"Putting aside pride, Senju… Could it be that she's one of Tsunade's disciples?"
Sakumo quietly asked after watching him leave.
"I remember you brought back a cat puppet from Sunagakure not long ago, right?"
Akaba said that much and stopped explaining further.
Sakumo suddenly understood.
The cat puppet had been given to Akaba's adopted sister, so naturally the one skilled in Puppet Technique must be his sister.
She was only six—barely old enough to start ninja school.
Seeking guidance on puppetry from such a young child was undeniably embarrassing, especially since Nightdance was called "the genius of the Gekko Clan."
Sakumo paused, then asked curiously, "Uzumaki Village shouldn't teach this. How did she learn puppetry?"
"She didn't learn it. She just knew it already."
Akaba sighed heavily; the underlying implication was obvious.
Sakumo felt some sympathy for Nightdance.
Explaining how she'd learned Puppet Technique without any instruction was nearly impossible—it wasn't something you could just put into words.
For someone like her who mastered it without a teacher, it wasn't just about pride anymore.
"Nothing exciting's happening today. Let's go train."
He had no interest in that plastic friendship fight.
Just as one arc ended and another hadn't started yet—the One Piece storyline was also stuck in a lull.
Sakumo stood up, preparing to return for more training.
Before leaving, he hesitated slightly and added, "Actually, Father doesn't mean much harm. He probably thinks you have talent with blades and wants to test you. That's just who he is."
"I understand, but forget about my blade talent."
Everyone knows their own limits.
Like hell Akaba had any blade talent. If he actually trained seriously, he couldn't even compare with children from the Hatake Clan. He was nothing but a slacker with a big mouth.
"Yeah, I'm heading back to train now."
"Do your best. Focus more on what you're good at during this time instead of obsessing over Dual-Blade Style."
Akaba kindly reminded him.
"I know. Today, I'll practice Mist Phantom Scene and Silent Killing Jutsu."
After promotion to Chunin, both Akaba and Orochimaru had their own assignments, but Sakumo remained without a position.
Once war broke out, he would most likely head to the battlefield in the Land of Whirlpools.
"Go ahead, go ahead."
Akaba waved him off.
The war was growing ever closer, and many ninjas in the village were beginning preparations.
The threat wasn't only toward the Land of Whirlpools—countries like the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth might also try to take advantage once fighting began. That's why Danzo was willing to risk serious injury to infiltrate Sunagakure and steal intel—even offering a life-for-life trade with their Kazekage.
Otherwise, the battlefield in the Land of Whirlpools would have to be abandoned.
"Young Master, are we heading into war?"
Rang Sakuma figured it out somewhat late and was now slowly grasping the situation.
"Just keep it to yourself. Don't go spreading rumors."
Akaba warned.
At this point, few among the lower and middle ranks knew about this matter, and those dispatched were mostly Anbu or certain ninjas specializing in assassination and concealment.
Not a full-scale war, so there's no need for too many people to know.
"I understand."
Rang Sakuma murmured in reply. Seeing incoming guests, he immediately shut up.
With two shadow clones doing the grunt work, Akaba could finally relax — though he still wouldn't risk napping inside the private chamber itself. If he fell asleep while facing them directly, the clones would vanish on the spot.
Meanwhile.
Guided by Akaba, Nightdance followed the street toward the Senju clan. "Senior, I'm looking for Lady Tsunade. Is she available?"
"Lady Tsunade isn't here. Do you have something urgent to say?"
A gatekeeper from the Senju clan replied.
Truthfully speaking, he himself wasn't even sure whether Tsunade was around — lately, he hadn't even seen her shadow, let alone confirmed her whereabouts.
So asking whether she's present or not, if there's something to say, just say it.
"I heard from Akaba that there's an expert in Puppet Technique here, so I'd like to seek some guidance. Would you be willing to introduce me to them?"
Nightdance bowed politely.
Puppet Technique, you say?
The guarding chunin looked confused. He himself hailed from the Senju clan and hadn't heard of any ninja within the clan studying puppetry.
Yet upon deeper thought, a particular image suddenly surfaced in his mind —
That little girl from the Uzumaki household, and the puppet cat perched on her shoulder.
Could it be her?
Startled, the chunin considered carefully and realized there seemed to be nobody else who knew the Puppet Technique.
"Senior, could you introduce us?"
Seeing no response, Nightdance assumed there might be difficulties involved.
After pondering briefly, the chunin said, "You should go talk to Lady Mito first; let Lady Mito arrange the introduction for you. This is beyond my authority."
Others might not know, but he certainly did.
Uzumaki Kyoyuki was Mito Uzumaki's most cherished protégé. Who dared show any ill intent toward Kyoyuki? The consequences would be unimaginable.
"Yes, thank you senior."
Nightdance happily ran inside. Finding Mito Uzumaki's courtyard proved straightforward, requiring no further inquiry.
Running all the way to the end, he quickly located Mito Uzumaki's courtyard.
"Lady Mito, greetings."
"You're from the Gekko house. Please come in quickly."
Mito Uzumaki smiled gently and stood up from her chair.
Seeing her warm smile, Gekko Nightdance immediately felt at ease. This was his first one-on-one meeting with a First Hokage-level figure, and he'd been pretty anxious before stepping in.
He entered and stated his intention: "Akaba told me you have someone skilled in Puppet Technique here, so I'd like to learn how to use the Puppet Technique."
[Puppet Technique]?
Mito Uzumaki paused briefly, then said, "To put it simply, it means manipulating puppets using Chakra Threads — it's really not that difficult."
