Chapter 176: C-Class to A-Class
The journey back to Konoha was far faster than the escort. Without a carriage slowing them down, the team moved swiftly through the forests and plains.
By afternoon, Mugetsu and his students finally arrived at the village gates.
"Everyone, you're dismissed for now," Mugetsu said calmly. "No training or missions today. Take the rest of the day to rest and recover. We'll meet at Training Ground Twenty-Six tomorrow morning."
To make it back before nightfall, Mugetsu had pushed them hard—traveling almost nonstop except for short meal breaks.
His haste wasn't due to urgency in reporting the mission, but because he wanted to make it back in time for Might Guy's birthday.
If they had traveled at a normal pace, they would have only reached Konoha by January 1st itself, leaving no time to prepare.
"Ugh, finally back. Traveling nonstop is so boring," Obito groaned, stretching his arms with exaggerated exhaustion.
Constant running and movement had been pure torture for him.
"Kakashi, want to have a backward running race?" Might Guy, still bursting with energy, flashed a bright grin and gave Kakashi his trademark thumbs-up.
"I refuse. I'm tired," Kakashi replied flatly, rubbing his temple. There was fatigue in his eyes—not from the journey itself, but from the thoughts that had plagued him since that night's battle.
Was Mugetsu truly an excellent ninja?
By strength alone, undoubtedly yes. Even the Third Hokage seemed to hold him in high regard. When Mugetsu had expressed confidence in his students, Hiruzen had immediately approved their C-Rank mission.
Mugetsu had once mentioned that his idol was the White Fang—Kakashi's own father, Sakumo Hatake.
Their beliefs seemed the same: that comrades were more important than missions.
But if that belief was right, why had his father been condemned by the very village he protected?
Why had even those he saved turned against him?
For the first time, Kakashi didn't know who was wrong.
Was it his father?
The village?
Or… the world of ninja itself?
If his father had truly been wrong, why did a man like Mugetsu admire him?
And if his father had been right, why had his end been so tragic?
"Kakashi, you're already worn out? Pathetic!" Obito's voice jolted him from his thoughts. "I could still run a hundred laps around Konoha right now!"
Kakashi's eyebrow twitched. "No wonder you—"
He stopped himself, biting back the rest of the sentence. Obito had been insufferable ever since the mission, constantly bragging about how he'd 'held off an enemy Jonin.'
"One hundred laps, huh?" Kakashi's expression darkened. "Fine. Let's run. Loser shuts up for a full day."
Obito froze for a moment. He hadn't actually expected Kakashi to accept. He had just been talking big! Konoha wasn't small—one lap around the Main District alone was exhausting, let alone a hundred.
But he couldn't back down now.
"Bring it on! Who's afraid of whom?!"
"Can't we run on our hands instead?" Might Guy muttered, scratching his head with regret.
Mugetsu watched his disciples—too energetic to rest, already bickering and competing again—and smiled faintly. Then, without another word, he turned and made his way toward the Hokage Building.
---
When he arrived, Mugetsu bypassed the mission hall and went straight to the Hokage's office.
"Enter," came Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice from within.
Mugetsu pushed the door open. Hiruzen looked up, his kind but sharp eyes softening slightly.
"Ah, Mugetsu. What brings you here?"
"Third Hokage-sama," Mugetsu began respectfully, "a few days ago, our squad accepted an escort mission to the Land of Rice Fields. After entering the territory, we encountered several ninja disguised as Iwagakure shinobi…"
He then detailed the events of the mission—the ambush, the battle, and their victory.
However, he deliberately omitted certain details: the Magnet Release user, the full extent of his own techniques, and the true level of the enemies.
In Mugetsu's version, the enemy had consisted of one Jonin and seven Chunin, and his team had narrowly succeeded in protecting the client.
"Before they died, they shouted about Iwagakure's revenge," Mugetsu continued. "But strangely, nearly all of them used Lightning Release. That alone seemed suspicious."
"Iwagakure shinobi using Lightning Release…" Hiruzen murmured, stroking his beard in thought.
At first glance, it seemed obvious—Kumogakure's doing.
Sending a disguised squad to provoke a war between Konoha and Iwagakure was exactly their style.
But the Hokage's mind worked deeper. Could it be Iwagakure trying to frame Kumogakure by disguising themselves as Iwa-nin dressed as Kumo-nin dressed as Iwa-nin?
It wasn't impossible—but unlikely.
Even if that were true, Iwagakure wouldn't have sent a team that strong. A typical Genin squad would've stood no chance against a Jonin leading seven Chunin.
Mugetsu reached into his pouch and placed a few scrolls on Hiruzen's desk. "Inside these are the bodies of the enemies. Two were… burned beyond recognition during combat."
Hiruzen nodded in understanding. "It's fine. The Yamanaka and Intelligence Division will identify the rest. In the heat of battle, it's impossible to preserve every corpse intact."
He looked up at Mugetsu with a faint smile. "If your suspicions are correct, then you've done Konoha a great service by uncovering Kumogakure's scheme."
What he had expected from Mugetsu was simply to help Kakashi mature—to temper the young prodigy's heart. But this? This was far more than he had hoped for.
Even if this discovery didn't stop the ongoing war with Iwagakure, it would at least prevent an alliance between Iwa and Kumo—a significant strategic win for Konoha.
"Since your team encountered so many enemy ninja, classifying this as a C-Rank mission would be inappropriate," Hiruzen said. He took out a mission record form, quickly wrote a few notes, and stamped it with his seal.
"I'm upgrading this mission to A-Rank," Hiruzen declared. "In addition to the original seventy thousand ryō, the village will issue an extra seven hundred thirty thousand as a bonus reward."
He handed the form to Mugetsu with a satisfied smile.
A-Rank missions typically ranged between 150,000 and 1,000,000 ryō. Eight hundred thousand placed this among the higher-tier assignments.
"Thank you, Hokage-sama," Mugetsu said, bowing slightly, his tone calm but respectful.
"Oh, and one more thing," Hiruzen added. "The Sealing Technique I promised you was delivered to your house while you were away. Minato happened to receive it on your behalf."
Mugetsu's expression softened into a grateful smile. "Understood. I'll retrieve it from Minato later."
As he left the Hokage Building, Mugetsu glanced at the mission record in his hand.
(Mission Level: Upgraded to A-Class. Reward: 800,000 ryō)
A quiet smirk tugged at his lips.
Indeed… the harder the mission, the greater the reward.
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