Chapter 264: The Unknown Third Person
"What was the meaning behind establishing the Ninja Academy? What was my original intention when I issued this policy? I ask you, what was it?"
In his dream, Obito found himself standing before a cold-faced, white-haired shinobi—the Second Hokage himself—firing rapid questions at him like kunai.
Obito's entire body trembled. He woke up with a gasp, staring at the familiar ceiling, desk, and bookshelf of his room. Only then did his heartbeat begin to calm.
He touched his back and felt it drenched in sweat. That dream had been far too real.
"That was terrifying… Good thing the Second Hokage is already dead," Obito muttered, letting out a shaky laugh.
If Senju Tobirama were still alive, Obito had no doubt he'd be lectured to death before he could even open his mouth.
But his relief vanished the moment he glanced at the clock.
"Ten-thirty?! I almost slept till noon!" Obito's eyes widened. He even tapped the clock a few times in disbelief. Normally, he woke up before eight.
Opening the curtains, he was greeted by the blinding midmorning sunlight streaming through the window. The clock wasn't broken—it was really that late.
"You're up, dear. You must be hungry, right? Should I prepare something for you to eat?" his grandmother asked kindly from the kitchen.
Looking at the table, where breakfast had long since been cleared away, Obito felt a pang of guilt. He didn't blame his grandmother, though. She probably hadn't woken him because she'd seen how tired he was from training.
"No need, Grandma. I've got something to do. I'll head out now!" Obito said hurriedly before bolting out the door.
"It should be fine if I pick up my graduation documents a little late," he muttered to himself.
Late for his enrollment papers. Late for his graduation papers. At this point, it was practically his trademark.
Just as he stepped outside, he saw Rin approaching, holding two folders in her hands.
"Even though you've gotten stronger, Obito, you're still as unreliable as ever," Rin said with a helpless smile.
She remembered how confidently Obito had promised yesterday that he'd be on time. Yet here he was—late again. If not for her plans with her classmates, she might've gone to wake him up herself.
"Hehe, Rin, you helped me again. Thank you!" Obito scratched his head sheepishly, smiling as his earlier frustration faded away.
Somehow, seeing Rin's bright smile made everything feel easier.
If there were a ranking for reliability, Rin would definitely be second—right after the all-powerful Sage Mugetsu. And that, Obito thought, was high praise.
"Make sure you keep these safe," Rin said, handing him the documents.
"Of course!" Obito nodded rapidly.
"Oh, right—Rin, did you see the team assignments yet?" he asked, face turning a little red. "Are we… on the same team?"
"Team assignments, huh?" Rin's smile softened as she lowered her gaze. Her bright eyes dimmed slightly, her cheerful aura fading like a sunny day turning cloudy.
Obito's heart tightened. His cheerful mood instantly plummeted.
He had considered the possibility that they might not end up together—after all, there were forty students per class, and the odds weren't exactly high. But when it truly hit him, the thought still stung more than he expected.
He tried to hide his disappointment with a shaky smile. "It's alright, Rin. Even if we're in different teams, when you go on missions, you should—"
"We were assigned together!" Rin interrupted, smiling as her eyes lit up again. "We'll still train together—and even go on missions as a team!"
Obito froze. Then disbelief gave way to sheer joy.
Just seconds ago, his mood had been as cold as ice; now he felt like he was basking in the warmth of a hot spring. Every breath was bliss.
"Did I scare you?" Rin giggled. "That's what you get for being late! Everyone else already left. I waited for you at school for hours and you never showed up."
"I'm really sorry!" Obito said quickly, bowing with both hands pressed together. He looked genuinely guilty.
"It's fine. I forgive you," Rin said kindly. "After all, you're Obito. If you ever stopped needing me to look after you, that would be the real surprise."
She was only teasing—she hadn't been angry to begin with. This kind of thing was, honestly, expected from Obito.
"Hehe… going on missions with Rin…" Obito muttered with a goofy grin spreading across his face. His imagination immediately ran wild—visions of him heroically saving Rin, who would then look at him with admiration and gratitude.
The happiness hit him so suddenly that he actually wondered if this was another dream. He pinched his cheek, felt the sting, and finally believed it was real.
"You did a great job, whoever assigned the teams!" Obito thought proudly. "You deserve an award—the 'Best Team Assigner of the Year'!"
Then another thought struck him. "Wait, aren't teams usually three people? Who's the third member? Is it Guy?"
If it was Might Guy, Obito thought, that wouldn't be bad. Guy was strong, dependable, and his presence would probably make Rin focus more on him.
Not that Obito disliked Guy—he just figured that Guy's bright green jumpsuit and over-the-top energy wouldn't exactly compete for Rin's attention.
"No," Rin said, shaking her head.
"Then who is it? Uchiha Tekka? Murai Ichiya?" Obito guessed several names from their class, but Rin denied each one.
"None of them? Then who is it? Someone from another class?" Obito frowned, mentally running through all the names he could think of.
"How should I put it… it's someone surprising in every possible way," Rin said after thinking for a moment.
She knew Obito would never guess that their third teammate was Kakashi—someone who had graduated years ahead of them. Even she had been stunned when she first saw the team list. The other students had reacted the same way, shocked that such a thing was even possible.
