Everyone had their own plans.

Konoha, Ninja Academy.

The moment the bell rang, a large group of kids rushed out of the Teaching Building.

The sounds of noise and joyful shouts filled the air.

The children happily rushed out of the school gate and into their parents' arms.

Snowflakes began to fall from the sky, heralding the arrival of the New Year. The year was drawing to a close, the exams were over, and the kids at the Ninja Academy were on holiday!

At the same time, Tōka's substitute teacher's task also came to an end.

For the past three days, Tōka has done almost only one thing: sit in a chair and close his eyes to rest.

The written test assesses the knowledge learned in daily life, and also examines everyone's investigative abilities.

Simply put, if you copy well, Tōka will pretend he didn't see it; if you copy poorly, you'll be thrown out of the classroom as punishment.

All in all, these three days were leisurely for Tōka.

It was tragic for the little devils in Iruka's class, because they couldn't refute Tōka's words; even if it wasn't their own will, their bodies would obey Tōka's commands.

"Luckily, the last three days are all written exams, otherwise you bunch of kids would have had a hard time." Tōka Earth Flow quietly on the road leading to the school gate.

Feeling relaxed on vacation makes even my steps feel lighter.

"Etc!"

Tōka suddenly stopped, a look of confusion on her small face.

Didn't the Third Hokage say he wanted to use the atmosphere of the Ninja Academy to test him? But these proctors can't possibly exchange more than a few words with the students, can they?

The most basic element of communication is speaking. If you can't even speak much, how can you express your true thoughts?

"Could that old man from the Third Path have another trick up his sleeve?"

Just as Tōka was filled with confusion, a strange feeling suddenly washed over her—the feeling of being watched...

The Third Hokage's Telescope Technique!

"Surveillance? They really had a backup plan!" Tōka suppressed her turbulent thoughts and walked out of the school with her usual composure.

As Tōka passed the Playground, he glanced at it subconsciously.

But then I saw...

A little blond boy sat alone on a swing set, his two little hands gripping the rope on one side, his eyes filled with expectation and envy.

Naruto? He's watching...

Tōka followed Naruto's gaze and saw that the area outside the school gate was filled with parents eagerly waiting for their children to be dismissed from school.

The heartwarming scene, seen by Naruto who had no parents, pierced his heart like a knife.

Tōka looked around and found that most people had already left.

But the feeling of being spied on didn't disappear.

The Third Hokage is still secretly keeping an eye on this place.

"Using an idiot like Naruto to test me?" Tōka raised an eyebrow, his gaze sharpening as he whispered, "Or are you deliberately giving me the opportunity to take the Nine-Tails away?"

The Third Hokage probably doesn't know that much, right?

With questions in his mind, Tōka strolled towards Naruto, pulling something out of his pocket.

"Naruto, here you go."

At the sudden sound, Naruto reflexively turned his head and saw a dark shadow hurtling towards his face.

Bang!

Unsurprisingly, a rubber ball filled with water landed heavily on Naruto's face, sending him flying.

The swing set shook violently, and Naruto landed on his bottom.

"Which idiot threw a rock at me?!" Naruto roared angrily, covering his face, and then flipped himself up with a somersault.

He clenched his fists, striking a defiant pose, seemingly ready to fight Tōka.

Tōka stared at Naruto with a half-smile, then stopped on the grass five steps away.

"Pretty-Boy Teacher?" Naruto blurted out the words without thinking!

Tōka was only teaching for three days and didn't want to tell these kids his name.

A group of mischievous kids saw that Tōka was "handsome" and gave him a nickname—"Pretty-Boy Teacher"!

Upon hearing Naruto's words, Tōka's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Naruto, what did you just call me?"

There's a murderous aura about him!!

Naruto shuddered, quickly scratching the back of his head before bursting into laughter. "It's teacher! It's teacher! I called you teacher just now!"

"Huh? What's this?"

Before Tōka could speak, Naruto immediately changed the subject, squatting down to pick up the rubber ball.

The sturdy rubber ball was heavy, as if it were filled with water.

Naruto tossed the rubber ball in his hand, as if the memories hidden deep in his mind were being awakened by the ball.

Sudden!

Naruto paused in his throwing motion, staring at Tōka with a look of realization, "You're that... the one in the forest that day..."

"I didn't expect you to remember." Tōka glanced at the excited Naruto, and the playful expression on his face gradually turned silent.

He's just a kid in his early teens, growing up alone without parents.

Tōka understood why the Fourth Hokage had made a promise to him to give the Rasengan to Naruto.

The Fourth Hokage simply saw through Tōka's intention to take away the Nine-Tails, which would then be sealed inside Nine-Tails. The Fourth Hokage hoped Naruto Tōka would only make his move after Naruto had grown up.

One reason Tōka readily agreed was to make it easier for her to get closer to Naruto later.

