Sunlight spilled over Konoha like a warm cloth, far too hot for February. Even Uzuki Yugao felt it, wiping sweat from her brow as a man in a bright green jumpsuit sprinted past.
She muttered under her breath."When will I ever have that much energy…? Every day, like Might Guy…"
"Morning…"A weak voice drifted over.
Yugao turned and nearly jumped. Hyūga Hana looked ghost-pale, her Byakugan eyes blending into a face white enough to pass for a vengeful spirit.
"Morning, Hana," Yugao said politely. "You don't look so good."
"You either," Hana replied, baring a tired grin.
"I just hope nothing weird happens again today."
"Please," Yugao groaned. "I've been stuck in bed for two days. Other teams have already finished two or three D-rank missions."
"Three in two days?"A familiar man's voice sliced into their conversation.
Both girls stiffened and slowly turned around.
Uchiha Tobika stood behind them.
And both girls prayed silently.Please no bugs today… we don't need trauma, just normal lessons… please…
Tobika didn't hear their fear, but he definitely saw the gloomy clouds hanging over their faces.He slung an arm lazily over each shoulder.
"Yugao, Hana… have you heard of the Konoha legend?Ten. A day."
Both girls froze.
Both suddenly turned scarlet.
Because they were thinking about the recent rumor floating around the village:A middle-aged couple reunited after months apart…And supposedly accomplished "ten missions" in one night.
Tobika blinked at their flushed faces.He tried checking their temperature.
"Hey, are you two runni—"
"AH!!""AHHH!!"
They leapt back, clutching their chests like he'd aimed a kunai at them.
Tobika froze with his hands in the air.…And I'm the crazy one? I just touched your forehead.
"Sorry, sensei! I'm late!"
Iruka came sprinting in, wheezing. He bowed repeatedly without looking up.
He then peeked up at his teacher—And found Tobika squatting on the ground, drawing circles in the dirt like a man punished by fate.
Iruka blinked."What… what happened? Why does he look constipated?"
"Humph!"Hana dragged Iruka to her side and whispered indignantly, pointing at Tobika.
"You came late so you missed it. Sensei tried bragging to us about… that rumor. The 'ten times a night' thing. Who tells that to two girls?!"
Iruka stared blankly."…Which ten times?"
"The ten times!" Hana hissed.
Iruka stroked his chin thoughtfully."To be fair, ten D-rank missions in a single day is impressive."
The girls both choked.
Iruka nodded seriously."I looked into our sensei while I was bedridden. He completed 17 S-rank missions, 169 A-rank, 287 B-rank, 334 C-rank, and 3078 D-rank. The ten-in-a-day record was when he was seven years old."
"Th… three thousand and… what?"Hana's voice cracked.
Iruka nodded again."He abused the mission system so badly that the Hokage implemented new regulations. Only jonin team leaders may take D-ranks. Anyone else is fined. Tobika-sensei kept using shadow clones to sneak in and take more until a so-called 'hero of justice' reported him. Hokage-sama had Hyūga watchers installed at the desk. Sensei got blacklisted."
Hana slowly turned toward Tobika, who still sat in the dirt drawing spirals.
"…So that's what he meant."
Iruka tilted his head."What else would it be?"
Yugao and Hana exchanged horrified looks.
They had absolutely misunderstood.
Both approached Tobika at once.
"Sensei… we're sorry!"
Tobika sighed, stood, and dusted his hands."I'm not petty. If you girls ever fail a mission because of menstrual issues, I can restructure your biology a bit. And if you get married and don't want kids, I can handle sterilization surgery too. And even—"
Both girls trembled violently.
Tobika sighed again and ruffled their hair."I'm joking. Calm down."
"R-right… sorry, sensei…""W-we overreacted…"
"Come on," Tobika said, grabbing all three students by the collars. "We're getting missions."
He had learned medical ninjutsu partly for mixing Yin-Yang chakra… and partly for the future of the Uchiha clan. If he'd had one proper chance, Itachi Uchiha would absolutely not have been born.Frankly, if Mikoto ever asked, I'd neuter Fugaku myself…
They arrived at the mission desk.
The Hyūga clerk froze."…You again?"
Tobika smiled politely.
"Yes, me again."
The Hyūga's face twitched. Hard.
"You… remember the rules. Only C and D missions here. S/A/B must be requested through Hokage-sama."
Tobika looped an arm around his three students, crouching enough to rest his chin on Yugao's head.
"I'm a teacher now. Bring me the list."
The Hyūga clerk's mind broke for a moment.A grown Uchiha proudly carrying three kids like accessories.
Hana whispered behind her hand:"So embarrassing…"
Tobika snatched the mission board from the clerk's hands as if he were stealing a menu.
"Let's see… lost cats, lost pets, digging sweet potatoes… trash pickup… babysitting… ugh. No dog-finding missions. I hate dogs this year. Give me five cat investigations, five pet searches, three trash collection tasks, and—"
"Sensei!"Yugao poked his thigh frantically.
"What?" Tobika asked.
"Th-that's enough! We're not running a wholesale warehouse! We're not here to load inventory!"
Tobika blinked, genuinely confused.
"Is it a lot?"
The Hyūga clerk slammed ten scrolls on the desk."Uchiha Tobika… every time you appear here, I feel like a shopkeeper being robbed blind."
"Thanks!"Tobika scooped up the scrolls and shoved them into his students' arms.
They stumbled under the weight.
Nearby shinobi stared in disbelief.
"…Why are they allowed to take ten missions at once?"
"Because that is Uchiha Tobika."
"…And?"
"Before him, the mission desk had three rules.After he became a shinobi, we now have eleven.Eight of those were created because of him."