Revolution in the Ninja World

Habara, naturally, remained blissfully unaware of the events unfolding in the Land of Rain. The very Orochimaru he yearned for had, at this point, already infiltrated the ranks of the Akatsuki.

The figure who had appeared before Orochimaru that night was, of course, Yahiko, the Deva Path of Pain. However, this time, Orochimaru initiated no conflict. The reason was simple: although he didn't know the full extent of the Rinnegan's abilities, he did know how it came into being, thanks to Habara. Therefore, he certainly wasn't about to act recklessly. The power to comprehend all things in creation ("Shinra Bansho") required the combined strength of Uchiha and Senju. And surely, this didn't mean just grabbing any random Uchiha and Senju, grinding them up, and mixing them together. If Orochimaru wasn't mistaken, it had to be Uchiha and Senju on the level of Madara and Hashirama.

Remarkably, Orochimaru's guess was pretty close to the mark. So, upon seeing Yahiko, he instinctively perceived him as some sort of "Madara + Hashirama" composite entity. Faced with such an opponent, even Orochimaru wouldn't attack blindly.

Not only did Orochimaru refrain from attacking, but after Yahiko merely showed his face, the old Sannin practically let himself be reeled in.

He couldn't help it. Who told Habara to fill his head with all that fascinating nonsense? The Rinnegan now seemed utterly captivating. Even if Orochimaru didn't care for the Rinnegan's power itself, he was deeply drawn to its mystery.

The ultimate secret of the shinobi world was laid bare before him, separated by mere paper-thin proximity. Without a second thought, he joined the anti-establishment army.

Of course, Orochimaru and Nagato were certainly not aligned in their goals. He was only doing this because he coveted those eyes but couldn't simply dig them out, thus deciding to observe them up close instead. Even upon learning about the so-called "Moon's Eye Plan," Orochimaru merely scoffed inwardly.

Universal peace achieved by trapping everyone in a dream? The person who devised such a plan was likely the one truly lost in a dream. With Orochimaru's life experience and intellect, he could see through that flawed logic easily enough.

The long-term impact of Orochimaru joining Akatsuki several years ahead of schedule remained to be seen. However, it was certain that someone who always had his own agenda wouldn't bring much positive influence to Akatsuki or its plans.

The rat dropping was already in the soup; now, it was just a matter of waiting to see what kind of stew it would brew.

Meanwhile, as Habara and Uchiha Shisui were heading back to Konoha, Kakashi Hatake, Tenzo, and Genma Shiranui were stationed somewhere in the eastern part of the Land of Fire, very close to the border with the Land of Rivers.

After setting up a simple barrier around the perimeter, the three immediately got to work. Kakashi was beginning to truly grasp the meaning of "once you get into construction, there's no digging your way out." After months of civil engineering projects, followed by a stint back in Konoha doing "secret technique transcription," here he was, back on construction duty.

What's that? Body too tired from construction? No problem, here are some calculus problem sets. Oh, mind exhausted from calculus? Don't worry, come out and relax with a few months of construction work.

"Let's get moving. According to the requirements, this setup must remain undiscovered... Genma, are you sure the sealing formula is correct?" Kakashi asked his teammate.

"Definitely no problem. We've tested it multiple times already," Genma stated confidently.

The trio then proceeded to dig a large pit, five meters square. Tenzo first laid down a layer of flooring at the bottom. Then, the three began meticulously applying a complex sealing formula onto this surface.

Once the formula was complete, Kakashi placed a specially designed chakra receiver in the center. After another thorough check to confirm everything was correct, Tenzo laid down another layer of flooring, concealing the formula beneath.

Next, they backfilled the pit, applied some basic camouflage, and then Tenzo began planting trees around the area. After the trees were in place, another round of camouflage was applied.

"Is that it? Compared to the previous jobs, this task seems pretty simple," Tenzo remarked, sounding like he hadn't quite gotten his fill of manual labor.

"This part is done, but it's not completely done," Kakashi replied. "This is clearly just a test phase. If it functions correctly, we might end up installing these things all around the Land of Fire... We'll definitely have plenty to keep us busy then." Kakashi actually felt a similar sense of wanting more, but he immediately grew wary of the thought. Wait, this isn't right. Could construction actually be addictive?

