Chapter 361: On the Importance of Acting Skills to Ninjas
Danzo was extremely diligent whenever it came to Root's development.
Even though Mugetsu's reply reached him at night, Danzo still read it immediately. As the leader, he believed in leading by example, including working overtime.
When he saw the opening, he nodded. Root members he had personally trained since childhood were always more reliable.
Even though Mugetsu had long since left Root, and now served as the Ninja Academy's Vice Principal, and had even earned merit on the battlefield, the reply made one thing obvious. Mugetsu still respected him deeply, still saw him as his superior, and still considered himself part of Root.
When Danzo reached the section about special training Root in secret, and the possibility of Hiruzen placing the blame on him, annoyance flashed across his face.
Not at Mugetsu.
At Hiruzen.
Danzo's recent proposals had been rejected over and over, and based on his understanding of Hiruzen, Mugetsu's concern was correct. Hiruzen did not want Root to become stronger, and he certainly would not want to see Mugetsu, who had been secretly recalled for special training before, returning to train Root again.
Danzo had wanted to do this quietly. He knew that negotiating with Hiruzen would introduce complications.
But he also understood that hiding it would be difficult.
Hiruzen's Anbu were everywhere, and Mugetsu still had daily duties at the Ninja Academy. If Mugetsu went to Root every night for training, that repeated pattern would be easy to notice.
"I can only talk to Hiruzen," Danzo concluded after weighing everything.
If he did it secretly, discovery was likely. If discovered, Mugetsu, a valuable hidden piece, would become useless, and Hiruzen might even use it as justification to weaken Root further due to the violation.
Danzo was optimistic about Mugetsu's future. If Mugetsu continued to develop, he could become a solid asset. Losing that because of this issue would be an unbearable waste.
The next morning, Danzo entered the Hokage Building and headed straight for the Hokage's office.
He did not knock. He pushed the door open.
"Rushing in like that," Hiruzen said, lifting his head. He set down the documents in his hand. "Is something urgent?"
He had reprimanded Danzo multiple times recently, so he did not even bother to comment on the lack of knocking anymore.
Danzo was still his old classmate and Hokage Assistant. Occasional reprimands were enough. He could not embarrass Danzo every single day.
"You know Root has lost many excellent members so Konoha could gain more advantages on the battlefield," Danzo said, not stating his purpose right away. He played the victim first.
Hiruzen did not respond. He placed the pipe in his mouth, took a slow puff, exhaled white smoke, and then spoke.
"Haven't you added new blood?"
Hiruzen knew Danzo was not lying, only exaggerating. Still, he would not agree to Root expanding.
Root had already grown to the point where it was almost a second Anbu. If its leader were anyone other than Danzo, Hiruzen would never have tolerated such a force existing in Konoha.
Anbu answered directly to the Hokage.
Root did not.
"New people have been added," Danzo said in a low voice, locking eyes with Hiruzen. "But they can never compare to the excellent members who died in battle. Root's strength has declined, and it affects our work in every area."
His gaze carried a clear message.
Root bled for Konoha.
Root suffered for Konoha.
Could Hiruzen not be more lenient?
Hiruzen simply met his eyes in silence.
He had already given Danzo and Root enough conveniences. He did not believe he owed anything.
"I need Hayate Mugetsu to train the new Root members," Danzo said slowly, his fist tightening, his face cold, as if he were stating his final bottom line. "Root needs someone with his teaching ability."
Hiruzen did not answer immediately. He removed the pipe, tapped a finger against the table, and considered.
Sending Mugetsu back to Root was impossible. With Mugetsu's current strength, returning to Root would be a major boost.
After a moment, Hiruzen spoke.
"Mugetsu can train them, but only in the short term, and it must be done with Anbu present."
Danzo's expression tightened.
Hiruzen continued calmly.
"Anbu also took in new recruits recently. If there will be training, then do it together."
Hiruzen also wanted to see whether Mugetsu could show the same teaching ability with fully grown shinobi that he displayed at the Ninja Academy.
Danzo was about to argue, but Hiruzen cut him off immediately.
"Danzo, don't forget Root's original purpose."
Danzo fell silent at once.
Because the excuse used to establish Root in the first place was to train Anbu.
After that, the two discussed the specific arrangements. Danzo kept his face cold the entire time, as if Hiruzen owed him thirty million ryo.
When Danzo left the Hokage Building, his expression returned to normal.
As Root's leader, Danzo was confident in his acting skills. Most of what he displayed in the Hokage office was performance, meant to make Hiruzen feel as if he were the one losing out.
There had been a minor unexpected twist, but Danzo's core goal was achieved. In his mind, this was not a loss.
In fact, Danzo understood why Hiruzen rejected expansion.
But Danzo believed the fault was not his, it was Hiruzen's.
Danzo was wholeheartedly for Konoha. A stronger Root was beneficial and harmless. Hiruzen should trust him more.
Since Mugetsu taught all day, Hiruzen went to find him after the Ninja Academy dismissed for the day.
Knock, knock.
Soon, the wooden door of the Hokage office was tapped.
"Come in," Hiruzen said, taking a sip of hot tea.
Mugetsu pushed the door open, stepped inside, and greeted Hiruzen with respectful composure.
Hiruzen smiled and nodded back.
"Anbu and Root have taken in new blood," Hiruzen said directly, not wasting words. "I want you to conduct special training for them and improve their strength. I will arrange other teachers to cover your classes at the Ninja Academy."
Mugetsu put on a surprised expression and replied, "Anbu and Root are gathering places for elites. I'm afraid there isn't much I can teach them."
"No need to be modest," Hiruzen said, his expression full of trust. "Your teaching ability is obvious to everyone. Just go and do it."
