"I wonder what kind of enemies we'll encounter this time. If it's Chunin, that would be great. I can finally show off my skills." On the way to the Hokage Building, Obito fell into a daydream.
Obito had a rough idea of his capabilities. He definitely couldn't beat a Jonin, but against a Chunin, he might still stand a chance since Kakashi was also a Chunin.
"What are you thinking? Last time's mission was an unpredictable exception. C-Class missions don't encounter ninjas," Kakashi said, exasperated.
He's done countless C-Class missions, and the only time he encountered ninjas was during the last mission.
"If it happened last time, why can't it happen this time?" Obito immediately retorted, kind of hoping for the same kind of unexpected event as last time.
The total reward for the last mission was 800,000 ryo, and after taxes, Obito managed to get over 100,000 ryo as a reward. Seeing so much money for the first time got Obito incredibly excited.
"The graduation exam of the Ninja Academy should include theoretical conditions, to prevent people without common sense from becoming ninjas." Kakashi said matter-of-factly.
"It's just that your theory is a bit better. What's so great about that? What matters in a ninja is strength. Even if you're good at theory, what does it matter? Guy's theory is about the same as mine and he still kicks your ass."
Hearing Kakashi's sarcasm, Obito instantly reacted like a frenzied cat and launched a counterattack.
If Kakashi had said that Obito wasn't strong, Obito wouldn't have been so mad. It's not certain who would win in a fight, but Kakashi saying he was bad at theory is something Obito couldn't stand since he was indeed bad at theory.
Kakashi's face darkened a bit, but he knew this wasn't the time to argue. He only hit at Obito's weak point in theory.
Mokgetsu did not intervene, as letting Obito tug at Kakashi's emotions was fine. Thus, they noisily made their way to the Hokage Building.
Since there were other teams picking tasks here, Obito and Kakashi temporarily halted their skirmish; Obito didn't want to embarrass Mokgetsu, and Kakashi just thought it was silly.
"I want to take a C-Class mission," Mokgetsu said to the registering ninja.
The registering ninja quickly took out a scroll and spread it open for Mokgetsu to see.
Mokgetsu noticed there were also war tasks on the mission scroll.
Unless it's a particularly urgent situation, Konoha generally doesn't forcibly dispatch large numbers of ninjas to the battlefield. Some less important tasks are published within the village for teams to freely pick.
Of course, some important war tasks are certainly assigned by higher-ups to Jonin for completion.
However, when the usual tasks begin to include war tasks, Mokgetsu knew the war was already entering the next stage.
Actually, Mokgetsu knew from when Jiraiya came to visit his home.
Jiraiya, who usually travels the Ninja World, rarely returns to Konoha, but now he has come back.
But according to the original story, Mokgetsu judged that it's still far from being the fiercest time. There was still a fair bit of time before the four major ninja villages ganged up, as Obito hadn't graduated yet, and Kakashi still had more than three years before becoming a Jonin.
Based on the original timeline, it should be the start of Obito's third academic term right now.
"Jonin Mokgetsu, although you're allowed to take C-Class missions, your squad still has two interns, and according to regulations, you're not allowed to take war missions," the registering ninja said.
There are war tasks in D-Class missions as well, and to prevent any crazy teachers from taking their students to the battlefield resulting in accidents, Sarutobi Hiruzen forbade any squad with interns from taking war missions.
"Hmm, understood," Mokgetsu nodded. He wasn't planning on taking any war tasks anyway. It would be troublesome if he ran into a Jinchuriki or the Tsuchikage or Raikage.
He just wanted to spar with those candidate Kage who haven't fully developed yet; dealing with the current Kage was out of the question.
Third Hokage, Third Tsuchikage, Third Raikage — none of these guys are simple. The Third Hokage doesn't need mentioning; Mokgetsu has seen his stats. The Third Raikage is absurdly tough and can even take a Rasen Shuriken head-on, and the Third Tsuchikage's Dust Release is also very powerful and enables him to fly.
"Huh, what tasks aren't we allowed to take?" Somewhat rebellious, Obito heard there were tasks they couldn't take and immediately leaned in to see.
Smack!
Mokgetsu didn't even look as he smacked Obito on the head.
"Could it be that you, Teacher Mokgetsu, have developed a ninjutsu specifically for hitting me? You're so accurate," Obito said, shocked, staring at Mokgetsu who was still looking at the mission scroll.
"Because I have good eyesight," Mokgetsu replied with a smile, continuing to look at the mission scroll.
Excluding the war missions, the usual C-Class missions are of the same few kinds: either driving away wild beasts or bandits, escorting clients, or escorting documents.
It's not that the clients don't want to set up other tasks, but anything more demanding would require a higher fee, qualifying it as a B-Class mission, which Mokgetsu Squad is not currently eligible to take.
Mokgetsu carefully examined the tasks. More than the task content, he was more focused on the task location. The Land of Grass was immediately ruled out by Mokgetsu as Konoha and Hidden Rock might have a major battle there.
Finally, Mokgetsu, after much consideration, chose a task in the Land of Rivers to drive away wild beasts.
The task description was about a giant black eagle frequently harassing residents in the mission's location, Kawakita Town, treating the residents' poultry like a buffet, with chickens, ducks, geese, and even pigs falling victim to the black eagle's talons.
Mokgetsu speculated that this black eagle was likely a ninja beast to some extent, given its ability to snatch and eat pigs, which was quite impressive.
Mokgetsu also noted the task's posting time; it was a new task published just last night.
"Let's take this task," Mokgetsu said, pointing at the task to drive away the wild beast in the Land of Rivers.
In case of any unexpected outcomes, they could make some extra money, and if things went smoothly, they could also test the normal rewards for a C-Class mission. If they were successful, they might even obtain a bird-type summoning beast.
There aren't many things in the Ninja World that can fly; having a bird-type summoning beast would certainly make it easier to escape when outmatched.
"Let me see, let me see," Obito said, poking his head to check the task as Mokgetsu walked out of the mission hall.
"Uh, it's not the same country as last time."
Obito's voice sounded a bit disappointed.
"What, do you like the Land of Rice Fields?" Mokgetsu asked, putting away the task sheet.
"Hehe, not really, it's just that it feels like there's a bigger chance of encountering enemies there," Obito replied with a chuckle.
Mokgetsu was a bit unsure of how to respond; was Obito treating Hidden Cloud ninjas like they were regular mobs?
However, this time Obito was indeed right. The chances of encountering enemies were higher if they went to the Land of Rice Fields.
Losing an elite team, if it were the front lines, then it would be understandable. On the front lines, even the Raikage could fall, let alone a Jonin. But such a situation where an elite team disappears abruptly would definitely prompt Hidden Cloud to send someone to investigate.
Without this giant eagle task in the Land of Rivers, Mokgetsu might have specifically asked if there were tasks in the Land of Rice Fields.
After all, the Third Raikage couldn't possibly come to investigate in person, right?