Sora then turned his gaze back to Steel Plate Hikawa and his group who were kneeling and begging for mercy, and asked:
"Lady Tsunade, these people... how should they be dealt with?"
According to Anbu convention, the most secure approach for rogue ninja who block the road, rob, and threaten Konoha ninja was direct elimination.
Hearing this, Tsunade's footsteps did not pause in the slightest. She did not even look at the group of trembling bandits, her expressionless face fixed ahead as if they did not exist.
"Shizune, let's walk faster. We need to find a good camping spot before dark."
These words sounded as if she completely ignored Sora's inquiry.
However, just as she passed by Sora, he clearly saw her glance briefly at Fox beside her, then immediately return to indifference.
Just a glance, without any words.
But Fox gave a slight nod immediately, his eyes understanding.
He also did not say another word, only imperceptibly slowing his pace to fall to the rear of the group, walking alongside Grey Wolf.
Sora understood instantly.
Tsunade's silence and that glance were themselves the clearest order. Tacit approval for elimination, but she personally did not want to see or hear any part of the bloody process.
This was the decision of a Sannin who had experienced countless battles. Calm and efficient, not swayed by the pleas of a few ants, nor letting personal psychological trauma affect necessary judgment.
When Tsunade and Shizune's figures disappeared around the bend in the road ahead, Fox, who had fallen to the very back, spoke softly to Grey Wolf:
"Make it clean."
"Yes."
Grey Wolf turned to look at the bandits who had just relaxed, thinking they had escaped disaster. His eyes looked at them as if they were already dead objects.
The smile of relief on Steel Plate Hikawa's face had no time to fully form before it froze.
...
A few minutes later, Grey Wolf caught up to the group ahead and gave a slight nod to Fox.
Fox nodded back. Everything was understood without words.
The group continued forward in silence. No one mentioned the insignificant road blockers from before again, as if they had never existed.
The rest of the journey was without further incident, and Sora's group smoothly returned to Konoha Village.
The towering gates, familiar guards, and that atmosphere of peace and tranquility let everyone secretly sigh in relief.
This escort mission had lasted nearly half a year, and the Third Shinobi World War had entered its second year.
But Sora knew this war would last a full four to five years. Right now, less than a quarter had passed. The road ahead was still very long.
At the village entrance, Tsunade separated from Squad C Five. She took Shizune and went straight to the Hokage Building, presumably to report to Sarutobi Hiruzen, or rather, to give an account of some matters.
Fox took the other three members of Squad C Five to the Anbu headquarters for mission handover.
After confirming the mission's completion and briefly recording the itinerary, the Anbu squad leader handling the handover informed them that due to the tense situation on the front lines, they only had two days of rest.
"In two days, new mission orders will be issued. Maintain standby status." The squad leader said emotionlessly.
"Understood." Fox nodded in acknowledgment.
Sora was not surprised by this.
The Third Shinobi World War was like a giant meat grinder, constantly consuming Konoha's manpower and resources. An experienced Anbu squad like theirs could not be left idle for long.
Having two full days of leave was already quite good.
Leaving the Anbu headquarters, the four bid simple farewells.
Fox, Grey Wolf, and Night Owl each returned to their residences to rest and recuperate.
Sora headed straight for the orphanage.
...
Returning to the orphanage after nearly half a year's absence, everything seemed unchanged.
Miyamoto Ichirō was in the courtyard drying clothes. Seeing Sora return, a surprised smile appeared on his face.
"Sora brother! You're back!"
Hearing the commotion, the two little girls Yumi and Ayumi also ran out from the house, surrounding Sora and chattering with questions.
The old Director was still lying on the bed in the inner room. Her breathing was weak but relatively steady. It seemed that that lingering obsession was still supporting her.
Uesugi Min was out on a mission and not at the orphanage.
After some brief pleasantries, Sora returned to his own slightly shabby small room.
Closing the door, shutting out the outside noise, he took a deep breath, savoring this hard-won tranquility.
Only two days. Could not waste them.
Sora had no thought of relaxing. Improving his strength was of utmost urgency.
The first thing he thought of was the "Super Strength" Tsunade had taught him.
This secret technique had great potential. If mastered proficiently, close-quarters destructive power would achieve a qualitative leap.
Moreover, "Super Strength" was different from the "Eight Gates." It focused more on the micro-control and instantaneous burst of chakra, placing relatively less strain on the body. It could be used as a regular attack method.
"Tsunade pointed out my problem with power dispersion. Must resolve it quickly. Control is the core of Super Strength."
Sora sat cross-legged on the bed. He did not start practicing immediately, but first repeatedly recalled and mentally simulated the chakra operation techniques of Super Strength in his mind.
At the same time, he formed hand seals.
"Multiple Shadow Clone Technique!"
With five soft sounds, five shadow clones appeared in the room.
With Sora's current chakra level, five was already the limit. It was far from the hundreds or thousands of the true Multiple Shadow Clone Technique.
Two shadow clones took the "Uzumaki Clan Sealing Arts: Basic Detailed Explanation" and continued studying those obscure and difficult runes and theories.
The other three shadow clones with slightly more chakra walked to a corner of the room. They began the most basic chakra control practice, attempting to precisely gather chakra at their fingertips, forming a stable, non-dispersing small point.
This was preparatory work for cultivating Super Strength, and also the best method to improve chakra control precision.
Sora's main body then went to the open space in the courtyard, preparing to conduct practical simulation training for Super Strength.
He did not choose huge boulders, but found several ordinary stones of different sizes.
"Start with the small ones. The goal is to completely focus the power on one point, minimizing the impact on the surrounding environment as much as possible."
Sora concentrated, calming his mind, mobilizing chakra, slowly gathering it toward the index finger of his right hand.
This time, he no longer pursued visual effects or exaggerated destructive power. Instead, he immersed all his mental focus into the extreme micro-control of chakra.
"Compress... compress more... condense at the fingertip..."
His index finger lightly tapped toward a stone the size of a fist.
Thud!
A soft, muffled sound. A tiny hole appeared on the stone, with only some slight cracks around it. It did not shatter apart like before.
"There is progress, but the power is still a bit scattered. The edges of the hole are not smooth enough."
Sora carefully observed the effect, analyzing the shortcomings in his mind.
He was not discouraged, picked up another stone, and repeated the same process.
Once, twice, ten times, dozens of times...
The main body tirelessly practiced finger strength in the courtyard, feeling every subtle change of chakra.
The shadow clones accumulated knowledge of sealing arts and experience in chakra control inside the house.
Large amounts of information, insights, and fatigue were periodically fed back to Sora's main body through the dispelling of shadow clones. Fortunately, with his constitution, it had no real impact.
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