Unease in the Forest

At the break of dawn, while most people were still asleep, Madara had already risen early and begun checking his gear.

He first performed his usual maintenance on his sickle and War Fan, then silently counted the ninja tools in his Ninja Tool Pouch. This was extremely important. When fighting an enemy, even the slightest mistake could be fatal.

These were the basic qualities of a ninja. Once he had finished preparing, Madara entered the Star Dou Great Forest.

Though it was still early, some Soul Masters were already heading toward the forest, while others were returning from outside to rest and recuperate.

Once the crowd left the town gates, they scattered in groups of three or five, heading in different directions. Only Madara was alone, making him particularly conspicuous.

Madara, however, paid no mind and rushed toward the depths of the forest at full speed.

It was worth mentioning that Madara traveled exceptionally fast, especially in an environment like the forest. Using Chakra beneath his feet to leap between the trees, he moved far faster than he could on the ground, quickly leaving the Soul Masters behind him in the distance.

Along the way, things were naturally far from peaceful. There were always some fools who saw that he was alone and tried to make a move against him.

Madara naturally showed no mercy to such people, properly sending them on their way.

Was there another fight?

Madara had thought the forest would be incomparably quiet, but it was far livelier than he had imagined.

The smell of blood!

Madara flared his nostrils and caught that scent, one he knew all too well in both his past and present lives.

He cautiously slowed his pace and silently headed toward the source of the bloody scent nearby.

Before long, Madara arrived there. Concealed by the branches, he looked toward a clearing in the distance.

It appeared to be a campsite, likely belonging to a group of three to five people. But judging from the bloodstains on the tents and the scattered camping equipment around them, those people had most likely met with misfortune.

Madara quietly activated his Sharingan and patiently observed the distant campsite. Until he confirmed the situation, a ninja's caution would not allow him to expose himself.

Before long, Madara noticed something. Inside a torn tent, a blood-covered hand dangled weakly outside.

Definitely not Spirit Beasts!

If Spirit Beasts had attacked, the corpses would have been devoured clean. It seemed they had encountered Soul Masters with ill intent.

Just as Madara was about to move, a warning suddenly rose in his heart. Something was wrong!

Madara could sense that this seemed to be a trap, because none of the valuables had been touched.

This had to be bait!

Using the extraordinary eyesight granted by the Sharingan, Madara carefully examined the surroundings and, sure enough, found something.

The corners of human clothing were clearly visible in several bushes. If one did not inspect carefully, their disguise would have been impossible to detect.

After weighing his options, Madara decided to retreat first. Hunting Spirit Beasts was more important. If he ran into them again on the way back, he could deal with them all at once!

Madara made his decision without hesitation. He lightly tapped the tree trunk with his toes, borrowed its force, and flew backward, leaving behind only a few fallen leaves.

Not long after Madara left, the Soul Masters lying in ambush discovered traces of him.

"Boss, Boss! It looks like someone was here!" A wretched-looking Soul Master sniffed the air, glanced toward where Madara had been, and immediately ran to a bearded man.

"Impossible! We surrounded this place tightly! We would've noticed if anyone came!" The bearded man clearly did not believe him, glaring at him without saying much.

"Boss! Don't you trust my dog nose?" The Soul Master hurriedly explained. "It seems he came from the trees!"

"Damn it! I forgot about that!" The bearded man flew into a rage and slammed a fist hard into the ground.

"What do we do now, Boss?"

With a sinister expression, the bearded man said, "Keep waiting! There'll definitely be more fish taking the bait!"

"Aren't we going after him?" The Soul Master scratched his head and asked.

"He ran through the trees! If you can catch him, then go chase him! Get back and keep watch!" the bearded man snapped impatiently.

"Understood, Boss!" The Soul Master sheepishly shrank his neck.

The forest returned to its former silence once more.

After leaving, Madara continued onward, naturally unaware of what had happened behind him.

Along the way, Madara witnessed quite a few battles—some between Soul Masters and Spirit Beasts, some between Spirit Beasts themselves—but not a single one between Soul Masters.

Still, Madara tried to avoid every one of them and stay out of trouble.

Even if he wanted to fight, he would wait until he obtained his second soul ring and strengthened himself first.

After all, the strength of those who came to hunt Spirit Beasts varied greatly. There might even be several Spirit Kings hunting Spirit Beasts here.

Madara had actually been considering this for a long time: what ability did he need for his Second Spirit Skill?

He had chosen his First Spirit Skill well. Though to the people of this world, it probably looked like he was treating his future as a joke.

Madara had clearly won his gamble and obtained the ability from his past life, Fire Release. His choice had not been without basis. Among the Uchiha who possessed the Sharingan, most had lightning and fire attributes.

Thus, Madara's First Spirit Skill was naturally an excellent match for the Sharingan.

Moreover, as the Sharingan evolved, it would allow him to use higher-level Fire Release.

Madara had long thought through his Second Spirit Skill in great detail. The Sharingan possessed another incomparably important ability: genjutsu!!!

How could the Sharingan possibly lack the ability to use genjutsu?

Aside from Fire Release, the Uchiha clan was most skilled in genjutsu.

Therefore, Madara's goal was to find a spiritual-type Spirit Beast with mental-control abilities, preferably one related to the eyes.

Madara did not know whether the Star Dou Great Forest had such a Spirit Beast, but he had to give it a try. If he truly could not find one, he would make other plans.

Madara shifted and leaped among the branches, speeding toward the depths of the forest at an incredible pace.

"Judging by that commotion, it should be Spirit Beasts! I'll go take a look!" Madara stood atop a tree and looked into the distance.

Madara still intended to check it out. Even if he could not find the Spirit Beast he needed, he had traveled for most of the day, skipped breakfast that morning, and could at least fill his stomach.

If he happened to encounter his target, that would be even better.

Before long, Madara arrived at the site of the battle. As expected, two Spirit Beasts were fighting fiercely there.

Madara frowned. He realized that he did not seem to be the first to arrive. Quite a few Soul Masters were already waiting around to reap the benefits.

Fortunately, these Soul Masters were not from the same group. They were divided into several factions, faintly confronting one another.

There must be something valuable here!

If it had merely been an ordinary fight between two Spirit Beasts, it would not have drawn so many people.

Even if there happened to be so many Soul Masters nearby, some would have retreated upon seeing such a scene.

Madara had only just arrived, and no one had noticed him, so he had plenty of time to figure out what exactly was happening here.

Without genjutsu to assist him, Madara would obtain information in the way he was most accustomed to.

Catch someone who was alone first!

Madara had noticed on his way here that he seemed to be the only one acting alone.

Thus, the lone travelers here were mostly vanguards and scouts sent by various teams. If he hesitated, their teams would arrive, and it would become difficult to make a move.

No sooner said than done. Madara spotted a cloaked figure lying quietly not far from him and crept over like a spirit snake.

That figure still had not noticed anything at all.