After seeing that it was Naruto, Sasuke casually slipped the kunai in his hand back into the tool pouch strapped to the outside of his thigh.
"Ninja dogs. Also, couldn't you knock before coming in?"
Naruto stayed perched with one leg over the windowsill. He looked at the two dogs on the floor, then at Sasuke.
"Liar!" Naruto pointed at the White Dog. "You never had any dogs before! And the Uchiha Clan isn't... isn't that thing, so how could you have ninja dogs?"
Sasuke walked over to the desk and set down the seafood-flavored cup noodles Naruto had brought him.
"The Uchiha Clan has always had a tradition of keeping ninja cats." Sasuke turned to look at Naruto, still perched on the windowsill. "If we have ninja cats, what's so strange about having two ninja dogs?"
Naruto froze.
His not particularly sharp mind began working at top speed.
He knew the Uchiha Clan was a big family.
It was common knowledge that big families had a lot of secrets.
If they had ninja cats... then having ninja dogs seemed pretty reasonable too, didn't it?
After all, he didn't even know how many people there were in the Uchiha Clan, let alone what pets they kept at home.
"O-oh, I see..." Naruto replied stiffly, swinging his other leg into the room.
He set the steaming cup noodles in his hand on Sasuke's desk, but his gaze remained fixed on the black and white dogs.
The White Dog sat on the floor, its right ear twitching twice as its golden eyes sized Naruto up.
"What are you looking at, shorty?" The White Dog bared its sharp fangs.
"It-it-it talked!" Naruto pointed at the White Dog, his finger trembling.
"Don't make such a fuss." The White Dog rolled its eyes and scratched its neck with a hind leg. "Never seen a talking dog before, country bumpkin?"
Naruto thought of Kiba Inuzuka.
Kiba walked around class all day with that little dog called Akamaru perched on his head, showing him off to everyone.
But Akamaru could only bark. He couldn't speak like a person.
And now this guy Sasuke had a ninja dog that could talk!
"Hmph. So what if it's a ninja dog that can talk? I don't think it's anything special."
The White Dog stood up and circled Naruto, sniffing his orange pajamas.
"You reek of sour envy. Are you jealous that Sasuke has such smart, adorable ninja dogs? Admit it. Your eyes are practically turning green."
"Who's jealous? I'm not jealous of a couple of ordinary little dogs!"
Naruto's face flushed bright red as he shouted back, though his gaze kept drifting helplessly to the White Dog's soft, snow-white fur.
"I'll definitely find a summoning beast a hundred times stronger than you someday! It'll be at least... at least as big as Kage Rock!"
"Even if you really summon something, it'll probably just be a giant toad."
"What did you say, you stinking dog? I'm a genius! Once I learn some powerful ninjutsu, the first thing I'll do is beat you to the ground!"
Naruto instantly bristled and reached out to grab the White Dog's ear.
The White Dog nimbly hopped back, dodging Naruto's hand.
"What, did I hit a nerve?"
The boy and the dog glared at each other, baring their teeth.
The Black Dog got up and ambled over to the White Dog, nudging aside the one still trading insults with Naruto.
"I'm a little interested in you." The Black Dog lifted its head and looked at Naruto.
Naruto blinked, then pointed at himself. "Huh? Me?"
"You're too noisy, and you don't look reliable at all."
"I think I should go to your room and keep an eye on you, in case you cause some kind of mess in the middle of the night."
Naruto's eyes lit up. This was the first time anyone... any dog had shown interest in him.
But he quickly put on a stern expression, crossed his arms, and pretended he wasn't interested.
"If you insist on coming, then I suppose I can let you stay the night." Naruto pouted and scuffed the windowsill with his toe.
"But I'm warning you, don't mess up my bed, and don't steal my cup noodles!"
The Black Dog jumped onto the windowsill and landed beside Naruto.
"Lead the way," the Black Dog said.
Suppressing a grin, Naruto glanced at Sasuke.
"Hey, Sasuke! Eat those cup noodles soon, or they'll get soggy."
Then he turned and jumped back onto his balcony.
"Hey, Blackie, what's your name? Can you play with shuriken? Let me tell you, today at school..."
Naruto's voice was cut off when the window next door closed.
