Chapter 657: Life Mission Settlement
Hokage Building, conference room.
A large number of Konoha jonin sat around a massive conference table.
"Effective immediately, Hayate Mugetsu will serve as Hokage Assistant."
As soon as the meeting began, Hiruzen dropped a bombshell.
The jonin exchanged glances, all of them wearing surprised expressions.
No one thought Mugetsu was unqualified to become Hokage Assistant. However, for Mugetsu to take on such an important position at the age of twenty-two was unprecedented in Konoha.
Considering the recent calls within Konoha for the Fourth Hokage to be chosen, it was difficult for them not to think more deeply about the meaning behind this appointment.
Clap, clap!
Minato was the first to applaud, a genuine smile on his face.
Although in a certain sense they were rivals, their relationship was far too good.
So even if this appointment meant Mugetsu would gain a huge advantage in the future Fourth Hokage election, Minato was still happy for him.
Clap!
Tsunade clapped excitedly, already thinking that it was perfectly reasonable for Mugetsu to prepare a grand feast to celebrate such a major occasion.
If not for the fact that the meeting was still ongoing, Tsunade would have already sent a Shadow Clone out to buy groceries.
Orochimaru clapped expressionlessly, his gaze toward Mugetsu extremely complicated.
He had once considered Mugetsu an asset to his own ambition of becoming Hokage, a capable subordinate worth cultivating.
Yet in just a few years, before Orochimaru had even fully realized it, Mugetsu's strength and reputation had soared. Now, even his position was higher than Orochimaru's, and the calls for Mugetsu to become Hokage were even louder.
However, the two of them had never clashed, so Orochimaru did not dislike Mugetsu. He simply felt as if he had somehow been backstabbed by empty air.
"Excellent, Mugetsu. You've done well!" Jiraiya clapped with a cheerful grin.
With such a capable ninja serving as Hokage Assistant, Hiruzen would no longer bother him. Jiraiya could confidently go search for his Child of Prophecy and travel the world writing novels.
Shikaku looked at Mugetsu as if he were looking at some kind of deity.
"Four years ago, who would have dared imagine things would develop like this?" Shikaku sighed inwardly while applauding.
Four years ago, if one had asked any Konoha ninja or resident on the street who was most likely to become the Fourth Hokage, the Sannin would undoubtedly have been the overwhelming answer.
This actually had little to do with the Sannin being Hiruzen's disciples. The main reason was that the Sannin were the three most prominent ninja in Konoha at that time.
For Mugetsu to surpass them and rise so suddenly was something many Konoha jonin present had never expected.
This was no longer a matter of whether Jiraiya and the others had enough will to compete. Even if Jiraiya and Tsunade wanted to fight Mugetsu for the position now, it would be extremely difficult for them to win.
"It really is Hokage Assistant! Teacher Mugetsu, the Sage, is truly prescient!"
Obito clapped frantically, fighting to produce the loudest applause as he expressed his reverence for the omnipotent Teacher Mugetsu, the Sage.
His strongest competitor was Asuma, who sat not far away.
Asuma had not even wanted to attend the meeting at first, since his mood had been terrible lately.
He was a talented jonin, yet when guiding a junior who was still in the Ninja Academy, he had nearly stumbled while using only Fire Release. In the end, he had been forced to quickly activate the Wind Breathing Chakra Mode he had recently mastered on the battlefield in order to defeat his opponent.
But for a Ninja Academy student to push him to such an extent, Asuma had already lost face.
After learning that the student had only recently started first grade, Asuma had almost fallen into depression.
He felt as though first year students were his natural bane.
When he became a genin, he had confidently fought Shisui, a first year student, only to be easily defeated.
Now he was already a jonin, yet he had almost carelessly stumbled against another first year student. It was ridiculous.
However, when he heard Hiruzen mention important news about Mugetsu, Asuma still composed himself and came.
Regarding the Teacher Mugetsu he respected most, he, Asuma Sarutobi, had to show his support.
Clap, clap, clap!
Thunderous applause erupted. Many jonin clapped earnestly, showing their approval of the decision.
Among them, some had children who had been taught by Mugetsu. Some had close relatives who had been taught by Mugetsu. Some had even been taught by Mugetsu themselves.
Although Mugetsu's teaching career had not been long, he had often conducted various forms of special training, and in truth, he had taught quite a few people.
Those who understood Mugetsu's teaching ability naturally had a very good impression of him.
Hiruzen, Homura, and the other higher-ups were also applauding.
There was nothing more to say about Hiruzen. He only saw Mugetsu in a favorable light.
Homura had suffered defeat in Hidden Mist, and it had been Mugetsu who turned the tide. He could not forget that favor, so naturally, he had to show his support.
As for Koharu, everyone else was clapping. If she did not clap as well, would she not stand out too much?
"I will certainly carry out my duties diligently," Mugetsu said, standing up and bowing slightly.
Another round of applause erupted. All the jonin were very respectful, and no one treated it perfunctorily.
Hiruzen continued, "Minato will serve as the Jonin Commander."
Clap, clap!
Mugetsu was the first to applaud, giving Minato a round of applause.
Although the title was commander, the unit in question was the Jonin Corps, which encompassed all of Konoha's jonin. It was a very high position within Konoha's organizational structure.
