Sora took the scroll, opened it, and quickly skimmed through its contents.
The mission details were simple: infiltrate the Land of Wind, scout the movements of Sunagakure and its surrounding areas, and assess its war potential and intentions.
Mission rank: S-rank.
An S-rank mission... infiltrating the heart of an enemy country alone, scouting the movements of a ninja village. The danger level of this mission was easy to imagine.
If exposed, he might face the encirclement and suppression of the entire Sunagakure.
However, Sora was not overly concerned about this.
Given his true strength, as long as he was not trapped by a barrier or encountered enemies with special sealing techniques, if he wanted to leave, probably no one could stop him.
'Perfect, I can go take a look at Loulan.' This thought immediately surfaced in Sora's mind.
He had just divided the Azure Dragon Fruit's power into four stages when he ate it, and he was currently in the third stage: complete beast transformation!
But he currently had no clue about the final awakening. Moreover, Sora had been living in the Naruto world for over six years now, and he gradually realized that his previous assumption that the awakening would correspond to the Six Paths level was a bit naive.
The Azure Dragon Fruit awakening could indeed reach the Six Paths level, but Sora estimated that at best, it would be around Kaguya's level, or possibly even lower.
But Sora knew that above Kaguya, there were the Otsutsuki clan, who could graze in the universe. Relying solely on the awakened Azure Dragon Fruit ability definitely had its limits. Therefore, Sora set his sights on the power system of the Naruto world: Kekkei Mora!
[Translator: Kekkei Mōra (Bloodline Encompassing) is an ultra-rare, advanced bloodline power unique to Kaguya Ōtsutsuki and her direct lineage, far surpassing standard Kekkei Genkai (two-nature fusions) or Kekkei Tōta (three-nature fusions) by incorporating all five basic chakra natures plus Yin-Yang, allowing for god-tier abilities like Truth-Seeking Orbs, dimension manipulation, and powerful offensive/defensive feats.]
And the dragon vein in Loulan was precisely the first step in his plan, an important part of solving his own chakra shortcomings. Although the artificial tailed beast technology was still nowhere to be seen, it didn't stop him from going to scout the location first and familiarize himself with the environment.
Quickly calculating in his mind, Sora's expression remained unchanged on the surface. He put away the scroll and said solemnly:
"Understood. I guarantee the completion of the mission!"
"Hmm," Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded with satisfaction. "The mission duration is two months. Within two months, regardless of whether you gain anything, you must return to Konoha to report. Pay attention to your safety during this period. Prioritize your own concealment above all else. Avoid conflict with Sunagakure unless absolutely necessary."
"Yes!"
"Go and prepare. You can depart at any time."
"I take my leave."
Sora bowed and turned to leave the Hokage's office.
Walking out of the Hokage Building, Sora narrowed his eyes slightly. Independent operational authority, an S-rank reconnaissance mission, target Land of Wind...
...
Returning to the orphanage, Sora told Miyamoto Ichirō and the others the news that he was about to go on a mission.
"Going on another mission? How long will you be gone this time?" Miyamoto Ichirō asked with concern.
"About a month," Sora said, then looked at Kabuto, who was standing to the side looking somewhat uneasy. "Kabuto, listen to Ichirō and the older sisters while I'm gone. Eat well and study your characters diligently."
Kabuto nodded vigorously.
Seeing the look of dependency mixed with concern in Kabuto's eyes, Sora felt a slight stir in his heart and ruffled his hair.
This little guy had become a bit more cheerful compared to when he first arrived.
Early the next morning, Sora changed into a plain dark traveling outfit and left Konoha Village.
...
Land of Wind.
Sora did not head towards the area where Sunagakure was located. Instead, based on memories from his previous life, he searched in the general direction of the ancient kingdom of Loulan.
At this moment, he was walking quickly through the desert. His conspicuous silver-white short hair had been changed to an inconspicuous dark brown.
He had also made some modifications to his face, making him look slightly older, more like a wandering ninja or merchant who had been traveling outside for a long time, weathered by the elements.
While traveling at a steady pace, Sora calculated in his mind.
