[Starting in Naruto with a Daily Login System] Chapter 32

The party lasted way longer than expected.

Minato-sensei and Kushina knew how to throw a celebration. Food, laughter, and Obito making an absolute fool of himself? Solid night. The highlight? Obito dramatically proclaiming himself the “baby’s future number-one uncle” and then nearly getting strangled by Kushina when he suggested "Kakashi" as the baby’s name.

I, of course, supported this decision. Objectively the best choice.

But underneath all the jokes, the food, and the weirdly competitive game of ninja charades (which Minato dominated for no reason), there was something hanging in the air. Something we were all thinking about but not really saying.

Minato-sensei—our Minato-sensei—was about to become Hokage.

I mean, yeah, it was obvious he’d get the job eventually. The guy was basically built for it. But hearing him actually say it, watching Kushina beam with pride, seeing Rin and Obito get all starry-eyed about it…

It made it feel real.

And I wasn’t entirely sure how I felt about that.

Would things change? Would he still train us? Were we about to get thrown into the deep end of ninja life without floaties? (Because let’s be honest, if anyone needed floaties, it was Obito.)

I didn’t bring it up, though. No need to ruin the mood. Instead, I just leaned back, absently spinning a kunai in my fingers, and let the moment pass in peace.

Minato-sensei said today’s session would be “light.”

That was a lie.

I barely dodged a kunai barrage before Minato teleported behind me with a Rasengan like it was nothing.

“Still too slow, Kakashi.”

Oh, great. Just what I needed.

Seamless Sublimity kicked in immediately. My body moved before my brain could even process it, shifting exactly where I needed to go to avoid the hit. I countered with a kunai slash—precision perfect.

Minato was already gone before it even came close.

“Better,” he said cheerfully.

Better? BETTER!? I was fighting for my life out here, and he was acting like this was a casual morning jog.

Across the field, Rin was practicing medical jutsu, carefully channeling chakra into a dummy. Meanwhile, Obito—

Obito was dying.

“WAIT, SENSEI, CAN WE TALK ABOUT THIS!?”

Minato-sensei did not let him talk about it.

I watched as Obito got absolutely bodied for the third time in under five minutes.

“…He’s learning,” I said.

Minato hummed. “Slowly.”

Obito groaned from the dirt. “I think… I saw my life flash before my eyes…”

Kushina, who had shown up just to watch the suffering, burst out laughing. “You’ll live, ya big baby!”

Rin walked over with a smile. “You’ll get stronger, Obito.”

Obito reached out like he was on his deathbed. “Rin… tell my story…”

I rolled my eyes. “He’s fine.”

Minato chuckled, ruffling Obito’s hair. “Alright, that’s enough for today. I just wanted to see where you all were before my schedule gets even busier.”

And there it was.

Rin hesitated. “Sensei… what happens after you become Hokage?”

Obito sat up. “Yeah, are we still your students?”

Minato gave a warm smile. “Of course you are. But things will change.”

Silence.

“You’ll be training more independently,” he continued. “I’ll still guide you when I can, but my time will be limited. I’ve arranged for other instructors to help, and you’ll be taking on more responsibilities yourselves.”

My fingers twitched. Independent training. That was something I was used to, but hearing it confirmed still made my chest tighten.

Obito frowned. “So… this is really happening, huh?”

Minato nodded. “It is.”

Rin smiled softly. “We’ll support you, Sensei. You’re going to be the best Hokage.”

Obito grumbled. “Yeah, yeah… Just don’t forget about us, okay?”

Minato’s eyes softened. “Never.”

That helped. A little.

But then, because Obito has no ability to sit in a serious moment for longer than five seconds, he clapped his hands together. “Alright! In that case, we should do something big before you take office! Like a team trip! A final mission before everything changes!”

Minato hummed. “That’s not a bad idea.”

I narrowed my eyes. “You’re agreeing to this?”

Kushina laughed. “C’mon, Kakashi, let loose a little! A fun mission before Minato gets stuck behind a desk forever? Sounds good to me! Dattebane”

Minato sighed, but there was a small smile on his face. “Alright. I’ll see what I can arrange.”

