章 51: **Chapter 51: Preparations**
Hattori felt a sense of regret for the death of the Third Kazekage, but that didn't mean he respected the man. He could still recall the first words the Kazekage spoke when they met:
"Show me your worth!"
Every time Hattori remembered that phrase, he felt uncomfortable.
"What right does he have to judge my worth? Just because he's the Kazekage?"
To the Third Kazekage, perhaps a person's capabilities equaled their worth and purpose.
But to Hattori, while personal ability was related to personal value, it was not absolute.
He firmly believed that a person's value wasn't determined solely by their abilities, but by their character.
If someone had a good nature, even without much ability, they could contribute to society by being hardworking and diligent all their life.
Such a person was valuable.
In contrast, if someone had a bad nature and did nothing but harm, then no matter how capable they were, they would only add to their own sins and endanger society.
What value did such a person hold?
By equating "capability" with "value," the Third Kazekage had marked a fundamental difference between himself and Hattori.
And it was precisely because of this that Hattori had become sensitive whenever he heard the word "value."
So, as soon as Karura finished her sentence, he turned to her, his expression serious.
"Karura, sacrifice is something we do out of necessity; it shouldn't be equated with value. So let's not use words like 'a worthwhile sacrifice' anymore."
Without waiting for her response, he turned and sprinted down the street.
Karura watched his figure disappear, blinking in confusion.
"Strange… what's gotten into him today?"
Karura couldn't understand Hattori's thinking, and Hattori knew this too, as they were from different worlds.
Different experiences naturally led to different perspectives.
He wasn't expecting to change Karura's views overnight; instead, he planned to influence her gradually over time, along with everyone else.
"But first, I have to get through this crisis!"
Thinking of this, he sped up, moving to the next street and resuming his "loot and burn" operation.
*Thud! Thud! Thud!*
With a series of heavy crashes, the homes he raided were quickly stripped bare.
He piled up large amounts of flammable materials in the streets, setting them alight to release scorching flames and thick, suffocating smoke.
Thanks to his efforts, these "smoke stacks" rose one after another, sending plumes of smoke skyward and dispersing the swarming bees overhead.
The bee attack was temporarily halted, but Hattori knew this was only the beginning.
The bee assault was meant to cause chaos in the village and test its defenses.
What would come next was the real threat—a full-scale assault from Iwagakure!
"The real battle is about to start!"
With that thought, he hurried back to Karura's place to prepare traps.
Given the situation, it was highly likely that the enemy would arrive before reinforcements did, so setting traps was the best way to gain the upper hand!
For a ninja, making traps was a basic skill, and not particularly difficult.
It was usually just a steel wire and a few explosive tags; one touch, and the enemy would trigger an explosion—hopefully injuring them, or at the very least, alerting him to their approach.
But Hattori didn't want to settle for something so basic.
As a medical ninja, setting such a simple trap wouldn't befit his status as a master puppeteer, nor the expense of 2,000 ryo per explosive tag.
"As a puppeteer, I should act like one!"
With that resolve, he leaped onto Karura's rooftop, took out his scroll of sealed tools, and opened it.
*Bang!*
With a small explosion, a pile of shuriken and explosive tag-laden kunai appeared atop the scroll—the tools he had sealed away earlier.
Hattori grinned as he looked at the weapons in front of him.
"These cost me two months' salary; now it's time for you to earn your keep!"
He picked up four explosive-tagged kunai and tossed them toward the street corner.
Hattori wasn't skilled at kunai-throwing, but he possessed a more powerful ability:
**[Level 30 Puppet Control: Allows control over targets up to Level 30 using chakra threads. Maximum total control level: 300. Requires 300 experience points to level up!]**
This combat skill, painstakingly leveled up after he became a puppet master, made precision no issue at all.
Under the control of his chakra threads, the four explosive kunai he threw landed precisely in a hidden corner.
Afterward, he tossed out a shuriken.
With the same chakra-thread precision, it landed right beside the four kunai, just as he intended.
In this way, Hattori threw out 40 explosive-tagged kunai and 200 shuriken laced with sedative, one by one, without missing a single one.
In front of him, only ten ordinary kunai remained.
"Alright, that should do it!"
Satisfied with the spread of weapons, Hattori nodded and popped a military ration pill into his mouth.
**[MP +100]**
The ration pill provided some satiety and a slight MP boost, although under the strain of the *Hundredfold Yin Seal*, the added MP wouldn't last even two hours.
He was well aware of this and furrowed his brow once more.
"Be it the Iwa-nin attackers or the Suna reinforcements, someone had better show up soon, or I'll be out of MP again! How am I supposed to fight like this?"
As if in answer, a man wearing an Iwagakure headband, clad in dark red armor and a flak jacket, came into Hattori's view.
A dozen more Iwa-nin, wearing gray flak jackets, followed closely behind him in an encircling formation, charging toward Hattori's position.
While advancing, they performed Earth Release jutsu to clear the "smoke stacks" Hattori had created.
"Clearing the way for the bees—a smart strategy!"
Seeing this, Hattori's eyes narrowed, and a slight smirk appeared on his lips.
"But I put a lot of effort into those. Did you even ask me first? You're dead meat!"
With those words, he shook his hands forward sharply, sending the remaining ten kunai flying.
"Manipulating Blades!"
(End of Chapter)
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