Chapter 237: War Mission
"A C-Rank Mission, let me see." The registration ninja lowered his head, flipping through the scrolls in front of him for a while before looking up.
"There are still C-Rank Missions left, but the remaining ones are all war missions. The regular C-Rank ones have already been completed," he said.
"There are a few D-Rank Missions, though. How about this, Jonin Mugetsu—you can take a few D-Rank Missions first and come back tomorrow to see if new C-Rank ones come in?" he suggested.
"What bad luck," Mugetsu muttered. He hadn't expected such a situation.
He had originally planned to test the rewards for a regular C-Rank Mission, but it seemed they were all gone. After a moment of thought, Mugetsu decided it wasn't worth doing D-Rank Missions. The Chakra rewards were too low, and it would be more efficient to have his disciples spend the day training instead.
"Hehe, then, old man, just give us a B-Rank Mission! We've already completed two A-Rank Missions, so a B-Rank should be no problem!" Obito said with a grin.
He had no interest in returning to D-Rank Missions. After experiencing the thrill of higher-level ones, he never wanted to go back to errands and chores unless there were no other options left.
"When you become a Chunin, then I can assign you B-Rank Missions," the registration ninja said firmly, his tone leaving no room for negotiation.
"Come on! Our team has Teacher Mugetsu, who's a Special Jonin; Kakashi, a Chunin; and then there's me and Guy, who haven't graduated yet, so we don't really count. But overall, this should meet the requirements for a B-Rank Mission, right?" Obito argued, trying to find a loophole.
"No," the registration ninja said coldly. "You two have intern certificates. That means you're still Intern Ninja."
"Then just give us a C-Rank War Mission. They're all C-Rank anyway. What's the difference?" Obito pressed.
"There's a big difference!" The ninja's face suddenly turned stern.
"War missions are directly connected to the frontlines. The battlefield isn't a place for children like you. Think about it again when you're Chunin."
"What's wrong, Sawada? Why so harsh with the kids?"
A calm voice came from behind them. Turning around, they saw Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, walking down with his usual pipe in hand and a faint smile on his face.
Whenever he finished his official duties, he liked to spend some time in the Mission Hall—both to reassure clients about Konoha's commitment and to let the village's ninja feel the Hokage's presence and care.
"Lord Third Hokage," Sawada said respectfully. "It's like this—Jonin Mugetsu came to take a C-Rank Mission, but the only ones left are war missions. This child, Obito, insisted on taking one."
"I see." Hiruzen nodded thoughtfully, puffing out smoke as his eyes turned toward Mugetsu's group.
He knew their team well and felt they were more than capable of handling a B-Rank Mission. Mugetsu, formerly from the Root Division, was certainly not an ordinary Special Jonin. Kakashi was a seasoned Chunin, and both Obito and Guy had shown considerable growth.
Most B-Rank Missions only involved enemy Genin-level threats. With a lineup like theirs, failure was unlikely. Still, having two interns made things delicate. He had already allowed them C-Rank privileges once—granting more might be overstepping.
"Hokage uncle, you know how strong our team is!" Obito said eagerly. "A C-Rank War Mission is still a C-Rank Mission. We'll be fine!"
Hiruzen took a slow puff from his pipe, exhaled a thin stream of smoke, and nodded. "Show me the C-Rank War Mission," he said to Sawada.
Sawada quickly handed over the scroll. Hiruzen opened it and read through the contents carefully. It was an escort assignment—transporting food supplies to the frontlines in the Land of Grass.
Such C-Rank War Missions typically didn't involve direct combat. They were mostly logistical support, ensuring the flow of resources to the army.
Normally, escorting supplies might be classified as a D-Rank or low C-Rank Mission, but with the ongoing conflict between Konoha and Iwagakure in the Land of Grass, the risk of attack elevated it to full C-Rank.
Currently, the war had split the Land of Grass in half, with each side controlling part of the territory. Iwagakure's forces would have difficulty breaking through to attack deep within the Land of Fire, so the escort route was relatively safe.
Still, food convoys were critical. For a large-scale, long-term war, the frontlines couldn't rely on scavenging or small hunts; steady supply from the rear was essential.
There were generally two types of escort missions: emergency supply runs when the front ran out of provisions and routine scheduled shipments. This one fell under the latter.
"Your squad has indeed performed exceptionally," Hiruzen said at last, smiling as he handed the scroll to Mugetsu. "I'll make an exception once again. You are permitted to undertake this War Mission."
"Mugetsu, what do you think?"
Mugetsu accepted the scroll respectfully and read through the details. After confirming the parameters, he nodded confidently.
"We won't disappoint your expectations, Lord Third Hokage. We'll complete the mission perfectly."
He was quite satisfied. Despite being classified as a war mission, it carried little real danger—a perfect opportunity to earn rewards while staying within acceptable limits.
As he turned to leave, Mugetsu couldn't help thinking that having someone like Obito in the team wasn't such a bad thing. If not for his persistence, they would have gone back to training empty-handed today.
