[Mad Tiger] Chapter 11

I used to think I trained pretty hard. Gave it my all, 100%.

My coach, Viktor Ivanovich, pushed me to my limits. Last year, I was at the top in the youth division for our region. I was gearing up seriously for the district championship, aiming to qualify for nationals. Viktor Ivanovich used to say my determination would lead me to the Davis Cup, as long as I didn’t burn out. “We’re not Moscow or St. Petersburg, where connections run deep, but you’ve got talent, Grisha—great reflexes, a powerful serve, and a clear head. You can do it,” he’d say.

Then I got sick. But I believed I’d get back in shape. The key was to push through. Naruto and I were so alike in that way. It wasn’t a coincidence that Sergey lent me that anime to keep my spirits up. Naruto fought tooth and nail to achieve his goals, while everyone around him tried to trip him up and laughed at him. It warmed my heart to know his mom was alive, and not just alive—she was the freakin’ Hokage! If only I could see Naruto in person… though I suppose it’s possible if my owner and I visit Kushina-san.

I totally agree with that guy: feeling sorry for yourself is pointless. You’ve got to take action to change things. Life goes on, and mine is… well, something else! Being a cat is beyond description. Sure, there are downsides, but there are plenty of perks too.

Kobo-san is a great coach as well. And I bet if Sano wasn’t so lazy, he’d have learned to control chakra ages ago, not just last week.

Kuromaru once explained to me that for animals, everything is both simpler and more complicated at the same time. For instance, humans don’t have exercises focused on their tails, and fur is a natural chakra conductor—something humans just don’t account for. And don’t even get me started on claws and teeth—you can make them longer and sharper with chakra! I’m pretty sure my eyes turned into giant hearts whenever I watched my beastly mentor.

Wait… where was I?

Ah, right, training. So, after three hours of sparring with the ninken, everything hurt. Not just my muscles—literally everything hurt: my body, my paws, my claws, my tail, my ears, and even my fur felt sore. And my whiskers? Aching. I was just a flattened, fluffy rag unable to move… anything.

But at the same time, I felt waves of bliss carrying me away. I’d reached a state of satori—or at least was closer than ever before. My chakra was starting to listen to me, and Kuromaru even praised me, saying that if I kept at it, I could master some powerful moves or channel chakra into my fur to make it armor-like.

I bravely cracked open one eye. Cat gods! Even my eyelids hurt! Oh. About that rocking sensation—turns out I wasn’t imagining it. I’d collapsed on Kuromaru’s back, and he was carrying me somewhere. Ah, so soft and warm… purr…

“Who’s that you’ve brought, Kuromaru?” a woman’s voice reached me through the haze. “What happened to the cat?”

She poked me; she must have thought I was injured. I mean, I’m a fan of attention, but not to that extent.

“What a beautiful cat. Is he your friend, Kuromaru?” She put me down, and I buried my paws into his thick fur, snuggling against him, all warm and cozy.

“Oooo! Grrk! Oooooo!” Strange, wailing sounds woke me up.

At first, I ignored them. Everything felt too good to move. Then I felt a gust of air, like a big nose sniffing me. I had a pretty good guess who that belonged to, and Kuromaru’s voice confirmed it:

“That’s your stomach growling, little tiger.”

The noises continued, and suddenly, a fierce wave of hunger hit me. Apparently, all the calories from that deliciously stolen meat had been spent on shinobi science.

“Come on, get up, time to eat,” the dog nudged my side with his nose to help me up. My legs were wobbly, slipping out from under me in different directions. I hadn’t felt this shaky since my kitten days, when I skidded across a floor that had been polished with some slippery stuff.

“Whoa, buddy, looks like you overdid it,” Kuromaru chuckled and grabbed me by the scruff. I didn’t even have time to worry about him biting through my precious fur. But no, it was surprisingly comfortable.

“Oh, you’re awake!” a familiar raspy voice cheered. “Here, eat up!”

I was set down in front of a bowl filled with a mountain of reddish-brown stuff that looked like ‘Chappi’ drenched in beans and tomato sauce. The smell was… tolerable. My stomach wasn’t about to let me be picky. Skipping the formalities, I dove in. Turned out it was a mix of herbs, vegetables, meat, and some innards. Tasted way better than it looked. Yummy!

