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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"The First Gate—Gate of Opening… Open!"

With a surge of energy, Guts activated the Eight Inner Gates.

This was the first time Guts had opened the gates right at the beginning of a battle.

But Guts wasn't reckless, he simply didn't believe Orochimaru could hold off the massive Rock Shinobi army for long.

Their numbers were nearly double that of Konoha's forces.

If they managed to break through and reinforce Ōnoki, the chance to eliminate him would all but vanish.

He had no time for a prolonged fight.

"Second Gate—Gate of Healing, Open!"

The second gate burst open, and in the blink of an eye, Guts vanished.

Ōnoki, sensing danger, immediately weaved hand signs and manipulated floating rocks around his body as a makeshift shield.

"You think that'll help?"

Guts laughed and flashed forward, his figure a blur.

With a sharp kick, he struck the stones surrounding Ōnoki.

Crack!

The rock defense shattered like brittle tofu under his blow.

Fortunately, Ōnoki's battle instincts saved him, he leapt back the instant his shield broke, creating nearly twenty meters of distance between them.

Guts had one goal: stay close.

Ōnoki was a poor match in close combat.

His strength lay in wide-scale support, Dust Release, Heavy Rock Technique, Light-Weight Boulder Technique—powerful, but better suited for group combat than one-on-one duels.

If ninjas were split into types—combat, support, and medical, Ōnoki straddled the line between combat and support.

He could hold his own against most Kage-level shinobi, but against opponents above Kage-level?

He became a liability.

In the Fourth Great Ninja War, when Uchiha Madara appeared, Ōnoki's role was more about backing up Gaara and the Raikage, boosting morale, and supporting the front lines.

Aside from his Dust Release, his offensive options were extremely limited.

Dust Release could obliterate almost anything, true—but if you could avoid it, he was vulnerable.

And in close combat? Practically helpless.

"Damn it… without Dust Release, I've got nothing," Ōnoki muttered grimly.

Under normal circumstances, he would've retreated and regrouped with his forces.

But if he turned his back now, Guts would catch him in an instant with that terrifying speed, and strike him down.

Even flight was meaningless here.

All he could do was hold out and wait for reinforcements.

"Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!"

A beam of blinding white energy shot forth, Dust Release had finally arrived.

But for Guts, now operating beyond Kage-level with the Inner Gates unleashed, the attack was laughably slow.

He dodged effortlessly, then clenched his fist to counterattack.

But to his surprise, Ōnoki didn't just fire once, he maintained the Dust Release, launching a barrage of continuous blasts.

"What's this, old man? You think you're Senju Hashirama?"

Guts scoffed as he weaved through the attacks like an afterimage.

"You think you can keep that up for minutes on end? At your age? You won't even last two!" (Pause)

Ōnoki gritted his teeth and said nothing, his face calm, but his body was already screaming under the strain.

Maintaining Dust Release continuously was consuming chakra at an alarming rate.

Outside the battlefield, an Iwagakure Jōnin stood beside Kitsuchi, watching with concern.

"Lord Kitsuchi," he said urgently,

"if this keeps up, Lord Tsuchikage won't last two more minutes. His chakra's burning too fast."

"I know," Kitsuchi growled.

"That's why we need to break through Konoha's defenses, now."

He clenched his left hand, molding it with chakra and clay, his fist swelling to twice its size.

"Earth Style: Fist Rock Technique!"

"Don't get cocky!"

Tsunade's voice roared across the field as she met his charge, her own fist glowing with monstrous strength.

"Super Strength Punch!"

Their fists collided, Tsunade's much smaller—but after a second's stalemate, Kitsuchi was the one sent flying.

Before he hit the ground, Roshi rushed forward and caught him.

"Thanks, Roshi-san," Kitsuchi muttered, wincing as pain radiated from his left arm.

Even through the pain, his eyes were fixed on his father, whose chakra was nearly depleted.

"Roshi-san," he said with desperation,

"Can you fully transform into the Four-Tails? My father… he can't hold on much longer."

Roshi's face froze.

"You know I can't control the Four-Tails in full transformation," he said.

"If I do that recklessly… I could lose myself completely."

A Jinchūriki without full control risked everything by transforming.

The tailed beast could seize their body and mind, and in that state, they were no longer human.

It was exactly what the Nine-Tails tried to do with Naruto in the early days, tempt him to rely on its power, just to break free.

Roshi hadn't mastered control. Full transformation was a gamble.

A deadly one.

"I know,"

Kitsuchi said, his voice heavy,

"But we're out of time."

In the distance, Ōnoki's chakra had nearly run dry. The Dust Release flickered and faded.

"You're finished, old man!"

Guts laughed wildly, his right fist glowing with Armament Haki.

He vanished, then reappeared behind Ōnoki, his punch descending like a falling star.

"Armament Haki: Falling Meteor Fist!"

Just before the punch landed, red chakra bubbles exploded around Roshi's body.

Without hesitation, he pushed past his limits, activating his cloaked tailed-beast form, and hurled himself toward Guts and Ōnoki like a blazing comet.

It happened too fast.

Not even Tsunade or Orochimaru could stop him in time.

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