Sakumo's words fell, and the courtyard went quiet for two seconds.
Nawaki finished chewing the last bite of sweet potato skin and clapped his hands.
"Alive?"
"Yes. The chakra fluctuations are very weak, but they've remained constant. Like some kind of... parasite."
Nawaki didn't press for details. He looked up at the moon, then down at the moonlight reflected on Sakumo's mask.
"Keep watching. Don't let the Uchiha Clan notice."
"Yes."
"No rush." Nawaki stood and brushed the grass clippings from his pants. "The more something hides underground, the less you can just start digging. Dig too early, and it'll burrow back in. Then you'll never find it again."
Sakumo nodded and vanished into the night.
Nawaki returned inside. Kushina had finished washing the dishes and was dozing over the table. He covered her with a blanket, sat at the desk, and spread out a blank scroll.
He picked up his brush and wrote seventeen invitations.
The following afternoon, at the Senju Clan Compound's private training ground.
Nawaki had dragged over a chair and sat atop the platform, holding a large wooden megaphone freshly made with Wood Release. His legs were crossed, and a blade of grass hung from his mouth.
A row of people stood below the training ground.
Minato had arrived first, dressed in a dark-blue training outfit and warming up in a corner. Shikaku had his hands in his pockets, wearing an expression that said, Who dragged me here? Choza hugged a bag of chips, crunching away loudly. Inoichi stood beside Shikaku, his blond hair especially striking beneath the sunlight.
Hyuga Hiashi and Hizashi Hyuga stood side by side, their backs ramrod straight. Tsume Inuzuka held the leash of a gray puppy that was trying to chew through her shoelaces. Shibi Aburame wore dark glasses and