Raj cautiously stood up and began to run toward the door.
Last night, a certain cat had vowed to start exercising, but this morning, it seemed to have completely forgotten.
He retreated step by step until he bumped into a leg.
He looked up.
Goggles, a green bodysuit.
'Oh no, it's Might Obito!'
He bolted, but Masato, who had accelerated toward him using the Body Flicker Technique, scooped him up.
Holding Raj, Masato glanced at Obito and instinctively replied, "Rin went to the hospital."
"I know. I came to see Raj."
Obito grinned at Raj and even pulled out some dried fish.
'What the heck?!'
Raj sensed something was wrong and lost his appetite for the dried fish, his eyes fixed intently on Obito.
"To see Raj?" Tsume asked warily.
She had heard that Obito had initially encountered the Little Black Cat, but later, Rin had adopted him.
'Could this kid be trying to take him back?!'
"Guy told me Raj loves to exercise and run. I've been wanting to step up my training lately, so I thought I'd invite him to work out with me."
'Guy, I'm going to fucking kill you!'
At just seven months old, Raj had no chance of escaping Masato's grasp.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have scratched Obito, though tearing a few holes in his green spandex suit was no problem.
"That sounds perfect!" Masato beamed.
He was thrilled that someone else would train the Black Cat for him, and even more astonished that anyone could think this cat actually enjoyed exercising!
What kind of bizarre mind could see Raj that way?
If this lazy creature truly loved exercise, how could his belly have grown visibly larger in just a couple of weeks?
"No~!" Raj couldn't help but cry out.
Though he didn't know how rigorous Obito's training was, he and Guy were now birds of a feather, so they couldn't be considered normal people.
"Raj, you can talk!" Tsume hurried over, her eyes sparkling with delight.
A seven-month-old kitten speaking human words meant the Little Black Cat's potential was even greater than they had imagined.
"No!" Raj repeated the sound, desperately trying to look cute.
As for the vow he'd made yesterday... he'd worry about that tomorrow.
Tomorrow he'd exercise; today, he'd rest.
"No, you need to exercise and lose weight. Starting today, your meals will be properly balanced."
The battlefield was a place of survival of the fittest.
Not every ninja was an Akimichi, and he knew the consequences of obesity for ordinary shinobi all too well.
His current harshness was for Raj's future survival on the battlefield.
"Come exercise."
"Come with me," Obito said, radiating chicken soup vibes. "I used to be lazy too, but Guy's right. If we lack talent, we have to make up for it with hard work. If we can't even outwork others, what chance do we have of surpassing geniuses?"
Raj waved its claws, but was ultimately dragged away against its will.
Obito wasn't as fast as Guy, giving Raj plenty of opportunities to escape.
In the end, it feigned submission.
Unfortunately, fate had other plans.
No sooner had Obito and Raj stepped out of the house than a genuine green figure came sprinting toward them.
The figure was so intensely green-glowing, radiant - that Raj instinctively shrank behind Obito.
If Rin hadn't been watching from the doorway, Raj might have bolted right then and there.
Guy didn't notice them at first.
Obito, who hadn't even mentioned actual training, should have been as focused and completely immersed as Guy.
This made Obito admire Guy even more.
Raj secretly rejoiced that Guy hadn't noticed them.
He planned to slip away at the first opportunity to avoid being tormented by the two demons.
But the next moment...
"Obito! I didn't see you there! Are you ready to unleash your youthful passion today? Huh, is that... Little Raj!"
"Uncle Nohara said we could take him training, so we're about to start running," Obito grinned.
"Excellent! Let's make our youth bloom together!" Guy shouted, charging forward.
Obito set Raj down and sprinted ahead.
Raj took a few steps before darting around the corner and making his escape.
The two idiots didn't even glance back, still thinking he was following them.
'Truly rare creatures,' Raj thought.
'But I never expected Obito to turn out like this. Is it my fault?'
Raj sighed softly.
"Worthless."
Raj looked up to see a flash of dazzling silver hair...
"A ninja who can't complete their mission is worthless." Kakashi stared at Raj, explaining his earlier words. He knew the cat understood.
'Why are you everywhere?!' Raj thought, inwardly annoyed.
"If you don't want to train with them, you can join me. Just so you won't be lonely..."
Kakashi bit his finger, formed a hand seal, and pressed it against the ground.
A ninja dog appeared.
The small dog wore a Konoha forehead protector, clearly certified as a true Konoha ninja dog.
Raj recognized it: Pakkun, a non-combat ninja dog.
'This is important!'
Its eyes darted around, sensing an opportunity to bully Pakkun and squeeze some Points out of Kakashi.
'Kakashi must be an Elite Chunin by now, right?'
Besides, Raj was curious.
Given Kakashi's aloof personality, why would he invite Raj to train with him?
'Could Kakashi actually like cats?'
Remembering the dog head icon on the Earth Style Wall, Raj doubted it.
'This guy is a pure dog slave.'
"Don't glare at me like that," Kakashi said coldly. "I don't want to train you either, but it's an order from above, so don't even think about running away."
"And there are seven more like me," Pakkun added helpfully.
'So what if there are more dogs? I'll teach you a lesson later!' Raj thought, mentally throwing a punch.
But for now, to prevent Kakashi from summoning even more dogs, it obediently cooperated with Kakashi and Pakkun.
Of course, this was only temporary.
It would seize its chance for revenge, earning some Points in the process.
Moreover, Kakashi's words contained crucial information: his purpose was to train Raj, and this was an order from above.
Was it Kurenai's father? He was responsible for guiding Chunin and Genin, giving him the authority to oversee Kakashi.
But upon reflection, Raj found it unlikely. That man wasn't the type to concern himself with such matters.
'The Third Hokage, then?'
That was highly probable.
The realization weighed heavily on Raj.
Every member of the upper echelons was a cunning and ruthless schemer.
"By the way," Kakashi suddenly stopped and turned back. "I noticed you seem to have grasped some Human Language while I was observing you at the entrance."
Raj was surprised, pondered for a moment, then nodded.
"Excellent. This will make communication much easier."
Kakashi didn't press it to speak further. Having gotten his answer, he turned and continued walking.
'This guy has eight lackeys. Even if I ran, they'd just surround me and drag me back.'
Plus, Raj was curious about this "training," so he reluctantly followed at a leisurely pace.
He had no intention of speaking for now.