Chapter 119

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Negotiations between Sunagakure's Elders and Orochimaru were ongoing, with the village's internal politics still unresolved. As a result, the main war faction's planned attack on Konoha was put on hold.

Back at camp, Team Minato was placed on standby. For now, they wouldn't be deployed for any major operations. Even if missions came, they'd be small and routine.

Missions like their recent one, i.e. rescuing spies in hostile territory especially during such tumultuous times, and clashing with Jonin teams were typically S-Rank. Such assignments were rare, and it would take a high-level intervention, akin to the Third Hokage and Jiraiya personally securing the border, to warrant sending their team for another A+ rank missions.

Minato had spent the past few days working solo. A message from Jiraiya recently confirmed his own observations: Nagato's dojutsu was the most advanced among the known ones. Trusting his Sensei's judgment, Minato kept this intel to himself, withholding it from the village.

Minato was all too aware of the Rinnegan's significance. If the village discovered Nagato possessed it, "that" person would stop at nothing to claim it, putting Yahiko and Konan's lives at risk.

Meanwhile, news of the tensions between Sunagakure and Iwagakure had already reached the Third Hokage, prompting swift action. Jiraiya was dispatched on a diplomatic mission, accompanied by high-ranking ninjas to the frontline.

Simultaneously, Jiraiya was tasked with securing Kusagakure's alliance, crucial as the Kusagakure stood as a buffer between Konoha and Iwagakure. As long as this alliance held, Konoha could maintain a safe frontline, keeping the Land of Fire out of the warzone.

In Takeshi's absence, life had unfolded peacefully. Obito and Kakashi shared a silent hope that this serenity might last, but they knew it was a fleeting luxury. 

From past experience they knew Takeshi's slumber wouldn't persist, especially after such an extended period, and the cat was bound to wake up any day now.

Takeshi's body has gradually adapted to natural energy. As soon as his body reaches a stable state, he can even utilize Sage mode to directly absorb natural energy from nature, and then there will be no need to rely on luxury cat food from system.

However, buying Sage mode also requires points.

Four days passed, and on a quiet morning, Takeshi stirred. As he woke, he detected intense, muffled movements outside, accompanied by sporadic, suppressed breathing. 

Takeshi's eyes narrows 'This is definitely not Obito.', with suspicion. 

Takeshi slipped out of his tent, only to find Kakashi walking on his hands. Their eyes met, and the atmosphere grew awkward. Kakashi, caught off guard, turned to face Takeshi's judging eyes... The atmosphere suddenly grew a little awkward.

"Meow~ You can continue, just pretend I'm not awake," Takeshi retreated to tent. It's incredible that Kakashi also learned to do handstand exercises.

It seems that he was quite pressured by Obito's progress, otherwise with his personality, he would rather do anything else do handstands in public.

Takeshi sneaked out again, observing from the shadows. However, Kakashi inadvertently "walked" in front of him once more, his ninja senses alerting him to Takeshi's presence.

"Why are you-", before Kakashi could continue.

"Hey, Kakashi, what's troubling you? I suppose seeing a genius like myself grow stronger has sparked a desire to learn from me? It's alright, I am magnanimous enough to allow this." Obito's voice came from behind, and Kakashi stood up straight, turning his head to see Obito standing on his hands, further embarrassing Kakashi.

Takeshi slunk back into the tent, feigning sleep. However, his curiosity got the better of him when he checked the system panel. The points had skyrocketed past one thousand – those extra hundreds had Kakashi's name all over them. A sly grin spread across Takeshi's face. 'Not bad, Kakashi, not bad at all.'

He just had to sneak another peek. Takeshi poked his head out to find Kakashi leaning against a tree, attempting to play it cool with a book. The image was almost laughable – Kakashi, the epitome of cool, using a book as a makeshift shield for his wounded pride.

Before Obito's return, Kakashi had managed to sneak in some "reading" – a.k.a. pretending to read while nursing his embarrassment. The brief respite ended with Minato's sudden appearance.

"Did anything happen?" Minato asked, his eyes scanning the area before locking onto Takeshi's partially hidden face.

"Is Takeshi awake? Sensei's orders: pack up, we're heading to the Iwagakure front. Oh, and Orochimaru-sama wants a meet with Takeshi. I'm to escort him." With that, Minato vanished into thin air, leaving Takeshi with mixed emotions.

He was happy that he could finally meet Jiraiya, a big points contributor, but sad that he had to meet Orochimaru again.

'Ugh, Orochimaru again... Wait, why am I worrying? I've got teleportation on my side! No one, not even Orochimaru, can keep up with me!'

Takeshi's worries had dwindled to a single concern: Rin. The rest, including Orochimaru and Danzo, no longer kept him up at night. 

This realization brought a sense of liberation, and he felt less intimidated than before. 

The Flying Thunder God, acquired for 20,000 points, was a game-changer. 'Worth. Every. Point.' Takeshi thought, almost giving the system thumbs up, but couldn't due to not having thumbs. 'My life would've been immensely difficult without system.'

"Meow~ I'm awake, let's roll!" Takeshi announced, prompting Obito to swoop in.

With renewed vigor, Takeshi stretched, arching his back and extending his claws. Three days of inactivity had left him slightly stiff, but he could sense a newfound strength coursing through his veins.