Mugetsu could be just as thick-skinned as Obito if he wanted to, but his position didn't allow it. Obito was just an overenthusiastic intern, while he was a Special Jonin and an Academy instructor. Bargaining for higher missions himself would have seemed unbecoming and out of character.
"Yay, thank you, Hokage uncle!" Obito beamed with joy and bowed deeply to Hiruzen.
"You are all the future of the village," Hiruzen said kindly, removing his pipe and smiling warmly. "So please, take care of yourselves."
"Teacher Mugetsu, let me see what mission it is!" Obito said eagerly as they walked out of the Hokage Building.
Perhaps it was human nature—the more he was told not to do something, the more curious he became. Obito was dying to know what made this war mission so special that Intern Ninja weren't allowed to take it.
"You all can take a look," Mugetsu said, handing the mission scroll to his students.
Obito grabbed it first and scanned through quickly, only to frown in disappointment.
"What? This isn't any different from a normal C-Rank Mission! It's just that we're escorting food instead of people," he muttered.
He had been expecting something thrilling—perhaps even dangerous—but the details completely deflated his excitement.
"This is different," Kakashi said seriously. "We're heading to a battlefield—one between two of the Five Great Shinobi Villages. It's one of the most dangerous places in the Ninja World."
Kakashi could tolerate Obito's usual antics, but not when it came to underestimating the battlefield. Even a Kage could fall there if they were careless.
"Even though it's unlikely we'll encounter combat, you still need to stay alert," he added.
Although the mission was classified as C-Rank, Kakashi believed there shouldn't be any real danger. After all, the odds of encountering an enemy four times in a row were nearly impossible.
"Kakashi, since you said that, it's almost guaranteed we'll run into enemy ninja," Obito said brightly.
(Damn ahhahahah)
Kakashi blinked, confused. "What?"
"Think about it!" Obito said seriously. "You said the exact same thing on our last three missions—and every time, we ended up fighting. So if you're saying it again, it must mean the same thing will happen this time too."
Kakashi was silent for a long moment.
"…That's just coincidence," he said at last, though even he didn't sound convinced.
"It's only bad luck that those missions turned out that way," he added. "Most of this route is within the Land of Fire. Even the section that crosses into the Land of Grass will have Konoha patrols nearby."
"Let's stop debating," Mugetsu said with a calm smile. "We'll head out now. War missions can't afford delays."
The last few missions had their share of unexpected danger, but that was largely because Mugetsu had intentionally selected high-risk routes to strengthen his disciples. Naturally, that increased the chance of accidents.
Now, under his command, the group made their way to the supply caravan's staging area.
"Ninja-sama, we're ready to depart," a middle-aged man said, stepping forward after confirming their orders.
"We're ready as well. Let's move out," Mugetsu nodded, signaling the start of the mission.
This one differed from their usual assignments. Normally, they worked under a client's supervision, but in this case, the client was Konoha itself. That meant Mugetsu held full command authority. Beneath him were his three disciples, followed by the civilian workers responsible for transporting the supplies.
Under Mugetsu's lead, several horse-drawn carts filled with food rumbled down the road toward the Land of Grass. Mugetsu and his disciples rode together in one of the empty carriages.
"Teacher Mugetsu," Obito asked curiously, "isn't there a jutsu that seals items into scrolls? Why don't we just put all the food inside one? Then we wouldn't need all these wagons or people—just us to escort it!"
Mugetsu chuckled softly. "It's not that simple. Storage scrolls have limits. How much they can hold depends on the quality of the scroll and the user's Chakra control. You can't just seal an entire convoy's worth of food into one scroll."
Obito listened intently as Mugetsu continued explaining. "During war, Ninja consume much more food than usual. Thousands of soldiers on the frontlines need constant resupply. It's impossible to store that much using sealing techniques alone."
"Besides," he added, "stronger Ninja are too valuable to waste on escort duty. That's why squads like ours are paired with civilians for transport."
Obito nodded, half-understanding, looking both enlightened and slightly dazed.
"What's the battlefield like, Teacher Mugetsu? Have you ever been there?" he asked suddenly.
Mugetsu shook his head. "No. Neither in this life nor the last."
"What about you, Kakashi?" Obito turned his attention to him. "You've done missions near the war zones, right?"
"I've done some war-related missions," Kakashi replied after a short pause, "but I haven't actually fought on a battlefield."
Though experienced for his age, he was still only eight. He had seen death but not the scale of true war.
"Then why were you acting like such an expert earlier?" Obito said with a pout. "You looked so serious I thought you'd fought a hundred battles already!"
"I haven't fought in one," Kakashi said calmly, "but I've heard plenty from veteran Ninja. Their advice is enough to know that war is not something to take lightly."
<><><><><>
[Check Out My Patreon For +40 Advance Chapters On All My Fanfics!]
[[email protected]/FanficLord03]
[Every 100 Power Stones = +1 Bonus Chapter]
[Join Our Discord Community For Updates & Events]
[https://discord.gg/MntqcdpRZ9]