At the Konoha Mission Assignment Desk.
“D-rank mission: Help the flower shop owner move cargo.
Reward: 3,000 ryo.”
“D-rank mission: Look after the Akimichi clan’s three-year-old toddler for a day.
Ensure he doesn’t swallow things he shouldn’t.
Reward: 2,500 ryo.”
“D-rank mission: Search for the Land of Fire Daimyo’s wife’s lost pet cat, ‘Tama’.
Pure white coat, blue eyes, wearing a gold bell around its neck.
Reward: 5,000 ryo.”
Ryuichi Matsumoto slapped the mission scroll onto the counter, his expression solemn as he looked at his three new subordinates.
“We’re taking this one.
Finding the cat.”
Kazuya Haruno and Itsuki Fujiwara leaned over to read the mission description, while Ryuha Uchiha stood in place, his gaze sweeping over the noisy mission hall.
Shinobi of all kinds passed to and fro.
Most Genin looked miserable as they hauled heavy crates or dragged crying toddlers.
Chunin rushed past in a hurry, while Jonin leaders stood among various small squads.
As for non-leader Jonin?
Ryuha Uchiha only spotted two.
Just another ordinary morning.
“The Daimyo’s wife’s cat…” Kazuya Haruno scratched his head.
“This kind of mission sounds like a hassle.
Cats are fast and love hiding in tight spots.”
“And the reward is so high because it’s bound to be hard to catch,” Itsuki Fujiwara added earnestly.
Ryuichi Matsumoto snorted coldly.
“Which is precisely why I picked it.
D-rank missions aren’t meant for you to play around.
They are designed to hone your fundamentals—specifically, teamwork.
Especially for certain people.” He cast a meaningful glare at Ryuha.
“Don’t think you’re a real shinobi just because you know a few flashy Genjutsu techniques.
Without solid basic skills, you’re nothing but dead weight on the battlefield.”
Ryuha Uchiha pushed up his glasses and offered no reply.
He could easily guess the thoughts of this mediocre Jonin, and there was likely an instruction behind it from that old man, the Third Hokage.
It was unavoidable.
His performance during the graduation exam had drawn too much attention.
Even going to the Military Police Force had resulted in an ambush by Danzo Shimura’s men.
The Uchiha Clan remained far too sensitive a subject.
“Let’s move.
The cat was last seen in the noble district southeast of the Land of Fire’s capital, twenty li from here.”
Ryuichi Matsumoto turned and walked toward the exit.
“Kazuya, you’re on intelligence gathering.
Itsuki, keep watch.
Ryuha—”
He paused, his voice cold.
“You are responsible for carrying the cage and bait.
Once the cat is found, you will be in charge of capturing and securing it.
It’s the most basic physical labor.
No complaints, I trust?”
“Understood, Teacher,” Ryuha replied calmly.
Kazuya Haruno and Itsuki Fujiwara exchanged glances.
Both could hear the targeted hostility in their teacher’s words, but neither dared to speak up.
The three collected their cat-catching gear: a large bamboo cage, a bag of dried fish bait, and a pair of thick leather gloves.
Ryuha silently slung the heavy cage onto his back and tied the bag of dried fish to his waist.
The bamboo cage was cumbersome, and the dried fish wafted a fishy odor.
Paired with those worn leather gloves, he truly looked like nothing more than an errand boy.
Nearby Genin cast sympathetic glances his way.
A few Uchiha clan members in the distance watched with schadenfreude written all over their faces.
“Look, that’s Ryuha Uchiha—the guy who made such a big scene before.
Today he’s been reduced to catching cats.”
“Genius or not, in the eyes of a Jonin teacher, he still has to do chores.”
“Matsumoto-sensei is famously strict.
That kid is in for a rough time.”
Ryuha turned a deaf ear to it all, quietly following half a step behind Ryuichi Matsumoto as if the gossip had nothing to do with him.
…
The noble district in the southeast of the Land of Fire’s capital.
Deep courtyards and high walls lined the immaculate yet quiet streets.
The Daimyo’s wife’s cat, “Tama,” had been missing for three days, and a fortune was being spent to hire shinobi to find it, proving its value.
“According to eyewitnesses, the cat was last seen in this area.
It likes walking along rooftops and boundary walls, is skittish around strangers, and moves very fast,” Kazuya Haruno reported, reading from his notebook.
“Split up,” Ryuichi Matsumoto commanded.
“Kazuya, Itsuki, you two form a team and search from east to west.
Ryuha, you search solo from west to east.
Remember, focus on roofs, wall ledges, and treetops.
If you spot it, do not act rashly.
Signal us immediately.”
“Yes, sir!”
Kazuya Haruno and Itsuki Fujiwara leapt onto a wall and began searching carefully.
Ryuha carried the cage on his back, strolling leisurely down the alley with his eyes casually scanning his surroundings.
In truth, his Spiritual Pressure perception had already spread outward silently, covering a hundred-meter radius like an invisible web.
Ten seconds later, he stopped and looked up at the roof of a mansion to his front left.
There sat a cat with snow-white fur and gemstone-blue eyes.
It was lounging lazily on the roof ridge, basking in the sun while the gold bell at its neck glinted brightly in the sunlight.
Found it.
Yet Ryuha did not send a signal, nor did he make a move to capture it immediately.
He set the bamboo cage down, reached into the bag to pull out a piece of dried fish, placed it on his palm, and then…
He released his completely suppressed aura just a fraction.
A microscopic thread of soothing Spiritual Pressure slowly drifted toward the cat.
Simultaneously, the power of Kyoka Suigetsu was activated without a sound.
This wasn’t a full Shikai—merely a subtle, precise manipulation of sensory perception.
To the cat, the dried fish in Ryuha’s palm radiated an irresistibly mouth-watering aroma.
Meanwhile, Ryuha’s personal presence became remarkably warm, harmless, and comforting—even inviting.
On the roof, the white cat’s ears twitched.
Its sapphire-like eyes locked onto Ryuha.
After a few seconds of hesitation, it stood up and leaped gracefully down from the roof.
Taking elegant, steady steps, it walked up to Ryuha’s feet and rubbed against his trouser leg.
Then, it hopped directly into the open bamboo cage, curling up on the soft cloth inside.
Narrowing its eyes comfortably, it began to enjoy the piece of dried fish Ryuha offered.
The entire process took place without the slightest struggle, as if the cat had simply returned home.
Ryuha Uchiha shut the cage door and locked it.
The entire endeavor had taken less than a minute.
He lifted the cage, glanced at the white cat licking its paws inside, and gently pushed up his glasses.
Then, his “performance” began.
He deliberately ran around the alleys a few extra times, leaped across several rooftops, and acted as if he had accidentally knocked over a trash bin to make some noise.
He even forced out a few beads of sweat using his Spiritual Pressure and adjusted his breathing to sound slightly winded.
Only when he felt he had put on enough of a show did Ryuha release Kyoka Suigetsu’s hypnotic influence.