Chapter 193: Refuse to Cooperate? This Is the Consequence
His gaze shifted to the Two-Tails Jinchūriki behind Sasori of the Red Sand, who had already fallen unconscious.
She looked like a girl no older than ten, yet her body was covered in injuries—evidence that she had fiercely resisted when they tried to capture her.
"What if we refuse?"
Sasori of the Red Sand didn't truly understand how powerful Uchiha Dali was—he had only heard the rumors.
And rumors could easily be false.
As a pragmatist, there were two things he hated most: waiting for others, and hearsay.
So, when faced with Uchiha Dali's demand, he was the first to object.
Orochimaru took a step back, crossed his arms, and watched with a cold smirk tugging at the corners of his lips. "Heh… This guy's strength isn't something an ordinary ninja can compare to. You'd best be careful."
That line, while seemingly a warning, was actually laced with malice.
At first glance, it sounded like he was kindly advising his teammates not to underestimate their opponent.
But who was Sasori of the Red Sand?
He was proud and aloof. Within the Akatsuki, he respected no one besides the leader.
Now with Orochimaru saying this, how could he possibly back down?
Sure enough, a wave of killing intent surged from Sasori's body.
He fixed a deadly stare on Uchiha Dali. Though he didn't attack right away, he remained vigilant, carefully assessing his opponent's reactions.
Uchiha Dali chuckled. "So you won't hand her over?"
"You're welcome to try."
"Try? Fine, let's try then!"
Infuriated by those words, Sasori struck immediately.
He didn't make any obvious movements, yet suddenly a mass of black, densely packed objects shot toward Uchiha Dali.
They were all poison-laced senbon, hidden within his Hiruko puppet form.
The toxic needles rained down like a sudden storm. Most people would be caught off guard and hit in such a situation.
But Uchiha Dali remained calm and unbothered.
Then, something strange happened—clearly he hadn't moved a muscle, still standing there with a relaxed smile on his face.
Yet, the storm of deadly needles stopped in midair, suspending less than two meters from his body.
Everyone's expressions darkened at that sight.
The senbon then began to rapidly fly back toward Sasori.
"Here, you can have them back," Uchiha Dali said with a smile.
The needles shot back even faster than before, and Sasori's face immediately twisted in shock, his pupils flooding with blood-red veins.
He clearly hadn't expected Uchiha Dali to be capable of such a technique—he couldn't even figure out what had just happened.
But Sasori wasn't helpless. He didn't just stand there waiting to die.
Suddenly, a figure appeared in front of him.
It looked vaguely human, but not quite right.
Its limbs, joints, and face all bore obvious signs of artificial modification.
After appearing, the figure hovered in the air and extended its arms. A wall, seemingly formed from condensed sand, rose up out of thin air.
All the poisonous senbon struck the sand wall, doing no harm.
Barely a moment later, this bizarre puppet-like being counterattacked.
"Iron Sand Drizzle!!"
Its speech was slurred, but the technique was clear—combining the sand wall and the returning senbon into high-velocity iron sand bullets aimed back at Uchiha Dali.
"How boring."
Uchiha Dali looked disinterested.
He activated his repulsion technique once again, easily deflecting the attack. And this time, he used the same method as before.
"Still yours—take it back."
With those words, the iron sand and senbon flew back toward Sasori again.
But unlike last time, Uchiha Dali didn't toy with him.
This time, his repulsion technique was used in full force—no mercy.
The overwhelming repulsion force not only reflected the attack but also struck both the Third Kazekage human puppet and Sasori himself with blinding speed.
Boom—
With a deafening blast, the enemy was hurled over a hundred meters away on the spot.
Watching from the sidelines, Orochimaru's pupils shrank slightly. A small white snake quietly slithered from beneath his feet and vanished into the grass nearby.
Further off, the fused form of White Zetsu and Black Zetsu had only half its head exposed above ground—the rest of its body was already well-hidden underground.
Uchiha Obito's face also darkened.
This enemy… was just too strong.
Not a single one of them could defeat Uchiha Dali in one-on-one combat.
"Now you see the consequences," Uchiha Dali said, as if he'd just done something trivial. Dusting off his hands, he walked toward the collapsed Two-Tails Jinchūriki.
He completely ignored Orochimaru, Uchiha Obito, and the others nearby.
But when passing Orochimaru, he suddenly stopped and turned to look at him.
Even someone as experienced and commanding as Orochimaru couldn't help but go pale under that gaze, cold sweat breaking out across his skin.
He instinctively took a half-step back, staring at Uchiha Dali with uncertainty, unsure of his intentions.
"You're quite the talent, Orochimaru."
"Was Konoha really so bad to you that you had to become a rogue ninja?"
The sudden question caught Orochimaru off guard, leaving him momentarily speechless.
"Heh, Uchiha Dali… Congratulations on becoming the Fourth Hokage," he eventually said with a wry smile.
"Why don't you come back and lend a hand?"
Uchiha Dali lifted the Two-Tails Jinchūriki over his shoulder and casually asked.
The question stunned Orochimaru again.
He stared at Uchiha Dali, unsure how to respond. Right now, he felt he couldn't read this young man's thoughts at all.
Inviting a rogue ninja back to serve the village?
Was he being genuine, or was it just a ruse to mislead him?
Orochimaru's eyes darted rapidly, mind racing with suspicion and uncertainty over Uchiha Dali's true intent.
"Don't want to?"
Seeing him hesitate in silence, Uchiha Dali looked away and walked on as if nothing had happened. "Orochimaru, it's always better to be a friend of Konoha than an enemy."
"I genuinely think you're an exceptional talent—otherwise, I wouldn't say this to you."
"And as for you—"
He stopped in front of Uchiha Obito. The eye behind the latter's mask flickered slightly.
"What about me?"
"Go home, Obito."
"Everyone is waiting for you."
"You—"
Obito nearly spat blood on the spot. This bastard Uchiha Dali actually exposed his identity in front of everyone!
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