Bang!
The sharp sound of fists colliding broke the silence of the training ground.
Hanabi felt the chakra from her Gentle Fist techniques sink into the old cat's body like a stone dropped into deep water—completely ineffective.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The dull impacts of fists and kicks echoed as bursts of force swept across the training field.
Under the blazing sun, emerald leaves rustled in the trees, as if applauding the intense battle below.
"Look at my Cat Punch!"
"A normal Cat Punch!"
"A serious Cat Punch!"
In his cat form, the old feline could go long stretches without making a sound, his aged body showing all the signs of decline. But now, in human form and able to speak, he was far more animated. As he fought, he cheerfully called out names for his attacks, clearly enjoying himself.
On the other side, Hanabi gritted her teeth, struggling to hold her ground under the cat's relentless barrage.
It didn't look like a ninja battle—it resembled a brawl between martial artists or samurai. No ninjutsu, no genjutsu—just pure taijutsu. Raw power and refined technique.
In terms of skill, Hanabi came from a thousand-year-old clan known for its secret arts. Her techniques were elite.
But…
Ssshh—
Her feet slid through the dirt as she narrowly dodged another savage strike. Using the old cat's beast-like strength against him, she sprang back out of his attack range.
The cold wind howled through the forest.
Haa…
Hanabi panted heavily, breath rushing from her nose.
The old cat's body was unbelievably tough. Striking his flesh was like hitting dense padding—no bruises, no bleeding. Just resistance.
Following Ryosuke's guidance, she hadn't used her Gentle Fist to block chakra flows. Instead, she aimed to damage his body from within using destructive chakra bursts. In theory, his thick hide wouldn't protect him from that.
But what she hadn't expected… was that the old cat's insides were just as durable. His meridians and bone marrow were like reinforced steel. The chakra that should've crippled him only made him shudder—barely even slowing him down.
"Careful!" the old cat called out gleefully, a warning laced with excitement.
Clearly, he hadn't expected to ever become this powerful. Yet here he was—reveling in it.
Before Hanabi could catch her breath, he was already on her again, fists flying.
Ryosuke had ordered the cat not to hold back, so he only gave the occasional verbal warning between attacks.
"Damn it!"
Unable to stop herself from shouting, Hanabi tried to form a substitution seal, hoping to retreat and regain some energy. But before she could complete it, she was forced to raise her arms to block another heavy strike.
Boom!
The impact sent her skidding several meters back, a cloud of dust billowing around her.
Her arms tingled with numbness. Before she could even adjust her footing—
Wham!
The old cat lunged out of the settling dust and threw another punch at her!
"Stop!"
A sharp voice rang out from the nearby forest.
Ryosuke had been observing the battle closely. The moment he shouted, the two fighters froze.
Hinata, who had been staring at his serious expression in a daze, suddenly snapped out of it. Blinking, she looked toward the training ground—and what she saw made her pause.
Hanabi was panting, her body covered in dust and her stance unsteady.
The old cat? He looked completely fine. Not even out of breath.
Was he really that strong?
Hinata's gaze lingered on him with disbelief.
Could an ordinary, dying house cat become so powerful just from eating a fruit from another world?
Her heart began to waver. Was the plan she and her father had developed—to invade that other world—truly wise? Or a mistake?
Ryosuke, standing beside her, relaxed slightly. His earlier stern expression softened.
Hanabi had performed better than he expected. He had underestimated his sister-in-law.
Walking calmly toward the center of the training ground, he approached Hanabi, who was clearly frustrated but not broken.
"You did well, but—"
"…I wasn't decisive enough," she cut in before he could finish. "I didn't fully use the advantages of being a ninja."
Ryosuke paused.
"At first, I held back because the old cat didn't have chakra. I wanted to spar fairly," Hanabi continued. "But after seeing his speed and strength, I lost control of the fight. I couldn't believe he'd grown that strong, that fast. It messed with my focus. I made too many mistakes."
"My awareness, willpower, even my mindset—they all failed me today. If I can't keep my cool, I can't bring out my full strength. I might still lose, but I won't let the old cat win this easily again."
Ryosuke: …
He hadn't needed to say anything. Hanabi had already broken down her flaws with clear, brutal honesty.
Before he could respond, she lifted her head, eyes sharp and unwavering.
She turned toward the old cat and declared, "Give me a moment—and let's go again."
Her gaze blazed with determination.
Despite her loss, her spirit burned hotter than ever. Like a flame fed by kerosene, her will didn't waver—it surged.
Ryosuke was impressed. Hanabi had not only identified her mistakes, she had also regained her composure swiftly.
Compared to Hinata, she might be more competitive. But in terms of raw fighting talent, she was clearly stronger.
He hadn't guided Hanabi as much as he had Hinata. Nor had Hyuga Hiashi enforced strict training, distracted by clan affairs and lessons learned from raising his first child.
Most of Hanabi's growth had come from the academy.
And while Ryosuke didn't look down on the Ninja Academy, its curriculum had to cater to the average student. That meant the standards were lower—and the truly talented were often left to teach themselves or graduate early.
Yet even so, Hanabi's battle performance today was on par with Hinata at the same age.
Her post-battle analysis, however, was far more insightful.
Good.
Ryosuke was satisfied.
Across from them, the old cat looked at him questioningly, waiting for approval.
"Let's stop here for today," Ryosuke said, shaking his head at Hanabi. "Your body's not in shape for another round."
He stepped closer, his tone firm but calm. "Instead of forcing yourself into another fight, rest. Recover. Think of a real counter-strategy."
"You already understand the gap between you and the old cat. There's no point in dragging this out just to 'look' better. A loss is still a loss."
