In the forest, Kakashi lay in a puddle beside a large tree. He had pushed the Breath Concealment Technique to its limits, watching two strange figures on a distant hillside with the scarlet eye on his left.
One looked like a flytrap, half black and half white. The other was a masked man in a black robe, with only one eye.
Was that man in black the experimental subject who had escaped from the village—and the mastermind behind the Night of the Nine-Tails?
The gentle, radiant smile of the blond man came to mind. Kakashi could barely suppress his killing intent!
"The most important thing now is to keep track of them!"
Kakashi fought to rein in his emotions, then quietly sank a little farther into the puddle.
"Something's wrong!"
At that moment, Kakashi suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
A battle-hardened veteran despite being only a teenager, he had always trusted his instincts. He leaped to his feet, giving away his position.
Almost as soon as he did, dense vines burst from the ground. The two Anbu Ninja concealed nearby were caught off guard and pierced through the chest. Only Kakashi avoided the attack.
"So we had a few little mice!"
Black Zetsu turned toward them from the hillside. His expression remained calm as he spoke in a tone of surprise. "Well, look who it is."
Obito turned around. After sweeping Kakashi with a cold glance, he looked toward Black Zetsu beside him, his eye filled with disgust and contempt.
"Zetsu, do you think you're clever? That you can fool me?"
"Heh! I'm just giving you an opportunity. Whether you take it is up to you."
Black Zetsu gave an awkward chuckle, then slowly sank underground.
As he disappeared into the earth, he gave Obito one last,