Pupet Master in Konoha

"First of all, Hong, the toy you have in your hand is called a Rubik's Cube..." Hideki began to present.

"It's very simple to play with: first, scramble the colors by rotating it, then try to restore it in the shortest time possible."

The word "simple" struck a nerve with Kurenai, who couldn't help but tentatively ask:

"Master Hideki, how long does it usually take you to solve the Rubik's Cube?"

Hideki smiled slightly and didn't answer directly. Instead, he simply extended his index finger, and with a flick of his wrist, the magic in Kurenai's hand caused the Rubik's Cube to spin rapidly in the air.

In the blink of an eye, the Rubik's Cube returned to Kurenai's hand, leaving her a bit confused as she caught it.

When she held it firmly and looked more closely, she realized that the Rubik's Cube in her hand had been restored, with each side displaying a single color.

"Master, this is too fast!"

The cube hadn't even spun for a second, right?

After the surprise subsided, Kurenai quickly placed the Rubik's Cube back into the box, looking speechless.

"Sorry, goodbye!"

It had been so long since she last solved a Rubik's Cube, and now it didn't seem to fit with the one Hideki had given her...

Seeing this, Hideki smiled and explained, "Actually, the Rubik's Cube isn't as difficult as you think."

"As long as you master the formula, anyone can restore it in no time."

But before Kurenai could rejoice at the thought of having a formula to follow, Hideki added, "But this toy is mainly used to exercise spatial thinking ability, so it's better not to rely on the formula..."

Upon hearing this, Kurenai immediately deflated like a deflated balloon, then rolled onto the podium and coquettishly said, "Master, stop talking about the Rubik's Cube and introduce other toys quickly."

Hideki and Rin exchanged a helpless smile before continuing to present other toys.

"This one is called Luban... No, it should be called Kimura Suo."

"Although there are many types, all of them use the tenon-and-mortise structure, which can make wooden strips fit tightly together without nails or ropes."

"Since puppets and many ninja tools also use tenon-and-mortise structures, if you're interested in making puppets, you can first learn the relevant knowledge through this Kimura lock."

Hideki then showed them various Luban locks in different shapes.

The scene where the entire Luban lock collapsed with a gentle pull on a wooden piece amazed both Kurenai and Rin even more.

But when Hideki asked them to try assembling it, Kurenai once again recalled the fear of having her intelligence crushed...

Especially Rin, who quickly restored the Kimura lock, which made Kurenai feel a bit embarrassed. She thought these toys weren't that fun after all.

Fortunately, the next toys were much more normal and didn't test intelligence.

"This toy is called a Yo-Yo. It will be the star product of my workshop in the near future. It will definitely become very popular in Konoha."

Although the master seemed confident, Rin and Kurenai looked at the unappealing yo-yo in his hand with some doubts.

However, their doubts were quickly dispelled by Hideki's marvelous demonstration.

Under Hideki's skillful control, the yo-yo flew up and down between his hands and the thin string, like a mischievous elf.

The two little girls had never seen such an interesting toy before. They stared at it with open mouths and wide eyes.

Hideki continued introducing various yo-yo tricks while casually explaining, "As you can see, this yo-yo is connected to your fingers by cotton thread, so you can use it to practice chakra string control for manipulating ninja tools..."

Rin and Kurenai finally woke up after hearing this and exchanged silent looks.

They began to realize the master's routine.

Just like the Pocket Puppet Beast, whether it's a Rubik's Cube, a Kimura lock, or a Yo-Yo, all of these toys are not only fun but also very useful for practicing puppetry.

This enthusiasm for teaching everyone skills through puppetry was truly touching and fun for both of them.

However, the subsequent toys were much more ordinary and didn't have much to do with learning.

For example, puzzles, Huarong Tao, bamboo dragonflies, jade swords, whistles...

Especially the wooden carvings of Konoha's heroes that Hideki brought out at the end made the two little girls fall in love with them.

"Master, you're amazing. You can invent so many new and interesting toys."

Kurenai made a gesture of prayer with her hands and said with admiration on her face.

Rin also nodded in agreement.

Hideki shook his head and said, "Actually, many of these toys can't really be considered inventions by me. I'm just standing on the shoulders of giants."

It's a shame that the two girls misunderstood, thinking he was referring to puppetry as the inspiration.

However, Hideki wasn't lying. The reason he could invent so many interesting toys was thanks to the thousands of years of human toy development in his previous life.

"But why toys?" Kurenai couldn't help but ask.

"Shouldn't you not make much money selling toys?"

It was no wonder she had those thoughts. After all, there are few children as spoiled as she is, with so many toys at home.

Children with the money to buy toys in Konoha are mostly from ninja clans, and they don't have much time to play with toys, so they naturally wouldn't spend money on them.

Therefore, Konoha didn't even have a proper toy store. At most, there was a shelf in a grocery store, which wasn't a good business opportunity.

