As the Anbu training came to an end, the second semester at the Ninja Academy also approached its conclusion.
Details regarding the graduation internship and holiday training were also mostly finalized.
"Sigh, the holiday training in the second semester isn't with Teacher Mokgetsu..."
"It'll be a long time before we see Teacher Mokgetsu again."
After the official announcement, Class 2A erupted in groans. Apart from the graduates, only a few other students could participate in the holiday training, and most of those in the second grade were in Class 2A.
Having gotten used to Teacher Mokgetsu's classes, they found other teachers' classes both boring and unproductive, making attending class a torture.
"Forget it, this holiday I'll just relax. I'll work harder next year," one student said, feeling it wasn't worth going if Mokgetsu wasn't there.
His comment was met with nods of agreement from the students around him.
"Why aren't Anko and the others on the list?" someone noticed that Anko and Hagane Kotetsu weren't among those in the second grade who were receiving holiday training.
"Let me check. It seems they aren't. That's really strange," the surrounding students commented, puzzled.
Although Anko and Kotetsu often acted silly, their abilities were undeniably strong, with Anko being second only to Shisui in their grade.
"After all, it's just a mere holiday training," Kotetsu had been waiting for them to notice this and stepped forward with an air of mystery.
"Exactly, truly excellent students have more secretive destinations," Kamizuki Izumo added in collaboration.
"It's just an internship; they're acting like it's something extraordinary," Anko couldn't hold back her sarcasm.
Kotetsu didn't like hearing that. Everyone was a talented prodigy participating in the early internship, so how could she destroy the air of mystery?
"Besides, you two weren't even assigned to Teacher Mokgetsu," Anko said with a smug smile.
Kamizuki Izumo couldn't believe Anko's unexpected viciousness, interrupting their act just to boast about herself.
Kotetsu nearly ground his teeth in frustration. While his own misfortune was sad, his brother's good fortune was even more infuriating.
Seeing the envious and resentful faces of his two good friends brought Anko a sense of delight.
"Shisui, do you know who our other teammate is? My notification only mentioned you," Anko asked Shisui.
"It's Shizune," Shisui replied.
This wasn't something he heard from the school notification but rather from Mokgetsu.
Usually, internships are in teams of three, and Mokgetsu didn't plan on making an exception for Shisui, as interacting with more people would benefit him.
After some selection, Mokgetsu chose Anko and Shizune as teammates.
Shizune would study under him for half a year, allowing for improvement by being at his side. Although Shizune had already graduated as a ninja, she had no team, so it wasn't an issue to include her.
After all, Kakashi had a similar setup last time when Sarutobi Hiruzen put him in, and given his current status at the Ninja Academy, a similar arrangement wasn't a problem.
The reason for choosing Anko was even simpler; she was more suitable than those fourth-year students, nothing more.
Anko's cheerful personality and familiarity with Shisui, combined with her solid skills, left Mokgetsu with no reason not to select her.
"Senior Shizune, I remember she already graduated?" Anko scratched her head, recalling some memories related to Shizune.
Since Shizune had also participated in holiday training, Anko barely counted as knowing Shizune, though not very well.
"Technically, we're not supposed to participate in the internship either," Shisui reminded.
There are always exceptions, and their team happened to be one of them.
"Hehe, I'm really looking forward to the upcoming ninja life," Anko, not one to overthink, quickly moved past the issue with Shizune and began daydreaming about the great internship life ahead.
Seeing Anko's apparent anticipation, Shisui silently swallowed the harsh truths he had wanted to share with her.
With several days until the official start of the internship, there was no need to spoil Anko's excitement about the harsh realities.
Even matches, generous commissions, and a carefree ninja life are all luxuries normal internships cannot offer.
This is because normal intern ninjas can only take on D-Class Missions, which involve chores without combat.
Normal intern ninjas just do chores and train, which is also the daily routine of newly graduated genin.
...
"Search for and eliminate the Hidden Rock Ninja defeated in the southwestern Land of Grass. Let's go with this mission," Namikaze Minato's gaze quickly scanned several scrolls before selecting one of the more difficult A-Class Missions.
Namikaze Minato clearly understood the abilities of his three disciples through battle training.
In situations where the enemy has no intelligence and is caught off guard, the three of them together could even possibly defeat a Jonin as strong as Dekai.
Even if the enemy is not caught off guard, according to Namikaze Minato's calculations, Kakashi and his team can handle two ordinary Jonin without any problem.
Of course, if there are any more enemies, it won't work, because although Obito and Kakashi are strong as the main force, they cannot sustain prolonged combat.
Whether it is Kakashi's Lighting Flash or Obito's Breath of Flame Chakra Mode full-force Fire Release, both have tremendous power, but the corresponding consumption is also high. Their current Chakra Amount does not support fighting for too long at full output.
However, under normal circumstances, an A-Class Mission would not have so many Jonin.
