Fishing Law Enforcement

This is a very ordinary shop. Inside, there are many pools, each storing various aquatic products categorized by type: grass carp, mandarin fish, perch, as well as crabs, lobsters, shellfish, oysters, and more. The selection is quite comprehensive.

Since it's afternoon, the peak business hours have passed. There's only one old lady in the shop, with hair half black and half white. It's unclear if she's asleep, as she's lying in a lounge chair with her eyes closed, a ginger cat in her arms that looks a bit mangy and quite pathetic.

This must be Grandma Qiu. She's short, and the sunlight filtering through the glass casts a particularly kind glow on her face. She looks just like Hai Yi described, likely a grandmother who's easy to talk to.

"Um... Grandma Qiu?" Xing Ran wasn't sure if the old lady was truly asleep, so he asked softly, as if afraid of waking her.

Xing Ran knew many elderly people who liked to pretend to sleep but were actually awake. That's why he asked quietly. If she was asleep, he wouldn't wake her and would just wait. If she wasn't asleep, he'd quickly ask to become her disciple.

Bubbles from the oxygen tubes in the fish tanks occasionally rose in a stream. There were no other sounds in the fish shop; clearly, Grandma Qiu was asleep.

Xing Ran shrugged and found a spot to sit. To learn from a master, one must understand their position. Waking a sleeping elder is a major faux pas. If this old lady had a "waking temper" skill, it would be very troublesome.

One minute, two minutes, ten minutes... Half an hour quickly passed. The ginger cat in Grandma Qiu's arms had already opened its eyes to look at Xing Ran several times, but Grandma Qiu in the lounge chair showed no signs of waking, leaving Xing Ran feeling helpless.

With nothing else to do, Xing Ran recalled the training method Hai Yi had mentioned. Instead of wasting time waiting, he might as well practice the Mind Body Switch Technique. He could quickly deplete his spiritual energy and experience the feeling of entering a meditative state after exhaustion.

He decided to do it right away. Xing Ran felt like he had just acquired a new skill in a game, and even if the skill was terrible, he wanted to use it as soon as possible.

"Ninjutsu: Mind Body Switch Technique."

Xing Ran casually aimed at a perch. This guy had been staring at him with dead fish eyes for a long time.

Xing Ran had already reduced the preparation time for hand seals and activation to under 3 seconds. For a Genin of the Yamanaka Clan, this speed was considered very fast. After a strange sensation of his soul leaving his body, the world in Xing Ran's eyes changed. It was his first time seeing the world from an underwater perspective, and it felt novel.

Controlling a fish for the first time, his body felt very uncoordinated. He wanted to swim forward, but no matter how hard he tried, he just spun in place. After some struggling, he finally got used to the fish's body, and then quickly became bored. A small fish tank with many other perch – the space was so cramped, the experience was terrible.

Xing Ran estimated that with his current spiritual power, he could control this fish for half an hour without any problem (unlike a ninja, who would have fierce willpower resistance). He didn't want to spend half an hour just blankly staying in this fish tank, admiring his handsome original body sitting nearby through the pool water.

He dispelled the Mind Body Switch Technique and glanced at the clock on the wall. Only 5 minutes had passed. Wasting life like this wasn't his style. Xing Ran's eyes darted, and an idea struck him. He turned his gaze to the ginger cat in Grandma Qiu's arms, his eyes gradually turning mischievous.

He'd use the Mind Body Switch Technique to possess the ginger cat, and then use the cat to wake Grandma Qiu. If she had a waking temper, it would be directed at this mangy cat, not him.

"Ninjutsu: Mind Body Switch Technique."

"Bang!"

"Where did this stinky brat come from? Not selling fish, but messing around here! Meow!"

Xing Ran, who had been immersed in the feeling of his soul leaving his body, as if about to ascend, suddenly felt something collide with him, and then he was kicked back into his own body. This time, the jutsu had clearly failed.

At the same time, a meow-like, no, a sharp voice suddenly sounded in his mind. When Xing Ran came to his senses, he saw the ginger cat bristling in front of him, looking like it would call for help if he came any closer.

"Was that you just now?" Xing Ran stared at the ginger cat before him, his mind racing. Was this a Ninja Beast? Grandma Qiu's Summoning Beast? A mental type? It could actually resist a secret technique of the Yamanaka Clan.

"No, it was me just now." A deep voice suddenly interrupted Xing Ran's thoughts. He saw that Grandma Qiu, who had been pretending to be dead in the lounge chair, had now stood up. She was even shorter than she had appeared earlier, likely due to her age causing her to stoop.

"Ahaha, hello, you must be Grandma Qiu, right? Hai Yi sent me..." Xing Ran's powerful brain finally caught up. If this brat could use the Mind Body Switch Technique, what was strange about this old lady, whom even Hai Yi called a senior, knowing it? No wonder the jutsu failed; the ginger cat's body was so lively. By the way, had this old lady been watching me for a long time? Damn it, she never paid any attention to me.

"Is that so? Hai Yi's adopted son? What a shame, you're not here to steal fish." After learning that Xing Ran was a fellow clan member who wanted to become her disciple, the old lady seemed uninterested. She muttered something under her breath.

Xing Ran had Super Hearing. Ordinary people might not hear such muttering, but he heard it clearly. So, this old lady's fish shop wasn't for selling fish but for catching people? The sign at the entrance clearly stated that stealing fish would result in triple the compensation.

Xing Ran's face turned red with suppressed anger. The old lady, however, seemed to see nothing. She put on a kind, neighborly smile and then rudely told Xing Ran to get lost, as she didn't take apprentices here.

"No, Grandma, we're from the same clan. For the sake of an ambitious youth, please take me in." Xing Ran couldn't hold back his frustration anymore. She wouldn't even take a disciple from her own clan? It seemed much harder to find a master in this Ninja World than in anime. He adjusted his breathing and calmed himself. Right now, he was a disciple without any rights. He'd think about revenge for bullying his master later. The important thing was to learn the skills.

"What does it matter that we're from the same clan? I hate my own clan the most, and I hate ambitious youths even more. Get lost!" Grandma Qiu, pulling out a broom from somewhere, unceremoniously chased Xing Ran out.

Xing Ran looked at Grandma Qiu's shop, completely bewildered. You hate your own clan? But Hai Yi said you were a kind senior?

And what's with hating ambitious youths? The entire Naruto story is about friendship, effort, and victory, positive attitudes. Why is it different with you?

Looking at Grandma Qiu, who stood guard at the door with her broom, looking imposing but occasionally gasping for breath as if she might collapse at any moment, Xing Ran dared not make any rash moves. If she fell down, should he help her? Or should he help her?