[Mad Tiger] Chapter 15

“Deep in the hundred acre wood — Where the Ninja Tiger trains — You will find the ninja neighbourhood, — Of Tora’s academy days" I sang, unable to resist reworking a tune I vaguely remembered from Winny the Pooh.

"Shhh, Tora-chan, keep it down, or they’ll figure out you’re in my backpack," Naruto whispered, patting me through the fabric.

Ah yes, last night, I’d boldly claimed Naruto’s pillow as my bed, pushing the little Uzumaki off his own sleeping spot. I woke up in the same place, surrounded by the scent of his herbal shampoo and with my paws tangled in his golden mop of hair. And what was he whining about? His hair wasn’t rough at all—soft and pleasant, actually. As I mused on this, I looked around his room, which was littered with scrolls, writing supplies, and those odd paper tags covered in inky scribbles. My sightseeing was cut short when a loud alarm clock buzzed under the pillow, jolting me upright. I might’ve used a little chakra in my panic and landed square on Naruto’s stomach.

That woke him up. And wow, I didn’t know an 11-year-old could string together so many creative insults. It reminded me of the time Amai woke me up—except back then, I thought it was Sergei.

Kushina-san burst into the room mid-rant, and honestly? I nearly lost nine of my lives. Judging by Naruto's expression, so did he.

Only then did I fully understand why they called her the "Red Hot Blooded Habanero." Her flaming hair seemed alive, waving and coiling like the tails of a Bijuu, and her eyes blazed with terrifying fury.

"NA-RU-TO!" she roared, her voice shaking the walls.

"I didn’t mean to! It slipped out!" Naruto squeaked, scrambling for an excuse but not ratting me out. "Sorry, Mom! I won’t swear anymore, promise!"

And just like that, the demon vanished, replaced by a perfectly composed Kushina with immaculate hair. How? I’ll never know. Naruto must’ve developed nerves of steel growing up with her.

"Wash up and come down for breakfast," she said, then noticed me. Her expression softened into a warm smile—mostly. "Tora-chan, so that’s where you slept! There’s something tasty for you downstairs, too. Madam Shijimi said you like omelets."

I gave her a polite nod before deciding to visit the garden first. Better safe than sorry in case Naruto’s morning antics triggered my delicate digestive system.

After breakfast, the kid started packing for the Academy, and I couldn’t resist tagging along. How could I miss the chance to see the ninja school from the anime I used to watch in my past life? Sure, I didn’t remember everyone’s names, but I’d recognize some. Like the girl with pink hair or someone from the Hyuga clan—the ones with pale, freaky eyes. Plus, I wanted to see what their classes were like. No way was I skipping this opportunity.

So, I slipped into Naruto’s roomy backpack, making space by shoving aside unnecessary scrolls. He hefted the bag onto his shoulders with a grunt.

"Uh… Tora-chan?" He peeked inside, and I responded with a strategic purr. His face broke into a grin. "You wanna come with me?"

I nodded and added the ultimate weapon: big, pleading eyes.

"You want to go to the Academy?" he asked, surprisingly intuitive. "Man, you really are a ninja cat. So sneaky and smart. Are you trying to learn something?"

I didn’t confirm or deny it, just grinned internally. Let him think what he wants.

"Okay," he said, glancing around suspiciously before zipping the bag shut. "Just stay quiet."

Judging by the chaos outside—shouts, laughter, and the occasional scream—I knew we’d arrived at the Academy.

"Tora-chan, you’re heavy," Naruto groaned as he jostled the bag. I peeked out. The architecture here was great—high ceilings and beams perfect for perching.

"Hey, Tora-chan, where are you going?" Naruto hissed when I hopped out of the bag. But he didn’t follow; the teacher was ushering kids into the classroom. While the ninja-sensei was distracted, I clawed my way up the wooden walls, making my way to the beams above the chalkboard. From my new vantage point, I had a perfect view of the students—and they could see me if they looked up.

The classroom had three long rows of desks, arranged like broad stairs. Thirty-six kids crammed into twelve desks—way more crowded than I’d imagined. Naruto sat near the back with Sasuke and Kiba, who joined him after he’d "accidentally" let me out. Shikamaru and Choji were in front of them, sharing a desk with a blonde girl. I spotted Sakura too, though her hair was more washed-out pink than I remembered. No Hyugas, though. Maybe the whole "white eyes" thing was an exaggeration.

Naruto whispered to his friends, all of whom sneaked glances at me. I sat there innocently, just a curious cat taking in the lesson.

