Hattori , Puppet Tyrant in Sand

Moments later, Chiyo stormed into the house, leaving behind a bruised and battered Hattori and Ebizō kneeling by the door.

Hearing the sounds of cooking from inside, Ebizō covered his swollen cheek with his hand, looking thoroughly aggrieved.

Meanwhile, Hattori wore a blank expression, as he was checking out the new skill he had just unlocked.

> **Transformation Technique:** Allows the user to transform into an entity up to three times their size, with randomly generated surface patterns and accessories for added realism, decreasing the likelihood of detection.

After reading the description, Hattori finally understood: he had been sabotaged by this newly unlocked skill.

But technically, it wasn't exactly sabotage, since the whole point of the transformation technique was to avoid detection.

Judging by what had just happened, he'd succeeded, since even Ebizō, Chiyo's own brother, hadn't recognized him when he transformed. This was a positive sign.

The only downside was that Ebizō, who was completely innocent, got dragged into it. Hattori felt a pang of guilt.

After thinking it over for a moment, he called into house.

"Teacher, one person should take responsibility for their actions. What happened just now was entirely my fault and has nothing to do with Advisor Ebizō. He was just passing by. If you must punish someone, punish me alone!"

"Hmm?"

Hearing Hattori's words, Ebizō turned his head and gave him a surprised, appreciative look.

"Good lad. Taking responsibility. I knew I didn't misjudge you!"

"Heh, Elder, you're too kind. I have a conscience, after all…" Hattori was about to add more modest words when he heard footsteps from inside and quickly closed his mouth.

Soon, Chiyo walked out of the house with a stern look, casting a sharp glance at Ebizō.

"That swimsuit... I remember I hadn't worn it since after Reto passed away, so very few people have seen it. How do you plan on explaining that?"

"Uh... this…"

Ebizō was speechless upon hearing this. He turned to Hattori in confusion, as if asking how he had seen it.

Hattori was also bewildered—so the randomly generated swimsuit actually existed in real life?

Before he could think of an explanation, Chiyo turned to look at him.

"Hattori, your teacher trusts you, so you should be honest. Was Ebizō the one who instigated this? If you tell the truth, I might forgive you."

"This…"

Hattori's face showed a struggle, but after a while, he nodded with a pained expression.

"Yes, that's exactly what happened."

Ebizō: "Σ(っ°Д°;)っ"

What the heck happened to your conscience? You just sold me out?

No, actually, this is slander!

You call that a conscience?

Realizing this, Ebizō's face changed rapidly, and he quickly tried to explain to Chiyo.

"Listen to me, sister, I really had nothing to do with this! I was just passing by. Actually, I…"

Before he could finish, the furious Chiyo swung a solid punch, instantly knocking him to the ground.

_(:ι」∠)_

Ebizō — down for eternity!

Watching this, Hattori turned his head in pity and, feeling a little guilty, said in a half-hearted tone.

"Um... Teacher, maybe we should let this go. Advisor Ebizō didn't mean any harm. Perhaps he's just a little... overprotective of his sister. It's understandable."

Ebizō: "╭(°A°`)╮"

Overprotective? Impulsive? Is that really how you're describing this? Understandable? Understandable my foot—you're dead set on putting all the blame on me, aren't you?

Desperate, he got up and tried to explain to Chiyo.

"It's not like that at all! Listen to me, sister…"

But Chiyo clearly didn't want to listen. Before he could finish, she pulled Hattori back into the house and slammed the door shut behind them with a "bam!"

"(Д*)"

Ebizō was stunned, his eyes becoming misty.

He stood there by the door, frozen, for a long time before slowly turning to leave, his figure looking somewhat defeated.

Seeing this, Hattori sighed as he watched from the window.

"Why are his eyes always brimming with tears? Maybe it's because of his deep love for this land."

Although he felt a little sorry for Ebizō, he had no choice. To save himself, he could only apologize inwardly.

"Sorry, don't hold it against me. I had no choice. Blame this world if you must—it's inherently flawed, because human hearts are too deceitful!"

With this thought, his guilt eased considerably.

Happily, he joined Chiyo for lunch and then began practicing another non-elemental ninjutsu.

"Today, I'll teach you the Puppet Clone Technique!"

Standing outside, Chiyo held a simple life-sized puppet and began explaining to Hattori with a serious expression.

"Unlike the fake clones you learned at the academy, the Puppet Clone Technique is a solid clone. If used correctly, even in close combat, your enemy won't realize it's not you. I'll demonstrate."

With that, she released her chakra strings to control the puppet, forming a seal with one hand.

"Clone Technique!"

At her command, the puppet, now controlled by her chakra strings, transformed with a "poof" into her likeness.

The transformed puppet immediately spoke to Hattori.

"The trick to this technique lies in the subtle manipulation of the puppet. For example, when you see it talking, it's actually my voice coming out through its mouth, like so. See?"

"Uh…"

Hearing this, Hattori turned his head and saw that Chiyo had one hand at her mouth while her voice projected from the puppet nearby.

Is this the ninja world's equivalent of a primitive telephone and speaker?

Seeing this, he nodded in admiration, surprised.

"I see it, Teacher! This jutsu is amazing. It seems just as good as Earth Release or Lightning Release clones!"

"No, there's a difference!"

Hearing this, Chiyo shook her head.

"Elemental clones are also solid and can use physical and ninjutsu attacks. Although they can't stray too far from the user, their combat abilities are significant."

"But the Puppet Clone's main purpose is to deceive the opponent and protect the puppeteer. Its combat ability depends on the puppeteer's skill, not on the Puppet Clone Technique itself."

"I see!" Hattori nodded. "I understand. Let me give it a try."

With that, he took the scroll from his back and summoned a Sword Master puppet, then tried to use Puppet Clone Technique on it.

"Clone Technique!"

"Poof!"

*(End of chapter)*