She was only held back by her youth, appearing a bit too green; when she observed her target's movements, her eyes stared fixedly, making it far too obvious.
If she were more experienced, she would be able to control her gaze and manage her facial expressions... then—
This kind of delicate reconnaissance based on 'observation' and rich experience is independent of Chakra, Secret Techniques, or Bloodline traits. It is the most covert and undetectable way to gather intelligence from an enemy—precisely because it doesn't involve Chakra or special abilities, targeted detection and defensive measures are useless against it.
"A Sand Ninja... this young girl should be a Puppeteer. But it's strange, where is her puppet?"
Inuzuka Tsume recognized the profession of this female Sand Ninja at a glance—the ability to judge what someone said or did based on subtle changes in body movements was something likely unique to the Puppeteer profession.
Puppeteers of the Hidden Sand Village use Chakra Threads to control puppets to perform various exquisite movements, so they are exceptionally aware of such subtle actions.
This is an understanding based on 'operation'; vast operational experience allows them to understand the meaning behind every combination of movements. They can master all sorts of bizarre puppets with ease, let alone simple human limb movements—one look at the shoulders or arms, and what's being handwritten becomes clear at a glance.
Only... a Puppeteer without a puppet?
..."A Puppeteer?"
Ino searched repeatedly through the surveillance, and the result was obvious... this Puppeteer had no puppet on her person.
However, Ino's thinking was much broader than Inuzuka Tsume's. Her gaze swept back and forth over the woman, finally discovering something—
The woman wore a pair of thick-soled boots that looked sturdy at a glance. She had bracers on her forearms, light and rounded pauldrons on her shoulders, and a palm-wide belt at her waist... could these be her puppets?
Ino pointed to these spots and asked Inuzuka Tsume, "Auntie, look, could these things be the puppets?"
No one ever ruled that a Puppeteer's puppet must be the common type carried on the back or the kind that hides the true body within.
"Hmm? You mean... her shoes, pauldrons, and belt?"
"The bracers are possible too—for instance, if her bracer suddenly transformed, revealing dark openings to spray venom or fire needles, or even fire or electricity. It could also completely disassemble, using Chakra Threads to control the scattered fragments for an attack—those wouldn't just be Kunai that can turn; they'd be small puppets with incredible maneuverability and speed. And if those small puppets were loaded with explosive devices..."
Inuzuka Tsume couldn't help but inhale sharply as she listened... her hair stood on end. The tactic Ino described was highly plausible and sounded incredibly difficult to defend against.
Uchiha Fugaku remained expressionless, but his heart actually skipped a beat. He had never seen such a use for puppets when fighting Puppeteers—but the more she explained it, the more likely it seemed!
...Hopefully, the Puppeteers of the Hidden Sand Village are stuck in the dead-end mindset that 'precision is best' and 'poison is wonderful,' and haven't broken through to Ino's level—
Simple, practical, rugged, disposable, and area-of-effect.
Absolutely lethal.
If a Puppeteer abandoned their complex, delicate puppets that required extreme operational skill and switched to what Ino suggested—just making a bracer that splits into the simplest puppets, controlled by Chakra Threads to approach a target and then detonating built-in bombs.
With proper tactics to create a blast zone, even the Sandaime himself would likely have little chance of survival!
Inuzuka Tsume rubbed her chin, her vertical pupils flashing with seriousness... "Hmm, that really is a possibility. And looking at her, she doesn't seem to be a pure Puppeteer—since she's hidden her puppets, she must possess Ninjutsu or Taijutsu more suitable for remaining in others' sight."
While speculating, Inuzuka Tsume flipped through the candidate's files. The female Ninja's name was 'Shu Feng,' age 14, a Genin who graduated the year before last, with Sand Ninja ID 24337.
Inuzuka Tsume said, "A genius Genin? Interesting!"
Ino, meanwhile, glanced at Shu Feng's Ninja ID... tragic!
Simply tragic!
Konoha currently has just over ten thousand registered Ninjas on the books, while the Sand's count is already 2.4 times that of Konoha... This shows just how brutal the Third Ninja World War was. While Konoha certainly suffered heavy losses, the Sand was even worse—this Ninja ID was enough to prove the Hidden Sand Village's weakness. Ino thought to herself, 'Under these circumstances, the Sand can still hold its own and maintain its status among the Five Great Ninja Villages; they really are tough!'
"However, Chakra Threads are quite interesting, and the Ninjutsu of that Spider-man from the Chunin Exams in the manga is also very intriguing..."
Ino was quite envious of 'Chakra Threads,' the tool for controlling puppets—since wood, metal, and even living people can be manipulated, these Chakra Threads are truly versatile—especially since they seem to have a property of combining the ethereal and the physical, allowing them to selectively bypass objects or control them.
With this, she could fully realize the puppet playstyles she had just imagined, like 'Scattered Flowers' or 'Sword Control Technique.'
Going a step further to that Spider-man—that would be even better; it could completely be used as another version of Kimimaro.
Benefit one: This Spider-man doesn't have a Bloodline Disease, and using it doesn't require pulling out one's own bones. Instead, it involves combining and transforming the nature of Chakra to form spider silk—how hard or soft it is can be freely toggled, changing between rigid and flexible at will.
Benefit two: If used well, this Spider-man is truly powerful... I think his name was 'Kidōmaru'... Hmm... As long as there's enough Chakra, she could completely use that Spider-man's Ninjutsu to pilot a mecha, rock-solid. She couldn't say exactly how powerful it would be, but even if it were subpar, it wouldn't be by much. If the structure were refined and paired with Puppet Technique... The more she thought, the better it seemed. Ino already had some ideas—'I think there are records of Chakra Threads at home; I didn't pay attention before, I'll have to look through them properly when I get back.'
As for the Spider-man's Secret Technique... there would be plenty of time in the future. Anything Orochimaru could research, she could too!
After all, she was someone who had mastered the core technology of Chakra.
Knowing the 'principles,' creating a model and searching for a specific effect wouldn't be too difficult a task.
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