PAW ENCYCLOPEDIA
Haven't seen him in a long time.
Granny Cat...
Give me 400 ninja cat kunai knives and 600 shuriken.
Well, what a surprise that you would come yourself.
The Uchiha brat was so cute back then.
What?! We're going to catch another cat?!
Not quite. It's actually a Nekomata.
Our mission is to get the paw print of this Nekomata.
Nekomata, or whatever!
Let someone else go on D-rank missions like that!
Right, Sasuke? Aren't you tired of missions like this?
Speak up and tell him.
Sasuke?
If you don't like it, don't come.
This is an Uchiha... or rather, my mission.
Why?!
- Leaf's History - Sasuke's Paw Encyclopedia
I'm glad you came, Sasuke boy.
It's been a long time, Granny Cat.
My, how you've grown.
You know her, Sasuke?
What is this place anyway?
This is the shop where the Uchiha clan buys weapons.
Granny Cat is the source of invaluable data for the Uchiha.
She is also our client for this mission.
Tamaki...
Bring me the Paw Encyclopedia.
Here you are, Granny.
You turned that into a book?!
Sasuke...
You seem to know a lot about this mission.
Care to explain why?
Originally, this book was a game between Sasuke and his older brother Itachi.
Don't talk about him!
I'm going to start preparations for the mission.
What's with him?
They used to be so close back then.
Itachi often came by on errands with little Sasuke in tow.
But Sasuke would get bored, throw tantrums,
and give Itachi such a hard time.
So Itachi came up with the game
of gathering the paw prints of quick and nimble cats.
You mean a kid's game.
Well yes.
But he already had the skills of a genin even before entering the Academy.
He was an Uchiha all right.
MIKE THE SWIFT
Anyway, it was a cute game at first.
TWO-SIDED WILD CAT But things began to escalate.
Sasuke completed nearly all the quotas that Itachi half-jokingly assigned him.
DREAD LION And his collection of paw prints became this book.
But even after Sasuke stopped, it's bothered me.
As for one of two remaining quotas that Itachi assigned,
I asked Ni'i of the Hidden Cloud, and she kindly agreed.
Ni'i of the Hidden Cloud? What's that?
And so, you're asking us to get the last one?
However...
Nekomata is a big shot in the ninja cat underworld
that never shows his face in public.
He hides in an impregnable fortress.
The number of ninja cats who guard Nekomata is unknown.
Can a three-man cell of genin manage this?
Just leave it to us! Right, Sakura?
Even Itachi thought this was too difficult for Sasuke
and wouldn't allow him to go.
You'll have to exercise extreme caution.
So that's what was bothering Sasuke.
I'll go beyond the boundary he set.
Hey, Sasuke. Let's change into cats and infiltrate that fortress!
I guess the best way to infiltrate a fortress of cats is to become one.
Transformation Jutsu!
How is that supposed to be a cat?!
I thought I looked pretty good.
You don't have to transform.
Besides, transforming won't make you understand cat talk.
And so! If you put these on, the cats will think you're one of them!
If it's that simple, why didn't you give me these from the very start?!
I-I'm expected to wear this?!
We're known in these parts, so we can't go any further.
No ninja cat has ever seen Nekomata's face.
Will you be able to find him?
Thanks to these, infiltrating will be quite easy.
You look so cute, Sasuke!
If we can get in successfully, the rest will be easy.
Let's go!
Hold it.
Sasuke, we're supposed to be able to talk to ninja cats with this thing.
Meaning there's no need to start a fight.
Let's just talk it out with him.
I'm sure he'll be happy to give us one or two of his paw prints.
Impossible.
Why's that?
Having your paw print taken is extremely embarrassing for a cat.
For humans, it's like being stripped naked, then photographed.
Is that all? A nude photograph? Just coax them gently.
I mean, even Sakura would allow it.
Right, Sakura?
As if! You pervert!
I think talking will be useless.
Thanks for showing us the way.
Get going, pervert.
Next!
I don't recognize you guys.
We're newbie cats!
Here.
For someone new, you're quick to catch on.
What gave us away?!
Like I know!
This is a reward for you.
New cats that get the idea are welcome!
What's the matter? You're welcome to it.
W-We have to play along or they'll get suspicious.
