Konoha Village Gate
More and more ninja gathered at the entrance.
The Third Hokage dispatched Hyuga clan members to search outside the village, and both the Uchiha and Inuzuka clans also joined the investigation.
Yet what baffled everyone was—
Not even a single trace of the enemy could be found.
Team Nine blended into the crowd, waiting for results… and ended up waiting for nothing.
Beneath the large tree near the gate, Drake cooled off for a while before strolling back toward the village.
"Guess it's getting dark~~"
Glancing at the sky, Drake decided he'd guard Minai tonight.
After all, protecting a Daimyo was the duty of a true ninja.
"Drake!"
Before he could go far, Minato suddenly appeared.
"Eh? Sensei?"
"Come here."
At a street corner, master and student leaned in close.
"You already know, right?" Minato asked mysteriously.
"How did you know I know?" Drake raised an eyebrow.
"What do you think?"
Their strange exchange left the eavesdropping Team Nine completely confused.
"Uh… are you two solving riddles or something?" Obito poked his head in, baffled.
"You're so slow! Drake already figured out who attacked," Kakashi corrected.
"How would he know? Wasn't he at the bathhouse?" Obito frowned.
"Hey, Drake, do you really know who the attacker was?"
All eyes turned to him.
Even Minato waited for the answer.
"It was Uchiha Madara," Drake said plainly.
Hearing that name, Team Nine immediately stiffened.
"The trees told you?" Minato asked seriously.
"Yeah. The trees at the gate said a white creature moved underground and brushed against their roots."
Now Minato understood.
A white creature… That could only be one of Madara's creations.
Which meant this explosion had been orchestrated by him.
Team Nine also came to a sudden realization.
They had nearly forgotten — Drake could communicate with trees.
"This is serious…" Minato murmured, then after a moment of thought, decided to distance Drake from this matter.
If Drake's abnormal abilities were exposed, it would invite endless complications.
After instructing Team Nine to keep this strictly confidential, Minato asked again:
"Do you have any additional evidence?"
"A tunnel."
"Hm? Where?"
"Outside the village, beneath the fourth tree. The white creature dug a tunnel there to temporarily store explosive tags during transport."
With solid proof, Minato actually relaxed.
He glanced toward the heavily damaged gate, a trace of concern in his eyes.
"This time, Madara only blew up the gate… But if those tags had been placed beneath the Hokage Tower instead…"
He didn't finish the sentence.
Drake understood too.
If the explosions had reached the heart of the village, the consequences would've been unimaginable.
Still, Drake couldn't help wondering:
White Zetsu had already slipped underground to the gate — why not just crawl a little further and blow up the Hokage Tower? What was the point of just wrecking the door?
"Probably because he was wary of you," Kakashi suddenly said.
"Huh?"
Everyone looked at him.
"Sensei, don't you remember? Drake can make those white creatures defect."
That single sentence enlightened the group.
Minato's eyes lit up.
"Exactly! Madara was afraid White Zetsu would encounter you! If that happened, not only would the attack fail, his secrets might've been exposed!"
Even Drake had to admit — it made perfect sense.
Because his power perfectly countered Madara's White Zetsu creations.
Of course, Drake knew the truth: White Zetsu wasn't created by Madara, but was a remnant from the aftermath of the Infinite Tsukuyomi.
Later That Evening
Minato discovered the underground tunnel beneath the tree outside the village, exactly as Drake described.
Inside were large numbers of unused explosive tags.
This meant another attack could've been planned.
Fortunately, the threat had been neutralized.
Outside Konoha — On a Hillside
Black Zetsu emerged from the ground, carrying White Zetsu with him.
"Lord Madara, the mission failed. The explosive tags hidden under the tree were discovered," Black Zetsu reported.
"Did you manage to test Drake's abilities?" Madara asked calmly.
"I didn't dare get too close. There were too many Konoha ninja."
"I see…"
Madara sounded faintly disappointed.
The purpose of this attack was never the gate.
It was to test Drake.
"If I hadn't feared White Zetsu encountering Drake and defecting, I would've had him blow up the Hokage Tower," Madara muttered.
"Lord Madara! I would never betray you!" White Zetsu declared righteously.
But Madara ignored him.
He knew full well — the more loyal White Zetsu was now, the more thoroughly he'd betray him upon meeting Drake.
"Still… how did Konoha discover that tunnel?" Madara frowned.
"I've heard it was Minato who found it," Black Zetsu replied.
"Minato? He doesn't have that ability."
Madara shook his head slowly.
He had personally crafted the concealment barrier for that tunnel.
Not even the Byakugan should have been able to detect it.
"Then it must've been Drake," he concluded.
"But how did he detect it…?"
Frowning slightly, Madara chose not to dwell on it any further.
He had more important matters.
A successor.
He had appeared once more to search for a suitable proxy for the Eye of the Moon Plan.
He was tired of clinging to life through the Outer Path Statue.
"Speed it up. We must find a suitable candidate within these few days. Once we do, we leave immediately."
Konoha — Rear Mountain
Under the hazy moonlight, Obito sat beneath a tree, whispering to it.
"Tree… this is our ninth conversation."
"Drake said if I talk to you sincerely, you might respond someday. Can you try responding?"
The tree stood silent, not even its leaves moving.
"…Sigh, I really am stupid. I can't learn anything properly."
Leaning against the trunk dejectedly, Obito sighed deeply.
No one knew how seriously he had taken Drake's teachings.
In Obito's mind, Drake's Wood Release must've awakened because of his ability to communicate with trees.
So he kept practicing… secretly.
"Tree, I'll come again tomorrow."
Standing up, Obito poured some water near the base of the tree, then prepared to head home.
Whoosh!
A sound tore through the night air.
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