CHAPTER 248: CHAPTER 248

Some people, when bored, will go so far as to fight a cat for its food. Tsunade was one of those people. Right now, she was filled with a sharp sense of regret. If she had known this cat food had such a strange effect, she would have snatched it away from the start. Then at least she wouldn’t be stuck here wasting her time with Takeshi.

She scooped up the cat once more and, after a careful examination...

"Is this... natural energy?"

"Meow."

Takeshi gave a slight nod.

Tsunade drew a slow, deep breath. A few seconds of thought was all it took for another piece to click into place. ’That must be why Rin couldn’t eat for a while,’ she realized. ’She must have had some of this, too.’

Something that could help a body adapt to natural energy... what a treasure.

"Don’t get any ideas," Takeshi interrupted her fantasies. "This belongs to my clan. I can’t guarantee what would happen if someone ate it and then tried to use their own Sage Mode."

"You know what I was thinking?"

"Meow!" ’Your expression gives everything away,’ Takeshi thought, unimpressed.

He knew that the cat food was meant to complement their clan’s unique Sage Mode. For someone to eat it and then try to practice the techniques from Mount Myoboku or Shikkotsu Forest would be like trying to force two opposing forces together. The resulting conflict could be lethal.

"What a pity," Tsunade said, though her mind was still turning. "Still, sell me some when you get the chance. I’d like to study it."

She understood the logic well enough. Each of the three holy lands had its own path to sage training. If their methods were interchangeable, an item like this wouldn’t be nearly so rare. After a moment, she let out a soft sigh of frustration. She could research it, but the odds of discovering anything useful were slim to none.

"Let’s go."

Since she couldn’t eat it. With its mystery solved, the cat food held no more interest for her. She tucked Nekomata under one arm and headed for the door.

Takeshi scrambled to keep up.

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It didn’t take Rin long to pack. She emerged from her house wearing a chunin vest and fully loaded with gear. Her mother, Megumi Nohara, saw her off with tears in her eyes, while her father, Aizawa, stood beside his wife, offering what comfort he could.

He knew all too well that being a ninja was a high-risk profession, he had nearly lost his own life on a mission. But Rin was far more promising than he had ever been, and she had a contract with the Nin-Neko clan. He had to believe she would be safe.

After a deep, respectful bow to her parents, Rin left home with Takeshi at her side.

They reached the village gate, but before Takeshi could even spot the rest of their team, he heard a familiar idiot shouting from somewhere in the crowd.

"Rin! Over here!" He could hear the voice, but he couldn’t see the person. After scanning the throng of departing ninja, he finally spotted a single hand waving frantically above the heads of the others. Obito was just too short to stand out among the Uchiha clansmen surrounding him.

The boy finally managed to struggle free, only to see the black cat leading Rin toward another group. Toward Kakashi.

"You stupid cat! And damn you, Kakashi! Rin!" Obito broke from the crowd and started chasing after them, his voice a string of indignant shouts.

Not far away, Fugaku covered his face with his hand, thoroughly exasperated. "The boy has talent," he muttered, "but this fixation on Rin Nohara is becoming a real problem."

"Haha, they’re just kids," Kura Uchiha said with a faint smile. "We were all like that at their age, weren’t we?"

The night before, the two of them had done something unthinkable, ending the lives of several of their own kin. Kura had hesitated then, but Fugaku’s resolve had been absolute. He had gone straight to the Third Hokage to declare his loyalty, and in return, nearly the entire Uchiha clan was now being dispatched to the front lines. It was a brutal cleansing, but it was a necessary one to ensure the clan’s survival. From now on, so long as the Uchiha did not seek their own destruction, Konoha would have no reason to turn on them.

"The front line is in your hands," Fugaku said in a low voice. "As we discussed, integrate our people into as many different units as possible."

As the clan head, Fugaku had to remain in Konoha with Hiashi Hyuga and a contingent of others to defend the village.

"Understood," Kura replied with a solemn nod.

