Kankuro's Excitement

["A... a hundred thousand kilometers?!" Kankuro's mouth fell open, his jaw nearly hitting the floor. This had completely overturned his understanding of the Puppet Technique.]

["Besides," Sasori continued in the same flat tone, though every word cut deep, "that isn't your only shortcoming."]

["Relying on chakra threads for precise control places an enormous burden on both your mind and your chakra control."]

["At most, you'd reach your limit at ten puppets at once, just like my grandmother Chiyo, wouldn't you? But as for me..." He paused, as though stating a simple fact. "I can now connect to and control up to three thousand combat units like this simultaneously."]

[Kankuro had turned completely to stone. He could only swallow reflexively as the sheer volume of information battered the worldview he had built over decades as a puppeteer.]

["Then doesn't that mean..." His voice was dry.]

["Exactly." Sasori finished the thought for him, his tone carrying a sense of absolute superiority. "Take Sunagakure, for example. If I wanted to destroy it, you wouldn't even be able to find my actual body."]

["Meanwhile, I could sit somewhere safe, far away, and send out endless armies of puppets until the entire village was wiped off the map. So, Kankuro..."]

[Sasori put away his armored puppet and walked past him, giving his shoulder a light pat. His words landed like a final judgment:]

["You do have some talent when it comes to controlling puppets in battle. But when it comes to puppet design principles and core engineering, you're a complete blockhead."]

["Take a good look at the Introduction to Puppet Engineering I left in Sunagakure—if you can understand it."]

[With that, Sasori left the corridor without another pause, leaving Kankuro standing alone, staring at the "masterpiece" puppet he had once been so proud of. Now