The White Dog walked over to Sasuke's feet and lay down on the floor.
"That Black Charcoal definitely went to steal food," the White Dog muttered.
"If it can get some, that's its own business." Sasuke tore open the cup noodle wrapper and picked up the fork. "Want some too?"
"Ha? What do you take me for? I'm a noble shikigami!" The White Dog leaped up, bristling.
"You can't even beat Mahoraga's toe. What's so noble about that?"
"You bastard, duck-ass!"
The night grew darker, and an empty cup noodle container sat on the floor.
Every so often, Naruto could be heard talking at the Black Dog next door. Eventually, even that fell silent.
The morning sunlight streamed through the window, casting a square of light on the floor.
A faint scraping sound came from the balcony.
Sasuke opened his eyes.
The Black Dog jumped in through the window and landed steadily on the floor.
"Have you been eating pig feed? You've gotten so fat," the White Dog yawned and muttered.
"I haven't gotten fat." The Black Dog shook its fur. "It's an illusion."
Sasuke noticed the change in the Black Dog too and examined it closely.
The most obvious difference was its size. It had clearly grown bigger and rounder.
Second, Cursed Energy was visibly flowing through its body.
"You've gotten a little bigger." Sasuke stared into the Black Dog's eyes.
The Black Dog walked over to the bed and sat down, bending its hind legs.
"Have I?"
Sasuke ignored the Black Dog's feigned ignorance.
He closed his eyes and focused his attention inward.
His Cursed Energy Pool had been completely dry, but now a shallow layer had gathered inside it.
He understood.
The shikigami of the Ten Shadows Technique were currently in a buyout state and couldn't be withdrawn into the Shadow Channel.
But that also meant they were completely free of the limits of Sasuke's body, becoming two independent individuals who could act on their own.
The Jade Dogs could devour curses. The Black Dog had absorbed energy in Naruto's room last night, which had led to its own growth.
And since the Ten Shadows were Sasuke's shadows, the energy the Black Dog gained while out foraging was also directly feeding back into Sasuke.
As long as the Jade Dogs kept devouring negative emotions out in the village, Sasuke could grow stronger without lifting a finger.
"How much did you absorb last night?" Sasuke looked at the Black Dog.
"A little," the Black Dog replied.
"After he fell asleep, some red negative emotions leaked out of his stomach. I lay beside him and absorbed them all night."
"You should've gained some Cursed Energy from what I did too, right?"
"Do you feel unwell at all?" Sasuke carefully observed the Black Dog's condition.
Those negative emotions were powerful. He was worried about the Jade Dogs' limit.
The Black Dog opened its mouth and burped.
A wisp of dark red smoke drifted out of its mouth and quickly vanished into the air.
"No." The Black Dog licked its lips. "It's a little spicy. I can handle it."
Good. This approach worked.
Konoha was never short on negative emotions, but the two dogs had to be able to roam the village openly.
They couldn't arouse the Anbu's suspicions or make the Third Hokage think something was wrong.
"Listen."
Both dogs immediately perked up their ears.
"Starting today, you're my ninja dogs. I'll take you to school, the training ground, and around the streets of the village."
"First, we'll get people used to seeing you." Sasuke opened the door. "Once everyone in Konoha is used to having you around and thinks it's perfectly normal for me to keep two dogs..."
Sasuke glanced back at the Black Dog.
"Then you can go around and eat whatever you find."
The White Dog wagged its tail excitedly. "Yes! Wandering around!"
The Black Dog silently followed Sasuke out the door.
"I'm going next door," the Black Dog said.
"Suit yourself." Sasuke shut the door behind him.
In the hallway, Naruto happened to step out of his room.
Seeing Sasuke and the two dogs following him, Naruto froze.
"Hey! Why'd you run off? I spent ages looking for you this morning!"
The Black Dog walked over to Naruto's feet and looked up at him.
"You snore too loudly. It's annoying."
Naruto's face turned bright red. He pointed at the Black Dog, unable to say a word.
Sasuke walked past Naruto and headed straight for the stairs.
"Let's go. We're throwing shuriken today, aren't we?"
Naruto hurried after him.
"Don't get cocky! Today I'm definitely going to wipe the floor with you!"
Before you continue