Chapter 12: No Wonder You're the Teacher

Chapter 12: No Wonder You're the Teacher

"Professor, we're running out of time!"

"It doesn't matter if we're short on time, we can't skip meals!"

Tobio Uchiha looked at Hand Beat, who was busy, and then forced his three students to sit in their chairs.

"Eat, three bowls each, on me. Now that you are ninjas, I have to tell you a harsh truth. You must treat every meal as if it's your last because you never know if you'll be alive tomorrow or if you'll have an accident."

As he said this, he discreetly pointed towards the Senju clan's territory and lowered his voice.

"As you know, I was born in the 33rd year of Konoha, and Senju Nawaki died in the 37th year of Konoha. I already had memory when he died. I remember hearing the ninjas who retrieved his body say that when the only heir of the Senju clan died, his stomach was empty, and he went to the afterlife like that. Who knows if there's food in the afterlife?"

Bam!

Before he finished speaking, Tobio felt a knock on his head. Rubbing the bump forming, he angrily looked behind him.

"Who hit me?!"

"I did!"

Tobio slowly looked up. White long legs, a slightly undulating abdomen, long red hair down to the waist, and veins on the forehead.

Why is she here?

Seeing Kushina sitting next to him, clearly intending to eat ramen, Tobio changed his expression to a serious one and said, "Hand Beat, an extra luxurious pork ramen soup, please."

Only then did he notice that behind Kushina was Mikoto, the wife of his clan leader. Realizing his nearly empty wallet, Tobio asked hesitantly, "Lady Mikoto, do you have any dietary restrictions?"

Mikoto smiled slightly, exchanging a glance with Kushina and instantly understanding. She responded in a low voice, "If it's free, I have no restrictions."

"Ha."

Seeing the expression of taking advantage on both women's faces, Tobio also ordered a luxurious ramen for Mikoto.

Already married and leaving her husband to come here and eat ramen. Poor Fugaku, he should consider a divorce.

Observing the mischievous smile on their teacher's face, Iruka and the other three looked at each other, then leaned in and whispered.

"What's wrong with the teacher?"

"Not sure, seems like he's thinking about something bad."

"I heard the teacher doesn't have a good relationship with his family."

After seeing off the two women, the three students turned curiously to their teacher and asked, "Professor, those two?"

Tobio looked at the gossipy expressions on their faces, then looked around and lowered his voice.

"It's nothing. The wife of the Fourth Hokage lived in the Senju house for a while and knew Nawaki, so there's some kinship. Anyway, Nawaki, poor guy, died with an empty stomach. Even if Tsunade, his sister, were in front of me, she couldn't change the fact that her brother died of hunger. So, as ninjas, you must treat every meal as if it were your last. Don't waste food or stay with an empty stomach."

Then, looking in the direction the two pregnant women disappeared, Tobio crossed his arms and commented in a low voice.

"Those growing bellies are hard to see. Every night I dream of Kushina sitting on me, controlling the Nine Tails inside her and slapping me. And Mikoto too... I won't be at peace until one of them or Fugaku gets divorced. If something changes and Mikoto gets pregnant again after having Sasuke, the Uchiha clan will be in trouble."

The three students looked at Tobio, seeing the struggle on his face and hearing his murmurs. They looked at each other curiously and asked, "Professor, what are you saying?"

"Ha."

Tobio glanced at them, then focused his attention on Hyuga Hana.

"Hana, I know you long for freedom. You know better than I do the situation of your Hyuga clan. Do you want your descendants to live with a curse like you?"

Idiot!

Seeing Hana seriously considering his words, Tobio lightly tapped her head and said, "You're an idiot. I was just joking; you don't have to think so hard about it. Don't worry, you won't have descendants. Idiots don't get boyfriends."

With that, he pulled a scroll from his pocket and handed it to the three, with a serious expression.

"The mission begins. From now on, as your guiding teacher and temporary leader, you must follow my orders."

Seeing their teacher's serious attitude, the three also became serious and responded, "Yes!"

"Very well. Iruka, Hana, as information gatherers, you must obtain all the data on the families that have lost cats. Especially mark those that only have elderly people at home. Yugao, you and I will go look for the cats."

"Understood!"

Watching Iruka and Hana leave, Tobio led Yugao towards the outskirts of the village.

"Professor!"

Seeing the path becoming more remote and desolate, Yugao swallowed hard and asked, "Professor, those missing cats, couldn't they have left the village?"

"No, those creatures should still be in the village."

"Then why are we..."

Yugao took a deep breath, remembering the scene in the ramen shop.

The professor taking me out of the village, is he thinking about...

"Stop imagining things!"

Tobio, seeing Yugao stop, waved his hand and said casually, "Don't worry, I have no inappropriate intentions. I'm taking you out of the village to see the cat grandma, who lives outside the village."

"Huh?"

Yugao shivered and looked up at the sky in embarrassment, murmuring, "Professor, can you read minds?"

"No, but your posture of protecting your chest gave you away. That's the classic stance when encountering a pervert, and there's no one else here but me."

"That's true."

Yugao scratched her head and ran to catch up with Tobio, realizing she had overthought.

When they arrived at the cat grandma's house, Yugao looked at the kittens all around with bright eyes.

