Anya took out a scroll, slowly unrolled it, and placed it on the ground. Then she formed hand seals and slammed her hands onto the scroll. A mid-sized four-wheeled wooden ox puppet appeared in the desert.
Anya looked at the puppet with a slight smile and said, "I'm not planning to sneak in this time. I'll just walk right in openly. Uncle, please get on board."
"You bought this back in that gambling village?" Kakuzu quickly figured it out. "So you've also learned puppet techniques?"
"Hehe, I know a little," Anya replied. She manipulated the chakra threads with her ten fingers, causing the non-combat-capable puppet to move around on the sand.
Seeing Anya truly control the puppet, Kakuzu couldn't help but comment, "This kid sure learns a wide variety of things."
So, the two of them sat atop the puppet and boldly arrived at the entrance of Sunagakure Village. Anya enthusiastically waved at one of the guards at the gate, then smiled broadly as she walked right in without hesitation.
Another guard witnessing this remarked admiringly to his companion, "Nice, dude! You even know someone like her—a young puppet master like Anya!"
The first guard gave a slightly uncertain dry laugh, "Hmm, she does seem kinda familiar."
Walking along the streets of Suna, they saw many rock-made houses, mostly single-story structures. The place obviously lacked commercial development. Just looking at the simple building colors alone, compared to Konoha, it was miles behind—probably making it the poorest ninja village among the Five Great Countries.
They picked a restaurant and sat down. Soon, menus were brought over. Surprisingly, the menu offered quite a few choices. As for prices, well—those in the know would understand.
Money was practically meaningless to Anya these days—just complete nonsense. Without it, you got pushed around wherever you went. With it, why not put it to good use? After all those days on the road, she definitely needed a proper meal.
The shop owner had probably never seen a spender like this before and cautiously asked, "You two are really ordering this much?"
Anya naturally understood the implied meaning behind the owner's words. She casually pulled out two bills and handed them over, "Here, this is for you."
The owner hurriedly accepted them, thanking joyfully, "Thank you, sir/madam!"
Since there weren't many customers, the table was soon covered in dishes, filling the air with mouth-watering aromas.
Just then, a middle-aged bald man entered. His appearance was quite unique—he had tattoos on top of his head. He approached freely and sat himself down opposite the pair, eyeing the full table of food while unconsciously swallowing.
Kakuzu was momentarily stunned, then coldly said, "This seat's already taken."
The man grinned, rubbing his hands together, "I know, but could I join you two for just a bite?"
Seeing this fellow refused to take a hint, Kakuzu showed no mercy, "Piss off."
The man's expression turned sour as he grumbled and stood up.
At this moment, Anya smiled slightly and called out, "Shopkeeper, come here. Prepare another full set of dishes for this guest too—I'll cover the bill."
"Huh?"
Both Kakuzu and the man shot Anya surprised glances.
Anya turned to the man and said, "My uncle dislikes dining with outsiders, but meeting is fate. It's just a simple meal after all, and I can afford it."
"In that case, I won't be polite then," the middle-aged man gave Anya a thumbs-up.
When the shopkeeper arrived, he clearly recognized the middle-aged man and immediately responded to Anya, "Got it, kid. We'll have it ready in a jiffy."
"Kid, this isn't how you spend money," Kakuzu clearly didn't share Anya's view on money.
Anya took a bite of the grilled meat and casually replied, "You can always make more money later, but if you don't eat, you'll starve."
"Well said, young man!" The middle-aged man raised a cup, "Come, let's have a toast to the two of you."
Kakuzu didn't even glance at him and continued eating from the table.
Anya, however, stood up and raised his cup in return. "Thank you, but you're too kind. When you're traveling, more friends mean more options. Today I treat you, tomorrow you treat me. One round leads to another, and before long, we'll be old pals."
"Haha, kid, you're quite something," the middle-aged man seemed genuinely pleased, looking at Anya with increasing interest, then drained his cup.
After some drinks, the man asked, "By the way, what brings you two to Sunagakure Village? You two don't look like you're here visiting family."
Anya replied, "Coming to Sunagakure naturally means we want to see the Puppet Masters here. If we can meet a powerful puppet master and learn from them for a while, even better."
The middle-aged man paused, then suddenly realized, "Oh, kid, you've already figured it out, haven't you?"
"Figured what out?" Anya asked, puzzled.
"The powerful puppet master is standing right in front of you!" The man beamed proudly.
Anya had indeed noticed that this man's hands were different from the rest of his body, just like himself, possessing an extremely dexterous pair of hands. But if he was going to learn, he naturally wanted to study under the best.
"Uh, actually, if possible, I hoped to learn from Lady Chiyo."
"You want to study under my sister? She won't teach you."
As it turned out, this middle-aged man was none other than Ebizō, Chiyo's younger brother.
Ebizō smiled mysteriously. "Plus, I make puppets too. The puppet you used when you entered the village was made by me."
To go completely unnoticed by both Anya and Kakuzu was no small feat. However, Anya didn't recognize him at all, and wasn't sure whether his puppet technique was actually skilled. Still, the fact that he could create puppets had intrigued Anya slightly.
Anya spoke directly, "Then learning from you works too. What conditions are required?"
"Hehe, the conditions are simple enough. But are you sure you want to learn?" Ebizō looked genuinely pleased. "It takes at least a year just to begin mastering the Puppet Technique. Achieving true proficiency requires years of continuous practice. You might have to stay in Sunagakure for a very long time indeed."
As soon as Kakuzu heard the time frame, he'd already made up his mind. The moment this brat agreed, he'd be out of there. Who was joking? Staying in Sunagakure for an entire year? No way he could handle that.
Anya also understood clearly. Instead of answering right away, she hesitated before replying, "This... originally it requires such a long time? Then I need to discuss it with my uncle first."
"Alright, once you've decided, just come find me anytime." Ebizō didn't push either. Smiling broadly, he returned to his seat to continue enjoying his meal.
Anya and Kakuzu, however, had already lost their appetite. They settled the bill and headed outside.
Just after stepping out, Kakuzu spoke first: "Kid, you're not seriously thinking about staying here for a whole year, are you? You're well aware of the current tensions between the nations. You understand what would happen if your identity gets exposed—surely you know what's at stake."
Anya suddenly burst into laughter. "Seems like you actually care about me."
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