[Mad Tiger] Chapter 18

It’s weird. In this strange “suspended consciousness” state, life suddenly became so clear and vivid. It was like someone hit rewind on my memories, and I got swept away, completely zoning out from what was happening outside as I relived past events in bright, startling detail. The anime world I’d landed in unfolded like a highlight reel—scenes, stories, characters I never even tried to remember. And just like that, Ino’s last name came to me: Yamanaka. Clan of the mind ninjas.

Oh, crap.

Is that how this works? They hijack your body while the “host” gets stuck rummaging through old memories? It felt like I was wading through a raging river. Pestretsov Gregory—aka Tora—athlete, activist, great friend, amazing pet, and future top-tier ninja-cat-spy.

Let me tell you, there’s nothing worse than being played with like a puppet. Scratch that—there is something worse: being trapped while your body is out there, moving around, completely out of your control. I had no idea what Ino was up to—was she practicing her technique? Messing with someone? Flirting with Sasuke? Whatever it was, I wasn’t going down without a fight! You picked the wrong target, girl. I’m not some lab rat—I’m a cat! And that means pride, baby!

“Don’t go with the flow, don’t fight the flow, strive for the shore.” That line from one of my mom’s self-help books always stuck with me. It was like it was written just for me. So I pushed forward, determined that when I reached the “shore,” I’d kick this meddling brat out of my precious, furry body.

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A sharp scream yanked me back to reality.

My hands! My legs! My tail! My beloved, fluffy body—mine again!

If I could’ve kissed myself, I would have.

Apparently, time in the subconscious—or wherever Ino stashed me—flows differently. When I came to, I found myself six meters away from the tree I’d been sitting on, near the sparring area. Sasuke and Naruto were facing off, surrounded by the teacher and the rest of the kids. I was still processing the flood of memories from the anime, but they all turned at once to the wild screaming.

What? What did I do? Nothing! Totally innocent. These kids are just too easily spooked. Sergei’s niece, who’s younger than Ino, wouldn’t have flinched at this. And here’s a future kunoichi nearly losing her mind in my subconscious. So what if you saw a cat. So what if the cat was a bit demonic and half human, with Freddy Krueger claws and a creepy, ghostly voice. All it did was say, “I’ll devour your soul.” Is that reason enough for hysterics, now?

At least Ino had the good sense to leave her body in a safe spot. When a Yamanaka projects their soul, their body’s left lying around like a half-dead doll. If she’d fallen out of that tree, she’d have smacked the ground hard enough to earn a bump the size of a kunai pouch.

“I-Ino-hime, are you alright?” Iruka-sensei was the first to reach her. She sat there hiccupping, her big blue eyes glued to me like I was a monster.

“I... I… I saw a huge bug!” she finally blurted out, not even blinking as she lied. “It landed on my knee.”

“Ewwww!” the girls chorused, wrinkling their noses in unison.

By now, the whole class had gathered around the tree, waiting for Ino to climb down.

Shino, the bug guy in the black glasses and high-collared jacket, perked up and nodded thoughtfully. Maybe he wanted to find this “bug.” Classic Shino, the ultimate entomologist. Wait—how do I even know that?

“Why scream like a stuck pig, though?” Sakura snapped. “No wonder they call you a pig—you squealed like one!”

“Oh, there’s one in your hair!” Ino shrieked mockingly.

Sakura screamed and started frantically swatting at her head.

“Calm down, I was joking,” Ino snickered. “Honestly, you’re louder than me.”

“That’s enough!” Iruka-sensei clapped his hands, stepping in to separate them. “Everyone, back to training!”

The class returned to the sparring area, with Sasuke and Naruto facing off again.

“Tora-san,” a soft voice interrupted me. I turned to see Ino standing beside me, looking sheepish and nervous. “I’m sorry, Tora-san,” she said with a quick bow, glancing up at me for a reaction.

Was I supposed to say something? We’re even. She tried something, I scared her half to death, and now she’s here apologizing. I don’t hold grudges against girls—I am a gentleman, you know. I turned away, watching the fight. Naruto and Sasuke were going at it with impressive energy, but no real aggression—it was definitely a friendly spar. Naruto was pulling off trickier moves than he did against Kiba, but Sasuke still managed to take him down with a mock throat strike. Not bad for kids! And Naruto wasn’t nearly as hopeless as he’d seemed in the anime.

As I watched, my mind wandered. Shikamaru, the lazy genius—he’s from the Nara clan, right? He should be able to control shadows. I wonder if he can already? And Ino—clearly, she’s already got a handle on her family’s mind-transfer technique. What about Sasuke? Has his Sharingan awakened yet? And then there’s Choji, the Akimichi kid. His clan can expand their bodies. He should be around the age where he can roll into that big meatball move they call “Human Bullet Tank.”

