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Sometimes, to drive someone crazy, you don't need insults or curses. All you need is an exposé.
In the underground cave.
"Lord Madara, something very serious has happened."
Black Zetsu, wrapping the anxious White Zetsu, materialized in the cave.
"Hmm?"
Madara, whose eyes were closed, slowly opened them and focused on the information scroll in White Zetsu's hand.
"Whose information is that?"
"It's about you," White Zetsu replied.
"Me?" Madara was slightly taken aback.
"This intel was on discount, so I bought a copy," White Zetsu added.
Discount? On sale?
Madara was momentarily stunned, then snatched the scroll.
As he opened it, his face went from calm to surprise, from surprise to blazing fury.
In the end, it morphed into a killing intent so dense it was almost palpable.
[Uchiha Madara, the aged '537', is hiding near the Kannabi Bridge, suspected to be within an underground cave.]
[This individual is secretly controlling Kirigakure (The Hidden Mist Village)!]
Just those two lines of text sent Uchiha Madara's blood pressure soaring. His killing intent practically solidified.
He could understand his hiding place being exposed; after all, he'd fought against Minato Namikaze's team just yesterday.
But how in the world could anyone know about his control over Kirigakure?
"Find the source of this news," Madara growled.
"There's no way to check," Black Zetsu replied.
"What?"
"This morning, intelligence about the entire Land of Grass was sold simultaneously..."
"...and it was still 50% off," White Zetsu interjected.
Poof!
Madara withdrew his arm, having just ended White Zetsu's life.
Damn that White Zetsu, so irritating every time he speaks.
Then, his thoughts turned back to Minato Namikaze's team.
"Where is Minato Namikaze's team?"
"They have already left the Land of Grass."
"Left?"
Madara muttered to himself, considering the possibility that Minato was the source.
It was impossible for Minato to know he controlled Kirigakure. Madara was certain of that.
"So, who is the one who exposed my secret?"
Akira had noticed that Obito was acting strangely; he was unusually silent today, which wasn't like him at all.
"Akira."
Minato Namikaze leaned closer and motioned.
The two deliberately lagged behind the rest of the group.
"What is it, Sensei?"
"Was the information you gave to Kenjiro true?"
"Yes."
"And is it also true that Uchiha Madara controls Kirigakure?"
"That's what the tree told me," Akira once again passed the buck to the flora.
Having said that, the two stopped walking.
Minato stared seriously at his student, feeling his own IQ was being insulted.
"Akira, how could the trees know about something like that?"
"Sensei, you can't communicate with the trees. How can you be sure that they don't know?" Akira countered.
"And the Great Tree didn't just tell me these things; it told me some others, too."
"Oh? Tell me," Minato said, still dubious.
"The Great Tree said there was a little boy holding a little girl with red hair. It also said that little boy looked a lot like you."
Minato froze.
How did the Great Tree know that?
The place where he'd held Kushina was near the border, far from where they were now in the Land of Grass.
"Maybe the trees have their own circles," Akira shrugged, saying casually.
This sentence immediately sparked an idea in Minato's mind.
Yes.
Humans have circles, and trees naturally have circles.
A tree's circle might even be purer than a human's.
To verify this, he just needed to ask Kushina when they returned to the village.
"If Kushina confirms this, then what Akira says is true."
His thoughts raced.
Minato asked again if there were any other secrets.
"Plenty, but the information the Great Tree gives me is very disorganized."
"It's okay, just say whatever you remember." Minato gestured.
"The Great Tree mentioned a black, shadow-like thing that has been following Uchiha Madara. It's very strange."
"Black? Like a shadow?"
Minato thought for a moment...
"Is it similar to the Nara clan's Shadow Imitation Technique?"
"No, that black shadow can move freely and can also talk," Akira clarified.
"In that case... then this might involve a higher level of Yin Release transformation," Minato murmured.
Then he added: "It might even involve a high-level fusion of spiritual will."
Minato was, undeniably, a genius.
Akira genuinely admired that.
Akira then shared a few more secret bits of information, which astounded Minato.
After a long while, Minato regained his composure.
"Akira, you absolutely must not reveal too much about your ability to communicate with trees! Otherwise, you'll cause huge trouble!" Minato warned solemnly.
At first glance, the ability seemed useless. But what shocked Minato was that Akira was learning many of the ninja world's deepest secrets through this communication.
If his ability were known by someone with ill intent, it would certainly lead to his death.
"I understand," Akira nodded.
He knew his Sensei was entering "Protect the Student" mode again.
"Keep moving, they've left us behind." Grabbing Akira's hand, Minato hastened their pace.
At this moment.
The two walked side-by-side, holding hands, almost like a couple.
Along the way, Akira glanced at his properties panel.
Name: Akira
Age: 12 years old
Power: 458 [Super Kage-level]
Physique: 2304 [Immortal Level]
Agility: 186 [Kage-level]
Spirit: 1280 [Ultimate Immunity]
Chakra Reserves: 4228
Skills: None
Ninjutsu: Planetary Devastation (S+ Rank) [Quality Evolution]
Abilities: Wood Release Advanced Mastery (Trait: Intimacy)
Comprehensive Strength Evaluation: Genin
"Huh? My Planetary Devastation doubled today? It reached S+?"
Closing the panel, Akira felt a little disappointed.
"Bad review."
"Why didn't it double my Agility?"
His biggest current weakness was his lack of speed.