Drake pondered the reason behind Iwagakure's sudden withdrawal.
In the end, he reached a simple conclusion.
A classic backstabber move.
Iwa clearly intended to let Kumogakure and Sunagakure grind each other down first—
feinting an attack, then waiting to step in later and harvest the results.
Drake didn't care much about that.
Because something far more important had just occurred to him.
ANBU Base · Back Mountain
Leaving his courtyard, Drake headed to the ANBU base in the back mountain and found Yamato.
Inside a sealed chamber.
Yamato was extremely uneasy.
He was certain that if Captain Drake had summoned him,
it meant something very illegal was about to happen.
Unfortunately, once you were on the pirate ship, there was no jumping off.
"Yamato~~" Drake smiled warmly.
"C-Captain… when you smile like that, I get scared," Yamato said weakly.
"Scared of what? I'm not going to eat you," Drake's smile deepened.
"T-Then why did you call me here?" Yamato asked, bracing himself.
"I just need you to lead the way."
"…Lead the way?"
"Yep. You'll take me and White Zetsu to the Root base."
Yamato's brain went blank.
He was absolutely certain now—
Captain Drake was about to make a move on Root.
"C-Captain… are you planning to—?" Yamato asked in horror.
"You're only responsible for leading the way," Drake replied calmly.
"Any problem with that?"
Root Base · Entrance
Yamato led the way.
Drake walked at his side.
White Zetsu had transformed into Danzō Shimura, his face dark and vicious.
"Drake-sama, is my expression okay?" White Zetsu asked.
"More gloomy," Drake said.
White Zetsu immediately tried to look even colder, even more ruthless.
After passing through a pine forest, a concealed cave entrance appeared.
Click.
Yamato pressed a hidden mechanism.
The stone gate of Root slid open.
"Lord Danzō?"
Several Root operatives froze, then immediately bowed.
They already knew Danzō had been attacked on the road—
they just hadn't expected him back so soon.
"Summon all Root personnel immediately," Danzō said icily.
"I have something important to announce."
"Yes!"
The Root operatives rushed off.
During the brief pause, Yamato whispered anxiously:
"Captain… if we kill everyone in Root, there'll be no way to explain it."
"No explanation needed," Drake replied casually.
Root Base · Assembly Hall
Over a dozen Root operatives gathered.
Most assumed this meeting would involve targeting the Uchiha clan.
They were wrong.
In the hall, Danzō rose slowly, sweeping a shadowed gaze across the room.
Then he pronounced their death.
"I have something to announce."
"That announcement is—"
"Death."
SPLAT. SPLAT. SPLAT.
Countless wooden branches erupted from the ground,
impaling every Root operative on the spot.
"Why?!"
"Lord Danzō—why?!"
"AAAAAAH!!"
Screams echoed—then abruptly ceased.
Drake lowered his hands, expression indifferent.
"White Zetsu."
"Roger!"
White Zetsu clapped his hands together.
In moments, more than ten White Zetsu clones split off.
They wrapped around the corpses and began consuming them.
Yamato stood frozen in disbelief.
Before his eyes, the White Zetsu clones squirmed and reshaped—
transforming into perfect copies of the fallen Root operatives.
"T-They can disguise themselves too?!"
"This… this…"
In that instant, Yamato remembered the missing ANBU members.
A horrible realization struck him.
Those ANBU…
they might already have been replaced.
Aftermath
Root was finished.
The entire base now belonged to Drake.
Before leaving, Drake replenished White Zetsu's chakra reserves.
"White Zetsu, when a higher position opens up later, I'll transfer you again."
"Yes, Drake-sama!" White Zetsu replied, utterly satisfied.
Leaving the Root base, Drake casually collected all Wood Release secret techniques stored there.
"Yamato, you're done here."
"O-Okay! I'm heading back to ANBU!"
Yamato bolted like his life depended on it.
He absolutely did not want to remain near Captain Drake any longer.
Terrifying.
Evening · Happy Hot Springs
Drake didn't go home.
Instead, he headed straight to Happy Hot Springs.
"Huh? Drake?" Kushina Uzumaki asked in surprise.
"Weren't you on a mission?"
She clearly remembered Drake saying he'd escort Danzō today.
"You escort someone who already ran away?" Drake shrugged.
He sat down and flipped through the Wood Release manuals.
"Wait—what do you mean he ran?" Kushina pressed, leaning closer.
"Yeah. Danzō got attacked and ditched ANBU to escape," Drake said, eyes never leaving the page.
Kushina understood immediately.
The Uchiha ambush.
Drake had hinted as much to Mikoto the previous night.
What shocked her was—
Danzō had actually survived.
"He escaped… that means you're in trouble," Kushina warned.
"Not really."
"…Huh?"
"Don't interrupt my reading."
Drake offered no further explanation.
All his focus was on the Wood Release techniques.
"Wood Clone. This one's essential."
More importantly—
Learning Wood Release techniques did not appear on his system panel.
That was the key.
After carefully studying the method, Drake paused in thought.
Clap!
Hands joined.
His shoulder began to writhe.
Zzzzt—
A Wood Clone peeled off from his body.
"You learned Wood Clone just like that?!" Kushina stared in shock.
She was sure this was his first time—
he had literally just been reading that page.
"Not that hard," the Wood Clone said casually, rolling its neck.
Drake sensed the clone's condition and instantly mastered the technique.
He dismissed the clone.
Now—
It was time to freeload dinner.
Hokage Office · Night
After finishing paperwork, Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced at the darkened sky.
"Summon."
Whoosh!
An ANBU operative appeared.
"No word from Danzō yet?" Hiruzen asked.
"No, Hokage-sama."
"And Luli? Any abnormalities?"
"Vice-Captain Luli has remained inside the ANBU base."
"I see," Hiruzen nodded.
"Any unusual movement from the Uchiha?"
"No."
After dismissing the ANBU, Hiruzen fell into deep thought.
This makes no sense…
Why is everything so quiet?
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