"Is there something wrong with selling toys in Konoha?"

In response to Kurenai's question, Hideki answered kindly, "It doesn't matter if you have money or not, as long as it's enough to keep the workshop and orphanage running."

"The reason I chose to make toys is mainly to enrich the entertainment activities of the villagers in Konoha."

Hideki suddenly looked out the window with a nostalgic expression and said, "A martial arts master once proposed this kind of experience."

"Study well, exercise well, eat well, sleep well, and play well."

"Study and work are naturally important, but properly relaxing through entertainment is the long-term way to keep both body and mind in optimal condition."

"The ninjas in Konoha are fine in other aspects right now, but they're not very good at having fun."

"Everyone's entertainment is just eating, drinking... and gambling. It's very unhealthy."

"Especially you, children, have fewer ways to entertain yourselves than adults. If you keep it up for too long, you'll eventually get sick."

"That's why I invented these toys, hoping to change this situation a little bit..."

The two little girls couldn't hold back their tears when they heard this.

Because the master's words truly hit home, touching on a painful point that they, students from the Ninja School, found hard to understand from an adult's perspective.

If they weren't under the pressure of graduating and going to the battlefield with nowhere to go, these students wouldn't be so precocious and would try to relieve stress through love...

Moreover, they thought that the master might teach puppetry selflessly and set up a workshop to help children in the orphanage, which was the limit of what they imagined.

Unexpectedly, it went beyond their expectations, and he actually considered the physical and mental health problems of Ninja School students like them...

What kind of spirit is this!

From their point of view, the master no longer just represents the Will of Fire...

Because he is simply the incarnation of the Will of Fire walking through the world!

At that moment, however, Hideki felt a bit uncomfortable under the burning gazes of the two.

Because he knew he wasn't as great as he'd just said.

Helping the ninjas and students in Konoha relieve stress was indeed one of the reasons he decided to make toys.

But the most important reason was that, in exchange for equivalent value, Hideki would receive a large amount of real money in return.

Regarding Kurenai's idea that selling toys wasn't profitable, Hideki could only shake his head and laugh inwardly.

The reason the toy industry wasn't generating profits at the moment was because traditional toys simply couldn't meet the needs of the target customers.

Hideki's new toys not only surpass traditional ones in terms of playability, but he also makes a point to connect them with cultivation to reduce the parents' resentment toward them.

Therefore, Hideki was very confident that these various toys designed for children would definitely create a craze in Konoha.

Another very important reason: it was precisely because the toy industry was still in a wild state in Konoha that Hideki could monopolize it without competition.

You must know that ninjas are behind every field of life in Konoha.

These stores were originally opened by ninja clans to find an outlet for their untalented members and develop financial resources for their families.

However, after years of operation, these stores had formed deeply ingrained barriers in their respective industries, making it difficult for outsiders to enter.

Hideki returned to Konoha this time to accumulate various resources and become stronger as quickly as possible, but he had no intention of wasting time on commercial wars with other ninja clans.

Therefore, although there are other industries like weapons and furniture that are relatively compatible with puppetry, Hideki ultimately chose toys as the main product for his workshop at the start.

...

Soon, more students arrived at the workshop.

As Hideki had expected, most of the disciples from the major ninja clans, like Hyuga Kamon and Sarutobi Asuma, didn't come.

After all, it was impossible for them to leave behind their family secrets and study the puppet technique in-depth with such an uncertain future.

Therefore, Hideki didn't have high expectations. His main goal was to focus on civilian children like Nohara Rin.

However, the arrival of children from smaller ninja clans, like Yuhi Kurenai and Shiranui Genma, was an unexpected surprise for him.

Except for Yuhi Kurenai, who was suspected of being a star-chaser, the other children basically had the idea of giving it a try.

This was because the ninjutsu passed down through their families was either generic or had significant flaws.

Therefore, if these children could achieve success in the art of puppetry, their families would naturally be happy to see them succeed.

If not, at least it would add another secret skill to their family.

Hideki was not dissatisfied with their speculative behavior.

Given the shortage of manpower in the workshop, he wasn't in a position to be picky.

Anyway, even if they gained something, Hideki wouldn't lose anything...

After arriving, the children, like Rin and Kurenai, quickly became captivated by these novel and interesting toys. They had so much fun playing with them that they almost forgot they were supposed to be visiting the workshop today.

However, Hideki, who deliberately wanted to use them as little workers, kept his objective in mind. He clapped his hands and said:

"It's almost time, so let's begin officially."

"Everyone can first take your favorite toy and sit down. You can use it as a template to make your own toy later."

"But before that, as a reward for everyone being willing to visit, I will teach you an interesting production technique."

Having said that, Hideki couldn't help but raise the corners of his mouth slightly and murmured to himself:

"Time to show my true skills..."

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