When Tetsu no Sosuke found out afterward, he beat his chest in frustration, but nothing changed.
Whatever. When it came to this, it felt like the universe itself was against him.
On the very day Tengen Uzui left the Hammer Hut, a large, packaged toy was delivered there by a member of the Hidden.
It had come from the Swordsmith Village, along with a letter.
The letter was naturally from Kawahara Chintetsu. He told Tetsu no Sosuke that news of their great victory had reached the Swordsmith Village, and everyone there was proud to share in it. He urged Tetsu no Sosuke to recover well and keep up the good work...
But he did not say a word about what he had sent.
That left Kanae and Shinobu Kocho, who had been keeping an eye on him, burning with curiosity.
Tetsu no Sosuke simply asked Shinobu Kocho to unpack it.
Inside were heaps of parts and body molds.
"A Combat Automaton!?"
Tetsu no Sosuke knew what it was at a glance. His eyes lit up. "This is fantastic!"
They would not be bored now. The three of them set about assembling the automaton together.
Tetsu no Sosuke was injured and could not move around easily. Kanae was pregnant and could not move around easily either. So a certain five-foot-tall someone ended up running back and forth doing all the work.
One moment she was over here, the next she was over there. She handed something to Tetsu no Sosuke, then took it away again... Eventually, Shinobu Kocho nearly lost her temper. "Are you messing with me?"
Then she realized Tetsu no Sosuke was not even looking at her. His attention had been on the parts in his hands the whole time.
She looked toward Kanae and found her gazing intently