The battlefield had barely cooled when Kyro noticed it.
The dragon was restless.
Its scales, once a steady ember-red, now pulsed faintly along the spine. Thin lines of brighter crimson traced between plates like molten veins beneath stone.
It growled low, shaking its head as if something itched under the surface.
Miku hovered closer. "it's magic, It feels… tight. Like it's growing too fast."
Kyro placed a hand against the dragon's neck, heat surged through his palm.
Stronger than before and very unstable.
The dragon's wings flexed involuntarily, tearing loose flakes of scale that fell and hardened on the ground like brittle obsidian.
"He's evolution must be stimulated by the recent Combat stress and Near-death stimulation of its master" kyro speculated .
Draconic instinct responding to survival pressure.
Its pupils narrowed into razor slits.
Kyro didn't hesitate.
"We're leaving this place before more dangerous people show up ."
The ruined stronghold was compromised. Musashi had retreated, yes but not defeated. And Cloud ANBU were likely triangulating the disturbance and arrive soon..
A dragon mid-evolution was vulnerable so he stored the dragon carefully within the system space, its presence flickering into contained stasis and departed immediately.
The Abandoned Village, Border of the Land of Fire
Weeks later, Kyro stood at the edge of a forgotten farming village swallowed by creeping forest.
Charred beams. Collapsed homes and no banners..
War had shifted borders and left places like this behind.
Perfect for someone to use as a hideout,
he released the dragon inside the largest intact structure.
The dragon stumbled slightly upon re-materialization.
Its body had grown subtly, shoulders broader, horns slightly longer, wing membranes thicker.
It exhaled smoke involuntarily.
Kyro watched carefully.
"Is it hurting or something ?" Miku asked quietly.
"No," Kyro said.
"It's changing, getting stronger.. ."
The dragon looked at him, eyes sharper now, more aware.
It lowered its head, pressing its forehead briefly to Kyro's chest.
Trust.
Kyro sat beside it as night fell.
If this was the beginning of natural evolution
He would guard it.
Meanwhile, Underground Exchange.
Deep beneath canyon stone, lantern light flickered across gathered figures.
Saki Musashi entered without announcement.
The room quieted instantly.
"So I take it that You failed?" a broker asked.
Musashi set a damaged sword fragment onto the table.
"I misjudged the boy."
Silence deepened.
"He has surpassed mid-tier rogue classification," Musashi continued calmly.
"Enhanced physiology beyond shinobi norms. Regenerative capacity. Dragon-type summon. Illusion hybridization."
Several bounty agents exchanged looks.
"he combined techniques mid battle ?" someone muttered.
Musashi nodded once.
"yes the target adapts mid-combat."
A long pause.
The broker inhaled slowly.
"Then the price doubles since he's much stronger than expected."
A new scroll was written.
Stamped.
Sealed.
Bounty: Increased.. High Priority
Alive: extraordinary compensation.
Dead: acceptable, with proof.
The room buzzed.
From the shadows, a Cloud shinobi who had been collecting independent contracts stiffened subtly.
He lowered his head to hide his reaction as he processed the information.
Later that night, he slipped away.
In a remote Cloud outpost, the shinobi delivered his findings.
"Musashi withdrew from the battle, as it seems he had lost sir ."
The commander's eyes hardened.
"And?..
"The rogue now carries a doubled underground bounty. High-level hunters are mobilizing."
Silence stretched.
"This complicates matters," the commander said quietly. "We cannot allow outside interference to eliminate a strategic variable."
Orders were written.
ANBU tracking units expanded their operational grid.
Other Hunters Take Notice
Across neutral territories:
A former Mist swordsman traced the bounty notice with interest.
A pair of twin mercenaries debated partnership.
A monk-assassin from a dismantled temple requested updated sketches, showing interest in the bounty,even Information brokers began selling rumored sightings at inflated prices as they saw an opportunity to make money.
Months Pass..
The Second Shinobi War continued grinding through nations.
Kyro remained in the abandoned settlement near the Land of Fire's outer forests.
He hunted selectively.
Bandits who exploited war refugees. Rogue deserters who preyed on supply caravans.
He avoided spectacle now.
Minimal fire.
Minimal structural destruction.
Precision removals.
Miku's illusions grew more refined. She could now layer emotional dissonance into targets, inducing hesitation rather than panic.
The dragon's growth stabilized but did not stop, its scales darkened from ember-red toward deep crimson edged in black.
Occasionally, heat radiated from it in pulses during sleep.
Kyro trained daily.
Control drills.
Dragon-lung endurance.
Mirage of the Inferno Wyrm refinement into shorter bursts and tighter execution.
He was no longer a desperate kid trying to survive and reach the next day, he was now growing warrior .
Current Status
After months of steady accumulation:
Summoning Points: 450 SP
Not enough for the 600 SP dragon evolution serum.
But close.
Very close.
Kyro stood on the roof of a broken farmhouse at dusk, watching smoke from distant war fronts rise beyond the horizon.
The dragon rested behind him, larger now, approaching small horse size.
Miku sat on his shoulder, quiet.
"we're being hunted by more people now ," she said softly.
"yeah I know, especially after dealing with that sword guy musashi ."
The dragon exhaled a low rumble.
Kyro opened the system shop briefly.
600 SP.
He was 150 short of forcing accelerated evolution.
He closed it.
"I won't rush it for now ," he murmured.
"Natural evolution might produce something stronger than artificial enhancement.
But natural evolution also attracted attention".He thought to himself
And somewhere out there, Musashi was preparing and Cloud ANBU were closing in.