Chapter 220 : That Damned Old Uchiha Ghost
The newcomer seemed somewhat surprised that his jutsu had been broken.
He only twitched his brow slightly—a minuscule movement, but still noticed by everyone present.
The man shifted his gaze from the spatial vortex shredded by the chains, letting it fall upon the person who had just spoken.
Uzumaki Karin stood there, golden chains still extending from her lower back, slithering through the air like countless golden snakes. Her lips curled into a grin, her chin tilted up slightly. The eyes she fixed on Uchiha Madara held no fear or reverence—only pure excitement.
'Uchiha Madara. A living, breathing Uchiha Madara!'
With that thought, Karin stepped toward Madara. Her pace was unhurried and steady, her soles crunching softly against the dry leaves.
"My teacher once told me that if we're talking about the most insidious person in the ninja world, it would have to be you."
She spoke casually, seemingly completely unconcerned about how Madara might react to hearing this.
Everyone present was stunned by this sudden turn of events.
From the appearance of the spatial vortex to Madara revealing himself, from the chains shredding the portal to Karin speaking—it all happened so fast. It was over before their minds could even process it.
The Konoha shinobi, in particular, all cast looks of sheer disbelief at the newcomer.
The four members of the Uchiha squad scrambled up from the ground. Forgetting the wounds on their wrists and the pain wracking their bodies, they stared dead-set at the man in dark armor.
The four members of the Hyuga squad also forgot the terror of having kunai pressed against their throats. Their eyes were wide open, their pale pupils filled with absolute shock.
The four members of the ANBU squad sat up from the ground, the eyes behind their masks staring unblinkingly in that direction.
That name was simply too earth-shattering.
Uchiha Madara!
One of the founders of Konoha, the Asura of the Ninja World, a man of legend.
They had heard this name since they were children, read it in the textbooks at the Ninja Academy, and heard it spoken from the mouths of their elders.
They thought he was merely history, a myth, a relic of the past.
But now, that very man stood right in front of them, flesh and blood, the air around him still faintly distorting.
Uchiha Sasuke's eyes widened drastically. The three tomoe in his eyes spun so rapidly they blurred into three dark shadows swirling within his pupils.
Subconsciously, Sasuke took two instinctual steps back, putting some distance between them.
His right hand slipped out of his ninja tool pouch, pinching two kunai between his fingers, their edges glinting coldly under the moonlight.
His left hand rested on the hilt of his blade at his waist, fingers curled tight, ready to draw at a moment's notice.
Hyuga Neji retreated as well, even more decisively than Sasuke. He raised his left hand, fingers pressed together, palm facing Madara's direction.
His Byakugan was pushed to its absolute limit, veins bulging around his eyes, his pale pupils seemingly coated in a faint white glow.
Through the Byakugan, he could see the chakra radiating from Madara. It was massive and dense, burning within his body like a roaring black flame.
*Gulp!*
Neji swallowed hard, subconsciously trying to ease his overwhelming tension.
Sasuke and Neji stood on the left and right, their bodies coiled tight as springs.
Madara watched Karin approach, his gaze taking in the golden chains drifting behind her.
His expression remained entirely unchanged as he spoke in a flat tone. "That hair color... Are you from the Uzumaki clan?"
Hearing this, Karin tilted her head up slightly, raising her chin even higher as her red ponytail swayed behind her.
"Of course!"
She replied, her tone laced with unmistakable pride.
Madara looked at her, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly in what might or might not have been a smile.
"Looking at you... Are you the daughter of that red-haired woman from the Five Kage Summit in the Land of Iron all those years ago?"
Karin was a little surprised. Her eyes widened a fraction as she stared at Madara for two seconds before nodding.
"That's right."
Madara shifted his gaze away from her, sweeping his eyes over the fallen Konoha ninjas, then glancing at Sasuke and Neji standing a short distance away, before returning his focus to Karin.
"I didn't expect this," he murmured, his voice lowering as if talking to himself.
"In the years I've been absent, the new generation of the ninja world has grown to this extent."
He looked at Karin and gave a small nod.
"Impressive."
Then, his gaze moved from Karin and landed on Sasuke. He stared into Sasuke's eyes, watching the three tomoe slowly spinning within them, and studied the boy's face.
"Brat," he said, his voice as calm as ever.
"Do you know who I am?"
Sasuke looked at him, his lips trembling slightly.
It wasn't out of intense fear, but rather a complex swirl of emotions.
After all, this was Uchiha Madara, a legendary figure within their clan. To see him standing there, alive and breathing... the feeling was utterly staggering.
Sasuke tightened his grip on the kunai, his knuckles turning white. He took a deep breath, his chest rising high, and slowly exhaled.
"Uchiha Madara."
Sasuke's voice was a bit dry, but he spoke the name clearly.
Hearing this, Madara threw his head back and laughed aloud.
"Hahaha..."
His laughter was booming, echoing through the woods, carrying a sense of genuine amusement.
"Brat, why did you leave Konoha?" Madara lowered his voice. "Was it to seek power?"
Sasuke remained silent.
Madara scoffed.
"What, too afraid to admit your desires in front of so many people?"
His lips curled in disdain.
"What a piece of trash."
Sasuke's eyelid twitched. He furrowed his brows and pressed his lips into a thin line, his gaze locked dead onto Madara.
Karin spoke up.
"Old Uchiha ghost, isn't it a little too late to try and brainwash him now?"
Her voice was loud, her tone dripping with obvious mockery.
As she spoke, she continued walking forward, stopping only when she was less than three meters away from Madara.
Madara looked at her as if he had just heard the most ridiculous joke, bursting into laughter once again.
"Hahaha..."
When his laughter subsided, he looked down at Karin.
"Brat, did you really think this jutsu could restrain me?"
Hearing this, the tall man's expression changed drastically.
His pupils shrank sharply, and his body snapped from a relaxed state into extreme tension, like a fully drawn bow.
"Lady Karin, watch out!"
Karin was already on guard the moment Madara finished speaking.
She leaned back slightly, shifting her weight to the balls of her feet. The golden chains whipped faster behind her, letting out a vibrating, whistling hum.
But Madara was faster.
He took a step forward, his sole crunching against the dry leaves. Yet, his body phased right through the golden chains. The chains passed through his form as if slicing through empty air, meeting zero resistance, not even grazing him.
It was as if the golden chains were mere illusions.
But the reality was the exact opposite.
Because, to be precise, it was Madara's body that had phased through the chains.
The chains were still drifting there, but Madara simply walked right through them. It was as if the chains and his body existed in two entirely different dimensions.
Karin's expression shifted. She abruptly leaped backward, tapping the ground with her foot to slide several meters away.
The golden chains retracted into her lower back, like countless golden snakes slithering back into their den, disappearing beneath her clothes without a trace.
Karin steadied herself, now over ten meters away from Madara.
Her breathing was slightly hurried, her brows knitted tightly, and her gaze instantly grew solemn.
"That damned old Uchiha ghost," she muttered, her voice low but laced with irrepressible astonishment.
"To think he still has this kind of trick up his sleeve!"
She stared at Madara, leaning forward slightly with her hands hanging by her sides. The light in her eyes was bright and searing, like a blazing fire.
"As expected of a powerhouse from the previous era. You really did catch me by surprise."
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