Out of curiosity, Rin had asked their teacher, Ikeya, who explained that this sometimes happened when a shinobi's previous team disbanded or had complications. During wartime, these reassignments were fairly common.
"Rin, now I'm even more curious. Who is it?" Obito pressed eagerly.
"You'll find out tomorrow," Rin said with a mysterious smile. "We're meeting at Training Ground 12 at 8:30 in the morning."
She deliberately kept the name secret. The scene tomorrow would be too entertaining to spoil early. After all, Obito and Kakashi had recently been mocking each other, each joking that it would be a nightmare if they ever ended up on the same team.
"But… looking at it this way, am I the unlucky one?" Rin thought with a helpless laugh, imagining the expressions they'd both make once they realized.
"Alright then," Obito said, blinking in confusion. "Rin, why are you smiling like that? Did you think of something funny?"
"It's something fun, yes—but I can't tell you yet," Rin replied, a mischievous glint in her eyes.
Obito could only nod, completely oblivious.
"Well, I've delivered your documents, so I'll head off now. Don't be late tomorrow—and try to make a good first impression on our new sensei," Rin said, waving as she walked away.
"Got it, Rin. See you tomorrow!" Obito waved back, his face full of anticipation.
"Hehe, I can finally go on missions with Rin!" he cheered, jumping excitedly and punching the air.
Now that he was teamed up with her, it didn't really matter who the third member was—just as long as it wasn't Kakashi. If their new teammate was strong, great; if not, Obito was confident he could protect Rin himself.
There was no way, he thought, that someone who had graduated years ago like Kakashi would be assigned with them again. That last internship had been nothing more than a coincidence.
"Good times are coming," Obito hummed as he walked home, his grin stretching from ear to ear.
---
[Disciple Uchiha Shisui diligently trained and achieved a perfect score in the academic assessment. Reward: Chakra +300, Skill Proficiency Scroll]
[Disciple Uchiha Obito diligently trained and achieved a perfect score in the graduation assessment. Reward: Chakra +600, Ninjutsu Mastery Scroll]
[Disciple Might Guy diligently trained and achieved an excellent score in the graduation assessment. Reward: Chakra +450, Skill Proficiency Scroll ×3]
Perhaps because it was graduation season, the system was being especially generous. Not only did the rewards include significantly more Chakra than usual, but it even granted a Ninjutsu Mastery Scroll—something Mugetsu had never received before.
[Ninjutsu Mastery Scroll: Instantly raises any mastered Ninjutsu to Mastery level.]
The effect was simple yet powerful—an immediate upgrade.
"If only it were a Skill Mastery Scroll," Mugetsu thought to himself.
This particular scroll couldn't be used on Nature Transformations; it only worked on tangible techniques like Fire Release: Great Fire Destruction or the Mystical Palm Technique.
He had once tried using a regular Proficiency Scroll to enhance his elemental transformations, only to find that it couldn't be applied to them at all.
Still, that didn't make the Mastery Scroll any less valuable. On the contrary, it was an incredibly rare item, capable of enhancing secret arts and even forbidden jutsu.
There was no such thing as too many Mastery-level techniques. If he could raise all his Ninjutsu to that level, combined with his mastery over elemental chakra, he'd essentially become a walking, all-purpose artillery platform.
In addition to the Mastery Scroll, he also received four Proficiency Scrolls and a total Chakra gain of 1,350 points.
[Name: Hayate Mugetsu]
[Chakra: 53,200]
Over the course of one academic year, his Chakra had risen from 4,300 to 53,200—an astonishing increase of 48,900 points.
It was a remarkable growth rate. When Mugetsu first met Minato, the future Fourth Hokage had only around 40,000 Chakra. In just one year, Mugetsu's growth was equivalent to gaining the chakra of 1.2 Minatos.
"Mugetsu-sensei, goodbye! I guess I won't be seeing you for a while," Anko called out, waving cheerfully.
Since Mugetsu often used Shadow Clones to teach, from her perspective, the third semester hadn't felt much different from before.
"You'll see me plenty next semester," Mugetsu said with a grin. "I'll be leading special training again—five months straight. You'll get sick of seeing me."
Next semester, he planned to focus on Ninjutsu, aiming for all A-rank evaluations to gain more high-level techniques. Chakra training alone was too slow; mastering Ninjutsu was much more efficient.
At the same time, he intended to expand the scope of special training to push his students—and himself—toward higher rewards.
"That's great! Without you, Mugetsu-sensei, special training is just boring," Anko said, beaming.
She genuinely meant it. The previous semester's training had been dull without him—tedious lessons, little progress, and constant fatigue.
"The opportunity for us brothers has arrived," Kotetsu said seriously to Izumo.
"That's right. This time, we'll definitely push into Group B," Izumo replied confidently.
"If we keep improving, maybe we'll achieve results like Obito-senpai and Guy-senpai from the Fourth Grade!" Kotetsu said, his imagination already running wild.
"Shisui and I still have a better chance," Anko chimed in smugly. "When it comes to real combat, it's obviously us."
Timid in theory but fierce in action, Anko's claim wasn't baseless.
As their lively banter filled the training ground, Mugetsu smiled quietly.
This academic year had indeed been a fruitful one—in more ways than one.
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