Clack clack…
On the training grounds—
Under the watchful gaze of Akira and Tenten, who patiently observed from the sidelines without any intention of interfering—
The built-in mechanisms within Puppet · Akira Number One's palms activated.
"Whirrrr—!"
One blade after another gleaming with cold light emerged.
Like chainsaws—
They continuously rotated and sliced at high speed as the puppet charged straight toward Akira Ren's Wood Clone.
Whoosh whoosh—
The Wood Clone rapidly retreated.
In an instant, several shuriken shot out like lightning.
The next moment—
His eyes sharpened.
Raising two fingers with one hand before him, he declared:
"Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique!"
Swish! Swish!
The few shuriken instantly multiplied.
Within moments—
The entire area was packed with shuriken.
Dense and overwhelming—
Covering the sky itself.
Clack… clack…
The puppet neither dodged nor retreated.
Its mechanical arms extended horizontally.
The fan-like blades spun violently before it.
Transforming into the sturdiest possible shield.
Clang! Clang!
Sparks scattered everywhere.
Every incoming shuriken was ruthlessly deflected away.
Blocked completely.
"It's only polite to return the favor… Take this!"
From within the puppet—
Tenten's voice strangely emerged.
The puppet's mouth opened with a mechanical creak.
Whoosh whoosh—
Cold flashes of steel shot out.
Large numbers of senbon needles fired like lightning.
Dense enough to scalp anyone watching.
They shot directly toward the Wood Clone ahead.
The sight was terrifying.
Swish! Swish!
The Wood Clone moved swiftly.
Continuously leaping backward to evade the sharp senbon relentlessly firing toward him.
One senbon after another embedded into the ground.
Their cold metallic sheen glittered ominously.
"It's not over yet!"
The puppet's abdomen suddenly opened.
Several shuriken burst forth at astonishing speed.
"Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique!"
Instantly—
The few shuriken continuously multiplied.
Transforming into dozens—then hundreds—of shuriken.
They flooded the sky.
Sealing every possible escape route of the Wood Clone as they bombarded him relentlessly.
Whoosh… whoosh…
"Wood Release: Wood Locking Wall!"
The Wood Clone had nowhere left to dodge.
He could only clap his hands together.
Boom!
In an instant—
Massive amounts of wood erupted from the earth.
Interweaving into an enormous shield that firmly blocked before him.
Stopping the incoming shuriken.
Whoosh… whoosh…
The gigantic wooden shield—
Was densely covered in enough shuriken to make one's scalp tingle.
But the next moment—
Most of those shuriken turned into smoke.
Only a few real ones remained embedded in the shield.
"Well? What do you think?"
Nearby, Tenten narrowed her eyes into crescent moons.
Looking toward Akira with expectation written all over her face.
She wanted his praise.
"Mhm. Your use of the Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique is very proficient, and your timing was excellent…"
Akira smiled and nodded, not stingy with his praise.
Although these past days—
Most of his focus had indeed been on Big Sister Kurenai—
He had not neglected Tenten, Ino, Hinata, and the others.
Not only had he used the Spirit Transformation Technique combined with his extraordinary medical ninjutsu to comprehensively adjust their bodies, widen their chakra pathway systems, and greatly strengthen and improve their physiques—
He had even taught Tenten the Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique, as well as the Mini-Series Ninjutsu he had personally developed specifically suited for puppet masters.
If not for the tremendous improvement to her physique and the increase in her previously limited chakra reserves—
Then even if nine-year-old Tenten had mastered these techniques—
Using them effectively in real combat would still have been extremely difficult.
"Hehe…"
Tenten beamed happily.
Receiving Akira Ren's praise clearly delighted her immensely.
Clack…
At that moment—
The mechanism at Puppet · Akira Number One's heart area activated.
Its silver-white chest armor opened.
A tiny figure no larger than a palm stepped onto the puppet's shoulder before leaping onto its head.
Aside from the drastically reduced size—
It looked exactly identical to Tenten.
Cute and delicately crafted like a porcelain doll.
Very quickly—
Tenten's Mini Shadow Clone directly shot chakra strings from her ten fingers, connecting to Akira Number One.
With barely noticeable finger movements—
The mechanisms on Akira Number One retracted back inside.
Immediately afterward—
The humanoid puppet ran toward Akira and Tenten like a living person.
"Besides Mini Shadow Clones…"
Akira smiled and asked:
"How are Mini Transformation Technique and Mini Substitution Technique coming along? Simply mastering them isn't enough—you need to reach the point where they're indistinguishable from reality and leave absolutely no trace…"
Over these past two years—
Besides developing Mini Shadow Clones and Mini Wood Clones—
He had also created an entire series of "underworld-style" miniature ninjutsu.
