Chapter 10

It's Just a Cat

Team 7 had been training and going on missions for 3 weeks now. Their success rate, 100 percent. At the moment, they were on their 11th mission.

"Aniki (big brother) here, target in sight at 20 meters," Sasuke called into his com-unit.

"Imouto (little sister) here, same as Aniki," responded Hinata, no longer the shy wallflower, but a dangerous opponent and powerful ally. At least, she was during missions.

" Shindou (wonder child) here, target in range at 10 meters," Naruto stated, slightly smug.

"How did you get closer?" inquired Sasuke in his "How dare you outdo me, otouto," voice.

'Here it comes,' thought Kakashi, listening over his own com-device, hoping to find out just what "it" would be.

"Um... I'm blind?" was the ever so intelligent reply.

"He walked right into that one," Inner Hinata muttered. Hinata just nodded in agreement.

Kakashi and Sasuke shared a single thought, 'Strangely, that made some sense.'

"Focus on the mission," Kakashi ordered.

"Hai, Tangan (one eye)-sensei," the three answered as one.

Sighing at the codename, the silver-haired cyclopes got back on track, "Just strike in 3... 2... 1..."

The three genin leaped at a shadow, barely missing it as it disappeared into the underbrush.

"That's it! We do this MY WAY!" shouted Naruto as he got off the ground.

"Naruto, this is a retrieval mission, not an assassination. So no using the Gigan."

"Fine, then we do this my way: plan B. That cat will never run away again!" Naruto cackled at the thought.

"I just said no killing the target."

"I never said I would kill it."

'This kid is going to be the death of me, I just know it,' the jounin thought with a sigh.

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The cat sat in a clearing, glad to have escaped going back to the death grip of it's owner for a little while longer.

Suddenly, there was a rustling in the nearby bushes. On guard in case it was one of those humans that always caught him, the cat approached the native vegetation to see what was disturbing the peace. Finding nothing, the cat went back to the single sunny spot to finish grooming.

Just as he got to the most important, and delicate, part of the routine, a 2-and-a-half foot blade was buried a mere hair's width from neutering the poor creature. Wide-eyed, the cat slowly followed the blade from where it was buried up to the gold fox head (was it grinning evilly? And what's with the glowing red eyes?), and finally to the one holding the weapon. A boy in red with a blindfold and a grin to match the one on the sword.

"Now listen here, Tora," spoke the blond in a voice that spoke if both annoyance and the pain to come if the orders weren't followed, "No more running from home. Because next time, I. Won't. Miss."

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As Madam Shijimi left the Hokage tower with Tora, the cat sent one last fearful glance at the blond with the innocent looking cane that hid the blade that would haunt his dreams for the rest of his natural life.

Iruka was the first to speak, "That's the first time I've seen Tora go home so... willingly."

"Let's just say that otouto talked some sense into him and leave it at that."

"Right... Perhaps we should get you your next mission," the aged Fire Shadow said as he pulled out and unrolled a scroll with the letter d printed all over it. "You can dig up potatoes in the field, help the old widow on Uchiwa Itsuwari (Fan Fiction (ain't product placement grand?)) Street-" was as far as he could read it before it was shredded in the blink of an eye, the parts in his hands being the only remains bigger than a fingernail.

"We need a real mission, old man! No more of this kiddy stuff!" shouted Naruto.

'I expected that a little sooner,' thought the one-eyed jounin as he swatted the blond upside the head. "Watch where you're swinging that sword, baka. Whose bright idea was it to give you a sword-cane anyway?"

The looks on the faces of the three genin went dead as if someone had hit a switch. As one they answered in voices as dead as a graveyard, "Uncle Hizashi."

After an awkward moment of silence, the Hokage spoke up, "Well, we have a c-rank mission you could take..."

Once again, the moods of the genin did a complete 180.

"IT'S ABOUT TIME, OLD MAN!"

"Er... well then, ahem, send in the client."

All eyes (and a blindfold) turned to the door just as it opened...

To Be Continued...