Obito fist-pumped. “Yes! This is gonna be awesome!”

I exhaled, already regretting this. Something told me this “final mission” was going to be a disaster.

— 

I hate being proven right

I should’ve known. I should’ve known.

The moment Obito suggested this “final mission” before Minato became Hokage, I knew it was going to be a mess. And yet, somehow, I still underestimated it.

Because guess what?

Minato-sensei didn’t just pick any mission.

No, he picked a A-rank escort mission to the Land of Hot Water.

That’s right. A hot spring country.

And you already know what that means.

On the Road – Three Days In

Rin: “Isn’t this great? We get to travel together one last time before Sensei becomes Hokage!”

Obito: “Yeah! It’s like a vacation!”

Me, internally: No. It’s like a death sentence.

I don’t trust this mission. I don’t trust this mission at all.

And it’s not because of the enemy risk. No, it’s because of the other enemy—the one we carry within our own ranks.

Obito Uchiha.

A hot springs mission? With him? There’s no way this doesn’t end in disaster.

Minato-sensei, however, seemed unbothered. He just smiled like usual, leading the way with that casual confidence of his. Kushina had joined us too, since she had time before… well, before becoming a full-time mom.

And speaking of which—

Taka.

Yeah. I actually summon him pretty often—mostly for recon, since an innocent-looking baby eagle is a lot less suspicious than a masked ninja. Plus, I’d been training him, and he could now fly for nearly a whole minute before crashing. Progress.

Right now, he was soaring above, scanning the area.

“Taka, see anything?” I asked, glancing up.

“Sky,” he called back.

“…That’s great, buddy. Anything useful?”

Taka tilted his head, then flapped his wings excitedly. “Trees!”

“…Incredible.”

Minato-sensei chuckled. “Well, at least he’s enthusiastic.”

Obito snorted. “Dude, your bird is useless.”

Taka glared at him. “I am a proud member of the Eagle Clan!”

“Yeah?” Obito crossed his arms. “What’s your best skill?”

Taka puffed up proudly. “Moral support!”

“…Yeah, okay, he fits right in.”

Despite the sass, Taka was actually useful. He’d spotted a few potential ambush sites before, and his hearing was sharp. Plus, having a summon made me feel cool. Sue me.

But back to the mission—

We were escorting some rich merchant who talked way too much about his collection of rare tea leaves. Like, I get it, dude. You like tea. Shut up.

At least the Land of Hot Water was peaceful.

…Which meant something was definitely going to go wrong.

You know, sometimes I think to myself: Kakashi, why are you still surprised when things go horribly wrong?

I mean, seriously. I’ve been a ninja for years now. I should expect disaster. Especially when Obito is involved.

And yet… I dared to hope.

That was my first mistake.

The mission had been fine so far. Almost suspiciously fine. No ambushes, no last-minute betrayals, no creepy cultists summoning eldritch horrors—just normal, boring ninja escort duty.

Minato-sensei seemed to be enjoying the break. Kushina was, too. Rin was excited about the hot springs. Even I wasn’t complaining much, because—get this—the merchant we were escorting actually had decent snacks.

And then.

Then.

Obito opened his mouth.

"Hey, since we’re already here… why don’t we check out the hot springs?"

I felt a cosmic shift in the air. Somewhere, the universe whispered, Ah, there it is.

Minato-sensei, of course, thought this was a great idea. “That sounds fun! It’d be a nice way to relax before the final stretch.”

Kushina nodded. “I could use a soak.”

Rin looked thrilled.

I looked at Obito like he had just personally signed our death certificates.

“You,” I said slowly, “are a menace to society.”

Obito grinned. “What? It’s a hot springs town! You’re telling me you don’t want to go?”

“Do you have any idea how this ends? Because I do. I have seen this play before. I have read the script. It ends in violence.”

Obito scoffed. “Oh, come on. It’s just a bath.”

Narrator voice: It was not just a bath.

