The Sky Screen finally revealed the next mission.
ULTIMATE MISSION FOUR
MISSION OBJECTIVE: DISCOVER THE HOBBY OF KUMA RAI, CLAN LEADER OF THE KUMA CLAN.
The village fell silent. Koga stared speechlessly at the words. His uncle stared at the words too, with his mouth agape.
The Villager Chat went quiet for several seconds before someone finally typed.
Villager Mina: That’s it?
Another message appeared.
Villager Toma: We have to discover what Kuma Rai does for fun?
Villager Haku: That’s an Ultimate Mission?
The Ninja Chat quickly became active.
Genin Raku: Why does this feel like we’re spying on our neighbors?
Chunin Sora: Because that’s exactly what we’re doing.
Genin Raku: I expected something involving a legendary monster.
Jonin Taro: So did I.
Koga scratched his cheek.
"What kind of mission is this?"
Keziki remained silent.
Koga glanced at his uncle. Then at the Sky Screen. Then back at his uncle. An idea suddenly entered his head.
He grinned.
"Uncle."
Keziki looked at him without emotion, as if thinking of something.
"What?"
Koga pointed toward the Sky Screen.
"Why does this sound like your love story?"
Keziki blinked.
"What?"
"You know."
Koga tried not to laugh.
"Inuzuza Kiza. The Matriarch. The woman who supposedly never married and dedicated her entire life to the clan."
Keziki’s expression became strange.
Koga continued, completely unaware that he was walking toward a cliff.
"Don’t tell me you’re her secret lover."
Keziki stared at him with incredulous look.
Koga laughed.
"I’m joking."
He was genuinely only teasing. He remembered how his uncle had once explained to his deceased father why he had never married, always giving vague answers about responsibility, the clan, and how there had been no time for a family. Koga had thought the timing was perfect. The village was already talking about Kiza’s mysterious private life.
Why not tease his uncle about it?
He expected Keziki to laugh.
Instead... there was a long..... Silence?
Silence!?
Koga’s smile slowly disappeared. He automatically turned his head.
Keziki was staring at the Sky Screen. His face had gone pale.
Koga’s eyes widened.
"Uncle?"
Nothing.
"Uncle..."
Keziki still did not answer.
Koga swallowed hard.
"Don’t tell me..."
He took one step backward.
"Seriously?"
Keziki suddenly turned.
"YOU!"
Koga barely had time to react.
Keziki kicked him directly in the backside.
"Ow!"
Koga stumbled forward.
"Uncle!"
"Don’t say ridiculous things!"
"I was joking!"
"Then learn to joke about something else!"
Koga rubbed his backside.
"That hurt!"
"You deserved it."
The two wolf cubs beside Koga suddenly growled Fenfyr’s fur rose. Ignilion lowered its head. A deep sound came from their throats.
Keziki stopped. He looked down.
"Oh?"
The two cubs stood between him and Koga.
Keziki’s expression changed into amusement.
"Well, well."
He looked at Koga.
"You have fierce Ninkens."
Koga quickly crouched.
"Calm down."
The two cubs continued growling.
"It’s fine."
Koga patted their heads.
"He’s my uncle."
Fenfyr slowly stopped growling. Ignilion followed.
Seeing this, Keziki only laughed.
"How could they be this loyal already?"
Two adult wolves soon came from the house. They were enormous compared to ordinary wolves, with thick limbs and powerful shoulders, and their presence immediately changed the atmosphere around the small yard.
Keziki looked at them.
"See those two?"
Koga nodded.
"I’ve seen them before."
"I spent ten years taming them."
Koga looked surprised.
"Ten years?"
Keziki nodded.
"Ten years of training, feeding, fighting, traveling, and building trust," he crouched beside one of the adult wolves. "At first, they didn’t listen to me," The wolf calmly lowered its head toward him.
Keziki smiled.
"I had to earn their loyalty." He looked at Koga.
"You don’t simply take a Ninken and expect it to follow you forever."
Koga glanced at his two transformed beasts.
Keziki continued.
"That’s why I’m impressed with yours."
"My wolves?"
"Yeah... Those two."
He pointed toward Fenfyr and Ignilion.
"They already act like they would protect you."
Koga became quiet.
Keziki smiled.
"And considering you don’t even have much chakra, that’s impressive."
Koga’s expression stiffened slightly.
His uncle did not know the truth. Nobody did. Although he trusted his uncle, he didn’t want to tease human greed. As far as Keziki was concerned, the two animals were ordinary Ninken that Koga had somehow managed to tame.
Koga gently rubbed Fenfyr’s head.
"Calm down."
The wolf cub sat.
"You too."
The Ignilion cub sat beside it.
Keziki watched. Then his eyes narrowed. He crouched lower.
"Wait."
Koga became nervous.
"What?"
Keziki reached toward Fenfyr. The wolf cub allowed him to touch its shoulder after Koga told him he’s their Masters uncle.
Keziki pressed his fingers against its body. He frowned.
"This is strange."
Koga’s stomach tightened.
"What is?"
Keziki moved around Fenfyr. He examined its legs. Its shoulders. Its back. Its chest. Then he looked at Ignilion. He examined that one too.
Koga stood there sweating.
