MCPOV
"Adios amigos."
It was a last, sarcastic toast to an imaginary audience beyond the fourth wall, a joke I thought I was making at the end of my new, short-lived, reincarnated existence. But it turns out, I was wrong. The slug didn't kill me. I'm still here, and my situation has only gotten stranger.
Apparently, the slug—and she's a "she," I've gathered from her gentle tone—sensed my awakening. She wasn't crawling over to devour me, but to talk to me. Yes, you heard that right: to talk. And no, I don't speak slug. The slug, in fact, speaks perfect Japanese. I can make out enough, despite my lack of proficiency, to understand the gravity of my situation.
And now for the grand reveal, the moment that answered all my questions while simultaneously filling me with existential dread: Her name is Katsuyu. With that single, familiar name, the horrifying truth slammed into me with the force of a tidal wave. I am in the world of Naruto. The shinobi world.
And believe me, I am not pleased.
This isn't the world of my hazy memories, where ninjas were cool and their adventures were exciting. This is a brutal reality. It's a world where ninja face death on a daily basis, where civilians are considered expendable, and where the threat of a full-scale shinobi world war is a constant shadow. Bandits roam every road outside of major settlements, rogue ninjas and cultists commit acts of mass murder, and the only place that's even considered remotely safe is the capital of the Land of Fire, and even that's debatable.
To make matters worse, I have no idea what time period I'm in. My memories of the anime and manga are blurry at best, fragmented pieces of a narrative I can barely recall. And to top it all off—this is the most critical and painful part—I have no golden finger. I repeat, I have no golden finger! No system, no cheat codes, no special lineage, nothing. God, if you can hear me, please correct this error immediately!
So, hooray for my new life, I guess.
Despite this horrifying revelation, there's absolutely nothing I can do about it. I'm a baby. So, my new routine has begun: sleeping, waking up, and listening to various animals—not just Katsuyu—speak fluent Japanese. It turns out this forest is home to more than just a giant slug.
----TIME FOR TIME SKIP----
---2 Years later---
Katsuyu(clone) POV
I am Katsuyu, the immortal slug—or the slug sage, as they call me. Though, I prefer the name the boy, Hashirama, gave me: Lady Katsuyu. For over a millennium, I've resided at the heart of the Wet Bone Forest. While my main body typically slumbers in a state of deep meditation, I always maintain a few smaller clones, their consciousness linked to mine, to keep watch over the world around me.
Approximately two and a half years ago, a day that began like any other was suddenly marked by a profound disturbance in the natural energy of the forest. This was highly unusual, and my main body was roused from its slumber just enough to dispatch a clone to investigate. To my utter surprise, the source of this disruption was a pregnant woman, mortally wounded, her life force hemorrhaging with every difficult movement. Yet, she was busy, working with a desperate, feverish purpose that defied her condition.
I approached her, wanting to help. When she saw me, perhaps recognizing me from her people's legends, her eyes lit with a desperate, pleading hope. She looked at me and asked me to look after her child when she went to the Pure Land. Her silent, emotional plea was a testament to a mother's love, an emotion so strong it resonated with the natural world around her. I felt her conviction, her unwavering devotion, and I agreed to her request without hesitation. I did not find it a hard task. After all, what was one small child to an immortal? I watched as she continued her work, her movements becoming more strained as death crept closer.
I observed her with a growing sense of shock as she used a kunai to slice open her own stomach. With a surgeon's precision and a mother's fierce love, she carefully removed the child. It was then that I was truly shocked. The baby was at most five or six months old, severely underdeveloped and tragically small. His breath of life was so weak it was almost difficult for me to perceive. I didn't believe the child could survive, but I am glad that I was proven wrong. Watching her, I felt a deep, profound pride in being called Lady Katsuyu, for I had just witnessed the indomitable strength and spirit that a woman, a mother, can possess.
I still don't fully comprehend the nature of the jutsu that young woman performed. After she asked for a casket—which I had the monkey clan carve from ancient wood—she requested a place rich in natural energy. I led her to a serene spot next to a lake, where the water itself was imbued with rich, natural energy. After making her preparations, she laid down and placed the baby on the casket. With her final breath, she cast a powerful sealing technique on her body and the casket. The jutsu began its work the very moment her life faded.
Her life was gone, yet a semblance of vitality remained in her corpse. It was a bizarre phenomenon. I later observed that while she may have died, her body remained active, slowly breaking down to provide chakra and nutrients to the baby. This process was supplemented by the surrounding natural energy, which flowed into the jutsu. This allowed the child to not only survive but to grow. Her technique resonated so perfectly with the natural energy that every breath the baby took pulled a small amount into his body, using it to uplift his health and vitality. I don't believe this child will ever suffer from a cold or fever. The full extent of the technique remains unknown to me, but I will honor my promise. I will leave this clone here to look after him, and I have declared the baby under my protection to all the denizens of the forest. They have since cleared the area of any potential threats.
As time slowly passed, I watched the child develop from a sickly infant into a normal, healthy boy. His spiritual energy began to show signs of activity, and four months after his mother's death, he finally opened his eyes for the first time. Two more years passed in the blink of an eye.
During this time, I had the wise ones of the forest come and speak to him. I knew that children learn language by listening, and I also had them bring milk for the child. It took him seven or eight months to begin to understand us, and by the end of the year, he could hold broken conversations. I've come to realize that this child's knowledge is unlike that of a normal human baby.
Curious about his unusual intelligence, I asked him about it. He told me he had some knowledge of a past life but that most of his memories were lost. He asked me to keep it a secret, and I, for some reason, agreed. I have to say, I have grown quite fond of him, and while still an infant, his words sometimes carry a profound wisdom that belies his age. I have told him everything I know about his mother and his own miraculous birth. For now, I will simply watch and see how he grows.