In Sasori's home, a round table was set up in the open space of the courtyard.
Chiyo, Ebizo, Qingshui, and Sasori were gathered there, sharing dinner.
"Ahaha, it's been a long time since we've all sat down to eat together like this, Sasori."
Chiyo raised her cup, drinking heartily.
"No, Grandma, we ate at Kogane's parents' shop a week ago, the night Qingshui came to our house for the second time."
Sasori looked at the sweetened cactus juice in front of him and said with a cold expression.
Both he and Qingshui were minors and couldn't drink alcohol.
"Ahahaha, it seems this old body has been too busy lately; I even forgot about that."
Chiyo's face was flushed as she chuckled.
In private, she had a very cheerful personality.
It was just that she spent most of her time on public affairs, leaving little time for herself.
"Speaking of which, how is Kogane? This old body remembers he was supposed to graduate this year, too, right?"
Chiyo put down her cup and mumbled curiously to Ebizo.
Kogane was Sasori's childhood friend and the only peer he truly connected with besides Qingshui.
Even after Sasori's parents died, Sasori was immersed in his own world for a considerable period, but Kogane could still be considered a friend.
"Next semester, Kogane will be in the graduating class of the Ninja Academy. A month ago, his family hired two Chunin to teach him Ninjutsu, hoping he can graduate smoothly."
Ebizo took a sip of his drink and said slowly.
He didn't even have confidence in graduating smoothly and needed to hire instructors; Kogane's talent was clearly not very good, at best average.
"Kogane?"
Qingshui raised an eyebrow.
In the original timeline, Kogane was the one who, due to his own fatal poisoning and a past remark to Sasori—"I wish I could be as strong as the Puppets you create"—ended up being turned into a Puppet by Sasori.
"Ah, he's Sasori's friend. If there's an opportunity in the future, I can introduce you two; after all, you're both the same age."
Ebizo extended a Chakra Thread, activating a mechanism on the table that caused the Puppet arm in the center of the table to move the dishes from across the table to Ebizo's front.
He said that, but in reality, he didn't really believe Kogane and Qingshui would become close friends, at most just acquaintances.
Even Sasori and Kogane's friendship wasn't something Ebizo was particularly optimistic about.
Kogane's talent meant that becoming a Chunin in the future would not be an easy task. The widening gap in strength, rank, and status would inevitably cause Sasori and Kogane's relationship to slowly drift apart.
"Alright, everyone's had enough to eat, right? This old body suggests it's time for some post-meal exercise."
Chiyo chuckled as she stood up from her chair.
"After tonight, it'll probably be hard to find this much free time again. Sasori, Qingshui, both of you come to the back mountain and spar with this old body."
Though she called it sparring, it was actually a guidance session.
"Okay! Chiyo-sensei!"
Qingshui eagerly picked up the Sealing Scroll next to his chair.
Chiyo was the world's foremost Puppet Master, and as her newly accepted disciple, Qingshui was also very much looking forward to learning something from Chiyo.
Stepping out the back door of Sasori's house, there was a barren, desolate mountain. Besides the brownish-red earth, there were only scattered weeds and a few withered shrubs.
It was indeed a good place to practice Ninjutsu and experiment with Puppets.
"Alright, this old body won't bully you. To deal with two people, I'll only use two Puppets. Let's test your abilities."
A Sealing Scroll slid out from Chiyo's sleeve. Smoke billowed up, revealing two white-robed Human Puppets.
The Chikamatsu Collection!
Monzaemon's proudest work, created by the grandmaster of Puppetry. Each of the ten Human Puppets was a top-tier Puppet, and if their full power could be unleashed, their strength would be comparable to the Five Kage.
The two Puppets Chiyo revealed both wore masks.
One was tall, nearly two meters, wearing a horned ox-headed mask. The other was relatively short and slender, about 1.6 meters, with upright yellow hair on its head and a red cat-faced mask.
*Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!*
Another burst of white smoke diffused.
Qingshui and Sasori summoned all their Puppets, exchanged a glance, and then attacked in unison!
The two were already teammates, having cooperated on missions and sparred frequently in their daily lives. They understood each other's abilities perfectly, and their coordination was highly intuitive.
"*Black Secret Technique: Puppet Dance!*"
"*Black Secret Technique: Rapid Performance Method!*"
In an instant, six long arms shot out from Black Ant, covering the little boy as he sped towards Chiyo.
Chiyo moved two fingers slightly, and the sides of the Ox-faced Puppet's body opened, growing four new arms that, along with its original arms, grabbed Black Ant's six tentacles.
The Red-faced Cat-faced Puppet, meanwhile, extended sharp spikes from its arms, engaging in a struggle with the little boy at a speed even faster than his.
Qingshui and Sasori exchanged a glance.
The next second, the Fatty Puppet instantly covered Qingshui, charging towards Chiyo like a tank.
Sasori took a string of kunai connected by wire from his Ninja Tool Pouch and threw them towards Chiyo, avoiding Qingshui.
"Puppetry: Puppet Skill: Manipulated Attacking Blades!"
If puppets could be manipulated by Chakra Threads, then kunai and shuriken could naturally be too. Kunai manipulated in this way could even rival the Uchiha Clan's Shuriken Manipulation Technique.
Chiyo raised her right hand slightly and pulled.
The Ox-faced Puppet grabbed Black Ant's arm and swung it around like a giant windmill, deflecting all the kunai. It also threw Black Ant in Qingshui's direction.
Sasori's eyes flickered. He used Chakra Threads to separate Black Ant's body parts, allowing it to narrowly avoid Qingshui.
*Boom!*
The Fatty's Pneumatic Fist was blocked by one of the Ox-faced Puppet's thick, strong hands.
A wave of air rippled outwards from the two fists.
Chiyo nodded slightly.
The force she felt through the Ox-faced Puppet was quite strong. It was only because the Ox-faced Puppet itself was one of the top puppets in this world that it could block the attack so easily.
Of course, Chiyo wasn't fully utilizing the power of these two puppets.
Otherwise, let alone Qingshui and Sasori, even two regular Jonin might not be able to win.
Qingshui swung his other fist and began to engage the Ox-faced Puppet in close combat.
The scattered Black Ant was reassembled by Sasori using Chakra Threads. Six slender, spiked sub-limbs grew barbed hooks, changing targets and attacking the Red-faced Cat-faced Puppet.
Even though Chiyo limited the Red-faced Cat-faced Puppet's speed to just slightly faster than a small boy, she still held a clear advantage.
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