I will admit: the water was nice. Steamy, relaxing, with a perfect temperature. A part of me almost—almost—let my guard down.

And then, like the harbinger of doom he was, Obito said the words.

"Hey, Kakashi. Bet I can hold my breath longer than you."

I turned to Minato-sensei. “Can we drown him?”

Minato chuckled. “Now, now. Let’s not start a war.”

Kushina cackled from the other side of the wall. “I mean, I wouldn’t stop you.”

Obito ignored us. “Come on, be a man! I challenge you!”

I sighed. “Fine. But when you lose, you owe me three dango sticks.”

Obito smirked. “Deal.”

I dunked under the water.

One minute passed.

Two minutes.

Three.

Obito was still holding strong, but I wasn’t worried. I had trained for this. I was the Jonin of breath-holding.

…Okay, no, I wasn’t, but I had Seamless Sublimity, and if that meant being perfect at holding my breath, then so be it.

Five minutes in, Obito’s cheeks started puffing.

Six minutes. He was struggling.

Seven minutes—

And then, the worst possible thing happened.

The wall collapsed.

Kushina punched the peeping creeps so hard they flew into the next district.

Rin screamed.

I did my best not to die.

Minato-sensei sighed like this was just another Tuesday.

Obito? Obito got decked.

Not because he was peeping—he wasn’t. But because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and when a furious Kushina is swinging fists, collateral damage happens.

Later, as we were limping back to the inn, Obito groaned. “Why do I always get hit?”

“Because you speak,” I said.

He flipped me off.

Minato-sensei chuckled, patting him on the shoulder. “Don’t worry, Obito. I’m sure next time, you’ll—”

“—Get hit again,” I finished.

And thus, the mission continued.

With Obito now having a black eye.

You ever have that moment where you just know trouble is coming?

I did. And I was right.

Because the next day, as we were walking through the market, we ran into Jiraiya.

Or rather, we witnessed him getting kicked out of yet another bathhouse.

The old pervert went flying, landed face-first in the dirt, and just laid there for a moment.

Rin gasped. “Oh no! Are you okay?”

I crossed my arms. “It’s Jiraiya. He’ll live.”

Minato-sensei sighed, rubbing his temple. “I should have expected this.”

Jiraiya groaned, pushing himself up. “Bah, no appreciation for fine literature.”

Obito squinted. “You mean your fine literature?”

“The finest,” Jiraiya said, brushing himself off. Then he grinned, spotting Minato. “Hey, brat! You didn’t tell me you were on a mission here!”

Minato smiled. “It was kind of last-minute.”

Jiraiya nodded, then looked at the rest of us. His grin widened. “Ahh, so these are your brats. Well, well, well.”

I suddenly had a very bad feeling.

Jiraiya slung an arm around my shoulders, which was unacceptable. “So, you’re the genius kid I keep hearing about, huh? Minato’s golden boy?”

I frowned. “That would be me.”

He smirked. “Ever thought about writing a book?”

“No.”

“Are you sure?”

“Very.”

“Shame. You could make millions.”

I squinted at him. “You’re talking about smut, aren’t you?”

Jiraiya grinned. “I only write high-quality smut.”

Kushina bonked him on the head. “Jiraiya-sensei, we are not corrupting the children.”

Obito snickered. “Too late for Kakashi.”

“HEY.”

Jiraiya laughed, rubbing his head. “Alright, alright. So, what’s this mission about?”

Minato-sensei smiled. “Just an escort job. Nothing too dangerous.”

Jiraiya nodded. “Good, good. You kids better be keeping up with your training. Can’t have Minato’s students slacking off.”

Obito grinned. “Oh, don’t worry, I’m gonna surpass Kakashi any day now.”

I deadpanned. “That’s cute.”

Rin giggled. “You’re both strong.”

Jiraiya clapped his hands. “Well! If you’re not busy, how about I treat you all to lunch?”

I looked at Minato-sensei. “Do we have to?”

Minato smiled. “Yes.”

I sighed. “Fine.”

And that’s how we ended up having the strangest lunch of my life.