Chapter 173 - C Rank mission & Chain Quests

Kakashi and his student stepped into the Hokage's office ready to take on their next mission.

"Ah! You two are here. Excellent." The Hokage said and looked through some documents. "I have a C Rank mission if you're interested."

"Yes sir." Kakashi said.

"Good." The Hokage nodded and looked to the assistant Chunin. "Send him in."

The Chunin quickly left and a few seconds later a middle aged man stepped into the room. He gave a small smile as he looked at everyone.

"Kakashi, Daichi. This is Kenichi Garoya. He's your client. Now this mission is a bit tricky. A valuable heirloom that was in his family for generations was stolen. Your mission is to track it down and retrieve it." The Hokage introduced the man and gave a rough outline of the mission.

Daichi had a small frown as he heard the broad details. "So a simple tracking mission… Doesn't seem that complicated to me."

The kage just smiled as if he was expecting that response. "That's not the case young Daichi. The thing that makes this mission challenging is that the heirloom was stolen almost a year ago."

Daichi's eyes slightly widened and Kakashi sighed. The Jonin knew a mission like this could be a headache.

"Ok you're right. That complicates things." Daichi said. At that moment a new quest and notifications appeared. But this time there was something different.

[Chain Quest Initiated.]

'Chain quest? I've read about these… So that means I'll get more missions once I complete this one…'

[Quest created - Locate and Retrieve the Missing Item.]

[The Hokage has tasked your team with finding the client's missing item. Successfully gather information and track down the item to complete this C Rank mission.]

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[Conditions:]

Gather information and find the item.

Retrieve it without causing any damage to the item.

Return the item to the client without damage.

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[Rewards:]

15000 Exp.

Reputation increases with the client.

Reputation increases with Kakashi Hatake and Hiruzen Sarutobi.

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[Failure:]

Reputation decreases with the Hokage, Kakashi Hatake and the client.

No C Rank missions for a while.

[Accept Y/N]

Daichi accepted the quest and a new notification appeared.

[You have accepted the 1st quest.]

Daichi was excited about this mission. 'Finally! Something challenging.'

At that moment the client stepped forward and spoke. "Hello. My name is Kenichi Garoya. And I would be grateful if you two could help me with my predicament."

"Well, we'll certainly try." Kakashi replied with a nod.

"Splendid. But let's discuss the matter over some Tea. I know just the place." The client and two ninjas slightly bowed to the Hokage and left the place.

Kenichi took them to a beautifully designed Tea shop and got them a private booth. He ordered for them and got situated.

"Wow, so you're the owner of this place?" Daichi asked in surprise.

"Yes. This has been the family business for generations." The man replied. At the man's request they enjoyed a relaxing cup of tea and then finally got down to business.

"Alright Mr. Kenichi. Tell us more about the mission."

The man nodded and sat straight. "To start you need to understand the significance of the item I want you two to find. Now this is a story that's been passed down through my family for 3 generations. Over a 100 years ago the ruling Daimyo of Fire capital visited my great grandfather's tea stall during one of his travels. But an assassin that was following him got past the Daimyo's guards and poisoned him. My great grandfather saved Daimyo's life with his herbs and medicines and as a gesture of gratitude the Daimyo gave him land in the capital, money and a gift. This gift was a handcrafted teapot made with rare earth materials. Some said that it was even more valuable than gold in its weight. Now this teapot was passed down from father to son for three generations. And a year ago my father died and a week later it was stolen."

"Wow… I'm sorry for your loss but something like that must be worth a lot to the right buyer." Daichi said.

"Yes… Well, if the story is true anyway?" Kenichi said with a sad smile.

Daichi was puzzled at that reply. "What do you mean?"

"Well, let's just say I have a different view of things than my father and grandfather did." Kenichi said, looking at the cup of tea in his hand.

"You don't believe the story. And you think the teapot is just ordinary, don't you?" Kakashi asked, looking at the man.

Kenichi just sighed and remained silent.

Deciding to change the topic, Kakashi asked another question. "If the teapot was stolen a year ago then was there an investigation at that time, right?"

The man nodded his head. "Yes. I hired a team but after week's of searching they couldn't find anything. And they gave up and after a while so did I."

"So then why start again now?" Daichi asked.

"It's been one year since my father passed away and despite my feelings, that teapot is the family heirloom. My father treasured it. And if I couldn't do everything I can to find it, then I would be ashamed to meet him in the next world." He replied.

Daichi nodded. "Where did the theft occur?"

"In the main residence at the Capital." Kenichi replied.

"Then we better get going." Kakashi spoke and the three of them soon left the Tea house...

The two ninjas quickly got ready for the journey and soon the trio made their way to the capital. Kenichi was riding on a horse while Kakashi and Daichi jumped through the trees keeping an eye on their client and surroundings. Within a few hours they reached the capital gates and Kenichi led the two ninjas to his home.

"What can you tell us about the robbery?" Kakashi asked the man.

"Well, aside from the teapot, some precious stones and scrolls were also taken. The people who investigated hadn't even been able to identify how the thief got in, let alone find him." Kenichi replied.

Kakashi and Daichi looked around the house.

"The Fire capital has defenses almost equivalent to a hidden village. And the punishment could be severe for something like this. Especially if it came out that the teapot really was a gift from a former Daimyo. Stealing something that was given as a gift from the Daimyo is the equivalent of insulting the Daimyo himself." Kakashi said, looking around the place.

