Taro POV
Inside the Hosai Cave
It's been four days since we captured the entirety of the Hebidoku clan and Kamishiro.
I looked at the man who was chained up in front of me and sighed. He was Kamishiro, the eldest son of the previous patriarch of the Hebidoku clan.
Although historically, most clans preferred their eldest son to be the next patriarch, it would seem that the previous patriarch of the Hebidoku clan and the rest of the clan wasn't fond of Kamishiro.
When he was taken away by my father and given to me as a slave, no one batted an eye, only his younger brother who protested but was quickly knocked out by my father.
As for why I'm keeping him alive, it's because of his IQ!
His IQ is by far the highest I've ever seen, an IQ of 168!
But that wasn't the only reason why I asked my father not to kill him, but because of his secret ninjutsu. Although I don't know how those puppets are being controlled without threads or how they can release bursts of chakra, it's a fact that those tiny puppets could injure an elite jonin.
Not only did he beat Fuji, he also nearly killed more than fifty ninjas even if it's just genin/chunin-level ninjas. What's more, he managed to put up a fight against my father, who's considered to be the strongest member in the clan.
Staring at Kamishiro, I asked, "So, you're really not gonna talk? We've been here for three days. I only ask for cooperation, and that's it."
Throughout the three days he has been chained up in this cave, he had not eaten anything or drank any water. And from the dry air, he was getting dehydrated faster than normal.
In the end, I had to forcefully feed him and make him drink water.
He chuckled mockingly, "You want my jutsu? I'm never giving it to anyone, not even family."
Scratching my head in frustration, I said, "I don't want your shitty jutsu! I was only curious. And besides, that's not the reason I asked my father to keep you alive."
Narrowing his eyes, he answered, "You think I'd believe that?"
For the past three days, I've told him multiple times that I did not want his jutsu, after all, I'm not a puppeteer. I only wanted him out of curiosity about his ninjutsu, but the main reason was for his IQ.
Not only would his IQ help progress the village technology faster, it would also help me gain a teacher that can teach me about anything that requires a big brain.
But of course he doesn't believe me. After all, who in the ninja world wouldn't covet something that can damage or kill an Elite Jonin while only being a chunin.
I sighed once again and told him, "I'm really not into puppets…" I looked at the puppet Kamishiro used in the battle against my father that was laying on the table and continued, "I was just curious on what that was and how it worked, nothing else. You don't have to tell me how to make it or how to control something like that."
Kamishiro scoffed and asked, "Then please, tell this slave what the young master wants."
"I want your brain." I got up and walked toward the table where a syringe was laying down next to the puppet. Picking up the syringe, I walked back to Kamishiro and presented it in front of him, "I want your brain to help me improve our village, not just my clan, but all the other clans including yours."
Seeing that Kamishiro was at least intrigued, a small smile formed on my face as I continued, "I've never met someone as smart as you. And currently, I need people that's smart, not powerful."
Understanding my words, Kamishiro sat straighter and questioned, "And how exactly do you know I'm smart? I never showed even an ounce of hint that I'm smart." He scoffed, "I know you're bullshitting, so just tell me what you really want. If it helps with something, then sure I'll do it, but I'll have to demand something in return."
Frowning, I retorted, "I don't think you have the right to negotiate here—"
Before I could finish, he cut me off, "Kill me or not, it doesn't matter to me. There is no negotiation rights with someone that has nothing to lose."
"Hmm. Fine, what is it?"
Although I'd rather be the one being in control, it'll be a waste losing someone like him. The things he can do for me in the future would be immense.
Developing technology wouldn't just be his use, after all, someone that smart can help with almost everything: construction, agriculture, creating a new village system, and other major reforms in the future.
Kamishiro smirked after hearing my answer, "There are three things I want. The first thing is my brother. Nothing should ever happen to my brother, keep him safe and let him rule over the Hebidoku clan in peace, without any political struggle."
I chuckled in amusement, "What makes you think I have the power to do that? Remember, your entire clan is under Hosai, not me."
Kamishiro scoffed, "So are you telling me that someone who could sit with Fuji in negotiation doesn't have power? Are you telling me that someone who could stop the Hosai clan patriarch from killing a subjugated ninja that killed thirty Hosai clan members doesn't have any power?"
He looked at me as I stayed silent. Accepting my silence as acceptance, he continued, "The second request is about my ninjutsu. I'll tell you how it works, but I'll never give any information on how it's specifically made."
I nodded, but Kamishiro suddenly added something.
"Write it on paper."
Although something like a piece of paper won't stop anyone from backing away from a deal, because there are no judges or laws in this world that protects them, a contract is still useful for one thing—legitimacy.
Throughout history, in both the ninja world and my previous world, legitimacy of something is the main cause for conflict, be it small-scale conflict or an all-out war.
An attack without legitimacy is an unwritten rule that one must be careful around.
However, to me, something like this is redundant, "How useless, but I concur."
I quickly took out a piece of paper and a pen inside a drawer and wrote down everything he said, including the third and final request he was now revealing.
"And for the final request, I want my lab back. Build me a lab and let me do my own thing without any interference."
Frowning at the request, I immediately said no, "Why would I allow you to grow your power behind my back?"
Before his capture, the lab outside of the Hebidoku clan was destroyed in a massive explosion. No one knew what happened and what caused the explosion, but many have suspected that he used those puppets of his to blow up his own research lab.
He rolled his eyes, "Then go ahead, kill me."
Chuckling, I placed down the pen and said, "For someone who said he has nothing to lose, you sure had a weird request for your very first demand."
He narrowed his eyes, giving me the confidence to continue, "Since I'm assuming the lab is used to create those puppets, I won't cause too much trouble. I'll agree with your request if you log everything you did into a logbook. Furthermore, after every time you finish using the lab, I'll be searching for anything that doesn't match with the logbook."
Kamishiro stayed quiet for a while, then he nodded, "Fine, I agree."
I smiled and got rid of the chains binding him. Soon, we both placed our signature at the bottom of the paper, finalizing the contract.
Once everything was finalized, my curiosity finally got the better of me as I asked him how the puppets were moving on their own and how they can unleash massive amounts of chakra.
This mastery of puppetry and weird jutsu wasn't part of the original Naruto, at least not from where he left off.
I stared at Kamishiro as he thought of a way to answer, and after a few seconds of waiting, he finally quenched my curiosity with a single word, "Fūinjutsu."