"Uncle?"
Keziki did not answer.
"These two..."
He looked at the adult wolves. Then back at the cubs. "They’re too muscular."
Koga blinked.
"What?"
Keziki placed his hand against Fenfyr’s shoulder.
"This isn’t normal."
He squeezed lightly.
"There is far more muscle here than there should be."
He moved toward Ignilion.
"This one too."
Koga swallowed his Adam Apple hard.
Keziki looked genuinely astonished.
"Even compared with the Ninkens of our elite Ninja, these two are unusually robust."
Koga’s forehead began sweating.
Keziki continued.
"Look at their legs."
He pointed.
"Their bodies are compact, but the muscles are dense."
He examined their paws.
"Their joints are strong."
He looked at their teeth.
"And these aren’t normal wolf cub teeth."
Koga laughed nervously.
"Maybe they’re just healthy?"
"Healthy?"
Keziki looked at him.
"These two look like they’ve been training for years."
Koga’s smile became stiff.
"Well..."
He searched for an answer.
"Good food?"
Keziki stared.
"Food doesn’t make a wolf cub look like this."
Koga’s sweat increased. His uncle was on the verge of discovering his secret. He needed to distract him. "Anyway, Uncle..."
Keziki looked at him.
Koga smiled.
"So, about the Matriarch."
Keziki’s expression darkened.
"Don’t."
"Come on."
"No."
"Just tell me."
"No."
"Are you really her secret lover?"
"Kyo."
Keziki’s voice became threatening.
Koga laughed.
"I’m only asking."
"Stop asking."
"Then why did you look so scared?"
Keziki’s face twitched.
"I wasn’t scared."
"You looked scared."
"I was surprised."
"Same thing."
Keziki grabbed something from inside the house.
Koga instinctively stepped back.
"Don’t kick me again."
Keziki threw something at him. Koga caught it.
He looked down. It was a forehead protector. A simple metal plate was attached to the dark cloth, and in the center was the symbol of Koyagakure, a stylized wild grass design.
Koga stared.
"What is this?"
"Your forehead protector."
"My..."
Keziki nodded.
"You’re a Ninja now."
Koga blinked.
"I’m officially a Ninja?"
"You’ve been training long enough."
Keziki crossed his arms.
"Take it."
Koga looked at the protector again.
"Alright, alright."
He tied it around his forehead. Inside, however, his thoughts were completely different.
His uncle had changed the subject.
Immediately. The moment Koga mentioned Kiza, Keziki had become distracted. Then he suddenly gave him his forehead protector.
Koga narrowed his eyes.
Was that really just a coincidence?
Or...
Was his uncle actually the secret lover of the Matriarch?
Koga shook his head.
"No."
That was ridiculous. Probably. He looked at the Sky Screen. The mission was still being discussed by the villagers.
People were already guessing what Kuma Rai’s hobby might be.
Koga sighed.
"I’ll go somewhere and train."
Keziki immediately turned.
"Train?"
"Yeah."
"You just finished your daily training."
Koga nodded.
"I know."
"You did your push ups, sit ups, squats, and your ten kilometer run."
"Yeah."
"Then go inside and rest."
Koga frowned.
"But..."
"No."
Keziki pointed toward the house.
"Go inside."
Koga looked at him.
"Why?"
"Because something tells me this Sky Screen is going to cause trouble tonight."
Koga looked upward.
His uncle’s expression was unusually serious.
"I don’t want you wandering around outside."
Koga hesitated. Then he nodded.
"Alright."
He turned around. Took several steps.
"Kyo."
Koga stopped. His uncle’s voice had changed.
It sounded hesitant.
Koga slowly turned.
Keziki was staring toward the Sky Screen.
"Before you go..."
Koga stopped.
Keziki remained silent for several seconds.
Then he asked quietly, "Do you think the Sky Screen is telling the truth?"
Koga’s eyes widened.
Keziki continued. "You know, about its gifts and rewards?"
For the first time, he saw genuine concern in his uncle’s face.
Koga quickly controlled his expression.
"I don’t know."
Keziki looked at him.
Koga pretended to shrug.
"I’m just a low level villager."
He smiled.
"I don’t believe something like that easily."
His gaze moved toward the enormous screen.
"Maybe it’s some kind of Ninja technique."
Keziki remained silent.
"Maybe another village created it."
Koga continued.
"We’re far from the major ninja powers anyway. Even if you gave me this forehead protector, it was only for the Ninkens’ control of the population in our Inuzuza Clan. So maybe someone is trying to do something to Koyagakure—or maybe not. I just hope not get entangled in the incoming troubles. No matter what, we are not true ninjas who use chakra and perform ninja arts with their Ninkens. We’re just ninjas in name."
Keziki stared at him.
For a moment, it seemed like he wanted to say something. His mouth opened. Then he stopped.
"...Whatever."
He looked away.
"Go inside."
Koga watched him for another second. Then he nodded.
"Alright."
He turned toward the two wolf cubs.
Fenfyr stood immediately.
Ignilion followed.
Koga smiled.
He had no idea what his uncle was hiding. He had no idea what the System was planning. He only knew that from now on, everything was probably going to be another headache.
He whistled softly.
"Let’s go!"