Pluto uses the Luna P Ball as part of a little magic trick to cheer her up. Since Pluto always manages to make her smile, she frequently visits her friend, whom she has affectionately nicknamed, "Puu".
Another important part of their friendship is the "death" of Black Lady (Volume 7, act 23). In order to stop Prince Diamond from fusing the two crystals together to create chaos, Sailor Pluto breaks the biggest Taboo - Stopping Time. Because she broke it, she must pay the price. Her very last thoughts were of Chibi Usa.
"I'm sorry I couldn't protect Small Lady..."
Pluto is apologizing to the king because as her friend, she wasn't able to prevent her from becoming the wicked Black Lady. Because of Pluto's death, Black Lady was finally able to realize who she really is and was able to morph into a sailor senshi. However:
"I finally morphed... But I don't care! Open your eyes! Pluto!"
Chibi-Usa was able to become something that she wanted to be, but, it doesn't matter anymore because her dear friend is gone and she isn't able to come back (at this point). This is just one scene that shows the power of their friendship.
Pluto's friendship to Chibi-Usa, to me, is quite motherly. However, I believe that they have more of a friendship than one similar to a mother-daughter. To me, Pluto is more of a confident to Chibi-Usa. She's there for Chibi-Usa to talk about things that perhaps she can't tell her parents. More importantly, they understand each other. Pluto is the first friend that Chibi-Usa ever made by herself. They have a friendhip that can last beyond a life time.
In conclusion, I believe that Chibi-Usa and Sailor Pluto's friendship is the strongest of all. Both had a life of solitude until they met each other and became instantaneous friends.
