Granny Cat
Two days later, a ramen shop in a town near Tanzaku Street in the Land of Fire.
"Do you really like ramen?"
Utakata sat next to him, looking over with a hint of curiosity in his eyes.
He had seen many rogue ninja recklessly use their power to satisfy their desires after losing the control of their villages. This kid, who was trying to use the Tailed Beast's power, was surprisingly well-behaved in his daily life, and even went out of his way to help the weak who were suffering.
This was quite interesting.
Lin Ke picked up some noodles, slowly chewed and swallowed the food in his mouth, then looked up and said, "Meat, vegetables, salt, and oil can fully replenish the nutrients the body needs after strenuous exercise."
"I also really like grilled meat and desserts. Meat and sugar are essential for the body's growth and recovery."
He didn't mind the other party knowing his preferences.
A utilitarian reason?
Utakata originally wanted to ask a few more questions, but his ramen was served, so he had to stop for now.
"I'm going to dig in."
After a quiet meal, the two returned to the street, walking unhurriedly towards Tanzaku Street. Utakata suddenly asked, "Where are we going?"
"You seem to be asking a lot of questions today." Lin Ke had noticed that he had changed his pronoun to 'we' in his last sentence.
"Since you need my power," Utakata said, his expression still relaxed, "you should tell me what you want me to do and where we're going."
"Granny Cat's Ninja Tool Shop." Lin Ke gave a simple answer.
Utakata pulled out his bubble-blowing toy from his waist and said, "No wonder you bought Matatabi Drink yesterday. Are you going to buy ninja tools?"
Lin Ke glanced at him without answering.
This guy's personality was supposed to be aloof, but after spending two days together, he had turned into a strange chatterbox.
"Boop~"
Utakata blew a series of bubbles, watching them rise into the air. He leisurely said, "Granny Cat, hmm, she's from the Ninja Cat clan, right? I heard they have a good relationship with the Uchiha. You summoned Uchiha corpses before..."
He chattered on and on, talking a bit too much.
"By the way, what do you need the Tailed Beast's power for?"
Lin Ke looked over and said, "You're just my prisoner right now."
"Alright." The single eye that wasn't covered by Utakata's bangs revealed a smile. He didn't continue speaking, but instead started blowing bubbles and playing by himself.
The two left the town and met up with the shadows carrying Hidan's fragments, then quickly arrived at Tanzaku Street.
Without entering, Lin Ke had the shadows catch a cat from outside the town. Looking at the clear-eyed orange cat in front of him, he remembered that Hina had said last time that any cat in Tanzaku Street could find her, so—
"Do you know Hina?" he asked.
The orange cat looked very calm. After being placed on the ground by the shadow, it lazily stretched and then began to lick its balls.
"Ha~" Utakata laughed.
Go catch a few more.
As soon as Lin Ke thought it, the shadows moved. Immediately afterward, Hina, wearing clothes, jumped down, her face full of anxiety. "Don't catch any more cats, meow~"
The news really traveled fast.
The shadows had only caught a cat, and the Ninja Cat had already come.
"What I meant before was that as long as you come to Tanzaku Street and appear in front of any cat, I can find you, meow." Hina squatted on the ground, her eyes secretly looking at Utakata. As a Ninja Cat skilled in sensing, she had discovered this monster from afar.
Lin Ke casually tossed the Matatabi Drink he had in his pocket over and said, "Close enough. You should take me to Granny Cat's Ninja Tool Shop, right?"
Hina deftly reached out her paw to grab the drink, her expression conflicted as she hesitated, reluctantly throwing the drink back. "I said I was doing this to repay you for letting me go last time, so..."
The shadow grabbed the drink and brought it back in front of her.
"This isn't the fee for guiding us," Lin Ke said with a smile. "It's a gift between friends."
He was thinking of getting a Ninja Cat to raise, so of course he had to build a good relationship.
"Thank you, meow." Hina took back the Matatabi Drink at light speed, happily stuffing the drink into her arms, straightened up, and said:
"Then follow me, meow." -- An empty city, gloomy skies with falling raindrops, a scene of wasteland.
"Tap, tap."
Shadow held an umbrella for Lin Ke, his ninja shoes stepping on the accumulated water, the splashing water making him feel slightly uncomfortable.
"What a convenient technique," Utakata said, holding an umbrella beside him, looking at Shadow and expressing a sentiment many had.
He glanced at the peeping gaze in the shadows of a building not far away, "It's really the first time I've seen so many Ninja Cats."
"Of course, meow." Hina was held in Shadow's arms, taking a delicious sip of Matatabi Drink, pointing in a direction with her paw, and said, "There, meow."
It originally wanted to lead the way itself, but well, it was just a cute little kitty, how could it refuse the kindness of humans?
If I choose this kid as my contractor, it seems not bad, meow, it thought, slightly adjusting its posture, lying down more comfortably.
With a whoosh, another Ninja Cat with the character 'Ninja' written on its forehead appeared in front of the two people, one cat, and four shadows, and said in an unfriendly tone, "Hina, what are you doing?"
"Of course, I'm bringing guests to see Granny Cat, meow." Hina said, holding the drink bottle in its mouth, jumped out of Shadow's arms, then twisted on the cap, stuffed it back into its arms, and led the way in front, "Tian Huo, why are you back so early, meow?"
Damn it, the feeling of stepping on the accumulated water is so unpleasant, and I have to walk myself, Tian Huo, this guy...
The Ninja Cat, originally fearless of life and death and known for its solitary ways, fell at light speed.
Tian Huo turned his head to look at his companion, whose face was full of displeasure, his gaze swept over the two guests, and the mysterious Shadow, and said, "Please come with us."
Hina's expression was even more unhappy, but she didn't say anything, just followed along silently.
Soon, the two arrived at a shop full of cats, led by the Ninja Cats.
"What do you two guests want?" The old lady with a cat nose was originally smoking a pipe, but when she saw Utakata, her nose twitched slightly, she immediately put down the pipe, her expression remained unchanged, but her body hunched over a little.
It was clearly a posture suitable for exerting force.
Jinchuriki? A troublesome guy, but the kid next to him seems familiar...
"I want to buy Scrolls, and order some sundries." Lin Ke handed the prepared shopping list and the Scroll containing the money to the girl next to him.
The girl handed the list to Granny Cat, reached out and used the Summoning Jutsu to take out a box of money from inside, opened it and looked at it, her expression a little surprised.
"The guest is really generous."
Granny Cat said, putting down the list, although the contents of the box were not the currency of the Land of Fire, there was a lot of it, more than enough to buy the items on the list.
"Guest, your name is Lin Ke, right?"
-----------
This high quality machine translation is powered by: https:// randomtranslator.com/
To read the full translation, as well as more than 130+ full translations or to request new translations, check out: https:// randomtranslator.com/
You can also join the Random Translator Community on Discord to connect with other readers: https:// discord.gg/NSWvfN7vua
-----------