"No problem," Tsunade said with a nod. She set down the porridge bowl and led the others out of the ward.
Once they were gone, Kura Uchiha sat up, taking the bowl and spoon for himself. He brought a slow spoonful to his mouth, his mind reeling. It was still hard to believe.
'Kumogakure... surrendered? Just like that?'
"What about the Third Raikage?"
"Meow~ about the Third Raikage, he left two days ago," Takeshi said, seeing the question in his eyes. "Oh, and their jinchuriki, Yugito Nii, is still here as a guest."
The Third Raikage's hand had been the most difficult part of the initial treatment. After that, it was just delicate maintenance, something any regular medic-nin could handle. There was no reason for him to stay in the Land of Fire any longer.
Besides, who knew if Tsunade would charge him an overstay fee.
Having seen Tsunade's methods of extortion firsthand, and having seen everything he came to see, the Raikage had decided to head home early.
"..."
The spoon in Kura's hand froze.
'The Third Raikage? The Two-Tails jinchuriki?' The information was coming too fast. He didn't even know where to begin.
After slowly finishing half the bowl of porridge, Kura finally asked, "And the Kirigakure ninja?"
"Even simpler, meow. Minato and I captured the Third Mizukage. We blackmailed them for the rest of their Ninja Swords, and they got scared and surrendered, meow."
'Captured the Mizukage? Took their swords?'
'Hold on,' Kura thought, feeling a little lost. The sheer volume of what had happened was staggering. In the short time since they'd last seen each other, this cat had become strong enough to go with Minato and kidnap a Kage.
'And he's so calm about it,' Kura thought, a fresh wave of inadequacy washing over him. 'Here I was, panicking after awakening my Mangekyo Sharingan... I still have a long way to go.'
He sat up straighter and stared at Takeshi for a long moment. "To think," he said, his voice full of awe, "less than a year ago, you were asking me for help. Now... you're the one who saved my life. You are amazing Takeshi."
"Meow~"
"I hope my son has half your talent," Kura chuckled. "Oh, have I told you about my son? Shisui. He's a cute kid, with curly hair just like mine."
He glanced around, spotting his personal effects on the bedside cabinet. Among them was a precious, worn photo. The edges were scorched yellow from a Lightning Release attack. He traced the damage with a regretful finger.
"Meow~ I've seen the boy."
"Really?" Kura beamed with pride, carefully tucking the photo into his tunic. He started telling stories about Shisui, which eventually led to him talking about his time guarding the border with his Uchiha clansmen. As he spoke of them, his voice began to waver.
He had led those men for years. To take them out on a mission and not bring them home...
He looked up, and the three tomoe in his eyes spun, blurring together before resolving into a new, shuriken-like pattern.
"Meow?" Takeshi jolted.
'Mangekyo Sharingan?' he thought. 'He awakened it. No... he must have awakened it before. This is just the first time he's shown it.'
"This is the Mangekyo Sharingan," Kura said quietly. "Have you heard of it?"
"Meow!" Takeshi nodded. The story of Uchiha Madara and his battle with Senju Hashirama was legendary. It would be strange if he hadn't.
"The Uchiha and the Nin-Neko clan have always been allies," Kura continued, his expression serious. "And you, Takeshi... you're a Jonin, and you're strong. I wanted to ask you. If you had eyes like these, what would you do with them?"
It was a heavy question.
It was the same question that had stumped Fugaku, who ultimately chose his clan above all else. Takeshi was curious to see where Kura's heart lay.
After a few seconds of thought, Takeshi shook his head. "I'm just a cat. You shouldn't be asking me things like that, meow."
"Right... ha. My mistake." Kura let his Sharingan fade.
'No matter how much great he was, he's barely a year old,' Kura thought. 'How could I expect him to understand a problem that gives even humans pause?'
Just then, the black cat spoke again.
"However," Takeshi said, licking a paw, "in my clan, if I had that kind of power and wanted to change things, I'd challenge the leader. I'd take over and lead the clan to thrive in the way I think is right. That's how I've survived, meow."
The principle was simple. It all came down to Kura's resolve.
With the Mangekyo Sharingan, there were few in the Uchiha clan who could defeat him, including the current clan head, Fugaku. If he wanted to, he could easily contend for leadership or even split the clan.
It was all up to him.
