While Xia Xi was pondering what other advanced skills he might be able to grind out of the system in the future,
Kazetoriin turned back to study the mechanical puppet.
After a long while, the Feather Hashira quietly asked Xia Xi,
"Say, little Xia Xi."
"Could you... let me play with this Mechanical Puppet?"
Pulled from his thoughts by him, Xia Xi instinctively asked, "What are you planning to do?"
"I want to see just how powerful he is in action."
Kazetoriin was brimming with enthusiasm.
"This puppet of yours is a little different from the [Yoriichi Type Zero] in the Swordsmith Village."
"Not only does it have fewer arms, but its legs are thicker, too."
"Did you specifically enhance his endurance and explosive power?"
Although their faces were identical,
their builds and heights were different.
Most importantly, the number of arms was completely different.
To a layperson, it might merely look like a few extra or missing arms.
But anyone proficient in swordsmanship would understand.
Even losing a single finger on a swordsman's dominant hand could mean having to rebuild their entire swordsmanship system from scratch.
And the Swordsmith Village's Yoriichi Type Zero had six arms.
The one before him had only two.
That was a full four swords fewer.
The sword techniques and fighting methods it could employ would inevitably be entirely different.
In Kazetoriin's eyes,
this puppet seemed considerably more finely crafted than Zero Type.
Kazetoriin had a rough idea of Yoriichi Type Zero's capabilities.
But Xia Xi's machine could slay an Upper Rank. It was probably stronger than Zero Type.
"Let your big brother have some fun."
"This kind of mechanical fighter will definitely be important in future battles. If we could mass-produce them..."
His words immediately put Xia Xi on guard.
"Wait... stop right there!"