"Chakra threads?"
Nightdance hesitated momentarily.
"This kind."
As Mito Uzumaki spoke, she flicked her finger, sending out a thin Chakra Thread that attached itself to a fallen leaf nearby.
Then, the leaf lifted into the air.
"That simple?"
Nightdance was astonished — so this was what "simple" meant? If that were the case, even Sword Clone would be effortless!
It really depends on the individual — for some it's effortless, for others... well, not so much.
Mito Uzumaki smiled faintly, uncertain how exactly to explain further.
Because mastering Sealing Techniques demanded such precise chakra control, the Uzumaki trained their children in it from the moment they could walk. Coupled with their natural talent, to the Uzumaki, this kind of control was as natural as breathing.
But for others, it wasn't that easy.
"Honored Master Mito, what should I do?"
Nightdance was filled with determination.
At this level, he definitely could master it himself.
"Slowly expel your chakra outside your body and condense it into a thread. If you want to be sufficiently discreet, make the chakra thread thinner."
Uzumaki Mito explained simply.
Truth be told, manipulating chakra threads wasn't that complicated at all. That's pretty much all there is to it. The problem is that talking about it sounds easy, but practicing it is difficult.
Nightdance nodded, then concentrated his chakra.
After a while, a line of chakra gathered at his fingertip; however, not only was the line as thick as his pinky finger, it also became increasingly thinner further along and disappeared completely near the end.
Looking at the distance, it barely extended three steps.
"I'll try again!"
He reddened his face and expelled chakra once more.
A thin wisp of chakra condensed—this time it was very fine—but before long, it snapped directly.
So difficult!
At this moment, an upstairs window opened, and a puppet jumped out, saying, "Honored Master Mito, I've done it."
"A puppet?"
Nightdance exclaimed in surprise.
"Oh! It's big brother Nightdance too."
The puppet jumped down from the upper floor—it was a cat puppet, and there was even a thread connected behind it.
"Uzumaki Kyoyuki, you've only just activated the Yin Seal—you mustn't overexert yourself by consuming too much chakra, do you understand?"
Uzumaki Mito scolded.
[Yin Seal] was an extremely advanced sealing technique.
The reason she let Uzumaki Kyoyuki practice here was to provide a safer environment during the activation process.
"Yes, Honored Master."
The cat puppet quickly jumped back and returned upstairs.
Uzumaki Mito remained silent for one or two seconds before saying, "As you can see."
"This... I'll keep practicing slowly at home."
Nightdance felt his face burning.
He recognized the voice immediately.
Uzumaki Kyoyuki—the little girl adopted by the Akaba family.
A six-year-old girl whose chakra manipulation surpassed even his own. Thinking back to what he had just done—
Could that even be called a chakra thread?
Calling it a chakra cable would insult actual cables—at least cables were stronger.
"Chakra control can only improve gradually. There's no need to rush; the more anxious you are, the harder you will find it."
Uzumaki Mito showed understanding.
Just based on chakra control alone, Uzumaki Kyoyuki surpassed many Jonin, so there really wasn't anything to feel ashamed about.
"By the way, when you return, please give a message to Akaba."
Uzumaki Mito smiled lightly, "He's gone into hiding for quite some time now—he should come out and see what's going on. There might be something worth his attention."
"You can rest assured. I will definitely deliver your words."
Nightdance bowed deeply.
Toward this elder, he held sincere respect.
Gentle and kind-hearted, knowledgeable, and willing to share wisdom with others, she was famously regarded as a great person in the village.
"Hmm, go ahead then."
Uzumaki Mito leaned back into her chair, continuing to rest.
Nightdance left the Senju Clan residence and made his way straight toward Akaba's manga shop. Seeing him leaned up against the wall and fast asleep, Nightdance gave the stool beside him a light kick.
"Who did that?!"
Akaba irritably opened his eyes. He had finally managed to fall asleep after quite some time.
Recognizing the visitor, he instantly changed his expression: "Oh, it's Nightdance."
"The one you mentioned who knows Puppet Technique turned out to be your little sister instead? Haha, why didn't you send me straight to Sunagakure Village?"
Nightdance muttered with irritation.
"This part I don't really understand, I just know she can."
Akaba explained briefly.
Nightdance wasn't an insensitive person. It was already pretty generous of Akaba to point him toward Uzumaki Kyoyuki—it was just that Nightdance couldn't bring himself to swallow his pride.
Sighing softly, he composed himself before repeating Mito Uzumaki's words verbatim.
"Alright, got it."
Akaba appeared calm and collected on the outside, like an old hound, but deep down he felt uneasy.
"I don't have anything else, so I'm going back to train. Once my ninjutsu is perfected, I'll treat you to barbecue as thanks."
"Nah, forget the barbecue—it's way too fatty for my taste. Just treat me to something lighter."
Akaba shot back.
"Your call."
Nightdance said and stood up, heading toward the Hatake Clan grounds.
Ever since becoming Kakashi Windseer's disciple, he had practically been adopted into the Hatake family. Except for sleeping at the Gekko compound, most of his time was now spent in the Hatake dojo.
Watching him leave, Akaba's face immediately fell.
You can't beat experience—she even figured out I was avoiding her. This isn't going to be easy.
Ah, whatever!
So it's the Senju clan, then?
Fine, I'll go.
Still, I wonder what useful thing Mito Uzumaki meant exactly.
"Gonna head out for a bit—I won't be back this afternoon. If my Shadow Clone vanishes, just shut the door to my Private Chamber for me."
"Yes, young master."
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