Naruto: The Immortal Sage

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"Teacher, I do understand you," Kurama said, trying to comfort him.

The corner of Manji's mouth lifted into a timid smile, only for it to turn into a sigh. "No, you don't."

Kurama said nothing more and retreated into silence.

"Big Brother Manji? What are you doing here?" A young voice called out from behind.

Manji turned and saw a short-haired boy skipping over to him.

The boy looked a lot like Naruto Uzumaki. Seeing him up close, Manji finally understood why Tsunade always said Naruto reminded her of her younger brother.

'Now that I look at him, they really do resemble each other...'

Manji nodded to himself and put his smile back on.

"Nawaki, are you already out of the Academy?"

Nawaki Senju nodded excitedly, his eyes bright with excitement. "Yeah! I heard the war started. I'll graduate next year, and then I can fight with you and Big Sis Tsunade!"

The boy looked up at him, his voice laden with anticipation. Manji just shook his head.

If Manji remembered the original story right, Nawaki Senju died because of a simple explosive tag.

"Do you want to go to war that badly?" Manji asked, crouching until they were at eye level.

"No. I want peace." Nawaki immediately shook his head.

One look told Manji all he needed to know: Nawaki was lying.

Nawaki might fool others, but not Manji. If he truly wanted peace, why was he so eager to fight on the battlefield with them?

Kids always dreamed of being heroes who saved everyone. Nawaki was no different. Manji remembered that his biggest dream was to become Hokage.

But in history, no Hokage had reached that position without first going through a path filled with blood and loss.

Naruto was the best example. Without the war and Pain's attack on Konoha, he never would have become the hero who saved everyone.

If Naruto had grown up in peaceful times, he would have had to clear his name and prove to everyone he wasn't the Nine-Tailed Fox. Even then, just doing regular missions probably wouldn't have been enough to make him Hokage, no matter how hard he tried.

"Nawaki, I know part of you wants to be on the battlefield. You want to fight with us and prove yourself," Manji said gently. "But war isn't anything like you think."

"Big Brother Manji, I..."

Nawaki lowered his head, embarrassed that Manji saw through him.

"You probably think fighting in a war looks brave and impressive. But you don't realize you could be the one who dies in the next moment."

Even though people here went to the Pure Land after death, Manji still wanted to warn him. Nawaki was too young to leave before he had really seen the world or lived his life. Sending him to the Pure Land so soon would be a waste.

"Okay," Nawaki answered, staring at him in confusion.

It was clear Nawaki didn't understand how serious Manji's warning was, so Manji tried to think of an example.

"Nawaki, let me give you a strange comparison. You know dogs can't eat chocolate, right?"

"I know," Nawaki nodded.

"But if a dog sees chocolate, it still wants to eat it. Now think of people as the dogs and war as the chocolate. Do you get what I mean?"

Manji ruffled the boy's soft hair.

"Don't wish for war. Once you're on the battlefield, you could step on an explosive tag by accident. After that, you might never come home."

Manji stopped there. He'd said enough for the warning to sink in.

"Hahaha! Big Brother Manji, you're really underestimating me!" Nawaki laughed. "I've studied at the Academy for years. How could I not recognize an explosive tag?"

"Who knows?" Manji said, shrugging.

He didn't press the matter. Some lessons could never be understood without experiencing them firsthand, and Manji had already done everything he reasonably could.

He could only hope Orochimaru wouldn't find Nawaki after an explosive tag had already taken him out.

Not far away, Kushina and Mito chatted happily, their growing friendship easy to see. Manji decided not to interrupt. After giving Kurama a few quick instructions through their mental link, he slipped away quietly.

"I'm leaving."

Manji left the Senju compound and walked through Konoha's familiar streets until he reached Ichiraku Ramen. The food wasn't as good as Kakuzu's cooking, but it still had the taste he remembered.

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The peaceful days went by quickly.

A few days later, the Second Shinobi World War broke out. Konoha quickly went to war, sending unit after unit to the different fronts.

Sakumo Hatake and Manji were sent to fight in the Land of Wind. Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru went to the Land of Rain, where the fighting was the most intense.

On the desert battlefield in the Land of Wind, Sunagakure's attacks became more brutal.

Wave after wave of suicide charges hit Konoha's defenses until they almost broke.

The Sand shinobi wrapped themselves in explosive tags before charging, leaving Konoha's forces pinned down and unable to fight back effectively.

From the top of the highest dune, Manji looked down at a bloodied battlefield littered with fallen bodies.

"Those Sand boys sure have a lot of energy."

His voice showed no anger or amusement.

"That's not courage. It's just foolishness," Sakumo said, his eyes full of anger. "Sunagakure's leaders never cared about their own people's lives."

This attitude may have come from the reforms Manji made as the First Hokage. He expanded education in Konoha and raised the village's standards, creating shinobi who valued life more.

Manji gave a small nod as chakra gathered around him.

"All right. It's our turn."

Sakumo drew his White Light Chakra Sabre, the silver blade slicing through the hot air.

"Let's go, Manji!"

Both men jumped from the dune, leaving blurred trails behind. In a flash, they hit the battlefield like twin bolts of lightning, breaking Sunagakure's attack wherever they went.

Sakumo moved through the enemy ranks at blinding speed. His White Light Chakra Sabre was a silver blur, cutting down enemies and breaking armor with every swing.

Manji stopped behind him and quickly formed hand signs, moving too fast for the eye to follow.

"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"

"Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"

"Earth Style: Mud Wall!"

"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"

"Lightning Style: Electromagnetic Murder!"

The five chakra natures ripped through Sunagakure's formation, sending their shinobi running in panic. Anyone watching might have thought Hiruzen Sarutobi himself had shown up.

Manji and Sakumo worked together perfectly, one leading the front and the other attacking from afar.

Sakumo broke through the Sand formation, while Manji took out every enemy left behind with nonstop ninjutsu.

The Sunagakure attack that had almost broken Konoha's defenses fell apart before them. In minutes, the whole Sand vanguard was gone.

Konoha's morale soared, and its shinobi charged forward with a roar, starting their counterattack.

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