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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At the end of the Third Ninja War, Kirigakure did intervene.

In the frontlines, Rin was captured and turned into a vessel for the Three Tails.

Behind the scenes, Might Guy's team clashed with the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.

It was then that Might Duy opened the Eighth Gate, the Gate of Death, to save them.

Whether the latter was part of Madara Uchiha's plan is uncertain, but the former definitely was.

And now, Mist Shinobi had suddenly launched an attack on Konoha. It was highly likely that Madara was pulling the strings again.

Might Duy and Kakashi were probably in danger.

Guts had thought about heading south with Namikaze Minato to reinforce the battlefield.

But Sarutobi Hiruzen had already pulled nearly half their forces away. Morale was also shaky after the Mist's unexpected ambush.

Tsunade herself was caught in a precarious position.

After some thought, Guts made a decision: he would stay to protect Tsunade first.

(PS: Hoes before bros.)

The best-case scenario would be to end this battle quickly, then rush south.

After all, Might Duy was the one who had taught him the Eight Inner Gates.

The man was kind to him. Guts genuinely didn't want him to die.

Fortunately, Guts had inquired about Anko and Kurenai earlier and learned that neither had been sent to the battlefield.

Their strength and experience weren't deemed sufficient yet.

Strangely enough, that felt like a blessing.

Jiraiya and Minato had already taken a considerable number of ninja reinforcements and supplies south.

That evening, Tsunade entered the tent with a simple meal, rice soup with sides, only to find Guts not deep in thought on the floor as usual.

He was meditating, though in reality, he was training inside his virtual space.

"What's the matter?"

Tsunade asked, setting the tray down.

"Still thinking about the southern front?"

"If I weren't so worried about you, I would've gone with them," Guts replied bluntly.

Then, without warning, he reached for her hand and pulled her into his arms.

Tsunade was momentarily stunned. It was the first time he'd ever acted so boldly.

She instinctively tried to pull away, but his arms were firm, locking her in place.

"H-Hey! Who told you to worry about me?"

She muttered, flustered.

"You think I'm weak or something?"

Guts loosened his grip slightly but didn't let her go.

"White Fang was stronger than you," he said calmly, looking straight into her eyes.

"And he still died because of poor decisions. I don't want you to end up the same."

Tsunade fell silent.

The mood shifted. The air between them felt heavy, but not with tension. With something else.

Guts leaned forward slowly and pressed his lips to the seal on her forehead.

Tsunade trembled slightly. His mouth moved just a bit lower, and she could feel herself losing control.

Just as they were about to kiss, Tsunade suddenly turned her head to the side, and Guts's lips brushed her cheek instead.

"T-That's enough!" she stammered, then turned and quickly fled the tent.

As she hurried away, her face flushed red, she muttered under her breath,

"What the hell am I doing with a guy younger than Nawaki... If I hadn't stopped... would we have...?"

She didn't dare finish the thought.

Guts sat there, a small grin tugging at his lips.

Compared to Kurenai's shy obedience, Tsunade was... complicated. But he liked that. He would win her over, eventually.

And when he did, he was definitely going to clap those CHEEKS hard.

Four days passed.

Onoki had finally caught wind, through intelligence reports, that Jiraiya and Minato had led a thousand ninja, originally meant to face Rock Shinobi, down south.

Now was his chance.

The entire Iwa army received the command to go all-in. After months of pressure, Onoki wanted one thing:

Victory.

"Rock Shinobi are really fired up now,"

Orochimaru said coldly, standing at the front lines.

Tsunade frowned beside him.

"Orochimaru, I still think we should go defensive. Wait for Sand Shinobi to finish their part, then launch a counterattack."

Orochimaru scoffed.

"You underestimate human nature too much, Tsunade. Sand Shinobi never put their full weight into the fight."

"They know Konoha's the main target. Do you really think they'll waste themselves smashing Rock Shinobi for us?"

Tsunade's lips tightened in irritation at his tone.

"Still," she said, "if their Kage falls, won't they retreat in chaos?"

Guts, who had been quietly listening, stepped forward with a casual smile.

"Exactly my point."

Tsunade and Orochimaru turned to look at him.

"Oh?"

Orochimaru smirked, eyes glinting with curiosity.

"Guts-kun, do you think you can take down Onoki himself? That old man won't go down easily."

"Don't get cocky just because you killed the Third Raikage," he added with a faint chuckle.

"I'm not cocky. Just being realistic," Guts replied.

"Taking out the Kage is the fastest way to end this war."

He took another step forward.

"Orochimaru-senpai, I'll need you to clear a one-on-one opening for me. Just make sure no one gets in my way."

In truth, Guts was confident he could kill Onoki if no one interfered. But on a battlefield, things were rarely so clean.

As White Fang once said, once a Kage's life is in danger, the entire village will protect him at any cost.

Killing a Kage-level opponent was no small feat.

Orochimaru tapped his chin, thinking.

"I could summon Manda to hold back their reinforcements… but he's not exactly cooperative."

"Try it," Guts said casually.

"I'm pretty good with animals."

Orochimaru gave him a long look, then nodded.

"Very well. Tsunade, fall back."

Tsunade was not on the front line this time. Her role was critical, summoning Katsuyu and tending to the wounded as quickly as possible.

With a thousand of their own sent south, Konoha's numbers had thinned dangerously.

They needed every soldier to survive.

At nearly the same moment, on opposite ends of the Konoha camp...

Orochimaru and Tsunade both bit their fingers and slammed their hands onto the ground after forming seals.

"Summoning Jutsu!"

With a massive burst of chakra and a cloud of smoke, two gigantic beasts emerged—comparable in size to the Tailed Beasts themselves.

From one cloud came Katsuyu, calm and composed.

From the other... Manda, eyes gleaming with menace.

"What the hell, Orochimaru?"

Manda growled, surveying the Konoha shinobi below.

"Did you summon me here just to feed me these weaklings?"

The snake's bloodlust rippled through the crowd. Several nearby shinobi shivered at the sheer pressure.

"I called you here to help," Orochimaru said evenly.

"Help?" Manda hissed.

"Didn't I tell you never to summon me unless there was something worthwhile? You think I won't eat you instead?"

Suddenly, a new voice cut in.

"Man, I suddenly feel like eating grilled snake meat."

Guts walked forward with a grin.

"How about it? Be a good sacrifice and satisfy my stomach."

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