In the evening, Natsuro's true body finally returned home after a long time. However, he didn't feel anything particularly special about it.
After all, his Spirit Clone shared the same thoughts and perceptions as him. As long as his Spirit Clone returned home, it was no different from him returning home himself.
He thought that once his Yin-Yang Release became more refined, he could create a consciousness-free body and then transfer a secondary soul into it using Spirit Transformation Jutsu.
At that point, he would truly have two of himself.
"I'm Home."
Soon, the door opened, but the one who greeted him wasn't Shinai, it was Ino.
"I'm back."
Seeing Ino, Natsuro smiled. At this point, Ino spent more time at his house than her own…
Although they weren't officially married yet, to outsiders, she was already considered part of his family.
Suddenly, Ino's eyes lit up as she pointed at the Umbreon, which was licking its own fur while sitting on his shoulder.
"This is…!"
"A pet I found. I plan to keep it with me from now on," Natsuro said, handing Umbreon over to Ino.
Umbreon didn't resist at all, and Ino, after taking it into her arms, looked absolutely delighted, unable to put it down.
"Does it have a name? And… is it a cat?"
As Ino gently stroked its fur, she couldn't help but ask. She wasn't sure what kind of creature it was, but its long ears made it look somewhat like a rabbit too.
"I named it Umbreon. And… just think of it as a cat."
Natsuro thought for a moment before replying. Technically, the Umbreon should be classified as a Chakra Beast, making it a distant relative of the Tailed Beasts.
"Umbreon? That's kind of a weird name…"
Ino playfully teased before quickly returning to playing with it, completely absorbed.
Most of the time, it was just Ino playing with Umbreon, while the little creature remained completely unbothered, letting her squish, stretch, and cuddle it however she liked.
Watching this, he felt that Umbreon seemed to be enjoying itself, especially when Ino was massaging it.
A bit jealous, actually…
After a while, Shinai finally came out.
Upon seeing Umbreon in Ino's arms, her eyes immediately softened with affection.
Fluffy, adorable creatures, they had universal appeal, regardless of age or gender.
However, Shinai soon frowned slightly in concern.
"Natsuro, what does it eat? I didn't prepare any food for it."
"Food? It probably doesn't need to eat," Natsuro replied after thinking for a moment.
"Don't be ridiculous, what kind of pet doesn't need food?"
Shinai rolled her eyes at him and, after a moment of thought, prepared a small dish with a variety of food items, setting them down as a meal for the Umbreon.
Natsuro had a feeling that if Umbreon didn't eat, Shinai would probably just keep trying different foods until it did.
To his surprise, Umbreon actually started eating.
"Hah! I told you, there's no such thing as a pet that doesn't eat."
Shinai looked at him with a smug expression, feeling vindicated.
"…."
Natsuro massaged his temples.
Even though he created Umbreon, he actually didn't know much about it himself.
For example, he still wasn't sure about the full extent of its abilities…
But now, it seemed that Umbreon was the type of creature that didn't need food but could eat without any issues.
At that moment, Ino suddenly remembered the real reason she had come.
She had originally planned to tell Natsuro right away, but she had gotten so distracted by Umbreon that she nearly forgot.
"Hmm? Why?" Natsuro looked at her in confusion.
"Because I'm probably going to have a little brother or sister soon. And since my father is away most of the time, I need to stay home to help take care of my mom."
Ino chuckled as she spoke.
She honestly hadn't expected this to happen, she was already so grown up, and now she was about to have a new sibling?
Granted, she was the one who suggested it in the first place, but she hadn't thought her dad would be this efficient…
"…Huh?!" Natsuro was stunned.
This was something that didn't happen in the original storyline.
But thinking about it, it made sense.
In the original story, Sai had married into the Yamanaka Clan, so there was no need for them to have another child.
But now?
Would the Yamanaka Clan even dare suggest that he marry into their family?
They wouldn't even dare bring it up!
"Got it. But even if you don't come over, I can always go visit you, it's not far."
Natsuro smiled as he responded.
"Mm!"
Ino smiled back and nodded.
....
At night, Natsuro returned to his room
Naturally, Umbreon followed him inside.
As soon as it entered, it fixated on the ceiling.
Seeing this, he became interested, since the ceiling was where he had engraved his fixed-point Flying Thunder God teleportation array.
Although the markings were concealed, it seemed that Umbreon could still detect them.
The next moment, Umbreon vanished from its original position.
Natsuro's gaze shifted toward the ceiling, and soon, he saw that the previously hidden Flying Thunder God markings within the roof were slowly revealing themselves.
At the center of those markings, Umbreon was joyfully swimming through them.
Yes, swimming.
Even though the ceiling was a solid surface, Umbreon moved as if it were in water, occasionally poking its head out of the Flying Thunder God markings.
How is It doing this?
He couldn't help but stare at the Umbreon.
This little creature's abilities might be more mysterious than he had originally thought.
After what seemed like playing to its heart's content, Umbreon suddenly reappeared on Natsuro's shoulder, squinted its eyes, and drifted off to sleep.
He, however, continued watching it closely.
Umbreon had teleported instantly, yet his shoulder didn't have any Flying Thunder God markings, so how did it transfer there?
Did it not actually require Flying Thunder God markings to teleport?
He felt puzzled.
Whether it was the timing of its appearance or its abilities, everything about it seemed a little odd.
But in the end, he shook his head.
Forget it. No need to overthink it.
He felt that Umbreon was harmless, and as its abilities developed, it might even become useful to him.
With that thought, he lay down on his bed for the first time in a long while, closed his eyes, and prepared to rest.
Ever since his body underwent its transformation, he hardly ever slept properly.
His body no longer needed sleep for recovery, so he simply used that extra time for training instead.
If it weren't for the exhaustion from prolonged experiments, and the fact that his latest trials had consumed a significant amount of energy, he probably wouldn't have chosen to rest at all.
After a long while, Umbreon slowly opened its eyes and yawned, as if it had just woken up.
It then licked Natsuro's cheek a couple of times.
Noticing that he didn't react, Umbreon curled up again and rested for a bit longer.
Then, as if sensing something, it suddenly disappeared from Natsuro's room.
The moment it vanished, Natsuro's eyes also opened.
Sensing Umbreon's current location, a strange expression appeared on his face, he hadn't expected it to go there…
But, after thinking about it, it wasn't really an issue.
After all, inside Kurama's (Nine-Tails') seal, there were Flying Thunder God markings.
Not the ones he had carved, but rather the Fourth Hokage's original Flying Thunder God marks.
At first, Natsuro had wanted to see what Umbreon would do after waking up in the middle of the night.
Now, it seemed that it was simply playing around, hopping between Flying Thunder God markings for fun?
If you want to read more...
Check out the patreon and get 55 chapters in advance -> SaintXI
Currently on Chapter 334 - A Meeting With Orochimaru
🎉 Right now there's a 45% discount on all tiers!
Use code 73F58 (Promo ends in 1 day)!!