Never Die

Beneath the God Tree! Inside the Bamboo Forest!

The night was deep, the stars sparse, and all around them was silent!

At that moment, the Bamboo Forest was as still as death!

Time seemed to freeze in that instant!

Manji stood in place, an All-Killing Ash Bone piercing his chest.

Ahead of him, the Chakra Fruit shimmered!

A top-tier item in the Naruto World!

The Chakra Fruit was right in front of him, yet Manji's attention was on Kaguya behind him!

In the end, the White Ape King was the first to roar in anger!

"You woman! Why?! Why did you hurt Manji?! Without him, that man would've fed you to the monster long ago!"

The White Ape King glared furiously at Ōtsutsuki Kaguya and roared.

Ōtsutsuki Kaguya's face was complicated, but in an instant, it turned cold as ice!

"Why..."

Manji struggled to turn his head, looking at Ōtsutsuki Kaguya in confusion.

He couldn't understand it. Why had Kaguya betrayed him?

Wasn't pursuing happiness what Kaguya wanted?

Or had her goal been the Chakra Fruit from the very beginning?

"I'm sorry, Manji. I broke my promise."

"You can't take the Chakra Fruit."

Ōtsutsuki Kaguya spoke with a focused gaze, her eyes icy and her voice as cold as frost.

Faced with this, Manji calmly pressed her for an answer:

"Tell me why."

"Because the man I loved betrayed me... That human actually wanted to trade me to an enemy country, so I can only feel safe if power is in my own hands!"

Ōtsutsuki Kaguya suddenly grew agitated and frantic.

Clearly, the betrayal of the man she loved had changed her completely.

Manji understood at once. It was just like what happened in the TV series...

At that moment, Manji cursed the Emperor of the Land of Ancestors in his heart. Why did he have to betray Kaguya right now?!

If only he'd waited a little longer, Manji would've succeeded!

Why did it have to be now?!

"Heh..." Manji laughed.

"Hahaha... Hahahahahaha... Hahahaha!!!!"

He started with a quiet chuckle, then gave a faint laugh, before breaking into a loud guffaw.

Ōtsutsuki Kaguya and the White Ape King both froze, staring at Manji in bewilderment.

"Manji, what's wrong?!"

The White Ape King asked anxiously.

Ōtsutsuki Kaguya, meanwhile, looked uncertain. On one hand, she was worried Manji still had another trick up his sleeve.

On the other, she wondered if Manji had actually gone mad.

"Beautiful women really are the best liars!"

"I even just wished you happiness, and I even felt sorry for you before..."

Manji gave a couple of bitter laughs, then exclaimed in astonishment, "So you're all real people, not NPCs. Every one of you is flesh and blood. This world truly is full of heroes..."

Ōtsutsuki Kaguya's expression remained unchanged as she stared coldly at Manji. There was no way anyone could survive her All-Killing Ash Bones!

"Manji! Use the Immortal Talisman the toad gave you!!!"

The White Ape King was frantic with worry and couldn't help shouting.

"No need, White Ape King. You should go."

Manji smiled helplessly.

His body was already starting to decay. He would turn to ash any moment now...

Before the White Ape King could react, Manji released his Summoning Jutsu and sent him straight back to the Summoning Realm.

He knew the White Ape King couldn't beat Kaguya. If he stayed, Kaguya would only kill him.

Manji collapsed to the ground, a fierce glint in his eyes!

"If I'm going to die, I'm at least taking a bite!"

Summoning all his strength, Manji suddenly opened his mouth wide and bit down on the Chakra Fruit!

In an instant, Manji bit off a chunk of the Chakra Fruit!

Ōtsutsuki Kaguya was startled. She used the Body Flicker Technique to snatch away what remained of the Chakra Fruit!

Manji chewed the fruit, feeling a little helpless.

Well, he couldn't taste much. His body had already turned to ash...

Ōtsutsuki Kaguya looked at Manji's ashes, and a pang of pity crossed her heart. She remembered the smiling face with which Manji had wished her happiness, and guilt welled up inside her.

She could tell that Manji had sincerely wished her well.

"I'm sorry, Manji. I'll make sure my children remember you and build a temple in your honor..."

"I won't forget you..."

Ōtsutsuki Kaguya murmured her promise.

Kaguya had originally planned to spare Manji, but she was worried things could go wrong. To avoid a future conflict, she had no choice but to erase him.

Then—

Ōtsutsuki Kaguya's face turned cold as frost.

"Power. I want power!"

Ōtsutsuki Kaguya swallowed the rest of the Chakra Fruit in one gulp!

Then, accompanied by a dazzling white light—

The Rabbit Goddess, Ōtsutsuki Kaguya, the progenitor of Chakra!

Made her entrance!

At the same time, a Tomoe Rinnegan opened on Ōtsutsuki Kaguya's forehead, and she flew into the sky!

She opened Yomotsu Hirasaka!

The Infinite Tsukuyomi illuminated the world!

Snow blanketed the land as heavy flakes fell!

In the midst of the pristine white snow, a hand slowly emerged from beneath the surface!

Then a naked man crawled out of the snow.

"Where the hell am I?"

Completely naked, Manji crawled out of the snow and looked around.

"Whew, thank goodness. Thank goodness eternal life and immortality are real."

Manji looked at his perfectly intact body and murmured to himself.

He'd often wondered whether his immortality meant he'd live forever, or that he simply couldn't die, no matter how he died.

Unfortunately, the system had no intelligence, so there was no one to ask.

Manji hadn't dared to risk testing it by killing himself.

Now that Kaguya had ambushed him, he'd finally found out.

His ability wasn't just longevity. It also made him immortal. He must have been resurrected.

"Summoning Jutsu!"

Manji silently summoned a set of Mount Myōboku training clothes and put them on.

"The most important thing now is to find out what's going on."

Manji leaped into the air.

His Sage Power was still there, and at a glance, Manji could see that there were hardly any people left in this world!

"The Infinite Tsukuyomi... Kaguya has already cast it..."

Manji sighed softly, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. The grudge against Ōtsutsuki Kaguya was still fresh in his mind...

"But for now, I need to keep a low profile. Kaguya is too powerful. I can't act recklessly."

Manji figured that Ōtsutsuki Kaguya was incredibly strong now.

With his current strength, fighting her would be no different from throwing his life away.

He needed to return to Mount Myōboku and see how things were there.

"Summoning Jutsu!"

Back at Mount Myōboku.

The first thing he saw was a magnificent tombstone.

Manji furrowed his brow and immediately went over.

"The Grave of Manji?"

"Why is my name carved on this tombstone?"

Manji rushed straight into the Toad Great Hall, where he happened to see the White-Browed Toad striking a wooden fish.

"Manji?! You're still alive?!"

The White-Browed Toad's face lit up, and he hurried over to Manji, overjoyed.

But then the White-Browed Toad grew wary!

The White Ape King had clearly told him Manji was dead. Was this Manji an imposter?

"White-Browed Toad, I'm back!"

Seeing his reaction, Manji let the distinctive aura of a Sage flow from him.

The White-Browed Toad sensed it and immediately beamed with excitement. "Little Manji! I thought that woman outside had killed you! How did you get back? Didn't that illusion affect you?"