Chapter 113: Unexpectedly Smooth

Upon arriving at the cave, Seimei routinely received the memories from his shadow clone first. After confirming there were no issues, he then walked into the deepest part. After these days of confinement, the seven Suna shinobi in the cave had become much more disheveled. However, perhaps due to the larger number of people, their mental states were still decent, and no one had broken down from despair. On the contrary, they were actively trying to find ways to save themselves, and the first thing they needed to ensure for self-rescue was their own lives. Therefore, they didn't dare to refuse when Seimei asked them to refine chakra. However, Seimei couldn't guarantee whether they would still be so cooperative if they continued to see no hope of escape. 'Forget it, those are matters for the future. Let's get the puppet secrets first.' Thinking this, Seimei went directly to Chiya's side and used the 'Chakra Absorption Technique' to drain his chakra. Just when the others thought Seimei would continue to extract chakra from a second person as usual, he suddenly untied the ropes binding Chiya. Everyone was stunned, including Chiya himself. However, his reaction was quick. Realizing that his hands and feet were free, he immediately lifted his leg and kicked hard at Seimei's right cheek. However, prolonged binding had made his body numb, and coupled with the fact that his chakra had just been drained by Seimei, he couldn't exert much strength. Therefore, Seimei easily blocked the attack and then delivered an uppercut, knocking Chiya unconscious. Then, ignoring the reactions of the others, he dragged Chiya's body and walked outside. Seeing this, Safo's puppeteer subordinate, Kurosawa, immediately started struggling frantically, making muffled sounds from his sealed mouth, trying to attract Seimei's attention. And this was exactly what Seimei wanted to see. 'However, I can't reveal my purpose so easily.' With this thought, Seimei stopped, dropped Chiya, and flashed to Kurosawa's side. He asked with a gloomy expression, "Do you want to die?" Hearing this, Kurosawa twisted his body frantically and made a series of "uuu" sounds towards Chiya, seemingly trying to say something. Seeing this, Seimei cooperatively glanced back at Chiya. Then, after thinking for a moment, he raised his hand, formed seals, and used the 'Chakra Absorption Technique', pressing his hand on Kurosawa's head. A few seconds later, Kurosawa's chakra was absorbed, and Seimei then tore off the tape from his face. However, before he could speak, Kurosawa asked first, "Where are you taking him?" "Oh, you care about him a lot?" Seeing his reaction, Seimei pretended to be interested and said, "Tell me, what's your relationship with him?" However, upon hearing his question, Kurosawa immediately closed his mouth and remained silent. Seeing this, Seimei snorted coldly and was about to reseal his mouth with tape. Realizing that he was about to lose his ability to speak again, Kurosawa quickly said, "Wait, I'll talk, I'll talk..." Hearing this, Seimei stopped and gestured for him to continue. Kurosawa struggled for a long time, and seeing that Seimei was about to tape him up again, he finally said in a resigned manner, "He's my nephew!" "Your own nephew?" Seimei asked. "My own nephew." After saying these words, Kurosawa seemed to have all his strength drained from him and slumped against the stone pillar. Clearly, he also knew that by revealing this relationship, it meant Seimei could easily manipulate him using Chiya's life. But what else could he do? Chiya was not only his nephew but also the hope of the family. If Chiya died here, it would mean the complete downfall of the family. This was something he absolutely couldn't accept. Therefore, no matter what, he had to protect Chiya's life. As for whether Chiya could still shoulder the responsibility of revitalizing the family without his hands? This might have some impact in other families, but in their clan, it wasn't a big deal. It could be perfectly solved by simply replacing his hands with puppet arms. Seimei might find it hard to understand Kurosawa's obsession with the family's rise, but it didn't prevent him from realizing that Kurosawa had surrendered. Yes, it was surrender. Based on Kurosawa's behavior just now, anyone with a functioning brain would know what to do next. Obviously, Kurosawa was also aware of this. But he still did it, which meant he was ready to cooperate. Things were progressing too smoothly, leaving Seimei in a bit of a daze. Fortunately, he quickly regained his composure and said directly, "Since you want to know what I'm taking him for, then come along." As he spoke, he untied the ropes on Kurosawa and then turned to walk towards where Chiya was unconscious. Looking at Seimei's seemingly unguarded back, Kurosawa stayed in place for several seconds, his expression changing repeatedly. In the end, he still didn't dare to make a move. Not to mention that he currently had no chakra in his body and had lost his hands and puppets, his condition was almost at its worst, and it was impossible for him to be Seimei's opponent. Even if he were at his peak condition, he wouldn't last many rounds against Seimei. In that case, rashly attacking would only anger Seimei and have no other meaning. So, after some struggle, he gave up the idea of a sneak attack. Hearing the weak footsteps behind him, Seimei's lips curled into a slight smile. The fact that Kurosawa didn't dare to attack even in this situation showed that he truly cared about Chiya, and wasn't just tricking him into untying him to seize an opportunity to escape. In that case, the possibility of obtaining the puppet secrets from him was even higher. Soon, the two of them walked into the room the shadow clone had prepared, one after the other. Seimei tossed the unconscious Chiya aside and sat directly on a stone chair. Kurosawa's eyelids twitched as he watched this scene. He forced down the anger in his heart and said, "Tell me, what do you want me to do?" Clearly, he wasn't stupid either. Seeing that Seimei allowed him to follow, he knew there was something he wanted him to do; otherwise, there would be no need to bother with him. So, he didn't beat around the bush and directly asked what Seimei wanted him to do. However, upon hearing his question, Seimei didn't directly make any demands. Instead, he politely invited him to sit down. Kurosawa hesitated for a moment but eventually sat opposite Seimei. But when he heard Seimei's next sentence, he immediately jumped up in shock, repeatedly saying, "Sorry, I didn't hear clearly, what did you say?" Seeing this, Seimei stretched out his hand and pressed down, adopting a mature demeanor. He said, "Hey, hey, calm down. You heard correctly. I want your family's secret puppet techniques." However, before Seimei could finish speaking, Kurosawa emotionally refused, "Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" "Is that so?" Seimei replied in a flat tone, but then turned to look at the unconscious Chiya beside him. The threat was self-evident. Seeing this, Kurosawa's face flushed, but he still insisted, "Puppet techniques are the foundation of our clan. It's impossible to hand them over to you, even if you threaten me with Chiya's life." Hearing this, Seimei pretended to be deep in thought, tapping his index finger on the armrest. The tapping sounds echoed in the room, as if each tap landed on Kurosawa's heart. His heartbeat fluctuated with the rhythm of Seimei's tapping, and his entire being was enveloped by immense pressure, making it almost impossible for him to breathe. At a certain moment, Seimei suddenly stopped tapping, and Kurosawa's heart also seemed to skip a beat for a few seconds. Before he could recover, he heard Seimei say, "How about this, I don't want anything else, just the knowledge related to the condensation, division, and control of chakra threads." "This..." Hearing this, Kurosawa still wanted to say something, but Seimei waved his hand to interrupt him. He said coldly, "This is my bottom line. Don't try to bargain." Kurosawa heard the firmness in Seimei's tone and knew that refusing again would definitely lead to trouble. So, after some struggle, he finally nodded in agreement, "Okay." He didn't mention any conditions like releasing Chiya because he knew it was impossible. Just like that, Seimei and Kurosawa reached a cooperation, and Chiya was sent back by him. (End of Chapter)