Kaiba flinches a little. That carving was what he'd glimpsed back then, right. How cruel to treat a child that way. Children are naturally curious, and to keep them restricted in a little box like that...he's reminded uncomfortably of his own childhood in certain ways.

"It wasn't fair to you. I've had pain inflicted on me to demand obedience, but for some tradition that could've been passed down any number of better ways? I'm not a fan of ritual at the best of times, but. You never should've been put through that."