Since Hanabi's attitude was already calm, there was no need for him to speak to her like coaxing a child.
The goal was simply to test the old cat's strength, speed, and internal changes after consuming the Devil Fruit—not to determine a winner between the two.
Since this was merely a test, it was about time to wrap things up. Continuing further would be a waste of time.
"Can…"
Hanabi opened her mouth to stubbornly refute, but Hinata beside her gently interrupted.
"That's enough for today, Hanabi."
She stepped closer and reached out, softly ruffling Hanabi's hair.
"I've recently taken leave to prepare for the graduation exams at home. Will you be my sparring partner?"
"…Huh?"
Hanabi's once-defiant expression quickly softened under the familiar touch.
And when she heard that her older sister needed her help, she couldn't help but grin.
"Then… I don't have to go to school either?"
"Take a leave for now and stay home," Hinata said, taking her hand. "I'll use this time to teach you some of the clan's secret techniques."
Holding her hand gently, Hinata began to lead her away.
"Let's go to the other side… it's quieter there."
It was just like coaxing a child. Slowly and patiently, she led Hanabi away.
Before leaving, she made a subtle gesture behind her back toward Ryosuke, signaling that he could continue with what he was doing.
Watching their figures as they walked off, Ryosuke let out a silent breath.
If Hanabi had insisted on continuing the fight, stopping her would've been troublesome and would likely have wasted the whole day.
Though he didn't mind spending more time with his sister-in-law, his attention was now fixed on the old cat—or rather, the power of the Devil Fruit within him.
"You performed well and improved quickly."
Turning around, Ryosuke finally gave the old cat a word of praise.
"Although you was unfamiliar with human combat at first, you adapted fast and even picked up a few human fighting techniques from Hanabi."
The compliment wasn't directed at the cat's raw physical strength, but at his adaptability and battle performance.
Walking over, Ryosuke raised a hand to pet him—but seeing the odd blend of cat and human in the creature's appearance, he hesitated and lowered his hand.
"Other than physical changes, do you feel anything else different?"
There was no doubt.
Since the fruit had allowed the animal to take on a humanoid form, it had to be a Human-Human Fruit—a Zoan-type Devil Fruit.
But clearly, this wasn't just any ordinary Human-Human Fruit.
"Nothing special…"
The old cat shook his head. "But I do feel like my learning ability is unusually strong. I was able to quickly mimic the Second Young Lady's fighting style during the match. That ability came from this... this new sense I have."
After a pause, he added thoughtfully,
"But this learning ability doesn't seem to apply to everyday life. It's only really strong in combat."
He seemed a little anxious as he spoke.
At first, he'd felt proud of his performance in the battle.
But once the elder and second young ladies left, and it was just him and his master left alone,
He finally realized—
He had eaten that.
A fruit that looked suspiciously toxic... yet gave him the power to fight on par with the Second Young Lady…
And even gifted him a superior battle sense.
Could it be… a divine fruit?
Maybe the fruit was meant for the eldest or second daughter instead?
The old cat grew nervous just thinking about it.
He didn't want his master to be angry. That was why he was doing his best to strictly cooperate with everything Ryosuke asked.
Opposite him, Ryosuke wasn't thinking anything of the sort.
After hearing the explanation, he was already deep in analysis.
Could the Human-Human Fruit grant the cat enhanced combat aptitude?
That alone was a valuable discovery.
He now had a fairly clear idea of what the old cat had consumed.
Among Zoan fruits, there exists a special subclass: Mythical Beasts.
These allow users to transform into legendary creatures or deities from mythology.
The basic form of the Human-Human Fruit grants intelligence, learning ability, bipedal movement, and human-level lifespans to animals—but it doesn't significantly improve physical strength.
If the old cat had eaten a regular Human-Human Fruit, his physical enhancements wouldn't be this drastic.
So most likely…
He had eaten a Mythical Zoan-type Human-Human Fruit.
A fruit that allowed him to take on the form or abilities of a mythical figure—or even a god.
The being tied to this fruit likely held dominion over battle, strength, or warfare.
Whether it was a warrior spirit or divine entity, only further development of the cat's powers would confirm it.
If it was the former, then chakra development would be key to reaching his limit.
But if it was the latter…
Then just developing the Devil Fruit's powers alone might allow him to rise to the top of the shinobi world.
Pulled out of his thoughts, Ryosuke noticed the old cat staring nervously at him.
He chuckled.
"Then… I'll be your opponent from now on."
"I suspect your fruit's abilities grow stronger through actual battle experience.
Sparring with Hanabi won't help much anymore, so let me train with you."
"…Fight with the master?"
The old cat looked visibly alarmed.
In his decade as a cat, he had witnessed too many extremes—
the kindness and cruelty of humans, often flipping back and forth in an instant depending on gain or loss.
Even family and close friends could betray one another.
And so, he feared the depth and complexity of human emotions.
"Don't worry," Ryosuke said, raising a brow, "You can't hurt me. Don't tell me you actually think you can?"
"No, no, that's not what I meant…"
The old cat waved his hands in a panic. "I just…"
He trailed off, not daring to say it out loud.
Afraid of being dissected.
Afraid of being studied.
Afraid of becoming… an experiment.
How could he even voice such a fear?
It was no wonder he thought that way.
He had seen too much darkness in humanity—
research conducted even on their own kind, let alone a half-human, half-cat outlier like him.
He'd seen it in the Hyuga Clan, too.
People taken apart. Eyes replaced.
He couldn't help imagining the same fate befalling him—
Strapped to a table, stripped of his dignity, organs and eyes harvested…
The fear was real.
And it lingered in his eyes.
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