Hearing Kakashi's words, Genma's face fell instantly. Regardless of anything else, he knew certain specialized ninja, himself included, would undoubtedly be involved in this project for the long haul.

Seeing Genma's reaction, Kakashi quickly offered some 'consolation.' "Hey, don't look so glum. Being part of such a clandestine mission, Genma, at least proves you're in the village's innermost circle."

Not like the ninja assigned to watch the gates, Kakashi added silently. Even so, Genma felt like something was slightly off about Kakashi's encouragement. It just went to show, Kakashi had picked up some bad habits.

No, Genma corrected himself. Kakashi was always like this.

Habara and Uchiha Shisui successfully returned to Konoha. With those two working together, failure was hardly an option. Habara subsequently reported to Kushina Uzumaki about the unfortunate death of the Chunin who had participated in the initial testing phase.

Strictly speaking, this didn't need to be reported directly to Kushina. The remaining members of that ninja squad would naturally report the entire incident to the Hokage – they had even brought back the enemy's corpse. However, since it involved an ongoing project, Habara still briefed Kushina.

"Is that so? A step too late... Truly regrettable."

Kushina could see Habara was somewhat downcast about the matter. But in her view, this didn't signify a setback for the plan. On the contrary, the fact that a Chunin, when facing an elite Jonin, wasn't instantly killed but managed to put up what could only be described as stubborn resistance, was sufficient proof of the plan's validity. Theoretically, when encountering that Kirigakure missing-nin, the Konoha squad should have been wiped out entirely.

"And the other matter?" Kushina couldn't bring the fallen ninja back, nor could she easily lift Habara's spirits, so she deftly changed the subject.

"The other matter went very smoothly." As he spoke, Habara formed hand seals and summoned the ninja cat. "The only people there capable of raising ninja cats were either old ladies or infants, so I had to hire a ninja cat to train the new ones... Its name is Shinso."

At that moment, Shinso maintained the size of a typical domestic cat. Its appearance was virtually indistinguishable from a common housecat, showing none of the usual signs of a ninja animal.

Upon being summoned, it leaped onto Kushina's desk. After turning in a few circles to survey its surroundings, it tilted its head at Kushina, then waved a paw at Habara.

Habara leaned down. Shinso covered its mouth with a paw and whispered something in his ear. Habara's expression immediately changed to one of understanding. He straightened up and addressed Kushina, "Lady Kushina, it requires a formal employment contract..."

Kushina: "..."

She hadn't expected things to be quite so formal.

"Can I just handwrite one now?" Kushina asked tentatively.

Habara leaned down again, listened to the cat's reply, then nodded. "That's acceptable."

He then added, "Lady Kushina, the crucial point is the monthly salary of 200,000 Ryo."

I'm translating 'cat-speak' that sounds just like human-speak into actual human-speak, Habara thought wryly. Is there really any point to having me as a translator?

What Kushina wrote wasn't the main issue; the key was guaranteeing the ninja cat's salary. That had been agreed upon beforehand and couldn't be changed.

"Understood."

Kushina pulled a blank scroll from a drawer beneath her desk, picked up a brush, and quickly wrote out an employment contract. She signed her name and handed the scroll to the cat.

Shinso peered at the contents, then nodded in satisfaction. It lifted a paw, dipped it into the inkwell on the desk, and pressed a paw print onto the scroll, serving as its signature and seal.

Watching the cat's deliberate action, Habara mused, This cat is seriously smart. Maybe even smarter than Naruto. Look at where it placed its paw print – right on top of the characters for "200,000." Now that was knowing how to focus on the important part.

Shinso rolled up the scroll with its paw and tucked it into the fluff of fur on its chest. However, it still didn't speak, instead fixing its gaze intently on Kushina Uzumaki.

By now, Kushina had grasped the cat's style. Without needing any further translation from Habara, she understood its meaning perfectly.

"An advance on the first month's salary, right? I get it. How could I possibly not understand?"

Even when they became wage earners, cats still acted like little lords.