The fact that the interviewer didn't get the joke and immediately divulged "the answer" makes it hard to assume the best here. If they were really trying to open a dialogue, I'd expect a chuckle and maybe some clarification (like, what _is_ in an inode?)
You may well be right. I'm reading between the lines and could be wrong - but I'd guess the interviewee gave those answers in a frustrated tone. This specific interviewer could have just been a jerk.
There does however seem to be a lot of criticism of FAANG interviews which seems immature.