Mini Transformation Technique and Mini Substitution Technique were among the more practical ones.
Unlike ordinary Transformation Technique—
Mini Transformation Technique could perfectly suppress one's aura when disguising as inanimate objects, making detection extremely difficult.
It could also be maintained for long periods while stabilizing chakra consumption.
Furthermore—
Mini Transformation Technique, Mini Shadow Clone, and Mini Substitution Technique—
These Mini Three Techniques he had developed—
Could all be used together in combination.
They were practically essential ninjutsu for home travel, assassination, theft, fake deaths, and ambushing enemies.
For a puppet master like Tenten—
They were an absolutely perfect match.
However—
The difficulty was far from low.
If Akira had not used Spirit Transformation Technique to effectively "cheat" for Tenten—
Widening her chakra pathways, allowing chakra to flow more smoothly, and greatly improving her chakra control—
And repeatedly demonstrating and dissecting the principles of these techniques for her—
Then Tenten would never have mastered them so easily.
At the very least—
Graduation would still be far away.
Especially after transforming—
Trying to manipulate chakra strings and control puppets as naturally as usual—
Was far from easy.
It required endless repeated practice.
Poof!
Tenten formed hand seals.
A cloud of smoke appeared.
Her entire body vanished.
In its place—
Appeared a miniature-sized Tenten.
Identical to the Mini Shadow Clone Tenten standing atop the puppet.
"Akira Ren, look…"
Tenten's Mini Shadow Clone jumped down.
Standing side by side with the transformed Mini Tenten—
The two were nearly impossible to distinguish.
"Mini Substitution Technique!"
The tiny Tenten shouted softly.
Her miniature hands rapidly formed seals.
Her body instantly transformed into smoke—
Becoming a tiny stone instead.
Meanwhile—
Her real body appeared rapidly several meters away.
Too fast for normal reactions.
"Mhm. You've become increasingly proficient…"
Akira nodded in satisfaction.
It was obvious—
Aside from his usual guidance and teaching—
Tenten had not slackened after returning home.
She had been practicing diligently the entire time.
If these miniature ninjutsu could be mastered proficiently—
They were perfect for setting traps and ambushing enemies during battle.
"Hehe…"
Tenten returned to normal size.
Her Mini Shadow Clone also dispersed into smoke.
While checking her puppet, she absorbed the memories and experience from the clone and excitedly said:
"Akira Ren, you're seriously a genius to think of developing techniques like these…"
"I have to admit, these techniques are way too convenient and practical!"
She had never imagined Akira could create such techniques.
It was truly unbelievable.
Although the Mini Shadow Clone was extremely small—
The utility it could provide was astonishing.
Especially for a puppet master like her—
This technique felt tailor-made specifically for puppet users.
She could essentially achieve wireless puppet control through it.
In fact—
As long as her chakra reserves allowed it—
She could simultaneously control multiple puppets in battle.
And the Mini Transformation Technique was also absurdly useful.
It allowed her real body to hide directly inside her puppets during combat.
Greatly reducing the risk of enemies targeting her actual body.
It could also thoroughly confuse opponents.
"Next, I'll make several more puppets for you. You need to continue practicing your puppet techniques…"
Akira rubbed Tenten's head and smiled.
"Although Mini Shadow Clones are very useful, you can't become overly dependent on them during daily training. You still need to work hard yourself and strive to control multiple puppets simultaneously as soon as possible!"
"Also, you've already mastered storing puppets, weapons, and ordinary items inside scrolls before summoning them…"
"Next, follow the methods I taught you to seal water, fire, and even poisonous mist into scrolls…"
"Make full use of your intelligence. Combine it with the knowledge you've learned and apply everything in real combat!"
He had extremely high expectations for Tenten.
He knew this girl possessed extraordinary talent in space-time techniques.
In fact—
Several days ago, he had already allowed Tenten to sign a summoning contract with the Lizard Clan.
Under Akira Ren's unlimited chakra supply—
She had quickly mastered the Summoning Technique and was already capable of summoning fairly powerful creatures to assist in battle.
As for the Flying Thunder God Technique—
Akira believed Tenten possessed talent in that area as well.
But there was no need to rush.
He planned to let her mature slowly first.
There was no point in over-forcing her growth.
"Mhm, I'll work hard!"
Tenten clenched her little fists.
She knew very well—
She was not some kind of genius.
Without Akira Ren—
She wouldn't even compare to girls like Ino.
Therefore—
If she wished to stand beside Akira in the future—
She would need to put in even greater effort.
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