I agree with you, he is the Nagual. I've been trying to figure out why the inorganic beings called him a "benefactor" instead of a nagual, well actually the ultimate living benefactor. It could mean many things. My personal take on him is the same as yours though, that he is the Nagual, and, certainly the person that I would follow.
My sense is that Manuel is an Earth based nagual, as far as his energy goes. He has "dark" energy, but it is
organic. So, he is quite different from Castaneda in personality and general vibe, as Carlos was a fountain of inorganic energy, from what I saw. I honestly don't know if I would be a "buddy" with him or not, but I get the feeling that he is a friendly person, more approachable than most. It is his energy that is important though, not his persona.
Somebody with as much energy as him can't stay invisible forever, and he's going to have people following him around whether he likes it or not. It is definitely enough to just have minimal contact with him to receive an energetic benefit, you don't really have to be in his party, but it sure wouldn't hurt either.
well, he is certainly having quite the party at this time, and he is young enough to enjoy the female attention that he is obviously getting plenty of, and maybe i would do the same thing in his shoes. your perspective changes when you're over 50, but what you learn just can't be related to somebody who is still young and dancing the night away. i was a party animal in my day, so i guess i can't talk, but i didn't have this guy's gifts either. well, at least he doesn't appear to be a drug addict or something, so he will probably survive until old age. his death defier is worse than him of course, she seems to be eye of that carnal storm he is in. so its not like she is going to be voice of reason there. fortunately, her youth is a temporary thing, and once she realizes that her body is no longer able to keep up with that lifestyle, then maybe she will wake up to what she is.