Chapter 98: Thoughts on Accepting a Disciple
When Kushina lifted the cover, something almost magical happened—a red glow seemed to flash the moment the lid came off.
But when she and Minato looked closer, there was no light—only the shockingly vibrant red of the dish itself.
Seeing the fiery-red Mapo Tofu, Kushina swallowed. "Mugetsu, you didn't say you'd use this much spice! This looks way too spicy!"
She had thought he might add an extra chili or two, but judging from the color, it looked like the entire dish was dominated by pure heat.
"This dish is indeed a bit spicy," Mugetsu admitted with a smile. "But it's not just heat—you'll also taste fragrance, crispness, and a numbing kick."
Hearing that there were so many layers of flavor, Minato didn't hesitate. He picked up a spoon and scooped some into his mouth.
"Spicy!" was his first reaction.
Mugetsu's "a bit spicy" translated to "especially spicy" in Minato's mind. It felt as though he'd been dropped into a world made of fire, with flames bursting around him.
But the heat wasn't all there was—soon, a wave of rich flavors followed, washing over his palate until all he could think about was the taste.
"Delicious," Minato said sincerely.
He immediately scooped more tofu into his bowl, eating eagerly.
Seeing Minato's reaction, Kushina knew it had to be good, so she took a bite herself.
It was indeed numbing and intensely spicy, but also wonderfully fragrant—and there was even a meaty texture in the mix.
"It really is delicious!" Kushina exclaimed, quickly helping herself to more.
Spicy or not, it was simply too good to stop eating.
After the meal, the Illusory Mapo Tofu became the main topic of conversation.
When Mugetsu listed the ingredients, Kushina frowned. "Mugetsu, did you forget one? Wasn't there meat?"
She was certain she'd tasted it.
"There's no meat in it," Mugetsu said firmly.
"But I could swear I tasted something like it," Kushina replied, puzzled.
"I tasted it too," Minato added.
"It tastes like meat, but it's actually processed soybeans," Mugetsu explained, revealing the method.
"That's incredible—that soybeans can be made to taste like this!" Kushina said in amazement.
Minato also found it impressive. Mugetsu's cooking skills were unlike anything he'd seen before—he could even turn soybeans into convincing meat.
Since he still needed to help his students train, Mugetsu soon bid farewell to the couple, promising to let them watch the cooking process next time.
…
At the South Border Forest, Mugetsu began his usual routine.
Shisui was practicing Phoenix Sage Flower Claw Crimson, Guy was focusing on physical conditioning and mastering Shave, and Obito was still pushing to perfect his own Shave technique.
When training was nearly over, Obito suddenly asked, "Mugetsu-sensei, how do you teach ninjutsu to someone else?"
"Why the question? Who are you trying to teach?" Mugetsu asked.
"My good friend Rin Nohara—she's in Group B for the summer special training," Obito explained, recounting what had happened earlier that day. "I thought I explained it clearly, but she still didn't understand."
Mugetsu was speechless. From the sound of it, Obito's teaching ability was about on par with Naruto's—show it once and let the other person figure it out for themselves.
As a former student of a regular school, Mugetsu knew all about proper teaching methods. But given Obito's performance, he doubted those methods would do much good here.
"You should focus on mastering the technique yourself first," Mugetsu said, lightly tapping Obito's forehead with two fingers.
"Don't tell me even the all-powerful Mugetsu-sensei has no solution this time…" Obito muttered, head down in disappointment.
Then an idea struck him. If he couldn't teach Rin, and Mugetsu couldn't make him a good teacher, then why not just have Mugetsu teach her directly?
"Mugetsu-sensei, Rin's grades aren't great either—she really needs your guidance," Obito said, pitching the idea eagerly.
Mugetsu paused. The system had four disciple slots, and only one was still open. Giving it to Rin was out of the question—but she could still be a student outside the system.
Teaching Rin had two potential benefits: it could motivate Obito to train harder, and it might open the door to recruiting Kakashi as a disciple.
Kakashi's potential was S-rank, and his growth trajectory was already rapid—he was a worthy investment.
"Then talk to Rin. If she's willing to learn from me, she can come," Mugetsu said.
Obito lit up instantly. He'd only asked on a whim—he hadn't expected Mugetsu to actually agree.
"As expected of the almighty Mugetsu-sensei!" Obito cheered.
Just imagining training alongside Rin in the future had him grinning from ear to ear. He could hardly wait for tomorrow to tell her the good news.
…
The next morning, Ebisu arrived at the training ground for his usual special training—only to notice people staring at him from all directions.
"Why does it feel like everyone's looking at me?" he muttered.
He'd attracted attention before, when he was the only one on the promotion list. But yesterday, his performance in Group A hadn't been great—there was no reason for him to be the center of attention now.
After all, it was normal to lose to the original Group A members after just being promoted.
"Ebisu, I didn't expect you to look so proper on the surface but play so big behind the scenes," Shiranui Genma said, giving him a friendly punch to the chest.
They were both in Class 4, Group 6, and on good terms.
Hearing Genma's words, Ebisu immediately felt uneasy, even if he didn't yet know why.
"If you're free at noon, show me that Enemy Confusion Technique—I want to test myself against my weakness," Genma added jokingly.
"Enemy Confusion Technique?" Ebisu's stomach sank—he had a bad feeling.
"Come on, don't pretend. It's already spread to all three groups, so there's no point hiding it. Just admit it—you developed a more, uh… 'adult' ninjutsu," Genma said with a smirk.
"Adult ninjutsu… and everyone in all three groups knows about it?"
Ebisu's vision darkened.
"It really wasn't me! I just… made a suggestion!" he protested.
Inwardly, he felt like his Ninja Academy career had just waved him goodbye.
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