https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-399-The-Sage-of-the-Six-Paths-Eyes/12558522/
Chapter 400: Strengthening the Disciples
Chapter 400: Strengthening the Disciples
Upon returning to Konoha, Mu Yue, as usual, gave her disciples a day off while she headed to the Hokage's office to report on her mission.
Typically, there would be no need for a personal report to Hiruzen Sarutobi for a B-rank mission, but the unexpected incident they encountered was rather unusual.
Knock knock!
Mu Yue knocked on the wooden door of the Hokage's office.
"Come in," came Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice.
"Third Hokage-sama, there may be ninjas from other ninja villages disguised as Konoha ninjas attacking the Sunagakure ninjas," Mu Yue said as she pushed the door open.
"Mu Yue, tell me the details," Hiruzen Sarutobi said, his expression turning serious.
Currently, three of the Five Great Shinobi Villages had declared war on Konoha, and Hiruzen did not want Sunagakure, the only village that hadn't declared war, to turn against them as well.
"It's like this," Mu Yue began, explaining the encounter with Yecang. "I accepted an escort mission in the Land of Rain and was surrounded by a Sunagakure squad led by Yecang along the way. They attacked us under the pretext of investigation."
"Yecang," Hiruzen Sarutobi murmured, his eyes narrowing in thought.
Yecang was not unknown in the ninja world, and Hiruzen had heard the name before. She was a powerful ninja with a bloodline limit.
"Did you hold back when fighting those Sunagakure ninjas, Mu Yue?" Hiruzen asked after a moment's thought.
In terms of fame, Yecang was a well-known strong ninja in the ninja world, while Mu Yue was only somewhat known in Konoha. However, in terms of strength, Hiruzen didn't think Yecang could surpass Mu Yue.
Mu Yue was proficient in all five nature transformations of chakra, possessed the Hyoton bloodline limit, had learned the Flying Thunder God Technique, knew many powerful jutsu, and had the advantage of intelligence. Yecang stood no chance against her.
Thus, Hiruzen wasn't worried about Mu Yue being injured; he was only concerned that she might not have controlled her strength and accidentally killed some of the Sunagakure ninjas.
If that were the case, Sunagakure would blame Konoha for the deaths, regardless of who had actually killed their ninjas.
"I was forced to fight back and engaged them until we could have a proper conversation. There were no casualties," Mu Yue replied.
"Afterward, Yecang also admitted that it was their mistake and that they would conduct an investigation again," she added.
With his current strength, fighting Yecang's Sunagakure squad would be nothing but a one-sided massacre. There was no room for unexpected incidents.
"You handled that well, Mu Yue," Hiruzen Sarutobi praised with a smile. "I will arrange for the ANBU to investigate this matter further."
This mission had allowed Hiruzen to witness Mu Yue's capabilities in handling matters, whether it was teaching or jutsu. Mu Yue's other abilities were also exceptional.
"It's a good thing I discovered her talent in time. Otherwise, Mu Yue wouldn't have been able to truly showcase her abilities," Hiruzen thought to himself, mentally patting himself on the back while shooting a disdainful glance at Danzo Shimura.
In Hiruzen's opinion, a genius like Mu Yue couldn't have remained unknown for long. It was clear to him that the darkness of Root had restricted her.
Hiruzen couldn't help but feel a sense of regret. If Mu Yue had revealed her talents earlier, he might have directly taken her on as his disciple.
Currently, Hiruzen's top choice for the Fourth Hokage was Jiraiya, followed by Tsunade. However, what frustrated him was that neither of them wanted to become the Hokage.
Hiruzen had tried to pave the way for Jiraiya on numerous occasions, but Jiraiya always bluntly refused, falling just short of carving the words "I don't want to be Hokage" on his face.
As for Tsunade, it went without saying. At least Jiraiya showed some respect to Hiruzen, but Tsunade couldn't be bothered to even acknowledge him.
Hiruzen's other disciple, Orochimaru, did have ambitions to become the Hokage. However, Hiruzen did not want Orochimaru to succeed him.
The young Orochimaru had been somewhat reclusive and aloof, but the current Orochimaru gave Hiruzen the feeling that he was gradually losing his humanity.
Such a person could be part of Konoha's leadership, but not the Hokage.
After finishing her report, Mu Yue returned home directly.
This time, Hiruzen didn't give any special rewards; instead, he provided her with some ninja training resources.