You know, maybe it wasn’t all bad that Ino experimented on me. I’m a forgiving and noble ninja cat. Plus, Ino’s not so bad. My buddy Sergey liked her, and he’s got good taste.

I padded over and placed my front paws on her skinny, bony legs.

“Tora-san!” she gasped, genuinely delighted, scratching behind my ears and stroking my back. “You’ve forgiven me? I’m so sorry! I didn’t know you were a real ninja. You’re so strong! And… um, so handsome.”

A flatterer, huh? To seal the deal, she pulled out her bento box—originally meant for Sasuke, but he’d brought his own—and started feeding me. Meat and smoked eel? Yes, please. I even ate a tomato. Sweet and juicy. Who knew?

Ino confessed that she was still learning her mind transfer technique and didn’t mean any harm—she just wanted to try it. Her blush told me she also hoped to cozy up to Sasuke while she was at it. But hey, I’m a big-hearted cat. I forgave her. After all she is not a bad kid, really. And now I got to experience real jutsu firsthand.

Back on my owner’s lap—soft, warm, and perfectly cushioned—I lounged in pure bliss. Shijimi sat in an armchair in the Uzumaki living room, cradling me like the treasure I am.

“Well, shall we begin?” Kushina-san asked ominously, with a grin that promised trouble.

I felt a shiver run through me. The night was about to get a lot less relaxing. Whatever she had planned, it was going to be interesting.

"Is that the ANBU report?" Shijimi asked politely, though clearly directing her question at me.

"Yes, duty calls," Kushina-san replied with a nod. "Normally, one ANBU agent keeps an eye on Naruto. But since you and Tora-chan have been staying with us and we had to leave the village briefly, I assigned an extra shinobi to keep tabs on Tora-chan. He handed me this report and mentioned there’s something… amusing in it."

"I’d like to hear it," my owner said nervously, her fingers absently tangling in my fur.

"Alright, let’s see… Hmm… Ah, here we go!" Kushina cleared her throat, barely stifling a grin. "Subject ‘Cat’ left the Ninja Academy grounds, where Subject ‘Son’ had brought him. He then stole approximately three hundred grams of pork from Teuchi-san’s ramen shop. Ate it. During observation, it was noted that Subject ‘Cat’ had also been there yesterday and was introduced as the Godaime family’s ninja animal, nicknamed ‘Mad Tiger.’ Patrons went on to call him ‘The Mad Tiger of the Bloody Habanero.’ Oh, and there’s a note here—‘With the utmost respect, of course.’” Kushina giggled, shooting me a sly look and wagging her finger.

I kept my face as neutral as possible. Fuu-chan was right—never let humans know you understand everything they’re saying. Makes life easier.

"We’ll compensate Teuchi-san for the pork," Shijimi said with a resigned nod.

"Next, Subject ‘Cat’ hunted birds… accidentally overheard a conversation between Sarutobi Hiruzen and Umino Iruka. Iruka-san is Naruto’s teacher," Kushina explained briefly before trailing off. "Hmm… That’s… odd."

"Is something wrong?" Shijimi asked, her tone concerned.

"Iruka had some kind of link to ‘Root,’ but we were never able to confirm it," Kushina mused, her expression shifting from a cheerful mother to a sharp tactician. She flipped through the report, tapping her chin. "Looks like my ANBU used a shadow clone to tail Iruka to a rendezvous point. Something fishy is definitely going on. And I don’t like it."

"So, Tora inadvertently helped gather intel? Such a clever boy," Shijimi praised, scratching my chin affectionately.

"Looks like it," Kushina agreed. "According to the report, Naruto insisted that Tora is a ninja cat belonging to our family. I apologize for that, Shijimi-san. But honestly, it’s better this way than having everyone know he’s the defenseless pet of the daimyo’s family. This way, people are less likely to mess with him. Gossip spreads fast around here, and a ninja cat isn’t too outlandish—it’s not like he’s a full-fledged ninken following orders or anything."

"Oh, children and their imaginations," Shijimi said with a warm smile, betraying nothing. Honestly, she’d make a fine cat herself.

"Unfortunately, because of this rumor…" Kushina frowned, biting her lip. "Shijimi-san, I think you’ll need to return to Himachi without Tora. He should stay in Konoha for a while as part of our family. I’m sorry to ask this of you, but we can’t risk blowing his cover now. It might spook the culprits we’re tracking—we’re finally onto something."

Wait—what? My ears perked up. Stay here? Yes! Yes! A thousand times yes!

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TN: “It might spook the culprits we’re tracking—we’re finally onto something."

By my understanding, here, Kushina is talking about the people who were the reason for Shijimi’s visit to Konoha. Not Sarutobu and Iruka.