"You like Konan?"
Mukai was taken aback. He simply had a very good impression of the future Sister Konan.
It hadn't risen to the level of liking her, at least not yet.
The nature transformations he was performing with each hand both stopped for a moment.
The small cyclone forming in his left hand was like a miniature typhoon.
After a brief pause, it continued spinning in his palm.
This spinning was not like Naruto and Minato's Rasengan,
but a precisely controlled whirlwind. Although it was very weak, it was as precise as a machine.
Electric arcs flowed constantly between the thumb and index finger of his right hand.
Different voltages and currents produced arcs of different sizes.
He had been practicing precise control over his Chakra output as he walked.
Only after hearing Sasori's question did Mukai smile and say:
"She's just a very interesting girl.
It's too early to say whether I like her or not.
Sasori, is there a girl you like?"
Sasori, walking beside him, shook his head.
"Only puppets are eternal art. Women are the most troublesome creatures!
Mukai, don't let women get in the way of you becoming stronger!"
Seeing eight-year-old Sasori, with his cute boyish face, haughtily declare that women were troublesome creatures,
Mukai couldn't help bursting out laughing.
He had assimilated Komushi's memories, so there was no barrier between him and Sasori.
Mukai stopped the Chakra output in both hands.
He seemed to feel that his Chakra reserves had grown a little.
"Sasori, it's still too early to talk about any of that.
Sunagakure is too weak right now. We need to find a way to make money,
and find a way to grow stronger before we've earned the right to talk about the future!"
During this mission to the Land of Rain, Sasori seemed to feel as though his best friend had become a different person.
Even though Mukai was a year younger than him,
he often spoke as though he were as old as that old woman.
"Sasori, are you all right?
Missions in the Land of Rain are dangerous. Why didn't you tell Granny?"
The two had only just set foot in the Land of Wind, with its endless yellow sands,
when a somewhat stout figure darted over.
Mukai was no stranger to the old woman hugging Sasori and fussing over him.
Granny Chiyo's love for Sasori had lasted from beginning to end.
Even the forbidden technique she had developed, One's Own Life Reincarnation, had been intended to bring the two puppets, Father and Mother, to life.
Seeing Granny Chiyo's disappointment when Sasori broke free of her embrace, Mukai found himself thinking of his deceased grandmother.
The one from the real world.
Seeing Sasori resist Granny Chiyo's concern at every turn,
Mukai couldn't help stepping forward and throwing an arm around Sasori's neck.
"Elder Chiyo, the mission went very smoothly. There's no need to worry.
On the way back, Brother Sasori said he wanted to take me to try your cooking.
I hope it wouldn't be too much trouble?"
Sasori was about to protest, but when he saw the bandages on Mukai's right arm, which was wrapped around his neck, he held back his refusal.
He was a typical problem child in his rebellious phase, saying no when he wanted to say yes. How childish was that?
Mukai secretly wiped his eyes with his arm.
He had been just as awkward as a child in his previous life.
He had been through all this himself, which was why he used the favor Sasori owed him to give him a push.
Granny Chiyo naturally knew Mukai, the reclusive Sasori's only friend.
She had been the one to transfer him to Sasori's team shortly after he became a Genin.
Naturally, Granny Chiyo believed every word Mukai said.
"Really? Granny is so happy.
It's no trouble, no trouble at all.
Come on, Granny will make you lots of delicious food today."
Granny Chiyo sent the others back, asking them to notify Mukai's family along the way.
She accompanied the awkward Sasori and Mukai home.
As for the minor matter of handing in the mission, it was nothing to Granny Chiyo.
Along the way, Granny Chiyo did most of the talking, while Sasori only answered occasionally.
Mukai was mainly responsible for keeping the mood lively.
It wasn't that he wanted to curry favor with Granny Chiyo.
He still wasn't mentally prepared to face Komushi's parents.
He would put it off for as long as he could!
Mukai ate his first meal after returning to Sunagakure at Granny Chiyo's house.
Having come from a future China filled with delicious food, Mukai wasn't used to this kind of Japanese cooking.
Even so, he ate a large bowl of rice with tears in his eyes.
Following his lead, Sasori seemed a little less resistant and responded more often to Granny Chiyo.
And for Granny Chiyo, who had cooked the meal herself, this was her happiest day.
Her only remaining grandson hadn't been this close to her in a long time.
Though she was already in her sixties, from Mukai's words, which only reassured her that they were safe and said nothing of danger,
she still managed to piece together how perilous the mission had been.
During the recently concluded Second Shinobi World War, Chiyo's main battlefield had been Amegakure.
It was she who had countered the poison of Amegakure's leader, Hanzō, enabling them to achieve an overwhelming victory.
That victory had also helped the faltering Sunagakure regain some face.
Granny Chiyo knew the situation in Amegakure very well, but she didn't expose the two boys' well-intentioned deception.
After finishing what had been a very heartwarming family dinner for Granny Chiyo,
Mukai unexpectedly made a request.
"Elder Chiyo, could Sasori and I stay the night here?
The injury on my arm hasn't healed yet. I'm afraid my family will worry if I go home."
Granny Chiyo was also a master of medical care. She undid the bandages on Mukai's arm and examined it.
Looking at the wound that had been treated with the Mystical Palm Technique, Granny Chiyo remarked casually:
"It's Konoha's Medical Ninjutsu. That ninja called Nonō is very skilled.
Don't worry. It'll be completely healed in another three to five days.
I'll send someone to tell your parents that you're here doing special training with Sasori. How does that sound?"
Mukai scratched his head sheepishly and thanked Granny Chiyo.
The reason Mukai felt sheepish was that he had already used his injured arm
to get his way several times. He was clearly using a favor to demand repayment!
But Sasori himself merely turned his head away haughtily and didn't reject Mukai's suggestion.
And Granny Chiyo was naturally overjoyed to see that her usually reclusive grandson was actually willing to stay the night with her.
After Granny Chiyo busied herself arranging a room and preparing bedding, only Sasori and Mukai remained in the room.
Sasori felt ill at ease in all sorts of ways when he wasn't in his own home.
Mukai wasn't used to sleeping on tatami either, and he tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
Bored, he held out both index fingers and drew arcs of electricity between them as they touched.
The current was in the milliamp range, while the voltage was over a thousand volts. It looked frightening, but it actually had little destructive power.
He stared at the ceiling and carefully went over what he needed to do next.
In the quiet room, Sasori was also tossing and turning, unable to sleep, when he suddenly heard Mukai ask beside him:
"Sasori, tell me the truth. If my arm had been amputated this time,
you would have fitted me with a puppet prosthetic, right?"
Sasori turned his head, unsure why Mukai was asking.
He nodded without speaking.
Mukai also turned over. By the flickering light of the electric arcs on his hand, he looked into Sasori's eyes and asked:
"If I suddenly died one day, you'd turn me into a Human Puppet, right?"