After all, he had already granted Mu Yue the privilege of freely borrowing ninjutsu scrolls from the library, so she had more than enough in terms of ninjutsu.
In terms of position, Mu Yue only held the post of vice-principal at the Ninja Academy, and Hiruzen couldn't very well fire himself to promote Mu Yue to principal.
"There are many wandering ninjas, ninja organizations, and ninjas from other powerful ninja villages," Mu Yue thought as she sorted through the intelligence she had gathered from the Land of Rain. She realized that the situation in the Land of Rain was too perfect for her plan to recruit disciples.
Mu Yue's plan was as follows: First, she would make a profound impression on Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan of Akatsuki in the Land of Rain. Then, she would establish a reputation and a lofty image to attract them to seek her out again.
Teaching classes would not only spread his name but also earn him rewards, making it a no-brainer.
Soon, countless ninjas from the Land of Rain would become his students.
Mu Yue was confident that ninjas would flock to his classes, as his teaching methods had been proven time and again.
A slight display of his strength would ensure that those ninjas would be clamoring to attend his lessons.
...
After disbanding, Kakashi didn't immediately go to train. Instead, he headed to the Konoha Library to search for information about the Rinnegan.
It wasn't that Kakashi didn't trust Mu Yue; he was simply curious to learn more.
However, Kakashi was disappointed to find that there were no records of the Rinnegan's abilities, only mythical legends.
Since he was already there, Kakashi decided to look up information about the tailed beasts once more, but he still came up empty-handed, no closer to understanding why they went berserk.
Leaving the library, Kakashi went to find Might Guy.
After returning from Loran, Kakashi had tried to find Guy, but he had been on a mission at the time, so Kakashi hadn't been able to locate him.
"My dear friend, do you wish to challenge me? I've been waiting for this day for a long time!" Guy asked excitedly.
It had been over half a year since he had last defeated Kakashi, and Guy had been itching for another battle with him.
In the past six months, Guy had not slackened in the slightest, consistently pushing himself to train. He felt that he was just a step away from mastering the fifth gate.
"I didn't come to fight you; I have something to discuss," Kakashi replied, shaking his head.
He wanted to share the information about the future with Guy, encouraging him to work together to change what was to come.
Hearing that Kakashi wasn't there for a fight, Guy's excited expression instantly turned to disappointment. He had already planned out how he would initiate the battle.
"If you really want to be challenged, I suppose that could be arranged," Kakashi said, seeing Guy's disappointment.
"So, it's time for another battle filled with youth and passion!" Guy laughed, giving Kakashi a thumbs-up, his white teeth shining brightly.
"But only if it's rock-paper-scissors," Kakashi added.
Guy, who had been full of life a moment ago, now looked like a deflated cabbage, as if he had been hit by a one-hit KO move.
"Rock, paper, scissors!"
Although Guy was a bit disappointed, he still took the rock-paper-scissors challenge seriously.
"You win," Kakashi said, raising the scissors in his hand.
Guy looked at his fist and sighed. He really wanted to engage in a fierce, physical battle with Kakashi; only then would winning feel truly satisfying.
Silently adding this victory to his overall win record against Kakashi, Guy followed him to a secluded grove.
"We accepted the mission to investigate the minister of Loran, and we encountered ninjas from the future..."
Kakashi first briefly explained how they had met Naruto Uzumaki and the others, and then he went into detail about the intelligence they had gathered from the future.
He shared not only the future intelligence but also the latest information about Akatsuki that they had obtained in the Land of Rain.
Guy was astonished to hear that Kakashi and the others had met ninjas from the future, but he trusted Kakashi implicitly and didn't question any of it.
"To change the future, we need your strength," Kakashi said solemnly.
"That's precisely why I've been training my body to become stronger!" Guy replied with a brilliant smile.
Mu Yue, Obito, and Rin Nohara were all companions that Guy acknowledged, and he would do everything in his power to protect them.
"Don't tell anyone else about this, except for us," Kakashi reminded him.
Guy nodded seriously.
Then, Guy and Kakashi made their way to the Southern Forest. Kakashi wanted to discuss something with Mu Yue's other disciples, and his reluctance to fight Guy earlier was related to this matter.
"To help everyone improve faster, I propose that we conduct a practical test every three months, and the bottom two performers will receive a punishment," Kakashi shared his idea.
