Sora borrowed the force to float backwards over ten ters, landing steadily.
He lowered his head to look at his right hand. The back of his hand was a bloody ss, even the white finger bones could be seen. It looked quite miserable.
’A bit painful, but within controllable range. With a Zoan physique, it will heal soon.’
’But the disintegration property of Dust Release is indeed domineering. If my mixed Dragon Breath hadn’t weakened most of its power, this punch probably would have cost the entire arm.’
Although the actual injury was not severe, Sora still pretended to be seriously injured.
"He blocked it?! He blocked Dust Release?!"
"With his hand... he blocked it with his bare hand!"
"Azure Dragon-sama!!"
The battlefield fell silent for an instant, then erupted into a huge uproar!
Especially the Konoha ninja in the rear who had narrowly escaped death. They were so excited tears welled up in their eyes, their gazes towards Sora filled with endless gratitude and reverence!
"He... he actually really did it..."
Jiraiya was also full of shock. He never expected Sora to choose this thod to counter Dust Release, and even more so, he never expected him to succeed!
Seeing Sora "seriously injured", Jiraiya imdiately reacted. His figure flashed as he blocked in front of Sora, his expression grave as he looked at Ōnoki in the air.
"Ōnoki! Your opponent is !"
Ōnoki’s face also didn’t look good right now.
Using Dust Release consecutively, especially the last fairly large-scale "Detachnt of the Primitive World Technique", was extrely draining for his old bones.
He stared intently at Sora, who was being protected behind Jiraiya, his heart filled with both shock and anger.
’This kid... what kind of monster is he?! Using that strange Fire Release to weaken Dust Release, and daring to block it with his fist?!’
’Is his body made of diamond?!’
Although it seed the other party had also paid a considerable price, being able to face Dust Release head-on without dying, the threat level of this "Konoha Azure Dragon" was imaginable!
However, his chakra consumption was severe now, and his stamina had also dropped significantly. Facing a Jiraiya in almost perfect condition, it was already difficult to gain an advantage.
Moreover...
His gaze swept over the ground battlefield.
That huge White Tiger and that female Anbu were still wreaking havoc. That useless Kitsuchi was being tightly entangled.
And further back, that damned Yellow Flash was still frantically cutting through his command system. Toshinin simply couldn’t stop him. The signs of defeat were already apparent.
’Damn it...’
Strong unwillingness surged in Ōnoki’s heart, but the rationality of being the Tsuchikage told him that continuing to fight would only result in greater losses for Iwagakure.
Taking a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the churning qi and blood and anger, Ōnoki made the sa choice as the Third Raikage did back then:
"Iwagakure... retreat!"
Woooo——!
The horn sound representing retreat sounded. The Iwagakure ninja hurriedly withdrew to the rear.
"We won! We defended it again!"
"Long live Azure Dragon-sama!"
Deafening cheers erupted from the Konoha camp. Countless gazes focused on that azure figure.
Jiraiya, watching Iwagakure retreat, also relaxed. He quickly called for dical ninja.
"Hurry! Take the Azure Dragon away for treatnt!"
Two Chunin from the dical team imdiately stepped forward, carefully supporting the "weak" Sora, heading towards the rear camp.
Sora cooperated, showing an exhausted appearance, letting them support him. But in his heart, he was calmly reviewing the earlier battle.
’The power of Dust Release indeed lives up to its reputation. Decomposition at the rule level is hard to completely offset with pure energy attacks.’
’However, the strength of my Azure Dragon body seems even higher than expected. Combined with the Eight Gates and the Lightning Armor, it provides the capital to briefly withstand it under certain conditions.’
’And I am still at the third stage!’
Sora was supported as he left. Wherever he passed, Konoha ninja cast looks of respect and gratitude.
In this battle, the feat of the "Konoha Azure Dragon" withstanding Dust Release and saving comrades would definitely spread throughout the entire front line, even the entire ninja world, through the mouths of these survivors.
...
Temporary dical area, inside a single-person tent.
Sora leaned back against a simple camp bed. His right arm up to the back of his hand was wrapped in thick white bandages, fixed with a splint. It looked like a serious injury.
He looked at this familiar bandage, his gaze sowhat distant.
He couldn’t help but recall the scene from a few years ago, when he was far from as strong as he is now.
Back then, the power of the Azure Dragon Fruit had just awakened. The dragon scales and abnormalities that appeared during partial beast transformation could not be perfectly controlled at all.
In order to hide this secret, he racked his brains.
’I rember at that ti, I had to brace myself and borrow quite a bit of money from Big Sis and Kurenai...’
A slight smile tugged at the corner of Sora’s mouth.
The specially made bandages from the Akimichi clan were not cheap.
For an orphan with little savings at the ti, it was a huge sum.
Rembering Nonō’s gentle, worried, yet unhesitatingly taking out her savings expression.
And Yūhi Kurenai’s expression, who although said ’you have to give half of your mission rewards from now on’, her eyes were equally concerned...
A slight warmth rose in Sora’s heart.
It’s worth ntioning, they never asked for that money back later~
...
The tent flap was gently lifted.
Night Owl walked in. Following at her feet was a White Tiger, shrunk to the size of a large dog – Shanjun.
Shrunk down, Shanjun lost so of the overwhelming ferocity from the battlefield, gaining more of the agility and cuteness of a large feline.
"You’re here."
Sora collected his thoughts, nodding at Night Owl, signaling her to sit on the stool beside him.
Night Owl silently sat down, her gaze falling on Sora’s heavily bandaged right arm.
As for Shanjun, the mont it entered, its tiger eyes lit up.
Without needing Sora to call it, it walked to the camp bed, affectionately rubbing its big head against Sora’s uninjured left hand. Then it obediently lay down on the ground beside the bed, emitting a comfortable "purring" sound.
Sora very naturally extended his left hand, skillfully stroking Shanjun’s furry head. His technique was proficient, like petting a docile kitten.
If this scene were seen by those Konoha ninja outside who had witnessed Shanjun’s terrifying might, their eyeballs would probably pop out.
"Your injury... how is it?"
Night Owl asked with concern. As a long-ti Anbu teammate, she clearly understood Sora’s strength and recovery ability. But this was, after all, taking Dust Release head-on.
Sora spread his perception around the tent, confirming no one else was peeking. Then he smiled nonchalantly.
"It’s nothing serious. Flesh wounds, a bit of a bone fracture in the bone. It looks severe, that’s all. It’s almost healed now."
He did not hide it from Night Owl.
The two had worked together in the Anbu for many years, going through life and death together, establishing deep trust.
Back when he decided to kidnap Yumi and Ayumi, Night Owl was the Anbu squad leader responsible for protecting the dical team. Yet she chose to remain silent about his presence. He always rembered this favor.
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