"Let's go, Kakashi, you won't be exercising anyway, so you can help us pack our things, thanks!" With a playful wave, Obito whisked Takeshi away, leaving Kakashi alone in the tent.

Kakashi while holding the book froze, and he frowned slightly and couldn't help but wonder - 'How did it come to this? Obito's learned to mess with people... I swear, no one's honest in this ninja world anymore...'

A pang of nostalgia hit him, and he couldn't help but think, 'I miss Guy – annoying at times, but always true to himself, unjaded by the ninja life.'

Kakashi's sigh echoed through the air, accompanied by a thought, 'Maybe it's not just the ninja life that's tough... maybe it's also because of this cat.'

Little did he know, Takeshi was simultaneously bemoaning the difficulties of life – but for entirely different reasons. Orochimaru had just bestowed upon him a "gift" that left him perplexed: the title of Special Jonin, authorized by the Third Hokage and Danzo themselves.

'A cat can become a Special Jonin? Did I just hear that right?' Takeshi's confusion was palpable, and the rest of the team shared his bewilderment – all except Minato, who had been privy to this information beforehand.

"Meow~ But it's not... I'm not..." Takeshi stuttered, unsure how to respond to the unexpected honor.

Orochimaru's smile was enigmatic. "Nonsense, Takeshi. You're special, indeed, very special... Your performance in the last mission was exemplary. I look forward to... discussing more when we return." His voice dropped to a whisper, intended only for Takeshi's ears.

Sure enough, where there is opportunities there is also risks.

Takeshi's mind whirred with the implications. The recent explosion had yielded a whopping 9,000 points, but at what cost? He had piqued Orochimaru's curiosity, and now Danzo was also aware of his existence – albeit not the full extent of his abilities. 

He has to make some preparations for them in the future.

Orochimaru's smile, inherently cold, spread across his face. "Congratulations, Takeshi. As of today, you're a Special Jonin."

It's not that he has ill intentions towards Takeshi, it's just that he looks like this, and his smile can never be kind and is often comes off as an evil smile.

Takeshi nodded, accepting the promotion with composure., but compared to him, the others in tent were still unable to calm down.

Although he is only a Special Jonin, Special Jonin is not a big deal for Takeshi. There are very few people in Konoha who are ranked as special Jonin.

Thinking about it again when this rank is brought up in future the conversations might go like this... "Oh, you are a Special Jonin too like that cat?"

"A cat is higher ranked than you, how embarrassing!"

"My captain is a cat..."

It's really rare for a cat or rather ninja beasts in general to be a special Jonin. Likely the first cat in Konoha, possibly the entire ninja world, to attain this rank.

'Suffer, and keep rewarding me with those delicious points!'

Crucially, the reason behind this promotion remained a secret, known only to Orochimaru, Takeshi, and Team Minato. The whispered mention of "the last mission" had been exclusive to Orochimaru and Takeshi.

Therefore, the ninjas in the tent looked conflicted and didn't know what to say for a while. No matter what, they had to accept this.

Although the strength is supreme in the ninja world, and this cat is strong, it still makes them feel uncomfortable when they think about it carefully.

However, there was one person who was more confused than everyone else. Uchiha Obito.

Obito had also received credit for the mission, earning the Chunin Vest from Orochimaru. Though the mission report was classified, Konoha's merit-based rewards had still recognized his contributions.

He was quite giddy at first, but now Obito's initial happiness had curdled into frustration. "Damn it!" He couldn't believe it, Takeshi, had been promoted to Special Jonin.

As he reflected on the situation, he reluctantly accepted the reality. The credit had already been given, and his Sensei had hinted at Takeshi's significant contribution: severely damaging Sunagakure Village's pursuers, including high-ranked individuals. Obito could infer the extent of Takeshi's impact.

He could guess how much Takeshi's contribution was. With this kind of strength and ability, Obito wouldn't have been dissatisfied if it were a human, especially a Special Jonin, but Takeshi is just a cat, and he is Rin's summon beast.

(E/N: You heard it here first folks, Obito Uchiha is a speciest! Speciesism is prejudice or discrimination based on species. especially : discrimination against animals.)

But after thinking about it, Obito felt relieved. It's okay for this cat to be promoted to Special Jonin. He cannot deny that the gap between him and Takeshi is gradually widening.

The cat's promotion was a reminder that his own goal should be to close the gap with Kakashi, not Takeshi. It was obvious that Kakashi should care more about the Special Jonin position than him.

After all, it had been three years since Kakashi was promoted to Chunin, and Obito had just obtained the Chunin position. It's not for lack of trying, Kakashi was promoted to Chunin after graduating quite quickly and he spent last three years trying hard to get promoted yet without getting any promotion.

A mischievous thought struck him, Kakashi's potential frustration over Takeshi's promotion could be his own happiness. "This is great!" Obito mused, amused by the prospect of Kakashi's reaction. 

He had discovered a peculiar coping mechanism – deriving happiness from others' potential discomfort – and it seemed to be working.

Now, instead of worry, Obito felt anticipation. He couldn't wait to share the news with Kakashi, savoring the impending moment. "Hahaha, this is going to be priceless!"

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