After completing his tutoring task, Mokgetsu didn't return to the Southern Border Forest but instead went to his house in the main city.
After quickly frying up two dishes for dinner, Mokgetsu went out for a stroll, since friendship won't come by staying home.
After walking for a bit, Mokgetsu encountered Minato and Kushina in a nearby park.
The two were sitting on a park bench, chatting in the evening breeze.
"Habu." Minato greeted Mokgetsu when he saw him.
"Are you also here for a walk in the park?" Minato asked.
Mokgetsu nodded and sat on a nearby bench, saying, "Just finished dinner, out for a walk to digest."
"Habu, I heard from Minato that you're a teacher at the Ninja Academy?" Kushina asked curiously.
None of her friends had ever been a teacher at the Ninja Academy.
"Yeah, I just started this year," Mokgetsu replied with a smile.
"You just started this year, so you must have led an outstanding class," Minato said, somewhat surprised.
Kushina looked at Minato with some confusion.
"Yesterday in the office, the Third Hokage mentioned that Habu has very high teaching skills, and he even wants Mokgetsu to be a tutor for their family," Minato explained.
"To get such praise from the Third Hokage in just your first year, you must have an outstanding teaching record."
"Wow, the old man praised you like that?" Kushina was also a bit surprised.
Though she generally didn't have a high opinion of Sarutobi Hiruzen, she did trust his judgment.
"Not at all; the students are just very diligent," Mokgetsu modestly said, and then added,
"Jonin Namikaze is truly impressive, becoming a Jonin at such a young age and an important asset to the village."
"Hehe, of course! Our Minato is the strongest," Kushina agreed wholeheartedly.
"But I'm also a Jonin!" Kushina laughed heartily.
Mokgetsu showed a look of surprise and then praised, "Uzumaki Jonin is also very impressive."
"Habu, you really know how to talk," Kushina said, finding Mokgetsu more and more likable. If her good friend Uchiha Mikoto wasn't already married, she would have introduced her to Mokgetsu.
Look at him, such a fine man, handsome like Minato and capable, praised even by the Third.
They chatted for a while, and then Mokgetsu was the first to say goodbye and leave.
Since the two were a couple walking together, it wouldn't be good to linger too long. It's important to be conscientious and slowly build one's image.
...
The next day, Mokgetsu trained Obito, Might Guy, and the other two until noon, then went to Sarutobi Hiruzen's house in the afternoon to teach Asuma, taking him to the riverside from the previous day.
"I'm too tired today, don't want to train," Asuma declared, leaning against a tree looking like he was ready to sleep.
He had silently resolved in his heart that no matter how Mokgetsu tried to provoke him, he would remain unmoved.
"Want to sleep?" Mokgetsu smiled at Asuma.
The smile was gentle and healing, much better than his old man, but Asuma had a bad feeling.
"Yeah, didn't sleep well last night, is that not okay?" Asuma replied stubbornly.
To Asuma's surprise, Mokgetsu nodded in agreement and said,
"Yes, today the sun is just right, the breeze is gentle; definitely a good day for sleeping."
Then Mokgetsu stretched, also leaned against the tree in a relaxed manner, and said,
"Being a tutor is great, lying down to sleep, waking up to earn a hundred thousand ryo."
Saying this, Mokgetsu closed his eyes, resting his head against the tree, looking as if he was ready to nap.
"Wait, what did you say about a hundred thousand ryo?" Asuma's eyes widened immediately as he questioned Mokgetsu.
"Why so noisy, aren't we sleeping?" Mokgetsu didn't even open his eyes, looking like he was about to fall asleep.
"Don't sleep, tell me about the hundred thousand ryo," Asuma shook Mokgetsu's body frantically.
"What else could it be? It's the money for teaching you," Mokgetsu opened his eyes and started talking nonsense with a straight face.
"Did you think I work for free? Even if the Hokage hires a tutor, he has to pay. My fees are high; teaching you costs twenty-five thousand ryo an hour, so four hours a day is a hundred thousand ryo."
"Is your mouth made of gold to charge so much?!" Knowing that Mokgetsu staying with him for just an hour would earn twenty-five thousand ryo shocked Asuma.
Keep in mind that his monthly allowance during school was only fifty thousand ryo, which was considered a lot.
Yet Mokgetsu only needed to teach him for two hours to earn his monthly allowance!
"You can check in the Ninja Academy to see if Habu Mokgetsu is worth that price," Mokgetsu said calmly.
"But why haven't I heard of you?" Asuma felt like he was being tricked.
"Because I joined after you graduated," Mokgetsu said, closing his eyes again, getting ready to sleep.
Watching Mokgetsu about to sleep again, Asuma's heart ached. This was a tutor costing twenty-five thousand ryo an hour.
"Don't sleep; let's start training," Asuma quickly shouted, afraid Mokgetsu would fall asleep and not wake up.
"Didn't you say you didn't sleep well last night and were too tired and wanted to sleep? Are you not tired now?" Mokgetsu opened his eyes and smiled at Asuma.
Looking at Mokgetsu's expression, Asuma knew he was tricked, and this guy hadn't slept at all!
But he also had no choice; this was a tutor costing twenty-five thousand ryo an hour. If Mokgetsu really slept here, not only would Asuma not be able to sleep now, he wouldn't sleep well at night either.
"I've rested enough; let's start training," Asuma said with a dark face.
He planned to complain to his mom about this at home, feeling that hiring such an expensive tutor was a waste of money when there were Jonin teachers available.
"Alright then, today's still about chakra control; today's goal is to last fifteen minutes on the water," Mokgetsu got up and smiled.
The training was the same as yesterday; Asuma tried hard not to fall into the water while Mokgetsu disrupted him with Water Release techniques from the shore.
This day's Asuma was as motivated as the previous day, but the previous day's motivation was to prove his father wrong, and today's motivation was Mokgetsu's exaggerated tutoring fee.
During dinner, Asuma directly complained to Biwako, saying Sarutobi Hiruzen was wasting money on a tutor costing twenty-five thousand ryo an hour.
Biwako was also shocked by this exorbitant tutoring fee of a hundred thousand ryo for four hours.
Keep in mind, some B-Class Missions only paid a hundred thousand ryo. This was practically four hours of a single-person B-Class Mission.
"Hmm? Are you talking about Habu? How's that possible? His tutoring fee is two thousand ryo an hour," Sarutobi Hiruzen paused, then smiled as he said this.
"Two thousand ryo?" Asuma looked at Sarutobi Hiruzen with a suspicious gaze.
"Of course it's two thousand ryo, where did you hear about twenty-five thousand ryo?" Sarutobi Hiruzen stated firmly.
Looking at his father's face, Asuma knew he had been tricked by Mokgetsu.
"Ah, damn you Habu Mokgetsu!" Asuma cursed inwardly, then channeled his anger towards eating, thinking to himself that no matter what, he wouldn't fall for Mokgetsu's tricks again next week.