"Okay, Jonin Minato." The registration ninja quickly completed the task registration for Namikaze Minato.
Then, Namikaze Minato handed the specific mission to his disciples for a look.
"An A-level war mission, huh, look at how high the commission is!" Obito immediately noticed the commission as high as 700,000 ryo.
With Obito's math skills, he couldn't instantly calculate how many D-Class Mission commissions this was equivalent to, but he felt it must be over a hundred, as a normal D-Class Mission was only about 5,000 ryo each.
"It indicates that the enemy's strength is not simple either," Kakashi reminded.
Aside from the rare wealthy and somewhat foolish merchants or nobles, most commission tasks are worth their money, especially such war commissions.
"Kakashi makes a good point, Obito, don't underestimate the enemy," Nohara Rin added.
After studying medical Ninjutsu under Tsunade for some time, her skills had indeed strengthened significantly, but Nohara Rin certainly didn't want Obito and Kakashi to get hurt, as treatment cannot erase the pain from the initial injury.
"Since Teacher Minato took on this mission, it means he thinks we can handle it." Obito grinned, looking at Namikaze Minato, and said, "Isn't that right, Teacher Minato?"
Namikaze Minato nodded warmly and said, "You are all excellent Konoha Ninja, of course there's no problem. And if there's an emergency, I'm here as well."
Because the Hidden Mist also declared war on Konoha, although they haven't initiated an attack yet, it still brought considerable pressure to Konoha. Namikaze Minato took on a high-difficulty A-Class Mission, aiming to train his disciples and alleviate Konoha's pressure.
The most direct solution to Konoha's current predicament is to defeat one of the Great Ninja Villages, rendering them too afraid to engage in war with Konoha again in the short term.
However, since all are Great Ninja Villages, achieving this is evidently very difficult.
"Having you on the mission with us is very reassuring, Teacher Minato," Obito gave Namikaze Minato a thumbs up.
Namikaze Minato, with his Flying Thunder God technique, is simply too fast, whether at dealing with the enemy or rescuing teammates.
In Obito's heart, Namikaze Minato ranks second in terms of providing a sense of security, although because the first is the all-powerful Sage Mokgetsu, Obito feels Namikaze Minato's second could be considered first in other rankings.
Kakashi also showed a look of agreement; the encounter with the Candidate for the Raikage was the best proof.
After picking up the mission, Namikaze Minato led the three disciples towards the Land of Grass; in such missions, the most time-consuming part was not defeating the enemy but locating them, and the southwestern part of the Land of Grass wasn't exactly small.
The White Zetsu responsible for monitoring Obito quickly relayed this information back.
"Lord Madara, Uchiha Obito has gone to the Land of Grass on a mission," Black Zetsu immediately reported the detailed intelligence to Uchiha Madara.
Uchiha Madara's eyes flickered, quickly considering his arrangements in the Land of Grass before shaking his head.
If it were just Obito and Kakashi and the three of them, Uchiha Madara would immediately carry out the plan to show the young Uchiha the darkness of the Ninja World, but with Namikaze Minato along, it's too tricky.
The reason being, Namikaze Minato is very strong, and the Flying Thunder God technique is too fast, easily ruining his darkening plan. Without enough strength to hold back Namikaze Minato, Uchiha Madara would not act.
"Lord Madara, the situation seems a bit unfavorable; every time Uchiha Obito goes on a mission, he's either with Sage Mokgetsu or Namikaze Minato, which greatly affects your plan," Black Zetsu mused aloud.
Currently, Uchiha Madara is too old; if he drags on for a few more years without others doing anything, Uchiha Madara might naturally die of old age. Black Zetsu worried that Uchiha Madara might screw up, and then he would have to work hard to patch things up.
Both Uchiha Madara's talent and strength are incredibly high, arguably the strongest Uchiha Black Zetsu had seen in over a thousand years, but in terms of strategy, he was quite average.
"The situation is unfavorable?" Uchiha Madara showed a confident smile. "Quite the contrary, the situation is increasingly in our favor. Once the Hidden Mist formally wages war with Konoha, the Ninja World will descend into chaos. How can Namikaze Minato and Sage Mokgetsu hope to stop my plan then?"
Uchiha Madara had enough confidence in his plan, believing it to be flawless.
He had considered too many aspects, and Uchiha Madara also thought about the possibility of Obito failing, so there were several backups, with the first alternate being Shisui.
Firstly, Shisui is highly talented, and according to Uchiha Madara's intelligence, Shisui's talent could rival his brother Uchiha Izuna. Moreover, Shisui has only one close relative, who frequently goes on missions outside, making the darkening plan easier.
If not for Shisui's personality being somewhat resistant to manipulation, Shisui might be prioritized over Obito, but Obito's personality is indeed a major plus.
"Lord Madara, you have great insights," Black Zetsu remarked with a playful smile.
PS: Became a jet fighter today, so the word count is slightly less.