'Well, he arranged it himself,' Takeshi mused. 'Saved the trouble. Just a few Points lost...'
Just a loss of Points, though... Still, kids being too well-behaved wasn't always ideal. No trouble ant no Points to earn. Takeshi let out a quiet, internal sigh.
Sora Uehara looked genuinely shocked. "You're... actually a Jonin?" he blurted out.
"ow!" Takeshi shifted back into his original, deceptively harmless cat form.
But no one saw just a cat anymore, not after he'd stomped those bandits flat. Against that kind of ferocity, ordinary people stood no chance. Even ninja... They glanced at Ebisu, diligently hauling goods. He was a ninja, wasn't he? And even he had to listen to the black cat. Their awe for the creature deepened.
This B-rank mission hadn't been difficult. Mostly just those minions. Takeshi would have been ashad to step in personally, so he let Guy and the others get so experience.
Guy was improving fast. He wasn't stupid, just... straightforward. His combat sense was top-notch-he wouldn't have been recomnded for the Chunin Exams otherwise.
Genma was coming along, too. His biggest improvent lately was sheer hand strength. He used to rely on precise force for techniques using Senbon's, but now he was thinking about adding weapons-kunai, maybe even Fuma Shuriken.
Genma used to think those big ninja tools weren't cool or powerful enough to bother practicing. Now? He saw their value. Turns out, all it took was a dose of reality-courtesy of the black cat currently curled up asleep in the carriage, soaking up the sun.
Takeshi looked like he was sleeping, but he was actually digesting the Senjutsu chakra he'd absorbed earlier, dispersing the excess into his body. He was still aware of everything outside. If Ebisu or Genma slacked off, the cat would be up in an instant, ready to deliver a corrective claw swipe.
The journey was surprisingly easy. Takeshi had expected more trouble. A Jonin leading Genin wasn't exactly the most intimidating squad, surely so Missing-nin or ronin would test them? But the attacks, mostly ronin, had clustered near the Land of Rivers. Once they pushed north, things quieted down.
All told, they'd dealt with three waves of attackers. Plenty of bodies, but Takeshi hadn't needed to lift a paw. Guy and the others handled it, getting fiercer each ti. Ebisu managed to snag two or three in the first fight, but as Guy and Genma refined their teamwork, he was lucky to take down one before the rest were finished.
"Takeshi-sama," Sora Uehara bowed gratefully as they reached the caravan's destination. "Thank you so much for your help."
"ow~ Maybe we can work together again." Takeshi stretched out a paw, patted the man's arm-and subtly pressed a Flying Thunder God mark onto him.
He wasn't just being polite, he genuinely thought they could work together. He'd asked about Sora's family business on the road-ironware, tools, weapons, so furniture on the side.
More importantly, Sora himself seed... adrift. He hated the risk of the family's traditional dealings but desperately wanted to prove himself sohow. Takeshi had a soft spot for saving lost souls like that. Look at Kabuto-once aimless, now finding purpose (with Takeshi's help, of course) on the path to becoming a pet care tycoon.
Cat towers, scratching posts... endless potential. Kabuto could handle the capital's pet health and dical side, Sora could manage pet lifestyle products.
Takeshi, as the visionary partner, would naturally take a cut. Maybe get a custom house out of it? A modest request, surely.
Now wasn't the ti, though. Sora was still caught up in his family's mundane business. After he went ho and inevitably got chewed out by his family-
'Honestly, this was a C-rank job,' Takeshi thought with amusent. 'But the idiot insisted on B-rank, urgent B-rank, because he was terrified. He deserved to get yelled at.'
Their squad reached the town, parted ways with Sora's caravan, and then, led by the black cat, headed further north.
Guy seed oblivious, but this ti it was Ebisu who noticed first. "Sensei," he began hesitantly, "isn't this the way back to Konoha?"
The black cat, perched on Guy's shoulder, gave a slight nod.
Genma's eyes narrowed. 'This way leads...' Realization dawned. *Hiss!* He paled slightly. "Sensei, don't forget what the Sandai said!"
'ow?' Takeshi paused, then recalled the Hokage's warning-'If anything goes wrong, he gets the entire mission backlog.' He considered it for precisely one second before dismissing it. 'First, the ravine for training. Then I'll use Flying Thunder God to pop over and find Jiraiya solo. Yeah, solid plan.'
'Too bad I don't know Shadow Clone Jutsu,' he mused. 'Could just send a clone to talk to Jiraiya, then dispel it. So much easier. But six thousand Points... steep!'
Takeshi winced internally. He still had a long list of things he wanted, he couldn't justify spending that much.
As they neared the training ground, Takeshi rembered sothing. "ow... Before Asuma left for the front line, did he ntion anything to you guys? About wanting to fight, earn rits?"