So many cats! And of so many breeds, with such shiny fur! Oh, this one is ugly but adorable!

"Grandma!"

Ignoring the kittens wanting to approach him, Tobio greeted the old lady sitting above and smiled.

"Grandma, I'm here!"

"Oh?"

The cat grandma slightly opened her eyes and looked at the familiar figure below, smiling with wrinkles on her face.

"Tobio, are you here to do business with me again?"

"Ha, don't even think about it. This time I'm here for something else."

Hearing he wasn't here for business, the grandma's smile faded a bit. She placed her pipe on the table and asked, "What do you want?"

"I'm here to find cats."

Huh?

Yugao, holding two kittens, looked at her teacher incredulously.

Find cats? How do you find cats?

The Cat Grandma didn't react much. She took a notebook from the table and opened it, murmuring, "How strange, I didn't expect you to be assigned another D-rank mission. It's been years; I thought you were done with D-rank missions."

"Yeah, I thought I was done with them too. But recently, I became a teacher, so I'm taking the opportunity to do a few more."

"How many do you want this time?"

"I'll start with 20 today. Not many cats have gone missing lately."

Twenty?

The Cat Grandma checked her notebook for a moment, then whispered to a nearby kitten.

Meow~

The cat nodded and ran outside.

In no time, more than a hundred kittens of various colors and sizes appeared in the hallway, much to Yugao's astonishment.

Tobio put on a pair of cat ears, looked at the kittens, and said, "With the Cat Grandma, you can eat until you're full. With me, you have a way to eat well and plentifully by going to the homes of villagers who have lost their cats. You know what it means to eat well every day, so I don't have to explain. I want cats that don't scratch, that are affectionate and like to be around people. Cats that like to sleep with people. Smart cats, follow me."

Meow meow~

Out of the more than a hundred kittens, thirty finally stepped forward, following Tobio and Yugao towards the village.

"Professor, have that many people lost cats?"

Yugao, looking at the kittens following them, couldn't help but ask incredulously.

"Yes, many cats have gone missing lately. Recently, a lot of things have been happening in the village, and more cats have been disappearing."

No wonder you're the teacher. Yugao lowered her head, thinking about how she could solve the missing cats case. Tobio glanced at Yugao, sighed, and tapped her head.

"Don't overthink it. There's no such thing as missing cats. It's a ruse. These cats had left a long time ago. Give them a new home in the homes of the villagers who lost them. Swap the cats, give them better ones."

Then, leaning closer to Yugao, he whispered, "The people who lost cats are mostly elderly. When they get a new kitten, their lives become more entertaining, and they live longer. Understand?"

Yugao looked at the ground and fell silent. So that's why?

Tobio looked at the kittens, slapped his forehead, picked up a fat cat, and said disdainfully, "Leave the fat cats; they don't seem able to fight. You have to make sure that when the original cats return, you can scare them away and show them the way to the Cat Grandma."

"Master!" After hearing what Tobio said, Yugao was stunned for a moment, quickly pulling Tobio's clothes and saying anxiously, "We can't carry out the mission like this."

"Why not?"

Tobio threw the fat cat aside, patted Yugao on the shoulder, and comforted her. "Who told those cats to run away on their own? They have to pay the price for their actions. How can there be such a good thing in the world? When you're tired of staying home, you can go out for a few days, go crazy for a few days. Do you want a warm harbor when you come back? You'll understand if you compare a cat to a human."

He took off the cat ears and put them on Yugao's head, continuing, "This is like if your husband went out looking for other women to eat, drink, and sleep with. When he's tired of playing with her, he wants to come back home. Are you willing? Since they can't control themselves, those kittens' hearts, just change the cat. Anyway, these cats will show them the way back here and will never starve."

Hearing this, Yugao's eyes fell on the cats surrounding her. She realized that after putting on the cat ears, she could clearly understand the cat language. It turns out they really are like humans, they can think, joke, and tell certain jokes that only adults tell. Pointing at the black cat telling jokes, Yugao bit her lip and looked at it with a red face. Tobio looked directly at the cat.

"Why is the cat here so rebellious?"

"Master!"

After removing the cat ears and handing them back to Tobio, Yugao picked up a civet cat and said worriedly, "The colors of these cats are different from the lost cats. Will they notice?"

"Don't worry, the master knows a hair salon. Their skills are very good."

Yugao lowered her head and looked at the group of kittens gathered around her feet, with a complicated look in her eyes. Now it seems she vaguely guessed how her master's thousands of D-rank missions came about.

Although this is a bit of a cheat, it feels really good. Yes, how come those cats that run wildly can return to their original families thanks to their efforts?

This is like an ordinary family. The "woman" is tired of staying at home and plans to run away from home and go to the colorful outside world to eat and sleep. Then they, the genin who received the mission, worked hard and labored. They found the "bride," brought her back, and forced her to return to her original family.

They thought they had done something good by spending time and effort, but they didn't expect it to actually be something bad.

Since the kitten wants freedom, then give it freedom. Just find a new cat. What a simple thing.

After brainwashing herself internally, Yugao looked at Tobio with a touch of reverence.

No wonder he can be a teacher while being just a student. The professor's way of thinking is different from normal people.

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