Upon entering the Land of Rain, Raj mostly hid inside Rin's raincoat.
It wasn't out of perversion; Rin's smaller frame meant her raincoat was slightly roomier.
If he'd tried to squeeze into Obito's raincoat, there might have been no room to move at all.
Plus, Rin's raincoat had a medical kit nest inside.
After entering the Land of Rain, they encountered no trouble along the way.
It wasn't until they reached the border region that they slowed their pace.
"Teacher, what's the next move?" Kakashi asked, turning to Minato.
Ahead lay a range of rain-free hills, marking the border between three nations.
The area was undoubtedly teeming with hidden ninja, including sensory ninjas skilled in detection.
"I remember you have several small ninja dogs, right? Summon them all. I'll mark each one, and then you and Raj will lead a stealth mission. Remember, safety is paramount," Minato said sternly.
"Understood," Kakashi nodded, then glanced at Raj, who was hiding under Rin's raincoat.
"Meow~ Teacher Minato, don't be late again if enemies show up! If you only arrive after Kakashi and I have been sliced into pieces, that would be a huge loss," Raj complained, jumping under Kakashi's raincoat to avoid getting his fur wet.
Obito and Rin exchanged nervous glances, wiping imaginary sweat from their brows.
Only Teacher Minato's good temper could tolerate this.
Any other Jonin with a shorter fuse would have sliced this dead cat into pieces by now.
"Uh... that won't happen. Kakashi, take this kunai as well," Minato said, retrieving a specially crafted kunai from his waist pouch.
"Let's go," Kakashi said, taking the kunai.
He quickly headed toward the Land of Rain's border.
As the rain lessened, Raj leaped out of his raincoat, while Kakashi summoned two small ninja dogs: Pakkun, Raj's old friend, and Bisuke.
Bisuke, also a small dog who could speak human language, was likely less skilled at reconnaissance than Pakkun but far stronger in combat.
Kakashi was about to issue orders when...
"Meow~ Meow... Meow?"
"Woof!"
Raj meowed a few times, and the two dogs nodded vigorously in understanding.
'Dogs understanding cat language? What kind of trick is this...?'
Next, Raj used the Transformation Technique to change his fur to camouflage with the forest.
The dogs glanced at him before running ahead to Kakashi, wagging their tails.
Though unspoken, their meaning was clear.
Kakashi paused in surprise before forming hand seals to manipulate their Chakra, casting the Transformation Technique on them.
He then used the technique on himself, changing his entire body to match Raj's camouflage colors.
The camouflaged cat nodded emphatically before darting into the forest, following the jungle path toward the mountains.
"Kakashi is starting to act like a normal ninja," Minato remarked softly.
When he first reviewed Kakashi's file, he had thought the boy was a problem child.
Despite his exceptional talent, Kakashi seemed like a fatal weakness for any team.
Minato had initially braced himself for a difficult class, but after forming the team, Kakashi proved surprisingly reliable, completely exceeding his expectations.
"That's because of Raj," Obito said, tilting his head and pouting, clearly unimpressed by Kakashi's transformation.
"Kakashi realized his talent was no match for a cat. He even had to be rescued by Raj and us a few times, which humbled him."
Minato and Rin chuckled simultaneously.
Minato then glanced ahead and gestured for them to catch up.
Kakashi and the others had already moved ahead some distance.
"We'll be out of the Land of Rain soon."
"Meow~," Raj responded to Kakashi, then carefully crawled forward.
Beyond the Land of Rain lay the territories of the Sunagakure Ninja and Rock Ninja, their primary surveillance area.
The dogs and Raj slipped through the undergrowth, while Kakashi effortlessly leaped over the dense foliage, a simple task for him.
The journey had been remarkably uneventful so far.
However, shortly after they resumed their advance, Raj and the two dogs abruptly halted.
'Human scent!'
"Two," Pakkun sniffed carefully, then raised a paw.
"Can you track them?"
"Different directions," Raj explained.
Though the scent was faint, their condition suggested the targets had split up, making tracking difficult.
Kakashi crouched down, momentarily stumped.
Splitting up would be more efficient, but Minato was alone.
If both groups encountered trouble, he couldn't save them all.
After a moment's thought, he gritted his teeth and said,
"I'll take this side. You guys take the other. If you run into danger..."
Whack!
A cat paw slammed down on his head, leaving Pakkun and Bisuke stunned.
'Daring to hit Kakashi like that? This cat's got serious street cred!'
Raj glanced at both sides, then pointed to the stronger scent.
"Danger? We're all going this way."
"But..." Kakashi tried to protest, but Raj's unwavering gaze silenced him.
After a long pause, he finally nodded.
'What choice do I have? My skills are useless against him. I can't win. As the saying goes, might makes right.'
They followed the scent trail, remaining well-hidden and undetected.
But when they finally tracked the targets, Raj's heart turned cold.
Two figures stood ahead.
The details weren't important; what mattered was that one had red hair and the other blue.
Though their faces were hidden, Raj already felt a chill creeping up his back and from beneath him.
'Nagato and Konan!'
'Could that black-and-white Zetsu be lurking nearby, spying on us?'
Zetsu's presence was unsettling, but he posed no immediate threat.
Nagato, however, possessed the Rinnegan and the bloodline of the Uzumaki Clan, granting him exceptional sensory abilities.
'We've been discovered!'
Raj dared not speak.
He whirled around and fled.
Kakashi froze for a moment, about to follow, when Bisuke suddenly shot into the air beside him...
In the next instant, the two figures transformed into a swarm of paper, which surged toward them.
'Clones!'
Kakashi instantly understood they'd been exposed.
Poof!
He swiftly canceled the Summoning Techniques for Bisuke and Pakkun, then activated his Lightning Release Chakra Mode to escape.
This ability to snatch targets mid-air was beyond their capabilities.
But in the next instant, the swarm of paper flew ahead of them.
Before Kakashi could react, Raj abruptly changed direction and bolted the other way.
Fortunately, Minato arrived just then.
The paper sheets layered and merged, coalescing into the blue-haired woman.
Meanwhile, Nagato, with his long, emo-style bangs, emerged from behind a massive tree nearby.
"Konoha ninjas?" Konan frowned, halting her attack.
Having learned numerous ninjutsu from Jiraiya, and with Konoha and Amegakure being allied villages, they naturally felt a degree of affection for Konoha.
Raj initially greeted Minato with joy, but quickly urged, "There's another one!"
"What?" Minato's expression shifted abruptly, and in the next instant, Raj vanished from before his eyes.
Summoning Technique!