"Mommy, someone's pooping in the sky!" a two-year-old pointed at Sheep soaring above.
"Nonsense!" his mother snapped, smacking him.
Pooping in the sky? What next?
"Look, Mommy, he's up there now!" the kid said, arms stretched wide, mimicking length. "His poop's this long!"
He nearly fell from the effort, voice full of awe—not just for the "length" but for pooping midair.
His mother raised her hand for another smack but froze, watching Sheep arc through the sky.
"Holy—someone's actually pooping in the sky!"
…
Watching Sheep's wails, Cat's face twitched.
If he got hit like that…
Ugh.
He shuddered, banishing the thought.
No more constipation worries, that's for sure.
Ebara, eyeing the shrieking Sheep, shivered too.
"That's brutal."
Sure, he'd done it, but still.
After a half-second of pity, he turned to Cat. "If you think I'll use the same trick on you, forget it."
"I don't repeat killer moves in one day. Too low-class."
Cat's mouth twitched.
Killer move?
And he had more?
"Guess I'll get serious," Cat said.
He vowed to keep Ebara at a distance—no falling for dirty tricks.
"Funny, I was gonna say the same," Ebara replied.
"Lightning Style: Thunder Chain!"
Cat finished seals in under two seconds.
A chain of lightning surged from his right hand toward Ebara.
Ebara moved like the wind, dodging easily.
The chain hit the ground, blasting a half-meter crater.
Ebara closed in, appearing before Cat.
Cat refused to engage, bolting away.
He earned pennies a month—not worth risking his life.
Ebara was fast, but Cat wasn't much slower.
As he ran, Cat sealed. "Water Style: Water Shockwave!"
A water pillar rose behind him, crashing toward Ebara.
Ebara didn't hesitate.
"Wind Style: Great Vacuum Sphere!"
Wind and water collided, scattering waves everywhere.
As the water cleared, Cat was gone.
Ebara reached Cat's last spot, scanning around.
Just as he stopped, the ground beneath him vanished, turning into a pit.
"Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu!"
As Ebara sank, the pit's walls closed in.
"Substitution Jutsu!"
Sealing fast, Ebara escaped just before the earth sealed shut.
He glanced right—Cat stood on a pole, hands weaving seals.
Ebara moved, sealing as he went.
Two steps in, a shadow loomed.
"Earth Style: Earth Prison!"
A sturdy cage dropped, trapping Ebara.
Boom!
The cage hit the ground with a thud.
Bang bang bang!
Ebara pounded the bars, trying to break free.
"Save your strength," Cat said smugly. "Your taijutsu can't scratch it."
"Oh yeah?" Ebara's voice came from behind him.
Cat jumped, leaping meters away.
"How?!"
His masked eyes widened in shock.
Ebara said nothing, closing in.
Cat, recalling Sheep's fate, kept his distance.
"Lightning Style: Thunderbolt!"
A bolt struck from the sky at Ebara's head.
Bang!
Ebara vanished.
A trick.
The real Ebara was in the cage; the one in front was a clone.
Cat spun to the cage—now shattered by Ebara's Wind Style.
"No IQ test for Anbu recruits?" Ebara taunted. "With that brain, I wouldn't even let you into the Academy."
He'd used a clone to distract Cat, exploiting his fear of Sheep's fate.
While Cat panicked, Ebara broke free.
Now close, Ebara charged, leaping at Cat.
A punch aimed at Cat's gut.
No flying Cat—instead, he turned into a water figure.
"Water Clone!"
Ebara gasped.
Cat, silent, sealed.
"Water Style: Giant Wave!"
The clone became a massive wave, crashing over Ebara.
Boom!
It hit like a speeding train, crushing him.
He could barely breathe, pain screaming from every limb.
Propping himself up, Ebara glared at Cat.
Cat was stronger than Sheep—and him.
His ninjutsu mastery outclassed Ebara's two-trick pony.
"Only 30% chakra left," Ebara thought. "Gotta end this fast."
Cat watched cautiously.
He hadn't expected Ebara, a supposed genin, to still have chakra and stamina.
"They said he was genin-level? Bullshit."
"He's nearly jonin," Cat panted.
He avoided close combat—partly to dodge Sheep's fate, partly because ninjutsu was his strength.
He stared, waiting for Ebara's next move.
Then, Cat's eyes widened.
Ebara grinned, then ran.
Yup, he fled, bold as day.
No rule said you couldn't run from a fight.
Fight if you can win; flee if you can't.
That was Ebara's motto.
He couldn't win, so he bolted.
Cat panicked.
Danzo ordered him to bring Ebara back. If he escaped, what was the point?
He chased, but Ebara's speed was no joke, vanishing around a corner.
Cat crouched to track him.
A low shout came from behind: "Secret Technique—Thousand Years of Death!"