Kura seemed deeply struck by the cat's words. He mulled them over, finally nodding in thought.
After a moment, he said, "About this... please keep it a secret for me."
Takeshi nodded, then stood and padded out of the tent.
Outside, Tsunade didn't ask what he and Kura had talked about. The war was over, the last of the critically wounded had been stabilized, and she was finally free to relax. Why would she bother asking about Kura? It was probably just about his eyes or some other Uchiha business. She had no interest in getting tangled in the village's messy power struggles. She just wanted a drink.
Takeshi was relieved he didn't have to lie. He wandered through the camp, much like Tsunade, waiting for the order to return home. He was heading over to the medical corps to see Rin when he spotted a girl trailing her from a distance.
He glanced over.
'Hm? That's Yugito.' Takeshi slipped closer, unnoticed. Yugito was too focused on her target to sense him. Also the seal on her hadn't been released yet.
Takeshi followed her gaze to Rin.
'Is Rin practicing Sage Mode?' he wondered. 'No.'
'Then why is this creep following her with such a strange expression? Does she want to get into yuri?'
Takeshi extended a paw and lightly tapped her on the head.
Yugito just swatted the paw away, annoyed, and got up to continue following. A few steps later, she froze, sensing something was off. She spun around to see the black cat perched on a tree branch behind her.
"Meow. Why are you following my Rin?"
"Your Rin?" Yugito's eyes went wide with disbelief, a faint blush rising on her cheeks. This wasn't a mission, after all. Getting caught tailing someone was pretty embarrassing.
She thought for a moment before giving a quick, formal bow. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to follow her. It's just... Matatabi sensed a special cat power on her, which is why... Anyway, I'm truly sorry."
"Matatabi?" Takeshi glanced at her stomach. 'That two-tailed cat is certainly talkative for someone who's sealed away. Too active, maybe.'
"Oh, right," Yugito added quickly. "She wanted to ask if you could undo the sealing jutsu..."
(E/N: Changed gender of Matatabi from Male to female, as some readers pointed out that Matatabi is a she, as the VA was female and by mistake I considered all tailed beasts as male.)
"Meow! So you can let her out to fight me?" Takeshi scoffed.
He remembered Matatabi being fairly gentle in the stories, but both times he'd met her, she'd been spoiling for a fight. 'And when did she get so familiar with Yugito?'
He paused. 'Wait. Unseal her?'
'Could it be she was desperately hoping I'd save her?'
The Takeshi reconsidered. That hadn't been his first impression at all. Matatabi must have only cooked up this plan, using Yugito's own desire to be unsealed, after she realized he was strong enough to actually help her.
Of course, that could just be his own wishful thinking.
'Maybe I could just knock Yugito out and pull Matatabi's consciousness out for a chat,' Takeshi mused.
While it was impossible to fully extract a Tailed Beast, Uzumaki sealing jutsu might be able to separate a portion of its power and consciousness. A clone, of sorts.
A Tailed Beast clone would be a massive asset for both Konoha and his Nin-Neko Clan. For the cats, it would mean another subordinate capable of taking on missions. Maybe he could finally become a hands-off boss. The benefits for Konoha were self-evident.
The thought made him eager to try.
But it was better to be safe. He needed to ask first.
Takeshi didn't agree right away. Instead, he lifted his chin and said, "Just stay put for now. And stop following Rin. The power she has comes from me."
With that, the black cat agilely darted out of sight.
After he left, Yugito tried to communicate with Matatabi, but the Tailed Beast was silent.
Inside the seal, Matatabi lay before the iron bars of her cage, lost in thought.
When had the nin-neko world produced a cat with Sage Mode chakra? Before Hashirama Senju had captured her, she'd spent considerable time among them and even made a name for herself. She knew their world well.
'Could there be a sacred ground I don't know about? A kekkei genkai?' Matatabi wondered.
Back then, Takeshi's strength had been unusual, but she'd been too focused on fighting and "defending her territory" to notice the Sage Mode chakra he wielded. It wasn't until just now, when he'd passed by the girl, that she'd sensed its lingering presence.
But now Matatabi knew. This cat possessed the key to a sacred ground, and all the clues pointed to him.
'How curious...'
She rested her head on her paws, wondering when he would figure it out and let her out for some air.
Even a clone would be better than rotting in this prison.
===============
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