Naruto: Reborn with the Template System

Guts had always been puzzled about one thing...how Obito managed to control the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, and maintain such tight control over Kirigakure during the infamous "Bloody Mist" era.

Sure, Obito possessed a terrifying dōjutsu. But with only a single Mangekyō Sharingan, even that power should've had its limits. Controlling one Kage for a time? Maybe. But manipulating an entire hidden village for years?

It didn't quite add up.

Unless... Zetsu had been involved.

With Black Zetsu's manipulation and White Zetsu's infiltration abilities, the puzzle made much more sense.

Especially when you remembered that Black Zetsu was the will of Kaguya herself. Not strong in battle...but in control and deception? Unmatched.

Guts, hidden in the shadows, watched the chaos unfolding like a man watching a drama play out before him.

"…She's not going to die like this, right?" he muttered, lips curling slightly.

"Vapor Style: Solid Fog Jutsu!"

Once again, Terumi Mei unleashed her Boil Release technique, clouding the battlefield in a dense, corrosive fog. But this time, it wasn't for offense.

It was for escape.

The visibility dropped to less than a meter. Hidden behind the white haze, she turned and bolted, straight toward Guts's direction.

"Don't let her get away!"

Most of the Mist assassination unit were stalled by the thick mist but two figures dashed through it, tracking her path with ease.

Perception-types.

"Damn it," Terumi Mei hissed, pushing her exhausted body forward.

But her leg already wounded during the earlier ambush...suddenly gave out. Blood burst from beneath her torn fishnet leggings like a faucet. She stumbled.

Behind her, the two pursuing Jōnin moved in sync, hands flashing through hand signs.

"Ninja Art: Water Style – Water Gun!"

"Earth Style – Earth Spikes!"

Terumi Mei bit her lip and raised trembling hands for a jutsu. "Water Style—!"

But before she could finish, her arm throbbed, ripped open from the earlier gash. Her fingers faltered, chakra slipping.

The dual attacks closed in.

And in that moment, just as despair flickered in her eyes...

Boom!

A flash of white cut through the mist like a divine blade.

Before she could even process it, someone had appeared in front of her. A foot raised...then slammed down with monstrous force.

BOOOOM!!!

The ground split with a roar, fracturing like glass under a hammer. The earth exploded outward in a storm of shattered rock and dust. The resulting shockwave blasted through the terrain, scattering debris and chakra alike.

The twin ninjutsu attacks were instantly torn apart...shattered mid-flight.

Even the corrosive mist she had created moments earlier was blown away by the hurricane-force wind.

"Nani!?" one of the assassins gasped, his voice lost in the maelstrom.

Terumi Mei, still kneeling from the pain, looked up.

The ground around her was unrecognizable, a battlefield turned wasteland. Shattered stones, collapsed trees, and crushed earth spread out for hundreds of meters.

Amid the dust and chaos, the silhouettes of the Mist assassins could still be seen...some barely standing, others collapsed.

And at the center of it all stood a man.

His white cloak flapped behind him. His presence dominated the field.

Terumi Mei's mouth went dry. Her voice trembled. "…What kind of power…?"

Then, he turned slightly. Just enough for her to catch a glimpse of his face.

Her eyes widened in shock.

"Y-You… it's you!"

She recognized him instantly.

She hadn't seen him in person back then, but everyone in Kirigakure knew the story. The man who killed the Third Mizukage. A ghost who haunted the Bloody Mist's nightmares.

At the time, she'd just been a Genin, too young for the battlefield but she never forgot that name.

Guts.

[System Notification: Mist Shinobi Assassination Unit – Template Character: Monkey D. Garp – Completion Rate: 91.86%]

"Tch." Guts frowned. "That's it? Ten Jōnin wiped out and I don't even get half a percent?"

He scowled at the floating interface only he could see. Sure, leveling progress slowed as he advanced, but still… This slow?

Apparently, unless he defeated top-tier Kage-level opponents or made major plot-defining moves, growth would be excruciatingly slow.

But just then...

[Special Achievement Registered – Failing Revolutionary: Terumi Mei – Template Character: Monkey D. Garp – Completion Rate: 93.12%]

"Well, that's something."

Guts turned toward Mei and held out a hand. "Hey. You okay?"

She blinked, dazed for a second. "I… Yeah. Thank you."

She reached for his hand but the moment she tried to stand, her legs buckled. Her body gave in to the blood loss.

Thud.

She nearly collapsed but Guts had already caught her.

"You're in worse shape than I thought," he said, glancing at her wounds. Without hesitation, he lifted her into a princess carry.

Terumi Mei's face flushed. "…W-Wait, what are you doing?"

"You're injured," he replied simply. "No use pretending otherwise."

As he held her, a warm wetness stained his left hand.

Still bleeding.

"We need to treat your wounds first," Guts said. "I don't know any medical jutsu and unfortunately, neither does the person I brought with me."

"Guts!!"

Speak of the devil.

Anko came running toward them, expression unreadable.

Guts didn't flinch. But he definitely noticed the twitch in her brow when she saw him holding Mei.

"With you, it's always something, isn't it?" she said with a sigh, forcing a smile.

She wasn't the jealous type. Not outwardly. But still...after what had happened between them just last night, seeing him cradle another woman like this was…

Impossible to ignore.

If Guts had a clue what she was thinking, he might've teased her with one of his trademark "thrusts of love."

Instead, he stayed focused. "We need to get her somewhere safe. Somewhere she can heal. There's no one here who can patch her up."

"Right," Anko nodded, walking beside him.

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