On the desolate hillside, the wind moaned as though mourning the embers of that earth-shattering explosion in the distance.
"Lord Sasuke! How are you feeling?" Karin knelt beside Sasuke, her hands covered in green medical chakra as she tried to heal him. But the moment her chakra entered his body, it vanished without a trace, faintly repelled and eroded by the two terrifying, intertwined forces. Her eyes reddened with anxiety, but she could do nothing.
"It's no use." Sasuke pushed her hands away, his voice hoarse with suppressed pain. He sat cross-legged and summoned all the Indra's chakra in his bloodline, wielding it like unruly lightning as he repeatedly scoured and encircled the dark power trying to take root. Purple chakra light and wisps of escaping black mist flickered across his skin, an eerie and dangerous sight.
Guren and Jugo stood guard nearby, alert and grim-faced. They could feel how terrifying the two forces inside Sasuke were. Either one could easily destroy them.
"What... is that dark power?" Guren could not help asking quietly. She had never felt an aura so purely evil. Even Orochimaru's chakra seemed "gentle" by comparison.
Sasuke did not answer. All his attention was focused on the struggle within. The consequences of using the Sacred Lord's power had far exceeded his expectations. It was not merely eroding his chakra; it was also trying to corrupt his mind, stirring the darkness and obsession buried deep within him. Countless suppressed thoughts of hatred, loneliness, and slaughter surged like a tide, battering his will. Had it not been for the innate pride and tenacity of Indra's chakra, he would likely have lost himself already.
Time crawled by in torment. Finally, under the relentless suppression of Indra's chakra, the active dark power was gradually forced back, curling up once more