Naruto: Reborn with the Template System

Author Note:

Here's the BONUS CHAPTER as promised—thanks for the support, and let's keep this energy going!

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"Look, I know you like to stir up trouble,"

White Fang said, voice low and serious as the tent emptied, leaving just the two of them.

"But I didn't expect you to push it this far. You realize Danzo has eyes in nearly every corner of Konoha? That bastard is the hardest to deal with."

Guts leaned back in his seat, unfazed.

"No doubt. One of Danzo's spies was in that meeting."

White Fang's expression stiffened.

"How do you know?"

"I can sense emotions," Guts replied calmly.

"When I mentioned the name 'Shimura Danzo,' one of them reacted. Rage. Deep, controlled fury. Classic sign of someone who's emotionally tied to their master."

White Fang blinked, momentarily taken aback.

"I've heard your perception skills were sharp, but even reading emotions?"

Guts gave a dry smile.

"That one's a dead man walking. I'll handle it. We'll just list him as 'KIA' — killed in action. You good with that?"

There was a moment of silence.

White Fang's usual calm faded, and something colder replaced it.

"Do it."

Despite his reputation, Konoha's White Fang wasn't a saint. He simply knew when to act, and when to eliminate threats without hesitation.

Guts nodded and exited the command tent.

A few minutes later, in the shadows near the supply depot, a lone Konoha Jōnin was summoning a ninja hawk, tying a scroll to its leg for secret dispatch.

The hawk barely took off before a flash of light zipped through the air, too fast to track with the naked eye. The bird fell from the sky, pierced cleanly.

"Who's there!?" the Jōnin barked, spinning around, kunai in hand.

Guts stepped from the shadows, cracking his knuckles.

"Danzo's reach is impressive. Even the Sarutobi clan has his dogs now."

The man flinched. His name was Sarutobi Jinku, a Special Jōnin, and clearly, not a good liar.

"W-What do you mean, Lord Guts?" he stammered, sweat trickling down his face.

Despite Guts being just twelve years old, his presence was terrifying. On the battlefield, he had earned the respect, and fear...of even veteran shinobi.

"I don't feel like wasting time."

In a blink, Guts vanished.

The next instant, his Finger Pistol technique drilled through Jinku's chest, piercing his heart.

As the man collapsed with wide, shocked eyes, Guts smirked coldly.

"One less rat. Danzo will get his answer... eventually."

He yanked his finger free and gave the body a swift kick, sending it tumbling off the cliffside into the forest below.

Still no progress points? he thought, annoyed. Guess Special Jōnin aren't worth much anymore.

Later, when he returned to the command tent, White Fang didn't even look up.

"Handled?"

Guts tossed the scroll from the hawk onto the table. White Fang unrolled it, skimmed the contents, then wordlessly threw it into the candle beside him. The flame quickly consumed it.

"Danzo never forgets a slight," White Fang muttered.

"Even if you just talk against him, he'll remember it."

He glanced up. "You think he leaked intel to Iwagakure?"

"Hard to say," Guts replied.

"But I don't care. If anyone targets me, I deal with them. Simple as that."

White Fang nodded slowly.

"At this point, the Elders control nearly everything in Konoha. We'll have to tread carefully."

Guts wasn't concerned. His thoughts were elsewhere.

He didn't care for politics or the petty games of old men. Strength, that's what mattered.

Once he reached a level close to Madara or Hashirama, these little schemes would mean nothing.

He could walk through the ninja world untouchable. Danzo wouldn't even be a footnote.

If he could reach that level before the Fourth Great Ninja War, even better.

In the coming days, both White Fang and the Konoha headquarters dispatched reinforcements to the Iwagakure front.

And just when it seemed things were stabilizing, terrible news arrived.

The Battle of Kannabi Bridge had failed.

The balance that once kept the war in check was shattered.

Minato's assault unit, which had been tasked with destroying the bridge, had been ambushed.

Hundreds of Rock Shinobi surrounded them.

Namikaze Minato – seriously injured.

Uchiha Obito – deceased.

Hatake Kakashi – lost his left eye.

Nohara Rin – barely survived.

Guts stared at the report, stunned.

That battle was supposed to be the turning point. In the anime, Kannabi Bridge was a victory. But here...now it was a crushing defeat.

Why?

This wasn't just a twist of fate. Something had changed the course of history.

Worse, Konoha's position on the Iwa front was now dire. Unlike the Cloud front, where they had the advantage, this side of the war was unraveling fast.

With Minato out of commission, Sarutobi Hiruzen had no choice but to redeploy forces from other fronts.

White Fang was ordered to lead an elite reinforcement unit to the Iwa front.

And with that—

Guts was granted full command over the Cloud front.

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