He truly was a genius—the ceiling of puppet master talent in the Naruto world, and destined to become the strongest puppet master in this world.
Among the eighty participants in the training and selection, the two youngest were currently performing the best.
Looking at the lifelike Tom carved from white ironwood before him, Hardy couldn't help but smile.
[Puppet Name]: Tom
[Overall Parameters]:
Height: 61 cm
Weight: 14.31 kg
Materials: White ironwood, reinforced bone material, etc.
Energy Source: None
Control Method: Chakra threads
[Puppet Rating]: C
[Overall Evaluation]: Small biomimetic puppet, excellent agility, well-designed, possesses standard genin-level combat strength. Can be further upgraded by replacing with superior materials to enhance combat abilities.
Hardy extended his hands, ten fingers releasing chakra threads that connected to the white cat, making it perform several movements.
Feeling the smoothness of control, Hardy was even more satisfied.
Tom's combat strength was probably not much less than Formentor's (the previous puppet).
It was a pity there was no blue dye. If he could take Tom back home, Hardy would definitely paint this puppet cat blue.
To be able to craft such a puppet in under an hour—man, I really am a genius!
"You're Hardy?"
Sasayama walked up to Hardy, scrutinizing him as he asked.
"Yes, Jōnin Sasayama."
Hardy stopped what he was doing and stood at attention before his superior.
"Hmm, good name. You finished your puppet very quickly—did you not use a design drawing?"
Sasayama tried to put on his most gentle expression.
But Hardy felt a bit intimidated by this fierce-looking, deep-voiced jōnin who seemed every bit like a mob boss.
He looked every bit the type who didn't talk much but would beat you up the moment he opened his mouth.
"Uh…"
His suspicions confirmed, Sasayama grinned widely, revealing a terrifying smile.
"If you think not having a design drawing is a problem, I can make one for you right now," Hardy said nervously, looking at the jōnin's menacing smile.
"No! Not having a design drawing is great—excellent!"
Sasayama slapped Hardy's shoulder, laughing heartily.
Hardy just felt his shoulder ache.
Is this guy really a puppet master? With arms like these, he could pass for a taijutsu specialist jōnin!
"I was originally planning to have you all demonstrate your puppets in combat after you finished, but since everyone else isn't done yet, how about I spar with you to test your puppet's performance?"
Sasayama slapped Hardy's shoulder twice more, laughing loudly.
"Forget it, Sasayama, let me do it instead. If you bring out your puppet, will there be any room left for Hardy to show off? Let me handle it."
Ishido walked over with a smile, pushed Sasayama aside, took down the sealing scroll from his back, formed a hand seal, and summoned a puppet that Hardy recognized instantly.
[Puppet Name]: Little Boy
[Overall Parameters]:
Height: 1.35 meters
Weight: 29.18 kg
Materials: Reinforced wood, lightweight composite materials, high-strength alloy
Energy Source: None
Control Method: Chakra threads, with five chakra connection hubs
[Puppet Rating]: B-
[Overall Evaluation]: Support-type combat puppet, excellent design, well-structured, possesses newly promoted chunin-level combat strength.
[Detailed Data]: …
This was the puppet he'd repaired just a week ago!
"Why did you bring that puppet?" Sasayama's eyes widened.
He knew this wasn't Ishido's usual puppet.
As a jōnin, Ishido's own puppets were far more powerful than this one.
"You'll see soon enough," Ishido said to Hardy.
He blinked, glanced around, then spoke:
"Let's go fight somewhere farther away, so we don't disturb the people here."
With that, he intended to pull Hardy along to another location.
"No need."
A crisp child's voice rang out.
The short red-haired boy was manipulating a puppet, its shell also made of white ironwood, with six arms.
"My puppet is finished. Its name is White Ant. It can be your opponent."
Sasori controlled White Ant to leap in front of Tom, then turned to look at Hardy, a hint of curiosity in his eyes.
This person finished his puppet even faster than I did, but I wonder about its quality.
After his parents died, a faint sense of anticipation had begun to stir in his heart, which had always been as calm as still water.
Precocious as he was, he had no real friends among his peers. In his eyes, the other children were too stupid and childish. As the grandson of Elder Chiyo, his noble status meant he had even fewer peers he could interact with.
So he could only devote his energy to his own interests—
Puppetry.
The ninja games of his peers were too childish; he disdained to engage in such boring things. Among his age group, there was no one who could keep up with him in puppetry.
Geniuses are always lonely—unless they meet another genius.
And Hardy had piqued Sasori's interest.
He seemed to have found a kindred spirit.
"To think you finished so quickly as well? As expected of Elder Chiyo's grandson."
Ishido stopped in his tracks, while Suna no Sasayama also looked at Sasori's puppet in amazement.
This puppet doesn't look bad either!
Hardy also glanced at Sasori.
So it really is Sasori?
He had already suspected the identity of this red-haired boy. After all, the age and hair color matched, and for someone so young to participate in this elite puppetry selection, his talent must be extraordinary.
Aside from Sasori, it would be hard to find another like him in the vast Hidden Sand Village.
"Then you two should have a match!"
Suna no Sasayama made the decision.
Thus, Hardy's opponent changed from Ishido to Sasori.
The Hidden Sand Village wasn't like Konoha; there were no complicated rituals like the Seal of Confrontation or Reconciliation before a duel. With Ishido acting as referee, a wave of his hand signaled the start, and the two began their puppet battle simultaneously.
"I wonder if this White Ant shares any similarities with the Black Ant that Sasori made in the original story. From what I can tell, White Ant's mechanical functions are a bit inferior to Tom's, but it should still have the combat power of a genin. According to the system's grading, it should be about C- rank."
After a brief exchange, Hardy couldn't help but be impressed.
As expected of Sasori—able to create such a puppet in such a short time, and though he was young, his puppet manipulation skills were already quite advanced. Even with a slight disadvantage in puppet performance, he was able to fight Hardy to a standstill.
Yes, Hardy realized that his own fairly decent puppet manipulation skills were actually surpassed by Sasori, who was two years younger. He could only rely on the superior performance of his puppet to bully the younger boy.
He was just a fake genius, relying on his "cheat," while Sasori was a true prodigy!
Fortunately, the reason a cheat is called a cheat is because it really is more powerful than talent.