Naruto: The Scientific Ninja

Chapter 51: The Secret Art of Puppetry

"I don't believe your defense is harder than diamond!" a cold look flashed in Sasuke's eyes.

Screeeech…

The fine diamond sand, driven by the rotating water flow, began to slice through the puppeteer's armor. The sharp, ear-piercing sound of grinding metal was enough to make one's scalp numb. In less than a few seconds, the armor at his thighs was cut in two, and his legs were severed directly.

"Ah…"

"You want to capture me alive? Dream on!" the special jōnin spat, a mouthful of red and green liquid erupting from his lips. It was obvious he had bitten down on a poison capsule hidden in his teeth, choosing suicide over capture.

"What a pity," Sasuke said, shaking his head with some regret. As expected of a jōnin who grew up in the harsh desert, he was cruel to others and even crueler to himself. If this Sand ninja could have been captured, it might have been possible to obtain the deepest secrets of the puppet arts.

However, he knew that when it came to the core secrets of the great villages, a seal was often placed on the ninja's mind to prevent leaks, even to the Yamanaka clan. It was the same for Iwagakure's Light and Heavy Rock Technique and Kumogakure's Lightning Chakra Mode.

"Still," he mused, "I have the infrasonic radar. It's not difficult to steal these basic puppet techniques."

He had another shadow clone clean the battlefield, then dispelled the one that had been observing and stealing the puppet techniques throughout the fight. A burst of memory flooded his mind, and he felt a slight dizziness, but it quickly passed. After receiving the memories, he began to experiment on the spot.

"This is the chakra thread? It doesn't look very good," he said, observing the flimsy thread extending from his index finger. He was a little disappointed. It completely lacked the toughness of a Sand ninja's, and was even inferior to that of a chūnin puppeteer.

"It seems that only ninja with wind and earth natured chakra have the potential to become puppeteers."

The basic technique of the Sand Village was both difficult and easy. It was a special ninjutsu that used chakra threads to release various signals through special chakra vibration frequencies to control the puppets. There were three conditions for training: strong chakra control, mastery of the special vibration frequencies, and wind or earth chakra natures. The latter two gave the threads a stability and toughness that his own water-natured chakra lacked.

He released a water-natured chakra thread, connected it to a nearby kunai, and pulled. Snap! The kunai flew to his hand, and the thread broke. With a thread like that, it was difficult to control a puppet, let alone a blade.

However, he wasn't discouraged. As long as he developed a second chakra nature, becoming a puppeteer wouldn't be a problem. His chakra control was already on par with that of a jōnin puppeteer. And as for the vibration control method, he could learn it all just by fighting more of them in the future.

Swish, swish, swish…

At that moment, a noise came from the woods. The support from Shibi and the others had finally arrived.

"It's the puppeteer squad!" Torifune exclaimed, shocked to see the wreckage on the ground. To take down such a team in less than ten minutes without suffering any damage was an incredible feat.

"Senior, you're amazing," Shinnosuke said, running up to Sasuke with admiration in his eyes.

"These Sand ninja fell into my trap, and I used poison," Sasuke explained, not wanting to draw too much attention.

"Sasuke, you don't have to be so humble," Torifune said with a thumbs-up. "You have completed another A-rank mission. You are one step closer to the title of Konoha Jōnin."

Before leaving, Torifune mentioned that Kagejirō had been transferred to the logistics department. If he gave Sasuke any trouble, he should ask for help from Nara Shikaku.

After they left, Tekudō came running up, his eyes watery. "Captain, this completed mission record, look..."

He knew that, technically, Sasuke had completed the mission alone.

"Alright, alright, this A-rank mission is yours," Sasuke said. "When you report for support, you will be listed as an auxiliary, and you will also get an A-rank completed mission record."

"Yes! Long live the captain!" Tekudō and the others exclaimed. This was their second A-rank mission record. Combined with their accumulated C and B-rank missions, it was enough for them to be promoted to chūnin.

"Captain, I know the rules," Tekudō said, patting his chest. "We only accept the completed mission record. All the merit points belong to you. Also," he promised loudly, "we'll take care of your dirty clothes and socks in the future!"

Hahaha! Not bad, not bad, Sasuke thought, patting his sensible subordinate on the shoulder. I'm very pleased.

- - - - 

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