Minato, moving at high speed, appeared behind Raj in the blink of an eye.
Obito, trailing behind, strained every muscle to catch up with the rapidly advancing pair.
"Wait up!" he shouted.
"Obito, was this a village before?" Minato asked, noticing the residential area.
This was territory claimed by the Uchiha Clan, where Konoha citizens rarely ventured to disturb the peace.
Minato, still young, had never been here before and was seeing this sight for the first time.
"This place used to be ruins left over from a great battle," Obito said, scratching his head.
"Later, many Ninja Cats started living here. Eventually, the Cat Granny appeared too, but I don't know the exact details."
Obito rarely paid attention to his clan's affairs, so his knowledge of the area's history was patchy at best.
"A bunch of cats? The smell is awful," Raj couldn't help but complain.
The air was thick with the scents of other cats, barely noticeable to humans but overwhelming to felines.
"And what about you, outsider cat? You're the one who's being rude, meow~"
A Ninja Cat perched on a rooftop, glaring down at Raj.
It was one of the cats often seen near the Cat Granny, possibly named Hina?
Raj glanced up, sniffed the air, and slipped around the corner into the room beneath the cat.
Inside, he found a white cat.
This was no ordinary feline.
It had two tails and razor-sharp claws.
Noticing Raj's entrance, the white cat licked its paw.
Double-Tailed Cat Matatabi.
The boss of Ninja Cat Castle, long-term resident of the Tenshu Pavilion...
Raj's mind raced through the cat's file, his eyes narrowing with caution.
This was the most dangerous of all the Ninja Cats, though usually lazy and rarely venturing out.
He hadn't expected to encounter it here.
"That outsider?"
Nekomata glared at Raj, a hint of murderous intent in its eyes.
As the boss of this territory, it was the first time it had encountered an outsider Ninja Cat, and one who had single-handedly defeated all the local Ninja Cats...
Raj stared back, cautiously taking a few steps forward.
This guy was formidable; without the Expansion Jutsu, he was already at a disadvantage in size.
Still, since they were indoors, the cat probably wouldn't dare attack him.
'If things get dicey, I'll just hit him with a Rasengan. Nothing to fear,' the Little Black Cat thought.
"Hmph!"
"I'll be back another day," the White Cat said, then stalked out of the room.
Minato and Obito finally breathed a sigh of relief.
A strong dragon can't suppress a local tyrant.
This Double-Tailed Cat was the boss here, and as humans, they couldn't interfere in such disputes.
If they angered it, things could quickly spiral out of control.
"Meow~ Buy me some food, please. Get the biggest portions you can find-I'm still growing," Raj said as he left the room.
"Hey, wait up!"
Obito chased after him, but the Black Cat had already vanished.
He immediately grew worried...
"Don't overthink it," Minato said.
"Ninja Cat fights rarely turn deadly."
Conflicts between cats of the same clan rarely result in fatalities, unlike those with cats from other clans.
However, a severe beating was almost inevitable, and Raj might return covered in injuries.
Of course, this was just their perspective.
In their eyes, Raj was still just a kitten, no match for a formidable Ninja Cat like the Double-Tailed Cat Matatabi.
But in reality, Raj felt no fear as he ventured out.
While the Double-Tailed Cat was powerful, he wasn't invincible.
Having followed Raj, the Double-Tailed White Cat stopped and turned to face the Little Black Cat behind him.
In broad daylight, the Black Cat couldn't hide; to a cat,
His scent was as obvious as if he were standing right next to him.
"You want to fight me?"
The Double-Tailed Cat turned, his massive eyes glaring at Raj, rage burning within them.
Suddenly, he slammed his paw down. The ground trembled.
"Yes," Raj hissed, cautiously preparing to defend himself.
"Hah, a mere kitten. Come back when you're older."
The Double-Tailed Cat turned away.
He knew Raj was strong - defeating so many Ninja Cats before his first birthday proved his strength.
But he was still far from being a match for the Double-Tailed Cat.
The Little Black Cat crouched low, suddenly launching his attack.
Sensing the movement, the Double-Tailed White Cat whirled around, raising his paw to strike.
If that blow landed, the Black Cat wouldn't die, but severe injuries were inevitable.
However, it discovered that the Black Cat was far faster than it had anticipated.
In the blink of an eye, the cat had leaped past its predicted position and swiftly climbed up its front paw.
The Double-Tailed Cat reacted quickly, shaking violently, but before it could dislodge the Little Black Cat, the latter spat out a series of wind bullets and used the recoil to propel itself into a new position.
None of these attacks hit their intentionally deflected targets.
"You're quite formidable," the Double-Tailed Cat said, its eyes narrowing.
This cat's potential was even greater than it had imagined.
No wonder it had defeated so many Ninja Cats in one fell swoop.
The cat then shrunk its body, reducing its size to slightly larger than Raj's.
Smaller, but far more agile.
This was now a full-fledged battle.
The black and white cats tore into each other, Raj desperately dodging and only resorting to Needle Jizo when absolutely necessary.
After more than a minute of combat, the fight remained evenly matched, both sides sustaining injuries.
The White Cat's fur was riddled with gashes, including a particularly gruesome spiral-shaped wound.
However, Raj's injuries were more severe, though his body's Natural Energy was accelerating his healing.
"A temporary stalemate. Let's settle this after I turn one year old."
"Which Ninja Cat lineage do you belong to?" the Double-Tailed Cat asked, its feline existence thrown into doubt.
While it wasn't necessarily afraid of the young cat's current strength, it was undeniably outclassed in terms of raw talent.
At one year old, the Double-Tailed Cat wouldn't have lasted a finger's flick against this Black Cat.
Could there be another Ninja Cat lineage in the Ninja World?
"Meow~ Are you wondering why I'm so strong?" Raj asked, his head held high with pride.
The Double-Tailed Cat fell silent.
He did want to ask, but he couldn't bring himself to lower his dignity.
As the boss of this territory, asking such a question seemed beneath him.
Still, reaching this level before even turning one year old was undeniably intriguing.
"It's not because my bloodline is superior to yours," Raj chuckled, scratching the Double-Tailed Cat's flank with his paw.
"It's because I know how to make a special cat food."
The Double-Tailed Cat bristled with annoyance but suppressed his discomfort, continuing the conversation.
"What kind of cat food?"