"This food contains a special additive made from tree fruits and grass shoots that conduct chakra," said Kuromaru. "They enhance the chakra pathways in animals and help us grow."

"So, you're saying you wouldn't be this big if you didn't eat a certain way?" I asked.

"Maybe, but I come from a long line of Inuzuka clan ninken. We’re all big."

Our conversation was interrupted by yapping, and a white puppy with long, floppy ears dashed into the kitchen, running straight to the bowl I was eating from.

"Mom, I’m home!" came a young voice. "I’ll grab a bite and head out with the guys! Akamaru’s hungry too!"

“Hey, where’s my food?” The puppy seemed confused, sniffing around the bowl while giving my satisfied face a side-eye.

“Sorry, buddy,” I sighed. “First come, first served.”

The woman picked up the bowl, washed it, and filled it with the same food for the pup.

“So, who’s your new friend, Kuromaru?” she asked as she sorted out the meal. “He is a tiger? Oh, his name’s Tora! Got it…”

I noticed Kuromaru had a unique way of speaking with his owner; I couldn’t quite grasp what he said to her, and she didn’t seem to understand our conversations either. All thanks to chakra resonance. Hah, I could write a dissertation on this now.

“Tora-chan, whose cat are you?” She leaned over me and scratched behind my ear.

I finally got a good look at Kuromaru’s owner. She had a lot of animal-like features: slit pupils similar to mine, dark chocolate-colored hair, and elongated canines. Her cheeks had some tattoo-like markings—triangular, pointing inward towards her chin. Nya! Cool! She was practically a werewolf woman!

“Tsume is asking whose pet you are,” Kuromaru “translated” for me.

“Yeah, I got it, I’m not dumb. A dumb cat wouldn’t get it,” I muttered. “I’m playing hide and seek, and they’re supposed to find me. If it gets boring, I’ll look for my owner myself.”

“Whoa! What kind of cat is that, Mom?” A boy walked into the kitchen, looking a couple of years younger than Sano. He was a mini-version of his mother: same hair, eyes, and cheek tattoos.

“This is Kuromaru’s friend, Tora-chan,” the woman said, seeming content with my answer. Maybe she thought I was a stray or lost, or just so cute she wanted to keep me.

“That’s my son, Kiba,” she introduced the kid. “And I’m Inuzuka Tsume.”

I looked at the kid, then at the puppy who had finished eating and was now sniffing me up close without permission. And then it clicked! This was that Kiba! I’d forgotten his name earlier. This little squirt was going to fight Naruto in the Chunin Exams! Wow! What a twist! And this floppy-eared pup was his ninken.

“Hey, quit wiping your face on me! Do I look like a napkin?!” I protested, pushing the puppy away with my paw.

Akamaru snorted in a huff and plopped down on his butt.

“Oh, come on, don’t pout like a mouse that lost its cheese!” I was already feeling much better.

Maybe it was that chakra-infused food, but I felt an unexpected surge of energy. I wanted to run, jump, and play. Hmm… how odd. It was like my chakra flow had sped up.

“Hey, Mom, I just remembered something…” Kiba said, glancing at me suspiciously. “Naruto said Hokage gave him a super important mission. We were supposed to meet up with him, Sasuke, Choji, and Shikamaru after lunch to start the search.”

“Who are you looking for?” Tsume asked, intrigued.

I tensed up. This “bzzz” in my brain definitely wasn’t a good sign.

“Naruto said we need to find the daimyo’s cat. He overheard some morning conversation and begged his mom for the mission. He promised to bring a picture of it to our meeting spot. He said the cat’s name was…”

I didn’t stay to hear my own name being mentioned. It was already ringing in my ears as I bolted for the door, slipping out through a dog flap clearly designed for Akamaru. No way that door would hold Kuromaru.

“That was him!” Kiba shouted behind me. “Akamaru, after him! We’ve got him!”

Oh, sure. Like I’d let a bunch of kids catch me. That food kicked in, and I was running like a furry cannonball.

Ta-da-da-da-da! Onward, kitty cavalry!