Athena protects Seiya

I've always found this scene absurd and ridiculous, Saori is far too stupid and passive to be kidnapped by a weak Sailver Saint.

Until recently, Saori had enjoyed torturing and humiliating Seiya and he hated her deeply. Saori had also blackmailed him by promising to find his sister Seika, the only person Seiya cares about for years.. Saori is probably the only woman Seiya truly hates and despises in the whole series, he doesn't even make faces like that against Hades and Poseidon when they threaten to destroy humanity.

Then Seiya had spent all his free time with Miho, his childhood friend, not caring at all about Saori; Miho takes care of Seiya in hospital and he is always happy with her, in fact Seiya almost goes to declare himself to MIho before leaving for the Sanctuary of Athens, a couple of episodes after this scene.

Really, how can you logically talk about the relationship between Seiya and Saori only on this scene? Are whips, blackmails and beatings a love relationship? Does the fact that seiya clearly prefers Miho's company to Saori's does it matter?