Jumping onto the dining table had netted him over two hundred Points; this prank should fetch at least six or seven hundred.
He circled back and re-entered the house through the front door.
By then, Masato and her mother had finished eating and were clearing up.
Rin was helping her mother wash the dishes, while her father, as usual, gathered his clothes and headed to the bathroom for a shower.
This routine was why Raj dared to pull this prank without fear of being caught.
The Little Black Cat, feeling a twinge of guilt, crouched nervously in his bed, his hind legs coiled for a quick escape.
The moment an angry roar erupted from the bathroom, he would bolt out the door without looking back.
It didn't take long.
"Damn you, Raj! You... gag... little bastard... gag, gag~"
Amidst the furious curses and retching sounds, Raj hesitated no longer.
With a whoosh, he darted into the narrow alleyway.
"What's wrong, Father?" Masato asked, hurrying over in confusion.
She found her father leaning against the wall, his face ashen.
Her father, a veteran of the battlefield, had gradually recovered after a few seconds of rest outside, despite the bathroom's nauseatingly fermented stench.
Deeply devoted to his daughter, he didn't vent his anger on her.
Instead, he demanded, "Where's that little brat?!"
"He just left," Masato replied after a moment's recollection.
"I'll catch him and make that little rascal copy the family rules ten times!" her father roared.
Her father stormed out of the house in a rage.
Rin didn't quite understand what had happened, but she knew one thing: even if cats could hold pens, did their family even have any rules?
Seeing her father's fury, she dared not stop him and decided to investigate the situation first.
She opened the bathroom door, her expression instantly changing.
But as a medical student accustomed to confronting grim realities, she held her breath, stepped inside, quickly closed the door, and threw open the window.
After a brief search, she found the cardboard box.
She swiftly tossed it out the window and fled the bathroom.
Raj crouched on the rooftop of a distant house, watching her father burst out of their home and frantically search for him.
He carefully lowered his body to avoid detection.
The night was hazy, making it impossible for her father to track him.
Though a Chunin, he wasn't part of the Inuzuka Clan and lacked their keen sense of smell.
The Little Black Cat dared not show himself, slowly retreating backward.
Once he was sure he wouldn't be discovered, he opened the System Panel and glanced at his Points balance...
After changing his cat food today, his Points had been around 2,000.
Now the panel showed 2,900-an increase of nearly 900.
'Perfect!'
'I wonder who cleaned the bathroom at home,' Raj mused inwardly.
Judging by how quickly Masato had rushed out, it was probably Rin.
'Rin is so gentle; she would never hit me. I just need to avoid her strict father.'
'No matter what Masato says, I can't go out. I need to hide out tonight.'
Perched on the roof, admiring the moonlight, Raj thought about his Points and felt a pang of regret.
If he'd hidden the box in a corner of the bedroom, he might have earned even more Points.
But doing that would've been more than just avoiding trouble-it would've guaranteed a painful beating.
Besides, that stuff really stank.
Before, he'd always handled it outdoors, burying it carefully before fleeing the scene.
He hadn't realized how overpowering the stench was.
But today, trapped in the narrow confines of the bathroom, he finally understood its true potency.
All he could say was...
'Terrifying!'
As night deepened, her father searched everywhere without finding a single clue.
He nearly stepped on the cardboard box Masato had tossed out the window, cursing his luck and throwing it into the bushes in frustration before reluctantly heading home.
"You little brat! Don't you ever come back!" her father roared.
But it was just an empty threat.
If Raj really didn't return, Masato would be heartbroken.
After all, Raj wasn't just an ordinary house cat; he was a Ninja Cat who could fight on the battlefield and protect their daughter.
Rin sighed in resignation.
'He's so smart, he even knows to use the litter box. Why would he do something like this?'
Rin couldn't understand it.
Neither could her family.
They all assumed it was either a prank by the Little Black Cat or a momentary lapse in memory.
After the house was locked up, Raj circled back late at night and discovered a crack left open in Rin's bedroom window.
The System had confirmed that cats are remarkably flexible.
Though the gap was narrow, Raj squeezed through effortlessly.
Within seconds, he had infiltrated Rin's room.
The lovely girl was fast asleep in her bed.
Raj watched from the windowsill for a moment before leaping down gracefully.
He curled up in a corner, using the curtains as a blanket.
This was the safest spot, far from Masato's early morning scolding.
When cats sleep comfortably, they often purr softly.
Humans might not hear it, but ninjas aren't ordinary people.
Though Masato hadn't officially become a ninja yet, she retained a basic level of alertness.
So...
In the middle of the night, she was startled awake by the faint purring in her room.
Following the sound, she found Raj and couldn't help but chuckle.
"Scared now, huh? Where was this fear earlier?" she whispered.
Raj couldn't bear to wake the Black Cat.
She retrieved an old garment from her closet and gently draped it over him.
The next morning, Raj woke up to find himself covered with a piece of clothing.
He realized the little girl had discovered him sleeping there the night before, but Masato happened to be getting up just as he awoke.
Hiss!
After a few glances, he quickly leaped onto the windowsill and squeezed through the window.
'Damn it, she's just a child!' Raj cursed inwardly.
'There's nothing to see on a little girl,' he told himself, deliberately ruffling his fur to look pitiful as he returned home through the front door.
"Hmph, you little rascal! So you finally decided to come back!"
Masato, dressed in his ninja vest and fully equipped for work, was clearly about to leave on official business.
Seeing Raj, he immediately recalled his humiliating state from the previous day-retching and cursing-and his anger flared anew.
Thus...
The Little Black Cat's account gained another hundred-plus Points.
Noticing Raj's shifty eyes and faint hint of smugness, Masato grew even angrier.
He crouched down and warned, "If you ever pull something like that again, I'll make Guy run you ragged."
This threat carried weight.
Raj immediately nodded, signaling, "I wouldn't dare."
His cowardly demeanor was endearing, having been meticulously practiced in front of the mirror at home.
He knew exactly which poses looked most pitiful and which ones would defuse anger.
Raj had long abandoned the pride of his previous life.
As a mischievous cat, mastering these tricks was essential; otherwise, he might provoke enemies at any moment.
"Your pathetic act is quite professional," Masato grumbled, still irked.
He muttered a few more words, but his initial fury had dissipated, replaced by a hint of helplessness.
He left.