As the morning sunlight streamed through the window, casting a warm glow on the room, the little cat woke up from its cozy bed, stretching luxuriously. It then bounced down the stairs, heading towards the kitchen.
At this time of day, Gin had already left the house for his daily training.
"These ninja really don't know how to enjoy life," the cat mused, shaking its head as it trotted into the kitchen.
With a swift leap, it landed on the kitchen counter, expertly opening the cupboard. Inside were rows of cat treats, always stocked by Gin in case he needed to summon other ninja cats. But for now, they served as the little cat's personal stash.
Grabbing two treats, the cat used its paws and teeth to tear open the packaging, making itself comfortable on the counter as it licked away at the food.
After enjoying its meal, it turned on the faucet to drink some water, remembering to turn it off—lest Gin come home and scold it.
"Curse that foolish human," the cat muttered under its breath.
Satisfied, it considered its schedule for the day. "Eat, sleep, and beat up Shiro."
A perfect day by ninja cat standards.
"Ah, I still need to deal with Shiro," it realized, gleefully imagining the mischief it would cause. In a flash, it zoomed through the house, searching for its rival.
As a ninja cat, it was equipped with chakra and could use ninja techniques when necessary. Even the two-tailed beast, Matatabi, was part of the ninja cat lineage, proving that cats weren't to be underestimated.
The house was only two floors. Downstairs was the living room, kitchen, and a small courtyard. Upstairs housed the bedrooms, study, and guest rooms.
"Shiro, where are you?" The cat grinned maliciously, relishing the chase. In its eyes, this house could only have one dominant pet.
"Shiro!!" The cat scoured every corner but couldn't find the small white snake.
"There's only one place left," it muttered, its grin growing wider. "Hehe, think you can hide from me?"
It bounded up the stairs, stealthily approaching Gin's bedroom door.
"Shiro, are you in there?"
Hearing a commotion from inside, the cat's grin turned wicked. That foolish snake was trapped now.
With a well-practiced leap, the cat nudged the door open just enough to slip inside.
"Shiro, here I come!" it declared, standing upright with its claws extended.
But then, its laughter died in its throat.
Towering over the cat was a massive white snake, easily as tall as a human.
The cat froze.
It didn't recall Gin ever playing with other snakes.
The huge white snake lowered its head, revealing its familiar, innocent beady eyes.
"You're Shiro!?" the cat exclaimed.
Shiro nodded.
"You grew this much overnight!?" the cat thought, panic rising. What had Gin fed this snake?
"Uh, I think I came to the wrong room," the cat said, trying to back away slowly. But before it could escape, a white tail coiled around it, trapping it completely.
Did this foolish snake really think just because it got bigger, it could act all high and mighty?
The cat bristled in anger and squirmed free from the tail, leaping at Shiro in a flurry of swipes.
But unlike before, there was no effect. Shiro simply curled up, closing its eyes. The fear from previous beatings by the cat still lingered, but now, something was different.
Shiro opened its eyes, noticing that despite the cat's furious attacks, there wasn't a single scratch on its body. The snake tilted its head, recalling Gin's words from last night.
"If it's a summoning beast, go with the yang attribute—it enhances recovery and boosts physical strength. Who knows, maybe Shiro could even turn into a dragon. I don't really like snakes."
Did this mean Shiro's physical defenses had increased?
Feeling more confident, Shiro's tail shot out again, wrapping even tighter around the cat, this time ensuring there was no escape.
The cat panicked. Why was this snake suddenly so tough?
As Shiro's head drew closer, the cat could only let out a desperate plea.
"Don't come any closer!!"
In the house, the sounds of distress echoed through the halls.
"Help! They're killing a cat in here!!"
To an outsider, though, it was just the usual sound of frantic meowing.
...
At a worn-down training ground nearby, Gin was deep in conversation with Minato.
Off to the side, Kushina was doing squats with a massive boulder strapped to her back, occasionally shooting dirty looks at the two boys.
She felt utterly out of place in their conversation, which only fueled her frustration. Dropping the boulder, she switched to push-ups.
"One day, I'm gonna crush that smug Uchiha jerk!"
Meanwhile, Gin and Minato were discussing chakra techniques and internal energy manipulation.
"So, if you convert it to a fixed energy source, it can amplify the power of a single element, but the other attributes will weaken," Minato pondered, absorbing the theory.
Gin did most of the explaining, but for Minato, this conversation was helping him carve out his future path as a ninja.
"If you want to get better, you'll just have to study harder," Gin said, giving Minato an encouraging pat on the shoulder.
Even at his young age, Minato was already developing his own jutsu. Though Rasengan hadn't been invented yet, with Gin pushing him, that timeline might be speeding up.
"But Jiraiya-sensei doesn't know much about Fuinjutsu," Minato admitted, scratching his head.
Gin smirked, nodding toward Kushina. "Why don't you ask her?"
Minato's face flushed. "I—uh, that's not what I meant..."
Gin rolled his eyes. "Not like that! I meant ask her to teach you some Fuinjutsu."
"Right... yeah, of course!" Minato quickly agreed, realizing what Gin meant.
"Anytime you want to borrow a book, just ask me!" Kushina's voice rang out as she threw the massive boulder away with a loud crash and sat down beside Minato.
Minato turned bright red again.
Gin couldn't help but roll his eyes. The roles here were completely reversed. What a sight.
"Damn lovebirds," Gin muttered, looking at the ground. Then he perked up.
"Man, I'm starving! Let's grab something to eat. My treat!" Kushina offered with a wide grin.
With a large inheritance from her grandmother Mito and a year of missions under her belt, Kushina was flush with cash. Even though the war had cut into her earnings, the sheer volume of missions kept her wallet full.
Gin didn't hesitate. "Sounds good to me!"
Even though Gin was quite wealthy himself, he knew there would be a lot of expenses down the line. Saving a little here and there couldn't hurt.
(End of Chapter)