Perhaps to others, their current strength at the age of ten would be considered that of super geniuses. But Kakashi felt it wasn't enough. This level of power was still insufficient to change history; they needed to be at least as strong as Naruto Uzumaki or Yamato.
Rin nodded helplessly. She wanted to participate, but it wouldn't be interesting if the strength gap was too vast.
"I agree, and I think today is a good day to start the first practical battle!" Might Guy was the first to support Kakashi.
"I think it's a good idea," Itachi said, nodding in agreement.
Although Itachi didn't currently have the confidence to defeat any of the three—Kakashi, Obito, or Rin—he felt that this would be more conducive to their strength improvement.
"I have no objections, but what is the punishment?" Tobirama asked curiously.
"It's simple. The punishment will be something that each of you dislikes," Kakashi replied.
Due to individual differences, some punishments might be considered rewards for certain people, so Kakashi felt that personalized punishments were necessary.
Tobirama's face turned slightly grim as he quickly spoke up, "I really hate..."
"For example, Tobirama, if you dislike studying and doing exams, then your punishment will be to study and take exams," Kakashi interrupted.
"I think I hate eating green peppers even more. How about changing it to eating ten green peppers instead?" Tobirama suggested, trying to negotiate a different punishment.
"After all, I know myself best."
Kakashi gave Tobirama a nonchalant look, "If you truly hated eating green peppers more, you wouldn't have suggested swapping the punishment."
Tobirama understood himself very well, but he also tended to deceive himself at times.
"Exams are indeed Tobirama's weakness." Rin recalled how Tobirama had looked so dejected when he was punished to take exams, and she covered her mouth with a giggle.
"Indeed, with his level of knowledge, taking exams is quite a challenge," Kakashi immediately added, twisting the knife in Tobirama's heart.
Tobirama's face turned red as he tried to argue, "But I scored eighty points in the science section of the Chunin exam! Eighty points, mind you!"
Although this was partly due to Mu Yue's assistance, it was also a result of his hard work.
"So, you're saying you're not afraid of taking exams, which means you shouldn't have suggested swapping punishments." Kakashi continued, his lips curling upwards at the sight of Tobirama's reddening face.
Tobirama didn't know how to refute, so he could only curse Kakashi in his heart and reluctantly agree to this punishment.
Kakashi was harsh on Tobirama, but he was equally harsh on himself. Soon, he volunteered his own punishment.
"If I end up in the bottom two, for one consecutive week, no matter what Tobirama says, I will not argue back," Kakashi said solemnly.
In Kakashi's opinion, this punishment was akin to torture for him, as Tobirama would undoubtedly spew all sorts of outrageous remarks.
With Tobirama and Kakashi setting the tone, Itachi and Might Guy also showed no mercy to themselves, each choosing a punishment that would be sufficiently difficult for them to endure.
Soon, it was time for the official practical battle to begin.
The four of them drew lots to determine their first-round opponents. The two who were eliminated in the first round would have to undergo the punishments, while the two winners would fight each other again. The ultimate winner of this round would be Mu Yue's strongest disciple for the next three months.
Since she didn't have to participate in the practical battle, Rin took on the task of organizing the event and helped the others with the drawing of lots.
"Itachi is number one, Tobirama is number two, Kakashi is number three, and Might Guy is number four," Rin announced the results of the draw.
"My dear friend, this is the bond between us!" Might Guy laughed and gave Kakashi a thumbs-up, his previous disappointment vanishing instantly.
Kakashi's expression turned serious. No matter how strong Might Guy was, he had to win this battle; otherwise, he dared not imagine how arrogant Tobirama would become in the next seven days.
Itachi and Tobirama locked eyes, both of them brimming with fighting spirit.
Itachi was eager to win, not only because of the punishment but also due to his competitive nature.
Among Mu Yue's disciples, Itachi was the youngest, but he was also the first one to start training under Mu Yue. Rather than being known as the weakest, he was more accustomed to being the strongest.
"Tobirama, your Fire-Style Breathing Technique is powerful, but you don't know that I've already mastered the Armed Color Chakra Mode," Itachi's confidence stemmed from his mastery of the Armed Color Chakra Mode.
From the very beginning, Itachi's progress with the Armed Color Chakra Mode had been ahead of the others. While the rest were still clueless, Itachi had already managed to use the aura intermittently.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
