Meanwhile, on the other side...
At Tōrō Sakura's residence, a figure suddenly appeared beside her.
"My lord!"
The newcomer bowed respectfully and said, "I have returned."
Upon hearing this, Tōrō Sakura slowly opened her half-closed eyes and asked, "How is it?"
"The target is still the same. Every day, he is either training or on his way to train. There have been no other unusual activities," the person replied.
Indeed, among the individuals monitoring Qingming, some were sent by Tōrō Sakura. Although the conversation a few days ago in the Hokage's office had led her to temporarily abandon her direct confrontation plan with Qingming, she had not stopped her investigative work.
Compared to Mito Gate En and Sarutobi Hiruzen, Tōrō Sakura's personality was more assertive and impulsive. Even though the Uchiha clan had clearly shown their intent to protect Qingming, she had not given up.
Unfortunately, Qingming's actions were too cautious, and he gave her no leverage to act upon, making it extremely frustrating for her.
Still, she had to hold her frustration in check. The village had its own rules, and at this sensitive time, if she acted rashly, it would give the Uchiha clan something to hold against her.
This could turn the situation in their favor.
Therefore, even after hearing her subordinate's report with no progress, she managed to suppress her anger and dismissed him.
Before he left, she instructed, "Continue monitoring, don't let your guard down!"
"Yes, my lord!" the person replied and then left.
Soon, Tōrō Sakura was alone in the room. Her eyes blankly stared ahead, reflecting on the many years that had passed, and she sighed softly, "Sigh..."
The next day, afternoon.
Back on the island.
After Qingming once again dispelled the 'Multi Shadow Clone Technique' and absorbed the experiences of the eleven clones, his 'Lightning Release: Thunder Sword' finally reached its perfect state.
Qingming stood up, drew the long blade from his waist with a "clang", and began swinging it. Standing in place, he performed the moves of 'Lightning Release: Thunder Sword' in an area spanning several meters.
For a moment, the surroundings were filled with flashing sword light and thunderous sounds, creating a lively atmosphere.
Qingming slashed out, sending a lightning bolt from the sword that struck a distant tree, leaving a scorched mark on its surface.
Then, with another swing, another lightning blade shot out and split a large rock on the ground.
Indeed, after reaching the perfect state at lv7 (0/0), he could now use 'Lightning Release: Thunder Sword' for long-range attacks.
The two lightning blades he just slashed had an attack power no weaker than that of an average C-rank jutsu.
With the fragile bodies of most ninjas in the ninja world, as long as a vital spot is hit, even if the target doesn't die, they would still suffer heavy injuries.
Thus, when combined with his single-handed hand seals and the ability to perform jutsu without hand seals, his close-combat ability was greatly enhanced.
After a bit more practice with 'Lightning Release: Thunder Sword', Qingming finally stopped and sheathed the sword. He then opened his proficiency panel.
Now that 'Lightning Release: Thunder Sword' was perfected, the chakra he had invested in it needed to be redistributed.
And how much chakra was that?
A total of 87,000 points!
Without a doubt, this was a large amount of chakra. Using it on any skill would significantly speed up its progress.
Qingming's gaze scanned over the skills he had recently learned and checked their progress bars. Once he confirmed they were growing according to plan, he decided to invest all this chakra into 'Water Release: Great Water Surge'.
This had always been his initial plan.
The technique was an upgraded version of 'Water Release: Water Surge' and started with lv7 proficiency. Advancing it to perfection would save a lot of time.
As for how long it would take...
Qingming had previously tested it, and it took an average of 120 chakra to increase proficiency by one point.
Thus, with 87,000 chakra, it would equate to 725 proficiency points.
Therefore, to bring it to the A-rank jutsu lv9 (0/0) perfect state, it would take only about three months.
Although three months might not be enough for his next action, even at lv8, the water domain created by the technique would still give him a significant advantage in battle against the Tailed Beasts.
Though the technique might not be needed in most cases, the saying still holds true—better safe than sorry!
Having made his decision, Qingming closed the panel and raised his hand once more, performing the 'Multi Shadow Clone Technique'. He created eleven clones to begin the next round of training.
Thus, the days passed by.
As time went on, Konoha Village grew more bustling. Everyone eagerly awaited the selection of the new Hokage to lead them toward a bright future.
Finally, after ten days, the Hokage election began.
On that morning, even Qingming stayed in the village and quietly awaited the start of the election.
In truth, though, the result had already been decided.
At this point, all the interests had been divided, and the only thing left was for the upper ninjas to cast their votes, a mere formality.
The line moved quickly, and soon it was Qingming's turn.
He entered the designated voting room, nodding casually at Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others seated at the front, then walked toward the voting box.
There was only one voting box, but it could hold votes for two candidates: Minato Namikaze and Orochimaru.
Indeed, although Orochimaru had been asked to withdraw from the Hokage race by Sarutobi Hiruzen, his name still appeared on the candidate list.
The reason for this was simple: family matters should not be aired publicly.
Therefore, even though Orochimaru no longer had a chance to become the Fourth Hokage, he still sat there, quietly waiting for the result.
Qingming dropped his vote with Namikaze Minato's name, glancing at Orochimaru in his peripheral vision.
At that moment, Orochimaru's already pale face looked even more sickly and unpleasant.
It couldn't be helped. In this situation, even someone with Orochimaru's temperament could not help but feel upset.
After all, he had been one of the main contenders, but now he could only watch as others played their part in the drama.
No wonder every person who passed by him seemed like a humiliation.
If it weren't for the lingering attachment Orochimaru still had for the village and the bit of teacher-student bond he shared with Sarutobi Hiruzen, he would have probably already walked away in anger.
Sensing Qingming's gaze, Orochimaru slightly turned his head, his golden-yellow slit pupils locking onto Qingming, his eyes filled with indifference.
Qingming did not meet his gaze and naturally shifted his eyes away.
After casting his vote, Qingming nodded again at Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others, then left the room.
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