However, there was one rather awkward point. In the current Konoha, the Jonin Commander could not attend high level meetings.
This created a very awkward situation where the Jonin Commander could not even participate in making truly important decisions.
Of course, it was still a good position, just not as good as Hokage Assistant.
Minato was also extremely popular, so many jonin sincerely applauded him as well.
[Disciple Uchiha Obito's strength, reputation, and connections have increased. His probability of becoming Hokage has moderately increased.]
[Progress reward: Chakra +2000, Self Selected Draw Scroll Fragment · S+ Mastery Level, Fire Release Chakra Comprehension Boost.]
As Hiruzen finished announcing Mugetsu and Minato's appointments, a message popped up on Mugetsu's system panel.
Obito's life mission progress surged, breaking through fifty percent first and reaching a settlement node.
Along with the message, many memories of Fire Release chakra nature transformation training and Fire Release Ninjutsu training surfaced one after another in Mugetsu's mind, giving him a deeper understanding of everything related to Fire Release chakra.
"The fifty percent settlement reward is actually an S+ draw scroll as well," Mugetsu thought, his interest rising.
Shisui had given him one fragment before, and now Obito had given him another. Guy was about to give him one too, so Mugetsu would soon be able to designate a type and draw an S+ skill again.
Mugetsu opened his panel and glanced at Obito's mission progress after the settlement.
[Name: Uchiha Obito]
[Life Mission: It is not those who become Hokage who are recognized by everyone, but those who are recognized by everyone who can become Hokage.]
[Main Goal: Become the Hokage of Konoha Ninja Village.]
[Mission Progress: 54.6%]
Mugetsu had to admit that the system was far too realistic. As soon as he and Minato, Obito's two teachers, were promoted, the progress really surged.
However, it made sense. Hokage Assistant plus Jonin Commander could indeed provide a great deal of help.
Then Mugetsu opened Guy's life mission panel.
[Name: Might Guy]
[Life Mission: Walk the path of the strongest Taijutsu user.]
[Main Goal: Become a top tier expert in the Ninja World specializing in Taijutsu, both in strength and renown, making all ninja aware that one can become strong even without specializing in Ninjutsu.]
[Mission Progress: 49.9%]
Guy was just that final zero point one percent away from achieving the fifty percent settlement reward.
Mugetsu was not in a hurry. He only had to wait for the news of the battle's victory to keep spreading, and the reward was guaranteed.
"Next, Konoha's main work is…"
After discussing several important appointments, Hiruzen also talked about the Five Kage Summit and the alliance of the Five Great Ninja Villages.
The entire meeting lasted five hours before finally concluding.
After the meeting ended, Tsunade, Minato, and other friends who had good relationships with Mugetsu came over to congratulate him, and Mugetsu responded to each of them.
Just as Mugetsu was about to go home with Minato and Tsunade, Hiruzen called out to him.
"Why are there so many things?" Tsunade grumbled, clearly annoyed that her grand meal had been forcibly postponed.
She had already decided which ingredients to buy, and then this happened.
"Mugetsu, we'll go ahead," Minato said, not seeming to mind too much. He smiled and bid farewell to Mugetsu.
He guessed that there were probably some important matters that needed to be discussed in a high level meeting.
The jonin meeting was nominally where various major affairs of Konoha were decided, but the true decisions regarding important Konoha matters were made during high level meetings.
After leaving the large conference room where the jonin meeting had been held, Mugetsu followed Hiruzen, Homura, and the other high ranking officials into the conference room reserved for high level meetings.
"Some matters are not suitable to be discussed at the jonin meeting, so they are moved to the high level meeting for deliberation," Hiruzen explained to Mugetsu after taking his seat, since this was Mugetsu's first time attending such a meeting.
Mugetsu nodded, indicating that he understood.
"Everyone, please take a look at the documents first," Hiruzen continued.
He had already arranged for the Anbu to compile and prepare the latest intelligence from the Land of Rain.
Mugetsu picked up the document in front of him and began reading.
After reading it, Mugetsu had to admit that Konoha, as the largest Ninja Village, indeed had its standards.
Hiruzen had already uncovered the fact that Danzo had collaborated with Hanzō, with the suspected goal of killing Ninja Master Sōsuke.
As for why it was only suspected, the main reason was that from Konoha's perspective, there were many suspicious points regarding the incident in Amegakure.
Although Hanzō had died, Amegakure had suffered almost no losses. That did not look like Hanzō murdering Sōsuke. Rather, it seemed more as though Sōsuke had orchestrated a coup in Amegakure and killed Hanzō.
In addition to the intelligence regarding Danzo's death, this document also contained information on the ninja forces of Amegakure and Ninshū.
Although it was not accurate down to the single digit, this intelligence was already considered quite precise.
However, Mugetsu did not pay too much attention to it. For Amegakure and Ninshū, this was not exactly secret intelligence.
They had few people to begin with, so they could not simply hide and do nothing.
The gap between ordinary Ninja Villages and the Five Great Ninja Villages was too vast, making infiltration almost impossible to fully prevent.
Unless Mugetsu personally took action, opened his perception completely, identified everyone he saw, and used his panel to precisely catch every spy, it would indeed be possible to eliminate infiltrators.
But that would be too much trouble. With that time, Mugetsu might as well directly use his hard power to strike the enemy down.
.....
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