Hattori , Puppet Tyrant in Sand

Just like with the transformation technique, Hattori succeeded on his first attempt at the cloning technique. 

With a sudden sound of energy bursting, the puppet of the Sword Master transformed into Hattori in a puff of white smoke.

This puppet clone looked and dressed exactly like Hattori, but it was several heads taller, making it look quite strange.

At this moment, Chiyo spoke up again.

"I forgot to mention, you need a puppet of similar size for this technique; otherwise, you'll get this kind of odd result. Want to try a different puppet?"

"No need. I have another way!" 

Saying this, Hattori canceled the puppet clone, then performed the hand seals again.

"Transformation technique!" 

With a low shout, his body went "poof" and transformed into the appearance of the Sword Master puppet in a cloud of white smoke.

"You transformed yourself to look like the puppet?"

Seeing this, Chiyo's eyes lit up.

"This method is indeed clever, and your puppet can stand naturally, making it even harder to tell the difference. Truly a genius idea!"

"Hehe, you're too kind, Master!"

Hearing Chiyo's praise, Hattori couldn't help but laugh sheepishly and scratch the back of his head.

"It's all thanks to your teachings, Master. I just have a bit of ingenuity. By the way, since I've learned both the transformation and cloning techniques, will you be teaching me the substitution and body flicker techniques next?"

"No."

To Hattori's surprise, Chiyo shook her head in response.

"For a puppet master, controlling puppets is already like using a substitution technique. Our puppets act as our substitutes, taking on attacks for us and launching attacks in our place. 

Most puppet masters aren't skilled in close combat, and if an enemy gets close, it puts us at a disadvantage. That's why we stay hidden, avoiding direct confrontations!"

Hattori was puzzled by this explanation, and he furrowed his brows.

"But the substitution technique allows us to evade attacks, and the body flicker lets us create distance. Since getting close puts us at a disadvantage, wouldn't mastering these techniques be even more necessary?"

"It's not that simple!"

Before Hattori could finish, Chiyo shook her head again.

"The substitution technique works by quickly swapping places with an object before the enemy's attack lands, camouflaging it to fool the enemy into thinking they've hit their target. So, strictly speaking, it isn't really a ninjutsu but more of a high-speed movement skill."

"Uh..."

Hearing this, Hattori immediately understood what Chiyo meant.

"Master, you mean that as puppet masters, we're not skilled enough in close combat to deceive an enemy with the substitution technique?"

"Exactly!"

Seeing that Hattori understood, Chiyo nodded and continued.

"As puppet masters, we fight at a distance, controlling puppets, so it's rare for an enemy to get close. We don't need the substitution technique. 

And if someone does manage to get close, the substitution technique wouldn't get us far enough away anyway. The same goes for the body flicker technique."

"Oh... I understand now!"

Hearing Chiyo's explanation, Hattori's face lit up in realization.

"Like the substitution technique, the standard body flicker technique is also just a type of high-speed movement."

"Yes, that's exactly it."

Seeing that Hattori understood her point, Chiyo nodded approvingly and patted his head.

"There are spatial ninjutsu and escape techniques that allow for teleportation, but they come with too many limitations, so we can't rely on them. 

For puppet masters, the puppet is paramount. Creating excellent puppets and controlling them well to keep enemies at a distance is the key to becoming unbeatable."

Though it sounded bold, Hattori knew that Chiyo was speaking the truth.

In the original storyline, it was mentioned that Chiyo was once known as the "strongest puppet master," capable of taking over an entire city on her own. 

And Sasori was even more impressive—a ruthless individual who wiped out a small nation alone!

For puppet masters of their level, unless they encountered powerful enemies with extraordinary abilities, they were practically invincible! 

Things like the substitution or body flicker techniques were unnecessary. 

Thinking this, Hattori bowed to Chiyo.

"I understand. Thank you, Master. I'll go back now and focus on perfecting my puppetry so I can reach your level as soon as possible!"

With that, he prepared to leave.

But before he could take two steps, Chiyo called out to him.

"Wait, I may have said you don't need the substitution or body flicker techniques, but I didn't say you don't need to learn taijutsu."

"Taijutsu?"

Hearing this, a hint of confusion flashed in Hattori's eyes.

"But Master, didn't you say that puppet masters aren't good at close combat and should focus on puppetry?"

"That's true," Chiyo nodded, then shook her head. "But just because we aren't skilled in it doesn't mean we shouldn't learn it. There are times when a puppet master might end up in close quarters with an enemy. At the very least, you should know how to dodge attacks—you don't want to be defenseless, do you?"

"Uh... That's true!" 

Remembering his previous battle with the two Jonin from Iwagakure, Hattori nodded in agreement.

"Taijutsu is indeed useful, but achieving any real progress requires years of intense practice. I'm afraid I can only scratch the surface."

"Haha, that's enough."

Chiyo laughed.

"Most ninjas focus on ninjutsu, with taijutsu and genjutsu as secondary skills. So as long as you know some basic moves to avoid getting flustered if someone gets close, that will be sufficient. Let's get started."

Chiyo then began teaching Hattori the fundamentals of defending against punches and kicks, as well as how to create distance after countering an attack.

Hattori, who had enjoyed practicing martial arts before this, was already familiar with the basics, so he quickly grasped Chiyo's instructions on taijutsu.

With the techniques and concepts understood, all that remained was practice.

This wasn't a problem for Hattori, given his Level 41 status. 

Leveling up didn't just increase his HP and MP but also enhanced his strength, agility, and reflexes.

This was why he had been able to handle his previous battle with the Iwagakure ninjas so confidently, even taking down a Jonin and several lower-ranking ninjas.

Of course, Hattori was aware that luck played a big role in that battle.

Taking out the Iwagakure lower ninjas was easy, and he had mostly managed to kill the Jonin because his opponent had underestimated him.

As for the first Jonin named Wotu, Hattori knew he might not have won so easily if it hadn't been for Karura's intervention.

He might even have had to bleed a little to win.

"I was unprepared last time, but next time, there won't be a repeat!"

With this determination, Hattori trained even harder with Chiyo.

"I must become stronger... not just stronger than before, but stronger than anyone!"

*(End of Chapter)*