As for the other reason...

Naruto, perhaps you can make me change my mind.

The air seemed heavy and stuffy, perhaps because of the snowfall.

"You should have popped the balloon by now, right? This is the second step. Pop this balloon and then come find me." Tōka disliked the heavy atmosphere, so she gave a simple instruction and then cast a spell to leave.

Tōka's presence vanished abruptly, before Naruto could even say goodbye.

Is it Clone Technique?

A hint of disappointment flickered in Naruto's eyes.

As he looked down at the rubber ball lying quietly in his palm, the corners of his mouth involuntarily turned up, forming a wide grin.

The New Year doesn't seem so lonely after all...

The Hokage's Office was filled with swirling smoke, much like the countless worries that plagued the Third Hokage.

The Third Hokage man, with a pipe dangling from his mouth, reached up to rub his forehead and stared at the Crystal Ball on the table. His old face was furrowed, and the deep lines between his brows were so pronounced they could almost trap a mosquito.

The Fourth Hokage's Rasengan, even Tōka knows it?

Why did Tōka give Naruto the Rasengan? And it wasn't even the first stage of Rasengan training.

Have they met before?

The strangest thing is that Naruto doesn't seem to remember Tōka.

The Third Hokage's mind was in turmoil, and their hair had turned quite a bit white from worry.

Thump thump thump!!

A sudden knock sounded at the door. The Third Hokage Generation casually flipped the Crystal Ball away. Tōka's three-day substitute teaching period was over, and he had come to hand in his mission.

For missions directly issued by the Hokage, in addition to reporting them in the Mission Hall, it is naturally necessary to see the Hokage in person for a detailed report.

Of course, classified missions are an exception.

"Come in." The Third Hokage composed himself, his old face regaining its composure as he sat quietly in the chair and looked up at the door.

With a soft creak, Tōka pushed open the door and entered.

Suddenly, a gap opened in the closed room, and fresh air from outside poured in, dispersing much of the smoke inside.

Tōka walked lightly but unhurriedly, stopping three steps away from the table.

"Lord Hokage, the mission to the Ninja Academy has been completed," Tōka said calmly, without a trace of resentment at being tricked by the Third Hokage on her peaceful face.

It seemed he had no idea that the Third Hokage was deliberately testing him.

The Third Hokage reached for his pipe, glanced at Tōka with a puzzled look, and then smiled kindly. "How have you been at the Ninja Academy these past three days? Those brats have been quite a handful!"

"It's alright, it's just an exam." Tōka replied casually, making the Third Hokage feel like they'd punched a cotton ball.

That's not what he wanted to ask at all!

The Third Hokage's eyes darted around, and then he asked, "How did the exam go?"

"It was all written tests, and everyone passed except for one person who submitted a blank paper."

The person Tōka was referring to as handing in a blank exam paper was naturally that idiot Naruto.

The Third Hokage's face showed a helpless expression. Naruto inherited Kushina's thick skin and was not good at learning.

"Fine, you can go."

With a wave of his hand, the Third Hokage knew from Tōka's expression that he wouldn't get anything out of him; talking to the little Fox was truly exhausting.

Upon hearing this, Tōka turned and left.

Their meeting seemed ordinary, but it was precisely this ordinariness that made it strange!

Standing at the window, the Third Hokage Generation stood with his hands behind his back, looking down at Tōka's receding figure on the street. "Is this guy really a member of that mysterious organization?"

A soft sigh drifted away on the wind, as light as a whisper in the ear.

The Third Hokage clenched the secret letter in his hand, crumpled it into a ball, and stuffed it into his pipe. The faint Kakkō flickered in the pipe, instantly engulfing the paper ball completely.

Winter snow falls, night descends.

The lights of countless homes, like starlight, are scattered throughout every corner of Konoha.

Leaving the Hokage Building, I walked along the bustling streets.

The atmosphere of the approaching New Year enveloped the peaceful village, but Tōka felt no warmth whatsoever.

Instead, a chill crept into my neck.

"This aura... Black Zetsu??" Tōka's expression hardened, and he subconsciously thought it was Black Zetsu, but then he came to his senses and realized the key point.

Black Zetsu is a cautious person and would never rashly infiltrate Konoha.

It should be the White Zetsu who has been with Black Zetsu all year round!

The thought flashed through Tōka's mind, but she didn't quicken her pace. Her calm expression seemed as if she hadn't noticed the other person at all.

I strolled slowly down the street, looking left and right, and occasionally buying some snacks.

An hour later, Tōka finally returned home carrying large bags of food.

He slammed the door shut behind him.

Splash!

Tōka threw the large bag of food she was carrying onto the table, instantly turning the small Square Table into a Small Mountain.

The house blocked the Cold Wind, making people feel a little warm.

