The Ninja Sect is short on manpower, and it'd be great if the Hidden Rock could help. The ninjas coming for training could assist with construction; Earth Release ninjas should excel in infrastructure.
After all, Mokgetsu probably won't teach the Hidden Rock any special abilities. At most, like a large class, he'll help them lay a solid foundation, with little improvement in a short time.
Having answered Kakuzu's question, Mokgetsu continued to ponder the martial arts tournament for youths.
The award for first place is already sensational, the signature ninjutsu of Ninja Master Sosuke, the Fire Dragon Dance.
However, the rewards for second to fourth place also need to be enticing enough, given that not everyone aims for first.
The Super Bursting Water Wave developed by Mokgetsu was an S-level super Water Release, but since Mokgetsu used it, to avoid exposing his secret identity, it can't be offered as a reward.
If the Super Bursting Water Wave were to be a reward, Mokgetsu would have to develop it further because this ninjutsu is custom-made for the Breath of Water Chakra Mode. Without it, perhaps only a Water Release ninja like Senju Tobirama could learn it.
Mokgetsu mused and wrote "custom ninjutsu development" as the reward for second place.
If someone becomes second, they can get a custom ninjutsu developed by the Ninja Master personally, which makes for quite a buzz.
For Mokgetsu, who has extensive ninjutsu knowledge, developing ninjutsu isn't hard; the challenge is creating very powerful ones.
For ninjutsu like the Rasengan, it's not about the mastery of the art, but a sudden flash of inspiration.
Mokgetsu then noted "Ninja Master's handwritten training notes" for third place and a "Chakra Blade worth ten million ryō" for fourth place.
The ores Mokgetsu obtained in the Snow Country haven't been used yet. He plans to craft a blade with them as a reward.
After deciding the rewards for the top four positions, Mokgetsu released the news.
This time, Mokgetsu didn't particularly promote it, but thanks to the groundwork of the unrestricted lectures and the indeed enticing rewards, newspapers from all over quickly reported it, and the term martial arts tournament for youths became a hot topic in the Ninja World.
Even the Daimyo of the Land of Fire learned of the news.
Curiously, he asked his ninja guard if there was anything special about the top four rewards, and the Daimyo found them quite ordinary.
"The Fire Dragon Dance now has the reputation of the strongest Fire Release ninjutsu in the Ninja World. Any ninja who trains in Fire Release surely desires to witness it."
"Ninja Master Sosuke is proficient in seven Chakra Nature Changes and has deep ninjutsu prowess. If he develops a custom ninjutsu for someone, it can't be bad."
"As a leading figure in today's Ninja World, Ninja Master Sosuke's training insights are naturally precious."
"Ten million ryō might be nothing to the Daimyo, but it's enough to issue ten S-level missions in Konoha Village."
The ninja guard explained to the Daimyo individually.
"The strongest Fire Release sounds impressive. Surely, many ninjas will participate in the competition." The Daimyo showed an interested expression.
Although the Daimyo doesn't practice ninjutsu, he understood the power of the Fire Dragon Dance upon hearing the term 'strongest'.
The ninja guard nodded, as the extravagant rewards are hard to resist.
"Get in touch with Konoha's Hokage." The Daimyo wanted to know if Konoha would have ninjas participating in the competition.
He wished to watch the tournament.
Watching ninja battles is one of the Daimyo's few small interests. He finds that the more skilled the ninjas, the more exciting the fights.
Although he can't see the ninjas' movements, the ninjutsu clashes are quite spectacular.
Sarutobi Hiruzen received the Daimyo's message and quickly reviewed the information of Konoha ninjas under eighteen in his mind.
After some contemplation, Sarutobi Hiruzen realized Mokgetsu's disciples were the strongest.
Though Kakashi, Obito, and Might Guy were only eleven, and even Shisui was just nine, they were already among the strongest ninjas under eighteen in Konoha.
If time went back three years, Sarutobi Hiruzen could have popped champagne because three years ago, Namikaze Minato and Mokgetsu met the participation requirements, and with a little luck, they could have secured the top two.
Sarutobi Hiruzen was already interested in the Fire Dragon Dance, and now that the Daimyo was too, he didn't mind making some extra on the side from the Daimyo.
He searched for a few other young talents and ordered ninjas to notify them.
Since Obito and others were all Mokgetsu's disciples, Sarutobi Hiruzen directly notified Mokgetsu to ask Obito and the others about their intentions.
"Martial arts tournament for youths, will many people participate? What's the reward?" Obito asked curiously.
Obito quite liked competitions, but he had a few conditions. He wanted to secure a good ranking, have Nohara Rin nearby, or the competition to have good rewards.
"There'll likely be many people, and the rewards are all listed here." Mokgetsu handed Obito the scroll containing information about the martial arts tournament for youths.
"The first place is a powerful Fire Release called Fire Dragon Dance." Before Obito started reading, Kakashi spoke.
Kakashi liked keeping up with current events, so he was somewhat aware of the Ninja Sect's matters and the martial arts tournament for youths.
Upon hearing it's a Fire Release, Obito's expression changed, and he couldn't help but ask, "How strong is very strong?"
He desperately needed a powerful Fire Release. The Fire Releases he currently mastered were enough against other ninjas but truly insufficient for internal conflicts.
"I haven't seen it, but now many people think it's the strongest Fire Release." Kakashi finished and glanced at Mokgetsu.
Kakashi believed Mokgetsu's Fire Release was also very strong, perhaps not inferior to Sosuke's.
"Teacher Mokgetsu, do you know about this Fire Dragon Dance?" Obito promptly asked the all-knowing Sage Mokgetsu.
"It should be very strong," Mokgetsu thought for a moment and replied.
The Fire Dragon Dance was indeed strong, but even if Obito obtained it, it wouldn't be useful because he wouldn't be able to use it now.
If Obito could use it, Mokgetsu would have taught it to him long ago, and the first place in the martial arts tournament could be exchanged for another ninjutsu.
Hearing Mokgetsu say the word 'strong', Obito knew that he had no choice but to attend the martial arts tournament for youths, as it was recognized by the Sage Mokgetsu, making it highly valuable.
"What, the age limit is eighteen, isn't this tailor-made for us!" Obito's eyes lit up when he saw the rules clearly.
Since graduation, aside from internal battles between disciples, whenever Obito faced peers, it was a quick victory. Generally, those worthy of a fight were ninjas in their twenties or thirties.
"Doesn't seem like there's anything I need." Might Guy peeked in, then scratched his head.
He didn't learn ninjutsu, so the first and second rewards were useless to him. As for the training notes, with Mokgetsu around, he didn't need them either. Only the million-ryō ninja blade was of use, which he could sell for money.
"Seems like it'd be good for us to join collectively, so if we're unsatisfied with the rewards, we can exchange them," Shisui said.
Currently, the overall strongest disciple is still Might Guy. Shisui figured if Might Guy participated, he'd likely secure first place.
"Shisui makes a point!" Obito agreed.
Although Might Guy's participation meant he couldn't get to first place, the Fire Release ninjutsu was secure.
Obito didn't believe there was another underage ninja stronger than the current Might Guy in the Ninja World.