After Danzo departed, the rain-soaked air carried a damp sweetness.
Yako stood on a tree trunk, peering through his binoculars into the distance.
B kept his guard on the other side of the Forest created by the Wood Release, wary not only of the distance but of the Fox as well.
The place Uchiha Madara had chosen was remote—rain fell heavier here than in other parts of the Land of Rain. No villagers came, and no shinobi had ever passed through.
Days slipped by. Not a word was exchanged between Fox and B.
Yako knew. A few days ago, B had quietly reminded Danzo: should they silence Yako to erase loose ends?
'He should be Aburame Ryoma from the original..."
Jan glared at him.
'You'd best not leave Danzo's side.'
It would take seven days to travel from the southern Land of Rain back to Konoha. Even if Danzo reached Konoha and discussed matters with Sarutobi Hiruzen within an hour or two, then immediately returned, the journey would still take fourteen days.
Fourteen days later, on the first of the month, a great crowd appeared on the horizon.
Lowering his binoculars, Yako muttered inwardly. Madara's psychological pressure on Danzo is this great?
Sarutobi Hiruzen. Danzo. Clan heads from the Senju, Uchiha, Yamanaka, Inuzuka, and Aburame. The Hyūga had sent an elder.
The Yamanaka, Inuzuka, Aburame, and Hyūga were tasked with reconnaissance.
Senju Hanaki and Uchiha Kagen, the two most directly involved, were also present.
Each brought two guards, making the party appear massive.
With such force, if they claimed to march on Amegakure, even Hanzō would have shuddered.
It was a truly extravagant investigation party.
Yako's eyes lingered on Danzo. His right eye was still wrapped in bandages.
'So it's never enough for him. Once Danzo tasted the Sharingan, he couldn't resist the temptation. Resurrection… how sweet it must seem.'
Danzo had gained too much from Uchiha Kagami.
The party landed around the Deep Forest Emergence.
Sarutobi Hiruzen wore battle armor, the adamantine Staff in hand.
From its tip, a giant ape's eye opened.
"Lord Hiruzen, is this… the First Hokage's Wood Release?"
Swinging the staff with force, Sarutobi shattered a coiling trunk. "At this density, yes… this is Wood Release."
All eyes turned to Senju Hanaki, who, seeing it for herself, was both confused and unsettled.
"Advisor Danzo said Uchiha Madara used Wood Release? Not some Senju shinobi who awakened a bloodline limit on the battlefield?"
For Senju Hanaki and Uchiha Kagen, the report was too outrageous to be false.
Danzo would not fabricate something so absurd in a matter like this.
The Senju had not produced a Wood Release user for decades. Aside from Nawaki, there had been no prodigies of note in recent years.
The Yamanaka, Inuzuka, Aburame, and Hyūga immediately began collecting intelligence.
Yako and B landed at the elders' side.
Sarutobi did not even look toward Root's B. Instead, his gaze fixed on the Fox.
"Fox. Tell us everything from the start. In detail."
Yako guessed Danzo had already given his version, so he offered a brief account: how they encountered three Konoha shinobi under Madara's control, how genjutsu turned them against each other, how he fled and ran into Danzo, and how Danzo brought him back—only to face Uchiha Madara again.
Madara had controlled three shinobi to battle Kato Dan and his two allies. Danzo had brought him and B, along with C, to reinforce.
Dan and his two comrades, as well as C, had all died.
Inuzuka Clan Head Inuzuka Retsu discovered seven bodies within the Deep Forest Emergence.
Yako led the elders higher into the dense growth, pointing out each corpse.
When he came to Kato Dan, Senju Hanaki's face drained white.
Through the cracks in the wood, part of Dan's lower face was visible.
Hanaki's chest tightened. She had grown up hearing of her father's Wood Release, how it dominated the shinobi world. But seeing one of the clan's most vital heirs crushed here—her heart bled.
Kato Dan was not only Tsunade's lover, but also the head of the Senju-affiliated the Kato clan.
His death was a crippling blow to the Senju.
Yamanaka Clan Head Yamanaka Kai said gravely, "The corpses' heads were all crushed by Wood Release. We can gain no intelligence from the remains."
Yako stood on a trunk. Beneath his feet, in the cracks, lay one of Dan's crushed hands.
It was unrecognizable. Even with two hundred meters of surgical thread, Senju Hanaki could not stitch together half of him.
When Hanaki finally slumped in despair, unable to voice a protest, Yako spoke again.
"Lord Hokage, please—come with me. There is a cave where Uchiha Madara once hid. Inside lies critical intelligence."
"Move," Hiruzen ordered at once.
As they neared the cave, even Hiruzen slowed his steps.
For Sarutobi Hiruzen and his peers, Madara was etched into memory since their childhood. Even Senju Tobirama, at his peak, had struggled against Madara.
They entered.
The cave sloped downward, opening into a vast hollow beneath the mountain.
At its center, on a raised platform, sat a stone chair.
Dust lay thick across the chamber. One could almost picture Madara himself seated there through endless days and nights, scythe in hand, unmoving.
Too old. Too weary to act. To him, the world was dull and unworthy of further concern.
Sarutobi stood at the base of the steps, staring upward, tense as if Madara still sat there.
"Lord Hokage… Lord Hokage?"
Only after Yako called twice did Hiruzen snap back.
"Lord Hokage," Yako said, "behind the chair lies a deep pit. Something once occupied it—a giant, perhaps. I can't say for certain."
Aside from Senju Hanaki, every leader's attention sharpened.
They followed Yako around the chair and saw the pit for themselves.
"I used a Clone to check," Yako continued. "The bottom holds the lower half of a massive humanoid. Legs, knees, feet.
"By proportion, it stood over a hundred meters tall."
Even Danzo stared into the darkness.
Yako's goal was achieved. No one was thinking about silencing him anymore.
Confusion reigned. What was Madara planning? What was this giant? Some kind of Wood Human Technique? Or the Thousand-Armed Buddha?
Yako produced a scroll, unrolling a drawing of the giant's lower body, handing it to the Third Hokage.
B's eyes widened. So these days the Fox had been sending Clones into the cave… just to sketch?
Yako thought smugly, From my past life, my old architect skills—let me show you some craftsmanship.
Hiruzen studied the drawing and shook his head. Not the Thousand-Armed Buddha. Not the Wood Human. More like a malnourished, atrophied giant.
Once the shock subsided, Yako added:
"Lord Hokage, there's one more thing... to the side there is a wooden bed—sized only for a child. I don't know what it was doing there."
The group rushed to inspect it.
Yako finally let himself relax. No one cared about Kato Dan anymore. Danzo had no mind for silencing him.
The mysteries of Uchiha Madara would keep them busy for a very long time.