"Alright, all procedures have been completed," Tsunade’s voice cut through the nervous chatter, sharp and clear with the authority of a Sannin. "Everyone, depart!"

"Yes!"

With a single, unified cry, the assembled ninja vanished in a blur of motion.

--**--**

"Takeshi-sensei," Might Guy asked from the road, "are we sticking with you?"

"There are no special instructions from above, so probably yes," Takeshi replied, sitting on Guy’s shoulder and letting out a bored yawn. "But we might end up working with Minato-sensei’s team."

Traveling in a large group like this was the most tedious thing in the world. With so many skilled ninja moving together, no fool would dare attack them. And if one did, the jonin would make short work of them.

Guy’s team was with him because his father, Might Duy, was still under observation after his use of the Eight Gates and wasn’t cleared for duty. The Third Hokage wouldn’t allow him to lead a squad, so Takeshi had reluctantly taken them on.

He glanced around at the others. They all looked as bored as he felt.

"A team with Kakashi?" Guy suddenly roared, his energy shifting in an instant. "Aha! Kakashi, you truly are my greatest rival! My blood is boiling! Let us have a duel! Whoever reaches the front line first wins!"

Kakashi shot him a cold, indifferent look, completely ignoring the hot-blooded outburst. He was more than used to Guy’s antics.

"This is so dull," Takeshi meowed, addressing the younger ninja. "Let’s make it a training exercise. Whoever gets to the front first gets a prize. For one week, I’ll stop messing with you and even give you some personal training."

Kakashi and Obito exchanged a look. What kind of a promise was that?

The next second, the two of them shot forward, with Genma and Ebisu right behind them.

"They certainly have a lot of energy," Rin said with a laugh, then pushed herself to follow them, her pace steady. Her taijutsu was the weakest of the group, and she knew she couldn’t keep up with the leaders, but she was happy just to participate. Takeshi loped along easily beside her.

As for Minato... ever since Takeshi’s own power had grown, the man had become as elusive as smoke. You were lucky if you caught a glimpse of him at all. Takeshi sighed. He was used to being the one who disappeared, not the one left behind.

The group traveled at a brisk pace, but few could maintain the all-out sprint Guy had started with. It consumed too much stamina. Kakashi and the others managed to keep up for a while, some even pulling ahead, but they soon realized the truth: Guy’s endurance was monstrous.

In the end, he left everyone else in the dust.

"You guys are pathetic," Takeshi drawled, making no effort to hide his disdain.

Kakashi glanced up, his jaw tight with frustration. Guy was no longer even in sight.

No one bothered to say, ’If you’re so good, why don’t you do it?’ They all knew Takeshi could overwhelm Guy with taijutsu alone, not to mention he had somehow mastered the Flying Thunder God.

The thought of it sent a fresh wave of irritation through Kakashi. That jutsu was impossibly difficult. He had been studying it for ages and had only managed to grasp the basics of the formation technique, but he was nowhere close to mastering it. Yet Takeshi had somehow skipped all the steps and learned the core technique itself. It was completely absurd.

"I’m going ahead," Kakashi muttered, pushing himself back to his feet after a brief rest.

This time he set a steady, controlled pace, conserving his energy. He had learned his lesson. But it was no use. He was a little faster than Obito and Genma, but he was still leagues behind Guy. According to Takeshi’s senses, Guy had almost reached the very front of the entire shinobi column by now. That blockhead didn’t know when to quit.

Takeshi briefly considered using his own Flying Thunder God to stop him but then sensed that Guy had already come to a halt. He had probably been stopped by Tsunade or Minato for getting too far ahead.

A few minutes later, Guy came jogging back toward them.

"Sensei! I made it to the front, but Tsunade-sama wouldn’t let me pass!"

Kakashi, breathing hard, watched the boy approach without a single sign of fatigue. The others were even more exhausted.

They just couldn’t compare. It was better not to even try. There was no comparing themselves to him.

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