Naruto: Reborn in His Younger Self

On the elevated command platform, Gaara stood with his arms crossed, his expression calm as he quietly observed the shinobi below. In order to obtain a clearer view of the ongoing situation among the alliance forces, Gaara activated his Third Eye, crafted from chakra-infused sand. The Eye of Sand floated overhead, transmitting visual information directly to him.

Below, the shinobi of the Allied Shinobi Forces buzzed with whispers and side glances. Many were curious about the young commander presiding over them. Murmurs began to spread.

"Tch, the commander of the entire Allied Forces… Who would've thought it'd be some brat?" scoffed an Iwagakure shinobi, arms crossed and voice full of disdain. "I really don't understand what the higher-ups were thinking. Lord Kitsuchi would've been a better choice to lead us."

Standing beside him, a Suna-nin's eyes narrowed in anger. "Lord Gaara is nothing like an ordinary kid," he snapped. "He is the youngest of the Five Kage! Do you even know what that means? If you don't, then stop spewing nonsense!"

The Iwa shinobi glared at him. "Hmph! You think it's impressive just because he's young? Honestly, it just proves you Sand shinobi had no one else to lead you. You pushed a kid into the role because you had no other options! Don't forget—until recently, he was our enemy! How can you expect us to trust him?"

The Suna-nin retorted, his voice rising, "Trust? We don't exactly trust you either! So maybe you should watch your mouth!"

Nearby, a Konoha shinobi named Hochte overheard the argument and nodded in agreement. "To be honest, I feel the same way."

His fellow Leaf shinobi turned to him in surprise. "Brother Hochte, what did you just say?"

Hochte looked toward Gaara's platform and replied grimly, "Even if they were manipulated by Orochimaru, it doesn't change the fact that Sunagakure launched a coordinated assault on Konoha. Because of them, the Third Hokage, Lord Hiruzen, is no longer with us…"

At that moment, Hochte clenched his fists tightly. The grief and hatred he had suppressed now bubbled to the surface.

His teammate quickly noticed several Suna shinobi glaring in their direction and tried to defuse the tension. He threw an arm around Hochte's shoulders and laughed awkwardly. "Hahaha, really now—what's done is done. We should look to the future!"

Hochte sighed and tried to compose himself. "I know. I'm still a shinobi. The first duty of a shinobi is to follow orders. I won't oppose the decisions made by our village and the Daimyō. I'm just... expressing personal feelings."

A voice full of scorn interrupted from behind. "Konoha shinobi sure are arrogant."

Both Hochte and his comrade turned around to see a Kumogakure ninja eyeing them with disdain. "Weren't the attackers of the Five Kage Summit and the one who tried to capture Killer Bee all traitors from your own Konoha? And let's not forget that so-called savior of yours, Naruto Uzumaki. He kidnapped our Jinchūriki and even stole our Scroll of Secrets. Now the next enemy we're fighting has the Sharingan, a kekkei genkai exclusive to your village."

His eyes narrowed as he continued. "With the number of defectors and criminal elements that have come from your village, you really have no right to question the loyalty of others."

"Watch your mouth!" Hochte snapped. "Say that again, I dare you!"

"Fine! What, are we not allowed to speak our minds anymore?" More Kumo-nin began to gather behind their comrade.

"You want to go one-on-one? No Ninjutsu, just fists! That way, no one can say we disrupted the peace with techniques."

"You bastard!"

"Who the hell are you calling a bastard?!"

Without further warning, the Konoha and Kumo shinobi charged at each other, fists swinging.

Elsewhere, the Suna and Iwa shinobi, who had only been arguing moments ago, saw the scuffle and soon jumped in, fists flying in every direction.

Watching from a distance, a Kirigakure shinobi clicked his tongue in disdain. "Tch. Iwagakure shinobi really are a bunch of uncultured brutes."

An Iwa-nin turned, glaring. "Who the hell are you calling uncultured, huh?"

The Kiri-nin smirked. "If the shoe fits. Or should I spell it out for you? You people from Iwagakure are all arrogant bastards who don't understand the meaning of unity."

The Iwa shinobi was stunned by the direct insult and stormed forward, grabbing the Kirigakure ninja by the collar. "What did you just say?! Say it again!"

The Kiri-nin's face turned serious. "We haven't forgotten what happened at Yosuga Pass. Your betrayal cost us dearly."

The Iwa-nin's expression faltered. "Yosuga Pass… that was years ago—"

"Time doesn't erase betrayal!" the Kirigakure ninja growled. "My brother-in-arms, Yanagi, rotted away in prison, waiting for a peace that never came. And in the end, your betrayal is what killed him!"

His voice shook with emotion as he continued. "Still… it was because of his dying wish that I agreed to be part of this coalition. He believed that peace and understanding were still possible between the villages. But I—I haven't forgotten. I haven't forgiven you!"

With that, the Kirigakure ninja shoved the Iwa shinobi away and punched him hard in the jaw.

The Iwa-nin stumbled and fell, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. His comrades rushed to help him and shouted, "Damn Kirigakure dogs! How dare you launch a sneak attack!"

The Kiri-nin shouted back, "People like you will betray the Allied Shinobi Forces just like you did in the past!"

The downed Iwa shinobi roared and lunged again. Chaos erupted across the assembly field.

Watching the growing brawls, Akimichi Chōji frowned. "Looks like there's still a lot of distrust among us."

Shikamaru sighed. "It's not surprising. Long-term grudges don't disappear overnight. Unity is easy to proclaim, but hard to enforce."

Temari snorted. "You're surprisingly philosophical for a Konoha shinobi."

Shikamaru turned his head lazily toward her. "What? You want me, a Leaf ninja, to get into a fight with you, a Sand kunoichi?"

All around, members of the five divisions began to break out into fistfights. Fortunately, no Ninjutsu had been used—yet. Veteran shinobi from each village began stepping in to break up the fights, preventing serious injuries for now.

From his vantage point, Gaara observed everything through the Eye of Sand. He sighed quietly.

Then, the gourd on his back opened, and streams of chakra-infused sand flowed out. They split into multiple orbs and descended silently across the battlefield.

Below, the situation was reaching a boiling point.

"Konoha! You're the root cause of every war in the ninja world!"

"Kumogakure, we'll settle old scores today! Don't think we've forgotten what you tried to do to the Hyūga Clan!"

"Sunagakure! Bastards! My father died in your ambush!"

"Iwagakure! I'd rather deal with you now than get backstabbed on the battlefield!"

Fists and insults flew freely. Hatred that had festered for decades erupted in raw emotion.

Just as one shinobi began weaving hand seals, preparing to unleash a jutsu, a ball of sand appeared between him and his target. It spun into a vortex and exploded with a thud, knocking both combatants back.

Across the field, sand spheres struck the brawling shinobi, knocking them away without serious injury. Gaara had intervened.

The sand floated protectively over the crowd, a silent but powerful warning.

Gaara's voice echoed through the area, clear and cold:

"This is not how we will win this war. If we cannot put aside hatred, then we've already lost."

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