I hear you. It’s hard to give a theoretical answer on an irrational concept. (If you know what I mean, lol)

Wheat that was toasted into snack-like kernels are fine, so technically kitniyot should be fine in the same way.

No one water in ingredients. Is there even a tzad issur?

you are correct, if you can determine that water is not used. I’m guessing there’s some water used, but maybe I’m wrong.

I can’t remember what product it was that I noticed that was the case. If I see it again, I’ll post, but it might not be til next year! Not the product I was thinking of, but for example, Nature Valley bars have oats that are not ground up, but they also do not contain water. Assuming oats are kitniyot, is there any reason for ashkenazim to avoid eating Nature Valley bars, since even if it was one of the 5 species, it wouldn’t have become chametz in this product?
Whole Grain Oats, Sugar, Canola Oil, Rice Flour, Dried Apples, Brown Sugar Syrup, Salt, Baking Soda, Soy Lecithin, Cinnamon, Natural Flavor.