After taking only two steps, "Shiro" felt his head grow heavy and instinctively shook it.
That scent grew stronger, wrapping around him from every direction.
"Shiro's" four legs began to weaken. His front paws slid forward, and in the end, he couldn't help lying down, resting his head on his paws as his eyes slowly closed.
The street was very quiet.
There wasn't even the sound of cats and dogs fighting.
Then, from the other end of the street, came very, very light footsteps.
A figure walked over from the distance, wearing a dark cloak. The hood was pulled very low, hiding the entire face.
The figure stopped in front of "Shiro." Moonlight fell across the hood, but under the brim, it was pitch black. Nothing could be seen.
Uchiha Toru silently appeared in the shadows of an alley, his brows slightly furrowed as his gaze landed on that figure.
Too late.
His hand moved toward the kunai in his ninja tool pouch.
The figure bent down and reached out toward "Shiro."
Uchiha Toru's fingertips stopped on the kunai's handle.
If he rushed out now, that person only needed to apply force with one hand...
No. The distance was too far. He couldn't let Shin-chan take that risk.
The figure picked up "Shiro" and walked toward the other end of the street.
Uchiha Toru followed along the base of the wall.
That person crossed an intersection, turned into a narrow alley, left the town, and followed a dirt road up the mountain.
Low shrubs lined both sides of the road. Further up, the shrubs turned into sparse pine woods. Moonlight leaked through the branches and broke into mottled patches across the ground.
The person pulled the cloak tighter and continued upward.
When they reached a rock wall, the person stopped, pushed aside a cluster of short pines beside the wall, and slipped inside.
The pine branches swayed a few times, then returned to stillness.
Uchiha Toru did not follow immediately. He waited three seconds before silently pushing aside the short pines.
Behind them was a cave entrance. It wasn't large, just enough for one person to pass through while bending over.
Past the entrance was a narrow passage. Faint light leaked from deeper inside.
After walking about twenty steps, Uchiha Toru poked his head out from the passage, and his pupils suddenly contracted.
It was an enormous cavern.
Dogs were everywhere inside.
Big ones, small ones, black ones, yellow ones, brown ones, spotted ones.
Some lay on the ground dozing. Others gathered in twos and threes, licking each other's fur.
The person carried "Shiro" in through the cave entrance.
A spotted dog came over and sniffed, then wagged its tail as if greeting him.
Passing through the groups of dogs, the person walked to the center of the cavern and took off the hood.
Uchiha Toru's breathing stopped for an instant.
Under the hood was not a human face.
It was the head of a dog.
It lowered its head and looked at "Shiro" in its arms, then gently placed him on the ground.
All the dogs in the cavern gathered around.
The large dog stood in the center, lifted one front paw, and gently pressed it to the ground.
A ring of black patterns lit up on the ground, then spread wildly in every direction.
Uchiha Toru's body moved before his mind did. He rushed straight out of the passage.
A faint red light flashed in his eyes. As if teleporting, he charged into the mass of black patterns and grabbed "Shiro" by the scruff of the neck.
Then the black patterns suddenly tightened.
Uchiha Toru lowered his head and looked at "Shiro" in his hand.
"Shiro" opened his eyes.
Those black eyes blinked, as if he still hadn't fully woken up.
Along with a wave of spatial distortion, the two of them disappeared from the cavern.
An Anbu's hand passed through the spot where Uchiha Toru had just been standing, grabbing nothing.
"A modified version of the Reverse Summoning Technique... And that brat's speed..."
...
When Shin-chan woke up, the first thing he saw was stone.
A stone ceiling, stone walls, a stone floor. Only a beam of light leaked down from somewhere above, falling onto the ground in front of him.
Uchiha Toru was half-crouched in front of him, a kunai held across his body, his shoulders tense.
"Toru?"
Uchiha Toru did not look back. His gaze stayed fixed ahead, unmoving.
"Don't move."
Shin-chan poked his head out from beside Uchiha Toru and saw the large gray dog.
It had deep-gray fur, amber eyes, and a ring of darker mane around its neck.
Their eyes met.
Shin-chan blinked.
The large gray dog blinked too.
Then, with a poof, white smoke scattered, and Shin-chan returned to his original appearance.
"As expected." The large gray dog sighed.
Shin-chan's eyes lit up at once. "You can talk!"
"I am of the Dog Clan." The large gray dog's tone was flat, as if it were stating something perfectly ordinary. "It is normal for me to speak."
Uchiha Toru did not lower his kunai. "The Dog Clan?"
The large gray dog did not answer him. Instead, it looked at Shin-chan again. "You carry the prince's scent."
"What scent?" Shin-chan scratched his head.
"The prince's scent." The large gray dog moved a little closer, its nose twitching slightly as if confirming something. "Its smell is still on you. It is faint, but there is no mistake."
Uchiha Toru stood in front of Shin-chan. "This prince you're talking about—what is going on?"
The large gray dog shifted its gaze from Shin-chan to Uchiha Toru. "The Dog Clan and the Cat Clan are at war."
Uchiha Toru's brow furrowed slightly.
"Our territories border each other, and friction has continued since long ago," the large gray dog said. "This time, the Cat Clan crossed the boundary."
Shin-chan listened with his mouth open, very serious.
"The prince went missing during the last conflict." A slight change entered the large gray dog's voice. "The battle happened in a valley. Both sides were scattered. By the time we drove back the Cat Clan, the prince was gone."
The tip of the large gray dog's tail moved, and it continued, "I am responsible for searching for the prince. At the same time, if I encounter clan members on the road, I bring them back. The Dog Clan needs more warriors."
"Have you seen Shiro?"
The large gray dog's ears twitched. "Shiro?"
"He looks a lot like me after I transform." Shin-chan gestured with his hands. "He disappeared last night."
The large gray dog was silent for an instant.
"I have not seen him."
Shin-chan's shoulders drooped a little.
"But," the large gray dog's voice sounded again, "besides me, there are other clan members doing the same work."
Shin-chan lifted his head.
"I am not the only one searching for the prince," the large gray dog said. "We search in different directions. When we encounter clan members, we bring them back. The white dog you mentioned—if he was taken from the town, he may have been brought back by another search team."
"Where is he?" Shin-chan stood up.
"That is not a place you should go."
"Why?"
"The Dog Clan is not peaceful," the large gray dog said calmly. "The Cat Clan may attack at any time. You are not of the Dog Clan. There is no need for you to get involved."
"But Shiro is there."
Uchiha Toru pressed a hand on his shoulder.
"Shin-chan."
Shin-chan turned to look at him.
"We should go back," Uchiha Toru said calmly. "Mr. Kosuke and Kakashi are still waiting for us."
~~~
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