I yawned lazily, stretching my arms. For some unknown reason, my old mattress felt more comfortable than usual.
"Nnng... That was the best night of sleep I've had in years. Time to finish the last applications."
Final exams were only three months away, and I had to work hard.
Once that was done, I'd officially secure a position at the company where I was an intern.
I slowly rubbed my eyes and tried to get up. "Hmm?? Something feels off."
My body was slightly numb, and my bones felt stiff and frozen in place.
And now that I thought about it, my eyes were also extremely tired—my eyelids probably swollen, each one weighing a dozen kilos...
"Hmm?? I don't remember crying last night?" I frowned, puzzled.
Even though swollen eyes and wet pillowcases weren't entirely new to me, I still felt like something was wrong.
"Ahh… Yesterday!!"
I remembered the feeling of extreme cold. Gathering my strength, I tried to move—only to fail miserably.
I felt wrapped in some kind of fabric that restrained me, and I couldn't get out. I couldn't even feel my hands—or at least, not like before. A constant weakness ran through my body.
Panicked, I tried rolling to break free.
Then I heard an unfamiliar voice say:
— "So you're awake…"
That panicked me even more. I started flailing. Was I kidnapped? I don't own anything worth stealing—why would someone kidnap me?!
I then felt myself being lifted from the ground and slowly unwrapped.
When I reopened my eyes, I found myself face to face with someone.
I felt uncomfortably close, so I pushed the person's face away with my hands.
Seriously, the kid is cute, but I'm neither gay nor a pedo.
At that moment, I saw two small paws appear in my field of vision. When I applied pressure with what I thought were hands, the paws extended claws.
When I pulled back, the paws left the boy's face. I gently tapped his cheek… and the paws followed the motion.
My mind went blank.
— "Ow…"
The boy's voice was calm, almost too calm for a child his age. He brought a hand to his cheek, where the tiny claws had left a faint red mark.
This isn't…
He didn't seem angry. Just… surprised.
I stared at him, frozen.
Almost ten minutes later, the boy finally spoke to me.
— "Why do you look so depressed? I'm the one who got scratched, you know."
I glanced at him and sighed—if that was even possible in this form.
The boy placed a bowl of pâté in front of me.
— "Here, this is for you. You should eat."
When I didn't react, he gently pushed the bowl closer.
Should I purr in gratitude?
I guess I should, after all, he's feeding me.
But I really don't feel like doing that.
Driven by hunger, I approached the dish and started eating. That's when a screen suddenly popped up in front of me, making me jump back in shock:
— "Too hot?" the boy asked.
I shook my head at his question.
— "Ah, so you understand me?"
That question made me freeze for a second before I slowly returned to my food and pretended nothing had happened.
I turned my attention to the screen now clearly visible:
[Emergency Quest: Survive – Complete]Reward: Level +2
[Emergency Quest: Emergency Ration – Complete]Reward: Level +2
I ignored the rewards for now, because one terrifying thought settled into my mind: I almost died—and it was probably this boy who saved me.
I looked at the rest of the screen:
[Current Status]
Name: Unknown
Species: Litten ♀
Level : 5
Nature : Timid
Ability : None
Status : Stray
Evolution Condition : Level 17 (additional requirements not met)
[Known Moves] :
Scratch – Normal Type – Physical
Growl – Normal Type – Physical/Status
Tail Whip – Normal Type – Status
[Active Quests][Adapt to your new body
.Reward: Understanding of Force]
What the hell? I knew I wasn't human anymore—but a Litten?
What even is that? So… my bathtub sent me into the Pokemon world?
And "Force"? Isn't that a Star Wars thing? This script is all wrong, isn't it?
And then there's this ♀ symbol…
Is this some kind of joke?
That was enough to kill my appetite. I curled back up on the floor.
The little boy approached me again.
— "You're not hungry anymore?" he asked.
He came a bit closer and gently tried to pet me. I flinched away from his touch.
— "You seemed to like it earlier…"
Then there was a loud cry that startled me.
I dropped my head to the ground and covered my ears with my front paws.
The boy rushed over to the couch and picked up a baby, gently rocking him.
After a few minutes, the baby calmed down, and the boy returned to me and said:
— "Mom isn't here right now, so Sasuke is under my care."
I didn't care. I just wanted that walking siren to stay far away from my poor ears.
Then it hit me: Who did he just say?
I'm absolutely screwed.
I stared at the kid again.
Sasuke.
That name hit me like a can thrown full-speed at my face. Not because it was weird—no, it was actually kinda cool—but because that name… that name…
Sasuke.
The baby's wail once again tore through my eardrums and confirmed my fear.
Sasuke. That's not just any name. That's a death sentence.
I'm in Naruto.
And if this boy was Itachi… then I wasn't just in Naruto. I was in deep, deep trouble.
Like, neck-deep.
I slowly turned my head toward him, my gaze empty.
He couldn't be more than ten or eleven years old. Which meant I was here before the massacre. Before the wars. Before the Akatsuki. Before everything went completely to hell.
And me? I was a damn kitten. A red-striped fluffball that could barely scratch, growl, or wag its tail.
At least this is after the Nine-Tails attack, right? That's… good?
Who am I kidding…
Unbeknownst to me, Itachi was still watching as I rolled on the floor, paws covering my ears, looking like a deeply traumatized kitten.
…
Can I just go back to sleep and cancel all this?