Guy looked blank.
But Ebisu and Genma exchanged a look. "He did say sothing," Ebisu confird slowly. "About proving he was as good as Kakashi. Wanted to fight on the front lines, make Chunin."
'Right,' Takeshi suppressed his excitent. 'That settles it. Perfect timing to run into him. Look everyone, here's Asuma, earning glory on the front lines! Oh, this was going to be good.'
A thrill ran through him. "Alright, pick up the pace! Last one there gets punished!"
With that, Takeshi leaped from Guy's shoulder and shot forward. He wasn't going full speed, but only Guy managed to keep up easily. They burst into the small ravine... where, sure enough, Asuma's squad was still training.
But the first person they saw wasn't Asuma.
"Takeshi?" Naoki Gekko looked surprised. "What brings you out here? New mission? Switching shifts?"
'Naoki? Still babysitting the Hokage's son after all this ti?' Takeshi suppressed a chuckle. He couldn't laugh, Naoki had taken the fall for him back then, landing this esteed Special Jonin the duty of overseeing Asuma's "training." 'Right, definitely can't laugh.'
He gave a polite nod. "ow~ Just passing through on a mission up north. Thought I'd stop by. I brought so of Asuma's old classmates to see how he's doing. ow~ When you get him, don't ntion us, okay? I want it to be a surprise."
"..." Naoki stared. "A surprise?" 'Oh, just be straight about it, you nace,' he thought, already feeling sorry for Asuma. The kid's pride was fragile enough, this encounter might just shatter it completely. 'Poor guy.' He briefly wondered what grudge the cat held against Asuma-Kurenai's involvent made so sense, but this? Shaking his head, Naoki decided it wasn't his place to ask. He just nodded. "Alright, I'll go get him."
Takeshi flicked an ear and nudged Guy over towards a nearby tree.
A few minutes later, Naoki returned with Asuma in tow. Asuma looked rough-bruises marked his face-but he also seed... tougher. There was a new solidity to his stance, a quickness in his movents.
"Naoki-senpai," Asuma asked hopefully, "did you call because... am I finally cleared for the battlefield?"
"Ah, *cough*, no, that's not it." Naoki stalled, wondering how to break it to him...
...when Guy burst out from behind the tree, beaming at Asuma. Monts later, Genma and Ebisu landed lightly beside him.
Genma blinked in surprise. "Asuma? Weren't you heading to the front lines for missions? How co... Ohhh. Getting Special training, huh?"
"Ahem! Special training, yes, quite," Ebisu muttered, nudging Genma pointedly.
Asuma flushed crimson. He'd bragged to his friends about coming to the front lines, about inheriting the Will of Fire and serving Konoha early... only to get stuck here, getting schooled. He was still training in this stupid ravine. The only difference now was that other Genin squads rotated through for sparring-the bruises on his face were souvenirs from them.
"ow~" Takeshi hopped onto Guy's shoulder. "Looks like you've been working hard, Asuma. We were just passing through on a mission up north-leading my own squad, you know. Been a while, missed you, thought I'd see how the training's going."
Asuma flinched at the ow. He understood instantly-this cat was behind his friends showing up here. Then the words sank in. 'Wait... leading a squad?'
He stared at Takeshi, horrified. Naoki, too, finally caught on. He turned slowly towards the cat. After a long mont, he asked, his voice tight, "You're... a Jonin squad leader?"
"ow!" Takeshi puffed out his chest slightly. "Just did a few small things for the village recently. Got promoted a few days back." He adopted an air of exaggerated modesty that made Naoki want to throttle him.
Ten years Naoki had been a Special Jonin, ten years he'd been aiming for Jonin. 'This damn cat!' He clenched his fists, jaw tight. 'I want that promotion, too! Not stuck babysitting Genin in so backwater ravine where you can't earn any real rit!'
Asuma felt sothing inside him crumble. The black cat he used to casually swat at was now a Jonin. Leading his own team. Powerful. And him? Stuck here, getting pumled daily by other Genin. Even Kurenai was cold, blaming him for dragging her out here and getting her chewed out by her father, 'It's not my fault Jonin Yuhi seems to hate for so reason...'
Who knew 'going to the front lines' ant being indefinitely stuck in training hell? The unfairness, the humiliation... it all overwheld Asuma. He couldn't hold it back anymore. Tears welled up, hot and stinging.
"Waaaaah~!"
===============
Dear Readers and Fans,
For those eager to dive into next Chapters earlier before others, I invite you to join us on Patreon. By becoming our Patron, you not only gain access to exclusive advanced Chapters but also help us continue this endeavour and expand it further.
spat reon/8Ashes8
(no space)
You can read upto 7 Chapters in advance.
Reviews
All reviews (0)