Naruto: Uchiha Madara's Cousin

"The system has detected the host encountering battle; the Steel Heart chest is accumulating."

The sudden system prompt interrupted Uchiha Gin's thoughts. Without much time to reflect, his eyes swiftly switched to Sharingan, warily eyeing the eerie old jailor before him.

"Hehehe, I mean no harm, I just want..."

The old jailor opened his mouth, his unsettling smile stretching all the way to his ears.

"I just want to see how much you've grown."

After finishing, the old jailor's figure disappeared into thin air like smoke before Gin's eyes.

Gin quickly activated his Sharingan's two tomoe, searching in all directions for the vanished jailor.

Yet, in the confined space of the cell, there were no blind spots, and it seemed as though the old jailor had evaporated into nothingness—there were no traces at all.

"Where are you looking?"

The tense voice of the old jailor echoed beside Gin's ears, the cold breath brushing against his back.

The jailor's words, like the gaze of death itself, left Gin's limbs feeling as though they were weighed down with lead.

Gritting his teeth, he applied his monstrous strength to his elbows, hurling a thunderous strike backward. But as expected, his attack met only empty air.

Once again, the old jailor was nowhere to be found. The flickering candlelight on the wall cast shadows on the cell, and Gin could only see his own reflection in the wall. The jailor's presence seemed like a mere dream.

Was it some special stealth technique? Or an illusion?

Guesses flooded Gin's mind. He took a deep breath and reached for the Flying Thunder God kunai on his waist. But the moment he touched the kunai, something eerie happened.

The old jailor was now standing upright on his shadow, his milky white eyes staring directly at him, the same unsettling smile on his face.

Gin's heart skipped a beat at the sudden sight. His hand, which had been gripping the kunai, reflexively loosened. As soon as he let go of the kunai, the strange old jailor vanished from sight, as if erased by an invisible hand.

Startled, Gin tried holding the kunai again, and once more, the jailor's figure reappeared. Letting go, the jailor disappeared.

He remembered the description of the Flying Thunder God kunai:

[Flying Thunder God Kunai] A weapon used by Minato Namikaze, containing traces of space-time energy. Note: Wearing it accelerates the understanding of space-time jutsu.

Space-time energy!

Could the old jailor's abilities be related to space-time?

Space-time power is one of the most mysterious forces in the Naruto world. In the original work, it was only briefly mentioned, but the abilities related to it were incredibly overpowered.

The Flying Thunder God jutsu of the Second and Fourth Hokages, Uchiha Obito's Kamui, Sasuke's Amenotejikara (Swap Ability) with the Rinnegan, and Kaguya Otsutsuki's Amenominaka (Changing Space)—all were hard carry abilities.

Though he had his suspicions, Gin feigned confusion, glancing around as if panicking while subtly gathering strength in the hand gripping the kunai.

Seizing the moment when the old jailor remained motionless, Gin rapidly thrust the kunai at his head.

For the first time, an expression of shock appeared on the old jailor's eerie face, seeing the kunai heading straight for his face.

However, to Gin's disbelief, the old jailor quickly sank into his shadow, dodging the attack.

This... is not good.

For the first time, Gin wondered if he had transmigrated into a proper Naruto world, as the old jailor's strange techniques were like nothing he had ever heard of.

"You can actually see me? When did you acquire this ability?"

The old jailor's head emerged from Gin's shadow, his hollow, grey-white eyes staring at him, speaking slowly.

"You seem to know me well?"

Gin deflected the question, turning to ask one of his own instead.

"Hehehehe."

The jailor didn't respond, only letting out his signature creepy laugh.

"Did you deliberately leak the information to Uchiha Mitsu just to pique my curiosity and lure me here?"

Gin changed his line of questioning. "So, the information you gave him..."

"It's true."

Upon hearing Gin's question, the old jailor stopped laughing, his raspy voice confirming.

"Then what's your purpose in leading me here?"

Gin furrowed his brows, switching to another question.

Without getting the answer he wanted, the old jailor suddenly grabbed Gin's legs, a strong force pulling him uncontrollably into his own shadow.

In a panic, Gin struck at the old jailor's hands with the Flying Thunder God kunai.

But a bizarre scene occurred—his sharp kunai passed right through the jailor's withered hands without any resistance.

Missed? The lack of impact, the absence of a solid target, made Gin's heart sink.

Could this guy be immune to physical attacks?

"Hehehehe."

Seeing Gin's failed attack, the old jailor laughed once more.

"If this is all you can muster... then drown in your own shadow!"

Feeling the tug on his legs intensifying, a wave of despair washed over Gin. Was this really the end for him?

Just then, a faint breeze blew through the otherwise still dungeon.

It was almost imperceptible, but the flickering flames of the candles on the wall danced wildly in the breeze, the swaying light distorting Gin's shadow.

At that moment, Gin felt the pull on his legs weaken momentarily.

Could it be?!

He quickly glanced at the candles, and a bold guess formed in his mind.

With a surge of energy, he swung his arm, sending a gust of wind towards the candle.

The strong wind instantly extinguished the only source of light in the cell, plunging it into darkness.

At the same time, the pull on Gin's legs disappeared completely.

"Hehehehe, you saw through my technique."

The old jailor's figure emerged from the darkness, illuminated only by the faint light spilling through the cell's small window.

"Thanks for holding back."

Gin stared at the jailor, his tense expression finally relaxing.

"?" The old jailor was slightly startled by Gin's words.

"You're not a physical entity, are you?"

Gin said, and the old jailor fell silent for a long moment, his grey eyes filled with doubt. "How did you know?"

His silence was a confirmation in itself. Gin pointed to the ground in front of the jailor—there should have been a shadow there, but there wasn't.

The old jailor didn't have a shadow!

"From the beginning, you haven't launched any real attacks on me. Even when you grabbed my legs, I only felt a pulling force, not an actual grasp."

Gin explained his reasoning.

"Impressive, you really are..."

The old jailor paused midway through his sentence, looking at Gin with an odd expression before continuing,

"Since you've figured it out, ask whatever you want; I'll answer everything I know."

"Host victorious, earned 1 Heart Energy point. Unlocking Steel of Heart chest after one more battle. (Current Heart Energy: 23)"

Gin lamented his lost streak. He hadn't even begun his act, and the opponent had surrendered, breaking his carefully built losing streak.

Still, if he could get valuable information from the old jailor, it wouldn't be in vain.

"Why did you bring me here?"

After gathering his thoughts, Gin's primary concern was understanding the old jailor's purpose in leading him here.

"You wanted to know who that person locked up six years ago was, didn't you?"

The old jailor asked curiously.

"That's my next question."

Gin shook his head, indicating that for now, he only wanted to know why the jailor had chosen him.

"..."

The old jailor's eyes dimmed, and he lowered his head into silence.

Seeing him remain quiet, Gin turned to leave.

Just then, the familiar raspy voice of the jailor called out again, but this time, it carried an uncharacteristic emotion.

"I just... wanted to meet you."

---

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