Tezuka Osamu no Buddha: Akai Sabaku yo! Utsukushiku

The time is several millennia ago; the place is India. Droughts and famine plague the country, and its people are forced into a strict caste system that rewards only the elite cream of the crop. Across the land animals and Brahmin alike rejoice, for the blessed child with a birthright to become a god is about to be born. His name is Siddhartha Gautama, later to be known as the Buddha. Meanwhile, in another kingdom, Chapra, a boy born into a life of slavery, is determined to break free of his caste and earn a position of power. As both Chapra and Siddhartha grow and mature, learning about the harshness of India's caste system, the choices they make lead them closer together.