"Iruka-sensei!" piped up a small girl with dark hair. Oh, I recognized him—Naruto’s teacher from the show.

"What is it, Ruri-chan?" Iruka asked.

"Naruto brought a cat to class! It’s sitting above your head!" she tattled, pointing right at me.

Traitor!

The kids erupted, scrambling to catch a glimpse of me. Some nearly toppled out of their seats.

"QUIET!!!" Iruka bellowed, startling me so much I almost fell. Wow, loud and obnoxious. And this guy teaches kids?

"Naruto! Stand up!" he demanded.

Naruto rose slowly, sulking. "Why’d you bring a cat to class? You think being the Hokage’s kid means you can do whatever you want?"

Wait, Hokage’s kid? Isn’t Naruto supposed to be the outcast? What’s going on here?

"Tora-chan’s a ninja cat, so he’s allowed!" Naruto snapped back, pointing at Kiba’s dog, Akamaru. "Kiba gets to bring his dog, so why can’t I bring my cat?"

"You’re an idiot!" Iruka yelled, his voice hitting a new decibel that probably deafened the front-row kids.

That was enough for me. Naruto was my boy, and no one bullied my boy—not even a ninja teacher.

I let out a long, low howl, tapping into my chakra to add an unsettling vibration to the sound. It was a trick I’d mastered back at the palace, guaranteed to send shivers down human spines. I fluffed up my fur for maximum intimidation, feeling it ripple slightly from the chakra current. Time to show Iruka-sensei just who he was messing with.

Iruka tilted his head back to look at me, and for a moment, it seemed like he paled a little.

“It’s the Mad Tiger!” he blurted, somehow recognizing me in his panic. The sheer absurdity of it made me stop mid-performance and stare at him.

“Iruka-sensei, you know Tora-chan?” Naruto chimed in, just as curious as I was.

“I… overheard some people talking about him at Ichiraku’s during breakfast,” Iruka admitted reluctantly, sneaking another glance at me. “Ahem. Alright, kids, let’s start the lesson.”

“But what about the cat?” Ruri persisted, clearly determined to get to the bottom of this.

“He’s a ninja cat, like Inuzuka’s Akamaru, so he’s allowed in class,” Iruka muttered, his face now as red as Kushina’s hair. “Now, we’ll be starting a written assignment on last week’s material.”

The collective groan that followed drowned out any lingering interest in me or Iruka’s little showdown with Naruto. Kids have a one-track mind when it comes to homework, apparently.

As they started scribbling, I couldn’t help but mull over a memory from my past life. If I remembered correctly, Iruka had a grudge against Naruto because his parents died during the Nine-Tails attack. But… wasn’t the Fox sealed in Kushina-san? So why the hostility toward the kid?

Unless...

Kushina-san’s a powerhouse in her own right—and now the Hokage. She’s untouchable, but Naruto? Well, he’s an easy target. Not intentionally, maybe, but it’s not hard to see how someone like Iruka might unconsciously misplace his frustrations. Especially since Kushina’s busy with official duties most of the time. Just this morning, she and Madam Shijimi had mentioned heading out on some mission, leaving Naruto a stack of cash and strict orders to feed me. That probably wasn’t a one-off thing, either.

So yeah, Naruto isn’t exactly growing up as an orphan, but he’s pretty much left to his own devices most of the time. And he’s not the type to complain to his mom. Honestly, for an 11-year-old, he’s already got his routine down. School in the morning, hang out with friends, train by himself in the evening, rinse, and repeat. He probably wants to be as strong as his parents—“the strongest ninja in the village” and all that. Hard work’s the only way to get there, and trust me, I know that grind. Been there, done that, in this world and the last one.

After the quiz, Iruka launched into a lecture about different types of camouflage and stealth techniques. Honestly? It was fascinating. Sure, most of the methods weren’t exactly cat-friendly, but one technique really caught my attention: the “transparency” method. Apparently, shinobi can use chakra to project an image of what’s behind them, effectively becoming invisible without needing hand signs.

I was hooked. With my dark fur, I already blend into shadows pretty well, but imagine sitting in a tree during daylight, looking like the sky itself. That’s next-level ninja cat stuff.

“After lunch, we’ll practice shuriken throwing, followed by sparring,” Iruka announced, snapping me out of my daydreams and reminding me of something equally important: lunch.

Yes! Lunch! And if I remembered correctly, there was a certain chatty old man nearby who made some excellent pork...