All in all, it was very valuable. The Sand Manipulation Technique: Third Eye was a rare long-distance reconnaissance art that would be very useful in conjunction with his Polarizing Light Killing Formation.
Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere was the most respectable long-range offensive jutsu Daigan now possessed. The Blade of Wind cyclone he had been using with his puppets was just a brute-force application of chakra nature transformation with limited range, a mid-range attack at best.
Wind Release: Gale Palm was an all-in-one offensive and defensive close-range move with some clever applications, depending on personal preference.
As for the Sand Body Flicker Technique, he hadn't tried it, so he didn't know its effects yet, but it looked quite impressive when Gaara used it.
All five jutsu were decent. With them, he could avoid many detours. Though none were overwhelmingly powerful besides the Shadow Clone Jutsu, they were very useful for him.
The strength of a jutsu depended on the user. A seven-year-old Uchiha Sasuke's Great Fireball Technique only produced a small flame, while Uchiha Madara's could rout the entire Allied Shinobi Forces.
Take Wind Release: Gale Palm, for instance. Daigan looked at the ball of wind-natured chakra forming in his palm, then compressed it to the extreme before releasing it.
"Too easy."
The process was similar to an intermediate step of his Polarizing Light Killing Formation, so he understood it at a glance. But the other C-rank jutsu, Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere, was much less friendly to him.
***
In any case, it seemed his path of ninjutsu development would focus on Wind Release, supplemented by the Puppet Technique and Sand Manipulation Technique.
This wasn't to say his future was incredibly bright. If the Fourth Great Ninja War didn't happen, becoming a Sunagakure jonin in a few years should be no problem. That was the absolute limit most commoner Sand Ninja could dream of.
But to advance further, he would need to rely on powers like Kekkai Genkai, Sage Mode, or a Tailed Beast. These weren't things Daigan could achieve through hard work alone. For these extraordinary powers, luck was probably more important than effort.
Sunagakure had too few Kekkai Genkai. Scorch Release had been lost with Pakura's death, and the source of Magnet Release was the One-Tailed Shukaku, passed down only through the Kazekage lineage. Daigan couldn't count on that.
As for the Kekkai Genkai of other villages, without Orochimaru's resources, trying to start biochemical research from scratch in Sunagakure was a hopeless dream.
Daigan didn't dare touch the Tailed Beasts. Anyone who tried to mess with them now would die; too many people were watching.
As for Sage Mode, that was paradoxically the most promising, but also the most dangerous. Mount Myoboku and Shikkotsu Forest were out of reach. But if he could find Ryuchi Cave, the White Snake Sage didn't seem to mind visitors, as long as they could pass her trials and survive the injection of natural energy.
Of course, the difficulty lay in those "buts." Even Orochimaru couldn't master Snake Sage Mode, so Daigan didn't have high hopes. Getting a Cursed Seal or two seemed more reliable.
*A Cursed Seal... is it possible?*
At this thought, Daigan put down the scroll.
Testing it on himself was out of the question. Even the degraded version of sage chakra laden with Orochimaru's personal modifications was extremely dangerous. The survival rate for ninja receiving the Cursed Seal was less than one in ten, and betting on luck wasn't Daigan's strong suit. He'd had plenty of bad luck since he was a child.
Using it on himself was too risky. Capturing a ninja who already had a Cursed Seal was much safer.
But after capturing one, how could he use it?
Daigan reviewed the abilities he had mastered. Wind Release and Sand Manipulation had no such function. That left...
*The Puppet Technique, the Third Kazekage, Human Puppets...*
In an instant, Daigan's eyes lit up.
*Human Puppets can preserve and replicate Kekkai Genkai and chakra... so could Sage Art... no, Cursed Seal chakra, be replicated?*
The outcome was uncertain. After all, not even Sasori of the Red Sand had ever tried such a thing.
"Human Puppets..." Daigan murmured, deep in thought.
This was a forbidden technique, not something to be taken lightly. If he were discovered, he would either be imprisoned and interrogated by Sunagakure or forced to become a rogue ninja. Neither was what Daigan wanted.
*I have to find a way, at least make some preparations...*
Previously, Daigan hadn't considered this path, but now he was stuck in this awkward, in-between state. If he was lucky enough to obtain the corpse of a powerful ninja, should he use it or not?
Although he hadn't had such a windfall yet, and hadn't even learned how to create a Human Puppet, some things were worth planning for in advance.
For now, however, the priority was to study the jutsu in the scroll from Otokaze and, at the very least, survive the "Konoha Crush."
The hospital room was no place to practice ninjutsu. Wind Release: Gale Palm was manageable, as with proper control, it mostly stayed within his hand. But Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere was difficult. It involved spewing wind-natured chakra from his mouth to attack distant enemies. A single mistake could damage hospital property, and he'd have to pay for it.
Konoha had prepared a dedicated training ground for the advancing Sunagakure genin. Since they had given each candidate a month for targeted training, they certainly wouldn't play favorites.
Unfortunately, in his current state, Daigan wasn't fit to go out and practice ninjutsu.
Resting and recovering as quickly as possible was his top priority.
***
Early the next morning, the eliminated Sunagakure candidates began their journey back to the village.
The sun had not yet risen, and a pale light was just beginning to show in the east. From the rooftop of the Konoha Ninja Hospital, Daigan, Kankuro, and Temari watched as the somewhat dejected genin began their disappointed return.
"It's just us left," Kankuro said.
If not for Daigan's influence, Sunagakure's participation in the Chunin Exam wouldn't have been so eventful. Though the process had been different, the result wasn't much changed.
"How are your injuries?" Kankuro asked, arms crossed, gazing toward the sunrise. "Don't push yourself if you can't handle it."
"I should be fine. Konoha's medical ninjutsu is amazing."
Ninja traveled fast. The eliminated candidates had no reason to linger in Konoha and soon disappeared into the distance.
On the main road in front of the hospital below, Sarutobi Asuma led his three discharged students away.
Among the Konoha ninja, besides Rock Lee who was the most severely injured, the others were mostly fine.
Among the Sand Ninja, Shira's injuries were also serious, but they were mostly internal. He needed more rest but could still travel.
As for the dead Tsurugi Misumi and the critically injured Akado Yoroi who was carried away, life or death unknown—it was best not to mention the two Otogakure spies.
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