The group returned quietly without celebration, slipping into the village late at night. Though they had won the battle, many would never return to Konoha.
After finishing his report to the Third Hokage, White Fang made his way home. Kakashi, already asleep, instantly woke up sensing his father's presence and eagerly rushed to greet him.
"Father, are you leaving again this time?"
White Fang gently ruffled his hair and replied warmly, "Not for now. I'll send you to the Ninja Academy tomorrow."
"That's great! By the way, where's Anya? I haven't seen him in a while," Kakashi asked curiously.
"He's been promoted to Chunin already. He has many missions now and won't have much time for training. If you want to see him, you can ask him to walk to school with you tomorrow."
"Already a Chunin? That was fast," Kakashi said enviously.
White Fang chuckled softly. "Have faith in yourself, Kakashi. Graduate from the academy and you'll climb fast too."
"That definitely will happen."
As dawn broke, Anya showed up on his own, bringing breakfast for both father and son.
While eating, Kakashi asked, "Why such a nice surprise with breakfast today?"
Anya grinned proudly. "Mission done, money in hand!"
"Hmph. One day, I'll be just like that too."
With that, Kakashi dug into his meal.
After breakfast, White Fang asked, "Did you prepare everything last night? Do you have a plan for this mission?"
Anya spread out a map on the floor. "This is the map I drew last night. The red markings are the routes I've noted. I'll probably gather intelligence along these paths."
White Fang glanced at it and understood Anya's intent—aiming for S-level results on what was only a B-rank mission. It was risky. Frowning slightly, he warned, "You don't need to visit every ninja village. Especially Kiri—just stay near its outskirts. Don't go inside."
"Why not?"
White Fang explained, "Kiri is an extremely secluded village. We know very little about it, but we do know it's infamous for bloodshed. As an outsider, you'd stand out too much. That's dangerous."
"Fine then, I won't go." Anya marked an X over Kiri on the map.
Meanwhile, Kakashi was already done eating. Slamming his chopsticks down, he declared, "Alright, let's go. Take me to the Ninja Academy."
"You're really going to walk Kakashi to school? He's still so young," Anya said in surprise.
Kakashi immediately protested, "Who's young? I'm definitely going to the Ninja Academy!"
White Fang simply added, "I believe in Kakashi."
Together, the three headed toward the Ninja Academy. Though Kakashi kept a calm expression, he kept urging them forward, clearly excited to start learning.
As White Fang arrived at the school entrance, he noticed a father and son with rather unique appearances. Both wore green full-body suits that made them look like they'd been carved from the same mold. He approached and greeted them warmly, "Nice to meet you. I hope my son will be under your care from now on. Please get along well with him."
Kakashi muttered unhappily, "Dad…"
But to his surprise, the other father's expression suddenly turned serious as he firmly replied, "No, that won't be possible."
"Huh?" White Fang stepped back in astonishment. "Why not? Could this be one of those monster parents?"
"No, Dad, you've misunderstood," Kakashi, quick-eyed as ever, already figured out what was happening. "This guy didn't pass the Ninja Academy entrance exam."
White Fang scratched the back of his head apologetically. "Sorry about that—I just assumed since we're at the school gate."
The other man chuckled and said, "Exactly, that's it."
Anya chimed in at this point, asking, "May I ask, what are your names?"
"Oh, I'm Might Duy, and this is my son…"
Before Might Duy could finish introducing, his son struck a pose with a confident smile, declaring proudly, "I'm Might Guy! In the future, I'll become stronger than anyone else!"
Anya listened carefully, glancing at him twice more. So *this* was the legendary Might Guy Emperor? Who knew he looked kinda cute as a kid. The guy who supposedly almost kicked his way into the finale according to rumors—in a sense, that last sentence really wasn't exaggerating.
Naturally, Kakashi didn't see it that way. Someone who couldn't even pass the Ninja Academy entrance exam obviously wouldn't earn his respect.
Still, White Fang let his gaze linger on Might Guy for quite some time before speaking to Kakashi, "Son, remember this name. He might become your rival someday."
Upon hearing this, Kakashi looked at the father-son duo more carefully, then shook his head dismissively. The person he most wanted to surpass right now was standing right in front of him—Anya. He needed to graduate from the academy as quickly as possible so he could prove himself by overtaking this protégé of his father's.
Anya, on the other hand, showed considerable interest. He walked over and chatted with them for a while. Soon the three were talking happily together, and White Fang watching from the side felt it was somewhat strange.
After the pair had left, White Fang approached and asked, "You're not interested in learning their particular style of Taijutsu, are you?"
"I definitely don't want to learn it," Anya reassured him first, then truthfully added, "I'm just curious about it, mainly wondering how powerful its effects might be."
White Fang spoke gravely, "I don't know either. Legend has it that if someone cultivates [Eight Gates] to the point of opening the final gate, they can temporarily gain Kage-level power—but once opened, their life force will be completely drained, with no cure."
In his heart, Anya silently added—no, that wasn't just Kage level, but beyond it. Although he couldn't recall many details about Naruto, he would never forget Guy's legendary kick. No matter what, leaving aside those characters with absurd advantages, Might Guy would undoubtedly be the strongest ninja in the future. A being who could forcefully fight you head-on even below the level of the Six Paths—completely defying logic.
Just as Anya was pondering these thoughts, White Fang suddenly formed hand seals and placed his palm on Anya's stomach.
A Sealing Formation instantly took shape.
"What is this?" Anya asked, her expression bewildered.
"It's a sealing formation. I've sealed your chakra down to the level of a Genin. This scroll will release the seal—don't break it unless you're facing a life-or-death situation." White Fang tossed a scroll to Anya and walked off without another word.
Clutching the scroll, Anya suddenly understood. White Fang had said he was assigning her a mission, but in truth, it was meant to push her to train outside the village, gradually improve her sword techniques, and gain deeper insight into them. That was why he had assigned it Mission Rank B. He had gone to great lengths to seal her chakra—he was probably afraid she would recklessly chase the mission no matter the risk.
Realizing this, a warm wave of emotion rose within Anya. She gripped the scroll tightly and left Konoha in silence.
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