Daichi understood what his sensei was getting at. "So whoever did this is definitely not an ordinary person. And based on the fact that not a single clue could be found means the person is skilled. Exceptionally skilled."

The Tea Shop owner looked at the two ninjas with great sadness. "Even the investigators at the time couldn't find anything. So now almost after a year, I know what I'm asking is an impossibility but… I would be grateful if you could help."

"We'll try our best." Kakashi said to the man. He then turned to his student. "Come on. Daichi. Let's see what we can find…"

The two ninjas left the house and walked through the streets of the capital.

"Do you buy his story?" Daichi suddenly asked his sensei.

"Hmm?" The Jonin merely glanced at his student.

"That he wanted to find the Teapot a year after it's gone because of some remorse and guilt…"

"What do you think, Daichi?"

The boy was silent for a few moments and then replied. "I think he found out that the Teapot might be more valuable than he thought… I think there might be some truth to the history of the heirloom."

"Well, whatever the case is, he's our client and he hired us to find it. So unless something happens our mission parameters are clear." Kakashi was simply reminding Daichi not to get side tracked.

"So where are we going?" Daichi asked his sensei.

"We are going to the archive building. It stores mission reports, investigation and personnel files. A Leaf Jonin can access the files anytime but a Chunin can get access to it after getting special permission." Kakashi replied.

"So a small time Genin like me couldn't take a peek if I wanted to huh?" Daichi said with a mischievous smile.

"Unless you have a Chunin with permission accompanying you, then no." The Jonin replied with an eye smile. They soon reached the place. Daichi saw several Leaf ninja patrolling the place along with some guards who wore the Fire Capital insignia.

The Leaf ninjas recognized Kakashi but made sure to check his identity. Once they were done they let him and Daichi inside. Kakashi walked up to the guard with the Fire capital insignia who was guarding the door to another chamber.

"Shigeru. Been a long time."

"Kakashi… yes. It's been almost a decade." The Guard Shigeru smirked at the Jonin.

Daichi looked at the interaction between the two. 'So he knows the Guy. Wonder how strong he is?'

The boy used 'Observe' skill and couldn't find anything. 'Damn. I guess they wouldn't keep someone weak to guard important documents.'

Shigeru and Kakashi talked for a short while. His eyes then turned to Daichi. "So who's this?"

Kakashi placed a hand on Daichi's head and spoke with a smile. "Well, this is my student. Daichi."

The Guard looked puzzled. "You took a Genin team? Where's the other two?"

"Well, it's just him. He's a special case, so I took him as sort of an apprentice." Kakashi said while Daichi just looked disgruntled. He never liked it when someone messed up his hair.

Shigeru raised an eyebrow at that reply. A couple seconds later he looked at Daichi with renewed interest. "You wouldn't happen to be Daichi Hekima, the medic who studied under Lady Tsunade would you?"

Daichi was slightly surprised at that. "Yes sir. I am."

The guard smiled at that. "You may not know me but I know about you. During your time here at the hospital, you saved my friend's life. You're quite the talented medic."

"Thank you for the compliment sir, but I wouldn't even be half as good without Lady Tsunade and Shizune senpai's help." Daichi replied. He wanted to give a humble appearance.

The guard gave a light hearted laugh hearing that. He turned his attention back to the Jonin. "So Kakashi, what are you looking for?"

"We're looking for the incident report and the investigation files pertaining to a robbery that happened almost a year ago. A robbery that took place at Kenichi Garoya's home." Kakashi answered.

"Ahh yes. I remember. Come with me."

Shigeru opened the door and led them inside. The group entered a large room with dozens of shelves with different labels on them. Thousands of scrolls were stored in this place. The guard led the two ninjas to a certain section of the room.

He opened the shelf and after some searching took a scroll and handed it to Kakashi. "Here. This is what you're looking for."

Kakashi and Daichi looked through the documents and report and it pretty much stated what little they already knew. The thief took off with the family heirloom along with some jewelry and scrolls.

"Do you know anything about that incident? Have you heard any rumors?" Daichi asked the man.

Shigeru nodded his head and spoke. "Well, this investigation is one of those very rare ones where no culprit was found. Not even a single clue to identify who did this was left on the scene. There were no signs of forced entry or any disturbances inside the home. We couldn't find anything that pointed to anyone."

"So we're after someone with extraordinary stealth and thieving skills." Daichi said.

"Yes… " Shigeru agreed.

[Congratulations. You have encountered a Lucky break.]

[+1 Luck]

Daichi was pleasantly surprised at this notification. He looked at the guard and the man looked like he wanted to say something else and Daichi caught on to it.

"What is it?" The boy asked.

"Well, not to brag but the guards and ninja guarding the capital are some of the best. And the fact that we still couldn't find the person who did this… It is still a shameful moment for all of us… You know some of us joked around that the person who pulled off this robbery was the Phantom thief…" Shigeru replied with a small smile.

"The Phantom thief?" Daichi could see Kakashi was surprised but more than that, There was something else in his tone that Daichi couldn't identify.

"Yeah. But it's not him. I guess we just said that as a way to protect our self esteem." Shigeru replied with a small smile.

"Do you know about this Phantom thief, sensei?" Daichi asked Kakashi.

Kakashi sighed and was quiet for a few seconds. "Yes. Let's just say I've come across his work." The Jonin replied.

At that moment before Daichi could press his sensei for more information a new quest popped up.

[2nd Quest.]

[Quest created - Identify the Legendary Thief.]

Daichi looked at the quest title and was shocked. 'What the hell?'