"What does Black Zetsu want with you?" Tōka asked casually, sitting down with his back to the shadows in the corner of the room.

"Itachi has retrieved the Vermilion Ring, but Orochimaru has escaped." A white figure emerged from the shadows, and White Zetsu presented a Scroll.

As expected of a slippery eel, it was no surprise that it managed to escape from the weasel's grasp.

Tōka reached out and took the intelligence Scroll, which contained details of the battle between Itachi and Orochimaru.

Skimming through the text...

Tōka quickly finished reading the information on the Scroll.

The intelligence can be summarized in one sentence: Orochimaru was defeated because he fell under Genjutsu.

It seems Orochimaru has already used the Living Corpse Reincarnation on himself. Otherwise, even if Orochimaru isn't skilled in Genjutsu, he wouldn't have been so easily defeated.

Because reincarnation depletes one's soul, Orochimaru suffered a crushing defeat against a master of Genjutsu like Itachi.

Tōka casually lit the intelligence Scroll, watching the flames dance in his hand.

After a moment of silence, he asked again, "Let's leave it at that. What about the other matter? Where are Kimimaro and the other two?"

"The three of them, acting as guards for the princess of the Land of Snow, have escorted Kazahana Koyuki to the border of the Land of Snow."

"Oh? How did you convince Kazahana Koyuki to return to the Land of Snow to compete for the throne?" Tōka was somewhat surprised, as that girl was very resistant to returning to the Land of Snow.

"Nothing more than Genjutsu." White Zetsu uttered four words succinctly.

Upon hearing this, Tōka nodded slightly, forgetting that Yakumo's Genjutsu were already quite powerful.

The candlelight flickered, and the two shadows in the room suddenly merged into one. The deliberately hushed conversation gradually fell silent.

Before long, the sound of running water came from inside the house, as if Tōka was washing up.

Just as expected!

Not long after, the candles in the room went out, and the entire room was completely dark...

Two streets away from Tōka's apartment building, two Shadow Hiding in a dark Dark Alley, peering out of the window of the building.

"Asleep?"

"He seems to be really asleep."

"I'll go back first; you stay here and continue monitoring."

"Good."

Bang! A puff of White Smoke disappeared into the darkness, Dark Alley fell silent once more, with only a cryptic gaze occasionally drifting towards the window of the house.

The night wind was a bit chilly, and the winter snowflakes falling on my cheeks looked like tiny ice crystals.

A refreshing coolness seeped into my pores.

Sudden!

The ninja wearing the Oni Mask felt a jolt in his heart, as if a pair of eyes were watching him from behind—a feeling strangely real.

The Mask-faced Ninja suddenly turned around and saw Tōka smiling broadly, standing with his hands in his pockets, looking at him.

The Mask-faced Ninja was terrified and took a step back, instantly creating a distance of ten steps between himself and Tōka!

"Didn't the Roots already disband?" Tōka asked curiously.

"..." The Mask-faced Ninja's heart pounded; this guy in front of him was definitely not someone he could handle!

"It seems Danzo and the Third Hokage reached some kind of agreement. Root wasn't completely disbanded; the Third Hokage just took back some of Root's power," Tōka muttered to himself, staring into the eyes of the Mask-faced Ninja.

The Mask-faced Ninja rolled his eyes, searching for an escape route.

His task was merely to monitor Tōka, not to fight him. As long as he wasn't caught red-handed, no one would believe him even if Tōka told them.

Buzz!

Chakra gathers, Jutsu Formula activated.

Body Flicker Technique, one of the essential Ninjutsu for Elite Ninja.

"Run? Do you think you can escape?" Tōka knew what the guy was planning as soon as he saw the strange look on the Mask-faced Ninja.

In the Dark Alley, a stench of decay suddenly erupted!

Tōka stomped heavily on the ground. On the wall, the figure of the Mask-faced Ninja appeared, still recovering from the shock of the Body Flicker Technique.

A piece of gray, Withered Bones broke through the ground and pierced straight into his body.

Discarded scraps of paper mingled in the snow-covered university grounds, vanishing in an instant as the Cold Wind blew by, the traces of the ninja's presence completely buried by the falling snow.

"The last mission... could it have been a show put on for me by those two old geezers, the Third Hokage and Danzo?" Tōka was preparing a plan.

In a few days, I'll have a White Zetsu Object Transformation and then find Danzo, and then cause some trouble in Konoha!

Compared to the shrewd and experienced Third Hokage Tsunade Third Hokage is less experienced, is clearly easier to deal with.

If there's another agreement between the Third Hokage and Danzo, then it's not wise to easily seek cooperation with Danzo; who knows which side that old guy will take?

"As expected of that Fox, what exactly is he planning to do? This is giving me a headache!" Tōka wrapped his thick coat around himself and decided to go back to sleep first.

Although the Konoha were decaying, they were still not easily shaken.