Chapter 168: Quick Brush Mission
Fake Darkness had two major challenges to master—one was compressing Lightning Release Chakra to maintain its power, and the other was controlling its shape. When performing a wide-range sweep, the user had to split the lightning spear into multiple bolts to expand the area of attack.
Mugetsu demonstrated it again, explaining in detail as arcs of lightning danced around him.
"Compression and splitting…" Kakashi muttered thoughtfully, Mugetsu's words echoing in his mind. As he immersed himself in the memory of the demonstration, the image of Mugetsu performing Fake Darkness gradually shifted—until it was Kakashi himself releasing the technique.
"So that's how it works." Kakashi's eyes brightened in sudden understanding.
Mugetsu glanced at Kakashi's panel and noticed the Fake Darkness proficiency rising rapidly. The enhancement to his Teaching skill was clearly showing results. In mere moments, Kakashi's mastery of the Ninjutsu had already increased by over twenty points.
Now it was time for Kakashi to practice the technique himself.
"Lightning Release: Fake Darkness!"
Kakashi inhaled deeply and unleashed a bolt of lightning from his mouth. The strike hit a nearby tree—but unlike Mugetsu's attack, which swept through the forest, Kakashi's only left a black scorch mark.
Seeing his own failure, Kakashi immediately began reflecting. He replayed every step of his chakra control and hand seals, trying to identify where he went wrong.
"Compressing lightning isn't as easy as it sounds," Mugetsu said, observing calmly. "You need to become more familiar with the feeling of control."
Explaining the theory of a Ninjutsu often made it sound simple. Rasengan could be summarized as high-density chakra compression followed by circular rotation, while Lightning Blade was merely shaping Lightning Chakra into a concentrated, piercing form. But in practice, theory meant little—just as knowing a formula didn't make solving the problem any easier.
Mugetsu let Kakashi attempt the technique twice more before stepping in to re-teach. This time, he demonstrated slowly, highlighting each subtle movement and correction.
This was Mugetsu's preferred teaching method—allowing his students to learn through trial, error, and guided correction. By struggling first, they paid greater attention to every detail in the next demonstration.
"So that's what I was missing." Kakashi nodded to himself, his respect for Mugetsu quietly growing.
In strength, Mugetsu was an exceptional Ninja. But as a teacher—he was extraordinary.
Kakashi had been taught by many before: academy instructors, elite Jonin, and even his own father. Yet in terms of teaching ability, none had guided him like Mugetsu. Under his instruction, knowledge seemed to flow naturally into Kakashi's mind, and his thoughts became sharper, more active.
He's truly a reliable teacher, Kakashi thought. Maybe in the future, I can consult him whenever I hit a wall.
[Disciple Kakashi Hatake's Trust Level has increased. Current Trust Level: Two.)
Mugetsu wasn't surprised.
Reaching Trust Level Two wasn't difficult—it simply meant that the disciple viewed him as a reliable person. All three of his earlier disciples had started at that level. But progressing beyond that was far harder.
The gap between Level Two and Level Three was enormous—perhaps five times greater than the gap between One and Two. Reaching Level Four was even more difficult.
Might Guy and Obito already trusted him deeply, nearly as much as they did their own families, yet neither had broken through to Level Four. That spoke volumes about the difficulty.
Still, Kakashi's increase wasn't a coincidence—it was the result of Mugetsu's careful design.
To build trust, Mugetsu had deliberately shaped an ideal persona: strong, wise, a skilled cook, and someone who possessed unique insight into what it meant to be a Ninja.
Then, to push things further, he arranged another sparring session the next day—Kakashi versus Obito and Might Guy. While it was meant to deepen their understanding of each other's abilities, it was also designed to ignite Kakashi's competitive spirit.
After all, when the so-called "dead lasts" began to catch up to the genius Ninja, even the calmest mind would feel a spark of urgency.
And that spark worked perfectly. Kakashi, realizing that his new instructor wasn't just powerful but also an exceptional teacher, committed himself fully to learning.
By late morning, their training concluded, and Mugetsu led the group toward the Hokage Building for their afternoon assignments.
"Today, we'll complete more missions than yesterday—let's do ten at once!" Obito declared energetically.
"Are you stupid?" Kakashi said flatly. "Even if each mission only takes half an hour, ten would take five hours."
Some missions could be completed quickly with connections and efficiency, but labor-based ones—like cleaning or trash collection—often took an hour or more.
"It's not even two o'clock yet," Obito countered confidently. "Even if it takes five hours, we'll finish before seven."
"Use your brain for once," Kakashi snapped. "You think every mission can be done in half an hour? And submitting them takes time too."
"It's fine, it's fine! I get it—you're just scared. I mean, I did win all three missions yesterday," Obito said with a smug grin.
Kakashi's expression darkened.
"Want to go again today?" Obito said with mock innocence. "Let's see who completes more missions this time."
"It seems I'll have to teach you what a real Ninja looks like," Kakashi replied coolly.
"How could I possibly miss out on such youthful competition!" Might Guy exclaimed, joining in immediately.
Mugetsu couldn't help but smile. "Alright then. Today's goal is ten missions. If you complete them all, I'll treat everyone to my special homemade dish."
That caught their attention immediately.
For Mugetsu, it was more than motivation—it was efficiency. If the trio really completed ten missions, his Chakra gains would be substantial. And now that Kakashi was officially his disciple, the rewards would multiply.
When they arrived at the Hokage Building, Mugetsu directly requested five missions at once to save time.
"This team again?" one of the mission registrars sighed. "If they keep this pace, there won't be any D-Rank missions left for other Genin teams."
Another Ninja beside him chuckled. "Can't blame them. They're efficient. But D-Rank missions are limited—mostly government-subsidized odd jobs. Normal teams handle one or two per day. These kids are cleaning out the whole board."
"What'll we do when they run out of work?"
"Let them rest—or train. Regulations say they can't take C-Rank missions yet anyway."
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