Tch, who's your best friend?

Upstream on the Naka River.

Uchiha Jin sat cross-legged on the ground, holding a fishing rod and staring at the river.

With the aid of his Three-Tomoe Sharingan, he could see through the surface to the fish below.

Unfortunately, not a single fish had taken the bait after all that time.

"Boss, can we really catch fish like this?"

The fat black cat had watched for so long that he was getting sleepy, and he couldn't help narrowing his eyes and yawning.

"Quiet. I have my own rhythm."

Uchiha Jin held his breath and concentrated, waiting for a fish to bite.

As a veteran angler, coming home empty-handed was already routine.

He had the day off today, so he had brought his equipment to the river first thing in the morning, ready to show off his skills.

Yet all he had caught the entire morning were two finger-length grass carp.

Fat Cat had devoured them the moment they were tossed into the bucket.

"Grrr..."

Fat Cat stared at the empty bucket as his stomach growled despite himself.

That morning, Boss had told him to skip breakfast, saying they could eat all the fish they wanted once they reached the river.

He had foolishly believed him and hadn't eaten the half bowl of cat food his mother had prepared.

It was already noon now, and he was practically starving.

If all else failed, he would just have to jump in and catch fish himself.

Rather than count on Boss to provide unlimited fish, he might as well jump into the river and fend for himself.

"Got a bite!"

The float sank, and delight spread across Uchiha Jin's face. With his Sharingan-enhanced vision, he saw a fish weighing roughly thirty jin take the bait.

"Once I reel this in, you can eat all the fish you want."

Fat Cat crouched on the ground, his tail swishing beside him.

After an entire morning of waiting, they finally had a fish.

It hadn't been easy, meow!

Once the fish was landed, he had to feast.

"Jin!"

Just then, a voice from behind startled both man and cat.

Shisui Uchiha had appeared behind them at some point.

Splash-

The big fish, which had nearly been dragged ashore, slipped off the hook while Jin was distracted.

Uchiha Jin: "..."

He had waited all morning before finally hooking a big fish.

Only for someone else to ruin it.

Honestly, he even felt like killing Shisui.

Of all the times this guy could have come, he had to show up right now.

Fucking hell.

How was this anything but deliberate sabotage?!

"Jin... are you okay?"

Looking at his friend's back trembling with anger and the big fish diving underwater, Shisui Uchiha belatedly realized he seemed to have caused trouble.

"Did I interrupt you?"

"What do you want with me?"

Uchiha Jin turned around, his whole face dark.

"You'd better give me a proper explanation, or I won't go easy on you!"

Why wasn't this traitor off being Hiruzen Sarutobi's dog in broad daylight? Did he have nothing better to do than interrupt my fishing?

He was absolutely furious.

That had been a thirty-jin fish. He had never caught a fish that big in either of his lives.

He would probably remember this for the rest of his life...

Shisui Uchiha swallowed with difficulty.

He had a rare day off today and had come over after asking Uchiha Kazuna where his good friend was.

Who could have known his timing would be so bad?

He actually had some fishing experience and knew perfectly well that even if he hadn't appeared, that fish would most likely have slipped off the hook anyway.

His appearance had merely provided a convenient excuse for the fish getting away.

What rotten luck.

If I'd known, I would have shown up later. Now I'm taking the blame.

"Haha, I just wanted to come see you."

Shisui Uchiha scratched his head awkwardly and laughed.

"Now you've seen me. Can you get lost?"

Uchiha Jin was so angry that he felt he was about to awaken his Mangekyō Sharingan.

A poor angler had finally hooked the first big fish of his life, only for the appearance of the inherently evil Shisui Uchiha to ruin it.

Absolutely despicable!

How many big fish could a person catch in a lifetime, anyway?

The fact that he hadn't drawn his blade and slashed at Shisui already showed remarkable self-control.

"Hehe, don't be so quick to chase me off."

Shisui Uchiha picked up the fishing rod from the ground, baited the hook with an earthworm, then cast it into the river.

Black Cat's eyes lit up at the sight.

Those movements were fluid and effortless, leagues beyond Boss's.

A master angler. An absolute master angler.

Looks like I'll soon have all the fish I want...

Just a few dozen seconds later, the float suddenly sank.

Shisui Uchiha jerked the rod, and a two-jin fish flew onto the bank.

Uchiha Jin: "..."

Did this guy secretly use genjutsu to make the fish bite?

How else could he get a bite that quickly?

Something's fishy. Definitely fishy.

As an angler who had spent two lifetimes coming home empty-handed, what he had just witnessed was clearly beyond his understanding.

Shisui Uchiha noticed his friend's bewildered expression, and the corners of his mouth rose slightly.

Hooked him.

Next, he began hauling in fish like mad, landing a dozen or so in just ten minutes.

"Heavens, meow! It's a feast!"

Fat Cat tore savagely into the fish like a hunting dog, tears of excitement spilling from the corners of his eyes.

Food. Finally, food.

Each one weighed several jin. No more finger-length small fry.

Those little things hadn't even been enough to fill the gaps between his teeth.

Uchiha Jin began to question his life.

Could the gap between people really be that big?

He instinctively opened the System Shop, trying to find a Fishing Proficiency skill.

Unfortunately, the all-powerful system had no such thing...

"How did you do that?"

Though he really didn't want to swallow his pride and ask, he genuinely wanted to know how to catch fish.

Why didn't the fish bite when he fished, while this guy got a bite as soon as he cast?

Why, exactly?

"Want to learn?"

At that, Shisui Uchiha turned to look at him, a smile of successful scheming appearing on his face.

"I'll teach you!"

Sure enough, as long as I don't bring up Uchiha Itachi or the conflict between the clan and the village, Jin is just as easy to get along with as before.

"Would you?"

Uchiha Jin's expression was somewhat complicated.

He considered himself a capable learner. With an adult's reasoning and logic, he had always been called a genius at school.

He learned ninjutsu very quickly, too.

If Shisui was willing to teach him to fish, he believed he could become an expert angler in just a few days!

"Of course. We're best friends!"

Seeing this, Shisui Uchiha's smile widened, his eyes curving.

"Tch, who's your friend?"

Uchiha Jin curled his lip and snatched the fishing rod from his hands.

"I'm only letting you teach me to fish. Don't push your luck."

"Fine, fine. We're not best friends, all right?"

The smile never left Shisui Uchiha's face as he moved closer to guide him through fishing at close range.

"Shoo, shoo. Don't get so close."

"How can I give you hands-on instruction if I don't get close?"

"Fair point."

"Bastard, don't touch my hands!"

"Jin, I don't mean to criticize, but... do you know what hands-on instruction means?"

"..."

Having just finished tearing apart a fish, Fat Cat looked up at the two sitting shoulder to shoulder and froze for a moment.

???

When did these two get so close?

As he remembered it, Boss and Shisui had gotten along well at first, but they had later fallen out during the Third Shinobi World War.

Ever since then, every meeting had been tense.

At least, that was what he had seen.

Black Cat had already been ready to find a corner where he could secretly eat fish without being disturbed by their arguing.

Who would have thought they would get along so harmoniously...