After the Battle of Kikyōyama, Sunagakure's strength was greatly diminished. Internal instability was inevitable. According to the timeline Sora remembered, they not only had to digest the bitter fruit of defeat and handle internal conflicts, but would also soon be attacked by Kirigakure.
They simply couldn't spare much energy to cause major trouble externally.
Therefore, Sora actually didn't take this S-rank reconnaissance mission too seriously.
He just needed to take a walk within the Land of Wind, gather some intelligence like "Sunagakure's mission volume has decreased" or "ninja forces are contracting their defenses," combine it with his own "analysis," and he could report back.
What truly concerned him was another objective of this trip: the dragon vein of the ancient kingdom of Loulan!
But most of the Land of Wind was comprised of Gobi desert and sandy desert, with harsh environments. Searching for the ruins of an ancient city that had been abandoned for a long time was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
Even with his memories from his previous life, Sora wandered and searched for over ten days in the vast desert.
During this time, he encountered several waves of sand bandits and Sunagakure patrols, but he avoided them all in advance.
Finally, on the evening of the fifteenth day, deep within a group of huge wind-eroded rock pillars, Sora discovered ruins half-buried by yellow sand.
And in the center of the ruins, an especially tall, though also dilapidated, spiral tower came into his view.
This is the place! Loulan!
Sora's spirits lifted, and a hint of joy flashed in his eyes.
He then quickly suppressed his chakra and carefully circled the periphery of the ruins several times to investigate.
After confirming there were no traces of human activity around, and no traps or barrier fluctuations were detected, he silently infiltrated the center of the ruins and arrived beneath that tall tower.
The interior of the tower was even more empty and dilapidated than it looked from the outside, filled with accumulated sand and dust.
Sora had a clear goal. He headed directly towards the deepest part at the bottom of the tower.
The further down he went, the more he could feel a faint, yet deep and vast, energy fluctuation.
Finally, in a huge stone chamber resembling an altar at the bottom of the tower, he saw the target of this trip:
A complex sealing formula about three meters in diameter, located in the center of the altar!
Sora took a deep breath, suppressing some excitement in his heart, squatted down, and began carefully studying this sealing formula.
He had now systematically studied the basics of the Uzumaki clan's sealing techniques and had mostly mastered the Four Symbols Seal. Although he couldn't be considered a sealing master yet, his perspective and foundational knowledge far exceeded that of an ordinary ninja.
Upon careful examination, Sora's brows gradually furrowed.
It really isn't simple...
Just as he had previously guessed, this was not a single sealing technique at all.
It was a composite seal cleverly nested and combined from multiple high-level sealing techniques!
Sora identified the three most core ones among them.
Four Symbols Seal... forming a closed loop, constructing a stable sealing space, serving as the main framework.
Then there was a natural energy sealing technique from the Myobokuzan lineage... carrying a strong toad contract aura, further reinforcing and stabilizing the seal, while seemingly having the effect of harmonizing natural energy.
And this last one is... a Contract Seal? No, it's a variant Bloodline Contract Seal!
Sora's gaze focused as he saw several lines of runes connected to the core of the seal, carrying a strange bloodline aura.
After thinking for a moment, Sora deduced that this should be the ancient contract between the dragon vein and the bloodline of the Queen of Loulan.
It was by borrowing the power of this contract that the dragon vein energy could be so precisely bound to this place.
Three powerful sealing techniques, interlocking and supporting each other, forming an almost perfect whole.
Its sophistication and complexity far exceeded what Sora could currently comprehend and master.
With just my current level of sealing technique proficiency, trying to safely break this seal is almost wishful thinking. Forcing an attempt would likely only trigger the seal's backlash and create a huge commotion.
He had originally held onto a sliver of hope, wondering if he could use his knowledge of sealing techniques to find a crack and slightly draw out a bit of the dragon vein energy to study.
Now it seemed that idea was too naive.
An energy source of the dragon vein's level was not something he could easily touch at his current stage. Even if he forcibly broke the seal, he wouldn't be able to utilize it.
Aside from needing profound sealing techniques to "open the valve" and "guide the flow," he probably also needed a key token or specific conditions.
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