After leaving the Hokage Building, Sora did not return to the Anbu dormitory. Instead, he went to the Medical Unit first.
Although he himself was not injured, the prolonged opening of the Fifth Gate and maintaining the Azure Dragon form had placed some strain on his body. He needed some medicines that would gently nourish his meridians and body as a cover, while also preparing for his true objective.
Using the reason of "excessive mission consumption, requiring recuperation," he obtained some standard soldier pills, blood replenishing pills, and ointments for relieving muscle fatigue.
These were routine supplies for Anbu members and did not attract any attention.
Then, he made a detour to the village's animal hospital and herbal medicine shop.
'Tenji is fine. The main issue is that Small White Tiger. Its injuries are severe, and it is too young. Ordinary medicine probably can't be handled. It needs gentler medicinal properties, and I also need to prepare some liquid food that a young animal can eat...'
Sora thought as he shopped.
At the animal hospital, using the reason "rescued an injured young ninja dog during a mission, want to try treating it," he bought some gentle topical ointments specifically for young animals, nutritional fluids, and feeding devices.
This reason was also quite common. Many ninjas had contracted summoning animals, and treating injured animals was not unusual.
At the herbal medicine shop, he bought some common herbs for clearing heat and detoxifying, as well as for strengthening the foundation and cultivating vitality. He mixed them into the previously obtained medicine, making it impossible for others to discern the specific purpose.
After finishing all this, Sora returned to his own residence.
He needed to wait for a suitable opportunity to go out. Having just returned from a mission and immediately applying to leave the village again would inevitably arouse suspicion.
For the next two days, Sora acted as usual.
He reported to the Anbu on time, conducted routine training, and received new mission briefings, mainly for village patrols or simple intelligence analysis. Sarutobi Hiruzen obviously did not intend to assign him high-risk missions for the time being, and his three teammates had not returned yet.
Everything matched the expected state of an Anbu member who had experienced a fierce battle and needed rest.
At the same time, Sora kept sensing Tenji's condition through that faint summoning contract.
The little fellow's emotions were generally stable, occasionally conveying a trace of anxiety and worry. Clearly, the condition of the Small White Tiger was not good.
'I need to hurry.' Sora thought to himself.
The opportunity soon came. On the third day, the Anbu Dispatch Office issued a C-rank mission.
Go to a small town on the eastern border of the Land of Fire to receive a routine intelligence scroll from a local informant.
The mission difficulty was low, and the journey was not short, but it was safe.
Sora took the initiative to accept this mission.
'Eastern border... Perfect for a detour to that forest from before. Receiving intelligence is the cover. Briefly "deviating" from the route midway for a while will give me enough time to treat that Small White Tiger.'
When going through the village exit procedures, the registering chunin looking at Sora's mission form simply checked his token as routine, advised him to "be careful," and granted permission.
For such a low-risk mission, executed by an Anbu member, the procedure was very simple.
Thus, Sora smoothly left Konoha.
Once out of the village, he immediately increased his speed. He first traveled some distance towards the mission location, confirmed no one was following, then immediately changed direction and sped towards the forest where he had the faint connection with Tenji.
His time was limited. He had to return within a reasonable timeframe for mission completion.
Relying on the contract sensing and his excellent memory, Sora quickly found the familiar forest.
Just as he approached that area, a thin, cyan figure eagerly jumped down from a large tree, chirping excitedly. It was the Six Eared Monkey, Tenji.
After not seeing him for two days, it seemed even more spirited, its eyes more lively.
But it soon tugged at Sora's pant leg, anxiously pointing towards a tree hollow deep in the dense forest.
Sora followed it to the front of the tree hollow. He saw the Small White Tiger lying listlessly on dry grass, its breath even weaker than before, its body even somewhat cold.
'The situation is worse than I thought!'
Sora immediately crouched down and carefully examined it.
He first carefully pried open the Small White Tiger's mouth and dripped a few drops of warm nutritional fluid to sustain its vitality.
Then, he took out the prepared ointment specifically for young animals and carefully applied it to the Small White Tiger's small wounds and fragile body, gently guiding the medicinal power to disperse with a trace of chakra.
Next, he chewed up some herbs for strengthening the foundation and cultivating vitality, mixed them with clean water, and fed them bit by bit to the Small White Tiger.
After doing all this, he gently picked up the Small White Tiger, held it in his arms, and used his own body temperature and a subtle trace of chakra to slowly nourish its cold body.
Tenji quietly squatted nearby, its big eyes watching without blinking, filled with tension and anticipation.
Time passed bit by bit. Under Sora's meticulous treatment and warmth, the Small White Tiger's cold body gradually warmed up. Its weak breathing also became slightly stronger. Although still unconscious, its vital signs finally stabilized.
Sora breathed a sigh of relief.
He glanced at the nervous Tenji beside him and conveyed a "reassuring" thought through the contract.
"Chii..."
Tenji also seemed to relax, rubbing its little head against Sora's hand.
Sora carefully placed the still unconscious but stable Small White Tiger back into the tree hollow lined with soft grass. He also left an adequate amount of ointment, nutritional fluid, and food, and carefully demonstrated to Tenji how to feed and apply medicine.
The little creature was astonishingly smart. After watching once, it nodded its little head as if understanding.
"Take good care of it. I will come see you again soon."
Sora patted Tenji's head.
Tenji nodded vigorously, its eyes firm, as if receiving an extremely important mission.
Sora estimated the time. Not daring to delay further, he immediately stood up. With a flash, his figure disappeared into the forest.
He had to get to the mission location as soon as possible, obtain that intelligence scroll, and then return to Konoha on time.
In the tree hollow, only the Six Eared Monkey Tenji remained, carefully guarding the sleeping Small White Tiger, waiting for Sora's next visit.
...
Sora rushed to the eastern border town at the fastest speed, smoothly obtained the unimportant intelligence scroll from the informant, and then immediately started the return journey without stopping.
The whole process was clean and efficient, not attracting any unnecessary attention.
When he returned to Konoha to hand over the mission, the chunin in charge of registration was even somewhat surprised by his efficiency.
"You're back already? No trouble on the way?"
"Everything went smoothly."
Sora answered concisely, handing over the scroll.
After completing the procedures, he walked straight towards the Anbu dormitory area. His mind was still preoccupied with the two little creatures in the forest, thinking about what reason to use to go out next time.
Just as he approached near the dormitory building, he vaguely heard some discussion.
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