'Of the other five, I either instantly defeated them or caught up and quickly killed them, so most likely no information was left behind.'
'That mutual destruction technique Black Crow tried to use at the last moment looked very unusual. Could he have forcibly sent out some kind of information even in that state?'
This thought made Sora somewhat alert, but he immediately felt a sense of powerlessness.
'Even if there was, there's nothing I can do now. I can't literally boil dry all the seawater in that area. I don't have that capability at my current level.'
Scorching the heavens and boiling the seas, those were the methods of true great powers from myths.
Although the power of Sora's Dragon Breath is formidable now, its range and control are far from reaching that level.
Being able to eliminate all six of Black Crow's team in one go without leaving obvious evidence was already the best outcome.
'Can only take it one step at a time, just need to be more careful in the future.'
Sora buried this hidden worry deep in his heart. Excessive worry was meaningless. Improving his own strength was the fundamental way to deal with all risks.
In fact, just as Sora thought, Black Crow did indeed leave information at the end. But because Sora acted too decisively and time was short, he only managed to leave the word "Azure Dragon".
…
Next, Sora began to review his own application of abilities.
The biggest highlight was naturally the first practical use of the "Azure Dragon Eight Gates" form.
After opening the Fifth Gate, the power, speed, and defense of the complete Azure Dragon form had a qualitative leap.
It created an overwhelming advantage even against elite Jonin level opponents.
This proved that Sora's previous exploration and injuries were worthwhile. This form would become one of his strongest trump cards for now.
Regarding the use of elemental abilities, this battle gave Sora a clearer understanding.
'Dragon Breath remains the most reliable, most powerful, and most precisely controlled attack method.'
'Whether it's the force, range, or temperature of the breath, I can achieve fine-tuned control, as if commanding my own limbs. After all, this has been the core ability I've been training since first obtaining the fruit power.'
Sora pondered the strength of his Dragon Breath ability. In contrast, the use of lightning power felt much more clumsy.
He had previously tried to transform his roar into thunder. The idea was good, but the form was unfocused, the power scattered, and the efficiency was far inferior to directly breathing fire. Directly generating lightning for attacks had acceptable power, but he could clearly feel a stiffness in control, not as smooth and natural as Dragon Breath.
This wasn't because his Azure Dragon Fruit was inferior to Kaido's. On the contrary, Sora could sense that the "Azure Dragon" power he possessed seemed to have broader connotations.
As a soul from China, his subconscious understanding of "dragon" was different from Kaido's, which resembled more of a dragon-like creature from Japanese culture.
In his understanding, the Eastern divine dragon, riding clouds and mist, summoning wind and rain, commanding thunder, lightning, and fire, was a sacred existence governing celestial phenomena, not merely a physically powerful monster.
'The core of my ability seems closer to this concept.'
'A robust Azure Dragon body is the foundation, while fire, fierce winds, thunder, water flow... these natural forces seem like innate authorities this body should naturally command.'
Sora carefully sensed the power deep within his body. They weren't ninjutsu that needed to be learned separately, but were instinctive things like breathing.
It's just that this "instinct" also required development and practice.
'I use Dragon Breath the most, so it's the most proficient. Wind element is often used to assist movement and attacks, so it's passable. Water and Thunder are used less, so they are clumsy.'
Having figured this out, Sora had a clearer direction for his future ability development.
'No need to deliberately pursue flashy techniques. Instead, I should calm down and delve deeper into understanding and controlling these most basic natural elemental forces. Especially Thunder and Water, they need more practice.'
He even faintly felt that if his control over these elements could reach a certain level, perhaps some unexpected changes might occur.
After all, summoning wind and rain, commanding thunder and lightning, these are not merely attack methods.
After reviewing the battle, Sora began thinking about matters after returning to the village.
This situation was different from last time at the Land of Wind border.
That time, there were three survivors, Fox, Grey Wolf, and Night Owl. He needed to align stories with Fox and weave a reasonable explanation.
This time, the battle occurred far out on the vast sea, away from land, and the opponents were completely wiped out.
As long as he didn't speak, no one would know exactly what happened.
He could simply say he escaped the encirclement of Black Crow's team. With no one to testify against him, he could say anything.
As for whether Sarutobi Hiruzen believed it or not, that wasn't something he needed to consider.
Without evidence, the Hokage couldn't do anything to him. Besides, Sora hadn't betrayed the village. At most, they would just think he hid some of his strength.
Having sorted out his thoughts, Sora's mood lightened considerably.
He looked up ahead. The familiar coastline of the Land of Fire was now clearly visible. He could even see the blurry outline of Konoha's border outpost in the distance.
Picking up speed, Sora raced towards the direction of the outpost.
...
Sora did not go to the rendezvous point mentioned by the former Fox. Having returned directly to the Land of Fire by sea in a straight line, he was now due east of the Land of Fire, quite far from the rendezvous point. It was better to return directly to Konoha.
This could also prevent others from deducing the location of the sea battlefield by backtracking his route.
After passing the outpost, that subtle feeling of tension within Sora finally completely dissipated.
The familiar scent of the forest replaced the salty sea breeze, giving him a sense of relief.
But he didn't let his guard down because of this. Instead, he became more careful, concealing his presence and choosing a more remote route to infiltrate towards Konoha.
'Although the probability is small, the possibility of Kumogakure having hidden sentries along the border cannot be ruled out. Better safe than sorry.'
Sora habitually analyzed as his figure moved silently through the trees, avoiding contact with anyone as much as possible.
The forests deep within the Land of Fire were much denser and more peaceful than the border areas, and traces of wild beasts became more frequent.
After advancing for about half an hour, the sounds of fierce beast roars and screeches suddenly reached Sora's ears.
'Hmm?'
Sora halted his steps, slightly furrowed his brow, immediately concealed himself, and silently moved towards the source of the sound.
Pushing aside dense bushes, the scene before him made Sora pause slightly.
In a forest clearing, two robust tigers were attacking a rather small and thin-looking monkey.
The monkey had dull fur, its body a size smaller than others of its kind, appearing very weak.
On some higher rocks not far away, several strong monkeys were crouching. They were scratching their heads and cheeks, chirping, but showed no intention of helping. Instead, they seemed to be watching the spectacle.
Even when the thin monkey was in great danger, almost hit by a tiger's paw, they let out a few sharp cries that sounded like mockery.
'Exclusion within the group?'
Sora immediately understood what was happening. This phenomenon in nature was not rare.
He originally didn't want to interfere. The survival of the fittest among beasts was perfectly normal.
Just as he was about to quietly leave, the situation suddenly changed!
The weak monkey, seemingly pushed to a desperate situation, flashed a fierce and cunning look in its eyes that didn't match its size.
Using its small size as an advantage, it nimbly dodged a tiger's pounce and instead seized the chance to scramble onto the back of the other tiger. Its slender claws dug deeply into the tiger's eye socket!
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