"Thank you for your trust, Sandaime," Mugetsu said, adopting a grateful tone. "I will do my best to help them improve."
Hiruzen stroked his beard with a pleased smile.
This was the art of language. He was simply assigning a task, yet he still earned Mugetsu's gratitude.
After that, Hiruzen chatted with Mugetsu about Asuma's training. Since it was already past working hours, once they finished speaking, the two walked out of the Hokage Building together.
"Anbu and Root together…" Mugetsu thought as he headed home.
This arrangement clearly differed from Danzo's original expectations. It was a compromise between both sides.
But for Mugetsu, it was actually better.
His system always produced better rewards the more people he taught and the higher their overall quality. If it were only a few new Root members, he would worry whether the conditions were enough. With two organizations combined, that worry disappeared.
Once home, Mugetsu began planning the training content.
This was not like the Ninja Academy's holiday special training. Anyone who could enter Anbu or Root was at least an elite chunin, and possibly even jonin.
A Konoha jonin's value was extremely high. If someone was too specialized, even with sufficient strength, they might only become a special jonin.
This was also an opportunity for Mugetsu to prove his teaching ability at a higher level. If he taught well, his value as an instructor would be amplified further, and he would be trusted with more important roles, making future actions far more convenient.
If he ever wanted to push major reforms at the Ninja Academy, without special achievements, Hiruzen would not trust him to change anything.
The two holiday special trainings he led had outstanding results, but resumes always look better when they keep getting more impressive.
Still, Mugetsu did not obsess over it.
With his current knowledge and teaching skills, raising people's strength was not difficult.
For Mugetsu, the two most important things remained the same.
First, developing the power bank.
Backup chakra would ease the problem of slow recovery. When he ran out, he could draw from the reserve instead of refining everything again.
Second, learning Flying Thunder God.
That technique would allow instant long distance movement, useful in countless situations, and absurdly convenient.
Mugetsu spent twenty minutes writing a rough outline, then focused on sealing technique study.
After two hours, Minato arrived to discuss ninjutsu.
Mugetsu listened to Flying Thunder God explanations, while Minato listened as Mugetsu explained Rasengan development. They continued until it was nearly bedtime, then Minato finally went home.
After Minato left, Mugetsu briefly researched breathing techniques, then prepared for sleep.
Before lying down, he checked the progress of each disciple's life mission.
Life missions gave extremely generous rewards. If someone's progress was close to a settlement point, Mugetsu would help push it forward, just like he had done for Obito before.
He reviewed them all.
Obito had the highest progress and had already settled once.
Next was Might Guy. Mugetsu noticed Guy's mission progress had reached 9.4%, only 0.6% away from a settlement.
Third was Shisui, though his progress was far lower, incomparable to Obito and Guy.
Kakashi was last place, the only one still at zero. But Kakashi's mission was special. Mugetsu could not truly say whether Kakashi or Shisui would settle first.
"If he can open the Fourth Gate under normal conditions, then a 0.6% increase should be no problem," Mugetsu thought.
Based on his records, Mugetsu determined what pushed Guy's life mission forward: strength and fame.
Strength increased progress.
Fame also increased progress.
For example, during the third stage of the chunin exams, with many spectators and Guy performing exceptionally well, Guy's mission progress increased after the battle.
But according to Mugetsu's observations, strength increases generally gave much more progress than fame.
If it were only 0.1% or 0.2% away, Mugetsu would likely have Guy go on a flashy mission and settle it that way.
But for 0.6%, training Guy to open the Fourth Gate would be faster. Guy was already not far from it.
The next day, Mugetsu spoke with Teacher Chen and arranged for Guy to temporarily leave the team for special training.
However, Mugetsu always treated his disciples equally. He would not single out Guy alone.
"Everyone is going to have to work hard for a while," Mugetsu said with a gentle smile. "The next training will be a bit difficult."
"Youth is about training more!" Guy laughed loudly, giving a thumbs up.
The harsher the training, the more excited Guy became. Every trial was another step on his path to becoming the strongest.
Obito's face turned pale.
Mugetsu rarely warned them about difficulty. If he said it out loud, it meant the training was truly brutal, like Constant State training not long ago.
Constant State training was the most terrifying thing Obito had ever experienced. He had genuinely fallen asleep while standing for the first time. It was exhausting, and he still had to keep exercising. Obito felt misery deep in his bones.
Kakashi's expression also turned serious. He remembered that same Constant State training.
Shisui's expression did not change. Difficult training usually meant significant improvement, which meant another opportunity for a shortcut.
Shizune sensed the atmosphere shift, but she did not understand why. Mugetsu had only said it would be a little difficult.
As if sensing her thoughts, Obito looked at Shizune with pity.
"What an innocent child," Obito sighed. "She has no idea what she's about to face."
Slap.
Mugetsu's finger landed perfectly on Obito's forehead.
After lightly punishing the troublemaker, Mugetsu began arranging the training programs.
This special training was targeted, tailored to each disciple's traits.
Guy needed to open the Fourth Gate.
Kakashi needed to completely master Transparent World.
Obito needed to master Flame Breathing Chakra Mode.
Mugetsu's goal was simple. He wanted them to convert their potential into strength as quickly as possible, raising their combat power.
Even though Shizune was an exchange student, she was still half a disciple in practice, so Mugetsu gave her attention as well.
At first, Shizune was puzzled, even smiling.
But once training truly began, she found herself missing the days with Tsunade.
Tsunade often made her do chores, but compared to training like this, Shizune realized chores were not tiring at all.
"So Rin has always been through this," Shizune thought, Rin's image in her mind becoming richer and heavier. "No wonder she became so strong."
"I must not give up," Shizune told herself, forcing out motivation. "Lady Tsunade will definitely be surprised when she checks my progress."
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