2nd gen Exhaust Re-route?

I'm going to be making 3/16" skid plates soon here. I'd like the plates to be as "unlumpy" as possible. That perpendicular exhaust pipe near the transfer case is bugging the crap out of me. It hangs down lower than anything else and it just looks like a bunch of unnecessary tubing to me. I'm sure Toyota had some good reason in mind when they designed it that way but I can't for the life of me figure out what it is.

Do aftermarket cat backs eliminate it? Can a muffler shop fix it easily/cheaply? I could even do it myself but I'm concerned about messing with it because I don't want to mess up readings to/from sensors, computers, etc.

I can build the skids around it but I'd prefer not to.

 

muffler shop

will cost you not much.

a bunch of guys have done it, they just reroute it. I'm getting mine done in a few weeks.