"In that case, how about coming to Sunagakure with me?"
After waiting a bit longer, judging that Hii Kōri's emotions might have settled somewhat, Chiyo crouched before him and asked tentatively.
With her strength, kidnapping a child like this would cost her nothing. But if she could get him to willingly commit to Sunagakure, that would be ideal. It cost nothing to ask—no harm in trying.
But the moment she spoke, Hii Kōri's eyes went wide. He fixed her with an indescribable gaze that made her deeply uncomfortable.
Why are you looking at me like that?
"Do I have another choice?"
It wasn't just the dust in his eyes making them water—he genuinely wondered about this.
Even if he might be completely unaware of his parents' dealings with Sunagakure, he was still the child of two ninja. He'd just crippled one of her puppet's arms—though that thing looked pretty crude, with sloppy joint protection.
Anyway, did he look like some brat completely oblivious to his own situation?
What kind of mindset was she operating on to even ask that question?
"Uh... well..."
Meeting Hii Kōri's gaze, Chiyo inexplicably recalled her younger days—her teacher's booming "Then let me ask YOU!"
Sensing she'd lost face, she pursed her lips and responded with two drawn-out hums.
"Then you should also know about the transactions between us and your parents."
"Not really. But probably something to do with sealing techniques."
Walking past her as if she weren't there, Hii Kōri ducked into the living quarters, grabbed some clothes, and pulled them on while answering: "I figure that's the only thing our clan would be worth coveting."
"You're a sharp kid. You'll definitely become quite the ninja."
And without even refining chakra, you still managed that much...
Chiyo's gaze flicked to her puppet. She left the second half unsaid, simply sealing the puppet back into the scroll on her wrist.
Hii Kōri's performance did raise some questions. The wound seeming disproportionate to blood loss. Detecting her approach and preparing behind the living quarters. Even easily disabling one of her puppet's arms.
But his status as a pure-blooded Uzumaki descendant was genuine. Everything else mattered less.
If he willingly served Sunagakure, excellent. If not... well, Uzumaki made far better sacrifices for tailed beast sealing than anyone else.
Either way, his very existence counted as gain at their expense. Whatever final "application" they chose would offset some losses.
"Wrong. With my brain, I'd probably succeed at anything."
Hii Kōri made no effort to hide his disgust for ninja. Chiyo shrugged understandingly, her expression revealing nothing of whatever dark plans might be brewing.
No matter how much motherhood inclined her to pity children, she'd still clawed her way through mountains of corpses. An elite jōnin didn't wear her emotions on her sleeve.
Even if she'd already been acting pretty outrageous before. (×)
Besides, wasn't it normal for a child whose parents were just killed by ninja to hate them? No matter how "mature" or "strong" he acted, a child was still a child.
"Do you know where your parents kept their training notes?"
Deciding to set aside pity and treat him as an elite jōnin should, Chiyo asked this. Though her tone remained quite gentle. Clearly, she couldn't fully set it aside.
But Chiyo had her reasons. Hidden compartments based on mechanical locks? She could crack those easily.
Inheriting the Puppet Technique founder's masterpiece—Chikamatsu's Ten Puppets—and mastering them wasn't just empty praise. Calling Chiyo the era's foremost expert on mechanisms probably wasn't an exaggeration.
But remember what Sunagakure had been trading with the Uzumaki couple for.
What if those materials were stored in barriers that would destroy everything inside if triggered? If they could handle Uzumaki seals and barriers, they wouldn't have needed this trade in the first place, would they?
This was exactly why Sand had been left drooling like a hungry fish.
Sigh. Seller's market.
Sigh. Priceless goods, no price to name.
"Those don't exist anymore. Oh, if you can restore ashes to paper, pretend I didn't say that. But if you can't..."
He didn't know why this kunoichi sought those materials. But that didn't stop him from feeling relieved about his advance preparations.
He tapped his temple lightly. "Then you'll have to look here."
"...!"
The veins beneath Chiyo's headband twitched—heart rate spiking.
First discovering her trading partners' whole family assassination. Then finding a surviving child. Now this kid tells her the valuable trading items have been burned to ash.
These ups and downs weren't good for the heart.
Chiyo almost wondered if the kid was punishing her for arriving "too late" to save his parents. But thinking further—no one could have known she'd come to this smithy.
So he was simply raising his own value...
Looking down, meeting Hii Kōri's gaze, after a long moment Chiyo sighed in defeat, shoulders slumping.
"Ha... fine, you win. Kid, tell me your name."
"Kōri. Hii Kōri."
Her address had shifted from gentle "child" to grit-teethed "kid." But this actually showed Chiyo no longer viewed him as an ordinary child.
The implication wasn't hard to grasp. Hii Kōri calmly gave his name.
"Huh... Hii, Kōri? Not a bad name."
Chiyo rolled the name around her mouth, then broke into a smile and slapped Hii Kōri's shoulder. "I'm Chiyo. Easy to remember, right?"
"Yeah."
"Anything else you want to bring?"
"The forge and hammer. Those were Dad's usual tools."
"A nostalgic kid in some ways, huh? Not bad. Looks like we might get along."
Chiyo glanced at the cold forge. Surprised, but not bothered. She casually unrolled a scroll and sealed the forge along with other tools inside.
"...Hey, Chiyo-senpai."
"What?"
"I want to learn ninjutsu. Will you be my teacher?"