I must do this to get Nekomata's paw print!
Hey, this is kind of fun.
Stupid sneeze.
This is fun.
A human! There's a human in our midst!
Huh?! W-What're you saying?!
You idiot! Let's go!
Hey, those two are suspicious too!
They're impostors! Alert! Alert!
S-Sasuke! Sakura!
What business does a human have with Boss Nekomata's fortress?!
Get out! Get out, now!
O-Okay, I get it!
I'm guessing you're telling me to leave, right?
Okay, I'm going.
Damn it. It's back to the drawing board!
What's with all this security? What's going on?
I heard some human slipped in.
A human?! If he's nearby, I'll snare him!
We don't have to worry about Naruto.
We'll take advantage of the commotion and search for Nekomata.
Sakura, you start from the east tower. I'll take the west.
Huh? At the very least, we need a two-man team for this.
They already know we've infiltrated. Time is of the essence.
It's smarter to split up for the search!
O-Okay, I understand.
What's all the commotion?
Boss! A human! There's a human who slipped into the fortress!
A human infiltrator?! Kick him out this instant!
Right!
A human? It's been seven years since...
No, it couldn't be.
If I can't get past the front gate,
I'll just sneak in from the side like a ninja.
BAR CAT'S EYE
The best place to get information is a bar.
Your Matatabi drink, miss.
Oh...I didn't order yet.
It's from that customer over there.
May I join you?
Oh, yes.
A new acquaintance. This occasion calls for...
You've gotta try this, it's so good!
Say, do you know a cat named Nekomata?
You mean, Boss?
He always stays in the main fortress tower.
Oh, thank you.
You can have this.
Rigged plastic bottles?!
These are supposed to be used against cats! Not by cats!
B-Boss is in the main tower.
I'm sure Sasuke is also heading there.
You don't look familiar.
I-I'm new here.
I see. So what do you want with the boss?
Oh no... He overheard my earlier conversation.
Who are you?!
You must have infiltrated with that human earlier!
Small fries can stay out of this!
Don't call me a small fry!
I won't allow you to get near the boss!
He's fast!
If there's an opening, it'll be the instant he lands!
Cha!
What was that just now?
I know I landed a hit, but there was no reaction.
He's quick and flexible.
Then I'll take advantage of his power when he gets close!
It's so obvious you want the counter.
Y-You...
Y-You're a human?!
Well then... No mercy!
Prepare to die!
Cat's fur cannot repel water.
When a cat's fur is drenched with water, its body temperature drops rapidly.
I-It's cold.
I give up.
We've been beaten!
So you made it all the way here.
Kid, who are you?
Are you Nekomata?
It'll be easy if you willingly offer your paw.
If not, it'll probably be quite painful.
You have the guts to stand before me and make such threats.
What is this?
Who are you?
Sharingan!
Disappear!
Sharingan can see through genjutsu.
Genjutsu has no effect on me!
You're pretty good. Then I'll go with brute strength!
Sasuke...
Here's the final blow!
Snap out of it, Sasuke!
Sasuke!
Are you all right?
Sakura... Naruto...
So this is Nekomata?
The headliner, Naruto Uzumaki, is here!
Stay out of this!
Huh?!
He's mine!
Besides...it's just about over!
There's no need to dodge it.
Paper bombs?!
You didn't think I was just running around, did you?
Mission accomplished!
You drew an unlucky number that time, Nekomata.
I wanted to have a go with him
since he was Itachi's kid brother.
Besides, I couldn't refuse a request from Itachi.
M-Monster!
In time, my kid brother will come.
When he does, fight him with all your might.
Although, with your strength,
my brother doesn't have it in him yet to beat you.
Then why?!
Growth occurs when one goes beyond one's limits.
Realizing that is also part of training.
I hate to admit it, but Sasuke passed Itachi's test with flying colors.
Indeed.
But how unfortunate...
Those two brothers were so close.
Old man. They call you the "Eternal Genin," but how long have you been doing this for?
It'll be fifty years this year.
That's some history!
I had my share of memories with each of the Hokages.
Ah yes, I also had the chance
to work alongside the great Lord Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin.
With Pervy Sage?!
Next time on Naruto Shippuden: "Naruto and the Old Soldier"
Who is this old man?
Tune in again!