Naruto: Manipulation-Chapter 131: I Am a Medical Ninja. Do You Need Help?

Inside Konoha Village.

Shigen was facing a minor inconvenience.

Black Zetsu didn't fully trust Shigen's intentions and was trying its best to speak ill of Asura in front of him, hoping Shigen would no longer be deceived.

"Alright."

"I won't believe them again."

New novel 𝓬hapters are published on ƒreewebɳovel.com.

Shigen assured Black Zetsu that he would no longer trust any reincarnation of Asura's chakra, even giving an example:

"Neither Asura nor Hashirama succeeded in their efforts. Why would I believe the third one?"

"Good."

Black Zetsu barely nodded in satisfaction before pressing for another promise. Its voice turned sinister as it proposed an idea:

"Then let's find an opportunity to make this clear. Let that brat understand that we were never on the same path to begin with..."

"Shigen..."

"That brat and we are destined to be enemies."

"He is the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki. Sooner or later, the Nine-Tails must become part of the Ten-Tails, which means we will inevitably stand against him."

"And Asura's chakra will continue to influence him. Given his personality, he will never willingly entrust his fate to Kaguya in the future."

"I understand."

Shigen gave a faint nod, his tone calm as he agreed,

"Once Naruto has the power to protect himself, I will leave Konoha."

That time...

Wouldn't be too far away.

Especially now that Naruto, after witnessing Shigen's battle against Jiraiya, had grown even more enthusiastic about training. Aside from going around telling everyone that Shigen defeated Jiraiya with just one hand, there were no other issues.

"That would be for the best."

Black Zetsu finally accepted Shigen's words. However, it was still somewhat uneasy and brought up another matter to divert his attention:

"Perhaps you should also keep an eye on another child..."

"Uchiha Sasuke."

"That child is exceptionally talented."

"In fact, his chakra might be quite special as well."

"Haven't you always wanted him to grow strong enough to replace his brother, Itachi, and become our ally?"

In truth...

Black Zetsu had already suspected that Sasuke was the reincarnation of Indra's chakra.

Because the reincarnation of Indra's chakra never lingered in the ninja world—each time they died, they would reincarnate immediately.

Based on the time of Madara's death, Sasuke was the most likely candidate.

"Uchiha Sasuke, huh?"

Shigen saw through Black Zetsu's little scheme but still played along, speaking in a deep voice,

"I've noticed that child before. He trains very diligently."

Indeed.

Sasuke trained incredibly hard.

Even though he was widely recognized as the number one prodigy among his peers, that never stopped him from pushing himself further. He trained harder than anyone else his age, maintaining his position as the top student in his class.

To dismiss his efforts simply by calling him a genius...

Would be unfair to him.

Especially since Sasuke trained alone.

He had no one to guide him, no one to help him grow stronger. He could only follow the traces left by his fallen clan, searching for his own path to power and revenge.

The cruelest part...

Was the blood debt of the Uchiha Clan that weighed on him.

His own brother had murdered his parents and their entire family. No matter how hard he tried to avoid it, he could always feel the pitying or scrutinizing gazes of others.

However...

The Uchiha were born proud.

That pride made Sasuke unable to stand being pitied.

It made him more and more withdrawn, refusing to befriend his peers or accept anyone's sympathy.

Right now...

Sasuke had only one goal—revenge!

—

At dusk.

By the lake at the old Uchiha training ground.

A black-haired boy stood on the shore, drenched in sweat. His body was exhausted, yet his fingers continued to form hand seals at an incredible speed!

"Fire Release... Great Fireball Jutsu!"

The boy gritted his teeth, exhaling a massive fireball.

But his body had reached its limit—he could no longer control the flames. The fire veered off course, burning his clothes and scorching his arm red-hot!

"Not enough..."

The boy finally slumped to the ground in frustration.

This jutsu...

Was already taking a huge toll on his body.

Yet the determination in his eyes did not waver. He looked at his burned arm, intending to rest briefly before continuing his training.

"I can't fall behind."

The black-haired boy clenched his fist, ignoring the pain in his arm. His mind replayed the recent events.

"That dead-last in my class is getting stronger. If this keeps up, I might not be able to defeat him..."

If he let someone like that surpass him...

How could he ever hope to kill Itachi and fulfill his revenge?!

Just as Sasuke was thinking about the classmate who had been improving so quickly, that very classmate's voice rang out beside him.

"Shigen! Shigen!"

Naruto tugged at Shigen's hand, looking a bit troubled.

"Can you train with me tomorrow?"

"Lately, Jiraiya-sensei keeps leaving me alone to refine my chakra. Sitting still and doing chakra training is so boring!"

"Is it working?"

Shigen did not question Jiraiya's teaching methods.

"Yeah!"

Naruto immediately perked up, grinning as he boasted about his achievements.

"Today, during sparring, I finally managed to channel chakra into my punches! I was so close to knocking down that stuck-up guy!"

"Hmm?"

Shigen frowned slightly.

However, Naruto knew him too well. Before Shigen could say anything, Naruto quickly crossed his arms in front of his chest.

"Don't start lecturing me again about how chakra should be used to protect people, not for fighting!"

Naruto already knew Shigen's stance on ninja battles.

Shigen never liked seeing them use chakra for unnecessary fights. But in the Academy, sparring was part of their training—it was unavoidable. And this time, Naruto had almost beaten Sasuke!

Still...

Naruto didn't actually disagree with Shigen's views.

Noticing Shigen's unchanged expression, Naruto pouted and muttered,

"If we run into danger when we grow up, I'll definitely protect Sasuke too. He's my rival after all! Even if that's just my own stubborn wish, I refuse to lose to that stuck-up guy now!"

"..."

Shigen's face remained unreadable.

"..."

By the lake, Sasuke clenched his teeth.

That dead-last...

Did he really think he was that strong?

Fine.

Naruto wasn't completely without talent.

But...

He was getting too cocky! Did he think having a good teacher would be enough to surpass him?!

"Hmph."

Naruto noticed Sasuke sitting by the lake, his earlier determination fading slightly.

"Tch! He's here again."

"Hmph!"

Sasuke turned his head away, equally annoyed!

"Shigen, let's go!"

Naruto huffed and grabbed Shigen's arm, ready to leave.

But Shigen simply ruffled Naruto's spiky blond hair and remained still, his gaze fixed on Sasuke's burned arm.

"..."

Sasuke instinctively tried to pull his arm back.

His reckless training had caused him to lose control of his jutsu—an embarrassing mistake for an Uchiha, especially in front of Naruto!

No...

More accurately...

Sasuke didn't want anyone to see his moment of weakness.

Even if he had suffered, even if he had endured countless wounds, he never wanted to show any vulnerability.

Because he was an Uchiha.

Even if...

He was the last Uchiha in Konoha.

Yet when Shigen looked at him, it was as if he were simply looking at an ordinary person.

He neither admired him for being an Uchiha nor pitied him for being the last one.

At the very least...

Sasuke could see the complete calmness in Shigen's expression.

For some reason, that made him feel both relieved... and strangely frustrated.

As Sasuke clenched his teeth and endured the burning pain...

A steady, tranquil voice reached his ears.

A voice that, for thousands of years, had brought healing to the suffering.

"I am a medical ninja. Do you need help?"

----------

Powerstones?

For 20 advance Chapters: patreon.com/michaeltranslates