Chapter 121: Soul Puppet

In the gloomy Spring Base beneath Konoha, on the upper level of the infirmary ward, sat a nondescript cell culture room. Unlike the bustling activity in the infirmary wards on the bottom floor that Kato Mifune had just visited, this room was deathly quiet, with only a few staff members busy at their stations.

Kang, the department head of the Spring Base’s cell culture lab and an absolute confidant of the "Pot Shadow" Danzo Shimura—as well as a technical elite within the Root organization—was also working in this silent room.

As the workday drew to a close, the few other staff members in the room had become absent-minded. Some were tidying up data and tools, others were cleaning, each finding their own way to slack off.

Receiving a new order from his master via a peculiar connection in his mind, Kang turned to look at his dawdling subordinates.

"You’ve finished today’s work well. The survival rate of the new Mokuhashiro cells designed by Lord Orochimaru is satisfactory; you finally managed to avoid repeating yesterday’s mistakes."

"Everyone has performed well and deserves praise. You may all head home early today as a reward for your hard work."

Kang casually found an excuse to send his subordinates away. Once alone, he remained in the ordinary culture room, performing his mandatory daily closing tasks while waiting in silence.

***

By the time Kato Mifune arrived, Kang had been waiting respectfully for quite some time.

Kang was now more than just Danzo Shimura’s loyal confidant or a technical elite of Root; he was also Kato Mifune’s secret tool and his "Soul Puppet."

"Master!" Kang greeted with a humble and submissive bow as Kato Mifune entered.

Kato Mifune did not respond immediately. Instead, he stared at Kang with his piercing eyes, inspecting him thoroughly from front to back, left to right, and top to bottom. After a short while, finding no irregularities, Kato Mifune raised an eyebrow and spoke in a calm tone.

"What are you supposed to call me?"

"Lord Kato Mifune!" Kang maintained his humble posture, switching to the title they usually used in public.

"That’s better." Kato Mifune nodded in satisfaction, then shook his head. "Be a bit more enthusiastic and intimate. We’ve been colleagues working together for nearly half a year now. Do I really need to teach you this? You’re such a spirited middle-aged man; how did I never notice you were this dull before?"

"Lord Kato! There is a clear distinction between superior and subordinate; the rules of etiquette must not be abandoned," Kang replied, shifting to a slightly more intimate but still deferential title.

"Tsk, tsk. Are you members of Root studying for an exam? You have a whole set of principles and rhyming slogans for everything," Kato Mifune remarked, casually mocking Danzo’s organization. "Fine, you’re right, it makes sense. Do as you wish, just don’t slip up in front of outsiders."

"Master, your orders are supreme!" Hearing Kato Mifune concede, Kang immediately reverted to addressing him as "Master."

"…Just call me Lord Kato from now on. What kind of strange values and worldviews did Danzo Shimura stuff into your brain?" Kato Mifune gave up on letting Kang choose his own title and issued a direct order, turning his mockery toward Danzo.

"Anything Danzo Shimura instilled in me, Lord Kato, you are free to browse through my memories at any time." As an elite of Root, Kang spoke of Danzo with chilling casualness, despite the "Cursed Seal of Eradication" still planted on his tongue.

The seal did not trigger.

"I have no desire to look through your memories again; I nearly got brainwashed last time," Kato Mifune muttered. "To think I walked right into his trap and got brainwashed—Danzo is truly a talent. Your 'second boss,' Danzo, is no less capable of bewitching people than Orochimaru."

Kang showed no reaction to the mention of Danzo or Orochimaru, standing humbly before him. As a Soul Puppet, his life, thoughts, and memories were entirely under Kato Mifune’s control. There was no need for Kato Mifune to hide his true attitude toward Danzo.

"Stick out your tongue and let me see."

Kang obeyed immediately, opening his mouth wide to reveal the black seal at the root of his tongue. After a careful inspection, confirming that the Cursed Seal of Eradication was still active and had not failed, Kato Mifune told him to retract it.

"Danzo is truly a piece of work. Planting a silencing seal on someone's tongue—can you really silence a human heart by silencing their mouth? Tsk." Kato Mifune scoffed at the method. "Enough, report today’s progress."

Although Kato Mifune had been remotely monitoring Kang for most of the afternoon, he wanted to hear the report in person—partly to satisfy his own perverse pleasure in successfully poaching Danzo’s subordinate.

"My Lord, I received your orders this morning, and subsequently used the cipher in your command to successfully summon a small sealing scroll. Following that, as you instructed, I secretly..."

Kang began his formal report in a steady, dull tone. As he spoke, Kato Mifune focused his mind on the "Secret Arts" tab of his Ninja System. Compared to a few months ago, several new entries had appeared, including the one he had just acquired—the technique used to control Kang.

*Secret Art: Soul-Breeding Sorrow, Soul-Submerging Mind Control, Soul Puppet Technique.*

The name was long, and certainly not something Kato Mifune had named—he was only capable of naming things like "Salted Fish Clone" or "Little Swamp." This name had been generated by the system when he mastered it.

The secret art was derived from three sources: the Art of Soul Breeding, the Sand Village’s Puppet Jutsu, and the Sand Village’s "Mind-Submerging Sand Control" technique.

When Kato Mifune first planned to turn Kang into a tool, he had considered the Cursed Seal of Eradication and the Mind-Submerging Sand Control used by Sasori. He eventually set the Cursed Seal aside—not because he couldn't acquire it, but because the specific steps were locked away in Danzo’s own mind, impossible to obtain without killing him. However, with many people in the Spring Base bearing the seal, he had been able to reverse-engineer it.

He had mastered the Cursed Seal first, but it didn't harmonize well with the Art of Soul Breeding. The Mind-Submerging Sand Control was much harder to acquire, as it was a specialized technique for Sand Village spies. Kato Mifune’s "Salted Fish Clone" had spent months in the Land of Wind trying to track it down, almost giving up until he finally succeeded.