Since someone was treating, he was naturally pleased, so he exhaled a puff of cloud chakra that condensed into a cloud crane and flew off into the distance.
"I'll tell Amado to come directly here; otherwise, there'll be no one to cook when he gets home."
"Hahaha, that Amado is a clever child with good talent, much better than my own child."
Torifu waved his hand. "What are you talking about? En is very good. In terms of pure combat, Amado can't compare to him."
Torifu's words were true. While Amado's talent was good, it certainly wasn't superior to En's, as En possessed the Ketsuryūgan Bloodline Limit. A moment's carelessness, and you'd fall under his genjutsu; once under genjutsu, you'd be completely at his mercy.
Afterward, the two continued to exchange compliments for a long time until they ran out of words, then both burst into laughter.
"We really overdid it."
Tsuki also laughed. "Hahaha, Torifu-sama, please don't say another word!"
By now, it was noon, and the Ninja Academy had let out. Amado and En immediately returned home. Dan also wanted to go, having heard that En's father was treating, but he remembered his mother had already made lunch, so he let it go.
"No problem. Next time, I'll tell your Auntie beforehand, and she can come too."
Dan smiled. "Then next time! Oh, by the way, Amado, say hello to Torifu Nii-san for me."
Amado nodded. "Hey, alright! See you this afternoon!"
"Mhm."
With that, Amado and En entered the Oyashirō clan compound. It wasn't mealtime yet; Torifu was still chatting with Tsuki about various clan relations. Amado and En couldn't understand much of it.
"Nii-san, Uncle Tsuki, we're back."
Torifu nodded. "Mhm, come sit down quickly."
Seeing the two children return, Tsuki had a maid bring out the food. There were ten dishes in total, quite a feast. The few of them ate and chatted, mainly with Amado and En talking about their studies. There were complaints about not being able to learn certain ninjutsu, or their taijutsu forms not being standard—all sorts of problems. In the end, Torifu was the only one who could answer their questions one by one. There was nothing Tsuki could do; he was willing but unable. However, his body was quickly recovering, and he would soon be able to resume training.
The meal lasted about an hour. After eating, Amado and En returned to school, and Torifu also planned to return to his compound. Tsuki did not stop him. After all, they had been chatting all morning, and there wasn't much left to talk about.
Upon returning home, Torifu saw the craftsmen diligently clearing the explosion debris. Torifu nodded at the sight and paid them no further mind.
"Snowflake, have you had lunch? Do you want me to fix you something?"
Snowflake, who was sprawled out at Torifu's doorway sunbathing, shook her head. "I've already eaten."
Torifu nodded. Since that was the case, he wouldn't bother Snowflake. Returning to his room, he lay on the bed and used his thoughts to connect with the puppets via the markings. He hadn't contacted Kakuzu in a while and didn't know where he was or if he had acquired any new Bloodline Limits. A year ago, Kakuzu had obtained the blood of a Scorch Release shinobi from Sunagakure, which pleased Torifu greatly. Scorch Release was far superior to the previous Lava Release, directly desiccating a person's body with fireballs. It was practically instant death upon contact.
Soon, Torifu's consciousness entered the puppet. By now, Torifu was no longer limited to using only the Sharingan puppet; Kakuzu had long known about the puppets anyway.
In an unknown cave, Kakuzu sat cross-legged on some wood, seemingly deep in thought. But then, a sharp pain brought him back to reality. Subsequently, a person dressed in white robes with long golden hair emerged from the mark on Kakuzu's arm.
"How are things? Where are you?"
Kakuzu rubbed his leg, which seemed to have gone numb from sitting cross-legged for a long time. "In some cave in the Land of Lightning, I don't know where."
"Oh? You went to the Land of Lightning? Did you gather any intelligence?"
Once the numbness in his leg subsided, Kakuzu stood up from the ground and leaned against the wall. "They're going to war, against Konoha."
"Mhm, I know."
"Looks like you planned it."
Torifu didn't deny it. Kakuzu hadn't expected his casual guess to be correct.
"You're truly insane. Are you that confident?"
Torifu waved his hand, and five puppets—Dust Release, Scorch Release, Ketsuryūgan, Sharingan, and Byakugan—appeared together in the narrow cave.
"I still have confidence, but I'm not the main force." With another wave of his hand, only the Uzumaki puppet remained in the cave.
Kakuzu let out a chilling chuckle. "You wouldn't one day turn me into a puppet too, would you?"
Torifu smiled. "If you provide the blood, of course."
Upon hearing this, Kakuzu pulled two vials of fresh, red blood from his robe and handed them to Torifu.
"The Land of Lightning's Storm Release, you've heard of it, right?"
"Black Lightning?"
Kakuzu confirmed, "Exactly, Black Lightning."
Storm Release was also a relatively powerful Bloodline Limit, a fusion of Water and Lightning Release chakra. It was a Bloodline Limit that could be acquired through later training. Shinobi who could master Storm Release would definitely be high-ranking shinobi in Kumogakure. Kakuzu managed to obtain even this.
"Where is the person? Did you kill him?"
Kakuzu showed a meaningful smile. "Hehe, his heart is inside me."
For someone like Kakuzu, who was somewhere between a pervert and a normal person, Torifu couldn't say much. He could only wish him happiness, lest he truly become a pervert.
"What's in the other vial?"
"A child from Kumogakure has a congenital Bloodline Limit; it seems to be Lava Release, but the effect is quite good."
Hearing it was another Kumogakure Bloodline Limit, and Lava Release at that, Torifu could confirm who it was. It must be Dodai; this person's Bloodline Limit was very strong, even able to block the Third Raikage's One-Finger Nukite. Much more useful than the Iwagakure one.
"Very good, I'm satisfied with both of these Bloodline Limits. The shinobi world will be chaotic during this time, so it's best you don't show yourself for now, lest you be hunted by enemies."
Kakuzu agreed to Torifu's command; he wasn't planning on going out during this period anyway. He would quickly leave the Land of Lightning and find a place to stay and lie low.
"Oh, by the way, you didn't kill that child, did you?" Torifu suddenly thought of this question. Killing adult shinobi was one thing, but if he had killed a child, Torifu would feel uncomfortable.
"Hehe, don't worry, I don't kill children."
Torifu didn't believe a word of this. "Back in Takigakure, you were the most eager to kill. Children, adults, I never saw you hold back."
Kakuzu glanced at Torifu. "That's different; they weren't human."