"Swish, swish…"
After watering Yūhi Kurenai's flowers—
The sun was already hanging high in the sky.
Outside, on the bustling streets, crowds of people moved back and forth in lively streams.
Because crafting those two puppet dolls had taken quite a bit of time, Akira Ren carried the gift boxes while leaping swiftly across rooftops.
Before long, he arrived in a lush, picturesque forest.
And there—
Two girls with very different styles but equally cute and beautiful appearances had already been waiting for quite some time.
"Big Brother Ren, you're so slow!"
"Ren, you're late…"
The moment they saw him arrive—
Both girls' eyes lit up as they quickly ran toward him.
"Sorry about that. I came a little late today."
Ren apologized with a smile.
Looking at the two youthful little beauties before him, his expression remained gentle.
"Big Brother Ren…"
The energetic little Ino, with her short ponytail tied neatly behind her head, immediately rushed forward.
She skillfully hugged his arm with great familiarity.
Pouting slightly, she complained,
"This is the first time you've ever been late!"
But her gaze was quickly drawn to the gift box in Ren's hand.
"What's that…?"
Beside her, Tenten watched the scene with a faint smile.
Seeing Ino boldly clinging to Ren's arm, a trace of envy inevitably flashed through her eyes.
However, with her naturally cheerful yet somewhat reserved personality, she couldn't bring herself to act so intimately.
Instead, she simply looked curiously at the gift boxes he was carrying.
There were two boxes.
Could it be…
"These are gifts for you two."
Ren smiled.
"Gifts?"
"Really?"
The girls' eyes immediately sparkled with excitement.
"This one is for you, Ino…" Ren said without teasing them further as he handed the boxes over.
"And this one is for you, Tenten."
"Hehe, thank you, Big Brother Ren!"
Looking at the exquisite box, Ino was clearly thrilled.
Her pretty face was filled with joy as she looked at him expectantly.
"I wonder what kind of gift it is. I'm really curious!"
"Thank you, Ren…"
Tenten accepted her box with anticipation.
She hadn't expected such a pleasant surprise early in the morning.
Although the gift wasn't meant only for her—
She was still very happy.
"Big Brother Ren, can I open it?"
Ino asked eagerly.
"Of course."
Ren nodded with a smile.
Upon hearing his permission—
Both girls quickly opened their boxes, unable to contain their excitement.
Inside—
Were two exquisitely carved and carefully painted puppet dolls.
Their expressions were vivid.
They looked incredibly lifelike.
And the figures depicted—
If not themselves, then who else?
The lively and cheerful Tenten.
The playful and adorable Ino.
Both dolls were crafted with remarkable detail, resembling their real counterparts almost perfectly.
"Wow! This is amazing!"
"Is this… a wooden doll?"
The girls' eyes widened.
Looking at their respective puppet dolls, both were overjoyed.
"What a beautiful doll…"
Ino held the puppet that looked nearly identical to her with obvious delight.
She hugged it fondly before turning her bright eyes toward Ren.
"Big Brother Ren, did you make this yourself?"
"Incredible… it really looks like me!"
Beside her, Tenten was also happily examining her puppet.
When she realized it was a chibi version of herself, she couldn't hide her excitement.
Blinking her big eyes, she looked at Ren curiously.
"Yes."
Ren smiled.
"But these aren't ordinary wooden dolls. They're puppet dolls I specifically made for you two."
He gently raised both hands.
From his fingertips, several chakra threads shot out, connecting to the puppets in the girls' hands.
Under their astonished gazes—
His fingers moved lightly.
The two puppet dolls suddenly began moving.
Click… click…
The palm-sized Chibi Ino and Chibi Tenten began dancing gracefully.
Under Ren's precise manipulation of the chakra threads—
Not only could the puppets move their eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and even tongues—
But their necks, arms, legs, knees, and even fingers could move as well.
Every movement was incredibly smooth.
They looked astonishingly lifelike.
It was almost as if two tiny living people were dancing before them.
Ino and Tenten were completely stunned.
They could hardly believe their eyes.
"Gulp… Ren, you already mastered puppet techniques?"
Tenten stared at him in shock.
She couldn't help swallowing nervously.
Although she already knew Ren was a genius—
This was still far too exaggerated.
If she remembered correctly—
It hadn't even been half a month since he first started learning about puppets.
Wasn't this a bit too monstrous?
"You're amazing, Big Brother Ren!"
Ino looked at him with sparkling eyes full of admiration.
Without any teacher—
Just by studying a few puppet books on his own—
In less than half a month—
He had already mastered puppet manipulation so smoothly.
And he had even designed and crafted such complex and precise puppet dolls himself.
It was truly unbelievable.